#with DL he freaked out a bit and ran off.

[liauditore]

cw// implied character death, double life nonsense

because you are love itself.

[bi-bi-buckleydiaz]

i think not | owen joyner

requested?; - yes! Owen Joyner x reader - their characters might not be love interests on the show (readers is possibly a new one for Luke/which causes a rift in Juke) but they are in real life and are trying to keep it on the down low especially during cast interviews and with fans.

word count; 2K

warnings; language, yelling but only like two sentences

a/n; I didn’t know how to end it so the ending kinda sucks sorry. also side note, the character the reader plays on jatp is a character I’m planning on writing an x reggie fic with so be on the lookout for that !

that close up tho 

You didn’t mean for it to happen. 

Not the, relationship, of course. You wanted that to happen. You’ve been wanting that to happen since you were an extra dancer on the first season of Julie and the Phantoms and danced right into Owen on accident during The Other Side of Hollywood. He was sweet about it, of course he was, asking if you were okay when he was the one that got barrelled into. The apology coffee date turned into a movie night at his apartment which then turned into weekly Friday night takeout dates which ultimately turned into Owen blurting out one night that he liked you and wanted to be your boyfriend. 

You obviously said yes. 

Which brings you to now, two years later filming season two of JatP, except this time you weren’t a dancer, but a recurring character - Delilah Alarie, a 17 year old girl who can hear ghosts, but can’t see them, and forms an unlikely relationship with everyone’s favorite bassist in a ghost band. This is where the problem comes in. 

When you and Owen started dating back in 2019, you two decided to keep it on the DL because you both weren’t totally sure where it was going to go. At the time you were both so busy: Owen having his first acting job as an adult so he was getting used to the long hours, and you working what felt like 25/8 to get all the dance routines down pat. So you both just...didn’t tell anyone. That’s not to say people weren’t suspicious. Charlie was present at many movie nights and Tori liked to tease you about you how you’d spend your time between takes staring at the blond drummer and his fidgeting fingers. 

Filming wrapped and you planned to announce your relationship at the wrap party, but a certain 19 year old thought it would be smart to get a little wasted and passed out before you could say “hey, we’re dating.” Then, you all went your separate ways and you and Owen didn’t see the need to inform everyone of the relationship, especially because you had to figure out the whole long-distance thing. 

Then Covid hit. And there really wasn’t a need because you both were fighting so hard to not get insecure and worried about the hundreds of miles between you two. But you got through it. Between many facetime calls, a spontaneous trip to Hawaii, and one memorable meet up at a halfway point between your two states, you were finally back in each other's arms after the last three months apart. Of course, it was on set, where everyone thinks you’re just friends. 

So yeah, there’s a problem. Because you didn’t mean for the secret dating to go on for so long. Life just, happened, and now you two are constantly sneaking around your fellow castmates and trading secret kisses in each other’s trailers and having little rendezvous meetings in the apartment building’s pool after your roommates have fallen asleep. You’re sure Savannah and Tori have heard you sneaking out a few times, but they wisely say nothing. Charlie sleeps like the dead so your certain Owen is in the clear. 

It’s not like you two want to keep it a secret. Of course you want to tell your friends, it's just, since it’s gone on for so long you’re scared of what could happen. If they’ll get mad about the sneaking around and the lying. 

But alas, you knew the day when the secret would slip out would come. And today just happened to be that day. 

Your friends were already starting to get suspicious, you and Owen were starting to lose your subtlety with the sneaking around, and some fans don’t understand the term BOUNDARIES and caught you two outside the apartment building one day. You weren’t doing anything relationship-y, you two were just coming back from a short day on set because you both ended at the same time and were looking forward to some much needed alone time. But you both knew better than to hold hands or kiss in public, which you were glad for that rule when a few girls bombarded Owen when you both walked out of the parking garage to head inside. The girls posted about the interaction online and of course, assumptions were made about why you two were together. The cast brought it up, but you both shut it down. You really thought the secret would be exposed because someone would catch you two together...Owen is not good at keeping his hands to himself despite his own PDA rule. 

But no, the secret came to a head because Owen is a big fat st0upid head and got jealous over his best friend. 

It started as a normal day. You got up at the last possible minute, Savannah and Tori already eating breakfast in the kitchen, knowing better than to wake you up before your alarm. You ate, showered, changed into comfy clothes for the ride to work. Madi joined you and the other girls that day, now being a little older her dad trusted her to be alone with the older cast members and alone on set for a little while. You jammed out to Doja Cat and HSM because “range, Y/N, range.” Then you arrived on set to Kenny calling you and Madi over for an impromptu meeting before any of you could reach hair and makeup. 

“Alright, now that the rest of you guys are here, I have an announcement to make.” You looked around to see that it was just the main four and you, and that’s when trepidation hit. The only scene you knew of today that involved you five was when the boys finally became visible to you, and you and Reggie share a moment. It’s a hug, much like the one Julie and Luke shared in the season one finale. But Kenny had come up to you a few days ago, suggesting adding a little something something. He told you he wasn’t sure yet, had to run it by a few execs, but that Jeremy was okay with it and he wanted to make sure you’d be okay with it too. You had said yes, after all Jeremy was the one married so you were really only worried about how he and Carolynn would feel about the kiss, you didn’t even think about Owen. 

That was a mistake. 

“So, I ran it by a few execs and of course, our own Delilah and Reggie, and have decided that after their big hug moment, a little kiss would really make the scene and ma -” 

“Uh I think not.” It was muttered, but everyone heard it. And everyone froze, Kenny stopping mid sentence to look at the culprit. Owen was looking at his hands, completely oblivious to everyone staring at him. He didn’t even realize he’d said it aloud until Jeremy cut the tension with a little forced chuckle. 

“C’mon Owen there’s enough of me to go around.” Everyone chuckled a bit, but Owen froze in his fidgeting, his face going firetruck red and eyes darting over to you. 

“Shit. Fuck I said that aloud didn’t I?” He groaned, putting his face in his hands and, before you could stop yourself, you walked up to him. 

“Hey. Hey c’mon.” You gently wrapped your hands around his wrists and pulled his hands away from his face. “It’s okay.” You expected him to look stressed. Based on his tone of voice you were preparing for a minor panic attack. But when you saw his face, all you saw was anger. It shocked you, causing you to stumble back a bit. 

“You knew about this?” And okay, yeah, you also expected a bit of that. But not to this caliber. 

“Owen I -”

“No. No you knew and didn’t tell me? Didn’t think to mention that you’d be kissing one of my best friends? What the hell Y/N?” You flinched, not used to Owen being this angry and loud.

“Owen, buddy, hey. Let’s just -” Charlie started, trying to diffuse the situation having noticed you flinching. 

“No! This isn’t a ‘calm down’ thing. This is a “my girlfriend lied to me” thing and I’m very upset about it!” And whoop...there it is. 

“Owen...” 

“God just, really Y/N?” Then he walks away, leaving you surrounded by your confused friends. It’s silent for a few seconds, everyone taking in what just happened. 

“Um...I know this probably a really bad time to bring this up but uh...y’all owe me twenty bucks each,” Charlie said. Then everyone started talking at one. Kenny apologizing for not knowing, Madi berating Charlie for the bad timing, Charlie firing back that Owen is just being dramatic, and Jeremy consoling you with Kenny. His hand on your back jump starts you into action. You quickly excuse yourself to make your way to Owen’s trailer, knowing that’s probably where he stormed off too. 

You don’t knock when you get there, just walk in, making sure to lock it behind you. Owen is there on the couch, elbows on his knees and head in his hands. 

“Owen Joyner what the hell was that?” That’s not what you had wanted to say. You were going to be nice and ease into it. But he yelled first and now you're anxious and stressed and upset. He sighs heavily and looks up at you, eyes red and glassy with unshed tears. 

“I’m sorry. I - Y/N I didn’t mean to freak. I realized halfway here that was not the way to go. I’m so -” You cut him off by pushing him back and crawling into his lap.

“It’s okay. It’s okay I should’ve - I shouldn’t’ve just yelled and I definitely should have told you when Kenny proposed the idea I just got so caught up in the fact it’d be my first on screen kiss and it’d be with a married man who’s in quite possibly the cutest relationship ever and I was worried about -” 

“You’re rambling babe,” Owen says with a smile. It’s a soft thing, one that makes your insides all mushy and your heart starts beating a little faster. “It’s okay. I mean, I would’ve liked to have found out earlier and not in front of our friends - oh my God! I just completely exposed us didn’t I? Oh God!” He whimpers out a whine and leans his head forward onto your shoulder. You giggle at the blonde beneath you, running your hands through his hair as he pinches your sides for the laugh. 

“Babe, I’m pretty sure they already knew.” Owen whips his head up at that, eyebrows furrowed. 

“Charlie mentioned everyone owes him twenty so, i’m pretty sure they were betting on when we’d tell them.” Owen groans and grumbles at that, throwing his head back in a dramatic way to convey his fake frustration. He brings his head back center and smiles softly again at you. 

“I will make sure to steal it from him tonight. That’s our money babe.” You giggle into the kiss he places onto your lips. You two sit there for a few more minutes, exchanging kisses and trading affirmations of love. After a final kiss, one that’s full of passion and heat, you decide to head back to set. 

You walk into the stage with the studio hand-in-hand, smiles on your faces. Madi squeals when she sees you both, running over to hug you. 

“Yay yay! I knew you’d work it out and now I have another couple to fangirl over. Yay!” You hug the small girl back before she bounces over to give Owen the same treatment. 

“Congrats bro,” Charlie says with a smile, clapping a hand on Owen’s back and ruffling your hair up. Jeremy smiles at you two, hugging you both as well. 

“Congrats you two, now can we get back to the meeting? You two dating is old news. Like, 2019 old. But congrats on finally announcing it!” You look at Kenny in shock for a second, before bursting out into laughter, everyone around you following suit. Owen squeezes your hand three times and you look back over at him. You both shoot each other a small smile. 

It’s gonna be okay. 

[queenofspades20]

Leave Him for Me

So this is my first fic. This is part of @evnscvll 3k challenge. I really enjoyed writing this. I hope you enjoy! Feedback is always welcome. This is just over 6.9k words.

Pairings: Tattoo!Artist Bucky x Lawyer!Reader; Brock Rumlow x Reader

Summary: Bucky is Reader’s new neighbor. She’s a prosecutor dating Brock. She and Bucky become friends and Bucky wants more. 

Warnings: some angst, some fluff, some curse words, cheating (not reader), Brock being the jerk that he is. Words in italics are inner thoughts of characters.

Y/N was awoken by the sound of something dropping on the floor of the apartment above her. “What…” she wondered. Her dog, a 65 pound mixed-breed named Harley, jumped up and ran out of the room. “You’re ok, Bubba. No need to freak,” she said, as she looked at her phone. *7:10 a.m.* “Seriously?” Y/N whined. “They couldn’t wait 5 damn minutes more???”

Y/N figured she might as well get up for work and turned off her alarm. After brushing her teeth and hair, putting on a little bit of makeup, and getting dressed, Y/N grabbed the dog leash hanging on a hook by the front door. “Come on, Little Bear. Time for your walk.” Harley made a big show of stretching before walking over to her and allowing her to put his harness and leash on. Grabbing her keys and bag dispenser, Y/N and Harley walked outside. As they passed by the patio, there was a crash from the unit above.

A masculine voice came from the open sliding glass door, “Come on, Sam. Don’t drop the couch! I kind of need it! Besides, it’s probably terrorizing my new neighbor downstairs.”

“Oh my God, you’re so dramatic. I’m sure your neighbor is fine,” responded another voice.

Y/N laughed to herself. She hesitated for half a second before yelling out, “Actually, as she’s awake and outside with her dog, feel free to get any crashes done now.” Y/N heard scrambling from inside the apartment and a man with chestnut brown hair and the most striking blue eyes Y/N had ever seen popped his head over the railing. “Sorry if we woke you,” the man said bashfully. “I’m Bucky. I guess I’m your new neighbor. And this knucklehead is Sam, my sometimes friend and my new boss.” He gestured to the man standing next to him. The man smiled and waved. “Hello there.”

Y/N smiled, gave a little nod, and waved back. “I’m Y/N. And this little fluffernutter is Harley. Nice to meet you both.”

Bucky smiled back. “Nice to meet you two as well. Harley is a beautiful dog, though he’s got nothing on his owner’s beauty.”

Y/N felt her face heat up at the compliment. Damn, that was smooth, she thought to herself. “Um, thanks.” Y/N caught a glance at her watch and the time. “With that, I do need to get him walked and get to work. It was nice to meet you. If you need anything, feel free to stop by.”

Bucky smiled and winked. “I’ll keep that in mind. See you around, Y/N.”

Y/N bit her bottom lip to keep herself from smiling too wide. I have a boyfriend. I have a boyfriend. I have a boyfriend. She thought to herself. “Bye, Bucky. Sam.” She nodded at the men and continued her walk with Harley, who had sat down during the exchange in boredom. “Okay, Bubba, I’m done talking. We can walk again.” Harley jumped up and happily walked to go sniff at all the trees in the area.

When Y/N got to work, she ran into her best friend. “So, I got a new neighbor finally.” Wanda perked up and started firing questions. “Is it a man? Is he hot? Is he single? We need to set you up.”

“Uh, ma’am, I have a boyfriend. What do you mean ‘set me up’?”

Wanda rolled her eyes. “You’ve been dating Brock for 3 months, you haven’t said ‘I love you’ to each other, and he’s garbage.”

“He’s a lawyer. He’s not garbage.”

“He not garbage because he’s a lawyer. Bitch, you’re a lawyer and you’re not garbage. Brock is garbage because he puts down like everything you like. He makes fun of your love of Disney, he barely acknowledges you in public, and he’s awkward with Harley. That alone should be a deal-breaker.”

“Yes, he’s awkward with Harley, but he isn’t mean with him. And to be fair, Harley is awkward with pretty much everyone, except me. And the acknowledging in public: we work together. He doesn’t want people to gossip. Hell, I don’t want people to gossip. And I mean, my love of Disney can be a bit childish.”

“Girl, it is not. You enjoy something that brings back good memories. He shouldn’t make you feel guilty for enjoying something that doesn’t harm anyone.”

Y/N hesitated. “I guess.”

“You’re doing it again.”

“What?” Y/N rolled her eyes.

“You’re ignoring red flags. You deserve someone who makes you feel confident in the relationship. Not someone who tears you down. You’re a successful prosecutor. You’ve argued in the state supreme court, multiple times. You own your home. You have an awesome dog. You don’t need a loser like Brock.”

Y/N sighed. “Whatever. I need to get to court. I’ll check ya later.”

Y/N walked to her assigned courtroom. As she doubled-checked her docket to verify which cases were up, a shadow fell on the table. “Hi, Y/N.”

Y/N looked up. “Hey, Brock. You have cases in here today?”

Brock smiled and leaned closer to her ear. “No,” he whispered. “I just wanted to see my girlfriend. But while I’m here, haven’t I told you that you shouldn’t wear such a bold lipstick? It makes you look a bit… cheap.”

Y/N felt the smile fall off her face and tensed up. “Well, Brock, I like red lipstick. I think it looks good.”

“I’m just trying to help. You don’t need to be so defensive.” Brock rolled his eyes.

“I’ll see you later, Brock. We still on for dinner?”

Brock looked at his phone. “Actually, I have some work I need to get done. Let’s do it another night.”

Y/N tried to hide her disappointment. This was the third time in the past two weeks that Brock had rescheduled dinner because of work. She knew what his workload was like because they were in similar divisions, but it seemed like work had come up a lot for him. “You promised that you’d make up for cancelling three nights ago. That’s what tonight was about.”

“You’re always hounding me, Y/N. We have an important job. I need to get work done. We’ll just do it another night. It’s not that serious. You’re so moody today. Is it your time of the month or something?”

Y/N closed her eyes for a moment. I am a prosecutor. I cannot punch someone in the face in the middle of court. Though if I got a jury of all females, I could convince them it was justified. No. No, I must not punch him, no matter how strong the urge. Fight the urge. Do not rise to his barb. Y/N thought to herself. “No, Brock. I’m not happy because we’re supposed to be in a relationship and you keep blowing me off. You expect me to just clear my schedule for you, but then you ditch me whenever you see fit. Not a fan of the double-standard,” she stated with tension clear in her voice. Y/N clenched her jaw but otherwise, no one would know how upset she was. Thank God this job has taught me to have a good poker face. I cannot be seen as emotional at work. Why does he always do this when there’s an audience? Why does he do this in court?

“Well, my job is important, Y/N. You know how this job is. You’ve had to stay late before.”

“Yes, but if I have pre-existing plans, I work around those plans. There’s a thing called ‘work-life balance,’ Brock. You should learn it. You’ll burn yourself out at this rate.”

Brock huffed and looked down his nose at Y/N. “I won’t burn myself out. You know I’m trying to get into homicide. Don’t worry your pretty little head about my work habits. I gotta get to my courtroom.” With that parting shot, Brock left the courtroom.

The conversation with Brock put a damper on the rest of her day. As she walked up to her front door, she heard her name being called out from the balcony above her apartment. “Hey Y/N! Good day at work?” Bucky smiled down.

Y/N plastered a fake smile on her face. “It was fine. Thanks, Bucky. I’m happy to be home and I’m sure Harley is more than ready for his walk.”

Bucky bit his lip. “Can I join you guys? I got this place pretty quick but didn’t really look around.”

What’s the harm? Y/N thought to herself. “Sure. Just let me get changed and let me grab Harley. I’ll give you the DL on the area.”

Y/N quickly went inside and put on a pair of shorts and a tank top. She looked around for her fluffy roommate. “Come on, Bubba. Let’s get our walk on.” Harley started wagging his tail. As she walked out the door with Harley, she almost crashed into Bucky, who had his hand raised to knock on the door. “I’m sorry, Bucky! Didn’t expect you to be standing right there.”

“My fault for standing so close to the door. Shall we, my lady?” Bucky gallantly bowed and  stuck his hand out. “Lead the way.”

Y/N chuckled. “Well, actually Harley leads. He’s the one who has business to attend to.” Harley looked back at his name being spoken and then huffed. “Oh yes, sir. I’m so sorry. We’re not moving fast enough for ya,” Y/N said sarcastically, while rolling her yes. She looked at Bucky. “He can be a bit of a drama queen. God forbid we don’t move at his pace.”

Bucky laughed. Y/N found herself staring at the way his eyes lit up. She quickly looked at Harley to make sure he wasn’t getting into anything or doing something that needed to be picked up. “So, what brought you here, Bucky? I hear a bit of a New York accent.”

Bucky looked a little surprised. “Good ear. I’m from Brooklyn. I’m a tattoo artist and I got a job down here with Sam. I was looking for a change after my best friend, Steve, decided to move to England to be with his girl.”

“Tattoos? That’s so cool! I’ve always wanted one, but can’t decide on what I want. Besides, I don’t think my boyfriend would approve.” Y/N said, speaking animatedly at the thought of getting a tattoo, but immediately deflating, knowing her boyfriend would make her feel horrible if she got one.

Bucky noticed how quickly Y/N went from excited to sad. Boyfriend sounds like a douche. If she were my girl, I’d encourage her to do what makes her happy. “Well, it’s your body. If you want one, you should totally get one. I bet you would look like a badass,” Bucky said gently, trying to lift Y/N’s spirits up.

Y/N half-smiled. “I know it’s my body. But sometimes it’s easier to not do something to avoid the headache of complaints. Like tonight, for example. He and I were supposed to have a date night. He had cancelled a few days ago because of work, but then gave me the same excuse for tonight. If I pushed it, I might have gotten him to come over, but then he would be complaining about work the whole time and how he needed to get stuff done. I don’t know.” Y/N sighed. “There’s not exactly a long line of guys wanting to date a 30-something year old lawyer. But let’s talk more about you. I’m pretty boring.”

“You’re a lawyer? What kind? I was wrong. A tattoo would make you more badass than you already are.” Bucky stared at her. How could she not see how great she actually is?

Y/N rolled her eyes with a smile. “I’m a prosecutor. Been at it for a few years. It has its days, but it’s not as interesting as you’d probably expect. The cases themselves can be interesting, but it’s a lot of arguing the same type of law over and over. Right now I handle defendants who appear in career criminal court, so guys with a lot of priors, usually violent.”

“That still sounds really cool. I could listen to you talk all day.”

“Well, you’d be the only one. Harley doesn’t even want to listen to me most of the time.” Y/N said with a laugh. Harley looked back at the two people who held his leash. He moved back and booped his nose against Bucky’s leg, looking for attention.

