#turns out i don't slice my apples before i'm ready to eat them

[lordgrimwing]

Friends And Family #10

“Hmm,” Thranduil mused as he inspected the contents of the pantry. “What should we do about lunch, Legs?”

Nine-year-old Legolas bounced on a stool by the kitchen counter. Today was Saturday, which meant that after a week of school, Elladan and Elrohir could finally go to the zoo with him (actually, the twin’s mother, Celebrían, had called Thranduil last week to ask if Legolas wanted to join her children on a zoo outing, but Legolas very adamantly insisted that he was taking his friends to the zoo and not the other way around). He’d been bubbling with excitement since getting out of bed this morning.

“Peanut butter sandwich!” He exclaimed. Over the last couple of years, he’d been steadily using his voice more and more. Signs still peppered what he said, but he only really stopped speaking when he was particularly uncomfortable or frightened (as when he found himself in the same room as an upset, hissing, watermelon beetle—one of the few bugs he did not like).

Thranduil nodded, unsurprised by the lunch request. His son loved peanut butter sandwiches. Legolas would eat one for every meal if his parents let him, and Thranduil always brought a jar of creamy peanut butter and a loaf of white bread on vacations.

“And what about fruit?” He asked as he brought the sandwich ingredients to the counter so Legolas could help. “Apple or banana?”

Legolas made a face. Clearly, a singular peanut butter sandwich was all that was required in his mind.

“You gotta pick one, buddy.” Thranduil gave him a butter knife and let him think about it while scooping peanut butter out of the plastic jar and spreading it across two slices of bread.

“Apple,” Legolas decided with less fervor than a minute ago as he plopped the sandwich into the little plastic sandwich box his father opened for him.

“Apple slices coming up,” Thranduil said, taking a pink apple from the bowl on the counter and retrieving the apple slicer from a drawer. “Will you get me a bowl of water and the orange juice?”

Legolas hopped off the stool and collected the supplies to stop the apple slices from turning brown in his lunch bag. He carefully carried the stainless steel mixing bowl from the sink over to his dad, walking slowly to see if he could keep the water from sloshing around very much. He wasn’t successful, but he liked to try.

Once the slices were bathed in water with a hint of orange juice, Thranduil moved them to a baggie and handed them over to Legolas to add to his lunch sack.

The nine-year-old stuffed the sack into his red backpack, the one with the little green-clad elf from his favorite game printed across it. “Let’s go!” He said.

Thranduil chuckled and grabbed the loop on the top of the backpack before the boy could dash for the front door. “Slow down there, little warg,” he said. “Your friends are going to pick you up so you can't go until they’re here.”

“When will that be?” Legolas whined. Waiting for other people when he was all set and ready to go was a work in progress, something his teacher was sure to tell his parents about when he started school.

Thranduil glanced at his watch. “They’re supposed to be here in fifteen minutes.”

Legolas’s shoulders slumped. “Fifteen whole minutes?”

“Fifteen whole minutes, and they could be late, so maybe longer.”

Legolas let the backpack slide off his bony shoulders so it was dangling from his father’s hand. “Okay,” he sighed.

Thranduil nodded toward the door out to the back yard. “How about you go check on those spiders you found in the garden yesterday? I bet they’ll almost be here by the time you’re through with that.”

The garden wasn’t anything particularly exciting, as much weeds as intentional flowers and bushes. Thranduil started it as a way to find something to do during the endless hours when Legolas wanted to play out in the communal green space in the middle of the neighborhood, so he could keep an eye on him and give his hands something to do when he didn’t feel like reading. After a while, the garden also became another place for Legolas to play and watch insects go about their tiny lives.

Mollified, Legolas hurried off to see how his newest invertebrate friends were doing.

[alina-dixon]

Another Sanji!?

Pairings: Zoro x Male reader

Warnings: cursing, fluff,

Requested: Yes / No

A/N: I thought it was a funny idea! Have fun reading!😙 (also sorry for not posting! I have a job since last September, but! Don't worry I’m going to be writing more again! YAY!🥳❤️😂)

---

Soooo... It was currently five in the morning and you had a weird but funny dream, it was about you and Sanji pranking Zoro. So when you woke up you looked at the clock. “Mmmmh? Sanji should be awake by now.” you stretched yourself and got out of bed but you had to be quiet so you wouldn't wake up Zoro.

You opened and closed the door quietly and made your way towards the kitchen. “Morning Sunny!” you greeted the ship. Making your way to the kitchen you looked upon the see next to you.

Now you opened the kitchen door gently, you stuck your head through it, and peeked inside. You saw Sanji preparing the breakfast.

So you went inside. “Morning Sanji!” you greeted him smiling brightly, making him glance towards you and he smiled gently. “Morning Y/N” walking towards you with a plate that had some chopped fruits on it, placing it in front of you.

You smiled widely at him. “Thank you, Sanji!” Sanji got back to preparing. “No problem! For you, always” he said softly. You rested your hand under your chin while eating some apple slices. “Say Sanji… do you want to help me with something?” you asked looking at him with hopeful eyes, as he once again turned to you. “It depends, What kind of help do you need?” he asked curious.

You smiled evilly. “I want to Prank Zoro! My idea was to Dress like you! Make my hair like yours! And act like you!” you explained. That got his interest, which made him grin at the thought of Zoro’s dumb look on his face.

Sanji then nodded. “Well then, come with me to my chambers. I will give you some of my clothes and cut your hair” he walked out if the kitchen with you behind. When you got to his Chambers he went to his closet and came back with a pair of his shoes, a yellow shirt, and one of his suits. He put them on his bed and turned to you, grabbed your shoulders, and pushed you into his bathroom.

He sat you down on a chair and got his scissors out. But before he started he looked at you. “You sure that you want that?” he asked, only to make sure that you knew what you were doing. You look up at him nodding excitedly. “Yes, I'm sure! And besides, I was actually thinking for a long time to cut my hair like you. It just looks so good!” Sanji smiled at that. “Thank you. Well then, let's start.” and with that, he started cutting your hair.

Half an hour later he was done, and you were awestruck at how good it looked. He even made your eyebrows! You shot up and hugged Sanji. “It looked perfect! The only thing that is missing is the clothes!” you giggled, and Sanji hugged you back. “I’d do it again if you want. Just come to me if you want to cut your hair” he said as he walked back into his room to get you the clothes for you.

He came back handing them to you. “I sure will do!” you said and Sanji got back out so you could change.

First you put on the shirt, then the suit and for the last, the shoes. When you went back to his room, posing. “And, how do I look?” you said jokingly. Sanji started laughing. “Just like me. Now come let's finish preparing the breakfast before everyone wakes up” he said still chuckling lightly as you both went back to the kitchen to make breakfast.

Most of the stuff was done and on the table. Then you heard the kitchen door open and heard someone humming in confusion. “Huh?” it was Luffy. You and Sanji turned around to greet him. “Morning Luffy. Breakfast is ready” Sanji said, but Luffy only blinked at him. “Another Sanji!? Since when are there Two of you!?” Luffy screamed in confusion.

The others of course heard that and came to see what was going on. Many gasps and shocked faces were looking at the two of You. The one that stood out the most was Zoro… his face when he saw you, his mouth was wide open. “Shity Cook! What have you done to him!?” He grabbed Sanji's shirt and got into his face angry.

Sanji of course screamed back at him. “Shut it you stupid Moss head! We were only cooking!” Zoro scoffed at that angrily. You pushed them apart. “Oi! Sanji! Marimo! Stop fighting, and eat something!” you said and hit both of their heads. Zoro looked at you in disbelief. “Stop talking like him! You are not him!” he tried to reason with you. Which made you roll your eyes, and then smiled because you couldn't stay serious anymore. The same goes for Sanji and the both of you start laughing.

Everyone looked at you confused. “Bwahahaha!!! It was just a Prank! And it was totally worth it!” you said while you gave Sanji a high five. “Definitely, that stupid look on his face was hilarious!” Sanji laughed back.

Zoro grew a thick Mark on his forehead! “Stop laughing already!” he screamed. You walked in towards him and took his hand, and walked with him to the table to sit him down. “Stop being so angry, and start eating, will you?” you said as you sat down on his lap.

Zoro scoffed but he gave you a kiss, before he started eating. And what didn't surprise anyone is, that Luffy was already eating the whole time.

When everyone was at the table, Nami spoke up. “Y/N, to be honest with you that hair looks good on you. The clothes too. On the next Island I’ll take you to go shopping with me!” she said excitedly. “Thank you! And sure why not, sounds fun!” you said happily.

Robin nodded too. “Nami is right, you look good. I think I'll go with the two of you,” she said calmly. “Oi! He is my Boyfriend-” Zoro got cut off by an angry-looking Nami that hit him on the head. “And!? He's our friend! Now stop being an idiot!” Nami screamed, as everyone laughed.

You Started to cuddle Zoro’s neck and kissed his head. “Don't worry I could never love anyone but you,” you assured him, to which He only responded by hugging you tightly.

[drarrily-we-row-along]

October 1: "I've Got You"

Draco Malfoy had had more than his fair share of humiliating moments. There seemed to be no shortage of things in his memory that made him simply want to crawl out of his skin with embarrassment, but this had to be one of the most horrifically mortifying things to ever happen to him.

His bank card was being declined at the check out. Face and neck heating horribly, he looked at the items he had to try to decide what to put back; a loaf of bread, sliced cheese, a jar of apple sauce, a jar of peanut butter, a dozen eggs, and a container of yogurt. "Oh," he said, heart racing as he tried to get past his anxiety to make a decision.

"Here," the man in line behind him said, "I've got you."

He turned, ready to decline his help, but those words fell away in favor of a spluttered, "Potter?"

"Hey, Malfoy," the other man said, nudging him out of the way with his elbow to insert his own card into the machine.

"No-" he started, too late.

Potter looked over at him, then back at his card, "I've got it," he said softly. And somehow there was compassion and understanding in his voice without any pity.

"I-" he tried again, looking at the fresh fruits and vegetables, the rice and potatoes, meats, and other delicious foods that Potter had piled on the belt behind him.

"Don't worry about it," he said before Draco could get any other words out. "Seriously," he added, looking at Draco from under his fringe, looking like he was the one feeling embarrassed as he pulled his card out of the machine and a receipt was printed.

Draco took his bag from the cashier and all but fled the store.

He wasn't too far, though, when he heard a set of footsteps jogging to catch up with him. "Hey-"

"Thank you," he said politely, "I-"

"No," Potter said, shaking his head. "Don't thank me. I just-" he broke off and Draco stared, waiting for him to continue.

When no other words were forth coming, he said, "If you were wanting to make fun of me-"

"No," Potter said, shaking his head vigorously. "No. Shit," he ran his hand through his hair. "Look, come to my house for dinner."

He blinked, "Excuse me?"

"I'm just making up a stir fry," he rambled on, "Nothing fancy just some rice, peppers, snap peas, onions, broccoli, steak, and some teriyaki sauce-"

"I'm fine," Draco said, even as his stomach growled at the thought of eating some actual fresh vegetables.

"Please," Potter said, grabbing his wrist to prevent Draco from turning away.

"Why?" he asked and he wondered if Potter could hear all of the questions in his head why would you help me? What's in it for you? Why aren't you mocking me? Do you just want to mock me in your home? What will this cost me?

Potter swallowed and looked down at his feet, "I know what it's like to not have enough," he said softly. "I wouldn't wish it on anyone. Just," he huffed, "Come on. Let me feed you dinner. Please."

"You have an insufferable martyr complex." he snapped but before he could go anywhere, Potter spoke up again.

"My aunt and uncle," he said, "they didn't feed me enough. I fucking hate peanut butter sandwiches. No one should eat them day in and out. Just," he shook his head, "let me make you some dinner. You don't have to stay to eat it, you don't have to talk to me, you don't have to do anything you don't want to."

"And that's it? You just want me to come to your house and eat your food?"

"That's the gist of it, yeah," Potter said, scrubbing a hand over the back of his neck. "I'm not going to drag you to my house or anything because that would be creepy," he said when Draco didn't reply, still weighing his options, "but I'd really like to do this for you."

"Alright," he whispered, still feeling embarrassed and overwhelmed but also a deep longing for vegetables.

Potter grinned at him, bright and charming, like it was the easiest thing in the world. "Brilliant. Come on then."

And that was the first time that Draco found himself having dinner with Harry Potter, but it certainly wasn't the last.

By the time he left that evening, with a full belly and a container of leftovers, he'd let himself be convinced to come back the following week. A weekly dinner on Wednesday became a Wednesday dinner and a Saturday dinner, which became dinner every other night. And then before he quite knew how it had happened, he was at his house every night for dinner, staying later and later like he never wanted to leave.

Because the truth was that he didn't want to leave. Harry listened to him talk about his dreams, about how hard he was working in the muggle nursing program he was enrolled in, about his shitty job that didn't pay enough. He loved Harry's cat, Milo. He loved looking at Harry's art and listening to him talk about the creative process of making it. He loved hearing about Harry's childhood and getting to talk about his own. He loved having someone to do the mundane things in life with like cooking, chatting, watching telly, even just having someone to sit on the other end of the couch while he studied.

Still it took him by surprise one evening when they were making waffles and bacon for dinner, Harry was at the stove and Draco was cutting up strawberries, when the other man said, "Hey, Draco?"

"Mmhmm?" he hummed around the strawberry that he'd popped in his mouth.

"You know how your job is shit?"

He laughed, "I do. Thanks for reminding me."

"Right," he said, glancing over his shoulder at him, "But what if you didn't have to pay rent, would that make things easier?"

"It would," he said slowly, not allowing his heart to rise, not allowing himself to hope.

Harry nodded, "Do you think you might ever consider moving in with me?" he asked. "No pressure or anything, but I have an extra room," he continued, "well, five, actually. And Sirius gave me the house, so I own it, and-"

"Harry," he said softly, fingers lighting on the other man's bicep to get him to slow down. "I would love to, but I can't take advantage of your generosity."

"You wouldn't have to," he said earnestly. "If you're not paying for rent, you could maybe help with the cost of groceries, if you feel like you need to. But I don't have a ton of expenses, and I have a stupid amount of money, and a ridiculously large house for one person," he babbled. "And I just really like you," he blurted before slapping a hand over his mouth.

Draco blinked at him, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips, "You like me?"

Harry nodded, hand still firmly in place over his mouth.

"I like you too," he said softly. "But I don't want you to feel like I only like you because of what you can give me."

He dropped his hand, a tiny smile blossoming on his face, "I hoped you might." Harry reached over and took Draco's hand, "I don't think that you only like me for what I can give you. You see me and hear my words, you know me. I'd really like it if you stayed."

And really, who was Draco to deny Harry Potter anything that he wanted? So he stayed.

