#well these customers never threw a fit about it

[weixuldo]

Who's your Daddy?

Older!James Kelly x f!reader

(SORRY FOR BEING GONE SO LONG OMLLLL- i’ve never written anything other than starwars lol- but I hope this is enjoyable. I also havent ever written fauxscest and I wouldn't say i'm really into it, but I feel like it fits the character lowkey)

One of James' customer mistakes you for his daughter and you actually play along...James isnt thrilled

warnings: dead dove do not eat?, Fauxscest, age gap, orgasm denial, just regular schmegular smex, name calling,

________________

 “Fuck Jamie!” you squealed as DILF!James Kelly harshly bent you over the old camaro that had been sitting in his shop for the past two weeks. 

His strong tattooed hand had your nicely curled hair in a strong grip as he smacked your ass with the other. “You wanna act like a child so bad, then I’ll treat you like one” he said as he continued to spank you. 

Earlier, James had been finishing up a job on an old Ford pickup and was negotiating payment with the owner when you skipped out from inside the shop wearing shorts and a tank top.

In James’ “office”- really just a room with a chair and desk that he’d toss papers on (or eat you out on)- he had a bowl of candy just in case a client brought around their kids. James never really knew what to do with kids, but you told him having a candy jar would make him seem less scary.

Of course he had one the next day.

But clients never really brought their kids around the shop so you got to enjoy the majority of the candy. Today you were feeling the cherry lollipop and twirled it around your mouth as you scampered out to see what James was up to. 

As you walked out you saw James broad back facing you as he stood with his arms crossed towards a gruff man with gray hair. They looked like they were talking shop- how boring.

You sighed and were about to go back inside when the gray haired man noticed you. 

“Kelly, you never mentioned ya had kids?”. 

James was taken aback- kids? 

He turned to see what the man was looking at when his icy eyes landed on your tantalizing form; it was nearly 97 degrees and humid as fuck- why the hell did you look so good?

He subconsciously licked his bottom lip before remembering the man’s comment; he turned back just about to protest when you skipped up to him and threw your arms around him. 

“He’s never mentioned me?” you said with a fake pout. 

“But dad- I thought you were proud of me? Why don’t you tell your friends about me?” 

James was too stunned to speak- sure, you’d occasionally call him “daddy” in bed but he never thought that act would leave the bedroom. His left eye twitched as he looked down at your doe eyed expression. 

“Haha- I’m sure yer Dad’s proud of ya kiddo- probably just wanted to hide you away cause you’d have all the boys riled up” the gray haired man chuckled as James fought to keep his frustration at bay. 

“Is that why daddy?” you asked innocently. 

James was pissed

…

and extremely turned on.

But he was really bothered that his client was obviously checking you out right in front of him. He clenched his jaw once more before straining out an answer. 

“Yea thats why, sweetheart. I’d hate to have to get the shotgun out of the shed for something other than hunting” he falsely smiled. 

You hugged him once more before heading back inside “Well I’ll let you two keep talking- Thanks for choosing my dad’s shop” you smiled at the man before your boyfriend. 

He shot back a bright grin “Not a problem darlin’, I’ll be sure to come to yer Dad’s shop from now on haha”. 

James clenched his fists at his sides, he could feel himself losing his composure.

The man finally paid James and added a little extra and told him to “buy somethin’ nice for that daughter of yer’s”. 

Oh- James would definitely not be buying you something nice after the little stunt you just pulled. 

“She's a looker Kelly, better keep an eye on her'' the man commented once more before hopping into his newly fixed truck. 

James just nodded as he counted the money the man paid him, “Yea, i’m always lookin at her- especially when she's bouncing on my cock”. 

The old man’s eyes almost popped out of his sockets; “Pardon?!”. 

James finally met his eye once more with a smug look, “Yea, she’s not my daughter- that’s my girlfriend”. 

The man just sat with the truck held in reverse as he tried to replay the whole interaction. 

“And I’m gonna fuck her raw for that shit she just pulled- Thanks for the tip and have a nice day” he said before shoving the cash into his pocket and shutting the garage gate. 

You had taken a seat at James’ desk as you mindlessly scrolled on your phone. You thought it was funny to play with him like that but you didn’t think it would get him too worked up- so when you heard him call for you to come out to the garage your body buzzed with nervous excitement. 

He had called your name harsher than he normally would so you could tell he was feeling some type of way but you couldn’t quite put your finger on what… were you about to be lectured, yelled at, or fucked? 

Maybe all three heh

James was standing domineeringly with his feet slightly parted and arms crossed tight as you entered the garage. 

“Yesss? What’s wrong Jamie” you answered innocently. 

He clicked his tongue and cut his eyes, “you know damn well what you were doing”. 

You pouted your pretty lips and shook your head, “I don’t really see anything wrong with joking” you said smugly. 

Annnd now you’re here, bent over his camaro with him ruthlessly plunging his thick cock in and out of you.

James’ veins popped as he tugged at your hair with one hand and angled your hips up with the other. He was panting like an animal as he forcefully thrusted into you, heavy balls slapping against your swollen clit. 

“Fuck, please! Jamie- Slow down!” you cried as you grounded yourself on the hood of the old car as your boyfriend hit it from the back. 

“Jamie?” he questioned, squeezing your ass harder.

“James!” you managed.

He let out a low chuckle that made you even wetter than before, “you wanted to call me dad so bad earlier, what happened, doll?”. 

You could hear his stupid smirk in the way he spoke, you wanted to say something but all that was coming out were pathetic whimpers and moans.

You felt him shudder as you clenched your gummy walls around his throbbing cock- “s-shit” he cursed under his breath as he slowly pulled out until just his tip was left in you. 

Your eyes were already brimming with tears-but when he stopped his movements, the tears started to flow. Your poor pussy ached for him to slide between your folds- once he started, you needed him to finish. 

It was almost criminal how empty you felt without your boyfriend’s dick inside of you. You began to whine the longer he held still. 

“You think you’re so slick, little brat” he growled as his rough palm made contact with your bright red ass cheek for the umpteenth time. 

He leaned down to whisper in your ear and you felt the cool silver of his cross chain as it slid down your arched spine. 

“Who am I” he asked with a dangerous lilt to his voice. 

“James” you cried again, you knew that was the wrong answer but you needed him to keep going.

Without warning he plunged into you and bottomed out as your eyes rolled back in pleasure. But just as fast as he was in, he had resumed the previous position. 

“Incorrect” he said before pulling completely out. 

You whimpered before he flipped you around so that you were staring at his flushed face; God he was perfect. Looking down between the two of you- his hard cock was completely coated in your combined juices and twitched as he stood over you. 

He grabbed your hips and lined himself up with your aching core once more before shoving himself in with an abrupt snap of his hips. You gripped onto his forearms as you yelped. 

“Who am I” he asked once more, his voice low with lust. 

“D-Daddy” you cried in humiliation as you shied away from James’ watchful eyes. 

He halted his movements and leaned closer to your ear, “Almost. What did you call me earlier, doll?” he said with a devious smirk. 

You took a deep breath and closed your eyes, “...dad”. 

“What was that baby? Didn’t hear ya” James taunted. 

“DAD!” you wailed as you dug your nails into your older man’s forearms. 

“That’s it, Sweetheart” he smiled as he quickened his pace. 

You moaned as his sloppy thrusts jiggled your breasts around for Jame’s viewing pleasure. You felt your high approaching fast. 

“Fuck- I”m close- I” you cried as James continued diving deeper and deeper into your sopping cunt. 

James bit his bottom lip and pulled out as fast as he had been fucking you; leaving you with a disappointingly empty feeling. You gasped at the loss of his massive member and your eyes shot open to see why your boyfriend felt the need to pull out. 

There he was in all of his glory; brow adorned with sweat , face flushed, brows drawn together, and lips parted. Soon you felt his warm ropes of cum spilling onto your stomach, you whimpered at the wasted seed and your lost orgasm. 

He finished stroking himself with a shudder and squeezed out the rest of his spend onto you with a low groan. 

“W-why?” you almost cried as your boyfriend began to clean himself off. 

“Good girls wouldn’t cum from their dad’s dick-” he tossed you a towel from the hanger on the wall, “I hope you’ve learned your lesson, little one”. 

“Once you’ve had time to think about your actions and clean up- maybe I’ll consider letting you cum” he said before leaving you alone and empty in his dim office. 

***

lol I hope you enjoyed :)

[p-taryn-dactyl]

masked hearts

part i

a/n: hi! this is my first time writing for ambessa so please be kind lmao. i also know very little about LoL lore :) this is kinda an AU where the Medarda family is together word count: 2.5k warning(s): none (yet); well no real warnings, reader has a crush and is not very smooth; very awkward; you're a lesbian; unedited 😭

prompt: ambessa holds a ball to find a partner for her son but what happens when you're the one to catch her eye?

Your kingdom was one of splendor and beauty, the hills ripe with settlements, the trees fruitful and the air crisp. It wasn't a mystery why the Medarda clan claimed this small portion of the world for themselves, as your kingdom sat on a pivital route for trade. The mystery however, was why the head of the Medarda's, Ambessa, chose this place to be the homeland of her son's future spouse. The flyers went up around the center of the capitol first, the paper of expensive quality and the ink shimmering with gold.

It was an invitation to a ball. One of masks and hidden identities.

The Medarda's, while they've never been accused of not caring about physical appearance, put wit above all. It was fitting that the son of a warlord would first fall for the mind before the body. However, as the whispers got around the kingdom, people realized there wasn't a class specified to attend. Everyone, rich and poor, was invited to attempt to become a Medarda-by-law.

You, however, weren't as excited as your sisters and cousins. You watched as they danced around your shop, holding up different fabrics and colors, trying to see which one would make their dress stand out to Kino. Laughing, you wiped down the counter, your eyes trained on your register, imagining it bursting with gold after your town had finished sending in their requests for their gowns and masks.

"Y/N, have you decided what you're going to wear?" One of your cousins, Laina, appeared behind the counter, her young hands stabilizing her as she stood on her toes, "Mama says I can go if I finish my chores the week before!"

You gave her a soft smile, flicking your slightly damp rag at her and laughing when she recoiled with an unamused glare.

"I don't think I am going to attend, but I can personally make your dress!"

Laina's face fell but her eyes still had a sparkle from your request.

"Why not?" She pouted, crossing her arms once she managed to pull herself up to sit on your freshly cleaned counter, "And would you make me a mask too?"

Sighing, you threw your rag into the bucket of water at your feet, ignoring the splash against your boots. You could always finish cleaning later. Leaning with your back agaisnt the counter, you mimicked her pose, crossing your arms and pouting out your lower lip.

"Masks are for potential suitors of Kino, maybe if he's still looking for a partner in a decade I'll make you one," Laina opened her mouth as if to interupt, to say she wasn't too young even though her tenth birthday had only just passed two days before. You held up a finger, stopping her words before they left her mouth, "And...I'm not one for the company of men, you know that. A large party, loud and boisterous, sounds fun but with my luck I would be the one to catch the wandering eye of Kino Medarda."

Laina nodded, albeit a little dissapointed. She played with a strand of hair falling in front of her eyes.

"Would you think about coming? With me? Mom and Dad aren't going, they want to have a quiet night in and Alana will be too busy trying to become a princess."

You laughed loudly, causing the customers of the shop and your family members to look at you. You covered your mouth with a hand, nodding at the customers apologetically. Pursing your lips, you scoffed humorously as Laina gave you one of her sad eyes expressions, one she knew you couldn't say no to. Rolling your eyes, you ruffled Laina's hair with a defeated smile.

"Alright fine, but you'll have to convince your mother to send me a basket full of honey buns afterward," Laina clapped in excitement, nodding in agreement. She fixed her eyes on you, taking a scrap of dark red fabric from her pocket and holding it up against your face.

"This should be for your dress."

Taking the fabric from Laina, you felt it between your fingers and sighed. What did you get yourself into.

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

In a few measley hours you would find yourself within the walls of the Medarda castle, built from stone from the most coveted quarry in your kingdom. At the right time of day, you swore you could see it shining brighter than a star upon the hill which it sat. Laina was a bundle of energy and was currently bouncing around the apartment above your family's shop. She was talking so fast, excitement blurring her words together so much so you couldn't even distinguish what she was saying, so you only nodded along to her words as you examined your dress one last time. Laina had long been dressed and now all her movement made you worried she would wrinkle or tear the precious fabric.

Your dress, one that matched the dark red Laina had chosen for your mask, layed across your lap, subject to your wandering eyes as you looked for any imperfections. While you didn't exactly want to catch anyone important eyes, you didn't want to be seen in a less than perfect gown.

"Put it on! We have to leave soon if we want to make it for the opening of the gates!" Laina excalimed, clapping her hands together as she twirled, her light green dress floating around her like petals in the wind. You smiled, gesturing towards the door with your head.

"Well, I'll need someone to guard the door while I change. I don't want anyone bursting in here while I'm in my unspeakables." You held your head up haughtily like your grandmother, mimicking her accent and pretending to clutch your pearls at the mention of your underwear. Laina covered her mouth as she giggled, nodding as she ran out to stand by your door, only pausing right before she shut it.

"If you need help, you'll ask right?"

You saw in her eyes the desperation of being a helper, a feeling you knew too well. You nodded at her then waved your hand, beckoning her to shut the door. At the click, you sighed, looking back at your gown, starting to feel the uncomfortable feeling of anxiety roaring in your stomach and up your throat. Damn Laina's puppy dog eyes. Now, instead of sitting in bed with a book and a hot cup of tea, you were going to dance in front of one of the most powerful family's in Runeterra. With your luck you would face plant right in front of Kino, or worse, his mother. At the thought of Ambessa, your mind grew conflicted. Sure, you had a healthy fear of the woman who was shrouded in tales of blood, but you remembered the first time you saw the matriarch after the Medarda's had claimed your kingdom for themselves. It was like a schoolgirl's crush on a teacher, you knew it would never go anywhere but yet, even after all the years, you still dreamed of the strong hands and scarred face which had been burned into your mind the second you swore her eyes landed on you in the crowd.

Shaking your head, you snapped yourself out of your senseless dreaming. Being attracted to women wasn't an issue, it never had been, but being attracted to that woman could only bring you strife as you compared all future partners to her. Standing up, you shedded your clothing, standing only in your slip and stockings tied up at your knee. Taking a deep breath, you slid the dress on, each part brushing against your skin in soft silk. Once it was on, all that was left was to tighten the corset. You brushed your hands down, smoothing down the fabric before calling for Laina, knowing you could tighten it yourself. Laina burst into the room, her eyes widening as she gasped.

"Y/N, you're so beautiful! I knew that color would be pretty on you!"

You felt your face flush from the compliments, not used to the attention. Laina pulled up a stool to stand on as she started tightening the your dress.

"Ah! Ok, if you want me to dance with you, you're going to have to let me breathe."

Laina chuckled sheepishly, loosing the ribbons slightly.

"Sorry! I think you're done!"

You nodded, moving to hold yourself up against the wall as you slipped on your shoes, dreading a night spent soley wearing heels. You grabbed your mask and held out your hand to Laina, bowing playfully.

"I believe it's time for us to depart, my lady."

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

The night was young yet you already were desperate for the strike of midnight, the time you and Laina had agreed upon leaving. Speaking of Laina, she had made a few friends with the other young children attending the ball, sitting in a corner with them as they played games, their laughter hidden by the music. At the front of the giant room sat Mel Medarda and her consort, Jayce Talis. They were holding hands as they watched the dancers, leaving you to wonder when they would join the party. Kino was already weaving his way through the room, dancing with many but seemingly connecting with none. And Ambessa, your breath caught in your throat as your eyes seemingly met hers, was making her way into the crowd, her mask one of gold and war. You looked away frantically, returning your attention to the table of food in front of you. After a few moments, you felt yourself relax, yet that was short lived. You felt a presence behind you and suddenly, you were very aware that you were the only one at the table and not on the dance floor. Which felt like the universe was just shitting you at this point. You picked up a berry, inspecting it as if that would make the imposing woman standing behind you not be standing behind you.

It didn't work.

Slowly, you turned around, heart beating in your ears drowning out the music. You didn't realize how close she was, causing you to jump slightly and bump into the table. For a second, you just stared at each other before Ambessa moved. You tensed, before you realized she had grabbed a pastry from the platter that had been knocked off center. She took a bite, keeping her eyes trained on you before she spoke. You just kept mentally pinching yourself, trying to force yourself out of this embarassing nightmare.

"Is that all you're going to have, Little One?" Her voice sent shivers down your spine as you processed what she had said, her head nodding to the berry still clutched in between your fingers, it's juices staining your fingertips.

"Oh! Uh, no? I'll have," you didn't want to look away from the tall woman, fearing that would be a sign of disrespect, so you tried to remember what food had been spread out, "bread? Yes, bread, I like bread." Your eyes widened as you spoke, now mentally punching yourself for the dumb response. Bread? Now come on. Part of you was grateful for the mask covering part of your face, hiding what was sure to be a horrendous blush.

Ambessa's mouth quirked into a smirk, taking a slight step towards you before angling her body so she could gesture her arm towards the sea of people.

"This whole night you've stayed by the table, or near that corner of children, never once even attempting to join the festivites," she turned her attention back to you, slightly cocking her head to the side, "Is this party boring you? Is my son?" You registered the humorous tone mixed with the protectiveness of a mother.

Quickly you shook your head, hand clenching the berry in your hand, bursting the fruit. You tried to start explaining yourself but the feeling of juice sticking to your skin made you uncomfortable. You still felt frozen by Ambessa's presence so you did what felt right in the moment, however pausing as you realized you had started licking your hand infront of the matriarch of war. In your embarassment, you didn't notice how Ambessa's eyes followed the actions of your tongue and fingers like a wolf hunting prey. Like a rubber band snapping, you realized you hadn't answered her question.

"I'm not bored! This is a beautiful procession and whoever catches your son's eye will be lucky."

Ambessa nodded slightly, turning her head to watch as Kino twirled a woman in blue. When she looked back to you, her eyes held a question laced with genuine interest and humor.

"And if you catch his eye?"

Your own eyes widened as you wiped your hand on the napkin you had grabbed while her attention was on her son. Ambessa didn't miss the change in your expression, your mask not hiding the nervousness shining in your eyes. Instead of your original adorable fear of her presence, you now seemed to radiate anxiety. She raised an eyebrow, knowing you couldn't see it, waiting for your response.

"I," you started, your eyes darting to Laina, who was now watching you with a teasing look, knowing of your godawful crush on the woman standing in front of you, "I would be very flattered-"

"But?" There was a sense of anticipation in her interuption, her words no longer holding underlying steel.

"But I would have to respectfully decline," you looked down at your hands, starting to speak quickly, desperate to explain yourself as to not give the impression you thought yourself too good for a conqueror's son, "Not out of any thought of doing better of course, I doubt that could even be accomplished, however I believe Kino- I mean, your son, deserves to be with someone who can love him purely and with romantic intent. The best I could give would be a position of friendship." You stopped to take a breath, fully intending to continue your ramble until the gods themselves had to shut you up. But this plan was foiled by Ambessa's strong hand holding your chin, forcing you to look at her. Her eyes analysed you, surveying your face before going lower to look at your dress. You felt heat rise, or more heat, at her intense stare. Something in the stitching on your bodice made recognition flicker in Ambessa's eyes. Her hand moved from your chin down to your waist, encouragaing you to walk with her. She continued to talk as the two of you made your way to the center of the room, the crowd parting as they danced around you.

"Do you already have someone in your heart? A different boy perhaps?"

If you weren't feeling like you were in a dream, you would have realized Ambessa was fishing for something, an answer she needed.

"No, my lady, I do not. I," you cleared your throat, "I won't ever have a man claim my heart."

Ambessa's grip on your waist grew stronger as she pulled you to her chest, positioning you to dance. You gasped as you felt her lips brush against your ear as she swayed you to the rhythm of the music.

"And if I lay a claim?"

a/n: haha sorry for the sudden ending i'm evil at my core. this fic was to test the waters for writing for this absolute goddess of a woman and i do have part 2 ready to go if anyone is interested! i cannot say my thoughts on Ambessa (or Sevika for that matter) for i want to keep this authors note short and PG ;) thank you for reading!! i hope this wasn't shit.

[steddieas-shegoes]

“Steve! We have to go!”

“I’m coming!” He yelled back to Robin, still searching through his closet for the pants he planned for their night out. “Where the hell are they?”

He was throwing things out of the way, not caring where they landed.

That was a problem for future Steve.

Current Steve needed to look as hot as possible.

His dry spell would be over tonight. He wasn’t leaving the bar until it was.

“Steve!”

“Robin! Where are the jeans?”

“What jeans?”

“The jeans! The ones that you told me to wear!”

“Didn’t you wear them yesterday?”

“No! I saved them!”

But Steve looked over at his laundry basket where his shirt was hanging over and the pair of jeans he was looking for peeked through.

He did wear them yesterday.

Fuck.

Okay, back up options.

The dark jeans that actually probably belonged to someone else and didn’t fit his thighs right? No, he needed to show off his thighs.

The light jeans he hadn’t worn in at least a year because there was a questionable stain that wouldn’t come out? Well, it would be dark in the bar, but no. He’d know about it.

The jeans he wore earlier that weren’t special but also weren’t bad? How would that help him get laid? No.

So he looked back the jeans in his hamper, ignoring Robin’s angry yelling from outside his door.

“Found them! Two minutes!”

He put on the jeans, hoping they didn’t smell or have any stains on them.

He ignored Robin as he threw on his coat that was hanging on the back of the couch and ignored the dull headache blossoming across his temples.

He opened the door and started to leave.

“You coming?” He asked over his shoulder, laughing when Robin smacked his arm as she passed by him.

“Don’t act like you’re waiting on me. I’ve been waiting on you for 30 minutes!”

They barely spoke on the way to the bar, Robin already sensing his headache and probably hoping the silence would make it better before the night got started.

She was amazing.

Steve couldn’t live without her.

But hopefully, they’d both find someone tonight. They needed it.

— — — —

Steve wasn’t having any luck. In fact, he’d never had worse luck.

His head was pounding at this point, music much louder than usual, more people crowded around his usual spot. The three men and one woman he’d danced with so far were fun, but not really his type. He’d been a little upset about seemingly wasting his time, but swallowed down the bitter feeling when he saw Robin dancing with the same girl for three songs, huge smile on her face.

At least one of them was getting something from tonight.

He stood at the far corner of the bar, trying to be out of the way as best he could. He needed to have some water, but he knew the bartender wouldn’t be pleased about getting pulled away from actual paying customers. He would wait for a lull and then get his attention.

It was a new guy, or at least one who didn’t normally work the shifts Steve was here. He was pretty.

There was no other way to describe him; long, curly hair, tattoos everywhere, wide Bambi eyes, tall and thin frame that still held hidden muscle. Steve’s dream, really.

Too bad his vision was getting blurry from the headache.

He had to reevaluate his plan and get water now before he went into full migraine territory. He couldn’t pull Robin away from her night just because he had to get home safely with a debilitating migraine.

He started trying to wave to the bartender anytime he looked over towards Steve’s end of the bar, but it didn’t work.

He tried yelling over the crowd and music, but it ended up making his head throb worse.

He finally managed to throw a napkin at him when he was standing a few feet away.

Not his finest moment, but he’d apologize when he had water.

The bartender looked over at him with raised brows.

“Need something?”

Steve couldn’t help the shame he felt about literally everything happening at that moment.

“Water please?”

The bartender nodded once and grabbed a cup to fill with ice and water. Steve felt some of his muscles relax knowing that he was going to be able to hydrate a little.

When he placed it in front of Steve, he slid a small cup of lemons with it.

“Squeeze a little in there. Helps with headaches.”

Steve knew he was looking at Eddie like the sun shone out of his ass. It would be embarrassing if he wasn’t so dreadfully miserable from the almost-migraine.

“Thanks.” Then he realized how shitty he must look if the bartender knew what was going on from just looking at him. “Wait. How’d you know?”

“My uncle gets them bad. He always gets pale and his eyes get bloodshot when one’s coming. You looked in the mirror lately?”

Steve shook his head, then winced at the way it made his head pound.

“You here with someone?”

“Yeah. She’s dancing.”

“Need me to have an announcement made for her?”

“No, let me drink this first.”

The bartender nodded, but Steve noticed he kept checking on him between serving other drinks to people.

Steve used more lemon than he probably should have, but he had a whole cup of it, and it couldn’t hurt to use more.

He rested his head against the wall next to him, wincing at the excessive vibrations from the music.

Normally, he loved that their hole in the wall bar got loud and fun once a week. Tonight, he wished he could be surrounded by silence.

He knew he was getting worse, but he didn’t want to bother Robin, who was still dancing with the same girl. She’d probably go home with her as long as Steve didn’t interrupt.

He felt a hand on his forehead, slowly brushing sweaty hair away. He tried opening his eyes, but even the small amount of light seeping through his eyelids was too much.

“Hey, I’m Eddie. I’m the bartender. My relief just walked in so I’m gonna help you to the back, okay?”