Bucky smiled, happy he made her laugh, and absentmindedly reached down to pet Harley’s head. “I mean it. You’re really nice. I mean, you could have yelled at me this morning for being so loud so early. You’re clearly smart, since you’re a lawyer. If you get tired of the boyfriend, I’ll gladly step up.” Bucky said quickly and looked away. He missed Y/N’s eyes widen is surprise, but heard her sharp intake of breath.

“That’s sweet of you to say to cheer me up, Bucky. As for this morning, well, missing out on 5 minutes’ worth of sleep isn’t a big deal. And it’s not like you meant to wake me up. I’m not going to be a jerk for something that’s an accident anyways.” Y/N looked at the time. “We should probably head back. I gotta feed Harley and I guess cook dinner.”

“I meant what I said, Y/N. I know we just met this morning, but you seem like someone I want in my life.”

Y/N smiled sadly. He’s just being nice. “Well, we are neighbors, so we’re in each other’s lives no matter what. I’m sorry for unloading on you. You don’t need that.”

“I’m here whenever you need me. That’s what neighbors are for, right?”

“If they’re good neighbors, sure. Thanks for walking with us, Bucky. You’re welcome to join us any time. He seems to like you. Also, just FYI, when I’m at work, Harley occasionally will howl, because he’s unhappy with me not being home at his beck and call. So, I’m sorry in advance if he disturbs you.”

“Like he could ever disturb me. He’s a good boy and dogs bark. I figured living in a dog-friendly complex that I would occasionally hear dogs.”

“That’s good. Some people don’t grasp that concept. And Harley really just howls when I’m not there. If I’m home, he’s quiet. I don’t think I’ve ever actually heard him bark at anything either. He’s not exactly a normal dog; definitely not a real guard dog.” Y/N started laughing. “He is scared of everything, except thunder and fireworks. The A/C turning on freaks him out, but thunder? He’s fine and will want to go for walks while there’s lightning and thunder. No sense of self-preservation.”

Bucky bent over, laughing heartily. “That’s…that’s crazy,” he wheezed out. Y/N joined in on laughing, recognizing her dog is definitely weird. After a few minutes, the laughter died down. Y/N wiped the tears from her eyes. “I needed a good laugh. Thank you for pointing out the ridiculousness that is my dog.”

“Any time, Doll.” Bucky said, still smiling.

At “doll,” Y/N felt a flutter in her stomach. I never feel that when Brock calls me babe. Maybe Wanda is right and I’m ignoring the red flags. But, then again, Bucky probably calls every girl “doll.” It probably doesn’t mean anything. “Hey, Doll. Since your plans got cancelled for the evening, would you be interested in hanging out with me? I’m not completely unpacked but I can order us a pizza or something.”

Y/N thought for a few moments before answer. “I appreciate the offer, Bucky, but I think I’m gonna spend the night in alone. How about we hang out another night? Maybe later this week?”

“Sounds like a plan. Enjoy the rest of your evening then.”

“Good night, Bucky.”

As Y/N walked into her apartment, she got lost in thought. She turned to look at her dog. “Harley, I think I’m in trouble. There’s no way someone as sweet and handsome as Bucky would really be interested in me. He probably just pitied me when I opened my stupid mouth.”  Y/N sighed sadly. “At least we seem to have made a new friend. Always got plenty of room in my life for good friends.”

Before she knew it, a few months had passed and Y/N and Bucky began to spend a good amount of time together. Brock cancelled more dates, claiming work. It got to the point where he cancelled more than he actually made the dates. Y/N started visiting Bucky at the tattoo shop when that happened. Bucky got more and more frustrated every time it happened. After what seemed to be the tenth time it happened, Bucky had had enough.

“Doll, why do you put up with him? You deserve someone who will treat you as the goddess you are. I would never cancel on you. If you left him, I’d make sure you know just how much you are treasured, always.” Bucky ran his hands through his hair.

“Bucky…” Y/N started. “Brock takes his job seriously. We have large caseloads. There are times when we have to work nights and weekends.”

“That has never stopped you from making plans and keeping them. What about our weekly movie nights? You have never cancelled on me. And I know there were days you were in trial. You still showed up and didn’t make me feel as if you wanted to be anywhere else. You are someone who loves with their whole heart. Brock just takes and takes from you and what does he ever give back? He treats you like you’re at his beck and call and your life doesn’t matter. Hell, you keep talking about how you want to get a tattoo, yet he says things to hold you back. Stop letting him. Leave him. Leave him for me. I could make you so happy.” Bucky looked at Y/N with almost desperation in his eyes.

Y/N’s brow furrowed and her breathing started to get a little faster. She could feel the tears rising. She wanted Bucky, but her fear held her back. Bucky had wormed his way into her heart. Y/N wanted nothing more than to go into Bucky’s arms. But she could only hear Brock’s voice in her head. You’re too clingy. You suffocate people. You’re just not the relationship-type. You’re lucky I even want you. I’m the only one who would ever put up with you like that. Y/N looked at Bucky, who looked at her like she was the moon and the stars in the sky, and knew what she had to do. She nodded to herself, trying to steel her resolve.

“I’m sorry, Bucky. I think I need some time to think. I think it’s best if we take some time away from each other,” Y/N quietly said. It took everything in her to hold it together. She couldn’t even look at Bucky, for fear that she would completely break down. She felt a crushing pressure on her chest. “I’m so sorry.”

“Doll . . . “

Y/N stood up quickly and rushed out of the shop.

Sam, who had seen Y/N rush out, looked at Bucky. “What happened?”

“I pushed her too hard. I just . . . I just want to be with her. She’s amazing. She’s smart, kind, beautiful. Two weeks ago, I was having a bad day. She showed up on my doorstep with Harley and a plum tart she made from scratch. She knew from our texts that I was having a bad day, so she made me my favorite dessert and we watched movies. When you talk to her about her work, she’s the most confident person you could meet. She works so hard to get respect. But when it comes to her personal life? It’s like she’s a completely different person. It’s almost like she doesn’t think she’s worth being loved. I don’t get it.” Bucky felt completely empty. Thinking that she needed time away from him hurt. “What do I do? She’s my neighbor. How can I see her and not be with her?”

Sam looked thoughtful for a few moments. “Bucky, I think that girl is head over heels for you. But I think she’s confused because she has an asshole of a boyfriend and she doesn’t know how to stand up for herself in a relationship. I think you need to give her space and let her come back to you.”

“But do you think she will?” Bucky felt hopeless. He knew he was pushing her, but he just wanted to see her happy.

“I guess you’ll find out.” Sam clapped Bucky on his shoulder. “In the meantime, I say this as your boss, get back to work. You have a client here.”

Bucky rolled his eyes at Sam. “Fine.”

The next morning, Y/N rolled into work and found Wanda. “Hey ma’am,” Y/N said, sounding despondent.

“What happened? Did you finally dump Brock?”

“You ask that every morning and what is the answer every time?”

“No. But I know the day the answer is different is coming soon. I can feel it,” Wanda said with a smile.

Y/N sighed. “I told Bucky I needed time away from him.”

“Why would you do something so stupid?” Wanda yelled.

“He asked me to dump Brock and be with him. Wanda, I don’t know what to do. Brock isn’t who I want. I’m not even sure why I haven’t walked away. I can see it isn’t working. Hell, I barely see him these days.”

“Well, how about I make it easy for you? Brock is over there, talking to Tony from homicide. GO DUMP HIS SELFISH ASS!” Wanda pushed Y/N towards him. Y/N knew Wanda was right. She knew Bucky was right. She didn’t want to be with Brock. They hadn’t even had sex in weeks, Brock always claiming he was too tired or Y/N not feeling right. Y/N thought of Brock touching her and it made her feel as if spiders were crawling under her skin. She knew it was time to end things.

“Brock, can we talk?” Y/N asked, as she walked up to Brock.

“Y/N, I have to get to court. Can this wait?” Brock sounded irritated.

“No. This needs to be done now, while we don’t have an audience.” Y/N felt her strong in her decision. “Brock, this isn’t working. We need to end this.”

Brock sneered down at her. “What are you talking about? What us? Did you think we were anything? You were there to just warm my bed and you couldn’t even do that right. I’ve been sleeping with my ex pretty much since you and I started dating, if you want to call it that.”

Y/N felt confusion. “You. . . We . . . we’ve been in a relationship for six months. Sure it hasn’t been great as of late, but there’s no reason to act like we weren’t anything.”

Brock, looking around, grabbed Y/N’s upper arm tightly and dragged her into the nearest office. “Listen, you delusional bitch, we’re nothing. I was just using you. It looked good to the guys in homicide that I had a solid relationship. Tony just offered me the spot. I no longer have use for you. You were a means to an end, nothing more. Why you would think you actually meant anything to me or to anyone is beyond me. You were so desperate for attention that you actually believed that I would like you. You’re pathetic.”

Y/N felt the blood drain from her face and rush into her ears. Still can’t punch him. Still not allowed to punch him. DO NOT PUNCH HIM. Y/N looked at Brock for a few moments, nodded, and turned and walked away. She headed straight to her office, knowing she needed to get there before she broke down completely. Wanda rushed after her and closed the door to give them privacy. “What the hell did he say to you?” Wanda demanded. She had never seen Y/N look so lost.

“He used me to get into homicide. He never cared. I never mattered to him.” Y/N felt weak. “I should have seen this coming. I should have known better.”

Wanda’s mouth hung open. “I’m gonna kill him.” Wanda started to move towards the door. Y/N lunged at her friend and grabbed her hand.

“No, Wanda! He’s not worth it. I appreciate your fury on my behalf, but he’s not worth it. I told him I was ending things. What matters is it’s done.” Y/N looked imploringly at her friend. “I just can’t believe I stayed for so long.”

Wanda sighed. “Fine, but I’m gonna destroy his career.”

Y/N’s head cocked to the side. “What are you going to do?”

“Brock’s dumb ass forgets that I am very well connected in this office. He messed with my friend, I’ll make sure he won���t get the promotion he wants. Besides, we all know he isn’t the best attorney for the job. There are way better people for that spot, including you.” Wanda smiled devilishly.

“Wanda, he’ll mess up eventually. Men like him always do. This office is in a state of change anways. We’re getting a new big boss after the new year. Brock will get his. And because this office gossips worse than a bunch of middle school kids, I’m sure it’ll get out how he treated me and we all know people won’t take kindly to that. And I’m not going to deny that I would be good in homicide. Because I know you’ll try to kick my butt if I do.”

“Damn straight,” Wanda muttered.

Wanda looked at her friend thoughtfully. “So. . .  can I give people enough of a gist that Brock will be ostracized? People like you a lot more than you think.”

Y/N stared at her friend. “I mean, he cheated on me pretty much the whole time we were together with his ex and used me to get himself into homicide. I don’t exactly want people know how pathetic I am. I can’t believe I dated him in the first place.”

When Y/N put it that way, Wanda could see why her friend didn’t want her to say anything. “Fine. I won’t spread the information around, but if I’m asked, can I tell the truth?”

“Well, yeah. There’s no reason to lie. I just don’t want that information volunteered. I wasn’t in love with Brock, never claimed to be, but damn it still hurts what he did. It’s like I meant less than nothing.”

Wanda nodded her agreement. “Well, now that you’ve dumped the loser, how about we get you set up with your hot neighbor that you spend all your time with?”

Y/N felt herself tear up and started wringing her hands. “Wanda, I screwed it up with him. He told me last night that he wanted me to leave Brock and choose him. I told him I needed time away from him and ran out of there. I just . . . Bucky has become a huge part of my life. He’s smart and handsome and caring and funny and, even though he’s a total asshole, what if Brock was right? What if I’m not the relationship-type? I mean, there must be a reason I’m almost in my mid-30s and have had only one relationship and look at how much of a disaster that was. I don’t think I could handle Bucky seeing me as too clingy. I couldn’t handle it if our relationship weren’t to work out.” Y/N felt lighter stating her fears, but still felt a gaping hole in her chest. The thought of life without Bucky seemed as if the world would never have color in it again.

Wanda looked at the lost look on her friend’s face and felt a few tears fall down her face. “Sweetie, you are worth everything. Bucky knows that and he would never see you any other way. I’ve seen you and him together. Every time you’re not looking at him, he’s looking at you. You should give a relationship with him a chance.”

“I think I need a few days at least to process everything. I feel like I’m going to explode out of my skin from everything that’s happened in the past 24 hours. I know I can’t wait too long to make a decision, but I also don’t want Bucky to think he’s a rebound. I don’t want to think he’s a rebound.”

“Y/N, he’s not a rebound. He’s not someone you moved on to because he showed you attention. He makes you laugh, he listens to you, he supports you. I think you need to move before it’s too late.” With that, Wanda stepped out of the office to give her friend the space to think about her words. Y/N luckily did not have to be anywhere that morning (a rarity to not have court), so she decided to keep her office door closed and focus on getting work done.

When she got home that evening, she saw the lights on in Bucky’s apartment. Every atom in her body was calling out to go to Bucky but she knew she needed to sort out her feelings.

Bucky saw Y/N walking to her door. Her face was void of makeup, her hair was in a loose bun, and Bucky thought she never looked more beautiful. He wanted nothing more than to go downstairs to talk to her, but he kept Sam’s words in his head. He decided to wait for her to come to him, so Bucky put on a movie and settled in for the night.

After a few weeks, Y/N started to feel more like herself. It didn’t take long for Tony to find out how Brock used her. Brock knew that Tony was her mentor in the office, but he underestimated their friendship. Tony stormed into her office and demanded to know the truth. Though she kept most of the information to herself, Tony was able to understand enough of what Brock did. While Tony couldn’t fire Brock like he wanted, he was able to deny Brock the promotion. Brock, in retaliation, tried to trash Y/N to anyone who would listen, but Y/N’s reputation preceded her and no one believed him. After a month, Brock quit and moved to another city.

Over the course of the month after things ended with Brock, Y/N would see Bucky around the complex but they kept distance from each other. Y/N appreciated Bucky giving her the space she needed, but she knew she had to make a big gesture to show Bucky she wanted him.

Y/N contacted the shop where Bucky worked and spoke with Sam. “Sam, I don’t know if Bucky told you about what happened,” Y/N started.

“He told me that he told you about his feelings and you asked for some time. I don’t blame you. He mentioned you have a boyfriend,” Sam stated. Y/N could tell he wasn’t judging her for her actions, but he sounded cautious.

“Had a boyfriend. I ended things the next day. Then found out some things about him and I needed time to get past it. I didn’t think it would be fair for Bucky for me to deal with that while trying to figure out exactly what I feel for Bucky.”

“Have you figured it out? He’s been a mopey mess without you.”

“Well, if it makes any difference, I’ve been miserable without Bucky. I didn’t realize how much time I actually spent with him.”

“You two were disgusting. Please tell me you’re going to put him out of his misery.”

Y/N chuckled. “Well, that’s actually what I want to talk to you about. I want to make an appointment with Bucky for my first tattoo, but I want it to be a surprise. Do you think we can make it happen?” Y/N asked hopefully. She waited with bated breath for Sam’s response.

“I think we can make it happen. What do you want to get? You realize that usually there’s a consult and then the actual appointment?”

Y/N felt excited. “I know that’s how it usually happens. I would love to get [your ideal first tattoo] on my left shoulder. Honestly, I know Bucky is a great artist and I trust him. He can design it however he wants. I mean, what’s the point of going to an artist if I’m going not let him be creative?”

Sam pulled the phone away from his ear and smirked at it. “I don’t know that I’ve ever heard someone say it that way before. I think it’ll make things easier to set up a surprise for him. I’ll use a different name for the appointment, so Bucky isn’t tipped off. I’ll email you the pricing. What day do you want to come in?”

“As soon as you can arrange it. I really want to put myself out of misery as well,” Y/N said with a laugh. “If during the week, any time after 7. Any time during the weekend.”

“Well, the soonest I can get you in is 3 days from now, on Thursday. Will you be able to wait that long?”

“Yeah. That’ll work.” Y/N felt an excitement she hadn’t felt in months.

Thursday came around and Y/N hadn’t seen Bucky in those days. She felt almost sick to her stomach with nerves. She felt her heart pounding in her chest. Will he reject me? Am I doing something stupid? What if I took too long? What if he no longer wants me? As Y/N walked up to the shop, she felt a tremble in her hands. Here goes nothing.

As she stepped into the shop, she saw Sam at the counter. “Hey, girl. You ready?”

“As I’ll ever be.”

“Hey, Buck. Your 7pm is here.” Sam was careful to not use your name. He pulled out his phone, pretending to be checking something. He wanted to record Bucky’s reaction to seeing her there for a tattoo. He was hoping for a reaction he could use for ammo against Bucky later.

As Bucky came around the corner, he saw Y/N standing there. He could feel how nervous she was. Y/N was biting her lip and had a small smile. “Surprise,” Y/N said with a small shrug. “I thought you should be the one to give me my first tattoo.”

Bucky strode right up to Y/N and hugged her tight. “I’m so sorry I pushed you, Doll,” he said into her hair. “I’ve missed you so much.” He could feel the tension leave her body as her arms wrapped around his waist and felt his shirt get a little wet.

“I wasn’t sure if you would want to see me after how I left last time.”

“You’re my best girl. I always want to see you.” Bucky smiled down at her. He felt happy for the first time in weeks. “Now, since you’re here for your appointment. Let’s get started.”

“I can’t wait to see what you came up with.”

“I can’t believe you’re giving me so much freedom.”

“Well, Bucky, I trust you. You would never let me down.” Y/N hoped Bucky understood she was talking about more than just the tattoo.

Bucky led Y/N back to the room and got the stencil out. “What do you think?”

“Oh my God, Bucky. It’s perfect! It’s better than anything I could imagine.” Y/N was gushing. It was truly the perfect first tattoo.

“Let’s get this placed and make sure it’s where you want it.” Bucky adjusted the tank top Y/N was wearing to make sure there was plenty of room and that none of the ink would get on her shirt. After  placing the stencil and getting approval from Y/N, Bucky had her sit down on the chair. He got the ink set up and inserted the needle into the machine.

“You ready, Doll?” Bucky asked, as he moved behind Y/N.

“Bring it on, Baby.” Y/N smiled over her shoulder at Bucky.

Bucky turned on the machine and the buzzing sound filled the room. Y/N felt Bucky’s hand just to the right of where the tattoo was going to be. The first touch of the needle to her skin stung. It felt like a long scratch, nowhere near as painful as she expected. “You okay, Doll?”

“Yeah. Thanks, Bucky.”

After a few minutes of silence, Bucky decided to speak up while focusing on the line work. “So, if you’re getting a tattoo, that means one of two things happened. Either you decided to get the tattoo no matter what Brock says or Brock is no longer in the picture.”

“I broke up with him the day after I last saw you. It hadn’t been working for a long time, if it ever worked at all. According to him, I was just a means to an end.”

Bucky paused for a moment before continuing on with the tattoo. “What do you mean a means to an end?” Y/N could hear the tension in Bucky’s voice.

“He was using me to get into the homicide unit. Apparently, they wanted someone who had a more stable home life and since I’m good with most of the people in there, he set his sights on me. This, of course, all came out after I told him I was done. He quit the office not long after. Because lawyers gossip more than a bunch of middle school kids, it got out and people didn’t take kindly to him doing that to me. He didn’t get the promotion.”

Bucky felt relieved to hear that he was no longer in the picture, but felt sad that Y/N didn’t come to him sooner. “I’m sorry you went through that, Doll. Why didn’t you talk to me when it happened?”

“I needed to sort myself out. I really like you, Bucky. I knew Brock wasn’t the guy for me. But I also didn’t think a guy like you would really want to be with someone like me.”

As Bucky switched out the needle for shading, he felt at a loss for words. “What are you talking about, Doll?”

“Bucky, I’ve never been good with relationships. Hell, Brock was technically my first boyfriend. He’s not the first to tell me that I’m not relationship material. I figured there was something wrong with me. I mean, when multiple people tell you you’re not worth it, it’s kind of hard to ignore.”

Bucky couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Y/N, Doll, in no way are you not relationship material. You’re kind and smart and so beautiful I forgot to breathe the first time I saw you. Those guys were complete idiots.”

Y/N started to tear up. “So, you would still be interested in giving us a try?”

Bucky turned off the machine and moved in front of her. He looked deep into her eyes. “Nothing would make me happier. You’re my best girl.”

Y/N gave him a watery smile. She leaned forward and kissed his cheek. She could feel the stubble against her lips. The smell of his cologne enveloped her like a warm hug. Bucky looked like he had won the lottery. “So, how’s the tattoo looking, Bucky Bear?”