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

[tonkatsubowl]

false love. - iv

jing yuan x fem!reader

nsfw themes (cursing and stuff i think. mentions of domestic abuse and self harm. mentions of suicide. no, jing yuan aint hurting u bb girl). read at your own risk. english isn’t my first language, so please don’t mind the grammatical errors. (っ◞‸◟ c)

⪩ arranged marriage. the reader and jing yuan have an arranged marriage and she is stuck, disliking every moment of it, until…

TERM DIRECTORY ◖y/n: your name ◖e/c: eye color ◖h/c: hair color ◖l/n: last name

part one. ✦ part two. ✦ part three. ✦ part five. ✦ part six. ✦ part seven.

(づ￣ ³￣)づ requested tags: @tigerpriestess @mythicalamphitrite (i think this is everyone...)

your world was black.

you couldn't exactly sense anything...meaning you didn't know your surroundings. you forced yourself to blink, thinking that your eyes were probably closed...but no, they were wide open. you were in a pitch black area with no sense of...well, light. or anything.

not even life.

you felt so empty as your legs began to move on their own, taking you somewhere...somewhere in the darkness.

that was when you felt something warm on your shoulder, and a familiar voice...

"you're gonna go further into the darkness?"

you turned your head, seeing that the arm was linked to a white silhouette, illuminate within the darkness that you were currently drowning in.

"well," you began, "i don't know where else i should go."

"then let me take you on a journey."

the hand retracted from your shoulder, extending towards you, their hand was open. ready for you to take.

"you can continue to walk through the darkness or come with me where i can guide you somewhere where you can actually see." they tried to joke with you, but they were probably horrible at humor.

you looked at the hand for a moment before deciding to take it. one your fingers intertwined with the unknown person's hand, the darkness around you had dematerialized, leaving a vast scenery of flora and fauna.

you stood in the meadow of green, the sky was blue... there was a pond of water that was so crisp and clean that it neatly reflected off the azure skies above you. the birds above had flocked away, chirping amongst each other as you gazed upon the beautiful horizon. your eyes slowly settle back, realizing you were holding this unknown's person's hand.

turning back, you see...

"—jing yu—"

"ah, she's awake."

your eyes shot open as the soft breeze of the window fluttered into your room. there were flowers placed neatly against the nightstand next to you, and there was a small cutting board with a tiny knife, accompanied by a bowl of freshly cut apples. in the distance, there were two nurses that were doing their medical tasks such as switching out the fresh, cool towel on your head.

your eyes slowly began to focus, allowing you to see better... this allowed you to bear witness to the door sliding open, revealing the man that you had married recently.

a smile was adorned upon his face as he approached you, reaching out to the apple that was pleasantly placed within the wooden bowl,

"how are you feeling, y/n?" he asked you, giving you a piece of sliced apple, "i predicted you would be awake today. eat. your body must be starved of nutrition."

you were still tired. so tired.

you looked towards the fruit in his hand, letting your hands move—ah, wait. you couldn't move them. it seems your body was still asleep—not actually broken, or anything. you were out for...

...wait. how long were you out for?

"ah.. sorry." you murmured. jing yuan took notice of the fact you couldn't feed yourself.

your husband chuckled, "say 'ahh'."

you blinked, your cheeks tinting red as your opened your mouth a bit. "a-ah."

as jing yuan fed you the apple, he began to inform you of everything that had occurred while you were out, "well. you were asleep for about a day or two. i was afraid you would be sleeping longer than that, but i'm happy that you're here...awake, alive and well, y/n."

you blinked. you were out for a day or two? oh geez. you wondered how much you missed, but...it probably isn't a lot. you were used to not being informed of important news most of the time due to your biological family.

"i just wanted to apologize—deeply—at the bottom of my heart of my lack of awareness and inability to save you sooner, y/n. you are my wife, and for that, i have failed you."

you witness your husband steadying himself on one knee, apologetic.

"i do not expect forgiveness from you."

you blink, unused to this... your hands raise themselves up, sheepishly waving about as your husband apologized to you over a situation out of his control. "n-no," you sputtered, "please don't apologize. i... it's not your fault."

"it is." jing yuan stood, his expression firm and disappointed with himself. "this shouldn't have happened. not on my watch. yet, here i am, failing to protect you ful—"

"jing yuan," you frowned, cutting him off, "i am safe. i-i am alive, right? you didn't fail to protect me. you saved me. if anything...i-i should thank you." you lowered your head. "please don't be upset with yourself. i forgive you...so please don't beat yourself up with it."

jing yuan didn't say anything for a moment... but his body spoke for him.

he leaned closer, slowly wrapping his arms around you. "is this alright, y/n?" he asked you, knowing that you possessed trauma to being touched unwantedly.

for once, you felt safe in someone's arms. you nodded slowly, "yes," you murmured, resting your head against his chest as he embraced you.

the warmth that protruded from his chest, the safe reassurance that washed over you... you could just fall back asleep despite the fact you had just woken up from a two-day coma.

...and that's what you did.

"...y/n? ...ah, she fell asleep again. she must be so tired after everything."

jing yuan chuckled to himself as he reached up, brushing away bits of your hair away from your face before gently—and slowly placing you back onto the bed. tucking you comfortably into the mattress, he made sure you were covered up by the blanket before turning back to the nurses, who came by to replenish the towel over your head and some new bandages.

"oh geez," one of the nurses began who appeared to be an elderly woman, "seeing this moment reminds me of my late husband, general... how i miss him dearly." she laughed to herself quietly.

jing yuan flashed a smile. "...a husband should do whatever they can to protect their wife, and to make sure their wife is happy, comfortable and reassured that all is well."

the elderly nurse smiled, nodding slowly, "my, you even sound like my late husband. you have a kind, warm and gentle heart, general. i'm just so glad that you're happy in this marriage."

jing yuan nodded. "...i am. but i worry that this arranged marriage doesn't make her happy. after all...it is arranged. neither y/n nor i have history together up until our marriage. i wouldn't hate or blame her for it if she didn't like this. it was her family obligation."

...right. family. he was going to get to the bottom of this...this situation. your past. everything.

the elderly nurse tilted her head, "well, i don't know if you saw it, but she seems to...be liking you. the moment you embraced her was when i saw love blossoming between the both of you."

jing yuan's smile widened. "...i hope it stays this way."

[bunbeeplays]

The Lemon Legacy: Generation 1, Chapter 101 - San Sequoia Bound

We're back with the Lemons! …Just in time for Gemma to have a diaper change disaster.

Ophelia: Sheesh, Gem, look at what you did to the changing table. You might just be the stinkiest girl in the world but I still love you.

Gemma: 😏

Xander: Why do I have to clean this?

Ophelia: Because I changed the diaper that resulted in that mess and trust me, it was worse.

Time for breakfast! Hope that didn't ruin anyone's appetite.

Now that Gemma can grasp things, let's try her first finger food!

I can't believe it. This is the first food she hasn't either been unsure of the first time trying it, or actually hated. Sliced bananas are a winner!

Gemma cleared her whole plate!

Ophelia: Look at you, big girl, eating all by yourself.

Gemma babbles back at her momma, trying her best to replicate this 'conversation' stuff.

Ophelia: I see. Fascinating!

Part of the basement has been renovated and Xander's finally ready to show it off. It's a nectar maker's heaven!

Ophelia: It looks amazing, sweetie.

Gemma: Buh!

Ophelia: Gemma agrees!

Xander: Well, as long as Gemma likes it.

Xander can't wait to try the nectar maker out!

Xander takes off his shoes and gets to stomping on some apples!

Ophelia works on crawling a little more with Gemma.

Xander slips and falls into the apple mush but, luckily, Gemma and Ophelia were a bit preoccupied.

Ophelia: There you go! You're getting so much steadier!

Xander: Wish I could say the same.

Gemma is beat from all that crawling practice. She slumps onto the floor and rests her little eyes.

Ophelia: Aww, is Momma's girl sleepy? Come here, I'll give you a nap.

As Ophelia rocks their baby to sleep, Xander finishes creating his first bottle of nectar. There will surely be many more to come!

Ophelia gazes down at Gemma, her conversation with Celeste fresh in her mind.

As Xander gets to work on his next batch, Ophelia quietly murmurs to her daughter.

Ophelia: I don't know how any parent could treat their baby so poorly. I promise to love you no matter what.

Meanwhile, Xander is riding the struggle bus when it comes to this nectar making stuff.

Marshmallow has come to judge her father for his failure.

Ophelia: HA! This is so going on Simstagram!

Xander: Love you too, babe.

It's time for dinner!

Xander: Mmm, yogurt melts! Nomnomnom

Ophelia sets out two plates of meatloaf for her and Xander. A bit more filling than yogurt melts but Gemma will get some milk before bed to make up for it.

Dinner conversation turns to a rare subject: Ophelia's parents.

Ophelia: The nerve of them, telling people I'm taking over the family firm when I haven't spoken to them in years! Where do they get off?

Xander: You're gonna be a B-Lister soon. I don't think they can keep it up.

Ophelia: I'd love to give them a piece of my mind.

Xander: Why don't you?

Ophelia: Because it would involve talking to them.

Xander: You can do whatever you need to do to protect yourself, Lemon Cake, but maybe confronting them would give you some sort of closure.

Ophelia: I do kind of want to rub my success in their faces. Except Gemma, they're not getting anywhere near her.

Xander: I can take a few days off work and go with you. I definitely don't want her meeting them either but taking her on a trip to your hometown might be nice.

Ophelia: I'd love to take her to the old splash pad my gran and gramps took me to. Hopefully it won't be too cold… Okay, yeah. Maybe making a trip out of it will make it less miserable. I'm sure Celeste would love to hang out. We could even visit Marcie and Joaquin!

Xander: I'm down for whatever'll make this easier, babe.

Ophelia: Okay, I guess it's settled! We're going to San Sequoia!

[judas-escargo]

Evil Kitchen Log #00001

Result - Failure, twice

So begins my first trial to replicate the apple chisps so beloved from my childhood. I found a brand new dehydrator from the early 2000's that someone was selling at a garage sale and decided my time would be now. It is a Nesco FD-60 Snackmaster. I think I should name it; it's tedious to type out Nesco FD-60 Snackmaster every single time I need to refer to it. How do we feel about Craig?

I began my experiment by purchasing three bags of apples - Cosmic Crisp, Granny Smith, and Pink Lady. I then put them away and forgot about them for two weeks, resulting in a lot of squishy apples and a weird smell in my pantry. 0/10 - I do not think anything could be worse than this. Despite scoring this, I will not count this as an official trial, as I did not get to eat any of the fruits of my labor.

I set out to begin again, with more caution this time. My excitement was my downfall. I purchased one bag of Cosmic Crisp apples. It came sealed with a Palpatophora utiliformis grandis albus amiculum, and the cape proudly stated these apples were, "Extra Fancy." I made sure to have everything organized and ready to be used - Craig was clean and sitting pretty on the counter, I rinsed the apples off and cored them, then used my mandolin and sliced them into thin strips. I thought I was doing pretty well for myself, and then I checked the clock to make sure I'd have time to dry them before heading to bed. It was 3:00AM. Instead of panicking, I put my thin apple slices into a container with some water and lemon juice - remembering that lemon juice helps apples not turn brown - and planned to get to them in the morning. Dear reader, I did not get to them in the morning. I forgot them for four days. It would've been a waste to throw them away, so I placed them in Craig and sprinkled them with a bit of cinnamon. I set the setting for 95°F and let them dry for roughly 8 hours. 1/10 - Oh my gods. They were so sour. I couldn't taste any of the apple or the cinnamon because the lemon flavor was too strong. All the cinnamon I got was in the texture, and it was rather unpleasant. The chisps were also too thin and turned to dust if you held them too tightly. The only reason it's not lower is because I would rather eat them than throw them away. But it's close.

I will need to not use the mandolin for the next trial, and that hurts just a little bit. I was excited to be able to quickly slice them and have them in uniform sizes. I'll need to work on my knife skills, and I think I need to sharpen my knives. My time management will need to be better too - forgetting that I have these apples caused both of these to fail harder than they would've if I had remembered them. I am worried that cinnamon is the wrong spice, though logically it has to be the right one. What else would it be? It is nice to have a roadmap for this experiment, despite my frustrations. I still have some Cosmic Crisps leftover, even though I don't think they're the apples I'm going to stick with for the final test, I do want to try testing the different thicknesses with them.

Supplemental: I think I should look into getting an ADHD diagnosis.

[delqcate]

my love, my beautiful love.

(i don't know what to name this fic🫡)

in which y/n injects a little too much insulin and draco helps her before something terrible happens

paring: d.m. and y.n.

warnings: i wouldn't say there is other than needles but it's only mentioned once

a/n: this was a fic request from @itzvenus04 so i really hope you like this and hope it spreads more awareness to it <3 ( also i'm sorry if it's a little too long, i tried to not rush it too much just so i can try ro explain everything)

{nav}

(creds to the gif owner)

Y/N WAKES UP nice and early with a blood sugar of 6.5 for the picnic her and her friends were planning today, including her loving boyfriend draco. y/n gets up from bed and changes into a long summer dress and heads downstairs to see draco packing all the food inside their picnic basket.

she walks up behind him and wraps her arms around his waist, kissing his cheek gently and smiling softly at the food he's packing. " morning, my angel " he turns around and kissing her on the cheek. " morning, draco. i see you're all ready for the picnic " y/n smiles softly at him, sitting on the counter of their kitchen.

draco chuckles softly and nods. " have you taken your insulin pump yet, y/n? " he asks her. " not yet cause i wanted to check on you but i was gonna do it now. " y/n sways her legs back and forth before draco lets out a content hum. " alright, my love. the drive there is about 25 minutes but since we're apparating it would be quick. "

y/n keeps that in mind and hops off the counted, walking over to their room, grabbing the insulin pump and gently sticking the needle into her stomach, she grabs a pair of biking shorts and puts the insulin pump in them to hide it, she grabs her insulin pump kit just incase and walks back to the kitchen to see draco all ready.

" ready to go, my love? " he lends his arm to her, y/n nods and takes his arm as he apparates to the park, seeing all their friends already there. they talk for about a few minutes before they start to eat, y/n remembers she took her insulin 15 minutes before so she starts to eat.

she finishes eating and decides to read a book, a few minutes pass and suddenly she feels off, her hands start to sweat, making the book almost slip off, the pages of the book becoming blurry and she feels as if everything starts spinning around, she leans onto draco as she feels weak and hot, she looks at all her friends, not wanting to worry anyone she doesn't say anything.

pansy, sitting beside y/n, notices something about her and taps draco's shoulder, draco looks at her and sees her pointing at y/n, he notices something off and puts his sandwich down, he looks over at y/n and it's become very clear, y/n's blood sugar is getting low. he immediately reaches into the basket for a bottle of juice and a few sliced apples he cut up, he packed everything y/n needed just incase this happened, everyone starts to realize what's happening and looks at y/n with worry.

draco hands y/n the juice as she lays there against draco's arm and she grabs it, drinking it slowly but surely, she grabs one of the apples and takes a bite out of it. " my love, did you take too much insulin ? " he asks seriously, a hint of worry laced in his voice. " y- yeah.." she says, looking down in ignomy, not daring to look into her boyfriends icy grey eyes.

he cups her cheeks into his slender pale hands, one of them ring-clad and staring into y/n's eyes. " y/n, listen to me. i love and care for you so damn much, i know you must've been scared to tell me but i wouldn't care. the whole damn world could be burning but i would worry for you and only you, my love. my beautiful love. " y/n smiles softly, still eating the apples and the juice her boyfriend gave her.

