#yeah ofc there’s others too. I’m not denying it. I’m saying I’m fucking tired of both light dark color etc lack abundance what etc

[venting-town]

Damn, nothing and/or/etc/what something and/or/etc/what etc really sucks ass

[crazyco0tz]

{Cuddles with Enhypen}

(:̲̅:̲̅:̲̅[̲̅:♡:]̲̅:̲̅:̲̅:̲̅) ~ (:̲̅:̲̅:̲̅[̲̅:♡:]̲̅:̲̅:̲̅:̲̅)

Warning: none

𝐇𝐞𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐮𝐧𝐠

*he loves them alot, especially at night. After a long day he can lay in bed and wait for you to cuddle him! He will watch you walk into the bed room then throws his arms open to invite you in.

Normally you both lay face to face since you both adore staring at each other which may sound creepy but “who wouldn’t stare”

Sometimes he’s sad or really tired so he will lay on his side sulking (waiting for you to hold him) to which you come up behind him in bed to spoon him while you whisper about how much you love him and how proud you are, which will lead to red faces and cute giggles~

𝐉𝐚𝐲

*loves cuddling you on days off, don’t get me wrong he loves cuddling anytime he can but during days off comforts him so much he feels so calm with you on his chest or his on yours.

The first thing he does on a break day is demand you to take the day off too, after a few hours of begging you’ll give in, after you make sure you both eat breakfast the first thing he will do is drag you to the couch, turn on a movie, and will trap you there

You laying on top of him dragging your hand up and down his waist makes him feel like he’s on cloud 9, and you know it does. During bad days he will be on your chest, pouting, praying for you to play with his hair which you’ll gladly do~

𝐉𝐚𝐤𝐞

*god he’s such a sweet boy he wants to cuddle all the time, you have gone days with him following you all around the house hugging your back or grabbing your arm

Like your tryna make tea with a full grown man clung to your back waiting for you to be done so you can go back to bed and cuddle properly.

Once your done making your tea you’ll turn to him waiting for the inevitable. “plEase can we go cuddle again?” Of course. Waking to bed with him trailing behind you like a puppy

You can’t even lay down before he basically jumps on you, also will fall asleep unbelievable fast in your arms it’s honestly cute.

𝐒𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐧

* “I don’t want to cuddle today..” three seconds later he is under the covers clinging onto your waist-

He wants to act all calm and closed of be he ain’t fooling you, so when u suggested cuddling for a while since you missed him you weren’t suprised when he said no at first, but it took one look from you to make him cave.

“That’s what I thought” you taunt as he holds onto you for dear life, not making eye contact with you of course but wil ask for you to hold him and talk a little bit, the next day he will deny everything (ofc)

𝐒𝐮𝐧𝐨𝐨

*normally you ask and he will be so cocky about it, but once you change your mind he takes back everything he said and will literally lay in bed and saying “I’m waiting?” In a sassy tone

“Yeah whos cringe now?” You say. He’s such a bed hog tho, you have to manhandle him into the right position he’s none the wiser of how much space he takes up

Ones he’s finally given you enough room to lay down he will wrap around you like a slap on wrist band. He’s so fast with it, it’s almost like hes scare you’ll disappear if he doesn’t wrap around your body ASAP

Other than the little fights he puts up he is such a soft cuddler and loves to be held while his arms are around your shoulders

𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐰𝐨𝐧

*also a little sassy lassy (I’m so fucking sorry😭) he’s a little back talker which is funny because he refuses to be anything other than small spoon

“Why would I wanna do that?🧐” 2 minutes later his back is to your chest and your arms are around his waist, but he needs to feel like he won so every now and then you’ll hear a “I’m doing this cuz I love you not cuz I like it 😒” but he’ll shut up real quick when you kiss his neck.

𝐍𝐢𝐤𝐢

*he cuddles anywhere but bed, he like to sprawl out at night so it hard to cuddle during then, but he always walks up to you when your watching TV to tug on your arm which mean “lay down” basically, then he will just flop on you to watch TV with you or he will just look at your face intensely and when you ask what he’s up to he hums n shrugs his shoulders with a little smile.

Or when your doing whatever at your desk he will sit in your lap facing you while his legs are slinged through the chair arms and his arms are around your waist.

Mostly does that when he is sleepy or just wants company, barely says a word to maybe a thank you or a I love you randomly but other then that he is quiet which means he’s calm and feels safe.

Hii this was mostly for my own entertainment so it’s very soft- also peep the new lay out?!😎

Anywayss ima post more enhypen and other groups more! Next post will most likely be NCT dream fake texts cuz it’s easier?!?!

Byee sweetiess

[hanasnx]

“I like it when you’re jealous,” you say as you take off his clothes. Anakin, through gritted teeth, “yeah and i’m getting real tired of it.” 🫠🤤🥴 I’m dead that what so hot!!! And omg please I would love for you to explore the idea of Anakin being jealous again, maybe how it would differ after him and the reader became an actual couple, if you have time ofc 💓💓💓

ill make time for steamy anakin romance any day anon— im so happy u told me what u liked most about that post!! it always makes me happy to know what lines got u :D

i needed a break from writing my halloween themed kinktober fic for anakin anyway ;)

☥ so anakin is obviously painfully aware of how sexy you are. his dick has ached for you more times than he can count. being so inexperienced before you meant being horny and being horny for you are synonymous bcos he conflates the two

so he thinks that a lot of other men feel that way about you too, even if he doesnt realize he thinks that way

☥ anakin is definitely toxic to an extent, so once you two become an actual couple im sure it’d be a problem that you have to face together.

☥ sometimes you don’t realize youre flirting, you’re naturally flirtatious as a personality trait, something youve adopted because it paid off in your last job, and it pays off now.

it’s a habit youre trying to break, and sometimes it slips out. and damn does it piss anakin off.

“you’re leading them on on purpose!”

“well it was necessary before! i’m still working on it, ani,”

“i think you like the attention.”

“oh? is that how you feel?”

“you get some sick satisfaction from guys thinking they have a chance with you.”

“and it doesn’t excite you that they never will?”

he side eyes you. “don’t turn this around like that,”

“c’mon, anakin, don’t you get some ‘sick satisfaction’ out of men thirsting after your girl only to be denied and forgotten?”

“you can’t say you whore yourself out to other guys for me.”

“but i can say you like having something no one else does.”

the way he fucking looks at you, tonguing his cheek with this heated glint in his eye. KDJF you better be ready to get fucked in half

☥ he gets so worked up over it, and you hate that he’s right about you liking the attention. it’s so tough to catch yourself in the act and clip it. anakin develops quite the routine with you

“i saw you talking with that scum like he had a shot. even if you weren’t with me you’d never even look in his direction. i’m starting to think it gets you off knowing you’ll be punished at home.” he’d tell you while he’s balls deep inside of you in a mating press

“ani! too deep! too deep!”

“i don’t care. you wanna act like a slut? take it like one.”

☥ this would happen so often that he pops a boner when he sees you flirting around. your hand bracing on a strangers arm when you laugh at their joke. letting them put a hand over yours on a table. whispering something naughty in your ear so you playfully hit them and meet anakin’s gaze from across the room.

like when a dog salivates at the sound of the dinner bell, anakin knows you just signed yourself up for being his personal toy tonight.

☥ “i bet he’s thinking about you, you know,” he’d tell you, while you were overstimulated and unraveling over him. his tip kissing your cervix mercilessly, thumb running over your clit, awaiting your next orgasm. “smiling at the thought of you. wondering when he’ll see you next. has no idea you’re here, getting fucked by your lover until you forget your own damn name.”

☥ being an actual couple means he has a little more reign in what he’s allowed to say to you, and what he’s allowed to do to you should you stray

its fun for him to reclaim you, and it’s fun for you to basically get a guaranteed rough fuck—

☥ “i can’t blame you for being so magnetic, princess, men flock to you ‘cause they’re human. it’s got me thinking,”

“about what, baby?”

“maybe if i fuck a baby into you, the question of if you belong to anyone’ll be answered.”

“ani—“

[diegos-butt]

Driving me crazy pt. 7

Captain Nathan Syverson x Hazel Murphy (tall!plus size ofc)

Summary: after their kiss, it was hard to not want more.

Warnings: the usual i guess, getting interrupted

Wordcount: 1.2k

A/N: and we're back my babes! hope you have a nice week and i hope you're gonna enjoy this chapter ❤️

< chapter six // masterlist

•••

The day after the kiss was a little weird. Well, Harper made it weird for starters. Ma Syverson had told her what happened, and she had practically screamed the entire inn awake. So, whenever Nathan came by the next day to just say hi or ask a question, she felt obligated to make jokes the entire time. By the end of the day, Hazel was more than tired of hearing Harper’s jokes. But she wouldn’t stop.

“I can give you and Sy a room key so you two can get to it,” Harper said and wiggled her eyebrows.

“Are you seriously making jokes about me having sex with your brother? Your brother having sex doesn’t gross you out?” Hazel laughed.

“Yeah, I don’t care. I mostly care about you, and you definitely need some. You have been drooling over him ever since you laid eyes on him. Look, I don’t see it, he’ll always be the ugly to me, but you look at him like he’s the juiciest piece of pie on the planet.” Harper grinned, and left her spot at the front desk reception and made her way to the back office, where Hazel was.

“I will neither confirm or deny that, but he is not unpleasant for the eyes, so you can’t blame me for staring,” Hazel shook her head and turned her computer off. “Okay, I’m going to check if the dining room is cleaned and empty and then I’ll go home because I don’t feel like continuing this conversation.” She stuck her tongue out to Harper, who fake gasped.

“Just look for Sy and ask him to kiss or fuck some sense into you. You want him, and we all know it. He wants you too, but that is more than obvious. He cannot keep his eyes off your ass, and I can’t blame him,” Harper said, and gave Hazel a light tap on her ass.

“Yeah, I’m definitely out of here now. Bye!” Hazel yelled, and walked away. Looking over her shoulder once more, she saw Harper grinning at her. They both knew Harper was right.

The dining room was cleaned and empty. The room was big, with high ceilings and a massive chandelier. To Hazel, it was the prettiest room at the inn. Red carpet, dark oak bookshelves, multiple tables scattered around the room and a fireplace with big, leather couches in front of it. Plus, the space was so big, there was plenty of room between the tables so people could have private conversations or dance for a bit.

That was also the reason soft music was always being played in the room. Hazel closed her eyes and spun around the room. Before she came to the dining room, she changed from her work outfit back to her normal outfit; a black sweater dress, black thighs, and a pair of black biker boots. The sleeves being a tad too long, the dress tight around her body, accentuating her curves.

From the door Nathan watched her swaying to the music. He had just finished his work at the to-be-renovated-room. He was still a bit surprised by her move to kiss him yesterday, but he didn’t complain. If anything, he was grateful she did. It meant she trusted him, that she wouldn’t shy away from her feelings.

He leant against the doorpost, arms crossed and a soft smile on his lips. With every turn she made, her ass jiggled, and it drove him insane. He was about to walk up to her when she opened her eyes and squealed when she saw him.

“The fuck Sy! For how long have you been standing there?!”

He chuckled and pushed himself of the doorpost. “Long enough to ask you for this dance sunshine.”

“You dance?” she wondered, cocking an eyebrow. Nathan reached her, and took her hand in his. He admired the fact her hands were almost as big as his, just softer and daintier. Nails long enough to leave some deep scratch marks on his back.

“I have many talents you don’t know about yet,” he answered and gave her a failed wink. Hazel laughed, and placed her other hand on his cheek.

“Yeah, I’ll dance with you,” she said softly. He wasted no time, and pulled her flush with his other hand that wrapped around her waist. The soft music that played being perfect for a slow dance.

He intertwined their fingers, and her other hand rested at the back of his neck. Softly scratching her nails through the short hairs. They spun around the room together, foreheads resting against each other. The world around them disappearing.

Once the song was almost at its end, Nathan moved his hand to her cheek. Brushing with is thumb over her bottom lip. He nudged his nose against hers, and he saw her eyes close and mouth open. He kissed her, and it felt just like the first time. It was impossible to be closer to and another, yet they both tried.

Hazel’s hands around his neck, Nathan’s hands found their way to her softest, and his favourite, part; her bum. Rather quickly she felt something hard, it was impossible to ignore.

Gasping for air, she pulled away. Nathan attacking her neck, sucking, and nibbling. She had to remember to wear a scarf tomorrow, but that was a problem for later.

Her hands moved to his chest, and slid underneath his arms to his back. Her hands wandering up and down his back, as he continued marking her as his.

“Baby, you’re driving me crazy. You know that right?” His voice raspy and deep, and a shiver shot down her spine.

“Fuck, Sy-,” Hazel muttered, but was rudely interrupted when the door flung open.

A shocked member of the cleaning staff rushed in, and grabbed her forgotten bag from a table. “Sorry,” she stuttered out, and left as quickly as she came in.

“Goddamn,” Nathan said while both of them caught their breath.

“I should go, yeah maybe I should go home,” Hazel said, and tried to step away.

“You wanna go?” he asked. Her eyes were open wide, and he could see her brain working to get an answer out. He pressed a kiss to her cheek, and one to the other before he looked at her again.

“No.” Her answer came out as a whisper, but it was more than enough. She firmly pressed her lips to his, until an idea sprung up in her head. She stepped away, grabbing his hand, and pulled him with her.

The reception, thank god, abandoned. Harper usually took a break at this time to eat her own dinner. Hazel stepped behind the desk, quickly checking the computer and grabbed a room key.

Nathan heard footsteps approaching, so he pulled the key out of her hands and grabbed her hand this time while they rushed up the stairs. A chuckle escaped her lips as they reached the second floor. He couldn’t help it, and laughed with her. For a minute they stood there, laughing.

Once they cooled down, he extended his hand, and she took it. He squeezed her hand while walking to the room. Once they reached it, he held the key up, and looked at her. Wanting to make sure she was alright. “This doesn’t mean we have to-”

“I know,” she smiled, and grabbed the key out of his hands to open the door.

•••

[scuttling]

Present

Fandom: Criminal Minds Pairing: Aaron Hotchner/Spencer Reid/Latina OFC Sophie Cortes Word Count: 4,598 Tags: 18+, NSFW, Voyeurism, Masturbation in shower, Sexting, Oral Sex, Dom/sub, Protected Sex, Established Aaron/Sophie Summary: Sophie sends Aaron a sexy video while he’s away on a case, Spencer watches it, and smut ensues. Collection: Part 1 of 5 of Present, Perfect, Patient, Promise, Pretend series Note: This is a previously published work from A03, just moving it over to tumblr because I was thinking about it today. 🤤 Link to A03 or read below! “I sprained my ankle. I’m not injured, not really. I can even walk on it,” Sophie assures as she pours them each a cup of coffee in the break room. She sets the carafe down, takes a step, wobbles, and Aaron catches her around the waist with a raised eyebrow of judgement. “Okay, so I can’t walk that well, but I can certainly sit in a conference room bouncing ideas around and drinking coffee. That’s all Rossi does, anyway.” He chuckles softly, knows she’s still… warming up, to Rossi and his idiosyncrasies.

“You know the rules.”

“Yeah, because we’re so good at following the rules,” she teases with a smirk, running her hands down his stomach, stopping at his belt. He looks over at the bullpen out of the corner of his eye, shoots her a warning look that makes her sigh and pull away.

“Think of it as choosing our battles,” he suggests, hoping that might get her back on track. “If you want to continue making out in my office, you have to stay here this one time.” She smiles, crooked, nods her head.

“Okay, when you put it that way, I’ll take the make outs.”

“I thought you might. Plus, you get to spend all day with Garcia. I figured that would be like a dream come true.”

“It is, definitely. It’s more the long, cold, nights that I’m worried about.” He sighs, because she’s being so dramatic, but he doesn’t want to give her the satisfaction of making him smile again. He can’t be looking as smitten and infatuated with her as he is all of the time. “I’m going to be so lonely.”

“Oh, I think you’ll manage without sex for a few nights,” he teases, and she looks scandalized, as if that wasn’t exactly what she was getting at.

“It’s not about sex, it’s about intimacy, comfort, sharing my bed with a big heavy man who scares away the bad dreams.” She grins lecherously and he prepares to roll his eyes. “And who has a dick that won't quit.”

“Like I said,” he enunciates, taking his travel mug of coffee for the road, “you’ll be fine for a few nights. If you do decide to touch yourself, though, make sure you send me a present,” he reminds her, because they aren’t separated often, but when they are, a couple of racy pictures or videos almost always exchange hands. He bends for a quick kiss on the lips, brushes her cheek. “I love you. Behave.”

“I love you,” she murmurs, all tenderness and no heat, now. “Be safe.” Two days after taking the case, the team is on the jet for a night flight home. Spencer is tired, but he can’t sleep; JJ is stretched out on the couch, Morgan and Emily are slumped over in their seats up front with pillows and headphones, and Rossi has been snoring softly since they took off, so it’s just him and Hotch awake. They are in seats next to each other, Spencer by the window, because he knew he would be a little restless, and that Hotch wouldn’t sleep, so it seemed like the safest bet if he didn't want to disturb anyone’s rest.

He also enjoys the comforting presence of the older man, always, but especially in the calm, quiet atmosphere of the flight home.

He tries to listen to music, a podcast, but he eventually pauses it and just rests his eyes, his head, listens to Hotch as he flips pages or taps away at his phone. He’s probably texting Sophie, who’s home with a sprained ankle and who hasn’t stopped grumbling about it since. He smiles at the thought, likes when she’s comfortable enough to complain to him. Likes being someone she turns to.

He sighs. Feelings are complicated. Sometimes he hates being part of such a tight-knit team because it makes the things he feels all the more confusing, especially when the two objects of his (totally manageable) affection are in a relationship together; he feels like the odd man out, as always, can’t deny that it hurts sometimes.

He’s drifting in and out of the not quite asleep stage when he hears sound coming from Hotch’s phone, shuffling, ambiguous noises. He lifts his eyelids just slightly to see a video up on the screen, a wall that looks vaguely familiar, like a bathroom, maybe. There’s nothing particularly intriguing about that, but then he sees a pair of smooth, bare legs standing inside a bathtub and his interest is… piqued.

There’s another sound, unmistakably a shower being turned on, and then the woman—it is Sophie, no doubt; even if he can’t see her face, the tattoo on her forearm is easily identifiable—squats down, and she is so gloriously naked that he just… freezes. His body and his mind are suspended in a conflicting state of this is wrong, I shouldn’t be seeing this, and this is the best thing I’ve ever seen, and why is Hotch watching this right now, with me right next to him, and hnnng.

She pulls the shower head into view, lets it pour over her hair from what he can see of it, then down her breasts, her stomach, arms and legs; after that, she adjusts it to a stream that is harder and more controlled than one would typically use in the shower. He wonders why, thinks it could be uncomfortable, until she moves it to hover over her pussy, moaning softly, and then he really, really gets it.

His heart is racing as she runs her hand over her body, thumbing at her nipples, sighing at her own touch. She rocks back and forth a little so the stream of water hits her clit, then lower, between her lips, against her opening, and Spencer swallows hard.

“Mmm,” she sighs, and the sound goes straight through him; he feels himself getting hard as she murmurs, pressing her hand against the rim of the tub for leverage. “Mmm, yeah.” He can see that Hotch is breathing heavily next to him, eyes fixed on the screen. It’s too dark in the cabin to see his lap, but he knows he must be aching in his pants, too, wonders what it would be like if he reached out and touched him there.

Sophie is incredibly gorgeous as she works to reach her climax, bouncing lightly on her heels as the pressure builds, her moans longer and louder, but it’s when she stops moving and presses the shower head closer, directly over her clit, that he knows she’s almost ready to come.

“Oh, yeah, yeah,” she whines, pinching a nipple, arching her back, and her voice is high and breathy and addictive. He would give anything to be in the same room as those sounds, to pull her wet body close and help her get off. “Fuck, mmm,” she purrs, bringing the stream even closer, and she comes, short, loud moans that sound like they’re being ripped from her throat as her thighs shake, her chest heaves.

She drags a slow hand down her body, like she’s soothing herself, and then shudders, pulls the shower head away like maybe the pressure is too much where she’s sensitive. With a sigh, she reaches for the phone, tilts it so her face is in view, cheeks flushed and wet hair clinging to her shoulders. She turns up her lips in a coy smile. “See you soon.” The video ends.

It takes Hotch a moment to lock his phone, and he looks a little dazed when Spencer risks a glance up at his face—with good reason. If he was on the receiving end of videos like that, he would never be able to focus on anything.

The rest of the trip is quiet, certainly uneventful in comparison. Spencer makes a show of opening his eyes fully, stretching, thinks it would be too awkward now to admit he saw and heard every incredible second; Hotch looks over at him with an expression he can’t read, and then flips open a new case file.

When they land, he and Hotch are the last two to grab their bags, and Hotch brushes up against him in a way that feels purposeful, but is probably wishful thinking. “Do you have anything going on for the rest of the night?” he asks, and Spencer shakes his head.

“Nope, nothing.” Maybe masturbating—definitely masturbating—but he doesn’t need to know that. Hotch nods, thoughtful.

“You should come home with me.” Spencer looks at him with wide eyes.

“What?”

“We both know that you saw the video,” he says in a low, no nonsense tone that makes him gulp. “I told Sophie, and she seemed… interested in the prospect. So you should come home with me. If you want to.”

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have—” Hotch raises a hand, halting his train of thought.

“I may have had a suspicion that you were awake when I chose to play the video, so don’t be so hard on yourself.” Spencer looks at his face, trying to determine if he’s saying what he thinks he’s saying. He did that on purpose? He knew that Spencer was watching? “No pressure, if you don’t want to come over. I would never want you to do something you don’t want to do.”

“I do want to… do… whatever it is we’re doing,” he rambles awkwardly, and Hotch chuckles.

“What we're doing is having sex. And I won’t touch you, or anything, if you don’t want that. It can be me and Sophie and you and Sophie.” Spencer swallows hard again, so turned on and breathless that it makes him feel bold.

“What if I do want you to touch me?” he asks, and Hotch leans in slowly, hot breath at his ear.

“Then I’m going to touch you.” When he pulls away, his fingers brush over Spencer’s jaw. “Do you want to come home with me?”

His answer is an emphatic yes. Aaron is due home any minute, and Sophie is vibrating with nervous energy, puttering around the apartment in her robe, couldn’t sit still if she tried. She waits for him on nights he has to work late and can’t bring it home, sure, but it’s almost never like this, where they are apart for days on end. It’s seriously affecting not only her sex drive, but also her mental state, which she hadn’t expected; she feels clingy, needy already, wants to smell him and touch him and taste him and be caged in by him, and it’s frankly getting a little out of hand.

It doesn’t help, she guesses, that she sent that video, but she was horny and wanted his attention… and boy, did she get it, had several texts come through a couple of minutes after she sent it, all very sweet and dirty and good.

Then she saw one about Reid, wanted to be mortified, but she just… wasn’t.

A: So, Reid saw me watching your present.

S: Oh, really? Did he like it?

A: Yeah, he liked it.

A: I bet he’d come pretty quick if he got to see the real thing.

A: Touch you… taste you.

God, how can this calm, controlled man make her such a whimpering mess with just a couple of texts? It’s unfair, is what it is.

S: Maybe we should invite him over sometime.

S: I’ve seen him looking at you, too.

S: Imagine how pretty he would look between us.

That was about an hour ago, and the only thing she received in reply was a brief message letting her know they’d landed and that he was on the way home. She hopes she didn’t upset him, knows that he’s mentioned being interested in men but that he’s never slept with one, hopes she didn’t hit a sore spot. She promises herself they will talk about it when he gets home.

But when he gets home, he kisses her so deeply she feels faint. Her body is lit up in an instant, suddenly desperate for more of him.

“I brought you a present,” he says, so low and sexy, and she grins, breathless, wraps her arms around his neck.

“Ooh, you know I love presents. What is it?”

“It’s not a what, it’s a who,” Spencer says, then, from the open doorway, and she glances between them, bites at her bottom lip. He steps inside and closes the door.

Fuck.

“Hey, Spencer,” she greets, but she can hear the tremble in her voice when she does. He looks to Aaron, and Aaron reaches back, wraps a hand around his wrist, guides him closer.

“I told him what you said, about how pretty he would look between us. He happened to agree, so I figured, why wait?” He looks her over intently, like he’s making sure she’s okay with this.

She is so okay with this.

She wants to speak but she’s so out of breath, her heart beating so fast, that she just pulls him down for a kiss, messy and graceless, and then she reaches for Spencer’s shirt and pulls him close as well, doing the same. She takes turns kissing them, ten kisses each, probably, until Aaron pushes her back gently with a soft laugh.

“Easy, baby. He’s going to stay the night; we have time to go slow.” Her chest is heaving, and he walks around so he’s standing behind her, unties the sash of her robe, pulls it off to reveal the lacy black bra and panties she thought would be a sexy surprise.

He kind of outdid her in the surprise department, but she’ll forgive him this once.

He runs his hands over her panties, her stomach, her boobs, and she bends her neck back, arching up for his lips, moaning against them. Spencer approaches, a bit hesitant, puts his hands on her hips and kisses her exposed throat, her chest. She feels like she’s died and gone to heaven, two pairs of hands on her, two mouths, her body pressed between them tightly. She thinks offhand that she’s glad her ankle doesn’t hurt anymore, because she could stand between them all night long, if they keep this up, would be content to never move again.

Then one of Spencer’s beautiful, incredible hands slips down the front of her panties, and they stop kissing her to kiss each other, and she whimpers, and her knees give out anyway.

“So dramatic,” Aaron whispers teasingly in her ear as he holds her up, big hands on her body, and she shakes her head, wets her lips.