Bucky chuckled as he moved back behind her. “Got a bit more to do. You doing okay? Do you need a break?”

“Nah. You gotta finish up so we can plan our first date.”

Bucky felt his face heat up. “Way to motivate me, Doll.”

Y/N chuckled. “Well, I gotta come up with something. Unless you’d like for me to come up with something else?”

“I don’t think my heart could handle it, Doll. You are trouble.”

Y/N had to bite her lip to prevent herself from laughing. “Only for you, Bucky Bear.”

Bucky smiled and resumed tattooing. After a little while, he set the machine down. “Ok, Doll. Let’s clean this up and you can check out your new tattoo.” He wiped down the skin gently. He helped Y/N stand up and move in front of the mirror. “What do you think?”

Y/N stared at it for a few minutes, her face not giving anything away. Bucky began to feel nervous when she didn’t say anything. “Doll?”

Y/N looked back at Bucky. She slid her arms around his neck and pulled him close. She whispered into his ear, “it’s a good thing I love it or our date would be pretty awkward.” She placed a kiss just below his earlobe.

Bucky felt a tremor go down his spine and chuckled. “Little shit. You scared me for a moment.”

Y/N had a cheeky smile. “Well, gotta keep you on your toes. Would hate for you to get bored of me.”

“There is no chance of that ever happening, Doll.” Bucky lifted her chin towards him. He leaned down and brushed his lips against hers. As he started to pull away, Y/N followed and crashed her lips against his. She slid her hand to the nape of his neck to hold him to her. Bucky moved his hands to her hips and squeezed. The move caused Y/N to gasp, which allowed Bucky to slide his tongue into her mouth. Y/N felt as if the world went away and all that was left was her and Bucky. They continued to kiss until the need to breathe caused them to part.

As they looked into each other’s eyes, Y/N felt the butterflies in her stomach she had felt the first time she met Bucky. “So, how about that date?”

[hey-there-love]

Foolish

Summary: Being the new kid is hard right? Try moving across the world to attend the elite hero course at U.A. Unfortunately following the path of straight and narrow is difficult when you find a blonde ball of death throwing twists in it. Nobody said it was easy. New experiences, new friends, new interests...what could go wrong?

Chapter 2: Oh You’re Feisty

Content Warnings: Adult Language, Cringy Situations

Word Count: 2.2K

Once you gathered yourself, you opened the door and peaked around, searching for any sign of life. Grateful you were by yourself, you began to search for towels. After they were located, you washed the grime from the long flight away.

Quickly you got dressed, brushed your hair, and began to apply a light coat of mascara. You began to sing to yourself to calm your nerves about meeting your new class mates.

“Are you singing Ariana Grande? I love her!” Someone squealed, rushing into the bathroom. You jumped at the voice and managed to hit your lid with the whole mascara wand. You clutched your chest and whipped your head around.

“Hey look! Twins!” The pink girl cracked a joke. You embarrassingly horse laughed because she wasn’t wrong. She had sweet deep eyes that were black and brown.

“I swear I think I’ll have a heart attack before I even start my classes here.” You shook your head and inspected the damage to your makeup. You ran your finger under the faucet and began to scrub your eyelid making the simple error into a huge smudge. You groaned and glanced back to her with pleading eyes.

“Here,” she began digging into a drawer, pulling out a pack of makeup wipes. “Uraraka usually keeps these in here.”

“I’m assuming you’re Mina, my new neighbor right?” You questioned, thankful as you wiped the makeup off.

“You’d be correct! It’s good to meet you Y/N. I can already tell we’re going to be fast friends. Cute jeans by the way.”

“Thanks! I got these from H&M. I literally bought every color , so if you ever wanna borrow a pair let me know.”

“I’ll definitely take you up on that offer! Are you ready? Dinner is almost done and I figured I’d come check on you.” She responded, taking a seat on the counter top next to you.

“I am. Just let me drop my stuff off in my room.” You said opting to give up on the mascara after your incident. You finished primping and picked your things up.

As you walked back to your room she began to question your previous statement. “Who else gave you a heart attack? You’ve only been here for an hour!”

“Oh, actually I was heading into the bathroom and I guess I wasn’t paying attention and I crashed right into a guy. I felt so bad.” You said, unlocking your room and setting your things down on the desk.

“It was probably Kirishima! He came back downstairs whenever I got up. ” She giggled and leaned against your door frame.

“Well he definitely laughed at me after he pulled my underwear off of my shoulder!” You said slapping yourself in the forehead.

“Oh my gosh!” Mina squealed. “He never said anything so I guess your secret it safe. I hope they were old lady underwear for his sake. He definitely gets flustered easily.”

“He didn’t blush in the least and it was a thong! I don’t even think I could look him in the eye! Wait what does he look like?” You asked examining yourself for a final time and spraying a little bit of body spray.

“Spiked red hair, sharp teeth, the cutest boy wonder smile ever.” She gushed. That definitely wasn’t who you encountered.

“No it wasn’t him then, he had a permanent look of disgust. ” Her eyes grew wide and your face dropped. “What?”

“KATSUKI FREAKING BAKUGO TOUCHED YOUR PANTIES?” She hollered, making your ears ring. You shushed her not wanting to relive the experience.

“Not so loud! I don’t need everyone to know about my underwear!” You cried out , cheeks heating up.

“That’s hilarious. King of Murder and Destruction Bakugo. Laid hands. On. Your. Thong.” You swore she was about fall over laughing.

“Do you think he said anything?” You covered your face, completely and utterly mortified.

“Maybe just Kirishima because they’re best bros, but he despises everyone else so you have nothing to worry about!”

You groaned. “Can we please forget that ever happened and go?” Pleading as you pushed her out the door.

“Sure thing bestie my lips are sealed.” Mina replied, mimicking a zip and locking her mouth. She then looped her arm through yours and made you skip to the elevator.

“Can you give me a quick run down of what I’m about to walk into?” You questioned as she pressed the button on the elevator.

“Well, the girls are the most awesome people you’ll ever meet. You’ve met Momo, but there’s Jiro, who has a great taste in tunes but kinda moody. Uraraka, the biggest ray of sunshine on the planet. Hakegure, who has the best personality ever. Tsu, is a little different, but is hilarious, and of course the greatest person you’ll ever meet...me!” She laughed, squeezing your arm.

“And the guys...well they’re guys of course. Kirishima, a total sweetheart and a feminist might I add. Midoryia, nice kid but villain magnet. Ayoma, he’s from France and I think he’s on the DL if you catch my drift. Absolutely at all costs stay away from Mineta. The little grape asshole with give you permanent taste of vomit in your mouth.” You crinkled your nose at the last comment. She continued, “Todoroki, which is the number one pro her Endeavor’s son and a total hottie.” She wagged her eyebrows making you laugh. “Shinso, who is the strong quiet type. Tokoyami, very respectful, the type you’d take home for Sunday dinner.”

“There’s Sero, he gives great advice he’s almost like the class therapist. Koda is a modern day Snow White and has the cutest bunny ever. Sato bakes like it’s nobody’s business and will literally make you gain 10 pounds. Then finally there’s the angry Pomeranian Bakugo.” Mina finished finally. You were pretty sure she just ran out of breath after trying to explain to you quickly before the elevator doors opened.

Mina guides you through the threshold where a bright banner read ‘Welcome to Class 3-A Y/N!’ “That’s so nice!” You said excitedly and pulled out your phone to snap a picture. Low music flowed through the large room as people mingled. No one seemed to notice that you two had joined the group. “Hello? The guest of honor is here!” Mina called out. Soon there were eyes centered on you. You waved slightly to the crowd.

You were met with bright grins and greetings. “Well hello gorgeous.” Someone spoke, you began to search for the voice. “Hey, I’m right here!” You looked slightly down and discovered a...vertically challenged boy staring at you. Well he was actually trying to stare at your boobs through your baggy sweatshirt.

“Um...hey? My eyes are up here dude.” You grimaced. Mina rolled her eyes.

“Oh I know this view is much sexier. I’m Minuro Mineta, class 3-A stud. What’s your name babe?” He wiggled his eye brows and blew you a kiss.

Ugh gross. You thought.

“This is Y/N. Back away now maggot or I’ll crush you like a bug.” Mina hissed.

“Ooooh. I’ve never been stepped on before, but if you’re doing it Mina I’d love to try.” He smirked back licking his lips. A blonde quickly rushed over and pushed Mineta back before Mina lunged at him.

“Whoa dude chill. Let her acclimate before you start being gross. I’m Denki Kaminari by the way.” He said sticking out his fist. You extended yours and fist bumped him.

“Hey, I’m Y/N nice to meet you.” You replied.

“Weren’t you interning with Hopewing back in the States? She totally rocks, I actually got her autograph whenever we went to the I-Expo a few years back.” Kaminari seemed pretty interested in the Pro Hero so you indulged him a little.

“Sure did, she taught me a whole lot about quirk control and management. Hopewing was a great influence on me, she’s kinda like my All Might I guess.” You laughed and scratched the back of your head.

“Super cool,” Kaminari replied, “Come meet the guys we were all actually interested in your quirk. Maybe you could show it off?” He grabbed your hand and lead you over to the couch where a few people sat talking. You looked over your shoulder at Mina who gave you a thumbs up.

“Guys, this is Y/N! She’s pretty cool!” Kaminari said eagerly. A chorus of greetings rang in your ears. “Kirishima, Sero, Todoroki, and Bakubro.” He pointed to each one of them and sat down on the arm of the couch, leaving you awkwardly standing infront of the group. You met Bakugo’s eyes for a split second before gaining a glare and quickly averted your eyes.

“So where are you from?” Kirishma questioned.

Before you could answer Bakugo spoke up, “The states dumbass where else?” He crossed his arms across his chest. His friend glanced at him and stuck his tongue out.

“Ignore him, he hasn’t eaten since this afternoon. He gets a little cranky when he doesn’t fed around the clock.” He reached across and pinched Bakugos cheek lightly.

“Remove your hand Shitty hair before I blast your ass.” Bakugo scowled.

“See?”

“Shitty hair...” He warned and his hand began to heat up emitting a small cloud of smoke. The group rolled their eyes.

“Anyways, I’m from Chicago, Illinois.” You answered before Bakugo could make his threat a reality. You weren’t really scared, but slightly intimidated by the man.

“Is that kinda like New York City?” Sero questioned thoughtfully.

“Kinda. Chicago isn’t nearly as big.”

“You must be tired from the flight over.” Todoroki spoke up noticing you were getting standing uncomfortablely. He stood up from the love seat he sat on, offering you his spot.

“It’s no biggie. I’m just over this jet lag.” You said, ushering him to sit back down.

“Well at least sit with me then? I’m respectful.” He continued before you took him up on his offer and sat down on the arm of the chair.

“Of course you are Icy-Hot.” Bakugo mocked. The comment being brushed off.

The hell was this dudes problem?

“The jet lag is kinda awful, but it’ll be nothing compared to this time change. I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep much tonight, I might just finish unpacking everything.” You said leaning back and closing your eyes for a second.

“Well if you need some help I’d be more than happy to assist my floor neighbor.” Kirishma offered.

“I’d actually really like that I have a book shelf that needs to be put together and I have no handiness what so ever.” You smiled. You felt eyes on you and peaked at Bakugo from your peripheral.

“So, like I saying earlier...this quirk?” Kaminari spoke up breaking the encounter with Kirishma.

“Kaminari why do I feel like you only friended me for my quirk?” You joked sarcastically.

“I did not! I’m just saying I think you owe me a demonstration since I practically saved you from Mineta humping your leg.” Sero fake gagged.

“Fine fine. Todoroki, I’d scoot over just a little bit I don’t want to ruin your vision like mine.” You said. His eyes grew wide and squeezed himself into the opposite arm of the chair. You closed your eyes and began to relax your body then staring at your finger tip. Your finger began to glow.

“That’s it?” Bakugo said, unimpressed. All of a sudden your hand began to glow blue before plasma rose through your skin. You began to use your other hand to shape it into a sphere. You tossed it slightly in the air and caught it before absorbing it back into your hand. You smiled

“Whoa...” the group responded. “What’s that called?” Sero questioned.

Just as you were about to share a guy came running over. “You have Ultra Violence?” He yelled and planted himself sitting across from you on the edge of the coffee table.

“You know my quirk?” You asked propping your elbows on your knees.

“Of course! I can’t believe I didn’t put it together before you got here! You’re the daughter of Stage Four! The plasma hero! His whole body can change into plasma! Can you do that too?” He said as he pulled a notebook out of seemingly thin air.

“Damn Deku. I thought I burned that thing?” Bakugo said, nostrils flaring.

“Oh you did Kachan...multiple times.” The guy said showing off the burn edges. He nervously smiled.

“Put that weird shit away before I finish it.”

“I think it’s cool. I’d like to see it sometime.” You said motioning to his prized possession.

“Just cause you’re new doesn’t mean you have to kiss everyone’s ass, you know.” Bakugo retorted.

“Are you just jealous because I’m not kissing yours?” You countered, a sly smile spreading across your lips.

He paused, thinking of a response. Obviously flustered, “Tch, screw you newbie.”

“Jeez Bakugo, if you suck your teeth anymore they’ll go straight down your throat.”

It looks could kill, you’d be 6 feet under. A small amount of smoke began to rise from him until he huffed and stormed away.

“Well shit, I think she just might make it around here. She defused the bomb!” Kaminari clapped and grinned ear to ear. You sat back down feeling completely flushed.

“Dinner is served!” Iida called from the kitchen.

“Midoryia right?” You asked. The green haired boy nodded his head quickly. “We’ll talk later and I can answer all your questions.” You smiled kindly and placed a hand of his arm, squeezing lightly

[6v6taeminisloveshineeworld]

House of the Damned Chapter One: BLOOD AFFAIR

Summary: Lust is neither love nor passion, it is but a starving beast driven mad by thirst and unyielding desire. A natural hunger akin to flame. As a daughter of the Church, a trial of purity is thrust upon you when a series of events leads you to live in a manor with six vampire brothers who are eager to possess you and claim their birthright as the strongest of the bat clan descended from Vlad.

Pairing: Taemin X Female Reader, SuperM X Female Reader

Genre: Vampire romance, Diabolik Lovers Crossover

Word Count: 7.2k+

Warning: Use of foul language and scenes with non consensual circumstances  

Authors Note: Most dialogue in this story is from the Diabolik Lovers game Haunted Dark Bridal Translated by maichiruhanabira and used with permission. It is not all my original work and will follow the DL game story with some extended or altered scenes. For original content read my other works, this work will be a side project since I am a fan of the game. If you are unfamiliar with Diabolik Lovers then I hope you enjoy surprise aspects of the plot. 

“Once beloved of mine, I never possessed you and yet you still haunt me.

Your absence stirs a great longing within me unquenchable by time.

Should fate take you from me again and into the shadow of another man’s arms I shall end this cruel existence. 

I curse destined prophecy, I curse you in your winter’s grave.

Heartless temptress, mistress divine, your crimson kiss is now a distant shadow dancing across hot desert sands.”

You woke from your strange dream and the alluring voice that accompanied it in a haze as the car bumped along the uneven roads leading you deeper into the middle of nowhere. Since landing on the soil of Emberwater you’d asked residents of the small town for directions to Hawthorn Hill and every time they’d waved you away saying that the estate had been vacant for years or that the place was haunted. Finally, you’d found one old woman who’d been a little too willing to help at last. Her eyes had been glossed over and you realized then that she was blind. She’d told you that her son would be happy to drive you to the estate free of charge to which you graciously accepted.

You hadn’t placed much stock in the townfolk’s superstitions until you saw the manor from your window at last. This may be a mistake indeed. What could Father be thinking sending me off to stay in a place like this? Is this really where my relatives live?

You still remembered the look on your father’s face just two days before as he hurriedly packed not only his bags but yours as well, stuffing things here and there frantically as if he was running away from someone. 

“I don’t understand why I can’t go with you to Europe, Father? What will happen to the church when you leave? You’ve only just come back from your last overseas trip, please don’t leave me again!” You could feel the tears forming in your eyes and you wiped them away angrily.

“Honey, don’t cry we’ve been over this.” His voice was surprisingly stern and it unsettled you further. He was always so gentle with you and his behavior now really set you on edge. “While I’m gone I’ll be passing on Church affairs to pastor Remiel. This job is simply one I cannot decline, they have requested that I go personally and in the meantime, you will be off at a nice private school and staying with distant relations of mine, the family is an old companion of the Church.”

“Which relations?” You asked.

“I haven’t told you about them since we are rather estranged, they are quite aristocratic but they will take care of you.” He said, running a hand through his graying hair and looking more tired than ever. “It’s painful for me to leave you as well but please try to understand my position. I go where the Lord tells me and you my daughter know better than to go against his will.” 

He came closer then and kissed your forehead. His eyes fell to the delicate silver crucifix embedded with pink sapphires that lay around your neck. He’d given it to you at birth, ‘a prized Church heirloom made of blessed silver’ he’d said when you had asked him long ago if it had belonged to your dead mother. “Finish packing, you leave tomorrow night.” He said, before giving you a final hug and walking out the front door with his suitcase.

As you approached this pompous estate now, you were half-filled with awe and more than a little bit of hesitation. You thanked the old woman’s son for driving you so far and started walking up the path, duffel bag in hand. The manor was quite large and elegant in the way that a royal castle would be you supposed if the castle was one from a horror movie or gothic novel. Vines with small orange roses covered the yellow-painted brick in a pleasing fashion but you couldn’t shake the eerie atmosphere and dark windows that seemed to send a chill throughout your body. 

Perhaps it only looks this way at night? You thought hopefully. Just then a loud crash of thunder boomed, making you jump. It began to pour so heavily then that even though you ran the rest of the way to the overhang you were already wet. You lifted the heavy brass knocker and pounded on the door.

“Excuse me?” You yelled when there was no answer. The storm must have muffled any sounds you made. Or maybe the rumors were true about the manor being haunted and you should just leave. But surely father wouldn’t send me to a haunted manor. The Church would never wish one of its members to be associated with such an unholy place. 

Just then the door creaked open on its own and you wished for the thousandth time on your journey that your father had just taken you with him. But thinking rationally the door couldn’t have opened by itself, perhaps someone was hiding behind it?

“Excuse me!” You shouted again, even louder this time, “Is anyone home? My father pastor Gabriel, he must have told you I’d be arriving.” When there was still no answer you stepped into the manor and closed the heavy door behind you. No way could this door be unhinged by just the wind. You dropped your bag on the floor and entered the foyer. No one was there but the manor did seem lived in at least. You rubbed the cold away from your limbs as you explored deeper. 

The hall was clean but dim, lit only by a few candelabras that you passed as you walked into the living room. You marveled at the plush red carpet and sofas as well as the tall ceiling, there was a grand staircase as well but what really caught your eye was the roaring fireplace. You hurried to it and dried off as best you could. This is getting a bit freaky no one is here. 

You reached for your phone but another flash of lightning made you jump and it slid from your hands. In that single burst of light you could have sworn you saw the shadow of a person lounging on one of the sofas but perhaps it was just your mind playing tricks on you. You moved to grab your phone only to find you were not mistaken. There was a person laying on the sofa fast asleep. You must have missed him in the darkness but you’d been certain you were alone.

“U-um… E-excuse me?”  You said, hesitant to wake him. The boy continued sleeping so you went on a bit louder, “I’d like to speak to the owner?”

When he didn’t answer you again you moved to touch his pale hand only to find it incredibly cold. You moved closer and waved your hand in front of his nose and felt nothing. He was so still his chest didn’t even rise and fall. Is he dead! You thought with alarm, your heart began to race frantically and painfully. You knelt on the floor beside the sofa and clutched at your chest. These attacks were happening more and more frequently and you knew it was best for your health if you didn’t freak out. There was a ringing in your ears like a voice repeatedly calling out for help. You breathed in and out trying to slow your racing heart. 

You started to dial an ambulance for the boy when suddenly his eyes flashed open and his hand grabbed your wrist to stop you. You screamed loudly in surprise and tried to pull away but his grip was too strong. 

“Shut up.” He said, turning his steely gaze on you.

“Excuse me! Let go now!” You shouted and tried to pull away again. He tilted his head and looked at you from head to toe curiously.

“What’s with you squealing in my ear?” He said sitting up on the sofa. 

“But just a minute ago…” You said trailing off.

“Just a minute ago what?” He said with a small amused smile. “I was just sleeping comfortably in my own house. Is that a crime?

