#we'll see how i feel next time i scribble her at this point in her life

[carnivalcarriondiscarded]

something something a supernova of heartbreak in a cold unforgiving universe etc

[greenwitchfromthewoods]

patrol. l Joel Miller

Summary:  you took a new person on patrol, not everything went as you expected

Warnings: +18, smut, unprotected sex (don't do that), a little bit of angst, Ellie is only mentioned, one clicker, a little bit of shooting

A/N: I wanted to write something. I had an idea. These scribbles came out. your feedback is very important to me and I thank you for all the reblogs, comments and likes. 🖤 sorry for all the mistakes

This patrol was a trial for him. When Tommy asked him to take the new one with him, he wasn't too happy.

"C'mon! You'll show him what and how we do. The guy has potential." Tommy said, pointing to the recently arrived man who was sitting a few tables away. "Besides, this will be an interesting change for you."

Joel grunted and finished his whiskey. Change wasn't something he liked. He was used to patrolling only with you. 

At first, you didn't talk much, exploring each other. But soon Miller realized that no matter what, you had his back. He trusted you and really enjoyed your company. And now this new guy.

"I already talked to Y/N, she seemed excited." Tommy added. "Maybe you'll have a new partner, what do you think?"

He frowned and looked at his brother. "New partner? Why? She's fine." And I really like her.

"I don't know." Tommy shrugged and finished his drink. "I thought she..."

"She's okay." he mumbled. "We'll take the new one with us, but that's all."

Tommy patted brother’s shoulder and stood up, stretching. "He'll be waiting for you at dawn."

Joel nodded and knew he was going to regret that.

Patrols were a rare opportunity to escape Jackson for a while. Joel liked the quiet life and this town certainly gave him that, but he also liked solitude. Any company of people he tolerated was okay too. You were one of the few.

You didn't try to change him, you accepted his sharp edges, and your presence soothed him. He didn't tell you this, but the time you spent in each other's company was important to him. You were important, in some strange way. 

He didn't feel like having anyone else with you, but Tommy had clearly asked him to. Besides, you had already agreed.

When he saw you at the gate at dawn, his heart felt lighter. A trickle of steam escaped your lips as you talked to a tall man, younger than Joel, who was staring at you with obvious interest.

"This is Martin." You introduced him when Joel stood next to you. Miller nodded. "So, shall we go?"

You stepped outside the walls of Jackson and headed on your usual patrol route.

The conversation going on behind his back reached his ears even though Joel was walking a few steps ahead of you. Each of your laughs brought a small smile to his lips, but at the same time he felt a pang in his heart - it wasn't because of him that you were laughing.

"So." Martin cleared his throat as you slowly entered the forest and colorful autumn trees surrounded you. "Your boyfriend doesn't mind you wandering around?"

You looked at him a bit surprised, and then your gaze fell on Joel's broad shoulders walking in front of you. "What do you mean?" you asked, adjusting your backpack.

Martin was clearly confused, scratching the back of his neck. "You know. You're an attractive woman. You should be in a safe place, and here..."

"I'm safe here." You interrupted him quickly. "And as much as I'm grateful for the nice compliment, I assure you that I'm doing great. I don't need a man telling me what to do."

"Shit! I didn't mean to sound like that, sorry." Martin tried to turn his words into a joke, but it probably didn't work out well, because you quickened your pace and caught up with Joel.

You walked in silence for a moment, but you noticed his dark eyes glancing at you every now and then.

"What?" you asked a little too nervously.

Joel just shook his head. "Nothing. He's hitting on you."

"Oh, fuck off!" you groaned, rolling your eyes. And you increased your distance from both men, trying to focus on your work.

You couldn't see the satisfied smile on Miller's lips, though.

Martin definitely liked to talk. Or maybe he was trying to mask his nervousness and the awkward atmosphere that had arisen since you had started walking ahead of them. 

The autumn sun was shining through the colorful leaves, and the dry grass crunched under your shoes as you slowly covered the next distances.

"Have you been in Jackson long?"

Joel reluctantly tore his gaze away from your figure walking a dozen or so steps ahead of them. "About a year," he replied.

"And her?" Martin nodded in your direction.

"A little longer, I guess. Why do you ask?"

"Just like that." the man muttered, but that didn't end the conversation. "You don't know if she's with someone?"

Joel stopped and frowned, looking intently at Martin. He unconsciously tightened his grip on the strap of his rifle. The man seemed to be confused again.

"Sorry, if you're with her..." he choked out, trying to smile. "She's just a hot chick, you know. We're both guys, we have our needs, right?"

Joel's jaw clenched tighter "We have work to do now." he hissed, but he was already regretting agreeing to this three-person patrol.

You disappeared from his sight for a moment, but after a few minutes he found you at the edge of the forest. You were crouching behind a dead blackberry bush, binoculars pressed to your eyes.

"Nice tête-à-tête with Martin?" you said as Joel crouched down next to you.

"I think he has a soft spot for you." he replied, looking in the same direction as you. There was an abandoned farm in front of you and it looked really promising. "Do you want to go there?"

"Yeah. Looks good. Quiet."

"Too quiet." Joel took the binoculars from you, and you took off your backpack and pulled out a thermos of coffee.

You poured some into a mug and took a few sips of the hot drink, which pleasantly warmed your insides. It was a cold day and even a walk like that couldn't warm you up enough. You handed the cup to Joel.

"I'll go there with Martin." you started after a moment of thought. "Will you cover me?"

"Always." Joel drank the coffee and handed you the cup. "Leave your backpack. You'll be faster if anything happens. Your gun?"

You pulled the gun out of the holster and reloaded. "Checked."

"Hey." his voice was warm and caring, you looked at Joel's face. "Take care of yourself. I'll be close, but you should be careful too."

"I get it." you smiled, placing your hand on his forearm and patting him lightly, then you looked over your shoulder at the approaching Martin and added in a whisper. "Just don't tell him I listened to you.” Joel smiled softly “Martin! We have work to do!"

The door opened with a loud creak that sent shivers down your spine. You gripped your gun tighter and swallowed. Martin was right behind you, you could see Joel nearby. The building was large and looked like it had been abandoned for a long time. Footsteps seemed loud on the tiled floor.

"Stay quiet." You whispered, peeking cautiously into the first room.

Everything seemed to be asleep. The furniture in the rooms was covered in a thick layer of dust. You signaled to Martin that you should split up. You entered the empty kitchen, and he climbed the wooden stairs. You managed to look through a few cabinets and storage rooms. Most of the time you found useless things, the hope for something interesting was slowly leaving you.

The unexpected noise upstairs immediately made your heart beat faster.

"Fuck! Y/N!"

Before you ran out into the hallway, a few shots were fired and there was a commotion as if someone had thrown something heavy on the floor. You ran up the stairs, but at that moment Martin ran out of one of the rooms, followed by one of the clickers. You aimed your gun, but the man ran into you, knocking the gun out of your hand and quickly running down the stairs.

"Shit! Shit!" you cursed seeing the gun fall to the ground floor and slide all the way to the wall.

Martin ran out of the building, and you stood face to face with the monster. The noise you made focused it on you. You felt for the door behind you with your hand and quickly pushed it, jumping inside and trying to slam it shut behind you. The clicker was strong, pushing harder and harder, and your shoes were sliding on the bathroom tiles.

"Fuck off!" you hissed, but from the other side you heard a terrifying scream.

The door creaked dangerously, and you noticed with fear that the hinges were very rusty, they couldn't hold out for too long. Your gaze swept across the small bathroom. There was no chance of running and getting through the window on the other side. 

You leaned your back against the door, braced one leg against the sink, but you felt that it would do no good. Another moment and the door would open, and you had nothing to defend yourself with.

Because of all the noise, the screams of the clicker and your rapid breathing, you didn't hear the first shot, but after it another one and another one rang out, and you heard those already.

The monster stopped pushing against the door, screamed once more, but then you heard a dull thud as it fell to the floor, and another shot made you sure that the beast was dead.

"Y/N?!" Joel's voice was anxious, but he pushed the door open and slid inside.

You saw the relief on his face when he saw you sitting against the wall, struggling to catch your breath. He quickly approached you, taking your face in his large, rough hands.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?" he asked.

You made a gesture somewhere between a nod and a shake of your head. "I'm fine." you replied. "That clicker... I wasn't expecting it. My gun... I lost it."

"We'll find it." he stroked your cheek with his thumb, his eyes looking at you with concern, but then he clenched his teeth. "That fucking Martin... I can't believe he left you here."

You put your hands on his wrists and that made him focus on you. "Leave it. The clicker surprised him too."

"He ran out of that house like his ass was on fire." Joel hissed. "If you had gone on patrol alone with him..."

"Don't do that, Joel. Don't start making up scenarios. I'm fine." the man nodded and helped you up from the floor. "We'll have to talk to Tommy. Martin should stay in Jackson for now. Patrols are obviously not for him. At least not now."

You noticed how Joel was breathing deeply, he was clearly nervous and tense. His eyes avoided looking at you. Your hand found his, you took it gently intertwining your fingers.

"Thank you." You said quietly, wonderful brown eyes finding your face. "Thank you, Joel, for being there."

"Always."

It was late when you returned to Jackson. The sun had long since set and it was getting darker. It was getting colder and colder and all you could think about was a warm bath and your bed.

"Sorry, Y/N." Martin approached you as you crossed the gate and headed down the main street of Jackson. "That clicker... God! You need to understand."

"Yeah, sure." you nodded. "That happens, right?"

"Yeah, you're right. Thanks." he rubbed his hands together and blew into them a few times to warm them up a bit. "Maybe... Maybe you'd like to have a drink with me?"

You looked towards the lit pub, but shook your head. "No, thanks. I just dream of a bath and bed."

"Maybe..."

"See you later, Martin." you quickly cut him off before he could say or suggest anything.

The man walked away, clearly disappointed. Soon you heard a familiar grunt and Joel stood by you, following Martin with his gaze to the door of the bar. "I can still shoot him from here." he mumbled, and you nudged him in the side, trying to stop yourself from laughing. "No? You're too good." he shook his head, but you saw the smile on his lips. It was adorable. "A bath and bed? Good choice."

"And you? Ellie's probably waiting for you."

"I'll grab a drink. She's probably at some friend's anyway." he shrugged. "She's not interested in an old guy."

"You're not that old!" you groaned. "Anyway, thanks for today. If it weren't for you..."

"Hey, we weren't supposed to come up with scenarios." he scolded. "Run home. You're shaking."

You smiled at him and headed towards your house. Joel watched you go, feeling a pleasant warmth inside. It had been a long day, and he could feel it in his bones.

You must have fallen asleep, because a loud knock on the door roused you from your bed. You went downstairs in the dark and reached the door. A cold wind swept over your face, but you immediately saw a silhouette in front of your door.

"Joel? What the hell?"

He was standing on the porch with his hands on his hips, breathing deeply and steam coming out of his mouth. His appearance worried you, but he didn't act like something dangerous had happened.

"Joel? Is everything okay?" you asked, crossing your arms over your chest.

He just shook his head, ruffling his hair with his hand. His eyes were shining like he had a few too many drinks.

"I thought," he began, "Listen, Y/N. I really like you."

"I like you too..." you started, but Joel interrupted you.

"It's not like that. I just - fuck - it's more, Y/N. It's been more for a long time." You saw how hard it was for him to find the right words, but slowly it began to dawn on you what he wanted to tell you. "Today on patrol, I thought I'd kill Martin. He flirted with you first, and then he just left you. I don't want to think about what would have happened to you if I hadn't been there." 

You thought about that too. When you were alone in your house, surrounded by silence and warmth, you started to think about what had happened. If it weren't for Joel, you wouldn't be here. He always had your back. He was always there for you.

You both stared at each other, you didn't feel the cold anymore, only his words were circling in your head.

"I don't know what to say, Joel." You finally choked out "I didn't think... Damn, I didn't think that you and I, that we..."

"Okay." He nodded "I just..." He cleared his throat "I think I'll go home. I didn’t want to bother you. I don't even know what the fuck I'm doing here."

He went down a few steps, his shoulders clearly dropped, and you felt like a heavy stone fell into your stomach. You didn't want this. This wasn't how it was supposed to be!

"Joel!" You called after him and ran barefoot onto the cold porch "Stop, please. It's not what you think!"

He stopped and turned slowly towards you, his face the face of a broken man. Your heart almost broke.

"I thought you never wanted this. That being close to someone was something you wanted to avoid." you began, your throat tightening painfully "I thought being your friend was the only thing I could have. And I... I think I fell in love with you, Joel. A long time ago, and it scares the hell out of me."

In a few quick steps, he covered the distance between you. He stared at you with hope in his eyes.

"So you don't want me to leave?" he asked.

You shook your head "Never, Joel. I would never want that."

His hand slid awkwardly into your hair, you felt his warm breath on your lips. A question appeared in his dark eyes that couldn't escape his lips. So you made the first move.

When your lips met, it was like a feeling of relief that flowed over both of you. Something you had both been waiting for for a long time, but were too afraid to take the first step.

It was a reward after all those furtive glances, accidental touches of hands, words you directed at each other. As if all of this was leading you to this frozen porch and dark night where you could try to tell each other what you really felt.

His lips were warm and soft. He felt relief when you parted your lips allowing him to slip his tongue into your warm mouth. The kisses were soft and tender, slow as if you wanted to enjoy this moment. But when a muffled moan escaped your throat, Joel felt it in his loins.

He touched your lips gently, "You should come inside." He said quietly, "You're shaking."

"I'm not cold." you replied and your hand stroked his rough cheek "But if you came in with me..."

"Will you let me?" you nodded "Lead the way, sweetheart."

You took his hand and led him towards the door. For the first time in a long time Joel felt just right. You were there, by his side, only his and you didn't push him away. He didn't know what he did to deserve this.

When your hands tenderly took off his jacket and shirt, when your lips wandered around his neck, caressing him tenderly. When his hands wandered around your body, extracting all the most beautiful sounds from you. It was heaven.

But the real fulfillment came the moment he slid into you for the first time. You were so warm and tight, he already knew he was gone.

"Joel, please..." you whispered.

His cock stretched you so well, he was so deep, but you needed him to move. With his first thrust, the last of the air in your lungs escaped. He hit exactly where you needed it.

"Look at me, please." he mumbled between the next quick thrusts. "You're so beautiful, so good for me. Fuck! When I think about that asshole..."

"Don't think about him now." your hands slid into his hair, tenderly scratching his scalp. "Just you and me, that's what matters now."

Joel closed his eyes, but opened them immediately when his cock hit you so hard that you moaned "I want you to be mine. Only mine. I want everyone to see it, so that no other idiot would come up with the idea of ​​flirting with you."

"Joel!" you moaned loudly, because his next thrusts brought you closer and closer to fulfillment "Please..."

However, his words were more and more aggressive, his movements harder and harder.

He grabbed your wrists and held them above your head. "I saw how he looked at you. Like you were the best snack he'd ever seen in his life. I want him to know, sweetie. I want him to know that I own you. That this pussy is only mine."

"Fuck!"

"That you come with my name on your lips. Do you hear me?" he leaned down, kissing you hard, pushing his tongue almost down your throat.

One of his hands kneaded your breast, rolling your nipple between his fingers. Your body arched as your walls tightened around his cock. You moaned loudly feeling your pussy contract again, but Joel didn't stop. He was close, you could hear it in his breath, you could feel it in his strong movements.

In an instant he pulled out of you and spilled himself onto your lower abdomen, panting heavily.

"Fuck!" he hid his face in the crook of your neck.

Your hands freed themselves from his grip and you tenderly stroked his neck and shoulders. His body was so hot, you felt completely safe with him.

After a few moments Joel lifted himself up on his shoulders and looked at you. His eyes were full of different emotions, but they looked at you gently.

"Give me a few moments..." he said, trying to even out his breathing.

"Why?" you were surprised, but seeing his sly smile you quickly realized "Oh, do you have the energy for another round?"

"Soon." he leaned down and touched your lips tenderly "I've waited so long, I don't want to leave you with only one cum."

"Jesus!" you laughed "Joel, you know you don't have to prove anything, right?"

He kissed your neck, then your collarbone and shoulder as if he was thinking about something. Finally he lifted his head.

"Do you think if you come hard enough people will hear you screaming my name in the bar?"

"Fuck you!" you patted his shoulder, but that only made him smile.

☆☆☆

Thank you for your time.

[miumura]

ෆ — A LOVE LETTER - JAY FIC

SYNOPSIS — sometimes, only a love letter is what it takes for someone to get into a relationship.

PAIRING — crush!jay x crush-gn!reader

WARNINGS — a kiss i think that’s it? || WC : 1.9K+ (1966)

SOPH — tysm for requesting anon ! i hope i did it justice , and i did gn reader since you didn’t specify !

"I'm telling you, Jay totally has a thing for you!" Chaewon excitedly whispered in class, poking you with her pencil insistently. You attempted to brush off her words, even attempting to snatch her pencil away. "No way! Have you seen him with that other girl?"

"Just because he smiled at her doesn't mean he has feelings for her!" Chaewon's frustration grew as she wondered how oblivious you could be. "He has smiled and talked to you countless times. Why wouldn't he like you?"

"I don't know..." you scribbled in your notebook, unable to focus on taking notes any longer. You stole a glance at Jay, your crush, diligently jotting down his own notes like the great student he was. "I just don't think I'm his type."

"Come on, YN," Chaewon sighed, giving you an exasperated look. "You have no idea what his type is, and if you're too scared to make a move, you can't jump to conclusions," she emphasized, pointing her finger at you for emphasis.

"Do you think so?" Your gaze remained fixated on him, captivated by his every move. Even in the simplicity of his school uniform, he managed to make it look effortlessly stylish.

Suddenly, someone called out Jay's name, causing him to turn in your direction. Inadvertently, your eyes met, and he rewarded you with a warm smile. You returned the gesture, but quickly averted your gaze.

"Chaewon, what's happening to me?" you whispered, holding your breath as your heart raced.

The sound of the bell resonated through the classroom, instantly filling the air with a cacophony of noise. Chaewon rose from her seat, wearing a mischievous smile as she nudged you gently.

"That's love, you idiot," she teased, her voice barely audible amidst the commotion. “Let’s not be late to our next class, okay?”

With a sense of urgency, you hastily gathered your books and shoved them into your bag, eager to catch up with Chaewon. Walking side by side, the two of you engaged in your usual banter, oblivious to the bustling hallways around you. It was a stroke of luck that you shared a majority of your classes with your best friend, Chaewon. But what made it even more special was the fact that you found yourself in many classes with Jay, your secret crush.

Despite your best efforts to keep your feelings hidden, it seemed that Chaewon had caught onto your little secret. She had been an observant friend from the beginning and could sense the chemistry between you and Jay. You had always shared an effortless connection with Jay, as if you had known each other for years. It was this natural connection that made Chaewon ship the two of you right from the start.

"You know, YN, it's so obvious that you and Jay have something special," Chaewon teased, nudging you playfully as you walked together.

You rolled your eyes, trying to brush off her comment. "Oh, come on, Chaewon. We're just good friends. Nothing more."

She raised an eyebrow, a mischievous smile on her face. "Good friends, huh? I've seen the way he looks at you, and the way you light up when he's around. There's definitely more going on there."

You let out a nervous laugh, feeling your cheeks heat up. "You're reading too much into it, Chaewon. We're just really close."

She chuckled, giving you a knowing look. "Well, if you say so. But mark my words, something's bound to happen between you two. Love has a way of finding its way, you know."

You shrugged, trying to play it cool. "We'll see. For now, let's just focus on walking to our class together."

And so, you arrived at your next class, reluctantly parting ways with Chaewon as you followed the seating chart. It was an unfortunate moment, as you wished you could continue your conversations with her. However, fate seemed to smile upon you as you made your way to the back of the classroom, spotting an empty seat next to Jay.

Taking a seat beside Jay, you caught his eye and a bright smile spread across his face.

"Hey there, seatmate," Jay playfully greeted, his tone filled with warmth and familiarity.

Taking a moment to compose yourself, you met Jay's gaze and returned his smile, feeling your heart flutter at his playful greeting.

"Hey, seatmate," you replied, your voice laced with a mix of excitement and slight shyness. The term "seatmate" seemed to hold a certain charm, as it implied a level of closeness that thrilled you.

You were grateful that this class was a free period, as it meant you could focus on your own tasks without much interruption. As the class started, you settled into your usual routine, pulling out your books and assignments to work on.

While you were immersed in your own world, Jay's voice caught your attention. It seemed like he was engaged in a friendly argument with his friend seated beside him. Curiosity piqued, you glanced in their direction, but soon realized you couldn't decipher the details of their conversation.

Deciding to maintain your focus on your work, you popped in an earbud, tuning in to your favorite playlist. The familiar tunes enveloped you, creating a pleasant soundtrack to accompany your tasks. With the music playing softly in your ears, you allowed yourself to delve into the world of your assignments, momentarily oblivious to the conversations happening around you.

Jay's friend persisted, nudging him with a mischievous grin. "Come on, man, just give them the letter. It's not that difficult."

Jay's eyes widened with a hint of panic, quickly shushing his friend. "No way, I can't do that," he whispered urgently. "And lower your voice! We don't want the whole class to know."

His friend chuckled, but lowered his voice as instructed. "Why not? You've been crushing on them for months now. It's time to make a move."

Jay fidgeted in his seat, his cheeks turning a faint shade of pink. "I don't know, man. What if they don’t feel the same way? It'll just make things awkward."

His friend leaned closer, whispering in a conspiratorial tone. "Trust me, Jay. I've seen the way they look at you when you're not looking. There's definitely something there. You just need to take the chance."

Jay's gaze shifted nervously towards you, who seemed engrossed in your work, unaware of the conversation unfolding nearby. His heart pounded in his chest as he contemplated the possibility of confessing his feelings. The fear of rejection battled against the hope of reciprocation within him.

After a moment of hesitation, Jay let out a sigh, realizing that his friend might be onto something. "Fine," he whispered reluctantly. "I'll think about it, okay? But no guarantees."

He stole another glance at you, his eyes softening with affection. As the class continued, he found himself lost in thoughts of what might be, contemplating the possibility of taking a leap of faith and sharing his true feelings with you.

As you were engrossed in your writing, you noticed Jay discreetly sliding something towards you. Curiosity piqued, you removed your earbud and met his gaze, sensing his nervousness. "Just read it," he stammered, his voice betraying his inner turmoil.

Putting the earbud back in, you carefully looked at the envelope, intrigued by its possible contents. A cute sticker adorned the front, causing a smile to grace your lips as you peeled it off.

With anticipation, you unfolded the letter and began reading its words, immersing yourself in the words. Jay discreetly stole a few glances at you, his heart pounding in his chest, anxious about your reaction.

"I always find myself questioning the warm, bubbly feeling inside me. Who and what made me feel this way? Well it was simple; the answer is you. It would be foolish not to seize this opportunity to confess my feelings. So, here I am, presenting you with this letter to express what I've been wanting to say. Perhaps it's a cowardly move to resort to written words instead of speaking them directly, but it brings me a sense of peace to share my feelings with you in this way.

Anyway, YN, I like you. More than you may realize. I find myself constantly drawn to you, observing you as you work and have fun with your friends. You have an undeniable ability to light up the entire room, whether you believe it or not.

Being with you evokes emotions I've never experienced before. It's inexplicable, but undeniably positive. You have made me discover what it truly means to have a crush on someone.

You will always be remembered as the best seatmate I could ever ask for. Now, to avoid overwhelming you any further, please know that you are under no obligation to accept this confession. Even if you don't, my feelings for you will persist. I have no problem with waiting for you until I can’t no more.

So, please don't keep me waiting any longer and let me know your answer. I have intentionally left a blank space for you to fill.

With sincerest affection,

Jay"

You wore a broad smile on your face, reaching for the pen on your desk. With a sense of excitement, you began writing your response, carefully choosing your words. Once finished, you folded the letter back up and confidently pushed it towards Jay, who was anxiously fidgeting nearby. With anticipation in his eyes, he eagerly took hold of the letter and unfolded it, ready to read your reply.

