#this is the 4 phone call today. may the gods help me

[eybefioro]

Having a job that requires good communication skills and talking to people everyday when I'm an introvert and is physically painful to make calls and be communicative is tmao taxing. Grrrrrnrmmnr if I survive today I need a treat (stay quiet in the dark listening to podfics. Maybe eat ice cream after dinner)

[charliemwrites]

Part 4 of Mafia!Price

No Content Warnings

There are many things to appreciate about your boss, but one of them is his respect for routine. You’ve gotten him on a schedule and now he seems happily beholden to it; appreciates your promptness with tea and pastries and morning “briefings” each day.

He’ll happily sit back in his big leather chair and listen to you chatter out his itinerary for the day. Meetings, reports, phone calls. Trips to the dock, now, bless him.

You try not to stare between glances at your tablet. For a rich bastard, he is unfairly handsome. Good taste in just about everything, classy and luxurious without being ostentatious. Old money vibes, for sure, though you know better than to do more than idly wonder. Helps that he’s also remarkably gentlemanly with you. You’re not one to buy into old stereotypes or gender roles, even the ones that benefit you — but you’ll take a chivalrous boss over your old one any day.

Besides, it’s not like he’s spouting off about what women should and shouldn’t be doing. Or trying to use you as an example of an “acceptable” working woman. So, yeah, you’ll indulge in the door-holding and offered arms.

“Alright, best for last — your reservation for Muse is tomorrow. The restaurant is twenty minutes from your penthouse, so Simon will be downstairs by 7:30.”

You check that off your to-do list as you continue speaking.

“Do you have a suit picked out yet, or should I order something? Green is in season and it would go nicely with your eyes.”

He hums; you glance up. Leaning back, one arm lax on the arm of his chair, black watch gleaming. The other is propped to press his index finger against his lips. Like he’s telling you to keep a secret. The corners of his mouth are tilted up.

Your tablet dings and thankfully distracts you from staring.

Oh, for the love of— the only person more inconsiderate than Philip Graves is his damn assistant.

“Is that the color you’re wearing, then?”

Will need to call later today — as if!

“Hm?” You ask, not having caught it.

He arches his eyebrows; ah, you must have been making a face again.

“Are you wearing green tomorrow?” He repeats.

You blink. Are you what?

“Tomorrow, sir?”

He nods, once. “To Muse, luv.”

When you continue to stare with pleasant obliviousness, his eyebrows furrow a bit.

“You do know one of those seats is for you, yeah?”

You press your lips together for a moment. Well… shit. You take it back. You take it all back. John Price is a terrible, horrible, awful man who is so rude.

“I do now.”

Across the office, you make wide eye contact with Gaz. He grimaces in sympathy and ducks his head, though it’s clearly just to hide his traitorous laughter.

“Of course you’re coming along.”

“Sir,” you say, pleasant and sweet, “remember when I first started here? And I told you that I’m not a mind reader?”

“Of course,” he answers. “You threatened to spit in my tea in the same breath.”

“Only if you told me to fetch it for you,” you correct, before continuing, “I feel you may need a reminder: I cannot read your mind. How was I supposed to know you wanted me to go with you?”

“‘S your job, isnit?” He replies. You give him a dark look; he puts his hands up with a chuckle. “My apologies love, I thought you’d be in my pocket next to my handkerchief. Like always.”

You set your hand on your hip, proper cross now.

“It’s outside usual working hours, sir. How could I have possible expected to be invited to your fancy man party?”

“‘Fancy man party’?”

“Well, there’s nothing for it, I’ll have to leave early tomorrow.”

You’re already tapping madly at your tablet, looking up a salon willing to do your hair and makeup. God knows what kind of meltdown you’ll have if you can’t get your eyeliner symmetrical.

“Do whatever you need to do, luv,” Price soothes, standing. “I really am sorry for the short notice.”

You wave him off, then pat his arm as he gently guides you towards the door. Absently, you comply, more focused on getting appointments set and rearranging your own schedule for tomorrow.

“I’ll make it work,” you promise, “I always do.”

You let him bring you all the way to your desk, lower yourself into your ergonomic rolling chair.

“I’ll let you know what color I’m wearing by… one o’clock. Yes?”

“Sounds great, luv.”

You glance at the clock. “Also you have a call with the KorTac Group in ten.”

He chuckles and taps your chin. “Cheers, luv.”

—

Simon is the one to pick you up Friday evening. You both pause in the lobby of your apartment complex, staring.

“You look lovely,” he says at the same time you ask, aghast, “what happened to your face?”

He’s got a dark bruises discoloring the skin around one eye. Clearly some ice has already been applied because the swelling is down, but it must be fresh because he didn’t have it yesterday.

He snorts. “My job happened.”

You tut. “I’ve got something for that but we need to get moving. Mr. Price said he needs some help with his suit.”

You grab his arm without hesitation, habit from any of your escorts or drivers always offering it to you. Usually you accept out of politeness, but tonight you could use the extra stability in your heels. Simon doesn’t seem to mind even though this is the first time you’ve done this.

He walks you to the car, holds the door for you. Sleek and spotless, a black Jaguar — your choice for the evening. You hum in delight at the warm interior as Simon slides into the front seat.

“Oh, thank you for the compliment, by the way,” you add as he pulls into traffic. “You look quite smart as well.”

He grunts, but you notice a bit of color to his ears in the passing streetlights. You smile to yourself and busy yourself with your tablet. Double checking the reservation confirmation, answering messages from Farah and Gaz, updating Price on your ETA.

The car stops at a luxury high rise just at 7. You hop out before Simon can get the door and receive a sharp look. He holds up a reprimanding finger; blink in surprise at the sternness of it.

“You pull that shite again and I’ll handcuff you to the door handle, miss.” He warns. “Making me look bad.”

You huff, amused, and take his arm again. “Don’t threaten me, Mr. Riley, I’m meaner.”

But you squeeze his thick bicep good-naturedly as he leads you into Price’s building. Your boss lives in the penthouse at the very top; Simon has to swipe a card for access. He’s also got a key to let you both in the door, holds it so you can enter first.

It’s all sleek and modern; not at all what you would expect of your boss’s more classical style. His office has a sort of 20s Hollywood vibe (gangster, you teased once) but clearly some interior designer was paid far too much for something out of a drab minimalist catalogue.

You don’t linger long, heels clicking on the polished floors.

“Sir?” you call.

“In here, luv.”

You grimace at the flight of stairs between you and the loft, but force yourself up them. The whole floor is the mater bedroom and it’s the size of your entire apartment. Walk-in closet, sectioned off lounge with a desk. His bathroom door is open, mirror fogged. It smells like soap.

“Bedroom to your right,” he calls.

You tip-tap in and your mouth instantly dries. Price is standing in the middle of the room, half dressed. Nothing unprofessional, no. He’s wearing slacks, a belt. But he’s also in socks, a white undershirt. No watch or rings or anything yet.

It feels oddly more intimate than it should. Your face warms despite yourself.

“E-evening, sir.”

He turns and you’re utterly unprepared for just how handsome he really is. Freshly groomed, hair trimmed and gelled, eyes bright.

“Well, aren’t you just a dream,” he rasps. “You’re stunning.”

You clear your throat, know that all the makeup in the world can’t hide how brightly you’re flushing. It’s pure politeness, he’s not looking at you with anything more than friendly appreciation. Mind out of the gutter, now.

“All the flattery in the world won’t save you if we’re late,” you manage, shaking yourself back into work mode. “So let’s see what we’ve got.”

You pick his shirt, a pocket hanky, his shoes. Tell him to get into those while calling Simon up the stairs. He’s there so fast you blink in surprise, then gesture him over. Sit him on an ottoman and extract the little bottle of makeup you’ve started keeping on hand for situations like this.

“Bullshite you had that in your purse,” he scoffs.

“You remember two weeks ago, when Soap came in with that bruise on his jaw?”

They told you it was a “disagreement” at the docks. You didn’t ask further, figuring it was some sort of bar brawl in that part of town. Rowdy boys.

“Ever since, I keep a couple minis on hand for you all.”

They’re so small that you just keep them in a pocket of your purse with the rest of your makeup and the tampons. Good for emergencies like this.

“You sure you’re not a mind reader?” Simon grumbles as you gently dab it over his face.

“How would being a mind reader even help in this situation,” you scoff, patting at it with your middle finger.

Price steps out of the closet with arms out. He’s picked a waistcoat as well that you hum in approval at.

“Which cufflinks are you wearing?” you ask, turning back to Simon. He’s sitting remarkably still and stoic — reminds you of a big dog trying to maintain some dignity while getting fawned over.

“The silver and diamond.”

You make a noise of disagreement. “The gold and onyx would go better.”

A pause. You sneak a glance and are relieved to see him smirking. “I’ll wear those then. Any opinion on a watch?”

You hum again, carding through your mental catalogue. “Oh! The Bulova you wore during that meeting with Kate Laswell. You remember?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

He disappears into his closet again while you lightly blend in the last touches of Simon’s coverup.

“There we are, good as new!” You declare. “Oh, and here.”

You set a couple of ibuprofen in his palm as he stands. “For the inflammation. Take with water.”

“Yes, mum,” he mumbles.

You wince. “Sorry! I’m being overbearing, aren’t I?”

He blinks, then puts a hand up. “No, no. That wasnt — I didn’t mean it in a bad way.”

You don’t entirely believe him. Know that you can be a bit much when you’re on a time crunch. Especially for something like this — an important business meeting over fancy dinner. You feel like everyone’s appearance is riding on you; this is your job after all. One thing out of place and everything will fall apart and it’ll be your fault.

“Simon, go take those,” Price orders from behind.

You turn as he approaches, a similar apology all set on your tongue. Instead, he gives you a sheepish smile and offers the cufflinks.

“Bloody useless with these,” he explains. “So unless you want to spend fifteen minutes losing respect for me…”

You laugh, amused by the idea of your hyper-capable boss struggling with a bit of jewelry that cost as much as a week of work. You step in close to thread them through his sleeves, fingers nimble and sure.

“You’re not wearing cologne?” You ask, surprised.

Don’t even realize how that might sound until he arches an eyebrow at you.

“Thought you might have an opinion on that too,” he replies. “And you haven’t steered me wrong, yet.”

He shows you his modest, but impressive collection of colognes. You pluck up one, sniff, and make a face, eyes watering a bit. It’s mostly full; clearly one he doesn’t wear often and you’re grateful for it.

“That bad, eh?”

“Sir, why?” You lament, putting it back.

“Gift from an ex,” he explains.

You store that tidbit of information away for further examination. The idea of your boss in a romance. Right now you’ve got a task to focus on.

“Did they hate you that entire time?” You wonder.

He snorts. “Maybe.”

You shake your head and pick a different one. Blink in surprise and sniff again. Feel your stomach flip.

“That one?” He asks when he notices you hesitate.

“No,” you say a little too quickly, setting it down. This is a business meeting, you can’t afford to be distracted by how he’ll smell with that on his skin.

You settle on one that doesn’t make your head dizzy and your panties shamefully damp. Still feel a bit like you’re shooting yourself in the foot, though. He’s going to smell sinfully good regardless.

You leave Price to his finishing touches and have Simon help you down the stairs. Check through the notes you hurriedly collected when you realized you’d be attending this dinner.

Price comes down too soon for your poor, stupid heart. Looks like something out of a magazine or a novel or a movie or… just too good to be real, really.

“Pass inspection?” He asks.

“Barely,” you tease.

His eyes do that thing where they smile more than his mouth; how you know it’s genuine. You try not to fluster, zero in on his tie, a little crooked and loose.

“Goodness, sir,” you murmur, stepping in close. Yeah, you were right. That cologne is going to be a personal challenge all night. “How did you get along before me?”

“With bad cologne and shitty ties, apparently,” he chuckles.

You grin despite yourself, getting it secure and centered, before smoothing his vest over it. Give him a once over. Feel your stomach flip again.

“If I may say, sir, you look handsome,” you offer quietly.

“Should hope so,” he replies, voice dipping in a way that’s detrimental to the state of your panties. “You dressed me.”

You hum, reach for your usual dry, sharp humor. “I have great taste.”

Instead of scoffing, he hums in agreement. Something flickers through his eyes that you don’t dare allow yourself to daydream on.

Simon, bless him, clears his throat and draws your attention. You check the clock above the stove.

“Ah, we need to get going. I can’t walk fast in these heels.”

You slip your arm automatically into Price’s and try not to obsess over how well you two fit together.

First | Previous | Next

Masterlist

[mariclerc]

just finished reading the new chapter of an unexpected role and MORE LILY x GRID INTERACTIONS PLSS

Thank you very much for this request!! I love writing Lily's adventures in the paddock, it seems very cute to me 🥺🥺🥺

An unexpected role (pt.6) | cl16

Summary: you revealed your little secret to your date, you didn't expect he would take it so well. Warning: none, just fluff as usual.

Follow the series!! Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 7, Part 8, Part 9

Sunlight streams through the window of the Ferrari motorhome. You're sprawled on a plush sofa with Lily, your two-year-old daughter, she sits beside you with a half-eaten cookie clutched in her hand. She giggles as a video plays on your phone, showing her interactions with the Red Bull mechanics earlier.

“Hey amore, are you almost ready?” he calls from another room.

“Almost, just gotta find Lily's lucky socks!” you say smiling.

Lily throws her head back and laughs, cookie crumbs flying everywhere. You scoop her up, tickling her tummy. Visits to the paddock are more frequent now, since the first race you and Lily attended everyone in the paddock and the teams love you both, it's like a breath of fresh air in the paddock, and not to mention the fans, after the initial hatred little by little they gave in and now they adore you two.

“Where did my little lucky charm get all this cookie on her, huh?” you say softly while looking at her.

“Dan-iel!” Lily says.

“Oh, Daniel spoiled you again, didn't he?” you shake your head.

Suddenly footsteps are heard approaching the room.

“There they are! My two favorite girls.” He says entering the room with a playful smile on his face. Charles ruffles Lily's hair, who squeals in delight. “Found those lucky socks yet?”

“Yup, she had hidden them in my bag. Naughty little girl.” You say with a giggle and then lean towards Lily and put on her socks and butterfly shoes.

Charles raises an eyebrow, amusement dancing in his eyes. “How about a pre-race cuddle session to appease the racing gods?”

Lily claps her hands and squirms out of your arms, making a beeline for Charles. He scoops her up, showering her face with kisses.

“Careful, you might give her pre-race jitters!” you say laughing.

Charles winks at you. “Nah, she's got Leclerc blood in her veins, she thrives on competition. Just ask all the mechanics she's been racing around the paddock with today.”

“Speaking of which, did you see the fan videos circulating online? Lily giving Valtteri a high five was adorable.”

“I know, right? It's amazing how much everyone loves having her around. You'd think she's been on the grid since day one.” he smiles softly.

You lean in and kiss Charles softly.

“She brings a different kind of energy to the paddock, doesn't she? Reminds everyone there's more to life than trophies.” you whisper.

“Oh, absolutely! You and Lily are my lucky charms, my whole world! Now come on, let's get this show on the road.” he said while holding you close.

You hand Charles Lily's stuffed bunny, a constant companion on race days.

“Go get 'em, champ! We'll be cheering you on from the pit wall, as always.”

“Always.” he kisses your forehead.

He takes Lily's hand, leading them both out of the motorhome. As they disappear down the hallway, you can't help but smile. Charles may be a racing champion, but in this moment, you and Lily are his biggest victories.

***

Charles emerges from the motorhome, Lily bouncing in his arms, her hair bouncing in a mini ponytail. The paddock is a hive of activity, mechanics bustling with purpose, engineers huddled over laptops, and fans straining for a glimpse of their racing heroes.

A collective gasp rises as Charles appears, Lily's bright eyes taking in the scene with wide-eyed wonder.

“Buongiorno everyone! Ready for another race?” he says while smiling to the fans in the paddock fan-zone area.

The crowd erupts in cheers.

“Forza Charles! And ciao bella Lily!” says a smiling little fan while waving his hand.

“Ci-ao!” Lily says waving her little hand.

Charles chuckles, then spots Logan Sargeant strolling towards them, a grin plastered on his face.

“Leclerc! Looking sharp today, even with your little pre-race mascot.”

Lily reaches out, giggling. “Lo-gan!”

Logan scoops her up in a playful hug, earning another round of cheers from the crowd.

“Looks like you've got some competition this weekend, mate.” Logan giggled.

Charles feigns a frown. “Don't worry, Sargeant. I'm sure I can handle a little competition... Especially when she's this cute.” He winks at Lily, who giggles and buries her face in his neck. Photographers snap pictures like crazy, capturing the adorable interaction.