“J-just sleeping? But… I’m certain you were…”

“I was what?” The boy asked in a mocking tone, he leaned in closer. His eyes were a startling green and before you realized it he had pulled you by the waist onto the sofa and was towering over you, one hand gripping both of your wrists over your head against the pillows.

“Hey what are you doing! You said, wriggling beneath him, “Let go of me!”

“Damn, you’re noisy. It was you who suddenly broke into my house. What are you doing in a place like this?” He said, bringing his face closer to yours. “Are you a magnet for trouble? Is that it? A moth drawn to flame?” 

“No! I’m not, I was supposed to come he-.”

“I’m hungry,” He said resting a finger from his free hand over your lips to silence you. “There’s nothing like getting a feast right when you wake up,” he said with a laugh that made your stomach lurch. 

“Don’t touch me!” You said, trying to squirm away but his knees locked you down.

“You’re some pretty energetic prey aren’t you? Stop struggling, just be a little… quieter.” He said as he began to unbutton the collar of your blouse.

“Please, God help me!” You shouted.

Suddenly all the lights in the living room came on startling you both. You noticed the ornate chandelier above you for the first time, it’s flames twinkling and reflecting against the glasses of the man who had entered the living room. The boy above you narrowed his eyes, seemingly annoyed. 

“What is all this clamor? I hope you have a sensible reason for causing so much ruckus and disrupting my reading, Mark.”

“Ah, Ten, it’s you.” Mark said with a glare.

You used that moment to pull away from the strange boy and ran over to the man. 

“Please help me!” 

“Hm? And you are?” The man pushed up his glasses as he surveyed you with a look that seemed both annoyed and disgusted. You gave your name hesitantly, you weren’t sure if you preferred his gaze to the boy, Mark or not. From their features you could clearly tell they were related, they shared the same sparkle to their eyes and lint of the chin but on all other accounts, they appeared quite different.

 “Mark, how many times have I told you to keep your conquests to your private rooms.” Ten said.

“I Am not a conquest!” You said angrily. “I came here because my Father told me i’d be staying here from now on!” You said it as clearly and unwavering as you could, relieved that at least some of your confidence was coming back to you. 

“Is that so? I know nothing of these arrangements.” Ten said, narrowing his eyes, he looked to Mark for an explanation. “Mark, what is the meaning of this?”

“Like hell should I know! You didn’t say anything about that earlier, Breastless!”

“Well, you suddenly attacked me and told me to shut up, and… wait, ‘Breastless’?” 

��Yes, dummy, it’s 'cause you don’t have any tits,” Mark said with a smile. 

“How dare you!” You shouted, your face turning bright red. 

Ten cleared his throat, and ran a hand through his black hair, “Well, there clearly is some error and you were misinformed.” 

“Oh, what do we have here?” Said another voice. You looked across the room to find yet another attractive face. His hair was bright red, he was sitting on the banister of the grand staircase. His eyes were alight with mischief as he slid down the banister and embraced you.

“Hey!” You said startled.

“Is there really a cute human girl in our living room?” The red-haired boy said. He stood in front of you and brought your hand to his lips, tipping his black hat as he did so. “Hello, pleased to meet you, Little Bitch.” You gasped in surprise as he proceeded to lick your earlobe!

“Taeyong, really now. For a woman you’ve only just met, wouldn’t you say that was a bit insolent?” Ten said crossing his arms. 

“Aha Ten you’re as stiff as always. Isn’t this fine? I was just getting a quick taste of a delicious-looking girl.” Taeyong said, licking his lips. You glared at him, taking in the eyebrow piercing on the left side of his face. If it weren’t for the ornamentation and bright hair you would have said he looked almost innocent in appearance although his actions said otherwise. 

“Shit, I’ll kill you, bastard,” Mark said, stepping toward Taeyong. “Fucking spitting on Breastless before me!” 

Taeyong’s laugh was more of a giggle like the chiming of bells. When he’d finally stopped he said, “You’ve got to claim your food with spit before your barbaric brothers do, hmm? Otherwise, they’ll eat it all up. Isn’t that right, Baekhyun?”

Another boy just as pale as the rest walked up beside you from the shadows. His purple cotton-candy like hair gave him a youthful appearance, He looked to be as old as you but for some reason, he clutched a teddy bear in his hands. A creepy bear at that, you thought. It may have been cute once but it seemed worn out in places now and very discolored, it even had an eyepatch and you wondered if it was just for style like some pirate or had the bear really lost an eye? Baekhyun’s eyes themselves were filled with excitement as he came closer to you and said in a childlike voice, “Please let me have a lick too. Don’t move, okay?” He wasn’t really asking for permission you realized for in the next instant you felt his tongue along your ear, wet and ticklish.

You made an odd sort of squeaking noise as you tilted your head away from him. What was wrong with these boys.

“Mm.” Baekhyun said noisily, clutching his teddy tighter against his chest. “She’s sweet… It’s rare to find a tasty one amidst all those dirty humans, isn’t it?”

“What?” You said in an exasperated voice, you were tired and confused of this little game they all seemed to be playing with you. 

“Hey, what is a girl doing here anyway?” Baekhyun asked. 

 “Isn’t she tonight’s side dish?” Taeyong said, licking his lips again. 

 “Dumbasses. Don’t go thinking she’s your “side dish” 'cause she’s mine. After all, ‘Yours Truly’ found her first.” Mark said laughing again.  

 “Oh?” Ten said in an imperious tone as he looked at Mark. “That may be so, however you failed to taste her first.”

“Fuck you, Ten! Stop saying unnecessary things!”

“Pathetic.” Ten said, shaking his head. 

Listening to this banter was worse than the licking you thought and just when you had accepted that things couldn’t get worse for you yet another voice entered the scene. 

“Oi, Lucas, come on out!” Mark said. 

Lucas it seemed had just appeared into the living room you had no idea where he’d come from. It was all just further proof that you needed to get away from this house and fast. 

“No wonder I thought I smelled a human. It was you.” Lucas said, his voice was deep and every word was quite sharp. “My sleep was interrupted thanks to you and your stench.” He said, his glare directed on you. “What’s even going on?” 

When you didn’t respond Lucas yelled, “Speak, don’t ignore me!” His fist pounded against the coffee table and made you jump in surprise. 

“Ahh my little bro’s as hot-blooded as usual,” Taeyong said. 

“Shut up, you year-round slut!” Lucas shouted at Taeyong. “I don’t consider you my older brother at all.”

“This is making me mad. Baekhyun said in a considerably serious tone that set you more on edge than the child-like one. “If you don’t stop with this needless talking, I’ll mangle you, okay?”

“Heh. I’d like to see you try it, Lucas sneered. His blue hair was disheveled and dare you say it, mangy as if his rage had grown roots. What are you gonna do with that tiny body, pipsqueak?”

“Ugh… Look at that, Teddy.” Baekhyun said in an offended voice. “This guy will be our next prey.”

“Please be reasonable,” Ten told you sternly. As much as I try to be gentle with you, my patience can only last so long. I’d like to say they can cook and boil you as they see fit but I cannot tolerate letting my foolish younger brothers compete for you in my clean living room. Now, first of all, please tell us how you managed to stumble upon this place.”

“Well... That is… because I..” Your voice shook as you spoke. It seemed your brain was at last catching up to the mess you were in. 

“What’s this, Breastless? Are you trembling?” Mark asked.

“Aha… You really are cute like this,” Taeyong said drawing close again. “Now I’d really love to eat you.”

Mark laughed. “Your teeth are chattering. We really frighten you that much, huh.”

“O-of course I am frightened! I’m in such a strange place and I can’t understand any of you at all!” You said. 

“What don’t you understand? Mark asked. We’re easy to understand, aren’t we?” He said, looking at Taeyong.

“Well, the rest of us are probably not as easy to read as Mark, right?” Taeyong said, a teasing lilt in his voice.

“Now, now, please don’t interrupt. Ten said, rubbing his forehead. “This conversation is not progressing in the slightest. I truly will lose my temper if this doesn’t shape up.” He turned to you and said, “You aren’t so frightened that you cannot speak, yes? So hurry and explain your situation.” He said the words slowly as if you were dumb. “Unless you’d rather I strike you with my whip?”

“This is all some big mistake,” you said backing away. I’ll just excuse myself. I’m sorry for coming in so late and imposing.” If I don’t leave soon they may do something worse. They really don’t seem to be joking about enjoying my discomfort.

“Hold up.” Mark called out from across the room and in the next instant he was right beside you! It was as if he’d teleported. “You can’t just leave, stay here.”

“I agree,” Taeyong said immediately. “It’s ridiculously troublesome when this house only has men living in it. If Little Bitch stayed here well maybe it’d bring a little bit of elegance into our lives.” Taeyong gave you a charming smile that sent you into a panic.

“I refuse!” you said before bolting for the door. There was nothing else to do at this point but run. 

“Oi! Wait!” You heard Mark shout behind you. As if you’d stay here and be their plaything! Before now you would have said ghosts and haunted houses were just legends but after seeing Mark just ‘appear’ beside you and after all of those strange encounters in this sinister house, you believed that it was indeed haunted. You’d made it all the way to the foyer before you heard another voice. 

“You’re so fussy, it’s tiresome,” The voice whispered. As if from smoke a man appeared right in front of your path. 

“Are you also with those other people in the next room?” You asked, barely suppressing the desire to roll your eyes at yet another person? Phantom?  Blocking your path. 

“‘With those other people’...  Being told something like that is exceedingly upsetting.” He said, his voice was much more enjoyable to listen to than the others you thought. It was languid and reminded you of a lazy stream. Soothing and yet refined.

“Well? Are you?” You asked again. When he stepped into the light you saw that his light blue sweater matched the blue of his eyes; serene waters both stoic and cold. You shook your head to clear it, damn these beautiful faces were distracting.

  “If I had to describe my relationship with them,” He said finally, “I’d say we share an undesirable but inseparable link to one another. Are you the woman that guy was talking about?” He asked. 

“'That guy’?” You repeated confused.

“Oi, Taemin!” Oh no just what I need now.“You know something about her?” Mark said coming beside him.

“Maybe,” Taemin said.

“Don’t ‘maybe’ me. I would like a full explanation,” Mark demanded.

“That guy, he contacted me the other day. ‘A new housemate will be coming to live with you, so get along nicely with her’ or something along those lines,” Taemin said dismissively waving them all away with his hand. He pulled out a pair of headphones that were attached to the black choker around his neck and went to recline on a sofa.

“So then, Breastless is just another prospective bride from the Church.” Mark said.

“No wonder, this is bullcrap.” Lucas said huffily.

“She’s more of a sacrificial lamb than a bride.” Taeyong said, moving to nibble at your ear, when you tried to get away he whispered, “Isn’t that right, Little Bitch?” 

Ten cleared his throat. “It appears that this is not a mistake after all.”

“Y-you’re kidding!” You said, looking at Ten imploringly. 

“Stupid. What would be the use of lying to you?” Mark said.

“I’m not a bride! I’m not marrying anyone! I have no idea what you’re talking about but this is all very strange! My father is an official from the Church, and for them to send me here…”

 “Isn’t it fine, being sent here by the Church?” Taemin asked as he took in your shocked expression. 

“What about that is 'strange?’” Baekhyun asked in that child-like voice again. 

“That would mean my father knew all about you guys and you’re all so strange.”

“What about us is?” Mark asked.

“Well…” You tried to think of a way to say in the nicest possible way that they were creeps and your father would never want you near any of them but before you could utter a word Taemin said, “Because we’re vampires?”

“What! Vampires?” You exclaimed. 

“Ugh. He went and spoiled it.” Mark said, sounding completely annoyed once more. 

“Spoiled it? Wait, I don’t really understand what you’re saying,” You said and you prayed silently that this was just another nightmare and perhaps you’d gone to the hospital due to heart failure and this was all your imagination. 

“It’s just as Taemin said. We are part of the vampire species. The bat clan, descendants of Vlad.” Baekhyun stated seriously.

“That must be a lie! Vampires? That can’t be true…” Phantoms were one thing but you couldn’t handle this. 

“It’s rather inconsiderate for you to insist that we’re lying to you.” Ten said, “Mark has already said this, but there is no reason for us to lie to a lowly human.”

“But!” Your mind was racing now. Of course, the explanation did make sense. There was the shadow apparating, the flawless features, and the pale cold skin. The Lifeless body of before and their melodic voices. Yes, it all made sense. 

“Now, now, Little Bitch,” Taeyong said in that ever so charming way of his. “You just don’t want to admit it, right? That beings as superior as us exist?”

“I don’t care if she believes it or not, she’s still annoying and loud,” Lucas said.

Whatever they said, you needed to call your father and ask him yourself. You reached for your phone but found your pocket empty.

Mark held your phone out to you, “Oi, looking for this?” Mark said, waving it in the air above your head just out of reach. 

 “That’s mine! You yelled exasperated. “Please give it back to me!”

 “Or what?” Mark said with a laugh. He continued to wave it over your head.

“Come on! Enough!” You screamed. 

“What’s with that attitude? I kindly picked it up for you. Is that how you thank me? Mark said.

“Mark, hand me that.” Lucas said. 

“Why?” 

“I said, hand it over,” Lucas reached over and grabbed the phone from Mark.

“Wait, what do you think you’re doing!” You scream but it was too late.

“I’m doing this!” Lucas said, before crushing your phone in his fist. 

 “No!”

“You’ve been so annoying ever since you got here,” Lucas said, letting the phone drop to the floor.

“You bastard!” You shouted. How would you call for help now?

“Now, now, Little Bitch,” Taeyong said. “From now on, you’re going to be friends with us creatures of the night. So there’s no need for boorish things like cell phones. Right?”

“Who do you guys think you are!” You said as you bent down to pick up the remains of your cell phone.

“So,” Baekhyun said as he stroked his Teddy bear, “Are you going to leave this place?” 

“That should be obvious.” You replied.

“Oh, I see. Well, that’s perfect, then.” Baekhyun said. 

“Perfect?” You asked wearily.

“I’ve been very hungry for a little while now.” Baekhyun continued.

“So what?” You said, hoping to stall for time to escape and keep him talking.

“You really are a fool, aren’t you? It can only mean one thing when a vampire says he’s hungry and I do love a good chase.” And with that Baekhyun pushed you to the ground teddy bear and all. For such a small figure he had a lot of strength, most of it supernatural of course you realized. You tried to move from beneath him but he would not budge.

          “Your blood smells so tasty and sweet,” Baekhyun said giggling like a child. His fangs prodded at your neck and you shuddered as you felt the tips brush against your skin. “I’ll drink it all without leaving a single drop behind. Okay?” His self imposed stupor was all you needed as you took just that moment before he would feed on you to move your hand to your chest. 

“Stop!” You yelled, whipping your rosary out and using it as if it were a shield.

“Huh?” Was Baekhyun’s only reply. 

Meanwhile, Taeyong was just about rolling on the floor laughing. “Little Bitch… you’re amusing! You carry a rosary with you?” He said between giggles.

“She seems to believe in the more archaic methods. Ten said. “Quite foolish, I must say.”

“But, vampires shouldn’t be able to tolerate crucifixes, garlic, or holy water…” Your voice trailed off at the look on their faces. 

“What kind of fairy tale did you get that from? That’s stupid,” Mark said. 

“I don’t want to hear that from someone who looks like a fairy tale character!” You shouted back. 

“This is making me mad,” Baekhyun said again with a whine. He looked as if he was about to throw a tantrum. “My food is right in front of me but the dining table is getting chaotic. Why are you doing this?” He said.

“Your food! Don’t say terrible things like that! I’m a human being!”

“This is tiresome,” Taemin said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Baekhyun said that because humans are treats for us. Didn’t they lick you already?” Taemin said. 

“I can’t accept that vampires exist!” You said quite stubbornly. 

“Mm… That’s kind of sad. Little Bitch,” said Taeyong. “The only way to make you believe us is by doing this.” He leaned into your neck and you shouted, “I get it now, so just wait a minute!”

“Don’t wanna,” Taeyong said, running his tongue along your throat and collarbone.

“You say that, but… m-my blood is not that cheap!” You said, trying to work out a strategy that would buy you time. “Because I-I want to choose who… gets to drink my blood!”

“Heh?” Mark said in surprise. 

Perhaps I shouldn’t have said that but it was the only thing I could think to say. 

“That is quite displeasing. Ten said, pulling up his glasses again. “I have no clue what kind of blood you might have, but aren’t you behaving just like a high-class prostitute?”

“This is stupid. I’m out. You guys do whatever you want.” Lucas said with a huff.

“Oh!” Mark exclaimed. “A dropout already?”

“The human’s manners are deplorable,” Ten said, looking down at you. “It has been quite a while since I’ve had a woman this undisciplined.” 

“Lavender's blue, dilly dilly, lavender's green, When I am king, dilly dilly, you shall be queen.” Baekhyun sang the folk song in a hauntingly beautiful voice before saying in his serious tone, “Hey… Teddy. If she doesn’t pick me, let’s both cut her to pieces, okay?”

“This has gotten interesting,” Mark said with a smile. “Naturally, you’ll pick Your’s Truly, right? It should be obvious.”

 “Little Bitch, Taeyong murmured. “If you don’t pick me… you’ll definitely regret it later.”

“Whatever.” Taemin said with a tired sigh. “Just end this silly game already.” 

I only suggested this in the spur of the moment, but now… what should I do?

You looked at Taemin then, listening to his headphones again trying to block out Baekhyun and Taeyong’s chatter. He seemed safer than the rest; you didn’t quite know if that was the best word for him but when those blue eyes caught your stare you said, “I choose Taemin.”

“What a pain.” He whispered before closing his eyes.

Taemin seemed lazy compared to the others, somehow he felt more normal to you and yet, well what was normal for a vampire? 

“Ngh, why him? You’ve got terrible taste, Breastless!” Mark exclaimed.

“You know, he’s not usually motivated to do anything, and I do mean anything,” Taeyong said moving his hips suggestively.

“Quiet.” Taemin told him, to you he said. “Well, I don’t mind having a nice meal come to me without having to do anything. But,” He said, eyes narrowing. “If you want me to suck your blood you’ll have to offer your neck to me yourself.”

Your cheeks reddened. Right, normal. This will work out in my favor.

“Everyone listen up.” Taemin said, “If you want to touch her, well, go right ahead. But you can’t kill her.”

“Huh? We can’t? Why not?” Baekhyun asked. 

“Like I know,” Taemin replied. “That guy is the one who said it. ‘Treat your guest with respect’.”

“You really should have said so sooner!” You said.

“Too troublesome.” 

 “T-troublesome.”  You echoed. He really was very lazy, you realized. 

“What’s that bastard thinking? Why do we have to treat this lame human girl with respect?” Mark said. 

“There might be some meaning to it. Maybe that person is planning something,” Taeyong said.

“Like what?” Baekhyun asked him incredulously. What could such a plain girl have?”

“Who knows?” Taeyong said with a sigh. “I can’t ever understand what that guy is thinking at all.”

“You’ve lost me again.” You said, feeling confused once more.

“Shut up, Breastless. Mark said, “This is our family’s problem.”

Who was “that guy” was he the person with connections to the Church that Father told me about? 

“Anyway,” Taemin said, bringing them all back to the initial topic. “That’s why you can’t go so far you kill her. And you,” Taemin said, meeting your eyes once more. “Try not to be so loud; stay out of my way.”

“The more I take, the more you fall captive to my will. When your body meets mine, this thirst, this depravity will it all fade? You are but a faint illusion on the horizon waiting for the midnight sun as you waltz further from me.”

You woke from the words of your nightmare to find yourself in an unfamiliar king sized bed and as all of the memories of yesterday night came crashing down on you at once, you wished you had just stayed asleep. Taeyong, Baekhyun, and Mark, had shown you to this extravagantly decorated room last night and you’d been so tired that as soon as they were gone you’d locked the door and fallen asleep as soon as your head hit the pillow.

 You turned on the nightlight at your bedside table now and opened the curtains to find it was dark outside. You realized you must have slept the entire day away and given all the excitement you’d gone through yesterday you weren’t surprised. Without your phone you couldn’t contact your father and tell him about the trouble you were in and you knew that waiting for him to seek you out would take weeks or maybe even months. He always lost touch with you when he was traveling overseas and it incensed you to no end. His actions really show how little he truly cares about my well-being.

Settling for being vampire food felt like giving up but as long as you stood your ground they couldn’t break your spirit so easily. They would eventually get what they wanted but that didn’t mean you wouldn’t put up one hell of a fight. 

