#working on a valentine's piece this weekend with any luck!!
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angelkissedface · 2 years ago
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establishing afzin as an emo with thumbholes in his big long sleeves
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nonotnolan · 11 months ago
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No Not Nolan's Year in Review
Apparently this is a tradition now, so-- here are the stories of 2023, ranked by the number of likes.   It also helps keep me a bit grounded-- it feels rough when recent stories don't pick up stream, but the year as a whole has still gone quite well. It's also nice to see where all of my work falls, note-wise.  And if you're feeling very nostalgic (or horny?) here is a link to 2021, and here is a link to 2022.
I'm leaving the eBook announcement posts out of my year end review, but I'm calling it out for myself so when I revisit this in December 2024, future-me will remember to grab those. I'm not planning to abandon this account anytime soon-- and I'm certainly not shifting to Patreon or PayPal or what have you. I'm not prolific or popular enough for any of that. The vast majority of my work will continue to remain free and open. I just wanted to prove to myself that I'm good enough of a writer to publish something that I can be proud of-- I have, and I am.
Do authors love notes and reblogs? Yes. But they often enjoy hearing direct feedback even more-- I know I sure do. Consider "messaging authors directly" as a New Year's Resolution. (Please note that begging for someone to write you a story is not feedback. Don't be that guy.)
12) Green Grass - 122 notes - December 2023 Two guys learn first hand that not everyone values the same things. Concise and straightforward. 11) Soul Stones: Long Distance - 192 notes - April 2023 A romantic story of two men using the power of body swapping to close the gap on a long distance relationship. Cell phones have nothing on being there in person. 10) Colony Freedom - 197 notes - September 2023 A slime alien attempts to rebuild its colony from the ground up after its overseers have completely vanished. Can it manage to find enough hosts for its family, or will its cover be ruined? 9) Cuerpo Inc: After Hours Perk - 249 notes - July 2023 Ethan tries to pretend to be Jake for the weekend, but he wasn't counting on Jake's nosy neighbor getting But if he can't be Jake, at least he can still have fun in Jake's body. 8) Summer Break Dullahans - 252 notes - June 2023 Eric was not expecting to find Ben's detached head in the dorms. I'm a big fan of detachable limb stories, so I decided to be a part of the change I want to see. (I'm also very rusty at GIMP / photoshop, but it gets the job done.) 7) The Great Gym Shift - 275 notes - August 2023 A version of The Great Shift, but with a limited radius. A gym instructor is stuck babysitting a bunch of grown men who suddenly find themselves in very muscular bodies. 6) Just Another Sunday - 279 notes - October 2023 A Chronovac story with unaware recipients and a retroactive reality shift that ripples through reality. I'm really happy with this one, though I will freely admit that I lucked out on the photos for this one. 5) An Excellent Choice - 291 notes - February 2023 My Valentine's Day story, dedicated to my boyfriend. As such, the emphasis is on a merging transformation sequence. Two men take advantage of new technology to become a new sum of themselves. 4) Group Project - 331 notes - November 2023 Another work set in the Swapper universe, where college students take advantage of body swapping technology for success or pleasure. This piece features Aiden, who has to hire a nerd to take over his body if he wants to pass his classes. 3) Cursing Fate - 337 notes - January 2023 It's an alien possession story with a dark twist. If you're going to align yourself with an extraterrestrial force, make sure you have something valuable to offer them. 2) Soul Stones: The Easy Life - 412 notes - March 2023 Alfie finds himself in the body of Jordan, one of the most popular athletes on the football team-- but he's not the one who plotted for the body swap to happen. It's one of my favorites for the year, and it's a series I could see myself returning to if the inspiration is right. 1) Rookie Mistake - 482 notes - May 2023 A novice magic user tries out an Astral Projection spell without reading all of the instructions. Things do not play out in his favor.
Special Mentions-
Travis Cordin - 382 notes - February 2023 by @mergeman My boyfriend's Valentine's Day story that he dedicated to me. A raw and electric story about a magic user who gives the resident nerd too much magical power.
Stories I Love (Part 1) and Stories I Love (Part 2) I was not expecting so many people to react to these lists, but these have been getting reblogged like crazy. More importantly, a lot of authors have been reaching out to show thanks and start conversations, which I appreciate even more. Like I said-- I'm not always the best at participating in the community, so I really enjoy hearing from people.
Top 5 All Time-
5) Revenge, Reversed - 517 notes - August 2020 4) Overbearing - 538 notes - May 2022 3) Finals Week - 552 notes - May 2021 2) Gym Merchandise - 610 notes - September 2022 1) Soulmate Swap - 659 notes - August 2022
It's always fascinating to see which stories get a second life through reblogs and new discoveries. Soulmate Swap is one of my heavy hitters, but both Gym Merchandise and Overbearing have gained a lot of momentum this year. Finals Week is starting to slip, though I'm still quite fond of it. I'm quite surprised to see Revenge, Reversed on this list given its age, but it's another one of my personal favorites.
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defendersalliance · 2 years ago
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Letter from a Villain
for @flashfictionfridayofficial 's prompt #FFF162: The Letter. ~700 words.
I wrote this so it could be read alone, but it’s basically a follow up to this snippet which gives more context on Valentine’s job tracking down the villain
~
The villain’s letter landed on Valentine’s desk three days after he’d escaped custody.
“I’ve heard he can be…more annoying in writing,” Brontide warned. Valentine’s hero co-worker gave the envelope one last glance before returning to his desk.
Valentine sighed and grabbed the envelope. “Has this been checked for poison?” he called. Sure, their branch of the Defenders Alliance was lacking in funding, but that didn’t mean they had to throw caution to the wind.
“You’re the ex-assassin!” Brontide replied. He glanced back and flashed Valentine a grin. “Poisons should be your specialty.”
He did know a thing or two about poison. Probably the reason they’d assigned him Sundew. Unfortunately, carnivorous plants were less up Valentine’s alley, and the villain’s new acid trick had made escape easy when he’d finally been captured after a month’s pursuit.
Valentine gave the envelope a closer look. Its pale green color was unusual, but he couldn’t find any discoloration or warping to suggest the paper was carrying extra ingredients. Still, he slid on his gloves before drawing a letter opener from his desk and tearing in. A pale piece of paper came out with letters typed in dark green ink. 
My dear Valentine, Sundew had written.
Great start. Valentine wondered if it was too late to pick a new hero name. Sticking with the fake last name he’d used as an assassin was…not his first choice. But no one asked him what he wanted when he’d agreed to join the Defenders.
With a heavy sigh, he continued reading.
It was lovely finally seeing your place after so many failed attempts to catch me. But let’s arrange the next date somewhere that isn’t falling apart.
The jab at the West branch made Valentine roll his eyes. Flickering lights and strange puddles, sure. But ‘falling apart’ was a stretch.
An art museum could be fun. I think we have different ideas about what “enjoying a museum” entails, though. I am looking forward to adding to my collection this weekend. And now that I’ve said that, I’m looking forward to imagining you on the streets all night in hopes of running into me. Weather says it’s supposed to rain, and I for one would love to see you drenched and miserable.
With Valentine’s luck, that was exactly how he’d be spending his weekend.
Since I’ll be giving myself the gift of stolen art, I thought I’d give you a gift as well. These seeds are so easy to grow that an amateur like yourself should be able to manage. And before long, you’ll have tomatoes! Or pumpkins. I forgot what I put in the envelope.
Valentine, with the utmost caution, tipped the envelope over his desk. A few small seeds rained onto his paperwork stack. Unlike last time, they didn’t explode into vines or venus flytraps.
Sundew, apparently, anticipated his concerns. And relax. They are ordinary seeds. Not my creations. I grow normal plants, too, in my garden. And I make a pretty good grape wine I’d be happy to share sometime.
Despite the promise that the grapes were grown from the ground, Valentine figured he’d have to pass, given the risk. Sundew’s powers also let him generate plants laced with deadly poison. Or, worse, put people in a hypnotic trance.
Though, Valentine suspected he had a different idea of ‘worse’ than most people.
I’m sure you’ve got work to get back to. I do too. I haven’t forgotten my promise that I’d find your real name, Val. 
Catch me again, and I might grant you the privilege of calling me your rival.
Valentine tossed the letter back on the desk with a huff of annoyance. Why couldn’t his first job as a hero have been a villain with a little less…personality?
He eyed the seeds. They hadn’t been the only thing to fall from the envelope. A fine layer of dirt had scattered on his papers as well. And he’d had enough brushes with forensics to know the value of dirt. Intentionally or not, Sundew had just given Valentine a clue to the location of whatever mountain cottage he was shacking up in.
The question was whether it was an accident, or a trap.
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mercy-burning · 3 years ago
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Losing You Twice / 1: If I Hated You
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Pairing: Spencer Reid x fem!Reader Summary: It’s Valentine’s Day weekend, and it turns out Y/N isn’t the only one struggling with the breakup. Category: Smut (18+), Angst Content Warnings: Language, drinking/getting drunk, penetrative/unprotected sex (If I missed anything, please let me know!) Word Count: 5,538
SERIES MASTERLIST | MASTERLIST
“My bedtime is the darkest, that’s when I’m brokenhearted. The nighttime is the hardest. It’d be easy, if I hated you.” —FLETCHER, If I Hated You
FEBRUARY 13th
It was Valentine's Day weekend, which sucked this time around. Every year for the past three years Y/N looked forward to Valentine's Day, but that was when she actually had someone to spend it with.
Well, someone she actually cared about, anyway... Whether or not Spencer actually knew it, she did really care about him. She was just stupid and didn't say it when he needed to hear it the most.
And now Valentine's Day was on Saturday and Y/N was still without him. Not alone, but still without the man who'd spent the significant holiday with her for the past three years. Memories of their dates and 'afterparties' flooded through her mind as she got ready for work like a montage, a cheesy love-song playlist she'd found on Spotify acting as the soundtrack.
Eventually she sighed and turned it off, opting for something more loud and obnoxious, and therefore not tainted by Spencer's memory. She applied what was left of her makeup and added a pair of earrings before turning the music off altogether and shoving her phone in her bag alongside her keys and other necessities.
Even though she wasn't emotionally prepared for all the cheesy Valentine's things she'd see and hear and experience throughout the weekend, it was still kind of nice to see that things in the bank never changed during the holidays— Everything in her life was so severely different at the moment, that if Marjorie had somehow decided to throw out all her elaborate decorations for each holiday, no matter how small, Y/N would have thought the world was truly ending.
Speaking of, she was met with Marjorie's brighter-than-the-sun smile almost immediately once she set her things in the breakroom.
"How's my little macaron this morning?" she chirped, Y/N chuckling slightly at the nickname— She brought macarons from the bakery down the street on her first birthday she spent at the bank, and ever since then, the older woman had adorned her with the namesake.
"She's alright, Marj... Better now that she's seen you..."
"That boy still on your mind, hon?"
Obviously Marjorie's intentions were good, but Y/N couldn't stand to think about the situation at all, least of all at work... So, setting her jacket on the rack, turned away so that her coworker wouldn't see the visible discomfort on her face, Y/N squeezed her eyes shut and cleared her throat. "So, what are your plans with Geno tomorrow night? Anything special?"
There was a brief pause before Marjorie cleared her throat as well. "Nothing short of our usual dinner plans, my dear. He's been so caught up with work at the Mill lately, I think we're just going to spend the night relaxing."
"Hm," Y/N said shortly, finally turning around and giving her the best smile she could. "Maybe I should take a page from your book and stay in..."
"You weren't going to?"
"No... Britt's been nagging me about getting out there so we're going out tomorrow night. We both haven't been single in a long time, so... Should be fun."
Marjorie didn't look convinced. Either way, she nodded with a smile and walked over to Y/N with something glittery and bright red in her hand— A cheap beaded necklace to clip her nametag onto. She draped it over Y/N's neck and patted her shoulders. "Well, I want you to have fun. And remember that you still have to come to work on Monday. Whatever shenanigans you get into should be reserved for Saturday night only so you can rest properly on Sunday, got it?"
Y/N laughed, thankful for the playful tone in Marjorie's voice. "Yes, Ma'am."
"Oh, I joke, I joke," the older woman said with a bright laugh, turning to walk out of the break room. "A little..."
The smile on Y/N's face only really lasted until after Marjorie was out of sight, then she went into her bag and clipped her nametag onto the red beaded necklace with a sigh.
Was she excited to have a good night out with Britt? Of course. Hell, had it been literally any other day of the year, she would have been practically bouncing off the walls with excitement at the idea of going out to a bar, letting men hit on her until she finally let one of them take her back to his place for the night.
But it just felt like it was too soon.
Either way, she was glad that she'd get to see Britt again, after she'd been on vacation for Christmas and New Year's to see her family and only got back a few weeks ago. She'd seen her on Facetime of course, and they met up once for coffee right after Britt got back from her trip, but a well-needed night out and quality time getting ready together was something that had been missing from their friendship for almost a year.
Y/N knew Britt would most likely spend her time trying to hook them up with end-of-the-night dates, but maybe it wouldn't be so bad...
Even still, sleeping alone the night before was probably one of the worst spells of loneliness she'd ever had. It was normal to be sad spending the first Valentine's Day in years away from a significant other, but knowing how things ended between them—bitter and stained with words left unsaid—this time was just... cold.
And that was putting it lightly.
Y/N laid in bed that night, her eyes wide open and staring at the plastic glow-in-the-dark stars that adorned the ceiling. They used to give her comfort, but now they just reminded her of all the nights she'd spend with Spencer, listening to him tell stories about the constellations. They were some of the most peaceful memories she had.
And now those, too—those stars that had grounded her pretty much all her life and reminded her of the better days—were tainted by her inability to properly communicate.
She almost thought about taking them down.
But if she was really going to get over him this time, for good, then she'd have to learn to make new memories with the stars. Even if it was painful. Even if replacing those memories and writing new ones over them absolutely tore her soul to pieces.
And, as if that pain wasn't enough, that night Y/N dreamt of him, making love to her amongst the stars in every galaxy, only to wake up the next morning cold and alone.
FEBRUARY 14th
She promptly decided that she hated his guts.
It was Valentine's Day, Y/N was respectfully buzzed, and courtesy of two beers and four shots of tequila, she'd just deleted Spencer's number from her phone.
"I'm done," she said, waving a hand at Britt and shoving her phone in her purse. "He doesn't deserve my wallowing."
"Yeah!"
Britt was significantly the more drunk of the two, resulting in a fit of giggles after gaining some stares from the people around them at her sudden outburst.
Y/N smiled, finishing off another shot and shaking her head. "We need more!"
"More shots!" Britt hurried off to grab them, leaving her friend behind with a half-drunken smile that also only felt half-genuine.
Sure, she decided she hated Spencer's guts, but her heart didn't exactly agree well with that sentiment. Even after deleting his number from her phone, after downing all that alcohol, her heart still ached.
Y/N knew deep down that getting over him was going to take some time. A lot of time... But maybe one night of distraction would help.
So the shots kept coming, and by the end of the night, Y/N was just about at her limit.
Which was near black-out drunk. And when you're that drunk you tend to make decisions you wouldn't soberly condone.
Britt got into a cab, and she begged Y/N to come with her, but she assured her friend that she had someone to come pick her up. Eventually the cab driver got tired of their inability to decide, and when Y/N told him to go, he did, leaving her alone on the side of the street at 1am.
Unfortunately, it was incredibly cold, and she didn't really have anyone to come pick her up. And that's where the bad decisions started.
Y/N pulled her phone out, a long sigh escaping her as she dialed the number by heart.
Would he even pick up? He hadn't answered any of her calls or texts before, so why would it have been any different now? Not to mention it was Valentine's Day Weekend. With her luck, he was probably in bed with someone else. Someone who wasn't her. As she listened to the dial tone repeating in her ear, images of him wrapped up with somebody else—sleeping in the bed she'd slept in many times before—clouded her drunken brain and made her more angry than anything.
Her gut twisted, and she almost hung up.
But then the low buzz of the dial tone abruptly stopped and in its place came his voice.
"Y/N?"
Her name on his lips, even through the phone, was grounding, the anger in her system melting away and revealing a coat of drunken relief.
"Spencer! You answered!"
"Yeah... Are you— Is everything okay?"
"Pff, yeah, 'm-fine. Just really fucking cold."
"You're not outside, are you?"
"Duh, I'm outside... I wouldn't be cold in-side... Besides, I didn't call t'alk bout the weather, I need you t'come pick me up."
There was a brief pause, and for a moment Y/N didn't think he was going to say anything she wanted to hear. She swayed on the sidewalk, shivering and praying that he would throw her a bone, even if she'd regret it all in the morning.
"Where are you?" he said finally, and despite herself, she smiled.
FEBRUARY 15th
Spencer couldn't believe he was picking her up at near two in the morning.
Honestly, he'd initially thought about ignoring her call again, but remembering the day it was and taking note of the time, he figured she was most likely in some type of inebriated trouble.
His instincts were right, of course, but he wished that he could have been wrong. He wished she'd only been calling to drunkenly ramble on about how she missed him or maybe how he was stupid and she never wanted to see his face ever again, because that was normal. At least then he could have hung up after she was done and never thought about it again— it was a normal step in any relationship that helped move things along. They could have gotten on with their lives and it would have all been over.
But of course it was never that simple.
Y/N was never that simple.
He pictured her on the street near some bar, alone and cold and drunk, and of course he would have been the only one she could call to rescue her. After all, he'd been pretty much the only thing she'd ever known to make her feel safe.
Still, he wished he was capable of only giving her a ride home and then leaving.
But again, it was never that simple.
It was easy getting her into the car— that wasn't what he was worried about. Rather, it was the fated moment where she'd ask him to stay after he finally got her tucked safely into bed that worried him. Because it was bad enough that it was Y/N... It was her in all her alluring glory, and he'd never been able to deny her anything no matter how badly he tried or wanted to.
Now add on the fact that she was drunk, and most likely sad on their first Valentine's Day apart, and it was a recipe for disaster.
Even if she'd broken his heart, Spencer still cared about her.
Which is why he inevitably agreed to stay, at least until she fell asleep.
He knew her well enough to know all the ways she'd try to get him under the covers with her, so it was a familiar amusement that settled in his being when he was finally able to get on top of the covers with her underneath. But as he entertained her silly little questions with the right answers until she fell asleep, Spencer noticed something else accompanying that amusement.
Guilt.
And then anger for feeling guilty about her sadness— sadness that could have been avoided had she just gotten over whatever was holding her back and either returned his "I love you" or  told him she wasn't feeling the same way just yet.
All she had to do was talk.
He had a right to feel upset about Y/N holding back when he'd been nothing but patient, spending almost every year of their relationship trying to make her see that she had nothing to be afraid of. He'd given her every chance to talk about what she was feeling, whether it was happy or not, and every time she pushed it all away in favor of sex.
That wasn't what he wanted in a relationship, so he ended it. And there was absolutely nothing wrong with that.
So why was he feeling so fucking guilty?
He blamed his good nature and innate need to please people, to make them feel good and happy. But he also blamed Y/N and her adorable drunken sleeping face.
He watched as she slept, willing himself not to forget the way she hurt him. She'd completely stolen his heart and shattered it at the same time, and if he was being honest, she still held some of the pieces. But he couldn't get them back, not if he didn't want to risk shattering her own heart in the process.
It felt like they were tied together by some strong, invisible force that wouldn't break unless both of them broke right along with it.
So... maybe he could afford to leave those pieces of his heart with her. He'd have to if they were going to get out of this alive. Not unscathed, sure, but alive nonetheless.
Once he was sure she was deep in sleep, Spencer quietly and carefully got off the bed and navigated through her apartment, getting her a glass of water and leaving it on the table next to her bed. And because he couldn't help it, he cleaned up some of the clothes that were scattered around her floor, depositing them into the hamper and straightening out a few more things that were out of place.
He looked over at her sleeping figure one more time, sighed, and then left, keeping her bedroom door open just a crack.
***
Spencer knew he shouldn't have stayed longer.
Despite his better judgement, he'd plopped himself down on her couch after making sure she was sound asleep, hoping to catch his breath and sort through what he was feeling before he got behind the wheel. But of course, it was 2am and he was exhausted, and he couldn't stop himself from closing his eyes and drifting off.
And now he was sitting up, looking around the apartment through the lens of morning.
