#working at the theater has its perks

[ruby-thursda7]

saw puss in boots for the 5th time today :)

[mrrharper]

Not In The Exhibit Brochure

It was a hot summer day and the city was filled with people coming to be a part of one of the biggest fantasy conventions in the country. Video games, board games, tabletop RPGs, LARP, movies, TV shows, theater shows, even musicals. If one fancied themselves a fan of a franchise that existed in any of these forms, they could be found spending a sunny August weekend in the convention center.

Mark meandered between countless people in the Second Pavilion, getting tired having spent the last five hours walking around the convention area, being asked for pictures and catching up with his friends. This year he came wearing a full cosplay of one of the characters from his favorite first person shooter. He put on a tactical vest, helmet with a full headset, a tactical belt with a bunch of accessories and camo pants. In his hands he was bearing a perfect replica of the most famous gun from the game.

He spent a long time perfecting the costume, both by searching for just the right gear and by spending hours in the gym. Now his broad and thick shoulders, football-sized biceps and veiny forearms were visible for all attendees, which garnered Mark a lot of attention, which he enjoyed.

It was exhausting, however. The temperature inside the convention center got uncomfortably high at times, so he decided to take a break. He fold the few friends who joined him during the day that he was leaving for a while to take in some relatively fresh air, then pushed his way through the crowds until he got to the exit.

Thanks to the fact that the center was basically in the middle of the city he didn't have to go far to get to a park and relax, then find a place to eat and just take a walk through the city.

Mark was aware that many businesses and institutions had various perks for the convention ticket holders, to keep the attendees in the city for longer and spread the economic effects of the convention. He was reminded of this fact just as he was walking by the giant building of the art museum. His curiosity was piqued and he checked if he would get a discount of a ticket. It turned out he could walk in for free, the only requirement was to show his pass at the entrance.

What Mark saw after getting through a quick but awkward security check truly amazed him. He slowly walked from one part of the building to the next, taking his time to watch every piece, all displayed in a well air-conditioned space, which was a nice bonus. The museum had a bunch of different special exhibits currently open to the public and they were all pretty stunning, each in its own way.

Finally, Mark made his way to a part of the museum furthest away from the entrance where he saw a recent collection of sculptures from a local artist. Each statue was an extremely realistic depiction of a person, and they were supposed to collectively represent modern society. There were athletes mid-run, businessmen in the middle of walking in between offices, chefs tasting their newest creations, it was all incredible to watch, every sculpture most likely taking weeks or months to complete. Mark stood in the middle of the room as he looked around and every time he managed to find a new detail in one of the statues. While his eyes were jumping from one piece to another, inspecting every curve and small detail, he was unaware of just how much time has passed since he entered this space.

And then he tried to move.

Mark heard his phone buzz loudly in his pocket. It was probably one of his friends wanting to check up on him. He tried to move his hand to take the phone and answer the call, but it wouldn't move. Neither would his head. Or any part of his body. He was immediately alarmed. Mark tried as hard as he could to get any element within his human form to move even an inch, but it didn't work. His whole body was suddenly completely stationary and he could not control its movements, because he couldn't cause any movements. He started to panic and hoped someone would notice that he wasn't well. There were a lot of people at the museum so it would be just a matter of time before one of them came to this room and noticed a guy in a military cosplay was standing weirdly still.

Except this did not happen. Visitors just passed by him with no interest in the person standing frozen in the middle of the room. As Mark looked with his unmovable eyes at the tourists wandering around the space right in front of him he felt like he was losing the track of time. Was it a minute ago that he realized he couldn't move? No it mus have been almost an hour by then. Nah, it couldn't be.

Then Mark realized something horrifying. Not only was no one coming up to help him, they began to stop in front of him and just look at him, as if he was just another...

Did he turn into a fucking statue?! That terrifying thought seeped deep into his mind wreaking havoc along the way. How could this have happened? Magic? But magic wasn't real! That was impossible, this was a dream, for sure! He tried to move his body even a little bit, but again he failed every time. He desperately tried to force his hand to move so that he could pinch himself and wake up from this terrifying nightmare. But no part of his arm changed position, not even an inch.

A larger group of tourists, mostly retirees, led by a young woman slowly moved through the exhibition space and passed by Mark, who continued to struggle and try to move.

"Huh, the guide didn't say anything about this one. Did that lovely lady talk about this soldier, Harold?" An elderly couple stopped in front of Mark and they stood there and admired him for a moment.

"No, Mary, I'm pretty sure I'd remember" The man, Harold, took a step closer towards the statue.

"Harold!" The woman shouted at him. "You can't walk up too close to the sculptures dear."

"Oh, calm down" Harold responded, slightly annoyed at his wife's comment. "I'm in an art museum so don't tell me to not look at the art." The older man stood just a few steps away from Mark. "There's no plaque or rope or anything, this is a free country, Mary!" He was a few inches shorter than Mark, so he couldn't clearly see everything but it seemed he was just looking at Mark's gear.

"Look. The artist — that Gary what's-his-name — knew what he was doing with this one. I recognize all that gear this man is wearing. Nice work." Harold's tone of voice suggested he was weirdly pleased with the statue that used to be Mark. "This is what a real man's supposed to look like. Not some sissy sitting behind the desk all day."

"Of course Harold, of course" The woman walked up to her husband and put her arm around him, then started gently pushing him towards the other statues.

Mark's brain struggled to comprehend what he had just witnessed. He had really turned into a statue! People thought he was a part of the exhibit! How could this have happened? He couldn't come up with any even remotely plausible explanation for what he was experiencing. He then thought that his only hope would be his friends - they knew he was downtown, maybe some would guess that he used the opportunity to get into the art museum for free, which would lead them to the place where Mark was currently stranded.

The group of retirees came back, walked next to Mark and was about to leave the room when the tour guide looked at him and murmured to herself.

"This statue was not a part of the exhibit. How did it get here?" She grabbed her phone and quickly led her group towards the rest of the museum.

Mark again realized he couldn't tell how much time had passed since any of the recent events. It was as if his internal clock had stopped working, ran out of batteries. This whole experience was so confusing that he had issues fully registering everything. He tried counting in his head, but got lost after 20, maybe? The only thing he was sure of, for now, was that the day had not yet ended, but he could not tell what part of the day it was, as the whole museum was constantly lit with this slightly weird diffused lighting.

Three people suddenly came into view and stood some distance away from Mark, clearly looking at him. He couldn't hear the conversation they were having because of the noise from surrounding visitors, but he could clearly see that they were all agitated, talking over each other and aggressively pointing at themselves and Mark. As he looked closer he realized they were all museum employees, meaning they were probably debating what to do with a statue which has suddenly appeared within the premises of the musem they worked for, a rather uncommon occurrence.

Not long after they left Mark's view and he was once again stuck in this feeling ot timelessness. Tourists stopped in front of him every now and then, looked at him for a moment and moved on, while he stood still, holding the gun in his hands as if ready to fight, and yet incapable of it because of some indescribable force.

The employees from before came back, one of them holding in their hands a metal stand of come kind. It had something written on it at the top, but Mark couldn't see what it was. What he could see was the employee putting the stand in front of him and them all looking at it.

"That will have to do for now" One of them said. This time they were standing closer and Mark was able to hear what they were saying.

"Yeah, I won't be able to make a proper one until tomorrow."

"Okay, but it has to be there by Monday afternoon, otherwise we're fucked. Jesus Christ, still'can't believe this happened."

"No time for moaning, Jacob. We have work to do." Another one replied. They all nodded their heads, took one last look at the stand and quickly left the scene.

Mark thought about what he had just witnessed, and it took him a moment to understand - this was a stand with information about the statue, which meant him. It was the same kind as dozens more throughout the museum that visitors could look at for further information that was meant to enrich their experiences. This was meant to hide the fact that he was not here just mere hours, or minutes, or days, or-- he was certainly not here when the exhibition was opened. That fact was probably what had made them so angry and confused before - from their perspective a random statue of a soldier randomly appeared in the museum.

His mind immediately asked one question - I wonder what did they write on there? What was his title, his author, his artistic description or statement? Wait, his author? That was a strange line of thought, Mark realized.

I am Uncontrolled Power.

Wait, what was that? Who said that? Where was that deep voice coming from?

I was created by Greg Duchaime Arreman.

Was there someone standing behind him?

I am meant to represent unchecked aggression and power of the Military Industrial Complex.

Wait a second, what this voice inside his head?

I am the physical manifestation of toxic masculinity and bravado.

Holy fuck, this was a voice inside his head. Was this... what they had written about him on this stand?

Fuck yeah, I'm an alpha who follows orders and crushes any sign of disloyalty.

The voice was talking to Mark. Shit, the voice was talking to him! What the fuck?

You scum, get ready to experience the primal, animalistic force of a toxic man! I'm gonna crush you!

Mark wanted to sigh loudly, but of course he couldn't. Great, the museum employees with their great art wisdom made him a stereotypical aggressive soldier. Obedient muscle. The armored tool of American imperialism. And this soldier character seemed to have appeared inside his head.

I am here to blindly follow orders, enforce them and show everyone what masculinity really means!

If Mark could have rolled his eyes, he would. He was stuck, like an NPC frozen mid-frame, standing in the middle of an art museum, possibly forever. And from now on he would represent toxic masculinity, aggression and military prowess.

Whoever stands in my way will be violently crushed with the power of the American Military and my primal force! Toxic and proud, that's who I am!

[jbaileyfansite]

USA Today Interview (2024)

For Jonathan Bailey, one of the biggest perks of starring in a massive franchise is getting your very own Lego figure.

The British actor, who plays the swoony prince Fiyero in “Wicked,” is featured in a 945-piece plastic Emerald City set. Although he has yet to procure the toy metropolis for himself, “Christmas is coming and I hope I’ve been a good boy this year,” Bailey says with a grin.

The impish heartthrob has been using Legos to unwind while on a weekslong promotional tour for the blockbuster movie musical, which tells the origin story of the witches of Oz. “Just last night, I managed to (put together) the Atlantic Ocean in this giant Lego globe that I’m currently building,” he delightedly explains.

The fantasy film caps off a monumental year for Bailey, 36, who earned an Emmy nomination for his devastating work in Showtime miniseries “Fellow Travelers,” and spent the summer in Thailand shooting “Jurassic World: Rebirth” (in theaters July 2, 2025) alongside Scarlett Johansson.

“It’s extraordinary the types of roles I’ve been able to play these last two years,” says Bailey, who broke through to U.S. audiences on Netflix phenom “Bridgerton” in 2020. “I’m pinching myself. If I could have gone back and told my younger self that this would be happening, I’d probably do a flip.”

Jonathan Bailey brings 'boyish charm' to 'Wicked' prince Fiyero

Bailey is no stranger to musical theater: At just 8 years old, he played the pint-sized revolutionary Gavroche in “Les Misérables” on London’s West End. And in 2019, he won an Olivier Award for a gender-swapped revival of Stephen Sondheim’s “Company,” singing the mile-a-minute “Getting Married Today.”

But it was a viral audition tape for the musical “The Last Five Years” that caught the attention of “Wicked” director Jon M. Chu. “It felt like the thing I’ve always loved about musicals, where the song is just an extension of the dialogue. It felt like acting,” Chu recalls. “He just has that X factor. There’s such a boyish charm to him that you’re like, ‘That is Fiyero.’”

Like many, Bailey became obsessed with “Wicked” thanks to its Broadway cast album and 2004 Tony Awards performance with Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth. “The lyrics are so fascinating and witty,” Bailey says. “I remember laughing specifically at Glinda singing how this hat is ‘really, uh, sharp, don’t you think?’ I screamed!”

When the contumacious Fiyero arrives at Shiz University from Winkie Country, he instantly enchants the besotted Glinda (Ariana Grande), but slowly finds himself drawn to the green-skinned Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo). He also freely flirts with both his male and female classmates.

“Fiyero is confident and curious and kind enough to invite anyone to Winkie Country,” Bailey says cheekily. But as a gay actor, he’s grateful for the “years and years of progress” that have allowed him to be the leading man in a big-budget movie like “Wicked.”  

“There's been many Fiyeros before me, and many members of the LGBT community who have fought for times where someone like me could play these parts,” Bailey says. "This story resonates for so many people because it’s about identity and celebrates our similarities. In playing Fiyero, you realize what an ally he is to someone who’s outside of society. People are incredibly unkind to Elphaba, and he uses his charm and privilege” to help her feel accepted. “It’s really lovely.”

The 'Bridgerton' dreamboat heads to 'Jurassic World' next

“There's been many Fiyeros before me, and many members of the LGBT community who have fought for times where someone like me could play these parts,” Bailey says. "This story resonates for so many people because it’s about identity and celebrates our similarities. In playing Fiyero, you realize what an ally he is to someone who’s outside of society. People are incredibly unkind to Elphaba, and he uses his charm and privilege” to help her feel accepted. “It’s really lovely.”

The 'Bridgerton' dreamboat heads to 'Jurassic World' next

Bailey delivers one of the movie’s standout numbers in “Dancing Through Life,” in which Fiyero persuades his schoolmates to join him for a night on the town at the trendy Ozdust Ballroom. The song begins in the Shiz library, where Fiyero swings between ladders, slides across desks, and flips through novels using only his feet. The actor spent seven weeks rehearsing the choreography, much of which takes place on rotating bookshelves.

“It turns out in Fiyero’s boots, it’s not so easy to open books and read ‘War and Peace’ with your toes,” Bailey jokes. “I also started training vocally over Zoom while I was filming ‘Fellow Travelers.’ I would do these scenes with Matt Bomer where I’d be smoking and screaming, and then I’d have to come back and sing somehow.”

Ultimately, making "Wicked" helped Bailey feel more at ease taking on the beloved "Jurassic Park" series, in which he plays a bespectacled paleontologist named Dr. Henry Loomis.

“Dancing and closing books with your toes does not save you from raptors,” Bailey quips. “ ’Wicked’ is its own beautiful beast, but it leans so much on the original imagery of ‘The Wizard of Oz.’ It taught me to blur out the reality of what it means to step into an incredibly iconic story, and just focus on working hard and having a lot of fun."

Bailey teases that he has another musical project “on the horizon.” In the meantime, Fiyero will have a more substantial role in "Wicked: Part Two" (in theaters Nov. 21, 2025), which shot back-to-back with the first movie. He still regrets not taking home the character's black leather boots, created by "genius" costume designer Paul Tazewell.

“I did manage to steal some postcards from the Emerald City,” Bailey says. “Some of those accidentally flew off in the middle of a take and landed in my bag. Other than that, I hope Paul will send me Fiyero’s tight pants one day."

Source

[kitashousewife]

you & me

an: i feel like gojo needs a break every now and then!! the chance to relax and i feel like he should get spoiled too!!!

pairings: gojo x fem!reader

warnings: angst from gojo, stress, anxiety, sorcerer au but everyone is happy and alive, alcohol mention and consumption, food mention, suggestive content

-

gojo's head hangs over the back of his desk chair as he lets out a long, exhaustion-filled sigh. he sways back and forth slightly, eyes shut, trying to relax for a few minutes. if he's not teaching, he's somewhere around the world on a mission. if he's not doing either of those, he's lying awake in bed with a drumming heart and a hyperactive mind.

with you by his side, of course.

being the strongest has its perks, for sure. challenges that help him grow and improve, opportunities to see the world, as well as more than enough financial stability. it's quite nice to be at the top.

it's pretty lonely as well.

the demand of it all has begun to take a toll on gojo, both mentally and physically. his bones ache, and his muscles strain more than they have before. just this morning during his training with the second years, he allowed himself to get pinned rather quickly by maki in 30 seconds. his fingers shake no matter how much he eats or drinks. even in his late twenties, gojo feels almost triple that.

the mental effects are a whole other story. at this point, he hasn't slept in almost four days, not that he hasn't tried. gojo's usually sharp mind is exhausted during fights, hyper-focused, and completely used up by the end of the day. and, for the first time in his life, he feels anxious. constantly looking behind himself, checking the school cameras, and even begging to install stricter security on your shared home than you already have.

he exhales, opening his eyes. he just wants a vacation.

"i'm really sorry, but nobody else is available," principal yaga sympathizes over the phone. the end of your pen taps on your notebook while you think.

"nobody from kyoto? what about a team? i know it's important, but satoru is tired and-"

"i know he is," yaga agrees. "but i told you, i can't find anyone else. i'm afraid that this mission needs someone of gojo's caliber. unless a miracle happens, i can't guarantee any time off. i'm sorry, i really am."

you rub your eyes, nodding as you cross off yet another failed idea.

"no worries. thank you for trying though."

you hang up and groan. this is the fifth idea that you've come up with today. valentine's is only a couple away, and you want to plan something special for your boyfriend. he's clearly overworked, yet he never fails to spoil you. it's your turn.

if something could work, of course.

you think for a few more minutes before giving up. you rise from your spot at the kitchen table, shuffling towards the fridge. at least you could make some dinner before he gets home.

"hey sweetheart," gojo's very tired frame comes through the garage door.

dinner will have to wait.

"hi! i'm so happy to see you." you give him a large hug, and notice that he leans into you a bit more than normal. he's already out of his blindfold and uniform jacket, both thrown on the floor near his shoes.

"i'm happier to see you. how about we order pizza or something? don't worry about cooking anything tonight."

you smile. even with his fatigue, he just wants to make you happy.

"whatever you want, 'toru."

the evening feels short. after eating dinner together and watching a couple episodes of a show that neither of you really notices, gojo heads to take a shower. you hope to figure out more of the valentine's festivities before he comes out.

you think about surprising him at work. going there early, setting up some decorations and his favorite treats all nice before he arrives. it's a great plan, except he would notice you were gone.

you consider seeing a movie, maybe even the nice theater that opened up. much to your dismay, every show time is sold out.

you're about to try another theater when your phone rings.

"i'm so sorry for calling this late. do you have a few minutes?" it's yaga again. he only calls you if he can't get ahold of gojo himself. your stomach turns.

"don't apologize. and sure, is everything okay?"

he chuckles. "actually, yes. turns out the kyoto branch wants to handle it. they have a team that i'm fairly confident will be able to get the job done, and then some."

your turning changes to butterflies. "what are you saying?"

the smile in your voice must be evident, as he laughs again.

"i'm saying that you're clear. gojo won't have any missions for at least a couple weeks, so he's all yours."

you jump up and down a couple times. "oh, my gosh. thank you, so much. i can't thank you enough."

"don't mention it. he deserves it."

you end the call, running over to your laptop. you might be able to pull this off.

"what's got you so excited?"

"satoru!"

he grins from behind you. he knows how much you hate when he sneaks up on you.

"really though, everything okay?"

"yeah. everything is perfect."

you shuffle by him towards your shared bedroom. he raises an eyebrow. his lithe frame leans against the wall while you grab pajamas.

"you're hiding something."

"six-eyes tell you that?"

he snorts. "no, i just know you. tell me, pretty girl. what's going on?"

"you'll find out in a couple days!" you peck him on the lips and get into bed. he joins you with a shake of his head. for the first time in a while, gojo gets a few hours of sleep.

if someone was to win the world's most impatient award, it would be gojo satoru. you're happy that today is the day to finally spoil your boyfriend, but a large part of you is happy to be done with his prying.

you complete the finishing touches on your look, finalizing the plan in your head. thanks to some friends, you were able to get a table at one of the nicest restaurants in tokyo. five courses, dessert, everything is perfect. you will finish the night in a hotel, one that overlooks the city and is luxurious in every sense of the word.

"how do i look?"

you look at your reflection and see your boyfriend staring back at you. black glasses rest on the tip of his nose, and white hair falls around his face. he's in a simple black suit, and shiny dress shoes, complete with a pricey-looking watch.

"you look amazing, as usual. are you ready?"

a low whistle sneaks through his lips as you walk by him. blue eyes drag up your figure and gojo can't help himself. he grabs you by the wrist, pulling you into his chest with a coy smile.

"i'm sure we could spare a few minutes," he smiles wide now, keeping one hand on your waist as the other sneaks up to the zipper of your dress. you put a hand on his chest to push him back, and he pouts.

"we do not, 'toru. we need to go or you'll ruin the surprise. you sure you want that?"

he trails behind you with a whine. "i'm okay with the idea of it," he jokes, raising his eyebrows at you, but you shake your head.

"i'm serious, it's time to go!"

gojo's fingers pull at the drivers seat, but you wave him off quickly.

"what! at least let me drive," he pouts once again, and you giggle.

"you don't even know where you're going! it's not a far drive anyway, get in please!"

he gives up, finally letting you spoil him. he would never admit it, but he feels terrible he didn't plan something for valentine's day first. every year he's done something elaborate. trips, jewelry, booking entire restaurants, renting out entire beaches, anything flashy and loud to scream to the world that you're his. he can't help but feel a little down, though. gojo is nothing if not showy, especially when it comes to you.

the drive is relatively short. traffic in the city gives the two of you time to catch up. gojo shares about his students, marveling at their rapid growth and mastery of their own techniques. the way he lights up when sharing stories of their success warms your heart.

this is the gojo that you know. the man who would do anything for those he loves. the man who would drop everything he's doing to go do something absolutely mundane with you. the man who sacrifices everything to make sure everyone important to him is safe.

"we're here," you announce quietly, voice trailing off with the nerves. you pull the car up to the valet, and gojo is quick to leap out of the car as soon as you park. he opens the door for you with a grin, helping you out and sliding his arm around your waist.