" i love you. " y/n says softly. " i love you more. now, just drink your juice and eat your apples. after that we'll check how y'feelin after 15 minutes, alright? " draco kisses y/n's head after she nods.

taglist: @angelzone @thehalfbloodedwitch @miss-celestial-being @slytherin-princess247 @lazydreamer19 @rosaliesrealwife

[babeydollx]

Can you please make a fic where the reader is JJ’s girlfriend and reader has a younger sister she has to babysit and JJ’s helps her & just pure fluff? ☺️ Love your fics!!🤍

omg love this!! and omg tysm!! <33

Teddy Bear {JJ Maybank}

Warnings: none pure fluff

Pairings: JJ Maybank x Female Pogue Reader

Summary: JJ helps you babysit your baby sister.

Word Count: 1k

You were at JJ's place. Since his dad was out of the house, you two could basically just go wherever you both wanted in the house without worrying about Luke coming in and ruining it or worse, getting violent.

The two of you were just laying there together on the couch all snuggled up together when you remembered you had to go home to babysit your baby sister since your parents would be going out. You sat up and looked at JJ.

"Where are you going princess?" He asked.

"I have to go home." You said with a frown.

"Oh, why?" He asked.

"I need to babysit my baby sister while my parents go out for a bit. She isn't old enough to stay home alone so I need to watch her until they come back, then I could come back here." You said.

"I could come with you and help you if you want." He said.

"Are you sure? I mean, I always thought that you would never want to babysit children." You said with a small chuckle.

"Well, if I plan on putting a ring on that pretty little finger someday, I have to at least get to know you sister and let her get to know me." He said.

"I- wait.. you want to marry me someday?" You asked with a smile.

"Well, of course. I love you so much Y/N. I would be so honored to get to marry you someday." He said. You could feel tears in your eyes as your smile grew more.

"God, I love you so much JJ." You said with a smile. "I would be so honored to be Mrs. Maybank someday." You said with a big smile. He grinned and peppered your face in kisses making you giggle softly.

"Well, if you want to come help me babysit, you can. I know my parents would not mind." You said.

"I would love to." He said with a small chuckle. You smiled and got up and off the couch then helped JJ get up. The two of you walked out and got on his dirt bike before driving off.

.·:*¨¨* ≈☆≈ *¨¨*:·.

Once you got to your home, you unwrapped your arms that were tightly clinging to his torso before getting off the bike. He got off the bike as well. You took off the helmet that JJ always made you wear before going on his bike.

You passed him the helmet. He took it and then rested it on one of the handle bars of the dirt bike. You smiled and took his hand before walking inside with him.

"Mom! Dad! I'm here!" You said. Your mother and father came downstairs. They were all dressed up nicely so you figured that they made plans for a date night tonight.

"Hi honey, hello JJ." Your mother said with a smile.

"Hi Mrs. Y/L/N." He said with a smile.

"JJ wanted to come help me babysit, you guys don't mind, right?" You asked.

"No of course not!" Your mother said.

"JJ is always welcome any time." Your father said with a smile. You smiled and gave them a hug before they left. You waved to them as they drove off and then turned to your little sister.

"So, how about I make you lunch and you can play with JJ?" You asked her.

"Otays!" Your little sister said with a giggle. You chuckled and then looked to JJ who was smiling.

"She's so cute." JJ said with a laugh.

"I know." You said with a chuckle. "You don't mind playing with her while I make lunch, do you?" You asked. He shook his head.

"No of course not. I don't mind at all." He said and smiled. You smiled back and kissed his cheek.

"Okay." You gave your little sister a hug and then walked off into the kitchen. You decided to make your sisters favorite thing to eat: dino nuggets, French fries, sliced strawberries and apple juice.

As you were making lunch, you would look out into the living room from time to time to see how your little sister and JJ were doing. It took you about 30 minutes to make it all and prep it. You got your little sisters plate ready and walked out quietly.

When you walked out, the sight your eyes landed upon made you smile. You saw your little sister and JJ sitting on the floor together. They were playing with her stuffed animals. JJ was pretending to be the lion.

"Pwetty lion." You little sister said with a giggle.

"Yeah, he is pretty." JJ said with the smile before making the lions nose touch her nose, pretending like it kissed her nose. "Boop!" He said with a smile. Your little sister squealed and giggled.

"I hate to ruin this but, your lunch is ready sis." You said with a smile. She clapped her hands. You smiled and picked her up. You took her to her highchair and put her plate down in front of her. She squealed and smiled before happily eating.

You chuckled and walked over to JJ, wrapping your arms around his torso. He smiled and looked down at you. You leaned up and planted a soft, loving kiss to his lips.

"You did really good with my sister. It was so adorable to see you playing with her." You said with a smile. He chuckled.

"Well, she's adorable and a sweet little toddler." He said with a smile.

"From how I saw you with her today, I think you would make an amazing father." You said.

"Really?" He asked.

"Really, really." You said with a giggle. He laughed and kissed your forehead. "Honestly, seeing you with her also gave me baby fever." You mumbled.

"Not gonna lie, I have it too." He said. You looked up at him shocked.

"Should we... I don't know... have a baby then?" You asked.

"Honestly, I'm down if your down." He said with a smile. Well, looked like there might be another Maybank coming soon.

a/n: I hope y'all liked this story!

Taglist: @luversgirl @masteroperator

[fanfictionlover333]

Dream Date

"Hey, maybe you should um take some time before you get back to work, allow yourself to heal... It's uh I don't know timing might be right, Cas shrugged suspecting his words would land on deaf ears.

Dean nodded in acknowledgment surprising himself by considering the recommendation. "Cas," he said through the lump in his throat as the angel was turning to leave.

"Yes, Dean?" Cas asked glancing over his shoulder at the hunter.

 Dean swallowed hard suddenly feeling nervous. "If you are up to it tonight, I'd like to hear that long story." Then he added with a grin, "after you drop off the female in your car."

Cas returned a smile, "I would like that very much."

Dean watched Cas walk away shutting the door once the angel was out of his sight. Next, he sat on the floor behind the closed door. He pulled his knees to his chest as his cheeks grew warm. "When did I become such a chick?" Dean muttered under his breath.

A couple of hours later Sam and Dean were eating apple pie for dessert. "Are you sick?" Sam inquired with concern having observed his brother nibble on a slice of pie for half an hour.

"Fantastic," Dean grumbled grabbing his plate and scraping it off with his fork.  "Just peachy," he insisted glaring at the food as it fell to the bottom of the trash. 

"Dean?!" Sam gaped unable to tear his eyes away from the older Winchester as he put his dishes in the sink.

"I'm going to hit the hay," Dean mumbled in response stomping upstairs. He flopped down on the bed staring at the ceiling for what felt like hours until he fell asleep.

Next thing Dean knew he was eighteen again working on the Impala. He lifted his head up from underneath the hood to look around. The hunter's breath was taken away when he saw the picture-perfect neighborhood, he was in. 

His focus was broken when a familiar voice called his name. Dean spun toward the sound and his jaw dropped. "Dad," he gasped.

"Were you expecting someone else?" John Winchester teased holding two glasses of lemonade as the scorching summer sun beamed down on him. 

Dean shook his head taking the drink his father was offering. They lazily enjoyed their beverages while working on Baby. The sun was setting by the time Mary told them dinner was ready.

"Thanks, mom," Dean glowed with joy hugging her as if his life depended on it.

"You're welcome," Mary giggled like a little girl. "Cas and Sammy are getting restless."

"Cas?" Dean questioned releasing his mother and racing to the kitchen where he found the angel at the table beside a six-month-old Sam. who was in a highchair.

"Hello Dean," Cas greeted "Does this make up for my tardiness?"

[demomonic-murmurs]

messy// kiyoko x reader [Haikyuu Server Collab]

Hello peeps! I am back on my Kiyoko bullshit this time being my first time participating in the haikyuu server collab! Its really awesome you should check it out!

It can be found here !

Prompt: "You woke me up at three in the morning for this?"

Warnings: None

Content: You convince Kiyoko to go to a run down McDonald's diner because you're craving nuggets. You also realize something

"You woke me up at 3 in the morning for this?"

"Listen I dunno how long the spicy chicken nuggets will be available. I have to take up every opportunity I can get. And that means going to McDonald's at 3 in the morning", you explained while gobbling away on your prized obsession (and for once you did not mean Kiyoko).

Kiyoko rolled her eyes and grabbed a napkin to wip away the sweet and sour sauce that was persistently hanging on the corner of your lips.

"Thanks mom", you said sarcastically.

"Certainly my dearest light in the darkest time", she replied and despite the obvious irony in her voice, your heart couldn't help it but flutter at the nickname.

"Come on can you imagine anything more romantic than sitting in a McDonald's at three in the morning wiping sauce off your girlfriends mouth? I can't think of a better way to spend your time."

"I can't either."

The lack of bite made you choke. Your eyes met hers briefly as you tried to blindly reach out for your drink and the shy expression she was wearing threw you into another coughing fit.

"You don't have to lie to protect my feelings dear, I know this isn't what we usually do." The words came out weak. Vulnerable.

"I do look like a mess", she hummed, "but", she continued, a lot more quiet than before, "...if its you... I... do not think I mind."

Pink was your favourite colour. You didn't like it too much when you were a child, deeming it as far too girly but seeing the way Kiyoko's cheeks were flushed in a brilliant shade of it sure did it put it above every other contemplation you had had when thinking about your favourite colour.

Black and gray were other contestants. The black tresses reminded you of every word you had written in black ink dedicated to her, affirmations of love on thin letter paper you had felt too vulnerable to ever give her, too scared of her meaning so much more to you than you did to her, the nagging voice in your head protesting and dismissing every syllable she returned. Her gray orbs were like a cold stormy winter morning, harsh but comforting, twinkling prettier than any snow in the sunlight could. Steady, reliable, calm, calculated. And so filled with affection she could've almost convinced you.

"What mess?", you asked breathlessly, lacking the playfulness you had wanted to included in that question.

"You pulled me out of bed, I was hardly able to get ready", she giggled quietly.

Quiet. Her hair was dishevled and there was still sleep in her eyes. The colours of her clothes clashed, something she put a lot of effort in to avoid (and you by extent). Despite her drinking a vanilla milkshake you had brought her for compensation, her breath still smelled a little.

"Shimizu Kiyoko I want to wake up next to you for the rest of my life." It was more a statement than anything else, devoid of anything that could make her question the weight of your words.

The realization made you awestruck. It had been so clear the whole time but maybe you didn't allow it to be true for yourself, for her. You loved her. As much as you wished for it to not be the truth; how could someone like you love her.

You loved the way she brought you apple slices while you were working on a project. You loved the way she hummed whenever you told her something, a sign that even if she didn't understand your obsessions (she herself being your biggest one), she was listening, you had her undivided attention. You loved the way she drowned her fries in ketchup making them all soggy, always eating all of them first before moving onto the burger. The way she always first divided the laundry into different piles depending on the articles of clothing and then folded them or how she first put everything on the table and then set it because she complained she got dizzy when she constantly turned in your tiny kitchen. The way her body language gave you the knowledge whether she was listening to music or to a podcast indicated by either the swaying of her hips or the thoughtful pauses in between dishes. The way she put toothpaste on her toothbrush, always ensuring that it was exactly as long as the toothbrush itself, not to mention that for all the maturity Kiyoko radiated she only liked toothpaste that had a taste so you usually ended buying a berry flavor for her. You loved how her hand fit perfectly in yours, always soft and smooth from her constant usage of hand cream, you loved how her ring fingers curved ever so slightly and it was that thought that made you realize just how much prettier it would look like with a ring on it.

"Are you... proposing to me?", Kiyoko squeaked, her face gaining colour once more.

"Give me a moment I'm just processing this myself", you said slowly, staring at your greasy fingers covered in sauce.

You wanted to marry Shimizu Kiyoko. The realization hit you like a truck, your cheeks warming as well.

"Holy shit yeah I do. Like really really bad."

You looked up to meet Kiyoko's eyes. They were wide, her mouth agape but above all they held so much emotion that you weren't sure you could describe with any other word than love that made you choke. No one had ever stared at you like that. It had always only been Kiyoko.

"God I am so lame I'm sorry I am literally asking you to marry me at three in the morning in a shitty run down McDonald's with my fingers and mouth covered in crumbs and sauce this is so unromantic-", you rambled, panic settling into your stomach, she wouldn't say yes she couldn't, she shouldn't she should just-

"My answer is yes regardless", she said, her voice almost soundless but determined, "I love you."

Kiyoko had never been the vocal type, mostly keeping to herself. Words of affection were few, mostly preferring actions over words, but when she uttered the syllables they were true and meant honestly.

"I... wow holy shit this was the worst proposal ever. Please let me redo this. Something more romantic please I swear I can do better babe-", you whisper yelled and Kiyoko laughed, snorting cutely.

"How do you even get the realization right now? When I am like this?"

"Like what?"

"A mess."

"Considering I myself am a mess and find myself very much sexy and irresistible, the same is the case for you", you joked, a light feeling settling in your chest as her laughter amplified.

"But for real it's... the time were you are the most unabashedly yourself. Where you are just you without thinking you have to fulfill a role. You're just Shimizu Kiyoko and I think that's the most beautiful thing you could ever be."

Her laughter died down and she looked at you again with those eyes. A quiet appreciation for your words and you finally understand what else they told you; that she harbored the same feelings towards you.

Otherwise she wouldn't have agreed to your unromantic and ugly proposal at three in the morning in a run down McDonald's diner.

[starlightxsvt]

Sunrises || Choi Seungcheol au

Pairing: Seungcheol x Female reader

Genre: apocalypse au, slice of life (?), angst, kinda fluff, some action

Warning: zombies, death and stuffs

"Thank you for saving me that day." You murmur to the male sittig next to you.

Seungcheol, in return says nothing, focusing on peeling the apple in his hand.

It was the third day after he saved you and gave you a place to stay. The man didn't offer his name or any other information - though you figured it out from craved wood that hung on his room's door saying, 'Seungcheol's room' - neither asked yours but you enlightened him with it. He doesn't talk much and doesn't like to be talked much but you kept your mouth open anyway.

It was about two months since the strange virus spread and begun the apocalypse and you were lucky enough to have stumbled upon Seungcheol.

"I really mean it." You whisper. "I'm new in this place. Believe it or not but I moved here literally a few days before the apocalypse started."

You didn't get any response to that either.

"Do you have any family? I don't. My mother died long ago and my father's an addict so I basically ran from him."

More silence.

You take in his features which are too concentrated on peeling the apple. His brows were knit to a frown and he chewed on his lower  plump lip.

You swallow, "Who's Sunghoon?" You know you probably shouldn't have asked the question but curiosity got the best of you. You saw the name hanging on one of the rooms which was apparently locked.