“Not being dramatic. This is so fucking sexy.” Spencer—apparently not worried about the fact that she almost collapsed on them because Aaron wasn’t—slides two fingers over the slippery wet lips of her pussy, and she groans. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to take all the attention,” she murmurs, moving her hips against his hand. “Kiss some more, please.” Spencer huffs a laugh and leans in, catches Aaron’s lips with his. From her point of view she can see the slide of their tongues, lips pressing together, and she groans again.

“If it’s okay with you,” Spencer says to her when they separate, “I would really like to eat your pussy now.” He kisses her softly on the cheek, and she exhales, shaky.

“Yeah, please—please do that.”

“I’ll hold you,” Aaron whispers, lips at her ear. “I’ll be right here, I promise.” She hums, leans back against him, and Spencer drops to his knees, guides her panties down. She’s so wet there’s slick on the insides of her thighs, and when he lifts one leg to hook her knee around his shoulder, he licks it away. She shudders.

She feels like she should have known how hot and skillful his mouth would be, because he talks so fast sometimes that his brain—his incredibly high-functioning brain—can’t even keep up, and she usually finds his mouth cute, but right now she finds it sexy, will probably never be able to look at it without thinking of the way he feels with his tongue in her pussy.

He is very enthusiastic, licking her quick and deep, with one hand on her waist and the other rubbing her clit like he’s got a PhD in bringing girls to orgasm, and she knows she’s moaning like a slut, gets even louder when Aaron bites at her earlobe, kisses her neck, squeezes her breasts. “Fuck, oh fuck, yeah,” she pants, reaches a hand down to wrap it in Spencer’s hair, making him groan; she rocks against his delicious mouth, which he encourages, moving his hand to her ass and guiding her closer.

“Come for him, baby,” Aaron urges, hand inside the cup of her bra to pinch her nipple. “Isn’t he pretty, down on his knees for you?” She drops her head back against him, brings a hand to his hair, too.

“So pretty.” He stoops down to kiss her as best as he can, and Spencer’s looking up at them, gorgeous, and she comes tugging on both of them, panting into Aaron’s mouth.

When Spencer stands up and kisses her, mouth soft and wet after working her through her orgasm, and then Aaron leans in to taste both of them on her lips? It’s a wonder she doesn’t get weak in the knees again. Sophie is soft and pliant after she comes, clinging onto them, and Aaron lifts her into his arms and carries her to the bedroom, Spencer following closely behind. He sets her on the bed, unhooks her bra and pulls it off; Spencer watches closely as he does, kneels down to kiss her, brush his hands over her bare breasts, and she sighs at the treatment.

“What do you want to do?” Aaron asks them, getting down on his knees as well, and he kisses them, thrills at the similarities in their soft lips, soft skin.

“I wanna suck you both,” she says, and he touches her face gently.

“Are you sure you’re up for that? You look a little fuzzy.” He didn’t think that she would get submissive so quickly, since he hadn’t actually dominated her, but can see how feeling at the mercy of two men might make her go to that place; he just wants to make sure he does what’s best for her while she’s there.

“Might not be able to get you off, but I want them in my mouth. Can I?” She looks up at him, then at Spencer, who swallows visibly. Aaron gave him a little insight on the way there about how they normally interact with each other, how she likes to ask for permission and he likes to give it—or deny it, depending.

(Aaron Hotchner’s crash course on having a submissive girlfriend—he might have to find a way to monetize that, somehow.)

“You can, for a couple minutes. Then what do you want?” He looks to Spencer to see if he has anything in mind.

“I don’t—I’ve never done this,” he says quietly, and he and Sophie both touch him, and she nuzzles against his shoulder.

“Neither have we, it’s okay. You want to, though?” He looks at them with soft, open eyes, and nods without hesitation.

“Yeah, I want to.” Aaron takes his face in his hands, kisses him deeply.

“Okay, good. Sophie,” he says softly, touches her face too, “do you think you would be alright being with both of us at the same time?” She licks her lips and frowns a little like she’s confused.

“What do you mean?”

“Maybe we could lay you down, and one of us could be inside your pussy, and one of us could be inside your mouth. I’ll take your mouth,” he decides quickly, because she doesn’t like it too fast or rough and he knows her limits, doesn’t want to hurt or overwhelm her. “You’ll be full of us, baby. Do you think you want that?” She closes her eyes, nods, and Spencer touches her throat with long, gentle fingers.

“You’d give us that?” he asks like he’s in awe, and Aaron gets it, knows how much it means that she trusts them with something like this. “You’re incredible, Sophie,” he murmurs against her lips, and she sighs, pulls him closer.

Watching them make out is a very enjoyable thing, made all the more so when he decides to come up behind Spencer to unbutton his pants, untuck his shirt. The younger man moans at the feel of his hands helping him undress, and he presses back against Aaron’s chest, panting and eager. He guides him to stand, gets him naked, and wraps a hand around his long, hard cock, stroking it a couple times.

“You want her mouth on you while I get undressed?” he asks, and Spencer bucks up into his hand, nods quickly. Sophie reaches for him, pulling him closer, and she licks at the head, moans. “Gently,” he murmurs in Spencer’s ear, “let her be in control.” He nods seriously, presses a hand to Sophie’s cheek when she takes him in.

Between the two of them, their moans are so filthy, wanton, that he craves the heat of their mouths, so he captures Spencer’s in a kiss when he can, pulling off his clothes slowly so they can enjoy the time together. “Sophie,” Spencer murmurs, and she looks up at him, and Aaron’s arms around him, and whines. She pulls off of him, licks her lips looking hungry.

“I’m ready for you guys.” The simple sentence makes his dick throb, and he lays her back on the bed, kisses her soft and sweet and slow. Spencer curls around them, kisses them and rubs his hands over their bare skin.

“Spencer, can you get in that drawer and take out a condom?” he has presence of mind to ask, glad that the ones they have should fit him, and he stretches up, all long, lithe muscles, grabs one and tears the wrapper open, rolling it on. Neither Aaron nor Sophie can take their eyes off of him, and when he’s finished, Aaron moves out of his way so he can settle between her legs. She hitches up her knees, and he knows first hand how inviting that can be, understands completely when he shivers with pleasure.

Aaron kisses Sophie a few more times, whispers sweet, loving words into her ear, and then he crawls up by her head, the tip of his dick at the same level as her mouth.

“Are you okay, baby?” he asks, running his hands over her breasts, and she nods, puts her hands on Spencer’s hips and pulls him closer until he is fully sheathed inside her; he keeps still, panting, and Aaron leads forward to brush his hair back. “You’re so gorgeous, Spencer,” he coos, and then he presses into Sophie's mouth, sighs.

She takes him in hand, guiding him in and out at a pace she’s comfortable with, so he just lets her take the lead and runs his hands over her body, Spencer’s fingers where they press against her thighs. He is pumping into her deeply now, an easy rhythm Sophie matches with her hand, and the room is filled with a symphony of soft, wet sounds and moans and hums that Aaron doesn’t think he’ll ever forget.

He is wholly unsurprised when he is the first to come, because watching Spencer’s hips move against her, his hands careful where he holds her down, and feeling her moan around his cock because she loves feeling full, it’s all too much for him. He spills with a groan, and Spencer watches his face like it’s art, which makes him feel warm in his chest. Something to explore at a later time.

Sophie lets go of him, panting, and he slides down to his belly so he can kiss her mouth, caress her. He looks up at Spencer, who appears to be trying so hard not to come, his teeth sinking into his bottom lip, and he rubs Sophie’s clit to help get her close, so he’ll stop trying so hard and just let himself feel good.

“Oh, god,” Sophie whines, brings her hands up to squeeze hard at her breasts. “This is good, so good, mmm.” She starts bucking hard against him, her neck stretched long, and he knows the instant she comes, her mouth opening in a wordless moan before she all but howls her pleasure. Spencer groans, shifts his legs a little so he’s hovering over the both of them, and he thrusts for a few more seconds before finding his own orgasm. “Hmm, yes,” Sophie sighs, and he kisses her slowly, passionately; Aaron rubs both of their bodies as they shiver with aftershocks, and they all sink into the mattress, deeply spent.

They cuddle together for a few minutes, until Sophie complains she has to pee, and she and Spencer go into the bathroom together to take care of business. Aaron runs a hand through his hair and exhales long, because this is the absolute last thing he expected to happen, while also being one of the most unforgettable nights of his life; he knows they’ll look to him for guidance about what to do next, and he’s really not sure what to say when they do.

When they amble back into the room, they’re both smiling softly, and Aaron smiles because he can’t help it. They climb back onto the bed, Spencer in the middle, though Sophie reaches across him to rub at the hair on Aaron’s chest.

“So that’s a thing that happened,” Sophie says eventually, propped up on her elbow, looking over at their two blissed out faces with nothing short of affection. “Is it a thing that’s going to happen again, or a thing we swear up and down didn’t happen?—No pressure, only asking so I know how to compartmentalize my many, many thoughts.”

Aaron looks to Spencer and can’t help but feel like there’s something more worth exploring, there. He thinks Spencer feels the same when he pulls him in for a tender kiss.

“I think it should happen again,” Spencer murmurs, and Sophie leans down to kiss him too.

“Yeah, it should happen again.” Aaron sits up, smiles at his girl, guides her mouth to his.

“Okay, then.” They kiss again, easy, sweet, and he breathes a laugh. “We owe you for this, you know: you and your little shower performance.”

“Oscar worthy,” Spencer says with a grin, and Sophie shoves him playfully.

“Hey, a girl has needs.”

“And we’ll help you meet them,” Aaron promises, running a hand suggestively along her body, and she covers it with hers.

“No way. I’m tapped out, buddy. Unless I get sleep or pizza, no more sex from me tonight.” Aaron feigns hurt, pulls away, flops onto his back with an exaggerated sigh, and she crawls past Spencer to straddle his waist. “So dramatic,” she teases, leans down for a kiss, then climbs off the bed altogether. “I’m good with pizza—I don’t want to go to sleep just yet, not when I’ve got two pretty boys in my bed.”

“I second pizza,” Spencer murmurs, his face pressed against Aaron’s bicep. Sophie pauses in the doorway, a thoughtful look on her face.

“Do you think they’ll do a third veggie, and a third pepperoni, and a third Hawaiian? Or am I gonna have to order two pizzas?” She comes back over to the bed, kisses them both soft, affectionate, and smiles. “Always complicating things, Spencer Reid.”

[kiss4kazu]

ooh! can i request something spicy?? maybe headcanons of claude, dimitri, and felix’s kinks?

spicy hcs | dimitri, felix, claude

this is combo between just kink hcs and also how first times being freaky w these three go hahhahahahhahah screams. this is not safe for kiddos so proceed with caution folks 

felix <3 

whew, okay. sweats. um 

so the first time u and felix do the do was definitely not planned. things tend to escalate a lot with felix when it comes to intimacy. pecks goodnight lead up to make out sessions and all of a sudden his hand is down your pants and you’re honestly not complaining. 

felix is definitely more of a giver than a receiver, not because he liked giving, but because he liked being in control. he liked seeing you writhe beneath him and all that jazz. 

he’d definitely deny you from reaching your high multiple times, partially to draw out the activity since you tend to come quite quickly beneath his touch but also because hearing you whine his name helplessly was a really big fucking turn on and he always swelled with pride knowing he was the only person who can turn you into a sobbing mess. 

felix has 2 moods. his soft and pliant types of fucking, and his arrogant, i’m big bad felix fraldarius and my cock is 30inches long type of fucking. he knows hes hot, he knows he has a pretty dick, might as well utilize it.

he hates praise when it’s ingenuine, for things intangible that he hadn’t earned himself. when it’s people praising him for his title or the power of a fraldarius battalion. 

but praise when it comes from you? when it’s you letting him know just how amazing he feels inside of you, how with every thrust of his hips your brain short-circuits and your eyes water with unspilled tears? when it’s you not being able to even form coherent words anymore because felix fraldarius is throbbing inside of you... yeah, that kind of praise. it does wonders for him and his dick. 

he’s also into hair-pulling

and overstimulation

hes also rly rly easily jealous like if someone else was making eyes with you or perhaps you were giggling a little too loudly with some handsome noble he’d just yank you away and march u up the stairs to his dormitory before kissing you hard 

he’s the type to make u beg and be rly possessive he’d just fuck you so ruthlessly hair stuck to his skin, panting “you’re mine. mine. say it” and u would just cry bc why tf he so sexy hello-

as mentioned in my kissing post, felix sucks the life out of you when he kisses you so it’s only logical that he fucks the life out of you too.  

im kidding ofc!! not rly

although he’s on the giving end of things, it’s still completely self-indulgent, felix gets off just knowing he’s getting you off because he’s a sexy narcissist like that. 

but on some days, he really really wanted you to know he cared a lot about you. 

felix isn’t the best with words, but he was really good with his tongue, so things usually worked out okay. he’d kiss you, everywhere. every inch of you, leaving hickeys in even the most visible places because who fucking cares. you were his, he needed you to know that. he needed everyone to know that. 

he can be sensitive sometimes too, make love, if you will. 

he has to be rly emotional tho, so it’s probably after something eventful happens in his life. like when the kingdom takes back fhirdiad, or wins the war. or when he’s sleepy and tired and wakes up hard and is just too lazy to put on his big bad scary persona. 

sleepy felix is submissive felix, aka my favorite felix. sleepy horny felix is all whiny and blushy and just wanted to come and he absolutely despised himself for it

you were well aware of how much he hated himself for being soft and needy, but that made teasing him all the more fun.

so yes, some nights felix would fuck you brainless and soak in the sound of your voice crying out his name helplessly. but on other nights, felix would lay down, his hair splayed against the pillow, your fingers twirling his locks and tugging gently as your other hand jerked him off, lips pressed against his as you breathed in his whines and grunts.

hearing him whine was a really rare sight, but it did slip out occasionally, when you squeezed the base of his member unexpectedly or when you took him deep into your throat and swallowed around him. felix really likes fucking your mouth. 

yeah felix is an emotionally constipated sex god 

claude ! 

whew lord. 

ok so claude, my sweet, cheeky, little shit <3 

the first time probs wasnt even intentional with him either he was just teasing you a little too much and things got a bit carried away but it’s a great time nonetheless

doing the do with claude is probably a rollercoaster ride, he would literally never shut up and would just say the most stupid things and you’d hate yourself for still being so desperate for his touch because somehow in between his terrible jokes and merciless teasing he whispered complete filth into your ears.

he’s a master of dirty talk, chuckling against the shell of your ear at the sound of you choking out a sob at his words, tugging at your earlobe just to spur you on even further. 

“don’t tell me you’re clocking out already?” you’d just glare at him in frustration despite your flushed cheeks and he’d kiss you on the tip of your nose and laugh in amusement at your misery 

he’ll literally do everything but fuck you, covering every inch of your skin in love bites, especially your chest. he’d literally eat you out or suck you off until you were dizzy but if you want him inside of you, he’d definitely make you beg. 

if you ever tried to get smart with him… um, he’d uh .. p-punish you 

not like in a pain kink type of way he’d just pull out right before you could nut and would laugh maniacally in your face afterwards because that’s what you get for being a smart ass ! denying u from coming is basically how he punishes u so its a pretty long night but claude’s really really good with his tongue so you’re guaranteed to come like 3 times at minimum anyways

he’d devour you, all smirks and with eyes filled with mirth and he wouldn’t give in until you were absolutely wrecked under him. 

he’s very um… dominant, i would say

but not an aggressive dom, definitely a playful dom who enjoys edging and teasing a bit too much 

he’s also pretty experimental, i can see claude as a bit of an exhibitionist also, he’d probably fuck you in the cathedral just for shits and giggles 

but he is human and despite how much of  a little shit claude is he’s just as wrecked as you he’s just much better at hiding it 

he’d probs quit the teasing once he himself can’t handle it anymore

and wow uh thats when claude gets all sensual 

when claude’s kind of in overdrive and completely uncoordinated just messily thrusting over and over again to finally get you both to that place thats when he becomes all romantic and lovey 

would compliment you to no amounts end, call you all sorts of pet names like honey, sweetheart, baby, etc. 

his messy curls would stick to his skin, his forehead pressed firmly against yours, verdant eyes blown wide maintaining eye contact with you just for that extra level of intimacy because watching you when you’re like this really drives him over the edge. 

he’d pant against your lips, kiss you roughly and somehow find it in himself to even let out an amused laugh because he’s having sex and that’s kind of funny for some reason

claude’s pull-out game probably a1 but idk he’s possessive in less conventional ways so i feel like he’d  get off to the thought of releasing inside you and watching him drip down your thighs bc yea

claude is also the king of aftercare let it be known

he’d have so much energy after sex for some reason like he’d just hop right up clean your bodies, fetch you tea if you wanted some and curl up with you resting on his chest, running his fingers over the skin of your arms tenderly and smiling softly to himself when exhaustion takes over you and you slip into a warm slumber against his chest. 

i love him bye

dima 

ok so dimi is a busy busy boy and even when he does have free time he’s never entirely there his mind is always kind of somewhere else u know 

he’s always struggled w getting a proper night's rest and always overworks himself into hysteria

so, as his lovely s/o, you presume a nice session to destress will help loosen those knots in his muscles and all that chaos whirring around in his mind

you were thinking a nice trip to the sauna or something

but dimi had other ideas 

 he’d just look at you and his gaze would darken all of a sudden and with just a glance at him you already feel the wind being knocked out of you 

it would be rly sudden, like dimitri’s just rly needy all of a sudden and he’s taking whatever you’ll give rly he has so much pent up stress and needs some form of release and he’s so so emotional and touchy and won’t stop kissing you with so much fervor and desperation

dimi is 1000% a lovemaker im sorry u cannot convince me otherwise. unless he is feral. if he is feral then understandable have a good day. 

he’s all about pampering and kissing every inch of you and asks every five minutes is this okay? are you comfortable? does that hurt? are you sure? because he’s terrible with fragile things and if he ever hurt you he’d never forgive himself poor baby

part of you just wants to grab his face and say !!! im fine !!! you big idiot !! but you just pull him to your chest and nuzzle your face into his neck and breathe him in deeply, kissing his jaw gently before reassuring him i’m fine dimi, stop worrying 

he’d calm down instantly and focus back on the task at hand, pleasuring the love of his life hehe

BODY WORSHIPPING non stop praises just kissing everywhere his lips come across you’d love it but hate it at the same time bc part of you just wants him in u already and the other half of u is just so so enamoured by him and feels so warm and loved and appreciated

he’s more of a giver than a receiver as well though for opposite reasons compared to felix, he worries about your comfort so much to the extent where it distracts him from his own pleasure, and it isn’t until he’s inside of you that he remembers and is like oh wow fuck and yea things dont usually last very long for him since he always neglects his own pleasure in favor of yours. he gets so focused on making u feel good because he loves you so much and he needs you to know that so yeah he doesn’t remember to even touch himself lmao 

you’d probably come like twice before dimi even whips his schlong out 

at the peak of his pleasure tho dimi gets kinda rough ngl. he’s a person whos very emotionally driven so when everything gets to be a bit too much he’s just slamming into you with so much force your skin stings, grip so tight on your hips there’s sure to be bruises in the morning but despite how rough he is his eyes are nothing but gentle and so so loving 

probably says something like oh seiros when he’s about to come LMAOOO 

dimi is also a king with aftercare but he’d probably knock out like a log afterwards and it’d be like the best sleep he’d get tbh all warm and satiated and just content

dimi sex god 

[wiypt-writes]

Leave No One Behind

Ch 14- Well, fuckin’ Shalom.

Co written with @icanfeelastormbrewing​

Summary: After another dangerous encounter with Ahmed’s troops, Ari is back into a corner and comes out fighting.

Warnings: Bad Language words. Smut (NSFW, 18+) Violence, angst and death.

Pairings: Ari Levinson x OFC Hannah Horowitz

A/N: It’s Hannah’s birthday today so Happy Birthday, Firefly!

Disclaimer: This is a pure work of fiction and classified as 18+. Please respect this and do not read if you are underage. I do not own any characters in this series bar Fliss Gallagher and the other OCs. By reading beyond this point you understand and accept the terms of this disclaimer.

Leave No One Behind Masterlist // Main Masterlist

Chapter 13

Ari pushed a grumbling Simon off his face and sat up, trying not to move too much. Once out of bed, he stretched before sorting himself out in the bathroom and dressing as quickly and as quietly as possible so as not to wake Hannah who was, thankfully, fast asleep.

After the events of the previous day, when Rachel had gotten him and Sammy out of jail and they had driven back to the resort only to find Ethan was shutting them down, Ari had had a rough night, memories of the ordeal making his already light sleep almost impossible at times. He had spent a few hours wide awake in the dark, lying still to avoid disturbing Hannah, simply staring at the ceiling of their hut as his restless mind continued to deny him a peaceful sleep.

He had been, and somehow still was, physically and emotionally exhausted. The mere thought that Hannah had intended on ending what they had just a few hours ago still made him shudder. Following their heartfelt conversation on the dock they’d stumbled into the hut, and he’d loved her softly, slowly and intimately in the shower before they’d collapsed into bed. All of that combined with the whispered sweet nothings they had shared in the still of their hut might tell a different story, but Ari was well aware he had fucked up and almost lost her a second time.

And it made him sick to his stomach.

Ari shook his head, a reflex action, almost as if it would shake the thoughts from his mind and he sighed gently into the quiet of the hut as he finished buckling the laces on his trainers, turning from where he was sat at the edge of their bed to look at his Firefly sleeping with Simon who had curled up by her side. He smiled softly at the scene as he leaned in to place a loving kiss on her head before leaving the hut.

A few minutes later, Ari emerged in the breakfast area after a short stroll down the beach. The bruises and cuts on his face and over his left cheekbone were beginning to heal but the dull sting of his skin was a clear reminder of what had gone down in that prison cell in Khartoum and the depth of Sammy’s anger towards him. Still, as arranged the previous night, Sammy showed up along with Jake and Max early so no one else was around. As he brewed a pot of coffee, Ari went over his plan to set off to find Kabede and explained his last-minute decision to only take Max and Sammy with him, leaving Jake in charge of the resort and the girls. He wasn’t willing to take any risks after the events of their last mission only a couple of days before.

“Don’t lose sight of them, Jake. However feisty they get, especially Hannah.”

“Sure thing, boss.” Jake agreed as he took the mug Ari was handing him and Max snorted.

“You know she’s gonna give him a hard time, right?”

“I don’t much care.” Ari snapped at Max with a stern voice, causing the man to raise his hands in mock surrender. At that Jake sighed so Ari turned to look at him, his voice softer. “If she’s getting an attitude, tell her to take it up with me when I’m back. There’s a reason why her and Rachel don’t know where we’re going. And they won’t need to either until it’s done.”

As he finished instructing Jake on how to act upon a more than probable tantrum on Hannah’s part, Ari could clearly see Sammy rolling his eyes.

“More lies, huh.”

“Will you stop with your comments, Sammy?” Ari groaned. He’d had enough of the man’s accusatory looks and snarky comments to last him a lifetime. “I get it, you hate me, you already made your point.” And to make his, Ari gestured to the bruising around his face.

Sammy didn’t answer, but simply maintained giving his so-called best friend a cold stare until Max’s groan put an end to the war of deadly stares.

“Come on guys. This is it, we’ll be out of here in a few days. Let’s go find Kabede, give him the news and-” he sighed, “-wrap it up and get out of this fucking sandpit.”

Ari looked at Max at he spoke and then back at Sammy who scoffed and, without so much as a word, started walking to the jeep as he lit a cigarette.

Ari looked down and sighed, hands on his hips before his head tipped up to the sky. He then turned to Max, who simply shrugged and stuffed a piece of toast in his mouth as he followed Sammy.

***

When Hannah woke later that morning, she instinctively turned and reached for Ari, missing his touch. She was used to waking up him either holding her from behind, sometimes peppering kisses on the back of her neck or, as the case usually was, hearing him groaning and cursing as he pushed Simon off the mutt’s preferred sleeping pillow, his face. But that morning there was nothing, because Ari wasn’t there. Blinking she laid still, listening for any sound that gave his whereabouts away, but she could hear nothing at all, no sounds of the taps running, or the water from the shower splashing down into the tray. Frowning, she stretched her arm and her hand felt Ari’s side of the bed to find it was cold, well, as cold as it could be in a beach hut in Sudan with no air-con.

As she sat up, Hannah thought to herself that the most likely explanation was that Ari had just gotten up and gone for a run after he had been unable to sleep following the events of the previous thirty-six hours or so. He’d been restless all night, and no matter what she had tried to do to help, and she had to admit she had tried a lot of things to help him relax so to speak, Ari couldn’t settle completely.

Hannah sighed, remembering her attempts to soothe her Lobo’s uneasiness as her eyes roamed the hut and when her eyes landed on Ari’s bedside table she noticed his watch wasn’t on it. He never wore his watch when he went running as it irritated him but, strangely enough, his running trainers were gone too so she was at an utter loss.

“Where’s your daddy, huh?” She asked softly as she looked at Simon who moved his tail and gave a little yawn and a huff in response making her chuckle, scratching his ear. “You couldn’t care less, huh?”

Pondering, Hannah got up and, after washing and dressing, she went outside. The sun was particularly scorching that morning and she had to pull her shades down as she greeted some of the guests who were already milling about. But as hard as she tried to spot Ari, there was no sign of him on the beach. She made her way to the main building, Simon hot on her tracks, and found Jake and Rachel serving breakfast.

“You slept in.” Rachel said as she greeted her with a warm smile.

“Yeah sorry, must have been tired after everything. Guy was tossing and turning all night.” She apologised in her thick, Spanish accent, as she looked around at the various tables sporting the guests. “Where is everyone else?”

“Luca says the guys went to the market.” Rachel deadpanned, but Hannah could read the disbelief behind her words so she frowned at the blonde woman.

“To the market? Ari?” She scoffed, dropping her voice. “And with my brother?” Hannah then turned to look at Jake who had approached them but he only shrugged as she arched her brow. “You’re full of shit.”

“Hey, that’s what they told me, Red.” He repeated as he started walking into the kitchen area to fetch another tray of toast.