Steve could barely nod, the pain in his head throbbing down his jaw and neck. He reached his hand towards the voice and managed to make contact with Eddie. Hopefully, Eddie understood he was not gonna be able to do anything helpful at this point.

He felt an arm around his waist, guiding him away from the bar, but Steve still didn’t want to try opening his eyes. He had to trust Eddie.

He should’ve stayed home. He knew the dull pain he felt earlier would turn into worse, but he was so stuck on getting in bed with someone, he came anyway.

Eddie was walking slowly, keeping a firm grip on Steve so he wouldn’t jostle him around too much. Maybe if Steve weren’t getting his brain attacked by hammers and knives, he’d be trying to get Eddie in bed.

That thought came and went though as he realized how pitiful it was that a grown man couldn’t even walk himself home because he had a migraine.

Eddie would probably tell this incredibly embarrassing story to everyone here and laugh about it for weeks.

Steve was in and out of it for the next few minutes, unable to really focus on anything around him besides the warm hand on his hip. Despite being sweaty enough to wring water from his shirt, he still felt cold, shivers occasionally wracking his body.

This was a really bad one.

He was so stupid for being stuck in a bar for this.

His brain registered a door closing, then a fan turning on. It wasn’t completely silent, but the outside noise was a small echo in his brain compared to the banging it had been previously.

“Gonna set you on the couch in the corner and get some ice.”

Steve didn’t acknowledge him, but he let out the most ridiculous whimper when Eddie set him down on the couch, slowly laying him back so his whole body was flat. He heard the door open and close, but was so focused on how nice the air from the fan felt, he didn’t hear the door open and close when Eddie came back in.

“Alright, gonna put this on your head. Where’s it hurt?”

“Everywhere.”

Eddie sighed, but placed the bag of ice on his forehead to start.

“Get these often?”

Steve appreciated his very low voice, knowing that anything at a regular volume would probably be too much in this quiet room.

“Mhm.”

“I grabbed you more water too. Think you can have a sip?”

“Mm. No.”

He heard Eddie laughing quietly, but he couldn’t smile back at him.

“You live close?”

“Mhm. Mile.”

“I live closer.”

“Hm?”

“Welcome to my humble abode. I own the bar, work at the bar, and live at the bar. Technically this is the staff office, but upstairs is my bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom. If you think you can handle the stairs, you can sleep in my bed and I’ll take the couch. I’ll let your friend know you’re here too if you give me a name.”

“Steve.”

“Your friend’s name is Steve?”

“No. Mine.”

“Okay, what’s your friend’s name, Steve?”

“Robin.”

He tried opening his eyes so he could see his surroundings, but they were so heavy. Leave it to Steve to end up suffering with the worst migraine he’s had all year at a bar with a hot bartender taking care of him and he can’t even open his eyes to fully appreciate it.

He distantly heard the door again, but must’ve fallen asleep for a bit because the next thing he knew, he felt hands on his face.

“You’re sure he can stay here?”

“Robs?”

“Steve. You idiot. You should’ve told me it was getting worse.”

She was whispering, but she was angry with him and he knew she would be yelling if she was a worse friend.

“Sorry.”

“Eddie’s gonna handle it. I’m gonna take Chrissy home. You call me as soon as you’re up, got it? I’ll send the cops here to break down the doors if I don’t hear by lunch time tomorrow.”

“Got it.”

He was gonna forget, but hopefully Eddie would remind him.

When he had bad migraines, he pretty much forget everything he did or said. None of the doctors could explain it. He’d had scans done, and there were no signs of memory diseases, so it was just a part of the trauma from multiple concussions.

He could hear Robin telling Eddie the same thing. If he could make his face work, he’d probably smile.

He drifted again, but he could hear Robin still talking to Eddie as he did.

The next time he was fully aware, he was in a bed. The bed was huge, and there were so many pillows around him, it felt like a fort.

Two blankets were on top of him, one so soft he couldn’t help rubbing his cheek against it. He was surrounded by a cozy, light cologne smell.

He was also fully clothed.

His jeans were itchy, and he suddenly felt claustrophobic as he realized the sun was up and he was alone in a stranger’s bed.

He sat up and looked around.

The room itself wasn’t that big, the bed taking up most of the space. The door was closed, but he could hear someone moving around outside of it. He looked to the right to see a door that must lead to a bathroom.

He quickly got out of the bed, shoving his shoes on and grabbing his wallet off the table. He opened the door and saw the back of a man with long, curly hair.

The bartender.

Eddie.

Eddie had taken care of him during his migraine. His migraine that he should’ve known was coming and stayed the hell home.

He was an idiot.

When Eddie turned around, he felt his heart stop.

God, he was pretty.

Like, Steve might have to change up the nights he comes to the bar just to get a glimpse of this beautiful man.

“Hey. Feeling better? Must be since you’re standing without support.”

Steve blushed. He’d never been in this position before, and he had no idea what the proper etiquette is for thanking someone for taking care of you when you’re unable to even move or talk.

“Uh. Yeah, much better. Um.” Steve awkwardly stood by the counter while Eddie continued mixing coffee in a mug. “Thanks for. All that.”

Eddie was laughing. In another circumstance, Steve may have found it cute, maybe been proud of himself for making a hot guy laugh.

But he was dealing with a migraine hangover, which usually left him grumpy.

Eddie must’ve noticed because he stopped laughing abruptly.

His head tilted to the side as he looked Steve up and down.

“You know, Robin called four times already this morning to check on you. You should probably call her and let her know I didn’t murder you and hide the body already.”

“Okay. Yeah. I.” He felt around in his pockets and couldn’t feel his phone. Shit.

“Over there. Charging.” Eddie said as he pointed towards the table by his front door.

“Thanks.”

Steve walked over to his phone to see 33 missed calls from Robin.

He called her back immediately, not wanting her to actually show up with a SWAT team.

“Thank god! Steve, I told you to call by lunch. I was just about to call Hop.”

“You’re the one who left me here.”

“Yes, assuming you’d wake up early enough that I wouldn’t assume you’ve been murdered!”

“What time is it?”

“Almost 3:00, Steve!”

“Fuck. Okay. I’m leaving now.”

Eddie cleared his throat and nodded at the counter, which now had a plate of fried eggs, toast, bacon, and sausage on it.

“Okay I’m eating, then I’m leaving.”

“You better text me. I’ll show up with Hop!”

“Robin. Jesus.” Steve felt a bit lightheaded. “I am literally at the bar. You know where I am and who I’m with. Chill.”

“You were incapacitated.”

“And now I’m not. I can escape if I have to.”

“You’re not as strong as you think you are!”

He hung up before she kept going. She would stay on the phone for hours if he let her, and he wasn’t in the mood.

He made his way to the counter and sat down, smiling at the steaming food.

“You didn’t have to cook all this. Especially this late in the afternoon. You probably have to head down to the bar.”

“Nah. I own the place. I just work there to keep myself busy. I’m all yours until you’re good to go home.”

Steve didn’t have much of a response for that, his brain still firing on the bare minimum. Migraine hangovers were worse than actual hangovers.

He ate a few bites silently, then looked up to see Eddie setting a cup of tea in front of him.

“What’s this?”

“Technically, sleepy time tea. But it works really well for headaches.”

“Oh. Thanks. It won’t like, make me fall asleep?”

Eddie laughed and Steve decided he was happy to hear it now.

“No. It has relaxing properties to it, but it doesn’t actually make you drowsy.”

Steve took a few small sips and smiled.

“It’s good.”

“My uncle says I make the best.” Eddie leaned over the counter with a smile. “So, you thought going to a bar was a good idea with a headache? On our DJ night?”

“It wasn’t that bad when I left. Thought I’d be okay.”

“Mhm. So you get these a lot?”

“Well. I mean I do get migraines a lot. But that one was one of the worst I’ve had in a while. I can usually still talk and walk enough to get to my own bed.”

“Do you remember everything?”

Steve knew he had a lot of blank spots in his memory from last night. If Eddie wasn’t such a nice guy, he’d probably be more worried about it.

“No. I have memory problems when I get them.”

“Ah. Well that’s okay. I got you into bed pretty easily. You only woke up twice. Once to use the bathroom, which you managed to do alone. The second time you were crying about having to sleep alone? I couldn’t understand all of it, but that seemed to be the gist.”

“Oh.” Steve sighed. “That’s super embarrassing. Guess I’ll never come back here. Maybe never leave my house again.”

Eddie smirked. “I dunno. I think maybe I could fix the sleeping alone thing. You know, when you’re not incapacitated from a migraine.”

“You’re serious?”

Eddie nodded.

“You saw me like that and would actually want to be around me again?”

“I was hoping for more than around you. Maybe on you? In you? Next to you? All of those sound good.”

Steve choked on his next bite.

“Uh.”

He took a sip of the tea to help clear his throat, ignoring the way Eddie was moving around the counter.

“You know, Robin kept me on the phone for about an hour earlier, telling me all about how you’re the best guy she’s ever known and she’s a lesbian for a reason so that means a lot. Said you guys come here once a week because it’s the best place to find decent people, not just anyone. Said you’ve both had a bit of a dry spell.”

“She’s exaggerating.”

“Oh, so it hasn’t been eight months since you’ve taken someone home?”

“No.”

Eddie’s eyebrows raised in a challenge.

“It’s been ten.”

“My bar hasn’t been good to you, I guess.”

“Up until last night, I guess not. But I still prefer it over the clubs.”

“Until last night?”

“Yeah. The guy who owns the place kind of rescued me and let me sleep in his really comfy bed. He probably deserves something for that.”

“Oh? What does he deserve?”

“Well, I’d offer a blowjob, but I’m out of practice and might disappoint.”

“Somehow I doubt that.”

“But maybe he’d be okay with a real date?”

“When would this date be?”

“Maybe tonight?”

“Hm. He has to check the bar schedule, make sure no one needs coverage.”

“He can text me later to confirm.”

“I sure hope you’re giving me your number to do that.”

Steve laughed and held his hand out. Eddie placed his phone in his hand and waited for him to type his name and number in his contacts.

When Steve handed it back, their hands grazed each other. Eddie wrapped his fingers around Steve’s wrist, squeezing for a moment.

“Dinner here? Maybe 8?”

“I thought you had to check the schedule.”

“Nah, just needed your number. I make the schedule, I know it like the back of my hand.”

Steve shook his head.

“Can’t start a relationship on lies.”

“Oh, a relationship? You move quick don’t you.”

Steve did. He knew he did. It’s why he’d never been able to keep anyone around. He moved like he was ready for marriage on the first date, and usually people didn’t like that.

He looked down at his lap, already prepared to lose Eddie’s interest.

But he felt a hand on his cheek, slowly guiding him to look up.

“Dinner here at 8?”

“Uh. Yeah. Please.”

Eddie smirked at him before he placed a soft kiss on his lips.

“Just be yourself, Steve. I like you just fine. And I’ve already seen you at your worst and your crazy best friend. It’s all uphill from here.” Eddie pulled away and moved back to start cleaning dishes from his cooking. “Who knows? Maybe we’ll end up married by the end of the year.”

“Now you’re making fun of me.”

“Am I?”

Eddie looked over his shoulder, serious look on his face.

“Are you?”

“No. Stranger things have happened.”

[aesthetic-bbyg]

BEACON OF HOPE ~ Sanji

LA!sanji x fem!reader

Warnings ! : being yelled at, daddy issues bc it’s the best fanfic seasoning, angst, fluff, abuse from parental figure, double standards, misogyny (or sexism?)

Nattie speaks: a lil something to y’all fed + I need a man like Sanji to comfort me and my daddy issues🙏

ZEFF WAS IN SOME SORT OF MOOD that day. The harsh trudging of his footsteps as he exited and entered the kitchen while bellowing orders was more then enough evidence to prove your point. Nobody in the kitchen even dared to breath the wrong way, afraid of the ex-pirates response. Even Sanji had managed to bite his tongue and hold back any snide remarks to keep the Zeff’s anger at bay.

You avoided any trouble all day, not causing a disturbance when a costumer was being particularly rude. You simply did you’re job was a waitress, took down orders and dropped them off at the kitchen, later coming back to collect the food and give them to the diners. You’d refused to even think about slacking off just a bit, not going over to Sanji for a couple flirtatious exchanges like usual. The Baratie was flooded in a thick tension but all was well, for the most part.

The business was booming with people, that certain point of the day where all the seats were filled with snobby, rich people. You’d been rushing between tables, taking down orders as quick as possible since these people didn’t recognize patience. It was overwhelming and overstimulating, making your temple throb in pain as you dragged you feet into the kitchen. You called out the order in a loud voice, sticking the scribbled notes onto the overhead where Carne cooked up a steak.

“Table 8 says they’ve been waiting for their drink for twenty minutes, y/n, hurry it up!” Zeff’s voice sudden boomed as he marched into the kitchen, you nearly flinched at the sound of his voice, swallowing down a remark about how those twenty minutes was actually a dramatized two minutes. Nonetheless you collected a few cups and took them straight out to table 8, some rich couple and their equally rich kids.

You gave them a kind smile, despite wanting to desperately slap their cocky smirks off their faces. “And are you ready to order?” You questioned in a chirpy tone, reaching for the notepad in your pocket and the pen tucked behind your ear.

“My, we just got our drinks, give us a minute to look over the menu.” The woman scoffed, you sucked you teeth in, blinking slowly and offering another wide grin.

“My apologies, I’ll be back in a bit.” You shoved the notepad back in its place, walking to a booth that was empty, though the table crowded in a mess of dishes. You reached for the sliver platter that held the receipt and a pitiful amount of berry left as a tip. “Assholes.” You mumbled, taking the money and collecting a few plates and cups.

The brewing storm in your head had begun to cloud your vision, sometimes you just wanted to quit and make a dramatic exit out of the shitty restaurant but you never had the balls to. The whole service you’d been good, held your shit together despite wanting to break down on the inside, bit your tongue, but the one moment you got vulnerable ended in tragedy.

In a fit of cursing out some of the customers out in your head, you didn’t take notice of the waiter coming out the kitchen at the exact same time you were entering. The collision led to the shatter of two plates, one cup and a mess of silverware clanking on the floor.

“Fuck.” You mumbled, watching as the waiter scurried away nervously, leaving you at the scene to deal with the approaching man.

“What the hell are you doing!” Zeff shouted, tone practically rumbling the whole restaurant as you stared up at him in utter shock. You felt like a kid again, having to guiltily stand there while an adult went on off on you. The man threw insults that he’d probably regret the next day, humiliating you over a few broken plates. You just stared down at the dirty floor, feeling tiny compared to him. “Clean this up and get out of sight!”

He walked past you, leaving the judging eyes of the kitchen crew to watch as you bent down, slowly picking up the larger chunks. You didn’t even realize that Sanji was approaching till the shadow of his figure loomed over you. You jumped, backing away in fear as you wide eyes met his. The boy frowned, taking notice at the tears pooling in your eyes and you’re quivering lip. You looked like a kicked puppy, that was enough for him to toss the shards of porcelain and help you up.

He took you out the back door, away from the staring eyes as he heard small whimpers escape your mouth. “It’s okay, darling, it’s okay.” He whispered, arms wrapped around your figure, his hand coming up to brush your hair. “The old man is just giving a hard time because he has a stick up his arse.”

You let out silent cries, tears dripping down your face and onto Sanji’s apron, his soothing tone helping ease the tightness in your chest. You felt stupid, and weak, crying over getting reprimanded for something that was your fault. Now your were taking valuable time away from both you and Sanji’s jobs, that’s all you thought about and it made you cry harder.

Funny enough, Sanji was thinking the opposite. He didn’t care about his job, or the broken pieces still laying on the kitchen floor, or even the fact that Zeff could come out any minute and yell at the two for slacking. All he cared about in that moment was you, making sure you cried all the tears you had, making sure that your trembling hands stilled. He placed chaste kisses on your head, standing there until your sobbing quieted down.

He slowly pulled away, hands still placed on your shoulder with a cautious look. “You look lovely, darling.” He chuckled at the sight of the black mascara that began to run down your cheek.

“Piss off.” You muttered humorously, taking the clean rag he offered and wiping away any evidence of your breakdown. “I hate today.”

“I know you do.” He whispered back, taking the cloth and gently swiping away the parts that you missed. “Beautiful as always.”

“Why are old people such assholes.” You shoved your head into his chest, words muffling as you did.

“Because they can’t get it up anymore without breaking a hip.”

You let out a chuckle, smiling against the material of his shirt, his chest vibrating with his own laugh and it calmed you down even more. You took in a deep breath, hands reaching down low, making the cook tense. You grabbed the pack of cigarettes he always had in his pockets, lifting the box with a sly smile.

“Get your head out the gutter.” He laughed quietly, reaching for the lighter in his other pocket as you shoved a cigarette into your mouth.

“Ready to go back in?” He questioned, watching as you puffed out a cloud of smoke.

“Yeah.” You replied quietly, taking a long drag while Sanji opened the door, allowing you to step in first. Gentleman, as always. “If Zeff smells this thing, I’m blaming you.”

The older man hated the stench of burnt out cigarettes that lingered in the air because Sanji had bad habit of lightening one every few hours. The ash tray on the extra table shoved in the corner of the kitchen was full, and Zeff always lectured the blonde on it, Sanji typically never cared enough to stop.

“Blame me all you want, darling, I’ll take the fall each time.” He winked at you, grabbing a dust pan and broom. He lazily swept up the mess, dumping it into the nearby garbage bin, something he knew Zeff would also yell at him about.

“He’s gonna kill you.”

“I’d like to that old man try.” Sanji smirked, giving you that classic flirty look that made the butteries flutter in your stomach. “Now, get back to work.”

You mocked a salut, rolling you’re eyes as you made your way to the kitchen doors, “Yes, chef.”

THE REST OF THE DAY HAD GONE smoothly, the sun hid itself behind the horizon as the dinning area emptied. Most of the guest had migrated to the bar, the party boomed at the other end of the restaurant.

You and Sanji were the only two in the kitchen, he was showing off some new dish he came up with, claiming it was the best thing on the VIP menu.

“We have a VIP menu?”

“Yeah, but it’s so secret that none of the guest know about it, not even the old man.” Sanji grinned, hand off the plate to you. “Now, the food critic decides.”

You rolled your eyes with a playful smile, picking up the fork and scooping up a bite into your mouth. The mixtures of taste were perfectly balance, unique flavors creating a wonderful sensation. There something about Sanji’s cooking that made you feel so safe and warm, you always teased that he was like a granny. He was able to create that familiarity in his food, something you eat every once in a while that reminds you of home.

You placed the fork down, dramatically folding your hands on your lap as you chewed down the food, “This dish, its…absolute shit.” You held back a smile, looking up at the cook.

Sanji glared at you, hands placed firmly on his hips. “You’re starting to sound like Zeff.”

“Ugh,” You groaned, “Don’t remind me.”

“I can’t believe he made you cry.” Sanji slid off into the seat right next to you, watching as the memory of his yelling flickered in your head, lips dipping into a soft frown. “Fuckin’ arse.”

“It really was my fault.” You mumbled back quietly, “But it was the fact that he yelled at me, you shoulda’ seen that look in his eyes.”

“I see it every day, darling.”

You didn’t like to reminisce on the past, especially since it was such a pain to even think about, both physically and emotionally. You didn’t open up about your family, or the crew you use to be a part of before running into the open arms of the Baratie. You were truly a mystery, you’re past locked up in a box and buried deep in the sand. Though sometimes, it escapes, poisoning you’re mind and breaking you down.

Zeff’s blow up triggered that poison, it spread like a virus, clouding you’re head for the rest of the day. Even now, you’d begun to dig up memories you didn’t want to remember. It was enough to make a fresh wave of tears build up, but you refused to cry this time, not allowing a single droplet to escape as you blinked them away. Though the quiet sniffle gave you away as Sanji glanced over at you, taking notice of the redness under your eyes, a silent confession that told him you were upset.

“You all right, darling?” He asked quietly, brows creased with worry, “Zeff isn’t here, he can’t make you feel like shit anymore.”

“It’s not that.” You whispered back, inhaling a shaky deep breath, “I’m just..thinking.”

“Thinking about what?” He asked, a comforting hand coming to hold yours. “If you need to talk about something you can talk to me.”

Silence filled the room as you struggled with making a decision, the truth was you’d probably start crying your eyes out if you opened your mouth. But the longer you held in these memories, the more toxic the venom became, it was tug-of-war between yourself and your conscious. Then again, the same trauma of the memories is what makes it such a hard task to open up.

You licked your lips, squeezing his hand gently and looking down. “I came from a pirate crew, but this pirate crew in specific was my family. Everyone on the ship was made up of all my relatives, mom, dad, siblings, cousins.” You saw the man nod from the corner of your eye, silently confirming his attendance. “My dad was the captain of the crew, and god he was a fuckin’ pain in the ass.” You voice cracked, words beginning to distort as you sucked in a deep breath. “My job on the crew was to basically be a maid, to pick up after the messes he made. Scrub the bird shit off the ledge, mop the deck, shine his shoes, serve him food, serve him drinks, anything a basic human can do I had to do for him.” You’re sadness had slowly began to turn to anger, your eyes lifting to finally meet his. “I got nothing in return, not even a few berry for the trouble.”

Sanji frowned deeply, rubbing the back of your hand with his thumb. “Why would your father do this to you?”

His questioned made you scoff, because it was the same thing you asked the eighteen years your spent on the torturous ship. It wasn’t until you grew out of the naivety that you realized the answer. “Because I was a woman, and as a woman it was my job, my place, to provide service for the men. I was treated like shit all my life, and no one dared to say a thing.” You stood up, hand pulling away from his as you ran it through your hair frustratedly, moving to pace the kitchen. “The men believed that it was the job of a good wife to give and give, while they just take. I seemed to be the only one who didn’t believe this. But no one could ever speak up to the man, the captain himself, god forbid you disobeyed that asshole because he was never wrong, no matter the situation.” You finally sat back down, picking at your nails. “For years I was treated like nothing more then a slave, yelled at for being to slow, never praised for my work, only picked on what was wrong. It changed my way in seeing people, and it permanently left a scar on my everyday life. Hearing Zeff yell at me that way, it’s just..”

“I know, darling, I know.” Sanji cooed, for soft and tender, “That day, when you first arrived at The Baratie, you had a mark on your left cheek.” The cook swallowed thickly, recalling the day you’re feeble body came to the doors of the restaurant and begged for help. “Was that from him?”

The day before you escaped the ship you’d been refused food, as a punishment for not finishing your chores in time. When you spoke up about being hungry and the unfairness of it all, you received a harsh slap across the face. That was it, that was the last bit of disrespect you’d take. So you set off to steal a life boat and run away from the horrible treatment. “Yes, it was.”

“Bloody hell.” Sanji muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose. “What was the name of your families crew?”

“The Calavera pirates.” You replied, Sanji leaned in closed, placing a finger on your chin to lift your gaze towards him.

“I’ll remember that name until the end of my life, and the day I find them, know that your same pain will be brought upon them.” His tone was so serious and low. His threat sent a chill down your spine, and not because you were scared of it, but because you knew he meant it. “You deserved so much better, darling.” He whispered, bringing you into his arms and planting a kiss on your hairline.

Sanji so desperately wanted to open his mouth and say that he’d treat you like a queen if you’d just give him a chance. But the man’s feelings were shoved down before they could tumble out his mouth. He chose to remain silent, allowing his actions to speak for him. With this new confession he made it his mission to take the extra step in making sure you were treated right. He would be your shoulder to cry on or someone to love, whatever you wanted. It was painful, the amount of love he held in his heart and he was unable to fully show you it.

But if he must wait all his life, he will.

sobbing but wanting to smash at the same time

lord pls send help.

[writingescapades]

Peafowls I - Peacock

It was your book that started the whole escapade. Here he was, a senior manager with the IPC. A man with a troublesome past, a burdensome present, and an uncertain future. Blessed by the goddess, he still gambled with his fate and let all outcomes rain over him. Pretentious, he waved his feathers to razzle, dazzle, and take back what stolen from him.

And you?

You were the Chief Information Manager of the IPC. A silent figure in the background that most people forgot about or groaned over. You did you job and because you did it well, you were partnered with him. A new project meant generating, accessing, creating, and storing information and given the precarious nature of this new project, Aventurine found that he had to work closely alongside you in order to see this project through.

At first, he thought this would just be another project with another IPC member. He wore his sunglasses but waited for the inevitable questions that failed to soften the speaker’s malicious thoughts. He waited for the brisk attitude and the clear desire to be anywhere but around him. But you smiled at him. You greeted him, and you asked him how he was doing.

He watched you. Your reputation preceded you. You came ready with information and questions. You knew how to extract information out of others, and you knew where to keep it safe, secure, and away from prying eyes. Focused. Responsible. Brilliant. So what were you doing working for the IPC? Wasting your talent with an unsavory crowd? It was clear you actually enjoyed your work, but there were other organizations desperately in need of the same role. If you went out into the market, people would chase after your skills. What kept you here?