"wow baby," he eyes the restaurant. he's never told you, but he's spent about six months on the waitlist for this place. 'how'd you score this?"

"i have my ways," you smirk. if he's impressed now, you can't wait for him to see what's in store.

gojo watches as you whisper with the hostess, quirking a brow as they scurry back quickly. he's even more surprised when what looks like the owner of the restaurant gives you a hug. soon, you motion him over with a big smile. he points at himself, mouthing a cheeky me? to which you roll your eyes.

gojo follows you, holding your hand as the two of you are led throughout the entire restaurant. dozens of couples dine together, laughing and carrying on with looks of love and adoration. it only makes gojo more excited, especially since the two of you are going further and further away from the crowd.

"here we are," your friend motions towards a small round table, adorned with champagne flutes, plates, and a bottle ready on ice. gojo pulls your chair out for you, kissing your cheek before sitting down. what's even better, is that this table is the only one in the room. "the first course should be out in about fifteen minutes or so. until then, enjoy yourselves."

you nod to your friend as they exit, before turning to your lover.

"oh my god baby," gojo looks around the room, eyes sparkling from the light of the candles that surround you. "what, i mean, how?"

your cheeks heat up, and he takes your hand in his.

"i know how busy you've been, how hard you're working, and i wanted to make this special. besides, you're always doing something for others, especially me," you squeeze his hand. "it's time i take care of you for once."

maybe it's the lighting, the way that you look tonight, or the overwhelming feeling of being taken cared of and loved, but gojo can't help but feel emotional. he looks at you, eyes full of adoration, and he laughs to himself.

"i love you. so much. i don't deserve you."

you shake your head at that.

"you deserve everything good, satoru. i mean that, with my whole heart."

he kisses your knuckles. "i love you more, my perfect girl."

he stands up and checks his watch before walking towards you. he knees to your height, kissing you softly on the lips. your lips move with his, gasping when his hand smooths over your thigh and tongue swipes at your lips.

"we have about ten minutes left," he breathes on your lips and your breathing quickens. his other hand moves up your calf, under your dress before sliding up your thigh.

"how about i show you just how much i love you, my angel?"

[queeniesblog]

Desires of The Heart and Body

Pairing: Z x Carmi(Fem Favor!OC)

Word Count: 12.2k

Warnings: Smut

Synopsis:

Thankfully, Z grabbed Carmi's chin and forced her to look directly into his heated eyes. Oh how beautiful they were, she lovingly sighed in silence. Swirls of shimmering gold, crimson as red as rubies and a dash of violet beneath a mess of soft hair hypnotically entranced her, keeping Carmi hanging off of the demon’s every word.

“Do not,” Z growled, glaring down at the dark skinned woman as his tail began to curl around her throat. “Even think about those humans in my presence. Not your pathetic little friends, not your insignificant little ex, and definitely not that sniveling, annoying blue haired idiot.”

Carmi could feel herself trembling, but not from fear. Oh, never from fear. But she wished that it was, for fear would be a far less shameful emotion to have at this moment.

‘Jesus, sweet Jesus,’ Carmi silently prayed to a god she knew would not listen. ‘Please, please, please, do not let this man find out how attractive his voice is. I’ll never hear the end of it.’

Notes: Welcome to the first fanfic I have for planned for the VN Favor! Before the story starts, I would like to give a special shoutout to @concreteparasite for not only creating Z, but also developing this amazing VN that will NOT leave my head. I also would like to give another massive shoutout to zackvalence for absolutely killing this VA role and really bringing Z to life. And finally, I would like to give a big, big shoutout to @winged-self-indulgence for helping me, inspiring me and giving me the courage to actually publish this massive fic. Diya if it wasn't for you I wouldn't have the balls to post this. Please enjoy!

AO3 Link

“...finally I gave up and recommended some simple tips to get better rest: don’t ingest caffeine or alcohol, avoid any tech when getting ready for bed, try lowering the room temperature… You know, things like that.” Carmi’s dark eyes flickered to her drink as she remembered the conversation that took place earlier in the day with her creepy coworker at the movie theater they both worked at. It was already bad enough that Alvin just couldn’t(or wouldn’t at this point) take the hint and give up on his crush on her. A crush that was unreciprocated as Carmi had a boyfriend. A boyfriend who she had told everyone about multiple times. A boyfriend who made her happy. A boyfriend who was…

Listening to her story about her day at this very instant.

“Then I told him if all that didn’t work, then he should just hit up his GP and ask about using some zolpidem or eszopiclone.”

“Hmph.” Z’s face, which was usually a mixture of adorably cute and devilish handsome, had scrunched up in annoyance at the mention of her human co-worker. The demon made no efforts to hide his intense dislike of Alvin. But then again, it didn’t appear to be personal as Z didn’t seem to like anyone in her “friend group”. Maybe that was a red flag. Or, it would be if Carmi didn’t also start to carry an ever growing dislike of her supposed ‘friends’. 

“You should have left him to suffer his fate. That would have been much more entertaining.” Z seemed to perk up at the thought of Alvin having to suffer multiple sleepless nights. Dizzy, disoriented and having to endure splitting headaches every single waking moment. As tempting as it was to ignore Alvin and leave him to suffer, Carmi was worried about him. Not because she cared about her co-worker(quite the opposite really) but more so, concerned that if his mental state deteriorated any further, there was no telling what Alvin could do. As easy as it was to simply wave off Alvin of being incapable of committing horrible actions due to his personality alone, it was better safe than sorry. Carmi would rather deal with a minor annoyance now, than a massive problem later.   

“Hmm.. at least he has good tastes in candies.” Carmi rolled the strawberry bon-bon between her dark fingers. At least helping people sometimes had its perks. Even if Alvin was an annoying, creepy, incel of a stalker, at least he had a general idea of what she liked. “It's one of his few redeeming qualities.”

“Few?” Carmi could already hear Z’s unspoken question of ‘He has ANY redeeming qualities?’

“I mean, as much as I don’t personally like the guy, Alvin isn’t the worst person I’ve had to work with…” Carmi thought long and hard about the many group projects she had to endure in her younger school days. Unfortunately, being the quiet kid with the best grades often meant that her classmates were going to be as useful as a broken candy coated jizz-filled condom.

“He pulls his weight, he doesn’t do things that would get me in trouble, and when I ask him to do something, he does it.” Carmi listed off, oblivious to the demon’s growing ire. “Yeah… he’s not a bad partner at all.”

Carmi swirled the chilled brandy around, as if the sound of the liquid hitting against the glass would help calm her thoughts. Carmi had been in romantic relationships before- first with Jay and then her recent ex, Xander. Feeling sexual desires for another wasn’t new territory for her, hell, even having sex wasn’t. But she had never felt it with such intensity, such ferocity . It was as if the make-out session Carmi had shared with the fiend had unlocked some sort of floodgate. When they were together, it was bad enough, but at least Carmi could distract herself with the endless entertainment that Z provided. He was very good at distracting her from her problems after all.

When they were apart however?

The dark skinned woman knew from the moment that she looked for Z’s adorable dimple whenever he smiled, that she was done for. And unsurprisingly, her hypothesis had been one-hundred percent correct. Whenever the two could not be around each other, it was like utter agony . All she wanted to do was spend time with Z, or talk and text him to see how he was doing when they couldn’t be hanging out. It had even affected her emotionless persona at her job. If there was any time that Carmi didn’t need to use her brain on the job, she would simply sigh and mentally moan about how much better it would be if Z was with her, or she with him. In the back of her head, all Carmi could constantly think about was her boyfriend- his shit eating smile showing off his sharp teeth and split tongue, the smell of whiskey and smoke that curled around his body, his dangerously honey sweet voice, his eyes, his memorizing eyes…

Carmi mentality slapped herself aside the head. She was becoming too clingy. This way of thinking was downright creepy and had gotten to such a bad point that Carmi had bought a black silk choker with an oval shaped pendant. But not just any necklace. No, it was a gorgeous fire stone opal that shimmered beautifully, with the same colors of Z’s eyes. It had cost her a pretty penny too- but when she had first seen it while window shopping on one of her few off days, it was like the dark skinned woman had blacked out. Before Carmi could even register what was going on, the bagged and paid for necklace was already in her hand with the shopkeeper waving her goodbye. She resisted the urge to kick herself as she quickly strode her way back home. Why, why had she done that?! 

Carmi's eyes flickered to the agitated demon as she once again stewed over her thoughts. No, she knew why she had bought the damn necklace. She hated to admit it but… the thought of wearing something that subtly showed just who she belonged to sent a pleasant tingling chill down her spine. God, that was so embarrassing to admit. It was even more embarrassing to admit she was wearing the dang thing! Not that Z had made the connection thankfully. Or… did she want him to notice? A non-verbal symbol of her devotion to him. Would Z like it if they had known just how badly she wanted to be marked by him…?

The small candy felt warm in her hands. Carmi didn’t feel like eating the sweet, nor answering any of the questions she had asked herself. Besides, the woman could see how annoyed her companion had gotten at the mention of her coworker. 

“Uhhh, I don’t really want to eat any sweets right now.” Carmi placed the candy on the table in front of the fiend. She didn’t want to risk touching him, as any physical contact might have emboldened her to ask Z if he wanted to grope her ass or chest. “You can have it if you want-” 

Z swiftly flicked the candy across the table and onto the floor. Or rather, attempted as Carmi quickly intervened, blocking the action with her hand. The strawberry bon-bon rolled pitifully onto the floor.

“Z… why would you do that?”

“It had a bug on it.” Z lied. Carmi sighed and narrowed her eyes at the demon as she pointed a finger at him.

“Listen Z. I don’t know what type of demonic mumbo jumbo you have going on where literally no one reacts to our presence,” Carmi started to lower herself to receive the abandoned candy. “But I was raised to always clean up after myself when I went out to eat. It is never okay to leave a mess!”

“Really now?” Carmi couldn’t see all of Z’s face, but she could practically hear his eyebrow raising. She thought about what she said a bit more as she hummed thoughtfully.

“Hmmm… not really, no. They were pretty abusive to the waiter staff now that I think about it.” Carmi rested her chin on the table. “Not the point though. I always clean up any mess that I make.” 

“Awww, look at you being such a good girl Carmi.” Z cooed as if she was an adorable pet. A tiny shiver nearly ran through her body but she suppressed the sensation. She was getting quite good about doing that around Z now. 

‘Yeah, I’ll be your good girl any day of the week.’ Carmi thought to herself. 

“Haha, yeah! Right back at you, your highness!” Carmi nervously laughed as the woman practically dove underneath the table to hide the blood rushing to her face.

‘Right back at you? RIGHT BACK FUCKING AT YOU?! ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!’ The urge to slam her head on the wall in frustration was immense. ‘WHY THE FUCK DID I SAY THAT?!’

She wanted Z so, so incredibly badly that at this point, it was making her look fucking stupid. And even though it caused her spikes of shame to run rampant throughout Carmi’s body, it did nothing to rein in the borderline animalistic urges she felt towards the demon. The thoughts about Z couldn’t be stopped at this point.

But… would she want them to stop?

True, it had become difficult for Carmi to rein in her lustful urges. It was if every time she managed to squander one depraved thought about the demon, two more would pop up. They would whisper temptations in her mind, recounting and speculating the possibilities of what could happen if she managed to fuck Z. Each time left Carmi with goosebumps on her dark skin and her feeling like a depraved, dripping mess. But, wasn’t it natural to feel sexual attraction to a romantic partner? Maybe not to this particular degree, but many people had started relationships based on lust and lust alone(they weren’t necessarily good relationships, but that wasn’t the point).   

It wasn’t that she didn’t like being in a relationship with him either. It was in fact, the very opposite. Z had been a breath of fresh air in the piss-filled diarrhea shitstorm that was Carmi’s life. A reprise from all of the worries and fears that plagued her mind. Was it sad to admit that Z had treated her better than anyone else in all of her years alive? Probably, but it wasn't like she had anyone else to tell. The demon was interesting, charming and… surprisingly sweet. He had the ability to distract her from problems she couldn’t immediately fix, or make her laugh so hard that she struggled to breathe. And even when he couldn’t help her with her problems or cheer her up with a joke… Z would just… be there for her. Listen to her worries and offer comfort. They couldn’t fix everything that was wrong in her life, nor did Carmi expect him to. It was the simple fact that he stayed, and supported her that mattered the most. It had felt so foreign and yet so good to know that no matter what, Z had her back, and that she didn’t have to be alone anymore. 

It also didn’t help her that Z was extremely easy on the eyes. Carmi hadn’t even noticed her growing attraction to Z until it was too late. When she had first laid eyes upon him, Z looked… fine. His horns, tail and sharp teeth were such an oddity that it caused her to take a second glance but aside from that, there was nothing particularly notable about him. It was only when Carmi started to grow ever fonder of her demon that she began to take notice of certain features he had. How his brownish black hair curled around his face and horns. Was it always so soft looking? The way that his tail would slow down once the demon was deep in thought was downright adorable. She even took note of how Z even had a cute little dimple on the right side of his face that would appear once he smirked. It was easy to miss, but it was there. Carmi would know considering she stared at it in awe every time it showed. Sometimes, they even gave her cuteness aggression so intense that she just wanted to squeeze him(with both her arms and legs) for the rest of her days. 

In other words, he was stupidly gorgeous.

So why couldn’t she bring herself to finally bang him?

Who was she kidding? Carmi was a terrible flirt and was just as responsible for the lack of intimacy in the relationship as Z. She wanted to, but everytime the opportunity came up, she would just freeze and then laugh it off. And the few times she was bold enough to tease the demon, the courage would disappear faster than her biological parents did once Z retaliated. Why was she like this? She liked Z, she really, really liked him and… Carmi didn’t want to fuck it up somehow.

Suddenly, the idea of hiding underneath the table for the rest of eternity was starting to look very appealing. What if he didn’t like how she looked naked? What if she sounded or said something weird? What if she didn’t pleasure him well enough? So many doubts and worries filled her head that when there was a chance to make a move on him, she restrained herself. But Carmi had needs and was getting desperate at this point. The woman had half a mind to just flash him her fat tits and hoped that it somehow worked out for the both of them.

‘Why won’t you claim me for your own?’ Carmi wanted to ask him. Thinking about Z like that was wrong. But she couldn't help it, and the urges were growing more and more.‘Reach out and take me for yourself? I've dreamed of it. Every single night I have dreamed.’

As her eyes scanned for the discarded candy, Carmi’s thoughts began to wander towards Z once again. She really couldn’t help it. 

Even her own body had become obsessed with him. 

“Fuck…!”

Carmi’s body shuttered and squirmed from the pleasure given to her by her vibrating dildo. Laying on her back, she had one hand on her large chest to play with her tits, twisting and pinching them until they were sensitive. Carmi let out a little whimper as she worked her toy deeper inside with a quiet squelch. What she really wanted to feel was Z sliding two of his fingers deep inside, jackhammering her abused hole. Wanted him to rip off her lacy panties and cram his fat cock inside her, use her like a fleshlight while he moaned about how good she felt. As Carmi got closer and closer to her climax, her brain provided her with new scenarios about Z and she thrusted the toy in deeper.

…Her shoulders on the blanketed floor and her holes pointed up, legs bent as Z furiously pounded into her practically limp body. The position would make Carmi feel vulnerable, exposed and she would love every second of it. Z felt so big and hot that it would feel like her body was melting from the numerous creampies her lover had already so graciously provided her. 

Carmi would then tense up as she reached her own orgasm, the action making the overflowing cum in her twitching hole be pushed out. More and more large pearly droplets would drooled down to hit her bunched-up hem and splashed onto her panting chest with each thrust…

…Or maybe she should ‘conveniently’ forget her panties and spread her legs wide while she wore a shorter dress? That would have to get Z’s attention. Besides, Carmi would love to see the look on his face when  the little fiend had an unrestricted view of her leaking entrance, relaxed and flushed with arousal at their next meetup. The alcohol provided by the bar and the thrill of the exhibition would provide her with all the courage she would need. What would Z do when they noticed? Would he fuck her right there and then on the table…?

No, she should keep the underwear. After all, the idea of Z masturbating while pointing his cock at her crotch so he could cum inside her underwear would get her so hot and bothered. She’d lift up the hem of her dress and hold them between her teeth to better expose her cunt and breasts, just for him. Carmi would love to see Z furiously stroking his cock to the sight of her exposed pussy, flushed and panting like he was a dog in heat. But the feeling of the lashings of pearly cum on her bare mound would feel so much better. Yes… Carmi would love to have something she could feel on her lips all day. Especially if it was from Z…

…Large and heated hands would slip through the spaces between Carmi's arms and firmly gripped her heavy chest at home. A hot mouth settling in the gentle slope between the back of her neck and her shoulder, beginning to leave a trail of kisses and nips in their wake. Carmi would moan and reached back to grasp the demon’s body and horns for support. She’d bet that she would be able to feel his erect cock sliding between her thighs, and grinding himself between her dripping sex as his tail curled around her waist. 

Fuck, she would give anything to have Z swipe his harden shaft through her lips and bump the bottom of her clit, pace growing in intensity as they both reached their peaks. She would flex her thighs around his dick as they both came. Z would be able to feel her tremble with an orgasm of her own, her pussy spasming on top of his cock and she wanted to feel Z slamming his hips against her ass a final time as he spurted rope after rope of hot cum onto her waiting hands in turn. After all, she couldn’t allow a single drop of Z’s load be wasted…

…The two locked in a passionate embrace, Carmi on her back, ankles locked around the demon’s hips, while Z was mounting her, thrusting deeply and drinking Carmi’s ecstatic noises with a deep kiss. He’d hold her in his arms and moan lovingly in her ear about how she was made for him, nobody could take her from him and how they were meant to be-   

Carmi rode out her climax with a wail of pleasure, imagining it was Z who was bringing her to completion instead of some large silicone toy. After regaining control over her labored breaths, the heated pleasure that she felt turned into an icy bath of shame that washed over Carmi. What did she just do?  She had just felt so lustful and pent up in the moment that she… 

The reality of what had occurred set in and she felt something well up in her flushed body. Not shame, but frustration. Even though Carmi had orgasmed, it brought her little relief from the burning well of desire within her. It didn’t seem to matter if she fucked a plethora of people or pleasured herself with the newest sex toys, the end result would be the same. The feeling of being unfulfilled as all she could think about was Z.

Z, giggly and ecstatic as her dog licked his cheek. Z, warm and relaxed under the soft light of the bar. Z, annoyed and adorable as he lost their numbers game. Carmi wanted to love Z, be loved by Z, make love with Z, Z, Z, Z -

The glint of a shiny candy wrapper caught Carmi’s gaze, pulling her away from the depths of her memories. Great. Now she was kind of horny. Again . Back to square one. Crawling towards the strawberry bon-bon as it(ironically) laid near Z’s boots, Carmi slipped it into her jacket pocket. She’d make sure to throw it away when she’d return home. Or maybe she should find a trash bin here…? Carmi really didn’t want her dog to go looking for a forbidden treat that came with a trip to the vet. Knowing him, he wouldn’t even need to smell it. He'd just assume the young woman had something on her and start searching. Carmi blamed Z for that.

‘Okay, now I just need to… to…’ Carmi’s thoughts trailed off as she realized what position she was in. She was nearly touching the demon’s knees and past his thighs was his…

‘NO!’ Carmi mentally yelled at her brain. She wanted to force it back on track and never mention this day again. ‘ Stop it! We can’t be weird!’

But it was too late as her head had heard the name ‘Z’ and lost all ability to reason with logic. Carmi couldn’t get a good sight on his bulge from where she was, but it looked like it was on the larger size. What did he sound like when he was being pleasured? Carmi already found Z’s voice to be lovely, but she knew it would sound even better if he was whimpering from overstimulation. Was his cum more watery or was it thick and creamy? Oh, she hoped he cummed buckets. Carmi would be willing to bet money that Z giving her a nice and deep creampie would feel utterly amazing . Orgasming was the best part certainly, but Carmi liked to enjoy the tension and journey of reaching her high. Would the fiend be a selfish lover? She couldn’t imagine it, considering Z had been surprisingly so attentive to her needs. The hot, weighted feeling of her lust for Z sunk down the bottom of her stomach as she squeezed her aching thighs. For a single second, Carmi even wondered how he tasted …

Suddenly, as quick as a viper, Z’s tail wrapped itself around Carmi’s dry throat, pulling her closer to him. Despite its slim appearance, the thing was just as strong as any other part of his body, and it didn’t stop until her head was practically on one of Z’s thighs. He was already man spreading, so Carmi tried really hard not to think about the position she was in. 

Key word “tried.”

‘DO NOT LOOK AT HIS DICK PRINT CARMI.’ She was practically screaming in her head at this point, begging her brain to listen to her just this one time. ‘FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DO NOT FUCKING LOOK AT IT. HE WILL NEVER LET US LIVE IT DOWN IF WE GET CAUGHT STARING.’   

Thankfully, Z grabbed Carmi's chin and forced her to look directly into his heated eyes. Oh how beautiful they were, she lovingly sighed in silence. Swirls of shimmering gold, crimson as red as rubies and a dash of violet beneath a mess of soft hair hypnotically entranced her, keeping Carmi hanging off of the demon’s every word.

“Do not,” Z growled, glaring down at the dark skinned woman as his tail began to curl around her throat. “Even think about those humans in my presence. Not your pathetic little friends, not your insignificant little ex, and definitely not that sniveling, annoying blue haired idiot.”    

