#yet still the young shun you

[stephaniedola]

every time i start to think things might be looking up with my dad some bullshit happens that makes the guilt kick right back in again

[rcvcgers]

Rotten Apples ❦.ׂ

chapter one: a new beginning

masterlist , series masterlist , ao3 link

you are here | next part

18+ MINORS DNI

pairing: caleb x non!mc reader

synopsis: you've always hated her. you live your life free from her and caleb. a stranger helps save you from a date gone wrong.

word count: 5.1k words

warnings: extreme loathing, kinda funny, kinda sad, a good mix of everything! mentions of death. not proofread!

author's note: hi! this is my first lads fic! it's lowkey a mess and is all over the place, but that's okay! i hope you all enjoy! <33 please feel free to comment! i love any & all feedback! <33

You never thought yourself to be a hateful person, but whenever you saw Caleb with her, your heart boiled. His smile was always the brightest with her. He always handed her the first water bottle after a run around the neighborhood. His eyes were always on her and not you during study hall. They shared giggles with one another and you were the last to know the joke as you filled out blank homework pages. Whenever she walked into a room, he jumped to her side and aided her with whatever it is she needed.

And she always needed something.

Your friendship with Caleb and the girl you deemed a she-devil blossomed from a young age, having been next-door neighbors with Josephine. You are older than her yet still a few months younger than Caleb, which meant that the two of you had to look out for her.

She was naive in many ways. She always trusts people too easily and is quick to help, not knowing that the world is cruel and is out to hurt her. It’s something you and Caleb bonded over; taking care of her was something you had in common with him alongside planes, absolutely loving apple pie, and always wanting to be the last one tagged during recess.

However, those childhood days have long passed and you’ve settled into a draining routine where you played a background character in someone else’s life.

When you and Caleb reached freshman year of high school, you were sure that he was going to ask you to be his date to the homecoming dance. Instead, you were surprised with the revelation that he was going to stay home and have a movie night with her since she wasn’t in high school yet.

Despite his compliments about your dress, he snuck back inside his house when you asked him if he needed a ride to the dance. She was waving him back inside in the background and he couldn’t have been happier to watch My Little Pony or whatever bullshit she had lined up.

You basked in his frequent compliments when he met you outside your home, when she wasn’t around. Caleb always knew what to say when you had a saddened frown on your face.

“Did James turn you down? I thought he liked you! You’re a catch!” Caleb’s warm words reached your ears and made the butterflies in your stomach flutter. At least he knew then that you were worthwhile. If only he wasn’t so blind to what you had to offer to him.

At least you had a year of high school alone with him. You two even shared a few classes together and had planned study nights to prepare for final exams! Huddled at the desk in his room, you could smell the sweet apple scent of his shampoo and were able to hear through raspiness of his chuckle right next to your ear.

It was fun until she came inside his room, claiming that she wanted to help you two study. That plan lasted for about ten minutes before she whined and complained that she wanted to watch her and Caleb’s favorite show. That night ended up with her snuggled into his side while he stroked her hair. You held the chip bowl, not by choice, and watched as your crush on the boy next door began to deteriorate.

When she finally joined your and Caleb’s high school, you bit your tongue and held back the deplorable comments that shuffled through your mind about his so called beloved. You even held back comments to your new friends about his relationship with her. You knew that if you ever said anything bad about her, he’d come to her defense and shun you for what you’ve said.

It never mattered how you felt. It didn’t matter if you were having a bad day or had just embarrassed yourself in front of your entire gym class when Becky threw a ball right at your face. His attention will forever be owned by her. You’ll never get to know how it feels to always be under his cautious gaze nor will you ever be a recipient of his charming smile.

Truth is, you used to be friends with them. The perpetual third wheel to all of their escapades and adventures. You used to be close to them but as time moved on, they grew closer together and you, well, just didn’t fit into their equation anymore. The funny thing is that they have no clue of their wrongdoing towards you nor did they realize that you had left their group entirely after months of sitting in your room, filled with nothing but discontent as you scrolled through their posted selfies together.

You thought you set yourself free from them. It’s better to watch from afar instead of up close, no? It spares you more heartbreak and it, very selfishly, keeps you away from her.

You can stay away from her smiles. Her laughter. The way her dark hair falls into the perfect messy bun while yours just looks plain erratic. Not to mention the way her hands always lingered on him while you watched, helpless from the other side of the lunch table.

And you can finally break free from that stupid nickname he has for her.

“Hey!” You hear a friend’s voice from over your shoulder. You turn and smile at them, tucking a piece of hair behind your ear. “Are you ready for the game against the Rams tonight? I heard you’re starting!”

Before you can reply, you hear a thud behind you. Glancing over your shoulder, you notice that Caleb leans against the metal lockers. His arms are crossed over his chest and he wears that stupidly charming  grin on his face.

“You have a game tonight? Why didn’t you tell us?” He asks. Her smile falters.

Us. That damned word.

“It’s not a big deal,” you shrug, placing your leftover books inside the locker. “You two are usually busy anyways doing…whatever…so it wouldn’t have mattered if you knew or not.”

Okay, maybe there is some venom in your tone and malice in the way you throw your books into your locker. To be fair, you’re so fed up with them ghosting you and never showing up to your games that you can’t help but let some of your anger out.

“Woah!” Caleb pushes off the locker and holds his hands in the air. You roll your eyes and slam the locker shut, walking away. He quickly follows and matches your hellish pace. “What’s wrong? You’ve been so distant lately. Me and—”

“Don’t,” you bark. The two of you pause in the middle of the hallway, your eyes locked on his in a heated glare. “How long do you think it’s been since I’ve hung out with you two?”

A look of confusion flashes across his face. You have to stop yourself from looking at the way his face scrunches up, the way his tongue pokes about between his lips while he thinks.

“Hm…like a month?” Caleb’s words are genuine, you know that, but it shatters your heart to know that he doesn’t even realize it’s almost been a year since you two hung out, let alone were in a room together.

“A month?!” You scoff and look away. A laugh filled with disdain and shock escapes your lips. Your hands drop to your side, tightly balled into fists, as anger washes throughout your body. “Caleb, be real with me right now. Do you truly think it’s been a month?”

You want to give him a chance to redeem himself, for him to own up to the mistake he’s made. Everyone deserves a second chance, right?

“I do, yes…” he wearily says. Your nostrils flare, cheeks heating with irritation.

“Hey guys!” Her cheerful tone scratches the inside of your brain. You sharply inhale and close your eyes just to open them to the side of her attaching herself to his side. “Are you okay? You look angry,” she remarks and gently places her hand on your shoulder. You immediately slap it away. The tips of your fingers tingle from the smack.

“Hey! What was that for?” Caleb steps in front of her, pushing the teen girl behind him.

You cross your arms over your chest, eyes narrowing up at Caleb, who guards her from you.

“Just fuck off and leave me alone!” You snap, pushing past them, your shoulder bumping into Caleb’s bicep. 

“Wait!” Caleb’s voice rings in your ears. A flash of hope makes your heart flutter.

Is he going to chase after you? Will he finally ditch her and see how you’re feeling for a change? Will the old Caleb come back, the one that actually cared about you and your feelings?

Your feet hesitate, pace drastically slowly, still in earshot of the other two’s conversation. You can hear his footsteps coming after you, going from slow to quick, but they suddenly stop.

“She isn’t worth it, Caleb,” her voice shoots any semblance of hope you felt, ripping your heart into shreds. “She’s so mean…she doesn’t deserve your care.”

The hallway in front of you turns glossy. You use the back of your hand to wipe away the tears that brew in your eyes. Your once reluctant pace hastens and you disappear down the hallway, becoming just another face in the crowd.

The year passed and you graduated with a new group of friends; friends that welcomed and invited you with open arms. Your camera roll was no longer sad, filled with empty selfies with her and Caleb not paying attention in the background, shifting to group photos and friends completing the other side of your hand heart. It filled your heart with the joy and happiness that your previous friendships lacked.

And most importantly of all: you were completely over Caleb and didn’t have to spend any more time around her. It’s a relief for you, really, and you’re able to go to the college of your dreams and pursue the career you wanted. 

The saddened memories no longer pained you. They no longer dug into your skin. Instead, you planted them into the soil of your mind, using the special fertilizer (the special ingredient being resent), and grew from them.

So what if they wronged you? You were now free and didn’t owe either of them a damn thing! That is, until Caleb died.

The news nearly broke you. Your mother informed you of the news when you came home for a visit. You were on a much needed break from work and were looking for a chance to relax. Your time of relaxation was quickly turned inside out.

You became a shell of yourself, the last memory of Caleb haunting your mind as you holed up in bed, covers covering the entirety of your body with a small hole for clean and cool breathing air. Your cheeks became perpetually stained with tears, becoming sticky in your sleep before the cycle started all over again.

The day of his funeral was unnecessarily rough. Your mother had to drag you out of bed and help you into the shower, the hot water turning cold from the amount of time you stood there. Once you stepped out, body trembling from the cold air, you stared at the black dress that was laid out across your bed.

It was simple. It stopped mid-thigh and the sleeves ran long down your arms. You paired it nicely with tights from high school, a pair that Caleb complimented you on, and a pair of simple booties.

She was the center of attention, of course, there was no doubt about that. The ache in your chest left you feeling conflicted. She sat alone, head hung low, as people walked by, chuckling as if they weren’t at a funeral reception.

You almost felt bad for her and the way her mascara streaked down her cheeks. She clung to a piece of metal in her hand, occasionally bringing it up to her lips to kiss it.

The distance between the two of you felt like a game of cat and mouse. She took one step forward, you took one back. She entered the hallway you found recluse in, you made sure that there was room in the closet for you to hide in.

You thought that you were able to slip out unnoticed until she called out your name.

“Hi…” your voice falls off. Her fists are balled at her sides, knuckles white.

“What are you doing here?” Her words are sharp, effortlessly slicing into you. “I thought you hated him.”

“I could never hate him…” the words barely come out, just above a meek whisper. She doesn’t say anything else. All she does is stare at you with her heartbroken expression, eyes strained and red from the sobs she let out earlier.

A part of your heart broke for her. The other part remained emotionless, knowing how she tormented you in your younger years by dangling Caleb in front of your face. It tormented you to know that you could still hold a sliver of resentment in your heart for something that happened so long ago. You quietly left, leaving her alone in the hallway, disappearing behind a familiar turn.

A year passes. The hatred you held in your heart has dissipated. You’ve watered the flowers you planted in your mind and the petals read off messages of forgiveness and second chances, even though you made sure to never run into her ever again.

Some people can forgive and forget, but you’ll be sure to forgive and keep a distance.

Skyhaven isn’t too bad of a home. Sure, there’s barely any trace of organic life throughout the city, except for the token tree the mayor decided to add about two months ago, but it’s a nice place to live. You’ve made yourself comfortable. The nightlife is great and the rain is even better. You even made some friends at your job and have gone out on a date or two with a guy who is very attentive.

But none of them are Caleb.

You stare at yourself in the cafe mirror, shaking your head. You fix your disheveled hair, wondering how you managed to spend the last ten minutes digging up the past when you’re on a date with a very cute guy. You bite your lip and tweak the last details of your outfit, flattening out a wrinkle in your skirt.

Pushing the bathroom door open, you glide down the hallway, smiling at the other customers who pass by. You can finally go back to…what’s his name again?

Jared? Clyde? Marc, who always emphasizes that there’s a ‘C’ at the end of his name instead of a ‘K’?

You clap your hands together when the name comes back to you. He jumps in his seat, his eyes closing in on you when you sit down. His smile is a little too goofy, missing out on any kind of charm that he can capitalize on, and you can’t help but watch out of the lower half of your vision as he itches his crotch.

“Thanks for waiting for me, George,” a warm smile spreads across your lips. He matches it and leans forward, pushing a colorful mug in your direction. You watch it closely before drawing it closer to you. You don’t take a sip, though, instead letting the whipped cream on top of the coffee melt. You sigh.

You don’t even liked whipped cream on your coffee. You know who would have remembered that?

“It was no problem at all!” George proudly proclaims. His chair scraps across the wooden floor. He inches closer and closer towards you in an attempt to close the distance but you scoot away from him, keeping a pleased smile on your face.

“So, what were you saying you do for a job?” Your question goes straight to his head. Gnawing at the inside of your cheek, you refrain from interrupting him about his long ramble about how he works as a “video game consultant” at a local game store.

The conversation is so painful to sit through. You glance between his beady gaze and the clock on the wall behind him. The ticking hands somehow move slower when he dives into his day to day routine. Maybe the whipped cream isn’t as bad as you previously thought.

An hour goes by and you have barely been able to get a word in. Mugs form into a half-circle in front of you. Your leg bounces up and down, hands jittery. Even your blinking is rapid as you solely stare at the clock.

“That’s enough about me. Tell me about yourself,” George grabs his glass. He ordered a cream soda at the beginning of the date but the cream separated from the colorful soda water, forming into chunky clouds.

“You know what,” you breathe out in a laugh, signaling over your shoulder to the door, “it’s getting late. I have an early start tomorrow so I should get going.” You stand from the chair and snatch your tiny purse from the seat beside you.

The cafe is practically empty now and the sun has set hours ago. You rush towards the exit, the route to the door feeling like it never ends as Greg — oh shit, George! — chases after you. 

The Skyhaven night is nice and crisp. The rain isn’t as hard tonight, just a mere sprinkle, and you rush out into the open, taking a deep breath. The chilled air fills your burning lungs and you’re able to breathe again, that is, until George grabs your hand. You gasp and snatch it back from him.

The raindrops lightly kiss your face but George’s sickening smile makes you want to hurl. He creeps towards you, the moon shining just bright enough for you to see the darkness form in his eyes.

“I have to get home, George!” You nervously chuckle, turning away. You rush towards the nearest bus stop, knowing that there will be other people there to take refuge with. George doesn’t let up though and his movements become more primal and animalistic as the seconds tick by.

“Come on, sweetheart,” George beckons from behind. You can hear his ragged breath from behind you grow close. You brace your body for impact…but nothing comes. Instead, you hear a struggle from behind. You swirl on your heels and stare at the scene behind you.

A tall man pushes George away from you. The moonlight reflects off of the shine of his coat, the top of his hat deflecting the light raindrops. You stagger backward, heart racing inside your chest, as George crumbles to the ground, a blur of red, grey, and blue pushing down on the man.

“She said she’s going home,” the voice growls. It itches the back of your mind, calling to you like a faint memory. “Leave. Or I’ll crush you right here and now.”

The voice beckons to you from the back of your mind, putting it at ease. The voice calls out your name followed by a throaty chuckle. It asks you how you’re doing, if you need help with that week’s math homework. You can also hear his voice apologize to you for forgetting about your plans to go to the movies with your group of friends, making some excuse that she got locked in the attic and needed rescuing.

The moonlight turns dark, the floating rock covered by a cloud, as the figure slowly approaches you. The once soft droplets of rain evolve into hardened projectiles, the wind picking up from all around you. With the weather matching your quickly escalating mood, you march through the rain, the phantom chasing after you.

“Hey! You’re getting soaked!” His voice calls from behind. You pay no attention to it.

The voice sounds exactly like a dead man! A person who is resting in peace six feet under and couldn’t possibly be here in Skyhaven.

You reach the bus stop and hide under the small covering, the rain pounding against the top, rolling off the sides. You hold your arms to yourself and your teeth clatter on the inside of your mouth. You have to tell yourself to not look at the man beside you.

Stranger danger, after all.

“Why are you ignoring me?” The man asks. It’s just the two of you at the bus stop. The stop’s light flickers, adding to the already ominous feeling that forms deep inside your chest. You hug your arms to your body, providing the only warmth in this cold night. “Oh, I get it. You’re mad at me.”

“I don’t even know who you are!” You retort rather quickly, finally looking up at the man.