He fell into his flattering speech. He called you his friend. He told you to use and misuse him as you liked. You gently brushed off his charms. You smiled when he called you friend, and you frowned when he told you to twist him about your fingers. But you didn’t comment much else. Warm but distant to everyone, not just him. Antisocial. Afterall what else would you call reading at a casino? Everyone dresses to impress at a casino. It’s just a part of fitting in while subtly communicating to desired parties. Yet there you sat, near the bar, in plain clothes, engrossed in a book. He saw the glares the bartender threw at you. Your association with the IPC was all that kept him from kicking you away for a paying customer.

Aventurine played a few hands. Each time he won he found himself glancing at you. You were right in his periphery, but you never lifted your head from the book. It was to become a repeated occurrence, the only thing changing was the book you read or the game he played. Finally, one night, he decided to indulge his curiosity and ask what you were reading. You mumbled the name, your attention not yet pulled away, towards him. It irritated him, though he couldn’t understand why. So he called you out, asked you why you were even here when you could go home and read.

Now you looked up at him, and Aventurine saw eyes that revealed nothing. He rested his head over his folded arms and watched as you rested yours on your palm. Neither person spoke, though for different reasons. Finally you sighed and looked at him with a small smile.

“Because I’m your friend, aren’t I?”

Aventurine stayed silent. He watched as your smile turned more mischievous as your waited for his response. Were you really here because you thought of him as a friend? Unable to answer the question or face you, Aventurine left that night. But something changed in your relationship. You became chattier and he often had to watch his words least you thew him a quip. He found himself asking for your thoughts as he planned. It was, fun. Nice. Certainly entertaining. You didn’t stop reading at the casino, but now you both went and left together. He was often the one to lead you to the casino, but you lead him out into the night air.

It was here, in twilight, when most were between sleep and rising, that Aventurine found answers to his questions about you. He saw your kindness. He saw your humour. He found himself slipping, forgetting who he was and just enjoying the moment. You were dangerous. What’s more, Aventurine saw your true character, the way your face warped to hide the insanity that lay thinly underneath. The sudden change in your personality when someone passed a snide remark about him. The way you stood by his side with your head held high. But he wasn’t a fool. He knew you were acting by your principles and not for him personally. You were harsh, and he told you so one night.

You stared at him with stiff eyes and tight lips.

“It’s who I am. To change would be to lie to myself”.

Oh, you had a story to tell. But, it slowly dawned on Aventurine that he cared too much about you to ask for that story, to try to pry it out, or go behind your back. He started to wonder. To dream. Hope. Did you feel the same about him? Is that why, despite curious eyes, you never asked too much about him? Did you already cast judgement on his soul? Or did you just not care about him? Was he just another story in the hundreds you razed through? He didn’t know which outcome he desired enough to gamble upon.

“You see things too intensely,” he found himself saying to you one day. “I think that’s why you’re so disenchanted by life. You can only find admirable people in your books”.

Yet despite his premonitions, Aventurine found himself drawn towards you. He had long stopped wearing his sunglasses around you. He always strutted for himself but was pleased if his dance caught your attention. You walked calmly ahead in life while he danced around. Sometimes he stumbled and wondered if you would leave him behind, but you always slowed down, stopped, and held out your hand, waiting for him just as he waited for you. You desires overlapped despite the difference in personalities.

“Is it so wrong to desire power if it’s only over your own life?” You had asked him one day, and he found himself unable to oppose you any longer.

He tested you, told your things to gage your thoughts and reactions. Instead of running away, he realized that you two started to dance around each other. Promising everything but that which neither was willing to barter.

“We’ll crown ourselves with crests of spurs,” you said softly as your looked out into the land. It had been a tiring day and for once, Aventurine just wanted to collapse into bed. He had too many wishes of you being there beside him, but it was still to frightening. Still to early. Not yet, but maybe, maybe one day.

He didn’t tell you his plan. He didn’t tell you what was about to happen, and his only regret was not being able to see your face crack one last time before he disappeared.

[crushedsweets]

i am so so sorry for the sheer amount of headcanons i'm making you crank out, HOWEVER... i am so curious as to if you have any headcanons for nina and natalie as a duo. i love the way you perceive them and write them it genuinely makes me so happy

i had to doodle them . ok. lets go..

nat was one of the first people nina met from jeff, since she and jeff lived in the barn together.

nina thought nat was a lesbian when they first met . that is literally the only reason why she wasnt mad jeff was living with a woman.

although nina was like, one of the ONLY people to notice toby/nat tension and was sooo heartbroken when she realized they were never getting together..... but then was relieved they didnt get together when she got over jeff because 'well i can't be the only single one!'

again, natalie grew up with 0 girl friends, only hung out with her brother and boys. even after meeting the creeps, theyre still mostly guys. so she's just kinda really awkward and weird around girls. not in a like, 'oh girls r so annoying' way but like... she just doesnt know how to fit in. she just feels so different in the worst possible way and always has.

and nina is very girly, outgoing, touchy, friendly, cute, etc. so it was very like UMMM?!? idk. natalie kept snapping at her, assuming she was fake and weird and just trying to get something from nat, but nina was so persistent and just. friendly. it started making natalie feel warm.

nina's presence started to heal natalies inner little girl. she had it stolen from her time and time again, from her dad, her brother, her peers - the operator, too.

so the two are eventually actual friends. they'll text and play mobile phone games together. sometimes they'll just sit on call and nina will be talking her head off while nat does her own thing at home. one time nat was at tobys cabin and nina was talking about toby on speaker and toby walked in and was like 'hey nina' .... nina almost threw up she was so embarrassed.

nina loves visiting nats bar because everyone is always talking to nina and giving her attention and buying her drinks, and at first nat was irritated but it kinda got nat some better tips since the customers started realizing ninas her friend. so nat was pleased. LOL

nat was never the type to go shopping, but she'll follow nina around and sit while nina tries on clothes and carry around all her bags that she buys LOL... ninas made jokes about nat being boyfriend material and nat just flatout says smth about how nina should get over jeff cuz he would never.

nat is friends with jeff but she's oddly comfortable just telling nina that he's a piece of shit. and ninas always like NOOO U DONT GET IT U DONT SEE WHAT I DO and nats always just .. not... impressed..

nina's always inviting nat out to try new foods. nat grew up just eating bread and noodles with butter half the time so it's fun. nina always tries to pay bc 'well i invited you!!!'. sometimes toby tags along but he feels a way abt going in public places..

nina rarely visits jack cuz she has no reason to, but nat is friends with him so sometimes nina pops in and she's always like ^_^ HELLO TALL MYSTERIOUS SLIGHTLY MONSTEROUS MAN... <3... nat smacks the back of her head cuz she's being dumb and drooling over a bunch of rando freaks. ... . ok i love nina and she owes jeff nothing but she is def not loyal LOLLLL AND SHE HAS THE RIGHT TO FAWN OVER EVERYONE she's a fangirl at heart.

they watch a ton of shows together. nina got nat into horror kdrama stuff, but they have to watch in dub cuz nat cant read the subtitles fast enough . . . at first nina cringed but now she doesnt care.

nat's painted/drawn nina several times, and nina almost cries everytime. she's put the drawings up on her wall before but anytime nat's at her apartment, she takes it down bc 'i dont want my art on ur wall stop it' LOL... kinda rude but whatevs.

ugh theyre just so fucking cute guys im sorry i love them . holds them. brushes their hair.

[whatthefishh]

Oxford Comma

Rydal Keener x f!Reader

Summary: You got into Harvard, based on your own merit. Rydal was a legacy kid and pissed you off every chance he could get. AKA the 90s University AU I spent two full days working on.

Words: 7k+

Warnings: NSFW, oral sex (m and f receiving), p in v, cream pie, Rydal is a cunt lmfao, a lot of run on sentences and overly describing situations because you just had to be there

Series Masterlist

———-

It all starts during homecoming. 

Well, sort of. 

That’s when you met him.

\\\

“I didn’t even want to go to school here, you know. Fucking bullshit,” you heard someone say. 

You bristled at the thought that someone would want to turn down the posh ivy university that you somehow managed to get a scholarship to. You had busted your ass for your grades and extracurriculars, balancing being on the school paper and being top of your class just for the chance to apply to Harvard. And here this prep kid was, complaining that this wasn’t his top choice. The privilege was pouring out of him like a faucet.

“Didn’t your dad bribe you though? He bought you a new car. Like, the exact car you’ve been whining about,” the taller boy said.

“It wasn’t a bribe–”

“And! Didn’t you get a custom licence plate? Something that had to do with Greek mythology or some shit–”

“You’re a fucking idiot,” the snooty boy sniffed. “He chose the plate. Wanted everyone to know who it actually belonged to.”

“Well– yeah. Still, we’re legacies. May as well use it to our advantage.”

You were listening so closely that when someone behind you in the crowd of students bumped you too hard, your drink spilled on the taller boy’s shoes. Not a lot, but enough to embarrass you in front of the clearly well-off duo. They both turned around to look at you at the same time, the shared weight of their accusatory gaze shrinking you even further, if that was even possible.

Chester, the taller boy whose name you had come to learn after hearing the snooty boy refer to him as such, threw a fit about the now dried cranberry stain on his crisp white Sperry’s, which he had apparently just purchased. 

The other boy, the one who didn’t want to go to school here, was watching you amusedly the whole time, his lids low as he slowly took in your appearance while you were stuttering out an apology to Chester. You didn’t notice how he was watching you until he interrupted you and said that it was fine. That he’d buy his friend another pair, to which you did a double take, catching his winning smile. That ten kilowatt smile probably got him out of a lot of situations, and he was aiming it at you now. For what, you didn’t know. He was genuinely very handsome. In a classic, old money kind of way. Sweaters around his shoulders, Ray-Ban wearing, summer in the Hampton's kind of way. To be honest, it just made you dislike him more. The uncomfortable feeling spreading over your body in goosebumps under his stare, most likely manifesting into a cringe-worthy blush across your cheeks. 

You needed to get away. Hopefully, this was a one-off and you’d never have to see or speak to them ever again. After an uncomfortable ten or so seconds of silence, you turned on your heel and walked into the crowd, not bothering to catch the other boy’s name.

///

The distinct smell of his expensive cologne hit your nose before you saw him again. 

Looking up from the list detailing the books you needed for your semester, you stopped short as someone cut in front of you in the aisle of the campus bookstore. The back of his head rang familiar but you couldn’t place him, until he grabbed something off the shelf – the last copy of The Communist Manifesto in his hands – and turned to give you a smug smirk when your eyes connected. You couldn’t help but flick your eyes back and forth between his eyes and the title in his hand, the same book you needed for your Perspectives of Politics course. And he’d just taken the last copy available.

“I…I was going to buy that,” your voice came out weaker than intended.

“Were you?” he was still smiling at you, infuriatingly. 

“Yeah, right before you jumped in front of me. It’s the last one in stock.”

“Hmm. Didn’t see you reaching for it. Guess you’ll just have to order it online then.”

You grit your teeth together, trying to go for polite but by the way his eyes lit up at your jaw clicking, you were having a hard time keeping it together.

“Come on, they’re like double the price online, I’m sure it wouldn’t hurt daddy’s wallet. Let me have this one!”

You grimaced as soon as the words left your mouth. They were ugly and not the way you wanted to carry yourself at a prestigious school such as Harvard, especially not to someone whose parent was a faculty member. 

He arches a brow and takes a deep breath in before tilting his head back and staring down his nose at you. He wasn’t much taller than you, not really, but he held himself with such distinction that you couldn’t help but feel three feet shorter. 

“Listen, I don’t know what backwater town you came from, but we don’t use those words around here unless you’re moaning about it.”

God, you hated him. You wanted the floor to swallow you up so you could disappear from this awkward fucking moment. 

Narrowing your eyes at him, your tongue once again got you in trouble, “Motherfucker,” you whispered incredulously. 

“No, my name is Rydal. But you were close.” 

He shook his head, the smug look back on his face as he walked away from you, leaving you to gape at the empty aisle trying to rewind time. 

\\\

You only realize he’s in your class when midterms come around, seeing him show up to write an exam for a course he’s never attended in person.

You avoid him, casting your eyes downward until you pass by him, too ashamed of your last conversation all those weeks ago to even look him in the eye. 

He finishes the exam quicker than someone should be able to for someone who hasn’t attended a single lecture. It’s almost questionable. Until you see several other students get up around the same time as him, leaving a good two thirds of the lecture hall still full. You’re still around the halfway point of the exam, and trying your best to remember what it was you read about capitalism and Marx, and but the moment from the bookstore comes to mind, your thoughts unintentionally drifting to Rydal again. His deep set eyes watching you from atop his aristocratic nose, lips parting curiously, temptingly–

You’re writing an exam, for fuck’s sake. Shaking your head and blinking rapidly to get rid of the thoughts (read: thots) you were having, you shifted your attention back to the papers in front of you. 

You double checked everything before handing it in, well before the last third of students finished. A small part of you bitterly wondered how he had managed to finish so quickly, but you again didn’t let yourself brood for too long.

///

You didn’t see him but you saw Chester in the library once, kicking the printer in an attempt to make it work after jamming for the umpteenth time. 

You made eye contact after he had just done so, your body freezing at the exact moment your eyes met inadvertently and making your library trip last half as long as you initially intended. If you were being honest with yourself, which honestly you were, way too often and mostly to your detriment, you high-tailed it out of there out of fear of running into Rydal. If Chester was around, you could safely bet that he was probably nearby, the two frenemies often spending their free time together. 

Planning on finishing your paper in your dorm, you made your way back, secretly hoping your roommate wasn’t there. You had no problems with her, she was actually really nice to you and often wordlessly gave you snacks if she saw you skipping meals. The thing was…

Your roommate started smoking weed and thought she was being slick about it. She wasn’t.

The smell of it followed her in the dorm, leaving its teeth marks in the sweaters she left around, in the bathroom where she would spend an hour in the shower washing it out of her hair, and in her bed sheets when she’d come back from god knows where smoking up. 

There was one night when she came back with some gummies for you to share, since she noticed you being on edge and wanted to help, bless her. You kindly refused, since you were in the middle of crying about your grades, but appreciated the thought nonetheless. 

Your midterm came back with a lower grade than you expected. Your project partner didn’t finish their part of the assignment, forcing you to do most of it yourself. You were going to get a lower grade than you wanted, than you needed to keep your scholarship. You had to get at least a 90% on the final to keep your average where it needed to be. How the fuck were you supposed to accomplish that? What with the stress of managing your finances and trying to blend in to this stupid crowd, most of the kids around you not having to even think about any of the shit that was on your mind. 

You couldn’t fail, you weren’t allowed the same slip ups half of the students around you were allowed. Not only could you barely afford your meals on campus, but you were skipping dinner some days, desperate to make it to the end. It’s not like you could ask anyone at home for help, that was a write-off. You were here off your own merit and volition. You and you alone. You thought about all your peers who had help getting here, jealousy rising like bile in your throat. You needed this more than them. And yet you felt hopeless when you thought back to the pre-requisite course you were failing.

Okay, fine. Not failing, just falling below the mark you needed.

Which you tried explaining to your roommate. Her casual suggestion made you stop crying immediately, turning to her in confusion.

“Why don’t you just buy an answer key?”

What. The. Fuck.

“What the fuck?”

“Yeah, like the answer key to the final. I’m sure someone has it.”

“Like… you mean like someone’s selling the answers to the exams we’ve been writing? Like… a student? Isn’t that against school rules?”

She laughed and looked at you like you’d grown two heads.

“Of course it’s against school rules, that’s why you have to be careful who you ask. Honestly, how have you been getting by this whole time? Don’t tell me you’ve actually been doing every single reading?” she asked you as if the mere thought of it was ridiculous.

You just stared at her in stunned silence, a little bashfully when you had no reason to be. 

“Oh honey, go ask Rydal, I’m sure he has it.”

Now you were going to scream.

“W-what?” you were struggling to wrap your head around it. The same Rydal whose father was a professor at the school, the same Rydal who left the exam early for a class he never fucking showed up for – that scumbag was cheating and still had the audacity to steal the last copy of the book you needed right out of your stingy hands. 

The sound of your roommate talking faded into noise as you were thinking about all the times you felt less than, and all the times you stayed up late in the library studying, trying to prove yourself to your professors and peers when all this time half the student body was probably buying their way through school and doing the bare minimum.

You realize she’s been droning on about how cute he was today, and how kindly he offered to roll her weed for her when she bought the dime off him and it occurred to you that she was still talking about Rydal. Her weed dealer, Rydal. 

A thought occurred to you. 

“Where’s his dorm?” you adopted a fake tone of cheerful curiosity. 

She adapted to your change in diction better than you could’ve hoped for really, giving you the information you were looking for and feeling altruistic about herself in the process.

He opened his door with an air of boredom, masking his surprise at finding you there – your eyes probably red from crying, hands wringing in front of you – and leaning against it with his arms crossed, looking you up and down before asking, “can I help you?” with a twist of his lips.

Taking a deep breath and trying not to literally twiddle your thumbs, you start explaining how you need at least a 90 on the exam to keep your GPA, trying to skirt around the topic of maintaining your scholarship. For whatever reason, you felt the need to hide your financial status in front of him, and you were already here groveling for his help. You didn’t need to hand over your dignity on a silver platter for him. 

Halfway through your monologue, he opens the door more fully for you, signaling for you to enter with a slight tilt of his head. Looking around his dorm, you take in the frames and posters lining his walls; the stack of books next to his extremely comfortable looking bed; his mostly cleared desk; an acoustic guitar half hidden behind it; and a hefty looking filing cabinet with a lock. It was much loftier than yours looked, even with the lived in state. His worn but expensive denim jacket hung off the chair at his desk, and you briefly wondered what the hell his deal was. Why was this rich kid with daddy issues acting out in a clear violation of several campus rules and regulations, pulling out a spliff from behind his ear to rest between his lips and light it up lazily in front of you? 

“D’you wanna hit?” he asks, blowing the smoke out as he watches you gingerly look around for somewhere to sit. You shake your head ‘no’, tugging at the hem of your Harvard t-shirt. 

“Take a seat, I have to find the copy,” he says gesturing to his unmade bed. 

So you do, you sit in the same place his body had been prior to you knocking on his door and you can tell by the traces of cologne you pick up as soon as you sit down.

You try not to stare as he’s bent over the heavy duty cabinet, rifling through the folders - criminally organised, this one – until he finds the one he’s looking for and turns around to catch you staring at his bum, your eyes widening as they meet his a second too late. 

"Y'know, you look good like that,” he says, leaning his hip against the cabinet and looking at you down his nose again, his lids laying low over his brown eyes. 

"Like what?" you ask, despite you already having a feeling where he was going with this. 

Rydal smiles, like you played into his hand exactly like he wanted you to.

"Sitting on my bed."

"Just give me the photocopies, Rydal."

"Alright, alright,” you stood up to grab them from his outstretched hand, more than ready to leave his cave of horrors. 

Except he doesn't let go when you grab them. 

"How much?"

He still hasn’t let go; you’re at an impasse with how to proceed. Looking up at him with a slight panicked look, he concedes, finally releasing the paper from his grip.

"For you? Nothing, for now.”

“The fuck does that mean?”

“Means you owe me one,” he said with an unethical twist of his pink lips. 

"I don't know how I feel about that."

"I have a feeling you'll like the way it feels,” he was ushering you out now, his hand on the small of your back raising goosebumps in its wake. Once in the hallway again, you turned around poised to dish it back but he didn’t give you the chance. Rydal winked at you before swinging his door shut in your face, leaving you half confused and half flustered at his blatant flirting and somewhat generosity. 

///

The next time you see Rydal is at a frat party that your roommate somehow convinced you to go to. She had insisted you needed a night out, a normal university experience she had called it, ever since she found out about your long study hours. Apparently, she had thought you were seeing someone and that’s why you were out late, not because you’d been holed up in the library this whole time. So she took it upon herself to throw some of her clothes at you, more expensive than anything you owned, albeit shorter and tighter. 

“This isn’t my size,” you tried to tell her from inside the bathroom you shared. 

“Yes, it is, stop being dumb and let me see,” she was being nice, you reminded yourself.

Groaning, you opened the door to reveal the kitschy micro pleated skirt she had lent you with the thigh high socks, to go with it. You felt ridiculous, but by the way her eyes lit up at the sight of you, you were made to believe that it was a good look, despite the irony of the academia look gone wrong, all things considered. 

Before she could drag you out any further, you managed to swipe your oversized denim jacket to throw on top for the chill November air, letting her drone on about how she wants to find you a guy tonight. 

The party was being held in a dated building on campus, hosting one of the many fraternities that Harvard has to offer, and of course, one of the many yearly gatherings where students come together to make terrible, horrible decisions together. The structure itself is historically beautiful from the outside, if one were to ignore the trashed students huddled together in swaying groups as the speakers from within the house blared out Hypnotize. There were shouts coming from inside the house, a constant stream of students going to and fro, and someone was most definitely throwing up in the hedge. 

Linking her arm through yours so she wouldn’t lose you to the throngs of people, your roommate pulled you through, ending up at the drinks table.

“Pick your poison,” she urged you, before turning and saying hello to a bunch of people you didn’t know, leaving you alone for a minute before he descended upon you.

“Step on me, would ya?” his soft voice was closer to your ear than you expected anyone to be. 

Your head whipped around and even his eyes widened at seeing your face, not having known it was you from behind. 

“Are you lost or something?” you scoffed at him. 

“Oh my god, Rydal! So good to see you,” your roommate swooped in at just the right time, stepping between you two to hug him, a hug that he returned though he kept his eyes on you the whole time. “You two know each other, right?”

He cleared his throat before smiling and nodding at her, answering all her socialite questions before seeing someone he knew across the room and taking his leave. You knew this outfit was a bad idea. 

“Babe, I’m gonna go dance with Sebastian over there, is that okay? He keeps smiling at me and– don’t look at me like that, I’ll be back soon, I promise, okay?” 

You felt bad, not wanting to keep her from having fun so you assured her you’d be fine, busying yourself with your drink and finding something to snack on. Which led you to search for the food table, it was bound to be here somewhere. Near the drinks is where they usually set it up, right? It should be here – 

He was already staring when your gaze landed on him, looking at you through his lashes from across the room, his index finger resting on his tongue as he licked off whatever food was leftover on it. You felt your cheeks heat as he didn’t look away, the pink of his mouth wrapping around his finger now and making a show out of cleaning it while he looked you up and down. 

Oh, fuck him, you needed some space. The back door was nowhere to be seen so you pivoted and took the stairs two steps at a time in your rush to find the bathroom. After brushing past some older, more inebriated students draped over each other in the hallway, you found an unoccupied bedroom, rather nondescript and clean to belong to this house, at least. Stripping yourself of your jean jacket, you tossed it somewhere near the door. Taking a few breaths to steady your racing heart, you tried to shake the tantalizing image of him and his perfect mouth out of your head, the way his lips wrapped around his finger and leaving behind a trail of spit–

The door swung open and you were about to apologize, presumably to the resident of whoever’s room you were occupying but the words died on your lips when you noticed it was him, closing the door behind him. 

You don’t have the energy to deal with whatever brand of crazy has him acting up tonight, his eyes drinking you in now that he has you cornered like a predator. Taking the moment to study the boy before you, to really study him, you notice he’s not really that tall and not really that imposing. The watch on his wrist looks old and worn, not like his flashy counterparts you thought he was similar to. His polo shirt, though obviously expensive judging by the material and the way it draped over his shoulders, was minimalistic in design. No logo, if any, was immediately visible, and you realized you wouldn’t have known about his ridiculous opinion of the institution if you weren’t eavesdropping that first day, and honestly? He’s probably someone you could have befriended upon first glance (or fallen for, but that’s neither here nor there).

You’re eyeing him with blatant distrust. He’s an asshole at times but his lips part as if he were about to speak and then thought better of it, cocking his head while searching for the right words and you’re waiting with baited breath, crossing your arms across your abdomen and inadvertently pushing your breasts up just enough, because why the fuck did he follow you up here?

He has the audacity to look a bit ashamed actually before deciding to press his fingers to his lips and not speak.

“You’re not going to say anything?” you manage.

He shakes his head and you can see the smile he's trying to hide behind his hand, “well I was going to, but I didn’t want to come off like a dick.” 

You narrow your eyes and sigh, “what? Just say it.”

“I wanted to cash in that favour, what with you looking like… well, like that.” His hand finally leaves his mouth to vaguely wave in the directions of your legs. 

///

So, you meant to put up more of a fight. 

Really.

You didn’t mean to give in to his stupid advances so easily, so wantonly, and you don’t even remember who moved first but you remember it being a damn good kiss. Rydal basically devoured your mouth, tongues fighting for dominance soon after your lips met with one hand cupping the back of your neck and the other pulling your body closer by your hip. You pushed his jacket off him while his hands reached under the hem of your top, fingers pressing into your skin. You finally had the opportunity to rake your fingers through his dark locks, causing him to moan into your mouth and bite your bottom lip in retaliation and you swore you could feel the vibrations in your fucking tonsils, your hips rocking into his and you could feel him–

Time seemed to blur, and suddenly you found yourself on your knees, his hands hurriedly unbuckling his belt while you looked up at him from below, his cheeks dusted pink. Massaging the head of his cock through his stupid corduroy pants, he whined under his breath, pushing your hand away to pull himself out of his briefs.