"The answer will always be yes for you,” he read the words, his face lighting up with a radiant smile. Playfully, he jotted down a little something on the paper, his smile growing cheekier by the second. Instead of folding the letter, he simply slid it across your desk, leaving it open for you to see.

"Let's seal this agreement with a kiss, shall we?" you couldn't help but chuckle, feeling a mix of embarrassment and amusement. "That was quite cheesy, Jay," you teased, finally turning to face him and removing your earbuds.

"Your blushing face tells a different story," he remarked, pointing out the obvious flush on your cheeks, a mischievous smile playing on his lips. "But, you know, you don't have to—"

Before he could finish his sentence, you silenced him with a quick, unexpected kiss. The bold move left him momentarily speechless, his own face turning red as the realization sunk in. While his intention was merely to provoke a reaction from you, he couldn't deny the rush of excitement that coursed through him now.

“Quite bold, aren’t we?” he chuckled, feeling a surge of heat rush to his cheeks. He playfully fanned himself, trying to hide his flustered state.

"You started it," you replied, a mischievous laughter escaping your lips as you enjoyed the sudden role reversal.

"Wanna finish this assignment together?" he asked, turning his attention back to the task at hand. You nodded in agreement, prompting him to move closer and place his textbook between your desks.

In a bold move, you reached out and took his hand, holding it discreetly under the desks. He squeezed your hand in response, his heart racing with excitement.

"How am I supposed to focus on the work now?" Jay chuckled, pretending to be distracted by your touch.

"Don't worry," you reassured him, a playful grin on your face. "I can work on it while you provide the answers. You can just copy it later."

"Sounds like a plan," Jay agreed, glancing at your notes and offering his input.

Meanwhile, Chaewon watched the two of you with a knowing smile, silently celebrating the fact that you had finally become an item. It was a moment she had been eagerly anticipating for ages, and now her efforts had finally paid off.

💭 — jay one chance 🙏🙏

ENHA PERM TAGLIST — @flwoie @ixomiyu @yenavrse @shinsou-rii @bearseulgs @ilovewonyo @yenqa @dimplewonie @bubblytaetae @wtfhyuck @ineedaherosavemeenow @starcubes @starikizs @wonioml @chirokookie @xiaoderrrr @neozon3nha @en-chantedtomeetyou @millksea @enhaz1 @eundiarys @woon2u @ja4hyvn @judeduartewannabe @j-wyoung @thia-aep @vampcharxter @softpia @officiallyjaehyuns @itsactuallylina @hsheart @sweetjaemss @ahnneyong @hanienie @jwnghyuns @kpoplover718 @jiawji @rikizm @haknom @yeokii @wvnkoi @whoschr @teddywonss @shinunoga-iie-wa @flwrshee @skzenhalove @chaewon-slays @misoxhappy @s00buwu @ox1-lovesick

[risingsoleil]

do more of linzin funny moments with their kids!😭

I present to you a few fun moments Linzin has with each of their kids when they're tiny:

Kang

He's doing his homework at the table.

"Mommy. Mommy! MOMMY!!!"

Footsteps come closer. "Don't shout. Use your indoor voice."

Kang wiggles in his seat. "When were you and Daddy born?"

"He was born in 119, and I was in 120."

"Did you meet Avatar Kyoshi?"

She makes a face. "No. She was reborn as Grandpa Aang."

Scribbles filled the blank lines, his tongue poking out at the corner of his mouth. He paused. "Ok. Were you alive when the Fire Nation attacked?"

Lin puts a hand on her hip. "How old do you think I am?"

Kang blinks. "Enough to know all the Avatars."

She mentally facepalms.

"Did Daddy get meet Avatar Wan before you then?"

Areum

She's sitting in Lin's lap at an event and turns to face her mother. Lin is engrossed in a conversation with a colleague, who also happens to be a mother. So it doesn't surprise Lin's colleague when she sees Areum suddenly turning and playing with the betrothal necklace.

"Mommy." Her fingers trace the designs.

"Hold on, sweetie. Mommy is talking to someone."

Areum pouts and grumbles under her breath until the lady finally leaves the table.

"Mommy," she groans.

"What is it?"

She points at the necklace. "I want one too."

Lin touches it for a moment, trying to remember which necklace she's wearing. Immediately she knows. "Then you need to marry someone from the Water Tribe to make you one when they want to marry you."

"I don't wanna wait."

A few days pass and Areum goes up to Tenzin.

"Daddy, can you make me a 'get married' necklace?"

He picks her up and holds her in his arms. "A what?"

"A necklace like Mommy's. The one you gave her when you got married," she explains and Tenzin 'ah's in understanding. "I asked the boy in my class, but he doesn't know how to."

Tenzin frowns. "Which boy?! He's not going to make you any necklace."

"Why not?"

"Bc you're not getting married, sweetie. Especially not to whoever this boy is."

"But--"

"No buts. I'll make you a 'get married' necklace."

Jin

Lin is working weird hours and Jin has been asking her and Tenzin everyday what time she's supposed to come home. Every day, Lin makes sure to write a note or tell him what time she's going to come home.

Today is a good day bc Mommy is coming home earlier! She's not coming home in the middle of the night. That means she can cook and play and go out on Oogi.

"I'll be home at 15:30."

Tenzin hears loud sobbing coming from the window and goes out to investigate. He sees his son, tears streaming down his face and cheeks red. His poor boy inherited his red-face syndrome.

Tenzin kneels next to his boy and holds him. "Why are you crying, Jin? Did something happen? Are you hurt?"

"MOMMY'S LATE. SOMETHING HAPPENED TO HER!! SHE SHOULD BE HOME BY NOW!"

He checks the clock. "It's only 15:31, son."

"THAT'S A MINUTE LATE, DADDY!!!"

It takes 20 mins for him to calm down his son (desserts did it for him, and he's willing to pay the price for a sugar crash later on). Finally, they hear metal boots clanking and Jin perks up, running to the person he's missed all day.

Jin hugs her and demands to know why she was late. He frowns at her for breaking her promise and not being home at 15:30 like she promised.

Lin rubs his back. "Alright, what will make you feel better?"

"I want dragon beard candy for breakfast. I can stay up late like you and Daddy. We go to the top of Kyoshi Bridge."

"Well, we can't do that all in one day. But we'll do that."

"And I want a baby brother."

Tenzin trips over air in the background.

Lin looks at Tenzin, then her son.

"Why do you want a little brother? You have your sister."

"So i can be a big brother. MeiMei is too mean."

"Well..." And she knows her husband is listening closely. "Daddy and I have to talk about it."

"Hmph."

Mei

It's summer and Tenzin is sure there's a heat wave rolling over Republic City this year. He's meditating without a shirt on because he's probably going to sweat with all the humidity surrounding the island.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

Peaceful.

The air shifts and a tiny body climbs on top of him.

"Daddy, look at me."

He doesn't open his eyes. "Sweetie, I'm meditating."

The small figure climbs off of his back, but stands at his side and traces her fingers down the back of his head, along his back. She follows the lines until she can't reach.

"Mommy wants to know why you don't have your shirt on."

"Because it's hot."

Her hand disappears. "Okay."

For the next ten minutes, Mei doesn't disturb him. Then he feels her sit next to him. A swell of pride fills his heart.

'She's meditating with me. She's so sweet. My little baby girl. I love her so much.' he thinks.

Then he hears a new voice.

"Why is her shirt off?"

His eyes open immediately and he peers over at his firstborn. Sure enough, her shirt was thrown off to the side and she's sitting topless like him on the pavilion. From behind, Tenzin can see Lin holding their son on her hip and giving him that "what the hell?" look.

Before Tenzin can answer, his daughter pipes up,

"Daddy says it's hot, that's why he's not wearing a shirt. It's hot, so I took off my shirt too."

Lin sighs.

Why do kids take everything literally?

[dizzyjelly]

Treat You Right

Word Count: 5k

Summary: You're abbys roommate and best friend, always there for her. She starts dating a guy who isn't even close to good enough for her, and you end up having an argument about how you've been acting towards him. That same night, you unknowingly confess your love to Abby, and she asks you about it a few days later at a party where you two will end up kissing.

Cw: drinking, mentions of throwing up/getting sick

You parked your car with a sigh, as close to the gym as you could get. It was pretty jam-packed, which you weren't really expecting. An unpleasant surprise as you struggled to find a parking spot, but you eventually did it. Quickly, you unbuckled yourself and leaned over to the passenger seat to grab the large metal water bottle and Abby’s favorite flavor of Gatorade before you made your way inside.

The man at the front desk greeted you with a smile, your face had become a familiar one over the last few weeks. Although you'd only actually worked out once or twice, you usually came to take your roommate Abby home. And bring her refreshments as she always managed to leave her water bottle at home, despite the countless times you'd remind her not to.

"Hello, nice to see you again!" He greeted, typing something into his computer.

"Hi, can I just go wait on one of those benches?" You asked, pointing over to the ones right by the lockers.

He nodded and motioned for you to go ahead, you made your way over there and took a seat. Abby would no doubt be making her way over here in the next few minutes, so you sat patiently and waited. It wasn't long until you saw her beaded your way, her forehead glistened with a light sweat and her chest rose and fell at a rather fast pace.

"Abby!" You exclaimed, waving at her excitedly.

She grinned and gave you a small wave back, coming to sit beside you.

"What would I do without you, Y/n?" She joked before grabbing her water bottle from your hand, taking a nice, long sip.

"I guess we'll never know" You responded with a sweet smile, then handed her the Gatorade, "here, brought your favorite."

She gasped, bringing a hand to her chest.

"For me? Why, thank you!" She took an even longer sip of the Gatorade then stood to walk over to her locker.

Mindlessly, you stood with her and followed her that way. You'd watch as she collected her personal belonging, talking her ear off about what you wanted to do when you got home. Once she'd finished, you walked out to your car together and you were the one carrying her drinks of course. You got into the car and let then sit in the cup holder, listening intently as Abby ran through her work out today. She'd stopped just a few minutes before you'd pull into your driveway.

"So, I was thinking you could shower and do whatever you needa do then we could watch a movie?" You suggested, and Abby agreed.

She wandered to her room for some pajamas, then to your shared bathroom to get in the shower. You decided to order some takeout, since neither of you had eaten yet and you didn't feel up to cooking anything tonight. It was nothing special, just a simple Chinese place the both of you would enjoy. And of course, you knew Abbys order by heart, so there was no need to ask her what she wanted.

You reached forward to grab the TV remote from the coffee table, opening up Netflix to browse through the movies. Eventually you gave up, being too indecisive for your own good, and figured you'd just let Abby choose something. Your phone went off, notifying you that your order was ready for pick up. Since you wanted to get the food while it was still warm, you quickly scribbled a note for Abby and left it on the coffee table before heading out the door.

She'd leave the shower and make her way to the living room, confused at first as you were nowhere to be found. But it didn't take long for her to find your note, setting it back down with a smile as she grabbed the TV remote.

'Left to get takeout, chinese!! Pick a movie bc I literally can't, no horror! I mean it.'

It read, in sloppy handwriting. You also drew a little heart at the bottom as well, something you'd always done when you'd leave her notes. It would take the place of a signature. She went through the different movies before deciding to check out a different streaming service because nothing piqued her interest. After a while, she settled on the movie White Chick's, a comedy. As much as she wanted to pick a horror movie just to push your buttons, she decided she could respect your wishes for one night.

It wasn't long before you'd return home, pushing the door open with your hip as your hands were full with the bags of food. You set them down on the coffee table, unboxing everything before grabbing drinks from the fridge and sitting beside Abby on the couch. You sat close enough to her so your sides touched, like always. You found expressing your love for her difficult, so most of the time you resorted to physical touch. Your elbows would bump into one another as you ate and drank, but neither of you were bothered by this.

It was a nice night, relaxing and fun. Once you were done with your food you sat crisscross applesauce, letting your hands fall into your lap. The movie was just getting to its middle mark when Abby slyly leaned back, bringing an arm up to sit behind you on the couch. If you'd lean back just enough, her arm would be around you., but you decided not to. Why, you didn't know.

"I'm kinda cold." She would say after about ten more minutes.

Immediately, you sprung to your feet and ran into your room. You grabbed your blanket from your bed, it was medium sized so you'd be able to share if you sat close enough. Smiling as you walked back into the living room, you tossed it to her and she thanked you. She pulled it over her lap, sitting back with her arms now crossed.

You sat next to her, then lifted the blanket before you'd lay down so that your head rested on her beautifully toned thighs. She chuckled, bringing a hand down to comb through your hair with her fingers. You smiled as a light blush spread across your cheeks, your bare face resting skin to skin with her thighs had a funny feeling settling in your stomach. It wasn't long until you found yourself falling into a peaceful sleep as you lied on her, Abby joined you shortly after.

You wouldn't wake until hours later, groaning as you sat up to check the time on your phone. Immediately regretting it as the bright white screen blinded you, quickly you turned down the brightness then saw it was nearing three in the morning. You stretched your arms above your head with a yawn, then leaned over to where Abby sat with her head tilted back against the couch as small snores spilled from her lips.

A smile found its way across your face at the sight, God she was so adorable. Then, you leaned down to her ear, shaking her lightly with a hand on her opposite shoulder.

"Abby.." You whispered in her ear.

It didn't take much to wake her, as she had always been a light sleeper. The only mistake you made was forgetting she was also quite defensive when being woken up, her eyes shot open and before you knew it she'd shoved you so hard you were now on the ground.

"Fuckk." You groaned as your side slammed into the couch, landing on your knees on the floor.

Abby sat, rubbing her eyes for a second before quickly rushing to help you up.

"Oh, shit! I'm so sorry, Y/n, you know I scare easy when I'm sleeping..." She apologized, and you could tell by her expression she really did feel bad.

Not that you doubted if she did or not, you muttered a simple 'it's ok' before rubbing at your side. It'd definitely be bruised in the morning, which was unfortunate as you had to work. Oh well, you'd manage.

"I've gotta be up in a few hours, so let's just go back to sleep." You said after Abby had given you a hug, still feeling bad for hurting you.

"M'kay. You just wanna lay back down on the couch or..?" She asked with a shrug, you merely nodded in response.

You waited as she'd lie down first, lifting up the blanket so you could lie down as well. You smiled at her as you climbed on top of her, your legs intertwined with hers and your head rested in her chest. Your arms would find their way around her waist, and hers held you in a warm embrace. She used one hand to rub your back until you fel asleep, which didn't take long as you'd felt safe and comfortable with her like this. It wasn't unusual for you two to... cuddle per say, but it was definitely a little too intimate for 'friends.' You'd never acknowledge that though, not as long as it meant you could still get in some good quality snuggle time with your favorite person in the world.

It wasn't until hours later when you woke up again, and sure enough you had to get ready for work. You winced quietly as you stood, your side being sore. That'd be a pain in the ass today, or rather the side. Sighing, you quietly made your way to your bedroom to get dressed and do your other morning routine things. Due to the fact that your coffee maker was loud as shit, and you didn't want ti wake Abby, you decided to leave earlier and get coffee on the way. Of course, you'd kept Abby a note on the coffee table letting her know you'd left for work. Even though she'd probably come to that conclusion on her own.

You'd actually enjoyed your job quite a lot, you worked at a daycare and it always made you happy seeing the children. They'd bonded with you really well, and it always put a smile on your face. After getting your coffee, you drove straight to work and walked inside. They weren't many kids on yet since it was still early, but that wouldn't stay true for long. Today was a pretty easy day, which was a pleasant surprise since things would usually get pretty chaotic. It was nearing ten in the morning when your phone buzzed from your back pocket. Of course, you walked into the staff only room to check it.

'Hi :('

Abby had texted you, immediately you were concerned as she'd put a frowny face at the end of her message.

'What's wrong???'

You'd replied.

'I have a terrible migraine'

'Did you take your meds?'

'No...'

'I will take them right now!'

'Ok good, try having some caffeine as well. The doctor said that would help, remember?'

'Yes I will have soda :)'

'Alright, feel better <3'

'Tyy <3'

You smiled to yourself, then stuffed your phone back into your pocket before going back out to the play area. Your eyes widened as you saw what happened while you were gone, one of the toddlers had gotten sick all over the carpet. There was a grimace on your face at the smell, you'd walked over to where it was and ushered the other children away while you got cleaning supplies.

After you finished cleaning, you went to check on Miley, the little girl who'd gotten sick. One of your coworkers had taken her to get a change of clothes and given her some water.

"Hi sweetie," you cooed, "you got a tummy ache?" She nodded with a babble.

"That's ok, you can lay down if you want." You motioned for your coworker to take her to the nap area while you went to call her mom. The mother quickly gree concerned when hearing that her little baby had gotten sick, but you reassured her everything was fine. After the phone call was over you went back out to the play area to care for the kids.

The rest of your day went by surprisingly quick, and nobody else got sick which was relieving. You said goodbye to your coworkers before grabbing your bag and heading out to your car. On the way home, you called Abby.

"Hiiii." She answered.

"Heyyy, your migraine any better?" You asked as you pulled onto the street.

"Yeah, you on the way home?" She asked in return.

"Yup, I was gonna cook tonight, what're you up for?" You asked as you turned your radio on, at a low volume.

"Ooh, can you make that pasta you do really good? I love that stuff." She replied.

"Of course, see you soon Abby, byeee." You hung up without another word, turning your radio up for the rest of your drive home.

You got home to see Abby sat on the couch, just scrolling on her phone. She set it down and came to the door to greet you by pulling you in for a hug. You wrapped your own arms around the back of her neck with a smile.

"Hi there." You greeted.

"Hello. Does your side still hurt?" She asked as she pulled away, taking a hand to rub over your side lightly.

"Little bit, but it's nothing I can't hanlde." You said with a smirk, making your way to the kitchen to start dinner.

You set out all the different ingredients and took out a pot, turning on the stove to boil water. Abby came to take a seat at the island so she could watch you cook. You were in the process of stirring the pasta and making the sauce when you decided to make conversation.

"So, how was your day?" You asked, your back turned to Abby.

"Good, good. Nice to have the day off." She answered.

"Yeah, you're lucky. Miley got sick today, it was bad." You recounted the worst part of your day.

"Oof, that sucks. I'm so happy I don't work with children. Dogs are so much easier to take care of." She smiled.

Abby worked at a dog groomers, which you'd never fail to believe was easier than a daycare.

"I bet." You chuckled.

Once dinner was finished, you set out two bowls and put Abbys in front of her. Then you placed yours at the chair beside her. You grabbed drinks from the fridge then went to take your seat. Abby all but moaned when she took her first bite, swearing by your delicious pasta.

"You're so dramatic." You teased with a playful punch to her shoulder.

"Shut up." She retorted with a chuckle.

You'd let out a small laugh as well, shaking your head at how silly she was. Once the two of you finished dinner you decided to sit on the couch and have a drink. Halfway through your conversation, Abby couldn't seem to stop staring at her phone. And with a great big smile too.

"Who are you texting?" You finally asked, getting a bit fed up with how uninvolved she was with you right now.

"Oh, just this guy, Derek. We've been talking lately. I met him at work." She flushed red as she explained, and you felt your heart drop.

Abby likes a guy?

"Cool." You tried so hard not to sound bitter, but your efforts didn't work.

Abby hasn't seemed to notice though, so encaptivated with her texting. You rolled your eyes and stood, setting your glass in the sink then going to your room. She'd found it odd you'd go to bed without a word, but couldn't bring herself to care that much. She was too busy talking with Derek.

Fast forward a week later and Abby was now dating Derek, which you absolutely hated. If nor only for the fact that he wasn’t all that, and didn’t treat her nearly as good as he should’ve been. Every time he came around he just pissed you off, always saying or doing something. Nevermind all the times Abby had cried over some stupid fight he started.

But you did your best to be kind to him, except for the occasional slip up. If Abby already had to go through dating this asshole, you weren’t gonna make it any harder by being a bitch about it.

It was a Friday night and you had Dina and Jesse over to play cards and drink. Derek was invited as well, but seemed to be running a little late. You let out a frustrated sigh as you watched Abby check her phone for like the tenth time in the past five minute.

“Abby, just leave it alone. I’m sure he’ll be here soon.” You said, only to reassure her.

“Yeah, yeah. You’re right.” She finally set her phone face down and took a swig of her drink, bringing her attention back to the game.

You smiled as you leaned into her a bit, your shoulders touching. She smiled back, nudging you playfully. About ten more minutes passed and there was a harsh knocking at the door, you rolled your eyes as Abby practically jumped to answer it.

She’d try to greet him with a hug, and he’d basically just feel her up at the door. Making you feel queasy as you pretended to vomit, getting a playful shove from Dina. Abby brought Derek over to sit, dealing him into the game. You sighed as you muttered under your breath,

“Boyfriend of the year over here, forty five fucking minutes late.” You took another sip of your drink.

“What was that?” He asked, his tone harsh.

“Nothing. Just find it interesting how you’re always late whenever Abby wants to hang out.” You said with a shrug.

“Ok well I’m a busy man.” He responded.

“Too busy to be on time for your own girlfriend, really?” You spoke with sass now, crossing your arms.

Abby sighed, standing as she pulled you up as well. She took you into her room, slamming the door shut behind her. You stood small now, knowing she was angry at you.

“What the fuck Y/n?” She asked aggressively.

“What.” You responded plainly.

“God, why do you have to be such a bitch?” She scoffed harshly, now raising her voice at you, “I mean seriously, I’ve never acted like this towards anyone you dated! Is it really so hard to just shut the fuck up and be happy for me!”

You looked down, unable to stop the tears that streamed down your face. Something that’d always happen whenever anyone yelled at you, and Abby knew this. But she seemed to have forgotten.

“’m sorry.” You muttered, your voice breaking.

She stopped yelling now.

“A-are you crying?” She asked, feeling bad.

“No.” You lied, turning away to wipe your tears.

“Hey, hey I’m sorry.” She apologized as she walked over to you, wrapping her arms around you and pulling you in.

You cried into her chest as you wrapped your arms around the back of her neck. She sighed, rubbing a hand up and down your back.

“I shouldn’t of yelled.” She admitted, biting at her lip nervously.

“No, youre right. I have been a bitch. But I just- Abby you’re like so amazing. I mean your beautiful, smart, funny, and just overall perfect. You deserve the world, and he barely gives you the time of day.” You explained your intentions.

Abby couldn’t help but smile, letting out a small laugh as well.

“Thanks, you’re a really good friend.” Friend, God it was like a stab to the heart.

“Of course.” You’d respond.

“You know Derek isn't as bad as you think, he's actually pretty nice to me.” Abby said, sounding very unconvincing.

“Oh yeah? Name one nice thing he's done for you this week.” You challenged.

Abby sighed, now pulling away from the hug with a light frown.

“Well, he gave me a ride to the gym.” She even sounded unsure.

“Ok that's like a favor, you can get am uber for God sakes.” You argued.

“Ok, whatever!” She threw her hands up in frustration.

“I'm just saying, if you ever opened your eyes and just gave me a chance I’d treat you like the queen you are.” You announced, the drinks taking over as you'd never be so bold if you were in your right mind.

“What?” Abby asked, slightly taken aback.

“Uh, nothing, just- forget I said anything.” You blurted out, rushing out of the room and back to the table where your friends sat, and Derek.

Abby returned too, her face a bit flushed as she took a seat beside Derek. She cracked an awkward smile as he placed a kiss to her cheek, then pulled her into his lap. It was only a few minutes before she’d move away from him. He’d smirk, wrapping a hand around her waist to try and pull her back in.

“Derek, I’m not in the mood right now” She snapped, her voice harsh.

“Damn, ok. Don’t gotta be a bitch about it.” He brought his hands uo defensively.

You could let a lot of things slide, but as soon as that name came out of his mouth you lost it.

“Ok, seriously man what the hell.” You spoke with distaste, your arms crossing.

“What?” He asked, widening his eyes as if he’d done nothing wrong.

“You seriously just gonna call her that? Like it’s nothing? You’re a fucking asshole, Derek.” You spat out.

“You really gonna let her talk to me like that?” Derek asked Abby, crossing his own arms.

Abby’s leg bounced nervously, she seemed to think for a minute. Then she stood and went to sit beside you.