Carmi could feel herself trembling, but not from fear. Oh, never from fear. But she wished that it was, for fear would be a far less shameful emotion to have at this moment.

‘Jesus, sweet Jesus,’ Carmi silently prayed to a god she knew would not listen. ‘Please, please, please, do not let this man find out how attractive his voice is. I’ll never hear the end of it.’

Carmi was so entranced by his voice, that it took her a second to register what Z had said. Instantly, whatever spell over her had broken and her jaw nearly dropped to the floor in shock.

“I’m not, and I’m borderline offended that you think that I would be thinking about that creep!” Carmi scoffed. She also wanted to roll her eyes, but she squashed the urge down. Honestly, she was more confused than anything. What on earth would Z have gotten the idea that the one she was thinking about was Alvin?

“Demon, remember?” Z tapped their horns, silver rings shining brightly. Carmi frowned, looking up at them, confusion swirling in her head. Why was Z bringing that up now? It wasn’t like it was hard to forget that he was a fiend from the literal pits of hell. What did that have to do with situation at all-

Oh. Oh.

Carmi felt heat flushing to her face for the second time that night. Z could have probably sensed how… excited she was getting underneath the table, which was extremely embarrassing. But that still didn’t answer the question of why Z mentioned her co-worker specifically . Was it something Carmi had said? She had mentioned a few things she thought were good about him, sure, but every other single time the guy was brought up, her distaste for him was clear as day. That was even if Carmi brought up Alvin at all, which she rarely ever did.     

“Z, Alvin is not the cause of this!” Carmi hissed. She could feel the blood rushing to her face as she tried to stutter out a response. “I-it’s…”

“Hmmm?” 

Her face was practically on fire at this point. Why wouldn’t she just spit out the truth? Carmi thought about it, confessing about… everything she had been feeling. The insides of Carmi’s guts churned as if they were the deep, oily waters of a terrifying storm. She did want him in that way, lord knows she couldn’t stop thinking about it. So why hadn’t she? Z was kind, he was funny, he was sweet… they were practically the perfect boyfriend, even if they loved to ramble on about arson. His many odd quirks just made him all the more charming. Carmi felt her heart let out an affectionate squeeze. She loved him. And insecurities be damned, she was going to show it.

In an instant, Carmi made up her mind. She was finally going to fuck Z.

Trying to calm herself before she fell into an anxiety fueled breakdown, Carmi looked straight at Z.  

Z stared at her.

She stared at Z.

The flat spade shaped tail began to lightly slap Carmi on the forehead and nose. 

“Hey-wait! Z, cut it ou- will you stop?!?” She spat out, her eyes closed as Z promptly ignored what she said. Without thinking, Carmi snapped her teeth forward and caught Z’s spade shaped tail in between her fangs. Immediately, Z let out a rough, pitchy gasp that ended in a grunt from the back of the throat, as if he was fighting the urge to moan fully. 

Carmi nearly dropped the tail in pure shock. The gravity of the situation dawned on the heavyset woman and a mixture of fear and arousal combining themselves as one, twisting and squirming as it resided in her stomach. Did she really just put his tail in her mouth? Z had told her(albeit it was under his breath) she could if she wanted to, and god she did. The idea of finally being able to see Z in such a state again only made her heart pound faster. 

“Aww, Dove . Do you need me to fill up your mouth that badly?” Z cooed, a beautiful red blush spreading upon his face. She was amazed that such a tiny action had such a profound effect on him. “If you’re truly that desperate, I can make sure that you put that sweet little tongue to good use.” 

“Yeah, I am.” Carmi bluntly replied. “Can I suck you off Z?”

It was Z’s turn to look dumbfounded once he realized that the woman was serious, clearly not expecting his teasing to work this time. It didn’t stop him from excitedly nodding his head though. Oh fuck, if a simple touch was enough to have her fighting the urge to ask the demon to feel her up with his large, warm hands, then seeing Z leap at the chance for a BJ nearly had her naked on the table with her legs spread from the entrance of the bar to the fire exit. Carmi had to fuck him. Right now.

The stem was nearly as thick as a finger, smooth like rubber, and pleasant against her tongue. Taking the feeling of Z’s hand cradling her head as a more intimate invitation to continue, Carmi lapped the tip in between her teeth. It pressed against her lips and the woman lovingly gave a very light kiss before allowing her lips to part, her tongue dragging it into her maw. Again, Z huffed out a long groan. Her mind spun into a daze. Slowly, gently, Carmi dragged the demon’s tail deeper into her hot mouth. She rubbed it against the roof of her mouth as she could feel it pulsating with Z’s quickening heartbeat. 

Flicking and lapping circles around the piece of flesh, Carmi made a show of sucking on it. The more the woman lavished the fiend’s tail with attention from her tongue, the more Z would let out delicious sounds that started to drive her insane as he thrusted his tail deeper until it hit the back of her throat. Hearing their breathy moans, no doubt enjoying the affection she was giving him, had caused Carmi to become bold enough to feel up his cock. 

Instantly, the woman could feel him harden underneath her touch, could see the swell of his cock straining against the fabric of his pants from her presence. Hot excitement flooded her stomach and she could feel drool pool into her mouth. Swallowing thickly, Carmi’s dark hand quickly unbuttoned his black jeans and once again she felt him stir beneath her touch. Feeling bolder by the second, Carmi’s mouth leaned forward to Z’s pants and slowly, carefully, began to unzip his pants with her mouth.

Finally, Z’s cock sprung free as he was already half-hard, nearly hitting her in the face. A circumcised penis that was much like his fingers, long, thick, and turned black with a red crown. Dribbling precum in her soft hands, Carmi noted that it curved up slightly, in a way that was designed to attack that sensitive spot.

Carmi also noted that it was stupidly fucking massive.

‘What the FUCK?’ Why the hell is he so damn BIG?!’ Carmi asked herself, an incredulous tone weaving itself in her internal dialogue. It wasn’t just the length, but the thickness of it too. Though she felt a spike of panic bolt through her body, Carmi’s outward expression did not visibly change. Could she really take Z’s cock…? Carmi thought back to the many, many toys of differing sizes and shapes hidden in her apartment. If she was horny enough with some good prepping… eh. She probably could. But in the mouth was a different ball game entirely. It wasn’t as if Carmi had been practicing how to take a massive cock down her throat just in case she had the opportunity to suck Z off.

Well.

Maybe she had… but that wasn’t the point! Blowing a dildo was much different than giving one to a person made of flesh and blood. How the fuck was she going to fit this thing in her mouth? She really wanted him to feel good too… Maybe if she had a few more weeks of training her throat underneath her belt, Carmi would be less hesitant.

‘Well… I’ve got to see this through. I’m not backing down now.’ Carmi thought to herself.  She was NOT going to go another day without dick. ‘I wanted to fuck Z, so I’m gonna fuck Z.’

Using just one hand and a whole bunch of lust filled courage, Carmi started to stroke him and palmed the demon’s cock as pre-cum dripped out, running in sticky ribbons alongside the veins of his shaft. Her cameo patterned off-shoulder dress had exposed her large chest, and the bottom of it had begun to ride up her thighs, revealing her wet panties. Even though the thought of Z shooting a nice and large load of hot cum onto her heated flesh made her hornier than she’d like to admit, Carmi did mean what she had said earlier. 

She always cleaned up any mess that she made.

Carmi slowly let her half-lidded eyes fall shut as she parted her plump lips so that she could kiss the head of Z’s hardening cock. 

Hearing the demon take a sharp intake of breath, she began to lovingly pepper small kisses all around the tip. Her steady wanting had quickly evolved into a lustful ache. Carmi wanted to take his hardened shaft in her mouth and feel him slide down her throat. How would it feel to have Z make her jaw ache and her dark eyes water? To feel the shake of his thighs, to hear his moans when he filled her mouth? The heavyset woman was very eager to find out. 

Once Carmi was sure that she had smooched every single bit of the fiend that she could see, she opened her mouth a little wider and sucked on his leaking tip. Rubbing her tongue across his sensitive head, Carmi could hear a stuttering gasp once again catch in Z’s throat. Her tongue licked a hot stripe over their slit as her dark hands began to pump his cock.  

“Thaaaat’s it Dove.” Z rasped out. The larger woman could feel the hand cradling her head tense tightly, sharp nails touching her scalp. “Go on, open up your throat for me.”

Resuming her task with renewed vigor, the eager woman began to run her hot tongue all over his throbbing shaft, licking and slurping at his cock. Then she began to sweep with long moist strokes as she sped up her hands. Lavishing his dick with eager attention, the more effort Carmi put into her blowjob, the hungrier she became. While she was excited for the demon to shoot cum in her mouth, Carmi was in no real hurry as she was pleasantly enjoying the experience of sucking Z off underneath the table.

“Aww, look at you go.” Z practically cooed through the breathless groans of pleasure. ���Such a good human. My good human.”

The excitement from having Z praise her had her body shivering from the anticipation, and her mouth felt just as hot as her clit. She focused on the heat of his stomach, the faint taste of his skin. The scent of smoke and whiskey to spur her on. Pressing her lips against the hairy base of his shaft, the woman could feel his cock oozing precum all the way down her hungry throat and Carmi moaned, the vibrations of her muffled cries had Z becoming louder, groaning in pleasure. His warm hands reached out to her face and stroked it tenderly, lovingly , as Carmi looked up at him, tears welling up from her dark eyes.

“Fuck…! Your mouth feels so damn good sweetheart.” Z was practically panting at this point. “You’re trying so hard to get me all the way down…”

At this point, Z had taken a more… active role. Grabbing her head to guide her mouth on his cock, Carmi simply followed the demon’s lead, licking and sucking as they tangled their claws in her muti-colored hair. Slowly and steadily, Z began to guide her head up and down until he was gently face fucking her, using Carmi’s mouth as nothing more than a glorified fleshlight.

And something about that turned her the hell on.

Carmi wanted Z to use her to reach his own orgasm. She wanted him to throw his head back and shamelessly moan as he emptied himself in her mouth. But most of all, Carmi wanted Z to stroke her face in the same loving manner he had done so before, all while staring down at her with the loveliest pair of heated eyes she had ever seen.     

Carmi shuttered, waves of pure lust raced through her heated body as Z began to speed up his pace. His thrusting became more erratic and wild, body tensing up and the woman trembled in anticipation as much as the demon did. Z’s release was rapidly approaching and she couldn’t wait to finally taste him. Following his lead, Carmi began to pump and suck to match his tempo, her soft lips were slick with his pre-cum, making it easy for her to glide them up and down his shaft.

Z suddenly let out a choked curse as ropes of hot cum hit the back of her throat, Carmi stiffened and pushed down the urge to gag. As her lover continued to thrust his dick into her mouth, Carmi kept sucking voraciously as she gulped down everything their body provided. There was so much more than the woman expected, almost too much. But when the spurting seemed to slowly die down, Carmi practically nursed on the demon’s cock, milking out every last drop of their cum as used her hands to stroke his shaft.

She pulled her mouth away and his black and red cockhead bobbed up and down before her face. Carmi licked her lips and opened her mouth. She wanted to show him how she had drunk every single drop. 

“Did I do a good job?” Carmi asked with a slur in her voice, drunk on the taste of him. Of Z.

The demon was practically caressing her face. She leaned into his loving touch as Z pulled her up. Carmi had become entranced by the way their bodies moved so smoothly in sync. Placing one knee on each side of his legs, the woman slid on top of Z and sat herself snuggly onto his lap, right where she belonged. Through dark, half-lidded eyes, Carmi spread her thighs to encourage Z to have access. Her body was filled with both shame and arousal, and eager for more of his touch.

But Z had never felt shameful and wasn’t going to now, especially with how his human was practically moaning in his lap. Z grabbed her ass and guided Carmi flush against them, her chest to their and her legs parted just enough to straddle their hips. Pulling her in close, their slick tongues slid against each other, hot and insistent, before disappearing into the other’s mouth in a heated french kiss. Z bucked upward against her covered entrance, grinding their throbbing cock against the spot that was dripping wet.  

Carmi moaned into the kiss as she felt a rippling thrill run down through her belly and swirled in waves in her crotch. She could feel her engorged clit. The woman pitifully writhed her body in sync with Z’s, their hips moving against each other, allowing her to relish in the delicious friction. The persistent wet sounds of lips and tongues had left her pussy throbbing with desire and brain a scrambled mess. But she wanted more, no, she needed more.

“Z, I need you… Please?” Carmi tried to whimper as softly as she could. Squeezing Z’s hand before she intertwined with her own(or tried to anyway. She loved how small she felt when her body was near his), Carmi guided it between her breasts where the demon could feel her pulsating heart, slid it down below her quivering belly, and didn’t stop until his hot, black tipped hand was cupping her already dripping slit.

“After all this, of course you're soaked.” Z retorted. The demon didn't hesitate for a second as he pressed two fingers against Carmi’s swollen clit. “Nothing gets you off like being my personal little cum dump, hmmm?”

A jolt of pleasure shot through her body as the demon rubbed her heated mound with their fingers and restless movements, bringing forth a delicious, pulsing warmth into existence. Her body felt empty, as if she wanted something to plunge deep inside her core. As if the demon could read her mind, Carmi could feel Z’s hot fingers sliding down from her clit to the entrance of her hole, rubbing and teasing it before sinking two thin but long fingers in. Her juices were so plentiful that Z’s fingers slid in with ease. The palm of his hand slammed against her pussy, with juices dripping down onto his palm with each thrust.

Soft, pliant, and imbued with a sense of lust and desperation, the two kissed the other over and over with growing wetness and force. Breaking one of their heated kiss left Carmi whining at the loss of contact. Z kept one large and heated hand on her thick waist with the other fingerbanging her. The demon, forward as ever, left an open mouthed kiss to her collarbone and began to suck, most likely intending to leave a bruise. Carmi let out another breathy sigh.

“Z… Can we go back to your place…?” Carmi whispered in his ear, praying that she wouldn’t have to have their first time together on a bar table. Not because she was embarrassed, but more so the thing looked uncomfortable to get fucked on. “I don’t want anyone else to see me like this except you.” She trailed her lips on the edge of his helix before biting it for good measure.

Z muttered a “c’mere” underneath their breath as they grabbed her thighs and picked her up like she weighed nothing, holding her in a way that kept her legs spread wide. Despite not wanting to have a full-blown fucking session in the bar, Carmi couldn’t help herself and squeezed her legs, grinding her clit onto him. She could hear Z grunt in her ear. And for a single moment Carmi felt like she was completely weightless, clinging tightly onto her boyfriend for support as there was an inky blackness that surrounded them- 

The pair of lovers landed softly onto Z’s bed.

There was unmistakable lust in every movement, every flinch, every twitch to their bodies. She moaned and pressed into him more. No matter how close the demon was, would it ever be enough? Carmi wanted to not only hold Z, but to have him bind himself to her soul. The woman wanted to have them intertwine themselves so intensely that they could not ever part, not without losing something integral.

When it was clear he was going to kiss her once more, Carmi didn’t resist. Kissing him back just as passionately, Carmi could barely remember the two throwing their clothes off. Every time they broke apart so Carmi could intake air, another piece of clothing would haphazardly be thrown to the side. She did spot the demon pocketing her thoroughly soaked panties which drove her wild. She’d have to remember to see which ones Z liked the best.

It didn’t take long for the lovers to be completely naked. A tantalizing combination of excitement and arousal pumped through her body. It was really happening, was she really about to have sex with her boyfriend? Carmi didn’t know and for once in her life, she didn’t care either. All Z had to do was lovingly stroke her face and whisper her name with that honey sweet voice of his, and she would fold in an instant. Carmi wanted to feel him, to taste him. To experience the dizzying rollercoaster that was Z with all of his ups and downs.

Carmi’s world shrank to just Z’s embrace as once again, their lips found each other, soft, pliant, and imbued with a sense of lust and desperation. Z eagerly ran his tongue over Carmi’s mouth and vice versa as the two lovers melted into a puddle of needy lust. Moving purely on instinct, Carmi allowed the demon to wrap his warm arms around her soft body and guide her down into the mattress, deepening the kiss while his hand roamed down her arching back. She hooked her thick legs around his hips and locked her ankles, pushing and grinding her crotch against his. He was already rock hard. Carmi could feel it.

‘More.’ Carmi wanted to beg him, her own mind clouded by a sexual fog. Months of pent-up lust had caught flame and was now threatening to boil over. ‘Give me more…!’

But Carmi couldn’t talk. Z was tasting her tongue, licking her lips, and drinking in all of the tiny sounds of pleasure she mewled out. Carmi’s long, black nails dug into his muscular shoulders, threatening to draw blood. They were in their own world and Carmi never wanted to leave it.

Z began to move from her plump lips to her exposed neck, alternating between kisses and nips all the way down until he reached her breasts. He rolled his tongue around them, teasing and sucking the tip of her nipples. They hardened inside his mouth and Z pinched the other one with his finger as Carmi cried out his name again in excitement. Sinking lower, the demon left a trail of kisses and sharp nips down her stomach until he left one directly above her smoldering mound. As Z parted her pillowy thighs, they lowered their head and hungrily gazed down at her leaking slit. Carmi could feel the air as it was sucked in by Z.

Was he… was he smelling her?

He groaned and kept his nose buried against her soaping entrance for a few more moments before he apparently found what he was looking for. Pulling at her dripping folds, the demon spread her pussy wide open with his black tipped fingers, revealing the vulnerable flesh of her throbbing clit. Carmi was amazed at how soft the demon’s lips were as she received a tender kiss to her overheated flesh and then a rough lick with the flat of his tongue that had left her whining for more. 

She was starting to really squirm at this point. Trying her best to keep her eyes on the demon feasting between her legs, Carmi involuntarily throwed her head back in pure, cardinal bliss with a full-throated moan when Z gave her throbbing bud a nice, rough lick. Just like Carmi had suspected, Z felt much better than most of the toys she owned. If this was how good sex felt when they were just using his tongue, Carmi couldn’t wait for the main course.

“S-Shit…! Oh God, Z, your tongue …” She panted out.

Carmi thighs clamped around his head as Z continued their assault.

She grinded herself against his face, shamelessly thrusting into his hot mouth. Z switched between giving Carmi fast attention to her engorged bud, and then slowly fucking her with his dexterous tongue in her clenching hole. The demon fervently drunk up any juices Carmi’s body provided, greedily slurping up every single drop like it was the most exquisite thing he had ever tasted. The sounds were lewd and filthy, and did nothing but bring her closer to the edge.

‘Fuck.’ Carmi cursed at Z in her head. The fiend’s oral was making her release noises that no one had made her cry out before. ‘Stupid demon, with his stupid good-looks and his stupidly long tongue-’

“Ahhha-AH!” Carmi’s body curled at the sudden onslaught of pleasure. It seemed that Z’s tongue had found that oh-so-sensitive spot that resided deep within her cunt. She wrapped one hand around one of his red tipped horns and fisted a handful of the demon’s soft locks with the other, as if to gain a sense of control she knew she didn’t have. As she clung onto his horns with her fingers roughly tangled in his wild locks, her hips began to pump. The young woman was quivering and drenching her lover’s maw, grinding her crotch against Z’s hot mouth. 

“Z-Z ! Sl-Ah, AH! Slow down! PLEASE!” Carmi finally managed to let out a high-pitched panting wheeze, but Z made no move to listen to her request. In fact, the demon began to eat her out even faster, devouring her with a vigor unmatched from any of her previous lovers. The woman began to wither and buck to escape the unrelenting pleasure but Z firmly held her in place no matter how hard she tried to escape his grasp. He held on to her hips as she bucked against him, back arching uncontrollably. She continued to let out a mixture of whimpers, moans and pleads that ended in tear-streaked crying as Carmi struggled to keep her head raised enough to watch Z practically make out with her sopping wet mound. Carmi could feel his hot, forked tongue abusing her g-spot, thrusting his tongue in and out of his tight slit, making her clench and tremble in Z’s mouth. She could feel her orgasm approaching closer and closer until the demon suddenly stopped the oral assault on her body.

“Hu-wha..?”  

“You want to tell me who was the one who had you so flustered, Dove?” Z asked with a smirk, but there was no mirth within his eyes. Carmi nearly hit the roof. Was he really asking this now? Couldn’t he have at least finished eating his plate before giving her a random interrogation? 

“I already told you Z, I-I wasn’t thinking about anyone!” Carmi tried to protest, attempting to close her legs. Z forced her dark thighs apart with ease, as they were much stronger than a human could ever hope to be. Carmi hated to admit to herself how hot it was that he could manhandle her like that.

“It’s no use lying to me Dove.” He replied in a singsong voice. Carmi did NOT feel like explaining how Z’s voice nearly made her bust a nut in the bar. The fiend already had so much power over her, they didn't need anymore ammo to bully her with. Besides, what if he found it more creepy than flattering?

“I-I wasn’t thinking about anyone you s-should worry a-about..!” It was technically the truth. But Carmi could see that her vague answer did nothing to placate her lover.

“Fine Dove. If it’s a game you want, it’s a game you’ll get.” Z said, their smirk turned into a downright sadistic grin, their smile showing off his dangerously sharp teeth. Carmi didn’t think she liked where this was going. “Let’s see how long you can last until you’re begging me to let you cum.”  

And he was true to his word. Twice more did Z bring her close to the edge, and twice more did Z deny Carmi release. By the end of his third denial, Carmi had been reduced to a teary, sweaty mess. This was no longer a dream. This was a nightmare.