You gasp and stumble backward. He quickly reaches for you, his large, warm hands gripping your waist, stabilizing you.

He looks down at you with an irresistible and charming smile. His purple eyes seem to glow under the dim lighting. He wears a black and orange rain jacket, black baseball cap sitting on his head. He cocks his head to the side, gaze drifting to memorize your face.

Nausea sweeps over your body. You tear your gaze off of the phantom before you. The cold air pricks the inside of your lungs, rapidly moving in and out of your system.

This can’t be real, right? He cannot possibly be standing in front of you, alive and well, with that damn smile on his face. A single tear rolls down your cheek, your lips parted. Your breath flows out of your mouth in gentle plumes of steam.

“Caleb?” Your voice falters. He chuckles, smoothing down your frizzy hair.

“The one and only! C’mon, you can say it: you missed me!”

You reach out, grabbing his arms, squeezing him. His brows furrow, eyes training themselves on your hands as you poke and prod various parts of his body. You grab his cheeks, pulling on them before squishing his face. He gently takes your hands into his, moving your hands away from his face.

“You done yet?”

“You’re alive!”

“I am well aware of that, yes.” His laugh fills your ears and your heart swells.

Even after all these years of forgetting Caleb, you still end up swooning for him the moment he saves you from Landon.

Or was it David? Eh. It doesn’t really matter.

“How…what…” you stammer, unable to form a cohesive and coherent sentence. Caleb sighs and takes your hand. He flattens your palm against his chest.

How heartbeat is slow and steady…it’s there. You gasp, bottom lip trembling, legs slowly becoming jelly.

Tears freely flow down your face as the realization of his existence sets in.

He’s alive.

He’s here.

He’s breathing.

His last memory of you isn’t you ending your friendship and avoiding him for the rest of your senior year of high school.

You collapse to your knees, hand digging into your chest. A sharp pain slices into your chest as your fingernails dig into your skin in an attempt to grab your heart and to scream at it to calm down. The pounds from your heart makes your ears ring, drowning out the endless pitter patter of rain. Even your lungs feel as if they are on fire, unable to suck in and inhale the oxygen that you need to survive.

Your eyes open and Caleb’s face is right in front of yours. You can hear him speak but cannot make out a single word that he says. He gently helps you back to your feet.

“Take it easy,” his words seep through the sound of your heartbeat, “breathe.”

His hand slides to the back of your neck, warming your body, and his thumb gently grazes the side of your neck. You inhale through your nose, holding it for a few seconds before slowly exhaling until all of the air is out of your lungs.

“Does she know?” the question pops out of your mouth before you can stop it.

How could you even ask that at a time like this? You should be seeing if he’s okay! If he’s in any sort of trouble that you can help get him out of.

Did he fake his death? Has he been alive this whole time? When was he going to come see you?

Caleb sharply inhales through gritted teeth, pulling away from your face. You watch him closely, bottom lip trembling.

You know. You know the answer.

Of course she knew before you! She is his beloved, the one person he will spend the rest of his life with. It’s laughable to even think that you stood a chance against her.

“Actually,” you interrupt him, covering his mouth, “don’t answer that. I really don’t want to know.” Even though every fiber of your being screamed blood murder at you to figure it out.

Is he dating her? Has he ditched her for good? HAs Caleb finally come to the realization that she isn’t some angel that came down from the heavens.

His purple eyes blink at you, perplexed by your actions. Caleb speaks into your hand but his voice is a mere muffle. You sigh and look out at the pouring rain.

You need to get home.

You need to get home and get away from him.

You need to relieve yourself of any memory, item, or scent that can remind you of him because, well, he clearly isn’t yours to have.

If you stay any longer, you’re going to end up crying in the rain, unloading all of your emotions onto him. And Caleb, who has risen from dead, doesn’t deserve to hear any of it. He’s innocent in all of this and no matter how angry and resentful you can feel towards him, you’ll never be able to hold it against him.

“Get home safe, Caleb,” you breathe the words out, slowly releasing your hand from his mouth.

You push away from him and bare the thundering rain on your own, hugging your jacket to your body. You sprint across the street, desperately needing to get away from him.

Caleb watches you with wide eyes, captivated by the woman you’ve become.

You’ve lost all the baby fat in your cheeks. Your hair is longer and is styled to perfection.

You’re bolder. Funnier, even, whether it’s intentional or not. Caleb laughed at your jokes in the cafe, particularly the ones that George didn’t find funny.

Whatever. He’s an idiot.

He heard your laugh from inside the cafe and got drunk off of it. He found himself smiling wider than he has before in the past year.

You took his mind off of his stressful job, which he just came back from, and relaxed his body. He didn’t think about how ling he stayed in that damned tunnel nor did he think about his connections with Ever.

Your laugh turned off the fight or flight switch that perpetually stayed on inside his head. It did pain him, though, to know that you were out with other guys. This George fellow is not your match. He’s a Sul-indulgent prick who only talks about himself.

And what the fuck is a video game consultant anyways?

His job is nothing compared to being a Colonel in the Farspace Fleet. You’ll surely be impressed with that.

You did always say you loved a man in a uniform.

His purple eyes flicker with excitement. He steps out into the rain and follows in your exact footsteps. Once he’s across the street, he turns around and stares at the cafe you two once sat in.

She walks out with her friends, umbrellas covering their heads. They smile and laugh with one another, teasing as thunder booms in the background. He chuckles at their umbrellas but his smile quickly fades when he realizes that you didn’t have one.

Silly girl. Now he has to check in on you and make for sure that you don’t catch a cold.

His gaze drifts to her but the spark he once felt isn’t there anymore. She’s…boring now. Caleb tilts his head back and laughs.

How could he have been so blind?

His focus has been on her all along but you…you are something else.

Captivating. Intoxicating. Enchanting. Hilarious. Fascinating.

Your fruity perfume formed a tent in his pants. Have you always smelled like apples and cinnamon? You encapsulate an autumn evening. Suddenly, he loves it when the leaves change colors and fall from the trees. He’ll never let you fall ever again.

Caleb doesn’t know how he let you slip through his fingers so many times. You live in Skyhaven, too, right under his nose. He should have found you sooner.

He should have gone with you to the homecoming dance. He regrets not watching you during the countless games you’ve invited him to. He should have closed the door in her face when she petered you two when you needed to study for the math exam. It was never your best subject. Lucky, he excelled in it.

And he should have fucking gone after you when you told him to fuck off all those years ago.

But now?

Now Caleb’s going to take back the time he missed out on. Surely, you’d feel the same way when he comes back? After all, he does know where you live now.

Six floors up. The fourth room from the left. You have a stained glass butterfly hanging in your window. He’ll see it up close soon enough.

He stands outside your apartment building with a bright smile on his face, staring up at your bedroom. He can see you move throughout the living room, your shadow painted against the far wall. His eyes follow as you slip into your bedroom. You look out the window.

What are you looking at? I’m here. Show me anything. Give me the signal I need to come and save you.

You turn on a lamp. The light points up to the butterfly, illuminating the blue and orange colors from the glass.

You’re so thoughtful.

How did you know those are his favorite colors?

Caleb chuckles to himself, shaking his head. His feet carry him to the entrance of your apartment building, just barely sneaking in as a couple leaves. He thanks them and sneaks to an elevator, stepping inside as he presses the button to your floor.

Thank you for the signal, he thinks to himself, I’ll be there soon.

if you're interested in being a part of a taglist, please let me know here!

[kira-loves0905]

>> My Wedding Vow Is To Divorce You (One-Shot)

— what if you had the guts to break up with Zayne? the loverman who is still smitten on a dead woman. the one who will never love you the way you do to him?

warnings: 3rd POV, fast-paced, unrequited love, angst/no comfort, mentions of divorce, married life, rebound, non MC!reader, mentions of pregnancy, ooc Zayne, mentions of Xavier, not proofread 🥹 i wrote this on a whim cause i've been feeling upset these days

"—your guardian in fate seems to have mistaken your current lover to be yours. a star has already been made to be his, one that is still connected to his soul despite its star being all but fray. you ought to find your own star, else your heart will turn to stone."

she could only repeat the words in their mind over and over. yet she also berated herself for even paying hunderds of her money to listen on a traveling shaman, allured by its mysterious facade and enticing marketing.

(Name) could've win a medal for their patience. a woman persevering on a void relationship for twelve years? she could be a popular Reddit post if she ever voiced out her dilemna to the world. seeing themselves being shunned, mind breaking down with insecurities that grew over the years.

twelve years ago, a mission went astray. Miss Hunter was in a serious accident that had her experience multiple rounds of surgery. it was to no one's surprise that Zayne took over all of it. despite the long hours of gruel work, his feet numb from the relentless days of standing upright— he pushed through.

in Dr. Zayne's hands, she survived, albeit barely.

at this point, everyone subconsciously knew that Zayne was inlove with Miss Hunter. even if he didn't voice it out, his action spoke words that he can't utter himself. the way his rough, cold edges softened and began to illuminate warmth that was never seen before.

(but (Name) did. she experienced the warmth of his touch when the night was young. when MC still wasn't back to his life yet as his patient. when it was just the both of them, growing up as childhood friends and into medical school in dreams of becoming coworkers of the same field.)

that same warmth Zayne reserved for MC disappeared once more, when she died in her comatose.

it was quite expected, really. there was just a slim chance of MC ever waking up after the severe injury she had on the mission. (Name) knew that it was bound to happen, even in Dr. Zayne's care.

but to him? to the man that dreamed of her in every aspect of his life? the same person who pursued cardiology just for her protocore heart? to a man that yearned for MC's love that even just a glimpse of her was enough to satiate his boundless yearning self?

he was in shambles. utterly broken and gripping the bits of fragments the dead woman has before it all disappears.

suffice to say, those twelve years ago. (Name) took the gruelling case of taking care of Zayne. even when her arms grew numb from the long hours of hug she gave him, or when her voice went hoarse from the time she kept whispering comforting words to his ear. hoping that, for even a moment, she can be someone who can manage to chip down the cold wall he was starting to build around himself again.

well, she surmises that maybe she achieved her goal.

for in that same twelve years ago, Zayne married (Name). in that month, she deliberately ignored the hushed whispers of everyone she passes by.

a rebound, is what they say.

she knows that— feels that, but to accept it is a different case altogether.

(when they make love, she sees the way he forces his lips shut. for Zayne knows, subconsciously— that when he lets it loose, it would be another woman's name that spills on his sinful lips.

Miss Hunter.)

— — —

"love." in the night of silence, where birds go to sleep and the skies began to darken. Zayne carefully mutters his call. by the field of grass and flowers, they held their hands passionately. their skin basking in each other's warmth— fighting off the coldness of the wind.

for the nth time, (Name) tries to mask the way his petname stings ironically.

twelve years ago, it made her heart flutter. made her feel like a special (rebound) person. but honeymoon phase was long over, hearing it numerous times in that dead tone of his was sickening now.

"yes, Zayne?"

"it's her death anniversary tomorrow." he says, his eyes faraway. "I want to visit her tombstone alone, is that alright-"

"I know," she says seamlessly, as if the words were already wired in her brain. "say hello to her for me, yeah?"

".....mhm."

a beat of silence.

before long, Zayne dragged her back to the car by their joined hands. (Name) knew by then that there wouldn't be any more conversation until the next morning.

(this was so wrong. she knows. staying for a person that hadn't even given the same love she had given for twelve years.

ridiculously, it was just around this time that she had realized that.)

— — —

in the whole week of MC's death anniversary, the house was colder than usual. the presence of her husband unseen as he drowned himself in his work. a ritual he religiously practiced countless of times in this particular time of the year.

(Name) sat by the living room. papers scattered at the coffee table. her brows furrowed in concentration. the documents were unfamiliar, yet she forces herself to read all of texts in the page. honing in the information before proceeding in its entirety.

divorce papers.

it has been hidden in her closet for the past week. this was the only time she had the courage to finally work on it.

(because every year, with no fail, she kept dreaming that someday he'll start to love her for her. that the illusion of MC Zayne had adorned (Name) would dissipate. one day, they could live happily as a genuine husband and wife.

maybe she should've done this on the 3rd year. but a beggar for love had no choice but to cling on hope.)

"what are you doing?"

odd. he doesn't come home this early.

(Name) fumbles the papers in a hasty stack. trying to hide it before he sees its contents.

"how futile." his steps were quick, gripping her wrist in a tight hold. Zayne's irises flee over to the papers, pushing his glasses higher with his free hand.

"I see," he drawls, "you finally realized how defective this marriage is."

"don't start, Zayne." for once in her life, she managed to stare at him head on. "if I remember correctly, you initiated this."

"and yet," there was a huff as he walks closer. tilting his head with a hint of wicked mirth. "you had the right to deny so."

"you knew I loved you from the start!"

"and you knew that my heart was always with her. no matter how hard you try to earn it."

(Name) stopped in her fit of anger, eyes flickering with emotions akin to hurt. Zayne was right anyway, it was her fault she got into this mess. her shortcoming for being a fool for love.

"did I.. ever mean anything to you?" they were having a proper conversation for the first time in their marriage. she might as well take advantage of it.

"you were a mere friend," he says, as if a pang of nostalgia hit him for a brief moment, "a company when I studied in medical school."

"I repeat what I said, MC was the only one for me."

"nothing else?" desperate. she's desperate. spiralling. "nothing more? not even once in your life—"

"not even in the 12 years we've lived under the same roof?!"

"(Name)." his voice rumbles in a subtle warning. one that made their house way colder than it had ever been.

"you ought to accept it now." he picked up the papers once more, a pen in his hand already.

she looked incredelously at his attitude, on how dismissive he was to her— to her feelings. the treatment wasn't new, but being slapped about it in the face is.

"fine." she snatched the paper in his hands right after he signed it. "I'll see you in court, I hope you live a lovely life."

— — —

a few months later..

(Name) thought she would be utterly miserable after the divorce. twelve years is a long time after all. the home she once lived in was her safe space, even when the owner of it isn't.

her eyes flicker to the heaps of boxes in her new apartment. a fresh start of her life.

she was starting to heal against the wounds she bear. looking back, she regretted wasting her life on Zayne that didn't reciprocate the way she felt about him.

but alas, she can't continue to mull over spilled milk. it had already happened, she can't change any of her mistakes no matter how much she wanted to.

(Name) absent-mindedly caressed her stomach. looking down at the bundle of life that will soon become her joy, despite the guilt of a babe living their life without a biological father.

she knew about her pregnancy a few days after she grabbed her things from Zayne's place. it was an utter shock to carry that man's child. after all the things she had gone through because of him.

the baby is blameless though, in her eyes. she won't leave them to grow alone and unloved like her.

knock knock

"Ms. Name?"

she turns around and opens the door, a polite smile on her lips.

"ah, you must be my neighbor. Xavier, right?"

"yes," the man nods, rubbing their eyes as they yawned. "I heard it was a tradition to make something for a newcomer. so I made some cookies, if you don't mind."

(Name)'s gaze shifted down to the small bag in his hand. the clear plastic making the..... delicious.. (charcoaled) cookies see-through.

she suppresses a chuckle, smiling politely.

"come on in, I'd welcome some company."

stress-free life it is.

[whimsyfinny]

He’s a Winchester

Chapter 1

Pairing: Dean Winchester x Reader

Summary: It's been a long time since (Y/n) and Dean's paths have crossed. Last time they saw each other it was ‘98 and they were young and living in the moment. Nine years down the Line, their paths cross again, but (Y/n)s longest kept secret is about to become Deans reality.