“Looks like someone's got a lot of fans to sign autographs for today.” You say walking behind them.

“Only the best fans, amore. Now, come on, let's get down to the grid. It's showtime!” He says, handing Lily back to you.

You follow Charles through the throng of fans, Lily nestled comfortably in your arms. As you walk, you hear snippets of conversation, all praising Lily's cuteness and the joy she brings to the paddock.

One little girl, clutching a Ferrari flag, yells out:

“Good luck, Lily! You too, Mr. Leclerc!”

Lily waves enthusiastically at the little girl, a smile splitting her face wide open. You glance at Charles, a silent understanding passing between you. This little girl, surrounded by the roar of the engines and the cheers of the crowd, is exactly where she belongs. The paddock may be her playground for now, but who knows? Maybe one day, she'll be the one stealing the show on the grid.

***

The roar of the crowd intensifies as they approach the grid. Charles, focused on the upcoming race, gives you a quick but reassuring squeeze on the hand.

“Alright ma belle, listen. I gotta get ready. You and Lily find a good spot at the pit wall, alright?”

“Don't worry about us, we'll be your loudest cheerleaders. Go get 'em, champ!” you say while nudging him playfully.

He leans down and kisses Lily's forehead.

“Be good for mama, okay? And remember, papa loves you the most.” he says to Lily and he gives her a little kiss on her cheek.

Lily giggles, clinging to her bunny plushie. A young Ferrari mechanic, a teenage girl with grease stains on her overalls, approaches you both shyly.

“Hey there, little super star. You want to see the car before the race starts? It's super fast, just like you!” the mechanic tells Lily timidly.

Lily's eyes widen with excitement.

“Would you like that, Lily?” you asked Lily while smiling.

Lily nods enthusiastically.

“Thank you so much, that would be amazing!” you tell the mechanic.

The mechanic beams, clearly delighted. “No problem at all! Follow me, little miss.”

The mechanic leads Lily, her eyes sparkling with wonder, towards the gleaming red Ferrari. You watch them go, a warm feeling spreading through your chest. The paddock, once a world of flashing lights and roaring engines, has become a second home, filled with people who adore your little family.

You find a spot at the pit wall, just as Charles takes his position in the cockpit. He looks out towards the crowd, his gaze locking with yours for a brief moment. You give him a thumbs up and a reassuring smile. He nods, a flicker of determination in his eyes.

The lights go out, plunging the grid into an electrifying darkness. Then, with a deafening roar, the engines ignite. Charles is off, a blur of red against the grey asphalt. You hold Lily close, her tiny hands clutching her bunny plushie.

“There he goes, baby! That's papa!”

Lily doesn't take her eyes off the track, her small voice joining the chorus of cheers as Charles battles for position. The race is on, and you know, no matter what the outcome, this day, filled with love, family, and the thrill of the race, the paddock visits will always be one of the best adventures for you and Lily.

***

Lily's eyes are glued to the track, tracing the red blur that is Charles' car with rapt attention. You, however, find yourself drawn to a group of young engineers huddled nearby. Their animated discussion, usually filled with technical jargon, has an undercurrent of worry that sends a shiver down your spine.

You catch snippets of their conversation: "front wing damage," "pit stop for repairs," "crucial time lost." A pit stop this early in the race could throw Charles' entire strategy off balance.

Anxiety gnaws at you, but you force a smile for Lily, brushing back a stray strand of hair from her forehead.

“See that big red car down there, honey? That's papa! He's having a little trouble with his car, but the clever engineers will fix it up in no time, alright?” you whisper softly at Lily.

Lily nods, her brow furrowed in concentration. The little girl beside you, normally brimming with boundless energy, seems to have sensed the tension in the air.

“Why don't we send papa some good luck vibes? Close your eyes really tight and think of the fastest, strongest Ferrari ever!” you whisper again leaning closer to her.

Lily closes her eyes tight, squeezing her stuffed bunny with all her might. You follow suit, a silent prayer forming on your lips for Charles' safety and a successful race.

Suddenly, a flurry of activity erupts in the Ferrari pit lane... Mechanics scramble, tools glinting in the afternoon sun. Charles pulls into the pit box, the red flag forcing an unplanned early stop. You watch with a mixture of apprehension and admiration as the team works with lightning speed, their practiced movements a well-oiled machine.

Just as your heart starts hammering against your ribs, the pit stop ends. Charles, with a fresh wing and a determined glint in his eyes, roars back onto the track.

The red flag is lifted, and the race resumes with renewed intensity. The crowd erupts in cheers, their anticipation hanging heavy in the air. You grab Lily's hand, squeezing it tightly.

“There he goes! Now let's see papa show everyone what a true champion is made of!”

Lily beams, a spark of mischief returning to her eyes. She raises her tiny fist in the air, chanting along with the crowd. “Go papa go! Go papa!” she smiles shyly.

You watch, a rollercoaster of emotions churning inside you, as Charles battles his way back up the field. The race has taken an unexpected turn, but one thing remains certain: your family is in it together, for every pit stop, every thrilling overtake, and every victory (or defeat) that awaits your family on the racetrack.

***

Disappointment hangs heavy in the air as the winner's car streaks past the finish line. Charles follows close behind, his red Ferrari a blur of consolation. The crowd, initially buzzing with anticipation, erupts in a mix of cheers and groans. Lily, perched on your shoulders, scans the track with wide, confused eyes.

“Papa?” Lily asks you with a tender look.

“There he is, honey! Look, it's the red car!” You point to the part of the track where Charles' car is located.

Charles navigates his way through the final corners, bringing the Ferrari to a stop in the designated post-race area. The roar of the engine fades, replaced by a wave of mixed emotions washing over you. While a tiny part of you yearns for the elation of victory, the bigger part swells with pride at Charles' fighting spirit. He may not have secured the top spot, but he fought hard, his skill evident in every daring overtake and smooth maneuver.

Mechanics swarm the car, their faces etched with a mixture of disappointment and respect. Charles emerges from the cockpit, his helmet tucked under his arm. His expression is a mask of controlled emotions, but a flicker of disappointment momentarily clouds his eyes.

He scans the crowd, searching for his family. When he spots you and Lily, a wave of relief washes over him. He strides towards you, a determined glint returning to his eyes.

“There you are! Come here, mes amours.” He says addressing the two of you.

You weave through the throng of fans, a mix of congratulatory pats and sympathetic murmurs on your way to Charles. The air crackles with the post-race energy, a bittersweet symphony of cheers and dejection.

Charles scoops you both into a tight embrace, the familiar scent of adrenaline and sweat wrapping around you. You bury your face in his chest, offering silent comfort for a battle well fought but narrowly lost.

“You were amazing out there, Charles. We're so proud of you.” You whisper as you give him a kiss on the cheek.

“I know it wasn't the win we were hoping for, but...” he kiss your forehead.

He trails off, his gaze falling on Lily, who watches the post-race celebrations with a furrowed brow.

“Hey little champ, what do you say we celebrate papa's second place with some ice cream? How does that sound?” He says smiling at Lily.

Lily's face lights up with a radiant smile, all traces of confusion forgotten. “Ice cream! Yaaay!”

Charles throws his head back and laughs, the sound a welcome release after the tension of the race.

“See? Second place isn't so bad after all, especially when you have the best pit crew a driver could ask for.” He says smiling at you.

He winks at you, the familiar spark back in his eyes. You smile, knowing that win or lose, your family bond remains the strongest trophy of all. Together, you navigate the bustling paddock, Charles and Lily hand in hand, ready to celebrate his second place and the unwavering love that binds them. The race may be over, but the joy of being together remains the most precious victory.

***

As the three of you walk through the paddock, several staff members and the drivers stop to say goodbye to the three of you... In particular, say goodbye to little Lily, since she has become the little princess of the paddock.

Lily lets out a little scream when she sees Oscar. “Osc! Osc!” she says, jumping up and down and smiles when she sees the young Australian. “Mama! Can I... 'ay goodbye to Osc?” She asked you and you smiled at her.

“Of course you can, honey pie! But be careful, okay?” you said sweetly and she let go of your hand and walked towards Oscar.

Charles let out a small chuckle as the two of you looked at Lily walking towards Oscar, Obviously you two followed her closely, but without stopping her little adventure.

Oscar looked down to see Lily, who had a smile from ear to ear. “Oh, hello there little Lily!” He said giving her a smile and bent down to take her in his arms. “What are you doing walking around the paddock alone? You know it's bad, right?” Oscar told her and she just stuck her tongue out at him as a joke.

Lily turned her little head towards you and Charles. “Mama and papa, there Osc!” She said pointing to Oscar where you and Charles were standing, you smiled at the young Australian.

Oscar smiled at the two of you and moved a little closer to you. “Hey, congratulations on the podium Charles!” says Oscar, greeting Charles friendly. “I got scared when I saw Lily walking alone in the paddock... Why did she come towards me?” He asked with a small grimace on his face.

You smiled softly. “Well she wanted to say goodbye to you.”

“Yes... And apparently she fell in love with you.” Charles said softly and Oscar's eyes widened.

“Oh, that’s so cute Lily!” he said as he hugged Lily.

“Bye Osc!” Lily said as she got out of his arms.

Both you and Charles said goodbye to the Australian and headed towards the exit of the paddock with a Lily who was somewhat curious about her surroundings.

***

When you got to the hotel room, Lily was quite exhausted from the day of adventures she had had, so, with the help of Charles, you gave her a bath and put her pajamas on. Between the two of you, you told her a bedtime story while she snuggled with her stuffed bunny Mimi.

Charles leaned down to kiss her forehead. “Sweet dreams my little one. I love you.” he whispered sweetly towards Lily.

“Luv you da!” she said a little sleepy.

You leave the joint room and you stood in your place. Charles turned on his heel and looked at you.

“Are you coming love?” he asked tenderly.

You blinked. “Yes... Yes honey, just give me a moment, okay?” You tell him and he nodded as he walked to the bed that was in the center of the room.

Carefully, you opened your travel bag and took out an envelope with some papers that you had been processing for a couple of months. With the help of Fred, Lorenzo and Pascale you were able to do this, you wanted Charles to officially be Lily's dad... And maybe they don't have a blood relationship or anything else, but the connection that exists between the two of them and, in general, between the three of you, is something incredible and even though neither you nor he are married, the fact that Lily bears his last name is more than enough for you.

You carefully walked back to the room with the envelope behind you. “I would like to give you this.” You whispered softly while you handed him the envelope and he sat on the bed.

He looked at you somewhat confused. “What is this darling?” he asked.

“Find out for yourself... Open it.” you whispered again.

He opened the envelope delicately and took out the papers, some contained the entire legal process to be able to have paternity rights, kinship by affinity and so on, until he reached the last one that said: Lily Marie Leclerc, he looked at you with watery eyes. “Honey... I.” he said with a small voice. “I'm... I'm her dad, chérie... Tell me it's not a dream.”

You smiled at him. “It's not a dream my love, you're officially her dad.” you said and hugged him with all your strength. “Happy Father's Day mon amour!” you whispered and placed several kisses on his face, he couldn't believe it, he was officially a dad.

“Oh god, this is.. This is the best gift I have ever been given in my life! Oh mon cœur, thank you for this!” He said now with happy tears running down his face and you smiled lovingly.

“It's nothing baby boy... I thought, well, we should make it official.” you giggled.

While you two were hugging each other, a new adventure began for your little family... The now Leclerc family and you simply couldn't be happier about this, because you and Lily feel happy, much happier than you both had been before you met him.

[redtsundere-writes]

Out Of My League | Heartsteel Kayn / Rhaast

Heartsteel Kayn / Rhaast x f!reader

Part 1: Facecheck.

Part 2. Part 3. Part 4.

Sypnosis: A chronically online girl doesn´t know that her Discord friend may be someone she already knows.

Contents: Modern AU, High school AU, a lot of bad jokes and meme references. No warnings.

Word count: 2023 (omg this year)

Author's Note: So... this gremlin's birthday was yesterday and since he has been on my mind lately. I decided to write him a fic cause why not?

Thanks to @mclovin1803 for helping me with proofreading and picking a title. (If this is out of charcater, blame him)

You were the exact definition of an introvert. You weren't good at talking to people you didn't know, your social battery doesn't last long, and you get excited when your friends cancel plans at the last minute. You like your loneliness and spending the afternoon playing video games and your guitar.

As an introvert, you didn't have many friends aside from a few classmates and some family members you were close with. Luckily, you had several friends on Discord. Among them was someone by the username of Rhaast. You didn't chat with him often because he wasn't as chronically online as you were, but he knew you were always down to play League of Legends with him.

One night while you were comfortably playing the new Super Mario Wonder on the switch, you received a message from Rhaast.

@Rhaast: League?

It had been two weeks since you had last played together, so you put the Switch aside and accepted. You opened League and put your headphones on to hop on the call with your friend.

"Hello there," you greeted him like Obi Wan as you waited for Rhaast to enter the game. He laughed at the reference. He had a deep, kinda seductive voice. You didn't know for sure if he was pretending or if he really talked like that.

"How have you been?," you asked while looking for your nightly playlist on Spotify to set the mood.

"Great. Yesterday I went out with a girl and today I broke up with her." You rolled your eyes at the comment. You knew Rhaast was quite the heartbreaker for discarding women like they were underwear. Personally, you didn't like that about your friend.

"And now why did you break up with this one,?" you asked as you started the game.

"I only went out with her once and she was already bugging me. My phone kept ringing because of her, so I blocked her," Rhaast answered with a chuckle. “Thank God I'll never date this asshole,” you thought.

"I wish there were more girls like you. You wait for me to send you a message and you are always down to play with me." He said while locking in Zed as his champion while you locked in Qiyana.

"I’m always down to play with you because I don't have any friends, not because I like you." You kamikazed by words.

"Damn, and I thought you had a crush for me," Rhaast joked. "Come to think of it, you never tell me anything about your love life," He suggested so he could hear some gossip.

"I haven't told you because I don't have any," you said, pretending to cry. Rhaast laughed at your foolish performance.

"Come on, you must have at least a crush or something," he insisted curiously as the game began. There was no one you liked... but someone caught your eye.

You felt like a fool for getting nervous every time you saw Kayn and his group of friends walk past you in the hallways. Kayn was a popular kid from a higher grade. He was good at sports, had good grades, was a member of an upcoming band, and was always surrounded by friends, while you were the complete opposite. You knew you shouldn't be nervous seeing him around because there was no chance that he would have the slightest interest in you. The majority of girls in your class drooled over him, so he was free to choose whoever he wanted. Why would he choose you?

Also, you had no good reason to go over and talk to him. The only chance you had, you blew it. You still cringe at yourself at night when you remember that moment. In your first days of high school, you had no friends and you just started learning to play guitar. When you tried to leave the music room that day, you ran into a tall boy with pink hair, perfect black eyebrows that indicated the true color of his hair, piercings decorating his ears, a pointy nose and a magnificent athletic body. Everything about him could catch anyone's attention but his most striking feature was his beautiful eyes with heterochromia, his left eye was green and the right; red. You were a moth and he was an RGB lightbulb that demanded your attention.  

You stood paralyzed infront of him. You clutched your music sheet notebook to your chest in nervousness. He was way too attractive and you didn't know how to feel about it. You tried to greet him but only stutters came out of your mouth. It was true that you weren't good at starting conversations but you had never been at a loss for words.

"Can you move? I want to get in," he asked while looking at you as if you were an inferior being.

"Ah... Yes-s, I'm s-sorry." You couldn't help your stutter as you stepped aside so he could enter the room. The Adonis didn't say anything else, but your eyes were still glued on him. The boy saw you watching him without shame.

"Can I help you with something?" He asked directly. You quickly shook your head and ran out of the room. “You are so stupid, you made yourself look like you have never seen a man!” You thought embarrassed as you felt your face getting hot. This was definitely your canon event.

One day, Rhaast sent you an ad. Riot was hosting a promotional convention for players at the capital at the end of the month.

@Rhaast: You goin'?

You: Maybe, sounds good.

@Rhaast: Let me know if you goin'.

You: Are you?

@Rhaast: If you go, I'll go.

You: K.

Thus the days passed until the day of the event arrived. You got ready with your best clothes: A K/DA sweatshirt, freshly washed pants, and the least dirty sneakers you had. You left your apartment nervously to finally touch some grass and meet your friend in real life. After a tedious subway ride, you arrived at the convention center where the event was taking place.

You: I'm here. Where are you?

@Rhaast: Wait for me at the entrance. I'm almost there.

You saw that there were several people waiting for their respective friends at the entrance, so you decided to stay in that area. You waited patiently while playing on your phone until you heard some girls next to you get excited.