“Do you want to be a good girl and give me an answer?” Z smugly asked like the little fucking shit he was. This was the guy who had a claim of her mind, body and soul?

“Not. Happening.” Carmi gritted out through clenched teeth.  

Seemingly deciding to change tactics, Z began to push Carmi’s legs closer to her chest, bending her in-half until she felt like a pretzel. 

“I could devour you whole,” Z says gently, and Carmi could feel the heat of his words sinking into her bending body. “And I'd make it so good for you. Won't you let me, sweetheart? You just need to tell me the truth.”

Carmi cursed underneath her breath as she shook her head, hips involuntarily jerking into his touch. Fuck, should she just tell them? She wanted to, but the fear of rejection wrapped their hands around her throat and slicened her. It’d be fine right? Z had to give in at some point.

His fat tip drooled pre-cum and he took it one hand to slap it against Carmi’s already sensitive mound. She flinched at the feeling. The fiend nudged his cock against her throbbing clit once, twice, gathering her leaking juices before dragging it down to the very spot where he could have sunken himself into her warmth.

“Fuck, you're so wet.” Z groaned as they lined themselves up against her entrance. Carmi could feel him using the head of his shaft to part her labia. “When I rub the head of my cock along your slit, it's completely drenched. I bet I could just slide it right in-”

Carmi could feel the stretch, she could feel every throb, every vein, all his thickness filling her. Even her cunt started to squeeze his cock’s head like it was made for this and this alone. But before Z could penetrate her too deep, give her something that she could clench down on, Z would pull himself out.

“Why did you pull out?” Carmi breathlessly whined. “You felt so good …” Even though Z’s hardened cock was resting on her throbbing mound, She could swear she felt it twitch as a response to the question. The heat of their combined lust made her head spin. Holy shit, she was so sensitive that Carmi couldn’t tell if she was going to pass out or cum so hard that she would see heaven. She was leaning towards the former. Z must have sensed that, as he delivered a sharp bite to the back of her leg, determined to keep his human’s attention on them. The nip wasn’t necessarily painful. No, all it did was bring forth a different type of feeling within her body. 

Z wasn’t far enough inside to be able to properly fuck Carmi yet, he’d start to move his hips, giving shallow thrusts as he pulled out slightly and sank himself right back in. The demon was only using his thick cockhead to stimulate her for now, giving her a taste of what she could have if Carmi gave into their demands. And much like receiving a sip of water while abandoned in a desert, the feeling had only been a brief moment of pleasure that, once passed, only left the woman craving more for more. However, with the combination of the fiend’s wandering hands, Carmi was sure that this was the closest she’d been to Hell. Z’s hands, large enough to greedily grab at her breast, pinching and twisting them. The woman wanted to break down in tears, everything felt simultaneously too much and not enough. Z gave her pleasure but never enough to satisfy her, to give her release from the torture of being denied another toe-curling orgasm. Z continued their teasing assault for what felt like hours , until Carmi finally cried out in defeat. 

“It was you!” 

Immediately, the woman could feel Z’s hands freeze up. She could feel the blood rushing to her face as Carmi  tried to remember how to use her mouth and hurriedly spit out an explanation. 

“It’s just that your voice sounds so nice and sometimes when I hear it, I start to think about you saying certain things and I know it’s weird, but sometimes you sound territorial and it, you, sound so good and I…” Her voice got smaller and smaller with each word when she realized what she had confessed to the demon who’s cock was still inside her. “I really… like… hearing it…”

Silence. That was all Carmi heard.

Instantly, she felt a freezing pit drop into her stomach. Holy hell, she fucked up. Oh, she fucked up bad. Why did she say that? Shit. Shit. Shit . Oh, this was it. Z was gonna call her a creepy weirdo, they would never talk to her again and she be left alone-

“You… like my voice…?” Z asked incredulously.

Carmi hesitantly removed her dark hands from her face, peaking at them to see the fiend with his jaw dropped. Z had looked completely gob smacked, as if he would have never in a million years guessed that it was his voice that got her hot and heavy back in the bar. Carmi nodded. 

“Yeah… But that’s not it. Every single time you flirt, or when you show that I can trust you , or e-even when you smile…” Carmi practically murmured. This felt too intense, too intimate , confessing her feelings like this. “Every single part of you drives me insane, Z. Is that really so hard to believe…?” 

“I could feel you getting anxious every time I tried to initiate things, so I assumed that you were too scared of me. Besides,” Z shrugged as if it was the most natural thing in the world. “Who would ever trust a demon? You’d have to be insane.” 

“I don’t trust other demons. I trust you Z.” She confessed. She had finally spilled everything out and Carmi could feel her face grow hot from not only being exposed physically, but emotionally as well. Oh God, she was rambling again. “And like you. Like, a lot. A concerning amount even-”

Z cut her off with a deep kiss. Immediately, whatever thoughts plagued her mind dissipated when their lips touched. Carmi looked at him with a dazed, lovesick expression as Z pushed her onto her back. How was he always able to calm her down so easily…? Was this what it was like to be in love?                                                                                                        

“Hmm…? Is that right? My voice alone is all it takes for my human to get all worked up…” Once again, Carmi could feel the heat behind his words, the feeling running down her spine and making her walls twitch. 

“Ugh, stop!” Carmi threw a pillow over her head. She wasn’t in love anymore. She was going to strangle him with her bare hands instead. “I knew you were gonna be like this!”

“Stop? How can I?” Z once again grabbed her, their lips meeting once again. She practically moaned as her lover slid his tongue against hers, feeling a rush of pleasure pump throughout her body. There were so many things Carmi wanted Z to do to her, and she to him . “Especially with the way your body is reacting .”

“Z…” The intimate kisses had riled her up all over again. She couldn’t and wouldn’t deny anymore. She was willing to beg for it at this point, shame and insecurities be damned. “Please…!”

“Go on,” Z purred as his tail swissed. His voice had switched from that of a lover to one of a predator that has caught its prey, playing with it to indulge their own sick desires. The cock inside her responded immediately with another pulse. Carmi could feel it. Was Z…  was he fucking getting excited about hearing her beg for it? For him? “All you have to do is ask. Nicely. ”

Her pussy was like a smoldering ember between her pillowy thighs and Carmi nearly let out a sob, tears practically streaming down her face. “Please, please, please fuck me Z. I need to feel you.”

Carmi winced as her lover licked the falling tears from her cheeks as if they were droplets of an expensive spiced wine. Satisfied with her desperate pleads, her lover crawled back on top of her, their combined body weight sinking her into the mattress. The woman could feel her lover kissing her face and neck, sucking on the bite marks they'd left earlier. While they would disappear by the morning, Z would not. Sharp nails sunk into his arms as her boyfriend pushed himself deeper and they let out a moan, and grunt mixed into one. Her heated walls tightened around him reflexively, and she waited for the rest of that delicious stretch.

“Look at you, taking me like you were born for it.” His thrusts were still somewhat shallow, Carmi knew she wasn't taking him all the way, not yet. But her twitching hole was starting to adjust itself to accommodate the great bulk of his shaft as Z pushed himself in again and managed to slowly fuck in and out of her eager entrance. “And to think you’ve wanted this the entire time. You little tease.”

Z’s cock was much thicker than his tongue, less flexible but it filled her up so much better, a sturdy hardness that she could finally clench around so nicely. Carmi almost sobbed as Z withdrew, pulling his long, delicious cock almost completely out. He returned immediately when she whined from the loss. Z felt so good , so warm and so, so big … he was fulfilling her entirely, every bit of Carmi that was empty, every little space that needed his heat was now his and stuffed to the brim.  

“I'm not some- I wasn’t-!" Carmi’s already weak argument ended in a loud gasp as Z reminded her who she belonged to with another good, deep thrust.

“Fuck… I can feel you tightening up, you’re- oh hells, trying to suck me in deeper-”

“Z-Z… ohgod oh fuck–!” Carmi shut her eyes from the intense pleasure, but Z was having none of it. He sunk his dagger like fangs into her leg once again, making sure she was watching his every move.

“Don't you dare look away sweetheart. Keep your eyes on me, just like that…” Carmi shuttered from a mixture of the pleasure of finally being fucked. Z’s honey sweet voice as he mumbled obscenities into her ears, reveling in her tightness, and the way her body fit so perfectly against his. Carmi gasped and cried out from his sudden depth as his cock rutted against a spot that left her absolutely writhing . “I want to see your face when I make you cum.”

Her body felt so weak, twitching, vulnerable and at the mercy to whatever the fiend desired. She tried in vain to hold back her whimpers, but they slipped out of her throat anyway, in a long and constant stream of cries that grew louder and more desperate as Z continued to fuck her. Carmi had tried to pull away from the demon, but she was in no position to do so. She could sense his hungry gaze as Z leaned in close, grinding his hips against hers. Fuck, Carmi could feel every single inch of his throbbing cock inside her spasming walls.

“Z-Z, I c-can’t…!”

“Oh, no, no Dove. You can. I barely even need to grab your hips, your body wouldn't let me go if I tried…” His tail began to rub on her engorged clit and Carmi gave another frantic series of moans from the stimulation. She was practically drowning in pleasure. “Look how badly you want this, sweetheart. Go on, squeeze me tighter. Thaaat’s it Carmi. Good girl.”

Carmi, for her part, could scarcely formulate a coherent thought aside from ‘yes, yes, yes…!’ . She'd put up so many walls, and having them all crumble at once was more than she could really process. She'd been terrified of ruining her relationship with Z, but now, she wanted to kick herself for not giving in and confessing how she felt sooner. Her lover rocked her back to the edge once more. Now Z was fucking his whole massive cock into her pussy with every lunge, burying the shaft so deep that his balls were slapping on her ass. Letting out high pitched whimpers as Z slid his painfully hard cock against a dangerously tender spot, Carmi genuinely couldn’t tell if his loud moaning made the experience better or worse. Z didn’t even try to be quiet, and it was nearly driving her to insanity.

Carmi squealed, breaking away from the kiss, as Z started to fuck Carmi with a frenzy that he’d held back until that moment, spurred on by her cries. The pressure was increasing, more and more.

“Oh Z-FUCK! I’m, I’m…!”

Carmi didn’t even have the chance to prepare herself before her orgasm hit her, juices gushing from her soaked pussy, coating Z in her arousal. Her back arched as her body spasmed while Z continued to fuck Carmi through her high for as long as it lasted. Her pulsating cunt slowly eased itself, leaving behind an overwhelming sensation that was strong enough to cause her legs to twitch. Z could feel her velvety walls clench around him as Carmi’s orgasm left her cunt drooling and pulsing with desire.

Even though she was sensitive from cumming, Z still rutted his fat cock in the whimpering woman. The feeling made her repeatedly squeal with every thrust with desire, surprise, even a little sting of pain. Carmi let out a particularly loud gasping wail when she felt for the first time a rush of hot, thick cum deep inside her. The pleasure was intense and overwhelming as the demon continued thrusted with spurt after spurt of hot cum, moaning as he practically emptied himself in her cunt. Once he was finished, she could see how the demon’s body trembled with the aftershocks of his release, still feeling the remnants of pleasure that washed over them.

Carmi wiggled her shaking legs from under Z and wrapped them around his chest. Maybe it was due to the orgasm he had just had, or maybe he was simply curious on what Carmi planned to do. Either way of thinking led to the same result. With Carmi straddling the demon underneath her. An excitement began to grow in her and she shifted her position so that the growing bulge pressed into her leaking entrance.

“Do you really not know what you do to me…?” Carmi grabbed hold of the length of his cock and rubbed her freshly filled pussy, teasing him. The cock had already become hard again, the head of it entering her. Z was panting at this point, more precum oozing from the tip to lubricate her already wet hole as Carmi began to slowly drop her full weight into his lap, enjoying the sensation of grinding his cock inside her. Taking in a deep breath, the woman fully sank onto him, feeling Z’s pulsating cock inside her once more. She planted her soft hands firmly on his toned torso to help steady her as she huffed and moaned. 

“W-why would I even think about anyone else?” She raised herself up until only his sensitive, hard tip rubbed against her heat and then slammed herself down hard once more.

“Ah!  Ahn!  Ahh-mphf!”  Carmi gasped and huffed delightedly each time she slammed her wide hips down. She could feel her pussy clamp down on Z, trying to keep the demon inside her as all she could do was moan, pant, and cry. The emotions that weld up inside of Carmi were so intense, that it was dizzying. She felt almost lightheaded, with nothing but the feeling of Z’s pulsating cock keeping her grounded. Fuck, why had she been holding back all this time?

“How can I-ngh! Even think of fucking any-Ah… Ah! One else?” Carmi could barely whine out her question. She was going to pound Z into the mattress and milk him for all he was worth, even if it was the last thing she was going to do. “All I think about is you , Z!”

Carmi’s hips began to ride Z’s cock in a frantic, almost frenzied pace and she could hear the absolutely filthy noises their bodies made together, a reminder of just how much Carmi desperately wanted to feel Z’s cum inside her body once more. The sounds of her pleasure reverberating through the room as she was riding him so hard that the bed bounced alongside her. From her plump lips began to spill every single lustful and downright depraved thought she had about the demon in the past few weeks. She professed how handsome he was, how much she desired him, and how much she couldn’t stop thinking about him. She couldn’t help nor even stop herself. It was as if her body had a mind of its own and decided that a confession of her sinful desires while bouncing on Z’s cock was the best course of action.   

“When we were in that bar,” Carmi dragged her sharp nail on his chest, tracing the tattooed sigil and giving Z a devious smile. She really wanted to savor the feeling of the demon’s twitching cock inside her. Her cunt was aching and sensitive, but she didn’t care as Carmi was overcome by the freedom of her giving into her lust. She could cry out Z’s name, could whimper for his cock, could thrash and moan and sob and Carmi wanted to. God, she fucking wanted to. “All I could think about was how I wanted you to fuck me properly until I was stretched out, aching, and sore.”

Before Carmi would spill out anymore of her desires, bare anymore of her soul to him, Z had stuffed his neglected tail in her rambling mouth. She had bitten down on it. Hard.

Carmi immediately wanted to stop and check on the demon to make sure he wasn’t seriously hurt once she realized what she had done. Z may have been an immortal demon that could barely register pain, but Carmi could never forgive herself if she had harmed her lover, accident or not.

She would have done that, had Z not given out the most vocal and sluttiest moan Carmi had ever heard in her life, as he arched his back in pure, cardinal ecstasy.

“Ngh, that feels so good! Do that again, Dove! Harder! ”

Z began to loudly beg and whimper for her, stuttering Carmi’s name in an incoherent babble as they furiously pumped their hips to meet her own brutal pace. His shaft glided in and out of her sweet cunt easily due to the thick load he’d already flooded her with. The louder and more desperate Z got, the more times she would simply stop and squeeze his throbbing cock with her velvety walls, denying him release as the demon had done to her. She wanted to see him weak and whimpering. That would be a lovely sight to behold. 

“Ahh f-fuck Dove! Keep riding me like that! ”

“I c-can’t stop, oh fuck, you feel so–!” Carmi felt the tingling sensation in her lower stomach. Z’s thick, creamy load once again flooded her cunt, and Carmi let out a pitiful, full body keen at the feeling of being so full, pumped so completely. Perverted sounds of pleasure filled the room as the two lovers rode out their collective orgasms together in a scene that was as passionate as it was deprived. Finally, when the last spasm from his cock died out, Z let out a low moan and went into a full body shudder.

By the time she was done riding him, Carmi was unable to do anything but lay upon his warm chest, feeling limp and satisfied as she listened to his racing heartbeat. Her mound still tingled in the aftermath of her climax. She could feel Z’s cum drip sluggishly out of her abused hole and down her thigh. Carmi was exhausted, but also happy and confusingly, dizzyingly in love.

‘I could stay like this forever.’ She thought to herself as she nuzzled the crook of Z’s neck. She breathed in his scent. ‘I wouldn’t mind it. Not one bit.’ The steady beating of Z’s heart, the feel of his caring embrace and snuggling into the warmth the demon’s body provided… Yes, Carmi could stay like this forever and she wouldn’t have blinked an eye. 

But unfortunately, the world had never been kind to Carmi and wasn’t going to start now.

The dark-skinned woman let out an embarrassingly loud and weird sounding yelp as she suddenly found herself on her back. Before Carmi even had a chance to make sense of what was happening, Z was already climbing on top of her body, spreading her legs and looking down at her sweating and flustered form. Though she could not see his eyes, Carmi could feel the heat of their gaze trail hungerly across her body. 

“Uhh… Z?” She nervously giggled, wondering what was going on. “What are you…?”

“Oh, I’m going to make sure that I fulfill every single one of your fantasies tonight to make up for lost time.” Carmi stared up at the demonic entity between her thighs. She could already tell based upon his excited, almost manic smile and unhinged personality, that Z was not kidding.

“Don’t worry Dove,” They practically purred, a toothy grin spreading across their face. Z settled themselves right in between Carmi’s legs, hiking her warm, soft thighs around his waist. “I’ll fuck you until you can’t remember how to speak, and I’ll keep fucking you until you pass out. Even then, I won't stop. I’m not one to get tired easily , after all,”

Z pressed such a gentle and deceptively innocent kiss on her mouth, that it made Carmi instantly relax and nearly forget the position she was(and going to be) in.

“Oh, me and my big, stupid, horny mouth.’ Carmi thought, already resigning herself to her fate. ‘Well, it was nice being able to walk when I could...’

[mariacallous]

Earlier this week, after warping across the galaxy for 90 hours in a sentient spacecraft, Twitch streamer John Wissmiller realized that Concord was the best first-person shooter he’d played in a decade.

“The gunplay was crunchy, the movement was smooth, and the progression felt rewarding,” he says. “I was even more enthralled by the world the developers had created when I looked into the lore.”

He wasn’t alone. “One of the biggest perks about the game was the absence of toxicity within the player community,” says Kelle Dees, a content creator at KDeesGamez. “Everything about the game was positive and inclusive.”

On Wednesday, less than two weeks after the game’s August 23 launch, Sony announced it was taking Concord offline and offering full refunds to anyone who had purchased it on PlayStation 5 or PC. “While many qualities of the experience resonated with players, we also recognize that other aspects of the game and our initial launch didn’t land the way we’d intended,” wrote Ryan Ellis, Concord’s director at Firewalk Studios, a division of Sony Interactive Entertainment.

“I was completely devastated,” Wissmiller says. “We’ve never seen a first-party title from Sony get this kind of treatment.”

In fact, we’ve never seen any AAA video game get this kind of treatment—and that’s what could make Concord a horrifying canary in the coal mine for gamers and game workers alike.

“It’s unprecedented for a game of this scale to be shut down so quickly,” says Liam Deane, a video game analyst at Omdia. “Usually publishers keep games that struggle at launch on life support for a while, but in Concord’s case the launch was so bad there was clearly no way back.”

Like Fortnite, Destiny 2, and Valorant, Concord was meant to be a live-service game that constantly released new updates over the course of several years. But while those other games are free to play—and rely on microtransactions to make money—Concord cost $40 up front. “It's just very difficult to break into competitive multiplayer games [and] displace the existing top titles,” says Simon Carless, an industry analyst who publishes the GameDiscoverCo newsletter. “These are the kind of titles that players socialize with their friends in, and they're often not motivated to switch games.”

Sony hasn’t revealed how many copies of Concord sold between August 23 and September 3, but the number of active PC players on the Steam platform peaked at just 697 on launch day. That’s abysmally low for a major release that spent eight years in development; Sony’s previous live-service game, Helldivers 2, had over 155,000 players on its first day, back in February, and later peaked at 458,709.

Helldivers 2, though, was a breakout hit that already had an established fanbase. Concord, on the other hand, was a brand-new franchise that didn’t get much of a marketing push and drew the ire of “anti-woke” snivelers who complained about the game’s use of pronouns on its character selection screen.

“For big companies, it's difficult to work out what bets—and how large bets—you should make,” says Carless. “Some of the corporate overexuberance during Covid and low interest rates has meant that large companies overextended, and the pullback has been—and is going to be—painful.”

Over the past 20 years, the brutal blockbuster-or-bust mentality of Silicon Valley startups has spread to executives across the entertainment industry. Movies with $100 million production budgets are considered dead on arrival after a bad opening weekend and are quickly ripped from theaters. TV series are canceled after failing to meet undisclosed performance metrics in their first seasons.

Now, the quick death of Concord, which officially went offline today, points to a similar mindset in the video game industry that could kill creativity, reduce jobs, and shutter entire studios.

“If you have a stable parent company with a balanced set of single-player and [live-service] releases, you should be in decent shape,” says Carless. But “the middle of the market is disintegrating. The games industry is deprofessionalizing in many ways; games as a stable profession will be tricky for many people in high-GDP countries.”

If studio C-suites keep cutting all the buds that don’t instantly blossom, the golden age of gaming of the 2020s—a mix of AAA blockbusters like Elden Ring, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, and Baldur’s Gate 3, alongside smaller-budget gems like Tunic, Chants of Sennar, and the reimagining of 1997’s Riven—could already be over.

“I think innovation is more likely to come from smaller companies with lower budgets that are happier to take risks,” says Piers Harding-Rolls, who leads the games research team at Ampere Analysis. “This has really been true for many years, but the current commercial environment makes that truer than ever.” Still, even the future of indies is uncertain and may be somewhat dependent on funding efforts like Innersloth’s Outersloth initiative.