“Where are they really?” Hannah inquired, following him.

“Told you. Market.” Jake answered as he left the tray on the serving counter by the kitchen.

Hannah noticed he was avoiding her stare and when their eyes met for a split second she took advantage of it and glared at him. “I know you’re lying.” She hissed.

But Jake wasn’t going to give in that easily. Whilst he feared Hannah’s rant, he also feared Ari’s should he blow their cover, so he was determined to play the part he had been asked to till the very end. Thus, he had no choice but to shrug again, the expression on his face unreadable, and keep on with his breakfast duty- to bring a pot of coffee to a guest table. 

Hannah huffed in frustration and turned to Rachel. “Do you believe him?”

“Not a single word.” Rachel smiled

“Then where the hell...” she began to ask, more to herself than to her friend and team mate. And the frown on her face softened as her eyes opened wide when it suddenly dawned on her what was really happening and she groaned.

“Kabede.”

“Yeah, that makes sense.” Rachel nodded with a little sigh.

“What the fuck... why didn’t they tell us?” Hannah scoffed, her hands laying on her hips. And Rachel thought she couldn’t look more like Ari when she did that even if she tried.

“I’m betting on Ari’s stupid sense of protection.” Rachel shrugged.

“Yeah well, he’s gonna be the one needing protection when he comes home. Fucking asshole.” Hannah growled as she grabbed a piece of toast and chewed it, angrily.

****

When Ari, Max and Sammy reached the shanty town, it was instantly apparent something was wrong. They found Kabede slumped against a wall, a stab wound to his chest that Sammy suspected had resulted in a punctured lung. But his injury was completely forgotten by the man when Ari informed him that Mossad had pulled the plug on the mission.

“Mission? This is not a mission for me. This is my life. My family. You go.”

Ari was torn. Kabede was right, this was more than a mission. It had been his life for two years and on top of that, he wasn’t sure he could go back to Israel knowing that they were leaving over three hundred innocent lives behind to their fate at the hands of a tyrannical regime which, most likely, would torture and kill them once they were found.

Ari swallowed and looked at Max and Sammy, jerking his head and the three of them headed out of the hut into the heat of the sun.

“You wanna pull off one last rescue, don’t you?” Max asked once they were outside.

Ari looked at him and it was all the answer he needed to give as Sammy groaned at his silence.

 “I can't force you guys to do this one. This is up to you. You know the risks.” Ari spoke calm but determined, his mind made up.

“I'm in.” Max deadpanned as he nodded.

Ari then turned to Sammy who rolled his eyes. He looked back at Max and asked him to give Sammy and him some alone time and Max obliged, heading away without a glance back.

“Whatever you want to do, I'll back you up.” Ari told Sammy once he found the words to convey the most honest message he could give his friend. It was not the time for absurd displays of testosterone and he knew it.

 Sammy scoffed and blurted out a “Fuck you.” before bringing the cigarette to his lips.

Ari stood there, his arms folded but didn’t protest at his friend’s jab. He lifted his head to look at him instead and spoke softly. “You're right. I'm an asshole. I let my ego get in the way. I get an idea, and I go with it. I don't listen. I take risks. Sometimes it works, sometimes people get hurt. I'm sorry. And if you wanna go home, I'll back you up.”

“I'm not going home without Hannah, Ari. How can I? How can I leave her here with you?” Sammy snarled though he knew better than to raise his voice where they were.

“I’d never do anything to...” Ari began to defend himself but was cut off.

“To what? Put her in danger? You already did! By simply bringing her here, her neck has been on the block, in fact all our necks have.” Sammy hissed gesturing at him with his hand before throwing his cigarette down and stamping on it, looking up at Ari before shrugging and dropping his head again.

“Here we go again, huh?” Sammy spoke after a few seconds, his eyes piercing Ari’s before he shook his head as he walked off.

****

When they arrived back at the resort, Ari was on edge for a number of reasons and his anxiety was compounded when Hannah railed at him for leaving without telling her where he was going. After a very heated exchange, he finally managed to calm her down enough to get her to listen along with Rachel and Jake as he filled them in on what he, Max and Sammy had found. When Ari explained that he needed either her or Rachel to go with them to pick up the refugees, Hannah nodded and said she would go, much to Sammy’s annoyance. But as usual, she paid her brother absolutely no attention whatsoever.

The problem Ari had, was that he was back to operating with no plan. His priority was getting the refugees out of harm’s way but after that, he was flying blind and banking on managing to talk Ethan around. But, as usual, he was in act now, think later mode. And for the most, it was working. The collection went without a hitch, and a few hours later, just as darkness had fallen, they were pulling back up to the resort.

And then they spotted the military jeeps.

Ari exchanged a look with Hannah who let out a curse and an exhale as she too spotted their unwelcome visitors. Ari hopped out of the truck, and motioned to Max and Sammy, indicating the jeeps. They both nodded to show they’d understood, and then he took Hannah’s hand.

“Follow my lead, okay?” He looked at her, squeezing his fingers around hers and she nodded as they headed inside. Ari began to laugh and Hannah, picking up on his signal, grinned at him as he closed the lattice door behind them, his hand still round hers, the other running through his hair. He gave a little false surprised start as he looked at the man in front of him, his best acting skills on show as he gave the man a smile and a puzzled look.

“Colonel. To what do we owe this pleasure?”

“I was just treating my men to some of Abu Aziz's famous cooking.” The man drawled back.

“Great,” Ari let go of Hannah's hand and planted his palm on the base of her back, guiding her forward, “let's not keep him waiting.”

They both walked past him, smiling at a few other guests, but Ahmed didn’t follow. “Stop.” He spoke loudly and Ari did as he was told, glancing at Hannah before the pair of them turned to look at him. “I just want to see what is in the back of your truck.”

“What for?” Ari shot back, a frown on his face, his stomach in nervous knots.

“It will please me.” Ahmed gave a huge grin displaying his bright white teeth before he barked something in Arabic to a soldier who obediently ran off.

Ari looked at Hannah, then to Rachel, fake puzzlement on his face as the two women both gave an exaggerated shrug, feigning nonchalance. There was a lot of shouting, as they all waited with bated breath, but eventually Ahmed’s smug grin slipped and Ari felt a huge wave of relief wash over him.

But, his relief didn’t last long. As they sat for dinner, the soldiers continued to patrol around the resort and the tension in the air was palpable, not merely across the team but also the guests. Ari was getting more and more frustrated and nervous as the seconds passed not least because he actually had no idea where Max and Sammy had hidden the refugees. He cleared his throat a little, his right arm leaning on the back of his chair, almost facing Hannah who was sat next to him, her body language tense. His left hand dropped to her back, gently rubbing circles over her T-shirt which was tacky with sweat as they both watched a soldier who walked amongst the tables, with his rifle held in his arms.

“Is there something I can help them find?” Ari turned to Ahmed.

“They are just doing their jobs.” The man shrugged before he looked at Nathifa who had come to clear away their starter plates, and began speaking once more in Arabic. Ari, Hannah, Jake and Rachel all exchanged a look. Whilst they had no idea what was being said, they could hazard a pretty good guess the man was digging for information. As he watched, in the corner of his eyes, Ari saw Rachel glance around, before she turned to him, taking a deep breath.

“I'll be right back,” she stood up. Hannah’s eyes followed her before she glanced at Jake who met her puzzled expression with one of his own. Giving a little cough, she reached for her glass of water at the same time Ari shifted in his seat, his hand dropping to Hannah’s thigh as he spoke to Nathifa who was now visibly distressed.

“Nathifa, go help Aziz with the food.”

Taking her leave, she did just that and a few minutes later their main course arrived. But, unlike normal, the entire resort was pretty much silent bar the chatter of the soldiers who were raucous around the table. Ari really wasn’t hungry, none of them were, they were too nervous as it wasn’t just their safety that was on the line but the hundreds of refugees hidden around the place, not to mention the guests who were all equally as tense at the armed guards. Taking Ari’s lead, Hannah forced herself to eat, keeping up appearances, and after what felt like a lifetime Ahmed placed his knife and fork down, letting out an appreciative noise. 

“This was delicious.” He waved his arms over the table. “Maybe I'll bring Abu Aziz to come cook for me, hey?”  He let out a chuckle as Nathifa made to move away with the plates, but in a flash he reached up and grabbed her arm, once more speaking in Arabic. And none of them needed to be able to understand the language to know the man was being forceful, and the young girl was scared.

Ari took a deep breath through his nose as Hannah’s hand dropped to his thigh and he steadied himself, quelling the anger that was simmering in his mind at the assholes treatment of the girl he had hold of. When he spoke, his voice was calm but stern, a far cry from how he felt inside. “Don't do that,” he shook his head, his gaze locked on Ahmed, who simply stared back at him, that arrogant, smug nature he exuded was almost suffocating. The man tossed his head at Ari, goading him further as he made a simple noise of questioning whilst he continued to feel up the young woman, his hand round her waist, rubbing up and down her thigh.

Ari clenched his teeth together, Hannah’s nails now digging painfully into his leg through his denims and he was aware of the deathly silence that had filled the room, all eyes now on him and Ahmed waiting to see how the clash of the two alphas was going to play out.

“Do you know why I love Hadandawa women?” Ahmed snorted as his hand slid round to Nathifa’s ass. “Because they are absolutely wild in the sack.” With a laugh he pulled her onto his lap as the soldiers around laughed as she let out a sob of protest.

“Hey!” A voice shouted from the rear of the room and Hannah turned her head slightly to see Rachel had returned and was stood a little behind them, her eyes fixed on the scene as it played out, her face set in anger. And then, in the corner of her eye, Hannah saw Ari slipping the steak knife off the table, his hand clenched around the wooden handle. His entire body was coiled like a snake, ready to attack, and Hannah knew he’d reached the point where if he was pushed anymore he wouldn’t think once, let alone twice.

Ahmed ignored Rachel completely, and continued his disgusting little monologue. “Because they don't feel anything down there.”

Hannah glanced at Jake, who shook his head slightly as he too had noticed Ari take the knife, and Hannah realised then she had to diffuse the situation before someone got killed. Ari might be fast, and strong, and in normal circumstances she’d bet on him to win, but these soldiers had guns. And he wouldn’t stand a chance, none of them would.

“Their fathers cut them when they are very young, so...” Ahmed chuckled, his hand straying across Nathifa’s thighs travelling slowly upwards. “You have to be very rough for them to feel anything at all.”

Hannah felt Ari besides her, moving as if he was going to get up, but before he got the chance, she reached over and deliberately knocked the water jug across the table. There was a sudden flurry of activity, as the liquid spread across the table, some of the soldiers jumping out of its way, and Ahmed made a clicking noise and pushed Nathifa up off his lap as the pool of water spread towards him. The sudden movement caused the girl to stumble to the floor and before Ari could stop her, Hannah jumped up to help.

“Do you have to be rough with your girl, Mr Thomas?” Ahmed asked, and Ari’s eyes flicked to his, his palm gripping at the knife even more as the man’s eyes moved to Hannah, a grin on his face. “Does she like it? Maybe I should try and see.”

And that was it, Ari was done. No one threatened his girl, no one.

Ahmed’s hand moved towards Hannah as she helped Nathifa to her feet, but his fingers had barely brushed her arm before Ari was out of his chair and right in front of the asshole.

“Don’t you lay a finger on her,” he hissed, the blade of the knife pressed into the man’s neck, fury radiating from every inch of his body as he glared at the man who dared to threaten his girl. Around him, soldiers were all raising their guns as everyone else stood stock still, the sound of his own breathing was all that Ari heard for a moment before Ahmed smirked.

“Or what? Huh? What is it that you are planning on doing with that knife, Mr. Thomas?”

“Hopefully just eat my dinner.” Ari’s voice was low but threatening, because consequences be damned, he wouldn’t think twice about slitting the man open, ear to ear. The two men faced off, neither backing down, the tension simmering until Ahmed eventually gestured for the soldiers to lower their guns. As they did so, Ari let out a deep breath, the hand holding the knife dropping slowly, his eyes not leaving Ahmed for a second.

Which was a mistake, as he missed the soldier approaching him from behind. The first he knew about it was a scream from Hannah at the same time he registered a searing pain as he was clubbed on the back of the head by the butt of a rifle. With a grunt, Ari fell to his knees, hands clutched to the back of his head as stars exploded in front of his eyes. His hands clutched to the back of his head in an attempt to alleviate some of the pain as he slumped back against the leg of the table, his head spinning. He blinked as Hannah dropped to her knees in front of him, her hands reaching to cup his face as he struggled to focus. He was aware that a few people were talking, and then there was a flurry of movement, and he blinked again, the room fading back into view as Hannah looked at him, her eyes full of tears.

“Lobo? Hey, let me see.” She whispered and he shook his head, swallowing as he brought his hand back in front of his face to check for blood. There was none.

“I’m okay.” He nodded to her, and she looked at him for a second before she stood and offered him her hand. He took it and rose to his feet, the other hand still pressed to the back of his head as he watched the remaining soldiers leave the room. The last one had barely left before he moved and pulled Hannah to him, his arms wrapping around her as he grimaced against the throbbing in his skull. Taking a deep breath he held Hannah’s trembling frame tightly, pressing a kiss to her head.

“Did he hurt you?” he asked, cupping her face and she shook her head.

“He barely touched me, Ari. I’m more worried about you.”

“He shouldn’t have even done that.” Ari ignored her concern as he shook his head, swallowing. He turned his head to glance around at the guests who were all watching with trepidation. With a nod, he gestured to the kitchen just as Max and Sammy both appeared and the team headed away from prying eyes.  

Ari immediately headed to the lattice screens over the windows, his hand wrapped around Hannah’s as the pair of them watched the jeeps driving off.

“They're gonna be back soon. With numbers.” Ari said, as he turned to look at his team over his shoulder as he felt that horrible, shitty cold feeling of dread flood his system. Their timescales had just shrunk, dramatically.

“Especially when they figure out they're one man short.” Max sighed.

“What do you mean?” Hannah frowned. “What did you do?”

At that, Max shot a pointed look at Rachel as Sammy looped an arm round her shoulder, giving her a squeeze. Ari blinked as Rachel looked up at him, swallowing, and he gave a groan as he realised what was going on.

“Where is he?”

Less than a minute later the group of them were looking at exactly where he was. Dead on the floor of a hut. As they all stared down at the deceased soldier, none of them sure what the next steps were, Ari was frantically wracking his brain for a solution. This was his responsibility as leader after all.

But, it was Sammy that broke the silence to state the obvious. “We need a plan, Ari, and fast.”

Painfully aware that Sammy was right, Ari rubbed his face with his hand before he took a deep breath. He had been hoping to back Ethan into a corner and force him to backtrack and effectively mount one last rescue op before they all bailed, but that had completely gone out of the window. There’s no way they could even attempt it, not now that Ahmed was into them and one of his soldiers lay dead by his feet.

This was a fucking mess, and Ari suddenly found himself wishing there was one of Bowen’s dammed cargo planes coming for them…

Oh. Oh...

“Okay.” Ari gave a nod as the bones of a plan formed in his mind, letting out a deep exhale as he turned to Rachel and Jake. “Buy me a day, make sure they're taken care of but completely invisible. Don't let the staff in here.” Rachel nodded as he looked round at the guys in turn as he spoke. “Max, Sammy, take the truck, get the rest of the group.” He then looked at Hannah, squeezing her hand. “You and I gotta call Ethan.”

And you’re not leaving my side till we’re out of this fucking country…

Hannah looked at him, frowning a little and Ari knew why. Given that Ethan had warned him not to go near the remaining refugees he knew he was in for it. But he didn’t give a shit. Ethan could yell at him all he wanted, Ari’s priority now was his team and the hundreds of frightened people they had hid at the resort.

Quietly they all left the hut, peeling off in different directions. Rachel and Jake strode back up to the main part of the resort to see to the remaining guests that were still milling around following dinner, whilst Max and Sammy headed off to the trucks. Ari led Hannah back towards the resort a little behind Jake and Rachel, running through his plan in his head. It was such a long shot, but the only one they had.

“What are you gonna do, Ari?” Hannah’s voice was soft and he paused, turning to look at her.

“I’m gonna tell Ethan we need imminent extraction.”

“What? He can’t. There’s no exfil plan!” Her eyes widened as she shook her head. “And even if he could, now we have like three hundreds refugees after he told you not to get them!”

Ari dropped his head, hands on hips. “I know, sweetheart, which is why we’re gonna have to play the Bowen card.” His eyes met Hannah’s as she hesitated, and then frowned, opening her mouth to no doubt protest but Ari cut her off. “He knows who we are and what we’re doing, Han. He even mentioned your father’s name.”

“Yes, but what the fuck makes you think he can help when our own government can’t?” She shook her head. “Ari, this…”

“He talked about cargo planes, didn’t he?” Ari pressed. “Coming to evacuate them all?”

“Yeah, but... “

“We just have to convince him to get us one.” Ari shrugged, as if it was an easy and obvious solution, but he wasn’t fooling Hannah. She scoffed and snorted.

“Why would the US give a shit about-“

“You got a better idea?” Ari snapped, “because if you have, now is the time to share it.”

 Hanna’s mouth pressed tightly into a thin line and she folded her arms across her chest, looking away. Ari gave a sigh, and when he spoke his voice was softer, contrite almost, but still carried an unmissable tone of frustration.

“Just hear me out!” Ari implored as Hannah continued to stare into the distance. “Because it’s the only thing I got. And last time I checked I was still in charge.”

Hannah raised her eyebrows at that, and after what felt like an age, she turned to face him, her face stony and Ari took a deep breath as she looked at him.

“Go on then.” She instructed as Ari raked his fingers through his hair, the way he always did when he was stressed or thinking.

“We reach out to Bowen tomorrow, come clean,” he licked his lips, the salty taste of his sweat mixed with the sea air stung his tongue as he took a deep breath. “If we can get Ethan on side he might be able to pull some strings, get our people to call his.”

Hannah blinked, before she shook her head, letting out a deep breath from her nose. “If you say so.”

Her tone was flat and Ari’s shoulders sagged a little as he glanced out over the dark surface of the ocean. She didn’t think it was going to work, and even he had to admit he wasn’t sure it would either. But right now, he could see no option. They were past being discreet, this wasn’t merely dangerous, it was now a straight out battle between life and death, and he wasn’t going to sit around and simply wait for the inevitable to happen.

“Hannah, I know it’s a long shot…” He turned back to look at her as she gave a derisive snort as she met his eyes.

“Long? That’s an understatement-“

“-but right now it’s the only shot we have!” His voice rose once more as he threw his arms out to his side, his palms slapping against the outside of this thighs as the snapped back down. “So I’m gonna take it, with or without your help.”

Hannah’s tongue poked the inside of her cheek and Ari could tell she was biting back another response, undoubtedly a smart quip about this being no change from normal, that he came up with these off-the-cuff ideas and ran with them, because he was a reckless asshole. But this time was different, he was in a corner and there was no alternative but to come out fighting. And, unlike normal, he was unable to find it in him to assure her it was all gonna be okay because he didn’t know it would be, not for certain. And he couldn’t lie to her.

Instead he waited, impatiently, simply watching as she stared back at him, an expression on her face so like Sammy’s when he too thought Ari was being a dick, as she shook her head, her tongue making a clicking noise against her teeth. “Fine.” She popped her shoulder. “Let’s call Ethan.”

*****

As predicted, Ethan blew his absolute fucking shit. He railed at Ari and Hannah over the radio, firing Ari, again. Both of them knew better than to interrupt his mad rant so they let him continue his angry diatribe until he finally finished and Ari picked up the conversation calmly and quietly. As he spoke and explained the spark of idea, Ethan’s logic kicked in and he agreed to do what he could at his end, but reminded them what they were already painfully aware of, essentially they were on their own. This whole operation had been illegal and off radar of the main Israeli government, so whilst Ethan was certainly able to provide them with a glimmer of an idea as to where they could exit the country, it was completely up to them to sort the when and how.

They spent the rest of the evening going over how they were going to approach Bowen and pull this off, Ari growing increasingly frustrated at the fact he didn't have the answers to Jake and Rachel’s questions. Eventually, Max and Sammy arrived back, and their attention then diverted to getting the remaining refugees quickly and quietly into the huts, providing medical treatment where needed and then some food. By the time that was done and the group reconvened in the kitchen area, it was almost half past three in the morning. To Ari's surprise, when he explained his plan to go to Khartoum and that he wanted Hannah to go with him, Sammy raised no objections, most likely because he was as keen to put as much distance between her and the potential returning soldiers as possible. And, whilst they were effectively about to officially blow their cover to the CIA, the US Embassy was the safest place for any of them to be.

They both took a quick shower and changed, Hannah dressing in a pair of faded jeans which grazed her ankles along with a pair of sneakers, whilst Ari pulled on a denim shirt and a pair of dark jeans before he sat on the edge of the bed to push his feet into his trusty boots as Hannah tied her hair back with a scrunchy. They then took Simon down to Max knowing the dog would try and follow the jeep unless he was occupied, and made a swift and quiet exit.

Ari could have driven the long journey to Khartoum with his eyes closed, it felt he'd done it that often over the past two years, but he was glad his eyes were firmly open as they both got to see the stunning sun rise over the desert horizon. It was a slight reprieve in an otherwise tense journey, both of them caught up in thoughts about what they had to do. At one point, however, Hannah fell silent mid discussion and Ari turned to see she'd fallen asleep. With a soft smile, he turned his attention back to the road happy to leave her to it. She might be exhausted but she was safe.

They arrived at the US Embassy at just gone Nine-Thirty, and a flash of Ari's 'Guy' Passport saw them through the guarded gate.

“Can I help you?” The receptionist looked up and Ari flashed her his most charming smile.

“We’re here to see Walton Bowen.”

“Do you have an appointment?” The woman beamed back, batting her eyelids at Ari, but before he could try and win her over with any more of his charm, Hannah rolled her eyes and cut in.

“We don’t need one.” She gave the woman a curt smile. “Tell him Guy Thomas and Rosa Gomez are here. He’ll see us.”

The receptionist blinked and Ari looked away, fighting the smirk that was threatening to spread across his face at Hannah’s tone. She kept her eyes on the receptionist, her mannerism not faltering for a second and the woman behind the desk gave a little cough as she reached for the phone. After a short conversation she replaced the receiver and looked up.

“He’s going to send someone down to collect you, in the mean time I’ll need you to sign in as Visitors.”

“Thank you.” Hannah replied sweetly as the woman slid over the register she needed them to fill in before she moved to a filing cabinet at the back. “What?” Hannah raised an eyebrow at Ari who simply shook his head.

“Nothing, Firefly.”

Less than five minutes later they were being led into the office upstairs, Bowen greeting them both in the main part before he led them through to a smaller room at the back which was clearly his office. They both politely declined his offer of something to drink, taking a seat opposite where Bowen himself sat at his desk. Ari’s hands clasped together in his lap as he took a deep breath, his eyes on Bowen,

“So, are you going to finally tell me who you really are?”

Frustration filled Ari’s system at how deliberately obtuse the guy was being. “You know who we are.” Ari’s voice was calm but authoritative, indicating that he wasn’t in the mood for whatever stupid horseplay Bowen was trying to tease them into. “I wish we had time to play games, but we don't.”

“Right.” Bowen was completely unfazed by Ari’s tone as he leant back in his chair, gesturing to them both “But I'd really like to hear it. From you.”

At that Hannah stiffened and took a deep breath, she was pissed off too. Ari gently laid a hand on her arm, as he turned to Bowen.

“Hypothetically?” Ari spoke, his eyes fixed on the man. “I'm the Israeli government.”

“Well fuckin' shalom.” Bowen’s voiced was laced with sarcasm as his eyebrow raised, a smirk on his face. Ari took a deep breath as he narrowed his eyes, Hannah making an angry noise through her nose as she shook her head, glancing around the room, teeth worrying at her bottom lip in a nervous, yet irritated manner.

“Let's assume for a second that we know something about these disappearing refugees.” Ari broke the tense silence. “And, we theoretically need your help getting about four hundred of them out of the country, immediately.”

 “Oh?” Bowen questioned, although both Ari and Hannah could tell he wasn’t in the least surprised. “How would I do that?”

“You mentioned planes.” Hannah looked at him as she crossed her left leg over her right. “Here on the ground in Khartoum, cargo planes.”

“Uh-huh.” Bowen replied, taking a deep breath before he shook his head. “Even if I could help you, Ari and Hannah.” He paused, levelling Ari with a look as Ari stiffened at the use of their real names whereas besides him Hannah merely blinked. “I don't have that kind of pull.”

“Okay, look,” Hannah uncrossed her legs and leaned forward, hands resting on her knees, “my dad didn’t found Mossad for you to come in riding shit shot over everything we’ve done or are trying to do.” She paused as Bowen took a deep breath, not an inch of surprise on his features confirming Hannah’s suspicions that he knew a dammed site more than just their names. “These are our people. They’re hungry, sick and being persecuted in a way you couldn’t possibly imagine. So much so that they’re willing to risk their lives to escape. Now, if we don’t find a way to get them out of here, then you’re gonna have a massacre not only on your hands but your conscience. So, I’ll ask again, are you gonna fucking help us or not?”

Her voice as steely, and as Ari looked at her, she was radiating a deathly, silent fury, fire burning in her eyes and for the first time since they’d started their meeting, Bowen’s cocky demeanour faltered a little as he shifted uncomfortably under her glare.

Despite everything, Ari couldn’t help but smile at how quickly Hannah had turned this round on Bowen by calling him out and he was reminded exactly why he had wanted her on the mission in the first place. Sure, her skills lay in the medical field but in situations like this she was fearless, quick thinking and had an authority about her when she was in this mood that could make the bravest of men quake in their boots. Right there and then, he didn’t think he could love her any more if he tried.

And he was also highly inappropriately turned on.