“Yeah, actually I am. Because she’s right. I’m fucking perfect, and y-you barely give me the time of day Derek.” She’d recited what you’d told her earlier.

You couldn’t help it when a proud smile spread across your face, and you brought a hand to rest on Abby’s shoulder to reassure her. Finally she stood up to the son of a bitch. He scoffed, rolling his eyes as he stood and grabbed his coat.

“Whatever, I’m out of here.” He spoke gruffly, clearly pissed.

“Good, don’t bother ever coming back. Asshole!” Abby called after him as he’d slam your front door shut.

Dina and Jesse sat in an awkward silence, ultimately deciding they should take off as well. You bid then goodbye and after they left was when Abby started to freak.

“Oh my god, holy fuck I can’t believe I actually said all that to him.” She spoke breathlessly, her hands running through her hair frantically.

“Hey, it’s ok. Not like you told any lies, he needed to hear it.” You tried to reassure her, following her as she paced and placing your hands on her shoulders as you stood behind her.

She let out a bitter laugh,

“Yeah, maybe, but I don’t know I feel like- like bad? I’m never mean like that. To anyone.” She explained.

“Unless they deserve it.” You reminded her, slowly rubbing at her shoulders to try and relax her.

She let out a heavy sigh, dropping her head into her hands. She groaned.

“You’re right.” Her voice was quiet.

“Exactly.” You responded, moving your hands to her waist as you pulled her into a hug from behind.

“Don’t even worry about it, ‘s all gonna be ok Abs.” You whispered in her ear, she let out a sigh of relief.

Her hands came to rest on top of yours, her head falling back onto your shoulder. She swallowed the lump in her throat, feeling a sense of security from your touch.

“You wanna watch a movie or something?” She asked, you nodded and started to clean up from your little game night as she brought a blanket to the couch.

You finished cleaning up and took a seat beside Abby, wrapping an arm around her shoulders with a smile as she laid her head on your chest. You’d grabbed the remote and just picked an older movie, one of the classics. Mostly because you knew it was one of Abby’s favorite genres. About halfway through the movie, you took immediate notice of how Abby was picking at her fingernails. Something she’d only do when she was feeling anxious. You let out a small sigh, taking her hands in your own.

“Abby, come on. It’s fine, I promise you.” She looked up at you with doe eyes, her brows furrowing with uncertainty.

“I don’t know Y/n, I still feel like shit. Like I’m a shit person.” She got extremely quiet, you almost couldn’t hear her.

“Ok, well that’s just not true. Abby, you’re a wonderful person, Derek was- he was an asshole, just like you said. I hate to see you worry like this. Especially over him, I mean ask anyone, he was a douche.” You tried your best to be reassuring, make her feel better about herself.

“I know, I know. You’re right.” She’d admit with a sigh, letting her head fall into your lap as she got more comfortable.

She brought a hand to rest under her head, her palm resting on your upper thigh. Butterflies erupted in your stomach, and you began to play with her hair. Since itd always be something to soothe you, you figured itd have a similar effect on Abby. And it must’ve because she was out like a light in no time. Or so you thought. Taking note that she was sound asleep, you let out a small sigh.

“God I am so in love with you. I just wish I had the courage to tell you.” You felt your bottom lip quiver the slightest bit, but you managed to choke back your tears.

You’d fall asleep yourself shortly after, but what you didn’t know was Abby had heard your confession loud and clear. And of course, she panicked, but only for a second. She was surprised, someone like you into her? Not that she hadn’t suspected it after your not-so sober words earlier that night about how you’d treat her if she gave you the chance. But now what the hell was she supposed to do, you’d confessed to what you assumed was a sleeping Abby. She’d act as if everything was normal for a day or two, until she couldn’t take it anymore.

You and Abby had found yourselves at a friend’s birthday party, although you barely even got to wish her a happy one. She’d thrown an absolute rage, so you saw her once then never again. You were a few drinks in and sat beside Abby on the couch, who oddly decided to stay sober. Probably to watch over you.

“Dance with me.” You tried to whisper, to her, but ended up shouting in her ear because you were so drunk.

“Alright.” She agreed hesitantly, standing and taking your hands in hers.

You smiled up at her as you brought her hands to your hips, your own coming to rest on the back of her neck. She felt a hot, red blush spread across her face as you leaned into her, pulling her unbelievably closer. She let out a sigh against your neck, her hands going to the small of your back.

“Hey, Y/n?” she prompted.

“Hm?” You responded with a hum.

“Um, you know the other night when everything kinda went down with Derek. Well, I-“ her breath hitched slightly, “I heard what you said. About how you’re i-in love with me.” She finally admitted.

And whether it was the booze or the realization of how deeply you thought youd fucked up, your stomach suddenly clenched hard. You pulled away from her immediately, brining a hand to your mouth.

“I-I’m gonna be sick.” You blurted out, running for the door.

Abby followed you, holding your hair back with a groan as you vomited over the porch fence. You sighed once it was through, leaning against the fence with a frown as you squeezed your eyes shut. You could help but panic, worried you’d ruined everything. Abby rubbed a soothing hand up and down your back, pulling you up.

“I’m gonna go get you some water, okay?” she told you, a hand on your shoulder.

You just nodded and watched as she walked away. Your hands flew to your face as you mentally slapped yourself, God you were such an idiot. Abby was probably all weirded out and uncomfortable now, what if she wanted to move out? Oh, geez, what if she didn’t wanna be your friend anymore? Every worst-case scenario was running through your mind. Abby returned shortly with a glass of water, a worried expression on her face as she encouraged you to drink it.

“Maybe we should head home, yeah?” she suggested once you’d finished your glass of water.

“Yeah, we should.” You’d agree, setting the glass on an outdoor table then following Abby down the porch steps before calling out, “Hey, Abby?”

“Yeah?” she answered, turning around to face you.

“Uh, wha- how-“ you let out a frustrated sigh, “How do you feel about what I said before?” you finally managed to get it out.

“Well, I think that you treat me right. And, you’re like really pretty.” Sounded promising so far, but she had yet to say the three words you longed to hear.

She stepped forward, taking your face in her hands. You felt like your heart stopped right then and there, and then it was beating a mile a minute as she brought her lips to your own. Sighing into the kiss, you brought your hands to her hair. She pressed at your bottom lip with her tongue, and you immediately opened wide so she could slip it into your mouth. The way she moved it around your own felt like magic. When she finally pulled away, your were both panting for air.

“So, I’m guessing you like me back?” you asked with a smile as you rested your forehead against hers.

“Of course, idiot. In fact, I love you back.” She whispered, pressing a kiss to your nose, cheek, and then your lips once again.

“Now come on, let's get you home, pretty girl.” You smiled at the compliment, following her to the car and thanking her as she opened the door for you.

[babybammargera]

From best friend to girlfriend

Bam x female reader hc

You and Bam became best friends during highschool. You were tutoring Raab (before he got kicked out of school.)

Bam and Ryan insisted on hanging out during this time mostly because it got them out of class but also because it gave them time to plan cky stuff.

After Raab got kicked out and Bam quit school you finally gave into them begging you to hang out.

You spent every weekend with them laughing at their stupid antics and helping them prank people.

After graduating you became a solid member of the group yourself and every weekend at the margera house turned into being at the margera house daily. Frequently arguing with one of the boys on who had dibs on the couch that night.

Truthfully you caught feelings for him on one of those nights when he refused to accept that you had rightfully claimed the biggest and most comfortable beanbag and just wrapped his blanket around himself and flopped down practically on top of you.

April knows as soon as you do but doesnt mention it.

Jess however does the next morning when you stumble into the kitchen before the others.

"You have a thing for my gross little brother don't you?" He had no doubt noticed the two of you squished on one beanbag.

Bam on the other hand fell for you hard a few months later as soon as you agreed to skate off of the high point of his roof and into the pool which felt like ice in October.

He was the first off the roof and pulling you out of the cold water. "Dude that was so sick I can't believe you actually did it"

Ryan wraps a blanket around you and Bam drags you into the house "so you don't freeze to death"

Ape and Phil are at the counter and definitely lecture the whole group as you run upstairs.

Phil says something along the lines of "that girl sure is around a lot now I think Bam likes her."

Jess who had come to grab a drink from the kitchen just cracks up "give it two weeks he'll grow some balls and ask her out then we'll really never get rid of her."

Meanwhile you and the others are upstairs sitting on Bams floor upstairs you had changed out your wet clothes into whatever you could find that was clean in Bams room.

Ryan and Dico are playing video games and Raab is sitting at the desk in Bam's room scribbling on a piece of paper which he crumbles up and tosses it towards you accidentally landing it in Bam's lap.

Bam unravels the paper and his eyes widen.

You snatch the paper away from him and in Raabs sloppy handwriting it says "You should date Bam already we're tired of him talking about you when you aren't around"

Your eyes snap up "DUDE!" Raab shrugs "we see how you two look at each other we've even considered locking you two in the basement together."

Bam lays across your lap, "Wanna give it a shot?"

Before you can answer the others yell yes in unison over your voice.

"I guess they answered for me."

"They know you too well"

@bambammargera

[pbjamie17]

Voltron AU‼️‼️

(Lots of Coran and Lance bonding because Coran is the best uncle :))

When Lance was 10, he was locked out of his first room in the castle. It was his parent's–King Alfor & Queen Melenor–office. He'd been caught by a maid scribbling family portraits on very important legal documents.

Allura thought it was hilarious. She knew her twin brother was a trouble maker, but she never thought he'd actually get banned from a room. Melenor believed he had it coming, but that didn't mean she wasn't a twinge upset that her son wouldn't be bursting into the office sharing whatever strange fact he learned that day, usually regarding unique Galra behaviors.

The next thing Lance is banned from is meetings. Well, just the meeting room in general. He was 15, and it might've effected him more than he'd ever admit to his father. Or his mother. Or even Allura.

But the one person he did admit it to was Coran. His father's right-hand man. His best friend, his- well, Lance wasn't exactly sure what they were, but he didn't press it.

After he'd been kicked out of meetings, Lance had been sentenced to a constant monitor to make sure he wasn't causing any problems. That monitor was Coran. At first, Lance hated it. He hated being babysat like he couldn't take care of himself.

But it didn't take long for Coran's helicopter parenting to calm down. Eventually, he'd just wander around the castle, blabbering on about how much things had changed since he was younger, and despite the pulling feel in his stomach to wander off, Lance followed. He helped Coran with repairs, and even had his interest in Galra etiquette renewed when the older Altean mentioned them.

His happy days didn't last more than a few months, though. After Lance was banned from two more things.

First, it was family photos. After a particularly infuriating photo shoot, where Lance had refused to make a straight face, Alfor pulled him aside and announced that he didn't want Lance in the photos until he could learn to behave himself. So, never.

Hearing his father's words made Lance want to break down, sobbing and begging for his forgiveness, but he didn't. Instead, he made a sarcastic comment and ran off before the king could see how hurt he was.

Unfortunately for King Alfor, banning his son had the opposite effect of what he'd hoped for. Lance began acting out more instead of less, and his stunts became more and more chaotic.

Rumors about the Royal Alteans began to spread, and after an especially great show involving a lot of illegal drinks and a public appearance from the prince, Alfor knew he had to step in.

He approached Lance about a week before the twin's birthday. Lance was told that at the end of the birthday party, the king would make an announcement.

At the end of the day, Lance would be sent to a border patrol ship at the edge of Altea's reign. Which was a far distance from the atmosphere itself.

Lance almost laughed. Sure, he'd been a bit of a handful as of late, but he didn't think that it was that bad. But the king made it clear his mind was made up. He said that Lance could return to the ground as soon as he proved himself.

So, on his 16th birthday, Lance was banned from one final place.

His planet. His home. The Castle of Lions.

♡⑅*˖•. ·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙·̩̩̥͙*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .•˖*⑅♡

Sorry, this probably sucks ass, but I had time on my hands and an AU in my head.

I'll probably update more about this, and maybe even upload it on Ao3 at some point, but just so you know, in this universe the war starts a few months after Lance and Allura turn 19, and Lance still hadn't returned to the castle by that point, but yada yada we'll get into that later. ;)

[shallyne]

The Diary of Feyre Archeron Ch. 2

Chapter two of Feyre's diary! I hope you enjoy,! Things might pick up in the next chapter

Words: 1.4k

February 7th

Dear Diary,

I feel like death on two legs. These past fews were SO hectic.

I've got the job I applied for and they agreed fairly quick for me to work the night shifts, and now I know WHY! Who would have thought so many people went to a seedy diner at the outside of town in the middle of the night? It's weird and I also need to act like nothing is different because mom knows nothing! She doesn't suspect a single thing! I guess being ignored by her has its perks?

Anyway, I'm not going down that route. Point is, I'm trying to juggle work and school and somehow get sleep at some point of the day, which worked until today when I fell asleep in Mr. Suriel’s class. And guess who woke me up? Rhysand!! He was very sweet about it but I felt so embarrassed, I basically bolted away from him and almost walked into a door. Yeah, I can't look at him anytime soon.

Also, dad is acting very weird lately. He's always in his office and barely talks to any of us if he bothers to show up for dinner, even mom and Elain.

Okay, that's it I think.

Byee

February 15th

Dear Diary,

The moon is so pretty. It's like 11pm right now and I'm not at work, I got this Saturday off to work on Sunday which even gives me a little Sunday bonus! Amazing, isn't it?

Back to the moon, it's beautiful! I've never paid much attention to it but now that I did, I never want to look at anything else again. Sitting in the moonlight and writing in my diary? That's so aesthetically pleasing, Pinterest would eat this up!

I'm also not the only one still awake, I can hear dad’s TV, he's watching the news again, as every evening although he's working much later than usual, mom is super grumpy about this. I think they even argued yesterday, I heard weird noises coming from their room.

I also have good news! Rhysand and I have to make a project together for history!! ME and RHYSAND. It's going to be so fun, as long as I keep him far away from my house. He already asked if we wanted to start the project at his house or mine, of course I said his even though I'm super nervous! We're meeting tomorrow. Should I wear the blue sweater? Maybe I can steal some of Elain’s mascara. Or I could ask her. We'll see, I guess.

I also don't know if I should leave my notebook at home. It's full of scribbles of Rhys's eyes. That's very specific but I just can't get them right! How can a person have such unique eyes? If anyone comes close to having literal starry eyes, it's him. So, what would be more embarrassing, if mom found the notebook or Rhys??

I think I'll leave it here, hide it in my closet. If mom still finds it I can lie and say it's just practice! Hopefully she won't find the R+F scribbled in the back.

I'm getting sleepy now, big day tomorrow.

Bye!

March 9th

Dear Diary,

Rhys and I got an A on our project! It was so easy working with him, it didn't even feel like working. He's not just the most beautiful guy I have ever seen, he's also so nice and incredibly smart! I think he also plays sports, what can't he do? Like, leave some talent for us!

I also got into an argument with Nesta if it's acceptable to use sus as a word. It's way too hard and time consuming to always fully spell suspiceus ous, same with saying it. Shortening it saves lots of time! She says it's stupid and to not use it in front of her friends because it's humiliating. To quote her, verbatim, “Stop trying to make sus happen, Feyre! It's not going to happen!” Rude. It's totally going to happen someday and I'm going to tell her “I told you so.” (She hates that)

Also, after weeks of acting sus, dad finally joined us at dinner and actually talked. Mostly to mom and the topic was the airplane that had just disappeared but nonetheless, he talked and his mood seemed better! He also doesn't look like a caveman anymore for the first time since he locked himself in the office, so that's good.

Mom also almost caught me eating chocolate, which would have been a total disaster. She's always making sure that we, mostly Elain and Nesta, aren't overweight. She's weighing them weekly! It's so insane. Sometimes I bring back some leftovers after my shift and sneak them to Elain and Nesta's room. They accept them and mom hasn't kicked me out of the house yet, so I assume they haven't told her. They also don't ask question when I bring the snacks, they just accept it. Good, that means they don't have to lie for me. Or I don't have to lie to them.

Okay, I guess that's it for the day.

PS: is it normal to constantly have a feeling of impending doom? Is it just PMS?

April 29th

Dear Diary,

Since Rhys and I did our project we've spent much more time together! He's so funny, he always makes me laugh. I think we've even become friends. We shared our lunch today, he got a half of my sandwich and I got a half of his! He even gave me his coke zero because he was shocked when I told him I never had any. It was amazing. (the coke, the company and the lunch)

Rhys told me he's super into astronomy, he's a nerd about it and it's so cute. I never saw him so animated about a topic! I mean, when he talks about himself. For some reason he also looks super interested when I talk about painting, he must be a good actor because I can't imagine him really being interested in art but I appreciate it anyway! No one ever really tried to listen to me about my hobbies.

I think I'm talking nonsense again, I don't know why that always happens. Sometimes my thoughts feel like a big heap of muddled words and everything is going on at once.

Oh, right, I almost forgot the most important thing! Rhys and I planned a sleepover during the summer holidays! I told him that I'd like to have a WiiU someday and he suggested a game night, because he has a WiiU, I'm so excited! I hope the time goes by fast, I can't wait. I need a break, my schedule is so tight these days, it's almost suffocating but I can't tell anyone.

It's going to be worth it, though. I'm saving my money, for what, I don't know yet. Maybe my driver's license? I have time to figure it out.

Mom is out for tea with her friends right now, so I'm using the time to listen to Taylor Swift without headphones!

May 31st

Dear Diary,

I could cut the tension here with a knife but either no one tells me what's up or they don't know. I tried to get some infos from our cook, Alis. She's always nice and she gets wind of all the gossip but she couldn't tell me what's going on.

Something isn't right and I need to know what it is, although something tells me I shouldn't. But can I just leave this mystery unsolved? Of course I can't!

It might be quiet right now, mom amd dad are in dad’s office upstairs, Elain and Nesta are in the garden and all the house staff seem to be huddled somewhere around the kitchen, whispering among themselves. Maybe I could eavesdrop? But there isn't really a way to hide without them seeing me. We definitely need more secret nooks in this house, I can't get information like this.

Nesta always says I'm nosy but that's such a negative way to look at it, I'm just curious. How is she not? How is Elain not? Is it wrong to be curious?

Especially if your parents are super jumpy for, like, the whole last week! It's super sus. Last night I knocked over the salt shaker and they flinched! Mom didn't even shout or reprimand me, she just glowered and went back to her dinner, it was sca–

Oh, hold on, the doorbell just rang, be back in a sec.

Taglist:

@captain-of-the-gwynriel-ship @starfall-spirit @rhysiedarling @corcracrow @sydney-fae25 @tothestarsandwhateverend @aayo-whatt @dreamlandreader

[randomperson99sworld]

Ruffled Feathers 🪶

~ Part 17 ~

Summary: Julia Morgan, Bobby's niece, has always been a royal thorn in Dean Winchesters ass since the day they met 1 year ago at Bobby's memorial. She wants to be a hunter, he thinks she's a dumb kid playing dress up. Will she always be seen as an unwanted load in Dean's eyes or will he see something more?

Pairing: Dean x OC

Warnings: Age gap, language, sexual themes (used lightly), physical abuse (Not by Dean).

Word Count: 2,835

A/N: Please keep in mind  that the dialogue and events are not 100% accurate to the show, it's been a min since I've watched it lol  anyways, I left out the part where Cain mentions to Dean that he would have to kill him at some point after he kills Abaddon because I loved Cain, so he's just not going to be a problem in this story xD. Happy reading! ♥️

After leaving the old factory, the drive back to the bunker was quiet, the weight of their conversation with Crowley hanging in the air. Dean was gripping the steering wheel tightly, his eyes focused on the road ahead, while Sam stared out the window, clearly lost in thought. Julia sat in the backseat, leaning her head against the window as the Kansas landscape blurred past them.

The tension between them had only grown, not because they were angry with one another, but because working with Crowley was never easy. Dean hated it more than anyone, but they had no choice. Abaddon was too powerful, and without the First Blade, they didn't stand a chance.

When they arrived at the bunker, the air inside felt cold, as if it knew what was coming. Dean headed straight for the kitchen, muttering something about needing a drink, while Sam tossed his jacket onto the war room table and began flipping through his notes again, his mind already working on their next steps.

Julia hung back, watching the brothers fall into their routines. It was strange, seeing how easily they switched from one life-threatening situation to the next. She admired them for it—how they managed to keep fighting, no matter what.

She walked into the kitchen, where Dean was already pouring himself a generous shot of whiskey. He looked up as she entered, his green eyes tired but sharp.

"You good?" Julia asked, leaning against the counter.

Dean raised his glass to her before downing the shot in one go. "Peachy," he said, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

Julia didn't push. She knew when to leave him alone, especially after what they'd just gone through. "We'll get the Blade," she said, more to herself than to him.

Dean grunted. "Yeah, if Crowley doesn't screw us over first."

She grabbed a glass of water from the sink and took a sip. "You really think he'll try something?"

Dean shrugged, pouring himself another drink. "I don't know. Crowley's always got some kind of angle, but we're running out of options. He's our best shot, and he knows it."

There was a brief silence, the tension between them still there but unspoken. Dean didn't meet her eyes, and Julia could feel the same frustration building in her chest. They had been through so much already, and yet every time they got close to stopping Abaddon, something else got in the way.

Julia let out a sigh and set her glass down. "You know, for what it's worth, I think we'll pull this off. We always do, right?"

Dean looked at her for a moment, his expression softening just a fraction. He didn't say anything, but he gave her a nod—his way of showing appreciation.

Suddenly, Sam's voice echoed from the war room. "Hey, I think I've got something!"

Dean and Julia quickly walked over to join Sam, who was holding up a piece of paper with coordinates scribbled on it.

"Looks like Crowley came through quicker than we thought," Sam said, a mix of surprise and skepticism in his voice. "He sent me these coordinates just now. Says it's the first lead on the Blade's location."

Dean frowned. "And we're just supposed to trust him?"

"We don't have much of a choice," Sam replied. "It's worth checking out."

Julia leaned over the table, glancing at the paper. "Where is it?"

"Somewhere in Missouri," Sam said, pointing to the map. "It's remote—near some old ruins."

Dean crossed his arms. "Figures Crowley would send us somewhere sketchy."

Julia chuckled. "Yeah, wouldn't be a proper hunt without the ominous location."

Sam looked between them. "We should head out soon. The sooner we check this out, the better."

Unable to shake the feeling gnawing at his gut, Dean made the last minute decision to have Julia stay behind. He knew the road ahead wasn't going to be easy, and every instinct he had screamed at him to keep Julia out of it. They had been through a lot together, but this was different. The First Blade was serious business, and if Abaddon's goons were out there hunting for it too, the risk was too high.

So when dawn broke, Dean made the decision. Julia was sitting at the kitchen table with Sam, going over notes and old lore books, when Dean walked in. He grabbed a cup of coffee, not meeting Julia's eyes, already knowing how this was going to go.

"I've been thinking," Dean started, his voice rough from lack of sleep. "You should sit this one out, Julia."

Julia looked up, confused. "What? Why?"

Dean set his cup down and crossed his arms, leaning against the counter. "This is the First Blade we're talking about. It's not just some regular case. It's dangerous as hell, and I don't need you getting hurt."

Sam glanced between them, sensing the tension already brewing. "Dean—"

Dean cut him off. "No, man. Not this time. I'm going with Crowley to meet Cain. I don't know what we're walking into, and I need Julia here, you too."

Julia's brows furrowed, clearly frustrated. "Dean, I've been doing fine so far. You can't just bench me."

Dean finally met her gaze, his expression hard but not unkind. "It's not about you being fine. It's about keeping you safe. You don't know what Cain's capable of. Hell, I don't even know."

Sam cleared his throat. "He's got a point, Julia. Cain's a wildcard. It's best if you stay back with me, help with the research."

Julia clenched her jaw but didn't argue any further. She could tell there was no winning this one, not when Dean had that look in his eyes. The one that said he wasn't budging.

"Fine," she muttered, turning her attention back to the book in front of her. "But don't come crying to me if you get your ass kicked."

Dean smirked, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. "I'll be fine."

The drive to Cain's house was tense, and the company didn't help. Dean glanced over at Crowley, who was lounging in the passenger seat of the Impala like he owned the damn thing, looking way too comfortable for someone who was technically their enemy.