Though the curtains were sheer, they didn't provide much light, but enough of it showed him just how familiar the space was. Y/N hadn't moved anything around. The same art was on the same walls, the potted ivy plant on her mantle sat un-watered and withering, and every book and record and DVD on her shelves was in the exact same spot as they'd all been the last time he was there in December.
Meanwhile, after the breakup he'd re-arranged everything. He was so sure that they were through for good this time around that he wanted a clean slate. Not that he wanted to rid himself of her memory completely, but if he was going to move on from the hold she'd had on him, he had to do something...
And yet, he ended up at her apartment the morning after Valentine's Day all the same.
He heard the shower running faintly a couple rooms away. You didn't have to pass the couch to get there, so maybe she hadn't seen him sleeping and he could get away cleanly.
Spencer scrambled off the couch, thankful that he hadn't removed his jacket or his shoes and that he could just sprint towards the door without having to find any of his belongings.
But as luck would have it, the second he took a step, the shower turned off. He had to get out of there quickly, but if he did then she'd definitely know he'd stayed overnight. But if he went quietly, he wouldn't have enough time before she caught him.
Maybe I could hide...
He shook the thought with a roll of his eyes, settling on the clearest course of action, which was to make as quick of a getaway as he could. He'd try to be quiet as well, though the creaky door was going to be nearly impossible to get through without a sound.
His hand was on the doorknob when he heard her voice.
"You didn't think you could spend the night and then leave without saying goodbye, did 'ja?"
The pure amusement in her tone made his stomach churn, and it wasn't unpleasant in the slightest.
Spencer turned and smiled softly, avoiding looking at her completely. "Sorry. Didn't want to bother you."
"You're never a bother."
That sentiment held less amusement and more sincerity, which was what guided his eyes to meet the woman who said the words.
His stomach twisted again when he saw her, exactly like he knew she'd be— wrapped in nothing but a thin towel with near-dripping hair cascading down her back. Her legs were bare and exposed, the towel not only thin but short, which meant that her chest was also practically spilling out of it. Despite the obvious and inevitable hungover look in her eye, there was also a good splash of that mischief that'd always been there— the kind that spelled out trouble.
He needed to get out of there.
"Well, um... I'm glad I got you home safe," he said, clearing his throat. "I should... I should go."
"You sure you don't wanna stay for breakfast?"
Spencer could have sworn she was teasing him, dangling her body in front of him like a meal they both knew he wouldn't be able to resist. But then she added, "I've got everything I need for your favorite omelet," and he exhaled with a small smile, exhausted with his own mind for convincing him that she was out to pull him back in.
Still, he declined. "No, I... I shouldn't. But, uh, thank you..."
"You sure?"
This time when he looked up at her, she was closer. She was gently striding forward to meet him, and he half thought about backing up towards the door until he realized he was already there.
"I—I'm sure. Really."
"But you drove around all night just to take me home when I was drunk, the least I can do is feed you..."
"Eh, it's alright. It's... Nothing I haven't done before."
She stopped then, her eyes briefly dropping to the floor. It was like her whole demeanor changed—just for a second—from the prowess she'd always been, to what seemed to be a woman filled with sadness and regret. It didn't last long though, just enough for Spencer to notice it before she looked back up at him with that wicked gleam in her eye and a remark right at the tip of her tongue.
"Still. I feel bad, making you do all that for me... Especially now."
He wasn't sure what to make of this... It seemed like she was sincere, but she was also alluring, calling to him like a siren leading him to his ultimate demise. And while he'd come to know that as merely a part of her nature, he couldn't help but shake the feeling that she was doing it on purpose.
She was in a skimpy towel, after all, and she definitely knew how to use that to her advantage.
It didn't help that he didn't have the courage to leave. Everything inside of him right then longed to drop that towel and indulge himself once more. Putting aside all the heartache and the differences they shared, all he felt in that moment was the need to touch her— to get lost in her and never be found again.
She was his fatal flaw, and it was painfully obvious.
Spencer knew he shouldn't have stayed longer...
He was over to her in just three strides, throwing off his jacket and tossing it aside before cradling her face with his hands and bringing their lips together for the first time since Christmas Eve.
The small whine in her throat signaled that she hadn't expected it, but welcomed it all the same. The moment she lifted her arms to wrap around his neck, the towel fell to the floor, and there was no going back.
"What about breakfast?" Y/N breathed out once they pulled away for air.
Spencer contemplated, studying her face, seeing the way her eyes sparkled, and decided on the two words that sealed his fate.
"Screw breakfast."
Their lips were melded together almost as soon as the words left his mouth. And it wasn't long before every other part of their bodies were melded together as well.
Y/N helped him take the rest of his clothes off as they danced around the entryway and the living room. Everything was open, no walls separating the living room from the kitchen, so to compensate for the lack of breakfast they'd be eating, they migrated to the kitchen counter once Spencer had off everything but his boxers.
He trapped her against the cool marble of the countertop, her back hitting it solid and sending a shiver up her spine. Meanwhile his hands roamed her body, unsure of where to be other than on her at all times, whether it be her waist, her stomach, her arms, her breasts, or her ass. He wanted to feel all of her, and quite frankly she wanted the same.
She even told him so, in her own way, by bringing one of her legs up and wrapping it around his waist, pulling him closer to her as she wove her fingers through his hair and tasted his tongue with her own.
The action elicited a groan from his mouth, low and desperate. Spencer settled his hands on her waist and gripped it tight, silently telling her what to do.
So she jumped up and he helped guide her swiftly onto the counter. Her legs instinctively wrapped around his waist again, and he found himself grinding into her hips, urgent to feel every part of her. And thankfully she was feeling rather desperate herself, because she rolled her hips up into him in return, breaking their mouths apart just briefly to speak.
"Fuck me..."
There was so much he wanted to say to her in that moment— how badly he was feeling about keeping her entertained while he was slowly deteriorating inside from her emotional detachment and rejection, how much she frustrated him, and more prominently, how she was so goddamn impatient and that he was getting there...
But all that he could manage was a broken, desperate whisper of her name.
It was all he'd ever known.
All that frustration... All that anger, heartache, passion, and time apart combined beautifully into those few syllables that made up her name and tore him apart from the inside out.
And his hands were just as destructive.
Spencer deftly dropped his boxers to the ground and pushed forward, almost losing all sense of self the moment the head of his dick finally made contact with her cunt. He made his way inside of her and then used both of his hands to grip her waist and bring her closer, their mouths connecting harshly as they found one another once again.
His grip was bruising— not possessive in any way, but desperate, like he had to cling to her for dear life or he wouldn't live to see another day. He held himself inside her, sighing and whimpering into her mouth as she clenched around him. It was so familiar, so comfortable and exhilarating that he almost didn't even want to move. He thought about staying there, still inside her forever.
But as always, Y/N was insatiable.
She wrapped all her limbs around him and held on, rolling her hips and seeking friction in any way possible when she briefly tore her lips away from his.
"I need you, baby, please..."
Even as his heart started to rumble in his chest, well aware of the fact that she still probably didn't love him the way he loved her, Spencer gave her everything. He pulled out and snapped his hips forward again, setting a strong, steady pace that had Y/N's eyes rolling back, and the payoff of hearing her sigh out his name was more than enough to keep him going.
Her nails dug deliciously into his shoulders, the faint sting adding something reminiscent of gasoline to a fire. The flames grew taller and brighter the more he fucked her, and with each gradual increase of volume and intensity, it was a wonder the whole kitchen around them hadn't literally burst into flames.
That's how they always were.
Together like this, so lost in the high of each others' bodies, it was easy to forget the things that made their relationship so hard. It was easy to let all the negativity slip away into the throes of pent-up, well-needed sex. The high they gave each other was merely that— A high...
A distraction.
And while that's exactly what Y/N needed, what she preferred in most cases, it's what Spencer recognized as completely unhealthy, despite his coming back to it every time.
It's also why he dreaded the moment ending. Because once they came down from the high, all that's left would be sadness, regret... Guilt... Their fire burned hot, brightly and wildly, but in the aftermath would lay only a thick layer of deadly smoke between them— hard to navigate, and nearly impossible to breathe in without suffocating.
So they simply burned and burned and burned...
Spencer gripped her so tight he was sure to leave her with bruising. And in turn Y/N dragged her nails down his back and dug them into his ass, her palm laying firmly over the muscles that aided in fucking her into the marbled surface. She whined out curses and moans, and he cried out broken whispers of her name, pet names, and curses alike.
Even once she'd come, he kept going, willing himself to hold on as long as he could. She whined into his ear at the overstimulation. And rather than keeping her legs wrapped around his body, she decided to spread them wide, perching her heels up on the counter as far as she could go and anchoring her fingers through his hair.
And though she might not have had enough orgasms in her to keep up with him, she welcomed it all the same—She welcomed the burn just as much as he did.
Even still, no fire can burn forever.
All concept of time was lost by the time Spencer finally collapsed forward, completely spent and barely standing on weak legs after coming twice. Y/N held onto him tightly to keep him upwards, lightly massaging his scalp with gentle fingers and closing her eyes as she focused on his breathing— the way it fanned over the skin of her bare shoulder and how it sounded, perfectly in time with hers...
It was the most peaceful she'd been in a long time.
She felt him pull out of her, the both of them groaning at the feeling, and a little at the mess it would make.
Spencer gently peeled his body off of hers, sniffing once and avoiding her eyes. "Sorry... You just got out of the shower..."
"It's fine," Y/N breathed. She begged him silently to look her in the eye, but he remained still... Most likely thinking. She could practically see the cogs turning in his brain.
So, in an effort to lighten the mood a bit, she added with a breathy laugh, "Besides... It's nothing I haven't done before."
The callback to his words—and memories of all the times they'd found themselves in this position before—got Spencer to laugh a little, but he still wouldn't meet her eyes.
Finally, he cleared his throat. "I'll... I'll grab the wipes?"
"Oh. Sure," Y/N returned with a thankful smile. It was hopeful, too, though the moment he was out of eyesight, it turned rather sad.
She'd known that behavior before, seen that hesitation in his movements and that sound in his voice.
It was guilt.
Regret.
Probably a bit of self-hatred, too.
When he returned, a pile of her clothes in hand and the bag of wipes on top, she took them from him with a kind smile and cleaned herself up while he put his clothes back on.
The silence was more uncomfortable than anything either of them had ever experienced.
So much so, that Y/N couldn't even muster up the courage to ask him to stay for breakfast— and she always did after one of their post-break hookups.
Maybe this time really was different.
Spencer was just at the door again when she stopped him.
"Thank you," she said. Her voice was so small, he almost didn't hear it. "For bringing me home..."
But he paused, turned, and finally looked her in the eye.
He almost sunk to his knees right there...
Seeing her, arms crossed like she was trying to keep warm, as her head hung low and she looked up at him through sad, hooded eyelids...
It reminded him of the woman he fell in love with.
But in his peripheral, he saw the towel on the floor and was reminded of the woman who'd shattered his heart.
Spencer cleared his throat. Once upon a time he might have returned her thanks with, Anytime, but... Honestly he wasn't sure there could ever be another time. For his sanity, he'd have to avoid 'anytime' at all costs.
So, he settled on, "You're welcome."
He was glad to see her return his kind smile with one of her own, even if it was tainted with sadness, and a small wave goodbye.
Maybe this time it would stick.
Even still, as he closed the door behind him and made his way to the parking lot, for some reason it didn't quite feel like goodbye.
And some of that deadly smoke that settled in his lungs as he drove further and further away from her apartment was inclined to agree.
***
Neither of them could sleep that night.
While Spencer stared out the window of the jet, a little annoyed to be called out on a case so late but at least thankful for the distraction, Y/N laid in bed, staring at the stars on her ceiling.
The same constellation caught their eye.
Columba.
The Dove.
She hadn't even meant to arrange the stars like that, but one night after a date, they were laying in her bed and Spencer pointed out that the cluster of plastic stars right in the corner of the ceiling looked like Columba.
Y/N fondly remembered Spencer telling her about how it was originally named to represent Noah's dove, which searched for dry land during the great biblical flood and returned carrying an olive branch to make news of its recession— of peace at last.
The memory made her smile. It tugged at her heart and made her dreams of him even more vivid.
All the same, Spencer noticed the constellation outside the jet window and remembered that same night. The smile on her face as he told her the story, the feel of her fingers gliding softly over the bare skin of his forearm...
It was the first night since he'd met her that he thought it.
I love her...
He almost told her then, too, but he was afraid it was too soon. So he refrained.
Looking back, Spencer was starting to regret that— Maybe without that extra time together, breaking up would have been easier. But instead, he gave her more time. He gave himself more time to fall deeper in love with her, and in the end it still wasn't enough.
Now they were both looking at the same constellation, one made of plastic and the other of gas, wondering if their flood would ever recede.
And in the event that it did... Who would be the dove, and what would be their olive branch?
“You know I dream about getting back together in the future, I could focus on you. But if I leave right now, I hope that you don’t find someone that touches you the way that I do...”
***
SERIES TAGLIST:   @reidyoulikeabook​ @yourmisosoup​ @fortheloveofcriminalminds​ @bellzo17​ @altsvu​ @flipperpenguins​ @mcumorningstar​
TAGS NOT WORKING: @reid-to-me @totallyclearwitch
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fanmoose12 · 4 years ago
Text
Nifa Strikes Back
Levi hates St. Valentine’s Day with burning passion. The only thing that makes this holiday somewhat bearable to him is a little tradition he shares with his best friend Hange. But after hearing the news that Hange is going to skip the years-long ritual to go on a date with someone else, Levi is faced with conflicting and severely confusing feelings. 
thanks @innocent-ghost-demon for the idea! (i’m sorry it took me so long to actually write it lmao)
In Levi's personal opinion, St. Valentine's Day was the worst holiday of them all. It was meaningless and explorative and it served no other purpose than to fill the pockets of flowers and chocolate sellers. Levi hated it with burning passion, getting groceries in the weeks leading to the forsaken holiday was the cruelest torture, as he was immensely annoyed by big pink hearts and cute figurines with naked babies on display. It was almost impossible for him not to gag.
The only thing that quelled his hatred towards this day was a small tradition he shared with his best friend Hange. It had started years ago, when they were still in college. Hange's boyfriend had dumped her - she was heartbroken and upset, while Levi was furious and ready to go, find that bastard and beat the shit out of him for making Hange cry. Naturally, as college students, they knew only one way to deal with that kind of complicated feelings - get absolutely wasted at the local bar. Next morning they woke up with the worst hangovers of their lives and vowed to never repeat the same mistake.
But next year, Hange was rejected by a girl she wanted to ask on a date, and, like a good friend he was, Levi once again offered his shoulder for Hange to cry on. And once again they've found themselves clinging to each other as they shakily stumbled towards their dorm.
They got drunk that year again. And that's what they've been doing every year after that.
It was the only thing that got Levi through the awful holiday. Because of that, he was actually looking forward to it.
***
"Hey, four-eyes," Levi looked over the wall that separated their cubicles, throwing a small piece of paper to get Hange's attention. "Is your place as messy as usual? Or have you cleaned it for the occasion?"
"Huh?" Hange raised her eyes from a screen, pushing the glasses up her nose. "What do you mean?"
Another paper was thrown at Hange. This one landed on her lap.
"The shitty holiday, Hange. It's this weekend. So are we going to your place of mine?"
"Oh," Hange raised her hand, rubbing her neck. "About that..."
Levi frowned, narrowing his eyes in suspicion. Did he hear a twinge of hesitation in Hange's voice? That was unusual. What could it mean?
"I can't go this year."
His frown turned into a scowl. "Why the fuck not?"
"I have a date."
Levi blinked. Hange's words... surprised him. And more than that, his own reaction surprised him. He felt displeased, but not just that. He was angry, he was disappointed. He was sad?
"You're going on a date?" he asked, cursing the weakness that colored his voice. What was going on with him?
"Yeah, sorry," Hange gave him an apologetic smile. "With all this work, I forgot to tell you about it."
"That's fine," he answered, even though it wasn't fine. Hange was going on a date, and Levi wasn't fine with it. Why wasn't he? Hange was his best friend, he was supposed to feel happy for her, right? Did it mean that he was a bad friend?
No, Levi decided. He wasn't a bad friend, he was a good one. He was worried about Hange, he had seen her get hurt by someone else, and he simply didn't wish to repeat the experience.
"Who is your date?"
Was it someone from the office, he wondered. If it was their co-worker, that'd be good, Levi could keep an eye on them then. But what if they start dating? Would Hange stop spending her lunch-breaks with him? Would she go and bother someone else if she's bored? Would she pay less attention to him?
Levi shot that train of thought as quickly as it appeared. He didn’t like thinking about it. It made him feel weird. It made him upset.
"It's Nifa's cousin, she set us up. I don't know the guy yet," Hange shrugged. "But if he's at least half as cute as Nifa, then it's worth a shot, eh?"
She looked at him then, tilting her head and smiling. It was Levi's cue to congratulate her and wish her luck. Or express his pity towards the guy. Instead there was an unpleasant, ugly feeling inside him. Hange broke their years-long tradition. To go on a date. With someone else.
And it pissed him off.
"Levi?" Hange reached out to him, grasping the sleeve of his jacket with her fingers. "Are you alright? You look a bit weird. Are you upset that we won't be hanging out this year? I'm sorry about that, I'll make it up to you."
"You don't have to," he grunted, shaking Hange's hand off. He turned around, feeling the acute need to leave. The concern on Hange’s face was annoying him. "Have fun on your date and don't worry about me. I wasn't looking forward to our get-together anyway."
*** It took Levi two days to admit his own weakness.
He promised to himself to ignore Hange. To forget about her stupid date and stupid feelings it had provoked in him.
But then he saw Nifa alone in the hallway and he just had to ask.
He approached the girl, stopping just behind her shoulder. "Your cousin," his rough, low voice made Nifa jump. She didn't hear him walk up to her. "Is he a good man?"
Despite a scare Levi just gave her, Nifa's lips lifted into a smug smirk. She looked at Levi, observing him closely. His face was as blank as always, but his shoulders were uncharacteristically tight and his eyes showed even more annoyance than usual.
Her plan was working.
"Cousin Greg?" Nifa twirled a lock of hair around her finger. "He's great! I think Hange would get along with him!"
Cousin Greg wasn't that great actually. In fact, he was quite boring and very annoying. But Nifa wanted to help her superiors admit their feelings for each other and Greg owed her a favor after that time when she had covered for him during the grannies' birthday. Hange didn't have to like him. In fact, if she starts liking him, it'd destroy all of Nifa's plans.
Hange didn't have to like Greg. And Levi didn't have to like the fact that Hange was going on a date with him.
Evidently, the most important part of her plan already proved to be a success.
"He won't hurt four-eyes, right?" Levi asked, a shadow of worry passing through his eyes.
"He won't," Nifa promised with a serious face. Inside, however, she could barely contain herself. Levi was so concerned! It was so cute! Nifa needed to share these news with someone, and quick.
"Alright," Levi pressed his lips together and nodded. "Thanks." He added before walking away, his head bowed and shoulders slumped.
As she watched him go, Nifa's heart constricted painfully. Levi looked so miserable, just like a kicked puppy. She actually felt bad for him.
It was for his own good, she had to remind herself. She was doing him a favor. Levi, no, Hange too - both of them - will later thank her for this. She was doing a right thing.
Nifa repeated these words a couple of times and then rushed over to the break room, where she knew she would most surely find Moblit. Her best friend would be thrilled to hear about her success. 
*** He wasn't brooding, he told himself as he threw another disgustingly sweet candy in his mouth.
He wasn't sulking, Levi thought, as he put the glass of wine to his lips. It was awful. He had been drinking this brand of wine for years, but he never noticed how mawkish it was. Hange’s taste in wine was as horrible as her taste in romantic partners.
He didn't care about Hange and her stupid date, Levi tried to convince himself, paying only half of his attention to the movie.
On his TV screen Harry ran away from Sally after their first night together, and Levi scoffed at his stupidity. It was obvious they're in love with each other, why couldn’t they just admit it? They were both idiots and this movie was stupid, Levi decided. Why Hange liked it so much was beyond him.
***
Harry and Sally started arguing at the wedding, when Levi's phone started ringing. He made no move to get up and pick it. It couldn't be Hange calling, because she was on a date. And if that was Erwin, informing him of some emergency at work, he could kindly go and fuck himself. It was Levi's day-off and he was allowed to be as miserable as he wanted in the coziness of his apartment.