Bowen sighed and shook his head, an apologetic look on his face, his body language now shifting from cautious to open. “Honestly, the best I can do is talk to my bosses.”

“Well then,” Hannah nodded to the two phones on his desk, her arms folding back over her chest, chin jutting upwards in a display of defiance, “get talking.”

Bowen looked at her before he took a deep sigh and picked up the phone. From then on in it was a flurry of calls, back and forth it went as Ari explained in detail his idea and what he had agreed with Ethan.

For hours the wrangling went on until Bowen made the final call and informed them there was nothing more he could do formally. Ari, frustrated by the amount of red tape the man seemed to be caught up in had started pacing up and down, hand running through his beard. Hannah remained nervously in her seat, her foot tapping the leg of Bowen’s desk as the man gave her a small smile.

And then the red phone rang.

All three of them looked at it, Hannah rising to her feet as Bowen took a deep breath before he reached to pick it up, but Ari stopped him, hurrying over from his spot in the doorway, panic flooding his system as he suddenly realised there was a pretty big chance this wasn’t gonna go the way they wanted.

“Wait, wait, wait!” His large hand curled on the receiver to prevent Bowen answering as it continued to ring shrilly. “I don't know what this person's gonna tell you. They may tell you to throw me out of the building or the country, but I promise you, what you do right now will be your legacy.” He paused as Bowen looked at him. “When you look back on this moment, it will either fill you with great pride, or great shame.”

Bowen looked at him, before Ari moved back and he picked up the phone. “This is Walton.”

Ari and Hannah exchanged looks, her hand slipping into his giving it a squeeze as Bowen spoke. Eventually, he put the phone down and took a deep breath.  

“They told me to throw you out.” He shrugged and Hannah felt her heart sink.

“Fuck!” Ari slammed his hand on the desk before he stood up, both hands flying through his hair.

“But lucky for you, we’re cut from the same cloth Ari, I don’t much care for stupid decisions from up the chain either.” Ari blinked, his hands dropping to his side as he stared at Bowen, who shrugged a little. “You’re right, I don’t want four hundred deaths on my conscience so I’ll get you a plane, but I can only get you one.”

Ari let’s out a sigh of relief, his mouth dry as he thanked every single one of his damned lucky stars. He turned to Hannah who was looking up at the ceiling, swallowing and blinking back tears, letting out the breath she had been holding pretty much since the phone rang.

“We got a thirty minute window tonight.” Bowen continued, as he turned and walked to a filing cabinet, pulling out a scroll “I can’t buy any more time.” With a flourish he unrolled the paper out onto his desk and Hannah instantly spotted it was a map as he pinned it down with a stapler at one side and a book at the other. He glanced up at Ari then Hannah, pointing to it.  “You mentioned an air field?”

****

By the time they had fleshed out their plan, which involved numerous calls on secure lines back to Mossad HQ, it was almost two in the afternoon, and Ari was conscious that they needed to go if they were to stand any chance of meeting the schedule. After bidding Bowen a hasty good bye, they made their way swiftly to the jeep, hopped in and Ari sped away from the embassy back down the main road that would lead them out of Khartoum for what Ari was hoping would be the last time.

They felt like it was taking forever, and this time it was the setting sun that filled their eyes as Ari navigated the jeep down the deserted dirt track through the desert, once more avoiding the main road. They made small talk, a mix tape playing over the speakers as they went, Hannah mostly concentrating on going over their plan so they had it down to the last detail. But after a few hours, Ari had fallen silent and had taken to huffing impatiently, the foot which wasn’t pressed on the accelerator was jiggling nervously and his jaw was clenching in that tell-tale way. After half an hour or so of watching this silently, Hannah instructed him to pull over and take a moment before they had an accident, something he was extremely reticent to do but obliged anyway because she knew she was right. He needed to stretch his legs and clear his mind as much as he could. He would be no use to anyone if he arrived home in this state. He needed to be calm, focussed and together.

Ari left the ignition running, in case they needed to make a quick get-away and climbed out of the vehicle where he had pulled off the dirt track slightly and parked in the shelter of two sand dunes. He cracked his neck, ran his hand through his hair and began pacing a little, his toes scuffing at a few loose rocks as he took a deep breath, while Hannah watched from her spot against the rear fender of the jeep where she leaned back against the warm metal, her eyes tracking his every movement.

Ari bit his lip as he paced, running anxious hands through his hair, wringing them together, murmuring to himself. He thought back to his conversation with Sammy the day before and the incident in the dining room which until now, he had managed to compartmentalise. He was so desperate and determined to get this escape out properly without further damage to any of them, not least make sure Hannah was safe, that he had focussed all his energy and mental capacity on plotting and organising their route out. But now, the realisation of how close he had come to risking everything getting blown in a split second crashed over him, and it felt like a knife in the gut that was being slowly twisted, compounded by a constant hammer on the head, reminding him of exactly how dire the situation was.

Abruptly, he quit pacing and stalked over to Hannah, his hands cupped her face and crashed his lips to hers in a kiss that was bruising and possessive, but ever so careful as well, a combination Ari managed effortlessly when it came to his Firefly. “I love you. I love you so much...” he mumbled against her mouth.

She made no protest, bar a huff of surprise, but she welcomed him, almost like she needed the release as much as he did. Their kisses became more heated, and before he knew what he was doing, Ari's hand was fumbling for the door. Then effort was clumsy at best, teeth clashing together as he blindly pried the door open and pushed her inside till she was lying on the backseat.

Hannah grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him down to her, furiously kissing him, teeth clashing, beard scratching as she emptied every single emotion she was feeling into his mouth as he pressed her into the well-worn, creaky back bench of the jeep, groaning as he ground his hips down against hers. It wasn’t comfortable, trying to contort his large frame across the rear of the car but, right at that moment, comfort was the last thing on his mind as her hands tangled into his hair, nails scraping his scalp as she keened underneath him.

Ari pulled away if only for a second but Hannah's eyes told him everything he wanted to hear.

"Make me yours, Lobo," she whispered against his ear as his lips nipped and licked at her neck.

"You're already mine, Firefly," he all but growled, moving so that he had one leg bent on the bench, the other extended into the rear foot-well. The clanging of buckles, zipping of trousers and the rustling of fabric filled the car as, with a swift, hurried movement, Ari undone his belt and jeans, shoving them and his boxers down over his hips, just enough to allow his erection to spring free.

With a feral movement, he swatted Hannah’s hands away from where they were fumbling with the flies at the top of her own faded blue denims and quickly pulled them and her panties down over one of her legs, leaving her to kick them off the other, or not, he didn’t give a shit as long as they weren’t in the way. He shoved her legs apart as best he could, the tight position of the back seat giving them little room as she braced herself against the door arms above her head palms flat against the door.

Ari wasn’t wasting any time, because they simply didn’t have any to waste. Not only were they up against the clock due to their schedule, if they got caught as they were, out in the open, well, there was a jail cell waiting for both of them, and all things considered, had he been thinking straight he wouldn’t have instigated any of this. But he wasn’t, he never was as far as this woman was concerned.

Laying back over her, with a long, deep rut forward he thrust up into her, making her groan loudly as he nipped roughly at her neck whilst he retracted his hips and thrust back into her, harder still. A few thrusts later, his hips were set in a rhythm, snapping back and forth with a pace and a vigour that was merciless as he pistoned in and out of her again and again. His hands firmly gripping her hips as his lips met hers in a hard, deep kiss which was furious, tongues lashing against one another, obscene noises filling the vehicle, the inside of which was already hot and sweaty thanks to the heat of the day still being present, and was growing muggier by the second thanks to the heavy, exertive activities taking place on the back seat.

After a particularly deep thrust, an animalistic growl burst from his throat as one of her hands snaked into his long hair and gave a tug. As he glanced down at her, he could see the pupils of her eyes were blown wide with a desire he would never tire of seeing.  She titled her hips up against him, causing him to drive deeper and she let out an almost primal cry he had never, in all their times of being intimate together, heard her make before. It simply revved him up even more, his rapid movements growing even more urgent.

“Fuck, Lobo,” she moaned, her head falling back, smacking against the metal of the car door as Ari thrust into her harder over and over again and it wasn’t long before he felt the tell-tale flutter of her clamping around him, a sign she was close and her hands flew from where they’d been braced against the door to his back.

“Firefly,” his hand reached up, grasping her chin between his finger and thumb, forcing her face round to his and his lips claimed hers once more. “Come on, baby,” he panted against her mouth, his thrusting pausing for a moment as he ground up against her, causing her to cry out. “Cum for me, Hannah.”

Another rotation of his hips saw her mouth drop open in as she chanted his name, again and again, her tight heat gripping him like a vice as she came, her back arching, hands clawing at his skin over his denim shirt. The bite of pain from her nails overwhelmed him and he felt his own stomach tighten.

“Shit, Hannah, I’m gonna…” His words tumbled into her hair as his movements became desperate before his hips stuttered as he came with a surge that made the world around him go silent, almost like someone was squeezing the air out of him inch by inch.

They lay there in a tangle of clothing and limbs, chests heaving, sweat glistening on every part of their bodies that was exposed, clothes sticking to the parts that weren’t. Ari held his girl to him, panting and shaking, and he was desperate not to let her go, but he was also painfully aware that their stolen time together today was coming to an end. As he managed to gain enough control push himself up on his arms, Hannah looked up at him, gently brushing the tendrils of hair that had fallen over his face back, raised her head, her lips pressing gently to his in a soft, tender kiss, a stark contrast to the violent ones they had shared moments before.

“Marry me.” He said softly, his eyes only on hers, awaiting her answer. 

Hannah blinked as the two simple words resonated in her brain and those gorgeous eyes that Ari could stare into all day long grew wide in surprise. “What?” Her question was nothing more than a breathy whisper and Ari took a deep breath, before he spoke again, his voice clearer than it had been moments ago.

“Marry me, Hannah.”

As he watched her process his request, her eyes began to water and a single tear trickled down her cheek. Ari reached up to wipe it away, his hand shaking a little with nervous apprehension. Had he overstepped? It really wasn’t how he’d ever seen himself asking her, in a million years, but he wanted her to know just how much he did love and need her, especially as they were about to embark on the most dangerous part of their mission yet.  And if it did go wrong, then at least she would know what she meant to him truly.

“Han?” He managed to croak her name out as she laid there, simply looking at him. And after what felt like an age, she gave a sniff and then the faintest nod.

But a nod nonetheless.

“Yeah?” Ari inhaled, hardly daring to believe it but then her face cracked into a huge smile and she nodded once more.

“Yes! A million times yes! It’s always been you, Ari Levinson.”

He spluttered a happy chuckle as her words sunk in and the sheer joy flooded his system at her answer, the love he felt for her warm in his chest like a talisman as she beamed at him. Grinning like  the Cheshire cat, he closed the small space between them, sealing their engagement with a kiss. As much as he wanted to slowly make love to her until the sun crested the dunes and the stars started to shine, they were on a time crunch and this little detour would have already set them back some. But it was all fucking worth it, it would be. He had to believe it, or no one else would. 

They made themselves presentable and began the rest of their journey back to the resort, time no longer on their side. And as Ari drove, Hannah's left hand nestled lovingly and snuggly in his right, he pressed his lips to her knuckles. 

“I didn't mean for this.” Ari sighed as he glanced at her and then back to the dirt road ahead. “Well, I did in a way but not for it to end like this. I don’t know how I would have made it through any of this without you.”

“Ari.....” Hannah gave a little tsk. “You’ve pulled a lot of missions without me in the picture.”

“Maybe but,” Ari shook his head, “this is different.”

Hannah sighed now herself and leaned over to kiss his cheek, “the Red Sea Diving Resort will always have a place in our hearts, huh? If we make it, that is.”

“Don’t...” Ari shook his head. “Don’t say that. It’s gonna be fine.”

“I really wanna believe you.” She whispered, looking down at their entwined hands, taking a deep breath. “In an ideal world, then yeah, but I don’t know, Ari. I’m scared.”

He felt defeat in that moment, for he wanted nothing more than for Hannah to feel safe and secure. His body slumped a little in his seat and for a little while he didn't utter a word, his mind reeling and when he spoke his voice was a sad, barely there whisper. “I’m sorry, Firefly. I’m so sorry I dragged you into this. Fuck...Sammy’s right, I’m an asshole, I...”

“Hey!” Hannah cut him off sternly, “You listen to me right now, I wouldn’t change this, any of it for the world. It brought you back to me and even now I’d go back and do it all over, just to make sure we had these last two years.” She trailed off with a little swallow and a shrug as Ari took a deep breath. 

“We’ll have more, Han. We didn’t go through all this to fail now. We’re gonna make it. We have to.” It was a plea more than a statement, his eyes searching hers as she held his gaze, pleading with her to give him this, assure him he was right, because for once in his life, Ari Levinson wanted his gut feeling to be wrong.

And she did.  “Okay. If you’re telling me that then I trust you.”

Despite the tension of the day, Ari felt himself relax a little, both from the touch of her hand against his and by her words. He pressed a soft kiss again to the topside of her hand.

He couldn't admit it, maybe later once this was all over he would, but he was scared too. 

**** Chapter 15

[harley-style]

DREAM SMP Swap AU

Dream = Wilbur : Dream comes into the server to help these two kids who are trying to stir shit up -- why not, right? He's got a fondness for chaos but also very protective and caring over his friends. VERY FOND OF TUBBO. To the point of.. well, brotherhood. Wilbur = Dream : He had a vision, to create a place where people could emancipate -- he's not above being the bad guy to keep that ideal in place. He's charming and self-confident and isn't afraid to use blackmail or get all up in your business. Has dirt on everyone but Dream. Constantly threatens secrets but subtle, yanno? Again, very charming, very persuasive.

Tubbo = Tommy : Still very sweet, but Big Crime often comes out to play more often than not. Also a huge trouble magnet, tried to start a...Honey smuggling empire? For some fucking reason, despite its innocent sounding plan, is a threat to Wilbur's land but no one has any idea why. Tommy = Tubbo : Tommy has an innate fucking fixation on music discs. He's got Cat and Mellohi personally. He dreams of starting up a music cafe/music area...? He and Dream get along swimmingly, Dream actually gifts Tommy a few music discs too, but also pins Tommy with the name discount Dave Strider.

Fundy = Eret : Was convinced earlier on by Wilbur to continue his 'legacy' and ideals. Fundy further grows into a neutral party, doing things only when it benefits him. Is the traitor from the first war. Eret = Fundy : Gets far too involved with stuff and the only way out is if he wiggles through the restraints on him. Yes that's metaphorical.

JSchlatt = Technoblade : Assists through uses of contracts and business deals. Like, hello, Tubbo's Honey smuggling business? He and Dream make an agreement, he supplies Dream and Tubbo with shit, and Dream does favors for Schlatt. Technoblade = Jschlatt : Anarchy lmfao. Was actually brought on by Wilbur in secret. Acted as a benefactor for Dream before turning around and causing chaos in the land Dream Tubbo and Tommy built. Blood for the blood god, only the strongest gets to the top kind of government. There's always fucking pitfights. Oops.

Philza = Callahan : Largely uninvolved in the events, mostly just there to supervise Wilbur, Tommy and Techno. Duh. Callahan = Philza : Has personal history with Dream, tries to convince him not to do the thing that could hurt everyone else. Minimally succeeds.

Alyssa = Niki : Ready to defend her home and her family. Niki = Alyssa : Neutral, but ready to back Wilbur up if need be.

Sapnap = Bad : Arsonist, goes around and burns shit whenever he wants to. His base is a Nether inspired fortress. Also, he has to deal with a Nether problem in reference to the Red Vine problem from the original SMP. Hotlands? LMFAO Bad = Sapnap : Helps when asked. Started out on Wilbur's side, as a favor, but slowly shifts neutral due to the conflict between factions.

Karl = Skeppy : Gets held hostage? That's what preoccupies Sapnap's time. He suddenly disappeears or gets trapped in a cell. Skeppy = Karl : Runs around doing supply runs. Gets his friends into various stints to try and settle the conflict through friendly rivalry and competition. It doesn't always work.

George = Ranboo : Unlike original Ranboo, George is highly unsympathetic and needs concrete fucking facts before he acts, and that kind of backfires on him in the end. As a favor to Dream (how many favors is Dream involved in honestly) he runs messages back and forth from Tubbo to Tommy. Ranboo = George : Largely uninvolved in the conflict, like Niki, but unlike OG George, is not absent. He's just there to assist. One of the most innocent and purest people on the SMP, knows when to keep his head down. When his house burns down, he doesn't really believe its Tubbo who did it -- he knows the kid has been framed because he'd been WITH him at the time, but Wilbur pressures him to admit it.

Quackity = Punz : Wilbur's loyal paid henchman. Quackity will cause shit for the appropriate price, he's not exceptionally picky. That stunt he did as Mexican Dream was great and everyone in L'Manberg loved it. Punz = Quackity : One of the best fighters under Techno. Has more morals, but keeps them secretly. Very good at hiding his true intentions/feelings.

(sorry about the other characters not being on here, i dont know them enough to make swaps, or dont know who they'd make a good swap with. Swap who you wanna swap though! i'd like to hear your take on this matter! HEADCANONS ACCEPTED TOO AT THIS POINT EVERYTHING HERE IS FROM WHAT I REMEMBER AND MY HEADCANONS)

PLOT

-Wilbur starts the SMP with Niki, slowly invites others like Ranboo, Tommy, and Tubbo.

-Tubbo expresses a desire to Fuck Shit Up and Tommy says they can get Dream, he's an expert at getting away.

-Dream is extremely protective of them both. Tubbo more than Tommy but that's fine because Tommy is largely independent.

-Tubbo gets in the weirdest shit but Tommy can roll with the punches really quickly.

-Wilbur gets tired of their crap and burns down Tubbo's establishment. It's like the Disc Wars except it's the Great Honey War. Bee War? Basically he's tired of Tubbo hogging all the Honey related expenditures.

-Dream gets the idea to make a honey smuggling empire, as a joke, but Tubbo is Big Crime and he's going with it. Tommy just wants chaos, and he was getting bored tbh.

-Eventually the Honey thing turns into Resource management, so Tubbo Dream and Tommy have a hold on all major supplies

-Shit happens and Dream, Tubbo, Tommy, Eret, Sam, Fundy and Alyssa establish an independent nation. Dunno what to call it bc the server is called the L'manberg SMP so....

-The fight for indepencence still happens. Instead of 'Green boy' Wilbur is named 'E-boy'. Dream still says "WE HAVE NO MERCY FOR YOU" when Wil calls for a ceasefire negotiation, but Wilbur does threaten the nation saying  "If there is no white flag by tomorrow, then you can kiss your sorry little arses good bye. That's my final warning."

-Turns out Fundy's been secretly funneling information to Wilbur in exchange for the safety of his friends, and also because Wilbur's his dad....uhm. Also! He and Dream are circling each other and others are like "OH MY GOD YOU GUYS ARE DEAD RINGERS FOR QUEERPLATONIC MATES JUST MARRY ALREADY" bc I like FundyWasTaken but others might not and its okay, we'll label it as platonic, but can be read otherwise depending on your tastes. But for this, it's very close platonic.

-Wilbur goads Tommy into a fight, as brothers do, but Tubbo steps in and Wilbur fucking jumps at the chance.

-This is the start of Dream's descent into madness. No one fucking threatens or pulls one of his friends like that. Denied. It's still subtle though, so he's okay for now.

-Tubbo and Wilbur face off. When Tubbo pulls back bc he genuinely doesn't want to hurt anyone, Wilbur takes the chance and beats him.

-Tubbo, however, makes a deal. Let their nation stand on its own, and he'll give up the Resource Empire he started. Wilbur accepts, with the condition that they unify their alliance with a...marriage? So basically, political marriage between Wilbur's heir, Fundy, and Dream, the leader of the revolution.

-YEAH I WENT THERE THIS IS VALID

-They're strained at first, but Dream and Fundy slowly mend their relationship post-betrayal.

-Fast forward a few months later. The Nation doesn't really have a leader, as per the agreement, but it does have a representative. All decisions are made via majority votes, and that decision is voiced by the rep and sub-rep, Dream and Tubbo respectively. Tommy's just there to have a good time and causes chaos as per usual.

-Enter Technoblade. He's been called in by Wilbur to...ah. Dismantle a little...nation. Sounds right up his alley. But he asks Wilbur to wait and see what happens.

-Tommy and Dream get the idea to hold a tournament to celebrate their independence, an all out brawl for everyone to kick back and relieve stress. There. That's where Techno comes in.

-He gets Punz to join him after like, being paid (ofc) and they fucking dominate the tournament. Dream's about to congratulate them but Techno turns the fuck around and declares his right to rule the nation. If anyone wants to fight him for the title, they're welcome to try.

-Dream loses another life to Techno trying and failing to fight it. He and a few others lost their first life sometime elsewhere? I guess? Probably by being blown up by Wilbur, idk.

-Tubbo and Dream are chased out by people who reluctantly follow Techno's orders, and Tommy, torn between his friends and his brothers, stays behind. Oh jeezus.

-Since Techno is a fighting GOD, no one's able to usurp him to make things turn back to normal. But Dream is smart, and knows Wilbur's 100% behind this. Fundy kind of knew but didn't do shit about it, which is why Dream rejects Fundy's offer of sanctuary. He can't be sure his husband will stay on his side, after all. It's nothing personal.

-Dream and Tubbo hide away somewhere, probably not a ravine but?? A mountain or something? They manage to get Sam away enough to ask him to build a super cool Redstone contraption thing that opens for them. ooooo.

-I'm not good at names but for the sake of jokes I'm gonna call their land the 'Bee's Knees' bc at some point Tubbo finds a fuckton of Hives hanging from Trees. Bee Mountain if Dream's feeling especially salty.

-SPEAKING OF DREAM. his insanity is on course now, it's slowly eating away at him and in fear of hurting Tubbo he's slowly distancing himself away. Tubbo's like what's wrong but Dream can't answer -- he doesn't know what's wrong with himself either.

-Tubbo and Dream need to go back and confront Techno, but they can't wait for long else Techno's going to obliterate everyone and their extra lives. They call Schlatt in.

-Schlatt's a pure business man and draws up a contract. He'll aid them in terms of supplies, but most of the revolution is on them. They agree.

-Tommy is actually really fucking good at lying and skirting around what he reveals to Dream and tubbo as a spy that Techno would have believed him if he didnt' know his brother. and Wilbur's warnings, of course. That results in Techno just being fucking done with Tommy's bullshit and plans his execution in another tournament? I guess?

-It doesn't go like the festival. First of all, Schlatt can't fight for shit, so why would Techno call him up the stage? No, Schlatt fights dirty. techno doesn't set much rules so theres no rule against poisoning Tommy quick and easy before the fight. Tommy loses another life and is on his last. Tubbo is spitting mad, but Schlatt points out that nothing in the contract covered this, so he's free to do as necessary. Tubbo is stopped by Dream who, at this point, is just overtaken by the need to one-up Techno.

-Also, Wilbur's been slowly persuading Dream to just. Let go. Let the monster inside of him free, he 'deserves it'. By the end of it all, Dream does. He snaps and lets loose the monster crying for blood inside him.

-Callahan is left to convince his old friend not to do it. In a moment of clarity, Dream stares on in horror of what he'd done. In his rage he managed to deplete ALL of Techno's lives (not really but shhhh), cause massive bloodshed, and terrified everyone in the process. He asks Callahan to kill him. Callahan does.

-Yes we'll get to Ghost Dream eventually.

-Anyway, Schlatt still does the Wither plan, because, uh, Drunken Rage. He was so stressed out from the ensuing conflict that he's like "LETS JUST FINISH THE REST OF YOU. THERE WILL BE NO CONFLICT IF YOU ARENT THERE TO FIGHT."

-and then he uses the line from the Lego movie on Tubbo like "Oh, Tubbster. It's nothing personal. It's just Business(tm)".

-Schlatt still dies of stroke. He does come back as a ghost though, that's one main difference.

-After everything's said and done, and the dust has settled, everyone decides to disband the nation, and just live their lives. like, they're done, wilbur, they get your point, jfc, let them rest.

-but uhhhh someone frames tubbo for setting fire to ranboo's (the server sweetheart) house. wilbur immediately decides to exile tubbo in 'anger'. acutally, he wants tommy and tubbo separated.

-tommy's not standing for it though, he fucking fights his way until wilbur threatens him and tubbo's like YES FINE OKAY I'LL AGREE TO BEING EXILED STOP THREATENING YOUR BROTHER

-tubbo's exile arc is not as sad as tommy's, but rather very tense because wilbur keeps riling tubbo up and taunting him. he still keeps contact with tommy though because they arent going to be separated just like that. no way. tubbo just gets a little more mad and gets short tempered like a lot.

-ranboo's not even that mad about it, he knows tubbo would never burn his house, there was a conspiracy on board and even if there wasn't he's like "arent yall overreacting its just a house, didnt you all do this like before the first war even began, what even (also, ranboo was WITH tubbo at the time of his house allegedly being set on fire. Not that he'll admit to it, because he and tubbo made that agreement long before)

-eventually he finds out that wilbur just wanted to pin the blame on tubbo to make him leave, and ranboo's like "IM DONE WITH YOUR CRAP WILLBUR STOP HURTING THE PEOPLE I CARE ABOUT" and leaves

-with the nation gone, people started to solidify their groups. sapnap and karl deal with their own thing, quackity still runs errands for wilbur, george is the main person ferrying messages from tubbo to tommy back and forth, etc.

-there's a funeral for dream, ofc, fundy arranged it. all of dream's shit was hidden because fundy doesnt want wilbur to get it.