"You seem awfully chipper," Dean muttered, gripping the steering wheel.

Crowley grinned. "Well, I am in good company. Besides, I'm eager to see how this little visit with Cain turns out. Should be... enlightening."

Dean rolled his eyes, focusing on the road ahead. Cain wasn't just any ordinary guy. He was the Father of Murder, the original Knight of Hell. This wasn't a simple retrieval mission—they were walking straight into the lion's den. But they needed that Blade if they had any hope of stopping Abaddon.

When they finally pulled up to Cain's secluded farmhouse, Dean felt his stomach twist. The place was quiet, too quiet. He parked the Impala and got out, grabbing his gun and an angel blade, just in case.

Crowley followed suit, his usual swagger in place as they approached the door.

"You sure he's even going to talk to us?" Dean asked, eyeing the door warily.

"Oh, he'll talk," Crowley said, flashing his teeth in a way that made Dean want to punch him.

Dean knocked on the door, and after a few tense seconds, it creaked open. Cain stood there, looming large in the doorway, his presence as intimidating as the legends said.

"Dean Winchester," Cain greeted, his voice deep and resonant. "I've been expecting you."

Inside the farmhouse, the air was thick with tension. Cain didn't offer any pleasantries, just stood there with a quiet, terrifying calmness that put Dean on edge. Crowley, of course, didn't seem fazed, casually leaning against the wall as Cain poured himself a drink.

"I assume you've come for the Blade," Cain said, not bothering to look at either of them.

Dean nodded, not seeing the point in dancing around the issue. "We need it to take down Abaddon."

Cain finally looked up, his eyes sharp and dark. "And you think you're worthy to wield it?"

Before Dean could answer, the front door burst open, and the unmistakable sound of demon howls filled the air. Abaddon's demons had found them.

Dean barely had time to draw his gun before the first wave of demons rushed inside, their black eyes gleaming with murderous intent. Crowley stepped forward, his face serious now, summoning his powers to help fight them off.

Cain watched the chaos unfold, unfazed, as if it were nothing more than an inconvenience.

Dean was in the thick of it, fighting off demon after demon, using everything he had—his gun, his angel blade, his fists. Blood and sweat mixed as the battle raged, but they kept coming. No matter how many he killed, more poured in.

One demon nearly got the jump on him, but Cain stepped in, grabbing the demon by the throat and snapping it’s neck with barely any effort. "You'll have to do better than that if you want to survive this."

Dean panted, his muscles aching as he stabbed another demon in the chest. "Yeah, well, some backup would be nice."

Cain smirked but didn't answer

The dust had barely settled, and the bodies of the demons lay scattered around the property. Dean stood, breathing heavily, his eyes scanning the aftermath of the fight. He glanced at Crowley, who looked a bit too amused by the whole ordeal, then turned to Cain, who had watched the entire fight unfold without lifting a finger.

Cain finally stepped forward, his face impassive. "You handled yourself well," he said, his deep voice carrying a strange sense of finality.

Dean wiped the sweat from his brow, his body still tense from the fight. "You could've jumped in at any time, you know."

Cain's lips twitched in something that might have been the ghost of a smile. "This wasn't my fight. It was yours. A test."

"A test for what?" Dean asked, narrowing his eyes.

Cain's gaze shifted to the First Blade resting nearby. "For the Mark."

Dean's eyes flicked with confusion. "The Mark? What does that have to do with this?"

Cain walked over to Dean, his expression unreadable. "The First Blade is useless without the Mark of Cain. Only someone who bears the Mark can wield it."

Dean frowned, his confusion growing. "So, why didn't you mention that before?"

Cain finally looked at him, his gaze piercing. "Because I had to see if you were worthy."

Dean stiffened. "Worthy? Of what, exactly?"

Cain slowly approached him, his large frame towering over Dean. "Worthy of bearing the Mark of Cain. It's a curse, Dean. A burden. But it's the only way you can use the Blade to kill Abaddon."

Dean's jaw clenched. "So, what—you're just gonna slap this curse on me and hope for the best?"

Cain tilted his head, studying Dean. "Not quite. The Mark is a heavy weight to carry. It will change you, corrupt you. But from what I've seen, you have the strength to endure it."

Dean swallowed hard, feeling the weight of Cain's words settle heavily on his shoulders. He glanced at Crowley, who was watching the exchange with keen interest, then back at Cain. "And what if I say no?"

Cain's gaze darkened. "Then Abaddon wins. The demons take over, and everything you've fought for—everything your family has sacrificed—will be for nothing."

Dean's mind raced, the gravity of the situation pressing down on him. This wasn't just about him anymore. It was about Sam, about saving the world from Abaddon's reign of terror. He couldn't back down now.

"What do I have to do?" Dean asked, his voice resolute.

Cain stepped closer, his hand slowly reaching toward Dean. "This will hurt."

Before Dean could react, Cain's hand pressed against his forearm. A searing pain shot through Dean's body, his vision swimming as the Mark of Cain began to transfer. It felt like fire was being burned into his skin, spreading through his veins, but he gritted his teeth and stayed standing, refusing to show weakness.

The pain intensified, and for a moment, Dean thought he might pass out. But just as suddenly as it had begun, it was over. Cain pulled his hand away, and Dean stumbled back, clutching his arm.

A strange symbol—dark, twisted, and ominous—now marked Dean's forearm. The Mark of Cain.

Cain's eyes lingered on the Mark for a moment before he stepped back. "The Mark will give you the power you need to wield the First Blade. But it will come at a cost."

Dean flexed his arm, wincing at the lingering pain. "What kind of cost?"

“The Mark demands blood. It will call to you, push you to kill. And the more you give in, the harder it will be to stop." Cain said, his voice grim.

Dean's face hardened. "I'll deal with it."

Dean looked at Cain, still trying to wrap his mind around the weight of the situation. The Mark of Cain now burned on his arm, throbbing as if it had a life of its own. His mind was buzzing with questions, but one was more pressing than all the others.

"So, we need the First Blade to take down Abaddon," Dean said, his voice rough from the pain of the Mark and the adrenaline of the fight.

Cain regarded him quietly for a moment, then sighed, a deep and weary sound. "Yes, but there's a problem."

Dean frowned, glancing at Crowley, who seemed to be watching Cain with a mix of amusement and curiosity. "What kind of problem?"

"The Blade..." Cain started, looking out toward the horizon through the dusty windows of his farmhouse. His voice softened as if recalling a painful memory. "I threw it into the deepest part of the ocean, to keep my promise to my wife."

Dean's face hardened. "What? Why?"

"To keep it out of the hands of people like you," Cain said, his voice steady but laced with something resembling regret. "The Blade has caused too much destruction. It's a weapon of death, and with the Mark, it brings out the worst in anyone who wields it."

Dean felt his stomach sink. They needed that Blade. "So what? It's just sitting at the bottom of the ocean? We have to fish it out?"

Cain's expression didn't change. "That's right."

Crowley, who had been listening with a rare seriousness, finally spoke. "Well, that's just brilliant. Bottom of the ocean, eh? I don't suppose you have a map?"

Cain walked over to a shelf and pulled out a small map, unrolling it on the table. He pointed to a remote area in the middle of the ocean. "Here. The deepest part of the Pacific, The Mariana Trench. No human could ever reach it without help."

Dean stared at the map, his mind already racing with plans. "Well, good thing you've got a demon on your side, huh?" Crowley said, casting a glance at Dean.

Dean gave a small sarcastic smile. "Lucky me."

Cain's gaze lingered on Dean, as if he were silently debating something. Finally, he spoke again. "Take the Blade when you find it, but remember: the more you use it, the more you become like me. A killer, nothing more."

Dean met Cain's gaze, the gravity of his words hanging in the air between them. "I'm not you," Dean said firmly.

Cain didn't respond, but the sadness in his eyes said everything.

Without another word, Dean turned and headed for the door, Crowley trailing behind him. As they stepped outside into the cool night air, Dean's mind was already focused on the next task: finding the First Blade.

Crowley, ever the opportunist, gave a sly smile. "Well, that went better than expected."

Dean shot him a hard look. "You better not screw this up, Crowley. We're running out of time."

Crowley put his hands up in mock surrender. "Relax, Squirrel. I'm on your side, remember?"

Dean didn't respond. His mind was already miles ahead, thinking about the First Blade, Abaddon, and the price he might have to pay to stop her.

As they climbed into the Impala, Dean glanced down at the map, the weight of the Mark of Cain burning in his arm. There was no turning back now. The hunt for the First Blade had begun, and with it, a path that could very well lead him into darkness.

"Let's get this over with," Dean muttered, starting the car and driving off into the night.

[mochasandwich-blog]

i wrote this on may 2021, im 22 now i do not think i feel the same way as my twenty year old self.

I make sure not to give anyone the same endearment because my best friend told me it was weird to call someone that reminds you of another. i do not care about pet names anymore, people exist just the way as they are in my life. the space they take up does not need to be labeled, what i call them does not matter anymore.

When I chop onions, I cut the roots last because my ex told me when you hurt the onions the onions hurt you back. Thus, the reason you tearing up. fucking NOT do it anymore. i do not want to be influenced by a person i killed so many times in my head; i cleansed myself of his existence to the breaking point i do not remember the pain he inflicted on me and the reason why this rage still lives within. i pretend he does not exist, my 16 to 19 self was my defining moment at the same time it never existed (a facade i put on everyday to keep me sane).

When I see someone with scars on their wrist, I make it a habit to never ask why. When I was in 12th grade I remember my best friend sobbing on my shoulder with a cast on her left wrist, asking me repeatedly "baket" and both of us did not know the answer. my being is wounded and scarred, renewed birthed to hardened. coldness does not mean it is tough, it is a precaution to not let anyone slide in carelessly ever again. Still, my heart would forever remain tender for this girl.

I always pinch someone's pinky when I'm comfortable with them. My mom always do this to mine when I was younger, it has stuck to me ever since. NOPE CREEP, I STOPPED DOING THAT HONESTLY WHATTA WEIRDO

Whenever I eat jjampong, I always remember the guy that I owed a jjampong cup noodles to. I was 12 and we spilled it while laughing in the tricycle's passenger seat, swearing I'll make it up to him next time. I'm 20 now, both of us still remembers that I never did. BITCH AHAHAHAH dudes a fuck up now, honestly never changed, his parents even hated him or so i heard. hate is such a strong word, but its like how your parents could loathe you at a certain degree and you still would be their son anyways typa way.

I already knew artic monkeys in 11th grade because another friend of mine introduced it to me, but was never keen on their music. I started listening intently because the boy I liked was a passionate fan. We dont talk anymore (char we still do pero we'll presume him dead) but I still listen to the band. I make it a notion that I liked them because I just do, and it was not for him. OHMYGOD THIS DUDE I COULD NOT EVER SHUT UP ABOUT THIS DUDE fuck i am twenty-two now??? AND hjdfcjsbhfesh god, pathetic. i still love his song recos, ngl. how do you want it slaps so hard i cant even. unfriended me on facebook, does not reply on insta anymore, yet stalks me religiously on tiktok. dude, please. AND WE'RE MEETING ON NOVEMBER fml.

I remember my bestfriend telling me she does not write her poems on paper because she felt disgusted by her thoughts that would forever be etched onto something. I realized that I also do. I now hide my little scribbles of typed poems and prose in posts, pictures and my phones notes; never written it on paper ever again. true!! i still do. though she is not my best friend anymore. funny how i used to call her that, maybe we really once were inseparably close. maybe part of her life i shared and we'd rely on each other so heavily upon. we grow older now, funny how now we’re so alike than ever.

[silvermuffins]

POkemon Scarlet Liveblog! Part 10ish

bc i am Getting Going even if I'm still scraming about Hades 2

first order of business: breed some ducks for friends. Gets Daya a nice date.

got a nice supply of duck eggs!

accidentally sent someone a gothita egg instead

Okay! I hav now filled in Dreepy, Sprigatito, and Gothita in my dex. Next to evolve is Crabrawler. And also Salandit. Wait how to evolv Crabrawler without Mt. Lanakila? Oh, ice stone. Okay we'll volve Monch and move right along. Phanpy nxt! xcellent, volution already. Nxt will b Cufant.

What's it man if a raid marker on the map is xtra sparkly? Oh ther's on right by a fly point, lt's find out. Shiny four stars??? I faild th raid bcaus th Tyranitar kpt spamming EQ....let's try it again. GOT IT! You'r Adgha.

stops in to say hi to mom rq. MOM TAUGHT ME RECIPES.

reexplores th inlet grotto....o this cave has multipl exits! whre am i!!!

ok i rachd th lighthouse

OKAY god we are Trying with this E key. i have been encouraged to be a curious little thing.

how DID i beat you here, Arven? I dilly dallied so much!

....knew it. He really was raised by the dog.

...The lab looks dusty. Doesn't look like anyone's done anything here in years. The computers come to life, and Sada asks for help. But is this a recording? Or a direct mssage? I stg if she's secretly dead or something....

"the great Professor Sada's glorious research" don't lik the sound of that one bit. Need the scarlet book, huh? We've already been using that. An experience worth treasuring. Tmpting, but lady I am afraid the Great Crater is absolutely off limits for the Treasure Hunt. You got legs, and if you don't you got wheels. Maybe expend half an iota of effort on COMING TO FIND YOUR SON.

cybernetic security systems???

Ohh....Mabostiff got hurt down there....Arven has ben there. Arven I know you treasure Mabostiff but w have more to find. More to see. More to do and feel and love. I'm nto doing this for Sada. I'm using her as an excuse to see it all.

HE CALLED ME HIS FRIEND. yah, that's the spirit! We're gonna go down there and punch your mom in the face! Yeah! Lt's duke it out, but also I need to rifle through your mom's shit for clues.

MOnitors covered in data. Mystrious machine. ...Bed with "Maschiff" written on by a kid. Whiteboard mess of scribbles.

Occulture. Roaring Moon, primeval Salamence. Oh shit it aparently looks similar to what I can only assume is Mega Salamence. Flutter Mane, ghost pterosaur...misdreavus....

A fram with no photo. Picture books for kids, including one about sandwich. Heavy fridge door. Cooktop was used recently! Microwave was not. Sasonings ar expired. Sink hasn't ben usd, mirror is foggy. FUCK went outside I hope I can go back in okay ys good...okay i think I found verything

The cooktop and the empty frame stick out to me as the most important things. Time for a battle! ....PUPPY WANTS TO FIGHT ME I LOVE PUPPY

oh you always lost to nemona yeah she's kind of so much all the time. not a bad person in the least. whatever tho im fight you! not her! no matter how sh acts it's not cheating on her to battle other people

i love Arven so much. Hy! First time I've battled an opponent with a full team! ...th fuck is toedscruel made of??? wham wham wham. Come to see it, Arven also looks like the tera orb is a little hard to control.

you did pretty good Arven. Not good enough to have really stood a chance, but pretty good. And now Linny is evolving! W can switch out.

ohhh we need to recruit Nmona and Penny (who I bet is Cassiopeia) huh

tumblr cool your jets. Honstly I think Nmona would help if w just askd but you're right we probably need to earn Pnny's aid. Also my guy i hav champion rank skills by now. ven if it's not official.

yanks another stak from th earth. yanks anothr. FOUND ANOTHR. ooh Bramblberry th applin will join us.

okay maybe let's gt on with things....like dealing with Cassiopeia. Hi, Clive. I know that's not really your name. But I'm not a snitch. And I am always one for indulging dramatic reveals. Impressive hiding long pants under your shorts.

wait wha??? You're Cassiopeia? I don't buy it. ...No you're angling for a battle bfore the real big boss. You could have just asked, you know. Oh I forgot to swap Linny out. This bgm is far too pleasant to b the finale. Hammer off! Abomasnow's Wood Hammr vs Pebbles's Gigaton Hammer!

Man even Clavell has some trouble controlling the orb. maybe it's just Hard. Anyway Chank is volving, so I'll swap in som new Pokmon after the cutscene. There's no way in hell Clavell is really Cassiopeia.

No shit you're not. Yah....yeah I thought you were trying to spare me some pain. Just. Let me learn the truth.

??? Tyme?

right, so, you'r gonna handle that, right professor? WHile I go battle? Okay it's Gibl and Wingull next. But I gotta wait for nightfall. So, friendship! I have nothing for Riafort and Saguaro right now but ooooh hi Miriam! I look forward to your classes next year~

discovers a whol chunk of msagoza I didn't explore before, somehow...ther's nobody in tsi Every Which Way? Not ven the recip guy?

am on roof!

am also sleepy

okay good morning

i think it's nighttime in game by now, so I have a constellation to fight

yeah that's penny alright. It's okay swetie you hid your identity fine, I'm just genre savvy.

Huh, so you didn't decid to do Operation Starfall until that day...? Mayb the two mmbers talking about quotas and trying so hard to convinc you....mayb the outliers in th tam were what told you it had to nd....strayd too far from what you wanted. Team Star lived long enough to see itself become the villain, that's what you thought, right?

yes penny listn to the part of you that wants Team Star to live on!!! They'v been waiting for you! You could guide them back to what you want to be!

oh hey clive, I se you escapd Ms. Tyme

Penny....is just so scard of being hurt.... Penny they're your friends. You never ven met them in person but they treasure you so much they've waitd for you for eighteen months.

i know from experience that even just a year is a long fucking time to wait. it hurts. physically, it hurts. it tears you up.

Thank god the bosses still had one another, and their squads, because I know how hard that is and I genuinely do not think I would have survived without my important people.

anyway protct Penny protect Team Star

sorry penny don't mind me taking care of this wingull while I dal with you

this music is sick. thanks Giacomo!

she has entirely eeveelutions....but she can't hav all of them, I wonder what will be left out? and what will be her tera?

Her Leafeon is causing me the most problems thus far just because I have no effective counter to grass.

Penny struggles to control the orb too so I guss it's just hard?

somehow I feel like we have arrived at the only outcome nobody wanted.

wll. Humphry is evolving, so we can swap out for somthing....mayb somthing that handles Grass....though most of my options aren't gonna b a viabl lvel by the E4 huh? still I gotta think about my championship team and I know what I need. I need a ground type, dark typ, and something to handle grass. Oh, Gorp is evolving too. Gorp is Ground....might b worthwhil to kep on my team....

anyway tim to hurt

ow

Penny....

the bosses had better turn up right the fuck now to talk som snse into you

Penny.....who hurt you that you feel like you need to hide and scheme and tie everything up in operations? Can't you even trust your friends...?

fuck it I'm sharing my mom with you too

penny why ar you throwing your treasure away

awww clavell got her, at least

OH YES THEY ARE ALL HERE AREN'T THY

FRIENDSHIP, YOU DIPSHIT

jfc

clavell being a Good Adult and acknowldging how fucked up this whole situation is

HUG HER. HUG ALL OF THEM.

babies

i finally understand....Pnny's ben all twisted up with guilt, and has kpt hrself distant and alone all this time. Sh nver got to reallyse that Team Star was the best thing that ever happened to the others. There's a difference between hearing somthing said and knowing it with your heart.

All this time she was trying to carry everything herself whn the whole point was that she didn't need to be alone.

thy're all still in trouble.....community srvice huh. ...Star Training Cntrs!!! Oh my gosh....sir you're dressing a reward up as a punishment

Penny they love you and want you to be with them, why do you need my opinion.

does some tam planning before I continue. I will need to grind a bit.

kay Scoots is back on the team! And w also hav a Sandile.

awww the League is like "you know what Penny, you're a genius, so use your talents for good and we'll waive the problem"

also penny I am kidnapping you to go crater diving

god pnny is being praised that foreign to you...?

Starfall Street....complete!

now tim to grind....I wish autobattling didn't giv so much less exp

oh well grinding grinding grinding. yanks a stake.

huh, i found a cave with the elemental hyper beams. Holy shit, Wild Spiritomb! Nam you Jacks. Some Candy later, I hav a Krookodile and everyon's at least to endgame-ish levels.

Okay! To Msagoza!

We have a league to beat but first, time to see if this cav's any good. Is it a real victory road???

....litrally it's not even a cave, wow. th Pokemon up here are worth no exp. Child why are you attempting the League with just a level 14 Meowth. He has no badges. Literally what the fuck???

okay this cabbi is a bit better

this is probably th most underwhelming league leadup ever

I can probably at last take down on elit as I am and if it's too much of a struggle, I have rare candies and plenty of them

Geeta could honestly kill a man with that hair of hers.

oooh Rika is interviewing me!....this is a wirdass intrview. Oh, memory games.

"You passed the interview on your first try?" "What, like it's hard?" Nobody's done it since Nmona huh...

heeeeere goes. Oooh w're back to a specific order, eh? ha'ent done that with a real elite four since gen 4.

Other than Hassel, I'm not sure of anyn type specialties. Rika's gone with Whiscash, so we're probably looking at watr or ground. ...And it's ground! Gt out hre Daya. oooh water absorb, that's nasty....well all else being equal, I have a bird!

I do wonder if it's going to b actually back to back, or if i'll hav a chance to heal first. Oooh Poppy's nxt, and I think it might lgit be back to back to back?! OH NO i do get to heal up

also this arena is bland as fuck

oooh she deals in steel eh. easy peasy. Jupe sweeps. Oh my god the steel crown is just an axe.

....LARRY???

WHY IS LARRY HERE LET HIM REST

well jupe will sweep again and Daya has whatever Jupe doesn't deal with-- oh he's not pulling a gen 7 on me actually. Oh he's using Flying, so Jupe still sweeps.

oh okay an altaria merits Pebbles. lol okay some swapping shnanigans at the end....

Larry down! I hope I get neat glovs if I win this. Okay, Pebbles is all dressed up and ready to go!

I bet he uses dragon and if not dragon then rock because th rest of the E4 have used the Titans' typs. Either way, Pebbles is the answer. k yah it's dragon.

oh so geeta strong armed you all huh....is Paldea's league some kind of mafia?!

....wait. there was no final rival fight, and it's been a while...am i going to be fighting Nemona??? SOmehow? Like that maks better plot sense but verything seems to be Geeta....

okay yah it's Geeta.

it's fin if you can't hold back I'm a protagonist.

Espathra...and THIS is why I specifically got a dark type! Gogoat? And THAT'S why I grabbed Scoots! Kingambit? King, king...leeeet's stay in for now? Fire's gooooo oh Scoots is down. Un, when in doubt, Jupe? Kingambit down and Scoots back up! Avalugg...I have several things to deal with ice but lt's try Sotero. ...bad moves. Okay, Pebbles! Veluza, that's gonna b Cabrande territory. I hav her backd into a corner and sh has Glimmora... That sounds like th Rock/Poison type I caught earlier? Uhhh what is this thing... Let's use Daya so Daya can appear in this fight, let's Do This! Terastallize, signature move, annnd...oh my god Glimmora's tera hat is just the fucking. Olympus Colisseum.

oh holy shit. Tera STAB crit type advantage, that's uh, that's...every fucking damage modifier basically. No wonder I OHKO'd

Geeta you were mildly troublesome.

THERE'S Nemona! Yeah sure we can be best rivals or whatever now come do a crime with me. We're going crater-diving. Ah, you haven't changed a bit.

awww I'm her treasure. Nemona you realize that's a marriage proposal, right?

oh fuck hr speech there was really cute...Nemona you're actually pretty cool aren't you~ Let's go!

Lycanroc? No biggie, I have a little pink menace with a great big hammer. Orthworm is steel, I think, so get out here Jupe! Dudunsparce is normal, so yeah, Jupe, keep it up! Hee, here comes her own Pawmot, and THIS is why I brought a Ground type onto the team! Goodra? Aighty, let's get Pebbles back in here! Wait, that's five already? Aw well, okay Daya! Just like we did to Geeta!

Nemona didn't change a bit, she just became more of herself.

Now. Nemona. Crimes. Crater. First a little friendship. Thn picking up some fly points I never hit. Now! To Medali! To the Zero Gate!

damn it looks kinda beat up. Oh! New plotline! The Way Home!

Powr saving mode.... eeee Arvn and the girlsquad are going on an adventure~ God I feel so bad for Arven, it must hurtto get treatd like this in front of pople he hasn't trustd with everything...