He’s so fucking thick. After unceremoniously pulling out his cock, he didn’t want to force you to do anything, his arms hanging awkwardly by his sides while you just blinked stupidly at it, watching the tip as it leaked out a drop of precum.

Rydal was watching you watch his cock, before you finally gripped the base and leaned forward to kitten lick the tip, and his hesitation flew out the window. His hand buried itself in your hair, not pushing but holding so gently, it was almost tender and it occurred to you that you wanted to wreck him.

Opening your mouth to let more of him in, you breathe in deeply through your nose until you feel him graze the back of your throat, hearing him stutter a breath when you do. Moving your mouth over him until the hilt, you repeated your movement, fingers tightly gripping his base and ignoring the way his thumb rubbed your cheek on every pass. You chanced a look up at him and saw his wild eyes watching you, groaning when your eyes met. His hips unintentionally thrust forward, hitting the back of your throat and causing you to swallow around the tip, both of you moaning at the same time. 

An ache is building in your jaw but you were determined to make him lose his shit, he drove you crazy and despite you being on your knees for him, you felt in control of the moment, taking pleasure from it. There was a throbbing between your thighs that you tried your hardest to ignore for the time being. 

He was whining now, and you continued to bob your head over his cock, obsessed with driving him further to the edge. Rydal made the prettiest noises, even his exhales were music to your ears and you were glad that you were completely sober enough to remember this, to remember how his head dropped back when you swirled your tongue around his fat tip, the sensitive spot underneath the head and you think he might come. You can't help but wonder if he'll taste any different having fed from a silver spoon all his life

Hes whining a lot now, please– so good j-just like that, God yes – you’re sure hes about to blow his load and you’re preparing yourself to take it as he starts bucking into your mouth but before he can the door swings open and none other than fucking Chester walks in and the moment’s diffused, dissolved, deflated, you’re on your feet faster than you realize and you grab your jacket from the floor as Chester guffaws at the scene. Your feet take you down the stairs and out of the house in a daze, you don’t hear Rydal calling your name behind you in your haste to leave and you see your roommate still with Sebastian, leaving her in his good hands as you make your way back to your dorm. 

Halfway through the Quadrangle you realize you weren’t wearing your own jacket, Rydal’s cologne wafting from it in the humid pre-rain atmosphere. Great, now you had a corporeal reminder of what just transpired. Out of everybody at that party to walk in on the two of you, it had to be his best friend, the one who he was probably going to dish all the dirty details to anyway. 

“Ughhhh!” you groaned once you reached your empty dorm room. 

The entire walk back was filled with images of Rydal, the way his hair felt between your hands, the way his thumb was softly caressing your cheek, the way he felt heavy in your mouth, the way his eyes looked at you like he couldn’t believe his reality. What a waste of your time, you thought bitterly. Neither of you even got the chance to finish what you started. 

Neatly folding the borrowed clothes on your roommates bed, you forced yourself to sleep, only able to nod off after several failed attempts to relieve the buildup between your thighs. 

///

The next two weeks went by uneventfully. Never mind you leaving your dorm for literally anything other than necessities. Classes ended a week before exams, the library was full at all hours, so you resigned yourself to studying in your bed and at your desk. Your roommate spent half her time at her desk and the other half at her new boyfriend’s dorm, Sebastian. That fateful night turned out in her favour, ironically.

She had actually asked you what happened and if you were okay, not having found you after your pathetic runaway stunt. 

“Uhh, I had a really bad acid trip. Ended up here, no memory of how.” 

She nodded at you solemnly, her hand coming to rest on your shoulder comfortingly as if you’d just told her someone in your family had died. 

Rydal’s jacket rests on the back of your chair, the smell of it lingering, both comforting and disconcerting at the same time. You’re bad at lying to yourself so you’ve come to terms with the fact that you enjoyed what happened between you two at the party and felt real regret that you couldn’t finish what you started, going home empty handed. Like a kid at the carnival with no prize, it was stolen from you at the last second and you had to leave before letting them see how badly you wanted it. 

And you did, you wanted him so badly. You almost hate yourself for acknowledging it but when you closed your eyes he was all you could see, his face moments before coming down your throat. Studying in a perpetual state of horniness wasn’t doing you any favours either. You had taken to going for early morning runs to get rid of the itch under your skin, having given up on trying to relieve it yourself. 

The answer key worked, flawlessly of course. You still studied, you weren’t completely undignified in your cheating. It’s not like you were behind in the course, so you did your due diligence and it turned out in your favour. You hung around after finishing, double checking your work and then handing it in with the first half of the class and leaving the examination room with a pep in your step. Once again your thoughts strayed to Rydal, and how you should thank him for his help but then memories of your thanks came to mind and you decided he already got his dues.

Still, you had his jacket. You should probably take it back, all things considered. You turned in your seat to check the tag, curious as to how much it cost him. No doubt that it cost more than half your closet – Balmain. 

Okay, upon first glance it was just a basic denim jacket, but now that you knew it was designer, you noticed the detailing, the strong hardware and clean top stitching that held it together. A quick google search told you it cost him nearly $3,000 and you’re rendered speechless that he hasn’t come knocking down your door and calling you a thief. 

Your leg starts bouncing under your desk, his cologne somehow more fragrant while the words on your laptop screen stop making sense, jumbling together as your mind screams at you to return the jacket at once.

///

Twenty minutes later you’re knocking on his door.

You speed walked here, his jacket in hand. Yes, it was cold outside, but you braved the wind and refused to put the denim on, based entirely on principle and fear that you’d be billed in case anything happened to it while you wore it. Your heart was beating out of your chest as you tried to listen to the shuffling behind his door. What if he wasn’t home? What if he was and didn’t want to see you? What if Chester was here? What if he had a girl over?!

Before you could drop his jacket and leave, the door opened to a shirtless Rydal, sweatpants hung low on his hips and he held a towel to his hair, drying it while looking at you with a clear question in his eyes. 

“Um, hi. I just came here to return this, since, well since I mistook it for mine. They basically look the same except yours cost you like, a lot more than mine did so it's okay if you don’t have it, I kind of ran away. Anyway, I’m gonna go–”

“You still owe me a favour, y’know.”

You pause in your turn, looking at him exasperatedly. He doesn’t even have the shame this time, there’s no pause in his words, no hand to cover his smirk, no, his mouth is twisted up crookedly and making his dimple jut out at you infuriatingly. Insultingly. You’re not staring at the water droplet making its way down his chest but you’re also not not staring. He’s gorgeous. 

“That’s not true, I think I remember–”

“Doesn’t count. I didn’t finish.”

Your eyes flash at his brazen response. Rydal licks his lips in response, staring openly at your mouth now. 

“If you wring my jacket any further, you’ll owe me two times–”

He didn’t get to finish his stupid threat with your mouth covering his, your body colliding with his almost violently and pushing him into his room in the process. He was quick to push you against the door once he had half the mind to close it, his body smothering yours and his hands ripping the jacket from your grip to toss it haphazardly behind him. It was somehow better this time, maybe due to him already being half undressed but you were enjoying the way his tongue was lapping at your bottom lip while your hands roamed his torso, running down his shoulders and lightly scratching him at the same time. His body shuddered and slumped against you as his forehead came to rest against yours, lips parting for air and sharing the same breath pointlessly. 

“This doesn’t mean anything,” you pant, his hands pushing your shirt up inch by inch as he explores your skin. 

“And what exactly is this, baby? Because it feels like more than a favour right now,” he said the last part while grinding his hips into yours causing you both to groan at the well-needed friction.

You glare at him, despite his face being mere centimetres away from yours and an irritating grin playing with his mouth, “You’re ridiculous.”

Flattening your palms against his bare chest, you push him back until the back of his knees hit and buckle against his bed, falling on it before your legs come up on each side of his hips, straddling him as your hands tangle in his hair again.

He’s volatile and sharp and unpredictable in ways that make you nervous and excited and you want to keep him you realize. Rydal’s hands rest on your hips, massaging the skin he can reach without pushing you for more but the desire is clear on his face, looking up at you with no mask. He presses your lower back so your hot core rubs his hardening cock through his sweats and you gasp and arch your back and press in a little closer, and his eyes are tracing your facial expressions. His hand comes up to cup your cheek again and you’re reminded of the last time he held your face like that, his thumb rubbing the same way as before and angling your face better for him to kiss you, stopping just before your lips connect.

You feel a little vulnerable until he says, “Yeah, I know.”

And then he’s kissing you and he’s not stopping and you’re grinding your hips down again, addicted to coaxing small groans and whines from him.

He takes a frightening amount of pleasure from seeing you come around his fingers, his lips wrapped around your clit and leaving behind a trail of wetness, just like you imagined all those days ago. His three digits curled and pressed on your sweet spot, your fingers tightening in his hair as he hummed into your mound, not letting up. 

When he rests the fat tip of his cock against your entrance, looking at you one final time before pushing in, you can’t bring yourself to plead with him so you kiss him instead, hoping your lips conveyed what you didn’t want to voice. He gets it, and enters you in one rushed thrust. Your nails dig into his meaty shoulders, eyes closing against the intrusion. 

You thought sex with Rydal would be competitive, as every exchange between the two of you usually is. You wanted to turn him inside out and devour the crumbs. It should’ve been aggressive, he should’ve fueled your violent tendencies, it should’ve been all bite and not soft brushes of his hand against your face, not him kissing your face as you gasp around a particularly deep thrust, not him religiously watching your mouth as you whimper and your cunt fluttering around his cock. 

He wouldn’t speed up. You already came twice, once on his fingers and once on his thick length as he stayed still inside you, holding off his own release until he reached some-inflicted goal to make you go cross eyed and cockdumb for him. He didn’t let you put your mouth on him before, claiming that you could ‘repay him for last time’ at another date, cheekily insinuating there would be a next time, without a doubt. 

You bite your lip to hold back from begging him to fuck you faster, harder, anything but this slow torture he was inflicting on your slick folds. There was no catch, he was gliding through you easily and he wouldn’t shut the fuck up about how wet you were. Pulling your lip free from your teeth, his thumb dipped into your mouth and caught your spit on it only to drag it across your cheek messily. You let out a high pitch whine at that, his cock hitting you deeply.

You turn your face to the side, scrunching your eyes closed as you feel your core building up again despite his agonizing pace. Rydal grabs your chin and turns you to face him again, holding your jaw in place.

“No, you look at me, wanna watch you come again,” he huffs into your face, lifting your leg to fold you in half. 

“I–” you start to choke, needing him to understand.

“What, baby? You owe me, remember?” he thrusts a bit harder at that, hard enough to make you snap and pull a guttural moan from you.

It happens before you’re ready; your spine feels exposed as your back arches into him, eyes unfocused and brain short-circuiting, and you gush around him. He’s still thrusting, albeit sloppy and irregular now, but he’s also talking a lot and you can’t focus on his words because your ears are ringing from how hard you just came.

“...fuck, baby, so pretty, love watching you come, fuckkkk, I’m gonna– ahhhh!” his hips buck wildly until you feel hot spurts of his come inside you and dribble out of your puffy pussy. His whole body flexes over yours as he all but empties his balls and slumps over you, your hands mindlessly running through his hair and petting his sweaty back. He had just showered before you showed up. Oh well.

The urge to keep touching him stays even past the time it takes for you to regain feeling in your legs, and Rydal has been nuzzling your neck for the time being. You don’t know how long you two stay like that, just basking in each other’s calm presence for the first time since knowing him. You feel like all the stress from the whole semester, let alone the past two weeks, had left your body, seeping out of you and into his sheets. 

You feel him smile against your skin and without thinking, you tug his hair to pull his face up to yours, wanting to see it. It’s not his regular smug smirk that he gives you, it's something else entirely. 

This smile is a bit gummy, not as dazzling as the one he turned on you on the first day you met, but sweet and genuine. His nose wrinkled a bit with it and you had to physically refrain yourself from kissing him silly.

Your bodies are sticky and clammy, no space to be found between you two until he pulls out of you, hissing as he does so. Taking a moment to slyly appreciate the mess between your thighs, he swiped a finger through it before you moaned in resistance, swatting his hand away. Rydal sniffed out a laugh, murmuring an apology before getting you something to clean up with. You were worried he’d be cold as soon as it was over, the tenderness he showered you with minutes ago was still present though and he seemed to share the need to keep touching. Useless and unnecessary touches, lingering hands and longing gazes hung around as he gave you something clean to wear, holding you close once you were decent. 

“Um–” you began.

“Can we talk about it tomorrow or something, for fuck’s sake, shouldn’t you be like super zen now?”

You choked.

He was right though, he had made you come, like, really hard. Plus, you did feel more relaxed so you let yourself laugh at his sassy remark, adjusting to his humour now that you saw how soft he really was. You tried to fake glare at him but couldn’t hold it since he was giving you the nose crinkling smile again, your own lips twitching at the whole situation. 

Burrowing yourself further into his chest, you remembered what you originally came here for.

“By the way… Can I keep your jacket since you lost mine?”

He burst out laughing at that. You find yourself loving the sound of it. 

//

tagging people who I think want to read this and if you don't kindly ignore lmao: @melodygatesauthor @360iris @xbellaxcarolinax @annautumnsoul @ninebluehearts @bit-dodgy-innit @moonknightly @luc-k-y @eyelessfaces @kittyofalltrades @romanarose @my-secret-shame-but-fanfiction @campingwiththecharmings @fandxmslxt69 @missdictatorme @loonymagizoologist

[twistedbunni]

*~Filling the Loneliness~*

A Buggy x gn!reader

Tags: mix of angst, smut and fluff basically, a bit of voyeurism too

A/n: excuse mistakes I'm very rusty at writing but this damn clown has a chokehold on my mind. I wrote this with LABuggy in mind but it could fit Anime buggy as well tbh. The only derogatory word the user is called is sl*t and it's only used once.

Word count: 6683

It was just another day of work, managing the costume shop that you'd come to own somehow. It was a relatively good sized shop, selling a variety of clothing one might use for performances or wear to the masquerade themed parties the town held every week.

Your little costal town had been unofficially deemed a safe space for pirates to come dock without having to worry about being captured for bounty or fought off by other pirates. Hence why the town threw celebrations themed around casting aside one's identity to just enjoy a night of drinking and having fun without a worry for their own safety.

You never cared to attend the celebrations, instead using the time to do trivial tasks around the shop like checking inventory or working on new masks or makeups to sell. You were doing such right now infact.

Behind the counter you sat, working on some paperwork you needed to finish, calculating what had sold best this week compared to last week.

"Welcome in!" You called out when you heard the squeaking of the shop's old door opening, but did not glance up to check whom had come in. "I'll be with you in a moment, feel free to look around and let me know if you need any assistance finding what you need."

Footsteps approached the counter followed by the creaking of someone leaning against the counter across from you. "Actually doll you can help me, I came to get my usual order of things. So where's ole Petey?"

Keeping your eyes still glued to your papers you continued to work as you replied. "That old coot's dead. Died bout 3 weeks ago after drinking himself into a damn stupor and falling into the sea. So I'm in charge of this place now unfortunately, seeing as I was his only employee."

You heard a chuckle "That damn old man. I tried to warn him something would happen but I suppose he got what he deserves after partying too hard even at his old age."

"Got that right. Sure he was a good boss but the bastard drank more than any pirate that visits town." You scoffed finishing up your work and setting it aside. Finally looking up you instantly recognized the man before you. "Now how can I help- oh it's you."

The man stood up straight, fixing his coat proudly with a grin. "I see you know of the Great and flashy Buggy. Of course you would, I mean who wouldn't?"

Placing a hand on your hip as you stood from your seat, smiling back at the Clown pirate. "The boss never seemed to shut up about you, constantly talking about how you were his best customer.... amongst other things I'd rather not repeat."

His face fell a bit at your hinting of the old owner saying less than honorable things about him.

"Don't worry, I never took his rambling of you to heart. He was always a cranky drunkard who'd complain about anything or anyone he could." You reached over and patted Buggy on the shoulder reassuringly, before motioning to the backroom with a thumb. "Thankfully that man made notes about his regulars preferences so I'll be right back. Just gonna go grab em real quick so I can get you what you need without all the hassle of you having to explain your likes and dislikes of products to me."

The tall clown gave a nod, watching you disappear into the back of the shop. Taking the opportunity to glance around at the stock around him, mentally taking note of what had changed since he'd last been here about 3 months ago.

After a few minutes you returned holding his wanted poster, reading the scrawling of notes written on the back of it. "Let's see, looks like you prefer the typical Circus clown makeup, of course long lasting and as smudge proof as possible. Though we don't carry one of these brands anymore...-" You were deep in thought now mumbling as you moved around the shop grabbing the items noted on Buggy's preference sheet.

The said Clown Pirate stood leaning on the front counter, watching you zip around like a little mouse searching for all the usual products he buys. He had to admit you looked quite cute all worked up and focused on your job like that.

"The only thing we don't have from this list is the white face paint, but have no fear my good man for you're in luck." You placed down the small basket of products before him. You gave a small 'boop' to his nose with your finger before proudly crossing your arms. "I happen to make my own white face paint, and am willing to give you my latest batch if your interested."

"Oh really? And just what do you know about clown makeup little shop keep?" He asked you smugly, with a smirk

"A lot more than you think bozo. I was a mime for ten years, hence my fashion sense idiot." You gestured to yourself and your choice of clothing.

He admittedly hadn't really paid attention to what exactly you were wearing, more distracted by your actions and words. Though now he could see you were wearing black pants, that were doing wonders to make your thighs look great, and a oversized longsleeved striped black and white shirt, with some subtle mime makeup. "Huh. I hadn't even noticed."

You stood there silent for a second, before reaching up to pat his cheek a bit mockingly. "It's a good thing your attractive, cause you sure aren't that observant are ya bud?"

The man was thrown off guard at the fact you'd just complimented him, albeit also insulting him along with it. Usually he's the one being somewhat cheeky and flirty to others with no prevail, but here you were just casually complimenting him like it was nothing.

You moved back behind the counter, pulling a container of white paint, a handheld mirror, a few brushes as well as sponges, and a damp rag. "Well here let me show you just what I actually know about clown makeup."

Before Buggy could even process what was going on, you'd already snatched his head off his shoulders, now holding it between your hands. "Hey- Just what do you think your doing?!" He spat out at you in an annoyed tone, head already trying to wiggle free from your grasp.

"Take it easy hot stuff, you're too tall for me to do your makeup if your standing. I'm simply making this easier for both of us." You took a seat in your chair, laying Buggy's head on your lap between your thighs so he was facing upwards. "If you're a good boy who stays still I may even give you treat."

"Forward aren't we? Already putting my head between your legs and I've only just met you. I mean I know I'm flashy and all but I didn't realize I was having such an affect on you babe." He teases as the both of blush a bit at the position your in.

"Oh shut up, fool. Only in your dreams would your head actually be allowed between my legs in such a sinful manner." You cut off any reply he could give by begining to gently wipe the makeup off his face with the damp rag you'd pulled out previously. You made sure not to rub too hard as you scrubbed his face clean, though the red on his nose wasn't coming off at all.

He picked up on your confusion, rolling his eyes and sighing a bit annoyed. "That's not makeup sweetheart. My nose is just naturally big and red."

You smiled sheepishly. "Heh, sorry. I knew it was your natural nose I just didn't think it was naturally red as well."

"Yea yea, crack your jokes now about it so I don't have to hear them later" His eyes were looking elsewhere as he spoke, avoiding your gaze as much as he could.

You paused, looking into his eyes till he eventually gave in, making eye contact with you. "Why would I joke about something you can't control or change about yourself?"

"Cause everyone else does so why wouldn't you as well?" He stated matter of factly, while studying your gaze, seeing a flash of hurt for him in your eyes.

"Well, I'm not everyone else." Shifting your gaze to look at his nose for a second, and smiling faintly as you spoke. "In fact I think it's cute to be honest. Seeing it up close somewhat makes me want to give you a kiss right on it."

Buggy was well and truly lost for words now, just a blushing mess that was forced to look right at you. You just let him stay like that, giggling softly at his cheeks that seemed to be almost as red as his nose, before you finally gave him some sort of mercy by applying new makeup to his warmed face. The both of you stayed silent during the whole thing, you concentrating on the paint you were applying to Buggy's face as his head laid there in your lap, him studying every inch of your face as you worked.

He had to admit he was trying to memorize every little detail of your face, from the color of your eyes, to every little twitch of your lips while you focused, the way your tongue would poke out slightly and brow furrowed when you were painting thinner lines. He was trying to savor this moment while he could, knowing there was never a moment like this before nor would he ever possibly experience anything like this again. No one was or ever would treat him with such care and attention as you were currently, this truly was a once in a lifetime thing for him and he wanted to remember it forever.

Eventually you finished, putting down the paint brushes, and lifting the clowns head up in your hands to admire your masterpiece. A smile formed on your lips as you stood, moving to reunite Buggy's head to his body again and handed him the handheld mirror.

"Pretty good huh?" You spoke as he looked at your handy work.

You did the exact same look he had on before but there was a noticeable difference between his work and yours. His makeup had looked more messy and somewhat smudged before, as if he practically lived in it, where as now the lines were crisp and colors vibrant. He looked like a clown people would smile and laugh with, no longer one people feared instantly.

"Damn sweetheart, you're even better with your hands than I thought." He teased as he handed you back the mirror, giving you a wink and click of his tongue.

You winked back at him with a smirk. "Don't give me all the credit, I mean I had quite the attractive canvas to work with."

"You seem to really enjoy flattering me." His head cocked curiously at you "Or are you just this flirty with all your customers?"

You shrugged nonchalantly, starting to clean up the counter and repackage the products you used on him. "Nah, just you Buggy. I guess you could say I have a thing for clowns."

A floating hand grabbed your chin gently, guiding your gaze back to it's owner, whom was now leaning in dangerously close to your face. "Hmm, well too bad for you. I don't have a thing for chatty mimes."

He could have sworn your gaze had flicked to his lips for a moment before you licked your own, but he'd chalk it up to his desperately lonely mind imagining things. The hand let you go, reattaching itself as Buggy stepped back, away from the counter. You took a minute to snap back to reality, then went back to packing up his order.

The pirate began to roam a little, looking at all the different costumes and masks you had displayed around the shop. Maybe he could get a few new outfits for some of the crew before they all head back out to sea in a few days. Hell maybe he'd get himself a new flashier coat too, one that would really wow the audience when he makes his grand entrance every night.

"Got everything you need packed up and ready for you. Did you want to get anything else?" Your voice pulling him from his thoughts and luring him back over to you.

"Was thinking bout a new coat, something flashy, but I'll hold off till tomorrow on that." He spoke, pulling out a few coins to pay you with.

"Oh good! So I will get to see you again." A smile formed on your lips as you took the payment and slid the box of merchandise over to him.

"Of course! I would never deny a fan from seeing my greatness up close in person." He takes a dramatic bow towards you, before placing one hand over his heart. "What kind of performer would I be if I did such a thing?"

You just laughed at his theatrics, shaking your head a bit.

He grabs the box off the counter and headed to the door, turning to bid you farewell. "You've been a wonderful audience, but it's time for me to take my grand exit unfortunately."

"Farewell Captain Buggy. I'll be waiting patiently till your next performance." You give a small round of applause for him as he leaves.

You stand there for a minute or two, replaying the whole interaction in your head, letting out a frustrated cry when you realize something. "FUCK! I NEVER TOLD HIM MY NAME!!"

"Didn't tell whom your name?" A voice says, causing you to jump.

Turning you see famed pirate Mihawk, you jump once more. "Ah! Sorry sir! I didn't hear you come in, my apologies."

"It's quite alright, I will not fault you for being so lost in thought in your own store." He stoically dismissed your concerned apology, removing his hat and placing it on the counter. "I seem to have gotten a bit careless earlier and somehow got a cut in my hat. Am I correct to assume this is the place I can get it fixed up nicely and quickly?"

Looking at the mentioned cut you assessed it was something that you could indeed repair, and quite quickly. "Yes, I do not believe this will take me that long to patch up, and I'll make it as unnoticeable as possible of course. Give me about an hour and I'll have it good as new sir."

"Very good, I shall be back then." He gave a curt nod before leaving, and as soon as he was out the door, you immediately set to work on fixing the hole in his hat.

After one hour had past exactly, Mihawk came strolling back in, gaining the attention of the few locals that had come in to browse.

"Perfect timing I finished a mere moment ago." You handed him back his hat, watching as he inspected your craftsmanship intensely.

A smirk cracked on his lips as he glanced back up at you. "Very well done, you can not even tell it is there unless you look extremely closely at it. Of course no one will ever be close enough for that, so you have my thanks." He placed a hefty amount of money in your hands before leaving.

"Whoa! That guy's intense!" One of locals muttered as they came to the counter.

"Yes he is, but thankfully I was able to do a good repair job." You replied, starting to ring up the items they'd set down.

"He seemed quite pleased with your work, maybe he'd be willing to dance with ya at the celebration tonight." Someone else chimed in, as they got in line to be rung up.