Concord may have gotten off to a slow start with gamers (most of whom hadn’t heard of it yet) and critics (who didn’t love the initial character designs), but the same could be said of Elder Scrolls Online, which has since made more than $2 billion, or the Destiny franchise, which celebrates its 10-year anniversary this year, or No Man’s Sky, which has become a cult classic.

If those games were released now, would they survive longer than Concord did—longer than the lifespan of a honeybee? The answer lies with the most ruthless beekeepers in the industry, and all they care about is the honey.

[multi-fandomdisaster]

Have some more info about my new OC Mason because I've already fallen in love with xem-

Tends to ambiently bite/chew on xyr fingers/hands when deep in thought, bored, or particularly nervous. My guy seriously needs to invest in some chewlry.

A big fan of theater and musicals. His favorite musical is Little Shop of Horrors (there's something about it that just resonates with xem...). His second favorite is Beetlejuice the Musical (for the vibes).

Had a werewolf phase in 6th grade and has been casually keeping track of the moon phases ever since simply because xe think it's neat.

Did that PTC paper test thing in school and lowkey thought he was gonna DIE because of how bitter it was-

Xyr middle name is "Cavern" because xyr parents wanted to be extra I guess lmao

Doesn't like going into the Witchwood unless he has to. The whole place freaks him out a bit.

Xe more or less initially started devoting xemself to Nibbly because He promised xem that He'd make sure xyr transphobic mom would respect xyr pronouns. So far, it's worked lol (well, it's actually a lot more nuanced than that in reality, but the pronoun thing was a nice perk lol) (edit: this specific fact's not technically canon anymore- 💀)

Lover of all animals. He's the kind of person to take a spider outside after everyone else is begging someone to kill it. (May or may not be on Webby's good side without knowing because of this-?)

Has only held and looked inside the Black Book once, and was absolutely enchanted by it. Xe'd love another opportunity to get to look through it in its entirety and learn more of the spells contained inside. (The last page xe saw before it was taken from xem was Nibbly's page, and xe've been somewhat fixated on it ever since. Oh, what xe'd give to have another look...)

Favorite time of the year is early autumn when it's still comfortable and sort of warm outside, but cool enough to comfortably wear a jean jacket without overheating.

Aroace and doesn't know it yet.

[ape-apocalypse]

Road To The Kingdom - Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes Film

I remember seeing the trailers for Rise of the Planet of the Apes, shaking my head at yet another remake of a long-ago franchise. In 2011, we were hearing rumors of a new Spider-Man coming to replace Tobey Maguire and now I was looking at Harry, son of the Green Goblin, becoming a scientist and creating a drug to make apes smarter. On the other hand, Andy Serkis was getting a main role, more screen time than Gollum in Lord of the Rings, where I adored him and was eager to see him again. I was going in with some hesitation but decided to just turn my brain off for a summer action movie. 

I was surprised with how much I enjoyed Rise. Many fans seem to put this as their least favorite of the reboot trilogy. I can understand why; it doesn't have nearly as much action as Dawn or War and runs at a slower pace. But what it did have was fantastic character building in Caesar, which is needed in this trilogy. I would not be as engaged with these movies if I didn't love Caesar. Seeing him start as a little baby with his human family living a carefree youth, and then grow into a mature ape questioning his place in the world really filled out his character. He could have easily just been a random lab chimp who got smarter but I think the slow-build really fleshes him out. You empathize with him when he protects James Franco's father to the point of biting a neighbor. The human world completely turns on him and Caesar is forced to realize his true nature as an ape. 

Andy Serkis is truly allowed to shine in this role. Gollum was fun and had the two different sides to play with but there is such a powerful subtlety to this performance. Though Caesar can sign, it's mostly not translated into subtitles; only in two conversations with Maurice does the audience get a translation. The majority of the film and Caesar's story is carried out entirely through his expressions, gestures, and body language. Look at the tall confident walk he has when directing Rocket to give cookies to the other apes. The heartbreak I felt as Caesar's expression falls when his human family says he can't go home. The wordless fury when Buck the gorilla sacrifices himself on the bridge to bring down the helicopter and save the escaping apes. Even when the story can get bogged down a bit in the constant science explanations, I immediately perk up when the focus switches back to Caesar and can soak in the incredible performance of Andy Serkis.

Rise is much less action filled than its sequel films because it has to cover a lot as set up for the apocalypse to come. That set up is good, but again the science is a lot and can be a bore. However I think the pay off works. The horror of a simple graphic of the Earth, where one line splits and becomes many more, spreading across the planet, was very effective for me. I've heard people who didn't like that the apocalypse that destroys the human race is done in the credits, that it feels more like an afterthought. But for me, I think it was a powerful hook. Halfway through watching the film for the first time, I'd forgotten that this was Rise of the PLANET of the Apes. So I was excited for Caesar and his apes to escape, just happy that they'd gotten their freedom. Then the sick pilot and the spreading sickness animation hit me like a ton of bricks like "Oh shit, I forgot the humans have to die for the ape world to happen!" This probably didn't happen for everyone, especially those familiar with the original movies, but I liked the ending, undercutting the triumph of the apes with the doom of humanity.

Other than Will and his father Charles, the rest of the human cast is mostly forgettable, servicing the story where needed. Tom Felton of Harry Potter fame is a bit fun in his over-the-top hatred of the apes. When he gets to say the iconic "get your stinking paws off me, you damn dirty ape", my movie theater laughed at how forced the line felt, which I'm sure was not the intention. The weirdness of the line was swallowed up by the excitement of Caesar speaking for the first time and leading the apes out of the shelter, but I still remember the laughter of the audience when rewatching this movie. 

Overall, I think it's a great start to the series. Not the most exciting of the films, definitely dragged down by a lot of science exposition and unremarkable human characters, but a good intro to the world, setting up the apocalypse and making you root for a bunch of apes over the humans. You probably could jump directly into Dawn and War if you wanted, just knowing that humanity was wiped out by an illness that made apes smarter and Caesar is the leader, but I think getting to know Caesar makes it worth a watch before the more exciting films.

(Note that this is the only movie in this trilogy that does not have a novelization, likely because it was the first film and they didn't know how well the trilogy would do. It's a shame because I would have loved to read the thoughts of Caesar finding his place among both humans and apes.)

Intro / Next

[bunniebubbleswrites]

Omggg i love your writing please do more motherly lesso x f reader like the last one if its possible xx

More Than You Know

Mother Figure! Lady Lesso x F! Reader

A/N: Gonna be honest this had been sitting in my inbox for months and I just now got around to finshing it bc school has been driving me insane but i'm back!

Warnings: None (Let me know if there are any though)

Words: 908

You didn’t know when it all started, the name-calling, the pushing, and shoving, but here you were throwing yourself against the wooden door of your dorm room. Your roommates had barricaded the door from the outside, so the only way out was the balcony and that drop no one, no matter how desperate, would try and risk. 

You had thrown spells at the door and none of them had worked so you had resulted in brute force which was, at the current moment, not working. Your breathing was heavy and the entirety of your right arm was bleeding just slightly due to the small splinters that came from the decaying wooden door. 

You could feel the tears pricking at your eyes, you weren’t getting out of your dorm room anytime soon. 

“Fuck,” You picked up one of your textbooks that had been haphazardly tossed onto your bed and threw it full force at the door in front of you. “Fuck them all” 

You kicked the door with full force letting the tears escape your eyes and roll down your cheeks. The impact from the kick left you sitting on the floor. You were tired, tired of it all. At this point, you didn’t want to try anymore. You knew about the whispers and how everyone was talking behind your back, but you could never confirm it. 

You moved to lean against your bedpost and pulled your knees to your chest and buried your face into your knees. You were a Never, you weren’t supposed to be crying over this. All you wanted was for someone to hold you and tell you everything would be alright. 

_____________________

Lesso looked around the theater of tales and she saw all her students, all of them but you. Clarissa had started to talk. She hid her worry, if you didn’t show up she’d do and check on you after the fact. 

The assembly went on but you never showed up so as soon as the students were dismissed for lunch Lesso went to turn on her heel but Clarissa stopped her. 

“Lesso, we both know what’s been going on. You should go find her.” Clarissa gave Lesso a kind smile as she turned on her heel and left the theater. How did she always know?

_____________________

You had been sitting on the floor for who knows how long. The sound of students rushing back to their dorms to grab something they had forgotten but never once had it been you. No one had realized they’d forgotten you. 

You wiped your wet cheeks off with your sleeve and pulled yourself up and sat down on your bed. You rested your elbows on your knees and just stared down at your shoes because there really was no point in trying to get out of your room at this point. 

The sound of heels moving in sync with a cane hitting the floor made you perk up. If Lesso found you like this, who knows what she would do. The sound grew closer and closer until it stopped right outside your door. The doorknob moved a few times before the lock was blasted open. 

You were met face to face with the Dean of The School for Evil and you didn’t know how to explain yourself. 

“Lady Lesso I-” You tried to get some words out but she silenced you with just a look. She walked further into your room and she shut the door behind her. 

“Okay,” Lesso’s voice came out softer than it should have.” Tell me what's been going on.” 

“Well, um.. I’m being bullied and my roommates they, they-” You tried to hold back your sobs but you just couldn’t. Lesso’s arm wrapped itself around your shoulder and pulled into a side hug. You wrapped both your arms around her waist and you cried. 

The arm that was previously wrapped around your shoulders found its way to your hair and Lesso’s hand gently stroked the top of your head. 

“It’s not okay that your roommates locked you in here, and it’s not okay that everyone has been saying things about you behind your back.” Lesso’s voice spoke out after a few minutes. You pulled back and looked up at her. 

Her hand came up to your cheek and wiped off what was left of your tears. Her hand lingered there for a moment.

 “Your roommates are in for some serious punishment, you don’t have to go to the rest of your classes today if you don’t want to, but I want you to know that my office door is always open to you and only you.” Lesso’s hand left your cheek as you nodded and wiped away the stains the tears had left behind. Lesso got up off the bed and went to go leave but you stopped her just before her hand made contact with the doorknob

“Lady Lesso,” Lesso turned her over her shoulder to look at you. “Thank you, for everything.” You gave her your usual bubbly smile and she gave you a small one back. How could someone like you be a never. 

“You’re welcome (Y/N).” She turned back around and left the room. You let yourself plop down on the bed already feeling so much better. You loved Lesso like a mom and you hoped she loved you like a daughter, because you were right. She did. She cares about you more than you know.

[waywardrose]

THROUGH A GLASS DARKLY 24

stranger things

eddie munson x reader

rated e

5.6k

spotify playlist

for @punk-in-docs​​​

fem/witch/goth!reader, sweetheart!eddie, magic, slow burn (for me), friends to lovers, angst with a happy ending, no y/n only pet names, series-typical horror, period-typical sexism and homophobia, historical inaccuracies and anachronisms, drug dealing and use, smoking, alcohol use, masturbation, mutual masturbation, fantasizing, one-bed trope, making out, fingering, dirty talk, chasing, oral sex, handjobs, condoms, piv sex, reader’s father is a dirtbag, mild spanking, magical violation, mental torture, body horror, blood, aftercare, nightmares, strict parenting, panic attack, past child abuse and abandonment, semi-public sex, break-ups, running away, guns, fist fighting, everyone survives, tags will be updated as needed

Eddie would have to wait until his lunch break to see this new, hot, weird chick. He wondered which flavor of weird she was. Art weird? Theater weird? Band weird? Weird weird? He shrugged. He liked weird. In other words, you’re the new girl in town, and Eddie is intrigued.

note: Idk if the Cali group arrives in Hawkins on Saturday or Sunday. I'm going with Saturday. If that's wrong, well, this fic isn't canon compliant anyway. Also, Unnamed Freak (aka Dave) has a canon name now with Flight of Icarus: Dougie. I've corrected this entire fic on all platforms. If I've missed a "Dave" somewhere, please tell me. 🖤

24

The phone rang, jolting you from your research. On reflex, you stretched across the spread of opened spell books for the phone on the nightstand. Then you remembered you weren’t at home. You sat on the bed in one of Steve’s guestrooms.

When he didn’t ask you to answer the phone, you straightened and found where you’d left off. The ringing ceased, then Steve’s voice drifted through the open door. At one time, it would’ve been an annoyance. Now, it reminded you that you weren’t alone. You had people who knew you for who you were and weren’t wary of your abilities.

Last night, Robin had stayed through dinner and Back to the Future. Working at Family Video had its perks, because there was a waitlist to rent it. Robin and Steve had talked through the entire movie, asking about you and sharing about themselves, but you hadn’t minded. You learned that ‘Scoops’ was Scoops Ahoy, an ice cream parlor. It must be a Midwestern chain, because you’d never heard of it.

Robin bragged Steve had slung so much ice cream, they had to put in special orders. Steve shrugged, all bravado, yet his flushed cheeks belied his cool demeanor.

“You should’ve seen some of the girls who came in,” Robin had said, face reverent. “They must’ve come from Fort Wayne or Indy—”

Eyes wide, Steve had interrupted. “Yeah, they weren’t local, that’s for sure.”

You’d glanced at him, then at Robin. He’d tried to divert the conversation. Maybe to protect her? That had made no sense until you remembered you were in the Midwest, where homosexuality — or even bisexual tendencies — was anathema.

To Robin, you asked with a sly look: “That hot, huh?”

“God, I could barely keep eye con—” She curled her lips between her teeth, but rallied. “I mean, they were, like, super intimidating.”

You grinned with a minute shake of your head.

“No, I get it. Girls are hot.”

“Yeah…” she breathed, eyes going glassy. “Girls are hot.”

The conversation had paused as George confronted Biff on screen. When George and Lorraine walked away together, you’d reached for your drink and glimpsed Steve holding Robin’s hand. He noticed you noticing and opened his mouth to speak. You stopped him with an understanding look.

“So, is there a girl at school you like?” you’d asked before taking a sip.

Robin glanced at Steve, who’d offered an encouraging shrug. She’d smiled, giddy and love-struck, and gushed about Vickie. According to Robin, she looked like Molly Ringwald, but even cuter. Vickie was talented and funny and smart. Steve insisted Vickie was into her despite what they’d seen at The War Zone. Robin waved it away, saying Vickie had a boyfriend. It was a lost cause. She’d pine from afar.

You’d said, “Well, not necessarily. She could be bi.”

“I don’t know? It doesn’t seem likely.” She’d gnawed on her bottom lip. “I would normally say that’s ridiculous, because this is Hawkins, but—” She gestured at herself.

You’d narrowed your eyes playfully.

“You could still win fair maiden’s heart.”

Steve laughed. “You sound like Munson.”

“What can I say? He’s rubbed off on me.”

Robin had snorted. “Yeah, I bet that’s not the only thing he’s done.” You’d giggled even as your face heated. You grinned now thinking about it.

Knuckles rapped on the doorjamb. Steve stood in the doorway, the sleeves of his teal henley pushed up his forearms. His perfectly tousled hair framed his face, his jeans showed off the goods, and his Nikes were clean.

“Hey,” he said.

“Hey, lookin’ good.”

He put a hand on the back of his head and looked down as if bashful. Like he didn’t know how handsome he was.

You asked, “Going somewhere?”

“Uh, yeah, that was Nance on the phone. She wants to donate some stuff at the school, and I offered her a lift. I think I’m going to volunteer while I’m there, too. You know, whatever they need.”

“That’s…” You first thought ‘surprising,’ but that was insulting. “That’s really generous of you.” You glanced at your suitcase overflowing with clean laundry. “Actually, I bet I have a few things someone else could use.”

“Oh, wow, sure.” He nodded. “You wanna come with?” He waggled a hand. “I mean, I know you’re not ready, but I was going to call Robin and Dustin. See if they wanna join.”

“I want to, but I can’t. I need to heal Lucas and Max.” You gestured to all the opened books. “That’s what I’m researching.”

“What about you?”

“Me?”

He pointed at his left eye.

“Wouldn’t everything be a little easier if you had both?”

“Probably, but Max is worse than I am, so…” You looked at the books. “I can manage.”

He surprised you a second time when he said, “It’s hard to take that ‘put your own oxygen mask on first’ advice, but you should consider it.”

You met his earnest eyes.

“I will.”

It wasn’t a bad idea. You should be the guinea pig before you sprung a healing spell on Lucas or Max. While you were certain a healing spell would never harm, that didn’t mean it would be effective.

Marking your place in the book you’d been reading, you eased off the bed. You knelt in front of your suitcase to pick out a few pairs of socks, a free promo t-shirt you wore when cleaning, and a pair of tartan trousers you hadn’t worn since moving.

There was more at home you’d be happy to donate. You realized you could drop in after healing Max to pick up more — as long as your parents hadn’t returned.

When Steve stopped at your door, you handed over the clothes and told him of your plan. He brightened with a nod. You jokingly assured him not all your clothes were black and scary.

He lifted the stack of clothes.

“Just most of them.”

You laughed as he smiled at you.

He stepped back and said he was leaving, adding he’d leave the spare key on the foyer console. You thanked him and wished him luck before he skipped down the stairs.

As the front door snicked closed, you plucked the book from the bed and found a white tea-candle in your magic supplies. After placing both on the en-suite bathroom counter, you flipped on the light. With a deep inhale, you found your center. Time to be a guinea pig. You opened the book and lit the candle.

Holding your fingertips above the flame, you said, “Magic mend as candle burns; Affliction end and health returns.”

You brought your warmed fingers to the dark, tender bruise on your jaw and repeated the chant. Your skin heated almost to the point of pain. You closed your eyes to concentrate on the feeling. Tendrils of cooling energy twisted through your flesh. You shivered and breathed through it.

Once the tendrils dissipated, you opened your eyes and withdrew your fingers. The bruise was gone. You wiggled your jaw, then put pressure where the bruise had been to find it recovered. Like Jason had never punched you.

That was one injury — and the lesser of the two.

You slipped the pressure patch from your eye and examined your reflection. The cursed eye was like any other injury, you rationalized. Surgeons removed damaged bits of the eye all the time. You were no surgeon, of course. You weren’t removing damage; you were healing it. That was different.

You couldn’t psych yourself out, though. It was like making the Creel house go unnoticed on Thursday. Size didn’t matter. Hence, the extent of the injury didn’t matter. It was all the same and all connected. There was plenty of energy in the candle, in the spell, in the universe, and in you to heal this.

You took a few deep breaths before holding your fingertips above the flame and reciting the chant. You closed your eyes as warm energy gathered. You brought your fingers to your left eye, swallowed the mounting tension in your throat, and repeated the chant.

Your fingers went numb. Heat radiated from your eye like needles of fire. Lightning burned under your skin. The floor left your feet. Or your feet left the floor. You couldn’t find the counter. You couldn’t move or think or orient yourself.

You clawed at the dark like a panicked animal. Red flashed across your vision. Rotting vines slithered across every surface, growing thicker. Their musty, sour smell invaded your nose. Your heartbeat thundered through the room. Red flashed again. A figure made of sharp edges and pain moved behind the vines. You stepped back. They stepped back. You reached forward. They reached forward. You screamed at them. Their mouth opened as though mocking you.

You charged forward to thrust your hand between the vines. Your palm hit cold glass. You met the figure’s eyes. They were your own.

You stumbled away. Your back slammed into something hard. Each blink of your eyes tore you through different realities. The gray Upside Down, your sunny reality, glowing lava fields, a silent city made of slate, a world full of unvoiced secrets, neon lights and the scent of stale beer. Time curved in on itself. No future, no past. On and on it flowed until you yelled for it to stop, stop, stop.

The soft bathmat cushioned your calves. You held onto the counter edge with your forehead pressed against the wood cabinet. The side of your nose filled the left border of your vision.

The spell hadn’t worked.

“Shit.”

You hauled yourself to your knees and braced your elbows on the counter. Thin tracks of blood ran down your reflection’s left cheek.

“Shit.”

You stood and bent over the sink to examine closer in the mirror. The cursed eye didn’t look any worse. Its milky pupil and iris were the same as before. Rheumy blood flaked under your touch.

If the spell hadn’t worked for you, you doubted it would work for Max. She’d taken part of the curse, the same as you. Your eye wasn’t only injured. It stood to reason her arm wasn’t only broken. Then you remembered both her eyes looked like your left.

This was more complex than any healing spell could manage—

Which you said to Lucas after mending his swollen cheek and eye.

From behind him, Erica asked, “Can’t you kill this son of a bitch already?”

You glanced over her shoulder at Susan, who slept on the alcove couch.

“I don’t know if a spell would reach him.”

Lucas turned to Erica.

“And if she kills him, she could kill Max.”

You frowned.

“Why do you think that?”

“El said she couldn’t find Max,” he said, tapping his temple.

He’d explained when you’d first arrived the other members of the party were back in town. On Thursday, El had fought Vecna by connecting to Max’s mind, while Vecna was also connected to Max. El then said Vecna had roared in pain and disintegrated into smoke in his own mindscape. Nancy had connected that to her shooting him and Robin Molotov-ing him.

El had seen Max unconscious in Lucas’s arms afterwards. She felt Max’s steady heartbeat then. Max’s heart continued to beat, which the EKG confirmed. However, El entered Max’s mind this morning to find a void.

“You think she’s with Vecna?” you asked.

Erica said, “Or she’s brain-dead.”

Lucas’s face became a mask of absolute anguish.

“Harsh,” you said to her.

Erica shrugged in lieu of saying it was a possibility. It might be, but you didn’t want to give up hope just yet. Lucas returned to the bedside chair to page through The Talisman. There had to be something you could do or something you could offer.