Dear God, why have you given me this trial? This nightmare felt a lot like being thrown into a den of hungry lions you thought. Like some crazy test of purity.

“Hey,” Taemin said appearing in your bedroom out of nowhere.

You screamed and jumped into the bed ducking under the covers. 

“Annoying woman,” Taemin said. “Don’t jump on the bed. You’ll break the floor and then Ten will throw a fit if you destroy the house.” You felt the edge of the bed sink in and you carefully peeked at him from under the pink frilly comforter. Really why would anyone decorate a place this obnoxiously. Everywhere you looked you saw stuffed animals and expensive furniture and it made you wonder how many other girls had been a guest in this room. You shuddered and moved your attention to Taemin. His eyes were closed and he was listening to his headphones again. He’d swapped his blue sweater for a school uniform and this had your mind buzzing with questions. 

“Why are you wearing a school uniform? It’s nighttime already.”

“Classes start around now though.” He said, opening one eye to look at you.

Before you could ask him anything more the door swung open, even though you had been sure you locked it you supposed the lock was there more for your benefit than to really keep anyone out. 

“What are you two still doing here?” Ten demanded, crossing his arms and glaring down at both of you. He was also dressed in a school uniform but unlike Taemin who wore his blazer around his shoulders, Ten's blazer was buttoned down and without a wrinkle in sight.

“The nuisance has arrived.” Taemin said, closing his eyes again.

“Taemin, would you please get in the car.” Ten said again, “I won’t ask politely again. If you two humiliate us all for being late I will-”

“Yes, alright. We’re coming now.” Taemin said.

When Ten left Taemin got up and took out a folded school uniform he’d been carrying under his arm. “Here put this on quickly and meet us in the front. I’ve already enrolled you for classes so you don’t need to worry about it.” He turned and started walking for the door.

“Thank you,” you said. You were amazed he went through the trouble. He waved your thanks away with a hand and closed the door behind him.

You hurried to dress, fearing that if you weren't downstairs in the next few minutes you’d have more vampires barging in, this time as you changed. It made sense that vampires attended a night school though you really hadn’t thought about it till now.  

“Good evening, Little Bitch.” Taeyong said, greeting you at the front door with a lick to your cheek. You wiped it off with your sleeve and walked out the front door gasping when you took in the limousine parked in front. Well here’s to hoping that I will actually be able to study at this night school.  Your mind anxiously wondered how many students would also be inhuman. 

The School corridor was thankfully filled with a lot of normal looking people. No horns or fangs were on display but of course that didn’t mean they weren’t around if the guys were anything to go by since their fangs weren’t always on display. You’d only attended one class so far and yet you were already worn out from the bickering the boys had engaged in during the car ride earlier. The only thing that even made the day bearable was that Taemin hadn't mentioned sucking your blood. Not even once. He hadn’t even acknowledged you existed beyond giving you the uniform. Perhaps he wasn’t interested in you at all and maybe if you stayed quiet he’d end up letting you go himself without you having to beg him. 

Just don’t make him mad, don’t get in his way, don’t look at his blue eyes…

“Hey you!” A girl shouted from across the corridor and you looked up.

“Me?”

“Yeah! you’re the girl who just transferred into our class today, right?” 

“Oh, yes I am. Nice to meet you.” You said.

“Yeah, likewise! My name is Ellisyn,” the girl said smiling. She was tall with long tawny brown hair that fell to her waist in ringlets. “You know… I saw you when you came to school, and…” She leaned in close to your ear conspiratorially, “I was wondering, how are you related to the Hawthorn brothers?”

“What!” Well, some things happened… And Tae-”

“Ahh, yes! What about Master Taemin?”

“Huh? Are you interested in Taemin?” You asked.

Ellisyn looked at you as if you were from another planet. “Of course I am! The six Hawthorn brothers are super popular here! I am the president of Master Taemin’s fanclub myself! 

“Oh I hadn’t reali-”

“I must inform you then that everyone calls Taemin the ‘Master of the Music Room’, he skips almost all of his classes to spend most of his time there. Also, he never talks to anyone that’s why I was so surprised when I saw you with him.” She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “Are you perhaps dating one of the Hawthorn brothers?”

No Ellisyn, i’m their prey and i’m being held in that creepy place against my will and you can keep your ‘Master of the Music Room.’  These were your first thoughts but of course you replied with: “No, no! It’s nothing like that, truly!” 

Ellisyn’s excitement deflated at this, “Really? Nothing?” She pouted, upset that she hadn’t come across some juicy piece of gossip. “Well, if anything does happen I promise I won’t tell anyone.”  Her forked tongue escaped her mouth with a slither as she said it and you tried to look unfazed. Not a normal human then. She waved goodbye and walked off down the hall. 

“I should try to steer clear of the music room.” You mumbled. 

“What’s wrong with the music room?” Taeyong said, startling you as he came from behind you. “You shouldn’t let the gorgon girl bother you, I’ll keep you safe.”

“Would you stop sneaking up on me! You screamed. “Make some noise next time!” 

“But the look of fear on your face is amusing, Little Bitch. Why would I go and do that?” Taeyong replied with a wink. 

You rolled your eyes, “What do you want Taeyong?” Just when you said it you regretted asking. 

“Instead of zoning out in the halls and talking to yourself, why don’t we have some fun together instead?” He said, eyes alight with mischief.

“Ah, no. I… I’m not free right now.”

“Then make some time to spare.” Taeyong said, stepping closer.

“I-I can’t. I still have my classes!” Ah damn it, you were stuttering again. God he unsettled you. 

“Who cares about classes? Wouldn’t it be much more important for you and me to learn about our bodies instead?” He said with a smile. 

You blushed and tried hiding it by opening one of your textbooks only to find yourself reading it upside down.

“You’re so cute when you’re embarrassed. Here, come over here.” He pointed down a hallway. “There’s a less-crowded classroom this way-”

You bolted, running in the opposite direction and calling over your shoulder, “I’m busy!”

Hah… That was too close!” Thankfully I got away… This time. You leaned against a classroom door trying to catch your breath. Then you noticed where you’d gotten to while you were distracted running away, it was of course, the music room. Just my luck.

You could hear soft playing coming from inside. Curious beside yourself you opened the door quietly to find Taemin playing on the grand piano, his back facing you. When he was playing he seemed quite the opposite of lazy, he was rather vivacious. You came further into the room and watched his fingers as they spirited over keys. Even the muscles along his back seemed to move with him beneath his shirt to the rhythm, it was all so mesmerizing you hadn’t really noticed he’d stopped playing until he said, “What do you want?” 

“Did you hear me come in,” you asked, feeling a bit guilty to have disturbed him. 

“Of course I did, you are ever so noisy. Stop looking at me, you’re making a weird face.”

You blushed and moved to look around the room knowing full well he was talking about how you had been openly gaping at him. It was cruel really how angelic these monsters could appear. Without his fangs and imperious attitude he really would have been quite admirable.

“Did you need something?” He asked, going to lay on the floor.

“Nothing. I don’t need anything really.” Perhaps you should start some conversation or it would only get more awkward. “What’s the name of the song you were playing? It was beautifu-”

“Get out if you don’t need anything. You’re fatiguing. You really don’t have any importance to me and I hate small talk.” He said, closing his eyes.

Well that was rather unfair. “I wouldn’t be in your way at all if it wasn’t for you and your brothers.” Forget not angering him, you were angry now.

“My brothers all seem to be in a frenzy over possessing your body and blood, but don’t lump me in with them. If you’re trying to use your body to gain control or whatever of our family, then it’d be pointless coming after me. Eldest or not, I don’t even care about this household. Does that change your mind? Do you regret choosing me now?” Taemin said.

You didn’t know what to say to that. You were stunned, it was almost a book coming from a man who supposedly never spoke and one who never revealed his thoughts.

“I assure you, I’m not here to gain leverage or power or anything! I just want my freedom, just like you want yours it seems.”

“Don’t act like you know me and as for trusting your word, what good is it?” He said.

“Just because you can’t take anyone else's word in your family doesn’t mean you have to shovel all of your experiences on me!” You shouted.

“I’m tired of talking. He said, getting off the floor and walking to the door. “I’ve already said what I had to.”

He really liked slithering out of conversation and being the one with the last word didn’t he. 

You sat on the bench and moved your hand across the ivory keys. It’s best this way, I’ll have the best chance at escaping if he really doesn’t care about anything or anyone at all.

[fuck-customers]

I almost fucked my boss

This has been something that has been on my mind for months and I felt like this is the ideal place to share it....

tldr; me and my boss kinda made out and touched eachother and had a pizza together whilst being so fucking drunk

I went to an out of work event with some people from my work, a big ass fuck off engagement party at this REALLY FUCKING COOL AND CHEAP BARR YESSSS of a former co-worker.... My manager was there too.

When I first arrived at the venue nobody else from work was there apart from him - we get on so I just sat down beside him and we got some shots at the bar before everyone else came. I think four to five other people were meant to come, but, only two came and it's these two girls who are like, best friends, and who I don't really work with. They sit with us but go away. So, me and my boss continue to drink and chat a lot of shit. I think this is the right part to state there is a ten year age gap between us but we do get on really well because we have like, almost identical interests/views/whatever. The drinking continues until me NOT HIM ends up fucking slapping his ass and telling him I think it's fine - God knows what demon posessed me to do this but I am quite touchy/feeling when I'm drunk and normally go out with close friends where this would be fine BUT he tells me he likes mine too and... I'm like hahahahahaha lol cos (1) this guy is my boss and (2) this guy is my 'hot cool boss' I tell all my friends about. I don't fucking know my memory is blurry... we dance with out co-workers for a bit. Drink more. And. I guess we go outside? We sit under this tree and I put music on my phone and like I'm SO DRUNK at this point and he's SO DRUNK we both can hardly string together a sentence and all I fucking rememeber... God knows how we got onto it but like I'm kissing him and it's the funniest thing ever and I'm just laughing in his face telling him it's great but also hahahahahah this is SO SO SO FUNNY. And I think he kinda finds it funny too and fuck idk what happens, I guess we go and find out coworkers and its hard not to say anything but he sits down at the bar and I dance with them for a while and then we carry on like everythings normal BUT then WE GO OUTSIDE AGAIN and he's like 'touch my butt' and I'm like 'HAHAH YES OKAY HAHAHA' and I do it??? 

AND BY THIS POINT I'VE HAD 20+ DRINKS AND I RAN OUTTA CASH AND HE RAN OUTTA CASH and I'm like 'well I'll go n get an uber home if ya wanna stand with me as I wait' and he's like 'NO YOUR NOT GOING IN AN UBER BY YOURSELF I AM YOUR BOSS AND I WILL GET YOU HOME !!!! ;) ;) ;)' and we fucking stagger for about a mile and make out and fucking touch eachother all over before like we end up on the floor and it's a Sat night so we just look like drunk idiots and we finally get in a taxi back to mine and he comes inside and ....we both freak out I guess? and I put on a record n we order a fucking Dominoes and then he gets a cab home.

When I woke up in the morning HALF OF THIS INFO WAS REMOVED FROM MY BRAIN and I remember it like 'hahah lol i touched my boss' butt and told him he was hot and then we got drunk and tried walking back to mine and ordered a pizza' but if you've ever BEEN THAT DRUNK you know... when the memories start coming back and it takes like three days? And I'm worried about what coworkers saw but I come out and ask them and they're like 'you two were so drunk we couldnt even speak to yous' and I'm like phew and then I realised I've not spoke to my boss in this time apart from le meme tagging and I have to fucking message him don't I before I work with him???

And we both agree we were fucked and we should keep it on the DL.

AND THATS THE STORY OF HOW I ALMOST FUCKED MY BOSS

how are things now you ask? absolutely fucking fine and normal 

m just needed to share sorry about the grammar getting worse and worse it basically feels like the way I did that night

[junker-town]

Which 2017 NFL draft prospects are underrated, per college fans?

Here are the players we’d scoot up the draft board. How about you?

College fans don’t always agree with NFL people on draft prospects.

We’ve watched these players on Saturdays and don’t care as much about NFL team needs, scheme translations, and anonymous scout chatter. That doesn’t necessarily make us more enlightened, but it does mean a different perspective.

Now that we all have a good idea of how the 2017 NFL draft’s early rounds are gonna go, let’s think about which players are especially popular among college fans. Who are our picks to be overlooked by NFL teams? Or, put another way, who are college fans most overrating, according to NFL mocks?

A bunch of us answered this question, but let’s hear from you in the comments, as well.

These are not our top-five overall picks, just our five players we’d be quickest to move up in the rankings.

The only rule: no picking Texas A&M DE Myles Garrett, because the expected No. 1 pick cannot possibly be undervalued. Guess that means we can’t pick potential No. 1 pick North Carolina QB Mitchell Trubisky either, not that, uh, we would.

Richard Johnson

1. O.J. Howard, Alabama TE: You know how in basketball, they just run the whole offense through the most dominant physical specimen on the team? Yeah, that's what Alabama more often shoulda done with Howard. He's the X Factor in every game he’s involved in, and even he was confused the Tide didn't give him the ball more often.

Whether decoy or main target in the progression, it'll be fun to see O.J. give defensive coordinators fits in the NFL. Oh, and he can block, too. 2. Deshaun Watson, Clemson QB 3. Jarrad Davis, Florida LB 4. Patrick Mahomes, Texas Tech QB 5. Adoree’ Jackson, USC CB

Bill Connelly

1. Zach Cunningham, Vanderbilt LB: One play never encapsulates a player. Two might, though.

That’s Cunningham, former star recruit, hurdling his 234 pounds over a mass of humanity and almost stealing the football before a kicker can even kick it.

That’s Cunningham, thought to be a bit too lanky for the SEC’s power schools, catching Isaiah McKenzie — a potential draft pick with a full head of steam — from behind and pulling him backward to seal an upset over Georgia.

Cunningham had 41 tackles for loss as a high school senior. He had 33 in his last two years as Vandy’s best defensive weapon. He is so much fun to watch. He combines elegant athleticism with a nasty streak. He was James Franklin’s parting gift to Derek Mason in Nashville, and he dragged an offense-free Vandy to a bowl in 2016.

Maybe he’s too small to be a true star in the NFL, but he’s a freak with an IQ higher than yours. I’ll take those guys any time. 2. Chad Kelly, Ole Miss QB 3. Patrick Mahomes, Texas Tech QB 4. Justin Thomas, Georgia Tech QB/RB 5. Josh Augusta, Missouri DT

Luke Zimmermann

1. Deshaun Watson, Clemson QB: Quarterback wins may be a worthless stat. And "winners win" is the kind of logic used to justify bad decisions by teams across pro sports. And yet, Watson is a dang winner.

At every level, from seven-on-seven to back-to-back College Football Playoffs, Watson is the kind of quarterback you can go into battle with and feel comfortable about coming away victorious. For all the questions marks — decision making, system fit, ability to read defenses — no one wants it more than No. 4. And with a rare mix of athleticism, arm strength, and football acumen, you're going to get the results you're seeking. 2. O.J. Howard, Alabama TE 3. Forrest Lamp, Western Kentucky OT 4. D’Onta Foreman, Texas RB 5. Curtis Samuel, Ohio State RB/WR

Dan Rubenstein

1. Dalvin Cook, Florida State RB 2. Budda Baker, Washington S: 2017 is an impressively deep year for defensive backs, but don’t let that hide how great Baker will be.

I say this as an Oregon fan who’s still bummed Baker decommitted from the Ducks to sign with then-new Washington coach Chris Petersen: Baker is impossibly fun to watch, if you enjoy safeties playing one step ahead and giving offenses fits.

Draftniks will pick him apart as being undersized and strictly a center-field type, but watch him effortlessly step in front of deep receivers to nab deep balls and then roll up to set a quick boundary to end a wide run before it ever starts, and you'll fall in football love. Don't let him be the one that got away. 3. Jabrill Peppers, Michigan football player 4. Dorian Johnson, Pitt OL 5. D’Onta Foreman, Texas RB

Bud Elliott

1. Mike Williams, Clemson WR: If I told you you could have prime-career Plaxico Burress with a middle pick in the first round, you'd take that, right? Because I'm pretty sure that's who Williams is. He is a big guy who understands what his game is, and importantly, what it is not. He played in an ACC with many top defensive backs and also faced Alabama and Ohio State. He's someone my quarterback can depend on to make contested catches. 2. Adoree’ Jackson, USC CB 3. Ethan Pocic, LSU OL 4. Joe Mixon, Oklahoma RB 5. Eddie Vanderdoes, UCLA DT

How a broken neck made Mike Williams even better

Matt Brown

1. Zay Jones, East Carolina WR: Without big-time playmakers to take defensive attention off him, Jones still caught more passes than anybody else in FBS (158), finishing second nationally in receiving yards (1,746). In fact, no player in FBS history has caught more passes than Jones, EVER. Don't you want a wide receiver who is really good at catching the ball lots of times? 2. Hunter Dimick, Utah DE 3. Christian McCaffrey, Stanford RB 4. Donnel Pumphrey, San Diego State RB 5. Taco Charlton, Michigan DE

Morgan Moriarty

1. Leonard Fournette, LSU RB: I’ll just leave this here:

ESPN

Don’t believe me? How ‘bout now:

Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

2. Deshaun Watson, Clemson QB 3. Dalvin Cook, Florida State RB 4. Jonathan Allen, Alabama DT 5. Malik Hooker, Ohio State S

Alex Kirshner

1. Deshaun Watson, Clemson QB 2. Cooper Kupp, Eastern Washington WR, is the most prolific receiver in Division I history, and that's how he catches your eye. But he keeps your eye because of all the things he's done well and all the good teams he's done them against. Kupp played in the FCS, but torched Pac-12 opponents for 716 yards and 11 touchdowns in four games. He ran option routes that are now commonplace in the NFL, and he's done nothing but get buckets for four years. 3. Zay Jones, East Carolina WR 4. Patrick Mahomes, Texas Tech QB 5. Leonard Fournette, LSU RB

Wescott Eberts

1. D’Onta Foreman, Texas RB: Might I interest you in a 235-pound running back with 4.45 speed? That’s Foreman, who is fresh off a 2,000-yard season and posting this Physical Size and Athleticism Rating:

Even with a hand time adjustment on his 40, D'Onta Foreman's PSAR rating is the highest of any RB in the 2017 class: 7.76 out of 9.00

— Kyle Crabbs (@NDTScouting) March 28, 2017

A two-star prospect by Rivals out of high school, Foreman has already made a career out of proving his doubters wrong, so here’s your chance to look smart when the big back has a huge rookie season. 2. Patrick Mahomes, Texas Tech QB 3. Tyus Bowser, Houston LB 4. T.J. Watt, Wisconsin LB 5. Malik McDowell, Michigan State DL

Jason Kirk

1. Deshaun Watson, Clemson QB 2. Dalvin Cook, Florida State RB: Cook should’ve twice been a Heisman finalist, ranking ahead of 2015 winner Derrick Henry in total yards per game and No. 3 in 2016, against a tougher schedule than those faced by No. 1 Foreman or No. 2 McCaffrey.

His explosiveness numbers top McCaffrey’s over the last two years (nearly doubling the potential Stanford first-rounder’s highlight yards per opportunity, or yards added to 5-yard gains, in 2015), and Cook was a more efficient receiver, based on yards per target.

But Cook had an underwhelming combine, you say?

According to Sports Science, John Ross and Dalvin Cook had the same 20-yard split in pads: 2.67.

— Marcus Mosher (@Marcus_Mosher) April 15, 2017

According to Sports Science, Cook has the second fastest top speed of any RB they've tested in the past five years.

— Marcus Mosher (@Marcus_Mosher) April 15, 2017

3. Cam Robinson, Alabama OT 4. DeMarcus Walker, Florida State DE 5. Ben Boulware, Clemson LB

Overall

Slap those together, and you get:

1. Deshaun Watson, Clemson QB: If he’s not the No. 1 QB, a lot of college fans are gonna be mystified. 2. Dalvin Cook, Florida State RB 3. Patrick Mahomes, Texas Tech QB 4. O.J. Howard, Alabama TE 5. D’Onta Foreman, Texas RB, and Zay Jones, East Carolina WR

Lotta skill players there, but overall, we had 11 votes for linemen and eight for back-seven defenders in these small groups.

Your turn. Who’s your personal draft crush this year, based on college production?