Nemona, no. We are not going to battle the professor excitingly. We're going to beat her face in.

Oh man...this is SO cool. Are we all gonna ride Koraidon together?

That cutscene. That was everything to me. That was it, that was the essence of everything I seek, everything I long for, everything I dream of. That was the essence of why I always com back to Pokemon.

Koraidon doesn't wanna be here....buddy what happened? ...Oh shit we lost Nmona! How'd she fall off?! She was in the middle!

oh no she's fine

....somthing's off. Arven's reaction here, and his "probably" on identifying his mom earlier...

disable four locks in research stations on the way down. can do!

OH MY GO THEY'RE JUST GONNNA FOLLOW ME AROUND we're really i this together

holy shit the music

holy shit this PLACE. Is this supposd to give me Nier Automata vibes?

lmao my friends trying to compet over who's my bestest frind

i wondr what the fuck even made the crater....like. It's a cratr. Something made it, right?

WOO fighting shit! And Pnny being the straight man to our shenanigans. To the extent that she is either straight or a man, that is.

man vrything here looks so weathred

oh yah rsearch stations man NOTES. Stuff about the origin of the tera phenomenon! Ooh and a telportr.

awww my frinds are bcoming friends!

holy shit so much to explore

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

okay here's the second station

oh that is SO not a jigglypuff. Scram Tail! Jigglypuff, but Screamo!

okay base 2. once again Sada just kind of dropping eaves. Gonna give som plot? oooh ancient pokemon! ...Sada just. Has a time machine. Sh just, has one.

Wait so the ancient pokemon don't liv here naturally, sh just. Brings thm here? Then what the fuck is the cratr?

squints at this convrsation. ...the cost was catastrophic...

It is theoretically possible to travel to the past, but a human can't return to the present. Somehow I get the pictur that's involved with the catastrophic price.

i guess that's reasonable enough. Some conversations are important to have face to face. MOre specifically, within punching range.

Arven....your dialogue here.....

"Paradise will be ours to create" because THAT always ends well....unstable crystals, nrvous financial backers....

i am getting sleepy and also lost

see you in a few line breaks

screams i would like some time to myself. and some focus.

literally like three days later

cheesus christ i have no memory of this place. thre's a big rock with an item on top i can't reach bcause i can't ride koraidon.

something isn't adding up. If the ancint Pokemon were only brought here via time machine, whcih Sada only got working sometime in the last several years....why's there a picture of Great Tusk in the Scarlt Book, and what made the Great Cratr so dangerous?

man the crater goes deep.

...

watches Nemona, Arven, and Penny slowly fall off a cliff and disappear into the abyss?!?!?!?!?!?

found a cave....i have noooo idea how thoroughly i have xplored this bit of the crater...nother research station! eyyyy it's tusky boy. Penny is right that IS kind of a hug problem. Thing is they've been on the prowl for months, if Occulture is to be believed.

oh nemona this is why you're the muscle. Sada just, taking over for Arven.... Koraidon was the first pokemon retrieved from the past, huh...and, yp, confirming that it's the past form of Cyclizar.

...two specimens? why are we assuming they're family. that seems likely to end poorly. i doubt it WILL but like....it COULD. and even if they are family, like??? so were Lusamine and Lillie, look how THAT ended.

'I was expecting one new life to treasure' THAT MEANS ARVEN IT HAS TO

okay that tunnel is clearly the way forward so imma keep exploring here for a bit

hm. Okay. Intrsting history with Koraidon Arven has there, and yeah I see why he felt that way. ...wait. goddammit I ned like, a timeline of Arven's personal history, because who lived where when with whom is not adding up.

Tons of Chansey down here, it'll be great for grinding levels for the dex latr. ...Okay yah I definitely need to explore again when I hav Koraidon. Let's carry on!

WILD SCREAM TAIL I wanna catch it! ...Oh this thing is beefy. Okay just get in the ball, GOT IT alright Pita.

Man...what on earth made this place? "feels like maybe you already died and went somewhere" huh...and yeah Penny im p sure this place is the source of the energy used to terastallize Pokemon.

we must go deeper

...i guess you could say we're gonna get t the bottom of this! ...nmona, no. ...nmona. Nemona, NO. Penny is correct, as ever.

Okay if Sada took Koraidon into th cratr and hasn't com out since, how'd Arven get Koraidon's ball?

Th crystals get biggr the farther down we go...oh what fresh hell is this? What happened in here?

Sada???? U good???

So, I know the game's a bit buggy, but it looks like Sada is too? uhhhh

"That man walked out not long after the boy was born" im sorry? sorry WHOMST? Turo????

....if only. thre were two of me. sada YOU HAVE A TIM MACHINE.

th scond koraidon was broguht later and was aggressive...

"You know what you need to do." All locks released. I feel like I did a bad thing. Like I got tricked into reviving Dracula or instigating the Fall or something.

man do clavll and th othrs even know we're here

WEIRD MISDREAVUS. Flutter Mane....you'r gonna b Yooki. STAY IN TH DAMN BALL. GOT IT, finally, that took like 20 ultra balls.

Metal plate with a wird symbol, and a map of Paldea, and...thre's an enormous crystal here... you know, it would scan if th crystal crashing from space made the crater, I think?

I wonder if I can breed paradox Pokmon or if I'm gonna need to catch som mor the slow way?

what the fuck, ar thos VENTS in th crystal. What the fuck did th crystal absorb the lab?!

This is a much bigger area than thy're gonna let m explore isn't it...oh no wait. WAIT oh my.

Man it's not a Lost Continent plot so much as a Journy to the Center of the Earth plot

where am i

i find it kind of intriguing that Geeta's ace is th pokemon found in abundance all the way down here. Sorry to Arven, Nemona, and Penny, but if thy're gonna let me be the leader they're gonna have to run around, them's the rules.

chews on thoughts and questions and nihilego. glimmora. hmmmm

I am here I hav explord it is time to enter the Zero Lab. I get cell service down here? Sada you're presumably right insid you could come to the door and greet us.

okay the lab really is getting eaten by tera crystals but what is this about them optimizing the performance of machinery? If the tera orbs are made of these crystals why can pokemon centers recharge them?

well. that IS why we brought Nemona.

you dipshits. listen to penny. penny is wise. Oh, you're letting me choose? ...I guess if no is the wrong choice, the game will But Thou Must me. yep it did. but aww, Nmona that's sweet.

guuuuys this is baaaaad....OH SHIT THE OTHER ONE. Oh god it's been lockd outside the lab. Sada said the Pokemon insid would probably make a break for it, but instead, othr Koraidon went in....

they made mine sooooo expressive though like BABY im sorry I brought you here :c

THANK YOU PENNY ugh Nemonaaaaa why.

oh here the other ones come. YES DO IT NEMONA. Oh Scoots is a reliable partner now! Oh no, are Nemona and Penny running off to stop a breach?

oh no is Arvenn staying behind too!?

aaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

okay this is a weirdass doorway. oooh dislike that the exit is a hole in the wall. Sciecne stuff....oooh there's sad....eactivating slep mode....

she keeps th aggro one in a mastrball. and sh is a robot. Not hard to see this coming after the trek down hre but....wow POkemon really making some bold moves here.

the real sada is dead...in the incident....ohhh boy. oh shit she sacrificed herself to protect MY koraidon.

Stop the time machin. Sure. That's a sane thing to ask a GODDAMN TWELVE YEAR OLD to do. We're going farther down but ma'am i have snooping to do.

i am going to sic my tinkaton on this mtal lady

Pokeball lock system to defend the lab. Rocklike thing in the tube. A picture of a young boy with a Maschiff...more rocks in tubes.

down w go.... Robosada can't lav because the crystals make her possible.

primal nergy? tera?

no SHIT they wreak havoc on the modern ecosystem!!! anyone with a basic understanding of ecology could have told you that! these things are invasive species of a magnitude ONLY surpassed by literal fucking aliens!

holy shit the robot copy of the profssor has BETTER thics than the professor maybe i don't need to sic my tinkaton on her

okay this place is gorgeous

oh this is why robosada needed th help of a formidible trainer. because i DO need to sic a tinkaton on hr.

To protect my treasure....to protect the whole of Paldea!

Why yes, AI Sada, I am familiar enough with a great many Pokmon to guess at patterns and detect weaknesses even in unfamiliar Pokemon. And yes, my human brain can overcom your wealth of data using two tools: innovation, and brute. fucking. force.

Had a lot of luck play out in defeating her third POkemon...next is Sandy Shocks so I think I want a ground type? aaaaaaaAAAAAAAA. Roaring Moon...I know that one! Oh, that was it? No terastallization?

okay AI down. Time for Feelings. god she really did love Arven, didn't she? She just loved her insane dream more.

oh damn that interface screw....oh shit. Our Pokeballs are locked, other than the ones rgistered to Sada's ID...which means this is designed to allow Sada and the protocol to brutally maul intruders who cannot fight back.

som intnse M.I.K.E. flashbacks ngl

But, thankfully....I have Koraidon. So does she. It? Koraidon, the guardian of paradise. Yeah...yeah, myKoraidon is!

oh DAMN transformation sequnce! We got this, Koraidon! Let's check out your summary bc this is SO cool. Uh, be great if I had the chance to fix this moveset. Hooboy that was close.

i knew I'd hav to trastallize....and I have a superffective tera type and all, plus this will be the first time I've ever used Tera Blast...

Victory is mine

oh...sh has to slfdestruct doesn't she....oh. No. She's going to disappear into the ancint world she loves so much. To unbind herself...and to stop the machin...

whre is the button to hug arven

arven this is your cheerup crew. FRIENDSHIP. holy fuck im almost taring up.

credits roll

[h0tch-r0cket]

Infatuation (18+) {a.h.} : chapter 5

summary: you needed a job. aaron hotchner needed a babysitter. the rest was inevitable.

word count: 5.5K

warnings: explicit language, drinking alcohol, smoking, building tension : )

table of contents

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

"Y/N?" Jack called out from the kitchen of the Hotchner home. You had picked him up from school, like always, and he was working on his homework as soon as possible.

"What's going on, Jack?" you asked as you placed your finger in between the pages of your copy of The Centaur which you brought with you to keep you occupied.

"I need help with my math," he said softly.

You put your bookmark in the novel and headed into where the little Hotchner was awaiting your help. You sat down across from him and glanced down at the papers that were sprawled out in front of him. "What do you need help with?"

"Well, Ms. Kingston showed us today how to add and subtract with three digit numbers like 100 and all that stuff. I get confused when you have to borrow from one of the other numbers when you subtract," he said as he tapped the pencil on the table, a habit you noticed Aaron did as well when he was working on his own work.

"Alright, let me take a look here," you said as you grabbed the paper from him.

After a few minutes of explaining the way you go about subtracting the numbers to Jack, he got it pretty quickly. "Thanks, Y/N!"

You ruffled his hair as you stood up from the table. "You got it. If you need me, I'm just going to be in the living room, okay?"

"Okay," he said as he moved on to the next parts of his worksheet.

You settled back onto the couch, bringing your knees up to your chest as you read the novel. You were just reaching one of your favorite parts, your attention glued to the pages in front of you. It was the part where George, the father of the story, had spent his very last dollar to bring home a sandwich for his wife even though he and his son were stranded for the night because their car broke down. There was something about the sentiment, the idea that he would give up his very last dollar, that always warmed your heart.

Just as you finished up the chapter you were on, the small pitter patter of feet coming into the living room interrupted you continuing on with your reading. You looked up from the book to see Jack coming towards you, taking hard steps as he walked.

He plopped down on the couch next to you and let out a low sigh. "What's the matter, kiddo?" you asked as you placed the book neatly on your lap.

"I want dad to come home already," he said quietly as he swung his legs against the side of the couch.

"I know you do, Jack. But hey, he should be here soon. Want to watch a movie in the meantime?" You weren't sure what else to do for him. It was the first time that Jack had ever expressed that sentiment to you.

He nodded his head lightly, not saying anything to actually answer your question verbally. "Alright. As long as you finished your homework," you told him. He simply nodded yet again, his face more somber than normal.

You tried to figure out why he had the sudden mood change from when you picked him up from the bus. You thought maybe he was just tired or perhaps he wasn't feeling good. You knew that most kids always wanted their parents around when they were sick.

As the different possibilities ran through your head as you looked for a movie that the two of you had yet to watch, Jack's small voice piped up from next to you. "Y/N?"

You turned your head to look at him to already be met with his gaze. "Yeah Jack?"

"Can I sit with you?" he asked softly.

You nodded your head and straightened yourself up more on the couch so he could sit on your lap. As he quickly scooted into your lap, your copy of The Centaur fell underneath the couch.

"Sorry Y/N. I'll pick it up," Jack said as he went to reach down and grab it. You pulled him back up towards you and let his back rest against your frontside.

"It's alright. I'll get it later. Pick out a movie to watch," you told him. You passed him the TV remote and let him scroll through the different family movies, hoping that he would find something to occupy his thoughts until Aaron got home from his lectures.

------

As much as he tried, Aaron Hotchner could not focus on the lecture that he was giving in his class. As he sat at his office desk at the university, he flipped through his notes which to anyone else other than him would not have made any sense at all with the way that the thoughts were not cohesive and the exhaustive amounts of abbreviations that littered the pages.

He planned the day's lecture to be about Orpheus and Eurydice, lovers tragically torn apart, but he couldn't gather his thoughts cohesively to provide his students with what he deemed to be the proper lesson.

His thoughts were foggy. Jarbled. He thought he would have shaken the thought of the way your hands touched the day prior. But it was all he found himself thinking about. He wasn't quite sure why. It was a simple accident.

A simple accident that made him want to rethink the way he had been so closed off with you. The way he was always curt. He craved more, despite the fact that he knew he shouldn't pursue anything with you.

He rubbed his temples, sighing in defeat. At that point, the lecture was going to be what it was going to be.

Aaron gathered all of his things in his satchel and headed down to the auditorium before his students filed in. He shed himself of his suit jacket, leaving him in a baby blue dress shirt and tan slacks. He organized his notes yet again and placed them in order on the podium that was in the center of the room.

His students filed in soon after, a chorus of Good afternoon, Professor Hotchner, How are you Professor Hotchner? coming from them.

Aaron gave everyone a few minutes to settle in before glancing at his watch for the time. He clapped his hands together once loudly to get the attention of the class. The side conversations slowly died down, only a few soft murmurs being heard through the crowd.

"Alright folks. Let's settle in. I know today is Friday and you all are eager to get out of here so I'll try to make this as quick and easy as possible," he said, projecting his voice so that everyone could hear him. "I'll run through attendance quickly and then we'll get started."

After taking attendance and marking the absentee students, Aaron grabbed the textbook for the class from out of his satchel. "If you all could open to page 265 that would be absolutely fantastic." Synchronous opening of textbooks and flipping of pages filled the auditorium as the students quickly followed Aaron's instructions.

He began to walk in front of the room, arms crossed over his chest as he glanced out into the sea of students. "Now, does anyone have any ideas as to what the story of Orpheus and Eurydice is about?" He looked into the crowd, being met with blank stares, eyes glazing over, and even a few students nodding their heads back as they fought the calling of sleep during class.

Not one student raised their hand. He caught the students glancing at one another, hoping that someone, anyone, would have the answer. But there was no such luck.

Part of him wondered if you knew the story. You probably would know the tale like the back of your hand, being that you seemed to be meticulous with whatever it was that you set your mind to. He was curious to see just how much you knew about mythology.

He decided that the next time he saw you, he would try to find out just that.

Focus, he thought to himself.

Clearing his head of you as much as possible, he rolled his sleeves up and walked to the whiteboard, uncapping the black Expo marker that laid next to it. "Orpheus," he said as the marker squeaked on the board as he wrote the name down, "is the son of Apollo and Calliope. Well, that is according to some accounts. Some people say that Orpheus had a different father," he clarified. Aaron turned his attention back to his students, pushing his glasses up on the bridge of his nose. "Can anyone at least remind me as to who those two figures are in mythology? Apollo and Calliope?"

A hand rose in the middle of the auditorium slowly. "Yes?" he said, letting the student know that they could answer the question.

"Well, Apollo is considered to be the god of poetry and music. Calliope on the other hand, was one of the nine muses. She was the muse of history," the girl answered.

Aaron shook his head, placing his hands on his hips and he continued to pace back and forth in the front of the room. "Close. Calliope is actually the muse of poetry. Clio was the muse of history," he explained. "But I'm sure you knew that, right Ms. Sinclair?" he said with a small smirk on his face.

The girl nodded and scribbled down some more notes in her notebook, frantic to capture each and every word that Aaron uttered throughout the rest of the lecture.

Aaron took a brief pause and scanned through the crowd yet again. When he noticed one of his students clearly scrolling on his phone rather than focusing on the lecture, he debated about whether or not he should say something. But when the student started to show his phone around to those near him, he knew he would have to address the obvious distraction from the lecture.

"Mr. McMillan, if your phone is more important than listening to the rest of this lecture, which does cover a large part of your final, please be my guest and take the rest of the day for yourself," Aaron said as he raised his hand towards the door, suggesting that the boy leave the auditorium. He watched as the boy's face turned a shade of pink as he slipped the phone into his pocket. Aaron mouthed a small thank you to the student and continued with the lecture.

"As I was saying, with the help of Ms. Sinclair, Orpheus is the son of Apollo and Calliope. Eurydice," he said as he wrote the next name down on the board and drew a line connecting the two names together, "on the other hand was a beautiful Spartan princess. She married Orpheus. He played her beautiful songs on his lyre, which is just a smaller version of a harp. Orpheus was an exceptional musician. But that makes sense considering who his parents were."

He leaned back against his desk, partially sitting on top of it. He crossed his feet and rested his hands on each side of him on the desk to hold himself up. "However, tragedy struck the young couple. Eurydice was bit by a snake and died. Orpheus was heartbroken. So much so that he only played the most somber and melancholy songs on his lyre. "

Aaron paused for a moment, letting his students jot down their notes onto their paper. "But that didn't discourage Orpheus from fighting for his true love."

Aaron pushed himself off the desk and started to pace again, rubbing his thumb against his pointer finger as he walked. "He was not willing to give up so easily. So, he came up with a plan."

He walked over to the whiteboard again and wrote the word Underworld on the board. "Now, what are some things you know about the Underworld?"

"It's Hades' domain," a student called out.

Aaron drew an arrow from the word and wrote Hades underneath it. "And Hades is?"

"Zeus' brother," the same student replied.

"Very good. What else do we know about this Underworld, the realm where the souls of the departed end up in Greek mythology?" Aaron probed.

"River Styx!" another student called out enthusiastically.

"Mhm." He added another line to the diagram and turned to face the student that answered. "What about the River Styx?"

"I don't know. I just know it's there," the student laughed.

"Fair enough," Aaron said with a small smile. "We'll be covering that within the next few lessons so I won't worry about drilling it into your heads for the time being. One thing that I do want to mention is Cerberus, the three headed dog that guards the entrance of the Underworld. That will be important for the rest of the tale of Orpheus and Eurydice."

Aaron paused yet again, settling back onto the top of the desk but this time he was fully seated on it, his legs dangling off the side. "Now, Orpheus, being heartbroken at the loss of his wife, came up with a plan. He decided to travel to the Underworld to try to regain his love."

"That's crazy. Who would want to go to that place? I mean, I get it he loved the girl but is that even possible?" a student asked.

"It was a wild plan, I will give you that. But Orpheus succeeded. He traveled to the Underworld and managed to strike a deal with Hades after playing his music for him. The ruler of the Underworld was so moved that he granted Orpheus his wish to bring Eurydice back to the land of the living. Hell, the stories even say that Cerberus, the ferocious guardian of the entrance of the Underworld, was howling in despair of the pain Orpheus' music suggested."

A hand rose amongst the crowd. Aaron took his glasses off, gently biting down on the end of the arm of them. He raised his eyebrows at the student, allowing them to speak.

"There's no way that he got her back that easily. Greek mythology seems to, for the most part, at least stem from some kind of tragedy," the student said, clearly not believing that the tale would end happily ever after.

Aaron took his glasses out of his mouth and shook them in the direction of the student. "Excellent observation, Mr. Roth. That brings us to the next part of our tale. Hades gave Orpheus a stipulation; his wife would be brought back to the land of the living as long as Orpheus did not look back at her while they were still in the Underworld."

He hopped off his desk and hooked his glasses onto the collar of his shirt as he continued with the lecture. "Orpheus made the journey back to the light, but he turned around too soon, full of excitement to be reunited with his wife. She vanished before his eyes and he was heartbroken yet again."

"So the moral of the story is to be patient and have trust in the situations that you find yourself in?" a voice called out.

"Precisely," Aaron said, his voice soft. He glanced down at his watch. "I think that's enough for today. For the next class, think of a time in your life where this story applies. A time where you were impatient and lost something that you worked so desperately hard to get. Class dismissed."

The students filed out of the room quickly, allowing Aaron to follow behind them with his satchel tucked under his arm, the same fervor coursing through his veins to get home. He wanted to see Jack.

He wanted to see you.

————

"Oh! You sank my battleship!" you hollered dramatically as Jack managed to get another one of your ships clear off the board.

"Yes!" he shouted, throwing his fist up in success.

You were happy to see him going back to his normal, happy self. Whatever was bothering him earlier had managed to subside by the time you were done watching The Lion King.

The familiar car alarm chirped in the driveway, causing loyal Buster to run to the door in anticipation to see his owner.

You felt almost the same degree of excitement flowing through your body. It was the first time you were seeing Aaron since his touch was embedded into your head. You were wondering if things would be different. If he would be different.

As the front door opened, Jack ran over to his father and wrapped his arms tightly around his waist. "Hey buddy," Aaron said with a small chuckle as he patted Jack's back.

"I missed you today," Jack said quietly as he looked up at his father.

"I miss you everyday," Aaron said with a smile. His gaze turned to you and he kept the smile plastered on his face. "How's it going, Y/N?"

"Pretty good. Jack just sunk my battleship...again," you joked, feigning annoyance.

Aaron's smile grew a bit wider, the dimples on his face making another appearance.

You couldn't help but smile at him. His smile was contagious and gorgeous. You felt like it was such a rare occasion that he smiled, even though he was smiling more often around you, that you always studied the way his face looked so you would never forget it.

Aaron headed into the kitchen with his things with Jack following close behind. You followed a few moments after, ready to gather your things and head home.

When you came into the kitchen, you saw Aaron place a hand on his hip as he looked down at Jack who held his hands together tightly in a pleading motion.

"Come on, Dad! It will be fun," Jack begged. He put on a big smile for his father, trying to convince him further to whatever idea he had planned.

"Alright, Jack. I wouldn't mind that. Ask her," Aaron said as he turned his attention towards you. You felt yourself get nervous, not sure as to what it was that Jack was about to ask you.

Jack took a step forward and planted himself in front of you as he looked up at you with big, puppy dog eyes. "Y/N, do you want to stay and have dinner with us?" Jack asked excitedly.

"Oh," you said with shock. Your stomach fluttered at the thought of actually staying and spending time with Aaron, even if Jack was still there. But the rational part of your head was yelling at you to leave. You already were thinking about Aaron too much and you were sure you would be even further doomed if you were subject to his charm and wit for the night. "Maybe another time, Jack. I think Esmé was planning on making a nice fancy dinner tonight."

"Please, Y/N," Jack pleaded. "Stay with us and eat." He held his hands firmly together again in a similar fashion to how he was begging his father to go along with the idea in the first place.

You clicked your tongue and scratched the back of your neck, unsure as to what other excuse you could come up with. "I don't want to intrude on the time you and your dad have together, buddy."

Aaron crossed his arms across his chest and you saw him raise his eyebrows for a quick second behind his glasses. "Stay, Y/N. I'm a pretty good cook," Aaron said with a smirk growing on his face.

You felt your stomach twist further into knots at the thought that one, Aaron wanted you to stay and two, that he was going to be cooking some sort of meal for you.

Aaron, on the other hand, felt desperate. He wanted—no, he needed you to stay. He wanted to learn everything there was about you. He wanted to know your passions, your fears. As his eyes searched yours, he saw the battle that was going on in your head as to whether or not you should stay or go.