"Look, it's Kayn, he looks so good!" They whisper to each other. You looked up quickly when you heard that name and, sure enough, the Adonis was there. “What is Kayn doing here?!” you thought as you tried to hide behind your phone as if you pretended he wasn't there, but your eyes traveled quickly between the screen and him. He was wearing a black crop with a jacket on top, tight pants and silver chains on his neck, fingers and waist. “Oh no, he's hot!” You thought nervously, wanting to run away. Your heart wasn't taking it.

You felt envious when the girls next to you didn't hesitate to approach him. Seeing the confidence they had to greet and talk to him, you felt that they had already known each other before. “I wish I could do that,” you thought.

"I didn't know you played League." One of the girls commented.

"I don´t play much," Kayn answered without taking much notice. Looking cool as heck.

"Are you here alone?" The other girl asked.

"Well, I'm meeting with a friend. I'll call her, " he said while searching for his friend's contact on his phone.

*Incoming call from Rhaast*

Out of nowhere, your phone started ringing from an incoming call on Discord. It was Rhaast. “No way,” you thought as you looked at Kayn and your cell phone simultaneously. “No, this must be a coincidence” you thought before answering.

"I'm here, where are you?" Your knees felt weak as Kayn spoke the words he was hearing over the phone. “Kayn is Rhaast?!” you thought in disbelief.

Kayn quickly found you and your eyes met. The last time that happened was a year ago. You knew Rhaast for over two years. That meant that Kayn, the cutest boy in school, had heard your horrible jokes, your fangirl screams when you saw Faker at almost every World Cup, and your burps for two years. You wanted the earth to swallow you whole at that moment.

"Oh, there she is. See ya," he hung up the call and said goodbye to his friends. He approached you while you were dying internally. You were lucky a wall was holding you up because you were sure you were going to pass out at any moment. “Breathe, maybe he doesn't remember you,” you thought.

"Hey! Why didn't you tell me we went to the same school, snake girl?" he joked. You covered your face in shame with your hands. “He does remember!” You thought, defeated. You still didn't believe that Kayn was still talking to you.

"Shut up, Rhaast… I mean, Kayn." You said, pulling your face out of its hiding spot. Kayn smiled, looking at your blushing cheeks.

"So you know me," he said confidently.

"How can I not know you? My classmates can't stop talking about you," you said defensively.

"I don't mean that," he said as he brought his face closer to yours. You backed up as far as the wall would allow you.

"Just look at you, you're crazy for me." He mocked in a flirting way. You couldn't help but to blush once again.

He was right, not only did he caught your eye, you liked him. You liked him more than you thought. Not because he was the popular Kayn, who is in a band and all the girls fight over him, but because he was also Rhaast. The one guy who laughed at your horrible jokes, the one who didn't criticize you every time you screamed when you saw Faker and burped when you did to match your energy.

"Ha! Says the guy that I always carry,” you mocked him back. Kayn laughed. That laugh that made you feel better in the small corner of your room.

"That's my girl!" He said before taking your hand. You blushed at the unexpectedly intimate act. His hand gently squeezed yours to guide you to the convention entrance.

You spent the whole afternoon chatting and spending all your money on merchandise. You got to know Kayn better than you ever thought. He was a little bit blunt, but nicer than you pictured. It was like you were seeing the other side of Rhaast. Kayn also got to know you on another level when you started to feel comfortable around him. You were a girl with whom he could see himself talking for many hours everyday without getting bored, something he had not felt with anyone else.

You and Kayn said goodbye to a wonderful day together. Both felt their hearts beating like crazy for each other. You had spent the entire day together but you still missed each other once you parted ways. You arrived home and then threw yourself on the bed to start screaming about the exciting day you just had. You had finally talked to Kayn and he seemed to like you. And boy did he like you...

The next day, another school day had ended, so you decided to go to the music room. On your way, you saw Kayn and his friends heading towards the exit. Finally, you got the courage to do something you've always wanted to do.

"Hey, Kayn!" You called him from your place. He turned around to see you among the other students passing by in the hallway.

"Wanna play later?" You asked, blushing lightly for attracting his attention. His friends began to tease him that a girl was talking to him that way, but he didn't care. Kayn smiled as he saw you standing there, blushing but determined.

"You know I do!" He said before turning around and getting back with his friends. You smiled. Maybe he wouldn't have chosen you before, but now you had a chance. 

Order your own fanfic! (Starting price: $5 USD)

Masterlist.

[stellarspecter]

stwg daily prompt 4/10/24: guitar

1.8k, steddie, modern au, guitar teacher eddie/guitar student steve (+ dustin as steve's brother)

so this is literally just me giving eddie my exact job and letting the plot bunnies do as they may. will be up on ao3 in a day or two once i've had time to look it over and think of a title but here it is! divider graphic by @saradika-graphics

“Let’s try that verse again, okay? 5, 6, 7, 8…” 

The little girl in front of Eddie plays with the utmost concentration, her little brow scrunched up as she tries to switch to a D chord. 

“It’s our little triangle, remember? On the — good, exactly,” Eddie nods and keeps strumming. “And to C, slide down to the first fret… 1, 2, 3, to E minor, yep, 1, 2, 3, 4.” The last notes fade into the slightly stale air of the practice room. “Good job! You did a lot better with your chord transitions this time. We’re about out of time for today, but try and practice that verse and chorus at home, okay? And then we’ll see about that bridge next week,” he tells her.

She nods with a big gummy smile. “Okay!” Eddie helps her put her guitar back in its case and walks her back out to the little waiting area they have behind the lessons desk. It’s honestly a little cramped, but before they hired him, he hadn’t even known that Guitar Center offered lessons at all, so it makes sense. He sends the girl off with her parents and a promise to practice every day before he slides behind the desk to check his schedule for his next student.

Usually he has a half hour gap on Wednesdays that he uses to practice for his band or chat with his coworkers, but today there’s a new name on the schedule: Steve Harrington.

“Huh,” he mutters. His manager hadn’t mentioned any new sign-ups to him. Maybe it was from online? With a shrug, he settles in to wait for the guy to show up. It’s 5:57, so he’s still got a few minutes.

After a minute or two of dicking around on his phone, someone calls out, “Hey, Eddie!”

He looks up to find his 6:30 student standing in front of him, an excitable kid named Dustin Henderson. He’s fun to chat with, and Eddie looks forward to his lessons — especially since it’s an opportunity to get yet another young mind hooked on metal. Sure, he’ll play and teach whatever is required, but he’ll never forget his one true love.

“Henderson,” Eddie responds, standing up and leaning against the pillar bracketing the desk. “You know your lesson is in half an hour, right?”

“I know!” He replies, chipper as ever. “I’m after him!” He jerks a thumb back behind him, and Eddie finally notices the most beautiful man he’s ever seen standing behind Dustin.

Dear god. If this is his new student, he’s absolutely fucked.

“Hi,” the man says, extending a hand when it becomes clear Eddie is incapable of forming words. “I’m Steve.”

Eddie forces himself to act normal and grabs his hand, shooting him a smile that he hopes comes off as confident. “Eddie,” he replies. “Munson. I play guitar.”

“I’d sure hope so,” Steve jokes, eyes dancing, and Eddie is fuuuuucked. Completely and absolutely. How is he going to be able to be alone with him in a tiny practice room for a whole half hour? 

“Well, you’re in luck,” Eddie says, kind of operating on autopilot while his brain reboots. “It’s. Guitar Center.” He mentally facepalms and claps his hands together, spinning and walking them back towards the practice rooms. “So, Steve, what brings you here on this fine day? Are you Dustin’s… dad?”

Usually, his mom is the one to drive him and wait in the lobby, but it’s not out of the question that Steve could be his stepdad or something, with their different surnames. He seems around Eddie’s age, but maybe he’s just into milfs or something? 

He can’t be single. The universe is never that kind to Eddie.

Dustin bursts out laughing. “My dad? Dude, he’d had to have had me at like, twelve!”

Eddie flushes. “Well, I don’t know!”

“He’s my brother.” Steve swoops in and saves him from embarrassment. “The Hendersons took me in when I was sixteen, that’s why we have different last names.”

Eddie nods. “Oh, cool. So I assume Dustin got you to take lessons too?”

Steve laughs a little, just when Eddie thought he could finally cope with his unearthly beauty, the dick. “Yeah, he’s dead set on us starting a family band or something. I told him I could just dust off my piano skills, but he insisted. Little twerp.” He goes to ruffle his brother’s hair, and Dustin expertly ducks — clearly a common occurrence in their household.

“Cool,” Eddie says again. “Well, you ready to get started?” 

Steve nods, and Dustin goes to look around the store and mess with the DJ equipment. 

“So, you said you played piano? How long ago was that?” Eddie asks as he ushers him into the practice room.

“Oh, years and years. My parents made me take lessons when I was a kid, stopped in middle school, so it’d have to be… ten years or something now? Eleven? Jesus, I’m getting old,” Steve answers.

Eddie laughs. “Oh, trust me, I get it. Every time I say I’ve been playing guitar for over a decade a little part of me dies.” They share a laugh as they both get situated on their matching stools and guitars on their laps. “So that’s a little bit about me, that I’ve been playing for over a decade. I didn’t go to school for music or anything, but I’m in a metal band in my free time, and I like to think I have a pretty good understanding of music theory and techniques after all this time, so don’t worry, you’re in good hands.” It’s easier than he’d expected to slip into his practiced first lesson spiel, but he’s still hyper-focused on Steve’s reactions, taking in every hint of a smile. “I’m actually self-taught, so I learned basically by just watching YouTube tutorials and spending a lot of time on Ultimate Guitar,” Eddie explains with a wry smile. 

“That’s really cool,” Steve says, impressed. “I could never do that.”

“Well, that’s what I’m here for, right?” It’s a familiar back and forth to Eddie. Maybe he can do this. “I like to run my lessons the same way — instead of learning some random two-measure exercises from a book, we learn songs that you want to learn, and through that we can learn some new chords and strumming patterns and techniques. How does that sound?”

“Perfect,” Steve says. “That was always the worst part of piano lessons. The music was so boring.” His nose wrinkles in distaste.

“Awesome,” Eddie says, and pulls out his phone, already open to his notes app. “So, what kind of music do you want to learn?”

“Uh.” Steve pauses. “I, uh, I listen to a lot of, um, pop? And, like, indie? Kind of just top forty radio type stuff.” 

Eddie nods as he writes that down. “Cool, cool. Any artists or songs in particular? Or just pop as a whole?”

“I dunno,” Steve admits. “I like most of the popular stuff. Oh, there’s this one artist my friend has been getting me into — Chappell Roan?”

“Nice,” Eddie responds, somehow managing to keep from jumping with joy that he might actually have a chance with this guy if he listens to gay people music. 

“You don’t… mind?” Steve asks hesitantly. Eddie looks up at him, confused. “I just mean, you don’t exactly look like you would love all that girly pop music.” He waves a hand at Eddie’s Metallica shirt, ripped jeans, and patch-covered vest. 

Eddie shrugs. “Well, maybe, but it’s my job. You wouldn’t believe the amount of Swifties I’ve got, I couldn’t avoid it if I wanted to. And I mean, it is pretty catchy,” he concedes, if only to see Steve smile again. “And,” he continues, “even better, really easy to play.”

“Oh, good,” Steve laughs.

Eddie pockets his phone and reaches for his folder, taking out a sheet of empty chord diagrams. “So usually for a first lesson, we just learn a few basic chords, and then get started with our first full song next week, sound good?”

Steve nods. “Yep.”

“Great.” Eddie sets the sheet on the stand in front of them and pencils in two little dots on the first diagram. “Here’s our first chord. This is called an E minor. You wanna put your first finger on the second string…”

He goes on to teach Steve an E minor chord, then a C chord, then a G chord, and by the time they’re done learning D, Eddie thinks that Steve’s fingers are going to haunt his dreams. He’s not mad about it. Just sad that he won’t be able to see them in person again for a whole week.

They make their way through the lesson, stumbling from one chord to another, but by the end of the thirty minutes, Steve is already doing pretty well with his chord transitions. Eddie’s honestly impressed. He drops him off in the lobby and exchanges him for Dustin, who is bouncing up and down with excitement.

“How was he,” he bursts out as soon as the door is closed.

Eddie snorts. “He was good. Just learned a few chords.”

Dustin waits expectantly. “And?”

“And what?”

“And how was he! Like, was he excited? Did you have a good time? Are you guys gonna be friends now?” 

Eddie rolls his eyes fondly and takes a seat. Technically, he’s not supposed to be actual friends with students, or even talk with them outside of work, but with Dustin and now Steve, they don’t feel like paying customers so much as friends he’s doing a favor for. “He was good. I’m sure he’ll tell you in the car on the way home.”

Dustin groans. “Come on.”

“You come on. You better have been practicing, show me what you’ve been doing.”

With that, Dustin drags himself to his seat, and the lesson goes great from there, both of them distracted from Steve by the intricacies of Stairway to Heaven.

When he brings Dustin out, he’s almost taken off guard by Steve waiting for them. In just half an hour, he’d already forgotten his stunning resemblance to a Greek god. It’s honestly unfair for his memory to do that to him. 

“Hey,” Steve greets them. “Had a good lesson?”

“Obviously,” Dustin scoffs.

“He did great today,” Eddie tells him, “And so did you. Just remember to practice, alright? Gotta build that muscle memory.”

Dustin rolls his eyes, too used to hearing it, but Steve nods enthusiastically. “Yeah, of course. See you next week?”

It’s a simple phrase. He says it every day. It’s a contractual obligation that yes, he will see them next week. But when Steve says it, it feels like a promise. Eddie can’t wait to fulfill it.

“Yeah,” he breathes, mesmerized by the way the fluorescent lights bring out the green in Steve’s eyes. “See you next week.”

Steve smiles and turns to leave, picking his way through the aisles of musical miscellany. Eddie can already hear Dustin interrogating him about his lesson. He leans back against the wall with only one thought in his mind: only seven days until he gets to see Steve Harrington again. 

He’ll be counting every single one.

[welldonebeca]

Guardian Bot (4)

WC: 1.5k words Warnings: Future AU. Tension. Robot Cas. Smut. Sex toys. Degrading kink. Dirty talk. Orgasm denial. Orgasm control.

If you like my work, consider buying me a coffee or subscribing to my Patreon. It’s just $2 a month and I promise you won’t regret it.

Masterlist

"Hey," you heard a little knock on your door.

You moved your eyes from the design in front of you, turning to find Dean standing by your open door.

"Hey," you spoke slowly.

The thoughts rushed through your mind. It happened every single day: Dean's secretary screwed things up, he'd knock on your door, and you would have to go there to explain how things were supposed to be done as if she hadn't been formally trained and worked in your family's company for over seven months.

"Are you busy?" your older brother asked. "Christie screwed up my schedule for the day, I have three meetings scheduled for the same time, I need your help to fix it."

You sighed. Since you were little, you always did everything for your brothers, which would usually come at the expense of your time.

This secretary wasn't ever good, she was just some fucking eyecandy for Dean.

Castiel always told you to just let him suffer the consequences of her lack of work abilities.

"Sorry, I can't," you answered, at last. "This is a bad time."

Your older brother looked at you with surprise, and his eyes moved to the screen of your computer. 

"Do you want me to come back later?" he offered.

You grimaced.

"Actually, I think I'll be busy with this the whole day," you decided. "But if she still needs help, maybe ask Sam's secretary? I heard Meg is amazing with the system."

He sighed.

"Come on," he insisted. "You're my sister, you know Sam. If I ask, he will think it is time we let her go."

"Maybe it is," you looked back at your project, not giving him space to argue. "And call Charlie into my office on your way out, please? I need to ask her for a few things, and my intercom isn't working."

You really needed to get that thing fixed.

You could hear him sigh in frustration, but Dean didn't insist, walking - well, stomping - out.

Before you could go back to work, a little message popped up on your screen.

"Has he come over to ask you yet, miss?" it read.

Castiel.

You blinked at the screen.

Oh, that cheeky bot.

You reached for your phone and called him.

"Hello, miss," he greeted you.

"How did you know?"

He chuckled on the other side.

"Well, it's almost lunchtime," he explained. "He usually comes right before lunch to ask you to cover for his secretary."

You scoffed.

"He just left," you sighed. "I told him to go ask Sam's secretary."

You heard a little knock on your doorframe.

"Ma'am?" Charlie asked. "May I come in?"

"I'll leave you be, miss," Castiel decided, and hang up.

You sighed. For a bot, he was just as hard to decipher as a human.

"Yes," you confirmed. "Come inside."

She stepped in, and you jumped, startled, when you felt the toy inside you vibrating. 

Oh, God. 