After a few seconds his phone fell silent, but before Levi could sigh with relief and continue watching the movie, he heard a few pings that announced that he had received a couple of messages. Erwin wasn't one for texting, and that got Levi wondering who was trying to get into contact with him.
Was it Petra, inviting him to a bar with others from their office?
Or, maybe, that was Yeager or any of his friends, wishing him a happy holiday?
Either way, Levi decided to ignore the messages too. If it was Petra, she'd understand his desire to be left alone. And if the messages were from any of their interns, then Levi most certainly didn't want to deal with that. It was bad enough they'd given him chocolate at work. It made him feel like he was a high school teacher, not a partner of the law firm.
He shouldn’t support this kind of behavior, Levi decided and returned his attention to the movie. 
*** Levi was halfway through a bottle of wine and Harry was ready to confess to Sally.
Fucking finally, he thought, pouring himself more wine. What kind of idiots waste twelve years denying the feelings they have for each other? Just when Harry was going to say those three little words, someone knocked on Levi's front door. With glass of wine still lifted to his lips, Levi paused the movie and stared at the door, wondering who could be fearless enough to visit him at ten pm.
As he continued to sit and ponder on it, the initially soft knocks turned into vicious bangs.
Cursing at the impatient idiot, Levi put the glass down and got to his feet, marching to the door with a glare on his face.
He threw the door open and— froze, blinking in surprise.
Hange stood on a threshold, holding a bottle of wine in her hands and wearing a wide grin on her lips.
"Will you be my Valentine?"
Levi bit his cheek to keep himself from blurting out 'yes'.
"What happened to your other one?" he asked instead, putting on a mask of cold indifference.
"Ah," she ruffled her hair. "He was actually boring as hell. Not even half as cute as Nifa," she shrugged. "I guess she's the sole owner of all adorable genes in their family."
Levi scoffed, plucking his lips. He would not give Hange the satisfaction of laughing at her lame joke. "Your date turned out to be a moron, so what? You've decided to come and bother me?"
"Yeah? Would you let me in or not?"
Levi knew he could put up a fight. He could tell Hange how annoying and inconsiderate she was. But he also knew that it would result in absolutely nothing. Hange would still get what she wants. He would still let her get what she wants. Because in all the years of their friendship he hadn't learned how to say no to her.
So with an irritated tsk and a shake of his head, Levi took a step back, allowing Hange to come inside.
"Did you bring something, except wine?" he asked while Hange was busy taking off her shoes.
"Yes!" Hange passed him her handbag.
Levi opened, finding chocolate inside. Lots of chocolate. Lots and lots of chocolate.
"Four-eyes. Did you rob the candy shop?" he inquired dryly.
"No!" Hange snickered. "These are gifts."
Levi had received chocolate too. His collection wasn't quite as vast as Hange's, though.
"Are all of these from brats?"
"Some are from my team. Where's your chocolate, by the way? If I received so many, I can't even imagine how much you got."
"It seems like this year you're more popular than me," Levi pointed at only a couple of box of chocolates on his coffee table.
Hange's face fell after his words. She even opened her mouth, probably with the intent to apologize or, god forbid, comfort him. Levi scowled, silently telling Hange the misplaced pity to herself. He didn't really care about such trivial matters.
And he was more than happy to find out how well-loved Hange was. She deserved nothing less than that after all.
"Don't just stand there," he snapped, when Hange continued to stare at him without saying anything or even moving.
Hange lifted the corners of her lips and hurried after Levi to the living room.
"Oh!" as soon as she saw what was on the TV screen, she clasped her hands in delight. "When Harry Meets Sally! I love this movie!"
I know, Levi almost said.
"And it's one of my favorite scenes!" Hange continued to gash. She plopped down on Levi's sofa with a wide grin.
However, as she took a closer look on a coffee table, her excitement diminished considerably.
"Two glasses?" she mumbled, frowning in confusion. "Are you waiting for someone?"
"No, it's just..."
A habit, Levi realized. He put two glasses simply out of habit. He was so used to drinking with Hange that he had taken two glasses without even thinking.
"It's nothing," he finished awkwardly. "Let's watch the movie."
Hange stared him for a second, her eyes wary. But then she snapped out of it and a smile returned to her lips. She waited until Levi took his place on a sofa and then put her head on his thigh.
"Must you always do it?" Levi complained without making a single move to change their position. "I'm not a piece of furniture, you know."
"Just put on a movie, Levi," Hange mumbled, too used to his constant bitching to have any kind of reaction to it.
"So bossy," he huffed, but took the remote in his hands and resumed the movie.
On a screen, Harry was confessing to Sally.
"It's kinda bizarre, don't you think?" Hange asked. "They knew each other for so long and yet they've realized their true feelings only years after."
"It's a movie, Hange."
"So you think it's unrealistic?" she lifted her head to stare at him. "That two people can be close friends for years and continue to be blind, refusing to see how much they need each other?"
"I think you have to be unbelievably dense to not realize that you're in love with your best friend."
Hange giggled, and the quiet sound was like music to Levi's ears. "Yeah, maybe, you're right. They're really dense."
"Idiots," Levi agreed, laying a hand on her shoulder and pulling her closer.
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daydream-believin · 4 years ago
Text
Flowers Have Feelings
summary: it's valentines and you're making some gifts for your good pal douxie,,, also confessing
warnings: swearing probably, no proofread cause tired
word count: 2659
a/n: i've been struggling with writers block. i guess. i've returned to this only to write like, a paragraph so many times. which is bad cause like cheese designed the bouqeut and this should have been done ages ago. idk idk bon appetit
tags: @yagirlcheesely, is for you
image below: sketch of the bouquet
Tumblr media
You jumped out of bed and slammed your alarm. Today was the day. You had to get everything ready today. Tonight would be the presentation. The night you finally do it. The night you confessed to your closest friend and crush, Douxie. Also happened to be Valentine’s day.
Your friends may have told you: “Just be patient. Drop hints. If he likes you, he’ll let you know.” But you weren’t about that passive love life. You liked to grab that strawberry cow by the horns. Subtly was boring and took far too long. You were in love with your friend and you were gonna let him know frankly if it killed you. It probably would, to be honest.
As confident as this makes you sound, you were aware of the possibility of him not liking you back, and that was okay. Sure, your heart would be shattered and you might not be very peachy for, say, a month or six, but you accepted that. At first, you had resigned yourself to just adoring him secretly. But you quickly grew impatient with that. What were you afraid of, really? Him letting you down gently, and ushering you two into an era of awkwardness? Okay so maybe that was worth considering. But not really. You wouldn’t let it come to that. Even if he did turn you down, you weren’t about to let that fact taint your friendship like that. You two were very close, and Douxie wasn’t the kind of guy to suddenly treat you differently after such a thing. Just a few weeks of awkwardness at most before all was forgotten (on his end at least). Only a problem for you. But, boy, it would be really, really nice, and not awkward, if he reciprocated.
You and Douxie were thick as thieves. There wasn’t a thing you hadn’t told each other. Not a secret between a pair of buddies as close as you. Oh, one thing, you know. The fact that you had caught feelings, that was definitely something you had kept secret from him. As eager as you were to do so, you couldn’t just drop a bombshell like that at any old time. That’s why you chose today of all days to confess; a little extra luck from St. Valentine. A little magic to give you a boost, placebo or not. This was going to happen. This was going to work.
You strapped on your helmet, safety first, before heading out on your bike. You cleared your schedule for the day cause you weren’t really sure if everything would work out or not. You could have everything done and ended wrapped up neatly in a few hours, or you could have a complete disaster on your hands, which could take up all your time. Time you would happily give, since you were determined for everything to be perfect. It was also nice to know you didn’t have to come in to work later,, lest you spend the whole night, crying your eyes out. You shuddered at the possibility. You were gonna stop thinking about that now. Yeah, only confidence now.
You may be a teensy bit sleep deprived. Only a teensy bit. You chugged a monster this morning, you’ll be fine. It wasn’t your fault you were up all night researching flower language. There were so many flowers, and those flowers had so many feelings. Eventually though, you managed to settle on a bouquet of roses, daisies, and dandelions. Fern leaves for greenery too. Greenery was important for flower arrangements. It tied the whole thing together. While it wouldn’t be the most on theme color scheme, the yellows, whites, reds, and greens, would mix together prettily. You definitely didn’t have to go as far as this, and you were banking on the fact that Douxie even knew flower language, but it was sweet, it was romantic. And you were going to be romantic about this, dammit.
Daisies, for friendship. It was really important that you communicate just how much you valued Douxie’s friendship and how nothing would change between you two if he were to not return your feelings. Red, red roses, classic romance. There was a reason the blooms were so strongly associated with the valentines holiday itself; no one sees a red rose and thinks of anything other than love and romance. A clear message to your beloved. And well, the dandelions? Cheery, beautiful, resilient, common weeds, never to be approved of, finding the strength to bloom despite assholes like Merlin’s best efforts. Dandelions were Douxie’s favorite flower.
Too bad the florist didn’t even consider them to be anything but said common weed. You had included them in your order when you called it in and you could hear the florist laugh, but muffled as if he put his hand over the receiver, before returning to the phone to inform you that you would have to add them yourself. Pretty rude, if you say so. No matter, hand-picked dandelions would be romantic, anyways. Even if no one else knew about it but you.
You placed the bouquet neatly into the basket of your bike. You’d pick the dandelions to complete it later, right before the big confession, in order to keep them fresh. But as of now, the bouquet peaked out of your basket, the floral fragrance wafting up to your face as you made your way to the next store.
Last week, you had seen such an adorable little box of chocolates. It had chocolates shaped like little skulls, flowers, and ghost cats, and the box had a silly pun about death. Goth chocolate, def. It would have been perfect for the edgy wizard in your life, but alas, it was way too fucking expensive. Like obscenely expensive. But no matter, you’d just steal the idea. How hard could making chocolate be anyway?
You left the grocery store with your haul safe in your skull-patterned reusable shopping bag. Wizard-chic and eco-friendly, it was your favorite bag. The contents of the much-loved bag? Melting chocolates, a jar of marmalade, a jar of raspberry jam, a jar of strawberry jam, and a new roll of wax paper, since you were out. Now you weren’t as ambitious as to make your own jam here. This was a failsafe. There are only so many ways to ruin chocolates if you did not make the chocolate nor the filling yourself. Now just a quick run in the stationary shop on your way home for a cute box, and you were all ready to start your chocolatier career.
 * * *
Douxie was getting antsy. Not many patrons had paid a visit to his bookstore this afternoon. Which was strange for valentine’s. and it left him with nothing but his thoughts to entertain his anxious mind. Doux had a lot to worry about. His band had a gig in a new town, so he wasn’t sure how they would be received. He was waiting on a shipment of books that was supposed to show up days ago. It may have gotten lost. That Lake kid was getting himself into more and more trouble these days and it was starting to become hard to help out without overstepping his vaguely imposed bounds. But most of all, at the very moment, he was worried about you.
You had asked him to meet up for dinner tonight. Okay, pretty normal for a Sunday night. Not that the weekend meant anything to either of you, but you normally set aside Sunday for dinner hangout. So nothing to abnormal. But then. Then, you said, something… Douxie actually can’t recall what you said, per se, just that it was along the lines of “we need to talk.” And that your tone sounded nervous. He did not like that one bit, nope nope. He had spent a great part of the day just revisiting every interaction the two of you had had in the last month or so, desperate to figure out if he did something wrong. But he was coming up blank, for all his efforts. Across the room, the clock ticked on. It would be closing time soon enough, and then he’d no longer have to wonder just what he did wrong, as you would be there to tell him directly. Fuzzbuckets, he couldn’t wait.
* * *
You wiped the goopy chocolate off of your cheek with the back of your hand. So far this wasn’t a total disaster. You had at least seven chocolate skulls filled and drying in the molds. The white chocolate seemed to have melted smoother than the regular chocolate? The regular chocolate ones looked kind of lumpy. You hoped they came out of the molds okay. Not to mention the ones you already messed up. A little mountain of chocolate pieces and jam had started rising from your table top corner.
It had been lots of fun at the start. melting the chocolates with a double boil, planning out which molds would be which flavors. But actually filling those molds? A messy, messy ordeal. You had chocolate and jam all over your kitchen, up to your exposed elbows, and even a little in your hair. But that was okay. You’d clean the kitchen later. With the molds in the freezer to set, your priority now was cleaning yourself up rather than the kitchen.
And you cleaned up nice, if you did say so yourself. You got the chocolate out of your hair, and had on a fresh outfit, taking a little time to put effort into your style. You looked snazzy, but not too fancy. You needed to stay casual. Something that you hoped would make Douxie be like ‘wow they look pretty okay’ but not freak him out with formality. Yeah. This was good.
Your watch beeped. Okay, you needed to get out of here, no more dilly dallying. You pulled the candies you made out of the freezer. Moment of truth. Thank the stars, all of the chocolates came out of the molds smoothly without breaking. You arranged them in the cute circular box you set up earlier and folded the tissue paper over them. They all fit in perfectly. The cheesy valentine card, the most important part, didn’t quite fit on top of the candies, you’d have to put it with the bouquet. You slid the lid onto the box and fastened a bow around it with a blue ribbon. Maybe this was a bit overkill, but Douxie knew how to appreciate the dramatic. He’d love it, you were sure.
Last but not least, you headed to the greenspace across the street from your apartment for the final ingredient in your Douxie wooing, dandelions. You were lucky that the empty lot had recently bloomed an entire garden’s worth of the yellow things. The chilly breeze mussed up your newly-fixed hair as you danced about gathering the tiny flowers, adding to the bouquet until you felt like it was enough. Which took longer than you had hoped. You definitely could have kept adding in more dandelions but your watch beeped once again and you had no choice but to make peace with the level of yellow and book it to the bookstore where you and Douxie were supposed to meet before heading out for the night.
* * *
Hearing the ding of the door chime, Douxie turned around to kindly inform the customer who came in that he wasn’t open, but the words caught in his throat when he was met with your smile. There you were, standing in the shop with a box in one hand and flowers in the other. You looked cute. Really cute. But Douxie chased that thought away. He fumbled with the book he had been re-shelving. It fell out of his hand unceremoniously, landing with a thud.
“Hey,” Doux managed to get out. “What’s all-”
“These are for you!” you shoved the presents into his now empty hands. That courage you had earlier? Gone. Your resolve? Dissolving as we speak. You had to get this over with before you chickened out. He was just so good, okay. And why did you think this was a good idea. Douxie looked down at the gifts in his hands confused, before blushing. If he could have reached a hand behind his head and rubbed the back of his neck he would have.
“I didn’t know we were doing Valentine’s, uh. I feel bad I didn’t get you anything.”
“Oh! Don’t be. I just,, felt like doing something nice for you and uh, special,” Douxie tilted his head. You took the box, freeing up his hand. “These are chocolates I made, like, like you’re supposed to do.” You waltzed over to the counter to place them out of the way. “The bouquet is the real star here, uh, I picked them out very carefully.” You tucked your arms behind your back. “I, uh- I brushed up on flower language, and I hope I got it right.”
Now Douxie may have been a Victorian once upon a time but he had barely any surviving memory of the frilly flower language people socialized through in those days. But thankfully, the blooms in the bouquet in front of him were straight forward enough that he did in fact get the message without taking too much gear turning in that noggin of his. Although, the friendly daisies with the red roses were kind of sending him some mixed signals. He knew what he wanted them to mean, but he could just be misinterpreting. You seemed to notice his hesitation.
“Um, there’s a card too. In the flowers somewhere. That. Probably explains what I’m trying to say a little clearer.” You carded your fingers through your hair. You had anticipated not being able to really speak with your voice, as you barely could now, so you’d written it all out on the card as backup. But damn, that card had everything on it. You maybe got a little carried away. There wasn’t going to be any going back from this.
Douxie dug out the card from amidst the blooms. It was handmade, with a cheesy little drawing on the front complete with a pun. And then he opened it. It was almost solid black with ink. Yeah, you had written that much in there. Both sides. And a little on the back. Wow. Doux tried his best to keep up a poker face while reading it but failed quickly as the first few lines alone left him flushed. It was true, everything was on it. From how much you adored Douxie as a person, to how much you valued his friendship, to how pretty you thought he was, to how you longed for something more, with him? Douxie felt like his hands were getting the card all sweaty.
It was nerve wracking watching him read that card. It seemed like he was finished, since his eyes stopped raking through it, but now he was staring intensely at the words written on the pages, in a trance. He broke focus, looking to the bouquet, back to the card, and then finally settled on you.
“Wow.”
“… is that a good wow?”
Douxie caught you by surprise. He pulled into a hug. “Yeah, a good wow.”
You and Douxie’s first non-platonic hug? Yes please. You didn’t even mind the flowers pressing into your back. Okay so a few rose thorns were poking you but that was fine. Douxie smelled like something you couldn’t name, but it was spicy, and cozy. He let you go sooner than you were ready to, but he grinned at you as he left to rummage through his things in the back for a vase. He turned to you as he proudly displayed them on the store’s counter, right where he could look at them all workday,
“So, where are we going tonight? For our first date?” Doux chuckled, “and, technically, our first Valentine’s day too.”
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mrsgiovanna · 4 years ago
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A series of Firsts - Don Giorno x Fem! Reader
A cute Valentines day scenario with husband Giogio, nsfw-ish toward the end, just something that's been on my mind for a little while. Cut for length🥺💭❤️
Word count: 2318
Everything that could have gone wrong had inevitably gone wrong. It was the first Valentines day that you and your beloved would be spending together as a married couple, so needless to say, you wanted to make it a tiny bit more noteworthy than the usual extravagant outings you’ve grown accustomed to. You knew that things like this weren’t really important, but blamed your sentimental self for wanting to commemorate each “first” event in your first year of wedded life. As luck would have it though, every single one of your plans would be foiled, however, in retrospect, your end goal would actually be achieved.
There was still a chill in the February air, but it was a beautiful sunny day nonetheless. Giorno had already left by the time your sleep had broken, but you had woken up to a beautiful red rose and a small heart shaped chocolate on his pillow with a simple note in his handwriting. You smiled when you read the note, three simple words, but it meant more to you than anything. You lazed about in bed for a while, thinking about all the things you wanted to do today. The villa was quiet, save for the few guards that Giorno would not compromise on, you had given most of his other staff the weekend off, wanting it to just be the two of you. Or so you’d thought…
The spanner foiling this plan, came in the form of some important conference call with an associate from the Speedwagon foundation. Well, calling him an “associate” might be a bit cold, seeing that it was Giorno’s relative, Jotaro Kujo, who wanted to speak to him himself. Giorno knew it must have been something very important for Jotaro to reach out to him of all people given the circumstances and how suspicious he was in the beginning. So off he went, you presumed to his study, to discuss whatever issue was plaguing Jotaro. Deciding it was time to get out of bed, you quickly showered and threw on something comfortable, knowing you were going to put on a knock out outfit later on. No sooner had you stepped out of the master bedroom did you hear a loud bang, and felt something whizzing past you, missing your face by a hair’s breath. Being immediately on guard, you summoned your stand ready to attack the enemy that had infiltrated your home when you heard the familiar whining of Mista’s sex pistols…
“Mistaaaaa, he’s not here, can we go eat now?”
“Well good morning to you too number 5,” you said to the miniscule stand, who started to hide himself in your hair to escape the harassment from number 3.
“Awww has Mista has been starving you guys again? How awful, lets go find you guys something to eat,” you teased, earning an annoyed look from the gunslinger, to which he retorted, “Excuse me, they’re well fed and have nothing to complain about!”
As you both made your way to the kitchen, you asked Mista what brought him to the villa this early in the morning. You were hoping against your better judgment that it wasn’t anything too serious, but by the time Mista was done relaying his report about the unrest in some of the outlying areas, you knew it had to be nipped in the bud before it gained momentum. Wanting to feed the tiny gremlins, but being unsure of what they would eat in the morning, you set up some cured meats, fruits, nuts and some warmed cornetto on a platter.
The delicious smell of warm, buttery pastry had whet your appetite as well, so you decided to warm up more pastries for you and Mista and started making cappuccinos for the both of you. By this point you and Mista had been around each other for long enough and had been through so much together, that the bond felt more familial than anything else.
Setting down the food in front of you and Mista, the facts of his report were still playing on your mind.
“So where is Giorno anyway? I thought he’d taken some time off, which is why I came straight here,” asked Mista as he bit off a piece of his strawberry preserve filled croissant.
“He’s in the middle of an important conference call, he might be a while… what do you think about what’s happening in in the new territories? Do you think we can handle the situation among ourselves?”