-niki's still there managing her bakeshop but doubles as an informant for wilbur because she's well liked within the server

-ghost dream is present and he's a chaotic troll who mostly hangs around tommy. he's really hyper active and is always on the move, you can never catch him sitting still for like, 5 minutes

THAT"S ALL I HAVE FOR MY SMP SWAP AU PLEASE BE GENTLE I DONT HAVE TIME TO GET ALL THE FACTS STRAIGHT FROM THE OG SMP qwq

[brw]

Tony Stark and Reed Richards for the character ask thing

TONY STARK

how i feel about this character: 😬 ngl i... don't care for him. at all. i don't vehemently hate him, there's definitely times where i appreciate him & his personality but it's few and far between and i... genuinely do not get the hype. i think its mostly mcu fans' fault for my dislike, its just he's fucking EVERYWHERE now, it's impossible to miss him? like he plays a big role in EVERY avengers comic now, he gets ongoing titles all the time, and it's just so frustrating especially when you consider characters who used to be more or less on the same level on them (like hank pym! who, by the way, has been dead for 6 consecutive years! that would never happen with tony!) or even more popular than him now get streamlined because of the mcu's popularity. by himself, i don't really mind him that much, but with how famous he is now and how large and frankly annoying his fan base is i just... now really do not like the character.

all the people i ship romantically with this character: short list here; reed, because i find their dymanic of reed as someone who does everything for his family and will do everything and anything he can to protect their interests above everyone else but also wants to keep his hands clean and believes, genuinely, in the good of the world, and tony as someone who will do horrendous things in the name of the greater good who always has the bigger picture in mind interesting. i also don't know a lot about it but he seems cute with rhodey? even if i think rhodey deserves a bigger chance to be his own character away from tony as is sometimes denied i can always appreciate a good best friends to lovers dymanic :)

my non romantic otp for this character: um? i honestly don't know 😭 i don't like him enough to say, i guess him n reed again? him n rhodey again? help 😭😭😭

my unpopular opinion of this character: he does not deserve the fame he has. like, i dont mean to sound jealous or whatever but pre 2007 movie he was not the most well liked character or even that popular. like obviously he had fans because he had solo series on and off for a very long time but it just feels SO ridiculous that tony stark has a bigger fandom than the fucking fantastic four. THE FANTASTIC FOUR. marvel's first superhero team, and yet??? like okay. he might have things to offer i don't see. he obviously does, i mean, he got three movies and multiple solo series. but he has most certainly not got enough as a character to overshadow the fantastic four, the x-men, etc and i will never forgive the mcu & mcu fans (and mark miller, he deserves blame too) for making it so. again, by himself he's fine but it is ridiculous to me that a one note white character that appeared in his third film (harley keener or... whatever) has 2000s more fics than THE PROTAGONIST OF INTO THE SPIDERVERSE, MILES MORALES. it is just... so vile and frustrating to me.

one thing i wish would happen/had happened with this character in canon: he didn't exist <3 jk jk um i'm not sure? i guess it would be funny if he was like... stick thin underneath the armour. like idk. he's in the armour 24/7 it makes sense to me for him to be a skinny little nerd under there. like completely fucking small. like you can't be a superhero AND be a billionaire and avoid all those taxes AND run the avengers AND run multiple massive corporations and still work out... even if you take away eating and sleeping there's just not enough time... it would be funny if he was just a tiny little boy underneath all that djndndbf

my otp: gonna say him and rhodey again. like i say, can never resist a good best friends to lovers dymanic.

my cross over ship: jdjshdhdh literally none i don't think about him enough to consider it <3

headcanon fact: 100% think he was the one to offer reed that money to star in a p*rno it's just so funny to me to imagine dhsnndnd

REED RICHARDS

how i feel about this character: HE'S MY BOY! I LOVE HIM SO MUCH! like i guess it's paradoxical considering how similar he is to tony in some ways but man i just love reed so much. i so genuinely think reed richards is what tony stark fans want him to be. like they (mcu fans) make up elaborate headcanons of him being a good dad and an ethical billionaire and its like no that's reed richards? canonically he's gone broke bc he refuses to get money off his inventions... u have the wrong man... anyway he's also an asexual LEGEND i do not take criticism and ofc. autistic icon. literally he's so autistic it makes me <3 i love him dearly.

all the people i ship romantically with this character: it would be easier to list the people i DON'T ship with him lol. sue, obviously, victor ofc, and ben are the big ones, but i just LOVE his dymanic with t'challa and i think they would rlly work it... i also love the idea of him with namor, idk with victor it's just so funny to imagine reed as like. bizarrely attractive to rulers of foreign countries. blackagar faces the same problem <3 i also do believe him n hank pym dated in college for a bit... all their weird little microaggressions towards each other just makes me feel that way... again i do like him w/ tony and i made this weird au where he and emma frost got together which if prompted i WILL talk about. probably. more but yeah <3

my non romantic otp for this character: while i do LOVE them together as lovers i just love. benreed generally <3 like they're LITERALLY besties they love each other sm and i'm tired of pretending they don't????? so many people ignore this relationship and it makes me so sad!!! they're best friends they love each other fight for each other fight with each other theyre literally besties... smh put some respect on the benreed name 😤

my unpopular opinion of this character: i don't think this is that unpopular but it is in certain circles so! i genuinely think reed is the best marvel dad! like you can talk abt others all u want but the fact is that reed is the only character i can think of who has always been there in his kid's lives and has consistently put their needs first. like not saying other characters are bad but even at his worst writing he's always done his best for his kids and certainly has been full of love for them. other characters at their worse have. murdered their own kids <3 genuinely he's the best marvel dad and sure there's not a lot of competition but. yeah <3

one thing i wish would happen/had happened with this character: I WANT A CANONICAL AUTISM DIAGNOSIS NOW. literally he is SO autistic & there are... no big autistic marvel characters! at all! literally none! the closest we have is legion (who was written in an incredible ableist way and autism hasnt been used to describe him in a solid 30 years) and monet (and it turned out it wasn't monet but one of her twin sisters impersonating her :/) so it would just mean so much to see a canonically autistic character like reed who is older & has a wife and kids who he loves and who they love in return on panel. like so much of the rep we DO have is like, young kids or teens and idk an autistic adult would just mean so much to me. especially one like reed who is as selfless & loving as he is.

my otp: tie between doomreed and reedsue! any option that gets this noodle nerd lots of love i'm good for tbh

my cross over ship: him and ralph dibney from dc should date... they have so much in common... stretchy autistic man who's very smart and kind of silly who loves his wife sue who pegs him 🥴 they'd have so much to talk about sjbdhdhd also imagining the look on ben's face realising there's TWO of them is. so funny.

headcanon fact: he's aromantic he's asexual and neither of these stop him from his very meaningful & passionate relationship with his wife :)

assorted character ask game!

[hollowisthyname]

Hello, Icarus! Please infodump to me about Danganronpa?

okay so! I had written out a whole thing but then tumblr deleted it! so that was fun! /s but now that I know what I'm going to write it's much easier, so that's good 😌

n e ways, I'm gonna do like a basic timeline w explanations and some other stuff that hopefully I'll remember once I start writing!! so let's go :D

a list of everything danganronpa in chronological order (not the order that you should play/watch the stuff in, I'll put that in the explanations)

Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope's Peak High School - Despair Arc (DR3) - second anime, watch along with the Future and Hope arcs after playing the first two games (and UDG if you want to). backstory for the cast of the second game.

Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc (THH) - first main game, play first. also has an anime that's basically the same as the game, but since there's not enough time to put everything from the game into the anime I definitely recommend playing the game. high school students from a prestigious school trapped in said school are forced to play a killing game, hijinks ensue.

Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls (UDG) - third game, not main. play after playing the first two games. very different game mechanics from the main three, and widely considered not cannon by the fandom. I like it though, and it introduces a lot of really interesting characters along with giving a v underdeveloped character from the first game a lot more character development. it's not necessary to play it (though one of the characters plays a pretty big part in the third anime, so that would make more sense if you already knew her), but I think it's interesting and fun. there are also robot fights.

Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair (DR2 or SDR2) - second main game, play after playing the first game. same basic premise as the first game, except it's a different class (same school though) and this time they're on an island. even more hijinks and plot twists than the first game.

Super Danganronpa 2.5: Komaeda Nagito to Sekai no Hakaimono - (I could only find the Japanese title for this one, sorry 😔) kinda also part of the second anime? watch after playing the first two games (and UDG if you want) and watching DR3. character is woken up from a coma via overdramatic and overpowered other character.

Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope's Peak High School - Future and Hope Arcs (DR3) - second anime, watch along with the Despair arc after playing the first two games (and UDG if you want to). aftermath of the first two games.

Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony (DRV3) - third main game, fourth game in total. I don't actually know when it happens bc they're v secretive about everything, so I'm just putting it last. play last. same premise as the first two, the class is trapped in a school with a courtyard and a huge sort of dome around everything. peak hijinks, too many plot twists to count.

woo!! that's the timeline as I know it, hopefully I didn't miss anything. and I have managed to remember what else I was going to say, so let's move on to section two:

the mechanics of the games

danganronpa is, at its core, a glorified visual novel. every character has a certain amount of sprites for when they talk, as well as voice lines that aren't usually the exact text on the screen but fit the vibe of whatever they're saying. and as I've said before, there's quite a lot of talking. these games have more plot than should really be possible and most or all of it is done through dialogue. cutscenes and class trials are the only parts that are reliably fully voice acted, but there are a lot of those.

as for the parts that are less visual novel-y: you can walk around, and the settings are pretty much as 3d as the 2d-ish style of the game allows. you can also click on things, and sometimes clicking on stuff will get you monocoins, the currency of the game, which means you'll be able to buy presents for the characters!!

"now why do I need presents for the characters?" you ask. well, that's because you're given a certain amount of free time each game to hang out with characters you want to get to know better! the game's ending is fixed, so you won't change the course of the game by who you do or don't hang out with, but you can learn more about characters and become closer to them! giving them presents they like makes them like you more :D

and the most exciting part of danganronpa, what a lot of people play the games for, the true lure of the game.... the class trials!!

so these characters are in a killing game, right? basically, they're faced with a sort of lose-lose predicament: stay trapped in the school forever, or kill one of your classmates to "graduate". but it's not as simple as that, because in order to graduate, you can't be caught. and how do you determine whether or not a criminal has been found out? well, a trial of course!

enter the class trials. every student (barring dead or severely wounded ones) is required to participate in a kind of mock trial- except someone's really dead, and they need to find the murderer or they'll all die too.

(right, did I forget to mention that? only one person can graduate. getting out alive insures that none of your classmates get the luxury of doing the same.)

so, yeah. the class trials are a true fight for life on both sides, because who ever loses will be executed.

and they're really, really fun.

entirely voice acted! enough minigames that the list of them is probably longer than this entire post! the joy of solving the mystery! the... execution, right in front of everyone.

hey, it's a dark game. not like they're trying to hide that. and the executions aren't actually all that gory most of the time, but they're still very much there and onscreen. also as close to fully animated as the games ever get, which is pretty cool.

so how the class trials work is this:

there's a murder. dun dun duuuun. you investigate everywhere related to the murder to get "truth bullets", which are the reason you don't immediately fail at the trials. you don't have to remember all of them, they're all written down in your e-handbook. plus, the protagonists all seem to have really good memories.

time for the actual class trial!! Monokuma (asshole bear running the killing game) introduces everything, explains the rules. and everyone starts talking.

there are a lot of different parts to the class trial, but most of it is "nonstop debates". everyone talks one after the other, and you have to find inconsistencies and shoot the right "weak spot" with the right truth bullet. you refute the lie or mistake and everyone goes back to arguing normally.

there's also hangman's gambit (weird hangman to find a key word), multiple choice things (self-explanatory), and plenty of others.

near the end of the trial (or sometimes only a little over halfway in, it varies), the killer will.... kind of become obvious. there's a specific kind of change in behavior that's the mark of the murderer in these games, but I'm not sure how to describe it exactly. a lot of times there's an accent change, and in general they start acting much more erratic. since it's a trial, though, even after this presents itself you still have to prove your case beyond reasonable doubt.

and once it's become clear to the killer that they're backed into a corner, you have to do the "bullet time battle". it goes by different names in different games, but the basic mechanics are the same: you battle against a student (usually the killer, but not always) in a rhythm-based battle where you have to click to the rhythm to refute your opponent's statements. once you've dealt enough damage, you shoot the final piece of evidence, and that's the end of it.

the murderers react differently different times. sometimes they break down and confess. sometimes they keep denying it. sometimes, they're just calm. however they act, though, the end is the same. they are caught and punished accordingly.

but before that, there's one more thing to do. the closing argument.

your final task is to explain how the murder was committed, from idea to execution (look, a pun! see I can be funny too 😌). and you have to do it... as a manga.

you don't have to draw the whole thing yourself ofc- you just have to fill in the missing panels and then watch as the protagonist narrates it to the rest of the class.

and that's all for the class trial, not counting the long talks after every execution while still in the courtroom.

wow, this is getting...... really, really long. there's only one more thing I'm gonna add, and I promise it will be much shorter than the other two bc it is late and I am officially Incredibly Fucking Tired.

with no further ado, a very short part three:

my general impression of the game. its vibes or smth, I dunno this is just what i think about it

when I first heard of danganronpa, I thought it was a horror game. I can now assure you that it is not. thriller? maybe. debatable. but definitely not horror.

and despite its extremely dark premise, this game is not all doom and gloom. there's so much stuff about hope, and overcoming despair even when it seems impossible... it's not exactly a happy game, but there's a lot more of that in there than you'd probably expect.

all in all, I love this game. so much. it means a lot to me, and I think it's a really good game. thanks for letting me talk about it so much asdhfd :D

[cant-think-of-a-username]

Hi!! I have never gotten this before so I thought it would be super cool to ask for one ahah

may i be matched to a haikyuu character? 🥺 thank you!! <3

Pronouns: she/her

Gender Preference: male

MBTI Type: I just took it for the 1000th time a few days ago and got INFP-T (but I would tend to also get ISFP dsfkjs)

Astrology Placements: Scorpio Sun, Pisces Moon, Gemini Rising, Sagittarius Venus, Pisces Mars (if it helps)

Physical Description: long straight black hair that reaches the middle of my back, dark brown eyes (that apparently makes me look like i have eyeliner sometimes) with long thick black eyelashes, light-medium neutral skin, 5'5", i apparently have long legs, thick thighs, cute butt (LMAO im just listing wut ppl have described of me too sdfkj), soft hands with quite long fingers, pretty basic body i would say sdfjhsd, and i apparently make things look expensive (i love fashion) i would say the best way to describe what i wear is probably (dark) academia but i like just wearing whatever i like--i don't like to limit myself to a certain aesthetic.

Personality Description: with new people/in first meeting, i tend to be quiet or generally don't speak much but once i warm up to you, im a really playful person or at least i really enjoy acting that way.

im honest but i should remember that my words can cut sometimes (rip), ive been described to be incredibly kind (sdfkh)... maybe because i tend to put so much energy and effort and time into other people or my relationships (friends, family, literally anyone that comes into contact with me for a decent amount of time)

i tend to act or do things according to how i feel but despite having that trait of mine or having that inclination, i can still very much be realistic. as i act according to how i feel, i have been described to act younger than my age and i doooo and i aint gonna deny it pfftt ima OWn That sHiT

i have no problem with acting like a child. i love rain, i love water, i love the ocean, i love cafes or the smell of coffee, i love the smell of fresh laundry and feeling the warm fabric (caused by drying in the sun or from a dryer lmfao) of whatever it may be (clothes, bedsheets) on my fingertips..

i love self development or just trying to be better and combined with me loving or liking a lot of different things, i try a lot of things--therefore not really becoming a master at anything dkjfhfsd. and because of that.. (i think) because i try a lot, putting quite a bit of effort into my.. goals (i have perfectionistic and overachieving tendencies) i guess.. when it fails (ofc) im incredibly disappointed, and become pretty... fucking sad hhh and when that happens.. i start to become more lazy/complacent 🤡

..bonus (if u wanna sprinkle some "angst" i guess LMAOO): i overthink a lot (so i start to have difficulty making smarter decisions or thinking of strategies to solve my problems + i still have a sprinkle of self-esteem issues of course... feeling incredibly incompetent is not foreign to me) so i could exaggerate my troubles or make a problem out of nothing 😶, im quite emotional, i have the "dismissive avoidant" attachment style, feeling hopeless quite often aint foreign to me either 😭

bonusbonus: (wow dont i love talking about myself? sdfknsd) i love corgis

Hobbies: dancing, witchcraft, astrology, divination, spirituality, reading fan fiction (LMAOOOO), reading visual novels/playing otome games, painting, drawing, looking into psychology in some type of manner, netflix, swimming, watching anime i guess, trying new things, learning something (new)

Ideal Date: tbh going to a concert of an artist we both enjoy, an arcade or an amusement park (im like a scaredy cat but im almost 100% sure im more likely to go for the “scary” rides if i was with someone i enjoyed hanging out with anyway), probably going on a tropical vacation (cus, beach anddd water activities), water amusement park !!

A Must Have in my Partner: they have to be okay with me pursuing my goals lol; i already have a problem with putting too much energy into others that i dont get to direct that energy onto myself.. so someone who has my best interest in mind + being considerate of me (because.. of that dismissive avoidant attachment style i would say--im just saying this because its the best that i can describe it) and they should be okay with my childlike actions/tendencies lol (like... they shouldnt be repulsed or something like that--that they treat me unpleasantly because of it or something) (oops i just realized thats more than one when u asked just.. one)

extra information: a short drabble would be amazing !!

sorry this was pretty messy and i pretty much just babbled LMAOO

but again, if ever you get to do this (or even if u dont..)

thank you so much!!!

i hope you have an amazing rest of your day hihi <3

sorry it took me a while ! i was just really busy lately and barely got time to write 😅

hope u enjoyy :)

I ship you with..

Nishinoya Yuu !!

- You are the most gorgeous person he knows ;)

- he literally shamelessly approached u the moment he laid eyes on u

- even with ur somewhat quiet first impression, he never gave up making u eventually warm up to him

- doesn’t really mind brute honesty, in fact he thinks of it as a form of bravery

- he also loves seeing your childish side since he himself has one too

- wanna dance around in the rain ?? he will 100% join u !!

- he loves how determined u are to get better and will constantly tell u how proud of you he is for it

- even if things dont go ur way sometimes he will comfort u and tell u that its completely normal to fail sometimes

- there is no overthinking on his watch !

- noya knows how bad it feels and that u definitely deserve a little break but he wont let u laze around too much, trying to help u get back up on ur feet and regain ur confidence is something he never fails to do

- he loves watching u do what u love and is always willing to join u (not that he is always fully understanding of what he is doing)

BONUS :

Cheering you up on a bad day..

You were getting frustrated trying to fix a mistake you made on one of your paintings. You let out a loud groan hiding your face in your hands in exhaustion, finally giving up. Hearing a loud knock on your door, you tell whoever is outside to come in. “HEY, HOW WAS YOUR- ....day ?” noya looks at you with concern in his eyes. “are you okay ?” “yeah i’m fine, its just that this painting won’t look right no matter what i do” you sigh.“maybe i should just throw it away” “you are not gonna throw it away” he says, his tone completely different from before, more serious in fact. “you might just be tired now, so don’t you dare give up now. you can always try again tomorrow” he says walking towards you and holding your hands in his, a little smile forming on his face. “how about you take a break for now ? the sun is really warm and it’s still early; wanna go swimming ?” You look a little unsure. “you still haven’t used that corgi beach towel i got you” he says, wiggling his eyebrows. You chuckle at that, proceeding to look him in the eyes with a small grin forming on you face, “sounds like a plan”...

[boogiewrites]

No.9: The Body

Chapter Five

Characters: Diego Hargreeves & OFC Eve Corpuz

Summary: Diego breaks down Eve unexpectedly, and Luther attempts to break down Diego.

Warnings/Tags: Light descriptions of fighting. Little bit of Luther. Talk of past trauma/abuse/death. 

Click on my icon then go to my Mobile Masterlist in my bio for my other works and chapters. Please like, comment and reblog if you enjoyed it! It helps out us writers A LOT! If you’d like added to the tags, just let me know. This is a multi-chapter fic.

Eve walked into the gym after work as she did most nights now. It greeted her half-lit but still bright enough to see the training area. She’d continually thanked Luther for being so accommodating, and he didn’t seem to mind in the least. She felt almost bad keeping him in the dark about her powers. She was dying to tell them all, to have people understand, to be around people like her as she tried to newly navigate this alternate reality she’d found herself having to accept. But Diego said to trust him, it was best to keep it as low key as possible until she felt a bit more certain. She did trust him, so she did as he suggested even if she felt like a kid being denied a gift.

She had acetaminophen in her system, her usual jug of water, and another large container of Gatorade in tow. She was as ready as she’d ever been. She was actually glad she decided to go late instead of early for her sessions. She was at least awake and warmed up and accustomed to the hungover feeling at this point.

“You showed up.” Diego smirks as he wraps his hands to ready for training.

“Of course I did.” she sasses back and throws her bag against the wall. She also liked not having anyone looking at her or bothering her while she worked out. No one around to steal her things, she could toss them instead of throwing them into a locker and be able to totally focus.

“You were getting a little faded when I left last night, didn't know if you’d be up to this.”

“I’ve already put in a shift today, dude. Don’t come at me with that shit.” she laughs and begins taking off her outer layers. Still staying in an oversized t-shirt and leggings as was her usual, she shook and jumped to warm up everything after it’s exposed to the still cold late winter air of the city that drafted through the old brick walls of the industrial-looking building.

“How was work?” he asked, always down to hear the gross-out stories she had to tell.

“Not great.”

“You good?” he asks, brows high and making an effort to meet her eyes.

“I’ll be fine. Just y’know, dealing with kids is hard.”

“They call you a butt head and it hurt your feelings?”

“No, they died from a drunk driver.” she stares into his eyes and she sees his instant regret.

“Oh shit. I-I'm sorry.” his posture slinks.

“It's what I signed up for, Diego. I’ll be fine.” she motions her hand to halt his sympathetic approach to her. “Just wear me out so I have to go home and collapse into a dreamless sleep.”

“Oh I’ve never let a girl down that’s asked me that.” he falls back into his playful self, trying to deflect the embarrassment he felt.

“Let’s not start now. C’mon.” she begins stretching and heads over to the heavy bags.

------

“Eve. You aren’t hitting like you MEAN it!” he says for the fifth time, trying her patience.

“I’m TRYING! I don’t know what you mean? I’m putting my whole body into it.”

“No, this isn’t about your body, you’ve got to FEEL it.” he shakes the bag as he holds it so she can hit it. She’d been shown how to wrap her hands, and get used to the feeling of hitting something and it jarring her back. But she kept hitting the bag, focused and form correct and he kept asking for more. She was starting to get frustrated.

“Is my form wrong?” she asks with dropped shoulders, panting.

“No, it’s perfect. That’s the problem. I want to see you get messy. In a real fight, you won’t have your head on perfectly straight. I want to see you give everything you’ve got and HIT. Like you HATE this bag.”

“I’ll hit it like it’s you if you don’t stop with this hippy sounding nonsense.”

“THAT is what you need!” he says exasperated too, trying to get her to give in and break, put her heart, not just her mind into it. He knew a fighter was inside her but her years of polish to appear as perfect as possible was a hard varnish to breakthrough. “Imagine it’s someone you hate.”

“I don’t HATE anyone…” she lies.

He cocks a brow at her. “Bullshit. Think of something that made you cry, made you lash out, made you want to beat someone's head in. HEY imagine it’s whoever stabbed you? What would you have done now that you KNOW how to fight huh? Imagine it’s them and that you’re going to give them what's coming to them.”

She takes a deep breath and presses her lips together. He didn’t really know what he was asking of her. Her therapist would be slapping him for requesting her to do such a thing. But she trusted his philosophy. And she imagined the bag was her mother. “I’ll… try okay. Just...stop talking and let me... focus.” she rasps out and stretches her neck.

He motions zipping his mouth and throwing away the key, and braces himself for her hit.

A one-two. A flash of her mother screaming at her. A few more hits. The feeling of true fear as she saw the wild in her mother's eyes. She begins a pattern, a few hits, and a deep breath. Eventually, it becomes a continuous downpour of hits, making sounds as she hits each time. It sounded like pain and Diego knew she’d found what she needed to fuel herself.

“There it is. You got it. Keep goin’.” he says softly, watching her eyes.

Her naturally dark hair is falling out of its tight ponytail, now flopping with every hit. She could hear her mother's voice, feel that fear for her life, and the deluge of insults that would be her inner monologue for so many years after. The hits came harder, with more grunts and whimpers after each one, each a time she’d been afraid. Her breathing buckles, the hits harder and harder, her knuckles aching until she throws in knees and kicks. It doesn’t stop, the feelings were broken open and he’d gotten what he wanted, but at what cost to her.

Diego was proud for a few shining moments until he saw the tears start to fall. Her lips went from tight to gasping, sobs breaking through her angry sounds of impact until her hits lost strength and her head hit against the bag. Her shoulders shook and his eyes went wide, quickly reaching around to her support her as the sobs hit and her knees gave out.

With an unsure hand on her back, her on all fours and trying to gasp through the sobs, the day and her past became too heavy at that moment and it all hit her, breaking her down into a tired, sweaty mess on the gym floor.

He sits next to her, silently, a now supportive rub to her back. “I”m sorry Eve I didn’t-”

She reaches her arms back and hits him lightly. “It’s-you didn’t-” stuttering inhale that she couldn't control.

“Sh… just breathe. Sit up here.” he pulls her up, sitting on her knees, pressing between her shoulder blades to give her lungs room to breathe. “Count in five, out seven.” He counts out loud for her, as her hands begin to still against her thighs and the sounds of pain cease. “I didn’t know you had panic attacks.”

“I dont,” she says wiping her eyes. “I just... it’s been a hard day.” she begins more weakly crying and lets a small laugh out to hide her pain.

“Uh…’ he takes his hands off of her as she begins to let herself stretch and retie her hair. “I think this is where I ask if you wanna talk about it?” he offers and his delivery makes her laugh.