He looks up at you, an angry look on his face. "I swear to any higher being up there, if you don't shut your mouth I am going to feed you to the corpses by myself." He stands up murmuring, "This is why I don't like helping people." 

You watch his retreating figure walk inside the house and you sigh, leaning against the apple tree and watching the sunset.

A week later

You thanked the heavens everyday for making you stumble upon a guy who's a farmer. Seungcheol had his own produce, a small field of rice and corns and a few apple and lemon trees. It was safe to say these were more than enough in a time like this.

The electricity is unavailable most of the time but it takes some surprise visits every few days for a few hours. That's when you and Seungcheol wash up and store water.

Your days go by rather quickly thanks to the neat system Seungcheol seems to have established. He had things run so smoothly that it was pretty unbelievable the world was going through an apocalypse right now. You help him around the house, cleaning things up, watering the crops and such. He had his own rules - don't waste water or tissues, don't eat too much, don't talk too much. You tried to follow them at your best but you couldn't stop yourself from starting a little conversation more often that which were only met with silence or threats. But so far, Seungcheol was a guy nice enough and you counted your blessings for meeting him.

A few more days later

When you ran from your place you only took your female necessities. Those were dumb things compared to others who ran away with guns and foods.

You sat in the guest room Seungcheol offered you, thinking about what you were gonna do after these necessities were finished.

Suddenly Seungcheol appears knocking on your door before entering. You turn to look at him as he takes a seat. "We'll be heading out tomorrow."

"Huh?"

"There's a super shop a mile away from here. We're going there."

"Why?"

"Why do you think, smartass? We need to stock up on tissue paper and dry foods. I visited there a couple times after the apocalypse started. Apparently the government and NGO's provide foods and stuffs there for the survivors out here."

"Really?Then where are they? We need to find them. They probably built a shelter, we can go live there."

"Do you think it's that simple?"

"Huh?"

Seungcheol sighs. "They are moving in their own pace, okay? The shelters are probably full now with survivors. When their capacity increases they'll let us know. I have a friend who works at the NGO. If he's okay he'll come for me."

"When was the last time you spoke with him?"

"On the day of the breakout."

"I see."

"Prepare yourself for tomorrow. Since you are living in my place, you are coming with me." He stands up to leave.

"I'm not a wuss, you know." You roll your eyes.

"We'll see."

"Yea. And you know, it didn't hurt to speak with me! We could talk more often Mr. Grumpy!" You call after him.

"Shut up."

The next day

"Listen carefully, don't waste anytime. Just grab the things you need and walk into the car." Seungcheol says parking the car in front of the convenience store.

You nod and watch him load his gun and tuck it behind him.

The store is a mess. Broken pieces and bits of metals everywhere. You both walk in and look for the things you came for. Luck seems to be on your side as you find a couple of dry food packets, some toilet papers and some pads -though they are not the best quality, you have to make do with these. You quickly put them on the tote bag you brought with yourself and turned around.

Seungcheol was on the opposite Isle looking through selves for God knows what. You walk out to the front of the store and see and notice taped there.

Food will be supplied here every week along with other necessities. If you are a survivor please hang in there. Once we manage more accommodation, we will come for you. Regarding the infected, our research says they are deaf, so please use that to your advantage.

You turn around to tell Seungcheol about this but instead you meet the eyes of a corpse. It stands there, a mess of blood and gunk as your soul leaves your body.

It approaches you, making garbled sounds and you take back a few steps. From behind him you see Seungcheol approaching will a huge piece of metal rod.

The corpse doesn't turn back to the noises Seungcheol's feet makes while approaching you through the mess, instead it's focus is solely on you, ready to devour. They're really deaf, huh. It opens its mouth ready to chunk a piece of your body when Seungcheol hits him in the head and bangs a couple more times to make sure it's immobile.

"Quick, get in the car. More of them might be around here."

You two dash back to the car, carrying your goods and he starts the car quickly. You look behind to see more of the corpses appearing from around the store. Dusk was approaching soon which meant the corpses will be more alive and ferocious.

The car speeds through the empty road as you clutch onto your tote bag. "Did you know they were deaf?"

"You didn't?" He throws at you. You roll your eyes at him.

"Thanks for saving me again."

"Maybe next time I won't."

Another couple weeks or so later

"I'm going to the supermarket."

"At this hour? It's almost dusk. Are you crazy?"

You watch as Seungcheol puts on the necessary protection on his arms and legs and checks his gun.

"They people from NGO deliver foods during this time since there is no survivors out at this hour. I'm gonna go there and try to meet the delivery guy. Also I need to refill my car."

"Why?"

"To pass a message."

"To your friend who works at the NGO?"

"Yes. I need to let him know that I'm alive. Then he'll come for me."

"What if he's dead?"

Seungcheol says nothing. You forbid him to leaves a few more times but he completely ignores your pleas saying he has to take a  chance. Before he is out the door, he hands you his gun. "Keep this with you. Until now, they corpses have never been around here so just stay inside the house and you'll be safe. I don't know if you have your memories after you becoming a corpse but if you see me coming here looking like one of them, shoot me."

What? You swallow as your heart tugs.

"Stop talking like that. You don't need to leave. We've plenty of food. We'll get by. Don't do this Seungcheol."

"Remember what I said." He speaks, ignoring you and turns around.

"Wait." You call, tears pooling in your eyes. "At least take the gun with you. You'll need it more than me. Besides I dont even know how to use it."

Seungcheol looks at you for a beat before taking a gun and giving you a small smile - the first one he ever gave you.

You watch him leave as the sky turn in hues of purple and black.

You spend a restless night, sitting in your room watching the sky and thinking about Seungcheol. You think of how he opened up a bit more in the last few days and the moments you shared.

Sunghoon was my brother. He was in the military. We were outside, celebrating his discharge when the infection spread. The corpses got him while he was trying to save me. I failed him.

I waited for him for a long time, thinking he'd come back. He didn't.

Y/n, if I don't return by dawn don't wait for me.

As the night passed anxiety got the best of you. This is it. I lost him. He's gone. I'll have to survive now, alone.

You were about to have a break down as you saw the first streak of light spread through the sky. You walked to the roof of his farmhouse watching the colors in the sky. You start to accept the fact that you're alone from now on. That is until you see Seungcheol's jeep approaching towards the house.

You held your breath and didn't move your position, waiting to see him come out.

You thought sunsets were pretty until you saw Seungcheol's tired figure getting out of the jeep, his eyes meeting yours and flashing a smile, the brightest one probably, at the crack of dawn.

Sunrises were pretty too. Even prettier perhaps.

A/N: Tbh I wasn't so confident in this one but oh well, here it is. Also thank you for loving my previous work, it really means a lot. As for this one, if it doesn't flop, maybe I'll write a part 2 👀.Anyway thanks again! 💖

[niawritess]

The Lovestruck~Chapter 12

(6 December Monday)

12:23 pm

You and Ria settled down on your table by the window as usual in the cafeteria with Mark across you. Three of you were chit-chating about various things and Ria telling Mark about the encounter with Song Joongki yesterday who surprisingly was listening to it with interest.

"I have actually heard about him a lot, you know." He stated munching while you both looked at him amazed making him laugh.

"Actually-"

His words got cut off as you three flinched by the sudden gasps and whispers causing you frown in confusion before following the people's gaze to the entrance which was getting a little crowded now.

"What's happening?" Ria spoke her eyes glued to the crowd as she shifted her body while sitting to see the view before letting out a gasp.

"What if it's Big Boss?!" She exclaimed causing Mark to roll his eyes while you looked at her shook.

"Are we that lucky?" You laughed at your remark turning your head back to the crowd only to get shook by the appearance of none other than your seniors who were walking in.

Your head whipped towards your bestfriend who's mouth was opened as she watched the sight infront of her before looking at you and closed it.

"What happened?" Mark questioned seeing Ria's expression before looking back at the crowd. "Who are they?"

"Seniors." Ria answered smiling before both of your eyes widen as you saw them aproaching your table causing you sit straight as you both exchanged looks with each other.

"Is this seat taken?" You almost gasped hearing the familiar voice before looking up at your side to see Baekhyun looking at innocently.

You blinked before shaking your head. "No."

He smiled pulling out the chair beside you and sat down with his friends sitting down too while you sat there shook processing. You can hear gasps and whispers around you before you glanced at your bestfriend who happened to be just as shook as you.

Although, you feel uncomfortable being in the attention but you can't just tell them to go away that's not polite or your place to do. Besides, the cafeteria is full today unexpectedly so, that's why they sat here. Well, that's what you assumed not knowing what is going on the mind of the person beside you.

Ria, who was shook, slightly smirked as she hoped for this to happen but didn't expected it would happen this soon.

Flashback

Ria got a call from home and excused herself leaving you with Mark and asked you to go ahead which you did.

And as she was done, she turned around startle by the presence behind her to see Baekhyun coming towards her but with a frown on his face.

"Hey." He smiled greeting her and she greeted back still confused before following his gaze where you and Mark were talking while going inside the campus.

"Who is he?" He asked his eyes still on you as a wave of jealously rose in him watching you talking and smiling to the guy.

His expression did not go hidden by Ria who was fast to catch these things and a smirk plastered on her face as she decided to play cupid.

"Uh..he is our friend, Mark." She smiled at him.

"Are they close?" He pointed towards your direction and she hid her smug grin. "They are getting close."

He stared at your direction for a while watching you disappearing inside the campus and looked back at Ria who was giving him a look which he couldn't comprehend.

Nevertheless, he just gave a light smile before nodding and walked away leaving Ria grinning to herself smugly. "Bullseye."

Flashback ended

Ria's smug smile dropped when she noticed Chanyeol looking at her questionly making her sit straight and her cheeks reddened as he was staring her.

"Oh Hyung."

Everyone averted their eyes to the voice which belonged to Rowoon who approached the table with Lauren beside him but her gaze was on the person beside you made you confuse, but he didn't even paid attention to her as his eyes were on you which you didn't know.

"How come you are eating in the cafeteria?" Rowoon asked as he settled beside jongin with her girlfriend beside her who was smiling too sweetly towards everyone which Ria noticed it as she let out a low scoff enough for you to hear it.

"Yeah, since this our last year, we wanted to make some memories." Jongin spoke shoving his mouth with spoonful of rice before giving Baekhyun a nod earning an eye roll from him.

"This is not bad as it was last two years, don't you think Baekhyun-ah?" Chanyeol asked munching his food and Baekhyun nodded. "It's actually good."

"Of course, they changed the chef that's why." Ria joined them. "If they hadn't, this cafeteria would be empty until now."

Everyone chuckled at her remark and your lunch time passed laughing with them. You also joined the conversation as Baekhyun asked you something as he saw how shy you were to talk openly to them which you were thankful for.

He was happy seeing you getting along with his friends where you also noticed his sweet little gesture of him giving you some side dishes time to time making your heart flutter not noticing the fiery gaze from a certain person around the table.

***

7:23 pm

Checking the time, you took off your apron and was ready to go home as it was the closing time. Hearing the jingling bell sound, you instantly looked towards the door to see your bestfriend waving at you before entering.

"I'll get my bag." You told her going inside the kitchen while she talked to Rose and Baekhyun who were also preparing to close the café.

Walking out of the café, Rose bid goodnight before closing the Café and drove off while Baekhyun stayed there.

You and Ria both gave him a confuse look and he just stared at you with unreadable expression unable to tell what's going on in his mind.

And here you were, seated on the passengers seat in Baekhyun's car with Ria in the backseat while on your way to your home. Apparently Baekhyun insisted to drop you both since it's night time and he was worried about the incident happened last time and then you couldn't reject him.

Reaching there, you three got out of his car before you spotted another car and a familiar figure in front of your porch so you stopped, making Ria and Baekhyun halt on their spot.

"Aunt jane?" You called out and she turned around.

"Y/n?" She smiled, coming towards you and hugged you before pulling away and saw Ria and hugged her. "Oh Ria, you're here too."

Ria laughed awkwardly. "Yes, I'm gonna stay here tonight."

"But who's this?" She looked at Baekhyun and he innocently glanced at you both you chuckled awkwardly. "Ah, he's Baekhyun, our senior and friend."

"Hello." He bowed a little giving her a polite smile and aunt Jane smiled back.

"But Aunt Jane, what are you doing here?"

"Oppa asked me to check up on you."

"But I asked dad not to do that." You muttered under your breathe, enough for Ria and Baekhyun to hear.

"Liam is here too." You all followed her eyes to see him getting out the car and walking towards you.

"Hey." Liam smiled standing beside Aunt Jane, looking both you and Ria then his smiled dropped, when his eyes stopped at Baekhyun who was eyeing him expressionless.

"Hi." Liam held out his hand to Baekhyun and he shook it but both of them were looking at eachother with unreadable expression.

"Let's go inside then." Ria interuppted, dropping the awkward atmosphere and you looked at her with 'what to do' face.

"Yeah." Liam went inside sparing last glance at Baekhyun before Aunt Jane looked at Baekhyun. "Why don't you join us?"

"No!" You quickly intruded making them startle.

"I mean he has something important to do, right?" You made an excuse and mouth Baekhyun to say yes.

"Yes, I have something to do." He told her and you and Ria looked at eachother in relief. "But it's not that important so I can join you." He added.

Ria and you looked at him surprised and he just smiled innocently at you. Aunt Jane nodded and went inside leaving you three alone.

"Don't blame me after this, I was saving you but you dug your own grave." You went inside and he watched your figure going inside with a confused look before he glanced at Ria. "What does she mean?"

"You dug your own grave." She shook her head and followed you inside leaving Baekhyun dumbfounded there.

***

Liam was on his phone, Baekhyun and daniel were playing games on the couch opposite of him in the living room, while you and Ria were helping Aunt Jane for dinner. Ria and you kept stealing glances and making sad faces, as you both had planned to chill and order pizza but now it's not possible.

"Here." Aunt jane put the sliced apples on the table and sat beside liam and fed him a slice.

You took another plate of sliced apples, placing them infront of Baekhyun and Daniel before sitting on another couch beside them.

"So Baekhyun.." aunt jane started and Baekhyun sat up straight. "What are you studying?"

You, Ria and Daniel gave eachother the look of 'here we go'.

You got annoyed by her questions, so you decided to interrupt. "Aunt jane, why are you asking so many questions?"

"Why? I want to see what kind of friend our Y/n has." She gave you a tight smile.

"He's really good friend so, you don't have to worry." You forced a smile at her and Baekhyun looked down hiding his smile.

"Aunt jane when will you go home?" Ria asked and Aunt Jane's eyes shot up at her.

"Why? You don't want me to be here?" Her voice was stern but Ria didn't care as always.

"No-I mean we have to do our assignments and all so..if you're here, we can't let you feel lonely and cause of that we won't be able do our assignments." she took a bite of sliced apple while you bit your lip preventing yourself from smiling and proud of your bestfriend as she always knows how to deal with her.

Aunt jane rolled her eyes. "Don't worry, Liam has his work too, so we'll leave after dinner."