"Don't be ridiculous. That man is much too serious for my liking, I'd feel on edge the whole time." You shuttered slightly at the thought. "I never go to any of the parties in town anyways, but even if I did I'd rather spend my time around someone more akin to Buggy honestly."

A scoff could be heard, followed by a disgusted toned response. "Really that loser? He's a pretty sorry excuse for a pirate don't ya think?"

A few other insults and comments were thrown in agreement by others in the shop.

"HEY, SHUT THE FUCK UP!" You shouted, causing everyone to jump and go quiet. "If y'all want to shit talk that man then: GET.. OUT..OF..MY..SHOP!" you put emphasis on those last words, pointing your gaze to each person, whom was just talking, with each word.

A few people gulped in fear at what you might do if they say anything more.

"Captain Buggy is a highly valued customer here, so if you want to run your mouths like that about him in front of me then there will not only be hell to pay, but you will also be banned from my shop for life."

Everyone remained silent and somewhat timid of you until they left the store thankfully.

God did that get you're blood boiling, and you weren't entirely sure why. Maybe it was the fact that the clown had just been in here early and then suddenly everyone's throwing around insults about him. Or maybe it was more so the fact that Buggy had wormed into your heart quite easily during the earlier interaction you'd had with him. Whatever it was, it caused you to be uncharacteristically protective of someone other than yourself or the few people you were actually fairly close to. He was risking his life out at sea, putting on showy performances of a lifetime, while everyone in town here just partied and got drunk constantly, yet they'd all looked down upon Buggy in distain.

Shaking your head clear of your thoughts, you began to occupy your time by sketching ideas and designs for costume pieces you could make to sell. Eventually you found yourself drafting up some designs for a flashy coat you'd think a certain blue haired pirate captain might not only enjoy but also look great in.

The squeaking of the door could be heard, pulling you from your current sketching, you looked up to find Buggy back in the shop.

Your face instantly lit up with a smile upon seeing him. "Hey there handsome, I thought you wouldn't be back till tomorrow."

He smiled back at you, making his way over to lean on the counter across from you. "Well what can I say? I was craving the love of an audience... well that and I realized you never gave me that treat for being a 'good boy' like you said earlier."

"Oh and just what kind of treat would the marvelous Buggy the Clown like?" You stood up, making your way around the counter to stand in front of him, placing your hands on your hips. "Maybe something like a free pair of gloves, or a discount on one of the pricer costume pieces, or maybe even a specially made mask that will fit around your cute nose?" At the mention of his nose you gave it a small 'boop' with your finger.

He gently grabbed the hand you used to tap his nose, holding in his as he looked into your eyes. "Actually I was more so hoping for that kiss you claimed you wanted to give me. Ya know the one you you said you want to give me on my nose you seem to like so much."

"Oh-" You were caught off guard a bit, in a good way however as it caused you to blush. "I suppose I can do that, yea.."

A wide smile grew on his face as you placed your hands on his shoulders, leaning up to place a small kiss to his bulbus red nose. You'd only pulled back a few inches away from his face, looking into his eyes for a moment before a mutual pull had you both leaning back in and connecting your lips. It was a sweet kiss, that lasted for what felt like hours but was probably only a minute or two in reality, though it left you both speechless for a moment.

"Uh wow, I um- wasn't expecting that sorry." Buggy said, breaking the calm silence you'd been in.

"Heh, yea me either, but I enjoyed it so don't apologize." You slid your hands up to cup his cheeks on either side of his head. Something felt weird though when you did. "Uh not to ruin the moment but you seem to be missing an ear..."

A nervous chuckle came from him. "Heh, about that..." He stopped speaking for a moment a bit embarrassed as his missing ear seemed to zip out of your back pocket and back to his head. "I kind of left it here earlier."

"When did you put that there?" You were more shocked at how it got his ear into your pocket without you knowing, than you were mad at him for seemingly spying on you.

"I did it while you were distracted with my theatrics of leaving." He smiled sheepishly. "I heard you defending my honor so to speak and felt bad about the whole spying thing after that so I decided to come back."

"Hmm, if you say so~" You squinted at him, being jokingly skeptical of his words.

"I'm willing to make up for the spying in anyway you want." He held his hands up, seemingly in a playful surrender.

You faked thinking really hard for a moment, before smiling and giving your response. "I suppose you can give me another kiss, then I'll forgive you."

A shit-eating grin plastered itself across Buggy's face, while his hands now detached pulled you close to him by your waist. "Oh that I'd me more than happy to do."

The two of you shared in another sweet kiss, this one with a bit more passion pouring from both of you. Neither of you wanted to be the first to pull away, though eventually when your lips had parted from each other's you remained there holding each other still.

A pit started to form in your stomach, the kiss was great sure but you hardly knew him. For all you know he could have a spouse and kids somewhere, yet here you were openly flirting and kissing him without even a second thought. There'd always been a sort of loneliness in you, always craving the love of another but never being able to find it. You had small flings during the time you were a mime, ridding yourself of that lonely feeling for short periods with the fleeting intimacy of your fellow performers. Though it had grown especially harder since you had moved here, to fight off that ache, no longer having the trusted company of others, only visiting pirates that brought danger with them and the townsfolk who only ever seem to care about partying their troubles away.

Then Buggy came in and you couldn't help latching on to the hope that those rumors of him being less of a threatening force were correct. Thinking he might be easier to approach, that he wouldn't be a threat to your own safety, and you could use him easily to fill that void again for at least the night. There would be no worry about catching feelings considering he only comes for supplies every few months from what you'd heard, and he surely would or has met others who catch his eye far better than you ever could.

It was all starting to make you feel guilty the more you thought about it. "I'm sorry Buggy."

His expression flushed with confusion. "Huh? What are you apologizing for?"

"I'm sorry that I don't fear you." You moved out of his grasp slowly, gaze now shifted to the floor.

More confusion. "How is that a bad thing exactly?"

A sigh escaped from you, back now facing the puzzled pirate. "Every other pirate that comes to town leaves me feeling on edge. Sure this town might be big on reputations not mattering here but I can't help but fear for my life around the few pirates that do come in to this little shop. You must have heard the fear I felt earlier over Mihawk's visit, yet I was completely at peace when I saw you. I guess I let the gossip people say about you being less threatening or less strong as others affect how I saw you. I kind of used you somewhat for my own selfish desires today or was at least planning on to."

"What do you mean by that exactly?" You couldn't read his emotion in his voice and you dated not look back at him.

"I've always longed to experience love but I never have been able to. I use to sleep around with my fellow performers to chase off my feelings of loneliness, though I can't do that anymore since I've moved to this town. The pirates bring too much uncertainty with them and the locals are all a bunch of careless party animals, but you've been described as somewhat of a push over. In my subconscious I guess I thought I could use you like a toy to make myself feel better with out caring about your own feelings since we're both pathetic cowards." As you spoke tears began softly falling from your eyes, causing your own makeup to become a mess. "I was wrong to think that though, and I realized it after you kissed me again. You don't deserve to be treated so poorly, especially not by me. I'm sorry Buggy for thinking so little of you, when in reality you are far greater than me."

Silence. No response from the man came, only the sound of you sniffing filled the air for what seemed like forever. Though finally detached gloved hands came to rest on your shoulders, snaking their way up your neck to cup your cheeks and wipe away your tears. Handless arms wrapping themselves around your waist from behind as Buggy's head floated Infront of you, looking into your eyes.

"It's okay sweetheart, there's no need to get so worked up over lil ole me. in all honesty I can't blame you or hate you at all for wanting to use me. I mean I would have used you right back." A bit of guilt hid behind his gaze, a small comforting smile on his painted lips. "I know I'm the great Buggy the Clown, but I'm in the exact same boat as you. Searching selfishly for small cures to fix the deep desire of wanting to be loved by someone. I've honestly used so many random people along my journey, never caring how'd they feel when I'd be gone the next day, never to see any of them again. There's no telling if I'd have ended up doing the same to you or not."

Staying there you a moment, both of you processing what you'd each admitted to, you could help but feel drawn to him again. Even if it was wrong of you to do considering all you'd said just now, you couldn't help but to reach up to cup his floating head, guiding his face towards yours again before kissing him.

"I'm sorry, i-" You started, but he cut you off.

"Don't be.." He said, connecting his lips back to yours again.

The kiss quickly turned passionate, it was clear that you both need this right now and there would be no resistance from either one of you. When you'd broken apart for a moment to catch your breaths, Buggy took the chance to spin you around and put himself together again. Now that your chests were pressing together, he recaptured your lips as one hand flew over to lock the shop's door and flip the sign to closed, before coming back to join the other hand in grabbing your ass. Your own hands found their way to his shoulders, one moving to his back as the other moved to softly tug off his bandana.

Tangling your fingers into his soft blue hair, few groans escaped him when you dared to tug at it. The sound only served to light a quickly growing fire of desire in you, which lead you to tug his hair some more in order to gain another few groans from him.

"Damn you really like my hair don't you?" He teased, trailing kisses down to your neck now, finding your sweet spot quickly, nibbling and sucking on it. "Though it's not fair I'm the only one making noise here."

You moaned at the feeling of his mouth marking up your neck, grinding your hips greedily against his, growing desperate for some form of friction between you two.

"Buggy~ pl-please" You whined a bit and he took the hint, using one of his hands to pin your waist against the counter while the other began to rub over your clothed crotch. He pulled his head away from your neck to watch the faces you were making at his touch. He felt he could watch you all day honestly, the way your eyes had become full of lust and your teeth gnawed on your bottom lip, was so mesmerizing to him. His own arousal and desire blossoming as he watched you try to plead with your eyes for him to touch you more. He maybe a killer but he knew how to be nice when he wanted, and thankfully he chose to play nice tonight by giving you what you wanted.

His hand stopped rubbing against your aching clothed loin, moving to undo your pants and pull them down.

When you tried to push your underwear along with them he stopped you. "No no- not yet." He picked you up, placing you so you were sitting at the edge of the counter, as he kneeled down to place his head between his legs. He started planting little kisses and bites along your thigh leading towards your core untill he was about to plant a kiss directly where you needed his touch the most, but instead switched to the other thigh, doing it over and over again to tease you.

"Captain please quit teasing~" you begged, not knowing how much more his little game you could handle before you'd go insane.

"Alright doll, but only cause you asked so nicely." Finally he removed your last bit of clothing covering your needy sex, planting tender kisses that only served to make you crave him even more.

Gradually he began to use his tongue, licking and sucking in all the right places and in all the right ways, drawing out moans from you, that he could only describe as beautiful. All the little moans, whimpers and curses of his name were music to his ears in all honesty, and he knew once he'd gone back out to sea they would haunt his dreams every night till he saw you again.

Of you in turn would be haunted by the memories of the way his mouth felt on you right now, the way it seemed to be effortlessly drawing you closer to your climax. "Buggy~ 'm close" Your hands tangled themselves in his hair, encouraging him to continue what he was currently doing until you had cum. Thankfully he did, letting you reach your high, then lapping up the mess you'd made without any hesitation.

Once he knew you'd come back down from your orgasm, he stood up and guiding you off the counter where you sat, moving to bend you over it instead. Removing his gloves and undoing his pants, his aching member flew around to your mouth while a few of his fingers began to tease your hole.

"Do me a favor babe, suck on that for me and get it nice and slick with your spit while I make sure your stretched out enough here for me to fit."

He didn't need to tell you twice, instantly you took the floating member into your mouth sucking on it and running your tongue over the tip. You took as much as you could into your mouth and throat, using your hand to spread excess drool over what little bit of length you couldn't. As you worked bobbing your head on his cock, he began to work your hole, starting by slowly inserting two of his digits into you, sliding them in and out a bit before scissoring them carefully inside you, and when he felt you were ready enough he inserted a third digit into the equation.

After a bit when he felt you were stretched out enough, and his dick was thoroughly lubed with your spit, he removed himself from both ends of you. Joining himself back together, he lined himself up with your entrance and slowly pushed in, groans escaping from both of you as he did. His movements were slow and steady to start, letting you get fully accustomed to the feeling of each other.

"Fuck, even with all that preparation your still so tight." He groaned out into your ear, his hands squeezing your hips tightly as he started to speed up his pace a little. "You doing okay? Nothing feels uncomfortable right?"

You shook your head, trying to remember how to speak anything but his name. "No- I'm fine- feels so good Buggy"

He plants a few kisses on your shoulder before he stands himself up straight, quickening his pace more till there's an audible slapping sound of your skin slapping against each other's. Just as you both were getting lost in the pleasure and feel of the other one's body, a knock errupts from the door.

The pair of you glance towards the door, seeing Mihawk standing in the window of it. Without even slowing down his thrusting for a second, Buggy detaches his torso and floats it to the door to answer it.

"What do you need?" You hear the clown ask annoyed, probably glaring daggers at the swordsman.

"I came to talk to the shop keep. I wanted to inquire about replacing the plume of my hat." Mihawk responds unfazed by the current situation.

"Really shit head? You can see were in the middle of something obviously, you couldn't wait till tomorrow to ask?" Buggy crosses his arms, now pissed at the man for interrupting you two over something so stupid. "Get lost, and If you bother me again while I'm fucking their brains out, I will kill you and serve them your heart in a pretty little box. Got it!?" With that he slams the door and relocks it, before his torso makes its way back over to you float Infront of you.

"Mmm~ Fuck that was kinda hot, and I loved the way you threatened him babe." You look up to meet his gaze.

"I know, I felt you clench a bit when I said it." He plants a kiss on your lips. "Now, that he's got me all pissed off I'm sorry but I'm gonna take it out on you. Sorry in advance"

He reconnects his body to his hips, gripping tightly onto your waist before picking up the pace of his thrusting till it's almost painful how quickly he's plunging in and out of you. Your hips are being harshly pressed into the counter's edge by force of his pounding, your brain going numb, only capable of barely forming his name on your lips occasionally or producing various loud groans of pleasure.

Somewhere in the hectic mess of your mind trying to keep ahold of what's going on, you realize you'd cum again, which only furthered the overstimulated mess of pleasure you'd become.

"Nng- Bu-ah-gy~" It was no use, you were desperately trying to beg him to slow down a little but words were far out of your reach in your current state.

"Shhh sweetheart" His removed head came up to rest beside your own to comfort you. "Only a little longer baby, I promise. I'm gonna cum soon and then we can take a break ok? You want me to come in you, right? Want me to make you mine, don't you?"

He weakly nodded in response as he kissed you, your mouths seemingly melding into one.

Finally his hips ceased all movement, burying himself as deep as he could before releasing into you. "Good slut~ see, doesn't it feel so nice to have my cum in you?"

Finally you regained the ability to speak. "Yes~ that was so... wonderful."

"I know it was, we practically had a standing ovation with all the clapping our bodies were making." He joked, removing himself slowly from you. "Now let me help you get cleaned up after that outstanding performance."

"I'd like that. We can go up the stairs in the backroom, I live above the shop." You stood up carefully but when you wobbled a bit Buggy instantly picked you up and carried you up to your bathroom, with the help of your directions. The pair of you bathed, him of course helping you clean and dry yourself off before you both moved to lie on your bed.

"Buggy, will you stay the night with me please?" You rested your head on his chest, curling up into his side.

"Of course. I couldn't even dream of leaving your side right now." He placed a few kisses to the top of your head while one of his hands now comfortingly rubbed your back.

Blissfully you both laid there silent, basking in the soft glow of the moon rising through the night sky and shining through your window. You could both hear the faint noise of people partying in town square, laughing and shouting in drunken glee, it serving as a form of white noise to your thought filled minds.

"Hey Buggy, can I make a proposition, well I guess it's more of a request?" You shifted so you could look into his eyes, that were now seemingly glowing in the low light.

"Sure my starlight. What is it?" A thumb ran over your cheek tenderly.

"Would you be willing to be mine?" You studied his face for a second as he thought. "I know I'm being a bit foolish here but you've filled that lonely void in me more than anyone else ever had. I honestly think I've fallen for you somewhat today and I don't want to lose you. I don't care if we can't see each other for months on end, just please let me selfishly love you for at least a little while and maybe you can even love me too."

Something twinkled in his eyes as you spoke, knowing he felt the same. You'd both lived your lives searching for someone to love, or someone who could love you back and now the two of you were here entwined in bed together. You'd both filled that empty void in each other, chased off the loneliness together and somehow grown attached to the other in less than a day. Even if this was only a fluke, a mistake on your part, Buggy wasn't going to question it in the slightest. You were practically begging for him of all people to love you, of course he wasn't going to deny your love. You were the first person to love him and want to be loved by him, he'd be an idiot if he pushed you away now.

"Of course! I'd give anything to be yours honestly!" He pulled you into a deep kiss, sealing your new relationship with tender passion. When he'd pulled away, the pair of you had eyes filled with joy.

"I do have one request of my own though, besides wanting you to be mine as well."

Curious and excited you nodded for him to continue.

"Can you finally tell me your name at least?"

[nights-at-crystarium]

Fragments - episodes 36-40 author notes

You can find similar breakdown posts on older episodes in my pinned!

I didn’t need to spend so much screentime on Titania fight, yet it was a fun personal challenge. I’d never written/drawn a cohesive fight scene before. The scripted ingame instances don’t leave much room for imagination, I wanted to stay away from the fourth wall, and make up a more immersive scene. How do you even make it look mildly interesting? You’d think, well, characters will just flail at each other until one of them dies, right?

So yeah the biggest challenge was creating the ebb and flow. What affects Vivi’s actions? Why wouldn’t he just murder Titania like any other opponent, and be done with it? I threw in a generous amount of inner pov (that I previously used very sparingly) and some silly tricks. The stakes are high, yes, it’s a Lightwarden vs WoD encounter, but Titania still retains their playful personality above all else. Vivi's here just to do his job, but he also knows that he's dealing with a fae.

The msq makes Titania stand out among other wardens, I capitalized on that and hc’d that they’re important to Feo Ul, and, by proxy, to Vivi. That instantly provided some emotional stakes, and an answer to why he doesn’t rush to kill them out of the door.

Vivi enters the castle in episode 35, and mostly runs in circles, analyzing his enemy, and even falls victim to illusions. This could’ve been it for him, but I daresay it worried none of us because we’re just at the beginning of a story about this guy, he’s THE guy in this universe not for no reason, he’ll manage.

No deep meaning behind "grasshopper", I just thought it's a bizarrely precise descriptor of both Vivi's long legs and dragoon jumps, and it fits the natural theme of the fight.

Vivi didn’t go in unprepared.

This line will be relevant again in like, 5-7 years from now :’>

More under the cut~

He always, always doubts everything, especially when it comes to his level of power. Self-nerfing. A light (heh) case of an impostor syndrome.

Everyone loved the bonk for meme reasons, Vivi simply bought himself some time to cast.

The Rainbow Sparkles of Believing in Yourself! And of something else, perhaps. I’m planting quite a bit of stuff for future, this one should take a mere year or so to pay off.

I hope this pose’s enough of a hint that you shouldn't be taking episode 37 too seriously.

Yes, he used his spear to ~cast~. And took a sailormoon pose. This's his, monoclass dragoon’s, interpretation of what the caster magic’s probably like.

Offscreen, Titania comes to their senses and shrills “so you wanna play rough?!”, Vivi ignores them, concerned with only one thing: did he succeed? How did the test of his custom spell go?

It only worked out because the both of them are idiots.

I like to emphasize that Fragments isn’t about retelling the msq, or big epic battles, but here, where I actually put my heart into it, I feel like I managed to pull off at least one epic beat you’d typically see in an action-focused comic. Super proud of this panel ;w;

This’s a standard panel divider I’ve used multiple times before, but it couldn’t be more visually appropriate here :3c

So, to recap. Vivi asks Titania if they miss the night sky. They do. Vivi brings the night sky to them, and lo, something actually happens. I illustrated this “something” as one of their eyes getting sort of cleansed here. This story suddenly takes a mahou shoujo (shounen, heh) turn, I appreciate that it may cause some eyebrows to raise, but I think it’s okay to take creative liberties like this in a story themed around identity, agency, and believing in yourself. If Titania’s so strong as to retain a tiny bit of their old self, to cohesively partake in a simple convo, then why can’t they return, even if for a brief moment, given the proper assistance.

An appropriate reaction to the wild bs that’s going on. Imagine inventing the tale of WoD in the First, only to witness THIS.

As about Vivi, he can save a soul when he genuinely cares for it. We haven’t seen him do this before. He does it for Feo Ul explicitly, implicitly as a self-reflection. He’s projecting so hard after realizing that Titania looks like him. He wishes for them what he'd wish for himself: to rest, to be treated with care and consideration. They don't only look like him, they're also unfree, tortured by something. Empathy or not, this’s the kindest fight Vivi’s ever fought.

I’m iffy about the canon talents that come with the Echo. You can understand any sentient creature, okay. What happens when you speak, does the other party feel the difference between that soulspeak and their native tongue? Does it feel off? Does it offend? I incorporated my own misgivings into Vivi’s thoughts about his Echo. He doesn't use soulspeak here out of respect and concern that Titania might not react well to it, throwing the entire plan out of the window. Thus he memorized quite a bit of fae words before the fight. This’s his way to mark himself as one of their people, or at least to show that he truly cares.

STAY TUNED FOR EPISODE 41

Vivien Doubter Rell. Also yay first nod!

Embracing his new duty, and possibly giving Titania the hug they deserve.

Look HE’S OKAY. For now. I just thought the hiccup would be a cute way to acknowledge the terrible power he’s just absorbed. The canon cutscene moves on unblinking, but here’s different.

Bracing himself for confrontation. Things might go awry. Or might not. Vivi doesn't know. Worst case scenario: this’s the end of his sweet lil friendship with Feo Ul. Do they like him, or a Titania-lookalike in him?

“Oh bugger...” big pets come with big responsibilities, my dear Feo Ul.

Just to reinforce his fae-ness.

Vivi had full control in this fight. Analyzed the enemy, successfully tested some crazy tricks, managed to have a heart-to-heart that resulted in getting a permission to kill Titania not with violence, but with mercy. So much could’ve gone wrong, but just didn’t. Vivi’s used to this, even if he constantly doubts everything, this’s how it always goes. He’s being flung at tasks with abysmal odds, somehow he emerges victorious.

I just like this panel so much okay.

This arc may feel slow, but it gives depth to Vivi and Feo Ul's relationship, and seeing them together in later episodes will spark even more joy.

Even after a warm moment they’d just shared, Vivi’s still wary. I broke out an analysis of what external influence, pressure to change means to him, please read this post if you missed it. YEAH TAGS AS WELL.

His expression here is an attempt to downplay the anxiety and swing the odds in his favor. What if Feo Ul insists and throws a tantrum? What if he has to become Titania right now, and there’s no way around this? Let’s make puppy eyes just incase, maybe that helps.

One more personal fav panel. There’s SO MUCH in this look. They’re on a threshold, about to become something else on Vivi’s behalf. Because they love him so much. They’ve instantly become friends because they don’t want anything from each other, just the company. Feo Ul’s such a breath of fresh air for Vivi, a new hope in a new world, where he’s (comparatively) a nobody, where people still have the potential to love him for who he is as a person. This’s why our crimson pixie gets so much screentime.

Vivi really said XD

The next few episodes wrap up the Il Mheg arc, and focus on good vibes and celebration. ShB follows a rollercoaster formula where it makes you smile at something nice and sweet only to whack you in the face right after, and I’m trying to do the same :3c

As always, thanks for reading~

[vilevenom]

Hello @90svn!! Thank you for your request and sweet comment ❤️

I took this request as a personal challenge, because Trollex has a whole 5 minutes of screentime in World Tour, and only maybe eight voice lines. Very hard to get a good read on a character with such a short appearance, but I did my best!

Hope you enjoy!~

To say that Clay felt overwhelmed was putting it mildly. Reuniting with his brothers had been one thing. Heck, even reintegrating the putt putt trolls with pop village had been a drain on his mental and social batteries, but he'd muddled through. However, following Viva along to royal meet and greets and council meetings was just too much. He felt out of his depths in so many ways. Sure, he'd helped co-run the golf course, and a lot of the rules and regulations that kept the place stable had been his doing, but there was just so much more to all of the other kingdoms. Not to mention the fact that he didn't really feel like the other leaders necessarily took him and Viva seriously. He was an ex-boyband member with no political background, and Viva had been unintentionally usurped as queen by her younger sister. They didn't exactly fit the standard leader stereotypes.

This latest meeting, to discuss territory laws and transportation between kingdoms had initially intrigued Clay, and when Viva all but begged him to go with her so she wouldn't be bored, he'd happily agreed. Now he sort of wished he'd stayed home. As much as he had thoughts on what was going on, absolutely no one in the room paid he or Viva much, if any, mind. They were treated more like Poppy's entourage than leaders of a subdivision of Pop trolls. Even Branch was getting asked more questions than either of them.

He was about to suggest to Viva that they leave, since no one seemed to really care what they had to say, when the door to the meeting room burst open, and the king of the techno trolls floated in, grin on his face.

"Sorry I'm late," Trollex laughed as he moved across the room to take his seat, "Last nights rave went on a bit longer than I had anticipated."

