#with me in need of a good hug this came to mind

[cherryblossomcowgirl]

The Bodyguard

Bodyguard!Jake Seresin x reader; Glen Powell x reader

WC: 2.3k

TW: age gap; angst; weapons; possessiveness; mentions of death

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I cross my arms and huff, “This is so not fair, Dad.” He sighs, “Sweetheart, you knew this was coming. You had a security detail during my last term.” “I was in school then! I’m an adult now, Dad. I don’t need an armed babysitter.” “This is not a negotiation.” His tone is stern, the same one he uses during press conferences, and I immediately back down. The door to the oval office opens and one of his staffers pops their head in, “Mr. President, he’s here. Are you ready for him?” Dad nods and in walks the most gorgeous man I have ever laid my eyes on. Late 30s, tall, chiseled, tan, blonde hair, stubble, and a killer smile. My Father rises from behind the desk to shake his hand, “Hello, Mr. Seresin.” The man smiles, “Good morning, Mr. President.” Dad gestures to me, “This is my daughter, Y/n.” The blonde man turns to me, “Hello, Y/n.” I nod in his direction and my Father clears his throat, “As you can tell, she is not thrilled about this situation. I will warn you, this one gave her last detail quite the hard time. I would like to thank you and apologize to you at the same time.” Dad chuckles and the man nods, “Do not worry sir, she will be safe with me.” Dad sits back down and smiles, “I heard you are the best of the best. Let me know if you need anything.” The man nods and I walk over to kiss my Father on the head, “See you soon, Dad.” He grabs my hand for a second, “Don’t forget to call. I love you.” “You too.” I walk out of the office with my new shadow.

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The sound of the engine humming fills the awkward silence as we drive back to NYC. My mind wanders as I stare at his hands on the wheel, they look so strong and rough. I gaze up his arms, vascular and practically bulging out of his shirt. He clears his throat, “So Ms. Y/l/n, would you like to tell me your daily schedule?” “Sure, Mr. Seresin. I wake up at 6:00 for my workout, then I walk home and shower. Right now I am in the writing stage, so I will set up my laptop at home or a coffee shop and write. Dinner with friends when I feel like it, but usually I just cook at home. Then I’ll watch something on tv and go to bed around 10. Also, you can call me Y/n.” He nods and continues to stare straight ahead at the road. After a few minutes I break the silence, “What’s your first name?” His green eyes pierce mine, “Jake. But Ms. Y/l/n, let me be clear about something. I am your bodyguard. You are my client. We are not friends.” I nod, turning to look out the window. This is going to be a long four years.

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*1 month later*

“You can’t be serious!” Jake calmly sets down his coffee, “You can book private sessions, but no more group Pilates.” “Why not?” He doesn’t even look up from the newspaper, “Because I don’t know who will be in the class, therefore I do not have time to properly vet them.” I throw my bag over my shoulder and head to the door. He follows, “Where do you think you are going?” “Pilates. You work for me, remember?” “It’s not a good idea.” I roll my eyes, “What’s not a good idea?” His green eyes darken as he leans in, “Disobeying my orders.” A weird warmth starts spreading in my stomach. “Watch me.” I start walking out of my brownstone and he follows, begrudgingly. As soon as I get to class I see my friend, Glen. He walks right up and hugs me, “Hey, darling! I’ve missed you!” I smile, “You’re finally back! Pilates hasn’t been the same without you.” We put our things away, chatting about the movie he just came back from filming in Australia. As we walk into the room, Glen places his hand on my lower back and for a split second I swear Jake’s jaw twitches. His green eyes sear into Glen throughout the whole class. Afterwards, we say our goodbyes and I follow Jake towards my home. After a minute of walking in silence, Jake furrows his brow, “Who was that?” I chuckle, knowing immediately who he is talking about. “That’s Glen. He’s a… friend.” Jake’s next words come out low, “Yeah he seemed a little too friendly.” “Oh be quiet. He doesn’t see me like that. I mean look at him and then look at me.” The muscle in his jaw twitches again.

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*The following week*

Writing had completely taken over my days. The last time I left the house was when I saw Glen at Pilates. I’m writing by my window and Jake is in the living room when my phone rings. “Hey! …. Oh that would be great! …. Okay, see you then.” I set down my phone and get back to writing. Jake walks over, “Who will you be seeing?” Without looking up I answer, “Glen. He would like to go to dinner.” His whole body tenses, “When and where?” “Tonight and I don’t know. He’s going to pick me up.” “No.” I turn to meet his green eyes that are burning with something I can’t identify, “What did you say?” He crosses his muscular arms, “I said no. He’s not picking you up and you aren’t going to a restaurant that I can’t check ahead of time.” I stand up, our faces inches away from each other, “I am going whether you like it or not. You can drive and sit a table away, or you can take the night off.” His cologne is distracting me. His voice lowers, “What did I tell you about disobeying me?” I start walking away, swaying my hips more than usual, “I’m going to shower. Be ready in an hour.”

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After checking myself a hundred times in the mirror, I decide I am ready. The only thing I can’t decide is if I am getting dolled up for Glen or Jake. Something about those damn green eyes. I decided on a mini skirt, baggy sweater, tights, and my favorite pair of boots. Jake is by the bottom of the stairs and I feel the heat of his eyes on me. There’s a knock at the door and I run over. Glen is smiling, “You look beautiful.” He wraps me in his arms, “Thank you! Mr. Seresin is going to drive. He’s more paranoid than my last detail.” Jake’s body looks stiff as a board as Glen smiles over at him, “No worries. You ready to go?” With his hand on my lower back he guides me to the black SUV, opening the door and all. We have been good friends for a while, and I would be lying if I said I never thought about him romantically. He is so kind, smart, funny, and attractive. I was shocked when he asked me to dinner, because he usually is seen out with actresses and models. We pull up to my favorite restaurant and Glen smiles. I follow him in, trying to forget about the shadow following us. It’s hard to ignore him when he is staring daggers at Glen the entire night.

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Dinner is wonderful and afterwards Glen walks me to my front door. Jake is standing at the bottom of the steps, still staring daggers. “Thank you for dinner. I had a great time.” Glen smiles, “You’re welcome darling. Maybe one of these days we could grab coffee after Pilates?” “I’d love that.” Glen’s eyes glance down to my lips, but he leans in for a hug. He kisses my cheek and I wave as he walks to his car. Jake follows me inside and I throw my hands in the air, “You have GOT to be KIDDING me! He’s not going to kiss me while you’re staring at him like you want to kill him!” Jake shrugs, “A real man wouldn’t have cared.” “You’re impossible!” He walks closer to me and his voice is gravely, “My job is to keep you safe. I don’t care if that upsets you or the little pretty boys you want to date.” I lean in, “Seemed like you were the one that was upset, Mr. Seresin.” I turn around, starting to walk away. His calloused hand grabs my wrist and spins me back around. His voice is barely above a whisper, “You are playing a dangerous game here, Ms. Y/l/n.” My heart feels like it is beating out of my chest. Heat rises to my cheeks and I pray he doesn’t notice. I lean in, smirking, “Good thing that’s my favorite kind.” Twisting my wrist out of his hand, I head up to bed.

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*3 months later*

“Wanna grab a coffee? I’ll walk you home.” I smile while I pack my Pilates bag, “Yeah, that’d be great.” Glen grabs my bag and throws it over his shoulder as I follow him to the cafe. “So, how was England?” He sighs, “Cold, rainy, gray… no you. But I think the movie will be great.” I nudge his arm, “I’m sure it will be. They always are.” He blushes and grabs our coffees. We start the walk back to my house and I almost forget Jake is there. Almost. A couple of stray paparazzi see Glen and run over. Before we have time to react, Jake pulls us into an alley. His entire body is covering mine and his hand is hovering over his gun. Heat is radiating from his body. His sculpted body is pressing into mine with every breath. After I get my breathing under control, I place my hand on his chest, “It was just the paparazzi. I’m sure they’re gone by now.” I feel his heartbeat, strong and steady. He back away, allowing us to continue walking home. Glen smiles at me, “Seems like he’s really good at his job.” I sigh, “Yeah, it makes up for how aggravating he is.” We chuckle and stop at my front door. Glen kisses my cheek, “Have a good writing day, darling.” I smile, “Thank you. Let me know if you need me to edit that script.” His thumb brushes my cheek, “Will do.” I wave as he walks back to his house up the street. As I walk inside I grab my computer to get set up, and Jake is chuckling to himself. “What’s so funny, Mr. Seresin?” Jake smirks, “Maybe he just isn’t good at aiming?” “Can you do me a favor and just stay out of my love life?” His smirk spreads, “There doesn’t seem to be one to stay out of.” I stand up, poking his chest hard, “Thanks. to. you. I’m not getting any younger over here!” He scoffs, “Calm down. What are you, 24?” “25 next month. How old are you? 40?” He puts his hand on his chest, “Ouch. I’m 38.” I shrug, “Close enough. Can we make a deal?” He raises his eyebrow, “I’m listening…” “You let me have Glen over, unaccompanied. You can have the whole night off.” His jaw twitches, “Not a chance.” I inch closer to him, “I have needs.” His green eyes darken, “Not my problem.” I storm up to my room, slamming the door. Jake is going to be the death of me.

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*2 weeks later*

It’s Saturday, so I decide to sleep in. I finally head downstairs for coffee, but I decide to stay in my pajamas. I am frustrated and bored and decide it will at least be funny to mess with Jake. Oh and my pajamas? It’s a silky pink slip with lace around the edges. Jake is at the breakfast table, going through some files. “G’morning Mr. Seresin.” Without looking up he responds, “Morning Ms. Y/l/n.” I start to make my latte, making lots of noise on purpose. I feel his gaze on me so I reach up for my mug, exposing more of my thighs. He coughs, taking a sip of his coffee. Once I have my latte, I sit across from him. My phone rings, “Hey Dad! … Oh, really? … No, I understand. … Some other time, okay? … Yeah, Glen is great. He’s doing a press tour right now. … I miss you too. …. Love you, bye.” I blink the tears away from my eyes and sip my coffee. Jake furrows his brow, “What’s wrong?” “It’s nothing. It’s stupid, really. Dad can’t spend my birthday with me this year, he has some important meeting that came up.” His jaw twitches, “Is Glen going to spend your birthday with you?” I shake my head, “He’ll still be on his press tour.” Still reading, Jake asks, “What do you usually do with your Father?” I look down at my latte, tears threatening to spill over, “It’s always the one day I get him to myself. No cellphone. No assistants. We’ll play chess, catch up on life, and he always cooks us dinner. Then we watch our favorite movie, The Sound of Music.” I swear a real smile flashes across Jake’s face, gone as soon as it appears. He clears his throat, “That sounds nice. It must be hard sharing him with the world like that.” A tear falls down and I wipe it quickly, hoping Jake didn’t see. In a moment of vulnerability, I decide to tell him something I haven’t spoken aloud before. “My friends say they don’t understand why I am unsure about Glen. It’s not that he isn’t nice or good looking, I just know I’d have to share him with the world. I already have to be second for my Father… I just want to be first for someone.” Sadness crosses Jake’s eyes. He blinks it away, “You will be to someone.”

[danikamariewrites]

Hey! Would you be willing to write a fic or head cannon on how Ruhn would react to being mated to someone who is the complete opposite of him? Like maybe she is introverted and enjoys reading on the weekends instead of partying or something? If not that's okay! Hope you have a great day!

Opposites Attract

Ruhn x reader

Notes: I am 100% the opposite of Ruhn and will always be the friend that picks staying home over going out. Books over bars am i right guys

Warnings: none

The two of you met by chance. You hadn’t been paying attention while walking to work and bumped into Ruhn

He caught you when you tripped over your feet and then you apologized a million times. The moment your eyes locked the bond was instant. “I thought it was a myth.” Ruhn whispered. From there you took things slow even though the two of you fell hard for each other

You liked hanging out at your place better than Ruhn’s

It’s not that you didn’t like the frat house, you were just more comfortable in your own space

You liked staying home anyway. Everything you need is there

Ruhn didn’t mind staying at your place. He would cook you dinner, cuddle and watch movies without interruption

As your relationship progressed Ruhn was happy he could feel your comfort and happiness down the bond

It wasn’t like people didn’t know about you. You hadn’t been on double dates with Hunt and Bryce. Been to dinner with his friends and all that

But there was a part of Ruhn that felt like he was disappointing you

“Are you sure you don’t want to go out tonight?” Ruhn asked while you cuddled on your couch. “Yeah,” your eyes never leaving the TV. “If you want to go out please, don’t let me stop you.” Tilting your head back you smile at your mate

Ruhn turned off the TV, sitting up to face you. “Y/n be honest with me. Do you not like being with me?” The sadness in his voice broke your heart. Cupping his cheeks you shake your head. “Not at all baby, no. Ruhn how could you think that?” Ruhn lets out a shaky breath. “You never want to go out. And we never go to my place, why?” You hug him tight. “It has never been because of you. I just get anxious in new spaces and I don’t like partying. I’d much rather be here with you.”

After that conversation Ruhn became more understanding with you liking your space

Ruhn is a tad bit clingy but you love it

He’s always torn between going out and staying with you. How could he possible leave his beautiful mate at home?!

While he goes out you like your alone time. You chat with your friends, read, or watch TV

The first time Ruhn came home from a boys night he stumbled into your house very, very drunk

It was kinda cute because he was so happy to see you

“My love! My mate, the light of my life, I missed you!” He flops on the bed next to you, staring at you with big eyes. “My friends aren’t as fun as you,” he whispered, making you giggle. Ruhn pulls you to his chest letting out a hum. “I feel much better now. My heart hurt without you.”