[anoldwound]

Stop me if you’ve heard this atomic secret - DL/Isaac [Heroes]

Title: Stop me if you've heard this atomic secret... Characters/Pairings: DL/Isaac (one-sided), Isaac/Simone Rating: PG-13 Warnings: Slash. Mild sex stuff. Cursing. Drug use. Word Count: 3856 Spoiler alert: S1 Summary: I wasn’t exactly sure what an escaped convict and a heroin addict could accomplish together, but there had to be something. A/N: I know what you're thinking..."DL/Isaac? Fuck the whuh?" But it wasn't my idea. It was my friend's, and it was so random I just had to write it. Enjoy. ^_^ Something...weird has been happening to me these past couple of weeks. Ever since I started chasing again, I keep painting all of this amazing stuff, and I don’t even remember painting any of it. I’ll wake up, and I’ll be staring at this...thing that I have no recollection of making. At all. They’re pretty good, some of them. Wish I could figure out what the hell they were and why I painted them. “Isaac?” I turned; Simone was standing in the doorway. “Hey.” I smiled, and picked up an empty paint bucket. She laughed her smooth, easy laugh and traipsed casually down the stairs. “I swear, Isaac, it’s like you never leave this apartment. You oughta watch it, or you’ll be pale as a ghost by October.” “That’s what they tell me.” I brought the bucket over to the sink and turned on the faucet. “What do you want?” “Got any new paintings for me?” “Yeah, they’re over there,” I said, making a vague waving motion towards the new pieces. A slight guilt nibbled at my gut. Those were the weird paintings, the ones I had painted  while I was high. But Simone couldn’t know that. Her heels click-clacked across the floor as she made her way over to them, and I scrubbed down the bucket as best as I could, trying to get rid of the dried bits of paint still in there.   “See anything good?” I called over my shoulder after a little while. “Yeah,” she called back. “Get over here.” I shut off the water and jogged lightly over. “Which one do you like?” “They’re all good, but...this one.” She was holding the small canvas that I had hidden under the large eclipse painting. It was a man, a black man, wearing orange jail fatigues, his foot phasing through the wall of a prison cell. I didn’t remember painting it, like most of the stuff I had been painting lately. Something about it had perturbed me, so I had stowed it away so I wouldn’t have to look at it anymore. “Yeah? You like that one?” I stuffed my hands into my pockets. “It’s fantastic, Isaac,” she said. She was staring at it so intently I was surprised her eyes weren’t boring holes through it. “It’s so...surreal. It’s got a Salvador Dali feel to it. Like you’re in some sort of dream or something. It’s great.” “Thanks.” “What made you paint it?” I shrugged. “Dunno. You want it?” “Definitely.” She set it down on top of a table. “I’ll get it wrapped later. Mr. Linderman will definitely want this one.” “Mr. Linderman? Who’s that?” I gazed down on the painting, and grazed my fingers across its thick, rough texture. “He’s a client. He’s very interested in your paintings.” She was sorting through some more pieces in the back, taking care not to chip one of her nails. “He’s that mobster guy in Las Vegas. He’s got lots of cash. You’ll probably make a lot off of him.” “A mobster?” I didn’t take my eyes off my painting. “Don’t you think that’s dangerous, Simone?” “Yeah, well.” I heard her walk up behind me, and felt her elegant fingers gently massage my shoulders. “I just sell paintings. I think I’m pretty safe.” She softly kissed my neck, leaving just a trace of peach lipstick against my skin. “You’re amazing, you know that?” I chuckled. “I’m not so sure.” “You are. Take my word for it.” We stood there like that for a while, her arms wrapped around my shoulders, head pressed against mine, and me, still staring at that goddamn painting. “This was why I hid it,” I muttered. “Hid what?” Simone said. “This painting.” I picked it up and narrowed my eyes. “I can’t stop looking at it. I had to hide it under that big one so I wouldn’t see it lying around and start...staring at it again.” Simone chortled in my ear, and her arms slid off me. “You’re funny, Isaac. So proud of your work.” “No, it’s not that, it’s...” I pursed my lips. “Never mind. I dunno.” I tossed it onto the table and went back to the sink. She laughed again and smoothed her curls, her bracelets clinking lightly together. “Well, I have to go now. I’ll be back later to pick these up.” She gave me a quick peck on the lips and sauntered on out the door, her hips swaying gently. I watched her go, the air hanging heavy over my head. I hated lying to her, about the drugs, about everything...which was pretty much what the drugs had become. It was getting worse than it had been before I had gone to rehab. I was shooting up about five or six times a day now. I just...needed to. I can’t really explain it. I shook my head, and started scrubbing the bucket again. After a couple minutes, I gave up and put it back with the others. I can’t ever clean those things right. My eyes slid over to the painting of the phasing man still lying on the table. My feet were moving before I knew what I was doing, and I was stroking the canvas again, feeling this man’s face, his chest, his foot that was going right through the wall. “A man who can walk through walls,” I laughed scoffingly. “Like that could ever happen.” But art doesn’t need to make sense, especially art that you create when you’re as high as a kite. My mouth twitched, and I placed the painting carefully behind the stack that Simone had left leaning against the wall. I couldn’t keep staring at the thing. I had important things to do—comic books to write, other paintings to finish. I started to walk away, but my head turned slightly of its own volition. Something about that man in the painting called out to me, but I didn’t know what or why... He’s just a guy in a PAINTING, I told myself sternly as I reached for the sketchbook lying on the kitchen counter. He’s not even real. Just some imaginary person you painted while you were all doped up. Stop thinking about it. I sighed and flipped open to a fresh page. Back to work—if that’s what you want to call doodling. ___________________________________________________________ There was a rush, a rush running through my veins, a desirable rush that coursed through every inch of my body, to my brain, down to my toes, everywhere. My head bent back, a lazy grin spread across my face, taking it all in, the pleasure, the ecstasy... There was a girl over there, in the hallway, wearing a cheerleading uniform, her hair was blonde and there was a boy standing over by the lockers and he looked disappointed because she was walking away (a messenger bag was on her shoulder), she looked pretty upset herself, and my hand groped for the paintbrush. All the colors were swirling in and out, and the bright red on her uniform was pulsating, and everything was illuminated and then it wasn’t, and then it was, and I added more brush-strokes and I watched the girl walk away and the boy stare after her. ___________________________________________________________ “What the hell—?” I was on the floor, the needle lying about four feet away, and I was staring up at yet another one of those mysterious paintings. A young cheerleader, probably some girl in high school, was walking away from some indie-looking kid who seemed kinda pissed. Why the hell would I paint something like that? I slowly got up, yawning, and dusted myself off. I contemplated the painting for a couple of seconds, and wondered how I was able to paint so well when I was high, when I was suddenly hit by a wave of nausea and headed speedily over to the bathroom. ___________________________________________________________ I remembered that girl, the girl that got run over by that bus. She accused me of painting her, and ran outside, and got hit by the bus I had painted her getting hit by. I had no idea who she was. It boggled my mind for the longest time. Still feeling the remnants of nausea, I ignored it and headed over to the phone, where I dialed Simone’s number. “Hello?” “Simone?” “Yeah, Isaac?” “You coming to get those paintings yet?” “On my way.” And she hung up. I put down the receiver and rubbed my hands over my face, hoping I didn’t still looked all drugged out. I looked over at the painting with the cheerleader. Wish I’d painted that guy again instead, I thought. ___________________________________________________________ If I was a little freaked out by the paintings before...well, that was nothing compared to now. Suicide bombing in Israel. Nothing out of the ordinary, right? Except, when I looked at the newspaper, and saw the photo that accompanied the article...it was the exact same image that I had painted three weeks ago. Even the bus numbers matched. Maybe that was a coincidence. But other things like this had happened already. The girl and the bus. The woman losing her child on the subway. The massive car accident in Rhode Island. All of these things, these things that I had painted...they had come true. But only the paintings that I had done while I was high had proved prophetic. The sketches that I had done sober, they were nothing. There was an obvious connection. And all of the other paintings, the ones I had painted while doped up...I had to destroy them. They were evil. Some...some devilish force, some evil thing possessed me. The heroin. It was making me lose my mind. I had to quit, I had to...rehab wasn’t going to work; it had never worked for me before. There was only one way. I had to stop completely, and stop for good. ___________________________________________________________ Something occurred to me after Simone left and I was staring at myself in the mirror, trying to figure out how I could’ve screwed up so badly. If I could paint the future, then that man—the phasing man—he was real. And he could walk through walls. It sounded crazy. But so did a junkie painting the future while he was high. I smiled. Maybe I wasn’t alone after all. ___________________________________________________________ I tried painting him again, but I couldn’t. All I kept painting was that cheerleader, the same cheerleader that had been walking down that hallway, except now she was running away from shadows. And I painted Peter Petrelli again too, and lockers were flying at him while he held his arms in front of his disbelieving face. And two Asian guys were staring up at a Homecoming poster splattered with blood. I couldn’t shake the feeling that these were all somehow connected, but I couldn’t care about that. I had to find him. If I found him, maybe we could stop the bomb. I wasn’t exactly sure what an escaped convict and a heroin addict could accomplish together, but there had to be something. Why else would we have been given these powers? It was destiny. ___________________________________________________________ The cheerleader did mean something, after all. She was the key, the key to saving the city and stopping the bomb. Peter had saved her, presumably, while I had been whisked away to a rehabilitation center by some strange people that seemed to know all about my abilities. They’d fed me drugs so I could paint more of the cheerleader, but I can’t control what I paint while I’m high. If I could, I wouldn’t have been painting the cheerleader in the first place at all. I would’ve painted Him. I didn’t know why I still had a fascination with this guy...I mean, clearly he wasn’t the answer to my problems. I hadn’t painted him at all since that one painting of him that I didn’t even have anymore. There was nothing this guy could do for me. I’d probably never meet him. But somehow, I still felt this sort of...kinship?...with him. I didn’t really know what it was, but I’m not exactly a Freudian analyst or anything. I dreamt about him a lot while I was at rehab. They were sort of interspersed between dreams about that Eden girl and nightmares about apocalypses. I don’t remember exactly what happened in them; I would just wake up from the dreams feeling very peaceful and fulfilled. I’m going to meet him someday. I just know it. ___________________________________________________________ “What do you want, Isaac?” Simone came down the stairs, her feet stamping each step heavily. I smoothed back my hair and attempted a smile. “Hey.” “What do you want, Isaac,” she repeated, her hands on her hips. “D’you know what I’ve discovered now, Simone?” I asked, cautiously inching myself nearer to her. “No, what,” she said, not seeming too interested. “I’m clean,” I started. “I know, you told me.” “I wasn’t finished. I’m clean, and I can paint the future without the drugs, right? I thought it was like...like I couldn’t control what I painted, you know? Like it just sorta happened and I couldn’t control what I saw and what went on the canvas. But I’m thinking that maybe I can. If I could just think about what I want to see, that maybe it’ll...maybe I’ll see it.” “So why don’t you?” She crossed her arms. “I will. But I need to ask for a favor first.” She sighed deeply. “I’m not sure I want to help you, Isaac.” “Please. Just this once.” I touched her sleeve and gazed deeply into her eyes. “For old time’s sake.” Her eyes looked conflicted, but she smirked resignedly and gave in. “What do you need?” “I need that painting back.” “Which one?” “The one with the phasing prisoner. You know, the one where his foot was going through the wall? The Salvador Dali one? I need it back. It’s important.” “I can’t give you that painting.” I bit my fist. “Why not?” “I sold it already. Mr. Linderman has it.” I scoffed. “Linderman. Of course.” I backed away from Simone slowly and scratched my head, trying to figure out any possible way I could convince Linderman to give it back. “Why do you need it?” Simone asked. “Because,” I said, “I need to paint him.” “Paint who?” “The phasing man!” I cried in exasperation. “Don’t you get it? I need to paint him, find out what’s happening to him. Do you realize I know nothing about this guy except that he walks through walls and is a convict? I don’t know why he was in prison. I don’t know if he was guilty or innocent. I don’t even know what his name is, for God’s sake!” “But why does it matter?” she said, and took several steps forward as though to get a closer look at my face. “With all of this crazy stuff that’s been going on—the cheerleader in Texas, this explosion you’ve painted—why do you care about some escaped convict?” “He can walk through walls,” I said. “He’s like me.” “You’ve met plenty of people who are ‘like you’,” Simone said, making quotation marks with her fingers. “What’s so special about this one?” “I...I don’t know,” I admitted. “But something about him calls out to me. I feel...connected to him, somehow.” She stared at me long and hard. “Something strange is happening to you, Isaac,” she said. “And it’s not just the paintings.” And with that, she spun on her heel and started away. “Simone!” I called after her. She stopped, but didn’t turn around. “Yeah?” “I still love you. Nothing’s going to change that.” “I know.” And she continued out the door. ___________________________________________________________ I was in the future, that strange floaty zone where all of the colors flew and melded together incandescently. He was there...I had finally found him, but something was wrong, he was on the ground and a blonde woman was kneeling next to him (was that the woman I had painted with the suitcase full of money?) and there was another man on the floor, an old man, but he was dead and his brains were splattered over the place. It hadn’t been Sylar, though, it had been the phasing man, he had put his hand through the old man’s skull...but why? And there was a bullet-wound through the phasing man’s chest. He was dying. Blood...everywhere. “D.L.,” the blonde woman sobbed. “I love you.” “I love you too, baby,” he croaked out, his voice deep and raspy. “No,” I whispered. “You can’t die. You can’t...” ___________________________________________________________ I blinked; I was back in the loft, and I was staring at the painting—an above angle showing the dead old man with a gun lying next to him and a hole in the back of his head, the blonde woman holding the phasing man (or D.L.) in her arms, and him...blood on his hands, bleeding...dying...dying on the hardwood floor. I choked out an involuntary sob as I stumbled backwards, the paintbrush clattering down to the floor. How could he die? When would this happen? Was it even true? Or was it like the bomb—was it preventable? Could it be prevented? It had to be. He couldn’t just die like that. He couldn’t be in one of my first future paintings and have me obsessed with him and dreaming about him almost every night, and then, when I finally find him, just die. It was ridiculous. It wasn’t fair. I had to contact him somehow. I had to warn him. But I still didn’t know anything about him. I didn’t even know what his last name was. I had to keep painting. Find out more. Save him. And then we could stop the bomb. Together. ___________________________________________________________ Simone and I were embracing on the rooftop, and her hair smelled like strawberries. “C’mon,” she said. “Let’s go out to dinner.” “I...I don’t have a lot of cash,” I said sheepishly. “That’s okay.” She patted my arm and pulled away. “It’ll be my treat.” I smiled. “All right.” We headed back downstairs to my loft, my arm flung around her shoulders. “Uh—wait.” I stopped suddenly. She looked at me quizzically. “What is it?” “Did you...did you see anything else while you were down there? Besides the painting of you and me on the roof?” “No.” “Oh.” I grinned with relief. I guess I had put it away after all, then. “Never mind.” She seemed suspicious, but didn’t say anything, and we made our way back into my apartment. “I should get changed first,” I said, sweeping my hand over my slightly ratty clothes. She nodded, and I grabbed some nicer clothes out of my drawer and headed to the bathroom to change. I was in there for a grand total of about, oh, thirty seconds. When I came back out, Simone was looking through some paintings in the back. My heartbeat started accelerating. “Um, Simone, we should—” Too late. Her rifling fingers came to a screeching halt as she noticed the one I had finished painting about four hours ago. “Isaac...” she said slowly, and pulled it out from the stack. “What the hell is this?” It was a...well, a rather erotic painting of D.L. He was lying naked on a bedspread, blanket strategically hiding his...you know. He was looking at someone, but you couldn’t see who. He had rather nice physique, to tell you the truth. Very nice, in fact. “Um, ah...” I stammered. “This is the phasing man, isn’t it?” she asked. “Y-yes.” “So you painted this.” “No! I mean, I did, but I was painting the future. I just painted what I saw, I didn’t do it, like, on my own or anything,” I said. She didn’t look like she believed me. “You told me you can think about something and paint it. You were thinking about this, weren’t you? You were looking for it.” “I...” Words failed me. “Tell the truth, Isaac.” “Why do you care, anyway?” I snarled, and flung my sweater on the ground. “We broke up. Or, you broke up with me.  I don’t see why it matters to you.” Simone looked hurt, and I felt bad for a second, but then she said, “You’re obsessed with this guy. It’s not healthy.” “Not healthy? How is it not healthy?” I spat. “What the hell is unhealthy about it?” “It’s not healthy because you’ve never even met this man and you’re painting these really sexually charged images of him and you can’t seem to stop thinking about him!” she exclaimed, and placed the painting on the ground roughly. “It’s either this D.L. guy, or the bomb, or finding Peter. You always have to be fixed on something. If it’s not heroin, then you’re addicted to something else!” I felt strongly tempted to say “fuck you”, but I didn’t. “Addicted. I’m addicted. That’s new.” “It’s not new, which is why I’m concerned,” she said, and grabbed me gently by the shoulders. “I care about you, Isaac.” “I care about you too,” I said, “but if you’re going to come in here and make these crazy accusations...” “It’s not crazy, Isaac,” she said softly. “And you know it.” I didn’t say anything. “Maybe we shouldn’t go to dinner tonight,” she said. “I guess not.” ___________________________________________________________ Simone is dead. I try not to think about it too much. They call it the “denial” stage of grief, or at least that’s what the guidance counselor told me when my father died. I’ve been occupying myself by painting...just painting, pretty much all day, with very little rest or eating. Once in a while I’ll stop to go to the bathroom, or nibble on some granola bars, but other than that, I paint. Or I draw more of my comic. It’s busy work, it’s mindless, it keeps my mind focused on other things. I need that right now. I have a world to save. ___________________________________________________________ He came to me in a dream last night. “You’re gonna be fine,” he whispered soothingly in my ear, and I shivered. “We’re all gonna be fine. I’m gonna take care of you, Isaac.” He kissed my cheek, and we fell down on the covers. ___________________________________________________________ I was trying to paint my future, for once—I wanted to see what would happen to me. I wanted to see me and D.L., together. Stopping the bomb. Saving the world. Being there for each other. Or me, saving him. Me, finding out his phone number and calling him to warn him. Something. But no. I painted my own gruesome death at the hands of Sylar instead. I rubbed my hands down over my face and collapsed onto the floor. I can’t ever catch a goddamn break... ___________________________________________________________ “It's all right. I finally know my part in all of this. To die here...with you. But not before I show them how to kill you...and stop the bomb. I finally get to be a hero.” He just shook his head. He didn’t get it. Somehow, I thought he never would. And in my last moments, I saw Simone— I saw my parents— And I saw him.

[badwolf1988-blog]

Nobody Gets Left Behind

Summary: Imogen “Ginny” Kyle is a teen actress who is stuck living with her abusive father. One night at a party she meets Duane Lee Chapman. He offers to help her. He wants to love her. Can Ginny believe him? Is he telling the truth when he tells her that when it comes to family...nobody gets left behind?

Rated: R

Disclaimer: Yeah, this never happened. 

Status: COMPLETE

Disclaimer:  I do not know Duane Lee Chapman. I mean, he seems like a swell guy but he never returns my calls and he took out a restraining order after I followed him home that one time.

Disclaimer: Lilo and Stitch is copyright © Disney and Jumba.

Author's Note: I wrote this story a million and a half years ago. Yes, I know movie timelines don't make sense and Alan Rickman is still alive. I wrote this story in 2010. You guys can thank @NicktheDiva for finding this on the hard drive of his old computer when he was doing some spring cleaning. I hope you all enjoy!

***WARNING*** This story features a romantic relationship between an adult man and a teenage girl. If you don't like that use your back button now. ***

Honolulu, Hawaii June 17, 2005

I hate my life. I mean it. I 100% detest my life. I slowly unwrapped the ace bandage that the wardrobe lady had bound my breasts with. Why had she done this? Yeah, I thought you might ask. You see, my name is Imogen Kyle. I'm seventeen-years-old and I have been an actress pretty much since birth thanks to my money hungry father. While I had once been an adorable little girl who had passed for Shirley Temple in a biopic about her, I now more closely resembled a 1960's Playboy Playmate. I had definitely inherited my late mother's curves that was for damn sure. This caused a bit of a problem because my two most popular roles to date were that of Annabeth Chase in the Percy Jackson films and Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter films. Both characters were teenage girls with normal teenage girl bodies. I did NOT possess a normal teenager's body. I had started developing quickly right around the time I turned twelve. I had endured more ace bandage wraps than I care to remember.

As I threw the ace bandage wrap onto the small vanity table in my trailer I gently massaged my chest. Looking at myself in the mirror, I could see where the bruises were already starting to appear around and under my breasts. I sighed. I looked like a freak.