Erica cursed under her breath and went to Susan. After Erica repeated Susan’s name and shook her shoulder numerous times, she woke with a grumble. Erica announced it was two o’clock. Susan blinked in sullen confusion. Erica said Susan had work at four.

Susan’s voice was hoarse when she said, “O-of course. Thank you.”

Erica backed away as Susan coughed with a wince and sat up. She sounded like shit. Her pallid face looked more tired than yesterday.

You asked, “Would you like some water?”

Her drowsy eyes settled on you.

“Oh, you’re back.” She couldn’t seem to muster a smile, but she looked pleased. “It’s good to see you.”

Without waiting for an answer, you went to the squat pitcher and disposable cups on the overbed table and poured her some cool water. Her hands trembled as she took the cup from you, but she managed drinking half the water in one go. That appeared to revive her, and you offered her more.

She nodded with a soft, “Yes, please.”

As you filled her cup, you thought of a quick blessing. She needed strength to see this situation through. For all you knew, she might be the key to bringing Max back, because despite what Erica said, you didn’t think Max was brain-dead.

By the time Susan finished the water, her green eyes had brightened. She stood, fluffed her hair, and straightened her rumpled clothes. She announced she was going back to the motel to shower and change before work, and if anything happened, to give her a call.

You, Lucas, and Erica promised. Susan nodded to herself and hooked her purse over her shoulder. She went to Max, righted one of her braids, and murmured something to her. She hesitated a second, taking a quick look around, before leaving the room.

You placed the pitcher on the overbed table and threw Susan’s cup in the bathroom wastebasket. The tense silence made you aware of every noise you made, from the swish of the wastebasket liner to the crinkle of your clothes and faint footsteps. Rhythmic squeaking of wheels came from the corridor.

Watching the EKG display, you thought of something you could do:

“I can look for Max, too. I don’t have El’s powers, of course, but Max and I, we’re connected.” You shook your head. “I… I might have a better chance of finding her or finding a clue to get her back.”

Lucas asked, “Are you sure?”

“What if Vecna’s got her, and he takes you?” Erica leaned her elbows on the overbed table. “Then we’re down a magic-user — and we need as many as we can get.”

“He can’t get me here. He tried before and he failed.”

“But you died.”

“And yet, here I am, talking to you.”

“Died.”

You threw out your hands. There was no arguing that fact. Yes, you had died. Yes, Vecna’s curse had killed you. Nevertheless, you were alive. Also, Vecna was wounded.

Lucas asked, “What’s your plan?”

“I don’t know? Connect with her somehow?”

You thought of psychometry. Through touch you’d seen Eddie’s past. Perhaps through touch you could see Max’s. If you could see when the curse hit her from her point of view, maybe that would show you how to get her back.

“Maybe I can’t communicate with her,” you said. “But I might be able to see how Vecna took her.”

“Then you could reverse his steps.”

“Something like that, sure.”

Lucas sighed in thought, tapping his fingers on the book. He came to a conclusion before looking at you.

“It’s worth a shot.”

Erica huffed in disapproval and retreated to the couch.

You propped a hip on the bed, facing Max. Her delicate fingers curled over the cast. You tucked your hand around them and closed your eye.

Unlike with Eddie, you didn’t have to tell Max to relax and trust you. You loosened your shoulders, breathing deep. You focused on her hand, the stillness of her fingers and the fine skin of her knuckles.

The room went cold. Ambient noise disappeared. The mattress sagged under your weight.

Max’s grip tightened.

You opened your eyes. The pressure patch was gone — as was Max’s cast. She stared at you through milky eyes in a younger face. Her now-smaller hand held fast to yours.

The world went wound-red and drained of life. Only you and she remained in the room. No leaves grew on the trees outside. A motionless, stormy sky hovered close. You were in a frozen, bloody version of your world, like a paused horror movie.

“I can’t sleep,” said Max.

“You’re sleeping in our world.”

“What? How?”

“This isn’t your world.”

“Am I dreaming?”

You hadn’t considered that. She could be dream-walking. If she were, why would she choose this? Why would she be younger?

You said, “I don’t know, but you need to leave this place.”

“You mean I need to wake up?”

“Yeah, I think so.”

“I can’t. I can’t switch back. I don’t know how.” She frowned. “Where’s El?”

“I don’t know.”

Instinct kept you from telling her El had been at the hospital to visit her earlier in the day. This younger Max could be an illusion. You could be talking to Vecna. Or Vecna could be listening.

“How did you get here?” you asked.

“I was fighting Vecna, and he threw me. Everything went dark.”

“And then?”

“And then I woke up in the goddamn Upside Down.”

You examined the room, noticing how much differed from what you’d seen through the tumbler.

“You sure this is the Upside Down?”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s red, and where are the vines? The lightning? The demo-creatures?”

From nowhere, an invisible force pushed you backwards. Your foot skidded across the floor. You held onto Max’s hand. She bent forward to stay with you, then struggled to her knees. Your hip dropped off the crumbling mattress. You gripped the edge of the tattered sheets until they tore.

Her eyes widened as she shook her head.

“Don’t go!”

“I’m trying!”

But there was nothing to fight against.

You met her panicked gaze.

“We’ll find you! Wherever you are, we’ll find you!”

Your heel hit the floor. You lost your hold on Max’s hand. She screamed your name, crawling to the end of the bed. You pitched backwards, your heel the focal point. For a second, it felt like flying.

You landed hard on your side. Your ears rang. Like Dorothy landing in Oz, the world bloomed in technicolor. The pressure patch was back. Hands rolled you onto your back. Above you, Lucas and Erica blurred and sharpened. Their mouths moved, but their voices couldn’t overpower the ringing. You touched Lucas’s shoulder to confirm you’d returned.

The room dimmed. Shadows deepened. The three of you paused.

Red light flared through the window. Thunder vibrated the glass, restoring your hearing. You froze. You’d brought the Upside Down — or wherever you’d been — with you. Any second, those rotting vines would slither over the walls, the floor, Max’s bed.

Lucas helped you sit. Erica peered at the window on the other side of the bed. The clouds darkened further. When the vines didn’t appear, you used the bedframe to hoist yourself to your feet. Erica went to the window first, Lucas right behind her. You followed them, keeping to the shadows. You dared not look at any reflective surface, lest that sharp-edged figure look back.

Red lightning cut through the iron gray tower of smoke now spewing from the mega-gate’s nexus. Deafening thunder shook your bones. Warmth quaked in your gut a second later, silver and true. It filled the emptiness that had settled days ago.

-

Pitch black surrounded him. He lay on ice — or something like it. It curved around the back of his bare arms, cooled his body numb. So numb he couldn’t move. And he needed to move. There was work to do, someone to find, wrongs to right. Too much had gone wrong in the world. Too many injustices to name. He could make it right. He could help, gather, hunt.

Blood hung in the air. Screeches echoed through his mind, a hungry call for vengeance. Vines pulsed with wrath. The Source promised a righteous purpose larger than himself. The Source was a kindred soul: misunderstood, rejected, and enraged by the world’s hypocrisy. They were misfits together.

And there was no need to be frightened of anything anymore.

He searched the dark, his fingers not offering the answers he needed. He moved his legs and found the curve of the surface he lay on. Raising a foot, his toe bumped into something hard and smooth inches above. He let his heel fall as he walked his hands across the surface. He pulled it down his body. Whatever he was on moved instead.

He walked his hands above his head to find more of the same smooth surface. To his left were round protrusions, like bolts. Yes, he thought, bolts. Bolts meant hinges. Hinges were weak points.

More bolts were on the right. That was the hinge. The left was the handle. Handles were weak points, too.

He placed his palm on the handle bolts.

The Source said he could free himself. Something as mundane as this wouldn’t injure him.

He slammed the heel of his palm below the bolts. The handle rattled. He struck a second time. The handle whined. He struck again. The handle clanged in the background. He waited for someone to come investigate — police, a guard, even an assistant. He pushed the hatch open and waited a few minutes more. It was nominally brighter beyond, yet there was enough light to see he lay on a metal drawer.

He pulled himself through the portal. The drawer rumbled. Still, no one came. All around the portal were similar metal doors with chrome latch handles. He recognized it for the morgue it was.

He’d been dead. He was dead.

The Source contradicted the thought, saying everyone had mistaken him for dead. They’d not looked close enough. They’d abandoned him. They’d thrown him away. Only Source accepted him and had seen him for the valuable individual he’d always been.

He sat and scooted up the drawer to maneuver his legs out. The skin on his torso pulled. He looked down and gagged. Lines of black stitches or patches of missing flesh disfigured his chest and stomach. He touched the flap of skin on a patch on his right side. It should’ve hurt—

Nothing hurt.

He should’ve been cold. He’d been in a refrigerated box for who knows how long, but he wasn’t.

The Source assured him he was beyond pain.

His right calf and left thigh had been gnawed on, too. Someone had attempted to repair the damage with more black stitches. Those injuries didn’t pull like his torso.

That hardly mattered, though. He needed to leave— wherever the fuck he was. He needed clothes for that, because he was very, very naked. Making anything right usually required covering your ass.

He slipped off the drawer, landing on feet that didn’t feel like his own. His legs wobbled. Every wound protested as he straightened. The skin stretched little by little until he could stand.

A shelving unit stacked with linens stood by the main door. He found a scrub top and held it up. His bare hands felt as naked as the rest of him. That wasn’t how it should be. He only took off— No, he hadn’t taken off anything. He was supposed to see someone. They were waiting— No, no one was waiting for him. Everyone thought he was useless — and dead.

He was forgetting someone— No, they’d forgotten him. He touched his upper chest. Something should be there. They’d stolen something from him.

Yes, someone had taken something from them. He needed to find this person— No, wait for this person. They had an essential component in Source’s plan, and he had to capture it.

-

“Something’s changed,” you said.

“Uh, yeah,” said Lucas, pointing towards the window. “The Upside Down is invading Hawkins.”

You shook your head.

“No, I feel the pull of something.”

You didn’t want to say you felt the silver flame of Eddie’s energy for the first time in days. That sounded hokey even to yourself. If the emptiness — which had to have been Eddie — was filled, it meant Eddie was alive. You couldn’t desert him. You had to find him.

Erica said, “You can’t go now.”

Lucas nodded.

“The party doesn’t separate.”

“Even if it’s for a member of the party?”

“Who is it?”

“I think it’s Eddie.”

“What about Max?” he asked. “Did you find her?”

With a nod, you explained the paused, red world where Max couldn’t sleep. Max thought she was dreaming, but you weren’t sure it was her dream. You theorized it was an illusion to keep her stuck. There had to be something to get her unstuck. She wanted to switch back, but she didn’t know how.

“She exists in two worlds,” you said. “Her body in ours, her mind in another.”

“Or in Vecna’s mind.”

“We have to unite her,” said Erica.

“She asked where El was, but I didn’t tell her. Because I don’t know, and because I didn’t want Vecna finding out.” The pull of Eddie being alive nagged at your consciousness, and you shook your head. “Look, I can’t stay. I gotta find Eddie.” You grabbed your purse from where you’d left it by the door. “Guard Max. Hide her, if you have to.”

Erica and Lucas shared a look.

“We can do that,” he said.

You gave them a nod before leaving the room. Eddie’s energy drew you outside. Though you didn’t understand, you took the service stairs down. Hospital personnel pushed open doors and passed you on the stairs without questioning you.

While the first-floor corridors bustled with people and staff, a hushed tension overlaid every conversation. You swerved around anxious groups of two or three and the occasional thousand-yard-stare loner.

Outside, the scent of smoke and hot ozone had your eyes near burning and your nose on the verge of running. Ash fell like snow from the low ceiling of the clouds. It disappeared when it touched your skin.

You brought your shirt collar over your nose, then crossed the parking lot to your car. You stowed your purse in the trunk and pocketed the keys. There, you hesitated. If Eddie wasn’t in the hospital, he could be anywhere. Perhaps Wayne had identified him and took him to another hospital. However, there wasn’t another hospital in Hawkins. Maybe he was at a doctor’s office. His wounds might’ve looked worse than they were. That didn’t explain his absence from Indra’s net or his reappearance, though.

You turned to the path that led through the trees at the back of the parking lot. Except for funeral homes, only the hospital and coroner’s office could store dead bodies. If Eddie was in a funeral home, word about it would’ve been everywhere by now.

His energy wasn’t far, yet it was muddled, like poor reception on a TV. You tried getting more of a read on him. Pain lit your nerves, making you back off. You pressed your shirt over the bridge of your nose and breathed deep.

Fine, you thought. The coroner’s office it is.

You had to get yourself worked up. An injured girl near tears could get sympathetic assistance and soothing information. You made your breath shallow and rapid as you marched across the parking lot. You brought to mind every stressor: your father rejecting your every idea, being a stranger in this town, Vecna disfiguring your face after stealing your magic, making mistake after mistake and not finding the strength to get over it or fix it, finding Eddie and losing him all in one night.

Tears rimmed your eyes as you walked under the coroner’s office awning. You righted your shirt and pushed at the door. It clanked in its frame.

“What the hell?”

You caught your breath. Maybe you had to pull it. You tried that, earning another clank.

It was locked. Still.

That was complete bullshit.

Your tears evaporated as you grit your teeth. You would not be kept from him any longer. It didn’t matter if he was alive, dead, or undead. You would see Eddie.

You placed a palm over the deadbolt.

“You are undone,” you whispered to it.

Its screws unwound and fell to the floor. The outside cover tumbled off. The interior mechanism flicked open and teetered in the hole. You encouraged it to drop with a jab.

You swiped the cover from the sidewalk before entering the building. Inside, you gathered the deadbolt pieces and dumped them in a potted plant in the dim waiting room. You went to the empty check-in counter to find the area beyond it vacated and dark, save for the blinking lights of the desk phone.

Heavy footsteps echoed behind the reinforced door to your left. With nowhere to run, you put on an innocent expression and curled your shoulders inward. A guard in fatigues tore back the door while another rushed into the waiting room, guns in hand.

“Hands up!” said the closest guard as the door closed behind them.

You raised your hands as your gaze bounced from one to the other. They both had black armbands with MP decorating the side. Military police. Your hunch yesterday about the Humvees had been correct.

“How did you get in here?”

“The front door?” You glanced at it. “The lock’s gone.”

“State your business.”

“I can’t find my-my parents.” You didn’t have to force any nervousness with two guns pointed at you. “They’re not at the hospital. And… and-and the ER told me to check he-here.”

The MPs scowled.

A frenzy of banging and clanging came from behind the door. The MPs turned from you with guns at the ready. You took a step back, heart in your throat.

What were they keeping back there?

The door flew off its hinges, springing off the linoleum by its corner. It ricocheted and crashed into an MP, who toppled to the floor. The door landed to cover his top half. His gun skidded into the waiting room.

“Back away!” yelled the remaining MP. “Hands up!”

You turned your attention away from the gun, thinking he yelled at you. Rather, his attention was on the person in the doorway.

You almost didn’t believe your eyes. You’d expected a demogorgon or some other sort of hellish creature. It was neither. It was Eddie. Unmistakable, even backlit by the severe hallway light. His usually wild hair hung limp around his face. Green scrubs had replaced his clothes.

Eddie hissed at the MP and stomped onto the collapsed door. The MP underneath bleated in protest.

If he kept on like this, he was going to be shot.

“Eddie?”

He turned his focus on you, his blank expression so unlike himself.

The MP shouted, “I said, hands up!”

Eddie’s eyes had you taking another step back. They were like your left: cursed. His skin was waxen like the dead. A tag hung from his big toe. You didn’t know who this was, but he wasn’t your Eddie. He felt like him, looked like him, had his silver flame, but he wasn’t Eddie.

The door was less than a yard away. You could make it out before anyone would reach you. Once outside, you could dash to your car — or lead Eddie away from the hospital.

You pivoted on one foot. A cold body plowed into yours. Hands grabbed your upper arms. The check-in counter dug into your back. Eddie reared up over you.

He’d moved too fast to be natural. In comparison, the MP turned in slow motion.

Eddie pulled the pressure patch down your face.

With a pleased look, he said, “Ah, I see you’re half ours already.”

His breath smelled of old blood.

“Eddie, don’t.”

“Don’t what? Have you join us?”

He leaned in to drag his nose over your cheek, inhaling as he went. You closed your eyes and pinched your mouth shut. His dry, cracked lips skipped up your cheek.

“Pretty, pretty witch.”

“Show me your hands,” ordered the MP.

“Should I let him shoot me?” Eddie asked you.

“Don’t shoot,” you called over his shoulder. “He’s… He’s not hurting me.”

Eddie hummed in your ear. “Take me to Max.”

You couldn’t let him get his hands on her. He’d take her to Vecna. If Vecna had you, Max, and Eddie — all cursed in one manner or another — it would be a recipe for destruction. He’d drain you like a vampire, sacrifice Eddie, and use Max as a pawn. Or maybe something even worse. You couldn’t let any of that happen.

You arched away to look into Eddie’s cursed eyes, so much like your own. You’d tear Vecna limb from limb for this. Apart from El, only you had power enough to destroy him. And you could with the Eradix spell you’d found on Thursday.

“Step away from the girl!”

Eddie snarled and turned his head like a predator. He released your arms before you could protest. You reached for his shirt to keep him with you. Your fingers grasped air.

A triple pop of gunfire had you hunching and covering your head. The waiting room window shattered. A gust of smoke and ash poured into the building. Boots shuffled across the floor. The MP grunted as something clattered.

You wanted to look, make sure Eddie hadn’t been shot, but you needed to get out of there. A wet gurgle and grind turned your stomach. You scurried to the main door, pulling it open. Wind dragged the door from your hand. It thudded against the wall.

With a flinch, you peeked over your shoulder. Eddie stared back. Blood dripped down his chin. The MP hung slack from his hands.

Everything narrowed.

Then everything sharpened as you steadied the main door and sprinted to the street.

[vampyboys]

Sonder (Ch 1-3)

Miguel O'Hara x Trans-Masc Reader (Boss & Employee Relationship)

__________________________________________

MASTERLIST🌿

Tags: Fluff, Slow-Burn (Maybe), Eventual Smut, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Soft Miguel, Boss/Employee Relationship, 2nd person POV

Word Count: 6k

Summary: You’ve been working at the Spider-Society for a year now as a Scientist to conduct technological improvements, experiments, and paperwork. Despite the high pay you’ve basically thrown your life away and work 72 hours a week.

Recently a small incident caused you to get closer to your boss, Miguel O’Hara whom you hate. Despite your feelings for him, you find that you’re oddly similar, both major workaholics who are attached to their work. Wanting to regain some of your life back you’ve decided to help each other and maybe fall in love with the process.

Aka,

Two Overworked Idiots who hate each other become friends with benefits then lovers at some point. *evil chipmunk laugh*

__________________________________________

CHAPTER 1

You've been working at the Spider Society for about a year now. Helping Spider people from different dimensions to fix these so-called anomalies which are fractures in some random universe fucking up its environment. You’re still shocked to this day wondering how you managed to even land this job. Constantly being surrounded by people who are far more knowledgeable about tech than you and they’re superhuman beings on top of that. Despite how cool that is, you are heavily overworked constantly working long hours past your shift. Spending countless hours revisioning experiments, devices, and oh god the endless paperwork on hundreds of anomalies that pass through each day. There are many days you want to quit but in this economy, living in Nueva York and with your degree this was the only thing offered to you that paid well. The realization of why it had a high pay started to dawn on you as you typed away the last remaining paragraphs of your report of a recent anomaly that landed this place. 

Finally, pressing the remaining letters you’ve finished your report, stretching your arms letting out a relieved yawn celebrating being free from your paperwork. You open up a new window going to your email and send it to your boss, he’d reply with a quick email on revisions you need to make but lately, it’s been dead silent. You’re starting to wonder if he’s even getting your emails, there has to be some sort of malfunction on your end or his. The last thing you wanted was to hear constant complaints from your boss, so you needed to visit his office to make sure everything was going smoothly; realizing that made you click your tongue in annoyance. You were in such a good mood too, the thought of talking with your boss filled your body with dread, and streams of memories started pouring through your mind of the times he’d talk down to you.

Before your departure, you stretch once more before heading to his laboratory aka his office, if you could even call it that. Each time you visited him he always had some sort of new tech or experiment scattered around and keep in mind his lab was MASSIVE, almost the same size as a theater. To have a room filled to the brim with your creation is incredibly impressive but also concerning at the same time. You were immediately pulled out of your thoughts as some Spider-People would swing by greeting you with a quick hello dashing away to go do their missions.

Navigating the Spider-Society was a bit tough for someone without powers, unlike the rest of your co-workers. At times they’d offer to swing you to your destination but you stubbornly refused wanting to somehow find a way to get there by yourself, most of them were pretty successful attempts but there were certain days where you’d nearly fall to your death. Luckily, being constantly surrounded by superheroes of every dimension has its perks so death hasn’t happened yet... 

After what seems like an eternity of a never-ending hallway with caged villains of a random dimension threatening to skin you, you’ve made it to his lab. Metal doors open as you get closer to it revealing Miguel O’Hara standing engrossed in his work with some videos playing on the side; assuming it’s footage from other universes keeping a constant eye on them. One in particular caught your eye, a video of him playing soccer with a girl who has similar features as he does. He immediately flicks the video away once he takes notice of your arrival and opens up a command to lower the platform he is standing on.