Slow burn (ish), mom!reader, eventual smut

Warnings: language, mention of drugs

Chapter Word Count: 2330

—-MDNI—-

A/N: wooooop new series! I'm trying something new with this one! As a mom myself I loooove reading mom!reader fics, so I wanted to write my own. It's a slightly shorter first chapter, but the following ones should be longer. Any feedback is greatly appreciated, reading your comments makes my day ❤️ and of course, this is proofread only by myself so pls pls let me know of any errors! I really hope you enjoy it. I also didn’t write this at 2am for once so brownie points to me hahaha

Photos from Pinterest

——————————————————————

Chapter 1

“Come on, (Y/n)! You have to tell me all about it! What was he like? Did you kiss? Hold hands? Where did he take you?”

I couldn’t help but smile at the rapidfire questions spewing from Kats mouth. Kat, the stunner sat opposite me with perfect dark skin and the inability to have a bad hair day, was my closest friend. We lived on the same street, drank at the same bar and both hated this small, slightly judgemental town equally. We bonded over the similarities in our lives - like both of us having fallen pregnant at a young age and being dealt the hand of having to raise our kids as single parents. Life was fucking hard sometimes (well, nearly all the time), but my son, Levi, and Kat, made this life worth living.

“Jesus Christ, ok! The date was ok.”

“Uh oh. ‘Ok’? That means it was awful, right?” she raised an eyebrow.

I took a gulp of my coffee.

“The date was ok. But he was…. Seriously not my type. He was too…perfect?” I winced as the words left my mouth, fully aware of how utterly ridiculous that sounded.

“Girl, ‘too perfect’? What the fuck kind of excuse is that?” Kat snorted slightly into her latte.

“I know, I know. But he reminded me of a Ken doll, ya’know? With his white jeans and his Armani sweater over his shoulders - that’s not really… me. The dude gets more manicures than I do. Plus he drives a Fiat Panda. Levi wouldn’t be caught dead getting in and out of one of those.”

“You can’t use your sons taste in cars to dictate the men in your life. That’s a low blow and you know it.”

“Ok then, you go out with Robert and tell me about all the kale facts that you never wanted to learn.” I leant back on the couch, clutching my coffee with both hands to bring some warmth to my fingertips. Kat did the same opposite me, leaning back in the plush armchair as we both took a second to glance out of the large café windows. This was our happy place, right here. It was the place we would come to when we first met and the boys were still in diapers. It was our happy place for the last nine years, and we would come here for every situation: be it a breakup, a catch-up, to discuss terrible sexual encounters or dire situations that need insane back-up plans. But we mostly came here to people-watch. Being the young, single moms that we were, we were constantly under the scrutiny of the small town, having every decision judged by the perfect Jeep-driving soccer moms and the old ladies from church. When we came here, to sit by this window in these comfy-as-fuck couches, it was our turn to do a little judging.

“Vicki Priestley isn't fooling anyone with those sunglasses,” I said, taking another sip of coffee as I watched the thin peroxide blonde across the street repeatedly wipe her nose with the back of her hand.

“Right? We get shunned for…well… fuck all, yet that Paris wannabe can snort coke on a Tuesday school run and everyone turns a blind eye? What a joke.”

“Amen to that,” we watched her for a few more seconds as she climbed behind the wheel of some monstrous four by four and sped off down the road.

“Did you hear that Mrs. Harris caught Mr. Harris with a young mistress? Apparently she works at the bank.”

“Oh my GOD yes I heard!” Kat exclaimed, leaning forward, “and as revenge she put Nair in his shampoo - he's completely hairless, even his eyebrows are gone.”

We both snickered as we raised our mugs.

“To Mrs. H for taking no shit.”

Conversation flowed as topics ranged from the new dessert parlour that opened last week down the road to the extortionate price of kids' Motocross gear.

“I mean the bikes are so tiny, why do they have to cost that much?”

“You're preaching to the choir babes, Toby just outgrew his boots for the third time this year,” Kat grimaced at the thought of how much money she'd spent already.

“Ouch, they're like what? Eighty bucks a pair?”

“Yup.”

“Yeah well, I had to get Levi a new helmet after that little dickhead from the tournament last month crashed into the side of him. That boy was more upset about the stickers he lost than the bruises he got,” I shook my head with a smile on my lips. Kat did the same.

“That's a tough kid you've got there.”

I sighed.

“Yeah I know. Despite never having met him, he's so much like his dad. It's a little concerning actually,” I laughed nervously, instantly regretting bringing up Levi’s father in front of Kat. I glanced up at her, taking a sip of my coffee in an attempt to hide behind the mug. The wiggling of her eyebrows being an indicator of her impending wrath.

“That man is the reason why you’re never satisfied with your dates. He set that bar waaaay too high.”

I scoffed. “He did not. We were young and he just swept me off my feet a bit, that’s all; with that ‘give ‘em Hell’ attitude and handsome face. Plus he had a great car.”

“Last time you said his face was ‘gorgeous’,” Kat cupped her face and fluttered her eyelashes, puckering her lips. I threw a sugar packet at her which she batted right back at me.

There was a moment of quiet as we both looked out the window again, my mind unable to stop itself from racing through old memories.

“Do you think he’ll ever come calling?” Kat asked, some sincerity to her tone. I sighed and slumped back further on the couch.

“I highly doubt it. He doesn’t even know that Levi exists. I tried calling him a few years back but some guy John W. had that number instead. I gave up after that. Plus, he had this kinda dangerous job, and normally if he showed up it was because something was going to go down,” I paused, looking into the dark liquid in my cup, “It’s probably a good thing that he hasn’t just shown up.”

“You say that, but you still have that photo you took together on your vanity.”

I shot her a look, pursing my lips and pinching my brows as she laughed, knowing she'd stumped me there. I quickly downed my coffee and checked my watch before standing and grabbing my bag.

“Come on, let's stop interrogating me and go pick up the boys before all Hell breaks loose at the track.”

“Mom it wasn't my fault, I swear.”

I slammed the car door closed and turned to the boy who stood close enough to be my shadow.

I turned around to face him with a stern expression, “so you did do it? After I called that boys mom a liar? LEVI.”

Levi, my son, looked close to tears, his bottom lip trembling.

“Mom, I'm so sorry! I'll never do it again!”

I narrowed my eyes at him before sighing, already exasperated, throwing the car keys into my bag.

“Did you at least stick to the golden rule?”

His answer was a vigorous nod, the tremble in his lip disappearing.

“‘Never throw the first punch; throw the second and finish the fight,’” he recited the words like a prayer.

“And…?”

“‘Always claim self defence.’”

I smiled and ruffled his soft brown hair.

“Good boy. What started the fight anyway?” I asked, guiding him to walk through the parking lot towards that new dessert parlour.

“He said I was weird for not having a dad.”

I looked down at him, eyes softening and I lifted a hand to rub his shoulder. It wasn't the first time he'd had this argument, and it likely won't be the last. Kids can be assholes. “And then he hit me when I said ‘at least my mom's boobs are real.’”

“Levi!” I stopped in my tracks and looked at him, mortified. I didn't even know where to start with that one. “Where-”

“Jamie from math class told me what ‘implants’ were… and he said that Brad's mom had them.”

He looked up at me innocently, and I knew then that he didn't fully grasp what he'd said to Brad - the kid he'd just punched between the eyes. I sighed for the umpteenth time and started walking again.

“Whatever, just… don't say that to anyone again, ok? You're gonna make me look like a terrible parent.”

“Ok mo- whoa! Look at that car!” It was Levi's turn to stop dead in his tracks as he stood in awe of the sleek black car parked by the sidewalk.

A black Chevy Impala.

“Oh wow,” my words came out slightly breathless, my mind suddenly racing to him and the conversation I'd had with Kat earlier that afternoon.

“So cool!” Levi gushed, walking up close to it but not close enough to touch.

“Yes, very cool. Now let's go inside before they run out of ice cream,” I ushered him to the door, reflexively looking over my shoulder, not knowing if I even wanted to see who could possibly be in the area.

The bell jingled as we walked in and Levi ran up to the counter, pressing his forehead to the glass. My eyes scanned the menu and I was pleasantly surprised to see they served coffee.

“What do you fancy kiddo?” I ruffled his hair again and waited for him to decide, and it wasn't long before he'd made up his mind. After ordering, we headed towards a small table-for-two at the edge of the room, and as Levi slumped down in his chair something familiar caught my attention.

A voice.

My heart quickly became erratic in my chest and my palms grew sweaty. I looked in the direction the voice had come from and was met with a slap in the face from memory lane.

There he was; the same wicked grin and mischievous eyes that had burned themselves into my memory. He dressed the same as he did nine years ago - right down to the necklace and leather jacket. He was engrossed in a conversation with another man, who looked slightly younger than himself, all whilst digging into a stack of waffles.

“Mom?”

The sound of Levi's voice snapped me out of the stunned fog I was caught up in and I quickly sat down, trying my best to focus on my son and not the man who was sitting only a few feet behind him. Levi looked like he was about to ask another question when a giant chocolate sundae and a coffee appeared at the table. I heard the waitress challenge Levi to finish the whole thing, but it was like I was listening to the world through water. My mind wouldn't stop racing. He's here. Do I talk to him? Will he remember me? Do I tell him about Levi? I hurriedly pulled my phone from my bag and sent her a hasty message before turning back to the boy in front of me, convincing a smile to appear on my lips.

“If you have room in that black-hole stomach of yours then you definitely could've finished your veggies earlier at dinner.”

He smirked slightly, like he always did when he knew he was getting away with murder, and it almost took my breath away. I saw the same smirk grace the lips of the man in the booth behind him. The mans gaze shifted to the side and when his eyes met mine - the same vibrant twists of green and gold that I have tattooed on my memory - I sucked in a sharp breath, my heart leaping in my chest as I tore my eyes away. I clutched my coffee cup, staring intently at the dark swirling liquid, praying to anyone or anything that I'd find the answers to my troubles in the bottom of this mug. The prickling on my skin was unshakable, like his eyes were on me and I was trapped under his intense observation, unable to breath. Minutes felt like hours, and eventually he and his companion stood before heading to the door. The moment they were gone with the bell signalling their departure, the air gushed from my lungs as I dropped my head into my hands, earning myself a confused look from my son. I offered him a reassuring smile which he accepted before returning to shovelling ice-cream into his face.

Just when I thought I was safe, I looked up and locked eyes with him. Our eyes locked through the window just as he opened the car door, leaning on it. It was like time froze, and for a few moments, despite my earlier urgency to not make eye contact, I was now unable to look away. My breath caught in my throat as a smirk pulled at his lips before he ducked down into the driver's seat, slamming the car door closed. I found myself chewing on my bottom lip as he tore out of the parking lol, that familiar rumble of the engine practically rattling the windows and, despite the noise, it was a comforting sound.

Once they were out of sight and the impala could no longer be heard, I sighed, pushing my hair off my face and running my hands through my hair. As Levi polished off the last of his ice-cream, my phone buzzed on the table. Opening it and reading the message, a small wave of relief washed over me as Kat confirmed that Toby would be at his dad's for once so she could come over to drink wine and discuss very important topics. She hasn't got a clue what I need to vent about yet, but I feel like tonight is going to be a very long night.

——————————————————————

Next Chapter: Chapter 2

@suckitands33 @jackles010378 @megara0224 @libby99hb @roseblue373 @hobby27 @calibootsgirl @lyarr24 @autistic-gothic @wattpaduser200 @spndeanwinchesterlvr @mxtansy @magssteenkamp @redmaro86 @slut-for-evans-stan @spookyysinsanity @localjisung @king-of-milf-lovers @xshortputax @jerksbitch @multifandoms-saidwhat @deans-baby-momma @writersxxx

[mooooonnnzz]

This is kind of cringe but can you write a fic or make a headcanon list of Stan/Fords daughter getting a partner and how the dads would react? I love your work btw it's great!

2010 Toyota Corolla

Stan + Ford HC's of their teen getting a partner!

⟡ 1,5k words

⟡ gender neutral reader!

⟡ guys i think im going through a writers block can u tell

⟡ i was doing so good too omg

⟡ i couldnt figure out a title so i used a song i was listening to ths is a song i swear

⟡ cute lil simple hc of of the oldmen!!

⟡ if u wanna be added to my taglist dm or comment!

⟡ i might like take a two day break from writing to get it working again ngl

Stan

♡ Stan is extremely protective of you. He never shunned the idea away of you having a partner, but he never really encouraged it. He told you that it was “a waste of time,” that finding a partner at such a young age isn’t really necessary until you’re older. You didn’t bother protesting against him because at the time you hadn’t found your person yet. But when you did, you couldn’t lie and say you weren’t nervous to tell Stan about it. You knew he wasn’t going to be overly mad, but he was going to be slightly against it knowing his views on you having a partner.  “Dad?” You nervously fidgeted with your fingers. “Yes, pumpkin?” You inhale, mustering up all the courage to tell Stan. “I have something to tell you…” You draw out. Stan’s face lightly drops, already having a feeling of what this “something” is. Pausing his TV show, he loudly gulped. “I’m dating someone!” You blurt out. Stan stares at you for the longest time, the gears in his head turning as he processes what you said. “You? Dating?” He sits up from the couch. “I need a moment…” 

♡ After he recovers from the initial shock, he’s bombarding you with questions, such as; “Who are they?” “Do I know them?” “Are they smart?” And so on. You had no problem answering his questions and he had no issue giving you questions with how rapidly he shot them at you. Whenever you answered his questions, you could see the wrinkles in his forehead deepen the more you open up about your partner. This was definitely going to take some time for him to get used to. “Thank you for at least telling me, pumpkin.” He says after finishing up the whole Q&A.

♡ Meeting your partner was a must before he’d allow you to hang out by yourselves. When they came over to the shack, Stan had this whole gruff persona. He didn’t show much emotion and when he did, it was to show his distaste for what your partner said. “How long have you known [Name] for?” He interrogated, flashing a bright light to their face. “For a year now, sir.” They responded, shielding their eyes from the shining light. “Sir? I like that.” He mumbles to himself, scribbling +1 point on a notepad. When he turned over to you, he gave you a big thumbs up and a crooked smile. You couldn’t tell if it was going well. “Why do you want to date them?” Stan raised a brow, tapping the pencil on his chin. “Because I fell in love with them, sir.” Stan let out a loud “hmm,” and scribbled down, ‘very straight to the point’ on the note. After the interrogation was over, he ripped the note and gave it to your partner. “This is your score.” He said. “I guess you did good.” 

♡ He pulled your partner into a room and had a serious “talk” about something you didn’t have a clue about. But when they came out of the room with a horrified look on his face while Stan was proudly smiling to himself, you had a tiny idea of what he said. They turn around to Stan and Stan twiddles his fingers, his other hand sliding across this neck threateningly. “Dad!” You smacked his arm. 

♡ Even after Stan approved of your partner, he still wasn’t fully swayed by them. Whenever they’d be over, Stan would send death glares behind their back when they weren’t looking. But you would always catch them and when you did, Stan would sheepishly smile at you and make a heart gesture and point at your partner. He only ever came around them when Stan noticed them staring at one of the monster tourist attractions. “Whaddya lookin’ at, kid?” They began explaining how interested they were in the craft of making these grotesque monsters and Stan was more than happy to tell them the process. “Glue and staples come in handy, kid. I’ll tell you.” 

♡ It wasn’t after that, you’d find your partner and Stan creating all kinds of monsters while cackling and talking. Stan saw you walk in and his face brightened up. “Pumpkin, look at what they made! It is disgusting.” He pointed a glue covered hand to the little ugly statue of a half chipmunk and fish. “Oh? Isn’t this something…” You poke at the monstrosity. “Isn’t it amazing?” Stan laughs, impressed with your partner's handiwork. “Oh, yeah. This is amazing.” You plainly said. “I’m going to leave you two be…” Conversation erupted between the two while you walked away with a big smile to your face. 