Clay rolled his eyes, sinking down further into his seat. He'd seen the techno king from afar a few times before, but he never struck Clay as the type to take anything seriously. He was always talking about the parties the techno trolls threw, never seeming to have a serious thought in his head. He figured, from here, the meeting could only go further downhill.

He, of course, hadn't been paying attention to what was being said due to his miserable ruminating, so hadn't caught that he'd been directly addressed. Not until Viva elbowed him squarely in the rub cage, anyway. He grunted, sitting himself up with a quick frown shot to his best friend, who simply grinned back at him. "Sorry, what was that?"

"I said," Trollex waved his hand at Clay to get his attention, his previous grin and chipper attitude seemingly gone, "What do you think about the implication of having trolls of multiple genres potentially staying all in one place? Since regional customs and attitudes are so wildly different, it opens up a massive amount of safety concerns. Viva said you were the best troll to talk to, outside maybe Branch, about what sort of measures could be kept in place to make sure everyone stays happy and healthy."

Clay perked up as Trollex spoke, not having expected the king to ask such an insightful question, especially not to him. Perhaps his first impression of the king had been all wrong. "Well, there are a lot of different things we'd have to keep in mind for such an undertaking…"

~

Trollex, it turned out, was an incredibly insightful king. Throughout the entire meeting he lobbed questions to several of the kingdom rulers, and directed most, if not all, concerns in regards to safety to Clay. All in all, he felt pretty good when the meeting came to a close, as they had several rough documents drafted up for new inter-kingdom laws.

So, it threw Clay off a little when Trollex floated past him, wide grin on his face and headphones over his ears, flipping a glowstick between his fingers, like he hadn't just been discussing transgenre rights barely five minutes prior. He froze when the kings eyes landed on him, his shoulders unconsciously hiking up to his ears as he was approached.

"Hey, hey! Clay, my man," Trollex crowed, only lowering his volume once he pulled his headphones away from his ears, "Nice work today, yo. Usually Branch is the only one who can figure out all that nuance-y regulatory stuff."

"Yeah, well. Boring legal stuff is my jam," he said with a little laugh while throwing up a peace sign and sticking his tongue out without even realizing what he was doing. He quickly straightened up, a flush forming on his cheeks as a grin slowly spread across Trollex's face.

"Yeah, bro! Nice," Trollex laughed, reaching over to shake Clay's shoulder gently in a friendly gesture, "Live your best life, yo. Speaking of, you should come on by Techno Reef sometime soon! We've got some bangin' raves comin' up. Would love to see how you unwind."

"Haha, yeah," Clay forced a smile onto his face, giving the king a little nod.

"Sweet! I'll send word to Pop Village with dates for the next big one! It's gonna be LIT," Trollex called out, earning whoops from some of the trolls milling near the meeting hall. He laughed as he put his headphones back on, tossing Clay a glow stick as he began to bob his head in time with his music, shooting him finger guns before floating away.

Clay didn't even register when Viva appeared next to him. "Ooooh, does Mr.Clay have a date?"

"Cupcakes!" Clay dropped the glowstick in favor of slapping a hand to his chest, "Viva! Ugh…we seriously need to get you a bell, girl."

Viva simply cackled at him, poking him in the side until he couldn't hold back his laughter and swatted her away. "Well?" she prompted as she took a step back to let Clay catch his breath.

Clay sighed and bent to pick up the fallen glowstick, shrugging a bit. "Pretty sure it was a general party invitation, Viv. Not a date request."

"Well, you gotta start somewhere," Viva chirped, wrapping both of her arms around one of Clays. "What do you think about him, anyway? He totally seems right up your alley."

"What?! How?" Clay asked with a laugh, arching an eyebrow at Viva curiously.

"Oh, well, you know," Viva hummed, resting her head on Clay's shoulder, "He's a party guy, sure, but you saw him in the meeting. He seems like he really takes his responsibilities seriously. I figured you'd admire him for that."

Clay gingerly twirled the glowstick between his fingers. "Yeah. I guess that's true…"

~

"Hey! The party has arrived!"

Clay couldn't help but cringe at Trollex's shout, offering an awkward wave as the king swam over to greet the small group of pop trolls that had travelled down to Techno Reef. Clay had been the one to officially receive the invitation, surprisingly, but it had said that anyone from Pop village was welcome, so he'd asked Poppy to spread word that any troll who wanted to could go. In the end, Clay, Viva, Poppy, Branch, and a smattering of villagers had all decided to go.

"Welcome to Techno Reef! We've got glow sticks for days, and the party's always poppin'," Trollex called with a laugh, tossing a handful of glowsticks out, which gently floated down into the waiting pop trolls hands. "If ya'll would follow Leguna, she'll show you to the accommodations we've prepared for your stay."

A purple techno troll swam forward and gestured for everyone to follow her, which Clay was about to do when he was stopped by a hand on his wrist. He paused and turned in surprise to find Trollex with a large grin on his face.

"I'm really glad you accepted my invitation," the king hummed, releasing Clay's arm and floating backwards slightly.

"Uh," Clay said smartly, glancing around quickly to find Viva shooting his a thumbs up while giggling with her sister, "Thanks, man. Me too. I'm real curious about your culture and it's really cool to finally get to see some of the other kingdoms."

Trollex chuckled, nodding a little as he pulled a glow bracelet off from around his own wrist, swimming forward to secure it around Clay's. "Well, if you've got any questions, you know who to come find," he said with a little wink. Clay was endlessly glad for the darkness of the water around them as his cheeks flushed, just before Trollex swam away.

"I think he likes you."

"VIVA! A BELL! Damn."

~

Raves were, apparently, not Clay's cup of tea. Perhaps when he was younger, before, well, everything, he would've loved a good rave. But older, serious boy Clay was not having the best of times. Branch wasn't, either, but Poppy had dragged him and Viva off almost the moment they had reached the large area that the party was taking place in (He had a feeling the sisters were conspiring against him, somehow). Which left Clay, alone, at the edge of the dance floor, awkwardly watching and wishing he could covers his ears from the loud bass. Unfortunately, the helmets the visiting pop trolls had to wear in order to even be down in the reef impeded his ability to do so.

He was debating on heading back to the rooms the techno trolls had prepared for them, when Trollex appeared out of the crowd, swimming over once he spotted Clay.

"Heyyy, Live Wire!" Trollex shouted over the music with a grin, "There you are!"

"Live Wire?" Clay echoed, arching an eyebrow at Trollex, who grinned wider, his cheeks glowing slightly.

"Yeah, man! Your rave name! Everyone's gotta have a rave name, and you've got the best hair. So, Live Wire," the king explained, swimming forward to tap at the side of Clay's helmet, where his hair was bunched up against the glass.

"I assume you're making fun of me, 'cause my hair stands up like I got electrocuted?" Clay snarked, folding his arms over his chest, not looking the least amount amused.

"What? No? Why would I make fun of you?" Trollex tilted his head like a confused cuddle pup. This gave Clay pause, dropping his arms to his sides.

"I, uhm…I guess I don't know," Clay admitted, shrugging a little. He chewed on his lip a little as Trollex gave him a contemplative look.

"Let's get out of here," the king said, just loud enough for Clay to hear, before he reached out and grabbed both of Clay's hands. With a smile he began to swim backwards, pulling Clay up along through the water after him.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Clay yelped, kicking his feet to try and keep himself from dropping back down through the water and onto the dancefloor. This pulled a delighted laugh from Trollex, who shook his head.

"Just relax. I've got you," Trollex hummed, sliding his hands down Clay's arms until he had a hold on the green trolls elbows, while shifting his position so he was half swimming beneath Clay. "You'll be okay, Live Wire. I won't let you sink."

~

Trollex let Clay's feet hit solid ground again once they'd reached what Clay could only describe as a palace; a huge building near the center of the reef, standing prominently above all the other structures of the town, with twisting spires and glowing accents that lit up the surrounding area.

"Wow," Clay murmured, admiring the architecture, while also noting that they were far enough away from the rave that he could speak at a normal volume.

"Yeah. It's pretty lucky Barb only targeted the DJ booth when she attacked. I'm not sure how well we could've reconstructed this," Trollex said, floating next to Clay with an easy smile.

"Wait…she attacked you? Like, actually?" Clay turned his head sharply towards Trollex with a frown. He'd heard plenty about Barb's world tour, but the finer details hadn't really been openly shared. He supposed it would make sense that Barb would have to attack trolls to gain what she wanted, but knowing it was enough that the techno trolls had to reconstruct buildings was a lot. Barb had been at their meeting, and no one had treated her like she'd terrorized them.

"Yeah. But it's all good. Things worked out," Trollex said with a little shrug.

"But, what if they hadn't? You would've lost all this," Clay declared, gesturing widely at te palace and surrounding buildings.

"True. But we didn't," Trollex swam in front of Clay, taking his hands in his own with a light laugh, "You can't dwell on the 'maybes' in life, bro. You just gotta focus on the here, and now, and what you can do in the moment." Clay felt his anger dissipate at Trollex's words, though he still frowned.

"'Maybes' are what keep people safe," Clay insisted, unconsciously squeezing Trollex's hands.

"Future 'maybes', totally. But past 'maybes' can't be changed. You gotta go with the flow, bro," Trollex chuckled, tugging Clay forward a bit, "But enough of that. C'mon, I'll show you around."

Clay sighed heavily and followed after Trollex, taking note of the fact that the king had only let go of one of his hands.

~

"This is all really impressive," Clay praised with an easy smile while pulling his helmet off. The last stop on the tour of the palace was a series of rooms dedicated to visiting dignitaries from other kingdoms. Much like the rooms arranged for the visiting pop trolls, these rooms had been made air tight and drained of water to allow for other genres to visit without the need for helmets.

"Thanks, man," Trollex said, taking the helmet from the green troll to set aside on a table. "We've only had a few trolls come to visit so far, so it's nice to know our efforts aren't in vain."

"I thought the whole world tour thing was a while ago?"

"Oh, yeah, it was," Trollex shrugged, floating over to a couch and patting the spot net to him in invitation to Clay, "But, we're a bit harder to get to, being underwater, an' all. Plus, as much as I'd love to extend more open invitations to other kingdoms, we haven't finished hammering out all the necessary laws to make sure everyone stays safe."

"Man," Clay said with a little laugh, flopping himself onto the seat next to the king, "How do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Just…so easily flip between being dead serious and being a party guy? How do you make sure people still take you seriously?"

Trollex watched Clay for a moment, before letting out a little breath and curling his fins beneath himself. "You're talking about the whole 'fun boy' thing, aren't you?"

Clay startled, leaning away from Trollex with wide eyes. "How'd you know about that?"

"Queen Poppy gave us a bunch of pop records when the kingdoms first started talking to each other again. There was a BroZone record in there. Which, by the way, makes for some killer mixes and spinbacks! But, uh…yeah. Not hard to put two and two together when Branch was talking about his brothers, meeting before last. Poppy also might have mentioned that I shouldn't call you 'fun' before we met," Trollex said with a light laugh.

Clay groaned, dropping his face into his hands. "Is that what this is, then?" he asked, slightly muffled, "Some sort of weird intervention to show me that I can be fun and serious, not just one or the other?"

"What? No. Man, you sure do jump to a lot of conclusions," Trollex chuckled, gently taking Clay's hands away from his face. "You just genuinely seemed like a cool troll. Is it so hard to believe I might wanna get to know you better, without any ulterior motives?"

"Yes."

That startled a burst of laughter out of Trollex, making the techno king reel back and wave his hands through the air. "Oh! Oh, man. Clay," he snorted, wiping at his eyes, "Bro. Trust me, it shouldn't be hard to believe. You really made an impression on the council with your ideas at the last meeting, and Viva told me about everything you did at the golf course. You're a really impressive troll, Live Wire."

"Oh. Well…thanks," Clay chuckled awkwardly, his cheeks flushing.

"It helps that you're real cute, too," Trollex added cheekily, shooting Clay a grin.

"I-What?!" It was Clay's turn to reel back, his back hitting the arm rest of the couch as his cheeks practically caught fire.

Trollex simply laughed, leaning his arm on the back of the couch so he was a bit more in Clay's space. "Okay, so maybe I had one ulterior motive," the king admitted, "I thought, maybe, you and Viva were a thing, but I overheard her teasing you about me."

"You had headphones on!" Clay squawked, shaking his head slightly.

"Yeah. I didn't have any music playing. Sometimes it's nice to be left alone because people think you can't hear them. Plus, I get to hear things that people might not want me to know," the king confessed with a little shrug. "But, y'know, if I'm reading you all wrong, just tell me to back off. I won't take offense."

"I…okay?"

"That was definitely a question, and not enthusiastic consent," Trollex chuckled, reaching out to gently take one of Clay's hands in his own. "You gotta say the magic word."

"Please?"

Trollex snorted. "I was looking for 'yes', or something to that effect, but I suppose that works, too." With that he leaned forward and cupped Clay's jaw in his hand, his smile turning soft. "You just do what you gotta do if this doesn't feel right, okay?"

Clay gave a little nod and let his eyes slip shut as Trollex pressed their lips together. He genuinely couldn't remember the last time he'd been kissed. Was it all the way back when he'd been in BroZone? Probably. He'd always been too busy at the golf course to ever entertain the idea of getting involved with anyone. And, as much as he and Viva were teased for being in each others back pockets all the time, there really wasn't anything more than close sibling feelings between the two of them. So, as the kiss broke and Trollex shifted back, he had no real idea if it felt right or not. He did, at least, know it didn't feel wrong. He opened his eyes to find Trollex watching him intently, a nervous little smile on his face.

"Well?"

"Repeat experiments must be run in order to ensure the results are valid and consistent," Clay muttered, pulling his hand free of Trollex's in order to take the kings face in both hands and draw him in again. He smiled into the kiss at Trollex's surprised little grunt, pleased as he felt the techno king all but melt into him.

When they pulled apart the second time, Clay took note of the dumbstruck expression on Trollex's face, feeling a little curl of satisfaction in the pit of his stomach for putting the look on the kings face.

"One more? To, uh, make sure the results are consistent?" Trollex asked, his cheeks glowing a faint pink as he leaned in again.

"Just to make sure," Clay easily agreed, tugging Trollex closer so the techno king was half in his lap as their lips met again.

~

Clay smirked as he fixed his hair and adjusted his romper as he glanced back at Trollex, who looked like a ragdoll on the couch, one arm over his face and one fin flopped onto the floor.

"Live Wire is a perfect nickname for you," Trollex sighed, sitting up as Clay picked up his helmet. Slowly he rose from his seat and floated over to the green troll, resting a hand on the top of the helmet. "I hope…I really hope this wasn't a one time thing?"

Clay blinked, a bit taken aback by the question. "It isn't?"

"I mean," Trollex floated backwards, twisting his fingers together in front of himself nervously, "If you wanted it to be, that…that's cool. I just…I know we don't know each other super well yet or anything, but I really like you, Clay. And I'd really like to get to know you better. I know you've got all your responsibility with the pop trolls and Viva and stuff, but…I'd like to see you again. I'd like to see you more."

"Oh," Clay breathed, oddly somewhat startled that anyone would want to see him again, let along a King. "You mean that?"

"I wouldn't say it if I didn't."

"Okay. Okay! Yeah," Clay nodded, shifting the helmet in his hands to rest on his hip so he could reach out and take Trollex's hand. "Next time, you come to ours. You can stay with me."

Trollex's face lit up in a giddy grin, his cheeks flushing bright pink at Clay's words. "Already looking forward to it."

[heartshapedbubble]

hi !!! could i request bday hcs with norton and victor?? anything works!! you could do general hcs if youd like <3

hihi of course !! 💓

norton campbell and victor grantz birthday hcs🧲💌

norton campbell🧲

not the best at throwing parties to be honest. never had one thrown for him, never threw one and was rarely invited to them. he never really celebrated his own birthday either

HOWEVER. since it's you in question he cannot go cheap

he's going to be avoiding you for some time as he's going to be busy digging ores and crystals to sell - organizing a birthday party is not exactly a cheap feat, and he needs to make sure everything goes perfectly, from the icing to the candle wax to the piñata (if you're up for it😎)

lacks a lot of those ""birthday skills""" such as baking a tasty cake and the ability to decorate well so he's going to go all out on your present at the very least

he likes gifting crystals and gems he finds - only the best one he could dig up for you, polished by hand - as he finds them to be a very versatile gift. don't like them? you can sell it! can't store them anywhere? no problem, for he'll simply commission a jeweler to make a custom piece out of it!

despite going all out for you he's quite indifferent about his own birthday, being happy even when it's just you and him and a birthday cake between you two. write him a sweet card and put some dollar bills between the paper to make this man's day

victor grantz💌

oh victor is so tooth-achingly sweet when it comes to birthdays. bless his little heart fr

he loves throwing parties and has an amazing eye for decorations and aesthetic, and he would like to keep planning your party a private thing so it's just him who can hyperfocus on making it perfect

vic's the kind of guy that prefers doing everything by himself, from the gift - for him, the best gift is the one that will have special meaning for the receiver - to the birthday cake which he'll mix, bake and decorate all on his own. the fact that it's him who's picking out the most fitting aroma for the whipped cream, the color scheme and the tea flavor makes him feel so good. is it because of you or is it just because he loves organizing? both? he'll never know!!!!!!!!!!! 🤗🤗🤗

and obviously the best part of it all? THE BIRTHDAY CARD. i don't think i have to explain this one tbh just visualize his face impatiently watching yours light up as you read

vic strikes me as somebody who would force everyone to wear birthday hats including wick. just a thought tbh

as for his birthday he's quite humble about it!! just a small circle of people dear to him (obviously including you don't even DARE to not show up i will personally put you into a coma) and a lot of birthday letters just for him </33334 god bless viccy

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for definitely getting someone fired...?

I (23F at the time) used to work at a Cafe. I exclusively worked morning shift so never really directly interacted with the person I got fired, but often worked with swing shift employees who did work directly with her and I also daily had to deal with the repercussions of this person's.... general existence.

The person I got fired was the late shift cook/baker. Let's call her Michaela.

I was more dedicated and hardworking than the job really deserved, but took things like food safety seriously and cared about my coworkers. Again, I never worked directly with Michaela but she controlled a good amount of the food distro bc late night shift also prepped quick items for early morning shift like pastries and a la carte fair.

She was always incorrectly dating her food, and would throw a fit if morning shift wasted (threw out) expired unsold inventory. Ex if she made a quiche sold by slice on Tuesday evening, it was technically good to sell through Friday night. On Saturday morning when I came in, I would waste any Tuesday quiche. On occasions where multiple items Michaela had made would be going out on my shift, she would change the date before closing so it wouldn't seem expired. I usually worked 6-8 days in a row on opening so needless to say this shit didn't fly by me and i would toss it anyway. (I saw that same danish on Wednesday morning, it's Saturday. I'm not feeding people expired food.)

She constantly caused a stink in the group chat over things like this. So I started documenting it when she would change dates, and would write down customer complaints about "stale" items.

I also heard from swing shift coworkers that Michaela had started talking shit about me to all of the late shift people. Having worked with most of the people she was talking about me behind my back to, they knew all of her complaints were baseless and just due to my adherence to food safety standards making her look bad. Then I found out she started threatening some of the staff with violence for standing up for me - texting them that she was going to beat them up in the parking lot after closing and other heinous shit.

So I compiled a drive folder of all the evidence I had, as well as "statements" (technically hearsay but... this ain't court) including the floor manager watching her crack six dozen eggs into a bucket and use them for a week (raw unpasteurized eggs stay good for MAXIMUM 48 hrs out of the shell btw) and other employees recording her leaving the bathroom without washing her hands - and I sent it to the owner with a statement that I was concerned about her jeopardizing customers with her lax food safety and threatening behavior towards the staff as well.

Anyway Michaela got the boot. I was definitely responsible. She needed to go and I do not feel even slightly guilty. AITA?

What are these acronyms?

[jowrites]

Thank God for cats - Jake Sim DRABBLE

Part 1

IDOL!JAKE! X F!READER FATHER!JAKE X MOTHER!READER!

In which Jake's daughter wants to hear the story how her parents met and fell in love for the 100th time...

TW: Mental health issues, depression mentioned, mentions of killing self, angst, semi cheating, emotional cheating, sad boi Jake, jealousy, fluff, neaurodivergent reader, mentions of pet death, cursing, kissing, groping

Jake sat with his daughter on the floor in her room, finishing up play time before bed. She had on her pajamas already and just had those few minutes before he had to put her to bed. He smiled down fondly at her as she handed him his items and held out her tiny palm to him.

“That will be $100 please!” She said and his eyes gaped.

“$100? For a banana and some eggs?” He said, gasping. “I don’t think that’s right, Miss.”

“The cashier is never wrong,” She said, folding her arms over her chest.

“Well, in this instance she is,” He said, folding his arms over his chest in a copy of her. “I feel scammed.”

“Fine. You can’t take the groceries then. Next time, make sure you have the money, Sir,” She said, huffing at him.

“And next time, try not to scam your customers!” He retorted back, sticking his tongue out. 

“Okay, time for bed,” YN came into the room then. “It’s daddy’s bedtime too.”

“Aww, can I stay up a little longer?” Their daughter pouted. 

“Nope. Into bed my little Layla,” He said lifting up off the ground, her giggles filling the air. He placed her in her small bed, tucking her in and getting her favorite stuffed animal, the white plush dog, and tucking it beside her.

“Goodnight, Layla. Sweet dreams, I love you!” YN said, leaning in and giving her a sweet butterfly kiss on the nose before getting up and walking out of the room.

“Daddy?” She said, “Tell me the story again about how you and mommy met.”

“Again?” He asked. “Okay, let’s get comfortable…”

He hopped into bed with her and got comfortable beside her, she nestled into his side, her little frame fitting perfectly in his arms. She hugged the plush to her little body as he kissed the top of her head.

“It all started on a late night walk…”

10 Years Before

Jake does not like to think of himself as an emotional man, he normally hides behind a mask and puts on the perfect smile and hopes everything he feels just goes away. For the most part, that always works for him, but why wasn’t it working this time? Jake couldn’t wait until it was late and he and the boys could be dropped off and he could rest his eyes. He was so exhausted, drained from the everyday schedules back to back and not having the time to even breathe. 

Ding

New message

Jake ignored it, placing his phone on the table beside him as he waited for the last two members to finish their side of things before they could all leave. 

“Is it Jiyoon?” Jay asked from his spot on the couch. Jake shrugged but he assumed it probably was. The last conversation he had with his girlfriend was not one he wanted to remember or one he wanted to even think about at that moment. It wasn’t a nice one, one where she threw curse words at him and reminded him just how useless he was. He simply walked away without much care. If she wanted to leave him, he wouldn’t blame her.

“You know, you won’t be able to ignore her forever, at least text her back,” Jay said, coming up and patting him on the shoulder. “Come on, time to go.”

Jake nodded, picking up his phone and walking behind Jay as the rest of the boys all followed suit. They all thanked the staff and began walking out to the vans to finally go home. Schedules these days were rough and Jake didn’t know how much longer he had before he would crack. He pushed those thoughts aside as he sat down in the van and closed his eyes, embracing the little moments of peace he had before he had to get back to reality.

Jake expected sleep to come to him the moment he laid down in bed but it never came. He kept thinking he was just a terrible person and he was being a terrible boyfriend and he hated it. He hated being like this. He read Jiyoon’s message and immediately felt guilty. She had come by and dropped off food for him and the boys and she told him to make sure he gets some rest because she knows how he can be. Even when they fight, she still cares about him and it drives him crazy. He sighed before getting up and throwing on a  hoodie and a hat, grabbing his mask and walking out the door. He needed some air.

When he was feeling like this, he always came to the Han river and it always seemed to cheer him up. He could always clear his mind and think better when he walked alongside it. It was way past 2 AM by now but that didn’t stop him from coming out and having this small moment of freedom. This small moment to himself. His shoulders were constantly feeling heavy and his feet walked with shackles as he marched alongside the river strip, he didn’t know why but he wanted to cry. He didn’t let himself though, he knew this would soon pass over and everything would be fine. 

He stopped in his tracks and in his view he saw a girl in the grass sobbing her eyes out. Concern filled his face, he looked around and saw nobody in sight, just her and his curiosity got the best of him because suddenly his tired feet were walking towards her. 

“Uhm, hello?” He asked from behind her. She still cried, not noticing his presence and he cleared his throat loudly. She didn’t budge. “Hello? Are you okay?”

He tapped her shoulder and she yelped, startled front he tapped and looked up at him. He jumped back from her loud screech and screamed in response to her getting startled. Her startle startled him. He stared at her with big eyes as she stood up, holding out a hand. 

“Please, I don’t have any money. Just let a girl cry in peace,” She said, and he quickly began shaking his head. 

“Oh…oh no! No, I just wanted to see if you’re okay?” He explained, and she sighed, her shoulders let loose.

“Thank God you’re not like a creep or anything,” She said. “I’m sad.”

“That makes two of us,” He said, chuckling at his small joke. She just stared at him. “I mean, are you okay?”

“No.” 