You started going more places with Ruhn, trying to get comfortable with the attention that came with being the crown prince’s mate

When you didn’t like a place Ruhn was very understanding about it

You weren’t a huge fan of bars or anything like that. It’s not that you didn’t see the appeal, it just isn’t for you

You eventually grew to being comfortable at Ruhn’s place, even staying the night

Staying for parties at the frat house was also something you grew to be comfortable with. Especially when Ruhn made it clear that his bedroom was your room too

He absolutely did not give 2 shits about how clean his room was until he met you

The first time you came over to spend the night at his place Ruhn was running around like a mad man to make it look like grown-ups lived here

Ruhn was def shoving all loose items in his closet (the only neat thing being his made bed) until Dec came to check on him

“Heyyy buddy, you good?” “NO! PLEASE help me, i have too much shit.”

Whenever you’re feeling tired or just done with the party you always sneak away to Ruhn’s room

He’s never far behind you

You get about 10 min of alone time before Ruhn comes in ready to cuddle

When he comes up drunk he’s adorable

“Bbaayyyybbyyyyyy, i missed you.” He flops on the bed, pulling his clothes off and snuggles into you before falling asleep

You def read while holding him

Drunk Ruhn can fall asleep with the lights on for sure

When he comes up not drunk he just dotes on you

If the music and crowd were too much he’s very gentle with you, rubbing your back and pressing kisses to your forehead while whispering sweet nothings

[lavylesby]

Family Reunion

hey guys! ^^ I officially have an AO3 account! :D so here's my first story (I'll be posting it here and on AO3):

Family Reunion

Author's Notes: There are two users on Tumblr, @akiiame and @coffeecat1983, who came up with the idea that Sonic is Mario and Luigi's pet. @akiiame made an adorable drawing, and @coffeecat1983 took it and ran with it as a fanfic. I would like to expand on this, as this is my first ever story on AO3, and I think it's an absolutely wonderful concept. Thank you reading my first story, and please don't hesitate to give me constructive criticism! Now then, onward and upward! ^^

"Hrrmgph." "Soonik." "Why does he keep making that sound?" Luigi laughed. He joyfully tossed the little hedgehog another treat, and continued chuckling at his hungry enthusiasm. Sonic. That's a perfect name, Mario thought. But where the heck did he even come from? And why is he blue? "Hey, Lu?" Luigi's ears perked up at his brother's tone. There was a slight hint of concern. "What's wrong, Mar?" he asked. "You don't think we could get in trouble, do you?" Mario replied. Luigi turned in his chair, being mindful of his cast. "Trouble for what? Clearly nobody was caring for 'im. You didn't know he'd show up at work." He got up and hugged his older sibling, who sighed. "We ain't do nothing wrong, bro," Luigi assured him. "If you want, we can take Sonic to the vet tomorrow and get 'im checked out." Mario gently squeezed his little brother. "OK. I guess it'll be alright." He turned to see the bright blue ball, eagerly snorting for more treats. "You gonna be spoiled, boy," Mario giggled. He scooped Sonic into his hands and hand-fed him one last treat. The little hedgehog must've realized this would be the end of his snacks, and he squealed in protest. "MMRRPGH!!" "SOOOOONIK!!" Luigi collapsed into laughter. "No more treats!" Mario chided him lovingly. "It's time for you to rest, buddy."

A few hours and a few helpings of Ma's lasagna later, Mario finished building and decorating Sonic's new home. Luigi chipped in where he could, even giving the rodent one of his favorite stuffed toys. Now, Sonic was fast asleep in his brand new, ultra fluffy bed, with all but his inquisitive snout being covered by a delicate blanket. Luigi was fascinated by the creature. He quietly hummed an Italian lullaby to help him sleep. Mario joined him later, and when the song ended, the bros embraced, and the older kissed the younger's cheeks. "How's your leg?" Mario asked gently. "It's just a dull pain right now," Luigi said. "I've got my meds, so I think I'll get a good night's sleep for once." Unfortunately, the pain from his injury had given him a nearly sleepless week. Luckily, he was stuck at home most days, so he could take naps when he had the chance. Luigi gingerly stood up and kissed his brother's forehead. "I'll be fine, fratellone," he murmured. "C'mon, let's go to bed." Mario took one last peek at his new pal. "G'night, Sonic," he whispered. As if responding, the spiky rodent let out a gentle, hushed grumble. The bros smiled at each other, happy to be hedgehog parents.

Sound asleep, Luigi snored peacefully. Despite being unconscious, he knew he was warm, comfortable, and safe, and his brother was at his side. Or was he? Luigi's brain prompted him to wake up. He realized that Mario was standing over him, having recently kissed his nose. "Mar?" he asked groggily. "Why are you up at 4 AM…?" "Spike called," he whispered. "I gotta come in, he said there's something I need to see." "Can't it wait until morning?" Luigi complained. "I dunno, he sounded pretty worried," Mario replied. "Y'know he never gets worried about anything." He grabbed his toolbox and ruffled Luigi's hair. "I made you some breakfast, you can heat it up when you're ready. Marty will come by to look at Sonic later," he said, Marty being the vet. Luigi mmphed a response. Mario shut the bedroom door behind him, and Luigi prepared to go back to the murkiness of sleep… …until Mario shouted. Quick, thudding footsteps made their way back to the bedroom. The door swung open. "Where's Sonic?!" Mario demanded. "Huh?? What do you mean?" Luigi said, still slightly confused. Perhaps he was dreaming. "He should still be in his cage…right?" "He's gone!" "Gone?? How?!" "The latch is wide open, and there's a hole in the front door!" Luigi was wide awake now. He ignored his leg pain and hurriedly began to dress. "I'm coming with you." "Lu, you need to stay!" "If Spike is worried, and you found Sonic at work, there's a good chance he went there and we'll find out what's going on. I have my crutches." Mario sighed. Despite his timid tendencies, he knew that once Luigi set his mind on something, there was no convincing him otherwise. "Well, c'mon then." The bros locked arms to aid Luigi, leaving their damaged door to be resolved later.

"Oh, thank God you're here!" Spike ran from the construction site to greet the bros. "Hey Luigi, whatta you doin' here? Thought you was patching up?" "I am," he said. "But Sonic is missing." "Eh, Sonic?" Spike paused for a moment. "Oh, the blue rat thing! Well, he ain't missing no more." Spike stepped aside, and to the bros' surprise, Sonic was standing right behind him. The so-called "blue rat thing" ran up to Mario and nuzzled his leg. "Boy, what is you doin'???" Mario exclaimed. "The sun ain't even out yet!" But before he could grab his strange companion, Sonic dashed off again, and motioned to the wrecking crew to follow him. "I couldn't sleep, so I came here to assess what our next step would be," Spike said. "All of a sudden the rat comes along and just would not stop squeaking! And he's so fast!" "Well, that would explain the door," Luigi chuckled. "But he would have to be REALLY fast to break it." "Yeah…" Mario agreed absentmindedly. His concern grew with every step he took to follow Sonic. Eventually, the group stopped at what appeared to be a nest. Sonic slowed down, and turned to face his humans. But before they could ask questions, Sonic turned back around and began uttering a low call. "ruuuuuuIMPH." "ruuuuuuuuuu…ruuuuuuuuIMPH." Mario, Luigi, and Spike shared hasty glances. They had no idea what was happening. "Tooooils…" "NuuuuuuuKLS…" "Soooodooow…" "Mimimimi…" The rodent continued repeating these calls, and to everyone's shock, several small creatures emerged from the makeshift nest. Mario was stunned. "Are-are…are those more hedgehogs???" Luigi gasped. "Look, one of 'em's got 2 tails!" Spike shouted. Sonic ran over to what could only be his family, his quills quivering joyfully. The creatures exchanged grunts, nuzzles, and rubs. Sonic turned once more, and you could almost make out a smile on his face in the early morning light. Mario managed to snap back to reality, and his heart filled with warmth. He knelt down to pet his blue baby. "Is this your family, buddy?" he asked. Sonic squeaked in response, and Mario caressed his ears. "Well, they can come with us." "They can??" Luigi gasped once more. Mario grabbed the two-tailed creature, who grunted gratefully. "Yeah…we can share them with Peach and the others, and they can meet each other sometimes." Spike was absolutely speechless. He just stared off as the bros scooped the petite animals and left. He heard a small bit of their fading conversation. "…Is Marty open now…?" "Yeah I guess we can…" "…Tails? That's awes…!" "I'm pretty sure he…"

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Thanks for reading! ^^ Can't wait to get started on AO3. Once again @akiiame @coffeecat1983 thanks for the idea! :D

[fandom-lover2]

Sacrifices - Pt 4

Word Count - 1615

Part 3

We stood gathered under Ratchet’s shade as Ultra Magnus’ ship came in for a landing.

Fowler had already sent the co-ordinates of where the ship could land once the Autobots had salvaged all they could from the grounded ship.

The wait felt like eternities within those minutes that the ship powered down and the dust settled. Then, the ramp began lowering and the Autobots came into view.

I scanned them, and my heart clenched at the lack of a certain red and blue mech. Then came the roar of engines, and from the same direction as the ship, a figure was making its decent towards us.

It roared like jet engines, and had the same blue afterburner effect as the figure dropped the last hundred feet to the ground with a thud.

My chest felt like it was going to explode as my legs began moving before my mind told them to.

He’d landed about the same distance away as the ship, but a little ways away from it.

When I began sprinting, he began moving towards me as well, strides faster than normal as we rushed towards one another. Once close enough, he dropped to his knees and scooped me up and brought me to cradle me against his chassis.

I stretched my arms wide, trying to give him a hug as best I could.

“I missed you so much.” I tried to say, but I’d started crying somewhere during all this so it came out all broken and weak. “I knew you weren’t dead, and I tried to get the others to believe me.”

“Shh,” he reassured, bringing me up further to be eye-level with me. “I am here now, Little Star.” He moved his helm forward, resting his forehead against my own. “I am here.”

I sighed into the feeling, relaxing into the cool metal of him.

He was here, his feel, his aura, his everything.

Optimus was back, alive, looking a whole lot cooler and holding me again.

He pulled away gently after a while, moving me back as well so he could look at me. Only, he didn’t look at me, he looked down at the ground.

“Y/n, I-”

“It’s ok.” I interrupted, reaching out a hand that didn’t reach anywhere near him.

He looked up at me, brows scrunched in worry despite the shock in his eyes.

“It’s ok.” I said again, smiling.

“You mean so much to me.” he finally spoke, reaching out with a single digit from the servo that wasn’t holding me to gently wipe the tears from my cheeks.

I caught his digit in a hug. “I know Optimus.” I reassured, looking into his optics.

He smiled, then pulled me to his chassis once again and just held me close, wrapping me in both his servos and cradling me.

I leaned into him again, and was content to listen to the steady thrums of his spark.

I don’t know how long we stayed there, it felt like minutes but also felt as though it was hours of just being with one another, healing the weeks of pain we’d been through.

Eventually though, we needed to return to the real world.

Optimus gently moved me away from him, standing slowly as I looked up at him.

“You’ve changed.”

He smiled down at me as he began walking, going to join the others who were busy carting stuff from the downed ship to the military hanger.

Ultra Magnus eyed us as though we were the oddest things in the universe he’d ever seen.

I couldn’t help but laugh internally.

Ratchet spotted us and hurried over, smiling widely. “Welcome back, Optimus.”

“Good to see you, old friend.” he replied, placing a hand on his medic’s shoulder strut.

Everyone had reconnected with the Prime while still at Darkmount, then Optimus had remained behind to ensure all the Decepticons had cleared out while the rest took Ultra Magnus’ ship back to Ratchet and us.

Fowler had arranged for us to be picked up via chopper, while Ratchet and the bots transferred everything still usable from the grounded ship onto Magnus’ one, before heading to the military base closest to Jasper.

Hanger E was now our new home.

Ratchet’s optics jumped around, taking in all the changes to his oldest friend, before looking down at me. “Told ya so.”

He nodded, a flash of guilt covering his face plates for just a moment before he met my eyes again. “You’d think I’d have learned to not question you by now.”

I shrugged, looking up to Optimus. “He’s just too cool to die.”

“Dude! Stop hogging him!”

We all looked down at Miko’s grumbling.

I’d never realized how small us children really were, until Jack, Miko and Raf hurried over to Optimus. Now I understood why the bots always looked so uneasy as they walked near us, almost as if they were tiptoeing on eggshells.

They were tiny, like little ants. But certainly not as silent. They all spoke at once, cheering for my guardian’s return and beginning to fill him in on all that had happened in his absence.

Optimus knelt, smiling down at my peers as he lower edme, offering his servos for us all to be seated in his hold. “It is wonderful to see you all again, little ones.” he greeted them.

“They have been insufferable in your absence.” Ratchet snarked.

I glared over at the medic, but then started laughing. I could his servos actually shaking at the effort it was taking to not start scanning and prodding every inch of Optimus.

I opened my mouth, ready to call him out on it, when Fowler’s voice hailed us from within the hanger. “Bring it in y’all.”

We looked into the hanger, where he stood on one of the catwalks.

The bots began to file in, Optimus keeping us secure as he walked slowly, joining the semi-circle the bots had formed around the agent.

June stood beside the agent.

“On behalf of the President, and the Joint Chiefs, I thank you all for your selfless heroism in defense of this planet. I’m only sorry the world can’t yet know of your undying dedication, because I for one owe you my life, my liberty and my future.”