He was hoping you couldn't see the way he crossed his fingers together subtly, a silent prayer that you would stay.

He didn't know what was coming over him. All he knew was that at that moment, he didn't want you to leave the house. He had tried to push you out of his head all day, but seeing you here at his house and your gorgeous smile, it was taking everything in his power to keep his composure as he felt himself succumbing to his desire to want to be close to you.

You weren't sure what it was but the way Aaron was staring at you, his eyes soft, it was as if he was subtly begging you to stay.

You knew you shouldn't. You already were feeling things that you never thought you would for the man. But a part of you was curious to try to figure out if he was feeling something similar.

"Alright, fine," you said defeated, throwing your hands up in the air. "I'll stay." Jack let out an excited yell before running back into the living room.

You could have sworn you saw Aaron exhale deeply once you came to your decision, as if he was relieved that you were actually staying. "But I'm telling you now Hotchner, if you're not as good a cook as you say you are, there will be hell to pay," you teased as you pointed your finger in his direction.

And to your surprise, Aaron laughed. He genuinely laughed. It was a sound that was pure music to your ears, something that you wished you could have turned back time to get it on a recording.

"I promise. I am a good cook," he said as he turned around and began to take out some different pots and pans.

You walked next to him and leaned up against the counter. "What exactly are you planning on making?"

He turned his gaze to you, a smug look growing on his face. "Well where's the fun in that? It's a surprise," he said quietly, leaning closer in your direction.

You caught a quick whiff of his cologne, the smell of cedar quickly filling your airspace. You bit down on your bottom lip, the closeness to him becoming almost too much to handle.

His warm honey eyes darted down to your lips and back up to your own eyes. He cleared his throat and stood back up straight, starting to pull some random ingredients out of the cabinet in front of him.

You shut your eyes for a second, disappointed by how quickly he stood away from you. "I'll be in the living room with Jack," you said. He nodded silently, making his rounds in the kitchen to cook.

As you made your way into the living room, you couldn't help but think about how close he was. You could have reached your hand out and stroked his cheek. You could have been putty melting in his hands.

Aaron watched you walk out of the kitchen, knowing that you wouldn't see his eyes raking across your body. Your perfume lingered in the space where you were in the kitchen, reminding Aaron just how close his face was to yours, how he could have pulled you by your cheeks to brush his lips against yours.

He wanted you. And he wasn't sure how much longer he could hold back.

———-

"Oh my god," you sighed in content as you took a bite of the food Aaron prepared. He made fettuccine alfredo with chicken. All from scratch.

His eyes shot towards you as he heard the sound of satisfaction fall on your lips. He raised an eyebrow at you, taking a bite of the chicken that rested on his plate. "So, did I live up to your expectations?"

"Mhm," was all you could muster as you took another bite of the pasta.

You watched as Jack twirled the pasta around his fork. He popped it into his mouth and gave his dad a thumbs up. "It tastes good, Dad. I could eat the whole pot!"

"That's an awful lot of pasta," you joked as you took a small sip of the chardonnay that Aaron had poured for the two of you. He insisted it made the meal but you were wondering if it had different indications than what he led on.

"Yeah it is but I could eat it," Jack said. Aaron rolled his eyes jokingly at his son's active imagination.

A few minutes passed and you all were eating in content. This time, there was a much more comfortable silence that fell between you all, something that you could easily get used to.

"So, Y/N, what made you pick up an interest in Greek mythology?" Aaron asked, clearly ripping off the bandaid he had been gripping to all day. He had to know. He wanted to know more about you.

"I took a class in high school, actually. And from there, I've done most of my learning on my own. I don't know," you laughed softly.

God your laugh. Aaron would never get over hearing it. He took a sip of his wine and glanced at you over the rim of the glass, watching you absentmindedly twirl your fork around in the pasta.

"I just find it interesting that there's so many stories that they came up with and they all have some sort of deeper meaning to them."

Aaron nodded in agreement, finding himself entranced with your words. You were right of course. There were so many things those stories explained, like the natural world or even as something simple to not be selfish.

"That's why I like them so much. The interpretation of them all varies and you can learn so much," he added.

"I like the ones with Jason and the Astronauts," Jack interrupted. Small laughs from you and Aaron filled the space between you at Jack's mispronunciation.

"Argonauts," you and Aaron said at the same time, correcting the young Hotchner.

Jack scrunched his eyebrows in confusion. "What's the word?" he asked.

"Argonauts," Aaron repeated.

"Astronauts is cooler," Jack concluded as he took another bite of his chicken. "Can I be excused?"

Aaron glanced at his plate and pointed his fork in the direction of his son's food. "Eat another bite of chicken and you can be."

Jack scarfed down the chicken quickly and left the table.

Realization hit you rather quickly.

It was just you and Aaron. A tinge of pink fell across your face at the fact that you were alone with Aaron.

You cleared your throat and shifted in your seat, sitting up straighter. "So, how did your lecture go today?" you asked.

Aaron shrugged his shoulders and kept his gaze on his plate. "Could have gone better, I suppose."

"What did you talk about?" You took another drink of your wine and this time, it was you glancing at him over the rim of the glass.

"Orpheus and Eurydice."

"That's a good one. Heartbreaking in the end but I like the story of it all," you admitted.

Of course you knew it. Aaron figured you would. He wished you could have been in his class. You clearly knew so much about the subject matter and he was becoming impressed the more you spoke.

"It's definitely one of the sadder ones," he agreed.

You placed your fork down on your napkin, full from the delicious dinner you just ate. "I think it's one of the best representations of agape in Greek mythology that there is," you added, running your finger along the rim of your wine glass.

Aaron felt his nerves go wild.

Agape?

How the hell did you know about that?

You certainly kept him on his toes.

"And you know about agape, the Greek word for the concept of self-sacrificing love. I have to say, Y/N, I really wasn't expecting you to be so well versed in the subject," he admitted. "But figures, a smart girl like you would go above and beyond to learn about whatever you set your mind to." He took another sip of his wine and his eyes were looking at you more intently.

You definitely felt your face blush at his words. You tried to keep your composure as best as possible, but how could you when he was being so fucking charming and looking at you the way he was?

"I am just full of surprises," you teased, making your voice almost a whisper.

You watched as Aaron licked his lips and raised his eyebrows. "You most certainly are," he agreed, his words coming out with an exhale. "Question for you though."

"Hm?"

"What makes you think that the tale of Orpheus and Eurydice is full of agape?" he challenged.

You took a moment to try to cohesively get your thoughts together. Well, as best you could with the way Aaron was looking at you.

"Well for starters, the man literally went to the Underworld to try to get his wife back. It was an unheard of feat. And the fact that Orpheus was willing to do whatever it took to get her back just shows how much he couldn't live without her. How much he loved her."

Aaron nodded slowly, finishing the rest of his wine. "You make a good point there," he said after he swallowed the chardonnay.

You nodded in agreement. You couldn't believe that you were engaging in such a deep conversation with Aaron. But it felt so natural. So right.

You glanced at the clock, seeing that it was almost 9pm. "I think I better get going," you said quietly. You pushed yourself away from the table and placed your dishes in the sink.

When you turned around to go grab your things, you bumped into a solid mass.

Aaron.

He grunted lightly at the contact, a flicker of his smile dancing across his lips.

"Sorry," you said quickly as he looked down at you. You stared at him for a second, as he did to you, before pulling yourself out of your trance and stepping around him to grab your belongings.

"Not a problem," he said as he placed his and Jack's dishes in the sink. "Let me walk you out." You nodded silently and watched as he grabbed the pack of cigarettes off the counter.

He patted the bottom of the carton against his palm before taking one of the cigarettes out, resting it between his lips as he walked with you towards the door.

He opened the door for you and you turned to say your goodbyes.

As much as you truly didn't want to.

"Thank you for dinner," you said with a smile.

"Don't worry about it," he assured as he leaned against the doorframe, the cigarette bouncing between his lips with each word.

"Enjoy the rest of your weekend, Aaron."

"You too, Y/N."

You headed to your car, settling into the driver's seat quickly, your brain still reeling from the events of the night.

You glanced back towards the Hotchner home and saw Aaron still leaning against the door frame, the faint orange glow of the lit cigarette piercing through the darkness of the sky.

You pulled away from the house and headed back home, watching as the Hotchner home disappeared from your rear view mirror.

Once you got home, you opened the door and pressed your back against it, still shocked with the overwhelming feelings that were still in your stomach, your head. Everywhere.

Esmé turned her head around towards you from the couch. When she saw your shocked and speechless expression, a shit-eating grin grew rapidly on her face. "Spill...the...details...now," she demanded as you sat down next to her on the couch.

As you were retelling the way you and Aaron had a few more moments that night, your phone dinged.

"Don't be a fool! Answer it!" Esmé hollered, smacking her hand gently on your leg.

Your heart fluttered when you saw the name of the person texting you.

                                                   Aaron Hotchner

-You left your book here. I found it under the couch when I was straightening up.

                                -Oh, I totally forgot about it! Sorry! I'll grab it on Monday.

-The Centaur, huh? You really are a bit of a nerd when it comes to mythology aren't you?

                                            -Maybe. But it's also just a good book in general.

-I'll have to give it a read then.

                    -I'm going to test you on it if you do read it, just so you're aware.

-I'll be counting on it.

-Goodnight, Y/N.

                                                                                            -Goodnight, Aaron.

You sighed loudly, trying to ignore Esmé who was staring at you with wide eyes. You clutched your phone tighter in your hand and turned to look at her.

"I'm in such deep shit," you admitted as you leaned back on the couch, resting your head on the headrest.

——

authors note:

i hope you all enjoyed this chapter! i also hope the lecture part wasn't too boring. i figured it was a good change of pace.

thanks for reading! i appreciate the support <3

see you next chapter!

-jordyn

[dancingazaleas]

𖨆. 03 / all for us

summary: you’ve been gone for a while and haven’t been replying to any of your texts messages. you’re friends suspect something might be up.

note: the reader has been left alone continuously ever since she has been kidnapped. erwin and levi are the only ones who see her, and it’s usually only for an hour or two. this is because of her reluctance to be around them.

taglist: @voltairelesecond @the-sun-baby @uniquepickle @baelo80

word count: +3.0k

warnings/notes: cursing, vomiting, your friends are looking for you

PIECK knew something was up whenever bertholdt said you weren't answering his texts and hadn't been showing up to work before you even went on vacation. she knew you were on vacation and that you were pissed with her, but even so you never ignored texts from bertholdt.

her suspicions only rose whenever porco and reiner told her the same thing, that you'd suddenly gone awol on the two of them out of nowhere.

they were confirmed when zeke came back into town and said the same thing.

she sits on her couch, shoulders shaking as she cries with porco's arms wrapped around her. reiner, bert, zeke, and annie, who reiner and bert brought for some reason, stare at her in complete worry.

you went awol just this sunday, telling each and everyone of them that you were going on vacation and wouldn't be in town for a little while. bertholdt hadn't seen you at work for almost three weeks now, two and a half of them after your sudden vacation.

"she can't be on vacation," pieck sobs, "she always answers your guys' texts. no matter what!"

"maybe she's just in a different country? she might just not be able to get reception," porco seems unsure as he says this.

"she can't be. she would've told me, pieck, or even bertholdt. god, she would've told all of us," zeke's head is in his hands while his teeth grind together.

"okay, so where would she be if she were still in paradis," annie speaks up while gesturing her arm in a circle.

"who fucking knows," reiner sighs, "when'd you last see her, babe?"

"at work before she stopped showing up. she said she was gonna get coffee at that one café she loves going to. other than that, she didn't say anything about plans or going out with anybody," bertholdt is laced with confusion and his arms are crossed.

"we got into a bad fight that night," pieck sniffles, "she left the house a few hours later, i just thought she was going to stay with one of you guys or yelena."

"what'd you even argue about?"

she grips at her hair with tears rushing down her face, "i can't even remember. it was probably so petty and stupid. the only thing i remember is her telling me that she hated me and me telling her that she was a fuck up."

"i'm so sorry, pieck," porco squeezes her shaky form tight to his chest.

"wait," zeke's standing up abruptly and pointing at bertholdt, "she went where?!"

"oh my god, she went to café scout!!! maybe the workers heard something," reiner perks up along with everyone else.

"holy shit, maybe that one girl is there!! she probably saw something," porco smiles.

"louise! she definitely knows (name)! she probably saw something! let's go," pieck jumps off of the couch and stumbles towards the front door of her house.

the rest of them follow after, all deciding that bertholdt's van, he's usually the designated driver, is the car they'll get into. they all yell at a fumbling bertholdt to hurry up and unlock the car as they stand at the car. he does so while screaming, jumping into the driver's seat and starting the ignition. reiner's jumping in the passenger seat and annie's in the first row of seats behind bert.

before porco can even close the door behind him, bertholdt is driving off towards the café. porco is screaming along with pieck as they're thrown around the van due to their lack of seatbelts and the both of them standing to sit in their seat. their screaming has everyone else screaming as bert speeds up the car despite the oncoming speed bump. bertholdt and reiner hit their heads against the roof of the car, a loud bang resonating throughout the vehicle. pieck and porco's back hit the roof as well, but luckily for pieck she lands on the first row of seats next to annie.

porco, unfortunately, lands on the floor. zeke would've laughed if it wasn't for his own head slamming against the carpeted roof of the van. annie holds onto pieck's arm whenever she's in a sitting position, screaming along with reiner for bertholdt to slow the car down as they see another speed bump.

he doesn't.

porco is once again thrown against the roof.

bertholdt is speeding, even as he gets onto the freeway with other cars. he's stressed out.

when they get there, they all wonder how the fuck bertholdt didn't even get pulled over and how the hell they even managed to survive. bertholdt cries out apologies as reiner and porco puke their guts out in the huge parking lot while annie gags and tries not to vomit at watching reiner and porco do it themselves. pieck is holding her hand and trying to cover her eyes while zeke manages to cover her ears and cringes at porco and reiner.

bertholdt's now sobbing at annie, profusely apologizing, even getting on all fours and begging for her forgiveness.

"how are you gonna get on your hands and knees for annie but not for your boyfriend," porco coughs before he spits out saliva to get rid of the taste in his mouth.

reiner follows behind him in a grimace, hand grabbing at his now emptied stomach and the other going to wipe at his mouth.

"dude, gross!! don't wipe it off with your hands!! pieck and bertholdt usually have tissues on hand," porco shouts to reiner, who drops his hand halfway.

pieck and zeke comfort the emetophobe annie all while bertholdt gives reiner and porco tissues and a breath mint. he gives them hand sanitizer as well, and throws a pack of peppermint frost gum at the two of them, clogging his nose up.

they scoff but oblige, both now looking somehow decent and also smelling it. pieck's calming down a shaking annie, who's buried herself in pieck's warm arms, and zeke stands to the side awkwardly.

porco and reiner rush to the order counter when they all step inside, ordering instead of asking the cashier for the employee they were looking for. annie, who's now calm, pushes them aside harshly.

"ignore them, is that girl louise working today? we need to talk to her," she asks and the poor cashier is terrified at annie's deadpan face.

"n-no!! sh-she should be at home!!"

"give me her address," annie starts to lean her front over the counter, almost pushing the poor girl into a heart attack.

she grabs a napkin and a pen, hurriedly scribbling down louise's address and running off into the back.

"we can get food on the way there," annie shrugs nonchalantly, "preferably wendy's or something."

————

bertholdt and pieck almost feel bad for the poor girl whenever she answers the door.

with annie's glare piercing into her and zeke's towering over her, they were sure she'd pissed herself.

"y-yes... what do you need," she digs her nails into the door.

pieck shoves them both aside and steps forward, louise lights up with recognition.

"don't worry, they aren't gonna hurt you," she waves her hand, completely ignoring how they both still glare at louise even over pieck's shoulder, "i just need to ask you something."

"what is it?"

"have you seen (name) lately? the girl who usually come in with me."

"last time i saw her was around a few weeks ago," louise shrugs, "wait, did she go missing?!"

"yea, we're trying to figure out where she was last on the night of her disappearance. did she say anything to you...? anything at all," pieck steps forward with a desperate hand on her heart.

"she said something about going drinking with two friends... something about them being blonde and short," she scratches at her temple, slight pout on her face, "that's all i can remember."

"did she say what bar," pieck steps closer again, putting her hand on the door frame.

louise shakes her head sadly, eyes dropping down to their feet.

with that, pieck broke into tears again and was led away by porco and annie. the rest of them followed behind, leaving louise inside her home.

"she has to be somewhere," pieck cries into her hands, "she has to be!!"

zeke's got a hand on his forehead while he loosely holds onto his glasses with his other hand. he lets out a choked out sob, and everyone turns to him.

"zeke... are you... crying?" reiner turns to look at zeke over his shoulder.

"fuck.. yea. it just doesn't make sense. she's gotta be somewhere," he rubs the bridge of his nose.

"maybe the guys louise mentioned know something...," bertholdt inserts as he looks in the rear view mirror.

the statement has pieck shouting at the meek boy, "we don't know what they look like!!! all we know is that one is blonde and one is short! we're at a dead end! we're fucking stuck!!!"

bertholdt visibly flinches in his seat while his throat clogs up, hands gripping at the steering wheel. his eyes are welling up with tears that he doesn't let out. reiner's hand is on his arm in comfort, eyebrows bunched up in concern.

pieck wails once more, "god, i'm so sorry bertl. this isn't your fault. you were trying to help."

he sniffles, "it's fine. i understand. we're all just upset and desperate to find (name)."

"we'll find her soon enough."

————

the loneliness is getting to your head.

you're in the secluded dark even during the day.

you just crave to be with someone, so much that you're getting desperate.

a tug at erwin's sleeve has him stopping and turning back to face you. you've got tears spilling over your cheeks and snot running into your mouth while you lean on an elbow to hold onto his sleeve for dear life.

it's not even nighttime, it's early afternoon. erwin had just come into the room to feed you lunch and to just leave after that. but you couldn't handle it anymore. being alone made everything dark and silent.

even if the lights and televisions were turned on.

"please," you beg and rest your forehead against his arm, "please don't leave me alone."

erwin's cheeks are lighting up while his eyes widen. his hand comes up to stroke the back of your head as it now rests on his hip. he doesn't mind the wet spot forming on his pants, this was the first time you ever initiated anything.

"i won't, darling. i need to go put the tray in the sink and let levi know i will be in here," he's taking a step away from you, jumping at your sudden loud sobs and tugging.

"no! no! please, i don't want to be alone," your eyes are squeezed shut while you grip onto his pants for dear life.

"but i need to go put these dishes away. after that, i can—"

"no!" you scream and push your head harder against his leg, "no! please don't leave! i don't want you to leave."

he sighs, putting the tray of empty dish onto your bedside table. he grabs the room key out of back pocket before he picks you up bridal style.

"you run, levi'll break your legs," his fingers dig into your skin, but loosen at the frantic nod you give.

he manages to unlock your bedroom door in a complicated way, which you don't feel like questioning, and strolls outside of the room.

he goes out of your quarters, it's the furthest you've ever been. you're in a large room that connects into other rooms, the amount of doors is slightly overwhelming to you even as you look at them.

to your shock, you pass by people. living people.

they all seem to be staff, and the only sort of acknowledgement you get from them is a wide eyed stare with a dropped jaw.

"levi is still in his study, correct," he asks while shifting his hold on you.

a girl with ginger hair and auburn eyes speaks up, "yes sir! he requested no one to enter."

erwin nods and walks past the girl, who gives you a small friendly wave whenever you look out from erwin's arm.

you turn your attention back to erwin whenever you hear the sound of a door opening and closing.

you're in a new room, which is assumed to be levi's study, that's lighted up by the cloudy and grey natural light that shines through the blinds and windows. there are bookshelves on both sides of the room and you notice that on both bookshelves the order of the books goes from largest to smallest. levi sits at a desk in the middle of the room, facing the door, as his hand holding a pen runs across the paper.

"what do you need," levi looks up for a brief moment, but snaps his head up once more.

"what's the brat doing here," he motions to you in erwin's arms.

erwin's sitting you on a leather couch in the office, wiping away some tears with his thumbs. he steps away from you and takes ahold of levi by the arm, essentially dragging him to the door of the study.

the dawning realization that they're going to leave you alone has you tripping over your feet as you run to the door. your hand grips onto levi's shirt and you tug him towards you, pulling him away from the door.

"i don't want to be alone," you cry while shoving your face into levi's chest, he cringes at your snot and tears soaking through his shirt.

"oh," he blinks, awkwardly rubbing your back with his hand, "why'd you bring her here?"

"because she wouldn't let me leave to put her tray away, which i now need you to do. i'm going to get in the bath with her, which you are welcome to join if you'd like."

"i don't like baths, sitting in your own filth," he scrunches his nose up.

"to each their own," erwin shrugs, giving levi a kiss on his temple and grabbing ahold of your hand.

"come along, darling," he smiles at how quickly you intertwine fingers with him and join his side.

he leads you into a different bathroom than the one that you use. there's not much of a difference besides it size, the tub's size, and the long counter built for two.

"undress for me, love," his giant hands are massaging your shoulders before he pulls away and walks over to the tub.

you look to the bathroom door, only to find a doorknob with a keypad, something you didn't notice when you walked in, and frown. you just sigh and slip off the the pastel pink nightgown you were wearing, the fabric pooling around your feet as it drops to the floor.

you look up into the mirror, and you almost want to cry. you look nothing like yourself. you barely had any life behind those (eye color) eyes and your eyebrows were now naturally furrowed in sadness. you've got fading bruises on one side of your body, trailing downwards all the way to your calf.

you decide to take off your panties before you let your thoughts roam, stepping out of them after they've dropped to the floor.

you hear the door open, to which you and erwin look to. only it's not levi.

it's a young boy with ebony black hair and emerald green eyes that stands at 5'10.

you instinctively cover yourself up and turn your back towards him, embarrassing washing over you in waves.

erwin scrambles to block the boys view, who is seemingly enjoying it, and furrows his bushy brows.

"who are you and what are you doing here? where is levi?!"

"levi sent me sir. he gave me clothing for the girl and then said you would be in here," his eyes try to take a peek over erwin's shoulder.

erwin snatches the clothing out of his hand and slams the door shut in the boy's face. he scoffs in annoyance while he puts the clothes onto the counter, now focusing his attention onto you.

"i'm sorry about that, dear. are you alright," he puts a hand on your back and guides you to his chest.

"i'm okay," you sniff, "just wanna get in the bath now."

he smiles a bit, leaving a sweet kiss on your forehead before he steps away. you watch him rid himself of his white button up and try not to let your eyes bulge out at his body. however, you can't exactly resist the urge whenever erwin is finally naked.

erwin's stomach has abs carved into it, a well groomed happy trail leading to his cock. the thighs in his muscles and back are almost screaming out at you whenever he turns and lifts his hand to ruffle his hair.

you look down to his feet, feeling ashamed for even staring for so long.

he gets into the bath after a moment, knees spread wide for you to sit between. his arms are resting on the rim of the tub while he sighs at the hot temperature. you get in, goosebumps running up and down your body as the heat invades your colder body. you settle in between his legs and lean back against his chest, closing your eyes.

his arms wrap around you, pulling you closer to him than you were before. you put a hand over his arm, silently giving him a message to keep his arms where they were.

his lips kiss at the crown of your head, and it seems sweet enough to where you think you might be able to smile. but you don't.

watching your eyes flutter, he mumbles into your hair, "the hot water make you tired?"

"yeah," you hum, "don't really like the hot outside of this. i prefer the cold."

"so does levi," erwin chuckles as he draws circles into your skin.

"does that mean you like summer?"

"no, i prefer fall or spring. both usually have the adequate temperature," he sighs.

"erwin," you ask after a few seconds, "why is levi so cold?"

"why are you only now asking?"

"i meant to ask sooner but i was never really... given the chance," you say bitterly.