She looked at Baekhyun again but he looked at you and mouthed 'help me'.

"Uh, Aunt Jane, I smell something from the kitchen." You pretented to sniff and she stood up and went to kitchen.

"Can I use washroom?" Baekhyun asked and you nodded standing up before making your way to upstairs.

You stood in front of Daniel's room and gestured him to go inside but he didn't.

"Which one is your room?" He asked and you pointed towards your room beside Daniel's.

"Then I should go there." He walked towards your room but you jogged and blocked him by standing in front of him with your back against your room door, stopping him.

"Why would you go into my room?"

"I wanna use washroom."

"Then you should use Dan's, you can't use mine."

"But I wanna see your room too."

"No, you can't."

"Why can't I?"

"Because you can't."

"Is there something you're hidding here?" His eyes enlarged as he let out a fake gasp and you scoffed. "What do you mean hidding? That's because it's messy."

"It's okay, I'm used to it."

"But-."

"You don't want me to go to your room? Okay, then." He made a fake pout looking at you with gloomy face before turning around making you feel bad.

"You can." You blurted out seeing his sad face which you couldn't see and a smile crept on his face before looking at your innocent face making his heart melt.

You hesitantly stepped aside for him to enter which he did with a excitement. You tiptoed looking over his shoulder to see your room if it was messy but it wasn't and how would it be as you always clean your room.

"You call this messy?" He roamed his eyes around the room as he walked inside and went towards your study table.

"Cute." He smiled, eyeing your childhood photo frame adoringly and you felt your cheeks burning.

"By the way, sorry about my Aunt." You spoke scratching your side of your head looking at him apologetically.

"Its okay and thanks, you did saved me." He chuckled. "So that's why you said I dug my own grave."

You nodded. "She asks too many questions and I warned you though."

"But I don't regret it though, I got to see your room." He smiled looking around. "And it's not pink."

You frowned. "What do you mean?"

"You know, girls have their room decorated in pink."

"Well not all girls, I'm more into black." You said with a proud smile. "I asked them to do it in black but dad said it'll be too dark for me but which girl are you talking about? who's room is pink?"

"Somi, my cousin." He replied and you nodded slowly, thinking he has been in a girl's room before and felt something strange inside but you shrugged it off.

"Wait, weren't you going to use washroom?" You looked at him quizzically and he chuckled. "You really thought that?"

"Eh?"

"Yo! Dinner is ready." Ria announced, coming into your room and then grinned mischeviously.

"What were you both doing?" She wiggled her eyebrows.

"We weren't doing anything, let's go." You glared at while walking out wondering what Baekhyun meant.

She looked at Baekhyun who was smiling and a smirk crept on her face. He saw her and his smile dropped. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." She still had smirk on her face, baekhyun looked at her frowning and left the room.

She sighed, shaking her head. "You're too obvious." With that she followed him out.

***

After eating dinner, Aunt jane and Liam went back to their home while Baekhyun was still here as Daniel forced him to stay here.

They were on the couch in the living room, playing games as usual while you and Ria were in the kitchen, cleaning the dishes before you made coffee for them and tea for yourself.

Ria took the tray with cups and placed it on the table in front of them before sitting on the couch opposite of them and you walked out with cup of tea in your hand and sat beside her.

Ria was scrolling through her insta, showing you dresses and asking your opinion on them, you helped her choosing before you looked at the sight before you.

Baekhyun and Daniel were laughing and then Daniel whined as he lost to him but Baekhyun just chuckled ruffling his hair, while your lips stretched in a warm smile, watching them getting along.

"He's handsome, right?" A voice whispered in your ear and you nodded before turning your head to see Ria smirking.

"W-what?" You stammered, taking a sip from your tea and avoiding eye contact with her.

"Gosh y/n, what do I do with you." She giggled shaking her head while taking a cup in her hand.

"Shut up!" You glared at her but she just showed a cheeky grin which annoyed you even more.

"What are you two doing?" You both turned to Baekhyun who was giving his remote control to Daniel back.

"Y/n was-". Ria's mouth got shut as you put your palm on her mouth to stop her.

"Nothing, she's just talking nonsense." You smiled at Baekhyun and shot a glare at you best friend who was struggling to get away.

Not long before Baekhyun stood. "I should go now, it's getting late."

You nodded and got up from the couch and walked him out with Daniel and Ria behind you. As you all walked out, he stopped at the front porch and turned around.

"Well, thank you for today." He looked at you smiling, while shoving his hands in his pocket and you nodded smiling back.

"Hyung, will you come again? I had so much fun." Daniel grinned and Baekhyun nodded right away. "I would love to, only if your sister wants me to."

He grinned playfully while looking at you and your forehead creased. "So I'm the bad guy here?"

You brought your arms to your chest pretending to get offended and they just laughed. Baekhyun bid good night to you and went to his car and drove off before sparing a last glance at you while smiling.

Entering inside Ria and Daniel plopped on the couch tired and you just gave them a look, like they have ran a marathon.

"Isn't strange?" Daniel started causing you and Ria to look at him perplexed. "I mean you didn't interact with any guy before but you've got two guy friends now."

You stared at him for some time contemplating his remark and confused to what to say so, you just shrugged.

"I know right? My bestie is getting popular with boys now." Ria teased nudging you and you rolled you eyes and Daniel laughed. "I don't know about that but if you're going to date anyone of them, date Baekhyunee hyung."

You looked at him shook then frowned. "What? Wait- Where is this coming from?"

"I agree with Dan." Ria interuppted.

"Wait." You instantly sat up straight raising your hands up. "What are you both talking about? What dating? This is never gonna happen."

"What do you mean never gonna happen?" Ria mimicked your tone before looking at you seriously. "Have you ever seen how Baekhyun sunbae is looking at you when you are not looking? Because I can tell it will happen soon."

You rolled your eyes. "No, it's not and I'm not even his type so stop assuming things."

"What? What's wrong with you? You are pretty as heck." Ria came on defense mood and you chuckled. "There's nothing wrong with me but I don't think I'm his type like his type would be like..um...Lauren type girls?"

Ria scoffed. "Lauren? Don't be ridiculous."

"Who is Lauren?" Daniel interuppted but got ignored by you two making him pout.

"I'm not saying Lauren herself but like tall, or stylish which is totally opposite of me. So stop saying these things." You stated sternly not wanting to get your hopes up where in return you'll get hurt.

"But I see something more y/n, trust me. And you'll see it soon." Ria interjected again.

"Ria." You looked at her sternly.

"Fine!"

You sighed walking in the kitchen thinking she would stop now but you were unable to notice her smug smile which was making way to her lips and that got noticed by Daniel who was sensing trouble.

________________

@wooya1224 @buttercupbbh

[snowstark]

Everyone Needs a (Baby) Day Off

Peter goes into little space for the first time since he and Bucky talked about it, and Bucky takes extra good care of him.

a little!peter x daddy!bucky story by @buckettbarnes and @snowstark

you can also read it here on ao3

Peter has been feeling a little out of character all day, like he needed to let himself relax in his headspace for some time. He hasn’t for a while, so he figures it’s a good idea to make himself comfortable and feel physically small at the same time—by wearing his boyfriend’s much bigger clothes. He wiggles himself into Bucky’s favourite hoodie, then sits down on the bed for a while as he starts to relax; feeling much better with nothing to do and the scent of Bucky’s favourite hoodie surrounding him.

Bucky is surprised to find the house extra quiet when he came home. Usually, Peter has the TV switched on and it would be playing an animal documentary—Peter loves those. But the television isn’t on and Peter isn’t sitting at his usual spot on the couch.

So, Bucky makes his way upstairs. He checks his room and smiles when he sees Peter sitting on his bed, drowning in one of his hoodies. Bucky's clothes are too big for Peter, but that never stops him. "Baby, I'm home!" he says brightly, entering the room. "I was wondering if you want to get takeout for dinner tonight?" He pauses when Peter stares wide-eyed at him. "Doll, what's wrong?"

Peter doesn’t realise how long he’s been laying there until the bedroom door opens; he could only stare at the other man, a little nervous to admit what’s going on in his head. “Hi... Hiya.” The smaller boy says after a moment, rubbing his rosy cheeks with the sleeves of his hoodie. “Bucky’s home!” Peter squeaks out, unable to stop himself from smiling.

Bucky smiles at that. Peter is so darn cute. "Yeah, I'm home, honeybun." He approaches and sits down next to Peter. Giving him a kiss on the cheek, he asks, "So, about that takeout... are you up for it?" He waggles his eyebrows teasingly. "I know you couldn't stop talking about how good that pizza place was last time." He stares quizzically at Peter. "Are you okay, baby?"

Peter moves aside for Bucky to sit with him, leaning into the kiss and reaching out to take his hand with both of his own. “Um... Yep! Pizza.” He nods and then looks at Bucky again, meeting his eyes. “I’m good, da— Bucky.” He goes pink again and tries to hide his cheeks with the hood of the sweater. “Can we get juice, p’ease? Apple?”

Peter is feeling shy, especially for his first time being in littlespace around Bucky. He doesn’t want to just come out and say it, of course, but he doesn’t feel like acting big to hide it. Not feeling rational, he decides the best way is to keep quiet; hoping Bucky will pick up on it by himself.

Bucky narrows his eyes; he hasn’t missed the way Peter is stumbling over his words, or the way his cheeks are going red. But he doesn’t want to push Peter; he knows that he’ll tell him if he wants to. "Yeah, honey, we can get juice. Let me order now." He pulls out his phone, relieved that mobile orders were a thing, while keeping an eye on Peter at the same time. He’s acting odd, all shy and squeaky, and Bucky is going to get to the bottom of it. Offering his hand, he says, "Wanna go downstairs and start getting ready for dinner? It'll take about fifteen minutes. We could wash our hands and stuff before it arrives."

While Bucky is ordering, Peter stares over his boyfriend's shoulder, poking at his phone to add dessert to their dinner for tonight. Once they’re done he stands up and nods. “Mhm! Wash hands, gotta clean.” He takes Bucky’s hand and practically drags him out of the room. “Oh! Gimme a second, gotta—” He stops speaking entirely in favour of padding into his own room.

Peter returns less than a minute later; holding a stuffed bear Bucky once won him on a date. “All done, wash hands.” He repeats, heading for the stairs.

Bucky grins when he sees the stuffed animal in Peter’s hands. Then, he falters a bit when he sees how small Peter was looking. Could this be...? Bucky shakes his head. Peter will tell him if he wants to, he reminds himself once again. For now, he would just keep going with the flow.

Peter is staring down the stairs.

“Wanna hold my hand?” Bucky offers cautiously.

The little watches the stairs for a moment, psyching himself up to go down them— usually he’d slide down on his butt to avoid falling. He looks at Bucky and nods, relieved that he offered. “Yes please, don’t wanna fall.” He reaches out and grabs the older man's hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Let’s go!” He giggles and begins to walk down, taking it one step at a time just in case he slips. If Bucky wasn’t around he totally would’ve done it sitting; it’s way more fun that way.

Bucky overlooks Peter’s actions with amusement, keeping a close eye on him in case he accidentally fell. He couldn’t help but heave a sigh of relief when they reached the bottom of the stairs. “Go wash your hands, baby,” he says, ushering Peter to the washroom. “Make sure your stuffie doesn’t get wet. Da— I’ll join you in a moment.” He hopes Peter hadn’t caught his near slip-up; he isn’t sure how he’d react. Peter seems very shy at the moment. Suddenly, he wonders if Peter would ask for help in washing his hands too— that would definitely be an indicator as to how he is feeling.

Once they reach the bottom Peter is happy to let go of Bucky's hand, running towards the washroom. He sets the stuffie down on the closed toilet and then glances back at Bucky, expecting him to come inside too. “Um...” He bites his lip briefly. “Bucky? Wanna do— wash together, please?” The boy questions. At least that way he can copy the other man's actions.

Bucky smiles. “Yeah, honey, we can do it together,” he agrees. Peter looks very timid, standing there with the most adorable puppy eyes. There’s no way Bucky can say no to that. So they wash their hands together, Bucky gently guiding Peter’s hands to the soap bottle. “Gotta make sure we’re squeaky clean before we eat,” he tells him, even going as far as to gently tickle his hands with his own.

Peter's smile brightens and he begins to wash his hands with Bucky's help, giving a soft giggle at the tickling. “You’re so silly!” he exclaims; making sure his hands really are clean before they leave the bathroom.

When they’re finished, the smaller boy picks his stuffie back up and Bucky leads him to the dining table, where Peter sits. “You don’t wanna watch some TV until the food gets here?” Bucky asks, though he notices how content Peter looks.

“Um... No thank you,” Peter says, swinging his legs under the table as he places his bear in his lap. It would be a total giveaway if Peter asked him to put cartoons on, anyway. He loves to watch Winnie the Pooh.

Bucky shrugs. “Okay. You tell me if you change your mind.” He gets his phone out to check how much longer the pizza will take while keeping an eye on Peter at the same time. With every passing second, it becomes more and more clear that this is exactly what he’d suspected—Peter is feeling little. Bucky refuses to acknowledge it first though; they would go at Peter’s pace and if that means pretending that nothing out of the blue is happening, that’s exactly what they’ll do. Thankfully, the pizza arrives sooner than expected and Bucky leaves to fetch it.

Peter sits there waiting the entire time, stuffed animal pressed into his chest. He hums a soft tune to keep himself occupied, tapping his fingers on the table. He really wants to colour, but feels too shy to ask Bucky. He’s missed him all day, and just wants cuddles and pizza before he settles in for bed.

Once the pizza has arrived Peter watches Bucky get out plates and- oh dear, a glass cup. There’s no way he can handle drinking out of that right now... “Hey- um, Buck..? Could I please have my special cup? With... with the lid.”

Bucky doesn’t flinch. Nodding, he says, “Of course, baby. Do you want anything else, hm?” He goes to fetch Peter’s sippy cup, smiling to himself. He has to admit, Peter is even more adorable when he’s feeling little.

The boy smiles when Bucky doesn’t dismiss him, truly thinking he’s getting away with hiding his headspace.

Bucky returns and moves to set it down in front of Peter, and then stops. Right, juice. Peter isn’t going to be drinking oxygen. He’s glad when Peter has a pleased look on his face, and he prompts once again, “Anything else before we start eating, honeybun?”

He gives his stuffie a squeeze as Bucky sets his cup down and hums quietly. “Kiss!” He says very seriously, making grabby hands for Bucky to lean down to him.

“Kiss,” Bucky agrees with a chuckle and obeys. Then, he puts a slice of pizza on Peter’s plate and says, “Eat up, honey.” He eyes the slice of pizza, seeing the mushrooms and onions and green peppers on it, waiting to see how Peter will react. It’s not a secret that Peter favours regular cheese pizza over any other type. He doesn’t say anything more though, just busies himself by getting a slice for his own plate.

He gives him his kiss, then turns his attention to his pizza. A frown forms on his face immediately, and he eyes it nervously. “Pizza...” he mumbles before quietly picking the vegetables off of it, grimacing slightly, “not my favourite kind.” He pouts.