Then, he straightened out and saluted the group.

I looked up at Optimus, seeing if he would return the gesture. But all he did was nod in reply.

Hard to use one hand while holding four little humans.

“Sir,” Ultra Magnus called out, and Optimus turned slightly to face his lieutenant. “I am honoured to relinquish the command of the Autobots to you.”

“Welcome to Earth, Ultra Magnus.” Optimus officially greeted, and when he saw the lieutenant’s optics drop to us, he added, “And, to team Prime.”

“There is a lot for me to learn of this world.” Ultra Magnus admitted, eyeing us uneasily.

“Ok,” Miko broke the seriousness. “Someone had got to say it, Optimus 2.0 is rad.” she held up her hands in a ‘rock and roll’ gesture before turning. “Imagine what the Forge could do to your body.” She aimed at Ratchet.

My mouth dropped open. “Miko!”

Raf facepalmed while Jack began to chastise her.

Why of all the bots did she have to target Ratchet like that? He hadn’t even done or said anything.

The medic scoffed, having long since learned it wasn’t worth the fight of further conversation.

But then her words sunk in and we all turned, Ratchet and Smokescreen parting to reveal the Forge of Solus resting against the hanger wall.

“Is it true? That the Forge has been drained of it’s power?” The lack of an answer was all the answer we all needed.

I watched, ready to jump to Smokescreen’s defense as Ratchet approached him.

“And any hope of restoring the Omega Lock with it.” The medic added, keeping his gaze on the former guard.

“I… did what I thought was right.”

If Ratchet was about to fight him on choosing Optimus’ life over Cybertron, I would throw a can at the old afthole.

“And your instincts have again proven to be quite sound.”

Well, that was as good a compliment you’d get from him.

Smokescreen turned to Ratchet in surprise, but all the medic did was nod at the younger bot with a small smile.

Someone spoke, I’m not sure who, and the gathered group began to have small discussions amongst themselves. But I didn’t hear any of it.

Bulkhead approached, taking Miko from Optimus. Bee followed after, opting to remain beside Optimus as he spoke with Raf. Jack looked over to the catwalks as his mother and Arcee began to talk.

I looked around the group. It was a miracle any one of us was alive.

Yes, all hopes of restoring their planet was well and truly gone. Cybertron was once again forever lost. But they were not.

 The bots, my friends, my family, were still alive. Still here to fight another day. Still on this planet and ready to face whatever came their way.

I looked up at Optimus, and found him watching the group, his team, his family, with a content smile on his faceplates.

Megatron was still out there, with old and new powerful allies. But we too had grown and improved.

The war was not over, not yet, but he could feel it as well as I could. Something had shifted. The end was nearer than ever before. In who’s favor, and what would be left to rule, no one would know until the dust settled.

But for now, we were all back together. And Primus help Megatron if he tried to go up against Optimus now.

Tags: @nyan-toaster @ameryhn

Commission Information

[littleadaline]

Grief Has No Shape [P.G8]

Warnings: talk of death, heavy feelings, grief

Word Count: 1.8k

A/N: Sorry for being MIA, I have been focusing on university. I wrote this piece as a way to channel the grief I often carry around when it comes to my grandfather. Although he passed away when I was 11, I often feel down when I see people who have grown up with their grandparents near them. It makes me wonder how his and I’s relationship could have evolved, the bond we could have developed had we had more time, had cancer not happened. To all of those who are grieving, or have been grieving, I send you all my love xx

——————————————

Grief was weird. It knew no bound, no shape, and it didn’t have an expiration date. You have grieved your native city, relationships and friendships, life experiences that were ripped away from you, but the hardest was when death and its effects rippled through your life.

You walked back into the shared house, the dimmed lights greeting you, the lack of warmth holding a mirror to your reality. Your bag slid off your shoulder as you took off your shoes. On the console table, a card caught your attention. You slowly picked it up, your eyes glazing over the picture, your heart clenching at the sight of that smile that once felt like home. The front door opened once again, this time, Pedri walking into the house. He was holding a bouquet of flowers, which he gently placed on the mahogany table. He untied his tie, slipping off his shoes, his hand faintly laying flush against your waist.

“I’ll make us something to eat.” He placed a kiss on your cheek, his hand stroking your hair. “I’m so sorry, mi vida.” He held your face in his hands. You looked away, kissing the palm of his hands, feeling your grief flooding back to the surface. You leaned in closer, the weight of everything bringing you on the verge of tears. Your arms hugged Pedri’s waist, the sound of his heart keeping you from spiraling.

He led you to the couch, sitting you gently. Before you could react, his grip tightened on you, holding you with such force that you thought your ribs would break. On any other day you would have jokingly kicked him away, tickling him under the chin, leading to him loosening his grip on you. But today, you needed his reassurance, you needed his presence to keep you sane.

The faint ticks of the clock in the dining room crowded the room. Feeling unable to verbally communicate the weight of your emotions, you laid back into his arms. Outside, the neighborhood was vibrant; the sound of family picnics; laughing children; and faint music flowing through the streets, creating a stark contrast between your life and the one outside.

As if life was punishing you, you heard a child in the streets scream.

“Abuelo, espérame!”

You buried your head into Pedri’s chest, unleashing all the grief you had been enduring for the past days. Your shoulders shook as your walls came crashing down. Your chest tightened, your mind racing to all the times where you had come short of being a good granddaughter.

“Shhh.” Pedri cooed as he rubbed your back in a desperate attempt to regulate your breathing. He leaned over, grabbing a tissue, lifting your head to wipe away your tears. You closed your eyes at the gesture.

“How does one get over this?” You asked, the emptiness of the room making your skin crawl. It had been 4 days since you had received the call that had changed your life. 4 days since you had fallen down to your knees, your sobs flooding your face as you called out for his name, praying to God that it wasn’t real. 4 days since Pedri had rushed out of training as soon as he got word of what had happened.

He unbuttoned his cuffs, scooching closer to you. He took your hands in his, thumb rubbing your skin in a slow, circular motion.

“Mi vida…You don’t. And I know it’s probably not the answer that you’re looking for, but…the grief will eventually subside and you’ll feel better. It’ll stop occupying all this space and will eventually find its own place in your soul.” He took a deep breath. “Grief is love that has nowhere to go.” He bent over, pressing a kiss to your forehead. Pedri took your hands, placing a delicate kiss on each knuckle.

“Despite the distance, you showed up for all the family reunions, every doctor’s appointment, every birthday. When some family members took advantage of his situation and stole from him, you stood your ground. Put his most precious possessions into a safe and changed the locks on his house.”

You cracked a shy smile.

“I just miss him, you know? I’ll miss how he used to call as soon as the clock struck twelve on my birthday, or how he always had my favorite candle burning in the kitchen whenever I visited.” You fiddled with the obituary picture in front of you. “He was a good man, Pepito.” You laid back into his arms. “He taught me how to ride a bike, and how to change a tire. And he made the best walnut pie.” You chuckled.

“He helped raise a strong, courageous and righteous woman, who has a soul as warm and welcoming as a thousand suns. You may feel like you’re scared of losing the memories of your grandfather, but I promise you, for as long as you breathe, his love will shine through your actions.” His hand brushed over your thigh, giving you a reassuring squeeze. He got up from the couch and walked over to the kitchen, flicking the lights on as he began to rummage through the pantry.

“What are you looking for?” You asked him without getting up from the couch.

“Something.. you’ll see.” He waved you away, his head still in the pantry cabinet.

You sat back, your body melting into the soft fabric of the couch. As your mind begins to wander, you find yourself being lulled to sleep by the ticks of the dining room clock. Unbeknownst to you, Pedri set the dusted book down on the coffee table, hoping that you’ll find comfort in it, once you woke up.

A few hours had passed when you began to stir awake from your sleep. The house looked different. The sun was shining lower in the sky, the air was colder and sharper, and you were hungry, very very hungry. You looked around the room, only to be met with silence, and darkness. A similar smell passed you by, a smell that reminded you of home. Walnuts, butter, brown sugar…

“Pedri?” You got up from the couch, making your way across the house.

“Bathroom!” He yelled out, meeting you halfway in the hallway. “How’d you sleep?” He kissed the top of your head gently.

“Not bad…that couch is insanely comfortable.” You buried yourself against his chest, arms hanging around his waist.

“I’m glad, my love. I have good taste in furniture.” He hyped himself up, wiping away his hands from the excess lotion. His hand found yours, dragging you to the bedroom. Out on the bed, lay a pair of pjs.

“Why don’t you get changed and meet me on the couch in a few? Mh?” He left you alone to get changed, his scent hanging in the air as he exited the room. You sat on the bed, the task of getting out of these clothes seeming impossible. You had never particularly liked this specific pair of pants, nor the shirt, but they were your grandfather’s favourites. You closed your eyes as you took off the shirt, the fabric heavy in between your hands. Your skin felt hot and cold at the same time, confusing feelings taking over. Would you ever be able to wear these clothes again? You fiddled with the garments before throwing them at the back of your closet, choosing to avoid the issue. The pyjamas Pedri had laid out felt plush and soft against your skin, like a built in hug that never faltered.

You met him back on the couch, his head turning at the sound of your feet against the floor. He extended his hand out to you, his eyes lighting up at the sight of you. You plopped down next to him, your head resting on his shoulder.

“I made something for you while you were asleep.” He handed you a plate where laid a slice of pie…a walnut pie. Walnuts, butter, brown sugar… You took a whiff of the dessert, your heart swelling with gratitude. You grabbed the spoon, digging carefully into the slice. The flavours exploded in your mouth, memories flooding your mind.

“I… don’t know what to say, Pedri.” You said, setting down the plate on the coffee table. “It’s exactly how he used to make it.” You hid your sob. “How did you know? How do you have the recipe? He never wrote it down for anyone.” Your voice choked up.

He knelt down to pick up the dusted book.

“When he got the diagnosis that the cancer had spread, he came to me. We got to talking, and he explained to me how cooking together was an activity that meant a lot to the both of you. We got to work together, creating a cookbook of all the recipes he wished to pass down to you. There’s about…every recipe you guys have ever cooked together, as well as family recipes. He made me promise to give you the book only after he passed.” He handed it to you, the weight of the book taking you by surprise.

Your fingers traced the fine engraving on the leather jacket, the title making your heart clench. ‘The Best Granddaughter’s Guide to Cooking’. You fought back the tears as you began flicking through the pages, your heart swelling with every turn of the page. There, in all its glory, was the walnut pie’s recipe. In writing, in physical form for you to keep for the rest of time. You looked back at Pedri with glossy eyes, a thankful smile on your lips.

“Thank you.” You whispered, a knot in your throat.

As you continued to flick through the heirloom, your eyes caught the pictures added to each recipe. Pictures of birthdays, monthly visits, family vacations, the first time you had ever cooked with your grandfather. Your favorite picture was the one where you were sitting on his lap pretending to read the newspaper in a language you had no knowledge of.

It then dawned on you, that your grief would always follow you. Grief was indeed love that has nowhere to go, but it was the ultimate act of love you could show someone who meant so much to you. Some days would be easier, some wouldn’t, but as time would go on, you’d learn to live with the loss, turning it into an eternal symbol of love for your grandfather. You were mad at life for putting you in this position, but it was undeniably a guaranteed cost of being alive and loving.

[sturniololuvz]

“First heart break”

Sturniolo x sister reader

warnings : crying , break up,

It was a quiet Friday afternoon when the front door of the Sturniolo house creaked open. Nick, Matt, and Chris were in the living room, lounging on the couch as they often did after a long week of filming. They were laughing about something silly when they heard the sound of someone sobbing from the hallway.

Nick furrowed his brows, immediately standing up. “Y/n?” he called softly, but the sobs only grew louder. He exchanged a worried glance with Matt and Chris before rushing to the door. His heart dropped when he saw their little sister standing there, her face red from crying, her shoulders hunched in defeat.

“Y/n,” Chris said gently, stepping forward to catch her before she could collapse into a heap. “What happened?”

She barely looked up, tears streaming down her face as she gasped for breath. “He—he broke up with me,” she choked out. “I didn’t see it coming. I thought… I thought we were good.”

Nick’s heart twisted, and without thinking, he pulled her into a tight hug. “Oh, honey,” he whispered. “I’m so sorry.”

Matt stood behind her, his hand resting on her back. “Who did this to you?” he asked softly, trying to keep his anger in check.

Y/n shook her head. “I don’t even know… He just said he needed space, and that he wasn’t ready for a relationship anymore. And now, I just—” She sniffled, unable to continue.

“Hey, hey,” Nick said, lifting her chin so she could look at him. “You are so much more than what he said. You are amazing, Y/n, and no one, especially not some jerk, is going to make you feel like you’re not enough.”

Chris smiled softly, ruffling her hair. “Exactly. You don’t need someone who doesn’t see how incredible you are.”

But Y/n just let out another sob, burying her face in Nick’s chest. “I just don’t understand,” she whispered. “Why would he say those things? I thought he cared about me.”

Matt glanced at Chris, his eyes filled with concern. “Let’s just sit down, okay? We’re not going anywhere. We’re here for you, Y/n.”

The three brothers led her to the couch, and they all sat down, Y/n nestled between Nick and Matt. Chris grabbed the remote and started flipping through channels.

“Alright,” Chris said with a soft grin, “how about we put on a movie to take your mind off of things? Something funny, okay?”

Y/n sniffled but nodded, wiping at her eyes. “I don’t know… I don’t really feel like doing anything.”