“Better question.” she moves to wipe her face with the hem of her shirt. “Do you wanna hear it?”

With a pause he answers, “Of course I do.” and she turns to face him with still watery eyes.

“Really?” the disbelief almost hurt his feelings.

“Yeah. If we’re gonna be in this together, I wanna know what’s gonna set you off like this. I don’t wanna...make things worse than I already do.” he shrugs.

She nods, turning and plopping down to sit on her butt and cross her legs. “That’s... that’s really nice…” she wells up again and then laughs and rubs her face. “Must be time for me to start my period or somethin’,” she mumbles and it makes him chuckle.

“Or you’ve had a shitty upbringing that still follows you around no matter where you run. Not that I would know anything about that though, right?”

She considered hugging him. For the goofiness he showed, he also had a depth that you had to access through empathy. They both had finally let that facade of having their shit together break down and now they sat like two children in a play circle, sharing secrets.

“Did your dad ever stab you?” she asks with a weak smile as she let herself slump over with a deep sigh.

“He did actually. Tried to kill me.” he nods with an annoyed look on his face.

“Well fuck.” she snorts and rubs her face. “Maybe you do get it.”

“I do.” he leans in and puts his hand on her shoulder. “So tell me.” he asks softly.

“It was the night I ran away for good.” she begins, eyes wandering and looking at nothing as she recalled it. “There was this kid, this guy at school that used to bully me. He’d had me cornered and was... “ she sighs, “he was trying to hurt me. And he ended up having a seizure and dying.” her eyes stare out blankly. “Whispers started fast. Saying I killed him. Although how would I?” she says defensively still. “My mom...knowing about my...abilities she did blame me. She became convinced I’d kill her too. So she tried to beat me to it.” her face wrinkles, pulling her knees to her chest.

“Shit.” he quietly exhales. “That's fucked up, Eve.”

She lets out a genuine louder laugh that confuses him. “Yeah, it is.” She shakes her head and rests her chin on her knees. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed but we’re both pretty fucked up, Diego.” she offers with a smile and tears still wet on her lashes. It makes him give the smile back, a soft laugh shared between them. Sometimes you had to laugh not to cry.

After pulling her to her feet, he tells her there’s no way he’s making her train more tonight and sends her home. A comforting hug between them before she parts, it felt right to do so. She’d entered the gym with a secret that no one else knew, and left with the weight of it shared. It was no small step, and even though it hurt like hell, in the aftermath it felt worth it.

Diego has a contemplative look on his face as he begins to tidy and shut everything down. Luther appears from the men’s locker room, an apologetic look on his face.

“Didn’t know you were still here big guy.” Diego looks him up and down, trying to read him.

“Yeah…” he drags on, eyes not meeting his brothers.

“What?” Diego demands with a jutted out chin.

“I...uh...kind of heard….all of that…” he pushes back his chin and presses his lips. “Were you gonna tell us you found another person like us or… just keep that to yourself?”

“I didn’t want her to get freaked out by you all and leave.”

“Well she’s already met me and I’m the freakiest there is.” he chuckles softly.

He shrugs in non-insulting agreement. “I just… she’s the first person since..”

“Yeah.” Luther interrupts.

“Y’know who's GOT me. Like, she gets how messed up everything is, man. I don’t want her to…” he sighs and drops the tension in his shoulders. “I don’t want her to leave.”

Luther put a large hand to Deigo’s shoulder. “Ever think she might want to be a part of this?”

“No, Jesus why would she?”

“She’s been alone since she was what? Sixteen she said? She didn’t have support like we did growing up.”

“You’re gonna call what dad did to us support?”

“Look, the point is.. She doesn’t have a family. And even if you hate your family, like you claim to, you still keep coming back right?”

“I can stop.” he sarcastically suggests.

“Well, maybe that’s what she needs. A family. Or at least y’know...friends that understand her. She didn’t know what was going on when she was younger. Can you imagine that? I can’t.” he muses with raised brows, feeling bad for the kind doctor lady.

“I hate to admit this...but you’ve got a point.”

“I know. I do that sometimes. If anyone would listen.” he mumbles defensively. “And I mean.. she’s very nice. She seems...cool. I wouldn’t mind being able to help her out too.” He offers, and Diego knows he only means it in the nicest way possible.

“She is cool.” he nods and looks down, voice soft. “Just let me… I’ll do...somethin’. Just give me some time okay?”

“Secrets safe with me.” Luther says proudly.

“Oh shit, Luther you can’t keep a secret.” Diego groans.

“Yes I can!”

“This is going to end so badly…” Diego complains childishly and loudly. “She’s gonna get introduced to Five and he’s gonna be a DICK and she’s gonna leave and hate me and-!”

“Ah. I get it.” Luther grins.

“What? What’s there to get? We’re a bunch of crazy people, and she’s a nice girl and you’re all gonna freak her out!”

“You like her.” Luther keeps the same cheesy grin on his face.

“PSH!” Diego says dramatically. “I don’t- pfft. I don’t like her. She’s cool and all but-”

“Diego…” Luther comes in and gives his brother a forced hug. “Can’t believe I didn’t realize it sooner.”

“I don't.” he murmurs into his brother chest, being held against his will.

“It’s been like what? A year? Over a year now? Since… Voldemort happened

“Voldemort?” he pushes away.

“She who must not be named.”

“You can say her name.” he grumbles.

“Since Lila. You were a wreck. It’s about time you started to move on.”

Diego pouts and holds a low brow, looking up with disdain for his brother. Who was right. “Doesn’t mean you have to say it.” he mumbles back but Luther hears and laughs.

“I can’t wait to meet your girlfriend, Diego!” he cheers out as his brother sulks away.

“SHE’S NOT MY GIRLFRIEND!” he protests but the flush on his cheeks from embarrassment says otherwise.

@s-h-e-w-r-i-t-e-s​ @jaegeeeeer​ @diegos-butt​ @anglovesthis

[debbiechanclub]

Best Two Out of Three, Part 5

These are getting so long 😅 Hope you're ready for some drama. 

Best Two Out of Three

Part: 5/26

Pairing: Kenny Omega x OFC and Adam Page x OFC

Warnings: Alcohol use, language, angst

Word Count: 3.2k

Catch up on previous parts here.

"So I hear you have a match against Alex next week.”

Callie glanced at Adam as he drove them back to the hotel after Dynamite. She’d wondered how long it would take him to bring up the match. “Yeah. Who told you?”

“Kenny.”

She bristled at the mention of Kenny’s name. “Did he also tell you that when I asked him for the match he said no, but when Alex did he said yes?”

She still couldn’t believe he’d done that. After Alex had left the locker room, Callie had stayed in the bathroom stall until Kenny had left, too; she didn’t want him to know she’d overheard their conversation. At least now she knew why he had such an obnoxiously soft spot for Alex—there were obviously some unresolved feelings there. She wondered what the full story was; she made a mental note to ask Britt tomorrow if she knew any details.  

“No,” Adam said as he steered the car into the hotel parking lot. “But the Bucks did.”

Callie shot him a confused look. “What?”

“After Kenny told me about the match, I mentioned it to Matt and Nick,” he explained. “They told me about your conversation with Kenny in production.”

She rolled her eyes. “Figures those two would eavesdrop,” she muttered.

“They said you were yelling,” Adam returned as he parked.  Callie glowered at him.

“Well he called me reckless, Adam. Forgive me for getting upset.”

“I know; I don’t blame you for getting upset.”

She paused. She hadn’t expected that.

“Look.” He reached over and placed a comforting hand on her thigh. “I agree that it was kinda shitty of Kenny to deny you the match and then turn around and give it to Alex. But I also think it’s better this way.”

Her scowl returned when she heard that. “Well I don’t,” she said, and she pulled away from him and got out of the car.

“Why not?” Adam asked as he climbed out of the driver’s side. Callie ripped open the trunk and grabbed her bag before she answered him.

“Because I wanted a one-on-one match with her.”

“What?” Adam hurried to grab his bag and shut the trunk. “It is a one-on-one match!”

“No, it’s not; not really,” she said over her shoulder as she marched toward the front entrance of the hotel. “Because not only will I have to deal with Alex inside the ring, but I’ll also have to deal with four people outside it who want me to lose.”

Adam stopped for a second, stunned, before he resumed hurrying after her. “What the hell are you talking about?” He caught up with her as they crossed through the front doors into the lobby. “Kenny and I will be in your corner, Callie.”

“Will you, though?” she returned as she jammed the up button for the elevator with her thumb. The elevator right in front of them opened with a ding, and they both got on.

Adam punched the button for their floor. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” he asked as the elevator doors slid closed.

“Kenny will physically be in my corner, but that’s it,” Callie shot. “You know he wants Alex to win. He probably hopes she’ll hit me with a chair.”

The elevator arrived at their floor. Callie flew out the doors as soon as they opened.

“And what, you think I want her to hit you with a chair, too?” Adam charged as he followed after her.

“I don’t know, maybe,” she huffed. “We’d be even then, right?” She fumbled to pull her key card out of her purse as she marched toward their room.

“Jesus fucking Christ,” Adam breathed. “Okay, let me say it to you loud and clear so there’s no confusion: I don’t want Alex to hit you with a chair.”

They arrived at their room. Callie shoved the key card in the lock and pushed open the door. “Are you sure about that?”

“Yes,” he gritted through his teeth. Tense.

They burst into the room, and Callie whirled around to face him. “Look me in the eye and tell me that’s not what you want, Hangman.”

Adam stepped right up to her, so close that she had to tilt her head back to meet his gaze. “That’s not what I want,” he said. But the husk in his voice indicated there was something else he wanted. Callie wanted it, too.

She reached up and pulled his mouth against hers, and he eagerly claimed her. They were feverish, grabbing hair and nipping skin, ripping at each other’s clothes as they blindly stumbled to the bed. So what if Kenny had been right about the sex; they couldn’t care less at the moment.

* * * * * * * * * *

“So word on the street is you have a match against Callie next week.”

Alex let out a sigh as she collapsed onto the spare bed in Kris’s hotel room. She wasn’t surprised she’d already heard about the match; word traveled fast in the AEW locker room. “Yeah.”

“Did you ask for it or did she?”

“We both did, actually. Apparently, Callie asked Kenny first and he told her no.”

Kris’s eyebrows arched in surprise. “But he told you yes?”

“Yeah. But only because I said he and Adam could be in Callie’s corner for the match.”

Kris snorted. “Please. You know Kenny’s gonna be rooting for you.”

Alex cut her a look. “Don’t get me started on Kenny.”

A corner of Kris’s mouth quirked up in a smirk, but she let it go. “Well anyway, are you going to Britt’s party tomorrow night?”

Alex’s brow furrowed. “Britt’s having a party tomorrow night?”

“Yeah, after the Dark taping. She didn’t invite you?”

“Nope,” Alex returned. Her invitation must have slipped Britt’s mind while she’d been threatening her.

“Well, I’m sure you’re invited; it’s literally at the arena,” Kris said; but then she frowned in thought. “Then again, isn’t she friends with Callie?”

Alex pursed her lips as she nodded. “Yeah. Fun fact: Britt threatened me on Callie’s behalf in catering today.”

Kris’s eyes widened. “What? What did she say?”

Alex let out a tired sigh. On one hand, she was hesitant to open up that can of worms; but, on the other, she wanted to tell someone—and Chuck and Trent were off the table. Telling them would only make things worse, guaranteed. So she filled Kris in on the details. “After Double or Nothing—you know, when Callie hit me with a chair—Adam came up to my hotel room and we talked in the hallway about it. Britt’s room was right across from mine; apparently she eavesdropped on us.”

Kris gaped at her. “Oh, she would.”

“I know, right? Anyway, when we were in catering tonight, she threatened to ‘fill Callie in on the details’ of our conversation if Adam and I don’t figure out our feelings.”

“What?” If possible, Kris’s jaw unhinged even further. “What does that even mean?”

“I don’t know,” Alex groaned. “Callie must have cried to her about how she’s convinced Adam and I are fucking behind her back.”

“Oh my God.” Kris brought her hands to her temples. She looked just as confused as Alex felt about the entire situation. “Okay, but Callie’s insecurities aside, why would Britt threaten to tell her about your conversation with Adam if all you did was talk about what happened at Double or Nothing?”

Alex winced. She’d been afraid she would ask that. “Well… it might have been a little more than just that,” she admitted.

Kris stared back at her. “Okay, you’re gonna need to elaborate.”

“Ugh, fine.” Alex let out another groan. There was no avoiding telling her. “During the course of the conversation I might have brought up how Adam and I made out once.”

“WHAT?!” Kris nearly jumped from her bed in shock. “You and Adam made out? When?”

“Years ago,” Alex said, wanting to make it crystal clear that it wasn’t by any means a recent occurrence. “Back when we were training, not long after we first met. We got drunk on moonshine and made out in the bed of his pickup truck.” She cringed. “God, it was a stereotypical country song come to life.”

“HA! Oh my God,” Kris struggled to speak; she could barely contain her laughter. “Moonshine?”

“Yes. And I’m not talking store-bought shit; it was the real deal.”

She flashed a devilish grin. “Are you sure all you did was make out?”

Alex’s mouth dropped. “Yes! I mean, we did get to second base. And there was some dry humping—”

“Alex!”

“—But that’s it!” she insisted. “It was a one-time thing.”

Kris’s brow furrowed. “Why?”

Alex sent her a confused look. “Why?”

“I mean, you and Adam get along so well,” she clarified. “Why didn’t you date?”

Alex shifted on the bed; that was a loaded question. The truth was that she and Adam had considered dating back then. But, ultimately, they’d decided the timing just wasn’t right. “Because it was kind of a messy situation,” she explained. “I’d just broken up with a longtime boyfriend, and Adam and I were training together. It didn’t seem like a good idea to get involved.”

Kris frowned. “Well, that’s understandable.”

Alex’s brow furrowed as she nervously bit her lip. “My God, I can’t believe I just told you all that,” she breathed. “I haven’t told anyone that.”

“Well then you probably needed to get it out!” Kris returned. “And don’t worry—my lips are sealed.”

“I know,” Alex said; but then she rolled her eyes. “I wish I could say the same about Britt.”

Kris’s eyes widened again. “Oh God; what if she decides to tell Callie at the party tomorrow?”

Alex shrugged. “If Britt wants to stir up shit at her own party, then that’s her prerogative,” she said. “As long I get to kick Callie’s ass next Wednesday, I really don’t care.”

* * * * * * * * * *

“Welcome to the party!” Britt proclaimed as Callie and Adam walked into the bar at Daily’s Place. They’d shown up fashionably late and most of the roster was already there enjoying themselves, including the rest of The Elite. But, as Callie scanned the room, she couldn’t help but notice that Alex and her attack dogs were conspicuously missing.

“It’s literally just drinks at the arena, Britt,” Adam said.

Britt’s smile dropped. “There’s hors d’oeuvres, too.”

He dramatically put a hand to his chest. “Oh—I didn’t realize there were hors d’oeuvres,” he sarcastically returned. “Please forgive me.”

Callie bit back a smirk; but Britt wasn’t as amused. “Just go get your whiskey before I throw you out. I want to talk to Callie.” She shooed him away to the bar. As soon as he was gone, she looked expectantly at Callie. “So? Things seem better between you two today. Did you talk to him about where he went after Double or Nothing?”

She gave a sly grin. “No. But we relieved some tension; I’ll just put it that way.”

“Oh, no,” Britt quickly waved her hands in front of her. “Did not need to know that.”

Callie let out a laugh; but her smile quickly faded. “Actually, there’s something I wanted to ask you, too. Do you know anything about what happened between Alex and Kenny?”

Britt’s face scrunched up. “That’s random.”

Callie shrugged, trying to seem casual about it. “Well, I just heard some things and was curious if you knew the full story.”

Britt glanced around to make sure no one was in earshot before she answered. “Well, I don’t know the full story. But, from what I understand they were sleeping with each other and Alex wanted to make things ‘official,’ but Kenny didn’t for whatever reason. So Alex moved on.”

Callie’s eyebrows arched. “When did this happen?”

“Oh, gosh. Between Double or Nothing last year and All Out, I think?” She rolled her eyes. “They tried to hide it, but it was obvious.”

So that explained why Callie hadn’t known about it; she hadn’t signed with AEW until just prior to All Out. But even so, she’d picked up that Kenny felt some type of way about Alex; and if he still wasn’t over her a year later, she could only assume it meant some part of him regretted not making things official.

“Speak of the devil.” Britt pursed her lips as she looked toward the doorway, and Callie turned to look, too. Orange, Chuck, and Trent had just walked in; and with them, of course, was Alex, wearing a tight, low-cut tank top that showed off her body in all the right ways.

Alex’s gaze met Callie’s from across the room—and she smirked. Callie’s eyes narrowed. That fucking bitch.

* * * * * * * * * *

Step one for dealing with jealous, catty bitches was to look hotter than them. Check. Step two was to completely ignore them and live your best life. Check. Two drinks in and hanging with her boys and Kris, Alex was having a great night. 

Trent nudged his chin at her. “Wanna do a body shot?”

Chuck nearly choked on his beer. “Fucking what?”

Alex smirked as she leaned toward him. “Are you hitting on me, Trent?”

“I don’t know,” he coolly returned. “Do you want me to be?”

She arched a brow. “My eyes are up here, big shooter.”

He pursed his lips. “Come on. You wanted me to look.”

She bit her lip as she sat back again. “No; let’s not. I don’t want to make Chuckie jealous.”

Chuck just rolled his eyes.

“I do want another drink, though.” She scooted past James and made her way to the bar. As soon as she was out of earshot, Chuck glared at Trent.

“A body shot?”

“Relax,” Trent said. “That was a test to see if Mariposa has joined us. Obviously, she has.”

James smirked. “Nice.”

Kris sent Trent a confused look. “Mariposa?”

Chuck sighed. “‘Mariposa’ is what we call Alex’s drunk alter ego.”

Kris’s eyes widened with excited curiosity when he said that. “Okay, I have to hear this.”

“Alex turns into the biggest flirt on planet Earth when she drinks, as I just clearly demonstrated,” Trent explained. “I guarantee you she’s not coming back from the bar. She’s gonna pick some poor unsuspecting target and spend the next ten minutes fluttering her eyelashes at him.”

“Hence, ‘Mariposa,’” James added.

“When we were in Vegas for Double or Nothing, Mariposa spent all night flirting with Chuck here,” Trent said as he pointed a thumb at Chuck. “It’s what gave him the balls to confess his undying love for Alex.”

Chuck smacked the tabletop. “Okay, again: I was also very drunk that night, and I’m not in love with Alex!”

James sent him a look. “Whatever you say, bud.”

He just grumbled and drank his beer.

“Anyway, we’ve turned it into a drinking game of sorts,” Trent said. “We like to make bets on who she’ll go after.”

Kris laughed into her drink. “Okay, that’s kind of messed up, but also kind of hilarious. Can I get in on it?”

“Absolutely,” Trent said. He waved his hand out over the room. “Please, make your selection.”

“Yes! Okay.” She eagerly looked around, searching for a pick. “What’s her type?”

“She likes beards,” James answered.

Kris frowned. “Hm. Well that knocks out my initial pick, then.”

“Who?” Trent asked.

She smirked. “Maxwell.”

“HA! Oh shit, I hope it’s Maxwell,” he laughed. “That would be fucking hilarious to watch.”

“I don’t think he’d know what to do with her,” James commented.

“Come on, Alex wouldn’t flirt with Maxwell,” Chuck dismissed. “He’s like seven years younger than her.”

“Well, it doesn’t look like he stands a chance, anyway,” Kris said with a nod toward the bar. “Cash certainly doesn’t waste any time.”

They all looked over. Sure enough, Alex was leaned back against the bar with Cash Wheeler standing just in front of her; and judging by their body language, they weren’t talking about the weather.

“Damn,” Trent said. “Well, I can’t say I’m surprised. Alex looks fucking hot tonight.”

Chuck shot him a look.

“What?” he shot. “Like you didn’t notice.”

“I mean, I don’t swing that way and I noticed,” Kris admitted.

James smirked again. “Nice.”

Back at the bar, Alex let out a laugh as she flipped her long, dark brown hair over her shoulder and playfully hit Cash on the arm. Trent looked back at the others. “What did I say?” he said as he picked up his drink. “She’s not coming back.”

* * * * * * * * * *

Alex’s friends weren’t the only ones watching her; Kenny hadn’t been able to take his eyes off her since she’d walked through the door. It was criminal how good she looked, and what’s worse was that he knew she’d done it on purpose; he just wasn’t sure if she’d done it more to piss off Callie or to rub it in his face after yesterday. But either way, when he saw her gently bite her lip as Cash leaned in to say something in her ear, it was almost more than he could take.

“What’s eating your shorts?”

He turned and glared down at Callie. How long had she been standing there? “What?”

She turned her eyes toward the bar. “Oh. I see what it is.” She smirked. “Getting a little jealous, Kenny?”

His eyes narrowed. “I thought that was your job, Callie.”

Her face dropped. “I learned something interesting,” she said.

Kenny let out a tired sigh. “What’s that?”

“Well.” She paused to take a sip of her drink. “I learned that you and Alex used to be... intimate.”

A mixture of shock and anger marked his face as he looked back at her. “And who told you that?” he charged. “Adam?”

“No. Britt did.”

Kenny rolled his eyes. He wasn’t surprised.

“So, what happened between you two?” Callie asked. She winced. “Oh; was it not that good?”

He laughed wryly to himself. “Alright, I see what you’re doing. Still upset about that comment I made about you and Adam?” he asked. But she ignored him.

“On second thought, it must have been good. I doubt you’d be looking at Cash like you want to murder him if it wasn’t.”

Kenny bit down on his jaw. His patience had officially run out. “Is there a point you’re trying to make? Because I’d appreciate if you got to it.”

Callie’s eyes hardened. “My point is that your feelings for Alex are pretty fucking obvious, Kenny,” she spat. “And once the bell rings for our match next week, your emotions better not get the best of you when I start to kick her ass right in front of your face.”

She sneered smugly up at him, clearly proud of herself for throwing his own words back in his face. But Kenny couldn’t care less. All he cared about was ending the conversation—and he knew exactly how to shut her up. “That won’t be a problem, Callie,” he said. “Because unlike you, I can control myself.”

And with that he walked off, leaving her alone to stew in her anger again.

[scuttling]

Signals

Fandom: Criminal Minds Pairing: Aaron Hotchner/Latina OFC Word Count: 2,063 Tags: 18+, NSFW, Overstimulation, Multiple orgasms, Oral sex, Vaginal fingering, Unprotected sex, Rough sex, Daddy kink, Dom/sub, Praise kink, Biting, Hickies, Choking, Sex toys, Subspace, Aftercare Summary: Buying a present for Aaron starts a new (very smutty) tradition. Note: This is a reformatted, previously published work. Link to A03 or read below! It all starts with a trip to the mall with Prentiss and Garcia.

Prentiss is looking for a new set of luggage, Garcia is looking for a few new dresses, and Sophie’s just along for the ride, but when she spots the tie, she immediately knows she wants to buy it for Aaron.

It’s a deep, dark navy blue, silk, with a paisley print—Armani, so something he would never buy for himself—and she just knows how good it would look on him with a black suit, crisp white shirt, silver watch. Her mouth practically waters, and Prentiss shoots her a knowing smile when she glances over her shoulder and sees her holding it.

“Present for your special someone?” she asks, and Sophie glances back, smiles softly.

“Yep. He’ll probably just tell me I shouldn’t have wasted the money on him, but I was really drawn to it. I’m gonna get it.”

When she gives it to him after dinner that night, his face is serious, his eyes almost amber colored in the yellow light of the kitchen, and he pulls her onto his lap, kisses her warm and deep. His hands slide up her body, holding her at the waist, and she sighs, lets herself be kissed and held up by his hands for so long that she’s foggy with pleasure when he pulls back.

“I take it you like the tie?” she murmurs, and he sets her carefully on her feet, pushes his dinner dishes aside, and lays her back on the table; it leaves her breathless, and she just looks up at him, panting, sitting up on her elbows, while he takes off her jeans and panties.

He pulls her close to the edge of the table, one of his feet on the ground and his other knee up on his chair, and he makes a fucking meal out of her, brings her off twice with his tongue; her second orgasm hits her so hard that her eyes water, and he makes sure she’s alright before pushing two fingers inside her and fucking her to a third, praising her for being sweet and thoughtful as he presses deep.

“I like the tie,” he says when she is throbbing around his fingers afterward, her face flushed and wet, and all she can do is babble in response; he kisses her cheeks softly, takes her in his arms, cuddles her close, and carries her to bed. The first time he wears it, she catches a glimpse of him putting it on in the mirror, and heat floods her body. She freezes where she stands, breathing hard, and he turns, curious; his eyes sweep over her, taking in the signs of her obvious arousal, and he looks down at the tie, back up at her face.

“Oh. You remember the night you gave me this, don’t you, sweet girl? You were so thoughtful, buying a present for your daddy,” he says, taking a step toward her. She swallows hard, licks her lips, and nods. “I rewarded your kindness the best way I know how.”

“Yes, daddy. You made me feel... very good.” She can almost feel his hands on her, his tongue, and she shivers.

“Yes, I did. It was my pleasure, and I’m happy to do it again tonight, if you like.”

“The same thing, or something different?” she asks softly, and he puts his hands on her hips, presses his lips to hers.

“Anything you like, baby. You can think about it, let me know later?” She looks up at his face, so soft and loving, knows instantly what she’d like—but she’ll let him wait it out for a little while. There’s no reason she should be the only one desperately day dreaming of tonight.

“Yeah, I’ll let you know,” she answers, breathless again, and he smooths one palm over her ass, squeezes softly, and lets her finish getting ready.

She contemplates putting on fresh panties again, but decides that there’s really no point.