♡ “I like that kid.” Stan says, a pleased look on his face. “Oh, I can tell, Dad.” You roll your eyes playfully. “Hey! They’re a great person. Perfect fit for my little [Name].” His fingers reached out to pinch your cheeks. “Oh, stop!” You push his hands away. “I’m just messin’ with ya, pumpkin.” Anything will and can make this old man laugh. “You might as well steal them from me.” Stan’s perked up. “Really?” He overplayed his excitement. You send him a dirty look while he barks out in laughter. “You’re gross.” 

Ford

♡ He never really thought of you ever dating anyone. Romantic partners didn’t exist to him considering how terribly alone he is. The only thing he ever said about you dating was; “Uh, yeah?” and carried on with his work and that was a good enough answer for you. Ford found out about your partner when he walked in on you and your partner cuddling on the couch. “[Name],” He clears his throat awkwardly, pointing at your partner. “Who is this?” You introduce your partner to Ford and he’s genuinely speechless. “Since when?” He whispers to you after pulling you aside in the kitchen. “Since like, last week?” Ford’s jaw falls open. “And you never thought to tell me?” You shrugged. “I asked you and you said you were okay with it.” You tell him. “When?!” 

♡ He would be so awkward around your significant other. “So…What is your name?” He’s tugging at his turtleneck, silently dying from how silent this whole exchange is. It takes him a lot of time to warm up to them, a lot of hangouts with the three of you together so he could be comfortable with them. He also uses this as an advantage and studies how they treat you and what they should improve on to make you happier. At the end of the hangouts, he’d slip in a note in their pocket. “If you want to stay with my child, you need to read the note.” He didn’t mean for it to sound menacing, but it was unfortunately received like that. “[Name], I think your dad hates me.” 

♡ Like Stan, there’s an interrogation but it’s not as serious as Stan’s. Ford would have called them over and told them to sit down. He begins asking questions and writing down their answers. “What are you hoping to do with [Name]?” Your partner blushed. “To marry them hopefully.” Ford nodded his head. ‘Disgustingly cheesy.’ He wrote it down in big words. “If I ever wanted to conduct experiments on you, would you allow me?” You jump in at the mention of that. “Okay! I think they’ve answered enough questions, Dad!” 

♡ He deep cleans the areas where you and your partner hugged, kissed and cuddled in. “Dad, what are you doing?” He has a mask and a plastic protective layer of armor around him. “I’m cleaning all the gross teenage bacteria!” You had to walk out after that.  “Is this something you’re seriously going to keep up?” Even though Ford is the smartest man alive, he has trouble understanding the true nature behind relationships. “Yes, Dad. This isn’t a one time thing and we’re over. It’s a relationship.” 

♡ Oddly enough, they bonded over their shared interest in researching the wonders of Gravity Falls. You’d often find them outside, Ford kneeled down to the ground, inspecting something while your partner has a notepad in hand, printing down whatever Ford is telling him to write. “Hey, what are you–” “SHHHH!” You looked at them with a confused look. “We need to be utter and total silence.” Ford held out a finger while he whispered notes for them to write. “Why though?” Ford pointed at a sleeping little fairy that was blanketed in a leaf. “Leave the fairy alone!” Ford opened his mouth to argue back, but his nose twitched and before he could react he sneezed, blowing the little fairy away. A silent tiny scream could be heard. “That was awesome, Mr. Pines!” Your partner held a hand out for Ford to high five but Ford was too sad to high five them back. 

♡ “Final opinions on them?” You ask. “They aren’t too bad. They could be a good research partner.” You smile. “Just don’t take them from me.” You say, nudging him gently. “Wouldn’t dream of it.” 

Taglist: @boredwithlifeatthispoint, @lovexsage, @teddycricketdream, @theilluminatidragonqueen, @raventeen @cedarmoonzz, @katharine3000

[simpingforbots]

Big Scary Grandpa

You sighed heavily as you were brought along to this school trip, looking out of the window and watching trees pass by. You were the only one out of entire group of teens soon to be adults who were actually interested in Transformers life besides the war they had for over millennia, and were looking forward to learn something new besides what yoou can scavenge in books. As a kid you were always interested in ufo and if there was life out there, finding human history growing boring, dull and repuitative. And for that you did not had much of friends, it did not helped that you were also a new student in this school, another reason to be shunned by your classmates. Finally the bus stopped in front space bridge memorial and every one rushed out, to tiered of seating inside the yellow bus and wanting to roam around, not paying attention to their teacher an curator, who was already panicking about how many of them there were and that no one was paying attention. You only rolled your eyes and decided to stick around the lady, who was now struggling to gather every one else around and in the end just gave up, proclaiming that teens were free to roam inside the memorial ground and to not leave, with which it was greeted with cheers and the crowd dispelled quickly. You were left alone, next to the curator, who seemed to sort of relieved that they won’t have to deal with kids, quickly pulling the teacher aside to have a chit-chat. You sighed and looked around, trying to find something for you to do, which is probably the best will be paying respects.

With every one scattered you walked towards the murals, activating the hologram of cube with flowers. From what you read so far every flower represented a life lost, both transformers and human alike, in this great and horrible war. You walked up to it, looking at it in silence, paying your own little tribute to those who fell. Such a horrible thing and hardly any one of your classmates respected. You just stood in silence, pondering to your self, then looked around for a bench in secluded place to read the book you brought from library, plunging in to the history you were promised to hear about.

Megatron watched from a far at the bus pulling up and the kids pooling out from it, immideatly scattering around, not paying attention to any thing or even respect the place they were in, making him huff with anger. A chuckle escaped from the side and he turned his head slightly to look at Prime, who looked at those youngling with soft smile.

“Don’t blame them. The young generation ususaly do not want to sit down and listen to anything. It hard to get their attention unless it’s something flashy”

“Still, those young one do not have any respect at all.” Megatron grumble, shifting from one leg to another, crossing his arms on his chest. The whole reason for them being here was because the school organised some special event and they were invited to teach kids about their past or something like this, yet it seamed like it will be a waste of time completely, but hey, who’s gonna complain about not being surrounded by little annoying kids who clearly had no respect and were going through puberty or what ever humans called it. Letting another angry huff until he noticed one human, apart from the small groups formed by other teens, walking over to the cube and staying there, silent, not moving or doing anything, just being still. Then they moved from the glowing replica of the cube towards stone monuments with carve in names, walking slowly and then they looked around, spoting something and heading towards a lone bench, far away from all the ruckus, seating down and pulling a book out.

Megatron was a bit taken back by what kind of book this little human had – it was a book on his kind history, crudely translated in to human language, but still, it was nice to see some human finally doing something respectful in this place, besides Terrans and Dorothy’s kids. Prime walked off to try and talk to kids, to do what he was invited for to begin with, which quickly got every teen’s attention, except one, letting them bombard him with questions about him and his weapons, as per usual. He continued watching the small little human from a far, until he sort of felt like he wanted to speak to them. After all, it will be boring just to stand here doing nothing while there was someone who clearly interested in their history.

Trying his best not to scare them, yet seeing how engrossed they are in the book, Megatron slowly walked over, doing his best to not shake the ground to much, knowing well how human are sensitive to big bot’s steps, able to detect , but it really did not take much effort to get close by this one’ side and get comfortable on the ground. It’s was really stupid just how blind they are to their surroundings, but it is usually in such situation when one wears glasses. It can only provide this much of field vision, leaving peripheral quite bad and an open spot for something to sneak on upon them. So he just set there, quietly, time to time glansing up to look at other kids, who still did not see him, or wanted to see, instead engrossed in conversation with Prime and now Elita-one. You still stayed focused on the book and after some time you seemd to finally move, come back in to reality only to freeze up. Here we go.

You were so in to the book, that you did not feel anything, heard or saw. You did not feel ground shake lightly beneath the heavy peds, someone grunting as they set by your side and them just being next. You just continued reading your book, ingrossed in different world history and the hardships of civilisations, before the war. Only when you moved to get some water that you noticed something in the corner of your eyes, turning to see someone from your class only to jump inside your skin at seeing a huge foot of a big robot, who was seating by your side, just quietly. Slowly looking up, your eyes widen in shock that it was someone that was not so well liked by population, yet you were not scared, just shocked that he was there and next to you, without much noise that would alert you o him.

“What are you readin, young one?” he asked while rising one of his metal eyelids and coking his head to the side.

“Cybertron history” you replied, closing the book with finger inbetween the pages and showed the cover to the big bot, who seemd tiered. You always felt like he looked tiered and despite his history, felt like he really regretted the war he was involved in. You knew that he was problbay instigator, yet something told you there was more to the story then meets the eye.

“And how do you find it?” Megatron eyes focused on the title, happy to see that it was not about the war, but the times before. Primus, he wished he never started this war, but inequality was relay weighting on him down back then, and blinded by the rage, he did not expected it to last this long, with so much casualties, so many life’s lost to it.

“It’s good..." you glanced down, felling cold chill running down your spine. You were scared and rightfully so. He was big, scary and you were small, fragile and weak. But with how he acted so far, you felt so stupid for being scared. Swallowing your fear, you looked up at him, fixing your glasses “Was... How was it like?”

“What do you mean, little one?” shifting a bit, Megatron asked, confused for a second. Did this human was really engaging with him, and not asking about war.

“Before.. war. How was Cybertron?”

It took a few second for Megatron to even clock in what the little human just asked. They were asking about the Cybertron, life before the war, and from the eyes he got, he can see they were quiet interested in this. So why not to indulge the little ones curiosity for a bit. Shifting to be even more comfortable he started telling the little one about the life before the war he started, how it was and all the hard ships of the life, corruption and other stuff. Your eyes seemed to light up as he spoke abut the life, shifting to be able to face him without trouble, moving your body to fold your legs, completely focused on him. He was taken back by such undivided attention, but in a pleasant way, shifting as well, happily continuing his story telling, with a few gesticulations, forgetting the cold stares he is so used form other humans, finally able to see another human as a friend. Slowly the story telling of history slowly changed in to life stories, talking the kid about funny situation Megatron found him self and his fellow miners, earning a few chuckles from the small one.

The time sadly passed to quickly and when an adult suddenly interrupted him, Megatron glared to the side, only to realise he just scared the teacher you arrive with to death, their eyes wide and body stiffened, almost ready to bolt any second like some doe, caught of guard. Looking around, the sun was slowly going behind horizon, bathing the sky on orange and red hues, with chill slowly settling in to the air. All the students were in a bus by now, staring at two of them from “the safety of the vehicle”, some even pulled their phones out. Damn teens and their “smart phones” and they need to record every thing. Letting out a heavy huff of disappointment, Megatron got up, with a few grunts, acting as a signal for you top get up as well and collect your thing. You still shined brightly with happiness and curiosity, yet it slowly deemed as the teacher, blabbering about something Megatron did not paid attention at all, garbed you by your hand, dragged you away. Raising his servo, big bot slowly waved a goodbye, watching you being dragged away, able to hear other human teens howling abut you being in trouble, yet he felt that he was forgetting something.

“Wait”  bot held his hand out, his voice still soft though poor human adult froze in spot, turning around slowly while you only coked your head to the side like some kind of puppy. “What is your name, young one?”

“Y/n” you smiled, softly “It was nice meeting you mister Megatron”

“it was nice meeting you too”

With nothing else, you were dragged away and the bus left, leaving the place get shrouded in last light of fading behind horizon, before the Spacebridge Memorial got draped in darkness, with weak light of light pole slowly flickering back to light, drowning the place in silence after hours of happy chatter. Letting a heavy sigh, Megatron crossed his arms on his chest, letting him self process just what he has done. He talked to a human for hours without a worry, like he would with Dorothy and her kids, giving him sort of peace of mind that there is another human who does not sees him as Megatron, the leader of Decepticon’s. A snicker brought him back from his thoughts, turning aorund and staring at Elita and Optimus, who were looking at him with a very familiar glint in their opticks and smirks. Oh, what now?

“What?” he snorted out, baring his denta a bit, not really in a mood for any of their teasing.

“Youi seamed to found a new friend?" Elita chuckled, walking over and punching Megs in his shoulder in friendly matter.

“I have not” rolling his eyes, Megatron grumbled, praying that there will be some kind of mission to call them suddenly so that they can forget this whole thing, well they could, he will cherish it.

“I heard that this school had some planes on returning” Prime “pondered” out loud, smirking and squinting at Megatron, with his antennas moving a bit, but it all he had to say to quickly get reformed decepticon’s attention. It will be nice to see you again. And hopefully soon. After all he had a lot more stories to share.

[taeaura]

Thomas Hewitt: Childhood and Social Upbringing

TW/CW: Period-typical ableism, r-slur, canon-typical violence, self-harm, self-mutilation

_____

"I know your kind - Nothing but cruelty and ridicule for my boy, all the time he was growing up." - "Does anybody care about me and my boy?(!)"

"Sweet boy. He's no harm. Always keeps to himself."

"{Skin disease}, he was just a little boy when it started."

"You raised that retard right, we wouldn't be taking this drive right now. You can't have a creature like that around normal folk."

"He ain't retarded. He's misunderstood."

__

All We Have is Each Other:

Thomas and his family were obviously outsiders in the small, conservative town of Fuller, Texas. The kind of family that everyone talked about but no one took the time to talk to.

What's that on his face? - Watch out, he might be contagious! - They ain't raisin' that retard right.

All the family had was each other - And from what they told one another, that's all they needed. Everyone was grateful for whatever scraps momma pulled together for dinner. Every prayer shared before supper was a blessing. Every tear shed, every droplet of sweat, the scratching of utensils against porcelain, staticky broadcasts humming from the dusted-over television - All blessings in the shunned home of the Hewitt family.

____

Just a Little Boy:

From a young age, Thomas knew he wasn't pretty. People stared, pointed, some even recoiled. With the little money the Hewitts had, Thomas would visit the local clinic with his momma in hopes of finding an answer. Even the doctors, who had apparently "seen it all," didn't treat him any better. In fact, those that didn't seem repulsed only treated him as an anomaly - Some walking subject they could study and examine.

He felt ugly. Demonic. Blasphemous. Monstrous. "Frankenstein" That's what he was called. A creature. Something that belonged in the depths of the swamp.

He was desperate to hide. Desperate to cover up, get rid of the sickness plaguing his body. Although young, Thomas knew a thing or two about sharp objects. He'd seen his momma use them in the kitchen - She'd skin potatoes, chop the cores out of apples, cutting away the unwanted and 'inedible' parts.

Slice by slice, cheek by cheek, the inflamed, pustular, ugly flesh was replaced by a sea of blood plasma and erythrocytes. He couldn't stop - Maybe if he cut deep enough, the disease wouldn't come back. Maybe one day he could show his face in public without the horrid judgmental stares.

It's safe to say, that isn't what happened. When Luda Mae found out, she was in hysterics. It was the hardest anyone had seen her cry. She was angry - furious.

"How could you have done something like that?!"

Truth be told, she was terrified. Her baby boy hated himself so much that he thought the chance of dying was better than living as he truly was. Thomas was bleeding profusely. Thankfully, he hadn't hit any arteries, and the wound would eventually heal. Charlie was better at handling it than anyone. He was worried, but he was good at hiding it. Whilst Luda Mae cried and Monty remained in a state of shock, Charlie tended to Thomas' wounds, holding back whatever emotions he was carrying.

"It's gonna be just fine, Tommy. You don't need to look pretty to survive."

That's when the mask (and his interest in taxidermy) were born. Crudely-crafted husks of animal hide, fabric clippings, and thick string - The birth of Leatherface.

____

The Slaughterhouse:

Whilst Luda Mae spent countless fruitless hours at the community center, Monty worked tirelessly as a local mechanic. Still, they didn't bring enough money in to keep them full for more than a day or two. Charlie wasn't yet drafted into the war, but he was a busy man - Slaving away on the farm only for it to never be enough. Thomas was old enough to work, and school wasn't working out for him anyway. No one truly believed he'd make it past middle school, let alone college (if they could even afford). Just before the draft hit, Thomas found a job at the slaughterhouse.