"well, levi has been through a tough life. he almost went to jail before i met him. but it isn't my story to tell," he smiles at the memory.

you nod and finally let out a yawn, "i'm going to fall asleep soon."

from then, erwin washes the two of you so you both can get out of the bath. during this, you find out he's actually quite playful. he gathers up bubbly soap in his hands and blows them into your face, hearty laughs following immediately after.

he stands before you once you're out of the tub, wrapping a towel around his waist and one around your shoulders. you look up at him while he brushes your hair and puts on a few drops of lotion on your face.

you're trying to ignore the voice in the back of your head that maybe he really does care. because at the end of the day,

you still have a collar and chain on.

[latte-fairytaekwoon]

𝑃𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑜𝑢𝑠 (𝐻𝑜𝑛𝑔𝑗𝑜𝑜𝑛𝑔×𝑅𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑟) 𝑅𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑

𝑃𝑎𝑖𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔: 𝐾𝑖𝑚 𝐻𝑜𝑛𝑔𝑗𝑜𝑜𝑛𝑔 (𝐴𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑧)/ 𝑅𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑟 (𝐹𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑒)

𝐺𝑒𝑛𝑟𝑒: 𝐹𝑙𝑢𝑓𝑓, 𝑆𝑚𝑢𝑡

♡♡ 𝐽𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑚, 𝑓𝑙𝑢𝑓𝑓𝑦 𝑠𝑚𝑢𝑡 𝐼 𝑤𝑟𝑜𝑡𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑚𝑦 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦 @seacottons ♡♡

♡･ﾟ:*｡.:*･ﾟ♡･ﾟ:*｡.:*･ﾟ♡･ﾟ:*｡.:*･ﾟ♡･ﾟ:*｡.:*･ﾟ♡

Hongjoong tapped his pencil on the notepad impatiently, sighing for the 7th time in the minute that passed. He looked at the clock, signaling that it was almost 10:30.

Maybe I shouldn't have asked her to come. It's already late.

He had a tendency to forget that unlike him, most individuals don't like to stay up at odd hours of the night, especially not to work. But he always worked better and got inspired more during the nights. Something about the dark blue sky, crystal glittering stars and even the bustling sounds of the city awakened his senses, enticing him to start writing lyrics down, or play a few melodies on his piano. Of course, sometimes he had the usual composer's block, struggling to come up with the right music or words. Or he ended up feeling lonely and in need of comfort.

That's where Y/N came in. He'd always call her up and asked her if she wouldn't mind keeping him company, a pout always on his lips, almost like a child expecting to be refused. But she'd always be there for him, and he truly appreciated it. And tonight, he was particularly antsy about seeing her. He was getting anxious as more and more time passed and she was nowhere to be seen. Not even a text saying where she was exactly at the moment.

He was about to pick up his phone again to check up on her, when the rattling of the doorknob let him know someone was outside. He had obviously locked the door, never liking to be disturbed by anyone, so he wasn't surprised to hear the person on the other side knock. He got up and opened the door.

"Hi! I'm here!"

A dripping Y/N scurried inside the studio room, getting as close as she could to the heater that was next to the couch. Hongjoong stared in shock as a tiny wet trail was left on the carpet.

"Baby, did you walk here?" He asked, his voice full of concern.

"Well yeah....." She fidgeted with the sleeves of her sweater. "I didn't know it was going to rain and the weather didn't seem too cold, but then tiny sprinkles turned to a heavy downpour.....

But I'm here now!" She said that last part more enthusiastically, trying to ease his mind a little.

But now he felt even more bad than before. She could easily have gotten sick and it would have been his fault.

"You could have just taken a cab back home love."

Y/N pouted at him.

"I know...but I wanted to see you."

His heart melted at her words. She said the same words he had been thinking all night long. Taking small steps, he threw his hoodie over his head and held it out to her.

"Here. You'll catch a cold if you stay in those wet clothes. Take them off and put this on. I'll go see if I can find some towels somewhere."

Y/N nodded and took it. She began unzipping her sweater as Hongjoong went out the door to check the supply closet at the end of the hallway. By pure luck, there was a wide array of freshly cleaned towels on the top rack. He grabbed 3 and placed them underneath his arm before closing the door and making his way back to the studio room.

"I found some towels for-"

He stopped abruptly when he saw Y/N standing there, completely naked. His eyes trailed down her body, some parts still dewy from the rain.

"What? You said to take my clothes of." She reminded him, snapping him out of his trance.

He cleared his throat.

"Well yeah.... I just assumed you'd keep your underwear on."

Y/N chuckled.

"But then your hoodie would get wet, then what would we do Einstein?"

Hongjoong smiled shyly. "I guess you have a point there."

Y/N was about to take a towel from him, but he pulled his arm away before she could reach for it.

"Allow me love."

He began patting her shoulders with the towel, getting some of the wet drops off them. Then he bunched some of her hair in the towel, squeezing any excess water out.

"Let me know if I accidentally pull too hard."

Y/N knew that wouldn't happen. He was always so careful and gentle when it came to these things. Once he was done with that, he discarded that towel and replaced it with another one.

"Jesus, did you get sucked inside a hurricane?" He teased her.

"You're so mean. I wouldn't even be in this condition if you didn't ask me to come." She retaliated.

"I know. I know love."

His hands began traveling down her torso, rubbing softly at her skin. He kept his gaze away when he swiped the towel across her breasts, making Y/N snort.

"Hongjoong, you've seen me naked at least 7 times. Stop acting so innocent."

He blushed at her words and hesitated to continue his task of drying her.

"Here, let me finish."

She took the towel away from him and finished the task he couldn't. She took the hoodie he had given her and threw it over her head, the length of it barely covering up to her mid-thighs, but it would have to do.

"You can turn around now, you drama queen." She rolled her eyes at his acting.

He turned his head and his heart fluttered as it usually did whenever she'd wear any of his clothing. It was kind of a reminder that she was his and his only, a sort of sense of ownership over her, as outrageous as it sounded. But Hongjoong would be the first to admit that he was indeed possessive over Y/N. She was just so beautiful and precious to him, he couldn't help but think that way at times.

He leaned and just pulled her into an embrace, holding her as if he hadn't seen her in years. Y/N reciprocated the action by wrapping her arms around his waist, getting the hint that he wanted to stay in that position for a while. He began caressing the back of her head, her hair still humid, but he didn't care. His other hand ran up and down her back, occasionally drawing random shapes into it.

Before he knew it, he was placing kisses on the side of her face, eventually kissing her forehead and resting his lips there. Y/N smiled fondly at that. Forehead kisses were Hongjoong's way of telling her he adored and cherished her profusely. He mentioned it to her one day when he had done that more often than any other times. Ever since then, she loved it when he did it, now knowing there was a meaning behind his actions.

Pulling back, he cupped her cheeks and squished them gently. Puckering his lips, he moved her face side to side, cooing softly at her.

"Who could not fall in love with such a cute face like this?"

She cringed at his words, but Hongjoong knew better. She did have a love-hate relationship with him babying her.

"You're such a dork." She let out a tiny yawn after she said those words.

Hongjoong pouted. "Oh love. I'm sorry for making you come out so late."

She shook her head.

"It's fine. Did you want something in particular?"

Hongjoong hummed softly, thinking about it. He wanted to hold her, that was for sure. But he also knew he wanted to try something, if she was up for it. Smirking, he brushed some hair off her face.

"Well.... I still have a few verses left to finish. What do you say if we try a little..... cockwarming?"

Y/N's ears perked up at the idea.

"Cockwarming?"

"Yes think about it love. Me nestled inside you, while you take a nap on my lap until I finish the song?" He looked to her with hopeful eyes.

She eyed him suspiciously.

"And what about when you're done?"

Hongjoong wiggled his eyebrows.

"Well, if you're not too tired, we could try something else."

Y/N giggled.

"Are you sure you'll be able to control yourself?"

Hongjoong smiled before picking her up and wrapping her legs around his waist.

"Only one way to find out love."

He set her down on his desk and began unzipping his pants. Taking his cock out, he stroked himself a few times before sitting down on his chair. Turning his attention back to Y/N, he pulled her off the desk, placing her on top of his thighs. He licked his fingers before slipping them in between her folds, wanting to make sure she was wet enough so it wouldn't hurt her in any way. He slowly slid them in and out of her, occasionally scissoring them, stretching her out. He glimpsed over at Y/N, who was biting her lip as she tried not to let out any noises.

"You worry about me, but I think it's you who won't be able to resist." He chuckled.

Y/N rolled her eyes. "We'll see."

Satisfied with his job, Hongjoong lifted her up and maintained eye contact as he slowly sank her down onto his length. They both moaned at the warm feeling, it had been so long since they were like this. Y/N let her legs dangle and she rested her face on his shoulder. Hongjoong wrapped his arms around her.

"Take a rest. I'll be done soon enough"

Y/N mumbled something incoherently, already dozing off thanks to Hongjoong's warmth and his scent that she loved inhaling. Muttering a small 'cute', he went back to work.

The words were now flowing even smoother than before. He always did say he worked a lot better if Y/N was around. The others would always think he was just being delusional, but he disagreed. Her presence just makes him more calm, serene and helps him focus. He'd often joke about her being his muse, but even she would often roll her eyes at his statement.

He didn't know how much time had passed, all he could hear was the sound of his pencil scribbling on the paper and Y/N's faint breathing on his neck. Once in a while, he'd give her thigh a gentle squeeze or kiss her arm that was wrapped around his other shoulder, where her head wasn't. He had completely forgotten he was even inside her.

He was only reminded of it when he looked at the time that was marking that it was almost midnight. He debated whether to wake her up and take her home, or rearrange the couch so it could become a bed. Eden was the one who suggested keeping a sofa that could turn into a bed, and even kept a couple pillows and blankets in the studio since Hongjoong practically lived there at times.

But then again, she looked so comfortable and peaceful, and it wouldn't be the first time he slept in the chair. Turning off the light, he began closing his eyes, wanting to drift off to sleep as well.

But then Y/N shifted in her sleep, causing Hongjoong to jolt up and hold her hips, thinking she was going to fall. She groaned softly and shifted even more, causing his cock to twitch.

Oh my God.

He thought he was doing so well, and he could cool himself down, but the feeling was too good. Without thinking about it, he began to gently roll his hips up against hers, ever so slightly so as to not wake her up. At least that was the plan.

He smiled mischievously though when he heard her moan against his ear. He could feel her growing wetter, making it easier for him to slip in and out of her.

"Fuck." He whispered to himself.

He was getting even more turned on by the fact he was practically fucking his girlfriend while she was asleep. He shouldn't get aroused by that fact, but he was. And to know that even in her sleep she was moaning boosted his ego.

Y/N fluttered her eyes open, whimpering slightly at being woken up with an intense need. She lifted her face and was met with Hongjoong's face, his eyes full of lust and desire as he continued rolling his hips against hers.

"I'm sorry baby. It was just too tempting."

He apologized, but she knew he wasn't the least bit sorry. And she wasn't mad either way. It was definitely one of the best ways to wake up. She placed her hands on his shoulders, to steady herself as she began grinding down on him, not wanting him to have his fun only. Hongjoong hissed at the change of pace, loving the way she looked: in his hoodie, on top of him and desperate to get some release.

Hongjoong's hands went to her waist, pressing her closer to him as he kissed her passionately, his tongue slipping inside hers. His hands wandered inside the hoodie, cupping her breasts and playing with her nipples, causing her to shudder and tighten around his cock.

Hongjoong pulled back, gasping for air.

"Fuck baby. If- if you keep doing that, I w-won't be able to last much longer." He told her, trying to hold back as much as he could.

Y/N chuckled and challenged him.

"Then make me cum."

Oh. Those 4 words always set Hongjoong off. One of his hands went down between her legs, his thumb playing around with her clit. His lips attached themselves to her neck as he sucked and nibbled on all her sensitive places, having memorized all of them. All of that, plus the way his strokes got even deeper and faster had Y/N whimpering and panting above him. Hongjoong pulled back only to tease her:

"What? You asked me to make you cum and that's what you're going to get love."

His free hand wrapped around her neck, squeezing it enough to make her dizzy, but not harshly. He growled in her ear:

"Now do it baby. Cum all over my cock. I want to feel you come undone before I fill up your pretty little pussy with my cum."

She threw her head back as she clenched around him, his words being the final straw for her to break and release all over him with a soft cry of his name. She hid her face on his neck, gripping him tightly as he helped her ride out her orgasm. Her walls clenching and squeezing him tightly had him coming undone seconds after her. She felt his hot cum coat her walls, his voice muttering curses as his movements stilled, trying to catch his breath.

After a minute, Hongjoong looked back at her.

"Baby? You good?"

She nodded. "Tired."

"I know love. Hold on."

Getting up, still inside her, he walked over to the couch and set her down. He began to miss her warmth as soon as he pulled out of her. Grabbing one of the previously acquired towels, he wiped her inner thighs where some of his cum had dripped out.

Y/N was pretty much half asleep by now. So Hongjoong tried to move her as little as possible as he adjusted the couch to turn it into a bed. Grabbing one of the blankets from under his desk, he covered Y/N with it and layed down next to her, pulling her against his chest.

He stared at her sleeping figure for a while, admiring her features and smiling to himself. His finger traced her lips slowly before he pecked them with tenderness.

"I love you Y/N."

He wasn't expecting her to answer, but she surprised him when she unconsciously nestled herself closer to him and mumbled 'I love you' back to him, causing him to giggle at her cuteness.

She truly was such a precious being.

♡･ﾟ:*｡.:*･ﾟ♡･ﾟ:*｡.:*･ﾟ♡･ﾟ:*｡.:*･ﾟ♡･ﾟ:*｡.:*･ﾟ♡

[crashdevlin]

Another Second Chance 18- Therapy

Another Second Chance Masterlist, Happily Ever Eventually Masterlist

Author’s Note: The final (hopefully) installment of the Happily Ever Eventually RPF series.

Summary: Y/n finds herself a new house and Misha is determined to make it a huge project.

Pairing: Jensen x Reader

Word count: 2993

Story Warnings: past cheating, mentions of FFM threesome, not much in this one

~~~~~~~~~~~~

“It’s pretty, right?” I ask, looking around the open concept of the first floor of this $350,000 house.

“Kitchen’s kinda outdated,” Jensen says, pointing at the fridge. “I mean, that fridge has gotta be from when you were in high school.”

“I could buy new appliances, Jay. Get a natural gas stove set up. Install some cabinet pulls, because I’m not a really big fan of this whole lack of elements.” I gesture at the cabinets. “Probably stain it a little darker to go against the flooring. But it’s pretty, right?”

Jay smiles. “Yeah. It’s pretty...and it’s about twice as big as the one you’ve been living in. Which is what you need.”

“Yeah. Walk-in closet in the master, too. It’ll be a good place to put the security hub.”

“Or you could put the security hub in the closet in the den and put your clothes in the master closet,” Jay suggests, grumpy old man in his tone. "And if you're gonna update the kitchen, you gotta update the bathrooms. Get one of those-"

"I am not getting an automatic toilet!" I laugh. "No one needs that!"

"Of course no one needs it but it's freakin' awesome!"

"Okay, Dean," I tease.

"Dean would agree with me. Automatic toilet, with the bidet and the-"

"Dean Winchester would break an automatic toilet and then complain that it's a damn computer which means he can't fix it without help."

Jay laughs. "He'd still think it was cool."

"He'd be down for the heated seat. I will give you that much."

He smiles as he looks around. "So...are we looking at your new digs or what?"

I bite my bottom lip and run my hand over the granite countertop. “Shouldn’t I ask Nova's opinion? It's gonna be her home, too."

"She's a teenager. As long as she's got her own room, I'm sure she's gonna be fine." He sets his hands on my shoulders and smiles. "But you can show her pictures or bring her by before you sit down with the realtor."

I nod and smile. "It's in the right school district and a bigger room for her and for Mav and the bonus room can be an office. I really think it's the place."

"Then get it," he encourages. "Get it, Baby Girl. We can make it perfect. I'm no stranger to a little reno."

"Please," I start, laughing. "A contractor did the work on your old place. Shush."

He looks a little offended. "I helped. I painted. I installed the sink in the half bath off the kitchen."

"Fine. You can stain these cabinets for me." I wink and step away from him. I'm gonna get this house. "Come on." I walk to the foyer where the realtor is waiting and I smile at him. "Can I put in an offer now or should I wait a few hours?" He smiles brighter than the sun.

"You can make an offer anytime, Miss."

Miss. Still young enough to get 'miss'. "Good. Let's do this."

~~~~~~~~~

"Four bedroom, 2 and a half bath, 3200 square feet with an office next to the master bed. It needs some updating and work...had a contractor quote me $60,000 but that's not bad...covers new appliances, too."

"I could come down and help," Misha offers. "You know, a lot of that stuff you can DIY and I can help with most of it."

"You don't have to do that, Meesh."

"Why would I let you spend that much money on something I could help you with for a fraction of the cost?"

"Misha, you really don’t-"

"I'm not letting you tell me 'no' on this. We'll get together some manpower and get this done for you."

He's really not going to let me say 'no'. "Okay. Well, it's going to be several weeks before the paperwork is finished and all that. I'll let you know when it's mine."

"Good. I'll start looking at HGTV.com." Damn it, Misha. Don't be so extra. "And send me pictures and a floorplan so I know what I'm working with."

"Yeah, okay." Really no point in arguing. It's Misha. If I don't send him pics and a copy of the floorplan, he'll just find the house and get them himself off the internet. "I'll send it to you after my appointment tomorrow, okay?"

"Sounds good. Talk to you then."

"Bye, Meesh." I hang up and sigh. He's gonna make it this whole thing, isn't he?

His house in Washington did come out amazing, though, so he does have some skills that will help in this. Eh, why not? Why not get together with my best friend and make my new home my own?

"So, I get to see this house eventually, right?" Nova says, walking into the living room.

I smile. "Come see all these pretty pictures I took and we can speculate on what craziness Misha is gonna come up with." I pat the couch next to me and she comes over. "This is the view from the street." I start showing her the pictures and she claims a room before I've even finished the digital tour.

"Oh, and you're gonna paint the exterior, right? Like, it's pretty but it's yellow. You're gonna fix that, right?"

"Oh, I'm sure Misha isn't going to let me move into another drab house. You weren’t here the first time he showed up at this house but he had opinions about all of it. I didn't let him talk me into reno last time but this time...I don’t know...maybe this will be the forever home so…"

"It's gotta be custom!" Nova exclaims.

"Exactly."

"Can I paint my walls custom? Or get custom wallpaper done? I know that a lot of people don't like wallpaper but I've seen a few places that got it right and-"

"Yeah, baby, of course. We'll figure out something awesome for your walls." I kiss her forehead. We'll do whatever she wants for her room.

"Yay!"

I love when she's happy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It's been a while since I've been in Dr. McCauliffe's office. Life has been in the way...and I guess I didn’t want her to judge me for my involvement with Jensen...which is ridiculous because she's my therapist. She's not going to judge me.

"So." She taps her pen against her clipboard. "What's new?"

"Well...I have been dating Jensen again. I know you saw that in the news."

"I saw it on Mr. Collins' Instagram, actually," she says with a smile.

"Right. The video. Forgot about it for a minute. Um, yeah, like I said in the video and Jensen said in his...spark's still there, we're giving it another chance."

"How's that feel?"

I bite my bottom lip. "Scary as Hell, honestly. I mean, but it's good. I've done pretty good with boundaries and moving slowly. You know, before...we jumped in head first and everything was this intense passion right out of the gate but this time…" I shrug. "I don't know. Maybe we've grown up, or grown old, but…"

"Have you slept with him?" she asks and it's because she knows that sex was a big issue when I was with him before. Sex was all we were supposed to be in the beginning and sex ruined us in the end. I know why she's asking but there's this...well, it's a bit intrusive, isn't it? It seems like she's judging me for being sexually active and I know that's not what it is but my whole spine goes tense when she asks.

"Yes. We dated for about a month before we started getting physical again."

“And how has that been? I don’t need details, of course, but...emotionally, how has it been to be intimate with Jensen again?”

How to answer that?

Really, how am I supposed to answer that? It’s the best sex I’ve ever had, emotionally fullfilling in a romance-novel sort of way. It’s perfect but it does have its scary moments. “Well, we’ve only actually...slept together a couple times this time. His libido is a lot less than it was. I mean, he didn’t have sex the entire time we were broken up, can you believe that?”

Dr. McCauliffe adjusts her glasses and shrugs a little. “I do not. Five years is a long time to go without sex...but you seem to believe it. That’s what matters.”

I never even questioned it. Should I have? No, because he’s been so honest about everything else. “I went years and years without sex after Nate. I believe Jensen did the same after me. He had a lot going on. He was in recovery for alcoholism. He had to be a good father and work on his career and-”

“You just got very defensive, very quickly. Why is that?”

Fuck, I don’t know. I run my hand over my mouth and shrug. “I don’t know,” I respond honestly.

“Analyze it, Y/n. Why would you get so defensive over my disbelief in what Jensen told you?”

“Because I didn’t question it,” I answer after a moment. “Because he told me that the last time he had sex, real full-penetrative sex, was the time that broke us and I didn’t really question it. I took it at face value because we’ve been doing very good about honesty with each other and what if that’s stupid? What if I’m stupid because maybe he’s lying about it and keeping stuff from me and-”

“You said he’s been very good about honesty so far, right?”

I nod. “Yeah. He’s...he admitted to stuff that I never thought he’d admit to and he apologized for stuff and he’s been open about what happened and why. He’s even been honest about little things that he would have lied about before...like I told him about Will and he Googled him. Used to be, he’d keep that kind of thing to himself, never tell me, but he admitted it without even prompting.” I chew on my bottom lip as she starts scribbling on her notes. “I believe him. It might be stupid but I believe him.”

She sets her clipboard in her lap and smiles at me. “It’s not stupid...and he’s likely changed enough that honesty is important to him. You’ve told me that his recovery has changed him. Jared’s told me the same. Now, it’s a bit hard for me to believe that he’s changed so much in the last five years that he would have abstained from sex since the last time he was with you, but...I don’t know the man, do I? You do. Jared does. If you believe him, then don’t let me change your mind.”

“I believe him. You didn’t see the way he looked at me the first time we...‘Reverent’ is the best word for it.”

“What do you think that means for you?”

I scoot back, leaning against the back of the couch. “I think he’s finally got Danneel out of his head.”

“Do you?” she asks and I hate when she asks things I don’t want to answer. “Danneel was a major roadblock in your relationship before, wasn’t she?”

“You know she was. I was so focused on giving Jensen what he wanted...Danneel...that I couldn’t see that I was what he was supposed to be wanting. I wanted to be like her, couldn’t appreciate myself. I know this stuff, Doctor.” I shift on the couch and sigh. “I don’t wanna be Danneel and I don’t want Jensen to be with her. I want Jensen to be with me...I want him to want to be with only me.” I shrug. “Seems like that’s where we are. He doesn’t even talk to her anymore. I talked to her the other day and she didn’t even know why he doesn’t talk to her anymore.”

“You talked to Danneel again?”

“Yeah. We ran into each other at a shop while I was getting Nova a new dress. It...didn’t go well. Nova was very combative with Danneel. I ended up having to...be very honest with my daughter. She knows about everything now...even the night with Danneel.”

“Oh? How’d that talk go?”

“It was...it was good to get it off my chest, actually. It was like the conversation where I told her about, about why her father and I got divorced. It’s like...It was a hard conversation but it was an important one. I don’t have to...hide things anymore and that’s a blessing. She understands why I make the decisions I make now...she understands...the betrayal was a lot deeper than she even knew. She understands that now and...maybe it’ll make us closer, but at least she knows the truth now.”

“And she’s living with you now, right?” I nod. “How did that happen? Nathan doesn’t seem the type to just allow her to do what she wants.”

I snort. “He’s definitely not, but...he fucked up with Jenny, blew up his marriage. I’m actually surprised it took her this long to realize that he was cheating on her, but whatever. Um...Nova didn’t want to be there for the destruction of his way of life and she asked if she could come to Texas. I convinced him to let her come because she didn’t need to see the parade of his affairs that Jenny would bring up. I then used those women to convince him not to fight me on custody when I refiled. It was…” I scratch at my cheek. “It was a low move, but it’s exactly the kind of move he pulled on me, convincing the judge that I was too unstable to care for her. I don’t feel bad about it, especially since she wants to be here.”

“That’s a big change...on top of other big changes.”