“Does that feel good, baby? Is this what you wanted?” Aaron purrs in her ear as he fucks her from behind, her hands squeezing the couch cushion while he pounds into her pussy. She’s got a throw pillow under her hips to tilt them up for him, and he’s so deep, so delicious.

“Yes, oh, god, yes,” she pants, and she moves one hand to cover his where he’s supporting himself on the edge of the sofa. “You feel so good.” Her tits are smashed against the seat of the couch, her ass jiggling each time he slams against it, her clit rubbing roughly on the throw pillow, and it’s everything she imagined and more.

“Perfect, gorgeous girl. So good for me.” One of his hands moves to her hair, and he pulls it all to one side, over her shoulder, so he can see her face better, probably. “You love to be fucked hard by daddy. You love the feel of me against your ass.”

“Yes, I love it. I love you.” She spreads her legs a little, one of her feet pressing against the rug for leverage, and he gets rougher, thrusts quicker. She whines, drops her cheek to the cushion, and just lets herself be fucked, her body moving only because of his deep, relentless thrusts.

“I love you, Sophie. You’re so perfect, wanting me to use you like this. When you ask for my cock, it’s almost impossible to deny you—but you know that, honey, don’t you? You know all I want is to make your tight little pussy quiver around me.” She moans into the couch, nods weakly, and when he leans in again to bite her shoulder, she comes. “Yes, that’s it. We’re not done yet, though.”

“Aaron,” she whimpers, her clit sensitive, and he mouths at the bite, kisses her arm.

“You’re fine, baby. You’re okay.” The hand not covered by hers moves to her ass, and he squeezes as he pumps inside. “You’re okay. You can take me, can’t you, good girl?”

“Hmm, yes,” she mutters, and she’s overstimulated, but she wants to be good for him, doesn’t want him to stop.

She gets too tired to do anything with her hands, just brings them up to rest by her face, and he moves his to her hips, holds her tight, and hammers her soft, pliant body until he comes; she feels him fill her, feels some slide out when he withdraws, and she exhales deeply, spent.

“No, no,” he says when she sags against the couch. “I want one more orgasm from you, baby girl.” He lifts her hips, tucks the pillow more firmly beneath her pussy, and it’s wetter now, from both of their come. “Hump this for me, okay?”

She’s tired, and satisfied, fuzzy, but she works her hips as best as she can. Aaron’s broad palms come to rest on her ass, and he spreads her open a little, watches her grind against the pillow. It makes her cheeks heat, being inspected so closely by her daddy, and she comes, neck outstretched, moans weak and broken.

He kisses her lips, her shoulder, and rubs his hand soothingly up and down her back; they get cleaned up in the shower, and he feeds her a snack in the kitchen—cheese and pickles, her favorite. Then, he wraps her in a blanket and tucks her into the armchair while he strips the couch cushions of their covers, throws them in the washer; she watches him with a sleepy, happy smile. The tie becomes an unofficial signal: when Aaron wears it to work, Sophie knows she is going to be taken apart thoroughly when they get home, will end the night with her body aching and her brain empty, and Aaron knows she knows.

This time, he left home wearing a red tie, she’s absolutely certain of that, but when they gather for their morning meeting, he’s wearing the blue one; she literally stops mid-stride when she sees it, and Prentiss crashes right into her back, almost causing a domino effect in the doorway. “Are you okay?” she asks, clearly concerned, but Sophie just swallows hard and nods, takes her seat without a word. Aaron turns to hide a smirk, the evil, rotten, bastard.

The evening begins agonizingly slow, with Aaron stripping her of her shirt and pants, laying her back on the bed, panties pushed aside, and fingering her with only one finger for a good twenty minutes. He has her whimpering, shaking, because it feels so good but it’s not enough, and it’s only when he leans in to slide his tongue through the wetness pooling around his finger that she comes, squeezing her legs together; he forces them open with his free hand, making her mumble and shiver.

“Beautiful, sweetheart. You’re so gorgeous when you get like this: needy and desperate for daddy.” She wants to reply, can’t, just nods her head.

When she’s calmed down a little, he pulls her panties off, but her bra stays on. She doesn’t understand why, at first, until strong hands push up her thighs, and he inserts himself inside her, wraps his fingers around the fabric between the cups of her bra. It pulls down, exposing her chest, for the most part, and he uses that to hold her steady while he fucks her into oblivion.

Her tits bounce with each thrust, and her hands do absolutely nothing, because she’s forgotten how to use them; all she can do is whimper, murmur daddy, and clench around his dick, so that’s what she does.

“Oh, fuck, baby. Are you fuzzy already? Was one little finger enough to make you brainless?” She nods, pants, and he squeezes his eyes shut, something he does when he’s trying not to come. “You’re my perfect girl, Sophie. You’re the best girl. I love you so much.” She whines high in her chest, licks her bottom lip a couple of times, and he reaches his other hand up to wrap around her throat.

“Mmm, daddy,” she sighs, and when he spills inside her she hums, pleased, and manages to bring her hand up to hold his wrist at her throat. He keeps it there for a moment, then lets go, takes off her bra and comes up to kiss the angry, red marks it left behind.

He slips two fingers inside her, and she’s so messy, she can feel it, groans when the thrust of his hand makes her feel squishy inside. “It’s only me, baby, it’s daddy’s come. I’ll push it deeper inside and make you shiver for me, sweet girl.” His hand moves quickly, his mouth still gentle on her breasts, and when he carefully bites down on her nipple, she does climax, trembling and breathing hard until he guides his fingers out.

He holds her, soothes her, and when she’s able to speak, it’s a flood of words like thank you and love you and so good to me and wow. “You’ve worn that tie twice this week,” Spencer mentions to Aaron in the briefing room one day. He looks down, slides his hand over it, and glances back up at him.

“I like it. Sophie bought it for me,” he explains, and Spencer nods, smiles at her.

“It’s nice. Pretty color.”

“Thanks.” She flushes and looks back down at the interoffice memo they’re supposed to be reading; she still has hickies and bite marks on her ass and thighs from the last time he wore the tie, on Monday, and her mind has been racing, thinking of what kind of reward it will earn her today.

“So, so pretty, baby,” he coos as she gasps through her fourth orgasm of the night. There is a vibrator in her pussy, a smaller one in her ass, and she droops against him where he holds her up, his back against the headboard of their bed. “You sound so pretty when you come for me, my good girl.”

He makes love to her after that, pumping slowly, gently, into her worn out body, and she musters up enough energy to kiss him, sigh Aaron, and clutch at his hair until he comes.

She calls off sick the next day, literally too well-fucked to be of any use to her team. When Aaron gets home from work, all she’s wearing is the tie.

[ihavenocluedude]

The two awkward fools

Chapter 4. I forgot you call her that!

Montgomery “Scotty” Scott (AOS) x OFC

Chapter 1   2   3

A/N: Hellu, so like.. as I’ve said before I have like a few of these chapter pre-written so I thought I’d just like... drop this one before I finish le Agent Whiskey One shot, honestly wish me luck, I need to figure out how Imma finish that one... might be a long one tbh. 

Word Count: 1538

The repairs had been done just some hour later after Scotty had left. 

“I’ll just tell Scotty that everything’s under control and that he doesn’t need to check in.” Jen explained to Max as Jen looked down on her PADD, checking to see that everything was truly done and that she had done everything right, the last checks. Max nodded, it was understandable, totally understandable… But did she want to see Scotty? Of course, they’re now sort of officially friends, did she want to admit that she wanted to see him to Jen and get teased to death in public? No. 

While she found a small affection for the man even within probably the first day… That affection had… grown. It had grown, especially during the short time he spent in the medical bay during the repairs. Seeing him care so much for something, seeing him passionate for something he probably does daily? Who doesn’t love passion? And they’d talk! Sure it wasn’t some sort of deep talk but he told her about Scotland, about his home. 

Much to Max’s pleasure, Scotty checked in anyway. Max, at first being worried that he hadn’t gotten Jen’s message until her eyes caught his, throwing that worry out the metaphorical window. He had searched the room for her and in doing so, making her breathe slightly more shallowly. And then of course he started walking straight towards her, keeping the eye contact but accidentally stumbling into one of the nurses as he hadn’t taken in his surroundings completely. 

“I kno’ that Jen said everything’s fine bu’ I jus’ wanted to stop by anyway…” Scotty smiled at Max, what Max didn’t see however was his slightly antsy body language and his brain trying hard to keep the eye contact and not look away. Whilst Max tried telling herself to look away, don’t make it awkward, but couldn’t look away. 

“Yeah of course, uhm… it’s just over here… But you know that…” Max stumbled slightly, chuckling, finally averting her gaze away from Scotty’s eyes and walking towards the repaired equipment. Scotty nodded, inspecting the equipment, just maybe perhaps trying to drag out the moment by taking a really good look.

“Hello there Scotty.” McCoy of course walked over to the two fools that stood by the perfectly fine repaired equipment “I thought Jen said it didn’t need a check in?” McCoy turned his eyes towards Max with a questioning look, as well as a smug smirk playing on his lips. Max’s eyes somewhat widening at his question, McCoy’s expression constantly being in a smug state around the two fools. 

“Ach no, bu’ it can’ hurt can it?” Scotty looked up at the CMO, picking up his PADD to really get everything checked. Scotty was afraid that he was being way too transparent, to McCoy? He definitely was, to Max? Not at all. 

--- --- ---

“I feel stupid.” Max groaned as she entered her best friend’s quarters, as she had already memorized the code months ago, “Am I stupid? 

“You’re not stupid but you are quite foolish, come here El.” Jen chuckled, embracing her best friend in a hug as Max walked over to her. “Why do you feel stupid? Did you say something to him? Did he say something?” Jen rushed through her words, putting her hands on Max’s shoulders and pushing her away so she could see her face, Max’s hands hooking onto Jen’s elbows’ creases. 

“Nope… But I mean… Ugh! I just met this man, tell me I’m not being stupid? I haven’t had feelings for anyone since like the academy!” Max groaned remembering the stupid guy she had fallen for years ago. His hair was brown instead of blond but he was still slightly older and quite quirky… and yes also an engineer… of course. “What can I do? Like what are my options?” Max then asked Jen, going back in for a hug from her best friend who had started overthinking it all the second she caught Scotty’s eye contact. 

“You can tell him-”

“-No!”

“You could try to get to know him more before you do anything?” Jen then suggested, running her hand over her best friend’s hair, keeping her other arm now locked around Max’s shoulders. They had always been very close with physical contact, Jen was basically the only person Max let that close to her, her thoughts, her heart, herself. It almost felt like a requirement to have someone there for you during the lonesome years in space, even if the ship is flooded with people, you need your number one. The person you could call home. Jen is that person for her. 

“I could… I mean I’m… He and I could probably be just friends right?”

“Why are you so determined on keeping him away from you-” 

“I’m not!” Max walked away a little from Jen, shaking her head and rubbing her hands over her face, trying to beat the sleepiness that was starting to seep in.

“You are, I know it won’t be some… well some whirlwind-falling in love within just a day or whatever but don’t be afraid to let him in Elfie!” Jen told her quite loudly, gesturing with her hands like she was some sort of mad scientist. “He likes you too, you do know that right?” Jen almost whispered now, stepping towards Max who now stood there, her hands just covering her face as she breathed deeply. But at Jen’s words she let her arms go cross over her torso instead. 

“No he doesn’t, we can’t know that. Let’s just let this all be, I’m too tired for this. Let’s go eat and then go sleep.”

--- --- ---

“Scotty you can’t deny this, you like her.”

“Who likes who?”

“Scotty just met Max last week and he’s already falling in love.” McCoy teased the scotsman, Keenser laughing at the teasing as Kirk sat down, joining the three who were eating together. 

“-I’m not in love, she’s jus’ very…-She’s simply a friend.” Scotty stammered slightly as he looked at the unconvinced facial expressions of his friends. Keenser nudged his friends in the ribs, shaking his head and went back to eating his- very small meal. Scotty had of course teased Keenser sometimes about being able to eat just one bean and being satisfied, but most times, such as this one, it meant that he dragged out the time of eating that one bean just to sit there with his friends. However at this moment Scotty wished that Keenser would just eat his food so he’d at least have one less person teasing him about his affection for the doctor he’d newly met.

“God- Maxwell, I haven’t seen her in a while, where has she been lately?” Kirk spoke with fondness before shaking his head with a small chuckle.

“Over there, joined at the hip with Ms Rogers as always.” McCoy chuckled, looking over at the two girls who just walked in. Scotty’s eyes may have just may have snapped over to the entrance as he saw the girl he still hadn’t stopped thinking about and was anxious to see again. “And you say she’s just a friend huh? Hope you don’t look at me like that.” McCoy joked as he looked back at his food. 

“We should call them over, have them join us. I don’t think I’ve talked to Maxwell since… way too long ago.”

“Do you really not remember your drunken little fight?”

“Our what?” Kirk questioned McCoy before recalling the last time they had been on shore leave a few months ago. Kirk, Max and McCoy had sat down in a bar, drinking way too much too fast and eventually Kirk and Max had found something to fight about; pretty much everything in this god damn universe “-ooh.” Kirk realised that he hadn’t spoken to her since then. “Do you think she’s still… irritated?” 

“No it should be fine, the kiddo doesn’t dwell on things.” 

“-I forgot you call her that!” Kirk’s laugh could’ve probably been heard from every corner of the canteen, which of course made Scotty’s eyes widen at Kirk, trying to tell him to shut up.

“Look I’ll talk t’ her, I’d talk t’ her everyday if I could but-”

“You can.” McCoy muttered, almost wanting to lock the two crewmembers in some closet or turbolift for a few days and see if they’d eat each other up or eat each other up so he’d finally get some peace from the craziness Max brings around. “It’s not that hard Scotty, visit the medical bay once in a while, make up an excuse for her to come down to the engineering station, I bet she’ll take any excuse. I’ll even help you god damnit.”

“Christ McCoy, calm down.” Kirk chuckled, rolling his eyes at his friends. He missed this sometimes, even when he had it, he missed these moments of laughter at the expense of his friends. Especially when it came down to one of his friends falling in love with another of his friends, however with Maxwell and Scotty, he knew it’d take way too long before they’ll truly show their emotions towards each other. Hence why he and McCoy would have to try and push them together. 

A/N - Okay so I’ve already written this on AO3, but like this whole thing about ‘your person’ is so fucking true and I like wrote that weeks ago! Like uni is as I said, kicking my ass. And I’m starting to get hella homesick and just wanting physical affections (hugs pleaaase!). Like I do have friends and such here but damn how I miss my friends and family from back home. 

Next chapter

[wiypt-writes]

Stark Spangled Banner

Stab Me In The Front

Part 1: America’s Asshole

Intro: It’s been a year since Katie was held hostage by Hydra, and whilst she’s still working through her feelings she has an idea about how she can make other people’s lives better as a result of her ordeal. Alongside this, she needs to take a trip to Boston to meet Harlan Thrombey-SIP’s latest author. Slightly nervous about taking a business trip alone after what happened last time, Steve offers to go with her.

What could possibly go wrong?

Warnings: Bad language. SMUT (NSWFW)

Pairing: Steve Rogers x OFC Katie Stark

A/N: So, here we go. This was a request/idea from @icanfeelastormbrewing​ for an Avengers/Knives Out Cross Over where Katie and Steve come face to face with America’s Asshole! The tongues are sharp and the knives are out! This is set in 2015 so way before the KO storyline so therefore contains no spoilers!

Oh, @angrybirdcr​ I bloody love this edit and banner- the edit you have named the Ransom pre- Steve-Rogers-fucked-my-face-after-I-called-his-wife-a-hoe edit...

Disclaimer: This is a pure work of fiction and classified as 18+. Please respect this and do not read if you are underage. I do not own any characters in this series bar Katie Stark and the other OCs. By reading beyond this point you understand and accept the terms of this disclaimer.

Stark Spangled Banner Masterlist // Main Masterlist

October 2015

 “So, Mr Thrombey, that’s all confirmed.” Katie tapped at a key on her computer to lock the meeting in her calendar. “11 am, Next Thursday, the 15th ”

“I’ll send you through the zip code and location for your GPS.” Harlan responded “The house is just outside of Lincoln, not far from Pierce Park. It shouldn’t be too far for you if you’re staying at the Harbor.”

“Thank you.” Katie smiled as she spoke into her phone.“I look forward to meeting you on Thursday Sir.”

“Oh, less of the Sir, Harlan please. And the pleasure is all mine Miss Stark, I mean, Mrs Rogers, my apologies!” The man chuckled. “And thank you for accommodating my need to pull this meeting forward by a few days.”

“It’s not a problem.” She assured him. They exchanged pleasantries again and then she cut the call and leaned back in her chair, cracking her neck, before she double checked the travel arrangements. The hotel was booked, flight was sorted, hire care was confirmed. All that she needed to do was not forget the annotated manuscript or the cover ideas.

The door to her office opened and she looked up to see Tony leaning in the doorway, waving a Starbucks cup at her, along with one of their familiar brown paper bags, clearly bearing treats.

“I love you, bro!” She smiled at him as he wandered in, chuckling, placing the drink and paper bag down in front of her. She looked into the bag and gave a moan when she saw it was a rather large, gooey looking brownie, and gave a bigger moan when she sipped her drink and found it to be a Pumpkin Spiced Latte. “Perfect Elevenses!”

“Well thought you might need one, you’ve been locked in here since seven this morning…”

“You got FRIDAY spying on me?” She narrowed her eyes at him.

“No.” He denied, but at the same time the AI affirmed her suspicions.

“He has indeed had me watch you, Mrs Rogers.” “Traitor.” Tony rolled his eyes and Katie chuckled

“Well I had all this Harlan Thrombey stuff to sort, Steve’s still in Copenhagen with Sam chasing the alleged latest sighing of Bucky.” She shrugged “Not much point in lying in when you’re wide awake is there?”

“True.” Tony nodded. “Are you going back to the Compound tonight?”

“I might just stay here again if that’s ok?”

“Kiddo, you own part of this Tower, it’s always gonna be your home too.” Tony shrugged, “You can stay as long as you want.”

“Thanks Tone.” she smiled. She didn’t want to admit it, but she felt safer in the Tower whilst Steve was away, even thought it was ridiculous as the Compound was just as secure, being closer to her brother was a comfort.

“I haven’t forgotten what tomorrow is.” Tony looked at her.

Neither had she. It was a year to the day since Bucky had pulled her out of that shithole in Canada and rescued her from her ordeal at the hands of HYDRA. With a little sigh, Katie pulled off her glasses, a lasting consequence of her period of capture and torture. Ever since spending six weeks in that constantly lit cell she’d needed glasses for anything that required a long period of concentration on a computer screen or monitor if she wanted to avoid migraines. Bruce seemed to think it was something to do with the fact that her cell had been painfully bright all the time and that continued exposure to artificial light in such a way triggered a subconscious response. 

She ran a hand over her face and looked at her brother, swallowing down the sudden spike of emotion, and  swallowed.“I’ve been trying not to think about it.” she said gently.

“Which is why I booked you and Pepper into the Dominick for the afternoon.” Tony smiled at her, reaching over to take her hand, giving it a squeeze. “Well, Pepper has, I’ve just given her the credit card. Apparently you’re in for a full deep tissue massage, facial and then Franco’s booked to do your hair, oh and don’t bother telling me you’re busy as I had your diary cleared and everything reschedule to next week” He sat back, watching as she opened her mouth before shutting it, shaking her head softly. “You leave in thirty minutes.”

“You spoil me.” She smiled softly. 

“Anything for my girls, plus I thought it might keep you busy whilst Spangles is otherwise engaged.”

“He was hoping to be back but when I spoke to him before he doesn’t know if he’s gonna be.” she shrugged. “It is what it is.” Tony smiled at her before he stood up “Yes, it is. And this afternoon is your pamper time so get your shit together and meet Pepper downstairs.”

“Yes sir.” she said, saluting him with a grin.  

****

As with anything Pepper or Tony booked, the spa was off the scale. Katie had been meaning to go for ages, and now, as she sat in the chair in Franco’s salon she was already searching available dates to go back. She laughed and joked with the stylist and Pepper, the pair of them enjoying yet another bottle of champagne as they had their hair done. A couple of hours later, at just gone seven, Pepper dragged her out over the road and into a ridiculously expensive wine bar.

“Feeling better?” Pepper asked as Katie took a huge gulp of her Sancerre.

Katie smiled. “Much, thank you.” “You know, I’m always here if you want to talk to someone other than Steve about stuff.” Pepper looked at her “And it won’t go any further.”

“That’s the thing, I don’t wanna talk about it.” Katie sighed “You know, Pep, I see all these women out there that went through…well, you know, and I read their testimonies and I just wonder how they’re so strong, like, how can they can just stand up and talk about it?” She trailed off, shaking her head “And me? I just wanna pretend it never happened. So much for being an Avenger huh?”

“Hey.” Pepper shook her head, looking at her sternly. “Stop that, right now.” “Well it’s true.” Katie shrugged. “I mean, I’m a public figure right? But all people know is I was missing for weeks, and it was put down to a mission gone awry. I just, well, I feel like I should be out there, trying to make a difference, helping people.”

“Kiddo, what you went through,” Pepper swallowed, “I can’t even begin to imagine. And how you’ve dealt with and processed it, well, frankly I don’t know how you’ve been so strong. There is no shame in wanting to simply move on and leave it in the past.”

“I know.” Katie sniffed a little. “Thank you. Having everyone around me makes me realise how lucky I actually am. I’ve got a huge support network. Not everyone who goes through…well, not everyone has that to fall back on.” Pepper pondered something before she looked at Katie, “You know, we haven’t picked our Partner Charity for the Stark Relief Fund next year. We could make it one that deals with Sexual violence. No need to go into details as to why.” Katie considered that for a moment, before she nodded. “That’s not a bad idea.” She clicked her deep purple manicured nails against her wine glass, thoughtfully. “It would make a difference, right?”

Pepper nodded. “Absolutely. Give it some thought, see how you feel.” “I will, thanks.” she smiled. 

****

Steve was exhausted but wasn’t willing to spend another moment away from his wife. So the moment the jet was down he headed straight for the garage, jumped on his bike and roared out of the compound heading down town towards Manhattan.

“Good Evening Captain Rogers.” FRIDAY greeted him as he pressed his palm to the access pad at the rear entrance from the underground car park “Mrs Rogers is in your apartment.”

“Thanks FRIDAY.” he said, as the elevator began to rise. It stopped a few floors up, and when the doors flew open he was greeted by Tony who was undoing his tie.

“Oh, you’re back.” He looked at Steve appraisingly.

“You’re up late.” Steve remarked in response.

“Just working on a few things.” Tony said vaguely. “How was the search for Tin Man?” “Well, it was him alright.” Steve ran a hand down his tired face. “Few more leads to work on. We could have stayed out there for a bit longer truth be told but, well, I wanted to be here tomorrow, you know.”

The two men shared a moment of understanding, both of them having experienced unsurmountable raw pain and anguish over the weeks Katie had been missing and it wasn’t something they were likely to forget any time soon. If ever.

“She know you’re home?” Tony looked at him again. Steve shook his head.

“Wanted to surprise her.”

Tony smiled softly. “She’s probably asleep.  Her and Pep have been in the Spa all afternoon and they’ve drunk a lot so…”

Steve gave a huff of a laugh. “Yeah she messaged me before saying you’d sent her there out for the afternoon. From the spelling mistakes in the text I figured there was a fair amount of alcohol that had been consumed.” He paused and smiled. “That was really thoughtful of you, Tony.” “Well it happens occasionally.” Tony sniffed as the elevator stopped at his floor. “Listen, Steve…” Steve turned to face him. “She’s not been herself the last few weeks.” Tony scratched at his beard and Steve took a deep breath.

“I know.” he said gently “I think she’s just, well, processing, if that’s the right word. We only got back from our honeymoon three weeks ago, and it kinda hit her when we got back just what time of year it was. Whilst we were away she didn’t have time to think about it.”

“Just, well, take care of her for me okay?” Tony looked at the Soldier and Steve nodded.

“Always Tony, you had my word on that when I told you I wanted to marry her, and I meant it.”

Tony nodded and clapped him on the shoulder, giving him a look of thanks before he left the elevator on the Part Floor level. It began to rise again and Steve let out a soft sigh. Tony was right, the last two weeks in particular Katie had been a little quiet, less vivacious, almost withdrawn even. At first he had put it down to post honeymoon blues, but Natasha had pointed out that this time twelve months ago she had been at the mercy of HYDRA, with those bastards brutalising her in ways that he couldn’t even bring himself to think about. For this reason, he’d been reticent to go on the latest mission but Katie had insisted, pointing out that they couldn’t not carry on with their lives and that she would be alright.

The fact she had basically moved back into the Tower for the three days he had been gone, however, made him think that she wasn’t quite as alright as she had told him.

The doors opened on their floor and he stepped out. It was mostly dark as he headed through to the bedroom where he found that the TV was playing on the wall, but Katie was fast asleep, one of the pillows clutched to her chest as a makeshift cuddle partner. With a soft smile he closed the door and headed over to the bed. Kicking off his boots he lay on his side, facing her, and brushed her soft hair back off her face before pressing a kiss to the bridge then tip of her nose and finally her lips.

She stirred, her face scrunching up in that adorable way it always did, before she blinked her eyes open. It took her a second to focus but when she did her lips curled upwards into a soft smile which became an ear to ear grin.

“Hey, Sweetheart.” He said softly, kissing her again, his hand cupping her face.

“You’re home.” She reached up to lay her hand over his. “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming back?”

“Wanted to surprise you.”

“Well it worked.”

“I missed you.” He whispered, his thumb caressing her cheekbone as he leaned in for another kiss.

“Missed you more.” She shot back, her lips brushing his and he chuckled.

“Doubt it. How was the Spa?”