“Trust me,” Matt said, wrapping an arm around her. “The last thing you need is to sit here and cry all night. Let’s just laugh for a bit, okay?”

Nick nodded. “Yeah, we’re not letting you wallow in here all night. We’re going to make you feel better, even if we have to watch the dumbest movie ever.”

They settled on a comedy, something light and silly that would hopefully make her laugh. As the movie started, Matt and Chris jokingly teased each other, distracting Y/n from the pain that still hung over her.

It was a brief reprieve, but it helped. For the first time in hours, Y/n cracked a small smile. Her brothers kept her distracted with inside jokes and dumb commentary during the movie, trying to keep the mood light. But by the time the credits rolled, Y/n’s smile had faded again.

“How are you feeling?” Nick asked softly, still holding her close.

“I don’t know…” Y/n replied, her voice shaky. “I just… I feel empty. I don’t know who I am without him.”

“You’ll find yourself again,” Matt said firmly. “But for now, we’re here. You’re not alone in this, okay?”

Y/n just nodded, feeling comforted by their presence, even if the pain still stung deep inside. The brothers stayed up with her that night, making sure she felt loved, but as the days passed, it became clear that the hurt wasn’t going to disappear so easily.

A few days later, Y/n hadn’t left her room much. The door was always closed, and the only sounds that came from behind it were soft sobs. Nick had tried knocking a few times, offering food, but each time she just turned him away, not ready to face anyone.

One evening, after Matt and Chris had spent hours trying to coax her out, Nick decided to check on her once more. He knocked softly on her door.

“Y/n?” he called, his voice quiet. “Can I come in?”

There was a long pause before Y/n’s voice broke through, barely audible. “I don’t feel like talking right now.”

Nick’s heart clenched, but he wouldn’t give up. “You don’t have to talk. Just… let me in, okay? We can just sit, no pressure.”

After a long moment, the door creaked open. Y/n was sitting on her bed, wrapped in a blanket, her face pale and tired. She looked up at him with a sad, empty gaze.

“Hey,” he said softly, sitting down beside her. “I brought you some food… It’s your favorite. Please eat something. I don’t like seeing you like this.”

Y/n looked at the plate in his hands but didn’t make a move to take it. “I don’t want to eat, Nick,” she murmured, her voice still raw.

“I get it,” Nick replied. “But you need to eat, sis. You have to take care of yourself. You don’t have to pretend like you’re okay, but you can at least take care of your body. It’s the little things, you know?”

She stared at the plate for a moment before finally taking it from him, but she didn’t eat it. She just held it in her lap, like the weight of it was enough to keep her grounded.

“Thank you,” she whispered, her eyes starting to well up again.

Nick smiled softly, putting a hand on her shoulder. “Anytime, Y/n. I know you’re hurting, and it’s okay to feel like this. But I’m not going anywhere. Neither are Matt or Chris. We’re with you every step of the way.”

The quiet sobs returned, but this time, Y/n didn’t feel as alone. Nick stayed with her, silently keeping her company, hoping that, little by little, she would heal.

[teine-mallaichte]

Day 2 @andersweek2025 - Tender Tuesday

Post DA2 Anders with Autumn Hawke.

A short bit of fluff from my Anders/Hawke family, set just after Hawke returns from Skyfold and the Adamant.

Autumn paused as the barn came into view, her heart thudding in her chest. This was where she had left Anders and Storm six weeks ago, buying their safety for a time with a heavy pouch of coin and a quiet plea for the farmer’s discretion. She could only hope they were still here. It wasn’t uncommon for their little family to move suddenly—to hide, to run.

Taking a deep breath, she pushed onward. Varric had promised to help them find somewhere safe. Somewhere permanent. The thought was a fragile hope she clung to as tightly as the secret she carried now.

"Heartbeats. Not just one, but two. Small, but strong. Growing. They don’t know yet, but they feel you. Safe, warm, waiting."

Cole’s cryptic words echoed in her mind, a strange comfort and a weight all at once.

"One listens, quiet, careful, like steps on wet stone. The other burns bright, golden, like a spark that won’t go out. They are not afraid. They know you will keep them safe."

Her hand brushed instinctively over her stomach, where the faintest curve had begun to show.

As she stepped into the barn, a small figure collided with her side. “Mummy!”

Storm’s arms wrapped tightly around her waist, his face lighting up with a smile that banished weeks of worry in an instant.

“Hey,” she murmured, kneeling to hug him close. “Did you miss me?”

“Did you have a good adventure?” he asked, his blue-green eyes wide with excitement. “Daddy said you’d bring back stories.”

Autumn smiled softly, brushing his unruly red hair from his face. “I did,” she promised, kissing his forehead. “But I need to talk to your father first. Do you know where he is?”

Storm nodded, pointing toward the field. “He’s fixing the fence for the farmer man.”

She ruffled his hair gently. “Stay close, alright? I’ll be back soon.”

With a nod, Storm bounded off toward a pile of hay bales. Autumn stood, adjusting her cloak and heading toward the field.

Anders stood with his back to her, his golden hair tied messily at the nape of his neck as he worked on the fence. The rhythmic clang of hammer against wood filled the air, but it faltered when she called his name.

“Anders.”

He froze mid-swing, the hammer slipping from his grasp as he turned. When their eyes met, relief washed over his face, followed by something deeper. He crossed the distance between them quickly, pulling her into his arms as if afraid she might vanish.

“You’re back,” he breathed, his voice thick with emotion.

“I’m back,” she murmured, holding him close as she could already feel his magic ghosting over her skin, looking, searching for injuries.

"I have news," she said quietly.

Anders pulled back slightly, his hands lingering on her arms as his amber eyes scanned her face. “News?”

Autumn hesitated for a heartbeat, rehearsed words tangling in her throat. Instead of speaking, she took his hand and guided it to her stomach. The faint curve was barely noticeable, but when his palm rested there, the warmth of his magic seemed to settle, searching, sensing.

His breath hitched. His eyes darted between her face and where his hand rested. “You’re…?”

“I’m pregnant,” she whispered, her voice steady but soft. She swallowed and added, “It’s twins.”

Anders froze, his entire body going still as if the weight of her words had rooted him to the earth. “Twins?” he repeated.

Autumn nodded, watching the storm of emotions play across his face—shock, fear, awe, and something else, something fragile and hopeful. His hand trembled against her stomach, his magic flickering faintly as if responding to his turmoil. "Varric promised to help. To find us somewhere safe. No more running. We can be a real family, Anders."

“I…” His voice cracked, and he shook his head, letting out a shaky breath. “I don’t know if I can do this again, Autumn. Storm… I was so scared I’d ruin him, and now—”

Her hands came up to cup his face, “You won’t,” she said firmly, her blue eyes meeting his, “You didn’t ruin Storm. Look at him, Anders. He’s happy. He’s strong. He adores you.” She smiled softly, brushing a stray lock of golden hair from his forehead. “And these two—they’ll adore you too. Just like I do.”

[lillaydee]

The Unlucky One

Joel Miller (No Outbreak AU) / F Reader

When it comes to love, Lady Luck seems to have lost your address. After being left at the altar without so much of an explanation, you decided love is no longer something you are interested in. Not even meeting an unlucky-in-love-himself Mr. Grump could change your mind.

Right?

Let me know if you want to be tagged, or if you want to be removed from the tag list.

WARNINGS: Protective Joel (The Last of Us), Good Parent Joel (The Last of Us), Soft Joel (The Last of Us), Joel is Bad at Feelings (The Last of Us), Joel Needs a Hug (The Last of Us), Hurt Joel (The Last of Us), Grumpy Joel (The Last of Us), Jealousy, Fluff and Angst, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Idiots in Love, unlucky in love, Child Abandonment, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Alternate Universe - No Cordyceps Outbreak (The Last of Us)

@peelieblue, @vickie5446, @harriedandharassed, @lovefreylove

SERIES MASTER LIST

---

“God, I cannot believe this is what my life has come to! I must be the unluckiest person on earth when it comes to love!” the young lady moaned, drowning her sorrows in yet another tequila shot, as her friends coaxed her, telling her no, she’s not unlucky, she just hadn’t found the right guy.

“Come on, guys, there were ten of them in that group, not even the frumpiest one took a second look at me!” she continued, gesturing at the bartender to give her another, looking longingly at a group of young men who were, at the time, shamelessly ogling at a group of ladies your age walking by in kaftans that might as well have not been there – the barely there bikinis clearly visible through the flowy, see-through materials.

“I think they just preferred older ladies, sweetheart,” her friend said, slyly pushing the freshly poured tequila out of the way. “How about we get you some coffee huh? It’s not even five yet, sweetie. We’re in Bali! Let’s enjoy our time here, okay?”

The young lady scoffed, “As if I could, knowing that Ed is currently unloading his stuff into the whore’s apartment!”

The ladies surrounded her with hugs and coos, telling her to forget that bastard, let’s enjoy the holiday, okay?

“I’m telling you, I challenge anyone, ANYONE!” she yelled out to the entire bar, which went quiet for a bit before breaking into it's buzz again, “To tell me they are unluckier than me when it comes to love. Heck, I bet you a thousand bucks no one has it worse than me.”

You couldn’t help yourself. You snorted into your drink.

And just like that, five pairs of eyes snapped towards you.

“You taking the challenge, lady?” the young lady slurred, despite her eyes being so sharply trained on you.

“I don’t know,” you said, turning your body towards them. “Let’s hear your story, and then I’ll decide if mine is worth telling.”

She adjusted herself to be a bit more stable in her seat, taking a deep breath.

“Well, let’s see. My parents divorced and remarried and divorced again before I was ten, married and divorced so many other people I’ve lost count of how many step parents I have, shutting me up with money to keep me happy. I’ve been with my ex Ed since high school, thought I would finally have some stability in life. We went to college together, birds of a feather, all that. I thought we were golden. Ten years! And a month ago, I found out he had been cheating on me all along with his girl best friend, the one he kept telling me to not worry about. The one who was supposedly seeing someone else that conveniently, didn’t have a name, or had never been introduced to us despite the fact that we all grew up together. I came home early one night and found them in our bed, that I paid for, in my house, that I bought!”

“And you know what’s worse? He actually told me he stayed with me for my money! She didn’t have the money, nor the education to help him out financially, so now that we’ve all graduated and working, he can provide for her! So bubbye me, hello filthy whore who stood by and let him flirt with and later fuck someone else for ten years just so that he could have a roof over his head and money in his pocket! And now, I’m on vacation, where I can’t even find one man who would hook up with me!”

She burst into tears.

You wanted to laugh, but managed to rein yourself in.

“How old are you sweetie?”

“23,” she answered through sobs, her friends clamouring to give her tissues.

“Oh, sweetheart…” you said, refraining yourself from calling her a ‘sweet summer child’, “You have a long way to go, I’m afraid. Life’s gonna throw so much more shit at you before you find happiness.”

Her sobs lessened as she asked you, “How old were you when you finally found it?”

You smiled, lifting your hands, crossing both sets of your forefinger and middle finger together, “Any day now.”

Somehow, that gesture put a smile on her face, although it may have been from pity. “So, you wanna take me on my challenge?”

You thought to yourself, why the hell not. Better out than in, right? So you ordered another margarita and told the five young ladies your story.

**********

You were the product of a drunken mistake. Your parents were going through a divorce, and one night of drinking too much at a party in an attempt to be civil with each other ended with you in your mother’s womb. They divorced anyway, but at first, agreed to co-parent.

About two weeks after you were born, your Dad met Frank. Your mother didn’t take it well when she found out. As you grew up, it became evident that she hated you, the only love you ever received from her household was from your Grandparents. She completely ignored you, chastising you for everything that went wrong in her life. So as you began to understand your surrounding more, you started avoiding her, knowing that you were not welcomed in her vicinity, going to your Grandparents with your cuts and woes, throwing tantrums when your Dad dropped you off after spending the weekends at his and Frank’s.

When school started, your Dad wanted you to stay with him and Frank, wanting to enrol you in the school where Frank taught, the best school in the county. Your mother fought tooth and nail against it, though it took you a long time to understand why. Not like she had to pay for it. Not like she spent any time with you when you were home with her. It was a miracle your Dad refrained from taking her to the courts over it, thinking of the trauma it would put you through. When you turned ten, your Grandma passed away, leaving your mother quite a bit of money. She used some to purchase a house nearer to your Dad’s. Just a few streets away from that school he wanted to enrol you in. One would think it was for your benefit, but no. 

See, she had decided that she simply needed another child to be happy. So she adopted your sister, Nell, who was five at the time. Nell, apparently, had more promise than you, so she would actually benefit from that expensive school, but not you. Your Dad was furious, so was your Grandpa, and the two of them enrolled you at the school anyway. And oh, she was going to have to pay for Nell’s fees herself. Your Dad only agreed to pay for you. After all, he didn’t adopt Nell. She did. Boy oh boy was your mother displeased. So how did she repay him?

By making your life as miserable as she could.

Anything your Grandpa or Dad bought you, became Nell’s. Mommy-daughter days consisted of her and Nell going places, eating the finest foods, while you sat in the car. Your birthdays consisted of nothing from her, but Nell’s deserved a bouncy castle and a petting zoo. You had to eat TV dinners, while Nell got homecooked meals made from scratch with the finest ingredients.

And what did your Grandpa and Dad do?

Nothing.

They did nothing, because you told them nothing. You were puzzled by the way your mother treated you, wanting to earn her affection, convinced that you had done something wrong to earn her wrath, so you didn’t say anything. She always sent you to your Dad’s and Grandpa’s in your finest clothes, the ones they bought for you, the ones that Nell was too little to fit into. And because you never complained, they were none the wiser.