Perplexed by your question, Mista thought for a while before answering. “I suppose they aren’t the strongest stand users, between you, Fugo and myself, we should be able to take them out if the need arises… listen, I don’t like where you’re going with this,”
It was all the confirmation you needed as you spoke with determination, “Let’s go then, if we can end this before it has a chance to blow up then we should do it. Call Fugo, I’m sure he’ll be willing to go with us, I’ll text Gio to let him know.” It was the first time you’d taken a bold decision like that without so much as consulting with Giorno… and just like that, you had thrown the second spanner in the works without even knowing it, because what should have taken a couple of hours had ended up taking the better part of the day.
“I wonder…. where could she be… ” mused Giorno as he walked around the villa looking for you. The conference call had taken longer than expected so he sought you out to make it up to you, but you were nowhere to be found. Deciding to call you, he’d come across the text message you’d sent him just before you left. His eyes darkened as he tried to call you.
“Oh hi Gio, are you okay? We’re kinda in the middle of something here,” you answered, trying to sound unfazed despite the ruckus taking place behind you.
“Cara, how can you just rush off into a dangerous situation like this? I’m very upset with you, come back here immediately,”
You felt very guilty when he still addressed you with his usual kindness despite how angry he sounded.
“Gio, I’m so sorry, I’ll explain everything when we get back, it will be over soon I promise,” you say, trying to placate both his temper and your own feelings.
“You guys have an hour to come back, failing which, I’ll have to come there myself. Honestly, you’re lucky I love you as much as I do, amore…” with that Giorno ended the call and went back to his study, hoping that you guys would be okay.
Upon arriving at Giorno’s study, you found him to be the picture of serenity, quietly working at his desk with some soft music playing in the background. He was relieved to see that you three delinquents were okay, most of all, you- his wife, who unfortunately was the biggest troublemaker of the lot, however he didn’t let that relief show on his face…
Just as Mista was about to speak, Giorno raised his hand to silence him,
“Did everything work out as expected in your marvelous misadventure?”
“you could say so… the job is done”
“is anyone hurt?”
“no, everyone’s alright,”
“then go home, it’s been a long day,” sensing everyone’s surprise, Giorno explained himself further.
“I trust you all, I want to make that clear… but for God’s sake, at least 1 person needs to be the voice of reason, nonetheless, I’m glad everything worked out for the best, just think before wildly rushing out next time,”
Mista and Fugo left the office leaving you alone with Giorno. You waited to hear the little electronic beep that the door made when it locked before you gently lowered yourself into Giorno’s strong arms, settling down comfortably in his lap.
“I’m sorry for upsetting you tesoro… you have so much to do, I just wanted to share some of the burden with you,”
“I know bella, I’m sorry too, I didn’t mean to snap at you earlier, I was just worried, I’d like to keep you away from these things as much as possible,”
“I can hold my own, you know,”
“I know bella, but you shouldn’t have to,” replied Giorno, lazily weaving his fingers through your hair. He drew your head closer for a kiss, starting off gentle, growing ever more passionate until you both stopped yourselves.
“Come amore mio, there isn’t a lot of time left, you have to get ready for our date, remember?”
Reluctantly, you got off his lap and left him with a feather light kiss to his temple.
After a long while of titivating with your look, you made your way back to Giorno’s study, finding him dreamily admiring the final seconds of the winter sunset. The fading golden light made his hair shine like spun gold and drew out the various jeweled specks of his eyes. He turns towards you, and his expression changes entirely, as if time itself had stood still.
“What do you think?” you ask, doing a little twirl and ending off in a pose, you giggle at your gesture.
“Sei cosi bella, you’re absolutely breathtaking amore mio,” Giorno says as he extends his arm to you, “are you ready to go?”
You smile sweetly and link your arm through his, just as you’re about to leave, the electricity cuts out.
No matter, you both wait patiently, expecting the generator to kick in at any moment, but nothing happens. Giorno’s study is more akin to a bunker, an impenetrable fortress built with the intention of keeping you both safe if the need ever arose. Grabbing his cellphone, Giorno calls one of the guards and asks him to check out the problem, as you are effectively stuck until you can get electricity back into the mechanism of the door.
You tinkered around the draws and cupboards, and managed to find all the aromatherapy candles and burners you got your husband to help him relax, you would have been annoyed that they were buried away if you weren’t as relieved as you were. It was quickly getting dark, and without the twinkling lights of the skyline, the room was becoming evermore difficult to navigate. After lighting up a considerable amount of the candles, you had to admit that the atmosphere was quite romantic.
“Well, they’ve found the problem, but can’t say how long it will take to fix, I could always try to use GE to break us out,”
“Break us out and do what my love? It looks like whole city is out, we’re probably in the safest place there is, come on, relax, we’ll just wait it out,” you reply as you pull him over to the couch. “see, this is nice right?” you say as you take your usual spot in his arms.
“Of course cara, I’m sorry, you’ve been patient with me recently, I know I’ve been very busy, so I just wanted to spoil you a bit,” Giorno’s voice was so gentle as he spoke, his fingers tracing circles onto your arm.
You were relieved as you felt him relax under your embrace, “for what it’s worth, happy Valentines day tesoro, I know things didn’t go according to anyone’s plan, but I’m still happy right here,” you utter, burying your face into the crook of Giorno’s neck.
“Happy Valentine’s day Amore mio, at least we’ll never forget this, and besides we have the rest of our lives to make up for it.”
The temperature started to drop the later it got, so Giorno decided to make use of his fireplace to make sure you didn’t get too cold, your slinky little evening dress offered little protection from the cold, not that he was complaining, it just meant that you would snuggle up closer to him. A yearning stirred in him when he looked back at you, bundled up in his large coat on the couch, you just looked so beautiful, the candlelight danced about in your eyes and your smile was the purest he’d ever seen.
“Are you okay bella? The room should warm up in a few moments. Ah, I know what would speed up the process… I recently acquired a very impressive bottle of wine…” mused Giorno as he found the bottle of Screaming Eagle Cabernet.
“Gio, isn’t that an insanely expensive bottle?”
“I’d hope so, it’s the 1992 vintage, imagine, we were just kids when this was made” he quipped, genuinely excited to crack open the extravagant alcohol.
“I thought you’d save something like that for a huge milestone like the birth of our first child or something of that magnitude. I just know how pricey it is,”
“Ah the birth of our child… conception of our child, it’s all the same”
Perplexed you asked, “caro, what are you saying?”
“What I’m saying bella, is that we’re freezing, the night is young and all we have for entertainment is each other’s wonderful company, whatever happens from here on out is up to the gods of fate, salute,”
And with a clink of your glasses and a gaze into each other’s eyes, you both took a sip of the wine. There was something irresistible about the way Giorno’s eyes glinted in the soft lighting. With a confident smirk, he drew you in for a passionate kiss, giving his hands permission to explore your beautiful body, drawing out those pretty sounds and lustful expressions that only he had the privilege of observing. Giorno was an intuitive lover, and you completely surrendered yourself to him. You both spent the rest of the night reveling in each other’s beauty and affection.
With arms and legs intertwined lovingly, breathing even and peaceful, you both slept blissfully unaware of the plans the mischievous gods of fate had in store for you.
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bangtae-sohotddaeng · 4 years ago
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we’ll be counting stars | k.th. | 1
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(^ gif cred: ON THE VOYAGE | pinterest)
pairing: idol!Taehyung x publisher!Reader
rating: nc-17 (for language and themes)
summary: You’d sworn off love and relationships forever. You were here to do your job - work with the biggest boyband of the world. Not forge friendships and...and whatever it was that you and Taehyung were building up with these sneaky glances. It was, to be very fair, your Chief Editor’s fault that you’d landed in this mess. Maybe you should quit your job? Maybe you should quit life -
Oh, he was staring again, and did he freaking lick his lips?
warnings: swearing (reader’s got a potty mouth) + this is set like 5 years in the future + reader has emotional issues, she's a relationship phobe + mentions of weed
genre: so much ANGST ugh + fluff + comedy + some crack
words: 2.1 k
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gimme feedback, much much appreciated!
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SIX MONTHS AGO
“Wait a second, really?” You blinked up at the Chief Editor, your boss, in wonder. “Heading this?” 
The chocolate skinned, tall woman smiled at you. “Yes, heading this. I’d been looking to hand you something from a really long time, to be honest. This is just the right fit."
You grinned at her, hugging the contract file to your chest. In your thirteen months of employment at the publishing company, through the departmental transfer from HR to Editorial and then the promotion to the Associate Editor position, this was the best thing to happen to you, so far. You finally had a project you were gonna head. You would finally, finally get to handle things on your own—curate your own team, work on an individual project where you made all the decisions.
You breathed out, happily. “I’ll read this thoroughly and report back within an hour, boss. With my sign on it, in all likelihood.”
“I’m counting on it.” Your boss smiled at you.
You looked down at the file. You were going to work with a K-pop group on their auto-biography. You were gonna fly to fucking Korea, for six full months. This was huge. This was awesome. This was what you fucking needed, right now. Your best friend that you had been rooming with for a year was starting to get too comfortable. You were so not up for that kinda shit again.
You looked at the bottom of the front page. Athena had drawn up this contract. Your eyebrows arched. It was no secret that she was your boss’s favourite Acquisition Editor. Some even suspected they were having an affair, despite the gleaming diamond you could see—even right now—on the woman’s finger. 
This project had to mean a lot to your boss. And she’d picked you to head it.
“This sounds big, boss,” you mumbled, leafing through the hefty files. You were gonna need a couple hours, maybe, to go through this properly. “And looks big, too.”
“It is big, Y/N. In all the ways. This idea had been brewing in my head for a really long time. I had Athena make the proposal to this K-pop group’s management company, a few months back, and they said yes. She and I had been brainstorming how to approach this. Those guys are pretty tight about their privacy and, um, well. Fraternising policies. It’s all in there, you’ll see.” She pointed a finger at the file in your hands. “We were finally able to draw up the contract with the company’s CEO and Manager. And you were the only one I had in mind when we thought up of building a team and having someone head it so that we don’t have to leave.”
You gave a small, delighted giggle. “Thank you so much, boss. I won’t disappoint you.”
“I know you won’t.”
You got back to your desk and flipped to the first page of the file.
BTS
Your eyes bulged. You had been a busy—and irritable because of all the stupid shit that just constantly kept on happening in your personal life—woman during the past couple of years and really uninvested in anything and everything that had to do with entertainment. This past year had been especially rough ever since your move to the States. You freaking smoked pot when you needed to unwind, what could be worse than that.
But. But—before, when you were a normal, happy woman with a soul, BTS had been kind of a really humongous deal. Did that somehow change in the past couple of years? You strongly doubted it, recalling how huge they’d been growing worldwide, the last time you kept a check. Which you did like crazy.
You momentarily wondered if your boss would still have you as the first consideration if she knew about your crazy ARMY days…
You blinked, coming back from the mental journey, and turned the page. BigHit’s owner was still the same, obviously, but the group members now apparently had individual managers. You blinked, uncomfortable at the knowledge. Reading further, you found something that disturbed you even more.
All the BTS members were done with their Military Service, with Jungkook, Jimin and Namjoon having returned from it just this year.
You swallowed, thickly. A lot had changed in the world outside of the one you’d been living in, too, apparently.
You read through the terms and conditions and your duties, thoroughly. Few points were pretty obvious and things you’d been expecting, but some of them made you frown.
You brought one such issue to your boss’s acknowledgement when you were done reading the entire booklet of a contract, nearly two hours later. You were ready to sign the thing, otherwise.
“And? What about it?” Your boss blinked at you, unfazed.
You sighed, and lifted your left hand up, pointing at your empty ring finger. “No ring, no fiance, boss. They want the team members to be at least engaged. I’m as single as it gets.”
She chuckled at that. “Tell me honestly, are you unprofessional enough to fraternise on your job? Such a high profile one, at that?”
You worried your bottom lip between your teeth. “I don’t think they’d care about what I think, boss, or that they’d even ask.”
Your boss gave an exasperated sigh. “Okay, let me put it in a different way.” You tilted your head to show your interest. “What’s your opinion on relationships, in general?”
You grimaced, unable to help your knee-jerk response. But then you shrugged, trying not to scowl while you said the words you’d started to believe in since the past couple of years. “Well, as I’d informed you through my quite less-than-professional letter at the time of my joining, boss, I think relationships are pointless. Humans keeping relationships beyond professionalism with each other is pointless, actually, because with a personal attachment comes a buckload of expectations, and then it’s just a rabbit hole down the middle of the earth. At the end of which, we burn.”
Your boss seemed to be suppressing laughter. Did the moral of your life amuse her? “You actually quoted the letter word by word, there, Y/N.”
You sighed. “That wasn’t something I’d thought through when I mailed it, boss. The voice input tool turned my rants into a letter. And my frustration over your concerns about fraternising in the office made me mail it.”
Your boss nodded. “Well, I talked to BigHit’s manager over the phone. The company’s not the group’s,” she added when you frowned in confusion at the singular term. “I explained to him about where you stood—taking references from this letter—and explained to him why I needed my most valuable Associate on the team.”
Your cheeks heated up, both due to the huge praise and embarrassment over the exposure of your letter. “Oh, um. Thank you. I guess?”
“Ugh, sign the damn piece of paper and start collecting the damn team, Y/N!”
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You’d resorted to staying back at the office till late hours just to avoid your roommate.
When you’d moved to the country, thirteen months back, and decided to share your decade old friend’s flat—feeling lucky as shit that he worked in the same city as you—you and him had been on the same page. You’d both been fed up with the concepts of relationships and entanglements, even the strictly-physical ones, and wanted to just burn away your youth on the grind and pot-smoking weekends.
But then, gradually, you noticed the shift in him. He was trying to get into your pants. It could not end well.
It wasn’t to say you weren’t attracted to him. You’d jump the gorgeous guy’s bones in a heartbeat, in an alternate universe. But in this one, you’d had a first hand experience of ruining multiple friendships, and you so did not wanna risk another.
That idiot didn’t get it, though.
Hence why you were brainstorming your project’s team at ten oclock of the night in your nearly empty office building.
“Any luck?” Your okay-ish colleague—the least clingy out of the lot—peered at your spreadsheet over your shoulder.
“Why the heck are you so against it, Sana?” you groaned into your palm, frustrated.
“Because I’m ARMY!” she said in an aghast tone.
“So? Dude, that’s nearly 70% of the earth’s population, at this point, I’m guessing.”
“Um, maybe, but. I don’t trust myself to be professional, Y/N,” she morosely mumbled, dropping into an empty chair on the table next to you.
You looked at her from above your glasses. “Why the heck not?”
She ducked her head, her honey blonde hair covering almost all of her face. But you still spotted the red that bloomed across her face. “Because I have a crush on Yoongi, the size of freaking America, Y/N!”
“What? What? That’s your reason?" You covered your mouth with a hand to hold back your laughter. "Lame fucking reason, Sana!” You glared at her when she nervously looked back at you. “Get your shit together, and pack your bags. And give me your husband’s number, I wanna tell him something.”
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You hadn’t imagined that picking out five people from a group of thirty would be this hard. You had spent an entire week literally running after these people to convince them. They were all married or engaged save for one, who had plans of proposing to his boyfriend a few months later, during Valentine’s before you convinced him to do it now so that he’d be able to join the team.
You’d come up with a total of four women and two men, including Sana, that were all fluent in Korean. That was kinda one of the biggest prerequisites, other than being in a committed relationship. You’d briefed the lot of them about what was to be done on this trip, who you were dealing with, and how long you’d be off for. They were all on board, now, and the only thing required was your boss’ approval.
And now you were all standing in the Chief Editor’s cabin, waiting for her to finish reviewing the team members’ profiles you’d collected and presented to her.
Your brain was nearly short circuited, at this point. If she said she wasn’t happy with any of your selections you were prepared to tell her to make the new selection herself, because there were only three more married people in this office, and none of them spoke Korean. There were only two more Korean speakers, but they were both female interns who’d be the worst nightmares to put on this project.
You looked at the six people standing next to you, all looking a varied degree of nervous.
But your boss looked impressed as she perused the file. She beamed at all of you, and then nodded. “Prepare for a six months’ stay, people, and prepare to do your best there. The only two real rules to remember are to keep it all a secret until the BigHit people are ready to disclose the news, and not fall in love.”
You all grunted in barely concealed annoyance at the last part, excluding Sana who bit her lip. You rolled your eyes. “It’d be a bigger concern for their partners than it would be to you, if that happens, boss. Don’t worry. We’re all a bunch of professionals, here.” You reassured your boss, shooting a glare at a fidgety Sana. 
“I have complete faith in y’all. Now, off you go. Brush up your Korean, spend time with your partners.” She looked at you. “Or just, you know, catch up on lost sleep. You fly to Seoul this Friday.”
Three days from now, oh God.
You all trickled out of your boss’ cabin with furrowed foreheads. You had the most workload out of them all, though, because in addition to preparing to spend six months in a foreign land, you also were to prepare a formal itinerary for said six months. You, of course, were clear on the details because they were mentioned in the contract, but writing them out for your team would definitely take a lot of time.
You briefly wondered if you should employ Sana’s help, before quickly deciding against it. It wouldn’t do you any good to do anything to sway your professional relationship by asking for personal favours.
“Hey, Y/N, all okay?” Simon, the guy that was proposing to his boyfriend early because of you, asked you when you dropped into your office chair with a huge thump.
You turned to scowl at him. “You guys have got to stop asking me that all the time! When have you ever gotten a good answer?”
Simon’s eyes widened, and he quickly shook his head. “My bad.”
You kept squinting at his retreating figure. Another member of your team met your eye, before quickly scrambling away.
You hummed in thought. Did they all think you were a bitch? Maybe you were.
Good. It’d do you some good in Korea.
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Tags: @tangledsparkles​
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anotherbeingsworld · 4 years ago
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vegas adventures
Pairing: Bryce x F!MC (Casey Valentine) , a pinch of Ash Tanaka x MC (Melanie)
Book: (BP x Open Heart crossover, rewrites of Chp 15 Book 2)
Summary: The rewrite of their trip to Vegas with an extra helping hand.
A/N: this is a belated birthday gift to the one and only @robintora ! We talked about this fic before, and this is my best attempt at bringing it to life. It was a tough one, but I'm satisfied with it! And Tanu, happy (belated) birthday, and I hope you enjoy this! Love you! <3 // I did manage to add some bryce x mc fluff along the way, which I hope again you enjoy!
-
The workload has been released upon her shoulders, as she arrives at Donahue where the others have been seated. She took a seat besides Bryce, as he placed his arms around her in the booth.
“Okay, so what’s going on here…” Her eyes made its way to Jackie’s somehow questioned about the text that was sent earlier.
“It is something important -..”
“But, don’t worry – we got some good loaded fries to entertain us through the briefing right Jackie?” Bryce interrupts as he take a piece of it with a happiness planted on his face.
Aurora breaks the silence, ‘Since we are all here – so spill.”
Jackie took a deep breath explaining the whole situation on Declan trying to leech onto some doctors from Mass Kenmore, followed by the partnership to push Panacea drugs onto MK’s patients as well.
Realization dawn to her face,
“Hence, the perks that made the others join then.”
Jackie nods, with an angry expression on her face.
“That’s why we need to stop them.”
Elijah looked at her with shock, “Wait…I thought you were in with the perks. What changed?”
Casey’s eyes, meet with hers somehow both knowing what happened the other day at the gas station has somehow a connection with her sudden revelation.
Jackie clears her throat suddenly upon the awkward silence that follows, clasping her hands together.
“I guess – it's not worth it anymore if it costs others misery. I don’t think I want to be part of it anymore.”
A surprising look was painted on Casey’s face which disappears in a second as Elijah interrupts with a resolute nod.
“So, how are we gonna bring the monster down? Technically Declan Nash is the kind of person who can get away with anything.”
Jackie looks resolute, as she lays out the plan which involved a company retreat in Vegas which will be happening during the weekend.
“…They have extended the invitation to doctors they’ve worked with…including me.”
Casey nods, “I am officially intrigued, count me in.”
“The situation is gonna be sticky, but a few drinks in and we can stop them. As a fact that he and his scumbag friends will be bragging about the ways they are scamming the system – all we gotta do is a tape and we can catch them.” Her tone is commanding.
The whole table went silent, as Bryce replies.
“And then what…blackmail one of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in the world?”
