#this spoke to my 'reader gets passed between kate and john like a dog held in joint custody' obsession

[syoddeye]

Divorcee Kate 🤤 .... would she hate it if you went crawling in a fit of spite to ask John for help? Send her pics of you sorting it out? A hairy forearm and a boonie cap tucked almost out of view behind the laptop screen?

oh boy. what if. let's just imagine it first. i could see it going one of two ways:

one, john knows better than to meddle in kate’s business. he knows you’re off limits and rebuffs you.

two, john’s been wanting a piece of you. you made one offhand comment years ago after kate showed you a photo of them when they first met—you couldn’t believe he’d ever been clean-shaven. you said something like, “you look like my college boyfriend.” he felt bad about it then, pulling over on the drive to his hotel to tug his cock at the idea. to the what if.

it was easy to deny the attraction. he only saw you maybe once a year if kate felt generous and offered to host for some holiday. (those visits were the worst. at least at a hotel, he could escape the lingering scent of your perfume. didn’t face the temptation of a laundry hamper in the shared bathroom.)

but when he learns about the divorce, he can’t help himself. he bides his time, watches kate meddle in your life from afar, and doesn’t even try to intervene or persuade his disgruntled friend. no, he waits until he knows things reach a boiling point to send a simple text message: ‘thinking of you, let me know if you need anything. you’ll always have a friend in me.’

and when you get that text? after nearly smashing your phone at kate’s selfie? you melt with relief at the thought you might finally have an ally. then something meaner comes nipping at its heels. kate’s jerking you around, you know it. that much is obvious with that stupid little bracelet.

you compose an innocent reply and invite john over for coffee. he’s there the next morning, politely kissing your cheeks with a sympathetic smile and a bouquet in hand. as he throws the ball for your dog, you explain everything that’s been happening over the last couple of weeks. you’re worried about your parents. your job. if you can afford the house and car payments on your own. he’s such a good listener and gentleman, it’s hard to not end up genuinely teary-eyed in the end. he smooths a big hand over your back and reassures you in the rumbling voice. he promises to ‘do whatever is in his power’, and this time, you believe those words.

the next time he comes over, the two of you put your heads together, and he reaches out to some old friends. while he’s on the phone, you snap a quick photo to send to kate: your laptop, a stack of forms, old bills, and a world’s best wife mug. you tell her that while you await her assistance, you manage with some help.

and if john’s caught in the corner of the frame, seated comfortably at the kitchen table that kate built with her own two hands? well. all’s fair in love and war.