You had your first boyfriend when you were 16. Kyle. He was sweet. Your Dad, Grandpa and Frank loved him. Your mother? Not so much. Why? Because see, your sister, the 11 year old, had a crush on him. And you were standing in the way of her happiness. She did everything she could to get Kyle away from you. He didn’t budge, though, the sweet boy that he was.

But then, he was also your first heartbreak.

He was your first. The two of you had gotten a motel room prom night. You thought the night went well, for your first time. But you woke up to him crying at the foot of the bed, fully dressed.

He told you he was gay.

He had suspected, for quite a while, but didn’t want to believe it, not when his parents were the way they were.

And how did your mother react to the revelation? When you went home crying to her? She laughed. She told you it served you right for turning your own Dad gay. He wasn't before you came along. And then you arrived, and voila! Bill and Frank happened. Clearly, that was your doing.

And that was the day you found out the reason she hated you so much. Turned out, she had hoped that she and your Dad would reconcile after your birth. Instead, he found Frank. Naturally, it was your fault. At two weeks old.

Your Dad and Grandpa almost killed Kyle, but when they found out his own father had kicked him out of the house for being gay, your Grandpa took him in, even paid for his college tuition. Try as you might, you couldn’t find it in yourself to hate him, much less be angry at him. So Kyle remained in your life, one of your best friends to this day.

And the boyfriends that came after him?

Well, the second and third boyfriend you had was during your early college years, just a few months each. Both broke up with you without explanation after meeting your mother and Nell. It seemed they were uncomfortable with the fact that your underaged sister liked to accidentally run into them while half-naked in the house when you were asleep, or that one of them woke up to her touching him inappropriately while he was sleeping on the couch, something your mother insisted, claiming she didn’t trust you enough to not whore around under her roof. You didn’t even find out until years after. They were just so uncomfortable they didn’t even want to tell you.

Eric, your fourth boyfriend whom you met at 21 managed to remain your boyfriend for a whole year. He was the first man you were in love with. He was the greatest. So caring, loving, romantic. He was the first person you actually started dreaming of a future with. You made plans with him. You were all set to move in together after graduation, saving money on the side to purchase your own place together, start a life together. You thought you were set. You were wondering if your mother or Nell had said something to your previous boyfriends, so you refrained from taking him home to meet them.

But your mother guilted you into coming home for her birthday, where shockingly, she insisted that Eric stay with you in your old room rather than the couch. She and Nell were so nice to him you actually thought they were turning a new leaf.

Well, you thought wrong. Nell went to bed early, but your mother, you and Eric celebrated until well near midnight. Eric went up first, drunk from all the wine your mother kept pouring into his glass. Your mother had asked you to help her with the dishes after the little celebration, and you walked into your room an hour later to a passed out Eric sleeping on your bed, your sister wrapped around him.

Naked.

When you screamed at them, Eric woke up, confused, immediately pushing Nell off him when he realized it was her, and not you. She had visited him in the dark room naked while you were downstairs, and he was drunk. He thought it was you.

Nell was sobbing, telling your mother that he had willingly taken her virginity, and now he was denying it. Your mother screamed at you to get out, telling you how worthless you were for bringing him into her home.

He swore to you he was innocent, and you believed him. But the two of you could never bounce back from the incident. So you broke up, both of you heartbroken. You didn’t see him for a few weeks after that.

Until your mother called and asked to meet. When you got there, Eric was there too, confused at what was going on, not understanding why your mother had contacted him too.

Nell was pregnant.

Your mother demanded he marry her. He refused, only to be met with the threat of a police report, for raping a minor.

You could see Eric’s face turn white. Nell was a few months shy of 17. She was underaged. And there was no evidence to show she had done what she did, although you never doubted his version of the story. Even she didn’t deny it. But now the story had changed. She now insisted that he had raped her. And there was nothing he could do to prove otherwise. Not even your Dad, who ran his own law firm, could help him.

Despite your break up, you were devastated. You loved him. And now you had to watch him marry your underaged sister? You’d decided to attend so that he would have someone on his side. No one was there for him. His parents disowned him. His friends left him. Everyone believed he was a child rapist. You pleaded with them to believe him. You did. Why couldn’t they? They called you an enabler. Accused you of setting the whole thing up. Of trapping him to get into your mother and sister’s good graces. You felt helpless. So you went to the bathroom to cry it out after yet another futile last minute attempt to get his parents to at least see reason.

Your mother walked in and found you, shouting at you to stop being so dramatic and be happy for your sister. “Be thankful to her,” she said. “At least now he won’t turn gay. You know it was a matter of time before you turned him too.”

You could only sit and watch as the two of them got married. Conveniently, she lost the baby a week later. And when Eric tried to annul the marriage, the threat of statutory rape was again waved in his face. And just like that, Eric, the man you were in love with, the man you had planned a future with, the one who was going to be a doctor, ceased to exist.

A new man replaced him. One who was drunk all the time. Who did drugs. Who dropped out of college and couldn’t hold on to a job. Your heart broke every time you saw him. Any attempt to help him was met with accusations of trying to steal him away from Nell. And he was just as stubborn, refusing to hear you, refusing help, refusing any kind of hope altogether. Three whole years you tried. Every single day, you tried. It came to a point where he didn’t even answer your calls. Refused to see you at all, holed up in your old bedroom, which he apparently moved into after he and Nell married, having nowhere else to go.

So you gave up. You had to. You couldn’t possibly help someone who didn’t want to be helped. And the headache your mother and sister was giving you, all the accusations, all the snide remarks about wanting him back, not to mention bringing up Kyle and your Dad over and over again, were not doing you any good.

Shamefully, you didn’t cut contact with them, still yearning for your mother’s approval, even if she had made it quite clear through her actions that you would never receive it. You hoped. You distanced yourself, but you stayed in touch.

But then, a year later, your Grandpa passed. He left you everything. His properties, his money, everything. He had learnt of your mother and Nell’s antiques by then. Not one cent was given to your mother or Nell. That, it seemed, cemented your mother’s hatred for you. She took you to court, unsuccessfully. Your Grandpa’s will was ironclad. And your mother declared, right there outside the court building, that you were no daughter of hers.

So you stopped trying. No more.

You moved on. Graduated, moved to another city, started your Masters, and met Andrew.

Five years later, you were living the life in this new city. Your life with Andrew couldn’t be more perfect. You moved in with him, and for once in your life, you were happy. Really happy. You loved him, and he, you. Your Dad and Frank loved him, and he, them. His family loved you, and you, them. You had completed your Masters and was carefully planning to open your own business, which he fully supported, free-lancing in the mean time for the experience. Your mother and Nell were no longer in your periphery, although you did tell him about them. Your Dad and Frank travelled to the city often to see you, they were even present when Andrew proposed to you. He had thoughtfully called them and flew them in. Them, and your best friend Maria. They and his family were hiding, surprising you with their presence when you said yes. For the first time in your life, at age 30, you were deliriously happy.

But as the wedding approached, he changed. He got distant, coming home later and later, sometimes not coming home at all, blaming it on work stress. Big project, he said, deadlines, the likes. And like an idiot, you believed him.

That was until he didn’t show up at the wedding. Just ghosted you. Just like that.

As you sat in your living room, crying your eyes out, Maria, your Dad and Frank, his family with you, trying their hardest to calm you, you wondered what went wrong. Calls went unanswered, texts unread. They all stayed with you for two whole days after the wedding, and he was nowhere to be found. You woke up on the third day to his family angrily packing their things to leave, demanding you return the heirloom ring he had given you when he proposed, and they too, left without an explanation, telling you that you should be ashamed of yourself, not answering any of your questions, nor your dad’s.  

So here you were, in Bali, on what was supposed to be your honeymoon, but instead of your new husband, you were here with your best friend Maria, who was passed out from jetlag in your fancy honeymoon suite. You still had no idea what happened. Still clueless. But, as tired as you were, you couldn’t sleep. So you decided to drink your sorrows away, hoping that alcohol could help you sleep, drinking one cocktail after another, listening to the young lady’s sorrows.

**********

You downed the rest of your now watery and warm margarita, taking a deep breath, finally looking at the five pairs of eyes, all of which were now downturned with pity.

“So, did I win? I could use a grand to drink myself to death in the next week.”

They all stared at each other, taking a deep breath.

The young lady who had challenged you lunged at you, hugging you, sobbing for your misfortune. “I’m so sorry! God, your mother and sister are awful people! I’m so glad you cut them off! And your fiancé, what a jerk! At least have the balls to tell you why!”

The other ladies nodded, eyebrows scrunched, unable to think of anything to say to you. The young lady gave her card to the bartender, telling her to put a thousand dollars on your credit. You waved her hand away, telling her you were kidding. That she didn’t need to pay for anything. You just needed to rant. Make sure you weren’t overreacting, that your life was indeed, a disaster, that what you were feeling, all the hopelessness, the anxiety, the depression, were all warranted, expected, justified.

They vehemently agreed with you. Yep. Definitely justified. The young lady insisted that she at least buy you a drink, just because. You declined, telling her you were alright. “Go, enjoy your vacation,” you told her. “Your life may suck, but at least it’s way better than mine.” You picked up your little purse and got up to sleep the evening away, feeling a lot lighter now that you had unloaded it all on these girls.

“Wait,” the young lady said, holding her hand out to you. “I’m Tracy.”

You smiled, taking her hand. “Aria,” you told her.

“I hope you enjoy your vacation too, Aria, and not let those jerks in your life take this beautiful place away from you,” she said, giving you one more hug.

**********

You laid in the hammock on your balcony, wondering how the fuck your life had gone the way it did. Why did he just leave? What did you do? Was it so bad that he didn’t even think you merited an explanation? Were you supposed to know already but didn’t get it? You searched your brain, thinking about anything you might have missed. Did you perhaps say something? Do something he didn’t like that he had always complained about and he just snapped and couldn’t take it anymore? Was there an ongoing argument that slipped your memory? Did you take too much money from the joint account? Did you scratch his car?

So many questions popped up in your mind. It was making things up as it went along, asking this and that, seeing if that was a possibility of him just deciding to leave without so much as a goodbye. Was it Kyle? Was it your friendship with Kyle? It was, wasn’t it? He didn’t like that you and Kyle were watching that show together, Face Timing as you did, even when he was a good 500 miles away from you? That was it, right?

But he liked Kyle. He even called Kyle himself to invite him to the wedding. But Kyle couldn’t make it, his husband Ethan, who, incidentally, was your colleague first – you introduced them - was in an accident and had to be hospitalized. He only cancelled two days before the wedding, though. And Andrew had been distant for a few months.

Did you cheat on him with someone? Did you? You didn’t think so, but what if you forgot? Nah… that couldn’t possibly be, right?

Did you badmouth him to someone? Nag him? Shout at him?

Shit. Did he cheat on you?

That must be it, right? He found someone else and ran away with her? Or him? With your track record, you never knew. But who?

Could it be that new woman who joined his team? The one you met at the company dinner some time ago, she was just a week in, if you were not mistaken. The time sort of lined up. Vanessa, that’s her name, maybe. Or was it Valerie? He mentioned her maybe once, but you didn’t really know for sure. Oh, Vivian? Nope… Veronica? Didn’t sound right.

Danielle. That’s it.

But Danielle was happily married, you thought. You met her husband. Oh, well…  Andrew was happily engaged. Rings and marriage certificates wouldn’t stop cheaters. Right?

You felt as if someone squeezed your heart tight. You were happy. That’s what you thought. And he seemed happy too, up until these last few months. You felt blindsided. You didn’t even know what went wrong. You didn’t even have a definite answer. You didn’t even know where to go from here.

The house was his, it’s in his name, he was going to add you to the mortgage once the marriage was finalized. And now, what? You didn’t have a permanent job. There was a business plan, but now that Andrew had left, you didn’t know if you wanted to go through with it. He planned it all – what if he sued you for profit if you used the plan? Money was no issue, even if you stopped free-lancing. You had rental income from your grandpa’s properties, now yours, and there was the money he left you. But truth be told, the idea of going back to live in that city was giving you so much anxiety already you didn’t know what to do. What if you ran into him? You couldn’t go back to your old town, even the idea of being near your mother or Nell gave you itches, as much as you wanted to be near your Dad and Frank again.

What the fuck were you going to do?

Just four days ago you thought you would be here lying in this hammock with the love of your life. But now…

“Girl, I can hear you think from jetlag-land,” your best friend’s voice brought you back to reality. She came to join you on the hammock, laughing uncontrollably with you as the hammock swerved and tilted dangerously, threatening to throw you off as she climbed in and put her arm around you. You snuggled into her embrace, thankful she dropped everything to be here with you, although she insisted she was the one benefitting from this trip.

You fell asleep for a few hours and decided to order room service. You didn’t feel like meeting people. Frankly, although telling Tracy and her posse your story was therapeutic, you were rather worried that you would repeat that self-pity parade, and you didn’t want to. Where would that bring you?

But Maria begged you to come down with her. “We’re in Bali babes! Come on! mingle! Who knows, you might even meet someone to distract you!”

So you got dressed and went with her, making her promise not to make you meet anyone new. Dinner, a couple of drinks, and we will come straight up, right? Cross my heart, she said.

The restaurant was full, so the two of you made your way to the bar to wait. As you were deciding which drink to muddle your broken-hearted thoughts with, two glasses of vodka sodas were placed in front of you.

“We didn’t order these,” you quickly said.