There was silence, as the others were contemplating the pros and cons of the situation but, in the end, they decided to stick together.
“If something happens to me while I’m gone, I at least wanted you all to know where I am.”
The others looked at her in surprise before Bryce breaks the silence,
“You mean – what happens to us.”
Casey nods,
“You don’t think we will let you go alone right? We are with you all the way Jackie, the group who heist together, stays together as we are should.” Casey said before Jackie can protest. The night ended with possibilities of the implication as Casey gets on the phone with a friend from afar that could help her with the situation.
-
A few days later.
The bright lights of Vegas were the reason for their wide smiles – as they stepped into the suite that was provided by Mass Kenmore. All of their jaws dropped in an instant – as the lights of the strip sparkle outside of the panoramic windows.
“This is the single coolest room I’ve ever been in, like legit.” His eyes wander in awe along with the others.
Jackie snickers, “Just remember that this luxury is from blood money.”
They all nod in agreement as they started to form a plan, as Casey finds herself texting a mysterious friend.
“Let’s get dressed shall we,” Bryce stated as the others get ready to dazzle for their night at Vegas.
As the others get ready, Casey finds a message from Rafael – wishing them good luck. She smiles at the message, as she took the phone call from the familiar number.
-
“Hey! We are in Vegas already – getting ourselves ready for the night.” Her voice is slow, as she stood facing the strip.
“That’s good! My friends and I had arrived yesterday, and we will meet you at the lobby! I brought a very special helper for you.” A knowing smile occurs on the caller’s face through the phone.
“Let me guess – it's your famous magician boyfriend Mel?” Casey raised an eyebrow at the statement – disbelieving but kinda curious as well.
“That’s right! He decided to join us tonight – plus, he is actually a vegas master. All of you will be lost without him.” Melanie replies from the other line.
Casey just shakes her head, but the smile remains.
“I’ll see you soon, say hi to the girls for me!” Casey ends the call, to be met with Bryce looking dashing in his suit.
-
“You look nice Lahela.” Her eyes are equivalent to the heart-eyed emoji as he models in front of her, making her chuckle happily at him.
“I always look nice, Casey! It's my specialty, but – why aren’t you dressed?” He asked as he loops his arm around her, eyes falling upon the Vegas scenery.
“I was making a phone call, but you definitely look stunning. You are gonna beat everyone here Bryce.”
He laughs at the comment, but somewhat smiles – “Thank you, now get yourself ready – we shall be the good-looking couple here shall we?” She looked at him in shock but brushed it away. The word ‘couple’ caught her somewhat off-guard but she somehow adores it.
“I will” She replies placing a kiss on his cheek before moving on to change.
Moments later, she walked out to a room, as all of their eyes fall onto her.
“You look…beautiful.” Bryce walks in front of them, as he pulls her in her arms – as she blushes furiously by the compliment.
“The lovebirds are at it again, let's move on before they hog the spotlight with their PDA,” Jackie said sarcastically as they walked out of the room – meeting with a specific group in the lobby.
-
The lobby was filled with people, yet the familiar pink hair caught her eye.
“Guys, I brought us some help – and, they have an expert for it.” She said as the others follow her, meeting a group of friends.
“Casey!!!! HI!” Melanie a.k.a the woman with the pink hair, pull her into a hug – as they were finally reunited.
“Hii, have you been waiting long?” She asked gesturing to the other familiar faces, Aisha, Courtney, Diana, and a mysterious guy who she assumes as the one and only infamous Ash Tanaka, the guy Melanie won’t stop gushing about to her.
“Casey! We have just arrived earlier – it's good to see you again!” Diana pulls her into a hug, as Courtney and Aisha did the same.
“Also, this is my friends! Bryce, Jackie, Elijah, Sienna and Aurora.” Casey introduces them to the group, as they all exchange introductions.
“Nice to meet you all, this is the men of the hour – Ash Tanaka, he will be a huge help as he knows the deep unknowns of Vegas itself.” Melanie introduces him to the gang, as he and Bryce ended up bro-hugging one another.
The reunion was cut short as they began to devise a plan, which went out smoothly, as Ash leads Declan to a game where he was surrounded by the group. They went in randomly, as it would avoid any alarms from Declan himself, and with the help from Melanie’s buddies – they were undetectable.
The information that was received, was priceless – as they found out upon that Solomon Health is making moves into vertical integration – however, it didn’t help their issue at the moment as they regroup once more to create another plan.
In the end, it went well, as Declan Nash was confronted – and he was captured on tape. The group manages to bring their best together – and the satisfied look on Jackie’s face is a very good sight to see.
“Payback’s a bitch, isn’t it?” it erupts the cheers of victory, as the air from the rooftop makes the winning of the night felt much satisfying. Sienna, Aurora, Elijah, Aisha, Diana, and Courtney were found socializing at the dance floor, as they recapped the whole situation again – somewhat like a televised situation that made Casey smile.
Jackie stood there, letting out a breath – somewhat feeling the calmness in her lungs again.
“How are you feeling Jackie?”
She met her eyes, and somehow – she was met with a hug. Jackie hugged her, and it feels like they did something incredible at the moment.
“Thank you…I feel like, tonight – I think I can sleep really well tonight.” She said happily, as Jackie joined the others.
Casey felt her heart in happiness – somehow, seeing Jackie in peace is such a sight. Her thoughts were interrupted by a familiar presence, Melanie who smiled at her.
“You did this tonight – and, I couldn’t even be more proud.”
“Hey, all of your friends and ehem…your boyfriend helped as well.” She gestures at Ash and Bryce who are having a conversation that follows a series of laughter.
“We love to be here – and, it's actually where I met him.”
“I remember the story. It involves mobs, a missing suitcase and a lot of chaotic stuff am I right?” Casey recalls their meeting before, as Melanie laughs in agreement.
“Yeah, that’s about right. It's an adventure, and being here with my girls – meeting Ash; it doesn’t feel real sometimes. But, I’m grateful for it.”
Casey nods, as they took a sip upon the drink they were holding.
“Thank you again for coming – I know it's such short notice.”
Melanie shakes her head, with a wide smile.
“It's okay, you helped us years ago – it's our turn to repay back. A silver lining too, I got to see Ash for the weekend.”
At the mention of his name, Ash appears at the scene.
“I heard a mention of the magician here?”
Both of them let out a hearty laugh, as he placed an arm around Melanie.
“I wanna thank you – it means a lot for your help,” Casey said, as he smiles at her.
“It's no problem at all, and if all of you ever hit vegas again – just give me a call; I can show you some of the best-secret locations here.” He winked as Melanie nods in agreement.
“It's true – he knows this place in its depth and, you will not regret it.”
Casey nods, excitedly as the others join them – somewhat looking panic suddenly.
“We don’t want to end this party yet, but the flight back home is in 4 hours.” A panic Diana stated, as the widening of Melanie’s eyes brought her back to reality.
“Oh crap, we have to get going.” She stated as all of them walked out of the club.
It’s a farewell with the whole gang, as they left for the airport.
“I’ll call you when we land? But, it's definitely a good time seeing you again Cas.” Melanie stated as they hugged once more, along with the group.
“Definitely, I’ll see you guys soon.” It was somehow an emotional farewell in a short amount of time.
The car vanished in a second, as they decided to make their way back to the suite after the success of the day.
-
The suite was quiet – as it was past midnight. However, the bright lights of Vegas are still shining brightly as ever. The room was dimmed, as the others had fallen onto slumber, leaving the pair to be awake.
She was dressed in her pyjamas as she settled down upon the squishy couch from the hotel. With a cup of coffee in her hand, as there was someone who decided to join her. She smiles at his sight, as she filled the gap as Bryce pulled her into his arms, both of their gazes fall upon the neon lights of the city that filled the dimmed room.
“What are you thinking about?”
He smiles softly before answering,
“Jackie. She did an incredible job tonight – but the grudge she held against Declan on what he did. It felt like someone else that we were seeing tonight.” He paused biting his lip, a pinch of anxiousness can be sensed from him.
“I just – I cant help to think about all the anger I am carrying around for my parents. I wonder – what its done for me?” His gaze falls onto her, somewhat pleading for an answer.
It was followed by silence for a few moments – before she spoke again.
“Are you ready to let it go?”
He shrugs, somewhat confused upon his decision too.
“I honestly have no idea, I don’t like to see them in myself – especially the times of arguing with Keiki. It feels like the past has repeated itself.”
“So, are you ready to forgive them?”
His stare falls upon the view in front of them – as he stares wistfully as his mind is filled with thoughts.
“Forgive feels like a huge action – but, maybe for now…I’m ready to let go and, start a new book with those who actually love me.” A smile appeared on his face, as he kissed her on top of the head.
“That sounds very healthy, for you and Keiki.”
He laughs as he nods in agreement, “I hope so too.”
They sat together in silence, as she stayed in his arms closing her eyes against the bright lights of Vegas, a beautiful ending of the day.
“Bryce, I’m proud of you.” She said as they lay upon the bed, her eyes looking at him in wonder.
He looks sleepy, yet the smile didn’t leave his face – today was a good day. A start of new beginnings for all of them – as he replies before both of them fall into another slumber once more.
“I’m proud of you too.”
THE END.
tags: @bitchloveskcbaseball , @mvalentine , @storyofmychoices , @princess-geek , @lahellacute ,   @annekebbphotography , @mrsbhandari , @dcbbw , @choicessa , @fantasyoverreality98 , @baltersome , @ofpixelsandscribbles , @thundergom @starrystarrytrouble ,  @kelseaaa  , @choicesficwriterscreations  , @lalizah , @drethanramslay , @eleanorbloom , @openheartfanfics , @brycessgirl  ,  @freckles-spangledvampire , @agentnolastname , @robintora , @adriansbiss , @appiomofchoice  , @ariondevereux , @natureblooms24 (comment if you want to be tagged or removed 💜💜)
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princecharmingmendes · 5 years ago
Text
Valentine's Day | Shawn Mendes
“Valentine’s Day is always hard for some people that are single, but it’s harder you have a loved one that’s on another country, but lucky you, he always had his ways of making everything better”
Hiiii! I’m going to try to post this weekend other to Valentine’s Day oneshot, but the other two will be  one with Raul and the other with Peter, they’ll all be called the same {Valentine’s Day} and that’s it, hope you guys like it!
                                         Peter  |  Raul (coming soon)
Word Count: 3.7K+
Warnings: cursing, mentions of sex and a lot of fluffy boyfriend material Shawn.
Posted: February 15th, 2020.
                                                        -*-
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  You love Shawn with every single cell in your body. I mean, how could you not? He’s everything anyone could possibly ever want. He’s the kindest, sweetest and most loving person you’ve ever met, he would literally run a marathon barefoot just to put a smile on your face and he would say that to anyone who was close enough to hear it. You’ve met him three years ago and been together practically all these time. You two met at a common friend’s birthday party and he couldn’t stop talking to you or trying so ridiculously hard to make you giggle just to hear it, at the end of the night, you had a date on the next day. And you couldn’t stop seeing him ever since and it was magical, for the first two months.
I mean, not that he changed or something, he’s still the same doofus cheesy 6’3 guy I fell for, it’s just that he’s not just Shawn, he’s Shawn fucking Mendes, a sweetheart with two identical brothers and a rockstar for a living.
The only thing that makes it hard is when he’s away. He tries his best to compensate with FaceTime calls and sending me surprise gifts and stuff, but that doesn’t make things easier. He also suffers from it, even though he doesn’t want me to see that or to think that, I know he does, his parents and friends told me that sometimes it gets harder for him and he just spends the hold day in a bad mood. But still, whenever he’s back from the road, everything’s better and it’s lime he never left. He clings to me like a giant teddy bear and follows me around like a lost puppy and I’d do anything he asks me with those hazel orbits and when he holds me, I just know things are going to be okay.
But right now, things don’t seem to be okay. 
I mean, between us, things are great, he’s been as present as he could as he was working his ass off in LA on his next album. But on the rest, it was all just a big mess. My parents are constantly screaming at each other due to a family thing on dad’s side, my brother left the house for college recently and wasn’t actually talking to anyone and work and college were trying to kill me, and the cherry on top was this  stupid project I had to finish and publish that was a huge part of my final grade. Everything’s falling apart and I haven’t been able to talk to my boyfriend for real for like, two days. I know it’s ridiculous, but I needed so bad just to hear him saying “you’re going to be okay, honey, you’re the smartest person I know”. But I can’t call him and stuff his head with my shitty problems, I don’t want to keep his mind away from his work. So I called his brothers instead.
Peter told me he could stop by at the end of the night if I felt like I needed help, and Raul offered to take me out to dinner to relax a bit since I’ve been going mad over this. And I love them for trying, but it’s simply not the same thing. So that’s why I’m sitting in Shawn’s living room (since he asked me to move in the past month and I did) surrounded by papers, textbooks and my computer on my lap, running my temples and trying to get some work going when my phone started ringing and my computer screen stopped working, Shawn’s face appeared all over it as he called me on FaceTime.
“Hey” I said as soon as I picked it up.
“Hey, baby, God, I missed your pretty face”
“You called me two days ago, weirdo”
“Still missed you tough”
“Okay, so... what’s up?”
“Hm, nothing, just got back to the apartment and I’m so tired and I miss you”
“I miss you too, kinda wish you were here”
“I’ll be back soon, I promise”
“I know” I said sighing and placing a few strands that fell of my messy bun behind my ear.
“What are you doing?”
“Just some stupid project”
“Apparently not that nice”
“No, it sucks, I have to submit it until noon”
“Tomorrow?”
“Uh, yeah”
“Oh shit, am I interrupting? Shit, I’m sorry, baby, I didn’t even considered the possibility of you being busy or something, I just needed to see you”
“No, hey, it’s okay, I was about to take a break, it’s okay”
“Sorry, I’m so sorry”
“Hey, bubs, it’s okay”
“Okay, so what are you doing tomorrow after submitting it?”
“I’m gonna go grab lunch with Peter and then work, probably later than I should, but you know my boss and his lovely situation with his ex, so he’ll probably keep us late due to Valentine’s Day to keep his mind busy, but after that, Raul is coming over for dinner since he’s single and you’re not here, Pete’s got a date”
“With that girl he likes?”
“Yeah, that’s the one”
“I think he’ll actually have something with her”
“So do I! He’s very happy whenever he talks to her or about her”
“He’s Peter”
“That’s true, what about you?”
“Me? Oh, just work stuff, I was curious about you to see if I could call you or something, but you seem to have way to many plans”
“No, you can call me after I leave work, I can text you, letting you know when I park or leave work so you can call me, Raul wouldn’t mind”
“I doubt that, but I don’t really care about what he thinks about it, text me when you leave work and I’ll call you”
“Okay, any new songs to show me?”
“Not yet, I want you to see only the finished product”
“Boring”
“You still love me” he sang song and I couldn’t stop myself from giggling at his boyish side.
“Bubs, I’m so sorry, but I gotta hang up, Kate’s calling me to help out with a thing I’m struggling with” I said sighing as my phone started ringing again.
“Hey, it’s okay, I should probably try to get some sleep, I have to be up early due to a meeting”
“Yeah, so should I but... Not finished, no sleeping” I said motioning to the paper on my lap.
“You should really try to sleep, honey, it’s late and I’m pretty sure the project is practically done, you’re just attached to details”
“Oh, you know me so well”
“Of course I do, I’m your boyfriend after all”
“That’s true, okay, I really gotta go now, Shawn, I’m so sorry”
“Don’t apologize, there’s nothing wrong, now stop worrying, add your finishing touches and go to bed”
“Okay, sir, goodnight”
“Goodnight, baby, I love you” he said chuckling.
“I love you too” I said smiling at the camera before hanging up, trying to call Kate back to get some help with some of the things I was not happy about before I could fall asleep.
                                                       -*-
Waking up on the other day was torturous since of the lack of sleep, but stepping outside was worse. I don’t get bitter on seeing other people happy, I really don’t, but seeing couples with flowers and holding hands broke my heart into a million pieces, because that was just a reminder that I wasn’t going to see Shawn for another week, which meant he was away for a month already. And it was everywhere.
When I was able to just hand my teachers a copy of the project and leave, it was like a thousand pounds left my shoulders and I could finally breath again, so I fished my phone from my pocket to text Shawn, but finding out he had already texted me early in the morning. This paper was eating me alive and I didn’t even noticed ‘till now.
“Hey, can you talk?” I said as soon as Shawn picked up the phone.
“Yeah, anything wrong?”
“No, everything went smooth apparently, I just left college and I’m going to meet up with Pete now”
“That’s great! Are you feeling better now?”
“So much better, I just called you to thank you for... I don’t know, being so supportive, I guess, and for texting me ‘good luck’ this morning”
“Oh, sure, that’s my job!”
“No it’s not, you’re just perfect and I fucking love you”
“Love you too, baby, but I gotta run now, I’m sorry”
“No, it’s okay, I’m sorry, I won’t hold you back”
“You don’t, relax for a bit, and thank you for calling me, I love hearing your voice, and soon I’ll hear it again personally”
“You’re too cheesy for your own goo, Mendes, goodbye” I said and I head his laugh through the phone, making me smile almost instantaneously.
“Bye, honey” he said hanging up.
                                                       -*-
The rest of the day was fine. Lunch with Peter is always amazing, he always now crazy and random facts about everything and he is way too sweet. Going to work sucked a bit cause my boss was being a bitch the whole day and just finding flaws were there weren’t any, but nothing that I couldn’t handle. When I left, I went to a grocery shop to buy some stuff for my dinner with Raul that he asked and sent a message to Shawn telling him I was going to be home in thirty minutes, and he replied with a simple ‘kay, baby, talk to you later’, which I found weird but tried not to read too much into it. He was probably busy anyways.
But what sucked was parking at the garage and calling Raul, only to find out he was not going to make it.
“Hey, Raul, I just got home and I can start the food if you want”
“Oh shit, I completely forgot to tell you”
“Tell me what?”
“Shit, I’m so sorry, Y/N, but this kid come into work today and his situation is pretty bad, I can’t leave him alone, I’m so damn sorry, I... shit, I don’t even know what to say!”
“Hey, hey, it’s okay, it’s not your fault and I’m not mad, you’re not bailing to go drink or something, you’re working and saving a child’s life, Raul, chill, dude, I’m not mad!”
“Thank you so much, you’re the best, I gotta go now, Y/N, again, I’m so incredibly sorry, thank you so much, bye” he said hanging up.
“Bye” I said into the empty lot and opening the door to grab my bags.
I pressed the button of the elevator and got in, holding the bags with one hand to text Shawn with the other one a quick ‘hey, Raul’s not coming, I’m at the elevator, you can call me anytime you can now xx’. When I got to my floor, my phone started ringing and it was Kate calling, so I picked it up.
“Hey, Y/N, are you busy?”
“No, it’s okay, how are you? By the way, thank you so much for the help yesterday, I really appreciate it” I said as I placed the phone between my cheek/ear and my shoulder to fish the keys in my bag.
“Oh, I’m fine, thanks, so... I’m calling you exactly because of the project”
“Oh really” I felt my heart going to a stop “something wrong?”
“The only think wrong with your project is in your extremely perfectionist brain, dummy”
“What do you mean, Kate?” I said finally being able to place the key on the lock and turn it.
“Bitch, you got an A, YOU GOT AN A, do you know what that means?! Your project is perfect! You don’t even need to do the test if you don’t want to! God, I hate you so much right now”
“Holy shit, Kate! Are you kidding me?! How do you know that?!”
“Mr. Saltzman just published the grades”
“I can’t believe it!”
“I know! And you know what happens to people who get an A on this thing?! YOUR ARTICLE IS GOING TO BE PUBLISHED! I’m so damn proud of you”
“I can’t believe it” I said finally getting out of my trance with a wide smile on my face as I got into the condo, closing the door right behind me, still trying to balance everything I was holding and lock the damn door.
“I know, I mean...”
“Wait a second, Kate” I interrupted her as soon as I heard a noise coming from the empty apartment “I think I heard something.
“Is everything okay? Where are you?”
“I just got home and I heard something, but the door was locked, so I don’t know, it’s probably nothing, I’m just overreacting” I said as I paced to the kitchen to get rid of the grocery bags, my heels echoing on the empty rooms.
“Are you sure? Do you want me to come over?”