Castiel had convinced you to let him put a Bluetooth vibrator in you before you left home. You had entirely forgotten about it. 

Until now. 

"Charlie," you exhaled. "Can you... uh..."

She raised her eyebrows, questioning you, and looked confused.

"I don't want visitors today," you moved your hands under your table, squeezing the desk, and the toy moved a little faster on your clit. "No one who hasn't bothered to schedule."

Your secretary nodded, though you could see she still looked puzzled.

"And after lunch, I want someone to come to replace or fix my intercom. Whichever is easier and faster."

"Are your brothers included in the no-visitors list, ma'am?" she asked.

You swallowed down.

"Yes," you confirmed.

She nodded, and you felt her eyes moving over your face.

"Are you alright, ma'am?" she asked. "You look flushed."

You opened your mouth about your answer, but felt the vibrator moving faster, stimulating both your clit and your sweet spot. The moment the door closed, you

"Yes," you spoke between your teeth. "You can leave now.  And close the door behind you."

The second Charlie closed the door, you crossed your legs, trying to ride the vibrator inside you discreetly.

Your phone vibrated on the table once more, and you picked it up, clenching your jaw.

"Cas," you hissed.

“Careful, miss,” he instructed. “The camera is right on you.”

You swallowed down, seeing the 360º camera in the middle of your office.

“Please,” you whispered.

Castiel hummed on the other side.

“Don’t cum, miss,” he hummed along.

You inhaled, trying to hold yourself and not show your pleasure.

“You see how pathetic you look?” he asked, voice too sweet for his words. “All curled up in your chair… I bet anyone could walk in, and you’d let them fuck you.”

You clenched the chair under your fingers.

“Please, Cas,” you whined.

He wasn’t going to just edge you, right?

"Cas, please," you begged. "I can't -"

"Have you done everything I asked you?" he asked instead.

You nodded, knowing he could see you.

"Yes."

"Everything?" he repeated.

You pouted. You were supposed to be at yoga now - the company gave you two hours of lunchtime, and Cas wanted you to do at least one session every week.

"Cas," you whined. "I have a project."

"And you had a 20-minute yoga class scheduled for right now," he answered back.

You whimpered, but finally conceded, standing up on wobbly legs and walking to your windows, pulling the curtains everywhere, and you could see the glass blackening behind them, probably by Castiel.

The vibrator stopped, and you grabbed your yoga mat from under your desk, placing it behind it.

"I don't have proper clothes," you realised.

"That is true," he remarked. "Reminder to make sure you pack yoga pants tomorrow. But go on, miss. The class won’t wait for you."

You scoffed and looked down at yourself.

"Cas, I can't do yoga in a pencil skirt" you reminded him. "And this top isn't any better."

There was a moment of silence for a moment before he answered.

"I am setting the privacy setting in your cameras," he told you. "You can proceed with stripping now. I'm the only one seeing you."

He said it with such finality you almost didn't know if you could argue.

So you didn't.

Instead, you took off your shoes and slid the zip of your skirt down, taking it off and folding it, placing it on your desk and doing the same to your shirt.

It felt so strange, standing in your office with just a bra on.

"Put up the video, miss," he commanded softly. "You can still catch up with the Livestream. They are just warming up."

You nodded as if he could see you. Well... he did.

Regardless, you turned on the live stream and quickly caught up with their warm-ups.

"We can work in finding you time to go to the actual classes when we start organising your schedule after time off," Cas told you. "I know live streams aren't the best option for exercise."

You scoffed, bending down.

"They are just fine."

"Well, the view is amazing," he added, cheekily. "You can do them from home too, miss. I won't mind."

You licked your lips.

Of course he wouldn't.

You stretched yourself and gasped when the toy came back to life, though just barely.

"Cas," you hissed.

"Just some motivation, miss," he hummed.

You stuck your ass out more, determined to tease him too now.

"Maybe doing that at home will tempt you to fuck me," you grumbled.

While Cas sated your sexual desires, he hadn't fucked you. You knew about his upgrades - he had bought it with your credit card, after all - but why wouldn't he just use them?

"Not until you've earned it, miss," he answered, simply.

You tried not to gasp as the vibrator increased in power.

"Alright, class, now we get into cant-cow," the cheerful instructor told the group, moving to kneel on fours on the floor. "This exercise helps with your mobility and tail bone."

You tried not to think of the sex implications of the positions, but it was hard considering you were naked and with a fucking toy inside your cunt.

"So pretty," Castiel spoke on the other side. "You are a very pretty slut, aren't you?"

Your cheeks burned.

"Cas," you whined. "If you don't want me to cum, you better be careful with those words."

He chuckled.

"Why is it, sweet slut?" he asked, clearly mocking you. "You can't control yourself?"

You just huffed, not wanting to amuse him

"Humans are so easy to work up, especially ones like you," he sighed. "You are so eager for someone to take control..."

"Cas," you breathed in.

You rotated your hips, and the toy brushed a little more onto your sweet spot.

"Fuck," you hissed.

"Don't forget the next position," he hummed.

You clenched your jaw and saw the instructor moving.

Downward dog.

Fucking hell.

You followed it, and shuddered when you heard Castiel humming, pleased.

"Such a pretty cunt," he clicked his tongue.

Your walls fluttered around the toy and he chuckled.

"No cumming, miss," he reminded you.

You clenched your teeth.

"It could be yours when I get home," you moved your hips a little, trying to taunt him.

"It is already mine," he corrected you.

Your legs weakened and you bit your lower lip, muffling your moans when you straight up came at his words, falling onto your knees and shaking as the toy vibrated inside you.

There was a long silence in the room when you were done, and the vibrator stopped.

"We'll talk when we get home," Castiel decided.

The phone clicked, showing he had hung up, and you grunted.

Dammit.

“Guardian Bot” is fully posted on my Patreon since 2022. To have early access to it now, along with other stories, consider subscribing to my page! It’s just $2 a month and I promise you won’t regret it.

Forever Tags: @emoryhemsworth​​ @amythyststorm33​​ @shaelyn102 @yknott81​​ ​​@maximofftrash @kgbrenner​​ @thefridgeismybestie @magpiegirl80​ @mogaruke​ @shadowhunter7​​ @musicalcoffeebean @megasimpleplan4ever​​ @deemoriarty​​ @05spn18​​ @malindacath @kdcollinsauthor​​ @random-fandom-fangirl2112​​ @widowsfics @frozenhuntress67 @averyrogers83​​ @notyourtypicalrose​​ @nerdypinupcrystal @giruvega Supernatural tags: @its-daydreamer23 @smalltowndivaj @tayrae515imagines @afanofmanystuffs @oneshoeshort @andkatiethings @wakanda-sometimes @xoxabs88xox @izbelross @isabelle-faith @flamencodiva @lyarr24

Supernatural Kinky Fics (+18): @stoneyggirl2 @phoenixblack89 @that-dark-girl

[saras-devotionals]

Quiet Time 8/15

What am I feeling today?

Frustrated. So so frustrated! I just got my schedule for this semester and our accommodations were not taken into consideration and I’m just feeling really angry about it. I know that I should look on the bright side, that since I’ll be with strangers I can take it as an opportunity to share and reach more people but I’m still feeling upset about it because I wanted to be my friends in a hospital close by. Anyways, I’ll talk about it to my mentor just to get her perspective on it and I’ll pray over it as well.

6 Keys to Sexual Purity

Key #2 - Escape Temptation

When you’re faced with temptation, know that God promises to give you a way out, but you must be willing to take it. You know, the voice telling you to leave before things get heated, or the unexpected phone call from a close friend. Don’t ignore these signs. Run toward the nearest exit, and don’t look back!

Jesus understands temptation and how we feel because He was tempted in all areas–just like us–but never sinned. Therefore, you don’t have to be ashamed, but you can boldly go before God to receive mercy and find grace to help you escape temptation.

Reflection:

Do you know that, as a Believer, God provides you with a way out of temptation? Have you ever ignored a sign before? How can you be sensitive to His Spirit and acknowledge signs as soon as you see them?

1 Corinthians 10:12-13 NIV

“So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”

That first line is powerful and a reminder for me. I thought that I was past a certain sin, that I would never fall to it again and in my pride, I stumbled. It’s wise to remember that every day is a new challenge and we must constantly seek our refuge in God, in His word and through prayer because we will constantly be faced with temptations. I like the line that we won’t be tempted beyond what we can bear because it’s true. I think of points for temptation for me and the times I do give in is by choice, because my flesh is weak and I either don’t have the strength or desire to resist. But I know that I am always capable of resisting and fleeing and therefore God is continually good.

Hebrews 4:14-16 NIV

“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

A reminder that Jesus was also fully human. He experienced life just as we did. He experienced temptations just as we did. He was even tempted by Satan himself and yet, he still held firm. He was still without sin and was fully righteous and holy. We can look to him as an example of how we should be because he can relate to us, and he is there on our behalf.

‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭6‬:‭12‬-‭13‬, ‭15‬-‭20‬ ‭NIV‬‬

““I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything. You say, “Food for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will destroy them both.” The body, however, is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never! Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.” But whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in spirit. Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body. Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”

When I was first studying the Bible and the issue of purity prominent, the first couple verses were shared with me. God has given us free will and yes indeed we do have the right to do anything we want. But just because we have that right doesn’t mean that everything we want to do will glorify God. We must acknowledge that as disciples, we have the Holy Spirit and we are tied to God. We belong to Him fully and when we partake in any sort of sexual immorality, we are defiling His temple. Should we not then feel ashamed? Have remorse and repentance? I must add though, do not wallow in your shame because God wants to forgive you. You must repent first and God will forgive in knowing your heart but you cannot go on sinning over and over again by choice because you think “God will forgive me anyways” because that is not repentance.

[rangikuxmatsumoto]

It’s already been said, but god, are we fucked.

My string of consciousness from behind tears in under the cut. It is heavy, so if you aren’t of the right mindset right now, please don’t read but I need to get these thoughts off my mind.

Yesterday morning, I cried – a mix of anxious fear and also of hope. I’m 35 years old, my first presidential election that I could vote in was in 2008, Obama’s first term. I still remember the hope.

I remember 2012, and 2016. I wish I didn’t remember 2016. How disappointed I was in the people of this country then. I remember the anger and the rage felt by my fellow democrats, by my fellow women. I told myself I’d fight, I’d always fight, but I was 27 then, younger, not yet worn down from years that were to follow.

Then there was 2020. I thought we saw the light, learned from our mistake. I remember the joy, watching people dance in fountains and pop bottles of champagne on Tiktok in Chicago and New York.

Then came January 6th. My sister messaged me over chat during work “Go turn on your TV”, I watched in real time to events of January 6th. How could our country come to this? Believe me, I’ve never been a “USA USA” chanting type person, outside of the Olympics, this country has flaws, we aren’t perfect. But we have been a beacon of hope to the world – I’m afraid we’re now a beacon of the end. I always believed the notion of “Those who do not learn history are damned to repeat it” and clearly y’all missed a lot of history classes.

Yesterday, I cried.

I cried when I went to bed at around 10:30 PM EST, I wasn’t trying to look at the election results. I couldn’t, because I felt sick to my stomach. I always know the South is going to go red, there’s no helping those shithole states – I say this living in North Carolina, the first swing state to fall red. On the bright side, we did keep a democratic governor and attorney general. Still, I once had hope that North Carolina would fall blue even by the slimmest of margins, that Georgia would stay blue. But no.

I woke up around 1:11 AM, the results hadn’t been called yet, but one story was on my phone “Harris won’t address supporters” and with it a picture of a grown man, face buried in his palms, crying. The blurry faces behind him, all in tears.

I cried then as well. Face buried in my pillow, trying to stay quiet.

Some might say “It’s just 4 years” it’s not. The ramifications of what happens in these next four years are far reaching, two potential Supreme Court seats may open and with a super conservative majority. The average length of a SCOTUS position, 22.7 years. So, it’s not 4 years. Meaning that the rest of my life, I can be affected by those rules – and they will come.

I cried this morning. They aren’t the body wrecking sobs that I feel because I’m just so tired of this shit. God, not to go on the Millennial rant here but can I stop having to face these world shifting events? We lived through 9/11, The Iraq War, the Great Recession, the list goes on and on – I’m fucking tired of it.

And today, I having to come to terms with what the next four plus years will be. What I stand to lose, and I’ve already lost.

The worst part of this is the one thought that has stuck with me. It wasn’t “I need to keep fighting” it’s I’m too tired to fight. I guess, it’s best said, “They’ll never take me alive” because all I thought about was killing myself. Ending it. I’ve never had these thoughts before, not seriously. Sure I’ve been depressed before, but not to the point I haven’t been able to push away the “I want to die” thought.

It might be better if I did. I know it’s just the depression speaking, that I’ll wake up tomorrow still depressed but not wanting to die. And in a couple days, I’ll still be depressed but the anger will set it. It’s different stages of grief, maybe not in the right order and I don’t think I’ll ever come to acceptance but I’ll get somewhere.

There is another thought that is lingering behind that “I wanna kill myself” one, of “fuck around and find out” – you see, I may be fine in 4 years, certainly won’t be better but I could be fine. But those stupid fucks that voted Republican that are single incomes, living paycheck to paycheck, ohhhh they’re about to get a rude fucking awakening. And I’m going to fucking love to see it.

But for now, I need some space, some time, I’m going to cry a lot. I may not be too talkative on Discord or here.

[michelle-is-writing]

Missing You, Ben Hardy

Since Ben left for filming a couple months ago, I’ve been okay. Of course, I’ve been missing him ever since he left. The text messages and phone calls have made up for the lack of conversations we used to have, and the constant pictures he sends me help me still feel connected to him. But lately, I’ve been missing him the hardest, and I couldn’t tell you why either.

During the day, I’m fine. I go about my daily rituals as usual, but at night, when I get ready to go to bed, it’s like I’m hit with a mix of sadness and longing for Ben to be back by my side. Some nights, I can’t fall asleep until it’s past three or four in the morning. I can’t explain why - it’s just something that happens now.

For some reason, tonight is the worst it’s ever been for me. I’ve tried everything I can to fall asleep. I’ve taken melatonin, turned off every bright light, made sure that there were no noises coming from anything, turned my phone off, everything. I even tried to meditate for a while, but I eventually gave up when I realized it wasn’t working for me either. I've also had “relaxing” music playing since I first started getting ready to go to bed, but that obviously didn’t work either.

Every time I close my eyes, images of Ben flash in my mind. I remember specific times like when we go out together and just enjoy each other's time. I’m also reminded of the times when we go out with friends and how Ben always holds me to him in front of everyone with his arm tight around my waist and my back pressed against his chest. It makes me feel like he’s so thankful to have me there with him when he does this. More importantly, I remember the times when he said things exactly like that to me. Hearing the love of your life say, “I’m so happy to have you in my life,” is something that you’ll cherish and remember for a very, very long time - if not forever.

The only problem with that is with moments like these when you can’t be with them. In that case, you’re left to simply think about that special person rather than see or hear them. You can’t hold them or love on them. You can’t even laugh with them and see their face crinkle up because of that laughter. So, you’re left to miss them immensely, and it sucks.

It really sucks.

Looking over at my alarm clock, the bright red lights tell me it’s almost 4:30, and I’m left to groan in response. Last night, I didn’t pass out until 3, and I had to wake up for work today with only 4 hours of sleep in my system. I don’t want to have another night like that. Granted, I may not have to work tomorrow, but still. I don’t want to fall asleep at the same time people are getting up to start the day if I can help it.

Frankie beside me stirs in her sleep before getting up and heading out into the living room. At that, I kind of laugh. She must’ve gotten tired of me constantly tossing and turning. I’m tired of it too, but it’s not like I can do anything about it.

With a sigh, I turn on my side toward the wall and try to close my eyes once more. At first, I’m joyful that finally, nothing pops up. No images of Ben or anyone else. Just the darkness of what I’m hoping is looming sleep.

For a few moments, this lasts until I start thinking about how nice Ben’s touch felt against my skin. The way his slightly rough hands had such a gentle grasp when he touched me is something that can wake me up instantly, but I’m trying to not let the memory of it do that. However, reminiscing on his touch seems to be too much for me as I actually feel his touch on me now despite him being six hours away. The mind can certainly be one powerful thing.

“Are you awake?”

As soon as I hear Ben’s voice, my eyes shoot open and I quickly turn over to see him standing by the side of the bed, a smile on his face. Granted, the only light in the room is the dim red hue coming from my alarm clock, so I’m assuming the lines on his cheek mean he’s smiling.

“Oh my God!” I exclaim, nearly jumping out of bed to throw myself at Ben. Thankfully, he’s quick to catch me in his arms, but that doesn’t stop us from tumbling down onto the floor with a soft thud, resulting in laughter coming from Ben. Conversely, I immediately pull back to look at Ben despite the room still being pitch dark.