“Oh it was amazing.” She gushed, her eyes shining. “I had this deep tissue massage and the guy hit spots on my back I didn’t even know I had. The facial was great, and my hair…”

“I like the colour.” He smiled, gently moving his hand so he twirled a piece around his finger. The ends were slightly lighter than usual, almost a dark honey blonde, and it extended a little up the strands before evening out.

“It’s called ballayage.” She smiled at him. “I just fancied a bit of a change.”

“Looks good on you. And I’m glad you had a nice time, you deserve it.”

“How was the mission? Worth it?”

“Yes and no.” Steve shrugged. “We have a few more leads we can chase up but…” he took a deep breath “I’m beginning to wonder what the point is. He clearly doesn’t wanna be found.”

“The point is he’s your friend, your brother.” Katie moved her hand to run her fingers over his jawline, the pads scratchings lightly against his five-oclock shadow. “Maybe he just needs a bit of time to find himself first, that doesn’t mean you have to give up on him. Besides, I need to give him back his jacket.”

“And I need to thank him. For getting my beautiful girl out and safe.”

“I can’t believe it’s been a year tomorrow since he found me.” She said softly

“Is that what’s been bothering you?”

“Huh?”

“The last few weeks you’ve not been yourself.”

She licked her lips and nodded “Yeah, I just, well, I didn’t give it much thought when we were on our honeymoon, you know, but since coming back and ramping up the Thrombey Campaign it’s kinda hit home a little.” And suddenly Steve understood. SIP were publishing the man’s latest book, “The Colour of Revenge” which was all about a Detective on the trail of a killer who was hunting down and dispatching of six men who had been acquitted of a gang rape and murder.

“Shit.” He let out a groan at the fact he hadn’t made the connection. “Honey, I’m so stupid not to realise that.” “Hey.” She frowned, “Don’t…” She reached up and smoothed the lines that had appeared on his brow and he let out a sigh, gently reaching up to lace his fingers with hers, bringing her hand towards him and placing a soft kiss on her wrist. “It’s better now you’re home.” She assured him gently.

He smiled and gave her a gentle kiss again.

“Is that everything?” He pressed and she hesitated again.

“I’m scared.” She admitted eventually, looking at him.

“Scared of what?”

“Going away, on my own.” The tears welled in her eyes. “I hate that they made me like this, Steve.”

He let out a sigh, he hated that she was scared too. She didn’t deserve it. 

“Why don’t I come with you?” He asked, the idea suddenly forming in his mind.  Katie stilled for a moment and he continued. “Not to the actual meeting, but I can drop you off and pick you up, hang around, whatever you want me to do.”

She looked up at him smiling softly, not even trying to pretend she wasn’t relieved he had offered. “Would you?”

“Of course.” He nodded, wiping the tears off her face. “You only had to ask.” “I didn’t want to. I know how busy you are here and…” “That can wait.” He held her face in his hands as he drove his message home. “You’re the most important thing in my life and if me coming with you makes you feel better then…” He shrugged “Besides, I’ve always wanted to go to Boston.”

“I know we haven’t been back from our honeymoon long, but maybe we can make a little trip out of it if you like?” Her face was suddenly hopefully “Come back on the Saturday?”

“Sure.” Steve smiled at her. “Let’s do it.”

“Oh, Stevie you’re gonna love it.” she beamed, and he smiled at the way her face had gone from being furrowed with worry to alive with excitement. “Massachusetts is amazing in the fall and Boston is just stunning…” “Well I’ll make sure I bring my sketch book.” He smiled “Give me something to do whilst you’re in the meeting.” “Thank you.” She said softly. “I’ll book us somewhere nice to eat one night. Give us an excuse to wear something pretty.”

“Like you need an excuse.” He teased, and she nipped him harshly on the arm. He chuckled and then with a groan he unwillingly pushed himself up off the bed.

“I need a shower.” He said, almost apologetically. “I won’t be long.”

“You better not be.” She muttered and he smiled, dropping a kiss to her forehead before he headed into the bathroom.

True to his word, he wasn’t long. Five minutes, tops. But by the time he came back, the TV was off and Katie was fast asleep. Thinking back to what Tony had said, he found himself wondering if she had actually slept much at all whilst he was gone.

Steve dried himself off, stepped into a clean pair of boxers and then slid into the bed next to his wife, slipping his arms around her. Once her back was nestled snugly into his chest, he dropped a soft kiss to her neck and closed his eyes, happy to have her in his arms.

****

Steve woke the next morning to find his girl tangled around him. She’d shifted in the night, clearly, and now her face was pressed into his chest, right leg snaked between both of his, her right hand was slid under his arm, lightly gripping his shoulder whilst her left rested against her head, fingers in her hair. Smiling to himself he pulled her closer, relishing the feel of her against him. She murmured something incoherently as she gently moved, her cheek pressing into the hair on his chest, the hand around his shoulder slid down to the base of his back where her fingers simply rested, soft against his spine as she continued to sleep. 

And Steve was quite happy to let her nap for longer, using him as her own personal cuddly toy.

He dozed in and out of consciousness again, drifting off for another ten minutes or so, before he felt Katie stirring in his arms, and a soft kiss gently being pressed to his jaw line. He smiled at the contact and tightened his hold on her again, his eyes still closed.

“Morning, Beautiful.” He said softly, his voice still thick with sleep.

“Morning, Soldier.” She said, her cheek returning to his chest as she basked in the safety and warmth of his hold as his hand crept up the back of the stolen shirt she was wearing, his rough fingers ever so gentle against her skin as he trailed the pads up and down her spine.

“Sleep okay?” He asked, his eyes still not opening.

“Yeah.” She assured him, truthfully. It had been the best night sleep she’d had in days.

“Good. What do you fancy doing today?”

He felt her still and then she pulled back slightly, and at that he opened his eyes and blinked to see those gorgeous emeralds locked onto him.

“Are you not needed at the Compound?”

He shook his head “Kitten, I’ve not seen you for almost three days so I figured we deserved one together.”

She groaned “I have meetings this morning.” “That’s okay, I’ll meet you at lunch.” He said, tucking her hair behind her ear.

She didn’t argue. She knew full well why he’d taken the time out, and frankly she adored him for it. Without saying a word she leaned up and captured his lips in a gentle kiss that quickly became heated, but was shattered by the piercing noise of Katie’s alarm.

She gave a groan, and made to move.

“Don’t you dare.” Steve mumbled against her mouth, his grip on her tightening.

“Stevie,” She sighed “I gotta…”

He reached over, his large body flattening her into the mattress making her giggle as he swiped across the screen of her StarkPhone silencing it.

“You ain’t gotta do shit.” He said, hovering over her on his elbows. “Except me.” He added as an afterthought.

“Oh so you’re gonna to explain to the board why I’m late?”

“Well, to be honest,” he said, dipping his head to trail hot kisses up the side of the next, “they probably won’t even notice you’re not there. I mean, are you really that important?”

“Fuck you.” She giggled back.

“Believe me, I’m tryin’” he quipped, his mouth nipping at her ear lobe. That made her giggle even more and she felt his lips curve into a smile against her skin.

“I love it when you do that.” He whispered gently, using his leg to part hers, leaving a large thigh pressed against her mound.

“What?”

“Laugh.” His mouth moved up her jaw line. “It makes me happy.”

“You’re such a sentimental sap.” She mumbled, as his lips claimed hers again, the heat between her legs intensifying as the kiss grew deeper, tongues lashing against one another. Steve pulled back for long enough to pull his shirt over her head before his lips returned to hers and Katie’s hand slid into his hair, one hand gently winding into the longer locks on top, her nails on the other dragging against the hairline on his neck. His hands moved, one gently cupping the side of her face, the other, gently skimming over her breast, her nipples already hardened. He gently teased one with the pad of his thumb and his mouth moved down to the other, his tongue and fingers working in tandem. She gave a little involuntary twitch against his thigh and once more his lips quirked up into a smirk.

“You want something, Baby girl?” He asked, peeking up at her and she nodded.

“Stevie, don’t make me beg, please.”

And when she asked so nicely like that, how could he ever refuse? He hooked his fingers into the sleep shorts she was wearing and worked them down, before flipping down the waist band of his boxers. Katie bent her legs as he shuffled upwards and worked into her, the pair of them letting out a groan each at the stretch as he buried himself to the hilt. Steve’s hands fell to either side of Katie’s face as he held himself up on his forearms, kissing her deeply as he flexed his hips forward, again and again, picking up a gentle rhythm.

It was soft, it was gentle, it was loving, everything she knew her soldier to be and it wasn’t long before he had her writhing and groaning loudly, his lips assaulting that spot on her neck.

“So good,” he groaned, his thrusts getting deeper. “Feel so good, Sweetheart.”

“Keep talking.” She keened, arching into him as her hands raked down his back.

“You were made for me, God I love you Mrs Rogers. So fucking much.” His words were punctuated by his heavy breaths as she gave a soft cry, her head falling backwards, eyes fluttering shut as she tightened around him, her legs shuddering slightly as she came.

“Atta girl.” He panted, his hips becoming faster as he thrust through her orgasm, chasing his own. It wasn’t long before he felt the ribbons in his belly unravel and he came with a cry of his own, his head buried in her neck, hips slowing, thrusts going deeper before he eventually stilled, a loud contented sigh escaping his mouth.

After a few moments of them simply basking in the afterglow, Katie’s hands trailing through Steve’s ruffled hair as his nose slid against hers, she gave a sigh and pushed on his shoulders gently.

“Soldier, I really do need to get up.”

He pouted a little causing her to chuckle before he rolled off her and she pushed herself out of bed, heading for the en-suite. Steve watched her go before he swung his legs from under the covers,, found his boxers, pulled them on and headed down to the kitchen to make them both some coffee. *****

The idea had sprung to Katie as she’d headed out for lunch. The local shop was donating a percentage of its earnings that month to a homeless charity, and it set her mind whirring.

“So you want to donate, all the profit we make, from what is going to likely be the biggest book SIP will ever publish, to charity?” Tony looked at her.

“In a nutshell, yeah.” She nodded. “We can split it across various charities, all those that help victims of sexual assault, abuse or crime…”

“Isn’t that what the Stark Relief Fund is for?” Saul, the SI Finance Director looked at her and she turned to face him.

“Yes, but it isn’t just about the money, it’s about raising awareness.” She pressed “A lot of people don’t know those charities existed. Hell, I didn’t know about half of them until a year ago. If we do this, think of the publicity and the press and…”

She trailed off, looking at Tony. He could see the excitement shining in her eyes. She had a point, and it wasn’t like SI needed the money. SIP was her company after all, and if she wanted to use it to do something good, help people, maybe even help herself…then that was fine by him.

He shrugged and looked round the table “SIP’s vision was never about making money.” Katie beamed at her brother as she realised he was backing her “It was always about helping those who needed a hand to get their work out there…I don’t see why in this case, where they author is already so well-known we can’t use that to help those who need it.”

There was a pause and she looked expectantly round the table. One by one the board members seemed to concede, all of them that is bar their Legal Manager, Dan Robertson who was frowning.

“You’re going to have to bring Mr Thrombey on board Mrs Rogers.” He looked at her. “We can’t just use his book as part of a campaign without his permission.” “I know.” She assured him. “I’ve already realised that. I’m meeting him on Thursday next week, I’ll have a full proposal and pitch ready.”

There were a few murmurs around the table before Tony spoke. “Is that it? Are we settled?”

Everyone looked at one another, nodding, and Katie leaned back in her chair, smiling.

But, she wasn’t smiling now. She had less than twenty-four hours before they set off for Boston and her pitch was only half way through completion.

“Sweetheart.” Steve’s hands slid over her shoulders where she sat on the chair in her office. She looked effortlessly elegant, even in sweats and an off the shoulder sweater, one toned leg stretched out in front of her, the other bent at the knee so her foot was resting on the seat of the chair, her left hand was curled around her shin, her right was tapping at her keyboard, the dark blue framed glasses perched on her nose. “It’s late.”

“I know but,” she sighed, “this means a lot to me Steve. I need it to be right.”

Steve knew better than to argue. Instead he leaned over and kissed the side of her neck. “What are you stuck with?”

“I dunno it just…it all seems so impersonal.” She removed her glasses and wrinkled her nose as he sat down in the arm chair in the corner of the room “Facts and figures on sexual assaults and stuff, we all know it happens, it’s about making people want to do something about it.”

“Are you ready to make it personal?” He asked gently, taking a deep breath. He hated thinking about what she had gone through, he truly did, and if he had half a chance he’d rip the bastards limb from limb. But if she was ready to confront what had happened to her, he had to be there to support and back her all of the way, regardless of his own feelings.

“I don’t know. I was talking to Pepper about this the other day. I should be able to, I should be someone other women can look up to, being an Avenger and all but…maybe I’m just not strong enough.” “You’re the strongest person I know.” Steve leaned forward and locked eyes with her.

“I don’t feel like it when it comes to this.”

“Honey,” he scratched at his head. “Without wanting to sound flippant, since January this year, you’ve been, okay, well maybe okay isn’t the word but you’ve gotten on with things. You’ve moved forward, we both did.”

“Because we were busy, and we had no choice…”

“Well maybe,” he shrugged. “But chasing down a sceptre, fighting Ultron, mobilising a new base, planning a wedding, running a business…it’s all time consuming, stressful stuff that if you really weren’t strong enough to deal with what happened, then it would have all gone to shit and probably tipped you over the edge into a nervous breakdown.”

She brushed a piece of hair behind her ear as she considered what he was saying.

“Honestly…” he continued, his eyes boring into hers. “If you want my opinion I think the fact that it’s the year’s anniversary of what happened that’s playing on your mind a little. You need to stop, look back and how well you’ve done and stop beating yourself up about all the things you haven’t”

She smiled softly and looked down at her hands before she glanced back up at him “When did you get so wise?” He chuckled “Well I am ninety seven years old.”

She laughed “You don’t look a day over twenty five.”

Steve smiled and stood up. “I’m gonna make you a hot chocolate, and you’re gonna stop overthinking everything and come relax. We’re up early tomorrow. You can do the rest at the hotel tomorrow evening.” “No can do, we’re going out.” Katie grinned at him “I booked the Chef’s table at Menton.”

“The what?” Steve frowned.

“You never heard of a Chef’s table?” She looked at him, and he shook his head. “Oh my God I’ve let you down, so badly. Check this out.” she tapped on her computer, bringing up the website and showed him the photos “It’s a private table with a glass wall that gives you a direct view into the kitchen. Totally impossible to get a reservation unless you book like a year in advance. Or name drop.”

Steve groaned. “You seriously dropped the Captain America wants a table line?”

“No, I dropped the Captain America’s wife want a table line.” She smirked, closing down the browser page.

“Pain in my ass.” Steve grumbled, standing up. But as he left the office there was a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

One that his wife had seen.

*****

“So, was it worth a name drop?” Katie asked as they walked back into the Fireside Lounge located in their hotel.

“I’m happy to overlook the fact you acted like a total brat to make that reservation, yes.” Steve grinned as he went to remove her coat from her shoulders. He looked her up and down, the tight black jump suit she was in was driving him crazy.

She grinned, and then shivered slightly.

“Cold?” He asked, frowning.

“A little, don’t wanna sit in my coat though.”

“Do you want me to nip up to the room, grab your cardigan?”

“Would you?” She asked, even though she knew perfectly well he would.

“Course.” He dropped a kiss to her cheek “You get the drinks in, be right back.”

She headed over to the bar. The bartender, Will, was the same one who had been on before so he greeted her with a smile.

“Mrs Rogers. How was your meal?”

“Fantastic thank you.” She smiled. “Can I get two Bourbon’s please? I’ll leave it to your choice, I’ll be back in a second, just need to nip to the bathroom.”

She excused herself and once she’d finally had the pee she’d been dying for since they left the restaurant, she set about touching up her make-up, smiling to herself. She’d deliberately picked this jumpsuit as she knew it got Steve’s blood pumping. It was a simple, plain black one with a V-neck line, but it was tight. Teamed with a thin red patent leather belt, matching Jimmy-Choos and purse all set off by the bright red lipstick she was sporting, she knew she looked good. Not that Steve had much room to talk, she could happily perve on him in the dark pants he was wearing, teamed with a tweed blazer and that damned blue shirt, his collar left open. Frankly, he looked good enough to eat, which she was planning on doing later.

She headed back into the bar and spotted Steve perched on one of the stools, blinking as she saw he’d changed into a simple brown, long sleeved tee, but then again he always did like to get out of his dress shirts as soon as they got home usually, so she wasn’t that surprised.

“Hey, Handsome. You changed.” She slipped her arms round him from the back. He felt different, he was softer than Steve was. He smelt different, there was a really heavy woody scent to his aftershave whereas Steve’s preferred Hugo Boss was a lot lighter and she realised with horror that Steve hadn’t changed his outfit at all.

This wasn’t Steve.

When the man spun to face her, Katie had to do a double take as the likeness was indeed uncanny at first glance, but as she blinked and looked at him she noticed subtle differences. His eyes were cold and calculating, his jaw line wasn’t quite as sharp as Steve’s and the smirk he wore on his face was nothing like the cheeky one Steve would sport. It was almost a sneer which spread across his face, every feature laced with disdain.

“What the fuck?” The man glared at her as Katie stepped back, holding her hands up in apology.

“I’m sorry, genuine case of mistaken identity,” she said, taking him in. His shirt was the wrong colour too, only she hadn’t been able to see that from the back.

“Yeah well if you’re touting for business I already got some today so get lost.” The man drawled in his light, Boston accent. “Like I just said I thought you were…hang on…” Katie frowned as his words registered “You already got some?”

“Yeah, that’s right.” He looked her up and down, arching a brow.

“You think I’m a hooker?” Katie snorted.

“Pretty high end one though, I’ll give you that.” The man’s voice was now amused, as he nodded towards her chest.

“I’m not a hooker.” Katie shook her head, laughing in disbelief.

“Oh, sorry. Do you prefer the term escort?”

She rolled her eyes, flashing her left hand at him. “I’m married, this was a genuine mistake….”

She moved away from him to the side, nodding at Will who slid the check over for her to sign to charge the drinks to their room.

Ransom observed her for a moment, fighting the smirk that was threatening to break across his face. After another row with his stupid Libtard cousin and his mother who had been at his Grandfather’s house before, he’d come out with the sole intention of getting laid and then so drunk he could hardly remember his name. After a visit to one of his usual fuck pieces, he’d achieved the first part, now he was concentrating on the second. He’d been initially irritated by this woman’s interruption, but now she was getting sassy back, and he wasn’t about to let it drop. He could tell she had money,that much was clear to see. The way she talked, held herself, was dressed. Whilst she wasn’t a hooker as he had originally thought (although to be fair to her, she was pretty hot, he’d consider fucking her if the opportunity arose), she was probably living off some seventy odd year old rich banker husband. Huh, maybe she wanted a fuck after all…frustrated little trophy wife.  

“So, tell me. Does your husband know you’re here trying to tap me up?” He looked at her.

“You know, if I was trying to errr…tap you up, you wouldn’t be able to afford me” She shot back, signing her name on the cheque with a flourish.

“Try me.” Ransom smirked, making a show of looking her up and down. “How much for that ass?” “I’ll kick yours for free you self-entitled dick.” She glared at him before she slid the signed paper and pen back to the bartender.

Ransom gave a bark of a laugh “I’ll pass thanks.”

Katie snorted and glanced sideways at look at him, scarlet red lips pursed as she eyed him over her glass of bourbon. “Good decision, because I’ve dropped bigger men than you for fun.” “Sure you have, Dollface” Ransom quirked an eyebrow, elbow leaning on the bar, angling his body towards her. She kept hers facing forwards, arms resting on the bar top, her head shaking slightly.

“You have no fucking idea who I am do you?” Katie shook her head, not looking at the prick stood next to her.  She hated using that line, but, well, when the occasion arose to get one over on a weasely little shit like this, she wasn’t going to pass it up.

“Why should I?” He snorted “I don’t know all the little bitches in Boston.”

Katie felt her mouth drop open and she was about to retaliate when Steve gently appeared by her side, dropping her cardigan over her shoulders.

Ransom recognised him straight away. He’d had it quite often, been told he looked similar to Captain America. So this meant the woman he’d been baiting for the last five minutes was his wife, Katie Rogers, sister of Billionaire Tony Stark, the Avenger, Supernova.

He’d called Supernova a hooker.

Ransom looked into his glass of scotch, turning away back to the bar, snorting with laughter.

“Sorry baby, Sam called and…” Steve stopped, frowning at the look on Katie’s face. “You okay?”

“Fine.” She looked up at him, smiling and nodding towards a cosy sofa over at the other side of the bar. “You wanna go sit down over there?”

“Sure.” He nodded, picking up his glass of bourbon, he held out his free hand for her and she jumped down off the stool.

“I’d like to say it’s been a pleasure.” She snarked to the man next to her “But I don’t lie so…”

Steve frowned, wondering what had gone down whilst he’d been away. He glanced at his wife and then turned to look at the guy that was sat on the stool next to where Katie had been to see if he recognised him and did a double take. He recognised him alright, but only because he looked incredibly like him. Granted, there were a few subtle differences, but the resemblance was uncanny, to the point that at a first glance in the street, you could be fooled.

“Pal, you should keep that bitch on a leash.” Ransom spoke, his eyebrows raising and in front of him Steve stiffened.

“What did you just say?” He frowned, pulling himself up to full height.

“Seriously, man. You save the world from Nazi’s, get frozen for seventy years and then end up marrying that.” Ransom smirked, enjoying baiting the Captain “I’d ask ‘em to put you back under…”

Steve’s nostrils flared and he felt his neck getting warmer. “Don’t you dare talk about my wife like that.”

“Steve, leave it, come on.” Katie gently placed her palm on Steve’s chest. “The guy’s a complete ass hole. If brains were dynamite I doubt he’d have enough to blow his head off.”

“Well if we’re talking about blowing,” Ransom looked Katie up and down before locking onto her eyes. “You up for the job?

Katie let out a bark of a laugh, her hand still on Steve’s chest which was positively humming with anger as she turned to face Ransom, contempt etched across every single inch of her face.

“Go jerk yourself off and wipe it on a curtain like your father should have done with you.”

“I’d rather wipe it in your hair.” came the quip back.

And that was it. That was the point that Steve Rogers snapped.

There was a loud smash, the glass he was holding shattered in his grip as his fist contracted in pure anger. Katie barely had time to realise what had happened before he had stepped forward and grabbed Ransom by the front of his shirt, lifting him with ease, slamming him on the bar.

“Steve!” Katie pulled on his arm. “Baby, he really isn’t worth it, let go!”

“Captain Rogers!” Will behind the bar was desperately trying to talk him down as well “Please, don’t make me call security.”

Security! Steve wanted to snort. Like that would do any good.

“Soldier, come on.” Katie tried again, pleading to his reasonable side. “Look, we’ve had such a nice night. Don’t let him ruin it.”

Steve let out a deep breath, he wanted nothing more than to knock the asshole’s teeth down his throat, but he felt Katie’s touch on his arm and her pleading tone and he let go, shoving the man hard.

“I would tell you to apologise.” Steve snarled stepping back. His voice was steely, eyes carrying none of their usual warmth.“But I suspect it’s pointless”

“Yup.” Ransom nodded “Totally pointless.”

“Like your existence.” Katie mumbled, Ransom snorting in response. “Look, Drysdale, my manager’s told you before.” Will said, his voice laced with vexation as he shuffled from behind the bar to sweep up the glass that Steve had shattered. “Any more trouble and you’re gonna be banned.”

Ransom’s nostrils flashed angrily as he looked at the man “’I’m gonna be banned? Eat shit! He’s the one that just attacked me! He ripped my shirt!” he gestured down to where Steve had grabbed him, two tears either side of the buttons of his shirt “This is a Fendi!”

“Ransom, just shut up and apologise.” Will pressed again. “Or you’re gonna have to leave.”

“Fuck this, I was going anyway.” Ransom snarled, knocking back his drink. He stood up and pulled on a long, tan coloured camel coat before he glared at Steve then Katie “Really bad smell in here.”

Katie rolled her eyes, deciding to let him have that childish one without any fuss. But Steve didn’t.

“Close the door on your way out.”  He watched as the man stopped, took a deep breath before angrily flinging the door open, his coat flapping behind him. There was a moment’s pause before it slammed shut. 

“Sorry.” Steve turned, apologising to Will. 

“He’s a dirt bag and a cretin.” Will shrugged, as he waved the apology off. “No redeeming features whatsoever. Well, none that I’ve seen and trust me, I’ve seen him a hell of a lot.”

“Is your hand okay?” Katie asked Steve gently. She turned his right hand over to see that there were no cuts at all from the glass, which was good.

“Yeah, fine, don’t worry.” Steve looked at her, frowning. “Honey, what on Earth just happened?” He asked her softly, as she took a deep breath, blowing it out of her mouth.

“I went to the bathroom and when I came back, well, I thought he was you from behind so gave him a hug.” She shook her head “Soon as I touched him I realised I was very, very wrong. I tried to apologise and he called me a hooker.”

“A hooker?” Steve repeated, arching an eyebrow.

“Yeah, so I told him even if I was he wouldn’t be able to afford me.”

At that Will, who had been busy pouring them both another drink, laughed as he slid two short tumblers of bourbon back over to them.  “He won’t have liked that at all.”

Steve nodded his thanks to the man as Katie looked at him. “How come?” She asked.

“Well, simply put, his family one way or another are loaded, and Ransom likes to be the flash bastard if you get what I mean.”

“What do his family do?” Katie asked, “I’ve never even heard of the Drysdales.”

“His mother and father run a real Estate Company.”  Will shrugged, “A local one round Massachusetts, but you’ll have heard of his grandfather, or if you haven’t you’ve been living under a rock for the last twenty years.” “Who?” she asked.

“Harlan Thrombey, the crime fiction author.” Will replied, and Katie felt the colour drain from her face. She turned to look at Steve whose eyes had also widened, and she gave a groan.

“Shit.”

**** Part 2

**Original Posting**