“No, it’s oka... shit” I said as I almost dropped my phone and I suddenly felt the bags being pulled from my arms  from behind, I was at the verge of losing my shit when I saw his reflex on the big window on his kitchen
Standing behind me was the 6’3 rockstar teddy bear that I got to call mine holding the bags that were almost falling from my arms for me as I just stared at him completely shocked. He just grinned at me through the reflection and I almost lost it, but kept frozen in place.
“Y/N? What’s going on?” Kate’s voice sounded clear now through the phone.
“Oh shit, sorry, Kate, I almost dropped my phone and I... I gotta go, I just found out Shawn’s home, I, I’ll talk to you later, bye” I said as I hung up, turning around in shock as I stared at him.
“Hi” he said barely louder then a whisper, placing the bags on the counter and picking up the bouquet of tulips that he picked up from the counter.
I couldn’t even understand what was happening, but my body decided to take the natural lead and jump on him, wrapping my arms around his neck and burying my face on his neck. He quickly wrapped his arms around me to keep me off the ground and in his embrace. I wrapped my legs around his torso and just took my time to process the information that he was actually here, with me. When I finally pulled back from his neck, I could only stare at his eyes that were already on me, with a look of pure love and adoration, so I just did what felt right, I crashed my lips on his. And all was right in the world again. The kiss was so passionate and so in sync that only made the fuzzy warm feeling I always have when I’m around him intensify a million times. I only noticed that I was crying when I felt his hand coming up to caress my cheek softly while his other arm kept me tightly in place.
“What the hell, Shawn?” I asked as soon as I pulled back for air.
“Hi, lover, I love you too and missed you lots”
“You do know I love you and you also know I missed you so bad, but what the hell? Weren’t you supposed to come home only in a week?”
“Well, that’s what everybody told you cause I asked them, you really thought I was going to leave you here alone in Valentine’s Day?!”
“Wait a second, Mendes, everybody knew you’re coming home today?!”
“Uh yeah?”
“So Raul wasn’t going to be with me at all?!”
“Nope” he said popping the ‘P’.
“Did he lie to me about being at work?”
“No, but he also never cancelled his shift today to be with you”
“So why the heck did he sent me grocery... is that why I have all the ingredients for chocolate chip muffins?!”
“Uh, maybe?” Shawn said with a sheepish smile on his face “don’t get mad at me, I wanted to surprise you”
“Mad at you? How could I be mad at you, bubs?”
“I don’t know, I can do some pretty stupid things”
“That’s true”
“Outch, you weren’t supposed to agree to that”
“Sorry, but I thought we didn’t lie to each other”
“Okay, I’m going back to LA” he said threatening to let me go.
“No! I’m kidding, I love you and you know I can never get mad at you, cause even though you make same stupid things, they’re never harmful and always innocent, so no, I’m not mad at you”
“Good, cause I have a whole night planned”
“Oh, really?”
“Yeah, I figured you wouldn’t like to go out, so I grabbed your favorite Italian dish, you bought the wine, I’ve set up our room, we can take a bath and then cuddle while we watch Harry Potter or Grey’s Anatomy and eat our food, then we’ll go to bed and I’ll cuddle the fuck out of you”
“You’re so weird, dude” I said and he chuckled, placing me on the ground again, but still not letting go of me.
“Yeah? Then why are still with me?”
“Because you’re the Shawn Mendes” I said and he laughed holding me tighter.
“Is that all?”
“Well, pretty much, of course, you’re pretty and stuff, but yeah, your career is all that matters to me”
“Thought it was my bank account... so if I go ugly and my voice disappears you’ll dump me?”
“Obviously” I said tapping his strong chest playfully and he held my wrists, bringing my hands up to kiss they’re back, so I took the opportunity to cup his jaw gently “but for real now, I don’t care if you loose your career, bank account and all your hair, it wouldn’t change a thing for me. Of course it’s amazing to be dating someone who gets to play in sold out arenas and travel around the world with a guitar case in his hands, you’re really talented and I’ve told you a million times that you always mesmerize me with everything you put on, you’re fascinating for sure”
“Thank you” he mouthed in the middle of my speech and I couldn’t contain myself from standing on the tippy toes of my shoes to place a sweet peck on his lips.
“Where was I?” I asked as soon as I pulled away “oh yeah, but honestly? That’s not what’s best about you. You’ve got the kindest soul I’ve ever met, you’re so caring and loving, you always put everyone that matters first and always makes me feel special, even on the toughest days, you do not measure consequences when it comes to pleasing someone you love and also, you’re the best person I’ve ever met and I’m so lucky to able to call you love of my life, I love you, Shawn Mendes, not only for the fame and the amazing...”
“...sex?” he suggested with a smirk on his face.
“Well, no, but that’s actually right as well. Anyone, and the amazing music you make, but for the real Shawn, the guy the grew up in Pickering and that watches rom-coms for a living” I said and he smiled softly, attaching his lips to mine again in a sweet kiss.
“I was the one supposed to make you a speech, I was not expecting that but thank you” he said kissing my forehead “ and also, thank you for being patient with me and allowing this relationship to work out”
“You don’t have to thank me for anything” I said softly as I caressed his cheek with my thumb “thank YOU, Shawn”
He smiled down at me and kissed me again, this time, deepening the kiss faster than before, quickly grabbing the back of my thighs and picking me up as he licked into my mouth, making my head go dizzy with the sensations.
                                                       -*-
After the bath, pretend to watch whatever we picked to put on the TV while we made up for the lost time on his couch and then ate or food to recover, we finally decided to head back to our room, cause after all, he got on a plane today to see me and my work was exhausting. We were laying in bed, Shawn in his underwear, and me in only his shirt laying half on top of him. He was gently running his fingers through my hair as I drew mindless circles on his bare abs, minds far away as we laid close just enjoying each other’s warmth and company.
“I forgot to get your present, it’s on my suitcase” he said more to himself then to me.
“You shouldn’t have”
“Ooh, shush, I like to buy you presents and spoil you, and you never allow me to do so, I just have to grab every opportunity I have”
“Fair enough, yours are on the closet”
“We can do that tomorrow when I’m making you breakfast”
“You?”
“Yeah, learned how to do pancakes!”
“Really?! I’m so proud of you, bubs” I said and he smiled, kissing my forehead.
“Thank you”
“Hey, Shawn” I said lowly after a while, breaking the silence again “thank you so much for coming home and doing all of this, it means the world to me, every single detail was perfect, and I can’t believe you actually bought me tulips! They mean...”
“They mean ‘declaration of love’” he said complementing what I was going to say “yeah, I know, Peter helped out on that one, not gonna lie”
“Just the fact that you took your time on asking what each flower meant it’s enough to make me love you even more” I said pecking his soft lips delicately.
“You should sleep, honey, you seemed tired when you arrived”
“I am”
“So sleep, I’ll still be home when you wake up”
“Do you promise?” I asked nuzzling my face further on his collarbone.
“I promise” he said softly “I promise I’ll always come home to you, happy valentine’s day, honey” were the last words I heard before I drifted off to dreamland, in the arms of the man I love with every single cell of my body.
                                                       -*-
Happy belated Valentine's Day!
*Please reblog or like this post if you liked it so I’ll know.
*I’m sorry if there are any spelling mistakes, I had to finish this in rush to post it on time.
*Please do not repost this without giving me the credit, this is a completely original piece and I do not give permission to copy this!
*Hope you guys enjoyed it!
*xoxo
-🌙
... : @fivefeetapartt
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searchingwardrobes · 4 years ago
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One of my favorite romance authors is Denise Hunter, and I’ve read almost everything of hers. For Valentine’s Day, I thought I would highlight who my absolute favorite couples are in her novels. These are all couples that I promise will make you swoon!
If you want to purchase any of these, please help me out by going to my blog HERE and clicking on the affiliate links.
1. Kate and Lucas in The Convenient Groom
Yes, this was made into a Hallmark movie. However, they did not do this book justice at all. Mainly, they had Lucas pretend to be engaged to Kate instead of married to her. Actually, he doesn’t pretend to marry her, he actually does when Kate gets dumped on her wedding day. The pressures of sharing a life together and having to pretend to be married result in so many opportunities for sexual tension. And since they’re married, this one gets steamy (though it never crosses the line one expects for a faith-based romance). The situation also results in a lot of humor, so I laughed during much of this book. The dramatic conclusion is also one of the most romantic in Hunter’s books.
And yes, fandom, this is the book I based a Captain Swan fic on. It’s just THAT good!
2. Hope and Brady in Honeysuckle Dreams
This is another one where there is a marriage of convenience, which means, yes, steamy scenes. (I promise, that’s not my only litmus test for these couples, though it helps!) In this one, Brady gets the shocking news that he’s not actually the biological father of his son, Sammy, and the parents of his deceased ex-wife are demanding custody. When a misunderstanding leads Brady’s lawyer to think his friend Hope is his fiance, Brady discovers that giving Sam a mother may be the key to winning the custody battle. To his shock, Hope agrees, and said marriage of convenience begins. One thing I love about this book is the way it flips the script. A woman who fears that all men leave because she was abandoned by her father is a pretty common romance trope. In this book, however, it’s Brady who feels women are always leaving him, starting with his drug addict mom. And though the couple are married, the burn in this is achingly, exquisitely slow as Brady and Hope go from friends, to a married couple, to lovers. Did I mention there’s also a swoon-worthy scene in the rain?
3. Abby and Ryan in Married Til Monday
We now go from marriage of convenience to “we’re divorced, but we have to pretend to be married for the weekend.” Yeah, I know, I don’t think that’s a trope, but in this book it absolutely works! Ryan is still in love with his ex Abby, even going so far as to buy the house she had always dreamed of them sharing. So when he finds out that Abby’s parents don’t know about the divorce, he sees the opportunity he’s been waiting for. Abby agrees to pretend they’re still married for her parents' anniversary party. Guess what that means? Road trip! A road trip with your ex probably sounds like torture to some, but the way Hunter executes this, its instead equal parts comedy and sexual tension. You also slowly learn what happened to end their marriage over the course of the book. I won’t give any spoilers; just know that Hunter does a fantastic job executing this storyline in a believable way. Ryan also never manipulates Abby to win her back. For example, the dream house he bought? He never tells her he bought it or uses it in any way to lure her back. He just wanted to do what he felt he should have done when they were together. That’s all I’ll say - just know that Ryan will absolutely steal your heart. I’ve read this one multiple times!
4. Lucy and Zac in The Goodbye Bride
This one was also made into a Hallmark movie that is nowhere near as good as the book (Christmas on My Mind). First of all, the book doesn’t take place at Christmas. Second, Lucy is a spunky, petite, curvy blonde from Georgia in the book and far more interesting than the Lucy in the movie. Also, Lucy actually wakes up on the floor of a public restroom in her wedding dress, which is way more of a dramatic opening.
Anyway, this book is part of the Summer Harbor series, which is one of my favorite series by Hunter. The three Callahan brothers are just the definition of swoon-worthy. Little piece of trivia - Abby from Married Til Monday is their cousin, and the town of Summer Harbor is introduced in that book.
But about Lucy and Zac . . . As I said, Lucy wakes up in a diner bathroom, with a bump on her head, wearing a wedding dress. She calls her fiance Zac to come pick her up only to discover that he isn’t her fiance anymore and hasn’t been for over a year! Lucy has amnesia, with absolutely no memory of why Zac evidently hates her now. And who in the world was she about to marry? Zac wants to protect his still broken heart, yet he can’t resist trying to help Lucy. The mystery of why Lucy left Zac to begin with, who she’s marrying, and why she was in a diner bathroom on her wedding day will keep you on the edge of your seat. As for this couple, you will absolutely want to smash their faces together in frustration, but in the best way!
5. Shay and Travis in The Accidental Bride
Yeah, I know, there are a lot of wedding themes here! What can I say? Denise Hunter does this trope so well! Just as the title suggests, Shay and Travis accidentally get married in this book. It’s part of the Big Sky series, set in Montana and featuring rugged ranchers and cowboys, and this one is my favorite of the three. How in the world does one accidentally get married? When you participate in a founder’s day reenactment, of course. Naturally. And the marriage license happens to not be fake, but the one you never used when you almost-eloped at eighteen. Naturally. Okay, maybe the premise is a little far-fetched, but I promise you won’t care. Shay is hurt by the fact that Travis didn’t go through with their elopement all those years ago, but she’s also in a tough spot with her ranch. Marriage to Travis may help her save it, so she’s just going to have to go along with it. She just won’t allow her heart to get involved. Sure, right Shay. Good luck with that. Did I mention that because they are married, things get steamy? You probably figured that already. Let’s just say they are on a ranch, remember, and there is hay. Enough said.
Tagging those who might be interested: @snowbellewells @reynoldsreads @whimsicallyenchantedrose @xhookswenchx @welllpthisishappening @ultraluckycatnd @ekr032-blog-blog @singersdd  @shireness-says @optomisticgirl @bethacaciakay @hookedonapirate​ 
Let me know if you would like to be tagged in my book reviews!
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laceymorganwrites · 4 years ago
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Don´t call me kid, don´t call me baby
THIS CONTAINS SPOILERS FROM THE MANGA
Word count: 4,043
Pairing: Atsumu x fem!reader
Summary: You are the neighbor of infamous Atsumu Miya and manager of the Sendai Frogs (Former manager of Karasuno). You don´t really like him (reader is a bit of a tsundere) until you get a chance to know him. Maybe you were wrong about him all along?
Warnings: Swearing, mentions of sex (nothing explicit), Atsumu overthinking and being insecure
Fun facts: Atsumu and you wanted to go to the park for your date, but it rained, so you just went to his place, cooked together and watched Naruto
Mini playlist: Illicit affairs - Taylor Swift
                       Bloody Valentine - Machine Gun Kelly
                        Friday I´m in love - The Cure
                         Rockstar - Call Me Karizma
                         Alphabet Boy - Melanie Martinez
                       Leave Me Alone - I Don´t Know How But They Found Me
Trying to squeeze your way through the masses at the airport always stressed you out, coming home was supposed to feel calm and relaxing, not like this.
You were only gone for a week, visiting friends and relatives abroad, but honestly you were excited to be back home.
It was stressful running errands and catching up on months upon months of information.
You only had this chance because the season just ended, but that only meant that the training would start again soon, now that you were home.
Volleyball and you were inseparable, ever since you could remember.
It all started with you watching it on TV and being fascinated, joining a club in middle school, then in high school, you even got the chance to be the manager of the Sendai Frogs, your current job.
Everything was going too well.
You only hoped that your apartment would still stand when you arrived there, maybe having the team look after it wasn´t the best decision. Maybe Tsukishima was able to smack some sense into the others.
“(Y/N)-senpai?!” Hinata called out to you, he thought he was only imagining things, but when you turned around to meet his eyes, he smiled brightly and ran to you.
He just came back from Brazil and you were equally surprised as him, sure all of you stayed in contact, but both of you and Nishinoya being abroad, the rest of the team being in college or working already complicated meeting up.
Yet it was nice that you texted each other, you even followed some of the careers of your former club as far as it was possible.
And Hinata made sure to text as often as possible, even announcing to you that upon his arrival he´d want to attend the tryouts of the Black Jackals.
“Hinata! You´re back already? Is it already the third?” you thought to yourself, to you it felt as if he just left, to you he was still the little bundle of joy that changed everything.
“You sure grew up a lot! You´re much taller than before… I can´t believe it´s been three years already!” you mustered him, noticing how mature he was now, still to you he´d always be the same he was in high school.
“Brazil was amazing! I learned a lot, beach volleyball is super hard! And you won´t believe who I met” he started as you two walked out of the airport together, you listened attentively as he told you all about his stay abroad, you had a smile on your face the whole time.
He has come so far.
“I can´t believe you ran into Oikawa at some random beach, what are the chances?” you giggled, picking up your luggage with him and leaving the airport.
You talked a bit more until you had to part ways.
“Good luck with the tryouts!” you called after him and he gave you a thumbs up before he grabbed a taxi.
You had the luck to be picked up by the team´s coach and discussed the next season and games in the car.
“Training starts tomorrow again, but you don´t need to do anything today. We don´t have any set games yet, so we´re just gonna commence normal training tomorrow and you can make some calls after and see who´s free for a game” he instructed and you nodded.
It was good being in the flow of things again, somehow being home and working was more relaxing than being with your family and friends.
When you arrived home, the coach helped you with your luggage which you were grateful for.
Luckily everything in your apartment was as you left it, probably thanks to Tsukishima.
After saying goodbye to the coach you were on your way to put the last piece of luggage into your apartment, though you wished you were already inside when the events unfolded before your eyes.
“You´re an asshole, Atsumu!” some girl yelled and you had to suppress a chuckle.
Being neighbors with Atsumu Miya wasn´t as annoying as you thought it would be, he was never at home.
And still he was just like the asshole you imagined him to be, just like the cocky prick he painted himself as.
But he was quite entertaining as a neighbor, you had to admit. Every now and then angry women would leave his apartment, yelling at him, accusing him of the most ridiculous things. And it always made you laugh.
“Come on, Sarah! It wasn´t that bad… give me some credit” he called after her, but she only huffed and turned around bashfully.
“My name´s Nicole!” she shrieked and stomped out of the door.
You eyed the two, leaning in your doorway.
Atsumu sighed, this wasn´t the first time this has happened. Not only was he bad in bed apparently, though he didn´t see the problem in cumming fast when she initially just wanted to blow him, but he was also the biggest asshole on the planet.
No wonder he couldn´t get anyone to stay.
“Ouch. Forgetting her name? That´s low, even for you, Miya” you commented with a bitter undertone.
At least he had the decency to look somewhat guilty.
“You think I don´t know that?” he mumbled, making you raise an eyebrow. Usually he´d make some shitty remark about how he had so many girls, he couldn´t possibly keep up with the names of them all.
“You know, it´s kinda her own fault for getting involved with you” you tried to comfort him, but obviously your words left more harm than intended.
You wanted to apologize, but before you could do that, Atsumu  gave you a knowing smile.
He seemed off today, but it was none of your business, so you didn´t press it.
“How was your vacation by the way?” he tried to change the subject.
You scrunched your nose, he always tried to pry into your life like that, you didn´t know why but it irked you.
“I don´t see how that´s any of your concern, Miya” you coldly told him off.
“Would it kill ya to call me by my first name?” he softly asked, scowling a bit.
The thing was, Atsumu had the biggest crush on you ever since he quite literally ran into you on your daily morning run. And when you moved in next door, he was over the moon.
But his reputation preceded him and you didn´t want to have anything to do with him, he couldn´t even blame you.
Yet every time he saw you, his heart raced more than when he spiked a volleyball, he couldn´t help smiling and you made his heart leap out of his chest.
It was stupid, he knew nothing would ever come of it and yet he couldn´t give up, he didn´t want to. He wanted to live in his little fantasy world where you actually looked his way.
“We´re not that close, Miya” you shot back, not wanting to admit that intimacy of that kind scared you.
You weren´t stupid, you noticed the thickened atmosphere between the two of you, but acknowledging even the slightest possibility of you opening your heart to him meant defeat to you.
Besides, you didn´t have time for relationships.
His heart sunk at your words, at the undeniable truth that hurt him so much more than he was ready to admit.
“Can I at least help you with your luggage?” he offered, sounding almost desperate.
“Suit yourself….” you mumbled. Usually you´d decline, but you just didn´t have the energy today.
You had to deal with the bickering of the team tomorrow anyways, a little help wouldn´t hurt, would it?
Atsumu entered your apartment and asked you what he could do to help, you showed him around and together you unpacked your suitcases. He even stayed to clean your apartment with you.
When you showed your surprise that he somewhat knew what he was doing he told you about his teammate who always got up on his ass about being dirty and messy.
You laughed at the way he pouted, telling the story.
“Hey are ya hungry? I can cook something up for ya” he asked, his eyes wide and hopeful.
He beamed at you when you agreed, showing him around the kitchen.
“Didn´t know you could cook…” you mumbled, watching him prepare the food.
You couldn´t believe you just agreed to have Atsumu Miya cook for you. You´d so regret that in the morning, you were getting weak…
“Yeah, my brother´s got an onigiri shop an´ I help out sometimes” he said nonchalantly, grabbing two plates and serving the food.
“Hm… I didn´t know that. You don´t seem like the type to do that.” you thought out loud, starting to eat and smiling delightfully at the taste. “Like you said, we´re not that close… I don´t really have the best relationship with my brother, but he´s still family, ya know?” he stated, digging in as well.
“Anyway, how´s the food? Do ya like it?” he asked excitedly and grinned widely when you nodded.