“Are you okay?” I ask him, my hands searching his face and head for any injury, again, in complete darkness. His answer comes to me in even more laughter, his hands quickly finding mine to press soft and gentle kisses to the skin.

“Darling, I’m fine, but I do have to say that was one of the best welcome home greetings I have ever gotten,” Ben assures me before leaning forward to press another kiss to my lips, but his lips meet the side of my nose instead. We both know that one of us should really turn the light on so we can see each other, but going by the fact that I’m on top of Ben, it’ll have to be when I decide to let go of him.

Smiling, I nuzzle my face into his neck. “I’m just happy you’re home,” I tell him, sitting back on his lap so I can turn on the bedside lamp. Ben’s hands instantly make their way to my hips when I do this, his fingers lightly massaging the skin of my exposed waist as soon as they make contact. Once the room has some light flooding through it, I look down at Ben and smile upon seeing his face after so long of having to settle for just pictures or FaceTime. He smiles back at me, a happy sigh falling from his lips afterward.

“You have no idea how much I missed you, darling,” Ben murmurs, a blissful gaze falling over his face. Sliding his arms up from my hips, he rests them against my back all while simply holding me to him as we lie on the hardwood floor of our bedroom. “Could hardly sleep without you, it was horrible.”

At his words, the corner of my lip upturns knowing he missed me too, but at the same time, he probably suffered the same sleep deprivation as me. “I had a hard time sleeping while you were gone too,” I tell him, feeling my body begin to relax on top of him. “I haven’t gotten much sleep either, especially tonight,” with a smile, I press a kiss to Ben’s jaw as I lean my head up a bit. “It's a good thing since you got home early, babe.”

Ben smiles with me in response to my words before swiftly sitting up with me still clinging to his body, my legs now on either side of him as his face rests mere centimeters from mine. The action surprises me for a short second until I let out a small giggle, my brain reminding me of my boyfriend’s superhero muscles that allow him to do those things with me, things that make me absolutely crazy.

“Let’s get back into bed, yeah?” He suggests, standing up with one hand pushing him off the ground and the other keeping my body against his. Once again, I cling tightly to him, my rigid stature only relaxing when my back makes contact with our bed. However, Ben doesn’t move, and instead, he remains on top of me. After a few moments, I speak up.

“Are you comfortable?” My question makes Ben quietly laugh as he knows putting his entire weight on me is not always comfortable, but I won’t complain either.

"I always want to be on top of you, love," He tells me with another sly chuckle before shuffling down in the bed. Now lying mostly on my torso and in between my legs, Ben peers up at me from where he lays his head on my stomach. “How about now? Are you comfortable?”

“Very,” I tell him, moving a hand to comb through his blonde locks. Once my hand touches his head, Ben nuzzles his face against my hand like earlier. In only a matter of seconds, Ben's eyes fall shut as he a soft sigh leaves his nose.

“I missed you… so much,” he admits, “I’d really like it if you came with me next time, even if it’s just for a week,” Ben’s eyes open after his last statement, looking intently at me as I process his suggestion. It would be great to spend that time with him, but I never asked before as I didn't want to distract him while he works.

"As much as I loved your greeting from earlier," Ben speaks up once more, breaking me away from my thoughts and over I’d love it even more if you greeted me like that after filming.”

[hamatosami]

Fire and Ice (a TMNT fanfiction)

Chapter 4: Twisted Tales

Notes: I am so grateful for the love on this story! Please note that all of my stories are 18+

(ALL OF MY STORIES ARE 18+ MAY OR MAY NOT CONTAIN SEXUAL CONTENT, LANGUAGE, VIOLENCE, GORE, DARK THEMES) PLEASE READ RESPONSIBLY 🫶🏼

👈🏼 previous chapter here!

“My loneliness engulfed me and my fear held me in shackles”

I continued to hold her hand until Donnie came. If anyone could help her it would be him. I checked for her breathing far too many times, making sure she was still alive.

Her body was shaking uncontrollably. She was hot and breaking a sweat. My hand slipped from under her to feel her head and she firmly grabbed my wrist.

I thought she was unconscious. Her eyes were too swollen to tell.

”Wh— ishhur nmm” she mumbled. Her hand shook around my wrist. She was so terrified that she tried to keep herself conscious enough for me to stay and lucky for me, her eyes were too swollen to see me.

I held her arm back. My hand propped under her neck to assure her there was someone there.

Talk to her Raph! You have to keep her talking.

”What did ya say?” I asked. She huffed hard. Breathing hurt her and she had blood dripping out of her mouth.

“Name.” She said barely opening her mouth. 

I was taken back. I knew she definitely couldn’t see me now.

”Raphael.” I answered finding my self getting more and more anxious at how much time she had left. I could be the last person… well creature she talks to. “As long as I’m here you’re safe. I promise.” I tried to comfort her.

She took another deep breath and became limp once again. My heart beat so fucking fast. 

A loud thump from the roof shook behind me.

Thank fucking God.

”Raph I’m here!” Donnie exclaimed and April hopped off his back. When April saw who it was her face turned into complete panic.

”Nooo!!” She ran faster than the speed of light.

”You know her?!” I asked now feeling a thousand times more guilt than I ever felt.

”I was just with her an hour ago… I don’t understand, how did this happen?!” Her face dropped.

Donnie ran to her side instantly checking her vitals.

”Foot clan members. The ones Leo told me to follow. I seen the one douche chase her out of that apartment.” I pointed. Her face went from upset to furious.

”Levi…he’s her boyfriend. Him and his friends at the college we go to I’ve been watching for days, I had suspicions they were clan members, that’s why I became friends with her, to get a lead. It turns out she’s one of the sweetest people I’ve ever met. Her boyfriends an asshole.” She explained. My heart fell for this girl. I looked over at Donnie anxious to know her condition.

”Damn it!” Donnie rarely swears. My heart raced faster than ever.

“What is it Donnie?!” I said a little too rough.

”I think she’s bleeding internally. Her temperature is spiking fast. She needs a blood transfusion and fluids immediately. She needs a hospital I can’t do anything without an ultrasound and my equipment.” He stuttered frantically.

“Will she make it to a hospital?” April asked now crouching down to her friend.

“You’ll have to get her there now!” Donnie said as he was watching his watch. April aggressively called an ambulance.

“Hello?! I need an ambulance here stat!” April yelled into the phone.

——————————————————

Eve’s POV

Its been a few days since my attack. I was slowly but surly healing. No fractured bones. Just a lot of bruising and a mild concussion. April was by my side every moment. She went as far as contacting the school for me. As for my parents I made it apparent to her not to tell them. They would pressure me to go home if they knew.

I was getting close to being discharged from the hospital. Today my social worker and the police were here for me to give a full report on Levi. This was something I thought I’d never have to do. Part of me was relieved that I could finally continue living freely, but a shameful other part of me was feeling heartbroken that I would never see Levi again. I did love him. At one point… the connection to your abuser is something a lot of people don’t talk about.

He was the only person I had left.

Another part of me was nervous how things would be at school. Would his friends try to hurt me? How would my classmates treat me? I could hear it now. “Eve fakes assault to put Levi in jail.” I already knew those rumors would start.

My stomach twisted in so many knots. My loneliness engulfed me and my fear held me in shackles. 

“Whenever you’re ready, I’d like you to tell me what happened.” The social worker said. Her eyes painted on me ready to engorge my testimony.

I felt a lump in my throat trying to remember the very little I did know. April held my hand and nodded me to continue.

”Umm well I was coming home from the coffee shop around 8pm. I didn’t answer his text right away so he got angry and waited for me at the door. He wouldn’t let me in my apartment and got aggressive with me.” My voice started to shake remembering his hands around my throat. 

“What happened then?” She urged. My breathing became rapid now confessing of the things I would usually lie about. I knew the plain truth, but saying it was hard. I had become so accustomed to lying that the truth felt vile.

”He strangled me…” I whispered. My fingers trailed to my neck that was heavily bruised. I remembered the scent of his breath…

A tear poured over my cheek. I felt too numb to even wipe it away. I let my tear loosely hang at the bottom of my chin. My eyes zoned away as I dissociated.

”What happened after that?” She asked again. I zapped out of my darkened state and looked up at April again.

“I managed to get away. I spat in his eye and ran as fast as I could. I tried to call 911, but I fell. That’s when him and all of his friends hurt me. I don’t remember much after that.” I looked at April again knowing she was the one who rescued me.

”What happened again April?” I looked at her with honest eyes. She gulped and smiled to try and lighten up the atmosphere.

”I had forgotten that I asked her to hold onto my keys for me.” April continued for me. “As I walked back I saw her running from him. I tried to get there as fast as I could, but I was too late.”

”Wait.” The social worker took her glasses off and sat up a little more in her chair. “So you mean to tell me that you single handedly fought off 5 grown men by yourself?” She said disbelieving.

Aprils mouth slightly gaped. Her offense clearly spread through her face.

”Yes mam I did. I study mixed martial arts, and for the record I’m pretty damn good at it.” She sassed.

”Shes telling the truth.” I jumped in. The social worker averted her eyes back to her binder of all of my pictures and information. 

“Eve I need to to tell me every name you know that was there.” She said.

”Well there was Levi, his best friend Michael Stewart. I think I saw Malik Worthington and I don’t know what he looks like but I heard the name… Raphael I think and D-Don? Donnie?.” I said scratching my head.

April looked at me faster than ever. Eyes shocked as hell. I didn’t understand why…

”Well Eve I think I have everything I need. We’ll get that PFA filed and with my team I’ll make it sure that he never touches you again.” She said standing up.

”Wha- what about school?” I said nervously before she quickly tried existing. She turned around.

”I’ve already contacted the school officials. Him and everyone who was involved are about to be expelled.” My heart sung and sunk at the same time. I would never hear the end of this at school.

The next day I was discharged. April insisted on staying with me for a few days. This girl was probably the most giving person I’ve ever met. She barely knew me. No matter how much I tried convince her I was okay, I saw the guilt behind her eyes. 

We’ve become so close within the past couple days. It honestly felt so good to have someone genuine by my side. The school administrator said I didn’t have to go back until next week so after school April would come straight to my apartment. 

We found that we both REALLY loved watching the bachelor. The new episode aired tonight and we prepped all day for it. Plenty of assortments of wine and snacks along with some candles, fuzzy blankets and some cozy pajamas. It was the perfect way to spend the a rainy afternoon.

As the episode ended and we finally simmered down from all the drama we just watched. I was excited to show her what I’ve been working on for my current events project.

”Youre suppose to be relaxing.” She implied as I shuffled through my papers.

”Yeah, but I really think you’ll find this story cool!” I said. I handed her a folder of all of my research.

“Ancient Japanese operations featuring the Big Apple.” She said uneasy. I rolled my eyes.

”Yeah it needs a better title I know. But look at how interesting this is!” I flipped the page for her. “See? A lot of Japanese Americans in the city are reporting that a lot of crime in the city is coming from a secret clan of ninjas. I thought it was bogus at first until I looked at a lot of the evidence. See this? Remember that robbery that was all over the news a couple weeks ago? Look at the symbol they left behind.” I pointed.

Her eyes looked uneasy.

”And look here, I took these right outside of our campus.” I pointed again. April remained silent and I couldn’t help but notice the sudden shake in her hand.

I had a lot of time on my hands since I was lounging around all day. My research was impressive in my eyes, but the more that I showed her of this “Foot clan” the more silent and resentful Aprils energy was.

”So. What do you think?” I looked at her with hopeful eyes.

“Well.” April cleared her throat as she adjusted herself in the couch. She was oddly comfortable. “It sounds interesting, but isn’t this project suppose to be interactive?” She asked.

I shrugged my shoulders. “Well that’s where I was hoping to ask for your help.”

April raised an eyebrow.

”I was wondering if you were willing, to maybe let me interview your friends and ask them a few cultural questions.”

“My friends?” She but her lip nervously.

”Yeah… you said they were Japanese right?” I hesitated slightly. April scrunched her face and shook her head. Something was off with her and I had no idea why.

”Oh yes. Those friends.” She nodded. “I don’t know how to say this, but they’re not really… people-ly.” Her lips became tense.

”People-ly?” I repeated.

“Yeahhhhh.” She chuckled. “They don’t really do well with people.” She seemed like she was sugar coating everything. I started to gather that she didn’t really want me to meet her friends. I knew her intentions were pure, but I couldn’t help but feel a little left out. Maybe I wasn’t cool enough for her cool Japanese friends that teach her martial arts.

I decided to keep my follow up question to myself then. Since I was pretty much a coward and knew nothing about self defense, I was going to ask if her friends could teach me a few things.

I threw that idea out the window quick.

”It’s okay. I understand.” I said trying not to look hurt about it. “It just means I’ll have to interview some of the kids at school. Talking to new people is not something I’m good at, but I need the practice.” I said. 

April smiled and switched her focus to the TV. 

“Well it’s still raining, you know what movies go perfect with rain?” She said.

”What?” I asked pulling up my blanket.

”Twilight.”

THANK YOU FOR READING! IF YOU ENJOY, LIKE, COMMENT AND FOLLOW. IT LETS ME MNOW TO WRITE MORE!

“Please, please

Don't leave me be

It's not true

Take me to the roof

Told you not to worry

What do you want from me?

Don't ask questions

Wait a minute

Don't you know I'm no good for you?

Baby, I don't feel so good

And all the good girls go to hell

Bite my tongue, bide my time

What is it about them?

I’m the bad guy”

[canonicallysoulmates]

J2 Gold Panel Nolacon 2023

We start off the panel with Jensen making a dirty joke because the stage reminds him of a lecture hall. It goes: A sex education professor comes into his lecture hall, he’s carrying a banana, and he says today class I’m going to teach you how to put on a condom. I have this banana here because I have a hard time getting an erection on an empty stomach. 🤦‍♀️ This makes Jared laugh and come up with his own joke: Did you hear about the serial killer professor? He always gave a Hannibal lecture. I can’t with these men, let’s get into questions.

Jared is asked about his ACL surgery, he hasn't gotten it yet but says he needs it at which point Jensen makes a knee pun. Jared’s brother has been helping him, and he does need surgery but it's a 4 to 6-month recovery period so until they find out about Walker he can’t risk doing it because he doesn’t want to do it and then get the call that they’re ready for him to film when he can’t move. Unless the season is gonna come back to Walker in the office playing wordle which sends them into a little sidetrack because Jensen mentions he got the wordle of the day in two so Jared asks him if he saw the hat picture at 2:30am he sent to the wordle group that they have, and Jared is so cute because he wants Jensen to look at it at that moment, it was something that had made him laugh but Jensen doesn't have his phone on him but after Jared explained it to him he did remember seeing it. It was just a little moment but I found it cute. Back to Jared's ACL, he’s hoping to rehab it and his brother thinks that maybe if he gets some intense physical therapy he might be able to avoid surgery. 

So when the fan was asking Jared about his knee they said that family should not help you in situations like that meaning if you have a family member whose a doctor they shouldn’t be the one treating you, and Jensen asks why, and says Jared’s doctor is one of the best orthopedic surgeons in Austin. Jared answers that he has asked his brother about this and explains why, for those that don't know, it’s because it's a conflict of interest. Because if you're treating a loved one there's an emotional investment that makes it difficult to be objective, and doctors and surgeons have to be objective in order to do what is best for their patients. x

Jared says some dad jokes, so Jensen mentions that he started watching The Last of Us, and the young girl, Ellie, has a dad joke book and when she says one of the jokes and it cuts to Pedro Pascal's character, Joel, going god, that's so stupid, and it makes him think of Jared 😂 That one of the jokes that got to him was: did you hear diarrhea is hereditary? It runs in your jeans.