Bucky tuts at that, deciding to push a bit. "No, baby, you need to eat your veggies too. They're good for you, yeah?" Bucky gently tugs Peter's hand off of his pizza and places the vegetables back on it, taking note of the slight pout on Peter's face. "Don't you want to be all big and strong and healthy?”

Peter looks at him and shakes his head gently. “N-No... No, I don’t want to, please...” he says in a soft voice, trying not to get upset, “I don’t want them, Buck... Just cheese.” He looks at his pizza, frowning again.

Bucky hesitates. He doesn’t want to push Peter, but he also doesn’t want to let him run rampage. “Okay, sweetheart. How about we make a deal? You have 3 pieces of veggie with each slice of pizza you have. If you do that without complaining, we can have ice cream for dessert.” Personally, Bucky thinks it’s a very good deal. Trying to convince Peter, he takes a big bite of his own slice, making sure to munch on the veggies as well. “See, baby? Yummy!”

Peter looks at him again and shakes his head gently. “I don’t want them, Daddy, I just want cheese!” he says, then realises what he let slip, and he goes bright red. “No...” he whispers and moves to grab his stuffie, hiding behind it. He really didn’t mean to! He just feels so passionately about not eating the veggies on his pizza, he forgot to think about his words before they came out of his mouth.

Bucky freezes for a moment. Then, he quickly moves back into action. “Hey, sweetheart, doll, it’s okay.” He gets up and moves to hug Peter. “You know I can be your Daddy whenever you need me to.” He sees Peter go even redder—he hadn’t even known that was a possibility—but he pushes on. “C’mon, honey. The pizza’s really yummy. I don’t want to have to tell you again.” He hopes that’s enough to calm Peter down from both his embarrassment and stubbornness.

Peter peeks out from behind the stuffed animal when Bucky wraps him up in a hug, making sure he doesn’t look angry at all. He can’t help going impossibly red, feeling very embarrassed about his slip-up. “Um... Can I jus’ do peppers?” he asks, trying to compromise. Mushrooms are way too yucky for him right now. “And cake for dessert?”

Bucky lets out a hum. "Green peppers and the onions, baby," he says firmly, leaving no room for argument. "Then we can have cake for dessert. Deal?" He holds out a fist for Peter to fist bump to seal the deal.

He glances back at the pizza, deciding mushrooms are way better than onions. “Um... Pepper and mushroom?” he suggests, then fist bumps Bucky anyway so that he can’t change his mind. “Cool, you gotta take all the onion off! I don’t wanna do it. Icky!”

Bucky stifles a snort of laughter at that and takes the onions off. “Here, baby, how’s the pizza lookin’ now, hm?”

Peter hums. “Not lookin’ the best but ‘s okay,” he says, then opens his mouth for the slice

The older man holds it up to Peter’s mouth, wanting to hand feed him but also see his reaction to being coddled. “Good boy,” he cooes when Peter obediently takes a bite, blushing.

Peter goes all red at a Bucky’s coddling, chewing carefully. It’s totally not his favourite pizza, but it’s okay. “Daddy, you take bite!” He exclaims, wanting to make sure Bucky really is enjoying it, and he’s not making Peter eat veggies just for fun.

Bucky laughs at that, unable to help but smile fondly at his baby boy. Peter is just too adorable. “Okay, baby,” he agrees, even though he has his own slice right there in front of him. He takes a bite, then offers it back to Peter. “Now you, baby. It’s all yours; don’t want you going hungry at night.”

Peter claps his hands when Bucky takes a bite, smiling brightly. He reaches for it and quietly begins to eat by himself, somehow managing to get sauce on his face and hands, and peppers on the table. But it’s no big deal to Bucky anyway, because he cleans everything up right away.

The cake is both his and Peter’s favourite and Peter clearly enjoys it as well judging by the cake smeared on his cheeks.

“You done eating, honey?” Bucky asks, and when Peter nods in response, he says, “Okay, great.” He glances at the clock. “I know it’s a bit earlier than usual, but what do you say to having bath time now, hm?”

Peter enjoys the rest of dinner, even if he does get cake over the hoodie he stole from Bucky. He reaches for him when he’s finished, hoping Daddy will pick him up. “Bath time? Bubble?” He asks, not objecting to it. “Can I play with toys, Daddy?”

"Yeah, you can," Bucky agrees. "C'mon, lemme carry you." He easily hoists Peter up onto his hip, holding him securely while going upstairs. "What kind of toys do you want, sweetheart? Boats, fishies, and duckies?" He suggests, trying to remember all the bath toys they had.

Peter wraps his arms around Bucky, letting his head rest on the other man's shoulder as they head upstairs. “Boats, please,” he says, feeling calmer now Bucky’s treating him exactly how he wants to be when he’s small. “They get lost in bubbles. He murmurs to him, rubbing at his eyes with the back of his hand.

“They get lost in bubbles, huh.” Bucky chuckled at that. They entered the washroom and Bucky reluctantly set Peter down on the closed lid of the toilet. “Okay, honeybun, lemme just get the tub all filled up for you. You wanna wear your comfy jammies to bed tonight?” He and Peter usually both slept in just their boxers, but he figured that if Peter was feeling small, he’d prefer pyjamas—maybe even the onesie they had. “Or do you wanna wear some of Daddy’s clothes?”

Peter blushes when his feet touch the floor, pulling them up so he doesn’t have to feel the cold tile. “Ummm..” He pauses to think, a small frown on his face. “Can I have my onesie? The bear one, you know it.” He plays with the hem of his pants, feeling shy for asking. It was rare he asked for his onesie, but he found it so very comforting to wear.

Bucky smiled. “Sure thing, buddy.” He added the bubbles into the bath and watched with Peter as they foamed and rose. “C’mon, clothes off and into the tub! Time for you to get squeaky clean.” Bucky helped a blushing Peter out of his clothes.

The boy lifts his arms for Bucky to take off his shirt, smiling up at him. “And can I have story?” He reaches down to take off his socks, putting them in the laundry basket. Once he’s undressed he’s blushing properly, trying to keep himself warm. “I get in, p’ease?” He nudges him.

Bucky helps Peter into the tub, holding his hand and letting him settle into the warm water. “Yeah, you can have a story as long as you’re a good boy and listen to Daddy when I say bath time is over,” Bucky replies sternly, but there’s a fond smile on his face that’s definitely not going away any time soon. “What kind of story are you thinking, hm?” He pops in Peter’s bath toys too, watching as the boy squeals and tackles them with his hands. He decides to let Peter play a bit before actually getting him all squeaky clean.

Once he’s in the bath Peter warms up, the heat of the water flushing his skin a healthy shade of pink. He listens to daddy before shrieking, grabbing his boat out of the water and quickly diving it back into the bubbles— he completely forgets to answer the question, too focused on his extremely cool submarine. He spends a while splashing with his boats in the water, mumbling to himself as he plays and making the noises of the horn. At one point he splashes a little too much, and water slides over the side of the bath onto Bucky's clothes and the mat on the floor. He looks up at Daddy and goes all pink. “Sorry...” He mumbles.

Bucky grimaces at the mess, but feels rather thankful that most of it got on his clothes instead of the floor—it would certainly be easier to clean up. “That’s alright, honey,” he says, reaching out and gently brushing Peter’s wet hair off of his forehead. “But I think it’s time to get out of the bath now—or else most of it will end up on the floor!” he added teasingly.

“Do I gotta get out?” Peter pouts a bit. “I’m playing, Daddy...” He looks at his boat, hair flopping onto his face again. “Promise I won't splash! Then I play more, right?” He holds his fist up for Bucky to bump it, assuming that’s how they make deals now.

Bucky wants to fist bump Peter back, but he hesitates. He had told Peter that he had to listen to him, but Peter is looking up at him with those adorable puppy eyes... no, Peter would have to learn. He shakes his head firmly. “No, baby, you gotta get out now. We need enough time to clean up so that we can read a story before it’s bedtime. Remember, Daddy said you have to be a good boy for that, remember?” He gently takes Peter’s fist and brings it back down to the water.

He frowns, but reluctantly nods. “Okay, Daddy.” He says, sounding a little sad. “Hoodie towel?” the boy suggests, setting his fist down. “And I can play before bed, not bath?” He stands up with Bucky's prompting, not wanting to be naughty. Peter lets the older man wrap him up in his special towel, the hood pulled up over his head.

Bucky gives him a quick kiss on the cheek as praise for behaving. “Hoodie towel,” he agrees, already getting it out. It’s a cute frog hoodie towel, easily one of Peter’s favourites when he’s feeling this way. As Bucky dries him off, he hums. “Maybe a little bit, because you were such a good boy during dinner and bath time. But no TV, okay, baby?”

Peter stands still while he’s dried, humming in response. He likes it when Bucky dries him, he’s so gentle, making sure he pats instead of rubs. “Uh-huh, ‘cause ‘m good, dada.” He reaches for him once he’s all dry, towel still over his head to dry his hair a bit more. “Jammies! I’m gonna be a bear.” He giggles and rests his head on Bucky's shoulder.

Bucky smiles. “Yeah, you can be my baby bear,” he agrees. He carries Peter to their room and sets him down on the bed. Then, helping him into the onesie, he asks, “Do you wanna play a little bit now before the story? Or story and then bed?” He secretly hopes that Peter chooses the latter; he’s feeling rather protective over his baby and wants to make sure he gets a good night’s sleep.

By the time Bucky has helped him into his onesie and he’s zipped up, he’s feeling much warmer. Peter isn’t really interested in playing anymore; slipping into his headspace further with his best jammies on. He shakes his head a little. “Story then bed, Daddy,” he murmurs, rubbing his face with the sleeves. “Can i haf’ a milk bottle?” the boy asks, hoping Bucky will feed it to him before he goes to sleep.

Bucky smiles. Peter is such a good boy. “Of course, lovely. You must be a mind reader; Daddy was just about to suggest the same thing. Do you wanna come down with me or start picking out a story and gettin’ all comfy?”

He clearly stops to think about it for a moment, before holding his arms out to Bucky. “Wi’f Daddy,” he says, letting the other man lift him onto his hip. He wraps his arms around him, a shy smile on his face. “I’m bear.” He giggles and tucks his head into the crook of Bucky's neck.

Laughing, Bucky nods and presses a kiss to his forehead. “Yeah, my baby bear. Was today a good day, hm?” He heads down to the kitchen and begins to fix up Peter’s bottle, warming up the milk so that it’s even more relaxing for him. Peter is absolutely adorable right now and he can’t stop smiling.

“A good day...” he says, letting himself cuddle into Bucky and hold onto him as he makes his bottle. Once it’s all done, he takes it from his hands, being careful not to spill. “Story now, Da? Wan’ the one wi’f um... The three bears?” he suggests, legs swinging a little as they go back upstairs. He’s feeling much sleepier after his play time and all the food.

"Okay, sweetheart. Very good choice." Bucky kisses the top of his head. "Such a smart little boy." He enters the room once again and sets Peter down on the bed with his bottle. It doesn't take long to fish out the story. He makes sure to get Peter all comfortable in bed, tucked in nice and warm.

The boy smiles at the kiss and lays down when Bucky sets him on the bed, getting comfy with his bottle and his stuffed animal. He looks up at Bucky, shuffling over. “Sit here, Daddy.” He says, letting him sit down. Once he’s comfy and sipping from his bottle, he leans his head on Bucky to listen to his story.

When he sits down on the bed and begins to read, Peter lets out a content hum. "Here's the story of the three little bears..."

Bucky isn’t even halfway through before Peter is asleep, snoring softly in his arms.

Bucky stops and looks down at his baby boy, grinning. So he had been tired! He gently sets down the book on the nightstand and slowly, quietly moves off of the bed, not wanting to disturb the sleeping boy. He would join him in bed later; it was still a bit too early for him. He turns off the lights, stiffening when Peter stirs a bit, but sighs in relief when nothing else happens. "I love you, baby boy," he whispers, and leaves the room with the biggest smile on his face.

[tuiccim]

Santi (Part 2)

Pairing: Bucky X Reader

Words: 4430

Warnings: Fluff, flirt, 

Summary: The team leaves for a mission leaving you and Bucky alone at the tower. 

Santi Masterlist

After bidding the team goodbye the next morning you and Bucky head to the kitchen for breakfast.

"How was your first night in the new place?"

"Good. Slept okay. How'd you sleep?"

"I have a hard time getting to sleep any given day but once I did last night I was good."

In the kitchen you pull out a frozen breakfast burrito to heat and grab an apple and peanut butter.  Bucky fixes a huge bowl of cereal. 

"Why aren't you on the mission?" Bucky asks.

"You want the official answer or the truth?" You ask.

"The truth, always."

"Steve didn't want you to be alone so he asked me to stay."

"You were okay with that?"

"Well, you know, my 'particular skills are not needed for this mission'" You say imitating Steve.

"You don't mind being my babysitter?"

"Well, first, I'm not your babysitter. You're a big boy and can wipe your butt all by yourself. Second, I don't mind having some time to take it easy. It's usually hard to come by. And, lastly, the rest of the team has worked with you before. I like that it gives me the chance to get to know you. Not the file or news reports or rumors, but you as a person." Bucky seems taken aback by your answer. "You said you wanted the truth, always." You smile and Bucky seems to relax a bit.

"Thanks." He pauses for a minute but then smirks, "Wipe my own butt? You always had that mouth on ya?"

"All my life." You smile at him.

"Apple and peanut butter?" Bucky asks as he watches you eat.

"It's delicious!" You pick up a fresh slice, scoop some peanut butter onto it. Leaning over the table you hold it up for Bucky to take a bite. "Try it." He eyes you as he bites into the slice you are holding out to him.

"Okay. Weird but good "

You giggle at his expression and pop the other half into your mouth. 

"Are you always happy like this? You always seem to be on the verge of laughing." He asks suddenly.

"No. But, I don't know, I guess I've had the privilege of living my life unlike you and Steve. It's given me the time to work through things, figure out what makes me happy. I guess I've just lived long enough to learn contentment. And I think that's the basis of happiness."

"Lived long enough? You're what? 25? 30?"

Your face falls. "You haven't read my file."

"No."

"Have you read any of them?"

"No. It feels... invasive. Like I'm prying."

"It's not. It's just basics. Nothing overly personal. Abilities. Skills. Things you need to know in the field." You say emphatically. "For example, let's say we're on a mission. I get shot. Femoral artery hit. Bleeding out. What do you do?"

"Apply a tourniquet. Determine if I can complete the mission without you dying."

"Wrong. You just wasted time and possibly cost us the mission. You do nothing. I don't need medical attention." You take a deep breath, "I'm a Gifted. I have healing abilities. My body will force out the bullet and the wound will be repaired within 90 seconds. Blood supply restored in minutes. You and Steve heal fast but I put your abilities to shame there."

"Do you have any other abilities?"

"Additional strength, not your level but decent. Increased metabolism. Slow aging." You pause and look directly into his eyes, "And empathic telepathy."

"Like Wanda?"