"Don't worry, Tommy, you don't have to look pretty to work down at the slaughterhouse."

Charlie, even in his moments of weakness, always uplifted Thomas with what he knew: Work.

Again: "Don't worry, Tommy, you don't have to look pretty to work down at the slaughterhouse."

Charlie knew Thomas wasn't gonna get far, but he saw his potential. Thomas could work, much more than the other poor bastards could. His strength and endurance outmatched men across the town. He was a determined, hard working, no-bullshit behemoth that Charlie took pride in. In order to make Thomas feel useful (and wanted), Charlie would task him with chores around the house: Cutting and moving firewood, cleaning and feeding the animals, helping momma in the kitchen or garden, fixing up mechanics with Monty, ect.

When Thomas found his place at the slaughterhouse, Charlie was proud - And that alone meant a lot to Thomas. Charlie is essentially Thomas' father figure. His impression of masculinity and manhood. Praise from him or his momma meant more than a few bucks or a home-cooked meal.

____

Hey...😀

sorry for not being active these past few months - I kinda burnt out creatively but thankfully my creative spark has been restored! More posts coming soon 🫀

[the-white-void]

I miss Home.

Synopsis: You miss someone special to you, someone very special to you. But, you don't have any memories of them to fill the emptiness you feel, only a void of the love you have for them. And the fact that Teyvat stole you from your world did not make the process of healing any better.

Warning: mentions of death, loss of someone close (not specified), depression (maybe), and isolation (I think), spoilers for the Natlan story quest.

You hear the news. They're gone. But tears did not fall nor did the thought cross your mind that someone you held dear to your heart, at least you know you once held close to your heart, has passed. Only then you see them lying inside the coffin did your heart begin to swell, tears running down your cheeks, and your heart cracking as the emotions of the time when you were once together begin to clench your heart.

You could only walk up to the coffin and whisper the regrets you had at your actions of forgetting and not cherishing the time you had together, leading to a crumbling and empty heart in your chest that was once their home.

You enter their room, even with their things stacked and toppling in their room, it never felt more bare. You could only rest on the foot of their bed as you try to wipe away the tears still running down your face, betraying the last bit of phlegmatic expression you had as wails of sorrow coat around you while mumbling small and meaningless apologies since it was too late until the silence overwhelms you enough for you to doze off.

As the sun peaks through the fluttering shade, flickering against your face, you could see the bright blue sky with faint clouds scattered across, and the floor felt warm and dusty. You rise from the ground and notice the place was no longer the room you fell asleep in, but an open landscape of bronze cliffs painted in colour bright.

"... where..."

Your voice but a mere murmur as the winds gusts though your hair. Your eyes were puffy from crying, the weight you feel chaining you to the ground, threatening to drag you into despair.

As you drop your knees to the ground, ignoring the mysterious change of landscape, a pair of footsteps start to draw near, yet you still shun it away, numb from the loss and emptiness from inside.

"Hello. Are you okay?" A young voice spoke to you, her tone soft and kind, making you turn to see who was talking.

As your gaze landed on the person behind the voice that spoke to you, your eyes widened to see a young girl you knew from a game known a Genshin Impact.

"... Kachina?" You whisper as you stood up in your feet to see the girl closer. You hand caressing her cheeks as your eyes scanned her from top to bottom. "What are you..."

As your voice trailed off, Kachina got a good look as you were eyeing her, but your puffy eyes and weak moves are what caught her attention. "...! Excuse me, but, you're not looking very well, would you like some water? Or some cookies?" The young child offers as she sat you down in her attempt to help.

The young girl then takes a handful of treats from her bag as well as a small mashak of water, offering to you with her brows furrowed and lips pursed from concern. "Please, take them."

She then leads you to a nearby tree for some shade against the heat of the sun. "What happened? Why are you here all alone? It's dangerous out here without any protection."

You only gave Kachina a small smile as you gently patted her head while she was talking. "It's nice to meet you... Kachina."

The girl's eyes widened for a split second after you said her name, it felt warm and... homey. "... I... How did you know my name?"

"... You're adorable... Kachina." You mumbled before pulling your hand back down, your gaze also faltering to the ground.

"...? What do you mean?" The young blonde asks as she tilts her head from your words, they are sudden and amiss. But looking at the person before her, their tired and puffy eyes, clear from crying themselves to sleep, and hoarse voice was clear that something happened to them.

"... It's nothing." You brush off as you look down on your lap where all the snacks and water the young blonde gave to you and start taking a bit out of one of the cookies. "Thank you for the food."

While you were eating your cookie, there was only silence between you and the young Kachina, accompanied with some noises from the tepetlisaurus nearby, and the soft rustle of the leaves in the tree.

After a long while of you eating then finally finishing your cookie, you take a sip of the water Kachina gave you before looking back at the girl herself. "Say... did something... big in Natlan happen recently?"

The unexpected question made the girl poo her head up, not thinking the mysterious person next to them would ask something like that after the odd interaction just before.

"Oh! Yes, there was a war against the abyss not too long ago. We suffered many losses, but we won, so, those who couldn't be saved by the Ode of Resurrection weren't in vain." The young girl exclaimed with a bright smile, but held a tinge melancholy, as she knew that there were many that could've survived, especially those she knew.

"... Did you also lose someone you knew?"

"I... I did..."

You then heave a small sigh as you turn back to the girl, remembering that your choices had affected the outcome of the war greatly, feeling somewhat responsible for the lives of Kachina's friends.

"... I hope you spent a lot of time with them, and made many memories for you to cherish."

Your words had hit the girl as she suddenly recalled the time she spent with her late friends. "... Oh... I- I did..."

Placing the cookies on a rock close to your side, you then sat on your knees as you held Kachina's hand with your eyes locked towards each other, your gaze kind and warm, yet flooded with sorrow.

"Kachina. Keep those memories close to your heart." You whisper softly as you guided the girl's hands to her chest. "Keep them close, and never let go. Think of them as a reminder that their memories, their existence wasn't just a fleeting moment, but an impact to many many people. Alright?"

"... Don't be like me..." You breathed softly as your hand wavered before falling down back to your lap. "Don't be a fool and believe memories can just be remade... you might never have that chance..."

[flamingoofeathers]

𝗠𝗜𝗗𝗡𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗭𝗩𝗢𝗨𝗦 || 𝗝.𝗛𝗢𝗢𝗞

pairings: james hook x peterpansister!reader

summary: in the stories we were told, Peter Pan and Captain Hook were enemies, no one knew why, but this story shows why.

genre: fluff, angst (a tinsy bit for now)

one-shot; wc: 2.3k

main masterlist james hook masterlist

requested by @stargener

a/n: this is a 2 part series! ALSO THANK YOU FOR 100+ FOLLOWERS LIKE WHAT!? TYSM!! To those who care, i am feeling a lot better now, i can stand up without getting dizzy now, so thats really good!:) also not proofread.

Amongst all the tale told in the kingdom of Auradon, there a tale shunned away from everyone, a tale that defied their ideals of 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 and 𝗯𝗮𝗱. The story of the young Captain Hook and his romance with Y/n, Peter Pan’s sister.

Long before he become the fearsome Captain, James Hook, was just a boy attending Merlin Academy, a bully some may call him but in this specific tale, he was just a boy in love with someone he couldn’t have.

Meanwhile, Y/n Pan, Peter's younger sister, was a spirited and adventurous girl. Unlike Peter, who reveled in the chaos of boyhood, Y/n had a curiosity for the world beyond the walls of the Academy.

She often wandered away from campus, exploring the secret and forbidden places that the world offered.

Their paths crossed on their first year at Merlin, on the Black Lake. It was when Hook wasn’t acquainted with the VK’s yet. James, missing the comfort of his ship back home, had seen the lake with a neglected boat.

Oh how innocent and sweet James was, if only people remembered this part of him.

James got into the boat, rowing towards the middle, he closed his eyes, feeling the soft breeze of the cold wind, the slight swinging of the boat was enough for him to feel the nostalgia of home.

During this peaceful escapade of James, he was spotted by Y/n as she swam around the lake. Intrigued by the sight of a newcomer, she approached him cautiously.

"Who are you?" she asked, her voice a mix of suspicion and wonder, as she snuck up on the poor boy.

“Bloody hell!” James yelled staring at the girl staring at him from the water “what the hell!? what are you doing in the water!?” James asked looking over the water.

“Going for a swim, as you can see. What are 𝘆𝗼𝘂 doing here?” The girl inquired leaning on the boat, James scrabbled to get back as the boat drop down on the side of the girl.

“A swim!? This lake is deep” James said agasp, cuz the lake is indeed deep, the girl knew that.

“It is, but not if you have some pixie dust that helps you” the girl chuckled. “Pixie dust? Doesn’t make you fly?” James said confused “it does.” The girl said showing him as she floated above the water.

“Oh.” James said in realisation “still. its the middle of the night, who goes for a swim at midnight?” He asked trying to avoid her question.

“Well…who goes in the middle of the lake and just close their eyes at midnight?” Y/n said raising her brow at him, who looked away.

James stayed silent, embarrassed and not knowing what to say, while the girl stared at him….𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 him.

“You miss home?” Y/n said with understanding tilting her head, trying to make eye contact.

James stared at the girl with surprise “yeah, you too?”

“Yeah”

Both remained silent, catching the longing in each others tone

“I’m James Hook”

“Y/n Pan”

As days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months, Y/n and James found themselves drawn to each other. They both shared stories of their daily routine, their home, the adventures they had…and soon something blossomed between the two of them.

It was the last night of school, before summer break and the two spent the night talking just as they did the whole year.

Things have changed, Hook had found himself friends and y/n did as well. In front of the whole school they were enemies, prey and predator, but in the quite hours of the night, they were just James and Y/n, not what they 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 to be, but just the way 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙖𝙧𝙚.

“Your brother is just sooo fucking annoying” James groaned throwing his head back as he sat on the shore of the lake.

Y/n chuckled as she searched for sea glasses “why do you hate him so much?”

“Because he 𝗵𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 me, for what reason? I dont know, one day he just started acting all” James said irritated as he moved his hands around expressing his dislike towards the brother of the girl.

Y/n watched him with a smile on her face, she found their hatred towards each other to be a funny thing.

“You hate my brother but you seem to like me so much, i mean, we’re kinda the same person if you really think about it” Y/n said, teasing the hooked boy.

“don’t even start. You’re different from your brother, you’re kind and sweet, you’re brother is frustrating, big headed and irritating” James said.

“I don’t know how people believe that bad boy act of yours.” Y/n said leaning down towards Hook “you’re just a softie” she giggled pinching his cheeks.

“Ow. Ow. Stop that. Plus, we already talked about this, i need to keep up the act or else Uliana and the rest will just make fun of me” James said.

“Like how they make fun of me?” The mood dropped.

“Hey…no, c’mon, don’t do that”

“Yeah yeah im just messing with you” Y/n joked “it’s like 3 a.m. now, i think we should head back now” Y/n said checking her watch.

“It’s our last night together, can’t we stay any longer?” Hook pleaded holding Y/n’s hand, still sitting down.

Y/n leaned down and touched James cheeks “i want to, but we need to be up at 5 to get ready for departure, we need sleep”

They stared at each others eyes, neither of them wanted to go back, they wanted this night to last forever.

“We’ll see each other again next year” Y/n whispered making Hook sigh “you’re right.”

They walked through the woods, chatting, both dreading their arrival to campus. As the campus comes to view, the two unconsciously slowed their steps.

They stood in front of the “Merlin Academy” sign, fidgeting in their spot, hesitant to walk away from each other.

“I’ll see you in three months, James” Y/n said breaking the tension as she hugged the boy who hugged her back tightly, afraid to let her go. “Write me letters, yeah?” Hook mumbled into the girls neck.

They pulled back slightly, still embracing each other, their faces inches away “i will and you write back” the girl smiled as the fully pulled away.

“Good Night, James.” As Y/n was about to walk away, a hand caught hers stopping her.

“I have something to tell you” Hook said nervously.

“What is it?” Y/n said, she was hoping for it to be what she wanted to hear.

“I- well… uhh, i kinda-“ Hook stuttered

Y/n looked at the boy anticipating.

“You know what, i’ll tell you next year” James said kissing the girls cheek before rushing away.

The girl stood there stunned touching her cheek.

“What the fuck”

They had kept their promises, wrote to each other whenever they can, careful not to get caught.

Y/n’s brother, Peter, had caught on the weird behaviour of his younger sister, he brushed it off that she was excited to see her friends again but he had an inkling feeling that there was something or someone else.

The first day back at school, Y/n searched and searched amongst all the student at arrival for a certain black haired boy.

As they made eye contact, it felt as if the world stopped and it was just the two of them, their eyes sparkled at the mere sight of the other, they smiled at each other, lost in the moment neither of them realised the moving crowd.

Hook frantically looked around before turning to the girl once more mouthing “𝘭𝘢𝘬𝘦. 𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵." as he got lost in the busy crowd.

“Y/n!” She heard as a hand gripped her shoulder, turning around seeing her brother looking at her “we need to go. c’mon, we’ll be late for the ceremony” Peter said dragging her along.

That night, Y/n had snuck out to see Hook at the Black Lake.

As she got closer to the lake, a figure she had missed to see for months came in to view. The hooked figure stood there under the majestic light of the moon. She paused to stare at the man she had unknowingly fell in love with over the course of last year.

James, sensing someone behind him, turned to see the girl that kept him up every night, the girl he sees every time he dreams, standing there as if the world around her shimmered with an ethereal glow. Her presence alone felt almost otherworldly.

James stared as she approached, simply admiring her beauty, she wore a dress that night, it draped over her, highlighting her every movement with a gentle sway.

“If i had known you were gonna be all dressed up, then i would’ve cleaned myself up better” James teased making the girl chuckle.

“Please, you look fine” she smiled as she came face to face with the boy “my brother organised a ‘welcome back’ party in the boys dorms” she explained.

They stared at each other, a silence filled with unsaid words circled them.

“I missed you” Y/n smiled leaning to hug the boy.

“I missed you too” James said hugging the girl back, inhaling her scent, engraving the smell into his head.

“Three months without was boring” Y/n chuckled as they pulled back.

“Yeah well, i do have that effect on people” James joked waving her off “wow. Nevermind, i take it back, I don’t miss you at all” Y/n said turning away from him pretending to walk away “Hey now.” James said pulling her back in by the wrist “i was just kidding” he said.

“Boat ride?” James asked as he lead her towards the boat they use “do i have a choice?” Y/n teased “No, not really” James teased back as he guided the girl into the swaying boat by the hand.

They chatted about their summer adventures while James rowed the boat to the middle of the lake, where they first met.

“I mean, i know right, he could’ve dodged the ball but he stayed there basically wanting to get hit” Y/n chuckled talking about the recent tourney games.

“Exactly, dramatic much” James chuckled.

Their laughs faded away slowly, both settling in a comfortable silence.

“Y/n?”

“Hmm?”

“Remember what i said before break?”

“Yeah” Y/n replied, on full alert, she had been waiting to talk about this for months but now that it’s happening, she’s scared.

“That i’ll tell you when we got back?”

“Yeah?”

“Well…” James knew that there was no turning back now, he had to do it.

He took a deep breath, taking her hands in his, he looked into her eyes, which reflected the colors of the evening sky “I’ve been wanting to talk to you about something that’s been on my mind for awhile now. Every moment spent with you feels like magic and i find myself falling for you even more as days go by. You’ve become my most cherished thought and my deepest dream. When i’m with you i feel like i discover a new part of myself — a part only 𝘆𝗼𝘂 can bring out. Your laughter, your kindness and the way you see the world have captivated me. Life can be unpredictable but the one thing i’m certain of are my feelings for you. Being with you feels like coming home.” He paused gathering his thoughts “what i’m trying to say is: i am completely and irrevocably in love with you.” James let out after so long of hiding it, a weight lifted off his shoulders only to be replaced with the fear of rejection, of loosing her.