Jared makes another joke: sex is hereditary if your parents didn’t have it you probably won’t either. I'll admit that one got a chuckle out of me. x

Continuing with the questions did they steal anything from the set?  Jensen says some things may have made their way into his suitcase. Jared replies that a few times when it was their last day shooting at a specific location for example Bobby’s house, there was a bronze owl paperweight and he wanted it so when it was their last day on that set it “got lost” and then after they said that’s a wrap he went back in to see if there was anything else he wanted to take or wanted to help find a happy home and Jim Beaver was in there and told him he was looking for the owl paperweight so Jared went back and gave it to him. Jensen shares that Jared has the cap of the steering wheel of the Impala that got totaled at the end of s1, that Jared just popped it off, put it in his pocket and it was never seen again. And when he's saying this there's a little in sync moment between the boys: x

Jared says they got some stuff and there were things they wanted but understood they might need for a reshoot but the set dec, props, and wardrobe would do them the solid of checking with WB if they would ever use something again so for example Jared has his white Lucifer suit and au!Sam's purple outfit, Jensen has the lederhosen and the duster from the western episode and he also has the OG Samulet, the original heavy metal one that would try to chip his tooth. Jensen says that one had gotten retired because it was so heavy and dangerous, so they did a mold of it and cast replicas in a lighter metal. But he took home the OG one, and actually included it in the Winchesters pilot. x

The next fan just wants to let them know that fans would love for a picture of them in the Bridge scene to be included in the stuff that is auctioned by Creation. Jensen mentions that scene was an alternate ending because of covid so he's glad that it worked so well. x

There's a character in Days of Our Lives called Marlena that gets possessed, and Jensen was in Days of Our Lives, does he think Dean would have been able to exorcize Marlena? Jensen answers that he believes the priest on that show is Jim Beaver so he should have been handling this a long time ago (that character has gotten possessed more than once). That it would have been interesting to see Dean show up and yeah it’s something the brothers could have knocked out in a weekend. x

When is Jensen going to play Batman? And was it liberating to play Soldier Boy? Jensen doesn’t think you’ll ever hear any actor complaining about playing the bad guy because it is a lot of fun. He says that if you ask Jared what one of his favorite versions of Sam is in SPN he’ll say soulless!Sam because when you get to play the bad guy it’s honestly more cathartic cause Jared is a really good guy in real life so when you get to find your inner asshole it can be cathartic. That Soldier Boy was a lot of fun, and the interesting thing, and he loves talking about this because people will ask how he could play such a horrible character and how did he prepare for it, the thing is Solder Boy doesn’t think he’s horrible, he’s the hero of his own story. 

And that’s something he took from Lee Marvin who answered years ago when asked why he made a career playing bad guys that he’s never played a bad guy in his life. And he thinks if you look at it through that lens it makes a whole lot more sense, Soldier Boy doesn’t think he’s a bad guy he thinks everyone else is in the wrong so that makes for really layered character work, and scene work, it was a lot of fun not to mention the way it was written and the way he related to the other cast memebers and characters on the show.

Asked if he got to improve any of it, he answers that yes. He gives as an example that Soldier Boy pops up for a brief moment on the new spinoff and his little bit was heavily improved. He had Kripke with him on set that day so they were spitballing ideas and coming up with different takes that it's a lot of fun to work at that level with that kind of mind that can throw something out and you're like 'oh! okay I'm gonna do that one' so it's a beautiful collab on that set much like SPN and that’s a testament to Kripke and the kind of worlds he builds and the type of people he puts in them. As for the Batman thing, he doesn’t know but if he gets the phone call he’s in. x

What is something they learned while working on SPN that they’ve since applied to their future projects? They’re kind of struggling to answer and Jared starts to try but he's having trouble so Jensen steps in to give him more time to think. And he answers confidence. Confidence on set, in front of a camera no matter who he is working with says that if he didn’t have the ten thousand hours that he had playing Dean he doesn’t think he would have the confidence he has now to go to a completely foreign set like The Boys or Big Sky or a movie set. He gives as an example when he was on Rust and working alongside Alec Baldwin, who is a legend in the entertainment industry, and shares that there was a moment on set where Baldwin dropped the line and got really upset and was screaming what’s the line and Jensen was just like holding up his phone going this is cool but he thinks had he not gone through what he went through with SPN that would have shook him a bit; he has a certain confidence, not arrogance but confidence that helps him do what he needs to do and that’s something he learned and earned on SPN.

Jared seconds that, and in his head went slightly different the fan asked about projects but he'll say life in general, he’s had a lot of highs and lows in his life and it doesn’t have to be something mental it can just be that he’s tired or physically beat down. They had a great time on SPN but there were times that just sucked like it being 5am and having to do a two-page emotional scene and having only an hour to film because the sun is coming up and just wanting the day to be over those were the days they’d get home and take a shower and get in bed and realize that it felt really good, so just realize there's another side of it. There’s a saying he likes: no feeling is final. When you're feeling beat down whether physically or mentally there's another side to that, you can get through that and he thinks SPN helped get that into him. x

Did Jared have fun doing his Walker Independence cameo, and are we going to see more of that? Jared replies that he had an amazing time there, it’s an amazing cast and crew that build a family over there in Santa Fe and he had a lot of fun. That he was riding horses in between takes and horsing around, and he has an absolute blast on Walker; he hopes he gets the chance to go back to Walker Independence and hopes the show comes back, he thinks if they were shooting in the same place he would have done it more often.  x

Favorite song on SPN outside of Carry On? Jared says he will probably forever love Renegade by Styx (saaaame!) and Space Oddity by David Bowie that those two music cues he’s watched more than a lot of the other clips of SPN he’s watched. Jensen says Eye of the Tiger but he'll also throw in Night Moves by Bob Seger. x

And that marks the end of the panel and as they walk away there's a mini butt pat! x

J2 Gold Panel Nolacon 2023

[punchdrunkdoc]

Part 3, Chapter 3

Summary: After the events of S3, Matt Murdock is trying to once again balance life as a lawyer and a vigilante. But he’s been scarred by loss and betrayal - will a mysterious new neighbour help him heal? Or will her secrets drag him back into the darkness?

Notes: This is a slow burn romance with an original female character, told in 3 (maybe 4??) parts. There is mystery, intrigue, action/violence and angst - all the good stuff!

Also available on AO3 and Wattpad

Masterlist

Reference pics

————–

PART 3

Chapter 3

The next morning, Matt smiled as he walked passed the florist on his way to work, the rich, heady scent of roses filling the air.

Yesterday, that fragrant reminder of the upcoming romantic celebration had only added to his bad mood - the bad mood caused by a week spent worrying about Calina and her strange phone call, and a month and a half spent missing her. The fact that Valentine’s Day was approaching meant he was bitterly reminded of what was taken from them, and what other couple’s took for granted - the chance to be with each other.

But today, he was actually feeling…optimistic.

Calina may have been a few days early, but she’d given him the perfect Valentine’s gift:

Hope.

Her brief visit last night had spurned him out of his morose despondency. It was the catalyst he’d needed to realise that it was time to stop dwelling on the negatives and obsessing over what they’d lost.

Instead, it was time to focus on the positives. They were both still alive. Still healthy. And still fighting for each other. Distance didn’t matter. Being temporarily separated didn’t matter. They loved each other. They would have the rest of their lives together. A few months apart was nothing compared to the years to come.

Matt had been dealt some crap hands throughout his life - losing his sight. Losing his father. Losing again and again. But he’d always found a reason to stay in the game. To accept the defeats and find the will to carry on playing.

This was no different.

He just had to have faith that God’s plan would reveal itself.

And this morning, he felt like he was finally getting a glimpse of the tapestry. He was finally seeing the beauty in the chaos. This separation would only strengthen them as a couple. It would serve to reinforce their bond, and ensure that they never took each other - or their happiness together - for granted.

“You seem…better,” Karen commented when Matt reached the office.

Matt shrugged. “I feel better.”

“That’s good.” She gifted him with a wide smile, and Foggy patted him on the shoulder.

It made Matt realise how much his foul mood had been impacting his friends and their workplace. “I’m sorry, guys,” he said. “For being such a miserable bastard the last couple of months.”

“I wouldn’t say ‘miserable bastard’,” Foggy replied. “That’s a bit harsh. ‘Forlorn asshole’, maybe. Or ‘wretched son of a bitch’ would be more accurate.”

Matt laughed. “Okay, okay, I get it. I’ll try to be more upbeat from now on.”

“What brought on this sudden change in attitude?” Foggy asked.

Matt couldn’t help his smile. “I saw Calina last night.”

“So you got laid! That explains everything!”

Karen slapped Foggy’s chest with the back of her hand. “God, Foggy.”

Matt just laughed. “No, it was just a quick visit. But it helped give me some perspective. It’s like you said, Fog - this is just a long distance relationship. It won’t last forever…and other couples go through similar experiences all the time.”

“Exactly, man. Astronauts.”

Matt smiled. “Yeah. Astronauts.”

“She’s Neil Armstrong, and you’re the little lady waiting back on earth.”

Matt rolled his eyes. “Something like that.”

“Okay,” Foggy said, rubbing his hands together. “Well, since you’re in such a good mood, you can take point on the meeting with the new nightmare client, while I finish off the brief for the Chisholm case.”

“Nightmare client?” Matt asked.

“Yeah, a tenant dispute case. They’re arriving at 10.”

“Fine,” Matt agreed. Liaising with a difficult client was the least he could do to make up for his less than stellar performance the last couple of months. “But I have something to do first.” He held up the USB drive that Calina had slipped to him last night.

“What’s that?” Karen asked.

“I’ll let you know as soon as I do.”

Matt booted up his computer and plugged in the device. It contained a single large document which he printed off in braille and started scanning through. At first there was just a list of chemicals - the results of the analysis by the Widow scientist - but then Calina added some context.

And it changed everything.

“Guys?” he called out. “You gotta hear this.”

“What is it?” Karen said, taking a seat on the other side of his desk. Foggy joined them a moment later and leaned against the door frame.

“Calina found something.” Matt spun his monitor around to show the document on the screen. “Apparently, one of the main ingredients of the fear pheromone is something called Arsonium bromide. Its a chemical that environmental groups have been calling for greater regulation on, because it’s disposal has been linked to soil contamination which is affecting agriculture yields across the country. Those environmental groups were successful in convincing a prominent politician to lobby their cause to the EPA last year.”

“Okay,” Karen said slowly. “How does this help us?”

“That prominent politician was Governor Andrew Benson.”

“The guy Calina was supposed to assassinate?”

“Yes.” Matt leaned forward as he laid out Calina’s theory. “Two days after the failed assassination, Benson suddenly, and without warning, withdrew his petition to the EPA, and walked back all his previous objections to the chemical.”

“Somebody got to him,” Karen added. “Somebody with a vested interest in the use of Arsonium bromide.”

“Exactly. With Benson’s support, the environmental groups were gaining traction in their fight. So someone tried to take Benson out. And when that failed, they likely played off the assassination attempt as a warning.”

“Do as we say, or next time it’ll be for real,” Foggy guessed. “Which means whoever is behind the manufacture of the fear pheromone-”

“Is the same person who arranged for Calina to be reactivated,” Karen finished.

“It’s all connected,” Matt said. “If we find out who created the pheromone, we find out who ordered Calina’s mind control. And vice versa - if we can find out who paid to have their very own Widow assassin, we find our pheromone guy.”

“Holy shit,” Karen whispered, tilting the monitor so she could read through the information on the screen.

“I take it the Widows are concentrating on finding out who bought Calina’s ‘services’, for want of a better term?” Foggy asked, reading the screen over Karen’s shoulder.

“As much as they can - but they’re more focussed on hunting down Volkov. He’s the bigger threat to them right now. Which means we’ll be doing them a favour if we find this information first.”

“So where do we begin?” Foggy asked.

“I say we concentrate on researching this chemical. Where its manufactured, who buys it, and how.”

“I’ll start today,” Karen answered, scribbling in her notebook.

“What does this mean?” Foggy said, pointing to something on Matt’s screen.

“Which part?” Matt asked, shuffling through his print outs.

“The last sentence. It says, ‘I hope this helps, shereen-am.’ What is ‘shereen-am’?”

Matt tried to control his reaction. “It’s nothing. Just an inside joke.”

It wasn’t nothing. And it wasn’t a joke. But it was something private, just between Matt and Calina. He’d googled the phrase before calling the others into his office and found that it was a Persian term of endearment. Roughly translated from Farsi into English it meant ‘Honey’.

By using that term, Calina was reminding him of Christmas Day, when she’d whispered all those terms of endearment into his ear as they’d made love on the couch.

She was reminding him of a happier time, to help get him through the dark and lonely days to come.

Matt smiled as he skimmed his fingers over that word again: Shereen-am.

Calina’s visit last night had given him hope. The information on the USB had given him a lead. And the affectionate nickname on the end of her message had given him a glimpse of how things would be between them in the future.

It was a promise, of better times ahead.

———

“And then he grabbed her and kissed her!”

“It was like something out of a movie - the way he dipped her back, and with the two of them bathed in the moonlight with the stars twinkling overhead…”

Calina groaned and sank into her chair as Katya and Inessa gushed to the other Widows about Matt’s antics on the boat last night. The three of them had arrived back at the mansion at dawn, and after a brief nap, they were now debriefing the rest of the team.

But it had gotten a little side-tracked.

“‘Bathed in the moonlight’?” Sofia repeated. “Come on, Inessa, I think you’ve been reading too many of those romance novels.”

“But that’s exactly what it was like!” the younger Widow protested. “It was the most romantic, swoon-worthy thing I’ve ever seen!”

“That’s not really saying much, given the way we were raised,” Viktoria commented.

Inessa rolled her eyes, and opened her mouth to respond but Anya cut her off. “Enough about Calina’s love life. Did you find the warehouse?”

Calina sat up again. “Yes, enough about me. Tell them what you found.”

Anya had found mention on Ranieri’s laptop of a recent real estate transaction. Which wasn’t unusual in itself - the Ranieri family seemed to prioritise property and commercial investments over gambling on the stock market. But while the rest of Salvatore’s portfolio made sense for a party guy in his late twenties - night clubs, bars, trendy apartments in major cities across the world - a former wholesale carpet warehouse in an industrial estate in New Jersey did not.

So Katya and Inessa had been tasked with scoping it out. 

Katya tossed a USB stick to Anya. “Photographs and schematics as requested. The place was deserted - no personnel on the grounds - but it was spotless, with signs of a recent professional clean. It’s definitely being prepped for something.”

“Like a lab to manufacture the mind control serum,” Sofia guessed.

“Possibly,” Yelena interjected. “But we can’t get ahead of ourselves. We need more evidence. We need to be sure before we make any moves.”

“Agreed,” Anya chimed in.

“Which is why we planted a few cameras,” Inessa said with a cocky grin. “And several bugs. We’ll know soon enough what the plan is for that building.”

“Good,” Yelena responded. She looked around the room at the rest of the Widows. And a rare smile graced her face. “I know I just told you all to be cautious…but I have a good feeling about this. I think this is how we get Volkov. I think this will all be over soon.”

Several of the women whooped and cheered in response - a sign that Calina wasn’t the only one who was looking forward to this confinement ending.

And it also proved to Calina how much the Widows had come out of their shells over the last few months. They laughed more readily now. They expressed their emotions without prompting. Conversations flowed instead of stuttered, and there was an easy camaraderie between everyone.

The stilted, angry, and bitter atmosphere that often pervaded the base in South Carolina didn’t exist here in Maine. And Calina knew it had nothing to do with the change in scenery - the weather outside the mansion was dark and grey and wet these days, holding little of the sunny, vibrant beauty of Charleston.

Time was the reason.

They’d been given time to start the healing process. To learn about themselves and the world around them. Time to find their little moments of joy.

Joy that even Volkov couldn’t take away. If anything, the looming threat that he posed had the opposite effect - as if the Widows were defiantly enjoying themselves even more to spite him and his attempts to force them back into an emotionless, violent existence.

Calina would be sorry to leave this place when the time came. She no longer felt the need to escape this environment. Not like in the beginning, when she’d first been freed. Back then, she’d felt suffocated by all the pain and rage around her. She’d wanted to strike out on her own and discover who she was away from that toxic environment.

But everything was different now. Now she would miss living here with all her sisters.

Though not as much as she missed Matt.

Seeing him last night had been a rollercoaster ride. She’d swung from the lowest low of wanting to escape his presence, to the highest high from that kiss. Because as much as it made Calina cringe, Inessa’s description had been spot-on - it had been the most wonderful, romantic, swoon-worthy gesture in the history of the world.

But on the journey back to Maine, the high had worn off. And all her doubts and fears - and all the guilt - had come flooding back.

And all of it boiled down to one thing - she didn’t feel worthy of him.

She didn’t feel worthy of the kind of man who would fly a hundred feet through the air just to kiss her. She didn’t feel worthy of a man as amazing and kind and smart as Matt. A man who fiercely protected the strangers in his city, and could touch her with such reverent tenderness.

The kiss had made her forget all that. It had short-circuited her brain and over-rode all her negative emotions, until the only thing left was passion. She’d given in to the moment, to the feel of being in Matt’s arms again.

Which she’d known would happen. It was the reason she’d chosen that cramped, awkward crane jib as their meeting point in the first place. She’d known that if they’d met in his apartment, or on the pier - or anywhere else out in the open - he would have taken her in his arms and she would have been powerless to resist. She would have accepted his embrace and returned his kiss all the while feeling undeserving of him.