A knock on the door almost made me jump out of my skin. I quickly grabbed my pajama top and threw it on.

“What?”

The door opened and the friendly face of my friend (and castmate) Brandon appeared.

“Hey, girlie...wanna go to a beach party tonight?” He stepped all the way inside and closed the door.

I rolled my eyes. “You know He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named would never allow it.”

For those of you who want to know...He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is what I called my father. If I was in a hurry You-Know-Who and Voldemort would also work.

“So don't tell him...he'll probably be passed out drunk by the time you get back to the hotel anyway.” He shrugged his shoulders. “Just tell him filming ran late.”

Brandon and I had come up together in the world of young Hollywood. We had been tight for years and he knew more dirt about my family than anyone else. If he was so inclined he could make a small fortune by selling just half of what he knew to the tabloids. Luckily, Brandon was loyal. He was one of those lucky child stars who's parents actually gave a damn about him so he was surprisingly well adjusted.

“Who's throwing the party?” You always had to be cautious about those you associated with when you were in my line of work.

“This dude named Leland I met last night at Hooter's.” Brandon explained. “His dad is this famous bounty hunter or whatever.”

My best friend wanted to take me to a party being thrown by a bounty hunter's son that he met at Hooter's? What the hell. I was only going to be a stupid teenager once right?

“Sure, I'll go...just let me finish getting changed.”

“I'll wait,” Brandon nodded but made no attempt to leave the trailer.

Jesus, he could be so airheaded sometimes.

“That means you have to leave numbnuts.”

“Oh, right...my bad!” He quickly made an exit.

Seeing as the only clothes that I had brought with me from the hotel this morning were the worn out Rugrats pajamas I had arrived in, I went to the clothing rack in the back of the trailer and quickly flipped through my wardrobe choices. Seeing as my chest was still killing me, I chose a white sundress that tied around my neck and had a hold ribbon along the waist. I wouldn't need to wear a bra. I'd be good...so long as I didn't dance...or run...or make any sudden movements whatsoever. Why couldn't I have mosquito bites like the rest of the actresses my age that haven't had extensive plastic surgery?

At The Party

Okay, this was the last time I let Brandon drag me to a party being thrown by some dude he met at a Hooter's. Most of the people in attendance were in their late twenties and early thirties. There was no one to talk to. No guys to dance with...not that I could in this dress but still. We were two millennials surrounded by Generation X. Add on that Brandon had abandoned me over an hour ago to chase some tatted up chick named Georgie and I wasn't in the best of moods.

“You don't look like you're having a very good time.”

A warm and not unpleasant voice broke me out of my thoughts.

I was seated on the tailgate of a pickup truck and while I had been spacing out, I had been joined by a rather bulky dude with deep blue eyes. He kinda reminded me of the character Emmett Cullen from that god awful Twilight book my grandma had sent me for my birthday because all the girls just had to have it. He was also way older than me. He had to be in his late twenties at least. But he was oh so pretty to look at.

“Yeah...well...I'm a lot younger than like...everyone here.” I pointed out the obvious as I took a sip out of my red solo cup. I had no idea what I was drinking but the fruity mix was making me totally chill.

“Then why are you here?” He countered by asking the obvious.

Touche, sir. I thought.

“Because if my best friend jumped off a cliff I'd probably jump too?” I tried being witty.

The fruity drink must have improved my snarky personality because the dude actually laughed. Score one for fruity alcohol!

“So, what's your name, young one?” He asked as he took a sip out of his own cup.

Oh, awesome! He didn't know who I was. I was going into this with a clean slate.

“Imogen but most people realize that was a cruel burden for my parents to place on my shoulders and simply call me Ginny,” Oh, this fruity cup of awesome sauce was turning me into a witty smart ass that would make my co-star and all around hero, Alan Rickman, proud.

He laughed again before catching my eye and nodding his head at me. “Nice to meet you, Ginny. I'm Duane Lee.”

“Too long,” I shook my head in mock seriousness. “I'm going to have to call you DL.”

“Princess, you can call me whatever you want.”

Hold the phone – Was he flirting with me?

“Oh, really?” I flirted right back because of the awesome sauce. “And why's that?”

I must have taken him by surprise because he paused for a second and chuckled to himself before he responded. “Because the lady is always right, of course.”

Oh, he was smooth...and I was going to see how far I could milk this.

“So, I could convince you to do anything right now? Because I'm a lady?” I baited him.

“Within reason,” He nodded his head and amended.

“Pretend to be my guardian so I can get a tattoo?” I have no fucking clue where that idea came from...probably the awesome sauce. Whatever. I was going to go with it.

“How old are you?” He seemed a bit taken aback.

“Seventeen as of January,” I replied casually as I took another sip from my cup.

“Damn...I thought you were at least twenty...” And he was going to go running for the hills. Just my luck...and he had been so pretty to look at.

“Hey, sixteen's the age of consent in most states...Hawaii included...” I blurted out and just let the statement hang in the air. How the fuck did I even know that?

He actually seemed to be thinking it over.

“I'm going to hell...” He muttered to himself before turning to me with an oh-so-sexy smirk. “So, where do you want to go for this tattoo of yours?”

Holy shit! He had taken the bait.

Well, in for a penny, in for a pound. I guess I was getting a tattoo.

“I'm only in town for work,” I admitted as he stood. “You pick the place.” Was I fucking nuts?

“And what kind of business would require a seventeen-year-old to travel?” Duane Lee asked as he offered me his hand to help me down off of the tailgate.

“Show business,” I responded shortly. It must have been too shortly because he very quickly changed the subject.

“Do you want to find your friend and let her know that you're leaving?” He asked as we slowly made our way towards the beachfront parking lot.

I shook my head. “He ditched me first. Let him worry.”

“Your best friend's a guy?” He asked in surprise as we arrived at the passenger side door of a red Silverado.

“Yep,” I smirked. “He's also black. We should have our own sitcom.”

Duane Lee laughed as he held open the Silverado's door for me and I got into a truck with a man who's last name I didn't even know.

At The Tattoo Parlor

“So...what kind of tattoo are you planning on getting?” Duane Lee asked as I flipped through a catalog of designs.

I had no fucking clue. I had been half passed shit faced when I had proposed this little adventure and now that I was coming down from my buzz I was really regretting drinking so much awesome sauce.

“Something that means something...” I replied vaguely.

Suddenly, a voice that I secretly loved came from the television that was hanging from the wall in the waiting room.

“Ohana means family...family means...nobody gets left behind...or forgotten.”

Stitch from Lilo and Stitch was my all time favorite Disney character.

“Do you think you could draw him?” I asked the tattoo artist and jerked my head in the direction of the television.

“Give me half an hour.” The chick nodded.

Duane Lee took a seat in one of the waiting room chairs and pulled me to sit in his lap. Damn, I really wish I had more awesome sauce right now. Being this close was making my brain pack up and go on vacation.

“Why Stitch?” He asked as he lightly ran his fingers up and down my arm.

“Because he's weird. He doesn't fit in. He doesn't look like people think he should. I can relate to that.” I told him honestly.

He leaned forward a bit and nuzzled my neck. That was it. My brain wasn't coming back from its vacation anytime soon. It had bought a summer home on Airhead Island and it was making friends with the neighbors.

“Are you going to get that ohana quote too?” He laid a kiss just below my ear and I shivered.

“I would actually have to believe in family to get that inked into my skin.” I said rather bitterly even to my own ears and once again Duane Lee let the topic drop.

TWO HOURS LATER

DUANE LEE'S HOUSE

What the fuck was I doing here? It was after midnight. Voldemort was going to kick the ever living shit out of me for not coming back to the hotel when filming wrapped for the day. He was never going to believe that filming ran this late. He might be a drunk but he still knew how the industry worked. I was still a minor. I could only work a certain amount of hours a day.

Duane Lee – to his credit – also looked like he had no clue what the hell to do next.

“I didn't bring you here to have sex with you,” He blurted out as we stood awkwardly in the center of his living room.

Um...okkaayy. I had no idea what to do with that. How was I supposed to respond? My right shoulder was stinging under the bandage that temporarily covered my new tattoo. My head was cloudy as I crashed even further down to earth after way too much awesome sauce. Witty Ginny was gone.

“I brought you here because I'm worried about you...” He continued.

Huh? How could he be worried about me? He had just met me.

“I saw the bruises when you pulled your top down for the tattoo artist,” He took a step closer and reached up to run his hand along my cheek. “Who did that to you, princess?”

I laughed. “The wardrobe hag on the set of my new movie,” I explained. “She binds my breasts so I actually pass for my age on screen.”

He nodded. “What are you here filming? Percy Jackson? I don't think there are any scenes in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince that require a Hawaiian backdrop.” He smirked gently. “I have a question for you, princess. Does it ever bother you that you play Luna when your name is really Ginny?”

The son of a whore! He had known who I was the entire fucking time!

“Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters,” I answered his first question on autopilot, completely ignoring his second.

“I know you're probably pretty shocked that I know who you are,” He reached up behind my neck and pulled on the strings holding my dress up. They easily gave way and the top half of my dress pooled at my waist, leaving my chest completely bare in front of him. “But I'm going to shock you a little further with what I know.” He gently reached out and cupped my breast in his hand, using his fingertips to soothe the angry purple and blue flesh along the bottom. “I know these bruises came from binding your breasts.” His hand suddenly dropped to run along the healing green and yellow bruises along my ribcage. “But these bruises came from someone's fist. I'm a bounty hunter, princess. I know abuse when I see it. You were too willing to get drunk and run off with me tonight. You act older than you are. Someone's hurting you, Imogen, and I want to know who it is...now.” He demanded as his eyes found mine.

“My dad,” I answered without even thinking about it. I had never told anyone that my father hit me...not even Brandon. All he knew was that my father was a controlling, verbally abusive asshole.

He pulled me into his arms and held me as tightly as he seemed to know my bruises would allow.

He laid a kiss on my ear before whispering, “Do you want to get away from him? I can make it happen, Imogen.”

Why was he so willing to help me? Why did he speak to me like I was something precious? Was getting away from my father even an option? He controlled everything, including my money, until my eighteenth birthday. How would I survive without him? And the press would be a nightmare when they got wind of me running away from my father. No, it was completely out of the question...at least until I turned eighteen next year.

I withdrew from his arms and pulled the top of my dress back up.

“This was a bad idea, DL. Take me back to my hotel.” I demanded while not quite meeting his eyes.

Duane Lee just shook his head sadly and complied with my wishes.

Before he let me get out of his truck, Duane Lee took my cell phone from me and programmed his number.

“All you have to do is call me, princess,” He told me as he leaned across the middle divider. “My offer to get you out never expires...you hear me?”

I nodded. “If you got me out...would that mean that I got to be with you?” I knew that I could never accept his help but still I found myself needing to know the answer.

He just stared at me, studying my face for a moment before asking, “Is that what you would want...to be with me?”

Christ, I hated it when people answered an important question with one of their own.

I knew the answer was yes but I couldn't bring myself to verbally say it so I simply nodded my head.

Duane Lee reached out and ran his finger along the seam of my lips. “Then, yes, you could be with me if you left your father.” He leaned forward and laid a brief, gentle kiss on my lips.

When we parted, I felt the tears welling up in my eyes and I knew that I needed to get out of the truck. I knew if I didn't do it soon, I probably never would.

Without so much as a last glance in Duane Lee's direction, I got out of the truck and literally ran away from the man who offered me salvation.

Two Months Later

I couldn't take it anymore! I didn't fucking do anything to that man! I was his daughter. He was supposed to protect me. Isn't that what good fathers did? My father wasn't a good father. No...Voldemort was the type of father to beat the hell out of his only child because she was twenty minutes late getting back from a press interview.

I was still having trouble breathing as I leaned against the sink in my bathroom for support and wiped the blood away from my nose...which I'm pretty sure was broken. This couldn't go on. He was going to kill me. The movie had wrapped filming today and I didn't start filming Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince until next summer. I was terrified of what You-Know-Who would do to me if we were left alone together for that long.

As it had after every beating I had received in the last few months, my wandered to Duane Lee. I should have taken him up on his offer when I had the chance. But then I remembered...

I looked at my cell phone laying on the black marble of the bathroom counter. Duane Lee said that his offer would never expire. Voldemort expected me to leave the island with him tomorrow. This could be my last chance to escape.

I grabbed my phone and sat on the lid of the toilet. I was in so much fucking pain! I scrolled through the contacts until I found his name. Knowing that my father had gone out bar hopping, I hit send and hoped that I was making the right decision.

“Bail bonds,” He answered on the second ring.

“DL?” My voice shook as I heard the mellow voice that I hadn't realized that I had missed so much.

“Ginny? What's wrong, princess?” I could clearly hear the worry in his tone and if I wasn't in so much pain, I probably would have smiled.

“He really hurt me this time, DL,” I told him as I started to cough. “I need help,” I admitted. It was getting harder to breathe.

“Where are you, baby? Do you need a doctor?” I heard him rushing around and yelling to people in the background.

“I'm at the hotel you dropped me off at...penthouse suite...and yeah, I'm having trouble breathing...and everything is starting to spin...”

“Imogen, listen to me. I'm sending an ambulance to you. I'm at the airport in Colorado waiting on my plane back to the islands but I'll make sure someone meets you at the hospital. You hear me, princess?”

“Yeah...” I replied before everything went black.

At The Hospital

My head was pounding as I finally came to. From the beeping of a heart monitor to the overly sanitized smell, I knew that I was in the hospital before I even opened my eyes.

What the hell had happened? The last thing I remembered was talking to Duane Lee. He told me that he was sending an ambulance and then everything just went hazy.

I started coughing as I opened my eyes and was met with the sight of mint green walls and red faux-leather furniture. What did all hospitals share the same interior decorator? My throat was raw as hell. I tried to sit up a bit.

“Whoa there, sista,” A stacked, bleach blonde woman appeared at my bedside. “You just had major surgery and you've been out a few days. You can't go moving around like that.” She gently pushed me back down with an overly manicured hand.

“What happened?” I asked as in a raspy voice as she grabbed a cup of water and a straw off of the rolling side table.

“Your father broke your ribs and one of them punctured your right lung.” She brought the straw to my lips and I gratefully took a sip. It felt like I hadn't had anything to drink in years. “Your left lung couldn't handle all the pressure and ended up collapsing as well. They had to open you up to repair the damage. You were on a ventilator until day before yesterday.” Well, that explained why my throat felt so raw. “You had us worried.”

“Who's us?” I didn't want to seem rude but I had never seen this woman before in my life and I had no idea why she was sitting at my bedside nursing me like she was my mother.

The woman didn't take offense. She just chuckled. “My name's Beth Chapman. I'm Duane Lee's step-mom.”

Okay, things were starting to make a bit more sense now.

“Where is Duane Lee?” I don't know why but I felt this overwhelming need to see him. I wouldn't feel safe until I was in his presence.

“He just ran downstairs for a cup of coffee,” She went about straightening my blankets. “He should be back any second.” She assured.

Almost as soon as the words had left her mouth, the heavy wooden hospital room door opened and Duane Lee walked in carrying a cup of coffee. He was wearing bagging jeans and a tight, black, long sleeve t-shirt. He looked exhausted; like he hadn't slept in days.

“Speak of the devil,” Beth smiled at her step-son. “Look who's awake!”

A huge grin spread across Duane Lee's handsome face and his bright blue eyes lit up when he saw that I was awake.

“Hey, DL,” My voice was still very horse and I was pretty groggy but I managed to send a weak smile his way.

“I'll leave you two alone,” Beth quickly slipped from the room.

“Hey, there beautiful,” He set his cup of coffee down on the side table – forgetting about it completely – and moved to sit carefully on the bed at my side. “How are you feeling?”

“Rough,” I told him honestly. “What happened with my father?” I knew that with me in the hospital, there was no way that he had gotten away with hurting me this time.

“He was arrested and Beth had a judge friend of hers sign over temporary guardianship of you to her.” He explained.

What?! Did this mean that I had to go and live with Beth? I mean she seemed like a friendly enough person but I didn't know her from Adam.

“It's just in writing...you're going to stay with me and we're going to hire a lawyer to get you legally emancipated.” He must have sensed my panic and rushed to explain.

“I wish I had stayed with you that first night,” I cast my eyes away from his as they filled with tears.

“I wish you had too,” He admitted. “I wish you had believed me when I told you that I would take care of you. But that's in the past. You're with me now. You're safe...and that's all that matters.” He leaned forward and took me by surprise when he carefully turned my head to face his and laid a chaste kiss on my dry and cracking lips.

One Week Later

I had finally been sprung from the hospital after a week. I was more than ready to leave. While Duane Lee, his brother Leland, Beth, and at times even his father (with the very odd name) Dog were always on hand to keep me entertained, I had developed a serious case of cabin fever.

I had been so anxious to leave the hospital that I really hadn't given much thought on just where I was going. Now, as I sat in the familiar passenger seat of Duane Lee's Silverado heading towards his house I was panicking slightly. I had actually gotten away from my father. I was free...and I had no idea what to do with myself.

Duane Lee had convinced his family that I would need time to settle in at his place so we were alone as we entered his Spanish ranch style house.

I was still having some trouble walking so Duane Lee had to help me to the couch. According to the doctors, I would be off my feet for the next couple of weeks.

Duane Lee helped me get settled before he finally kicked out of his shoes and took a seat next to me. Careful of my still fresh stitches, he pulled me into his arms.

“Welcome home, princess,” He laid a kiss on my temple. I had never felt so secure in my life. That combined with the truly killer pain meds the doctor had given had me falling asleep on his shoulder in no time.

Later That Night

When I awoke, I was no longer on the couch. I was laying in a huge, comfortable wooden sleigh bed. The room was bathed in nothing but moonlight and I knew that it had to be late.

As if cued by some unseen director the door to what I could only assume was the attached bathroom opened and Duane Lee emerged wearing a pair of black basketball shorts and a white t-shirt. He had obviously just finished getting ready for bed.

The room was so dark, he didn't notice that I was awake until he joined me in bed.

“I didn't expect you to wake up until morning,” He laid on his side with his head on the same pillow that mine rested on. “The doctor said I should expect you to sleep a lot. Are you hungry? Do you need any pain pills?”

“No,” I yawned. “By the way...where am I? Is this your room?” I asked curiously.

He gently wrapped his arm around my waist. “Well, up until today it was my room. Now, I was kind of hoping that it could be our room...”

Oh. If I had given zero thought to our living arrangments, I had given even less thought to our sleeping arrangments.

“Our room?” I parroted back. “Doesn't that seem a little permanent?” I asked. Surely, he wouldn't want us to live together forever.

“Princess, you're welcome to leave whenever you want...but I really don't want you to.” He ran his hand up and down my back. “You see I have this wicked plan, Pinky...” The Hawaiian moonlight made his smirk seem downright sinister.

“And what is this wicked plan, Brain? Are we going to try and take over the world tonight?” I kidded back.

He let his hand run up my back until it stopped over my Stitch tattoo. “I'm going to prove to you that you are worth loving. I'm going to do that by loving you the way that you deserve to be loved. I'm going to surround you with so many members of the Chapman family and with so much love that you are going to have no choice but to go back to the tattoo shop and get that ohana quote added to your tattoo. I'm going to make you believe in family.” He vowed.

October 2005

It was only four months before my eighteenth birthday when I finally became emancipated. After having to rely on Duane Lee for everything, I finally had access to my own money...and boy did I have a lot of it. My father never let me know how much money I made off of my movies...now I see why he wanted to keep me under his thumb so badly. He didn't want to give up my money.

My dad had been sentenced to three years in prison for the attack that had almost killed me. I really wish they would have given him more time but in the eyes of the law he was a first time offender. At least I knew that I would never have to see him again. The trial judge had made it very clear that one of the conditions of my father getting out of prison when the time came was that he obey a permanent restraining order that had been put in place.

A month ago, I had traveled with Beth and Duane Lee's younger sister Lyssa (Duane Lee had to work) to my native North Carolina to pack up my childhood bedroom and put the South Park Charlotte area home on the market. The mansion that my father had bought in my name sold quickly.

Now, here I sat in the kitchen looking through the documents the financial advisor Beth had hired for me had put together. I knew what I wanted to do with some of my money. I wanted to buy a house. I didn't want to stop living with Duane Lee. I had come to the not so startling conclusion that I was in love with him over a month ago. He was renting the house we lived in for an astronomical amount of money a month and he had picked the place by himself. This had just been the place that he had been nice enough to share with me after my father had attacked me. I wanted a place that was our own. I wanted to pick out a place that belonged to the two of us.

“What are you up to, princess?”