Miguel O’Hara was your universe’s Spider-Man and also your boss. You’ve only ever seen him in his mask until working here, he was surprisingly very handsome. His broad shoulders, tall figure, and if you were fortunate enough he’d turn to look at you with his dark brown eyes that would glow a reddish hue depending on his mood. Miguel had very sharp angular features, a strong jaw, high cheekbones, plush lips, and heavy eyebags from work. Yet, you hated him with every fiber of your being. At first, you admired him, duh, he’s Spider-Man for fucks sake! But the moment he opened his mouth, oh lord. He’d critique you on the smallest things, and yell at you for the littlest mistake, he was a hard man to please. Aside from that, he’s the person who assigns you piles of work having to constantly work overtime just to finish it promptly. Every moment with him was a battle not to strangle your boss to death even though he’d probably pin you down the moment you set your hands on him. Oh, and that stupid platform of his that he puts so unreasonably high up in the air taking years just for him to get down. Your co-workers would joke about how ‘it’s his way to look intimidating because he’s the big mean boss man’ and you’d giggle. When the platform got down to your level he hopped down looking down at you with a heated stare and his arms crossed.

“What do you want?” He asked, lifting his brows and tilting his head in curiosity.

“You haven’t been replying to my emails. I came here to check if you’ve received them.”

You chewed the insides of your cheek awaiting his response. Talking to this man was like Russian Roulette. On some days he’d reply in small nods, gestures, and a simple yes or no which was rare. On other days he argues with you yapping on about how you’re wasting his time and the state of the multiverse is at stake. But today, he goes to his holographic monitor to check his emails before turning to you,

“They’re here, I guess I’ve been too busy to check them.” He pauses, “Thanks for letting me know.” 

“Of course,��� you nodded, walking back to the entrance with the doors closing behind you. That was surprisingly the most nicest conversation you’ve had! You even pinched yourself to make sure you weren’t in some sort of lucid dream or one of the villains somehow polluted the air with some sort of hallucinogen on your way here. But it was all very much real! You hopped around throwing your fists up in the air grateful that your boss didn’t tear your entire ego to shreds.

Walking back to your office, you had a certain glow about you that made your co-workers turn. Normally you’d walk around like you’ve experienced all 7 layers of hell with a coffee in hand that’s probably your 5th cup of the day. It’s gotten so bad that people would often ask you if everything is okay, other than the endless work you’d have to deal with on a daily basis; genuinely deep down you were fine. But, your face conveyed the complete opposite looking like your childhood dog was killed in a tragic accident. So imagine their shock seeing you strut the walkways wearing the biggest grin they’ve ever seen in their life. They didn’t think it was possible, and neither did you. Of course, you still have some work to finish nevertheless a glimmer of hope twinkled in your chest that you might leave your shift on time.

____________

Shutting off your holographic computer you peeked at the clock hovering above the corner of your office showcasing the time, it was 9:03 PM! Not exactly at 9 PM like you wanted, but it’s still astonishing how you’ve managed to finish earlier than you normally would. With work finally behind you, it was time to celebrate for not only such a productive day but for finishing your work (almost) on time. A lightbulb goes off as you’re wondering of ways to celebrate, nothing hits better than going to a bar after a long day. It’s been a while since you last drank alcohol; it was perfect; exactly what you needed after everything. You quickly clean up your office, turn off the lights, and lock the door skipping out of the building to meet with a car awaiting your arrival to take you to your favorite bar. 

Adalhard’s Hideaway was a bar hidden in an alleyway somewhere in Nueva York, it was a pretty small place where people like you would drown their sorrows away after a long day of being holed up at their job or just hanging out with friends. It was a pretty calm atmosphere, and that’s what you loved about it. Not only that the place had a vintage, industrial look about it. There were random animals and photographs of the owner all framed and dotted around the place with thick bronze pipes that allowed some sort of ventilation. It offered comfy couches, tables holding napkins, potted plants, and high seats.

You always opted to go hang around the bar not because it was easier to get drinks but because there was a small jukebox near it that would play relaxing jazz as you’d drink your margarita. This was truly the first time you’ve felt peace in a long time, you inhale and exhale the scent of strawberry exuding from your drink as you take another sip. As time went by, you tried as many fruity drinks as they could conjure until the bartender had to intervene telling you they couldn’t serve you any more drinks. The bartender takes the empty glass from your hands and goes to attend to the person sitting next to you. Everything was starting to get blurry, despite being disappointed you couldn’t indulge in any more sweet booze they were right; it was probably for the best anyway.

You lay your head against the bar top desperately needing something to rest your head against something, you happen to glance over to the person next to you who is quietly sipping their drink. They wore a simple grey sweater that covered his neck and the palms of his hands, you felt a little creepy adjusting your glasses that were close to falling off your nose just to have a closer look at this stranger. Even though your vision was a bit hazy from drinking a lot you recognized those swept-back brown waves anywhere, although it was a bit messier with strands of hair peeking out of his forehead the last time you saw him. You drunkenly lift your hand and point an accusing finger at him,

“Y-You! Why are you here?!” Miguel side-eyes you for a moment then goes back to drinking his tequila acting like he doesn’t know you. 

“Hey! Miguel!” You continue to call out to him but nothing works. Some people start staring in your direction while Miguel looks at them like ‘Who is this crazy guy?’.

“Hey, I know you can hear me..” You furrowed at him starting to get annoyed. Frustrated, you began to stand up but the moment you did, you felt your stomach churn spewing all those drinks you had to the floor. It was an ugly sight leaving many people gasping and screaming in disgust. Before you can apologize for such an embarrassing scene, and for throwing up all over their carpet your vision starts to fade away. You couldn’t see or feel anything but all you could hear was muffled voices along with a loud ringing in your right ear that soon fades away.

____________

Suddenly light leaks through your eyelids, the sunlight kissing your cheek and urging you to wake up. You jerk awake doused in sweat with your heart palpitating out of your chest, while you scan your surroundings. This was not your apartment, it was a bit more modern and chic compared to yours which was filled with random objects you’ve taken a liking to, hanging lights, and plants galore.

“Have I been kidnapped?” You whispered to yourself, slowly breaking into a panic. Scanning around the area, you were placed in a king-sized bed covered with a grey soft blanket and wearing nothing but an oversized black shirt with your boxers. Everything that happened last night was a blur, you tried to recall everything but it was hard to focus with a throbbing headache that was wrenching your brain.

You thought of the only thing with the evidence laid out in front of you, gasping in the process. “Did I sleep with someone?!” Just as you say that, the bathroom door flies open, and through the steam is a shirtless Miguel O’Hara with grey sweatpants. The feeling of horror washes over you, now you REALLY fucked up! You begin throwing pillows at him as if he were the problem, knowing you were the one who decided to drink irresponsibly that night.

“Why are you throwing things at me?!” He asked confused, hiding behind the bathroom door shielding himself from the things being thrown at him.

“You pervert! How dare you!”

“Wait– it’s not what you think!” As much as you wanted to keep throwing objects at him, you ran out of things to launch at him.

He sighs sitting down across the other side of the bed, you lean back keeping your distance away from him. He sees that, and you watch his brows and lips twitch in response.

“I don’t know if you remember but after your little scene, you fainted.” Miguel stands up walking over to his closet pulling out a shirt and putting it on. Your eyes were glued onto him, as he went to get dressed you couldn’t help but gaze at the way his muscles flexed along with his movements, your face warmed up at the sight of it, you immediately shrugged off the feeling and then returned your focus to his face.

“Not only did you throw up everywhere, but I had to pay the bartender extra for YOUR behavior and clean up your shocking mess mind you.” You lean back against the headboard with your arms crossed avoiding eye contact with him as much as you can while Miguel does the complete opposite keeping his glowing red stare on you.

“I was kind enough to let you stay at my apartment and let you borrow MY clothes. What do I get in return?” Regret started to swallow your heart hole piecing together the events that happened last night. 

“You throw MY things and completely trash MY room!”  Miguel was pacing around with his hands around his waist trying to calm himself, watching him move back and forth. You felt like you needed to do something to repay for not only taking care of you but to apologize for your actions.

“Is there anything I can do to make up for it? I-I can clean the mess I’ve made.”

You get up from the bed quickly organizing all the things you’ve thrown at him and Miguel watches you frantically trying to clean up his room.

He rubs the creases between his brows, “Ay, dios mío, just.. Clean up your mess and get to work on time.”

You smile nodding your head in a fast pace not wanting to piss him off anymore, he leaves the room as his Spider-Suit started to form back in place.

Before departing he looks back at you, “I’ve left some painkillers and water on the counter. Don’t forget to take it before you leave.”

You watch him glide out of the balcony swinging back to the Spider-Society.

CHAPTER 2

That was the last time you’re ever drinking again, memories of last night would come pouring down replaying every single excruciating detail. The facial expression on Miguel’s face as you puked your guts out, the cartoonish gasp that would echo across the bar. You face plant into the your table with a loud thud, hoping these thoughts would somehow magically pop out of your head. Even the floral fumes radiating from your coat reminded you that he took the time to wash your clothes which were covered in puke. Imagining Miguel squeezing a bile soaked fabric makes your body curl in shame wanting to move to a far-away state, maybe Oregon? Fuck it, how about just moving to a whole different country.

You sigh, bringing your coffee cup to your lips taking a quick sip. Having to apologize to Miguel was your only option, besides you owe him after that shitshow in Adalhard’s Hideaway. As you scanned the cafe looking for something else to focus on, you spot a chalkboard in bold letters decorated with little stars on the side and a smile drawn at the bottom as if it were a sign from God himself. 

“NOW SELLING CREPES!” The plan of gaining Miguel’s forgiveness and your pride back was starting to develop. Inspired, you start packing your things strutting up to the cashier in the front.

“Hi! Is there anything else I can do for you?” They greet you with a big smile, fiddling with the screen to prepare your order.

“Hi yes! What are the popular ones? For Crepes please?”

__________

The taste of eggs, avocado, garlic, and salmon coats your mouth, the perfect combination of a nostalgic flavor taking you back to mornings when you used to cook. One thing you loved was making something similar to what you have. A whole wheat bagel combined with eggs and garlic powder on top, adding some tomatoes or salmon if you’re feeling fancy. Now with what little time you have in the mornings, cafe visits are frequent, or whatever food you can get hold of; a single piece of bread, a banana, maybe an apple?

You glance over at the last 2 remaining crepes stored neatly in a brown paper bag for Miguel. One was a banana crepe glazed with Nutella and whipped cream, the other was the same one you ordered. Choosing something Miguel would like was hard. He seems like a guy who would prefer savory foods but who knows? He might have a weakness for sweets too. A thought pops up in your head, what is Miguel O’Hara like? Based on what you’ve gathered from purely visiting his lab from time to time. There’s very little you know about him within the span of knowing each other for a year. He’s very reserved, usually holed up in the office all day. The only time you’ve ever seen him out of his lab was when he was done with a mission or one of the Spider-People would create a mess in the halls. Seeing him at the bar yesterday made you wonder if there’s more to that brooding face of his.

Your brain starts brewing many clones of Miguel each depicting a different personality. Looking over at the crepes once again as you take a final bite of your food. Is he a tough guy who secretly has a soft side? Well, that part you cannot deny; he did recruit a cat and a Lego to the team after all. Images of him saving a small kitty stuck up a tree, or helping an elderly person cross the street pop up in your mind, making your heart flutter at the thought. That feeling instantly dissipates, reminding yourself that this is Miguel O’Hara we are talking about. He has to be a simple guy, enjoying the simple things in life, sitting down to read a novel sipping a cup of coffee watching the sunrise, and long walks on the beach. You don’t know why but it made your face scrunch up, cringing at the entire concept.

__________

The Spider Society building stands tall and proud looking over the city, it’s one of the tallest buildings here in Nueva York. Its metallic pristine exterior illuminates the sun giving it an elegant, powerful feel. Along with the advanced tech flying around the building with portals of Spider-People from many dimensions popping up around the entrance swinging around or chatting with their co-workers. You sit on one of the benches near a fountain located in the front to check the time. Sighing in relief you were right on schedule. Just as you were about to head to the building, a man about the same height, dirty blonde hair with some white streaks on the side, brown eyes, and recently shaved stubble. He wore a pink fluffy coat with his spider-suit underneath and a red-haired baby? You giggle, stretching your arms to greet them.

“Peter!” You squealed wrapping both the child and man in a warm embrace. The Red-Headed baby uses this opportunity to latch onto your chest returning the hug as well.

“And Mayday! How are both of you?” Peter B. Parker is one of your co-workers who you’re pretty close to mainly because of Mayday. Whenever Peter had to do one of his missions, he’d send Mayday your way to babysit since you’re one of the only people in this workplace who could take care of her. He’s tried asking other people but either they were too busy or ended up losing her in the process which his wife wasn’t happy of.

“Oh, we are doing great! Mayday here just wanted to come over and say Hi.” You look over to her whose hair is bundled up in a Spider-Man beanie, glimmering at you with a gap-toothed smile. Your heart melts, hugging her once more making the baby throw a fit of giggles.

“I’m more worried about you!” He says surveying around you in a circle pointing at your bloodshot eyes, and the whisps of hair ready to fly off.

“Jeez, you look like you’ve been run over by a bus on your way here.” You roll your eyes at him giving him a light swat at his hand.

“Ow! Okay, okay, I deserved that. That was very rude of me.” He chuckled nervously rubbing the stinging pain over the area where you smacked him.

“Why don’t we sit down for a moment.” Peter yawns, stretching on-top of the benches. He looks over, giving you a sly look urging to take a seat right next to him.

“Do.. you wanna talk about it?”

“Are you serious right now?”

“Yes! What’s wrong with venting out your feelings? Everyone needs it at times!”

“You know what, fine.” You groaned, defeated sliding over to a spot next to Peter. Mayday was still perched on your lap. This conversation probably isn’t the best to tell around a child. So, you cupped her ears as tight as you could. Making your hands as some sort of barrier to prevent her from hearing what you’re about to say.

“I might have had a little too much to drink last night..” Peter nods, letting out a simple mhm indicating that he’s listening.

“It happens to the best of us. Trust me, I’ve been there.” “I’m not finished.” You snap, focusing his attention back to you. “Miguel was there and he might’ve been involved.” He juts his head back, eyes widening.

Your brain flashes images of the horrific events last night. Every word that comes out of your mouth feels like you’re being repeatedly stabbed in the chest. Your face starts to feel warm, heat rising on your neck, cheeks then ears attempting to pry the words out of your mouth. After sometime, you were able to blur it out in one quick sentence, “I threw up on him!” Saying it out loud made your heart explode, if it were possible you’d turn into liquid seeping through the benches, turning into a small puddle that would evaporate the moment it touched the ground. In the mists of questioning your life choices, there were felt tiny tugs on your lab coat. Removing your hands shielding your face, you’d spot Mayday with a concerned look. Of course, not wanting to worry her, you scruffle her hair gesturing that you’ll be okay.

“Oh wow! That’s-uh.. Something.”

“I know!” You paused, making sure to cup the small child’s ears before you talk, “I really screwed up, bad.”

“Well, did Miguel say anything about it?” He asked with his back hunched over, interested in what you’re about to say.

“Of course, he scolded me for it, but only because I threw his stuff at him–”

“You THREW stuff at him?!

“Only because I thought we hooked up!”

“YOU WHAT?!” Peter adds his hands on top of yours, as an extra measure to make sure Mayday wasn’t hearing any of this. Meanwhile, the baby just eyed them having no clue what was going on.

“Hold on, pause. Pause! Tell me everything..” And you did, every detail from you trying to consume as many fruity drinks as you can to how Miguel took care of you after puking in his face. All that could come out of his mouth is,

“Wow, just wow!” He sits there in silence trying to process the information you just told him.

“Well, are you planning on talking to him about it?

“Yes, actually, and, I bought these crepes for him on the way here.” You opened up your bag showing him a brown bag of a cafe’s logo.

“Do you think he’ll forgive me?” Peter doesn’t reply immediately, his lips turn moving side to side trying to evaluate the proper words to say.

“Hmm, knowing Miguel. Yeah, I think he would.” Your jaw drops upon hearing that, stuttering in shock.

“There’s no way he would, come on Peter!”

He laughs slinging a hand over your shoulder, “Trust me, he may be rough around the edges but he’s not cruel! Sometimes..”

You lay your head back letting out an annoyed groan while Peter pats you on the back, “I assure you, he’s uh- forgiving guy.”

All you could do was stare at him with a blank face and he’d respond to you with an awkward smile. “Fine, I trust you. But if I get torn to shreds-”

“You won’t, Y/N.” He looks at you with a determined look, confident that everything will work out.

You feel somewhat conflicted about the whole thing but that talk felt surprisingly helpful. Your shift was starting soon, it’s best to call it here.

“Well then, I better get going y’know, get this whole thing over with.” Before heading off to work, Peter stops you in your tracks gently pushing you back down on the bench.

“Wait, let me take a photo of you and Mayday. She looks so adorable here!” Mayday lets out an infectious laughter, making you giggle in return. Peter whips out his phone stepping a couple of steps back to capture the moment with the camera flashing at the two of you. He flips the phone showing you the picture with a big, happy, dad grin. It was a beautiful photo of you looking up at Mayday sitting on your shoulder beaming a bright smile at you.

“Aw, that’s so cute. Can you send that to me?”

__________

After your talk with Peter, you’ve somewhat gained some confidence about your plan. But, anxiety would eat away at every positive thought telling you that everything will all backfire and you’ll leave the building unemployed. You can imagine it now, Miguel's voice would echo across the building making mountains split, the world shake,

“YOU’RE FIRED!” He’d yell on the top of his lungs, hurling an empty box at you to pack your things. Then it’d cut to a scene of an elderly version of you with a beard reaching your toes begging for a scrap of bread. You dust away the thoughts shaking your hands, telling them to go away.

Finally you’ve made it. The metal doors loom over you upon its menacing presence. This was the moment that would make or break your future. You prepare yourself to take a couple of deep breaths before charging to the door ready to finally face Miguel! 

Until your body subconsciously turns the other way.

“Yup, I think that’s it. That was a clear sign that you shouldn't be doing this.” As you were about to leave like the coward you are. The doors open slowly revealing Miguel standing on the platform with light leaking in his direction, as if the spotlight is on him telling you to go speak to him NOW. Oh, right automatic doors.

You have no other option but to face him. Shuffling your way closer to Miguel straightening your posture and glasses. Luckily his platform was already lowered to your level if you had to wait for that stupid thing to go down. You’d probably flee halfway down to its descent. 

“Uh, hey.” You were inside the dragon’s layer, every part of your body wanted to scream, run, hide under a table. OH GOD, YOU’RE DEAD!

He turns around only letting half of his face show, “Hm?”

“I- Uh, I wanted to..” There was a moment of silence before continuing to talk,

“I bought you some Crepes.” You flashed him a plastic smile wiggling your fingers showcasing the bag hoping he’d just take the damn thing. He nods, tapping the only open spot at his desk amongst the empty coffee cups which probably are new and some are a couple days old. You waddle over gently placing it next to him.

“Thanks,” he says before returning to work expecting you to leave. You couldn’t, at least not yet. You clutched onto the fabrics of your lab coat holding a stare at the back of his head,

“I also wanted to properly apologize.” He didn’t show it but you felt like his ears started to perk up in response. “You helped me when I needed it the most and I appreciate it, I do. But I clearly didn’t express it correctly. So, I’m sorry. I’m sorry for throwing your things at you and belittling your kindness, that was such a wrong thing for me to do.”

”Did you take the painkillers before you left?” Miguel doesn’t face you, he even pauses whatever he’s doing awaiting your reply.

”Um.. yes, I did. Thanks.” He hums in approval continuing back to his work.

Oh-kay, is he not gonna acknowledge what you said earlier? You awkwardly stand there awaiting his response, but nothing. He was just tapping away at his holographic screen. The silence was so loud you even started to hear crickets around the corner of the room. Panic starts to flow through you, then anger, sadness, and regret all at once. Though you accepted his answer nevertheless nodding in understanding with his final answer laid out to you. Turning to leave, he tilts his head glancing over to you.

“I forgive you. You owe me a drink though.” 

The unsettling silence between you two was like hours of torture awaiting for something, ANYTHING! But with him finally replying at the last minute, just when you were about to leave feeling humiliated. It did not give you any sense of relief however it did make you furious! Was this some type of joke you weren’t in on for you to treat you like this? To play with your feelings like food on a platter?

You puffed your chest out at him rolling your eyes, “Fine, tomorrow then.”

Stomping out of the building, something glimmered at the corner of your eye you see the bastard smirk! 

“God, I’d do anything for a chance to strangle him.” Mumbling under your breath as the doors close behind you.

CHAPTER 3

Here you are sitting in the corner of the room quietly listening to music as you enjoy your drinks. At least one of us is enjoying it. You glance over at Miguel, who is sipping on the whiskey you paid for, with his arms slinging across the booth. The tips of his fingertips hover over your left shoulder. He wasn’t exactly touching you, but with his finger levitating above your clavicle, it felt like the shadow was prickling your skin. You slowly scoot away, shooting a hot stare in his direction. Miguel was in his own world, watching the people around chatting and reading old albums ranging from 2000s to 2050s sprayed across the walls of the pub.

This time you chose to go to Venandi Coven, a well-known pub around Nueva York that’s close to your apartment.  It had a similar vibe to Adalhard’s Hideaway, a calm, relaxing place. Unlike Adalhard’s more people were hanging about in the bar and booths. You eyed the group of young adults that Miguel was looking over, chatting about how stressful exams are, and would sometimes spill some gossip that you were also shamelessly interested in. Looking at them would bring back the old days when you’d laugh, chat, and drink with your friends being up to no good. Maybe Miguel is feeling that way too.