“Courtesy of the gentlemen at the end of the bar,” she said, pointing at two men sitting together, another bartender handing them a glass of whiskey each, saying something to them while doing so. They looked at you, one looking much chirpier than the other, raising their glasses and taking a drink, looking impressed at what they were tasting.

“Oh, the one with the long hair is cute,” Maria cooed, raising her glass at them.

Well, a free drink was not a bad thing, you thought, following suit, thanking them for the drink from afar, a half-hearted smile accompanying it.

You were not even halfway through your drink when the long haired guy came to Maria.

“Hi, are you two waiting for a table too?” he asked.

“Why, yes we are,” your lawyer best friend answered, head cocking to one side, unnecessarily fixing her hair and dress, batting her eyelashes at him.

The fuck? What happened to not meeting anyone?

“Well, my brother and I just got a table, care to join us?”

“Oh, you’re so kind. We’d be honoured!” she picked up her glass and immediately went after him, taking his offered arm in hers. His brother was at the table, looking grumpy as fuck, seemingly not looking forward to dinner with a couple of strange women after all.

If you were to see your own reflection at that point, you would see the exact same look on your own face.

But… you were in a strange country, and your normally straight laced and serious lawyer best friend went through that vodka soda like it was water, so you shouldn’t leave her alone with the men who bought you alcohol. So reluctantly, you picked up your drink and followed her, who was already seated and talking to the long-haired guy as if she’d known him forever.

The grumpy one got up when you approached the table, pulling a chair for you, both of you still looking and feeling supremely annoyed at this sudden company for dinner. You gave him a reluctant smile, which he sort of returned. The two of you sat there quietly, hands on your glasses, waiting for your platonic companions to realize the table was now full. But all was in vain. The two seemed to think no one else was in the restaurant but each other. So you just got the waiter’s attention and told him what you wanted, and the Grump did the same before kicking his brother’s foot under the table, the latter and your best friend finally looking away from each other to order.

Dinner was quiet, at least on you and the Grump’s end. Maria and the brother didn’t stop chatting at all. When you finished eating, you told Maria you were going for a walk on the beach and then straight to bed. You doubted she even heard you, waving a hand at you without looking, still transfixed on the long-haired guy, who seemed equally besotted by her. You called the waiter again for the bill, but the Grump insisted on paying, grumpily, of course, just as you insisted the same, equally annoyed.

“No, you paid for the drinks, so it’s only fair…” both of you said at the same time.

Wait, what?

Your grumpy looks went away for a while, confusion taking over.

“We didn’t buy you your drinks,” both of you said, again, parroting each other.

Maria and long-haired guys stopped talking.

“Wait, we were told you bought us our drinks,” Maria said.

“We were told you bought us our drinks,” long-haired guy said.

The two of them suddenly got extremely giggly, at which point the grumpy looks on yourself and the Grump returned at full force.

When the waiter got to you, you asked for the bill, but he told you that your bill was already taken care of.

“By whom?”

“The person wishes to remain anonymous, Miss,” the waiter said, picking up the empty glasses, asking if you’d like anything else.

“Erm, no, nothing for me,” you said, still confused. Maria and Tommy mentioned they would like to go to the bar, have a drink or two. So you picked up your purse, asked the waiter to thank your benefactor for the four of you, and told Maria you were going for a walk, seeing as she didn’t really hear you the first time.

You were almost out the door when you realized the Grump had followed you. You stopped abruptly and turned to him, aggressively asking him what he was doing.

“I was just going back to my room,” he said, hands up as if worried you were going to shoot him.

Oh.

“You were going to the beach?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

“Let me walk you to the gate, at least? It’s dark.”

“I’m a big girl, Mr Grump, I think I could manage,” you said, before you could stop yourself, clapping your hand to your mouth at the realisation.

But before you could even apologize, he laughed. A pure, unadulterated, belly laugh. And suddenly, something shifted in you.

“I know you could, Ms Grump, didn’t mean it like that. My Mama would kill me if I didn’t offer,” he said, making you laugh yourself.

Two grumps on a holiday in Bali. Wonderful.

A group of ladies walked past, and you saw Tracy, smiling meaningfully at you, winking as she passed by, her posse giggling uncontrollably among themselves.

“You know them?” the Grump asked.

“We’ve met,” you told him. “Well, goodnight, Mr Grump,” you said, walking towards the beach.

“Good night, Ms Grump,” he said right back, standing there with his hands in his pocket until you disappeared through the gates.

When you got back about 30 minutes later, he was sitting in the lobby, still dressed in the same clothes he was wearing. Clearly, he hadn’t gone up after all, talking on the phone with someone. He hung up when he saw you, getting up and walking with you to the elevators. You didn’t punch in your floor number as he did his, exiting the elevator just as the door was about to close.

He smiled, “I’m not a creep, Ms Grump, just had to take a phone call, and now, I’m going to bed.”

“Better safe than sorry, Mr Grump,” you said, as the doors closed.

The two of you kept smiling at each other until your own reflections were all you could see on the shiny, highly polished doors.

---

Part 2

[doodlesdreaming]

Kisses and Passionate love making is great and all.

But what about hugs?

What if, instead of sneaking into storage closets and behind shaded buildings for 2 minute makeout sessions, Ghost and Soap were more for tactical cuddling than lip contact?

It started out small; one armed hugs from Soap during casual/playful banter and protective holds from Ghost, whenever he had to yank the Sergeant out of danger(which tends to happen alot).

As their relationship began to take shape, it evolved into tender but careful hugs when Soap's anger gets the best of him, which has him dissolving into downhearted tears that he fights to hold back. Or stable and warm hugs, when night terrors lock Ghost into a panic attack, and if anyone else tried to consult him, there would be a knife to the throat.

Both men knew that there would be nothing but trouble if they were to continue this. And not just on fraternizing charges alone. But after that too close of a call with Makarov and a bullet nearly injected into the skull, as soon as they were alone, Simon and Johnny locked each other into a tight bear hug. The kind of hug that felt solid, safe, and grounding into reality. Johnny gripping his LT tight as he buried his face into the crook of his neck, as Simon held on for dear life, telling himself that everything is OK. Johhny is here. Johnny is safe. He got to him in time....

Neither one wanted to let go. Not until their hearts stopped hammering against their ribcages, and their nerves stopped working overtime. When they finally pulled apart from each other, it was quite obvious that they are very much doomed soldiers at this point. But neither one of them didn't give a frick. No one fights alone after all.

As time passed, they got slightly more intimate with each other. As one suspected with couples. But anyone who knows Ghost and Soap knew that they communicated with hugs more than anything else. (Though some would believe that is mostly because Soap is compromising with Ghost's mask.)

[asteroidtroglodyte]

5 years ago, I was in Rehab.

10 years ago, I was watching my Potential and Opportunities dissolve and evaporate in an ocean of cheap gin and expensive whiskey.

But 5 years ago, I was in Rehab.

One of the exercises they had us perform was to imagine ourselves happy, 5 years in the future.

Many of us in that room had forgotten how to imagine nice things happening to them. A few snorted (well, I snorted), finding the notion that we’d even still be around in 5 years grimly humorous.

For about half of us, it was the last stop on the way down.

But I indulged the therapist. I was there, after all, because I did not want to die. So, I imagined myself, 5 years hence.

Happy.

It came to me all at once; an artistic remix on Norman Rockwell’s Freedom From Want, reframed with myself placing food at the table.

Sunday Dinner At My Place, I answered, when it came my turn to share my fantasy. I was asked what food I imagined eating.

It’s not the meal itself, I said, it’s the implications framed around it. Sunday Dinner At My Place means that I have a Place. It means that I have Family that will actually speak to me and friends who actually want to see me. It means money enough not just to feed myself but others too. It means having the time to spare to take the time preparing the meal.

A lot of nodding heads all around me. A struck chord. Many people with no Place, in that place. Nowhere that would lament their leaving.

5 years hence, as I lay down to sleep in my Home, with my Wife and my Son, surrounded by my Art and my Flowers, I reflect.

It was a long road. It was hard. We lost people. So many people. There were long days and long nights and hospital stays. Angry arguments with ghosts. I changed, in ways I never hoped for, or expected. Good ways, finally, for once. Slowly, against the backdrop of a world in chaos, I found my mind.

Sometimes, My Wife wondered aloud, what she did to deserve me. After some stumbling with my feelings, I eventually settled on an answer.

I’m a Rescue.

She gave me a Home.

And, so, I gave her a Family.

It seemed fair

This Sunday, my folks, which whom I have not had a shouting match in years, will come over for dinner. We will cook and eat together. My Friend became My Wife, and she took a piece of me and with it she made Our Son. There will be many hugs, and no violence. Good Things Happened.

I don’t know who needs to hear this, but you don’t know what the future holds.

don’t give up yet, ok?

It could get good, even.

[phagodyke]

trying to watch all of us strangers and it's just making me cry really hard this is why I don't do romance movies WAH

[e-nonsense]

“Gonna fill you up, till you’re round with my baby.”

This prompt for Dick having baby fever with his fem!reader after seeing her taking good care of Damian (giving him praises and cookies for example).

Please and thank you!

pairing. dick grayson x reader

warning. smut

a/n. here you go anon

prompts used. “gonna fill you up, till you’re round with my baby.”

seeing you with damian was normal. the young boy saw you and dick as his paternal figures not that he’d admit it. but to see you doting over the boy. he’d ‘ran’ away from home — you’d already called bruce to tell him where damian is — and to your shared apartment.

first it started with the way you worried when he showed up at your door, a bag swung over his shoulder and his scowl set on his face.

“damian?” you stared down at the boy confused, looking around the hall way where all the other flats and the elevator could be seen.

“what’s wrong? are you okay?” your confusion switched to worry almost immediately when the boy hugged you, your arms moving around him to hug him back, gently rubbing his head.

“can i stay with you and grayson?” he mumbled.

“babe? who’s at the door—” dick’s voice trailed off when he saw damian holding onto you for dear life.

“what happened?” dick asks, the worry in his eyes matching yours.

“he needs to stay over tonight,” you murmur, glancing at dick with those puppy eyes of yours that he can’t say no to. he wanted to protest, remind you that tonight is his night off and date night but his heart flutters at the way damian clings to you like a boy would to his mother.

he doesn’t have the heart to say no, merely nodding. “sure baby, he can have the spare room.”

the next time he feels that same flutter of undistinguishable wanting is when you’re making damian late dinner for him, seeing as its midnight and you and dick were planning on a little fun tonight.

the way damian sits at the dining table, finishing his homework — because even if he’s staying here and his school is in gotham he’s still gotta keep up with school — and the way you make something quick that alfred taught you to make before sending damian off to bed.

he’s all over you after that, kissing at your neck, hands slipping under your shirt, you giggle before reminding him that his little brother is in the apartment so fun time is going to have to wait.

so he waits, a week before damian finally leaves, not that dick minds having his little brother around — lies. he does mind, he minds a lot, especially when your attention is being stolen from him.

but even that didn’t stop the way his heart fluttered with every moment you doted over like a mother would, and that’s when it clicked in his mind. he wanted a baby with you.

that’s how you got here. a week later after you’d dropped damian back to the manor, and when you came home you were talking to him about how you were concerned about damian overworking on patrols but he couldn’t hear a word over the hunger buzzing in his ears.

“mhm,” he hummed, head pressed into your neck as you rambled on. “baby, baby shhhh. lets forget about them for minute.”

“dick?” you mutter confused, his hands pressing warmly against your tummy.

“yes baby?” he asks.

“what’re you doing?” you ask.

“touching you, why? am i not allowed to touch my girl?” he replies, moving you towards the bedroom. “my pretty girl, yknow that?”

you hum in response, not sure what had come over him as he gently nudges you back onto the mattress to lay down. “i was thinking, honey. about you and me… and a little someone else.”

you catch the way his eyes drop to your stomach, his pupils blown out so much that his pretty blue eyes look different. “and who’s that?” you ask, urging him on.

“our baby.”

now that does surprise you, you and dick have never talked about having kids together, you’ve barely even talked about marriage but you know enough that he seems to like the idea of both those scenarios.

“our baby?” you question and he nods, a wide smile setting on his lips as he stares down at you hungrily.

“you’d look so pretty, honey. all round and full, full of me, of us. i’d take such good care of you too.”

your cheeks flush at the way he stares at you and the way the compliments leave his lips, like pure honey.

it doesn’t take much longer till you’re both completely bare, with you all spread out under him all fucked out as he ruts against you from behind.

he wasn’t shy with his noises, whining into your ear and groaning too. whispering praises that make you purr. “aw, look at you baby, all fucked and pretty for me to use. you want me to fill you up that bad huh?”

you nod eagerly, stomach fluttering as you spasm around him, face pressed into the pillows to bury your moaning, back arched so prettily it makes him want to never stop.

“good girl, my good girl. you like the sound of being a mommy huh?” he coos, fucking into you with no mercy, mind set of giving you a baby. a part of the two of you to love.

“that’s good ‘cause i’m gonna fill you up, till you’re round with my baby.”

© e-nonsense. do no copy/steal/translate. do it and I’ll bite your toes off

[banj0possum]

My Lovely Melody

Yandere!Rockstar x GN!Reader

CW: yandere is a playboy before he meets reader, suggestive (creepy) thoughts, minor obsessive behaviour

🎸 Axel's been in many relationships with both men and women alike, but all of his little flings felt nothing more than that, just flings.

🎸 And he was content with it, I mean being a famous rockstar meant lots of people wanting a chance with you and he indulged in that fact.