He looked at her eyes and saw the unshed tears swimming in them. He waited for a response or a sign that he hadn’t made a mistake, but he was met with silence. The girl was overwhelmed, she knew it was coming, but she didn’t know it was gonna be like this. She stared at the boy she fell in love with, unable to form words, her mind was in a mess, reliving every memory with him, a tear left her eye and cascaded down her cheek.

“James…i-“ she got cut off.

“And i know, that our situation makes it hard for us, every rule, every boundary, every expectation from the world around tells us we can’t be together. I can’t give 𝙪𝙨 up, Y/n, i just ca-“

She didn’t let him finish. In one swift motion, she leaned in and captured his lips in a sudden yet heartfelt kiss. They were lost in the intensity and the passion of the kiss, the world fading into the background. Her arms wrapped around his neck and his hands cupping her face.

When they finally pulled apart, their faces inches from each other, they were both breathless. His eyes searched hers, his panic driven mind long gone, replaced by a newfound warmth.

“I’ve been waiting for you to say that” her voice trembled “i always felt like you felt the same but i was so scared that i would loose you if i had said something and so I didn’t, but god, James! I am so in love with you” Y/n said leaning in once more.

Both of them savouring the moment, lost into the magic that had sparked between them.

Neither of them noticed the figure that lurked above them.

“𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧" y/n whispered into the soft silence.

[averillaratargaryen]

‘The Bitter Bond.’

Chapter V

18+ Content ⚠️

“Your father tells me about your professions, Daerlyssa” Viserys smiled, “you are quite a fluent speaker, with the tongue of Valyria.”

“Yes” Daerlyssa responds, as she places her cutlery down, “my brothers have taught me well, growing up. It just rolls on the tongue, now.”

“Your uncle, Aegon, he finds it a struggle to speak the language. Perhaps you could put your talent to use, in helping him out?” Viserys offered.

“What-? What are you doing?” Aegon looked toward his father in question.

“It is no harm in taking some help” Viserys responds back, “after all, it seems you are quite content in each other’s company.”

Whilst Daerlyssa found herself believing her grandfather meant pure intentions, Aegon could see through his father, what he truly wanted.

“Father, I don’t-?”

“It is alright” Daerlyssa responds, “I do not mind helping out. After all, I haven’t much to do.”

“It is not that I don’t wish for the help” Aegon looked at her, shocked that she could not see the alliance Viserys wished to perform.

“Then what is it?” Daerlyssa asks.

Aegon’s eyes shunned wide open, as he looked at her, waiting for her to realise the obvious, yet she still found herself clueless.

“Oh Heleana, you are here” Alicent called out to her daughter, who had finally made her way for breakfast.

It was not soon after, that Daerlyssa’s family had arrived down, noticing Daerlyssa’s presence.

“We have been looking for you everywhere” Daemon called out to her.

“Oh, father” Daerlyssa smiled, “I had gotten up early, and was quite hungry, so I came down with Aegon.”

“Oh” Daemon tilted his head, with an impressed pout.

“That is great” Rhaenyra nods, “im glad you two are getting on well.”

“That’s not-!”

“Sit down, have something to eat” Daerlyssa cut off Aegon, as she welcomed her family to sit beside her.

“Daerlyssa” Aegon whispered to her.

Smiling, with no sense as to what was going on, she looked toward him, “why do you look so tense?”

“Do you not understand what is going on here?” Aegon whispered back.

“We’re all here to eat breakfast?” She questioned.

“You really weren’t lying, on being kept in the dark” Aegon scoffed.

“Aegon, if something is wrong, tell me” Daerlyssa looked at him with concern.

“We will speak later” Aegon sighed, “right now, I need a drink.”

Before he stood up, Daerlyssa held him down, as he took a hold to his hand.

“Aegon, do not” she warned him, “your father has taken it lightly, considering I have asked him to. But you can not expect him to continue to support your decisions, should you make bad ones.”

“Daerlyssa, I appreciate what you do, but right now is not the time. I will speak to you when it is appropriate, with no one around” Aegon put her hand down to her lap, before he stood up once again.

The young girl found herself stunned, by Aegon’s behaviour. He was not himself, so to say.

But she couldn’t figure out why that was.

She tilted her head, turning to face him, before her confusion turned into sudden shock, as she turned back around.

Daerlyssa had come to meet Aemond’s eye, as he walked past his brother, making his way in.

It had been just over four days, since their last encounter.

Despite living in one place, with the difficulty reaching the highest level, on avoiding his presence.

She managed to do so, given that she simply did not look in his direction, no matter how much her curiosity killed her.

To know what he was saying, or thinking, she wished to discover. But she did not let her curiosity get the best of her.

Not wishing for herself to be humiliated.

“Nephews” Aemond sighed, as he made his way to his seat.

Looking toward Daerlyssa, he noticed her avoiding his gaze.

As he noticed over the past four days.

To begin with, he liked it that way.

He found her presence to be tiring and unwanted. After all, he despised his sister and her family, due to his mother’s awful words against them.

Aemond was far too young, at least four years of age, when he had his fatal accident, causing the loss of his eye. It was hard to remember what had truly happened, or why it had happened.

Yet he only remembered the words of his mother, as she spew her lies, due to her hatred against Rhaenyra’s bastards sons, considering them to be monstrous, by name.

Despite his hatred toward them, Aemond could not help, but find himself restless by the fourth day, that she had avoided him, for reasons he himself, could not understand.

“Good morning, Princess” he called out.

“Your Grace” her voice cracked, before the two of them cleared their throats.

Both parents, Daemon and Rhaenyra, looked toward their daughter, wondering why she sat with her head down, avoiding her uncle’s attention.

It would have been reasonable, had Aemond treated them horribly, compared to the last time, Rhaenyra and her son’s had come to stay.

But this time was much different, as Aemond spew no hatred, but rather, let the feud between the two, simply be, giving no attention to it.

“This breakfast was great, but I will dismiss myself” Daerlyssa stood up.

“Where to?” Viserys asks.

Daerlyssa looked around at the table, all eyes on her, and perhaps Aemond’s too. But she could not say for certain, when she continued to ignore his presence.

“I had forgotten to speak to Uncle Aegon, of something important” She lied.

“And what would that be, exactly?” Daemon asks.

“Well-?” Daerlyssa looked around helplessly, as she wondered what lie she could have come up with at that moment, before it clicked to her, “he promised that he would… take me to see the tapestries.”

“The tapestries? Aegon?” Daemon let out a pfft.

“Y-yes! Yes, he is trying to become a better person by engaging with peaceful activities, to avoid himself in becoming drunk.”

She successfully had given her lie, having Viserys smile at her, pleased by the sudden relationship between the two.

With quick steps, Daerlyssa had skipped off, leaving Aemond to sigh in his seat, as he watches her leave.

-

“Aegon, wait!” Daerlyssa shouted out, as she held her dress, running toward him.

Aegon, who held a bottle of alcohol in his hands, only just about beginning to drink it, turned around after hearing her call out to him.

“May the gods help me” he whispered under his breath.

Walking toward her, the two meet within the middle, before Aegon pulls her away from being noticed, and into his chamber.

Pulling her inside, he had closed the door behind him, before turning around to face her, placing the bottle down.

“Daerlyssa, what is wrong with you?” Aegon pleaded out, “why are you following me and screaming my name, for other people to hear.”

“I don’t-?” She looked at him, confused and slightly hurt, as she spoke in a low tone, “I don’t understand, I just had a question to ask.”

Noticing her eyes soften, he sighed, before sitting her down, “look, I’m sorry. I just- I need you to understand, in front of other’s, you can not be friendly with me.”

“Why not?” She asks, “I thought I was helping, in having our families get along with one another. Grandfather complains about it so much.”

“You are, but that is the problem” Aegon sat beside her, “do you not see it? Why they wish for us to be so close to one another?”

“I always thought it to be so that my mother could permanently move back in, with us, without any issues between our mothers” Daerlyssa responds.

“They wish for us to be bethroed” Aegon confesses.

“What?” Daerlyssa chuckled, “no, if that was the case, my father would have told me.”

“Daemon has no say, when it comes to his brother. He’s married to the King’s daughter, and im sure he’s learnt what happens, when he disobeys the King’s orders” Aegon responds.

“Even then, he would have sat me down, and told me” Daerlyssa looked unsure.

“I had a feeling, when I first heard of my sister, and you all coming to stay. My father continued to make points, on how I am a grown man who is yet to be married. But this morning, he had confirmed my theory” Aegon explains.

“What did he say? Did I miss it out?” Daerlyssa asks, “from what I heard, he only wished for me to help you out, on speaking the Valyrian language.”

“We are quite content in each other’s company” Aegon quotes Viserys’ words.

Daerlyssa looked at him silently, before Aegon sighed out of frustration.

“Our talks, and simple conversations, have him believe we wish for something like this. To be content with one another is more than just a friendship, or a simple teaching relationship, Daerlyssa. He thinks of us to like one another, a lot more than friends” Aegon explains.

To which had Daerlyssa slowly nodding as she looked away.

“I do enjoy our conversations, and I am thankful for the efforts you have given to have a friendship with me. Not many people do” Aegon explains, “we can not be seen as two people who want to be bethroed to one another. We simply can not!”

“I agree, we can not be bethroed to one another” Daerlyssa whispered back, before putting her hands up toward him in defence, “not that it would be a bad thing, or that you are a bad person, no!”

“I would not think that” Aegon chuckled at her panic.

“It is just..” she sighed, “you must promise me to keep this secret between us.”

“Of course” Aegon nodded, leaning in to hear her.

“I have always thought for myself to be bethroed to Lord Cregan Stark” Daerlyssa looked away, shyly.

“Lord Cregan Stark?” Aegon questions, “since when have you spoken.”

“During his crowning, once his father had passed. Me and my mother had flew to the North, in order to pay our respects and recognise him to be the King of the North, which he now is” Daerlyssa responds.

“I see” Aegon nods, as looks impressed.

Tilting his head, he squints his eyes in question, as he looks toward her, “so does that mean you have some sort of.. feelings, toward him?”

“I’m not sure” Daerlyssa responds, “he is the only man in my life who has been a great companion to me. We send ravens to one another. I have spoken to him much about you.”

“You have?” Aegon’s voice pitched at a high squeak.

“He said it is a good thing, that I have formed a friendship with you. Which is why I was so surprised, when you pushed me away before” Daerlyssa pouted in guilt, “I do apologise, I hadn’t realised your father’s reasonings. Nor mine.”

Aegon shook his head, as he smiled, “it is not your fault. I did not think you would have.”

“Is there a reason why you do not wish to be bethroed to me?” Daerlyssa asks, “perhaps you have someone else?”

“It is not that. I am just.. not attracted to someone like you” Aegon blushed as he scratched the back of his head.

“Oh. I see” Daerlyssa found his comment to be, that he did not see her as an attractive woman.

“Not to say you aren’t a good looking woman, I mean, ever since you have been here, even the guards have continued to lay their eyes on you” Aegon confirmed with a chuckle.

“Well, what do you mean then?” Daerlyssa asks.

“I am just… not attracted to women” He whispered.

“Oh” Daerlyssa nods, her eyes slightly widening, when she realised, “so you are attracted to men?”

His silence had given her an answer, as he avoided her eyes.

“You may think less of me, surely” he whispered.

“No, not at all” Daerlyssa responds.

Her positive attitude had Aegon look back up to her, confused.

“Just because you are a man, does not mean you must be attracted to a woman. We live for desire, with our own preferences, to who we wish to be beside. If you wish to be beside another man, then that is your right” Daerlyssa smiled with support.

“That is.. quite a nice thing to say” Aegon smiled.

“It does not make you less of a person, Uncle” Daerlyssa held his hand, “at least, I do not think so. You should be able to love whomever you wish to. As long as it is someone who truly cares for you. Does the King know of this? Or perhaps, your mother?”

“They have come to an understanding. Which is why, they are so keen on having us bethroed. They say it will cleanse me” Aegon rolled his eyes.

Those words causing Daerlyssa to feel disgust, in her Grandfather, and his wife.

“Well, do not worry. I will not let this happen. In fact, we can pretend to dislike one another, during the times we are nearby our parents, but share conversations like this, in secret” Daerlyssa chuckled.

“I have always wanted a friend I could share secrets with. Secrets like this, I have kept within me for quite some time” Aegon responds.

“Are there any more secrets?” Daerlyssa teases, “perhaps a man you have already set your eyes on?”

“I don’t know if I should say” Aegon stood up.

Daerlyssa squealed, as she pulled him back down beside her, “you must tell me! I told you about Lord Stark!”

“Oh what choice do I have” Aegon sighed in defeat as he rolled his eyes.”

-

A dim light shone through the halls, as Aemond found himself walking through, the floor creaking beneath him as he took each step.

Despite his bedroom door being in sight, before him, Aemond could not help but sense that something was different. It did not feel real.

As he reached the door, with only a step away from making it inside, he turned back around, to a dark distance. “Hmm” he whispered, under his breath, before turning back to his bedroom door, looking down at his hand that gripped the knob.

Turning it slowly, his door grated open, as he slowly looked up in his room, shocked at the sight before him.

“Your grace” Daerlyssa smiled, as she was laid on his bed, his blanket covering just some of her.

“Princess?” Aemond closed the door behind him, without turning around, his eye fixated on his niece, who slowly stood up out his bed.

He watched as his blanket fell to her feet, before she was stood, completely nude, before him.

It was the first time he found himself too stunned to speak. “W-what are you doing?” Aemond stuttered.

“I’m sorry I have been avoiding you, Uncle” she whispered seductively, as she walked towards him, slowly.

“Daerlyssa, if anyone finds you here-?”

“Everyone is asleep” she whispered again, before she had come just an inch apart to him.

Aemond couldn’t help himself, as his head dropped down to get a good look at her, with her breast in his sight.

But her hands were quick to motion, when she held his chin, and had him face up again. “I have been waiting for this moment with you” she couldn’t help herself to bite her bottom lip.

“Then why have you been avoiding me?” His hand found its way to her cheek, as he craddled it.

Daerlyssa tiptoed toward him, her lips brushing against her earlobe, before she spoke, “you make me so nervous. Every night, after learning such things about a woman’s desire, I can’t help but feel pleasure, every time I remember you.”

Her words cause him to let out a shiver, finding himself proud, for causing her to feel such a way.

As she begins to lay her feet to the ground slowly, she moves away from his ear, her nose brushing past his, as she looked up at him, with her lustful eyes.

Her lips had become agape, when she felt his breath lingering against it, before rubbing her nose against his.

Aemond fought against the idea to give in to her, wondering of the consequences, should anyone find out.

That was until she held his wrist, the two watching the movement, as she pulled it down toward her breast, letting his grasp onto it softly.

The two then slowly look away from his hand, back toward one another, before she leaned her body into him, a soft moan escaping her due to the feeling of his hands pressing against her nipple.

It was all he needed to hear from her, before he had lost all his restraint.

With both hands, he held both her breasts firmly, before bringing his lips onto hers, as the two shared a passionate kiss.

His fingers motioned in the same direction as their tongues, toward her nipples, having her moan once again, this time, with their lips still intact.

Aemond did not care for his hatred at that moment, before he decided to let go of her breasts, grasping for her waist as he held her up.

She wrapped her legs around him, as he carried her to his bed, laying her down. With a smirk on his face, he hovered himself over her, finding himself drunk on the taste of her tongue.

He did not know what was happening to him, but this moment began to flash before him, from his hands around her body, to hers around his.