"Wanda's a little different. She's more telepathic in the sense of reading minds and forcing waking dreams. My ability allows me, if I choose to, read people's emotions. And I can imbue people with emotions."

"Force them to feel things?"

"Ye...yes." You say hesitantly and then look him directly in the eyes, "Look, I have read your file and I know you've had your mind messed with enough. I will never, NEVER do that to you without your consent. Never."

You stare at each other for a moment before Bucky gives a slight nod.

"Is it helpful?"

"My specialty was deep cover. Being able to force trust, calm, caring. It makes getting to the inner circles easier. But after doing it for so long I had to get out. I was other people so much I started to lose myself. So, I told Fury that I wanted out. And then the world blew up and I ended up right back in the middle of it. I think I'm where I'm supposed to be now."

"How do you do it?"

"I just think it and I kinda push it to the other person. It's even easier when I'm touching them. If a person can somehow resist me mentally, once I touch them the resistance fades."

"What all can you make them feel?"

"Any emotion. Several if needed."

"Fear? Panic?"

"Yes."

"Pain?"

"Emotional pain, yes."

"Love?"

"Yes."

"Pleasure?"

You look at Bucky and raise an eyebrow at that one before replying in a low voice, "Yes."

"Have you done it to me?"

Voice strong again, "No. Never without your permission."

"Our teammates?"

"Only with their consent. Most people want to try it at least once."

"I have nightmares sometimes." Bucky says quietly.

"Yeah." Your tone softens.

"Could you calm me if that was happening?"

"I can, yes. I can also help you sleep. Do you want me to?"

Bucky stares into his bowl of cereal for a moment. When his eyes flicker up to you there is a tinge of red to them. He gives a slight nod. Reaching over you curl your hand around his wrist. "You're my teammate, my friend. I'll do anything I can to help you. Anything, okay?"

Bucky gives a small nod.

"Okay. Time to get some training in. Don't want Steve to think I'm slacking the first day without him." You start clearing your breakfast dishes.

"He's a real drill sergeant, huh?"

"Sometimes." 

"Wait, how old are you? I take it, older than 25."

You laugh, "That's sweet, Buck. I'm 62."

"So Sam was including you in his geriatric patients?"

"I think you have to be over 65 to be in that category. You and Steve are still the geezers of the place." You smirk at him. "I'll catch up with you later."

"I'll see you in the training room in a bit."

"Sounds good." You say as you walk to the elevator. Your heart hurts a little for Bucky knowing it had to be hard for him to ask for help. You hope he knows how strong he is, how brave to ask.

Before Bucky heads to the training room he detours to his room. Going to the desk he pulls out the stack of files Steve had given him and quickly located Santi's. Flipping it open he read:

Name: Bella Santi Delarosa

Last known address: Stark Tower

Date of Birth: November 1, 1957

Place of Birth: Mobile, Alabama

Status: Active

Title: Agent

Aliases: The Saint, Lucia Roman, Marie Frances, Eve Lastra, Elana Romano.

Document Citizenship: United States

Height: 5'8"

Weight: 140 lbs

Gender: Female

Hair: Black

Eyes: Brown

Languages: English, Spanish, French, Italian, Russian, Portuguese, German.

Identifiable Markings: Triangle shaped birthmark right shoulder.

Family: Parents, Marco and Giulia Delarosa, deceased. Brother, Luca Delarosa, deceased.

Classification: Gifted

Abilities: Healing. Increased strength, stamina, reflexes, balance, and accuracy. Decreased aging. Empathic telepathy.

Skills: Multiple forms of Martial arts, acrobatics, expert marksmanship, espionage, infiltration, tactical coordination.

Bucky closes the file and heads to the training room. He spots Santi lifting weights and joins her. "So, 'The Saint', huh?"

You laugh, "You read my file?" 

"Yeah."

"That's what you took away from it? My code name?"

"Bella Santi Delarosa. Beautiful Saint of the Rose?"

"I was born on All Saints Day. My parents were Catholic." You shrug. "Any other questions?"

"I noticed the slight southern accent so Alabama made sense. Did you grow up there?"

"Until I was 13."

He wanted to ask what happened but knew it wasn't the right time to get into it. Deciding on a subject change, "Expert marksman?"

"You bet your ass."

"I was gonna bet lunch, actually."

"Knives or guns?"

"Knives."

"Yay!" You clap your hands as you move to the weapons cage to pull out knives. "Let's start with a target and we'll see if we need to get to trick shots to determine a winner."

Bucky glances at the body shaped training target at the end of the range, picks up a knife, and says "Right eye." The blade finds its mark with barely a glance. 

"Left eye." Hit.

"Left shoulder." Hit.

"Right shoulder." Hit

"Center mass." Hit.

"Same." Hit within millimeters of his knife.

"Nose." Hit.

"Mouth." Hit.

Getting an idea you move in a bit closer as he says "Forehead" and aims. As he's preparing to throw you reach on tiptoe and blow in his ear. The knife hits the target's groin. 

"I'm sorry. Did you say forehead or foreskin? If it was forehead, you were a little low on that one, weren't you?" You say still right next to Bucky's ear. Bucky turns eyes wide and swallows hard. You smile innocently up at him. 

"Wouldn't you call that cheating?" Bucky's voice is gravelly as he stared down at you.

"I'd call it winning. After all, out in the field there's all kinds of distractions. You have to get used to them." You say in mock innocence with a sweet smile.

Bucky tries to keep a straight face but a chuckle slips through. "Fine. I'll give you this one, Doll."

"I accept your defeat. There is this great diner right by the Museum of Natural History. They have phenomenal burgers and then we can go to the museum."

"I thought the bet was for lunch."

"Well, I figured I'd take you to the museum as a consolation prize. After all, I did cheat."

"I'm not taking you away from any plans?"

"Those were my plans. Now, you get to pay for lunch though."

Bucky laughed and his heart warmed a little at the thought that you had planned out the day with him. 

"Let's finish training and then we can get ready to head out." You say heading back to the weights.

Three hours later, you arrive at the diner and both order burgers and fries.

"Can I ask you something? Personal?" Bucky asks, glancing at you nervously.

"Anything. I'm kind of an open book. Which is unusual in this group."

"Yeah." Bucky says on a short laugh "What happened to your family?"

You knew it was coming at some point. "You want the short or long version?"

"Long if you're comfortable with telling it."

"Yeah." You pause to collect your thoughts. "You read my file so you know I grew up in Mobile, Alabama. My parents were Marco and Guilia and I had a brother named Luca. He was two years younger than me. My parents wanted more kids but it just didn't happen. We were a big Italian family. Steve always says he knows I'm Italian because I'm loud, always eating, and am touchy-feely."

Bucky laughs "Sounds right. You've never shied away from touching me."

"Sorry." You say feeling a slight blush creep up. "Please let me know if I make you uncomfortable. I just don't think about it much."

"No, I like it. Most people don't get very close to me. Keep going"

You smile blushing a little more but continue with the story. "My grandparents, my dad's parents, had a bakery. Most of the family worked there. I loved it. I had 8 aunts and uncles, a million cousins. Big, big family. Nice life, ya know. Lots of love and lots of drama. Then when I was thirteen, we were driving home from my cousin's birthday party and our car was hit by an 18-wheeler. My parents died on impact. Luca…" you pause and swallow hard willing the tears away. Clearing your throat you continued, "Luca died while they were trying to get us out of the car. He was such a sweet kid. Tender-hearted and quiet. I should have died too. My injuries were severe but that's when my mutation kicked in. Before they even got me out of the car my injuries healed. I didn't understand what happened. The doctor explained the mutant gene while I was in the hospital. I was so wracked with guilt that I lived. I didn't want to hear anything about it. Then my family… they were scared of me. I could feel it. They turned me over to the state. They didn't want anything to do with me. I was put in a group home and first chance I got I ran. Ran for nine years before SHIELD found me. They took me in. Taught me that my mutation was a calling not a curse." 

The food came at that point and you both dug in hungrily. Bucky looked up after a few bites. "What'd you do the nine years you were running?"

"Petty theft, lot of trespassing, might have been a grand theft auto somewhere in there, and then I joined the circus."

Bucky laughed, "Serious?"

"Yeah. I got a job helping set up and take down for a circus and when they left I kinda stowed away and they let me stay. I grew up dancing and doing gymnastics, so they taught me aerial silks and rope tricks. I ran errands, took care of the animals, cooked, and eventually even performed."

Bucky narrows his eyes at you, "You're pulling my leg."

"No. It was the 70s. I'll show you some pictures when we get back."

"What exactly are aerial silks?"

"They're sheets of silk you use to perform contortions while kinda flying in the air. I'll show you one day. I still love doing it." Bucky still looked skeptical. "What?" You finally ask when his face was still scrunched up.

"You really have pictures?"

"Yes. Tell me about when you and Steve were kids." Trying to get the subject off of you for a minute. 

You looked across at Bucky and saw a genuine smile on his face for a moment. He launched into a story and was more animated than you had seen before. It was endearing the way his face lit up talking about pre-serum Steve and their antics. He looked young and happy for a few minutes. 

The spell was broken when the waiter delivered the check. Staying true to the bet, Bucky paid and then you walked to the museum a block away. You had already purchased the tickets online and went right in. It was only 12:30 and it seemed to be a slow Tuesday as you were nearly alone in every exhibit. Bucky was enthralled. He went from display to display pointing out observations, wondering at the discoveries, and fascinated with the history. Sometimes even grabbing your hand to follow him. You were enthralled by him. It seemed like for a few hours the weight lifted from his shoulders. 

You stay at the museum until closing and then head back to the tower. Bucky talks nearly the entire way back about the museum exhibits. You thought your heart would burst that your outing made him so happy. 

Heading to the kitchen you look in the fridge. "What do you want for dinner?"

"You pick."

"If I pick, we're ordering pizza."

"Sounds good to me. What movie do you want to watch?"

"You're not sick of me yet?" You smile, amazed that he wanted to spend more time with you.

"No! I mean, you don't have to watch a movie with me. I just thought, ya know, pizza and a movie. You had, uh, mentioned the Star Trek movie yesterday, so I thought maybe..." He trailed off.

"Sounds good to me." You echoed his earlier sentiment and he smiled at you.

You sat on the couch eating pizza and watching the movie. After a while you ended up shifting to lean into Bucky and rest your head on his shoulder.

"You okay?" He asks.

"A little cold. I'm sorry, am I making you uncomfortable?" You say, moving away a little. He doesn't answer. Instead he grabs his hoodie and drapes it and his arm over you giving a little squeeze. You snuggle into him. It's a little harder to concentrate on the movie enveloped by his warmth and smell. 

After the movie was over, Bucky looked over at you, "Tired?"

"No, not really. You?"

"No."

"What'd you think of the movie?"

"It was interesting. I'd like to see the next one. Right now, I'm interested in seeing some pictures someone told me they have."

"Oh, yeah. Let's go to my room and I'll find them." You stand and stretch your arms over your head bowing your back. When you look at Bucky still sitting on the couch his eyes aren't quite on your face. You clear your throat ostensibly and his eyes snap up to yours while his cheeks gain a little pink tinge. "Come on, Buck." You turn away smiling to yourself. 

You get to your room and find the photo album with pictures from the Seventies in it. Placing it on the bed in front of both of you, you skip the first few pages and flip until you find pictures from the circus. They're starting to fade with age, but there you are riding an elephant, another showing you contorted in the silks, one where you are surrounded by clowns, cooking in a tent, and a few more showing your circus life. 

"You weren't kidding!"

"Of course not! It was actually a pretty fun time in my life. It was easier being accepted there. Once I got past being first of May."

"First of May?"

"Green. New. Takes awhile for circus folk to warm up but they're good to you once they do. They were like a big family." 

"Why'd you decide to leave?"

"SHIELD. They could help me learn to control my powers. And to be able to use them for something good."

"What are these other pictures?" Bucky asks as he flips back to the beginning of the album. 

"Oh!" You say in surprise. You reach for the album but Bucky is already looking at the pictures. Resignedly, you explain, "That was the last family portrait we took."

Bucky looks up at you sorrowfully, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have." He goes to hand you back the album.

"No, it's okay. It's been a long time since I looked at them." You point to the next photo. "That was my grandparents 50th wedding anniversary."

"Is that the entire town of Mobile?

"No, that's just my grandparents, their kids, and all my first cousins."

"First cousins?!?"

"Yeah, they were prolific. What can I say? My parents were picked on because they only had two of us."

"How old are you here?" He points to a picture of you holding a stuffed bunny.

"Three, I think." The next picture is you holding a baby Luca. You reach out and touch his little cherub cheeks but only feel the cold plastic covering the photo.

"You miss him?"

"Yeah. I guess you never stop. Losing a sibling sucks, ya know? They're the ones that are supposed to be with you through it all. You expect grandparents and parents to die, but your siblings are supposed to be there. Do you?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I miss Rebecca."

"Sorry. I shouldn't have brought that up."

"No, it's okay. But I probably should get some sleep."

"Yeah."

Bucky gets up and puts the album back on your shelf. "Night, Santi."

"Night, Bucky." You say in a small voice.

"Hey." He waits until you look up at him. "You okay?"

You force a smile, "Yeah, I'm good."

He hesitates, studying you. 

Finally, you give in to yourself. "Actually, can I have a hug?"

"Absolutely!" He walks over to you taking your hand and pulling you up before wrapping his arms around you. You put your arms around his waist and your head on his shoulder. After a minute you feel a soft kiss pressed to your forehead. "Sweet dreams, Doll."

"You, too." You say as you reluctantly let go. You change into a sleepshirt and get ready for bed. Knowing sleep won't come for a while you pick up a book.

A couple of hours later you feel your stomach twist in knots and a loud grunt issues through the wall followed by "NO!" Getting up quickly you knock on Bucky's door, "Bucky, are you okay?" You listen for a second but only hear another grunt. You knock again, "Bucky?" You say a little louder. 

"Стоп!" Hearing the Russian word from Bucky made your decision. You turn the knob and walk in. Bucky is thrashing a bit on the bed. His right hand is clenched around the sheets.

"Bucky, wake up. Hey. Come on, Buck." You put a knee on the bed and lean over to shake Bucky. The moment you touch his shoulder he sits up. The knife in his left hand lands with a thunk in your side. You hiss at the pain but stay still. "Buck. Bucky, hey." His eyes are far away and you know he hasn't come out of it yet. You put your right hand over his hand gripping the knife and your left on his shoulder suffusing calm into him. "Buck, I'm calming you. You said it was okay. Look at me, darlin'. Hey, hey." You see his eyes begin to focus. Finally, he looks at you. "Good. Hey, love, I need you to let go, okay?" You gently nudge his left hand which is still firmly holding the knife in you. You see him glance down and panic blanches his face. Suffusing calm again you take your left hand and touch his face drawing his attention to yours. "I'm okay. I just need you to let go. Bucky, talk to me."

"I'm so sorry!" Comes out in a panicked whisper as he lets go. 