So she’d chosen that metal cage instead, as a way to deny herself.

As a punishment.

But he’d gotten around her little ploy. He’d kissed the life out of her on that boat deck, and everything else had faded away. How guilty she felt about Italy. How scared she was that if he truly knew her and everything she’d done as a Widow that he’d hate her.

How terrified she was that they were too good to be true.

“Calina!”

Calina lifted her head at the sound of her name. The other widows were all staring at her. “Huh?” she asked.

“You spaced out there,” Inessa explained.

“Sorry. Just tired,” she lied. “I’m going to head back to bed.”

The chorus of ‘Byes’ and ‘Sleep wells’ from her sisters followed Calina up the stairs, but she was already lost in thought again.

She didn’t know what to do about Matt and all these doubts she was having.

Did she share them with him? Admit her fears about not being worthy of his love? Could she even explain them without having to divulge all the dirty secrets of her past? Wouldn’t that just bring about the end of their relationship and defeat the purpose of the whole ‘sharing’ thing?

Calina fell forward onto her bed and smothered her frustrated groan with her pillow. Then she flipped onto her back and stared up at the ceiling as she contemplated the alternative scenario: being with Matt, with this constant pit of worry in her stomach. Revelling in his affection and his love whilst always waiting for the other shoe to drop.

A tear leaked from the corner of Calina’s eye as she wrestled with all of these unfamiliar emotions. A tiny part of her longed for the days of being an unfeeling automaton…but she quickly squashed that treacherous notion.

This was better.

Despite all the uncertainty and pain and confusion, dealing with these emotions was far better than living as a shell of a human being under the Red Room’s control.

“Hey, you okay?”

Calina hastily wiped away the tear as Katya entered their room. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Liar,” Katya teased, taking a seat on the edge of the bed. “You’ve not been okay since Italy. Did something else happen there?”

Calina levered herself up to rest against the headboard. “What do you mean?”

“Well, when you debriefed us after the mission you said Ranieri just got a bit handsy. Did something…more…happen that night? You can tell me.”

Calina shook her head. “No, nothing else happened.”

“So what is it? What’s going on with you?”

Calina’s first instinct was to lie again. To keep everything to herself. It was the way she was raised - the way they all had been. Even before the mind control serum took away their emotions they were trained to hide them. To bury their sadness and their loneliness and their pain. To never confide in anyone how they were feeling.

It was a difficult habit to break, but Calina was determined to tear away this next layer of Red Room conditioning. So she took a deep breath and told Katya everything. How she’d called Matt before the party in Italy. How having Ranieri’s hands on her felt. And how it was all messing with her head. “I know intellectually that nothing really happened,” she explained. “It was just a few unwanted gropes and a kiss on the neck - I’ve been through much worse on missions like that - but I just feel so…guilty. I keep imagining if it was Matt in that situation, and he’d let some other woman touch him. I would hate it. Which means I can’t tell him, because then he’d hate me.”

“You don’t know that for sure,” Katya interjected. “If you just explain to him that it was a mission and you were playing a role-”

“But that would just open up this whole can of worms. About all the other roles I’ve played in the past, and the things I’ve done-”

“While under mind control, Calina.”

“Again, I know that intellectually…but don’t you still feel guilty about everything you did while under the serum?”

Katya smiled. “I feel guilty for stabbing you in Seoul.”

Calina rolled her eyes. “I’m being serious. We all did some really messed up shit for Dreykov. Doesn’t that…stick with you at all?”

Katya looked down as she picked at a loose thread in the bedspread. “Occasionally. Usually at night - my dreams are sometimes…not fun.”

Calina placed her hand over Katya’s remembering what it was like when she first arrived in New York - the endless nights spent pacing the rooftop, unable to sleep. “I’m sorry.”

Katya shrugged. “It’s fine. They’re just memories. The important thing is that I don’t blame myself for it. And you’re not to blame either. We were kids when we were brainwashed, and then we were forced against our will to commit all those acts.”

“But what about now? We’re acting on our own free will, and we’re still murdering and stealing-”

“Yes, to stop the bad guys!” Katya protested. “We’re on the side of good now. And we have the rest of our lives to be on that good side, and to make up for everything we’ve done”

“Can we, though? Can we possibly balance a ledger with so much red in it?”

“Now you sound like Natasha. And look what she’s accomplished. She’s an Avenger. Little girls all over the world want to be like her, because she’s a hero. We can be like that too.”

“I don’t think I’ll ever feel like a hero. Matt’s a hero, and he-”

It was Katya’s turn to roll her eyes. “You know I like Matt, but he’s not exactly squeaky-clean. He’s a vigilante - he breaks the law every night.”

“It’s different. He has a moral code. One I’ve violated again and again. If he ever found out the truth about me, he’d hate me.”

Katya studied her for a few moments, a frown marring her face. “Calina, what is the ‘truth’ about you?”

Calina swallowed harshly. When she finally answered, her voice was small and shaky. “That I’m not a good person.”

Katya reared back. “That’s ridiculous! You were brainwashed and under mind control-”

“I’m not talking about that! Since leaving the Red Room, I’ve abandoned my sisters, I’ve lied to everyone I’ve met, I’ve killed people, and I- I cheated on my boyfriend!”

“You didn’t cheat!”

“What would you call it?”

“I call it necessary! We’re fighting a war here, Calina. And wars are messy, and they involve sacrifice and difficult decisions. Killing the men who came after you, lying to protect your identity and going undercover to steal from Ranieri were difficult decisions, but necessary.”

“But-”

“I’m not finished!”

Calina snapped her mouth closed. She’d never seen Katya like this - so agitated and…loud. She’d always been one of the quieter, more rational Widows.

“As to your other ‘sin’,” Katya continued. “You did not abandon us. You came to save me in Korea - you risked your life to save me. That’s not abandonment. And the other widows told me what you were like after you were freed - they could all see you were struggling. Moving to New York was another necessary decision. You know why?”

“Why?”

“Because you’re a good person. You were never cut out for this kind of life. Even as kids we realised that you were too sweet and sensitive. And the Red Room persisted in trying to beat that out of you, but they never could. Despite what you’ve been through and what you were forced to do, you’re still that same sweet, sensitive, good person. It’s why you’re feeling all of this so much more than the rest of us. And while we all appreciate your help with taking down Volkov, if you want to leave again, not one person would blame you.”

She bumped her shoulder against Calina’s. “We love you, Calina. You are worthy of love. You just need to convince yourself of that.”

————–

So do we think Katya got through to Calina? Does she believe now that she's worthy of Matt?

Read chapter 4 to find out...

Tag list: @hollandorks @stilldreaming666 @yanna-banana @chezagnes​ @tearoseart-blog @acharliecoxedfan​ @freckledbabyyy ​​

If you’d like to be added - let me know!

[morganwrites12672]

r slowly falling in love with blind!max mayfield...

thoughts?

YES OMG YES, also you said thoughts and I spent way to much time on this...

That's brilliant, because in S5, she will most likely be blind, and may have some other health issues due to A STUPID FUCKER NAMED JASON CARVER WHO TRIED TO KILL LUCAS WHILE LUCAS WAS WITH MAX. AND IF WE GOT RID OF JASON MAX WOULD BE PERFECTLY FINE AND HER WALKMAN WOULD HAVE FUCKING SAVED HER

Also, in this one Vecna died in S4

Blind!Max Mayfield x Reader

May 4, 1988 (Yn's pov, with a little bit of Max's pov)

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

Max was at the park again today. You had only had a brief conversation with her. She had lost her sight in a car accident, it just happened to have happened outside the old Creek house.

You shake off the thoughts, the thoughts that what she was saying wasn't true, and go talk to her. Your footsteps are loud so she doesn't get to spooked.

"Max, it's Yn," you call out when you are only a few feet away. She turns to the direction that your voice came from and you see a ghost of a smile on her face.

"Hey Yn," Max offers a small wave. You wave back, and then mentally kick yourself, she can't see your wave. You were an idiot.

"How's your Mom?" You ask. Her Mom had been so freaked out after everything. This town really was cursed, and Max's poor mom. Her step son was killed in a tragic mall fire, her husband left her, and her daughter was almost killed. You didn't blame her for drinking.

"Steve dropped me off," Max replies and you sit down next to her. You knew what that meant. Her Mom wants doing well, most likely still asleep, that was why Max had called Steve.

It had taken Max a week to have Steve's phone number memorized, it took her a month to learn how to use the phone without her sight.

She learned braille after a while. A little book of phone numbers sits next to the phone. All I'm braille, a reminder of what Vecna had done.

"I could give you my number and I could pick you up next time? Only if you want," you say. God, you sounded like an idiot. You just wanted to help her, not in a pity way. You just knew she hated being helpless.

"I can't read," she reminds with a laugh, you let out a little laugh to.

"I know braille, let me write it down," you say and grab the little notepad in your pocket. You scribble down the number and hand it to her.

She runs her fingers over it and you can see a small smile appear on her face. She couldn't believe you knew braille, or even would be willing to drive her.

Max heard a honk and got up, "Thanks Yn," she says and grabs her walking stick before slinging her backpack over her shoulder and leaving. You smile and say goodbye.

It was nice to have a friend.

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

May 4, 1988 (Steve's Pov)

Steve honked the horn and saw Max with a girl, he recognized the girl. He had seen her and Max talking a few times before.

He saw Max get up and grab her stuff, slowly walking back to his car. She usually called him or one of the other boys to drive her to the park on the weekend.

She didn't usually let Steve stay, and Steve didn't know why the park. She said it was peaceful.

"Thanks Steve," Max says when she gets in the car. Steve notices she looks a little happy.

"It's no problem, really. It's not like I have anything better to do," Steve told the girl. It was true, when he wasn't working he didn't do much other then hang out with the kids.

Max then slipped in her walkman, and Steve knew she was done talking. She hadn't been very open to anybody about anything.

Pushing everybody away, Steve was worried about max.

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

May 29, 1988 (Yn's Pov)

You had been seeing Max every saturday. She was always dropped off by some guy she said was Steve, but today she was dropped off by a curly haired boy. He had brown hair, and he looked like he was only 16 or so.

"Max," you say and she waves in the direction of your voice. Over the last few months you had known her she had always been good at knowing where the voice had come from.

Max walks over, and sits next to you, "Hey, Yn," she says with a smile. You notice she seems more happy then usual.

Her shoulders aren't hunched, she's sitting up straight. Her smile is wider, and lasts longer.

"Who was the kid?" You ask. You had never seen him before. She hadn't told you much of her past, other then a mom who was trying her best and Steve. She told you about Steve a lot.

"Dustin, he is apart of this friend group I used to hang out with a lot," Max replies. She had mentioned there were some kids she used to be close with, but she told you she didn't talk with many people anymore.

"Oh, that's cool," you say and she laughs a little. You didn't know what was funny.

"He's pretty awesome," she says. You were slightly confused but went with it. He probably stood up to some bullies, or he is popular in school. Maybe she even has a crush on him.

"I like your laugh," you say and she blushes. She mumbles a thanks. Her laugh was a nice sound. Kind of like hearing your mom's voice after a long day.

"I haven't seen you at school before," Max comments and then laughs, "I mean I told Lucas about you and he hasn't ever even seen you," Max says and you tell her you go to a school a few miles from there.

"Oh, that cool," Max says in reply. You both carry on in some basic small talk, and she tells you about her old friend group.

She talks until you hear the telltale honk, and see Dustin. He waves, and you wave back. You hand max her backpack as she grabs her waking stick.

"Bye, Yn," Max says.

"See you Saturday," you reply.

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

June 1, 1988 (Yn's Pov with more some thoughts from Max)

You were sitting at home after school. Completely bored out of your mind when you heard your phone ring.

You picked it up, "This is Yn,"

"Uh, hey it's max?" The girl says and you recognize her voice.

"Oh! Hey," you tell her

"I called four other people before I get your number right," she laughs and you let out a little snort.

"Shit," you say in reply.

"Um, you said I could calm if I needed a ride?" Max almost asks.

"I am your own personal chauffeur," you say.

"Cool, do you want to maybe go to the diner? Steve said he saw one around the park," Max says and you smile.

"Where do I need to pick you up from?"

--

You were deciding between a strawberry and a vanilla milkshake. Max had picked a strawberry.

"Screw it, strawberry," you told the waiter. He smiled at you and ran to go out in your orders.

"This place seems pretty nice," you tell her. She smiles at you.

"Steve had a shitty time with women, but he can pick a place to eat," Max says with a small laugh.

You giggle in response. You both engage in small talk, how's school, what did you do last night, the basics.

The waiter brings out your milkshakes and you thank him before putting the straw in Max's and handing it to her.

"Oh, thanks," Max says and smiles again as she tries it, "I pick the best milkshake flavors," she jokes and upon trying yours, she is definitely right.

"So, are you and Lucas still a thing?" You ask nonchalantly. She had mentioned that they dated, never saying if they still were

"No, we were on and off for a few years, we finally decided we were better off as friends," Max tells you before taking another sip of her milkshake.

"Few years?" You ask in shock and she nods. A few years? No guy had been interested in you for more then a week or two.

You both finished your milkshakes, you left some cash on the table, and went out to the car. Max thanked you for taking her out, and you told her it was no problem.

You made basic small talk, nothing special. But max was. After everything she had been through, everything she had lost, she was still happy and smiling.

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

August 28, 1988 (Yn's Pov)

You had been driving Max to the park every Saturday, and Wednesday. You both went there to hang out, and sometimes would stop by the diner before hand to pick up lunch or milkshakes.

But today Steve had wanted to drive Max. Either he missed her or he had something to tell her.

"Okay, Yn. I need to tell you something," Max says and you can tell by the way she is fidgeting that something is wrong. Very wrong.

"You know you can tell me anything," you say. You liked her, you didn't know how it happened. You had always enjoyed her laugh, smile, just being with her.

"You know that girl? Barb, the one who disappeared a while ago? The government cover up was a lie. Same with the mall fire, and same with me," Max says before she tells you everything.

Barb wasn't killed by a chemical leak. She was killed by some beast that drug her to another world. A parallel universe, something called the Upside Down. It had Demo-Dogs and Demogorgons, monster bats and a thing called Vecna.

And it wasn't a mall fire, it was the Mind Flayer. Any death that has occurred in the last five years, was most likely due to the alternate universe.

"Are you okay?" You ask. Having been through all of that, there was no way it didn't take a huge toll on your mental health.

"What? No, I'm fine just blind," she replies a little confused. She was fine, minor side effects. She was still better then Bob, and better then Billy.

"Not physically, mentally. How is your mental health?" You say and she lets out a sad laugh.

"It's complete shit," she replies and you grab her hand she blushes and you start to recall your hand, "No, it's nice," she says.

You feel heat creeping onto your cheeks and are thankful she can't see how much you are blushing.

"I think I like you, more then just like a friend," Max admits and you smile. She liked you back.

"Can I kiss you?" You ask and Max replies by leaning in to kiss you. You find her lips and softly kiss her before pulling away, both breathless.

"That's it, wow," You say and Max sighs.

"Incredible," max says with another happy sigh. You both hear a car honks, Steve had driven max this time.

Max gets up and grabs her stuff before slowly waving and walking back, you tell a bye and she yells back.

You would see her again in a few days and couldn't wait. You would definitely be calling her tonight.

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

August 28, 1988 (Stevie's pov)

Steve had waited a minute before honking after the girls kissed. He knew they liked each other, he knew from the second he noticed how Max was happier.

He couldn't be more happy as he honked and Max came, as fast as she could. The girls waved bye, and Steve swore his heart grew Three sizes.

They were in love, young love was so cute to watch. Watching Max and Yn, it would be nice after everything they had been through.

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

I spent hours on this, and I have no regrets. Not a single one.

Please reblog this if you enjoyed.

My requests are open, if you check my pinned post it has all of the people and fandoms I write for.

[storiesofsvu]

Happy Thursday hoes, let’s get to it!

Todays pros: citytv thinks im in TO so I’m getting it started at six!

Cons: no subtitles.

Alright, OG up first.

Love this new detective that’s a fanboy of everyone, makes me miss rollins lol

Pls let it be a female perp. We love a good female perp.

Okay seriously, this very subtle shaky cam is fucking terrible and hurts my head.

The GROAN I let out at the sight of Samantha in her well fitted pants suit sitting there like a fucking badass pissed off look on her face. Ma’am. Please. (yes, she is the only reason I watch this show)

Okay, the pedo may be the only eye witness, but they still have blood on the murderers pants, don’t they? Would that not tie it together enough? Or is it because the eye witness was the one who lead them to him? God I hate the legal system.