The feeling of her neck, as he grasped onto it, looking up at her as she sat above him.

From every movement, to every breath, it felt as though everything was becoming louder, yet less clear.

“Hmm” he cried out, in frustration, before letting out a soft grunt, with his hand fisted in motion.

His head lifted slightly from his pillow, as he let out a soft groan, his legs stretched in motion.

Slowly fluttering his eyes opened, Aemond found himself in bed.

Looking toward his window, it was telling to him, that it was the morning, and that he had just been dreaming.

Once again, it was the fourth time he had dreamt of her, yet each time it became more and more vulgar.

With a sigh, he sat up, before noticing something strange between his legs.

Lifting up his blanket, with the substance he found, and his pants slightly bulged, he sighed before laying back down on his back.

“What am I going to do” He whispered to himself.

-

After breakfast, Aemond found himself distraught and confused, given his dreams have been all about Daerlyssa, and he couldn’t grasp as to why that was.

It frustrated him, due to how she avoided him, including that morning, when she hardly looked toward him, before running off to find his brother.

Yet, what frustrated him more, was himself, acknowledging his own fault as he remembered what he spoke, when he had last come eye to eye with her.

As he continued to walk with his head down, in his own thoughts, the sound of a faint laughter was heard before him.

Looking up, he found Aegon walking out his chamber, as Daerlyssa followed out behind him.

The two chuckled amongst one another, Aegon turning around to face her.

“I am glad we have had this talk” Daerlyssa smiled.

“As am I” Aegon smiled back.

“Now go!” She pushed him, “do what you must do! We will speak again tonight.”

Aegon chuckled as he shook his head, walking away, with his head down.

He noticed Aemond’s shoes, before looking back up at him, “oh, brother. Didn’t realise you were here.”

Aemond smiled in response, before asking, “where are you off to?”

“The brothel of course. Where else?” Aegon responds.

“So early?” Aemond found his motives questionable.

“Why not?” Aegon shrugged, looking a lot more happier than usual.

He walked past Aemond, leaving him to it.

Aemond’s eyes followed his brother, to the back of his head, before turning back to Daerlyssa, who continued on ahead, having no clue of Aemond’s presence.

════ ⋆★⋆ ════

chapter 6

[moussedoodles]

I KNOW I'M IN THE MIDDLE OF A COMIC-OFF WITH TAY BUT HAVE WE GUYS MADE A MAFIA AU FOR OUBING YET??????? LIKE,,, CONSIDER,,, (long as yap sess below)

The Li Family was a line that birthed many honorable figures in the field of law, with it's heads having been retired officers while their oldest sons, Jinzha and Muzha, went off to become a great lawyer and officer respectively in their own right.

Nezha, their youngest son, meanwhile, grew up to be a... problem child, to put it mildly. Despite excelling academically, especially under his tutor Taiyi Zhenren, his loud and brash attitude often invited scorn from other parents, teachers and classmates alike, and the occasional bouts of vandalism, destruction of property and pranks didn't help his reputation either. Nezha grew up to be named the rotten delinquent of the noble Li family, and though his family loved him unconditionally, flaws and all, and tried their best to lead him onto a good path, that never stopped the rumors and open fear their neighbors held for him. So, the young master leaned into it, unintentionally founding a gang and recruiting the very group of fellow rascals that bullied him once upon a time as his underlings.

He's a young man who looks like he's nothing but trouble– and he is– but there's more to him than just that. The young master of the Li family still a really sweet kid, and he loves and cares for his family just as much as they care for him in turn, he just leaned into the delinquent, "demonic" persona the town had created for him as he grew up as an unconscious way to cope and protect himself, because he doesn't need to think about disgracing his family or his future, not when people have already made a mold for him to fit into. Why think and fear and be anxious about what the future holds? Why keep trying to prove and gain the acceptance of others when no matter how hard he tries or how many of his own mistakes he tries to fix, it's never enough and almost always ends up worse? It's better to be the terror they believe you to be than to keep trying on what's basically a Sisyphean task. (Think the Nezha birthday crash out in the first movie [2019] except instead of letting loose and succumbing to his demonic instincts, he's letting loose and becoming a gang leader)

His relationship with his former bullies-turned-gang members are really sweet too actually. They've turned into this dumb lil friend group that pull stunts and schemes every now and again (petty thievery, vandalism, street fights with gangs outside their own), but still care enough about their own, self-appointed territory of Chentang Guan to actively help around the community (even despite both their reputation as a group and their leader's reputation especially), and pull their own sort of vigilante justice when they find actual injustice. Despite their bad reputation, the boys have done their part to lift their own community up for the better while keeping bad influences out and at bay.

The Loong family meanwhile, are the actual big shots. A wealthy mafia family that– after being back stabbed by their own allies– were forced to flee deep into the underbelly of the city they once ruled over under iron claws and just eyes after the deaths of Ao Guang's eldest sons and wife.

They pull strings and set pieces behind the scenes in hopes of pulling their family out from the ashes of their own, tarnished name. Despite being, well, a crime syndicate, the Loong family proved to be a strict and noble group that kept the rotten, unwanted and shunned from society in line. Without them, worse crimes have begun to go unchecked and unregulated, and whatever rot they've been keeping an eye on for generations have begun to spread.

But, before they can move up, claw their way back into the throne that's been wrongly taken away from them, they need to start small, taking territories from smaller groups to grow their numbers and power.

And if one of those territories happen to be Chentang Guan? Well, let's hope Ao Bing, the so called "Dragon prince" and heir to the Loong family line is ready, because a demon haunts the streets of the pass, and won't go down without a fight.

[onydung]

Surreal Angel

Arthur Shelby x FemReader

Synopsis : Your acceptance is new and scary to him

Masterlist

GRAMMER NOT GOOD, DONT EAT ME

You are everything that he is not. Young, innocent, an angel, your hands are small and soft compared to his dirty and calloused ones. He doesnt believe even for a second you come from the same world as he.

Yet your naked body is in his bed, nestled in his blankets close to his chest for warmth. Your eyes closed, unburdened by nightmares. He has been with a lot of pretty girls before but none of them we're you.

None of them look up at him with admiration, with so much geniune love that he doesnt even know if he even deserved to be looked upon like this, it feels wrong. He has been searching for someone to truly accept him for who he is but now that he found you it feels surreal.

He tried his best to keep you at arms length, wanting you so badly but too afraid to ruin everything like he always do. Showing you only the parts of him where he is stable, taking to heart Tommy's advice and pushing everything out so you dont percive the darkest parts of him but he knows deep down it was futile. He blew up, not able to contain himself any longer when a poor unfortunate soul decided to mess with his family. You saw the carnage with your own eyes, the blood all over his face and hands, the manggled face of the man, and the broken pieces of his soul yet you didnt run or puke or shun him instead you cleaned him of the blood with nothing but a reassuring smile. It was both comforting and chilling at the same time. Were you really an angel? Were you also twisted like him to be able to stomach such carnage and still accept him with open arms?

Despite it all you are still here by his side, holding his bloody hands on yours proclaiming your love for him. Why do you love him? Why do you accept him when he knows he could easily do you the same way he did that man? All these questions in his mind and yet he could not say them to you. He needed you.

He had forgotten the sensation of his victim's mushy flesh the moment your lips touch. Soft and warm. Your touch was delicate like you were afraid to break him, tender and sweet he couldnt help but cry.

He deepens the kiss, holding your body close to him, laying you on his bed, hungry for more. Your sweet moans and whimpers flood his senses, he wants to drown in you, forgetting what he is, what he has done and believe that he deserve this. Deserve to be loved by you. Pumping into you and accepting your love until it overflows.

He doesn't want to fall asleep, afraid he might wake up and find you were never real in the first place. So he stays, no matter how unreal you are, he holds you close believing that he at least deserve to be loved at this moment.

.

.

[droaxa]

half of the ring

✧ tags: first love x reader, the reader takes too long to admit she’s in love with him and it has consequences

✧ warnings: angst angst angst be ready, betrayal but not really, you cry, friends to lovers to strangers

✧ a/n: really wanted to show you guys my angst skills, started on a plane but then got rlly into it 💗 but fr idk what i was on while making this.

✧ 2.1k words

He was your first love. You had a boyfriend before him but that relationship wasn’t born out of love, hell you didn’t even know if you liked your first boyfriend. The middle school curse of saying yes to dating boys you didn’t really know had gotten to you too, just like many other young girls at school. At an age when you were unsure of what boyfriends and girlfriends even did, you got into your first relationship.

Then you met him. Tall, charming, and somewhat nerdy. He wasn’t anything close to your first boyfriend but you felt strangely attracted to him nonetheless, much to the dismay of your friends who stated that he was ‘a weird loner that no one really liked’. You didn’t care about his obnoxious sports glasses, his long frizzy hair, or his ‘nerdy interests’, to you he was perfect and unapologetically himself.

You broke up with your boyfriend days after meeting him, he made you realize that if you should date anyone, it should be someone that makes you happy. Not someone you feel obligated to.

He was exciting and cool in ways your friends didn’t understand, a diamond in the rough. Before you knew it, months had passed and he moved to your neighborhood.

“The school was better here than in his district” he explained.

You were thrilled of course, who knew what this could bring? Your parents were friends so you met often, but they didn’t allow you both to date so you hid it. Soon, secretive texts and calls turned to meetups and walks in your neighborhood under the guise of being with a ‘friend’. You were with him all the time, if not at school, on the bus, and if not on the bus, around the neighborhood.

Truly the ying to your yang, you were opposites but still had so much in common. While you loved horror movies and he would bury his face in your neck during a jumpscare, squeezing your hand so hard it would turn blue. You would laugh at it his cowardly manner, patting his messy hair as he complained.

You were hopelessly unathletic and he was on the volleyball team. He taught you how to play, laughing as you tried to receive the ball only to have it hit the ground next to you. He never brought up your shortcomings or belittled you, instead helping you become a better version of yourself.

Inseparable. The only way to describe it, atleast until you heard about his reputation first hand. Being ignored by kids at school, shunned for the way he acted and spoke. That’s when you started to become embarrassed of him. Sweet thoughtful him. You heard the whispers about him and didn’t want to be dragged down along with his reputation.

You had been alone long enough, you could still remember those days when you had no one. You didn’t want to be alone again. You were young and dumb, placing social acceptance at a higher priority than him. But it was the pulling away from him that was the hard hardest. You were each others halves but there was something else. Something that young dumb you wouldn’t yet understand.

If his disappointed expression every time you would cancel on him didn’t hurt your heart, the hurt on his face when you would pretend like you didn’t see his wave in the school hallway punched you in the gut. But you managed to make more friends. It would be worth it. Wouldn’t it? You missed him, but you still wanted to have this social power, this freedom.

On the bus home one day a ring you wore broke in half, a silver ring with the emblem of wings. Looking at the two halves you decided to give one half to him on your walk home, his face lighting up as you give him the metal fragment. You would never truly understand the meaning of ring to him. It was a bittersweet moment when you both bid each other goodbye, no hugs or touches. Just a smile.

You saw him was again on the bus, this time your phone chimed with a text. It’s from him.

‘i’m going to kiss you today’

It was a little strange but so hopelessly innocent, he was asking his permission. You felt guilty when he had told you that you were his first anything, first girl he had talked to romantically and now he was hoping first kiss. But you didn’t know if you wanted it. You’d already wasted your first kiss on your first boyfriend, a regret.

You didn’t want to be a regret for him, you didn’t want to face your feelings firsthand either. You knew that this kiss would prove your feelings for him, no more tiptoeing around the bush that you both were doing. You were scared, what if he realized that you weren’t what he wanted. What if you get shunned from being with him?

So you ran. From your feelings, confusion, and most importantly from him. You didn’t kiss him that day, much less look at him.

You didn’t see him around much after that, you heard that he moved out of your neighborhood and into another one. His father had decided they needed a bigger house. You visited him with your family and he led you up to his room, showing you around. On his bookshelf glimmered the half of the ring you gave him, put on display as if it was a piece of art. You smiled as you saw it, you didn't know how much it meant to him.

In a few months, you would move to the same neighborhood. A plan your family had before you had even met him, maybe it was fate or maybe it was just some coincidence.

Your meetups were few and far between then, the next time you saw him was on a school trip to another state. A week where students would be unsupervised, to do whatever they pleased, a recipe for disaster. On the day of the departure, one of your friends had asked you about him before you both had got on the bus to leave. What sport he did, what he was like. You were confused, they’d never asked about him before. Much less without making fun of him.

You shrugged off the strange feeling creeping up on you and told her the basics, she was elated. Then she revealed her true intentions, she was interested. In him. You buffered. What? But you had ever told her what went on between you and him, so it’s not like girl code applied. And for some reason you didn’t want to tell her, he was a loser in the eyes of everyone. If you revealed what really happened, you would be deserted. You had enough of being alone for a lifetime.

You shot her a smile as genuine as you could muster and told her that you’d tell him to think about her. She grinned and thanked you, heading into the bus.

And you did. You did tell him that she would be good for him, that they had so much in common. You could see the disbelief in his eyes, that something like this was coming from someone as special to him as you. You didn’t meet his eyes once, face turned down and words quickly mumbled.

You didn’t know what you were expecting, maybe a romantic display like in the movies where the male lead would refuse and tell the female lead he only wanted her. Maybe you wanted him to grab you and shake some sense into you, remind you of what mattered and what he was to you.

You hated yourself for it, you didn’t want him to go, to leave you. But you were conflicted and stupid, unable to see the true value of what you were giving up. After he nodded at your suggestion, he walked off without a word. Maybe you didn’t deserve him anyway. You warded the tears off as you walked in the other direction.

You didn’t know that he would take the suggestion seriously, to get back at you or to get over you, you didn’t know. You'd deluded yourself into thinking that he would come back, you mattered enough to him, right? You didn't see or talk to him for two whole days, and honestly, you were ripping out your hair in frustration.

Finally, you'd see him when your group was visiting a landmark in the city you were in. It was supposed to be a normal day of the usual activities, sightseeing and such. But then you saw them both. Together. Maybe they’d started talking after you suggested it or maybe she’d come up to him, you didn’t even want to think he went up to her on his own accord.

It hurt in ways you thought unimaginable, why was it so easy for her? People did snicker at them and laugh sometimes but she was with him all day, not a hint of embarrassment on her face. They both laughed and whispered to each other, about what? You didn't know, you weren't sure you wanted to. But this wasn't fair, that should’ve been you. You tear your eyes away from the scene, you should've been stronger, been more resilient. Had you lost him already?

On the last day of the trip, you finally faced the truth that this wasn’t anything close to what you wanted. You knew that he deserved better, but with him by your side you could be better, for him. All you needed was him. You could deal with the gossip and public shunning if he was by your side.

You decide to talk to him on the last day of your trip, striding towards him as he faces the opposite direction, observing the artwork on the urban brick wall. Before you can even get close to him, she appears. Hair flowing behind her as confident strides bring her every bit closer to him. There's a bright smile on her face as she pulls him to face her, and he smiles back. Why does he smile back? Months of late-night talking, laughing, and understanding can’t be undone in a week right? Your heart stutters as you see him smile, a real smile. Not the melancholic one he’d give you when you said you couldn’t meet or talk to him, a real smile from his heart.

Then he leans in, he leans in first, and presses his lips against hers. A strong hand on her back to steady her as they share an innocent kiss, nothing more than lips pressed against each other. You stare at them, shock rendering your body immobile as they pull apart. Faint smiles are still present as they look at each other, and a glimmer in his eyes that you had stopped seeing a while ago returns.

You can’t stop the tears that fall down your face, apology you were planning to give him dampened and forgotten. You step back, you were too late. Far too late.