🎸 He could sleep with whoever he wanted, whenever he wanted, and he wouldn't have to deal with the commitment that comes with dating or any of that messy stuff.

🎸 So why the hell can't stop thinking about you ?!?!?!!

🎸 He scratched his head trying to make sense of it, his messy hair getting even more ruffled as he tries to get the image of your smile out of his head.

🎸 You were in a miscellaneous store full of alt clothing, trinkets and various other stuff when he walked in with his bandmates.

🎸 It was fairly normal when he came in the store. It was dim with some random punk song playing faintly in the background. His friends started exploring, looking at the graphic t-shirts and mugs shaped like skulls and the like.

🎸 He got a bit bored and wandered to the other side of the store. It had posters, candles and..who's that?

🎸 There you were, staring longingly at a plush toy sitting on one of the shelves, just standing there.

🎸 He didn't think much of it, probably just some person baked out of their mind. "Hey buddy, you doin' good?"

🎸 You snap out of your gaze and look at the big hulking man in front of you. You stutter out an apology and explain your little misfortune.

🎸 "So you want this..toy...but you can't afford it..?" He raises a brow at you as you nod, making him chuckle.

🎸 He thought for a moment, looking at the stuffed creature, well it wouldn't hurt to buy it for you, he's pretty well off from all the gigs and concerts he's been in so...

🎸 "How 'bout I buy this thing for ya then? But you owe me~" He winks, thinking he could score some quick sex for being such a 'gentleman'

🎸 But no, instead of a blush or a knowing smirk, you just looked at him with the widest, most innocent eyes he's ever seen, you were practically shaking with joy as he said it.

🎸 You thanked him profusely before listing off things you could do in return, treating him to some food, buying something for him in return, plain paying him back..he was a bit surprised.

🎸 "O-oh...uhm that was a joke heheh, y-you don't have to do all that babe..." He blushes.

🎸 The two of you head to the cashier, his friends spying from behind the aisles as his gaze is locked on the little ball of cuteness beside him.

🎸 Seriously? Did you even know who he was? This has never happened before...most of the time, he would pay for someone's drink or something and they'd be on his dick in seconds, but you, you were so..different...it felt nice..

🎸 You didn't even get it in a bag, you immediately took the plush after it was paid and hugged it close.

🎸 so cute so cute so cute so cute so cute!!!

🎸 "Hey uh..so me and my buds are in a band and uhm..wanna maybe..watch our next gig?" He asks nervously, he's never been so shy towards anyone!!

🎸 You agree, thinking it's the least you could do for what he did for you.

🎸 You take out your phone, Axel can't help but grin at the case, it was cute, like you~..

🎸 "Here's my number if..you need it.." You smile at him, that smile..that damn cute smile...you had his heart wrapped around your finger at this point.

🎸 "Th-thanks sugar..I'll see you there.." He smiles back as you part ways, he heads back to his friends who were bombarding him with questions as he watches you skip out of the store with your new little soft friend.

🎸 That night, he was getting ready for the show when he got a message notification and sees that you sent a picture of the show from one of the seats with some text "Good luck out there!"

🎸 His face was on fire as he realized you were there, he peeks out in the crowd and there you were, your little plush toy in tow.

🎸 You look so out of place from the people in spiky jewelry and dark outfits, you were just in a hoodie and baggy pants, albeit the hoodie had a MCR design on it, but you can tell it was very soft compared to the rest of the audience.

🎸 Finally it was time for the show to begin and it was the most passionate he's been in a while, it seemed as if the words he was singing were dedicated to you and you alone.

🎸 The little glances at you made you giddy, like a friend seeing their bestie perform, you were cheering excitedly for him, not in a fangirly way, but one of genuine support and amazement.

🎸 After the performance, Axel tried finding you, but the crowd was too big and he assumed you must have left already.

🎸 Wait..why is he being so buddy buddy with you? You just met today! It's not like you two were best friends or anything!

🎸 He tried dismissing the thought of you, tried distracting himself by flirting with other people, but he could only think about you, and making you smile like that again..

🎸 no no no! get out of my head!

🎸 Maybe a little fling can ease his mind?

🎸 Even on his bed with some random girl after show, he can still think of you.

🎸 Would your skin be as soft? or maybe softer? How would your hair smell? He bets your moans would sound delicious..

🎸 shit FUCK!!

🎸 Even after his one night stand, he kept thinking of you

🎸 He stares at your messages, you sent a lot of pictures of your plush toy doing goofy things to him, so cute..so silly...he can't help but smile.

🎸 He decides to look you up on social media and..

🎸 Wait a minute...you make music too?

yep this was a bit short but idk man i love making you guys suffer <3 stay tuned for part 2 (i am actually out of ideas guys please request me please please ple-)

[bkgsangel]

⋆˚࿔ ᴋᴀᴛꜱᴜᴋɪ ʙᴀᴋᴜɢᴏᴜ + ᴘᴅᴀ. ✩˚⋆

✧ hellooo!! the unexpected support on my first lil drabble made me want to write another one!<3 This one’s just a little longer though

✧ fluffy fluff, suki loooves youu, gn reader

During the early stages of yours and Katsuki’s relationship, when it came to being publicly affectionate, furthest he would go would be hand holding.

You didn’t mind however. His hands were always comfortingly warm, and despite his explosive, even deadly quirk, would always hold yours firmly, yet ever so gently. Such a simple gesture, though it always brought a feeling of safety.

Besides, Katsuki didn’t seem like the type to go past handholding beyond closed doors to begin with. You knew what you were getting into, and you were completely content with just that. You simply took it as a silently set boundary of his, and you didn’t want to force your boyfriend out of his comfort zone.

Which, you realised overtime, even if you wanted to, you didn’t have to.

It was like he was exploring his own boundaries, pushing his own buttons. The more steps he took out of border, the further his hands wandered.

They went from your own, snaking their way to your shoulders, waist, anywhere on your back. The fleeting touches eventually leading to sweet, careless hugs and kisses. Becoming second nature to him.

Walking down a street? You’re not walking unless you’ve got a hand around his bicep, your head on his shoulder.

In a crowd? His arm is not leaving your waist.

Waiting in line? Your impatient grump of a boyfriend is hugging you from behind, leaning his head on your shoulder as he grumbles complaints into it.

You think about it every once in a while. How he went from having the tips of his ears burning at your hand nestling in his, to having his arms shamelessly around you at all times. You don’t know what is it that gave him the push, just happy it’s you he feels comfortable with to such extent.

All the while, Katsuki wishes he could put it into words for you.

Falling for you, then falling in love with you has taught him a lot. The kind of love you showed him has helped him realise things, look at them from a different perspective. It made him yearn for and want everything he never thought he would. Being publicly affectionate a small, nonetheless great example of that.

Katsuki used to think there was no need for not just you and him, but anyone to be all lovey-dovey in public. He used to think it was completely unnecessary, obnoxious even. That is, until the small sense of longing surfaced from the depths of his heart.

Katsuki thinks it grew stronger the deeper he fell. It wasn’t long before he’d decided to act on it, languidly at least.

It was weird, kind of a newfound feeling for him. He quickly pinpointed it to, pretty much, wanting to show your guys’ love off. He wants to show off how good he is to you and how happy you are with him. To the whole world, preferably, because he loves you that much and more.

In Katsuki’s head, he notably matured for this. Something he did next to, and thanks to you. But he guesses that’s just part of being in love.

[sonolynn]

Forbidden Fruit

summary | Jace didn't want her, but Aemond did.

pairing | Aemond Targaryen x Fem!Reader

tags | 18+ MDNI, Jealously, Aemond yearning, explicit sexual content, mentions of bastards, loss of virginity, unprotected sex, size kink (?), oral f!receiving, Angst if you squint. "Technical" infidelity but is it really if Jace started it? (yes). ooc!Aemond (probably). NOT PROOF READ (its one am, leave me alone).

w.c | 3.8k

note(s) | My first smut fic!! Ah I'm scared...I also think I have a problem with making Aemond want fem!reader when he rightfully can't have her. Also I swear I'm not a Jace hater!! I love Jace, but in this fic specifically I made him long and wish for Baela.

____________________________________________

“Why don’t you marry her then?” 

Aegon’s voice was taunting, as if pushing Aemond to say something. Aemond stared down at the cup in front of him; even with a stoic expression, his mannerisms betrayed him. He tapped his finger against the edge of the cup, he picked at the skin around his nails on the opposite hand-all the tell tale signs of thinking, a mind that cannot be stopped. 

“Because she is betrothed to Rhaenyra’s bastard.” His voice dripped with malice as he spoke. Aemond hated that Jacerys would inherit the throne enough; What his bastard nephew didn’t need was the girl Aemond had wished for his entire life. Ever since the two of them were children Aemond had a…weird infatuation with her. When he was a boy, he would pick flowers from the garden and he would purposely do good deeds for her, just to have her hug him or smile graciously at him. 

But now, everything was different. She was a woman grown, and him a man grown. She was to be engaged to his bastard nephew, and he would have to sit and watch as they shared a kiss, held hands, smiled and danced as newlyweds. He’d have to hold a straight face as the two of them left to Jacerys’ bed chamber, only knowing the connotations that came with what would happen on their wedding night. 

Ignoring his brother's tedious rants about hells knows what, Aemond stood from his chair, opting for a walk in the gardens.

____________________________________________

Aemond walked, hands clasped behind his back, and his gaze drifted into nothingness as he walked with just his thoughts, and the cool breeze that accompanied the summer evenings. He tried to distract himself from the thoughts of her, for they were all almost too painful to ever truly think about. 

But he couldn’t help himself. He thought of her as a sickness, one that lingered and grew stronger by the day until it fully consumed your every waking moment. He thought of her laugh just as contagious as the plague, her eyes as intoxicating as the finest of wines. He thought her to be a type of sickness, and he so desperately wanted to be affected. 

Aemond was never one to smile-one to truly-smile, his half smirks or half smiles were only ever in a sarcastic sense, but for some reason his smiles were real with her. With her he laughed a little more, with her he walked a little faster. He knew it was stupid, perhaps perpetually idiotic-to ever think, let alone long for such a pure and innocent creature. 

As Aemond walked, he noticed her sitting by one of the fountains in the garden. She looked breathtaking, he thought to himself. Her hair was down and cascaded down her shoulders, her face was just the perfect amount of shaded with the moon's light. And above all, she held that intoxicating smile that she always held. He never knew why she was always smiling, nor did he wish to find out. 

She turned her head, her smile widening at the sight of Aemond. 

“Aemond!” Her voice was cheerful, slowly standing as he walked towards her. 

“Princess,” Aemond smiled-a half smile-at her as he looked around, then slowly back at her. “It’s quite late. Should you not be in your chambers?” 

She always thought the way he cared for her, even if he didn’t show it outright, was extremely enticing. She knew how he was with others, but she knew the differences he had with almost everyone in court-so what made her so different? Why her, the object of the second son's affection. 

“Perhaps I do not wish to sleep. Perhaps…I quite like the quietness of the garden.” She smiled innocently, looking back towards the fountain as she started to walk. Aemond knew her well enough to see that this was a quiet plea for him to join her; Because no matter how much she enjoyed the quietness of the garden, she enjoyed it much more when he was with her. 

Aemond stared at her, as he often did, but this time, it was different. The stare he held was nothing short of primal. He watched the light in her eyes as she smiled up at him and for some reason, now, he wished to watch as the innocent light in her eyes slowly dwindled as he claimed her. 

“Aemond? Is something wrong?” Her voice snapped his thoughts back, if only for a moment. She stopped walking to look up at him and she crossed her arms underneath her chest. His eye trailed down slowly, fixating on the way that her cleavage just slightly out of her dress. He was like a man starved; Clinging to the littlest of details that would make his imagination run wild. 

She seemed to notice the way that his eye raked over her chest like a starving man, and her face flushed with embarrassment. She-though subconsciously-reached up to place her arm over her chest, but to her surprise, Aemond gently took her hand, and when she looked up, his one sapphire eye was locked with hers. 

“You needn’t cover up. Not around me.” He spoke calmly, though his heart was racing and his head spinning. He let out a shaky breath as he lowered her hand and looked into her eyes. 

She watched him carefully, searching his gaze for anything that would betray him. In truth she didn’t know what she was searching for, but she felt as if she should be searching for something. 

Aemond lifted a hand, placing the back of his knuckles against her hot cheek. The gesture was gentle, and slow, something he was not known for. His eye slowly trailed down her face, and his eye caught on her lips, his breath heavy as he reached his hand up and gently placed his thumb over her plush bottom lip. 

Her eyes followed his, big, and full of longing. She stared at him as his thumb pushed against her lip. She didn’t know exactly what to do; She knew that this moment was intimate, far too intimate to be happening between a betrothed woman and a bachelor. But, the way he gazed at her made her feel hot, and the way he trailed his hand over her face and body made her want to see where this could lead. 

His free hand shakily went up to her waist, cupping it firmly as he brought her closer. He leaned forward, just slightly, till his nose was pressed against hers. Her breath hitched, and her eyes instinctively closed. She waited for him to press his lips against hers, to feel his mouth on hers like she had (shamefully) always wished for. But, it never came. 

When she opened her eyes again, she saw Aemond breathing heavily, desperately trying to restrain himself. He pulled away slightly, and he shook his head,

“I shouldn’t take advantage of you…not like this.” Though his words held conviction, it seemed his body betrayed him. His hand stayed on her waist, slowly trailing up and cupping her breast in his hand. She gasped softly at the feeling, and his thumb went to her lip again before he connected his lips to hers. She responded immediately, putting her hands on his arms. 