I REALLY wish this show would show more of the arguing between Nolan and Sam, like these two do NOT see eye to eye or have the same opinions on basically anything. And while I know major fighting would be called unprofessional, we at least used to see the lawyers get into it, or bantering. There’s so many times that you can tell just by the look of her face that Sam’s pissed, that she doesn’t think highly of him or his decisions on cases, like she hates him. I wanna see that play out on screen LOL

SVU time!

Let’s see if this week is any better than the last ones

Liv back in therapy, we love to see it.

A crumb of EO? Will that keep the crazies at bay? (like, I don’t even ship it but fuck am I sick of it now, the baiting is hella annoying and terrible, make it happen or not, don’t keep leading the actual ship fans on…)

Uhhh… is there not some kind of patient dr confidentiality? Like this bitch could have just lost her job (esp with someone like mcgrath involved… wtf..)

ITS THIS KIND OF SHIT THAT MAKES ME FERAL. In previous episodes they’ve had situations where shrinks couldn’t testify when they were the ONE witness, and like the entire case went into the trash because of it based off this exact type of situation… where TF is the continuity??

Okay… so she’s a minor so I can see the loophole here, BUT the therapist should have told her parents….

I knew it wasn’t the math tutor…

Ok… so mcgrath threatens to kill the math tutor, but when they’re picking up the son across the street he goes rage on benson?? And the iab captain? Shouldn’t you be attempting to punch the kid or something? God I really hope this ep is his last…

“can you drop that to me?” good thing Bruno’s there cause fin would have ZERO ideas on how to do that…

“until the age of 25 the male brain is about as useful as an electrified meatball” jfc… that wins for best line of the night.

Where the fuck is Velasco? Like.. man deserves his paycheques too..

Okay, mcgrath’s wife needs to shut the fuck up, liv’s trying to help her daughter and she accuses liv of gunning for mcgrath’s job.. jfc..

I was expecting mcgrath to throw hands not pull out his fucking GUN jfc… and like.. that was infront of two cars, that’s gonna be on a dash cam somewhere…

This is one of those one case turns into 4 but there’s only 5 mins left of the episode… cmon…

“I guess I didn’t see it in myself…” THANK YOU I was just gonna bring up the whole half assed back plot of mcgrath being abusive… (which is on par for cops, and ironic that the woman playing his wife was the wife of a cop who abused/raped her in 1.o)

This very much seems like a good bye. Pls let it be a good bye. Petition to bring back Garland!

Okay… im confused, I looked at my phone for 5 seconds and lost track of what was happening. Is the iab captain joining svu, cause that doesn’t work…theyre both captains. Or is she saying she’ll be filling in for mcgrath in the meantime??

Onto OC!

Okay, I am incredibly thankful for carisi on oc, but he’s the *sex crimes* ada.. not the only Manhattan ada, he wouldn’t be prosecuting this case… lol

Me: “wait I thought he was an officer.”

Reyes: “detective?” *side eye*

Me: ah yes, okay he was promoted the writers didn’t forget between weeks.

God this entitled pos teenager… wtf… its not *your* house bitch.

Ah, thank god, here’s the arguing that was missing in OG, not surprised its Elliot. Lol.

Oh god..the bratty teen overheard that didn’t she? Fuck..

God… this girl is gonna blow the entire thing, isn’t she? Like, in todays day and age with all the social media and how teenagers (and some adults) don’t know how to go without it, there’s no way they’d cut contact with everyone and delete socials and keep things quiet.

Aaaaaannd here we go. 5 seconds in and she’s blown their new location. (also WHY would the cops even tell them the location? That seems like something they wouldn’t do until they were halfway there…)

Okay… we’re missing a daughter.. I don’t know if this is supposed to be Maureen or elizabeth but I’m assuming liz as it looks like her kids are twins and she was the twin… Also where’s dickie? (I know the brother said something about someone not being able to get a flight? Im just deaf and without subtitles I couldn’t tell ya what exactly was said lol)

How old is this younger brother supposed to be? The only info online I can find is the actor is 50 which im not sure I believe.

Okay there’s dickie he’s in the background!

These guys KNEW they were in a high risk situation and none of them have a vest anywhere near them? ARE WE DUMB?! IS IT OUR FIRST DAY ON THE JOB?

Okay, there’s the other kid.

Maureen and Kathleen giving side eye while sipping their drinks while the tea is being spilt is the highlight of this moment.

This is SOOO awkward for everyone else at the table jfc… ESPECIALLY Eli’s poor girlfriend.. like. Welcome to the family drama, don’t worry we never have to come back…

Why the fuck did jet not grab the other gun?!

Me: unfazed at Elliot body slamming a teenager.

Bell: *casually* “I’m shot”

Me: ARE YOU FUCKING FOR REAL RIGHT NOW

THIS CANNOT BE HAPPENING IF WE FUCKING LOSE HER I WILL ACTUALLY RIOT.

(BUT ALSO MAY WE STEP BACK TO 8 LINES EARLIER WHERE I WAS YELLING ABOUT THEM NOT HAVING VESTS ON?!)

I knew this other captain was going to be coming more into play, but im pissed its cause bell’s out with a gunshot wound.

Christ.

Okay well, another week and OC is continuing it’s reign as superior of the three!

Some pics for context/hilarity

[sophisticatedgia]

My workout didn't feel as fulfilling as usual because I got a phone call that lasted about 4 or 5 mins which slowed me down. I am a bit ADHD or really ADHD and OCD. I'm trying to let go of that feeling of disappointment. I went to store got 2 organic bananas, acai berry almond milk yogurt, two hydration primes, and an orange dreamsicle energy drink for tomorrows workout. If my boyfriend goes to see his dog today I will have some time to myself. Which is kewl. Because it makes me feel the silence within and outside of me, some peace. For awhile there I was having immense anxiety and intrusive thoughts. My psychiatrist upping my OCD medication has helped a lot I realize. I wonder though if she should up it more. She is a good woman, she doesn't like to overdo medicational prescriptions. I'm sure she will be pleased with my progress and say it's unnecessary to up the dosage. It's just little things like checking for my key, wallet, folding clothes perfectly, compulsively wanting to get my workout just right. But I can handle myself. I can handle it. It's not like it used to be at all. I have a great love for my psychiatrist for some reason. Maybe it's the compassionate, feminine, intuitive vibe she radiates. She is a bigger woman with long brownish red hair. Brown doe eyes and a calming depth in her voice. Except since beginning our meetings one of her eyes has drooped. Is it stress doing that? Once I mistakenly hit on her. I said "I like a woman with bigger hair" I've told you guys this before but I was so so embarrassed. I talked to my therapist about it for three sessions lol. This world is strange and forceful. I must be my own force. I love Courtney loves quote, "I am not a woman, I am a force of nature"! a mutual of mine told me I looked like Courtney love omg! I always thought I did. But no one ever told me such a statement. I also have been told that I look like Chloe sevigny. Took that as an insult. Though Chloe is cool it's whatever. I love her name Atleast. When I used to play sims I would make my character name Chloe. I think I enjoyed the movie "party monster" w Chloe sevigny in it. Back in the dizzzay. Thank you God for this day this space this life i love and live and may all beings be warmed lightly and wholly with Your love and tender solace. I wrote to my ex best friend. I'm smiling now. Thank you.🐾

[welldonebeca]

Android Hero (4)

WC: 1.5k words Warnings: Future AU. Tension. Robot Steve. Smut. Sex toys. Degrading kink. Dirty talk. Orgasm denial. Orgasm control.

If you like my work, consider buying me a coffee or subscribing to my Patreon. It’s just $2 a month and helps a lot while I go through these hard times.

Masterlist

"Hey," you heard a little knock.

You moved your eyes from the design in front of you, turning to find Pietro standing by your open door.

"Hey," you spoke slowly.

The thoughts rushed through your mind. It happened every single day: Pietro's secretary screwed things up, he'd knock on your door, and you would have to go there to explain how things were supposed to be done as if she hadn't been formally trained and worked in your family's company for over seven months.

"Are you busy?" your older brother asked. "Christie screwed up my schedule for the day, I have three meetings scheduled for the same time, I need your help to fix it."

You sighed. Since you were little, you always did everything for your brother, which would usually come at the expense of your time.

This secretary wasn't ever good, she was just some fucking eye-candy for Pietro.

Steve always told you to just let him suffer the consequences of her lack of work abilities.

"Sorry, I can't," you answered, at last. "This is a bad time."

Your older brother looked at you with surprise, and his eyes moved to the screen of your computer.

"Do you want me to come back later?" he offered.

You grimaced.

"Actually, I think I'll be busy with this the whole day," you decided. "But if she still needs help, maybe ask Wanda's secretary? I heard Agatha is amazing with the system."

He sighed.

"Come on," he insisted. "You're my sister, and you know Wanda! If I ask, she will think it is time we let her go."

"Maybe it is," you looked back at your project, not giving him space to argue. "And call Darcy into my office on your way out, please? I need to ask her for a few things, and my intercom isn't working."

You really needed to get that thing fixed.

You could hear him sigh in frustration, but Pietro didn't insist, walking - well, stomping - out.

Before you could go back to work, a little message popped up on your screen.

"Has he come over to ask you yet, miss?" it read.

Steve.

You blinked at the screen.

Oh, that cheeky bot.

You reached for your phone and called him.

"Hello, miss," he greeted you.

"How did you know?"

He chuckled on the other side.

"Well, it's almost lunchtime," he explained. "He usually comes right before lunch to ask you to cover for his secretary."

You scoffed.

"He just left," you sighed. "I told him to go ask Wanda's secretary."

You heard a little knock on your door frame.

"Ma'am?" Darcy asked. "May I come in?"

"I'll leave you be, miss," Steve decided, and hang up.

You sighed. For a bot, he was just as hard to decipher as a human.

"Yes," you confirmed. "Come inside."

She stepped in, and you jumped, startled, when you felt the toy inside you vibrating.

Oh, God.

Steve had convinced you to let him put a Bluetooth vibrator in you before you left home. You had entirely forgotten about it.

Until now.

"Darcy," you exhaled. "Can you... uh..."

She raised her eyebrows, questioning you, and looked confused.

"I don't want visitors today," you moved your hands under your table, squeezing the desk, and the toy moved a little faster on your clit. "No one who hasn't bothered to schedule."

Your secretary nodded, though you could see she still looked puzzled.

"And after lunch, I want someone to come to replace or fix my intercom. Whichever is easier and faster."

"Are your siblings included in the no-visitors list, ma'am?" she asked.

You swallowed down.

"Yes," you confirmed.

She nodded, and you felt her eyes moving over your face.

"Are you alright, ma'am?" she asked. "You look flushed."

You opened your mouth about your answer, but felt the vibrator moving faster, stimulating both your clit and your sweet spot.

"Yes," you spoke between your teeth. "You can leave now.  And close the door behind you."

The second Darcy closed the door, you crossed your legs, trying to ride the vibrator inside you discreetly.

Your phone vibrated on the table once more, and you picked it up, clenching your jaw.

"Steve," you hissed.

“Careful, miss,” he instructed. “The camera is right on you.”

You swallowed down, seeing the 360º camera in the middle of your office.

“Please,” you whispered.

Steve hummed on the other side.

“Don’t cum, miss,” he hummed along.

You inhaled, trying to hold yourself and not show your pleasure.

“You see how pathetic you look?” he asked, voice too sweet for his words. “All curled up in your chair… I bet anyone could walk in, and you’d let them fuck you.”

You clenched the chair under your fingers.

“Please, Steve,” you whined.

He wasn’t going to just edge you, right?

"Steve, please," you begged. "I can't -"

"Have you done everything I asked you?" he asked instead.

You nodded, knowing he could see you.

"Yes."

"Everything?" he repeated.

You pouted. You were supposed to be at yoga now - the company gave you two hours of lunchtime, and Steve wanted you to do at least one session every week.

"Steve," you whined. "I have a project."

"And you had a 20-minute yoga class scheduled for right now," he answered back.

You whimpered, but finally conceded, standing up on wobbly legs and walking to your windows, pulling the curtains everywhere, and you could see the glass blackening behind them, probably by Steve.

The vibrator stopped, and you grabbed your yoga mat from under your desk, placing it behind it.

"I don't have proper clothes," you realised.

"That is true," he remarked. "Reminder to make sure you pack yoga pants tomorrow. But go on, miss. Class won’t wait for you."

You scoffed and looked down at yourself.

"Steve, I can't do yoga in a pencil skirt" you reminded him. "And this top isn't any better."

There was a moment of silence for a moment before he answered.

"I am setting the privacy setting in your cameras," he told you. "You can proceed with stripping now. I'm the only one seeing you."

He said it with such finality you almost didn't know if you could argue.

So you didn't.

Instead, you took off your shoes and slid the zip of your skirt down, taking it off and folding it, placing it on your desk and doing the same to your shirt.

It felt so strange, standing in your office with just a bra on.

"Put up the video, miss," he commanded softly. "You can still catch up with the Livestream. They are just warming up."

You nodded, as if he could see you. Well... he did.

Regardless, you turned on the live stream and quickly caught up with their warm-ups.

"We can work on finding you time to go to the actual classes when we start organising your schedule after time off," Steve told you. "I know live streams aren't the best option for exercise."

You scoffed, bending down.

"They are just fine."

"Well, the view is amazing," he added, cheekily. "You can do them from home too, miss. I won't mind."

You licked your lips.

Of course he wouldn't.

You stretched yourself and gasped when the toy came back to life, though just barely.

"Steve," you hissed.

"Just some motivation, miss," he hummed.

You stuck your ass out more, determined to tease him too now.

"Maybe doing that at home will tempt you to fuck me," you grumbled.

While Steve sated your sexual desires, he hadn't fucked you. You knew about his upgrades - he had bought it with your credit card, after all - but why wouldn't he just use them?

"Not until you've earned it, miss," he answered, simply.

You tried not to gasp as the vibrator increased in power.

"Alright, class, now we get into cant-cow," the cheerful instructor told the group, moving to kneel on fours on the floor. "This exercise helps with your mobility and tail bone."

You tried not to think of the sex implications of the positions, but it was hard considering you were naked and with a fucking toy inside your cunt.

"So pretty," Steve spoke on the other side. "You are a very pretty slut, aren't you?"

Your cheeks burned.

"Steve," you whined. "If you don't want me to cum, you better be careful with those words."

He chuckled.

"Why is it, sweet slut?" he asked, clearly mocking you. "You can't control yourself?"

You just huffed, not wanting to amuse him

"Humans are so easy to work up, especially ones like you," he sighed. "You are so eager for someone to take control..."

"Steve," you breathed in.

You rotated your hips, and the toy brushed a little more onto your sweet spot.

"Fuck," you hissed.

"Don't forget the next position," he hummed.

You clenched your jaw and saw the instructor moving.

Downward dog.

Fucking hell.

You followed it, and shuddered when your heard Steve humming, pleased.

"Such a pretty cunt," he clicked his tongue.

Your walls fluttered around the toy and he chuckled.

"No cumming, miss," he reminded you.

You clenched your teeth.

"It could be yours when I get home," you moved your hips a little, trying to taunt him.

"It is already mine," he corrected you.

Your legs weakened and you bit your lower lip, muffling your moans when you straight up came at his words, falling onto your knees and shaking as the toy vibrated inside you.

There was a long silence in the room when you were done, and the vibrator stopped.

"We'll talk when we get home," Steve decided.

The phone clicked, showing he had hung up, and you grunted.

Dammit.

. . . .

"Android Hero" was posted on my Patreon in January. To read it now, subscribe to my page! It's just $2 a month and I post everything there earlier!

. . .

Forever Tags: @emoryhemsworth​​​ @amythyststorm33​​ @shaelyn102​​​ @yknott81​​​ ​​@maximofftrash​​​ @kgbrenner​​​ @thefridgeismybestie​​​ @magpiegirl80​​​ @mogaruke​​​ @shadowhunter7​​​ @musicalcoffeebean​​​ @megasimpleplan4ever​​​ @deemoriarty​​​ @05spn18​​​ @malindacath​​​ @kdcollinsauthor​​​ @random-fandom-fangirl2112​​​ @widowsfics​​​ @frozenhuntress67​​​ @averyrogers83​​​ @notyourtypicalrose​​​ @nerdypinupcrystal​ @giruvega Marvel forever tags: @its-daydreamer23​​​ ​​​ ​​ @random-fandom-fangirl2112​​​ @tayrae515​​​ @indecisiondecisions​​​? @afanofmanystuffs​​​? @patzammit​​​? @thevanishedillusion​​​? @widowsfics​​​? @alexisshoto​​​ @princess-evans-addict​​​ @dreams-of-feysand ​​​ @xoxabs88xox​​​ @dragonqueen0606​ @izbelross @isabelle-faith