“Yep...and there’s more coming. Because I need more room since Nova is living with me, there will be a new home in my future."

"A new home? That's exciting."

"It is. And I am more excited about it than I am scared so that says something."

"I remember how anxious you were about your first house. I remember all the security options you went through."

"Well, security had to be heavy. I had to think about Tom and his crazy-ass fans and the crazier of Jensen’s fans and the paps. There was that one photographer in Vancouver that climbed the balcony outside the condo to get pics of me and Jay, remember?" I shiver at the memory of looking out the French doors to see a man with his camera, snapping away. So intrusive. "I'm gonna have to put up a privacy fence and a coded gate at the new place, too...and, of course, all the security cameras."

"Sounds like a big project."

"Yeah. Definitely. Not even half of it, though. Misha wants to DIY everything."

"Misha isn't your husband, Y/n," Dr. McCauliffe reminds me and I laugh.

"I think he forgets that sometimes. But there's not a lot of use in arguing with him. He's...well, he's right a lot. Like, most of the time, I mean. So, I always cave to him."

"Do you want to do a big DIY project at this new house?"

"Not at first, I didn't but...I dunno. Might be fun. I've never gotten to do that kind of project and knowing Misha, he's gonna make it fun even if it is hard work."

"Well, as long as you can maintain your work as well as this project. How is that coming along?"

"Really good, actually. We started shooting not too long ago...and I hadn't even considered that this project might be detrimental to Midsummer. I'll have to make sure that Misha knows that Midsummer comes first."

"Well, it seems like you've got things under control."

"Yeah? I was afraid you'd tell me I was...going too fast or…"

"Do you think that? You were telling me that you'd done well with boundaries and keeping things-"

"Well, I have! I mean, Jensen was talking about moving in together already and I shut that down and decided to get a bigger place...my own bigger place."

"Jensen wanted to move in with you?" She writes down something on her notes. "And you said 'no'?"

"I said 'no'," I confirm. "I was really proud of myself, Doc. Nova was proud of me, too, actually. Which was...it was interesting and new. I don’t know that she's ever been proud of me for anything and I know that it's supposed to be the other way, where I'm proud of her and I am, of course but Nova being proud of me setting these boundaries and sticking to them...it gives me hope that she'll be able to do the same in her own life, you know?"

"There's nothing wrong with feeling happy that you made your daughter proud and there's nothing wrong with hoping she's going to make different mistakes than you. She's going to do well in life if you keep making the best choices for the both of you." She sets her clipboard on her desk and smiles. "I'm proud of you, too, by the way. Six years ago, you would have jumped at living with Jensen."

"Six years ago, I did."

We finish out our session with a promise to not go so long without seeing her next time. "Mental health is about the maintenance," she reminds me as she opens her office door and walks me to the reception desk. I agree and set an appointment for six weeks out. I call Misha as I start my car, intending to tell him that Midsummer comes before the house project. I haven't even gotten a 'hello' out of my mouth when he speaks.

"I saw the pictures you sent. I have so many ideas!"

~~~

The Kitchen Sink - @emoryhemsworth @flamencodiva @wasabiwitteks @rainbowkisses31 @rissbennett @mariekoukie6661 @officiallyunofficialperson @dolphincliffs @mrs-meghan-winchester @gayspacenerd @foxyjwls007 @ilovefanfic86 @marvelfansworld @f-yeahfandoms @wonderlandfandomkingdom @hhiggs @sev3nruby @hobby27 @paintballkid711 @divadinag @thewhiterabbit42 @fantasymyth-1 @queenoftheunderdark @cosicas-cuquis @superfanficnatural @letsby @supernatural-bellawinchester @onethirstyunicorn @swinchester27 @chalicia @screechingartisancashbailiff @death-unbecomes-you @dayasvalkyrie @paryl @wereallbrokenangels @the-american-witch @that-one-gay-girl @tatted-trina6 @sunshineandwings86 @lunarmoon8 @wheezyeds @vicmc624 @couldabeenamermaid @vulgar-library

[cocastyle]

Robin — TWO

Pairing - Joel Dawson x reader

Word Count - 4,476

A/N - new update for Robin!! yay!! this series as been so much fun writing so far and I’m overwhelmed by the unexpected love for this series so far! I hope you all continue to enjoy it as much as I! I have a lot in store for our very own Batman and Robin duo :))

if you would like to be added to the tag list, let me know!

R O B I N

Robin Series Masterlist

⭒❃.✮:▹  TWO   ◃:✮.❃⭒

Dear Aimee,

This week has been especially shitty.

We lost Connor to what looked like a really big ant. It helps me to draw them. I try to capture their essence, scribble down some notes on how to kill them.

Turns out Robin's katanas can pretty much solve anything. Although, I'm pretty sure it's just because Robin's the one wielding them.

Sometimes I think drawing them is the only way I know how to cope with these things. That and having Y/N. She helps me a lot more than I give her credit for.

I owe her my life.

We've lost a lot of people over the years. You'd think you'd get numb to it after a certain point.

You don't.

- - -

Y/N walked through the hallway with a small skip in her step. Despite everything that had happened in the past week, she still managed to feel happy just at the thought of being with her best friend. With her activities for the morning already done, she was determined to spend some time with Joel who she knew was still a bit down on himself about what had happened during the breach.

She had set up the target in the room where Gertie and Mav1s were, knowing that the boy had been begging her to teach him how to shoot for a while now. She had about a half an hour before she had to be back with the hunting squad, so she was hurrying to get to Joel so that they could have more time working with the crossbow.

She was almost to his room when she heard his voice echoing down the hall. Furrowing her eyebrows, she picked up her speed and went pass his bedroom until she was at the radio room. She poked her head inside, her eyes landing on the boy who sat at the desk with the radio turned on.

"This is 7045. Come in, 3022. I repeat, come in, 3022. Over," Joel said, his eyes flickering over the map in front of him where he had 'X's marked everywhere except for the circle around their bunker and 3022.

"This is 3022. What is it now, Ray?" a voice replied over the radio making Joel sit up a bit more.

"Hey, Janice. No, it's actually. . .It's, uh, Joel," he told her making Y/N smile softly as she watched the boy.

There was a long moment of silence before the woman chuckled, "Oh. Joel."

"Yeah," he replied, smiling slightly.

"All right. Hold on one second," Janice said. "Aimee, it's Ray!"

Y/N’s smile faltered at that, muttering softly to herself, "Aimee, of course."

"Joel," the boy corrected with a small sigh into the radio. "Thanks, Janice."

"Joel! Hey!" a new voice said, instantly making the boy perk up as a big grin took over his features.

"Hey, Aimee! Hi!" Joel exclaimed. "How are you?"

"Hi. Yeah. I, uh. . .I'm good," Aimee told him.

"It's so good to hear your voice," Joel admitted, relaxing a bit at finally being able to hear her voice once again.

Y/N watched him for a moment longer before smiling sadly and turning to walk away. She knew how much getting to talk to Aimee meant to him, so she wasn't about to interrupt him with something he honestly probably didn't care to do. Besides, she wanted to give him some privacy to talk to the girl he was in love with. After all, that's what she would've wanted if it were her having to talk to Joel over the radio.

The girl walked aimlessly down the hallway, lost in her own thoughts about Joel before she was snapped back to attention when a voice softly called out, "Y/N, are you alright?"

She came to a stop, her head lifting up to notice Kala standing in front of the memorial they had for all the lost colony members. The girl's eyes were on her, concern evident despite the sadness in her eyes.

Y/N gave her a forced smile and said, "I'm fine, Kala."

Kala just stared at her before giving her a sad smile and whispering, "Joel's talking with Aimee again, isn't he?"

Y/N looked away at that, swallowing thickly before asking, "How. . .how are you?"

Kala went quiet and glanced down at the hat in her hands that had belonged to Connor. When she continued to not respond, Y/N walked across the room and pulled the girl in for a hug. Kala melted into her embrace, her body shaking a bit as she softly cried.

"I know," Y/N whispered, holding onto the girl tightly in hopes she would realize she was no alone. "Connor. . ." She trailed off as she felt her own sadness bubbling into her throat. After all, Connor and her had been close. He was a part of the hunting team with her. He had been like brother to her and she had lost him. "He was a great person and he loved you so much. He died protecting you."

Kala sniffled and nodded her head. "I know," she said, her voice cracking a bit.

The sound of footsteps approaching pulled the two apart and they turned to see Joel walking in. He plopped down on a seat beside one of the tables, a numb and upset look on his face that made Y/N’s heart break.

"I'm going to go put Connor's hat up," Kala muttered, her hand gently squeezing Y/N’s arm in order to pull the girl's attention back to her. "Thank you."

Y/N nodded and Kala gave her a small smile before walking back over to the memorial while Y/N walked over to Joel. She sat down in the seat beside him, the boy instantly looking her way while she offered him a small smile.

"Hey," she whispered. "How are you?" Joel looked away at that and Y/N sighed, "Joel, you need to put the breach thing behind you, okay? No one was expecting it, so you can’t blame yourself for being scared."

"But you're not scared," Joel retorted, his head still hung low.

"Are you kidding me? I'm always scared," Y/N told him, her words making him look up at her. "It's my fear that keeps me going.It's my fear that pushes me through whatever challenges may come my way."

Y/N didn't go into the fact that her fear was never truly about herself. Her fear had always and would always be for Joel's life. For if she died, then that meant Joel could die simply because she wouldn't be there to protect her. And that's what scared her more than anything in the world.

The thought of Joel dying.

So in her mind, she survived for him. She survived so that Joel would survive.

The boy was looking at her, still not saying anything. Sighing, the girl reached out and placed a hand on top of his own. She gave him a reassuring smile before saying, "Even Batman was afraid every once in a while, Joel. That's what makes him human."

Joel smiled a little at that, squeezing her hand and rubbing his thumb over the top of her skin while Y/N smiled back.

She let go of his hand and leaned back in her chair, propping her feet up on the table as she looked to the boy. "How's Aimee?" she asked.

Joel looked at her in surprise, not sure how she could've known he was talking to the girl, before saying, "I think she's fine. We. . .we didn't get to talk much before the radio cut off."

Y/N frowned, "I'm sorry, Joel."

Joel smiled weakly and looked down at the table before whispering, "I just miss her."

Y/N felt her heart ache at the sight of him and she quickly dropped her feet to the ground before wrapping an arm around his shoulders and leaning her head against him. "I know," she whispered softly, ignoring the way her heart slightly broke knowing that even after seven years of not seeing her, Joel still loved Aimee.

Y/N had gone through seven years of watching him pine after a girl who barely even seemed to understand what she had when he was her boyfriend. Yet she still stuck by his side even though she found herself falling in love with him even more with each second that passed.

Joel let out a soft sigh and leaned his head against her own, relishing in the comfort of his best friend while his heart ached for the girl he loved.

Still oblivious to the fact that the girl holding onto him loved him more than Aimee ever could.

- - -

"I wanna know how it got in," Karen demanded, frowning from where she sat down at the table. The whole colony was there, the discussion about how the monster had gotten in finally being brought up after giving everyone enough time to mourn.

Y/N was watching Joel, her eyes flickering over the boy who sat on the opposite end of the table with his gaze on the table and a numb look upon his face. Frowning, she pulled her gaze away and looked to Karen. "You sure about that?" Y/N asked. "Sometimes it's better not knowing."

Karen was hesitant, knowing that what the girl said was true. After all, the hunting team didn't always tell them what went on unless everyone agreed on it. It was better for some people to have to worry about certain things over others. When she gave a small nod in response, Y/N looked to Tim and gestured for him to go ahead.

With Connor gone, Y/N was one of the designated leaders at the moment. She had a bit of a reputation in the colony anyways, having worked her way to top hunter on their squad within a matter of weeks. So Tim didn't hesitate to comply to her orders, looking around at the others as he explained, "It appears to have ripped through one of our perimeter defenses."

"What, it ripped through steel?" Anna Lucia asked, having not known that bit of information.

"Y/N, Anderson, and I resealed the breach point and the vent. Nothing's getting in that way again," Tim assured them.

"And if they do, we'll be ready. I set up triggers around possible breach points to help alert us when something's attempting to get in. Next time one tries to strike, the team and I will be out there ready to take it down," Y/N said.

"But why did it happen?" Karen asked.

"It was a freak occurrence," Ray told her. "There's no reason to think it'll happen again."

"Ray's right. We only took precautions just to be safe," Y/N spoke up. "We should try to stay calm. There's no use worrying—"

"How far away is Aimee's colony?" Joel spoke up, his voice making them all go silent while the boy looked over at them.

"What?" Tim asked.

"Aimee's colony," Joel repeated, ignoring the fact that everyone's eyes were now on him including Y/N who looked like she didn't understand what was happening. "How far away is it?"

"About eighty five miles," Ray answered.

"How long does that take to get there?" Joel questioned. Y/N sat up a bit, her feet that she had propped up on the table falling to the ground as she stared at her best friend.

"Joel, you're not actually thinking of going?" Tim said confused.

"Tim, just. . .humor me," Joel pleaded. "How long?"

"Seven days," Y/N spoke up, causing the boy to look her way. She was watching him, her eyes flickering over his face while she had a completely blank look upon her face. It was enough to make Joel still, for he had never seen her act that way, but he was too focused on her words to speak up about it. "Minimum."

"An armed and trained hunting party would be lucky to last fifty miles on the surface," Anna Lucia said, the others all looking at each other and mumbling in agreement while Joel looked off in thought and Y/N continued to study him with narrowed eyes. "But you, Joel. . ."

"All right," Tim spoke up, noticing the way Y/N had obviously gotten distracted by what her best friend was saying. "Now I need volunteers to help reinforce some of the outer perimeter."

Everyone began to speak up, agreeing to help out, but Joel spoke out again, his voice making everyone freeze as he said, "I'm gonna go."

Everyone was dead silent as they looked to him, Y/N’s face growing a bit pale while Joel ignored her gaze. "It's an impossible journey, Joel," Tim told him.

Joel shook his head and stood up. "No, I'm serious," he said. "I love you guys, but Aimee is one of the only people in this world who ever truly made me happy, and she's only eighty five miles away. And I'm gonna go see her." He let out a breath he had been holding before smiling slightly. "That felt awesome." He then turned and walked out of the room, leaving everyone staring after him.

All eyes turned to Y/N who was staring at the place Joel had just been with tears in her eyes. All she could hear were Joel's words playing over and over in her head.

Aimee is one of the only people in this world who ever truly made me happy.

Aimee is one of the only people in this world who ever truly made me happy.

It took her a moment, but Y/N was up and out of her seat without a second thought. She ran out of the room, leaving the others to sigh and exchange a look for they knew Joel's words had hit her harder than he meant to let them.

By the time she reached Joel's room, her tears were long gone and her mind was already made up. She appeared in the doorway, her eyes instantly locking on Joel who was shoving his few belongings into his backpack. He glanced up at her, his eyes hesitating on her form for a moment before he looked back down.

"I have to go, Robin. I can't stay here anymore and just wait for something to happen. I'm done waiting," he told her, shoving his journal and pencils into his backpack as he did so.

"I know," Y/N replied. "You have to do this. You should go." Joel looked up to her at that, his face displaying a look of shock for a small second. She smiled softly at him before walking towards him and saying, "But I'm coming too."

"You're. . .you're what?" Joel asked in surprise, his eyes flickering over her face as she came to stop in front of him.

"Joel, you're the only person who makes me happy," she began, her words making his heart skip a beat which he quickly pushed aside as nothing. "I can't let you just leave without me."

Joel was reminded of what he said earlier and his face softened as he reached out and cupped her face in his hands and looked into her eyes. "You know I didn't mean that you don't make me happy, right?" he eyes searching her own to make sure she understood what he was saying. "Cause you do, Robin. You're the one that keeps me going every day."

He let go of her and turned to his backpack which he zipped up, missing the way Y/N’s face heated up for a second due to his words and display of affection. She quickly pushed her feelings aside, knowing Joel always had been an affectionate person. It was just how their friendship worked.

"But I have to go see Aimee," Joel continued, letting his gaze fall back upon his best friend. "And I can't just make you come with."

"You're not making me do anything," Y/N assured him. "I'm coming. We stick together through everything, remember?" She took a step forward before holding her hand out to the boy. "Batman and Robin, right?"

Joel hesitated as he looked to her, a smile slowly making its way onto his face while he felt his heart swell with an emotion that he pushed aside as nothing else but relief in getting to keep her by his side.

"Batman and Robin," he agreed, clasping his hand in her own while they exchanged small smiles.

Y/N gave him a short nod before taking a step back which caused Joel to frown because it suddenly felt like he was missing a warmth he hadn't known had been there when she was right in front of him.

"I'm going to go grab my things," Y/N said. "I'll meet you by the exit." And with that, she ran out of the room, leaving Joel to stare after her. He was a bit confused as to what he had just felt, but didn't think much of it as he turned back to his bag and smiled.

"I'm coming, Aimee," he whispered, thoughts of reuniting with the love of his life running through his head.

- - -

Dear Aimee,

I am done hiding. I am done waiting for things to get better.

It's time to take matters into my own hands. Time to let someone else make the minestrone.

I'm taking a radio, even though it doesn't have power. But I'm gonna take it anyway.

Robin's coming with me. She's just the best, you know?

I didn't want to admit it, but the thought of leaving her behind had scared me. Knowing she'll be there with me every step of the way, it provides me a sort of comfort that I can't even begin to describe.

I can do anything if I have her with me. Walking eighty five miles through a monster infested world will be a piece of cake.

- - -

When Y/N was done packing, she went off to find the rest of the colony, knowing she would have to explain to them that she was going with Joel even if they might not want her to. Muttering rehearsed lines to herself, Y/N walked into the main room where the colony was all huddled around a map and writing things down.

"Guys," Y/N began, letting out a shaky breath. "I'm—"

However, she didn't get a chance to finish before she was being tackled in a hug by Kala. Y/N fell into a stunned silence, hesitantly hugging the girl back in confusion before Kala pulled away to look at her.

"You're going with him," Kala stated. "We know." Y/N blinked in surprise before looking around at the others who all just nodded softly despite the sad smiles on their faces. The girl looked back to Kala who just smiled softly. "It's okay, Y/N. We knew you would."

"I didn't want to do this to you guys," Y/N admitted. "I know we just lost Connor and losing another person on the hunting team isn't ideal, but I have to go with him. He's my best friend."

They all nodded in understanding before Tim reached out to clap a hand on her shoulder. "You don't need to explain to us, Y/N," he told her. "We get it. Just know that we'll be waiting for you two when you get back."

Y/N smiled softly at that, falling into Tim's embrace while everyone smiled at the exchange. "So," Y/N began as she pulled away from the man, "what are you guys doing?"

"Attempting to make a map for the two of you. Well. . .mostly for Joel in case he somehow gets lost," Anna Lucia said making Y/N chuckle softly before she walked over to the table.

She smiled softly at the sight of all the notes on the front before noticing that there seemed to be something on the back. She flipped the paper over, her smile growing even more at the notes the crew had all written on the back for the boy.

"We were going to make one for you too," Kala spoke up. "But I think Joel needs more of a reminder of how much we love him than you do. I have a feeling you already know that."

Y/N smiled and looked up at the people who had become her family. "I know," she whispered making them all smile before she looked down at the paper snd grabbed ahold of one of the pens. She scribbled down a small note on the back to go along with the others before Karen folded the map up.

It was when she was almost finished folding it that they heard Ray call out, "He's not joking."

They all walked out of the room at that, Y/N catching sight of Joel making his way over towards them with his backpack on and two crossbows and her katanas in hand. His eyes locked with hers and he smiled before holding out her weapons. "I think you may have forgotten something," he mused making the girl roll her eyes.

"Thanks, Joel," she said before grabbing the katanas and strapping them into her back and under her backpack. She then took the crossbow and the two turned to head towards the ladder that led to up above when Tim stepped in their way.

"We're not letting you two leave. You're needed here," Tim told them, even though Y/N knew that he understood he wasn't going to be able to stop them.

"Tim, Y/N may be, but I'm not. Come on. I don't do anything," Joel said.

"Joel, that's not true. You fix the radio. You make the minestrone," Tim stopped after that and winced slightly at his own words. "Okay. Doesn't sound as important when I say it out loud."

"I appreciate you trying," Joel assured him. "Really, I do. I just don't feel like I belong anywhere. I don't really wanna die all alone at the end of the world, so. . ."

Tim stared at the boy for a moment, his eyes flickering over to Y/N who gently shook her head at him to let him know he shouldn't say anything about her feelings for the boy. Tim sighed and turned away, allowing the two to walk by.

Joel moved forward, but paused before looking back at the others. "Look, I know you guys all just think of me as, like, some little, pathetic, adorable hedgehog. But I can take care of myself. I'm actually probably a lot stronger than you might think," he told them.

Y/N smiled softly at the boy's words, knowing how badly he wanted to prove to them all that he could do this. She placed a hand on his arm and Joel looked her way, smiling as she squeezed his arm before looking to the others. "We'll take care of each other," she assured them. "We've survived seven years. We can survive seven days."

The colony didn't say anything until finally Karen stepped forward and held the map out to Joel. "We made you a map," Karen told him.

"Thanks, Karen," Joel whispered before the girl reached up to hug him. Joel hugged her back and Karen pulled away with a sad smile before going over to Y/N and hugging her as well.

"Just. . .take care," Karen whispered before she pulled away and backed up to join the others. Y/N stared out at the people who had become her family, her eyes tearing up a bit as she knew that there was a possibility she would never see them again.

She felt a hand latch onto her own and Y/N looked to her left to see Joel giving her a reassuring smile as his fingers intertwined with her own. Y/N gave him a shaky smile in return while Joel rubbed his thumb across the skin on top of her hand.

"Everything will try to kill you," Ray told them.

"Oh," Joel muttered, making a small face which made Y/N chuckle softly.

"Be observant. Use the advantages that you have. You're fast and small and Y/N is one of our best hunters, so, Joel, don't fight. Just run and hide. Y/N, you should do that too, but if you need to, use those katanas and crossbow like your life depends on it cause it does," Ray said.

"Don't fight," Joel repeated, making another face before looking to Y/N. "So Robin fights, but Batman doesn't?" he whispered to her. She just smiled shyly at him.

Ray reached out and pulled the two into a hug, Joel and Y/N hugging him back while their intertwined hands still stayed by their side.

"You're both assholes if you get eaten," Ray told them.

Y/N smiled at that before saying, "And you all are douchebags if you don't answer our call when we get there."

The group all chuckled while Joel went to hook his crossbow to his backpack. Everyone fell silent as they watched him, their smiled falling as he struggled to simply latch the crossbow to his back. Y/N sighed and brought her free hand up to facepalm herself while Joel just awkwardly laughed and tried to latch the crossbow one more time.

This time it latched into place and he smiled before saying, "Okay."

"Nice," Ava muttered.

Joel ignored her comment and squeezed Y/N’s hand before turning to climb up the ladder. "I love you guys. Tell Aimee I'll see her in seven days," he said before climbing up the ladder.

"We believe in you," Karen called after him.

"Love you, buddy," Tim said.

Y/N walked over to the ladder before hesitating at the bottom. She glanced back at the colony, her eyes flickering over each of them. Karen and Kala were softly crying as they hugged each other, the others all looking at her sadly before Tim just gave her a small nod.

"Take care of him," Tim said before hesitating. "And yourself."

"I will," Y/N whispered, smiling at the group one last time. "I love you guys."

"Love you too," they all chorused as she began to climb up the ladder like Joel had. The latch was already open by the time she reached the top and she was blinded by the sunlight until Joel moved himself above the hole and looked down at her.

"You sure about this?" he asked, his eyes flickering over her face for any signs of hesitation.

Y/N smiled softly, "I'm sure."

Joel smiled at that before holding his hand out, the girl looking to it for a moment as she realized just what it is they were doing. Was she really about to help the boy she loved reunite with the girl he was in love with? It was crazy. She knew that. Yet seeing that smile on Joel's face and knowing that this was what he wanted, what he needed, to be happy was enough for her to know this was the right thing to do.

Then, without another second thinking about it, Y/N took ahold of the boy's hand and he pulled her into the world above.

- - -

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