He helped you clean up the dishes before you two said goodbye.
“Thanks for the help… Atsumu…” you said through clenched teeth, looking sideways.
He looked at you perplexed, but over the moon.
“You called me by my name!” he exclaimed, smiling at you softly.
“Don´t let it get to your head” you told him before he went back to his own apartment.
The next few days passed rather quickly, your team was as chaotic as ever, you called a few of your friends and Hinata texted you that he made it into the team and asked you if you wanted to celebrate with him on the weekend.
You were free so you agreed.
What you didn´t expect was that he also invited the team.
You rolled your eyes as you saw Atsumu and Hinata come up to you, one more joyful than the other. “Congrats on making the team, Shoyo” you smiled at him, trying to ignore Atsumu´s knowing smirk.
Hinata must´ve told him something.
“Thanks! I can´t believe Atsumu-senpai´s finally tossing to me!” he smiled widely, it was nice knowing that he was still as full of energy as ever.
“What can I say? I keep my promises” he smugly answered.
“(Y/N)!” Bokuto called out to you, running up to you and joining in on the conversation.
“Kou!” you matched his energy and gave him a big hug, to which Atsumu looked away jealous.
“Have you met everyone already?” he asked, but before you could say anything he looked over at Atsumu who had a pleading look on his face.
He hoped Bokuto wouldn´t embarrass him too much after everyone found out about his crush on you.
It wasn´t even his fault, he never thought they´d figure it out. He always kept talking about his neighbor, and now that Hinata was there who knew about your annoying neighbor, all of that secrecy was for naught.
It was quite funny from the outside perspective.
In their first training with the newbie he talked nonstop about you and his old team, about his stay in Brazil and his dreams, Bokuto asked about you as well and asked Hinata if you still had that douche of a neighbor.
Atsumu only listened in on their conversation once you were name dropped.
He was shocked when Hinata nodded and asked if he was really that bad.
Bokuto said nothing to that, only shrugging his shoulders and letting him know that his attitude wasn´t for everyone.
“I think you´re great, Atsumu-senpai!” Hinata then let him know.
“Yeah, don´t let it get to your head!” Bokuto patted his back.
And now he wanted nothing more than to escape this situation.
“Ah, (Y/N), are you free next Wednesday?” Bokuto asked and Atsumu´s eyes went wide, he couldn´t be thinking of that, could he?
“Yeah, it´s our day off, but I have to make some calls. Why´re you asking?” you answered, something about Hinata´s and Bokuto´s behavior seemed suspicious, but you couldn´t put your finger on it.
It really threw you off.
“Do you maybe wanna watch our training and help a bit?” he asked, so it was true. Atsumu´s most dreaded and most wished dream would come true if you said yes.
Wished because it was you and he wanted nothing more than to impress you. Dreaded because he needed extra training to get used to the noise in the stadium. Which meant his teammates would make as much noise as possible and Bokuto would very loudly imitate his fangirls.
He already embarrassed himself in front of you enough on a daily basis.
“Yeah sure, just text me the time and I´ll be there” you agreed, it wasn´t every day you got the opportunity to watch such a great team.
Hinata and Bokuto left you two to talk to some of their friends from high school. You already talked to everyone and didn´t feel like staying much longer.
Atsumu felt kind of out of place, he wasn´t that good at social interaction despite being known as such a bright personality.
He gave up on taking someone home tonight, he really wasn´t in the mood.
And without his brother, his old friends from high school or his teammates who already left or were busy with someone else, he just felt lost.
“Hey, you know what Kou meant with me helping in your training?” you asked, it didn´t leave your head ever since he mentioned it.
“Promise me you won´t laugh?” Atsumu sighed, meeting your eyes.
“It´s you we´re talking about, of course I´m gonna laugh” you replied, smirking at him.
“Fair enough” he stated, facing you.
“I can´t play when it´s loud, my serves and spikes are always off when I hear those squealing pigs…” he mumbled, crossing his arms and pouting, looking way cuter than he should.
You couldn´t help but chuckle a bit.
“Squealing pigs? Seriously?” you raised an eyebrow, but couldn´t stop laughing as you imagined Atsumu glaring at them like he did in high school.
He was such an asshole back then, a good player, and just your type.
“What? They´re annoying….” he defended himself.
“Sure, but that still doesn´t explain how on earth I´m gonna help with that. Except I should cheer for you” you thought and scoffed when he met your eyes.
“In my defense it wasn´t my idea! And Bokuto does it too…. But it helps a lot actually… I just hope I´ll get my shit together until next game” he confessed.
“Oh trust me, I´ll give it my all” you giggled, you wouldn´t let an opportunity to make fun of him slip by so easily.
Atsumu and you talked for a bit longer, he told you a bit more about himself, and you, well, you gave in and did the same.
It was weird laughing with Atsumu, being by yourself at a party and still having more fun than everyone else.
And yet you didn´t want it to stop.
“Hey, you wanna grab a bite to eat?” he suggested with a hopeful glimmer in his eyes.
“Yeah, food sounds great right now” you gave him a smile which he reciprocated gladly.
You two said goodbye to everyone and Hinata and Bokuto both gave you knowing looks.
“So, where are we going?” you asked, for the first time actually interested in sparking a conversation with him.
“My brother´s place, it´s close and you said you wanted to go there sometime” he said, surprising you that he actually remembered.
The walk was nice, you talked a bit more and the cool night air was refreshing.
“If it ain´t my idiot brother, didn´t I tell you not to bring yer hoes to my shop? Don´t want my rep to be crushed...” Osamu scolded him and now you understood why Atsumu was always so reluctant to speak about him.
Apparently he didn´t lie when he said they parted ways on a bad note.
“She ain´t a hoe, ´Samu! Her name´s (Y/N) and she´s my neighbor. The one I told ya about” Atsumu explained and Osamu quickly apologized to you.
You simply shrugged it off though since it didn´t bother you that much.
“Ya must be some sort of angel with nerves of steel to be able to live next to such an idiot. If I was in your place, I woulda moved places a long time ago” Osamu remarked, getting your order ready.
“Oh you know, he´s not that bad” you admitted, slightly looking at Atsumu and catching him off guard.
“You really think so? Thanks, (Y/N)” he smiled and then sat down with you to eat.
Meanwhile he told you funny stories from his childhood while Osamu told you embarrassing things about Atsumu that made you laugh even harder.
Atsumu decided that the sound of your laugh was his new favorite.
He paid and you two walked home together.
You even hugged him goodbye as you had to part ways.
This night your touch and your words clouded and calmed Atsumu´s dreams and he woke up refreshed and in a good mood the next morning.
Wednesday came rather soon, now that you talked to him more and got to know him, time seemed to fly and you cursed yourself for being so prideful for all the wrong reasons, for your prejudices against him.
You entered the gym to Sakusa scolding Atsumu for fucking up his seventh serve, Hinata was praising and defending him and Bokuto was doing fuck knows what, yelling about how he wanted Atsumu´s children.
Atsumu was the first one to notice you, apologizing for the scene you just had to witness as he saw your appalled expression.
“Kou, what the actual fuck?!” you murmured as you greeted everyone.
“It´s part of the training! I´m one of his fangirls, they´re gonna be super loud and he has to get used to it” he explained, smiling widely.
You shook your head.
“So he has to get used to people wanting his children and calling him daddy? Alright… I´m not gonna do that” you decided.
“I think I´m just gonna watch a bit and cheer when I think it´s necessary” you said and sat down.
Everyone thought that Atsumu would be distracted by your presence, but the exact opposite was the case.
He was hyper focused, even though everybody was trying to distract him, he could shut that all out and focus on his play.
When he landed the first serve of the day, you were shocked to see how good he really was.
You couldn´t help yourself but cheer for him as well, though you didn´t yell out how much you wanted his children, rather you yelled how awesome he was, how you didn´t know that anybody could make a spike this hard and fast, how he was better than Kageyama.
The last one really pitched his ego and he dedicated his next serve to you, to which you rolled your eyes, but also blushed.
“Guys, honestly I think you´re gonna be fine on the game. Like, holy shit… all of you are so good! I´m so proud of you” you let them know after training was finished.
“Thanks, (Y/N)!” Hinata and Bokuto grinned.
“I´m still not good enough, you helped a lot, but it´s not enough...” Atsumu said, he was never happy with his performance, no matter what he always found something that didn´t go as he planned it.
“What do you mean not good enough? You´re easily the best setter in Japan right now” you stated as a matter of fact.
“Huh?” Atsumu questioned, thinking he had just imagined it, there was no way in hell you´d compliment him like that, cheer him up like that, and in such a way that leaves no room for objection.
“I mean it, Atsumu. You´re amazing. And if anyone tells you otherwise they´re either lying or just plain rude” you undermined your statement and he gave you a dreamy smile.
“You said my name again” he happily noticed.
“If that´s what it takes to make you know your own self worth then I´ll do it over and over again” you said, crossing your arms.
Hinata thought you looked like you did in high school. Like a mom, like someone who deeply cared, someone who could kick ass and someone who was one of the best managers he could´ve ever asked for.
Hell, Kiyoko, Yachi and you carried the team to the nationals, if it weren´t for you, Ukai and Takeada none of this would´ve been possible.
It was only now that he was an adult that he realized what all of that really meant and how grateful he was.
“I agree with (Y/N), Atsumu-senpai! You´re a great setter and you got even better, you train harder than anyone else and get better every day but it´s important that you take breaks” Hinata chimed in, he wasn´t part of the team for long, but has heard that Atsumu always overworked himself.
The team was scared that he´d hurt himself some day because of that.
“I can´t afford to take breaks, if I do I´ll fall behind. And if I fall behind I´ll get benched and if I get benched I´ll get kicked from the team and then all of this was for nothing” he rambled, looking distraught.
You let out a worried sigh and gently touched his arm, making him stop in his tracks and look at you.
“Do you really think they´re stupid enough to let such a great player go? And even more than that, do you think that anyone would let a great man like you go?” you softly spoke, touching his heart.
“Do you mean it?” he quietly asked, being in your presence calmed his mind down immediately.
“Of course I do. Look, when I first met you I thought you were the cockiest asshole to ever walk on earth. But you proved me wrong, because you´re so much more than you think. And I regret being so cold and distant to you, because honestly, I wish I´d got to know you sooner. But I´m stubborn and I didn´t. I can´t change the fact that it could´ve gone very differently, and neither can you. No matter how much you think about it, how you could´ve done things better, spiked this ball better, you can´t change it. All you can do is give it your all in the moment. And trust me, everything you do is more than enough, so don´t dwell on it. If you keep thinking like that, volleyball won´t be fun anymore. And that would just be sad” you opened up more than you intended to, but you thought it got the point across.
Atsumu said nothing for a while, still processing those words. Sure, he felt great hearing your praise, but what stuck to him was that you were actually glad to have met and know him.
And that was just the best feeling in the world to him.
“Will you come to our next game and cheer me on?” he asked hopefully, making you smile.
“Tell you what, I´ll even treat you to dinner afterwards. Sound like a good date to you?” you grinned.
“A date? You actually want to go on a date with me?” he had the goofiest, biggest smile on his face that made you feel all fuzzy and warm inside.
“A poor choice really” Sakusa commented.
“Hush! They´re having a moment!” Bokuto whined, he was very emotional and honestly relieved, Atsumu has been up their asses about dating you ever since you moved in next to him.
You groaned and dragged Atsumu outside with you, away from the others to have a little privacy.
“Maybe it wasn´t the best idea to ask you out in front of everyone…” you laughed it off and Atsumu joined in.
“I´m glad you did though. I wanted to ever since you moved in, but you know… didn´t think you´d be interested” he admitted.
“Me neither and yet here we are” you chuckled, not really knowing where to go from here.
You were pretty proud of yourself that you even managed to admit your feelings for him, give him a chance and then asked him out. It was totally worth it.
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thecassadilla · 4 years ago
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The Perfect Moment
Word Count: 1,866/AO3
Pairing: New Dream/Rapunzel x Eugene
Summary: Eugene tries to find the perfect moment to propose to Rapunzel. 
Author’s Note: Hi everyone! This is my contribution for Day 5 of New Dream Appreciation Week - Proposal! I’d just like to reiterate that I, idiotically, have not watched seasons 2 and 3 of Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure (well, I watched one random episode at 3 in the morning, but that’s a different story for a different day). While I know there were multiple proposals and rings from both Eugene and Rapunzel, I actually haven’t seen any of them, unfortunately. So, in true “me” fashion, this is a Modern!AU that I pulled out of thin air. Seriously, I don’t know how I managed to come up with this - I’ve never been proposed to, and all of my friends have gotten engaged in Disney World. Definitely not my area of expertise lol. I hope you enjoy it!
If you asked him directly, Eugene would’ve denied being a planner. He lived his life on the edge, doing things on a whim. Spontaneity. Until he met Rapunzel - then he subconsciously became a planner. Although outwardly, he tried to play it cool and pretend like he was too focused on living in the moment to care about the future, that couldn’t be further from the truth. It only became evident to him when he purchased an engagement ring for Rapunzel and carried it around for months, unsure of when and how to propose to her. 
Like the night they went to dinner and she looked so beautiful. He wanted to pull the ring out of his pocket and propose right there, but then there was a fire in the kitchen and they all evacuated, so they ended up getting fast food and calling it a night. So, he scrapped his plans and decided it would be best to wait for a better opportunity.
There was the weekend they went to New York City where he thought about proposing a thousand times. Like inside the Museum of Modern Art; the vibes weren’t right, though, and that plan quickly went out the window. He thought about doing it at the ice skating rink at Bryant Park, but then someone injured themselves while skating and he knew he would’ve felt guilty for taking away the attention from someone who’d just been hurt. He very seriously thought about doing it in front of the Christmas Tree at Rockefeller Center, and just as he was about to pull out the ring and get down on one knee, a couple less than ten feet away from them got engaged. Forget Times Square, that place was filled with couples getting engaged. And then just like that, the weekend was gone and so was the opportunity to propose in New York.
He thought about doing it on New Years Eve, surrounded by their friends and family at a party, and instead, he found himself in a fog.
“Hey,” Rapunzel said, shaking his arm slightly.
He shook his head in an attempt to come out of his trance. “Huh?”
“Are you alright?” She asked, a glimmer of concern in her eyes.
“Oh, yeah, sorry. I was deep in thought.”
“Okay,” she smiled. “Just checking.”
And thus, another opportunity fizzled before his eyes. He was immensely grateful that Rapunzel appeared to be none the wiser to his plans, failed or otherwise. The thought was on his mind constantly, but he had a long list of everything that it had to be: perfect, for starters. Unique. Unforgettable. Extraordinary. And daily life just wasn’t like that; it was ordinary and mundane. They went to work and ran their errands, and that was that. 
He was certain that he was going to do it on Valentine’s Day. He had the entire evening planned out; they were going to go to see a show at the theatre, and then to a fancy restaurant and he was going to do it - no more inhibitions. Until he got stuck late at work.
“Hello?”
“Hey, sunshine,” he said into the phone, trying his best to keep his voice from cracking. 
“Hi, baby!” She exclaimed. “Sorry, I’ve got my hands full and I couldn’t see who was calling. But I’m so excited for tonight.”
“Yeah, about that…” he started, but trailed off.
“Oh no, what’s wrong?”
“I’m stuck working late,” he sighed. “I’m really sorry, I know you were looking forward to tonight.”
“Oh,” she said, the slightest hint of disappointment in her voice for a split second. “Well we can always reschedule! It’s just a day, after all.”
She was ever the optimist, wasn’t she? If only he felt the same way. He wasn’t bitter, but it was yet another wrench in his plans. And this one wasn’t for lack of trying, or because someone else stole the moment, either. It was just sheer bad luck. 
So he sat on it for a long, long time. There were no more special days, no more special trips. Time was passing quickly, and it was starting to bother him more and more, and eventually it became noticeable. 
“Is everything okay, Eugene?” She asked while they were sitting at the dinner table one night.
He looked up. “Of course.”
“You’re lying.”
His eyes widened. “What?”
“Something isn’t right,” she said, placing her hand on top of his. “You haven’t been yourself lately. Is something bothering you?”
“No, everything’s fine,” he lied. “Things have just been rough at work. You know how it is.”
“Okay,” she nodded, her eyes sympathetic. “You’ll tell me when you’re ready.”
He didn’t answer. And he hated himself for that. He hated himself for lying to her, and he hated himself for not doing it right then and there. But the most perfect woman in the world was sitting right in front of him, and she deserved nothing less than perfection. 
He decided that he’d have to work harder to disguise his feelings. And more time passed. He thought about doing it when they went to the park at sunset, but they were being eaten alive by mosquitoes and had to leave before he could even think about doing anything. He thought about doing it the night they sat outside and stargazed, until their neighbors came outside and ruined the moment. He contemplated doing it on her birthday, but that plan fell to pieces when he realized that she should have her birthday to herself; getting engaged should be a separate day to celebrate. He thought about doing it when they were laying in bed one night; she was reading a book and just as he was about to clear his throat, she leaned in to kiss him goodnight and turned off her lamp. And the moment had escaped yet again.
And that brought them to mid-July. He’d been carrying around the ring for eight months, letting it sit in its box instead of on her finger, where it belonged. The beach, the pier, the mountain they hiked, and the drive down the coast became other missed opportunities along the way.
When he woke up that morning, he wasn’t surprised to see that she was already gone. It wasn’t unusual for her to get up early on a Saturday to run her errands. He laid in bed for a while, brooding and muttering to himself before he got up and decided to go on a long drive to clear his head. It didn’t help, of course. He wasn’t only wasting time, but also gas. He felt totally incompetent; the ring was burning a hole in his pocket and he felt like he wasn’t being honest with Rapunzel. 
He returned home in the early afternoon, feeling no better than he did before he left. He took a deep breath as he pushed his key into the lock, unsure what he would do if Rapunzel noticed his sullen expression - it was more a matter of when than if, at this point, though.
The living room was covered in a large tarp, an easel and blank canvas in the center of the room. The coffee table was pushed into the kitchen and a bouquet of sunflowers wrapped in brown paper were resting on the counter. Every blind and curtain was open, so the entire room was illuminated with natural light.
“Hey!” Rapunzel called, emerging from the hallway with a stool in her hands. “I wasn’t sure when you were coming back, so I turned the living room into a studio. I hope you don’t mind.”
He was immediately taken aback by her appearance. She was wearing denim overall shorts, with a white floral off-the-shoulder top underneath. She had a light blue headband in her hair, a small knot sitting perfectly in the center. She placed the stool next to the easel and put her hands on her hips. She looked so happy, and completely at ease with the world.
“No,” he shook his head, dumbfounded. “I don’t mind at all.”
“I figured you wouldn’t,” she giggled. “Oh, and guess what!”
“What?”
“I went to the market today and they said the sunflowers bloomed two weeks early! Isn’t that just incredible?” She gushed. 
“Yeah, that is something,” he said, his voice low.
“The only thing is, I can’t remember where I put the vase. I’d like to get them in some water, but I don’t know where it is,” she said, bringing her fingers up to her face. 
He tried to think but his brain wasn’t working.
“Ooh!” She exclaimed suddenly, clapping her hands together. “I remember what I did with it!”
She raced down the hallway, and he heard the closet door open. A minute later she was back with the vase in his hand, and he realized that he never moved from the entryway to their apartment. He was standing there, shoes on and keys in hand, frozen. 
“I found it! I was keeping all of my sewing stuff in it temporarily,” she explained, bringing the empty vase into the kitchen. She navigated around the coffee table that was taking up most of the room, and he heard the tap turn on, followed by the sound of paper being torn away. A few seconds passed and she came out, holding the vase full of sunflowers in her hands. She was smiling brightly when she said “See! Look at how nice that looks.”
She went back into the living room and placed the vase on the stool. And then he decided it was now or never.
“Marry me,” he said, his voice practically a whisper. 
“What was that?” She asked, her back facing him.
He dropped his keys on the floor, startling her, and then charged in her direction. She turned to face him and he repeated himself.
“Marry me,” he said, breathlessly.
Several looks crossed her face - confusion, shock, delight. “I-uh, w-what?” She stuttered.
And so he pulled the ring box out of his pocket, got down on one knee, and opened it. Both of her hands flew up to cover her mouth and her eyes widened as she watched his every move.
“Rapunzel, you’re my best friend. I love everything about you - your kindness, your ability to see the world in a positive light, your creativity and your sassiness. You inspire me to be a better man each and every day. I love going on adventures with you and I want all of our adventures to be together. I know you're the only one I want to share the rest of my life with. Will you marry me?”