He kissed her like he was dying, his body subconsciously reacting more to the kiss then he’d wish it to. He pulled her flush against him, his strong hands coming to cup her face, his shoulders shrugging in a futile attempt to have her closer. He opened his mouth, causing her to gasp at the feeling of his tongue against hers. Her mouth moved with his as if it was known to her; As if this was a dance she had practiced for years to perfect, as if the dance of her lips was a song that Aemond had mastered just for her. 

She practically melted in his arms. She had been kissed before; Jace was a good kisser but he was soft, and the kisses were never not chaste. But, kissing Aemond was like walking through fire. Her entire body reacted to the way he clung to her body, how he pulled her impossibly closer. It was like a fire had escaped through his lips and was now coursing through her veins and settling in her abdomen. 

Even though she didn’t know exactly what to do, it seemed her body did. Her hands slid down his arms and slowly made their way to his chest as she moaned softly. 

The moan grounded him, like he had been falling from the heavens and down to earth. He suddenly pulled away, breathless as he stared down at her. Her eyes opened steadily, and she looked up at him with confusion while a frown graced her kiss swollen lips. 

“We shouldn’t have done that.” He spoke breathlessly, his hand still gently stroking her side. 

“Maybe not..but it felt good.” Gods, the way she spoke held him in a chokehold. He wished desperately to dive back into her; To drown in her lips and never come up for air, but.. 

“Not again. You are to be married.” He suddenly pulled away and at the feeling of his hands leaving her body, she frowned deeper. 

“Aemond-” “Goodnight, Princess.” 

And with that, the prince turned and rushed back into the keep. 

____________________________________________

Aemond couldn’t sleep. He tossed and turned in bed, picking at his nails, biting his lip-genuinely anything to help stop the incessant thoughts of her lips. 

The thoughts started off sweet and innocent. The way she looked up at him as he trailed his thumb over her lip, the way her lips pursed just slightly when he leaned forward. 

But then the thoughts got venereal fast. He thought about how he felt to finally kiss her. The way his lips practically burned when they pulled away. He knew that as he gazed at her kiss swollen lips his night would be harbored with thoughts of what they’d look like doing gods knows what else. 

His hand slid down underneath the sheets, firmly grasping at his length as he let out a shuddering breath. He hated doing this; Feeling so pent up and so desperate that he had to resort to using himself. But as of right now he couldn’t care less. 

He imagined her lips around his cock, her innocent eyes gazing up into his. He’d imagine the way she’d gag around him, how her lips would look kissing the head of his cock. 

He groaned at the thought, his head tipping back as he closed his eye and let his thoughts wander more. He’d think about how she’d look with his seed covering her lips and her chin, how she’d moan his name as he devoured her between her legs-

He peaked with a gasp, and a low moan of her name. The minute his orgasm washed over him, and he started to slowly come down, he felt an intense feeling of guilt, shame, but most of all pain. 

Guilt and shame because he hated himself for touching himself to someone who couldn’t be his. 

Pain because she’d never be his. Pain because he knew that no matter what he did, she’d still be betrothed to Jacerys. 

____________________________________________

The next morning, she sat alone at breakfast, supposedly liking it more that way. With her fiance practically ignoring her, and her father too entranced with kissing the king's ass, she learned to enjoy the solitude of just…nothing. 

Plus, she always had her thoughts. Even if they were only occupied with Aemond. 

She played around with the food on her plate as her mind trailed. She remembered the way he kissed her, how he held her. She felt happy, something she so rarely felt with Jacerys. 

She knew how he felt, how he longed for and wished for Baela. She did not blame him, she was beautiful, but she also didn’t feel sad, which, at a point did bother her but, not so much. 

At least, not after last night. 

She smiled to herself as she thought about the kiss, wishing that he would do it again, longing for the way the heat escalated through her body. 

She didn’t register the voice next to her until it spoke her name. 

She looked up, surprised. But, when her eyes met with Aemond’s, her heartbeat quickened, and she smiled. 

“Aemond.”

“You’re not hungry?”

“What?” “You’re not eating.” “Oh,” Her cheeks flushed red for a reason unbeknownst to her, and with a soft huff, she pushed the plate away, “It seems as though I have lost my appetite.” 

Aemond looked concerned at that, and he looked down at her. Despite himself, he found himself worrying yet again for her comfort, her needs. 

“Is something the matter?” She shakes her head, but for some reason, Aemond was persistent. “If this is about what happened last night, then I should apologize-” 

“Apologize?” She interrupted, sitting up straighter at the mention of the word. “Why?” 

“Yes…apologize. Because we should not have done that-”

“But I wanted it to happen.” 

Aemomd stopped and he slowly looked towards her. His eye pierced into hers as if to read every thought and emotion that crossed her brain. He just simply couldn’t believe her. 

“You shouldn’t say things you do not mean, Princess.”

“You don’t know that I don’t mean it.”

“Princess-”

“Aemond.” She said his name as if to challenge him, and he knew that he truly could never challenge her. He saw it in her eyes, he saw by the way she looked at him and smiled that she wished for him just as he wished for her. But these feelings-these blockages-would only cause unnecessary trouble. 

“Please, do not give me a hope that cannot be upheld.” Her heart broke a little at that, and, as he stood to leave, she instinctively stood with him, taking his wrist in her hand as she pulled on his arm. As if the small gesture would stop him from walking, (it did). 

“Aemond please..You do not know what I wish for.” 

His lip curled down into a small frown as he looked at her. He knew what she felt-at least he thought he did-but even if his suspicions were right, even if she did wish for him like how he longed for her, he couldn’t. He may dislike, perhaps even hate his nephew, but he was better than stealing his fiance. 

Right?

“We cannot. To be with you would disgrace your family and the alliance-” 

“Fuck the alliance!” She swore, her eyes boring into his as she studied his face. “Fuck the alliances Aemond, I wish for you. Desperately, I wish for you. Jace does not see me like how you do. Jace does not make me feel the way that you do-”

“It does not matter if Jace makes you happy or if he makes you feel desired-” “He does not wish for me as you do!”

“Princess-” “You do not understand! We are speaking of breaking it off. Neither of us wish for this.” Aemond went quiet at this and he sighed heavily, turning his full body towards her. He pried his arm away from her, staring at her incredulously, his body language giving no open window to how he was truly feeling. With no words coming from him, she continued. 

“I love you.” At those words Aemond showed his shock. He took a step back from her and he raised an eyebrow. 

“You do not mean-”

“Oh for the love of-Yes! I mean it! I love you, Aemond! I love you as if it is breathing! Instinctively, not thinking about it….I love you.” 

Aemond couldn’t hold it anymore, he walked to her and gripped her face tightly, her cheeks squishing slightly in his grasp as he smashed his lips against hers. She initially was shocked at the sudden kiss, but she kissed him back fiercely, holding his wrists as she leaned up to kiss him deeper. 

He led her back until he pressed her back against the table, holding her thighs as he pushed her onto the table. His body fit perfectly in between her thighs, just like he imagined it would. His hands gripped her thighs, one of his hands traveling up, feeling and savoring the soft skin as he groaned. 

She pulled away from the kiss to leave small kisses along his jaw. He bit his lip at the feeling, the action presumably so innocent and so sweet it almost made him chuckle. 

He pulled back slightly, his gaze intense and lust filled as his hand trailed underneath her breasts. 

“Tell me to stop.” He demanded. His head was spinning with the lust that clouded it. He waited for her to push him away, or to whimper a soft “I do not think myself ready”- But she shook her head, bringing his head back to hers swiftly to connect their lips in another passionate kiss. 

He pulled away from the kiss, groaning to himself as he left hot, open mouthed kisses against her jaw and neck. He looked down, his breath heavy as he stared down into her cleavage. He wished for nothing more than to rip her dress open and kiss every inch of her body, but being in the dining room came with its disadvantages. So, he settled for kissing her cleavage, before trailing his lips down the fabric of her dress till he came to her thighs.

Aemond pushed her dress up as far as he could, staring at her the whole time. He slowly pushed her thighs about, giving her time to stop him but she never did. Gently kissing the inner side of her thigh, he tried to reassure her. He could see the uncertainty in her eyes; The way she looked at him with both anxiety and lust. He stared up at her searching for any sign or signal that would make him stop. 

“Is this okay?” Once he saw the light nod of her head, he disappeared underneath her dress. 

She had never been intimate with a man-courtesy of her father, enforcing the “Women should be pure” melodramatic speech into her head ever since she could stand. She always thought it to be a chore, only having heard stories from unhappy married women who hated their husbands, and much less disliked their children a little less, but this? This was exciting, this felt good. 

She placed a hand on his head, moaning his name under her breath as he ate her like a beast. His hands gripped her thighs as if to ground himself-He had tasted women before but for some reason she was so much sweeter, so much more divine. His eyes practically rolled back just from pushing his tongue into her heat, sucking gently on her flit before he pulled away slightly, focusing his attention on her clit as he dipped a finger inside of her. 

The sudden stretch made her jump, and gasp loudly. She may have pleasured herself before but it really never felt like what Aemond was doing to her. He eased his finger in slowly, dragging it back out, and then slowly pushing it back in. Hearing the moans that graced her lips, he continued the slow thrust of his finger for a moment before he added another one. 

She let out a loud moan, a hand on the back of his head as she pushed his head closer to her heat. She felt him chuckle against her, the vibrations only adding to the pleasure. She moaned loudly, perhaps too loudly for comfort, but Aemond only seemed to want more of those noises to come from her. 

He slowly curled his fingers, his mouth praising her clit. The added pressure with the curl of his fingers, and the sucking of her clit made her eyes squeeze shut. 

“Oh gods Aemond, I’m going to-” Just as her orgasm was going to consume her, it stopped. With her heavy breathing, and slightly shaky legs, she slowly sat up. Aemond smirked up at her, holding her gaze as he nipped at her inner thighs. “You stopped..” 

“Yes. Because if you are going to peak it should be on my cock.” 

Her face flushed at the words, and she stared at him with wide eyes as he pulled his trousers down slightly to free his throbbing cock. As their eyes met, he seemed to notice the slight anxiety in her eyes, because he pressed his forehead against hers and lined himself up with her entrance. 

“Tell me to stop if it hurts too much.” She nodded in response, and she wrapped her arms tightly around his shoulders as he pushed into her. She let out a gasp; The feeling was new, discomfiting but..new. Her face scrunched up at the stretch, and Aemond shushed her quietly as he started to move. After a few thrusts, her body relaxed, and she started to moan his name. 

Hearing his name fall from her lips was like a prayer answered, like a lifelong dream he had been waiting for. He grunted as he started to rock his hips back and forth into her slowly. It took everything inside of him to not pound into her, to fuck her like he had fantized about. He wished that her father could see her now, her maidenhood gone and her body fully submitting to the pleasure he so gracefully gave her. 

“Aemond..Aemond oh gods-” Her voice broke as he went faster, her moans only getting louder. She tried to wrap her mind around the pleasure he was giving her, the way his hips moved slowly yet deeply, the way the tip of his thick cock rubbed against the spot so deliciously. Her eyebrows furrowed, and she held him close to her. 

One of his hands was on her thigh, the other on the table as he thrusted into her, as if holding the edge of the table would stop the creaking sounds, or the way she moaned his name, or how his groans got louder as his climax approached. 

White splattered her vision as her orgasm washed over. She cried out his name in pleasure, holding him close as his legs trapped him inside of her. The feeling of her core pulsating and tightening made Aemond’s head spin, and he grunted out a moan of her name as he came himself, spilling his seed inside of her. 

As the two sat there, basking in the afterglow of being intimate, neither of them would move for what felt like hours. Even though the position that they were in was compromising, they smiled, and laughed softly at the situation itself. 

Once they both got cleaned up-the best they could get cleaned up for just having sex on the dining room table-Aemond took her hand. She smiled softly at Aemond, her heart racing in a new, and exciting way. The two stared at each other for a while, trying to wrap their minds around the fact that now, they could truly be together, or at least, now, they had a hope that they could be together.

____________________________________________

[3amfanfiction]

I fully headcannon that Simon Riley is the type to take anything you give him, regardless of the impact to his health.

“Simon, you’re home!”

He had just walked in the door as you take a bite of a cooling cookie. you grab another one and hurry over to give him a hug and kiss, then you hand one of the cookies over to him. “You’ve gotta try these. They’re a cherry cream-cake cookie that my coworker gave me the recipe for. Tell me what you think!”

You wait expectantly for him to try it, bouncing excitedly when he tells you it’s good.

you grin as you stuff the rest of your cookie into your mouth and hurry back to finish your last batch. Simon follows and sits at the kitchen table to visit with you while you finish baking and begin cleaning the kitchen.

Before too long you notice his voice start to go a little hoarse when he answers your questions. as he clears his throat for the third time you ask, “You okay? Do you need something to drink?”

“Nah, I’ll b’ fine” he rasps, standing and coming to give you a kiss on the forehead. “i’ll be back in a bit, lovie.”

Is out the door before you can get your thoughts together enough to question him.

That evening you’re laying in bed when the door opens and in walks Simon.

When he crawls into bed you turn to him and let out a “Simon!’ when you see him covered in hives “what happened to you?”

He tells you he went to A&E since he’s allergic to cherries. His throat was swelling up while he was listening to you tell him about your day and he broke out in hives shortly after he left.

When you grill him, trying to figure out what was going through his mind when he accepted the cookie without saying anything, he just shrugs and pulls you into his chest with an eye roll and a, “it came from you, sweetheart. What was I gonna do? Not eat it?”

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