She went back and sat down, sniffling again to herself and Jake looked around not wanting to leave the stranger alone. She wasn’t from here, she was a foreigner and he wasn’t sure if he should leave her alone out here. Sometimes, especially for foreigners, it wasn’t too safe.

“Do you want to talk about it?” He asked, taking a seat beside her.

“My cat died,” She said, just as she began to sob again and hug something to her chest. Jake noticed it was a small blanket. “T-this w-was his.”

Jake didn’t know what came over him, but watching the scene before him and seeing this stranger in such a vulnerable state without any worry of who would see her, brought his eyes to tears. He began to cry, trying to hide his own sniffles as he thought about his own pet, his dog Layla. The girl suddenly heard Jake beside her and she calmed down and looked at him.

“Why are you crying? He was my cat!” She cried out, huffing and sobbing.

“I’m crying because you’re crying!” He cried back.

And just like that, the two strangers sat beside each other and just cried over the death of a cat, together.

It was around 3 AM now when Jake walked out of the 7 Eleven with two hot teas in his hand. He offered one to the girl who sat on the bench waiting for him, she silently thanked him. Their eyes were puffy, noses were read, and together they sat there sniffling next to each other as if they’ve been friends for years. The blanket she had was wrapped over her shoulders and she held the cup between her two hands. Jake can get a better view of her face now, seeing her beauty and youth. He never felt so odd, crying together with a stranger over a cat he didn’t even know the name of. He knew the members would never let him live this down.

“What’s your name?” The girls asked, suddenly breaking him from his dreaded mind.

“Oh, I’m Jake,” he said, holding out a hand. She took it and nodded.

“I’m YN. Thank you for crying with me, Jake. Thanks for making sure I wasn’t alone during this time,” She said, tears welling up again and she quickly pushed them aside and gave him a small smile.

“You welcome,” he said, giving her a smile back. “What was your cat's name?”

“His name was Ophelia, but I called him Ophy for short,” She said. She took out her phone and showed him her lockscreen. The screen showed a beautiful gray tabby on the front, thick and looking at the camera as if posing.

“You named your cat Ophelia who was a boy?” He asked. “That’s interesting, I guess.”

“I thought he was a she when I first found him,” she said. “He had some tiny balls.”

Jake let out a laugh at that. His laughter brought laughter upon her and together the two were just laughing together.

“Man, people will think we’re insane,” he said.

“Who cares what people think? To be honest, my insanity normally keeps people away and they run. Don’t know why you stuck around and mother towards me tonight,” She said. 

“You were literally crying, I wanted to make sure you were okay,” he said.

“And I appreciate that. Well, I don’t want to waste more of your time,” She said, standing from her spot. “Thanks for keeping me company, Jake. Uhm…yeah.”

She suddenly turned around and started walking away, leaving Jake to just stare after her. He didn’t know why or what compelled him to do this, but as she was about to round the corner he chased after her. Once he caught up to her she noticed he was behind her and turned around. She lifted an eyebrow at him as he caught his breath, she just looked at him confused.

“C-can I have your number?”

******************

Present time

Jake heard giggles from beside him, looking down and seeing Layla giggling to herself.

“Why are you laughing?” He asked.

“Because you and mommy were crying together when you first met,” she said. “That’s kind of lame, daddy.”

“Wow, after everything I do and I’m still so lame to you,” Jake said, sighing.

“You’re lame but also really brave for getting her number then, and Thank God you got her number,” Layla said.

“Hm? Why?” he asked her.

“Because if you didn’t you might have never seen her again, duh! And then I would never be here,” she said, matter of factly.

“You know, you might be right. But Mommy is my soulmate, Layla, and soulmates always find each other…Let’s continue…so that’s how Mommy and Daddy became friends…”

**********************

Past

Ding

New message

Ding

New message

YN: I didn’t know you were an idol!

YN: 2 weeks and you failed to leave out that information. Very rude.

Jake: Is that a problem?

YN: No lol Just please tell me nobody knows. Kpoppies are crazy and I’m too young to die.

Jake: Don’t worry lol nobody will find out we’re friends

YN: Gucci hehe

Jake was about to type his reply when their manager walked into the room and began to talk to them over the upcoming schedules for the weeks to come. Normally company meetings didn’t last this long but things have been going on in the company and they’ve been coming in late. They were preparing for an upcoming comeback on top of touring still. Things were moving so fast and Jake could not slow down even if he wanted to. On top of things, things with his girlfriend seemed to be in the same state. They were working things out, but Jake couldn’t help but feel like he was wasting her time. They never saw each other which was the root of most of their problems, him not prioritizing her enough, but it’s not like he could just drop everything and go running to her every moment she wanted. She knew what she signed up for the moment they started going out.

“Alright boys, good work! We’re going to give you guys the next 3 days off before schedules start back up,” their manager spoke up, eliciting the room with cheers from the boys. Finally, some rest.

“As of now, you’re on a 3 day vacation. No funny business and let me know your exact whereabouts. Got it?”

********

Jake found himself outside the cat cafe covered up and hands in his pockets. YN gave him the time he could come by when she was closing up shop and he could come see the cats if he wanted. He mostly wanted to see her again, something about her just drew him in and he felt like he could be himself for once. Since they've exchanged numbers and started texting, he was intrigued by the way her mind worked. She always seemed to say outside of the box things and he appreciated that kind of thinking. She also never judged him and he quickly became comfortable enough around her. 

“Are you going to stand out here and be a weirdo or are you going to come in?” YN said, snapping him from his daze as she approached him. “Hey, if you prefer to see the cats from outside that’s fine, you’ll be missing out on George though. He’s really the best manager.”

Jake chuckled before following her inside. She quickly flipped the sign and locked the door so nobody would come running in and disrupt Jake’s peace if they recognized him. Jake took in the place, the cute beige interior, the colors of neutrals and browns. It was very cozy. Cats were spread out everywhere, most of them asleep and some of them coming up to him right away and rubbing up on his legs. He knelt down and began petting their fur, the two cats who greeted him.

“That’s Yellow Mustard and Avocado Toast,” YN said, walking by and wiping some of the tables in the process. She was still closing up the cafe.

“You have a very strange way of naming things,” he said.

“I’m really not that creative, Yellow Mustard got mustard on him one time and we can’t sell Avocado toast anymore because of him,” YN explained, pointing to each respective cat.

“Uh, do I want to know?” He asked.

“Not really,” She replied.

Some other cats jumped down from  their spots and came over to Jake. He quietly sat on the floor, enjoying the cat’s company. He noticed then some of the cats had collars on them with name tags. He noticed ‘Luke, I am your father’ on one, ‘Lana Del Gay’ on another and some other weird wacky ones that brought laughter out of him.

“Who picks the names?” Jake asked.

“We all do, sometimes customers. It depends,” YN said, shrugging as she went back to the counter to finish closing up. “Oh, do you want anything to drink?”

“Naww, I was thinking we can go grab something after,” Jake suggested and YN nodded.

“Sounds good. Also, how did things go with your girlfriend? Did you talk to her?” She asked.

“The same, we didn’t fight but we didn’t make any progress either,” He said, sighing and standing up and coming to her. “It just doesn’t feel like it’s worth it anymore.”

“Do you still like her?” YN asked.

“I don’t know,” he said, and he was being honest. “I just feel like I’m wasting her time and she is just holding onto something I feel like isn’t there anymore.”

“Jake, if that’s the case you need to end it with her. It's not good to drag it out like this. That’s not fair to her or you,” She explained, before letting out a gasp and rushing off to somewhere in the back. “I forgot to turn off the sink back here, shit! You were saying?”

“I didn’t say anything, will George be mad?” Jake asked as he watched her finish up.

“I don’t know, ask him yourself,” She said, nodding to the side where Jake saw a black cat in a tie.

“That’s George?” He asked. “I thought he was your manager?”

“He is,” she said. “He keeps me in check.”

“YN, that’s a cat,” he said.

“Your point? Ain’t that right George, you run the place,” She said, walking to the cat and giving him some pets. “Ha, Thank God for cats, am I right?”

********

Jake and YN sat on the floor in her small apartment, 2 bottles of soju had already been opened and down and they were working on their 3rd. They picked up some food on their way out of the cafe and YN offered to go somewhere quiet which Jake quickly accepted. Her place was extremely cozy, and she had another cat who was white laying on the small sofa behind them. Jake was absentmindedly rubbing the cat's fur which the cat easily felt happy and purred to. The two unlikely friends ate fried chicken and laughed together, talking about their lives and embarrassing things that happened. It was just so easy talking to her.

“I haven’t felt this alive in a while,” Jake admitted, his cheeks flushed from the soju, and he felt like just talking. 

“Why’s that?” She asked, taking a bite of her chicken. “Do you want to kill yourself?”

“Jesus, YN,” Jake said, stunned by her straightforwardness. 

“What? Usually when people say things like that they want to die,” She said, her shoulder shrugging. “I’ve been there too, I understand.”

“No, I am not going to kill myself,” he clarified. “But I do feel like I’m drowning.”

“Well, good,” Yn said.

“What’s good?” He asked.

“Good that you don’t want to take your life,” YN said. “We just became friends and I would be sad over your death too. I already lost a friend.”

Jake understood her, remembering how she just lost her cat which he learned was everything to her. How this cat brought her so much joy and comfort as she was in a  foreign Country away from home. YN came here for a job that quickly fell through, and the night she quit that job she found her cat Ophy. He had been with her through all her hard times here, and even led her to her current job at the cat cafe. 

“And if you feel like you’re drowning, just remember we float,” YN said. “Whatever you’re going through, you’ll get through it. And if you need a hand don’t worry, Roger and I will extend our hands so you don’t sink. It’s not fun going through things alone. Talk to someone, cry it out..crying always makes me feel better so don’t be afraid to cry. Embrace it like you did the night we met.”

“Embrace it, okay. I’ll embrace it more since you told me to,” Jake said, smiling at her.

“It’s okay to not be okay, you know? We’re all human,” YN said. “Just don’t marinate in it, just let it out.”

“You have a very odd way with words, but it’s making me feel better,” Jake said. 

“We’re all just a bunch of meat of all sorts of different flavors! Only difference is we shouldn’t marinate in things, that’d be cannibalism,” YN said and Jake let out a big laugh.

“What are you even saying? And why do I understand it? Jake said.

“I’m right!” YN defended. “I’m also drunk.”

*******

Jake had laughed so much since that night. He could feel himself slowly coming back to life. He felt more awake and more excited during the day. Anytime he was tired or disappointed in something, or a performance YN was right there cheering him on and being honest with him. She was such a great listener and anytime he had stress he would take her advice and his emotions became more clear instead of so stagnant and everywhere. His black and white world was becoming full of color, and the ice in his chest was starting to melt away and he could finally breathe. 

There was one thing he knew he had to take care of: Jiyoon.

YN was very clear on her boundaries with him, keeping their friendship and never letting him cross a boundary she knew he’d regret. She knew he wasn’t a cheater and she would not let him become one. Friendzoning Jake was how she constantly set boundaries and if he ever tried to break through new barriers she would shut him down. He was in an unhappy relationship and she was aware, but she was not going to be this outlet for him to come to when he was lonely. He had to take care of that himself.

Jake didn’t like the term ‘breaking up with you’, he honestly hated it even if it was coming from him. He felt worse, but he knew he had to do this. This was for him. Throughout these months he realized he should have done this a long time ago. This had nothing to do with his newfound friendship with YN, he was checked out of the relationship long before he even met her. He spends more time talking with YN than with Jiyoon, and YN helped him come to his senses that he’d been checked out long before anything. He had feelings for YN but he still had yet to find her feelings for him. She did nothing but be careful and strictly be nothing more than just his friend. His very good friend and she helped him regulate his emotions more and come to a more emotional maturity level. He wished he didn’t need a crazy cat lady to help him realize this, but it turned out that way.

“Oh? Jake,” Jiyoon said, as she opened her door. 

“I came to see you,” Jake said, Jiyoon stepped aside and let him come into her apartment. The place always looked the same, nothing new to him. He didn’t move from the doorway though, and Jiyoon knew he didn’t plan to stay.

“You look good, so much healthier,” Jiyoon said, tucking some of his hair behind his ear.

“I’ve been doing better. What about you? You cut your hair,” He said, noticing how her long hair was no longer long and now cut to her shoulders.

“Ah, it was bothering me. I don’t know if you remember when I texted you the photo,” Jiyoon said, looking away from him. He didn’t remember and that just made him feel more awful. 

“I’ve been-”

“Really busy, I know. Your company just doesn’t give you a break, does it?” She cut him off. 

“Jiyoon, I’m really sorry,” he said. “Really, really fucking sorry.”

“No, it’s okay, Jake. I understand. This is what I signed up for when I started dating you, remember?” Jiyoon stepped forward trying to embrace Jake, but he only stepped back causing a frown to form on her face.

“No, it’s not okay, Jiyoon. I think we’ve both known for a while,” Jake said, and when he looked into her eyes he could see the tears in her eyes and he could hear her heart shatter. “We have to end this so we’re no longer suffering anymore.”

“Jake, we can work this out, please,” Jiyoon said, crying and gripping the material of his shirt.

“Jiyoon, I don’t want to. I’m no longer in this relationship emotionally, mentally, physically even…and you don’t deserve that. I’ve been wasting your time and you deserve better, I’m sorry,” He said, taking her hands in his and squeezing them one last time before dropping them to her sides gently. “Thank you for all the wonderful memories. You’re such a beautiful person inside and out, I hope whoever comes along treats you better. Be well, okay?”

Jake kissed the top of her head before opening the door and walking out. He knew if he looked back he’d be shattered even more. This is not what he thought would ever happen between them, but it did and he only has himself to blame. He let a few tears fall from his eyes before gathering himself up and putting on his hat and mask, covering himself up and walking out into the night. As he turned the corner he dropped down to the floor and sat there comforting himself. He brought his knees to his chest as he let out a few breaths. It was over, it was done. Suddenly, he felt something rubbing up on his leg and when he lifted his head he saw a gray tabby, rubbing up on his side and comforting him. He smiled and began to pet the cat, letting the cat come up on his lap and give his hands some licks.

“Thank God for cats.”

To be continued...

[d1strxct]

𝑨 𝑻𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝑳𝒂𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒆𝒓

𝑵𝒊𝒓𝒂𝒏 “𝑳𝒊𝒇𝒆𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒓“ 𝑷𝒓𝒖𝒌𝒔𝒂𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒆𝒆 𝒙 𝑹𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓

an: a silly little lifeweaver fic that no one asked for (i want him so bad). enjoy!

You tiredly staggered into your small apartment and let out a deep sigh. Finally, you were back home from what seemed like the longest work shift ever. Your feet ached and your mind was frazzled by the overwhelming amount of rude people. Dealing with ignorant and disrespectful customers was not your strong suit.

You tittered on the edge of a migraine and rubbed at your temples while hastily kicking off your shoes. Making your way to the couch, you wanted nothing more than to relax and enjoy the night.

And who a better person to spend it with than him.

Niran quietly walked into the living room, coming from the bedroom to investigate the sudden noise. He chuckled softly when he saw you laying face down on the couch, one arm hanging off of the cushion. A warm smile painted his face as he stepped towards you, his footsteps lightly pattering against the carpet.

A gentle and warm hand touched down on your back, landing flat and rubbing up and down soothingly.

“Rough day at work, dear?”

You nodded against the cool surface of the couch, sighing contentedly as Niran’s hand rubbed out the knots in your lower back. You turned your head to peek up at him, half of your face smushing into the cushion. He wore a pretty grin that made you tiredly smile up at him.

“I’ll go make some tea, love. You lay right there and look beautiful.”

And that’s exactly what you did.

Almost ten minutes later, you were still laying on the couch. Your eyes were half closed and you were about to succumb to sleep when the sound of light footsteps brought you back. You slowly opened your eyes and watched as Niran set down two cups of warm tea on the table in front of you.

“Sit up, love. Tell me about your day.”

With the help of your lovely boyfriend, you got into a comfortable sitting position next to him. He leaned forward and carefully grabbed your cup, handing it to you. You took it from his hands and blew on it before taking a small sip. The warmness of it made you significantly more awake and you smiled to yourself. One of Niran’s arms wrapped around you and you rested your head on his chest.

“Alright, now what happened at work today?”

You sighed and closed your eyes for a second, the memories of today's events flooding into your mind. Your tea sat comfortably in both hands as you started speaking.

“Well, two of our registers shut down at the same time. Tons of people were waiting in each line and half of them wouldn’t stop complaining. Not to mention there were only four of us working at the time. This lady threw a fit like it was our fault they went down. I was on my feet the entire time and my back was aching from carrying heavy loads. It was hot and humid and exhausting and I-“

“Hey, hey. It’s okay. It’s over now. You got through it.”

You hadn’t noticed your voice growing louder with each passing second until Niran stopped you, rubbing your arm delicately. You took a deep breath and let it out, calming your mind and listening to Niran whisper sweetly into your ear.

“Customer service isn’t for the weak, darling. It takes a lot of mentality to do that, and because you’re so strong, you get through it. Ha, I could never work in customer service. I’d give them the same attitude back and get myself fired. And hey, it’s the weekend now, so you don’t work! We can sleep in and relax all day tomorrow.”

He placed a small kiss on your forehead and affectionately squeezed you closer to him. You chuckled and tilted your head to give him a hearty smile. He always knew just what to say to make you feel better, and you couldn’t be any more grateful.

“That would be lovely, Niran. Thank you. Ugh, I’m starving now. I’m gonna go get my leftovers.”

Niran didn’t say anything, slowly unwrapping his arm from around your shoulders. You sat your tea on the table and patted his leg affectionately, giving him a small smile before standing up. You walked into the kitchen and made a beeline for the fridge, where the leftovers from last night’s dinner awaited you. Opening the refrigerator door, you set your eyes on where you had put the container last night.

Except the container wasn’t there anymore.

You narrowed your eyes slightly and made a confused face before looking around inside. Maybe it got moved around somewhere? Niran must’ve put it in a different spot and you just weren’t seeing it yet. But after almost a minute of searching, you still didn’t find the leftovers. Shutting the refrigerator, you turned around to call out to Niran.

“Hey, love? Where are the-“

Turning around, your eyes landed on the kitchen table, where a container stared back at you, empty. You stopped midway through your sentence, standing lifeless in the middle of the kitchen. Those weren’t your leftovers, were they? Upon closer look, you saw a fork laying next to it, and what appeared to be little crumbs of yesterday's dinner.

You entered the living room again, your face expressionless and dark. Niran sat on the couch still, looking anxious with a nervous smile. A guilty smile. The two of you stared at each other for a moment, before you slowly opened your mouth. You spoke calmly, but it was monotone and quiet.

“Niran, did you eat my food?”

He recognized your blank expression and quickly jumped up, putting his hands out in front of him defensively.

“I-It isn’t what it looks like! I swear!”

That’s all you needed to hear before you lunged for him.

“Niran Pruksamanee, you are so dead!”

As soon as you took a step forward, he yelped and clumsily took a step back, almost tripping over his own two feet. He quickly rounded the couch, standing behind it while you were in front of it. His throat bubbled up with nervous giggles, the smile growing wider and guiltier looking. His eyes pleaded for forgiveness on their own, but you were having none of it.

You shifted towards the right side of the couch and Niran moved to the left side, keeping both of his hands on the end of the furniture. You stared intently at him, your gaze fierce and sparkling with a sense of mischief Niran had seen before. And it usually didn’t end well for him.

“Wait wait wahahait! Please, l-let’s just talk about this!”

“Ohh no no no” you started, “you’ve said enough.”

Instead of chasing Niran around the couch and going back and forth, you got the idea to jump over it instead. When Niran was standing behind the middle of it, you quickly leaped over the couch. With a shriek, Niran pivoted around the couch and took off down the hallway. You had to contain a laugh from his girlish scream and quickly ran after him.

Since the apartment was small, there wasn’t much space to run around everywhere. You were able to use that to your advantage and catch up to him pretty quickly. He made a beeline for the bedroom and just before he could reach it, you jumped onto his back. He yelped and lurched forward. One of his hands came up to make sure you didn’t fall. He was already in enough trouble and didn’t want to add fuel to the fire if you got injured.

You wrapped one of your arms around his neck, careful not to choke him, and put the other one around his torso. Your hand rested on his hip and felt him tense underneath you. Niran poured out pretty giggles and shook his head, trying to walk toward the bed. You smirked and brought your lips close to his ear.

“You can speak in laughs for me, pretty boy.”

Deciding not to waste any more time, you instantly went in for the kill. Your thumb latched onto his hip bone and pressed in, your other fingers sneaking to the back of his side and mercilessly squeezing. Niran was in hysterics immediately and let out beautiful laughter. You knew that this was one of his worst spots, and you also knew that he deserved no mercy.

You already felt him crumbling underneath your hip squeezes and watched as his knees buckled. He slowly fell to the ground and you used this as an opportunity to get him onto his back. You quickly got off of his back and fought his defending hands to get the upper hand.

With a few more squeezes to his waist, you managed to lay him on the floor face up and straddle his waist. You gathered his wrists in your hand and held them above his head, basking in the giggles that spilled from his mouth. Now that he could see your face, you put on your best angry look and narrowed your eyes at him.

“Any last words, thief?”

“I hahahave to admit, it was pretty gohohoohahaHAHhaha!”

Your fingers landed on his side, rapidly pinching up and down. He threw his head back against the floor with a bright smile, laughter barreling through his chest. His arms tried to crash down against his sides, but you managed to keep them up. Behind you, his legs kicked out uselessly and he stomped his feet against the carpet.

“I can’t believe,” you pinched his hip, earning another squeal, “that you would eat MY leftovers. I mean who does that?!”

Niran shook his head through loud and hiccupy laughter. You watched as he scrunched his nose and crinkled his eyes out of reflex. It took everything in you not to show the big smile that was hiding behind the ‘bad cop’ facade. His laugh was as sweet as gold and glazed in honey. His small hiccups and wheezes were only one of your favorite things about it. You wouldn’t trade it for the world.

And what a perfect opportunity to hear it in all its beauty!

“Nohohohahahaha! I’m-hah! Ihihi’m sahahahahaharry!”

You shook your head and tsked, bringing your hand up to his ribs and prodding in random spots.

“Nuh-uh. It’s too late for apologies. You should’ve thought about that before you decided to steal”

Niran squirmed around like a fish out of water and squeaked at each prod to his lower ribs. His lower ribs were more sensitive than his higher ones and you made sure to take your time to find each sensitive spot. You were methodical and fast-paced as you dug your fingers into each bone, watching his reactions intently.

Usually, when you and Niran got into playful attacks, you started slow and teasing. You would lightly trace his waistline to make him giggle and move to his sides to get a few squeals out. Those fights had a ninety-nine percent chance of ending with you on the ground a laughing mess, as Niran was always one to seek revenge right after.

But you made sure to change your tactics tonight. Starting with hip squeezes always made him a crumbled mess on the floor. Boisterous and bubbly laughter flowed out of him like an open ocean. His wide smile was bright enough to light a thousand rooms. You enjoyed the way you could make him squirm beneath you with a simple prod to one of his most ticklish spots. Continuing on the rougher side would tire him out quicker, so your chances of ending up in his spot were slim.

“Ihihihit’s nohohot stealing if Ihihihi mahade it!”

“Okay, fair point. But it still doesn’t give you the right to eat it without even asking!”

Niran was lost in laughter at that point. Your fingers skittered up to the backs of his ribs. He tried turning his body to the opposite side, but your wiggling fingers followed, not once letting up. You noticed him trying to form words and quickened your fingers. A snort escaped him and you couldn’t help the small smirk that formed on your lips.

“Hmm? What was that you were trying to say, thief?”

“IHIHIhihi’m sahahrry! I’m sorry, pahaha-please!”

“Please what, huh?”

Before he could get anything else out, you climbed your fingers back down and spidered them onto his stomach. He sucked in a breath, and you felt him tense underneath your hand. His laughter dropped to high-pitched giggles and you thought this was the perfect time for some teasing.

“You know, I’ve had a very stressful and long day today. I couldn’t wait to get home and eat my oh-so-delicious leftovers and relax with my oh-so-beautiful man. But come to find out, you had eaten them all! Do you not love me anymore? Are you against me somehow?!”

He was about to giggle and wheeze out a response when you shushed him, giving a squeeze to the side of his stomach. Any words about to come out of his mouth were quickly replaced with a bark of laughter.

“Ah ah, I said no apologies. Looks like I’ll just have to find something else to eat. I could really go for some fruit right now. Do you know what kind, Niran?”

His eyes almost shot out of his head at hearing your words. He blabbered out pleas’ and scrambled to pull his hands down. In his giggly and weakened state, he wasn’t able to get far in bringing them down and laughed louder in anticipation. You smirked down at him and tried not to laugh at his nervousness. You stopped skittering your nails against his stomach and slowly pulled his loose shirt up until his stomach was fully shown. You watched as it quivered underneath your fingers and smirked down at him.

“I could go for some raspberries! And I see an oh-so-beautiful man,” you trailed your eyes down to his stomach and gasped, “with an oh-so ticklish tummy all for me!”