You hate to admit it, but you share a lot of similarities with Miguel. From being extreme workaholics, being perfectionists, and not socializing with a lot of people. Did he crave the affection of other people like you do? Do you want a place to just relax without your work interfering with your life? A place to get away from it all. 

Swirling your glass, watching the liquid move in circular motions, admiring how the candlelight on your table would reflect with the ice. After you promised Miguel that you’d buy him a drink, you couldn’t help but play out scenarios of what to do. This could be an opportunity to woo your boss, get a raise, or a promotion. Having fun, and just relaxing was also an option too. But with the atmosphere so thick, barely even allowing you to breathe, these goals seem impossible. Maybe some liquid courage should help? You throw your head back, taking a swig of tequila and slamming your glass onto the table, catching Miguel’s attention.

“Maybe you should hold off on alcohol for today,” eyeing you through his glass.

“Oh, shut up.” Okay, maybe adding alcohol to the mix wasn’t a great idea. 

Your face reddens, realizing the harsh tone in your words.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to snap at you.”

He sets his tequila down, leaning back with his arms folded.

“I know it might not seem like it, but, I’m looking out for you.”

“Hm, are you now? How so?”

“Every scolding, every lecture, it’s for your own good. It’s for you to improve, get better, y’know? The state of the multi—”

“Yeah, yeah. I get it.” You lowered your pitch matching Miguel’s voice, “The state of the multiverse is at stake, and we need to make sure everything goes as smoothly as possible."

Throwing him a quick smirk. "But yelling at a simple mistake isn’t exactly helping, boss.”

He leans forward, observing the way you’re fiddling with your hands. It’s a habit he’s picked up on whenever you’re nervous or anxious. 

“I know my temper can be… a lot. But my reasoning is still justified.”

“Uh-huh, like that silent treatment you gave me yesterday.”

“Oh, come on. You deserved it.”

“So you admit you did it on purpose?”

He chuckles. You admit it was a little strange seeing Miguel break out of his usual pokerface. But it wasn’t an unwelcome sight.

“You. Threw. My. Stuff. At. Me.”

He said each word with a tone that was a bit playful. 

“I already apologized for it, what more do you want from me…” You huffed, slinging your leg over the other.

“Anyway, what I’m trying to say is… Our work in the Spider-Society isn’t exactly easy, especially for someone who isn’t like us.”

Miguel hovers his hands over yours as if he wants to comfort you, but he quickly pulls back, placing his hand next to you.

“It’s imperative we make sure you are in tip-top shape.” You laugh at the irony of it all.

“Miguel, one thing we have in common is that we are burrowed in our work. We practically live at the Spider-Society at this point.”

“I know but, I’m the leader—“

“Are you listening to yourself? How about this, we both need to learn how to take care of ourselves.”

He grumbles, averting his eyes away from you. There’s the Miguel O’Hara you know.

“If we both want to approve our work life. Let’s do it together. It’s nice to have someone with the same struggles as you, right?”

He nods, and you smile in return, coming into some sort of agreement.

“Let’s exchange numbers, if that’s okay with you. Let me grab my phone—“

“Wait, I got this. Don’t worry.” A holographic screen appears through the Gizmo, you watch him press a couple of buttons before your phone vibrates showing a notification to add a number on the screen.

Clicking the green accept button gives you a bubble saying the number has successfully been added.

“There you go.”

“You Spiders and your fancy tech.”

Miguel goes on a rant about how important technology is in his work, missions, and other personal stuff. Even though you were rolling your eyes the whole time, it was the first time you didn’t have the urge to rip his head out.

You’d talk about the crazy things you experienced, complaining about the grueling tasks he’d give you. Instead of his daily scolding, Miguel would listen. Returning the same energy complaining about how many Peters he has to deal with every day and the mess your co-workers would make. You were starting to understand why he’s so grumpy all the time. By the end of the night, you thought.

Maybe Miguel is alright.

End Notes:

I hope you all enjoy the story! I'm unsure if I'll continue this but we'll see. I'm open to any sort of criticism as long as you're nice and respectful. 💞

[lavalamp-juice]

You see the Mario movie yet? If so, thoughts?

AH I'm sorry this took so long! got put in my drafts and I assumed I lost the ask D:

But to answer: We saw the first showing of our theater (was full of cute lil kids, it's almost like the normal teen would be in school or smth xD) (perks of online school ig)

The Art: I like how it's animated, cartoonish enough for the slapstick to work! colors and just all the designs in general were nice. I desperately want Illumination to make an Art Book usually art books come out with the movie tho so I doubt it :////

The actors: Liked em all! Especially Bowser, DK, and Luigi.

Plot: Pretty good all things considered! I was watching a review by the Super Carlin Bros, they brought out how Toad totally should have been a secret spy, which I agree! Who was givin Bowser all this info?? Other than that it was super fast paced I would have liked a couple of slower moments. Peaches and Mario's slow burn was adorable!! Can't believe they gave him rizz , tbh it wasn't really even that he was just being himself which I think is sweeter :') Friends to Lovers is my FAV I hope Luigi gets Daisy in a future movie he deserves her! Overall very enjoyable!

Jokes: yes yes yes all the jokes landed for me. ESPECIALLY the DK and Mario moment in the whale (fish??idk) it's even funnier in Spanish.

I'm so excited to watch it again on streaming, if its not on streaming I'd even buy the dvd cause man I really liked this movie. I've been seeing clips of it dubbed in Spanish, idk why cartoons are so much funnier in Spanish??? The movie got me to read fan fic for the 1st time xD my favorite has been a couple of writings from @drones-of-innocence and I've seen such cool fan art 🎨. One last thing I liked the Shy Guys UGH they are so cute

Overall 8/10 :D

[thewaverly]

Webb Chapel Dallas: The Ideal Location for City Living with a Suburban Feel

Dallas is known for its vibrant energy, diverse culture, and fast-paced urban lifestyle, but there are hidden gems within the city that offer a unique blend of both city convenience and a peaceful, suburban atmosphere. Webb Chapel in Dallas is one such area that beautifully combines the best of both worlds. Whether you're looking for a place to call home, a neighborhood to explore, or simply a new area to discover, Webb Chapel offers a prime location that caters to various lifestyles.

A Community That Bridges Two Worlds

Webb Chapel is a charming area situated in the heart of North Dallas, conveniently located just a short drive from major city hubs. It sits between the bustling activity of central Dallas and the more laid-back, quiet neighborhoods surrounding it. This perfect balance allows residents to enjoy the vibrancy of city living while retreating to the calmness of suburban life at the end of the day.

For families, professionals, and retirees alike, Webb Chapel offers a sense of community that is rare in larger urban areas. The streets are lined with mature trees, well-maintained properties, and local parks, providing a welcoming atmosphere. With a mix of single-family homes, townhouses, and apartment complexes, the area suits a wide range of living preferences.

Easy Access to Downtown Dallas

One of the biggest advantages of living in Webb Chapel is its proximity to downtown Dallas. The area is well-connected by major highways, such as Interstate 35E and Loop 12, making it incredibly easy to commute to the city center for work or leisure. Whether you’re heading to work, a game at the American Airlines Center, or catching a show at the Dallas Theater Center, getting to downtown is a breeze.

The quick access to major roads also makes it simple to explore the broader Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. Whether you want to visit nearby cities like Irving, Carrollton, or Plano, Webb Chapel serves as an ideal base for exploring the entire region.

Suburban Tranquility with City Perks

Despite being just a stone's throw from the heart of the city, Webb Chapel has maintained a suburban feel that allows its residents to escape from the chaos when needed. Quiet streets, residential neighborhoods, and small local businesses contribute to the slower pace of life. Many people who live in the area appreciate the peace and privacy it offers, with tree-lined streets and green spaces providing an oasis of calm.

Yet, Webb Chapel is far from being isolated. The neighborhood enjoys easy access to a wide array of shopping, dining, and entertainment options. Residents have nearby access to the Preston Hollow Village, a popular shopping and dining hub, as well as the Valley View Center and Galleria Dallas, which offer a variety of stores, restaurants, and entertainment venues.

Diverse Dining and Shopping Options

Webb Chapel in Dallas residents are not far from some of the best shopping and dining experiences that Dallas has to offer. Whether you’re in the mood for a quick bite or a night out, there are plenty of options just around the corner. Local spots like Webb Chapel Plaza cater to everyday needs, while nearby areas such as Preston Hollow provide a range of upscale restaurants, cafes, and boutique shops.

Dallas is famous for its diverse food scene, and Webb Chapel offers easy access to various culinary delights. From Tex-Mex to gourmet cuisine, there's something for every taste and craving. Whether it's grabbing a casual meal at a neighborhood diner or indulging in an elegant dinner, the dining choices in and around Webb Chapel are sure to please.

Parks and Recreation

For those who enjoy spending time outdoors, Webb Chapel offers several parks and recreational areas to explore. Local parks such as Webb Chapel Park and nearby Bachman Lake Park provide ample space for jogging, picnicking, and enjoying nature. These green spaces are great for families, offering playgrounds for children, walking trails, and areas to relax under the shade of mature trees.

The proximity to the scenic Bachman Lake also adds to the area’s appeal. Residents can enjoy the serene lake views, take a leisurely walk around the water, or partake in a variety of outdoor activities, such as boating and fishing.

A Perfect Place to Call Home

In summary, Webb Chapel in Dallas stands out as the ideal location for those seeking city living with a suburban feel. Its convenient location, quiet residential vibe, and access to major attractions and amenities make it a perfect place to call home. Whether you're new to Dallas or looking to relocate within the city, Webb Chapel offers a unique blend of peaceful living without sacrificing the excitement and convenience of urban life.

[thecurioustale]

The Wizard of Speed and Time: A cult classic film with special effects in practically every shot, but it's from the '80s...

At one point during Desert Bus this year, they got to talking about the Jittlov Font and its legendary readme file. (I looked at it; it's interesting, but it's not legendary. Back then, stuff that we all do regularly could make quite a stir due to its novelty on the Internet.)

Eventually, they got to talking about how its creator, Mike Jittlov, also made a movie. Like, an honest-to-goodness feature film that was released in theaters. They mentioned that Jittlov was a special effects artist by trade, and had done some work for Disney, and that his movie had special effects in virtually every shot.

Today, with our overproduced, CGI-heavy, do-it-all-in-post film production paradigm, we take that for granted. I remember George Lucas smugly joking about how he put one shot in The Phantom Menace that had no special effects work just for nostalgia's sake. But with The Wizard of Speed and Time this has a very different meaning: His film, being from the '80s after all, used almost entirely practical special effects—usually animation (e.g. stop motion), but definitely not limited just to that. The Desert Bus peeps mentioned how Jittlov did a scene where he's underwater in a pool for several minutes, and how that actually happened for real: It's one continuous camera shot, and Jittlov has no breathing equipment. He just held his breath for several minutes. (One of the few perks of being skinny, I suppose.) The film features a very wide showcase of different types of special effects. A little of everything that existed at the time, honestly.

The Wizard of Speed and Time is on YouTube for free (with the tacit consent of Jittlov himself), and over the weekend I finally got around to watching it!

I almost didn't make it out of the gate. Jittlov's editing style is horrifyingly frenetic. The camera cuts are almost constant (notwithstanding that pool scene). The opening of the film is very disjointed, and on first viewing it's hard to know for sure when the credits end and the movie proper begins. The pacing is just so, so fast, and this warps everything. I almost turned it off immediately, and it wasn't until the 12-minute mark that I paused, had a think, and decided that I would indeed commit to watching the rest of it.

Having watched it, I can say that I'm glad I did! This is one of those rare films that's worth watching purely for the special effects. The story and plot are very basic. The acting is not world-class. The music is charming at points but ultimately forgettable. The cinematography as I mentioned is uncomfortably frenetic. But the craftsmateship of filling almost every camera shot in the movie with special effects is something worth seeing for its own sake. It's a tour-de-force and there's nothing else like it that I know of. It's a real "museum piece," if that makes sense.

The effects work is all done not only expertly but very lovingly. In fact, I would say the other main strength of the film is its theme of preserving and celebrating the humanity in industry. In the movie, Jittlov portrays the motion picture industry in Hollywood as largely soulless, and presents this soullessness as the true antagonist of the story. There's also some anti-tax and anti-union stuff in there under similar auspices, with the IRS billed as the "Infernal" Revenue Service; but, despite being pro-tax and pro-union myself, it's easy to see where Jittlov was coming from, and that he was doing so in good faith.

Jittlov made this movie on a tiny budget by doing most of the work himself. He directed, did the special effects, played the starring character, etc. His name shows up in the credits frequently. Even still, the film was a box office flop, and I can understand why. But I will say that the film delivers splendidly on its implicit promise built up in the plot of showing us the special effects work that Jittlov's character is working on. We do get to see it by the end, and actually that whole sequence is an adaptation of a short film Jittlov had done in the '70s.

I like people like Jittlov. I'm one of them, myself. Very much a mate of his own mold. Very passionate. Artistically driven. Wants to believe in a better world but is oppressed by the current one. I feel better about myself for having given his movie a chance. We should all be so lucky as to have people bear witness to our work!

He was an early user of the public Internet, and his website, Mike Jittlov's WizWorld, is still online. It's a time capsule of what the Internet looked like 25 years ago, which I find immensely refreshing and also filled with cultural curios I'd forgotten about, like how he has a list of quotes on one of his pages. Just quotes that he happened to like, and gathered them all up. That used to be a popular thing to do on websites! That Internet was a lot nicer than this one, in many respects.

[jobsthe24]

Top Cities for Creative Professionals: Where Artists, Designers, and Innovators Thrive

In the modern world, creativity has become a cornerstone of thriving industries, from advertising and tech to entertainment and fashion. For creative professionals, choosing the right city to live and work in is more than just a lifestyle decision—it's a career move. These urban hubs are not only rich in inspiration but also offer the infrastructure, communities, and opportunities needed to succeed.

1. New York City, USA: The Cultural Powerhouse

New York City remains a beacon for creative professionals across disciplines. From Broadway stages to Silicon Alley startups, NYC is a melting pot of artistic and professional innovation. The city's rich cultural diversity fuels endless inspiration, and institutions like the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and the New York Fashion Week create opportunities for networking and exposure.

Key industries: Fashion, advertising, film, publishing, and fine arts. Challenges: High cost of living and intense competition.

2. Berlin, Germany: Europe’s Creative Capital

Berlin has earned its reputation as a hub for artists, musicians, and designers. Known for its vibrant underground culture and affordable living (compared to other European capitals), the city attracts creatives who value freedom of expression. Its thriving startup ecosystem also makes it an attractive destination for tech innovators.

Key industries: Visual arts, music production, tech startups, and design. Perks: Affordable studios and co-working spaces.

3. Tokyo, Japan: The Fusion of Tradition and Futurism

Tokyo's creative scene is a seamless blend of traditional Japanese art forms and cutting-edge technology. From graphic design and animation to architecture and fashion, the city offers boundless opportunities for creatives. Tokyo’s design culture, exemplified by its innovative retail and urban spaces, sets it apart globally.

Key industries: Animation, fashion, architecture, and digital design. Unique draw: Immersive cultural festivals and access to global markets.

4. London, UK: The Global Design Epicenter

London is home to some of the most prestigious creative institutions, such as the Royal College of Art and Central Saint Martins. Whether you're an artist showcasing work in Soho galleries or a designer working on campaigns in Shoreditch, the city's creative ecosystem is vast and interconnected.

Key industries: Media, advertising, theater, and fashion. Bonus: A steady stream of international events like London Design Week.

5. Los Angeles, USA: Where Entertainment Meets Innovation

For those in film, music, or digital content creation, Los Angeles is the ultimate destination. With Hollywood as its anchor, the city offers unrivaled access to the entertainment industry. Beyond movies, LA also boasts a flourishing tech scene and a growing reputation in fashion and art.

Key industries: Film, music, digital content, and gaming. Highlight: Endless networking opportunities through festivals and industry meetups.

6. Barcelona, Spain: Art Meets Lifestyle

Barcelona combines a laid-back Mediterranean lifestyle with a bustling creative scene. Known for its stunning architecture and design-forward culture, it’s a haven for graphic designers, architects, and visual artists. The city's co-working spaces and innovation hubs also foster collaboration.

Key industries: Architecture, graphic design, and digital media. Drawback: Limited opportunities for non-Spanish speakers in certain sectors.

7. Seoul, South Korea: The K-Wave Capital

Seoul has risen as a global cultural powerhouse, driven by the Hallyu (K-Wave) phenomenon. Whether in music production, fashion design, or digital storytelling, the city's creativity knows no bounds. Seoul's embrace of new technologies makes it a hotspot for digital designers and animators.

Key industries: K-pop music production, video games, animation, and fashion. Advantage: A rapidly growing international market.

8. Copenhagen, Denmark: The Design Lover’s Paradise

Known for its minimalist and functional design philosophy, Copenhagen is a mecca for product designers and architects. The city’s commitment to sustainability and innovation draws professionals who want to combine creativity with purpose.

Key industries: Industrial design, architecture, and interior design. Perk: Strong government support for creatives through grants and initiatives.

Why Location Matters for Creative Professionals

Cities are more than just backdrops; they shape how and where inspiration strikes. These hubs provide:

Access to mentors and collaborators.

Infrastructures like galleries, studios, and incubators.

Opportunities for global exposure through events and festivals.

Choosing the right city often depends on your personal preferences and professional goals. Some may prioritize a supportive community, while others seek access to high-paying clients or advanced technology.

Final Thoughts

For creative professionals, the city you choose can define your career trajectory. Whether you seek the high-energy buzz of New York or the eclectic charm of Berlin, these urban landscapes offer the canvas to bring your visions to life. As you plan your next move, research the local creative ecosystem, and don’t be afraid to take risks—after all, creativity thrives on bold decisions.

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Secure Living Spaces 

When it comes to feeling safe at home, electronic locks and locking bedrooms make a huge difference. At Alight West Lafayette, you can rest easy knowing your space is secure. The apartments come with convenient in-unit laundry, so you won’t have to trek to a laundromat. Plus, the setup is super flexible with per person contracts, which is great if you’re living with roommates. They even offer roommate matching if you’re looking for someone to share your space with. With options ranging from studios to 4-bedroom apartments, this place really has something for everyone. If you’re searching for off-campus student housing in West Lafayette, Alight is a fantastic choice that combines comfort and security.

Inspiring Collaboration Areas 

Creative meeting spaces can really boost productivity and bring fresh ideas to life. At Alight West Lafayette, you’ll find just that, along with a vibrant community atmosphere. Whether you’re working on a group project or brainstorming with friends, these spaces are designed to inspire. Plus, the 24-hour fitness center is a big perk if you want to squeeze in a workout anytime it fits your schedule. With options for studio apartments all the way up to 4-bedroom units, there’s a perfect fit for everyone. If you’re looking for off campus housing near Purdue, Alight offers a mix of comfort, convenience, and a great place to connect with others. It’s the ideal spot to live and collaborate with your peers.

The Transportation System in West Lafayette, Indiana

Getting around West Lafayette is pretty convenient, thanks to its well-connected transportation system. If you have a car, you’ll find that the roads are easy to navigate, with plenty of parking available near shops and restaurants. Biking is super popular here, and there are plenty of bike paths that make it safe and enjoyable to ride around town. If you’re a student or just prefer public transport, the local bus service is reliable and connects you to Purdue University and the surrounding areas. Walking is also a great option, especially in the warmer months when you can enjoy the lovely scenery. With so many choices, you’ll never feel stuck when it comes to getting from point A to point B.

Elliott Hall of Music in West Lafayette, IN

Elliott Hall of Music is one of those places you’ve got to check out if you’re in West Lafayette. It’s right on Purdue’s campus and hosts everything from concerts and theater productions to big-name speakers and events. The hall is massive, with a stage that feels larger than life and seating for thousands, so there’s really not a bad seat in the house. If you love live performances, this place has a little bit of everything—broadway shows, student recitals, and even comedy acts. The sound quality is top-notch, which makes every event feel special. Whether you’re catching a show with friends or attending a graduation ceremony, Elliott Hall gives you an experience that feels both grand and personal at the same time.

Purdue Innovates Incubator Awards $18,500 in Cash Prizes to Purdue Student Entrepreneurs

It’s always exciting to see Purdue students turning ideas into real businesses, and the Purdue Innovates Incubator is a big part of that. This year, they awarded $18,500 in cash prizes to help student entrepreneurs take their projects to the next level. You can feel the energy around these competitions—everyone’s rooting for their friends, and the ideas are as creative as they are ambitious. Whether it’s a new tech solution or a cool product, the cash prizes give students a huge boost in bringing their vision to life. It’s not just about the money, though. The incubator also connects students with mentors and resources, making sure they have the tools to succeed. These kinds of opportunities make Purdue a hub for fresh talent and innovation.

Link to Map Driving Direction

Elliott Hall of Music 712 3rd Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States

Follow 3rd Street to N University St 36 sec (299 ft)

Take Northwestern Ave and Sagamore Pkwy W to Sagamore Village Estates 8 min (3.6 mi)

Turn left onto Sagamore Village Estates 29 sec (0.1 mi)

Alight West Lafayette 2243 Sagamore Pkwy W, West Lafayette, IN 47906, United States