“Yes!” She nodded, tears pooling in her eyes and offered him her shaky left hand.
He slid the ring onto her finger and stood up, and immediately she was in his arms. 
“I can’t believe this,” she blubbered, when she finally pulled away. “How long have you been planning this?” 
“A long time,” he admitted, sheepishly. “I’ve had the ring for about eight months, and I kept trying to find the perfect moment, but it wasn’t easy.”
“Nothing could be more perfect than this,” she promised, leaning up to press a kiss to his lips.
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lorrainefm · 4 years ago
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( bethany joy lenz, thirty-seven, cisfemale, she/her ) did you see LORRAINE DUNAWAY walking down main street earlier? you know who i’m talking about, they’re an EDITOR AT THE WESTMERE WEEKLY. everybody in town says that they’re COMPASSIONATE and MOTHERLY, but have a tendency to be APPREHENSIVE and RESERVED too. LORRAINE has been in town for TWENTY years. c'mon, they’re always requesting I WANT YOU TO WANT ME by CHEAP TRICK at karaoke nights. well, i’m sure you’ll see them soon!
a southern belle 
lorraine is the middle child of five children born just outside of houston texas.  her mama was a radio show host, and her daddy a journalist.  they like to say they knew they were meant to be when both of them were working on the same story, even though they’d known each other for years.  
lorraine’s older siblings are tucker and joan, and her younger siblings are scarlett and evan.  they used to be a close and tight knit family growing up, lorraine can’t remember a time when her and her siblings really fought.
a close extended family too, lorraine always knew that if she needed anything she could call on any member of her family and they would come running.  and she would do the same for any of them.  
empathetic and compassionate to high levels, as a child lorraine could always sense people’s emotions.  she always knew who was having a bad day in the house, explaining that she got “a feeling” even if she hadn’t seen them all day.  
lorraine was intrigued by both of her parents work--the one kid who could manage to sit down and listen to even the most mundane pieces of business her parents had to deal with.  
growing up, lorraine took after her father.  she saw him keep a notebook and pen on him at all times and that’s what she did.  at first it was filled with all the words she could spell and as time went on, lorraine was writing down her observations of the days and the people around her.  
lorraine is the kind of person who does little things to make sure that the people she cares about have a good day.  as a child, lorraine would make small care packages for her friends when they were sad.  they often included fresh baked cookies and a little note saying how much she loved them.  
she used to coat desks with candy and flowers on valentines day, having made notes of which of her classmates were allergic to what.  
some might call her notes and observations “obsessive” but it was something she liked doing.  she never showed them to anyone, but people knew she would write things down.  
lorraine had been in every school production since elementary school.  her love for writing turned into a love of reading and that wound up cultivating her love of acting.  though she didn’t think she could do it full time--or that she’d want to--lorraine was happy to take part in the school productions.  
thanks to her father, william, lorraine’s favorite type of story is a mystery.  she read all the classics as a child, having william read to her when it was bedtime--though her favorite would always be adventure mysteries.  
lorraine was interested in writing her own stories and kept other notebook sets to write those in--but she never showed those to anybody either, since she was always embarrassed and they were “never ready”.  
her northern escape
when she got pregnant, though her family accepted her she was worried about how everything would go when the news broke.  her own boyfriend at the time had a bad reaction to her winding up pregnant, so lorraine knew she was going to be on her own.  
thankfully, she could finish high school and didn’t have to tell anybody else that she was pregnant.  it was then that lorraine decided to move away.  she wanted to go somewhere where nobody knew who she was.  
the town of westmere had always been a conversation in her house--merelake mysteries is her dad’s favorite book series and every one of her siblings and her had read them all too.  
with money borrowed from her parents, lorraine managed to buy her own house in everwood down by the boat docks--her dad’s favorite part of this is that it’s only a six and a half minute walk to the rw wallace house and museum ( and yes, he did in fact count ).  
at first her family would often visit her, and her mother took time off to come and stay with lorraine before the baby was due and for another two months afterward.  
lorraine’s oldest, her son eliott, was born on august 29th, 2000.  she sent a card to her ex boyfriend after eliott was born, but never heard anything back and assumed that he wanted nothing to do with her or the baby even after months to think about it.  
lorraine’s first job in town was working at the rw wallace museum.  she knew enough about it to be an expert tour guide and was a happy camper with the flexible hours they offered her.  
after time, around the time eliott started pre-school, lorraine decided to find a full time job.  she worked as a fact checker at the westmere weekly for a while before being promoted to a staff writer and then, eventually, an editor.  
at the beginning of her career at the westmere weekly, lorraine was single and happy.  she didn’t expect to fall in love and wasn’t looking for anything.  
you know how they say when you fall in love it’s when you least expect it?  it’s when you stop looking that you find it?  well, that’s what happened with lorraine.  she met a guy working at another newspaper and she fell in love with him.  it felt like it was the story her parents had always told her about how they met.  
she took it slow, since eliott was still so young--he was five when they started dating.  but, with lorraine’s luck things wound up going faster.  
soon after they began dating, lorraine fell pregnant with her second child, a daughter named sydney born on april 13th, 2006.  
for a while, her and her boyfriend managed to stay together.  marriage wasn’t a question yet since they hadn’t been together too long, but he did spend most of his time in town with lorraine and their baby, even becoming a father figure to eliott.  
after nearly three years of dating, lorraine got married.  he quit his job at the newspaper he worked at a couple of towns over and started working for the westmere weekly alongside lorraine.  
they were happy, and lorraine eventually got pregnant with their second daughter, penelope, born on october 31st, 2013.  
lorraine was happy, she always wanted a big family.  and it seemed like she was finally getting everything she’d ever wanted.  working in a place where she could write, and sometimes taking weekend shifts at the wallace house & museum on the weekends because she still loved that place, she was happy.  
just two short months after her husband filed for divorce--which, if you’ll ask lorraine, she never saw coming--lorraine gave birth to a set of twins named audrey and adrian on may 16th, 2015.  
recently i’ve been ... 
lorraine has been kind of apprehensive about falling in love after her divorce--she really thought that would be the end of it, that she would be married to him forever. 
instead of focusing on the negatives, lorraine put all her effort into the kids and her work.  it was around this time, the year and a half post her divorce, where lorraine finally got promoted to being an editor for the paper.  
she still writes for the paper, too, but she’s been focusing lately on writing a story of her own.  lorraine never thought about what she might do with her own personal stories, but it’s been on her mind lately and she’s been working on a secret novel project.  
her kids are still her world, and she’s the sole parent--when her ex divorced her he moved away and didn’t fight her on custody for the kids.  
personality & factoids 
lorraine can quote anything she’d read, seen, or heard after only one time.   
she keeps journals, and has a whole bunch of old ones from her childhood scattered around too--a lot of them are stashed at her childhood home with her parents.  
lorraine loves her family more than anything and likes to do meals with the kids as often as she can--all of them, if eliott and sydney are around and not too busy.
always always always has a pen on her and a pad or notebook.  doesn’t keep notes on her phone because she prefers to handwrite them out so she remembers it more later on.  
loves to take care of everybody, but would just love someday for somebody to take care of her ( and for that person to stick around ).  
her “secret shame” is that she loves cheesy romance novels--not the smutty ones, but the soft and true love ones they make into hallmark movies.  
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heathenclung · 4 years ago
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apple blossom :   how does your muse go about expressing or not expressing their sexuality ?
grey - he’s kinda restrained about it, honestly?? like he isn’t the type to be going out on the weekend looking for hookups, so his sexuality only really comes into play when he’s pursuing a relationship or in a relationship bc then he feels comfortable enough to express it
lyle - through his job, to a degree. i mean, mans dances around in sparkly booty shorts for a living, so he does sort of exude sexuality. naturally he’s not quite as outgoing as his vibes would suggest, so he’s more of a follower than a leader when it comes to initiating anything sexual w someone; he simply doesn’t want to get his hopes up for anything and then have someone turn around and say that they only wanted him for sex, u feel?
mikey - he’s never been terribly open about being bi??? like, growing up it just wasn’t really a thing he ever thought about or allowed himself to accept about himself. he had a girlfriend, and that was all he really cared about. he only rarely actively pursues people in relationships, and even then, he’s more active about it if he’s trying to woo a woman than a man.
tanner - tanner woke up one day and said ‘i’m hot as hell so i’m gonna fuck anything that moves and everyone’s just gonna have to deal with that’ so, uh... good luck avoiding knowing everything about the man’s sex life
@flawedhearts​ said: Apple Blossom, Carnation, Ivy // Greyson, Lyle, Mikey + Tanner |  meme (accepting)
carnation :   what is your muse’s relationship with their gender ?   how do they express or not express this relationship ?
grey - he’s not one of the ‘i’m a man and therefore i can’t enjoy femininity or androgyny’ types, but he knows he’s always going to carry around a bit of ‘do i pass when i act like this/wear this/etc.’ he doesn’t project that onto others, of course, bc he loves the fuck out of the lgbtq+ community and would use his existence as a White Man(tm) to stand up to people who thought they could start shit w his ‘family’
lyle - gender was never really a thing that lyle put much thought into. he keeps to himself enough that he has no issue expressing himself in whatever way he pleases, but he’s also very, very acutely aware that any deviation from ‘generic white twink’ in his expression is liable to draw attention to himself, so it’s not really something he ever explores outside of work
mikey - it’s the toxic masculinity, innit. he’s definitely got a lot of internalized issues re: his manhood thanks to his upbringing and the career path he took. for the most part he’s pretty stoic and tries to play the ‘brave soldier man’ role in life, but again, gender isn’t really something that mikey puts much thought into
tanner - since coming out and transitioning there’s definitely been a change in how tanner treats his gender and its expression; he was never really all that feminine, and that hasn’t really changed. it’s opened up a comfort in expressing his sexuality, though, and he embraces that with open arms, even if it makes him an irritating fuckboy
ivy : what are your muse’s views on marriage ?   do they believe it is something strictly for love ,   or an institution rooted in business   &   social benefits ?   do they desire or have they desired to be married ?
grey - safe to say that grey doesn’t really care about marriage. there’s definitely a part of him that would be absolutely thrilled that someone wanted to marry him and call themselves his partner ‘til death do them part, but he doesn’t view it as the pinnacle of love, or anything like that. much like valentine’s day, he thinks it’s just a bit too commercialized and a bit too much of a heterosexual institution to be worth anything as a ceremony alone
lyle - it’s a big fat no from lyle. commitment is bad enough for him without there being a signed document and rings and being one under god, and all that sort of thing. the idea of marriage makes him anxious, and he doesn’t hold any more respect for a couple that is married than he would a couple who were simply together without the ‘eternal bond’. at best, it’s a meaningless ceremony; at worst, it’s the thing he’s most scared of in life.
mikey - there’s a bit of traditionalism in mikey that would love to be married. a church, a minister, a big old ceremony. there’s another part of him that doesn’t think he could ever get married, that the idea of dedicating himself to another person seems wrong when a piece of his heart still belongs to his late gf. add in the fact that his family is a bit...... fractured, and he doesn’t hold out much hope in ever having a wedding himself
tanner - the idea of marriage honestly hasn’t ever crossed tanner’s mind. he’s still young and he’s still playing the field, so the prospect of standing at the altar seems so far in the future that, at best, the concept only features as a joke between himself and his friends
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doof-doofblog · 4 years ago
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" ... But Another Gaining Me As An Enemy!"
Friday 12th February 2021
Part 1
Hello again folks! Hope you've all had a lovely Valentines weekend! I apologise for this post being up a bit late, it's the only time I've had to watch the episode and I of course wanted to celebrate my own Valentines Day. Anyway, I know I'm going to be a little bit behind, but if all goes to plan, I should be caught up by Thursday's episode. I just want to thank you all for being supportive and patient with me.
But not delaying it any further, let's focus on the first episode of Friday evening. Firstly lets focus on Chelsea and Lucas. The previous episode ended with Lucas threatening to kill Caleb after finding out the truth behind Chelsea setting him up. In this episode it appears as if Lucas is still eager to get back into his daughter's good books. He arrives at the house, informing both Denise and Chelsea that if she can re-book the flights to Ibiza, he's willing to go. (Even though he knows full well that it'll be for delivering drugs!) Denise seems a bit shocked and voices her concerns that he was going to go after Caleb. For a split moment I question whether Chelsea knows that Lucas is aware of her trying to set him up, but of course my question is answered much later on. After excusing himself from his visit with Denise and Chelsea, Chelsea notices her phone has gone missing, suddenly it comes to their realisation that she last had her phone when her Dad was there. He had simply took her phone, knowing her pass code and attempted to find Caleb's address. This is where Denise has to tell her daughter everything, informing her daughter that Lucas knew about the drugs but the one thing he didn't know or understand was why, but now he's found out about Caleb, in his mind, it all makes perfect sense.
However, now Chelsea realises her Dad knows anything, she finally puts him straight. She storms round to her Dad's apartment and demands to speak to him, luckily it looks as if Lucas hasn't got his hands on Caleb just yet, as each time Lucas has been round to his house, he hasn't been there, but of course that doesn't mean he's going to stop looking for him. When they get inside, Chelsea decides to be brutally honest with her Dad informing him that everything she had said and done had been lies. Even using the horrible words that it brought her sick to her stomach having to act as if she loved her Dad, but deep down she still very much hates him to the core for what he did. She explains how his actions in the past have effected her life, how everyone looks at her with dirty looks as if she's the one to blame, not him. You can tell that the truth appears to really hurt Lucas, he apologises for making his daughter's life hell and begs that if there's anything he can do to make it up to her, he will do so. To which she then responds by informing him that if he doesn't go to Ibiza and deliver the drugs as originally planned, it won't be just her life at stake but quite possibly Denise's life also. She informs him that if he leaves Caleb alone and does as he's asked, that will be the only way he'll be able to make things up to her. Now this leaves me asking whether Lucas actually will go through with delivering the drugs? What do you think? Something tells me that something is going to happen and Lucas will be caught red-handed and sent back to jail. What do you guys think? I'd love to hear your thoughts.
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The next thing I need to talk about kind of entwines two families, Mick, Linda, Jack and Max. So the first time we see the Carter couple, of course they are still fretting about Tina, even after hearing from Shirley that she's not had any luck in locating their sister, they still cling onto the hope that eventually Tina will be found. Also, it looks as if Mick is slowly getting back to some form or normality after revealing everything to his wife over Christmas/New Year. Today however looks as if he'll be going back to the police station to review his statement. Whilst the Carter's have this going on in their lives, it looks as if Max is visibly struggling. Jack has been concerned about his brother after learning that he had a visit from a clairvoyant the previous day, he voices his concerns to Rainie, but of course she seems to take everything as a joke and just belittles Max, stating that she's not surprised how much of a down spiral he's taken after everything that happened with Linda. Realising that speaking to Rainie isn't going to make things better, Jack leaves and eventually finds himself back at the police station, as he chats with a fellow colleague about the type of day they're having, his colleague informs that he's dealing with a child sex abuse case - only when another police officer enters the room, from the hallway Jack sees Mick sitting in the room, which of course answers so many questions. He's visibly shocked by seeing his friend and finding out what he knows, but somehow this may be able to put Max's mind at rest.
After hearing Jack's concerns, it looks as if Rainie takes it upon herself to check on her ex-husband. She happens to mention that him losing his wife and having many failed relationships, as well as losing two children and the others living elsewhere, it's no wonder he's having an emotional breakdown. She suggests keeping Abi for one extra night, just to help him out. Later on in the episode, unfortunately, Max has drunk himself to oblivion. He's clearly feeling lost, depressed maybe, Jack manages to find his brother before he causes harm to himself or anyone else, its then when he's convinced his brother to back inside that Max opens up about how he's feeling. Losing Linda seems to have tipped him over the edge, he confesses that he actually loved Linda and still can't understand why she would choose Mick over him. It looks as if Jack is finding it hard seeing his brother struggling so much the way he is, perhaps it wasn't for him to tell, but I personally believe he informed Max out of concern for his brother. He drops the bombshell that it wasn't because him that Linda ended things, to which Max looks really confused, as if he knows his brother is hiding something from him. Jack reveals to his brother that the main reason Linda chose to stay with Mick was because Mick was sexually abused, and she chose to stand beside her husband. Now part of me believes that Jack had no right to inform Max about the Carter's personal life, regardless whether he had sworn Max to secrecy. The way things are going, it's only going to be a matter of time before the whole Square knows about Mick. Of course they'll be sympathetic, but that is something that Mick never wanted, he never wanted to be the subject gossip of the Square, he didn't want people's sympathy, he doesn't want people looking at him differently, as a victim. The only thing I think now is that Max is probably going to fight even more to get Linda back, now he knows the truth, but it will only make Linda more suspicious, and when she realises both Jack and Max know about her husband, she's going to flip!! Will Mick's secret be safe? What does this mean for Max now? Is he going to fight for the woman he loves? What do you guys think?! Please feel free to let me know what you think.
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The final thing I need to mention is Sharon. The episode begins with Sharon being woke by horrendous banging, of course she's only going to act as anyone else would, on edge and grabs something to defend herself with. As she opens the door she sees two work men carrying huge boxes, looking as if they're either delivering things of simply packing belongings away. They reveal that it actually turned out to be Kathy who hired them to remove her belongings. Kathy is a worried Mother, lashing out as her new daughter-in-law, believing that Sharon knows more about Ian's disappearance than she's letting on. As much as Sharon still tries to defend herself, Kathy is desperate for answers on the whereabouts of her son. Interestingly, when Kathy and Sharon continue to argue in the Vic, a solicitor turns up out of the blue, informing Sharon that she has documents to sign. But the most interesting piece of information she gives is that Ian is actually her client, and as of the previous day he was alive - much to Kathy's shock. She pleads for the solicitor to share any news, a phone number or address for her son, but of course under client confidentiality, she's unable to give her the information she's desperately after. Looking at the documentation, Sharon reveals that Ian has decides to annual their marriage - which to be fair, was to be expected, but the the next big shock is that he has also signed the Queen Vic over into her name. Sharon is now legally the owner of the Queen Vic! Of course, these leaves Kathy reeling, claiming that Sharon now has everything she's ever wanted and it's all because of her son! Part of me does feel sorry for Sharon at this point, okay she did try to kill Ian by poisoning him, but she still has no idea where he's disappeared to. I feel for Kathy also, as learning that her son was poisoned by his wife and now he's vanished, who else would be to blame?! But it may look that Sharon won't be in the Vic for long.
Later on, Mick and Linda are both sat in the Vic, Linda looks over at the bar at her ex-friend and can't seem to understand why she is looking so cheery. She overhears Karen mention that Sharon is celebrating something - Linda is curious as to what exactly she has to be celebrating over. She suggests to her husband to pick up a takeaway for them and informs him she'll meet him at home. As Mick agrees and leaves the pub, Linda approaches the bar. Sharon is happy to see Linda, it looks as if she's wanting to get their friendship back on track, even though Linda can't forgive her friend for framing Tina for Ian's attack. Sharon pleads that if there was anything she could do to make up for it, she would. It's then Linda drops the big bombshell, as she swoons over the Queen Vic bust, she informs Sharon to sell the pub back to her family - hinting that it'll be the only way to make up for what she's done. At first, Sharon seems very reluctant, especially considering that it's been finally been made legal in her name, the last thing she wants to do is lose it. But Linda blackmails her, if she doesn't sell the Vic over to the Carter's, she will go to the police and not only tell them what Sharon told her, but she'll also drop Phil into it also, as the police have been wanting to get their hands on Phil Mitchell for a very long time.
It looks as if Sharon has a big decision to make, she has been backed into a corner and knows that there's possibly no way out, other than selling the pub back to Mick and Linda. She wouldn't really want Phil to go down for something she was also involved in, would she? Her relationship, connection, history - whatever you want to call it - with Phil is far too strong for her to turn her back on him. What will happen next? I know you guys are fully aware, but I am super excited to find out what happens next. I'll be posting part 2 tomorrow. The way this week is turning out, there's possibly going to be a post every day this week! I know this post is a bit long and I apologise for rambling a bit. I hope you've all enjoyed reading. Please feel free to leave me a comment or a send me message about the soap and where the current storylines could be heading, I'd love to hear your thoughts. Enjoy the rest of your day folks and I'll be back tomorrow with Part 2! Love you all xXx
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