"Bucky, I'm fine. Healing ability, remember?" You gather the ends of your shirt and brace to pull out the knife. "Mmmm...had to be a serrated one, huh?" You press the shirt to the wound to staunch the blood flow and look at Bucky. He looks shattered. "Bucky, everything's okay."

"I stabbed you." He whispers.

"Better me than anyone else." You give a humorless little laugh. You wipe the knife on part of your shirt and set it down on the nightstand. 

"I stabbed you."

"90 seconds, Bucky. 90 seconds and I'll be healed. No harm, no foul."

"I stabbed you and you're laughing." He looks at you incredulously. 

"What's a little stab wound between friends?" You smile but he still looks lost. "Bucky, another empathic part is I can let you feel how I'm feeling. Can I show you?"

He nods and you put a hand on his. "What do you feel?"

He looks in your eyes finally, "Calm. Caring. Worry for me."

"Exactly. I'm fine. Now, are you okay? You were having a nightmare."

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm okay." You pull him into a hug keeping your bloody side away from him. He puts his right arm around you and runs his left hand up your arm to your neck. Pulling away he looks into your eyes, glances down to your lips, and then back with an almost questioning look. It doesn't take empathic ability to know what he's feeling and your heart twists a little. You raise up a bit and kiss his forehead like he did for you earlier that night.

"I'm gonna get cleaned up. Can I borrow a shirt?" You stand up and that's when Bucky notices you had bunched your shirt up to stem the wound exposing your legs and a pair of peach colored panties. 

Tearing his eyes away he stands up quickly and pulls open a drawer. "Yeah, here, Doll." 

You look in the drawer and pull out a black ribbed tank from the top. "This will work." You say as you head into his bathroom. 

Bucky watches you walk away thinking with the peach colored underwear it almost looked like you weren't wearing anything down below. He shook the thought away. Nice, Buck, you stab her and then ogle her, he thinks to himself. 

You take off the shirt you are wearing and grab a cloth to clean off the blood. After washing your hands you slip on the tank. It comes down just past your butt and almost looks like a dress on you. A very short dress. Staring at yourself in the mirror for a second you can't deny the feelings developing in you. Bucky is...you can't even describe it. Beautiful inside and out. But too often your empathic abilities had interfered with real feelings. You had wanted to kiss him in that moment but the emotional charge was too much. What if that's all it was? The heat of the moment? It was too soon. You'd known him for less than 48 hours. Sighing, you shake off your thoughts and walk back out. Bucky eyes you from where he is sitting on the bed. 

"You okay?" He asks. 

"Yes. See? No harm, no foul." You lift the tank up to show him. 

He raises his left arm and touches your side. The cool touch from his metal hand breaks your skin into goosebumps. You cover his hands with yours and for a moment get lost in his eyes when he looks up at you. 

Breaking eye contact you pull the shirt back down, saying softly "It's late. You should go back to sleep." 

"I don't think I can." He says.

You sit next to him on the bed. "Lay down. Get comfortable. I'll help you."

He lays on his side and hugs his pillow. Running your hands through his hair, you suffuse calm and see the tension slip away a bit. Giving him a minute before suffusing lethargy, you watch as his muscles start to relax. Finally, you suffuse a sleepy feeling. You can't force sleep but have found that when these three feelings combine they make a fairly good sleep cocktail. Bucky's form slowly relaxes and you continue to run your hands through his hair suffusing the sleepy feeling until his breathing evens out. You retrieve your ruined shirt and bloody cloth from the bathroom and the knife from the nightstand. You don't want him to have any reminders when he wakes. Switching off his lamp, you reluctantly head to your own bed. 

Part 3

[vermilion-curtain]

Notes:

AU: Humans

Word count: 1,108

Pairing(s): Implied romantic Logince

Warnings: N/A

It was a fairly warm summer afternoon, and most of the children were out playing. Despite the kids playing around him, that didn't stop Logan from sitting under a tree in his yard, reading from a book. 

Despite all the children out playing, Roman had no interest in them, especially since his brother was playing with them. The kid went over to the tree and dramatically flopped down next to the other. 

The dramatics seemed to go unnoticed, though, as Logan simply turned a page in his book, not even sparing a glance to the other boy. 

Roman took notice of this and pouted. He leaned against the other, throwing an arm over his face. "Logan-! I see the light!" 

Logan just tried shifting away from Roman in annoyance. "You're really sweaty, Roman. And if you see a light, you should probably either rest or, if you're being an idiot again, stop staring at the sun-" 

Roman huffed and got off him, crossing his arms. "Wow, thanks for the concern.." He mumbled before huffing. "Why can't you come play with me?" He asked in a whiny tone. 

The other simply rolled his eyes. "I'm trying to read, that's why-" 

"You can read later, when you have to go inside! You can't play when that happens, and you haven't done anything all day!" 

Logan rolled his eyes. He wasn't really very fond of the rough, active type stuff Roman was into. "You're not going to leave me alone until I agree, are you?" 

Roman just smiled and shook his head. "Nope, not at all~!" 

The other boy sighed, pushing up his glasses as he spoke against his better judgement. "I guess playing for a little while wouldn't hurt.." He mumbled, placing his book on the ground gently. 

Roman's eyes lit up as his smile got bigger. "Really?! Thank you, thank you, thank you!" He shouted, wrapping his arms around him in a tight hug. 

Logan squirmed a little, trying to escape from the hug. "N-no problem, Roman- Please let go--" 

Roman let go quickly, only to then pop up and pull Logan up quickly, hardly giving him time to adjust before pulling him off, rapidly ranting about all the things he wanted to do before they had to go inside. 

It was stressful, sure, but Logan didn't think he'd minded too much. 

~~

Logan sat alone at a table during lunch, his food laying forgotten to the side. He was currently in the process of rewriting notes for a class, since he had all the stuff down, now he just had to organize the notes in a way that made sense and add little notes to himself. 

Roman soon slid into the table next to him. He propped his head up with his hand as he looked at him. He planned to sit quietly until he was noticed, but after two minutes and no acknowledgment, he started getting bored. "You know you're supposed to eat at lunch, right, Specs?" He asked with a hum. 

Logan shrugged. "I have work to do, and it isn't like I'm hurting anything," he'd mumbled quietly. 

Roman sighed. "Okay, but you haven't touched your food at all. You need to eat-" 

Logan huffed a small bit. "Roman, I am fine. I don't need you mothering me," he said, continuing to write. 

The other wasn't having it, though. He grabbed an apple slice from his own food and slowly brought it up to Logan's mouth, gently poking his mouth with it. When Logan didn't take it, he just huffed and poked more, trying to gently slide it in. 

Logan rolled his eyes a little before sighing, opening his mouth a little to accept the fruit slice. 

Roman smiled a little before grabbing Logan's food and bringing it over to himself. He'd eat a little bit of his own food before grabbing some of Logan's and feeding it to him. 

This went on until lunch ended. Logan packed his stuff up before looking at Roman, a rare smile on his face. "Thanks, Roman." 

Roman's expression softened a little as he smiled back. "No problem. See you after class?" 

The other nodded a little. "When has that answer ever been no?" He asked with a light-hearted sarcastic tone. 

"Fair point, my dear friend~" Roman said as they walked out of the cafeteria. He waved a little as they split ways. 

Logan gave a small, awkward little wave in return before turning and walking to class. 

~~

Logan was in his kitchen, drying up some dishes he'd just washed so he could put them away. The man had just had dinner and he was ready to relax until heading to bed. 

A knock was heard at the front door. Logan was about to go open it before he heard it open and shut. The fact that the person was able to open the locked door alerted him to who it was. Only one other person had a key to his house. 

"Greetings, peasant~!" Roman said grandly as he entered the kitchen. 

Logan rolled his eyes fondly as he turned to face Roman. "Greetings, your majesty," he said, playing along with a small smile. 

Roman grinned a little before noticing the activity Logan had been doing. He simply walked over and started putting away the already dried dishes. 

Logan hummed a little in gratitude as he continued to dry dishes. With Roman's help, he was able to get done fairly quickly. "Any reason royalty such as yourself has taken it upon himself to help out a lowly peasant such as myself?" 

Roman leaned against the counter. "The prince took mercy on you~ Plus, I'm bored and wanted to watch a movie with you, and I knew you wouldn't until you were done," he said with a smile. 

Logan huffed a little in amusement. "Such a selfish prince," he said with a small tsk. 

Roman shrugged a little. "I guess I am~" he said before stretching. "So, what movie? I vote Little Mermaid~!" 

The other man rolled his eyes, but he smiled anyway. "If that's what you wish, your majesty." 

Roman smiled brightly, grabbing Logan's hand, pulling him into the living room quickly to set up, not letting Logan stop to turn the lights off since he knew they'd be back for snacks anyway. But first, Roman had to conduct the building of the best blanket fort two grown men could make. 

Logan played along, both amused and endeared by the other's actions. 

It may have taken twenty minutes just to set up for a movie, but when Logan huddled closer to Roman as it started, he couldn't say he wasn't satisfied. 

[dork-knight-stephanie]

A Brown Thanksgiving

The holidays were never really a big deal for Steph. She understood what they were meant to mean, but with Arthur in and out of prison all the time, and up until a few years ago, Crystal in and out of stupors, being forced into rehab and then working all the time (holidays always were busy for the medical field), Thanksgiving was never really a thing for the Browns.

Alfred had made it clear to Stephanie a while back that she was always welcome to join them at the manor, and usually she just hid out, laid low, patrolled instead. But this year she had other ideas.

Crystal was on call, of course. And Steph was going to take her something to eat. With Alfreds help. Because God knows Steph couldn't cook to save her life.

Slipping into the kitchen, through the back door of the manor, instead of her usual creep in through the cave, looking over the workstation Alfred had turned into the island countertop,  she frowned slightly.

"How much food do you think we're going to need, Al..?"

Steph asked softly, as the Butler dropped an apron over her head and motioned to the sink, for her to wash her hands.

"I wanted you to have options. I don't know what your mother likes to eat, and judging by the wording of your message, you wouldn't mind the chance to learn more about cooking either."

With no remarks to make back for once in her life, Steph tied the apron, washed her hands, and took up place next to Alfred at the counter.

"What's first, boss?"

Raising a slight brow at her words, but smiling faintly, Alfred passed Stephanie a bag containing green beans.

"Top and tail these, if you would, Miss Brown."

Steph looked at him in mild puzzlement, for Alfred to point at the stem and pointed tails.

"Cut those parts off. Then give the beans a rinse."

"Got it."

With the same determination she went about everything in life, Steph set about fixing the green beans. After a few moments of cutting in silence, in which Alfred was heating pants, she speaks up.

"Does it matter that they aren't all the same length?"

"Not at all, no. Some people might trim them all to be the same, but that would waste a lot of food."

Nodding as she moved to wash the beans, and set them back down on the cutting board, Alfred set about putting out the other vegetables for her to prepare, while looking between the meats.

"Which do you think she would prefer?"

"Is chicken an option?"

"Of course."

"Go with chicken. I don't think I've seen Mom eat red meat in forever… and Turkey is too much…"

With a nod, Alfred set about filleting and butterflying the chicken breast, before laying plastic wrap over it, rolling it flat.

"Whoa, what are you gonna do with the chicken, Al? I mean, like, slow down, I wanna know…"

Steph sets down the sprout she was in the middle of running over the mandolin slicer.

"I'm going to make a roulade, and stuff it with the same stuffing the turkey has. So it will almost be like a whole Thanksgiving meal, but not quite."

Unsure what to say, Steph nodded, clearing her throat, and went back to slicing her sprouts.

It wasn't long before everything was ready for the pans, and Alfred was on Steph watch, who was on pan watch.

Every time she moved to touch them before it was time, there was a tutting, and she would sulk into her tea.

Steph didn't quite have the patience necessary for cooking.

She did, however, clean up after them very quickly, in her impatience, dishes done, bench wiped down, everything dried and put away, much to Alfreds insistence it didn't need to be done.

A timer that had been set, somewhere, that Steph didn't even know about, went off, startling her from her sulking about waiting for things to do. As Alfred got to his feet, Steph followed him to the cabinet.

"You may borrow some plates. But make sure they return, or I'm taking it out of your hide, Miss Stephanie."

Staring at him for a moment, she finally cracked, and hugged him, squeezing with all her surprising might.

"Thank you Alfred. For everything. You didn't have to do any of this…"

Hugging back for a moment, patting her back, he cleared his throat.

"None of us have to do anything, but we do, because we care."

She let go, nodding her head, wiping her face in her sleeves, and pointed at two terracotta, blue plates that looked like they had never seen the light of day.

"I think I'm picking up what you're putting down, Al… those ones…"

"Very well. Let's get this ready then, shall we? And the invitation still stands. You can come back after you've eaten with your mother. I could always use the extra set of hands in the kitchen."

"Oh, I dunno… maybe…"

Carefully boxing everything up, and setting it into a picnic basket, along with some non alcoholic apple cider that had been picked out, the plates, cutlery, and glasses, Steph was ready to go. With one last thank you hug, she set off for the hospital. 

At this point, it was easy for her to get onto the ward, with or without ID.

Waving at Crystal from the end of the ward silently, the patients all eating their meals by this time of evening, she raised the basket, and pointed to it, beaming, Crystal frowning in confusion. Holding up five fingers, which Steph took as '5 minutes', she went and leant against the wall, to be out of the way.

A very frazzled looking Crystal soon came to join her daughter.

"What are you doing down here? I thought you'd be… working?"

"Maybe later, I thought I'd bring you some food."

Steph wiggled the basket, cutlery, glasses and plates clicking together inside. Crystal ran a hand through her cropped hair.

"I've got time for a break…"

Leading Steph to the staff break room, Steph grinning from ear to ear as she started to unpack the basket of goodies.

"Did you make this?"

Crystal asked, cracking open the container of sliced sauteed sprouts, onion and bacon, as Steph started carving the roulade.

"I helped… I cut up stuff, but that was about it really. A friend did all the heavy lifting here."

"Stephie, you didn't have to…"

"I know… but we've never done anything for Thanksgiving. Like, ever. So…"

Crystal was silent as she thought about it, then nodded.

"You're right, we never have… well-"

Raising her glass of cider

"-I'm thankful for how my daughter turned out, despite, no, in spite of her parents."

Stalling for a moment, Steph raised her own glass, lightly touching it to Crystals.

"I'm thankful for friends and family… is that lame? I feel like that's lame…"

Both Brown women laugh, drinking to their thanks.

"We should take a picture!"

Steph chirps out of the blue, jumping to her feet, and rushing around behind Crystal, taking out her phone.

"Wh-Steph, I look exhausted!"

"Psh, so do I. It's fine. We need something for our first Thanksgiving."

Looping her arm around her mother's shoulder and mooshing her cheek against Crystals, beaming widely, she held up the front facing camera, poking her mother's other cheek.

"Smileeeeee"

Before snapping a series of pictures, as they both laughed.

Returning to her seat, she sent the worst one to her mother, grinning deviously at her.

"You've never looked better, Mom…"

"You're a shit, Stephanie Brown…"

"I know."

She sent the best one to Alfred, with a two word message; 'Thank you'