“No no noho no! Pla-plehehease! Nahahaha, Ihihi CAHAhahahn’t!”

Niran’s laughter got more frantic as his squirming increased. Instantly, you lowered your mouth to his stomach and blew a raspberry. He screamed and threw his head back, falling into a never-ending pit of never-ending laughter. His legs kicked and hit the floor repeatedly. You blew raspberry after raspberry until his laugh was barely audible, his smile threatening to split his face in half.

You decided to give him a break when you saw the darkest shade of maroon paint his cheeks and tears form in his eyes. You sat up and smiled down at him, keeping your grip around his wrists. He sputtered out giggles with a big grin and took in deep breaths, his chest heaving up and down. Your hand came up to his face and he flinched, giggling even louder and attempting to move his head away. You cooed and teased him.

“Aw, did you think I was gonna tickle you again? Stop giggling and hold still!”

Niran relaxed a little when your hand wiped the small tears from the sides of his cheeks. You caressed your thumb against his face and booped his nose, earning a tiny giggle as a reward. You grinned and lowered your hand to his neck, fluttering your fingers against the side of it. He squealed and twisted his head, trying to evade your ticklish touches.

“You’re just too ticklish for your own good, Niran. Look at how flustered you are!”

“Stahahahap teheheasing. I ca-ahahaha-can’t!”

“Can’t what?”

“Ihihi cahan’t tahake it!”

Your fingers moved back to his stomach and lightly skittered all across it, keeping him in a state of airy giggles and squeaks. The smirk on your face never faded.

“Awh, you can’t take the teasing? Or the tickling? Maybe both? Either way, I think you can! And I think you deserve it too.”

Niran shook his head and babbled out protests again. You giggled innocently and prodded his side a few times, basking in the precious laughter it gave you like he was the sun. Slowly and teasingly, your hand spidered up his side, making sure to hit all of his sensitive spots on the way up.

He sucked in a breath through his teeth and squirmed around. You smiled and brought your fingers up to his armpit. Niran squealed at the feeling and giggles escaped his mouth. They raised in volume when he noticed the evil look on your face and he shook his head wildly, his eyes begging yours not to continue.

“Ohoho gohohosh. Plehehease nohohot there!”

“Where? Here?” You poked his armpit with a single finger. “Or maybe here?” A squeeze to his ribs. “Or what about here?” A skitter of fingers on his neck. You left him a giggling mess on the floor. He was squeaking and squealing like a child and you loved every second of it.

“Ohh, you meant here!”

Quickly, you let go of Niran’s wrists and shot both of your hands into his armpits, scribbling your fingers into the hollows. Niran outright screamed and threw his head back, diving headfirst into cackles and snorts. His arms crashed down by his sides and his back arched before falling back down. He tightened the space between his arms and his torso, trapping your wiggling fingers further in his armpits.

“NAHAHAnohoho! Ohohohhoho my gahahahad! Stopstopstahahahap!”

His torso shook with mirth as you deepened your fingers, making sure no sensitive spot went untouched. You switched between digging in and lightly skittering, keeping him on edge the entire time. You poked, prodded, and wiggled your fingers wherever you could. Niran made it easier for you by giving you no room to take your hands out. You giggled with him (and at him) and leaned down to blow a raspberry against his neck, getting a shrill squeal out of him.

“IHIHIHI’M SAHAHORRY! I’m sahaharry! Nohohoho mohohohohore!”

“Are you really sorry?”

“YEHEHEHES! Mehehehercy!”

You stilled your fingers and hummed in thought, looking down at him curiously. Niran gasped for air and let out tiny hiccups of laughter. He slightly relaxed and you felt his arms loosen, so you flexed your fingers. He squealed and squeezed them to his sides again, giggling up a storm and breathing heavily. You laughed and maneuvered your hands out of his armpits, receiving a few squeals and chortles.

Niran hugged his torso and looked up at you with a face as red as an apple and a smile as bright as a star. His chest heaved up and down as he caught his breath. You rested your hands on his hips and scooted down to sit on his lower legs, spreading them open slightly. Your hands traveled to his thighs and stilled on top of them, massaging them gently to calm him down.

“Y’know, I’m not sure you’re really sorry. I think you need one last bit of convincing.”You smirked down at him and lowered your voice. “After all, you always have to make sure a thief is punished properly.”

Without letting Niran fully process what you said, you found vacancy on his inner thighs and squeezed rapidly and mercilessly. Niran almost ascended into the heavens with how hard he started laughing. He squeezed his eyes shut tight and threw his head back, kicking his legs out like a fish out of water. You knew how much of a bad spot this was for him and you had no shame in using it to your advantage.

Niran’s hands raced down to grab yours, but since he was so weak with laughter, he didn’t attempt to slap your hands away. Boisterous laughter turned into hiccups and shrieks the longer you continued. You kept one hand on his inner thigh to skitter all across it and brought the other one lower to his knee, where you repeatedly squeezed the top of it. The different sensations made him fall into silent laughter and you could tell he couldn’t take it for much longer.

“Do you promise not to eat my leftovers ever again?”

Niran nodded slowly, tears threatening to fall down his face again. His stomach ached from laughing so much and his cheeks were sore. His entire face was painted red and he barely attempted to squirm around, telling you he was at his limit. You grinned and stopped your merciless squeezing to lightly spider your fingers across the tops of his thighs.

“Are you one-hundred percent positive you will ask for permission next time? And not steal them?”

“YEHEHEhehehes! Just-ahahaha-stahahahap! Plehehehahah-“

You hummed in triumph and stopped tickling him for good. You got off of his legs and sat beside his head, running your fingers through his hair while he caught his breath. Residual giggles spilled from his lips and you giggled too, gently getting the knots out of his tangled hair. The two of you sat in silence for the next minute or so, the occasional giggle escaping him. When he could finally function again, he tilted his head up to look at you.

“Thahat was ehehevil and sadistic. I didn’t you hahad it in you.”

You shrugged your shoulders and chuckled, smiling proudly.

“I had to teach you a lesson didn’t I, love?”

“Yes, you did. And I promise I learned it!”

“Good, because you’re making me dinner now.”

Niran sighed with a soft smile on his face and nodded. You giggled and booped his nose before standing up and reaching a hand out to him. He took it with grace and you helped him off the ground, keeping a hand on his arm in case he got too dizzy. Once he stood up, the two of you made your way back into the living room. You took a seat on the couch and relaxed while Niran walked into the kitchen, starting dinner for the two of you. You turned on the television and got lost in a show playing.

About thirty minutes later, Niran walked into the living room with two plates full of your favorite food. He sat them down on the table in front of the couch and you excitedly sat up, bringing the table closer to you so you could eat. It smelled delicious and you couldn’t wait to dig in. You looked up at Niran with starry eyes and smiled.

“This looks amazing, love. Thank you.”

He grinned and sat down next to you, instantly starting to dig into his food. You did the same and moaned in delight at the taste. Niran grinned and put his fork on your plate, trying to sneak a piece of your meal onto his. You quickly grabbed your plate and moved it away from him, narrowing your eyes and smirking.

“No way, Niran! This is all mine.”

He laughed and held his hands up defensively.

“Okay, okay! I’m not allowed to take any of your food. Noted!”

After the two of you finished dinner and cleaned up the table, you both laid back on the couch together and watched the television. Niran wrapped his arm around your waist and pulled you closer to him. You rested your head against his chest and brought your legs up to lay out on the couch. You felt so warm and safe around him, as he was like a big teddy bear.

A little while later, you two were still cuddling on the couch. Your focus was completely on the show, so you were distracted for the most part. A yawn from Niran broke you out of your focus and you looked up at him, a smile on your face. He softly grinned at you, tiredness evident in his eyes. You patted his chest and made a move to get up.

“Let’s go to bed, love.”

He nodded and brought a hand up to stifle another yawn. You chuckled and slowly started to break out of your cuddle with him, only to be gently pulled back down by a firm hand on your waist. You looked back at him with an eyebrow raised and noticed the small smirk on his face. He pulled you in closer so his lips were right beside your ear and he tiredly whispered.

“You’re lucky I’m too tired to get you back right now. You’re in for it tomorrow morning, darling.”

[nogenderbee]

♡˗ˏ✎*ೃ˚ 𝕊𝕝𝕖𝕕𝕕𝕚𝕟𝕘 ₊˚ˑ༄

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ @bleachtheidiot @akitosheart @hayillaaaaaaa @miguelito-maruti-blog @ravenmoon903

﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌

Somehow when Emu said she wanted to show you something cool on top of a big mountain... you expected it to be some cool rock she found or something like that! Not... a weirdly customized sled... Seems you underestimated her again, huh?

You were looking at her with this deadpanned look, wondering what's it this time she thought of and who did she this time got into her antics... or maybe it's you and you simply don't know it yet?

"Emu... What's this?"

"It's a sled!!"

You sighed to yourself gently at her weird excitement over sled as she sat down on its front.

"I can see that. I meant... why's this decorated like that?"

"Rui helped me customize it a little!"

That's the moment your eyes went wide... Maybe you don't know that guy personally, but you heard enough about him to know it can't be a normal sled after he touched it...

"What... did he do...?"

"There's the fun! I don't know!"

You honestly wanted to scream right now... but somehow that excited look on the girl's face made you think it may not be as bad... You really had too much of a soft spot for her...

"What do you mean you don't know?!"

"It's a surprise for us to discover!"

"Well this- Wait... Us?

Realization hit you all of a sudden as you looked at her and the space behind her... This slide definitely could fit 2 if not 3 people at once... So you WERE the one getting dragged into her antics after all!

"Mhm! You're curious too, right?! C'mon! Let's see how Rui did!!"

Your mind was telling you to just go back the way you came here... But your curiosity? It made you sit right behind her, get your feet on wood and arms around her. Even saying what you wouldn't id you were thinking rationally in the first place!

"Let's go."

"Yayyy!!"

She wasted no time as the second after your words, you were already going down this mountain... And you began feeling effects of what that Rui may've done to the slide...

"Emu... Did he add some speed boost-?"

"I think so! Wohoo!"

Emu was actually cheering and having fun as the slide went by many others, swiftly making every turn! Meanwhile you were clinging to her and the slide for your life, trying to not scream in terror as you realized what you're doing with your life...

"(I forgot to tell my mom I love her... And my grandma how much I love her food... And I got an F yesterday... And-)"

Your process of saying goodbye to this world in your mind was interrupted by a shaking. You were sure an angel came for you but... it was way too energetic and had pink her... So of course you were quick to realize you're still alive and it's just Emu...

"Y/N WAKE UPPPP!!!"

She was shaking you panickly, clearly worried that something may've happened to you just now.

"I-I'm awake, stop shaking!"

As you announced tour consciousness, the shaking indeed stopped! But you were met with other problem... now she was squeezing the life out of you with a hug!!

"I'm so glad!! I was worried I went too SWOOSH-WOOSH and that you may've gotten BLEEE..."

"What- No, no! I just had... hard time believing how fast we went..."

It was honestly putting lightly "I was scared for my life" in your eyes... But she doesn't need to hear it, right? Especially when she visibly began calming down as her grip relaxed.

"Really? So you wanna go again?!"

You could never say no to that shine in her eyes... But it's not saying no if you move it to later, right?

"Maybe... We can get hot chocolate first?"

You threw first thing you saw at her, hoping she'll agree and forget about sledding for now... And luckily, it seemed to so the trick!

"Oh yes! Hot choco! Let's goo!!"

She then excitedly took your hand and sprinted towards the stand offering hot drinks. She may be short but she certainly was a fast one...

"H-Hey! Slow down!"

But it still was better than experiencing that terror again, no? After all, she can't do anything risky when she's drinking something hot!

"I have an idea! Maybe we can drink it while sledding?"

"Oh god-"

﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌

ᴄʜᴇᴄᴋ 2024 ᴀᴅᴠᴇɴᴛ ᴄᴀʟᴇɴᴅᴀʀ

[barkspawn]

I desperately need the "Why dont you go marry them if you like them that much?" "...Are you jealous?" "Am not." prompt with Sebastian😫😫

I made myself laugh with this one

Amelia and Shane were hard at work all morning getting the coop ready to house chickens. Well, Shane was doing most of the work and explaining every detail to her. Everything from feed to love made its way into the discussion. She hadn't realized how passionate Shane was about the things he enjoys; in this case, chickens. She asked questions along the way, wanting to be a good chicken mom. 

Despite her best efforts, her mind wandered to later that afternoon when she was going to hang out with Sam and Sebastian. She had been growing increasingly excited to do so, having developed a bit of a crush on Sebastian after she ran into him in the rain one day. They shared a heart-to-heart and it changed so much about her view of him. She'd always thought he was attractive, sure, but he was also grumpy and tried a little too hard to be cool despite being around friends who were most times definitely not cool. 

Since the talk though, she understood. He wanted to be sure that he fits in and that there was no room to be rejected. He often felt as if that were the case in his family, which broke Amelia’s heart. She assured him that it would be something he'd never have to worry about with her, so if he needed to just… Let the facade down and nerd out or just vent, the farmhouse was always open. He had come over fairly often too, pacing on her porch in frustration with Demetrius and how his mother couldn't stand up for him when she knew that's what he needed. He’d get overly excited and need to talk about a new book in Cave Saga X (which he was happy to find out she liked too), and sometimes he'd have horrible customers. The most recent time he came over, it was a customer who screamed at him and was genuinely hostile over the color of the font on her website. She was paying well and he had to drop her. 

She took a chance and hugged him that night. She thought he might have never let go, just relishing in the fact that someone cared enough to try. 

Oddly, though, he left as soon as the hug ended. She assumes it's because he felt emotional or that he felt like he let his guard too far down, but she didn't know. She just knew that her heart had started to swell for this man. But she'd get over it. 

“Earth to Amelia?” Shane called, a handful of hay in his hand as he waved it. 

“Shit, sorry, Shane,” she gave him a genuine apologetic smile, “just a little distracted, I guess. What were you saying?”

He explained his point once more before they worked, finishing the preparations in the next hour. He agreed to bring two chicks in the morning and went home, a small pouch of peppers in hand. 

She made her way up to the house, taking in the vastness of her farm and how far it's come. As she turned her attention back to the cabin, her eyebrows shot up in surprise. Sam and Sebastian sat on her porch, Sam in a chair and Sebastian laying in the small, chair-like hammock. He looked so comfortable she was almost jealous. 

“Oh, hello, boys,” she called, chuckling as Sam jumped up and leaned on the railing, waving excitedly. 

“Ameliaaaaaaa,” he called back, pouting, “I know it's supposed to be later, but we're bored out of our minds.”

“I pretty much live in a state of boredom,” Sebastian chimed in, just loud enough for Amelia to hear. She was suddenly hyper-aware of how dirty and sweaty she was. She gave them both a small wave as she leaned on the banister as Sebastian finished, blowing smoke he had inhaled through his cigarette, “so Sam was bored.”

Sam threw a gardening glove at Sebastian, laughing as it drew out a surprised scoff as it smacked him in the chest. It left a large dust mark that he tried to brush away, “so not cool,” he mumbled.

She shook her head and opened her door, gesturing inside, “you guys are welcome in. You know Loaf missed you,” she looked at Sam, who had become a fast friend with her corgi, Loaf, “and I actually made some sashimi to bring for you later if you're hungry, Seb.”

Sam had run inside, and the excited barks from Loaf blended with Sam’s praises. Sebastian stood out of the hammock, struggling as everyone does, though he smiled at her, “sashimi, huh? That's one of my favorites, how did you know?”

“I'm just good like that,” she teased, following him inside and going to her mining bag by the door, fishing out a frozen tear and offering it to him, “just like I know you love these.”

She smirked as he took it, his touch delicate as he looked over the cool stone before looking down at her, surprised, “I do. Thank you. Really.” 

She smiled and nodded before turning toward the restroom, pulling her curly (and very tangled) hair down from her bun. 

“Make yourselves at home, alright? I am covered in dirt and smell like hay, so I need to shower. She backed into the bathroom, pointing at all of them, “it better not be a wreck when I come out of here.”

Sebastian smirked and walked over to the couch, contemplating getting the sashimi, but wanting to share with Amelia. The fish isn't easy to come by or filet… And he appreciated her. Sam took Loaf outside to run around (and not be destructive), while Sebastian lay on her couch, tossing this weird, sticky ball thing that Amelia ordered as a joke to throw at his ceiling, hoping they'd fall randomly on him in the day or even when he was sleeping. He cursed the high ceiling in his room. 

The little things were fun though. You just throw them up, they stick, then they fall. Easy, mind-numbing things to get lost in thought. 

He’d been over here tons of times now, bitching and moaning about everything that brought him down, whether it be a particularly shitty customer or Demetrius. She was always there to listen and, often, in the middle of the night. 

The last time he was here was when she hugged him. He hadn't been hugged like that for as long as he could remember. Abby and Sam would throw their arms around him for photos or as thanks for a gift. But Amelia held him. She wrapped her arms tightly around him, her head on his shoulder, and just held him there. 

And he didn't want to let go once he wrapped his arms around her and rest her head on hers. She smelled mainly of lavender and honey, mixed with the scent of the hay she had begun to lay. 

It calmed him immediately and he was sure she felt his heart racing. Until he realized the situation he was in and fled. He thanked her and went home, his breathing ragged as he panicked on the mountain path. 

He really, really liked her. 

He continued trying to distract himself from those ideas with the ball, Sam coming back in just as Amelia came out of the bathroom, fresh in pajamas as she towel dried her hair. 

Just don't look at her. Don't think about her. Be cool. 

She came out and plopped onto the armchair across from the couch, legs tucked under her and raising an eyebrow at Sam, “and where is my dog?”

Sam raised his hands in defense, “he's on the porch in his bed. Safe and tired.”

Amelia laughed, looking over at Sebastian before rolling her eyes, you kept those silly things?”

He continued starting up, refusing to be caught off guard by one, “of course. It's easy, repetitive, and mind-numbing enough to distract from any real issues.”

She flinched at that, concerned it meant he was mad about the hug… But he held on so tightly. 

“So, Amelia, you've hung out with Shane for like three days!” Sam (sort of) chimed in, moving away from that conversation to another, less tense one. Sebastian scowled, glad no one could really see his face as Sam continued, “something going on that you're not telling us?” 

Amelia was taken aback by the question as the soft thumps of the ball hitting the ceiling grew a little louder. Sebastian wasn't trying to throw it harder, but here he was. 

“No, Sam,” she laughed, more awkward than convincing, “he's super nice once you get to know him! He's helping me get ready for the baby chicks to come tomorrow morning.”

The noise grew louder, no one noticing as Sebastian spoke, his tone colder than he meant for it to be, “so once you get past him telling you to fuck off, you just buy him pizza and beer until he's nice to you?”

She stared over at him, Sam's eyes shooting to him as well, shocked. Amelia couldn't help but smirk, grasping onto her suspicion, “well, yeah, he was kind of a dick at first, but he's getting it together! Quitting drinking, taking care of all of the chickens. He's really good with Jas–”

“Why don't you go marry him if you like him so much?” he murmured as he threw the ball up once more, though it seemed to stick a little more than he meant for it to. 

“Seb, dude…” Sam started, thinking the same as Amelia. She held her hand out to stop him as she shifted to face Sebastian. 

“...... Are you jealous?” she asked, her trembling voice masked only by a bit of a teasing tone. 

Sebastian sat up, his hand supporting himself as he shifted his position to face her, his expression a mix of panic and forced confusion. 

“What?” he looked over at Sam for a moment who had an incredulous look on his face. Immediately, he turned back to look at Amelia. He couldn't hide the crimson in his cheeks, his voice a normal tone despite his demeanor, “jealous? Why would I be jeal– ah, fuck!”

With a small smack sound, the ball finally released from the ceiling, landing on the top of Sebastian's head. Oddly, he was thankful. His hand moved to touch the spot, chucking the ball at Sam as he absolutely lost his mind in laughter, nearly falling over. Even Amelia’s hands held her side in laughter as she managed, “oh shit– worth every fucking penny.”

After a few seconds, even Sebastian had to laugh at himself. 

The three of them hung out for a few hours before the two men stood to leave. Sam’s arms flung around Amelia in a bear hug, “Goooooooodniiiiiiight!”

She yelped, but ultimately laughed as he set her down. 

Sebastian gave his signature smile and wave, not quite meeting her eyes as they headed for the door. 

“Hey, Seb,” she called after him, Sam stopping outside of the door, “I want to ask you something if you can stay for a minute?”

She was suddenly nervous as all hell, watching as he turned to look at Sam, who smiled and gave a shrug, “I know how to get home. Text me, dude,” he pointed at Sebastian, waving bye to Amelia, “you too, Amelia!”

They both gave their goodbyes before Sebastian stepped back in, shoving his hands in his pockets as she started, her voice too soft, “are you hungry?”

He blinked, looking over her face as she bit her bottom lip, a nervous habit. 

“Uh, I guess a little?” his brows furrowed as he walked to the kitchen island, leaning on the outside while she went to the fridge, pulling out the sashimi and offering a smile.

“It's fresh from this morning… I don't want it to go to waste,” she placed the small plate before him, a set of bamboo chopsticks resting on the side. He leaned on the counter across from him  

Despite himself, he smiled, picking up the chopsticks, “you really went all out, huh?” he tapped the little metal cup of soy sauce in the middle of the plate. She felt her cheeks go warm. 

“I want to make sure I can do the dish justice! And given your expertise…”

He laughed, eating the first bite, his hand over his mouth while he chewed. 

Dear Yoba. 

He closed his eyes for a moment and let out a noise not too far off from a moan, her cheeks growing even warmer as he opened his eyes and nodded, “Ames, this is fucking incredible.”

She laughed shaking her head and rolling her eyes, “okay, I'm glad you like it but there's no way it could be incredible,” her voice tapered at the end as he pointedly picked up a piece and held it over the soy sauce. 

“With or without?”

“Seb, I made it for–”

“With or without?” he asked, his voice more firm. She couldn't protest if she wanted to. 

“I uh… However you eat it?”

He chuckled and dipped it in just enough to add flavor before holding the chopsticks, hand cupped underneath to prevent dripping soy sauce. She went to reach for it, but he pulled it away, shaking his head, “not with your fingers, dingus,” he teased before holding it back out, “I'm not gonna stab you or anything, I promise.” 

She laughed and rolled her eyes before leaning in and eating the roll, chewing slowly as he studied her face for a reaction. He gave her an expectant look as she finished chewing. She paused for a long moment, her heart choosing her next words without consulting her mind. 

“I'm not into Shane like that.”

His smile faltered as they stared at one another, both of them seeming to hold their breath. He relented after a moment. 

“Okay…” he didn't know what to say. He wanted to not care, but he found himself relieved. 

She bit down on her lip, her heart sinking as she thought she misread him earlier, ”just… Letting you know.”

“I'm glad,” he nearly choked on the next bite, “wait, not glad you don't like him, glad that you told me?” he managed, finally bringing a small smile back to her lips.

She reached out and took his chopsticks, eating another piece with an appreciative hum. Though, she did rather like being fed to be fair. 

He faked offense before she gave them back. They finished the food like this, not realizing it was growing past 2 am. 

Her eyes widened and she stood, frowning. 

“Oh Yoba, it's 2 in the morning,” she looked at him, eyes wide, “how are you even going to see to–”

“Ames, I've gone home this late before, I'm okay,” he reassured her with a smile, stepping toward the door. She took a breath, nodding. 

“Right. I.. Never paid attention to the time the other night…” her voice quieted as she inadvertently brought it up, “I'm really sorry if I crossed a line, Seb.. I just knew what I'd need and I guess I–”

He reached out to touch her shoulder, effectively quieting her, “don't tell anyone, but it actually was really nice.”

A smile formed as she looked up at him, relieved beyond words. He hummed a quiet, “C’mere,” before using the hand on her shoulder to draw her into another hug. They both held on tight, exhaling the tension in a deep breath. 

After a long moment, he spoke, his voice almost inaudible, “I am glad you aren't into Shane.”

She could feel his heartbeat as she was sure he could feel hers. She squeezed a little tighter than before pulling back and looking over his face before leaning up to press a gentle kiss to his cheek. 

“I'm glad that you're glad.”

If his face weren't red before, it burned crimson now, his freckles almost completely hidden in his blush. Still, he smiled, backing up before turning toward the door. 

“Good night, Ames,” he hummed as she leaned on the door frame to watch him off. She smiled, giving him a small wave as he made his way down, turning around as he made it a few feet past the house, “actually, Ames?”

She arched her eyebrows, stepping out for a moment so she could see him better, “hmm? Everything alright?”

He ran a hand back through his hair, still taking small steps back, “wanna grab dinner with me sometime?”

Her smile grew as she watched him, “are you asking me on a date,” she teased, her inflection like that of before. 

“And what if I am?” she could hear the smile in his voice as his steps backward toward the path were as slow as he could make them. 

“I'll make us some more sashimi and I'll come to meet you by the lake. When?”

“Tomorrow? Around 4?” 

“I'll see you then,” she laughed, calling back as she walked into the house, “now turn around before you bust your ass!”

He laughed, the sound echoing over the farm.