I nearly had a heart attack. I hadn't heard Duane Lee come in. I wasn't expecting him until later. He and his family had been on the hunt for one of their fugitives for over a week and the guy was proving elusive.

“You're home early,” I commented as he dropped a kiss on my lips and took a seat in the chair next to me.

“Yeah, the cops got the guy before we could.” He seemed truly pissed off about this. “Dad sent us all home. Told us to take tomorrow and the rest of the weekend off. What's all that?” He nodded towards the papers scattered across the glass service of the kitchen table.

“My financial advisor sent these over. It's a breakdown of all the money that I've earned during my career.” I explained. “I was just going through them and thinking...”

“Thinking what, Gin?” He prompted when I hesitated.

“I want to buy a house.” I blurted out.

He leaned back in his chair and he almost looked like he had been deflated. “I thought you wanted to stay with me?” He sounded hurt.

Realizing that he had taken my comment the wrong way, I rushed to assure him. “I do want to stay with you. I want to buy a house together. I want something that's ours...that we can pick out together. I want permanent.” I rambled.

A slow smile spread across his face. “Really? You want permanent?”

I nodded shyly. “I know that I'm young but I also know that you are the one that I want to be with.”

“How do you know that?”

I hadn't been expecting that question. I guess he was going to make me say it.

“I know because...I love you.” I looked him in the eyes. “I couldn't love you if I didn't want to spend the rest of my life with you.” I couldn't believe that I had actually said the words but they felt so good to say.

He pushed back his chair and got to his feet. Holding out his hand to me, he pulled me to my feet and kissed me hard on the mouth.

I was panting when he pulled away and rested his forehead against mine. He had never kissed me like that before.

“I love you too, Imogen.”

Christmas Eve, 2005

The Chapman House

Denver, Colorado

“So, sista, how goes the house hunting?” Beth asked me as she sorted out the gifts under the Christmas tree. She was sorting gifts by name and placing them into red velvet bags that looked like Santa sacks.

“We found this beachfront place not that far from you and Dog. We made an offer but we haven't heard back yet.” I answered as I finished wrapping Duane Lee's presents.

“You don't sound very excited...do you not like the house?” Beth asked as she tore into what appeared to be a wrapped clothing box.

“No, I love the house...it's just...everything is so mixed up.” I vented. I cast aside the small gift box that I had just finished wrapping and ran my hand through my blonde hair in frustration.

“Care to elaborate? I can't help ya, if you don't, sista.” Beth said as she opened the white cardboard garment box and extracted a handheld video game. The sneaky woman. She hid gifts from Santa hidden under the tree in plain sight.

“DL keeps asking me to marry him...”

“The way you say that means that you keep turning him down,” Beth eyed me critically. “Do you want to marry Duane Lee or not?”

“I want to marry him but it's not that simple...” I tried to explain but Beth wasn't going to let me finish.

“Let me guess...your career is holding you back, isn't it? I know being a celebrity seems like your whole world but at the end of the day, you're an actress. That's a job. Nothing more and nothing less.”

I'm going to be honest and admit that I had never thought of it like that. I had been an actress since I was a little girl. My whole life had been wrapped up in being a celebrity until I had come to live with Duane Lee. I was only seventeen. The press was already having a field day with my father going to prison. How would they react when they discovered that I was in a relationship with a thirty-two-year-old man? Our marriage would be seen as nothing short of perverse and fans would never accept it.

“I do enjoy life more when I'm with DL and the rest of the family just...being normal,” I admitted. “I actually love it when you guys let me come and hang out at the office or let me ride around on bounties.”

Duane Lee had started taking me along to work about two months ago. The premiere of Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters wasn't until June. I wasn't needed in Scotland to film the next Harry Potter installment until August. Brandon had booked a guest starring role on this sitcom called Raising Hope and was in California indefinitely. I was going stir crazy. At first, Duane Lee's brother Leland suggested that I volunteer with the local theater. It was a thoughtful suggestion but my heart just wasn't in it. I might be a natural actress but I don't really enjoy it. It's just something that I have always done. When I'm hanging around Da Kine...I love it. I enjoy helping my scatterbrained boyfriend catch up on paperwork on the weekends. I love hanging out with Beth and Lyssa when things are slow. I even truly enjoy the rare occasions when the reality TV cameras aren't rolling and I can join the family out on bounties.

Would losing my public image and walking away from Hollywood after my Percy Jackson and Harry Potter commitments were up be so horrible?

Could I see myself as an eighteen-year-old bride? Isn't that what I already was? I mean, me and Duane Lee lived together. We had breakfast together in the mornings and went to bed together every night. We lived like we were married already. There was only one marital perk that he wouldn't grant me.

“But work isn't the only problem! I would happily walk away from Hollywood to be with DL. But why should I marry a man that shows zero interest in me sexually?” I regretted the words almost as soon as they left my mouth.

Beth's eyes went wide and she froze for a second before she regained her ability to speak. “It sounds to me like you would want to leave Hollywood even if Duane Lee wasn't in the picture.” She spoke evenly. “You should follow your heart. It also sounds to me like you want to get married but you are way too focused on what society is going to think instead of what you want. Lastly...are you nuts?!” Her voice suddenly rose. “Have you seen the way that boy looks at you?! Of course he's sexually attracted to you!”

“Then why won't he sleep with me?” I demanded to know.

“Everything okay in here?”

Beth and I both jumped as Duane Lee suddenly appeared in the room. I really hoped that he had not heard our conversation but the look on his face gave nothing away.

“Yeah,” I chuckled nervously. “We were just messing around...”

“Oh, well, I was looking for you, princess,” He smiled at me. “Do you think you're up for taking a ride with me?”

A ride? Where in the world could he possibly want to go? Three feet of snow had fallen the night before and the snowplows had just finished clearing the roads. Plus, it was Christmas Eve. Nothing was open. There was really nowhere to go. Still, it was Duane Lee asking. How could I say no to him?

“Sure,” I smiled, got to my feet and headed to the coat closet by the front door.

“That bag is for the two of you,” I heard Beth tell Duane Lee as I laced up my snow boots before pulling on my jacket, hat, and gloves.

I was surprised when Duane Lee met me in the hall carrying one of the Santa sacks over his shoulder.

“Go hop in my truck, princess,” He bent down to drop a quick kiss on my lips. “I have to grab a few things and then I'll meet you out there.”

What the hell was he up to?

In The Truck

I was more confused than a Star Trek fan at a Star Wars convention. Before we had left the house Duane Lee had loaded not only the Santa sack but also a duffel bag into the bed of the truck

We had been driving for about twenty minutes when my curiosity finally got the better of me.

“Okay, where are we going?” I demanded to know. “I've seen you in the middle of prank wars with Leland and Wesley. You have that same gleam in your eye right now. You are totally up to something.”

Duane Lee just laughed at me as he turned onto a gravel road that lay almost hidden in the dark.

There were no lights on this dirt road save for the headlights of Duane Lee's pickup truck.

“Um...babe...I'm not really up to reenacting Deliverance for Christmas...” I said nervously. This road was creepy as fuck.

After what felt like forever we finally emerged from the darkness onto a paved well-lit driveway. Duane Lee parked the truck in front of a cute two-story log cabin.

“Not Deliverance...I was thinking more Cabin in the Woods.” He joked as he killed the engine.

He got out of the truck and came around and held open my door for me.

“Seriously, DL...what is this?” I asked as he gave me a hand out of the truck. I shivered as the cold December wind hit my face.

Duane Lee pulled me into his arms and kissed me thoroughly before he answered. “This is me trying to make our first Christmas together special.”

My heart almost melted like I was the overly emotional, hyper-sexed heroine in a cheesy dime store romance novel.

“We're spending Christmas here?” I confirmed with a smile. While I loved the Chapman family with all of my heart, the thought of spending Christmas alone with Duane Lee sounded like heaven on earth to me.

“We're going to be spending a lot of time here, Gin,” He told me as he took my hand and led me up the front steps.

“What do you mean?” I asked as he took out a key and unlocked the front door.

“Well, with the way things have been going, the family will be spending a lot of time here in Denver for work. I thought we should have a place of our own here as well as in Hawaii...”

Was he saying what I think he was saying?

“This place is ours?” I asked in excitement.

He nodded and smiled at me. “I signed the papers Monday morning. The deed is in both of our names.”

I couldn't help myself...I jumped into his arms and hugged him tightly.

“I take it you're happy, princess?” He chuckled as he put his hands on my ass to keep me from falling.

“Blissfully happy,” I kissed his neck before getting down to my feet.

“Now, I do have an ulterior motive for bringing you here tonight, Pinky.” He smirked as he placed his hands on my hips.

“Oh really, Brain?” I played along. “And whatever could you be up to?”

“You see, Pinky,” He pulled my hips until our most intimate parts were pressed tightly against each other. “I want to make love to my lady for the first time...I've been waiting until we had a place that was ours. I want our first time to be in a home that we share.”

I nearly lost it right then and there. Here I was thinking he wasn't attracted to me and he had been waiting to make our first time special.

“You know, Brain, I think your lady would very much like it if you took her upstairs and did just that,” I told him in a husky whisper.

Without another word, Duane Lee picked me up in his big, strong arms and carried me upstairs.

3:00 am

Christmas Morning 2005

I awoke to Duane Lee moving around on the bed beside me and slowly opened my eyes to find him staring at me.

“What are you doing up?” I asked in a voice still rough with sleep.

“Admiring how beautiful you are when you sleep,” He ran his hand up and down my naked back under the sheet. “How did I get so damn lucky?”

I blushed and buried my face in my pillow. I was a celebrity. I was used to people telling me I was beautiful but Duane Lee was the only person that I believed when he said it. I knew that he thought I was beautiful on the inside as well as on the outside.

“How are you feeling?” He asked when I finally rolled over onto my back to face him.

“A little sore,” I admitted. “But in a very good way,” I assured him as I stretched my hands over my head.

Something on my hand caught the moonlight and sent a flash of light across the bedroom.

“What the hell?” I pulled my left hand down to examine what had done that and I nearly stopped breathing.

Duane Lee was relentless. On my hand was a truly beautiful emerald cut diamond ring.

“I'm hoping the fifth time's the charm,” He reached his arm around my waist and pulled me tightly against him. “I don't care how long we are engaged. I don't care if we keep it a secret. Just please tell me that you will marry me one day and will wear my ring, Imogen,”

This time I set aside all thoughts of my career and what society would think. I just went with what I wanted...what would make me happy.

“I'll marry you any time, any place, baby.” I laughed as tears started to flow down my cheeks.

“About time you got with the program, princess,” Duane joked as he rolled over to lay between my legs and kissed me deeply as he started to harden against my stomach.

July 8, 2011

London, England

I nervously stared at the plastic stick on the counter of my hotel room bathroom. I was two weeks late for my period and I wanted to make sure I was pregnant before I mentioned anything to Duane Lee. We had been married for five years now and we had just decided to start trying for a family a few months ago.

I was twenty-three now and as of last night (when I had walked the red carpet of the final Harry Potter film) I was a retired actress. No more traveling and location shoots for me. I would now have the extra time to devote to a family. Any time that wasn't spent working on raising a family would be spent at the Da Kine Bail Bonds offices where Beth had been training me to take over as office manager. I was finally going to have a normal (well, by my standards anyway) life filled with a job that I actually enjoyed and a man and family that I adored.

After five minutes, I picked up the stick. There were the digital words...PREGNANT.

I started squealing. I must have scared my husband because Duane Lee came hurrying into the bathroom with a look of alarm on his face.

“What's wrong, Gin?”

“I'm pregnant!” I started waving the test at him and jumping up and down.

Once what I said sunk in, a grin slowly spread across his handsome face and his blue eyes lit up in that way that I loved before he pulled me into his arms and kissed me with so much passion that I wouldn't be surprised if I was now carrying twins.

“I love you so much, Ginny Chapman,” He told me when he pulled away and started raining kisses all over my face and down my neck.

He pulled my shirt over my head and turned me around. He laid a kiss on the words that were now inked into my skin below my Stitch tattoo. He always made sure those words were the first thing he kissed before we made love.

“I love you too, Duane Lee...you're my ohana...”

FINIS

[junker-town]

Which 2017 NFL draft prospects are underrated, per college fans?

Here are the players we’d scoot up the draft board. How about you?

College fans don’t always agree with NFL people on draft prospects. We’ve watched these players on Saturdays and don’t care as much about NFL team needs, scheme translations, and anonymous scout chatter. That doesn’t necessarily make us more enlightened, but it does mean a different perspective.

Now that we all have a good idea of how the 2017 NFL draft’s early rounds are gonna go, let’s think about which players are especially popular among college fans. Who are our picks to be overlooked by NFL teams? Or, put another way, who are college fans most overrating, according to NFL mocks?

A bunch of us answered this question, but let’s hear from you in the comments as well.

These are not our top-five overall picks, just our five players we’d be quickest to move up in the rankings.

The only rule: no picking Texas A&M DE Myles Garrett, because the expected No. 1 pick cannot possibly be undervalued.

Richard Johnson

1. O.J. Howard, Alabama TE: You know how in basketball, they just run the whole offense through the most dominant physical specimen on the team? Yeah, that's what Alabama more often shoulda done with Howard. He's the X factor in every game he’s involved in, and even he was confused the Tide didn't give him the ball more often.

Whether decoy or main target in the progression, it'll be fun to see O.J. give defensive coordinators fits in the NFL. Oh, and he can block too. 2. Deshaun Watson, Clemson QB 3. Jarrad Davis, Florida LB 4. Patrick Mahomes, Texas Tech QB 5. Adoree’ Jackson, USC CB

Bill Connelly

1. Zach Cunningham, Vanderbilt LB: One play never encapsulates a player. Two might, though.

That’s Cunningham, former star recruit, hurdling his 234 pounds over a mass of humanity and almost stealing the football before a kicker can even kick it.

That’s Cunningham, thought to be a bit too lanky for the SEC’s power schools, catching Isaiah McKenzie — a potential draft pick with a full head of steam — from behind and pulling him backward to seal an upset over Georgia.

Cunningham had 41 tackles for loss as a high school senior. He had 33 in his last two years as Vandy’s best defensive weapon. He is so much fun to watch. He combines elegant athleticism with a nasty streak. He was James Franklin’s parting gift to Derek Mason in Nashville, and he dragged an offense-free Vandy to a bowl in 2016.

Maybe he’s too small to be a true star in the NFL, but he’s a freak with an IQ higher than yours. I’ll take those guys any time. 2. Chad Kelly, Ole Miss QB 3. Patrick Mahomes, Texas Tech QB 4. Justin Thomas, Georgia Tech QB/RB 5. Josh Augusta, Missouri DT

Luke Zimmermann

1. Deshaun Watson, Clemson QB: Quarterback wins may be a worthless stat. And "winners win" is the kind of logic used to justify bad decisions by teams across pro sports. And yet, Watson is a dang winner.

At every level, from seven-on-seven to back-to-back College Football Playoffs, Watson is the kind of quarterback you can go into battle with and feel comfortable about coming away victorious. For all the questions marks — decision making, system fit, ability to read defenses — no one wants it more than No. 4. And with a rare mix of athleticism, arm strength, and football acumen, you're going to get the results you're seeking. 2. O.J. Howard, Alabama TE 3. Forrest Lamp, Western Kentucky OT 4. D’Onta Foreman, Texas RB 5. Curtis Samuel, Ohio State RB/WR

Dan Rubenstein

1. Dalvin Cook, Florida State RB 2. Budda Baker, Washington S: 2017 is an impressively deep year for defensive backs, but don’t let that hide how great Baker will be.

I say this as an Oregon fan who’s still bummed Baker decommitted from the Ducks to sign with then-new Washington coach Chris Petersen: Baker is impossibly fun to watch, if you enjoy safeties playing one step ahead and giving offenses fits.

Draftniks will pick him apart as being undersized and strictly a center-field type, but watch him effortlessly step in front of deep receivers to nab deep balls and then roll up to set a quick boundary to end a wide run before it ever starts, and you'll fall in football love. Don't let him be the one that got away. 3. Jabrill Peppers, Michigan football player 4. Dorian Johnson, Pitt OL 5. D’Onta Foreman, Texas RB

Bud Elliott

1. Mike Williams, Clemson WR: If I told you you could have prime-career Plaxico Burress with a middle pick in the first round, you'd take that, right? Because I'm pretty sure that's who Williams is. He is a big guy who understands what his game is, and importantly, what it is not. He played in an ACC with many top defensive backs and also faced Alabama and Ohio State. He's someone my quarterback can depend on to make contested catches. 2. Adoree’ Jackson, USC CB 3. Ethan Pocic, LSU OL 4. Joe Mixon, Oklahoma RB 5. Eddie Vanderdoes, UCLA DT

How a broken neck made Mike Williams even better

Matt Brown

1. Zay Jones, East Carolina WR: Without big-time playmakers to take defensive attention off him, Jones still caught more passes than anybody else in FBS (158), finishing second nationally in receiving yards (1,746). In fact, no player in FBS history has caught more passes than Jones, EVER. Don't you want a wide receiver who is really good at catching the ball lots of times? 2. Hunter Dimick, Utah DE 3. Christian McCaffrey, Stanford RB 4. Donnel Pumphrey, San Diego State RB 5. Taco Charlton, Michigan DE

Morgan Moriarty

1. Leonard Fournette, LSU RB: I’ll just leave this here:

ESPN

Don’t believe me? How ‘bout now:

Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

2. Deshaun Watson, Clemson QB 3. Dalvin Cook, Florida State RB 4. Jonathan Allen, Alabama DT 5. Malik Hooker, Ohio State S

Alex Kirshner

1. Deshaun Watson, Clemson QB 2. Cooper Kupp, Eastern Washington WR, is the most prolific receiver in Division I history, and that's how he catches your eye. But he keeps your eye because of all the things he's done well and all the good teams he's done them against. Kupp played in the FCS, but torched Pac-12 opponents for 716 yards and 11 touchdowns in four games. He ran option routes that are now commonplace in the NFL, and he's done nothing but get buckets for four years. 3. Zay Jones, East Carolina WR 4. Patrick Mahomes, Texas Tech QB 5. Leonard Fournette, LSU RB

Wescott Eberts

1. D’Onta Foreman, Texas RB: Might I interest you in a 235-pound running back with 4.45 speed? That’s Foreman, who is fresh off a 2,000-yard season and posting this Physical Size and Athleticism Rating:

Even with a hand time adjustment on his 40, D'Onta Foreman's PSAR rating is the highest of any RB in the 2017 class: 7.76 out of 9.00

— Kyle Crabbs (@NDTScouting) March 28, 2017

A two-star prospect by Rivals out of high school, Foreman has already made a career out of proving his doubters wrong, so here’s your chance to look smart when the big back has a huge rookie season. 2. Patrick Mahomes, Texas Tech QB 3. Tyus Bowser, Houston LB 4. T.J. Watt, Wisconsin LB 5. Malik McDowell, Michigan State DL

Jason Kirk

1. Deshaun Watson, Clemson QB 2. Dalvin Cook, Florida State RB: Cook should’ve twice been a Heisman finalist, ranking ahead of 2015 winner Derrick Henry in total yards per game and No. 3 in 2016, against a tougher schedule than those faced by No. 1 Foreman or No. 2 McCaffrey.

His explosiveness numbers top McCaffrey’s over the last two years (nearly doubling the potential Stanford first-rounder’s highlight yards per opportunity, or yards added to five-yard gains, in 2015), and Cook was a more efficient receiver, based on yards per target.

But Cook had an underwhelming combine, you say?

According to Sports Science, John Ross and Dalvin Cook had the same 20-yard split in pads: 2.67.

— Marcus Mosher (@Marcus_Mosher) April 15, 2017

According to Sports Science, Cook has the second fastest top speed of any RB they've tested in the past five years.

— Marcus Mosher (@Marcus_Mosher) April 15, 2017

3. Cam Robinson, Alabama OT 4. DeMarcus Walker, Florida State DE 5. Ben Boulware, Clemson LB

Overall

Slap those together, and you get:

1. Deshaun Watson, Clemson QB: If he’s not the No. 1 QB, a lot of college fans are gonna be mystified. 2. Dalvin Cook, Florida State RB 3. Patrick Mahomes, Texas Tech QB 4. O.J. Howard, Alabama TE 5. D’Onta Foreman, Texas RB, and Zay Jones, East Carolina WR

Lotta skill players there, but overall, we had 11 votes for linemen and eight for back-seven defenders in these small groups.

Your turn. Who’s your personal draft crush this year, based on college production?