Turning around, you try to wipe the tears as they fall. You were really stupid huh? Took too long to decide and he finally realized that he deserved better, and she was his better apparently. But that kiss was supposed to be yours, it was your kiss. He was supposed to be yours, you were the one with him before anyone else. It was selfish, but if only. If only.

‘But you chased him away didn’t you?’ a voice whispered. You stopped. You were the one that forced him into the arms of another, why did you deserve to cry? You couldn’t help but wonder, did he think about you? Did he think about those late nights when you both would text like you were each other's lifelines? Maybe he would still be with you now, if you tried harder, if you ignored the others, if you saw all that mattered. He was what mattered.

But sometimes, doubt, a moment of hesitation was all it took to ruin everything that is and can be. All you had now were questions. The what ifs and maybes. The half of the ring, without knowing if he kept his.

a/n: well thats all guys :)) i'm gonna write a part two for this who knows how it'll go

[drinkinboilingcoffee]

I don’t have the link on me but I can try to find it but I remember seeing this fnaf analysis ages ago we’re in one version of the persons timeline Mike could have been as young as 14 at the time of sister location (you can work at a parents business at pretty much any age exempt from a lot of the usual requirements) and I’m thinking about that yet again today (he was an adult in SL in my au but still) Part of me is like “Oh my god that’s terrible, William sent his child son to go save his sister, and since it would have been right after Evan’s death, he probably did it out of spite for that, probably knowing full well Michael would be “killed”. He had his entire life ripped away from him at such a young age and he spent the rest of his life in agony, probably being shunned by his friends for his twisted form and deciding that he deserved it for what he did to Evan.” The other half of me is like “lmfao they literally had a kid working there? No wonder the Funtimes wanted to kill him, he probably activated their kidnapping programming. He was probably like 6 inches too short for the springlock suit they put him in, no wonder he couldn’t see shit through it. Would he even age or is he a teenager throughout the entire series? Bet William still made him go to school all corpsy looking.”

[orphicrose]

Beneath the beast

Chapter 1. Marigold

Cursed with a titan, you find yourself on the island of devils - Forced into the ranks of the scout regiment. But as you fight to control the beast, one man threatens to unravel everything… Levi Ackerman.

18+ • Explicit content, blood, swearing, gore, smut • Angst, Slow-burn, Titan shifter AU, Enemies(?)to Lovers, Hurt/comfort • Plot focused • Canon timeline •

w/c . 1.5K

( Wattpad . Chapter overview )

───────────────────────────────────────────

Oil lamps flickered in the small hallway that lead down to your cell, a dim but warm haze that casted over the bricks cracked with time. Your hands stretched over the rusted bars that separated you from the rest of the world like cattle. Waiting to be allowed freedom.

Hours had dragged on down there, hours since they tossed you into this inhumane pit of self-pity.

You had thought the people of the walls may have offered you some grace when you had saved one of their soldiers, but they treated you like a criminal.

Above you was the council house. A large area that stretched across half the building, littered with chairs and long tables full of greyed men. Each scratching at the bald patches on their heads, questioning how the hell a young woman had made it outside their menagerie. Let alone survived it.

God, how you missed your bed. The warm, clean sheets that held scents of your mothers cooking. The wallpaper on the East wall peeling with time, that you and your brother would pick at mindlessly while you spoke of your day. The damp patches that drowned your ceiling in a black mold. Your father always claimed he would fix it. He never did.

But - oh, it was your black mold. And you'd do anything right now to be picking at the yellow, flowered paper with your brother, complaining about it all.

The memory stung, shunning itself into the corners of your mind. Shadowing itself from the light of the present. It was gone. All of it. There was no point to dwell.

Leaning your head into the bars, your eyes flutter shut. Bursting back open when a noise from above startled you.

A door at the top of the stairs had flung open. Followed with the sound of footsteps creaking down the old wood, forcing splintered shards to rain down from the ceiling braces.

You spun on your hands, eyes trailing up to a tall man standing with a commanding authority. Looming over you.

His blonde hair was neatly combed into a side parting that framed his slender face , with blue eyes that locked onto you with a vicious intensity. His uniform matched with every other scout you had come across. Yet, you could tell he was a higher ranking officer. The way he carried himself with sureness, the confidence extruded in his steps without a word having to be said.

It was intimidating, to say the least.

Eyes trained on you, not wavering even for a split second, he took a seat on the rickety stool opposite. Looking as if it would crumble with any added weight.

"They informed me you haven't said a single word since your arrival. Is there a particular reason?" He finally spoke with a sharp tone. Leaning forward with his hands locked in his lap.

You remained silent, still. Almost defiant as you stared at him back.

His lips tightened into a line with his pupils dancing across your features. Studying you.

"I'm Commander Erwin Smith." He spoke again, shifting back in his seat. "I just want to know what you were doing outside the walls."

Erwin waited for a response, watching as you turned your back to him with a deep sigh following through your parted lips.

Nothing.

"You're not a scout. You're not registered in any division. So, who are you?"

"Does it matter?" Your voice was gruff from the lack of use. Erwin's exhale forced you to turn your head, his blue eyes cutting through the lucent orange, glaring at your form that was retreated into the darkness of your cell.

"It does," he almost mused. Reaching into his cloak, you half expected him to reveal some sort of hidden weapon. Torture the information from you. That's what they would have done.

Instead, a journal with a knitted cover was pulled into his hands. Every page in between the wool was stained with a yellow tint, full to the brim with illegible scribbles and detailed sketches. He flicked through with his thumb, air from the fast turning paper stirring some loose hairs on his forehead. "Especially when this was found on your persons."

You swallowed, hard, when his focus abruptly flickered from you to one of the pages. Stopping his finger at random and clearing his throat as he brought the book closer to his face. Shielding whatever thought he held from your sight.

"'Subject showed signs of cognitive delay post-transformation. Possibly linked to exhaustion?'" He paused for a moment, shutting the journal with a loud thud. "These are not the notes of a frightened civilian. They are written by someone with extensive knowledge, possibly firsthand?"

The jig is up. You've been here for three hours and they've already sniffed out your betrayal, the stench of an oppressor.

"Just theories," you countered. "I've been piecing things together. I've seen enough titan encounters to know we're missing something."

Erwin hummed, reluctancy to believe you present in the way his eyebrows twitched. "So, you're a survivor? A witness? But not a name, not a file, not even a viable story that fits." He didn't miss a beat, rising to his feet and taking a daunting step closer. Lowering his voice in a way that made you shrink into your shoulders. "If you are hiding from something, or someone, I suggest you choose your allies wisely."

"I'm not your enemy." It came out as barely above a whisper.

"I know, Miche filled his report this morning."

"Miche?" The question was genuine, your brows tugging together in a confused scowl.

Erwin nodded. "He claims you saved his life. He believes you had every opportunity to run. Yet, you didn't."

He watches you for a moment, silence overwhelming the area once more. Quiet tapping of footsteps barely audible above you, distant murmurs of jurors and men of an important standing.

Finally, you spoke up, "what happens now?"

Erwin took a step back, the light flooding back into your cell as he retook his seat. "I have an offer for you..." His voice was even, but edged with something sharp. Steel. "Give me your name, and join the scout regiment. No secrets. From this point on you'll be one of us. Or you can spend the rest of your short, watch-listed life in this cell."

Lowering your head, you felt his glare on you. Burning through the invisible guard that was orbiting your mind. You swallowed ,hard, as you considered his offer, while simultaneously wondering why.

Why would he give you a chance at something so... meaningful. Especially considering you are behind bars, at present, being tried as a criminal.

"You'll be monitored closely. But we will put your mind to use. Your knowledge, instincts, it could save lives." He spoke again, eager for your answer.

"You don't even know who I am."

"Not yet." He held your gaze, unwavering. "But I know who you're not. Ordinary, reckless. And you're not untrained."

"What makes you say that?"

Erwin's lips curl, a broad smile forming on his face. "Most people run away when faced with a titan. You ran towards it. That's enough to earn you a chance."

You shift slightly, considering. Your body still aching from the previous hours, but your mind sharper than ever.

The walls are closing in around you, threatening to engulf you in a timeless prison. Prison means staying still. Staying still means losing control, means letting everyone down.

You didn't make it this far just to be cut off.

"You offer freedom like it's a favor," you mumble.

His expression doesn't change. "Is it not?"

Goddamnit, you think to your self. Becoming a scout is a high profile role, you're practically drawing yourself over as a target. But what choice do you have?

"Marigold."

Erwin doesn't flinch, he just raises a curious brow. Like you just made up a nonsensical word.

You repeat yourself, adding your first name into the mix. "But most people call me Marigold, or Gold."

Hesitancy struck the oceans in his eyes like lightning, his lids twitching. He didn't buy it. But he accepted it.

"You'll ride with the next outbound patrol to the headquarters. Squad leader Hange will ensure you know what you are doing. Levi, as you've met, will oversee your training. You'll need it in the field." Erwin stood abruptly, dusting his cloak of the filth that was this damned enclosure. "You'll be watched, but not caged."

You had tensed up at the mention of the runts name. Levi. He was the one who initially brought you to this retched place, the one who spat names at you on the journey back. Not a single fiber of him trusting you.

Though, who could blame him.

"One more thing." Erwin spun towards you, pausing at the bottom of the stairs. "If you aren't who I hope you to be..."

"Then I won't come back," you interrupt with a cold voice.

Erwin nodded, just once. "Let's hope it doesn't come to that."

He began his ascent up the stairs, the room tremoring with every step and movement. Shaking the metal bars of their rust when the door slammed shut behind him.

Your cell felt wider, not freer. But open enough to move.

This was your starting point. Your opening to rid yourself of this thing. This curse. Your opportunity to give your father everything he ever wanted out of life.

Humanity. 

───────────────────────────────────────────

(Continue reading)

[kikyoupdates]

Tears of a Villainess ⭑˚🗡️⭑ 𝑎 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑓𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑙𝑦 𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑓𝑒𝑐𝑡 𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑒

yandere!ocs x reader

yandere, reverse harem, isekai, original characters x fem!reader, slowburn, slowburn yandere

Reincarnation isn't as great as it sounds, especially when you've been reborn as none other than the villainess. Fated to die if you stand in the heroine's way, you immediately resolve to distance yourself from the plot. As long as you have nothing to do with any of the relevant characters, surely, you'll be able to avoid an untimely death. But in a horrible turn of events, the heroine ends up wanting to get close to you. Are you really doomed to meet the villainess' tragic end? Or is there an even more sinister fate that awaits you?

previous | story masterlist | next

“I’m back with the snacks!” 

You grin widely. Annabel is still sitting at the desk, right where you left her, with a rather unsettled expression. Maybe she was actually getting peckish, but she was just too shy to admit it. It’s a good thing you’re the coolest, most thoughtful host ever. 

Surely whatever the villainess did to her in the past can be overwritten, right? You even brought her a bunch of yummy treats. You’re bound to become her favorite student in no time. 

“I stole these from the kitchen,” you happily state, placing a huge platter right in front of her. “I think they were set aside for my mom and dad, but it’s no biggie. They can just have their tea time a bit later than usual.”

Annabel furrows her brows. “Oh… there’s really no need for that. I’m not hungry.” 

“Not even a little bit?”

“No. Truthfully, I have almost no appetite.” 

“That’s not good,” you frown, leaning closer to her. “I hope you aren’t skipping meals or anything. It’s not good for your health. You need to take care of yourself.”

Annabel bristles, and within a few seconds, she finds her heart beating wildly. Curse you and your blatant disregard for personal space! It’s not her fault that she can feel her face heating up. It’s just… a normal reaction. It’s only natural, considering how absurdly pretty you are.

As shallow as it sounds, Annabel harbored feelings for you for a while. She’d never spoken to you before, but every time she saw you step into a room, she could feel her chest tightening—like right now—and she had to avert her gaze on several occasions, too flustered to dare make eye contact.

Of course, her attraction to you was purely superficial at that point. 

That was before she realized what a horrible person you are. 

For as long as she can remember, she has battled waves of guilt that threaten to swallow her whole. She doesn’t understand why she’s different from everyone else she knows. All her life, she’s been told that she needs to find herself a respectable husband and start a family, but… how can she?

What is she supposed to do when she’s never felt anything towards even a single man?

Since she was young, girls were the ones who caught her eye. Every time, without exception. As a child, it was harmless enough, because apart from lessons and etiquette, there wasn’t any pressure to marry yet. Responsibilities weren’t being imposed upon her. She didn’t yet feel the weight of her family’s expectations.

But as she grew up, it all became clear to her. She isn’t normal. She isn’t the way she’s supposed to be. Or at the very least, the way others tell her she’s supposed to be. 

A woman marrying another woman is unheard of. Two women can’t have children. Two women can’t create their own family. 

In the face of painful rejection, and out of fear of being shunned and treated as a damaged, misshapen tool, Annabel understood that the only thing she could do was hide her feelings, no matter how much it made her heart ache. 

But she slipped up. 

She fell for the one person she shouldn’t have. 

“You like women, don’t you?”  

The accusation was already frightening to begin with. She never expected to have her true emotions exposed and laid bare. It made her feel weak and vulnerable. It made her feel ashamed of something completely out of her control. 

But you’re a cruel person by nature. So of course, simply confronting her about her desires apparently wasn’t painful enough. It wasn’t enough to fill that twisted, sadistic hole that lies in place of your heart.

You just had to humiliate her publicly. 

Countless other people were there to witness the confrontation. The whispering, the gasps, the looks of utter disgust… all of it is impossible to forget. If not for the fact that she’s highly intelligent, educated far beyond other noblewomen in her place, her life would already have been over. She would have lost the one value she was supposed to have had. 

Naturally, the rumors led her family to ruin. Her parents were horrified and disgraced by the revelation. Even now, she denies her feelings. She lies and pretends that everything you said that day was untrue. She’s never actually been with a woman, so there’s no proof. But unfortunately, all that matters is what people believe, and how they perceive her. 

That day, you ruined any chance she had of living normally. 

Not everyone buys into the rumors. Some believe that the act of a woman loving another woman is too far-fetched to possibly be true. Above all else, she is a scholar. A prodigy. But thanks to you, she is being denied many opportunities, and there are few people who even wish to be taught by her. Most know to keep their distance and remain uninvolved. They don’t wish to be stained by her blight.

When your family asked to hire her as a tutor, she was in no position to refuse. Teaching is the only thing she has left. It’s the only thing she can cling to anymore. 

In a disgusting twist of fate, she now finds herself obtaining her livelihood from the very person who stole it from her in the first place.

“Here, Annabel,” you smile, guiding a pastry towards her lips. “I promise this one’s extra yummy. Open wide—”

“Enough!”

She slaps the pastry out of your hands. It falls to the ground, spilling sugar and jam onto the carpet, and she lurches forward, gasping for breath. There are tears pricking at the corners of her eyes. She honestly feels like she’s about to puke.

You swallow and take a hasty step back. You must have pushed her too far. She looks really uncomfortable now. You’ve been trying to be as friendly as possible and prove to her that you really have changed, but whatever happened between her and the villainess… it’s clear now that she’s still feeling the aftereffects. Being clingy won’t help. It’ll probably just push her even further away. 

Annabel hastily wipes her eyes. “Please forgive me for sullying your carpet. I’ll clean it up right now.”

“It was my fault for being pushy. I’m sorry, Annabel.” You bow your head and apologize. “There’s definitely no need for you to do that. I’ll clean it up myself once our lesson is over.” 

She doesn’t listen, and has already dropped to the ground, carefully picking up the soiled pastry, then wiping the mess up with a napkin. You would offer to help, but you know she’ll just refuse again, so all you can do is stand around, feeling endlessly guilty. For the sins that someone else committed.

Annabel sniffles. She keeps wiping the same spot on the carpet, over and over again. Every time she feels like she’s about to cry, a voice in her head yells at her not to show weakness, not to reveal any more of her ugliness to the world, and by some miracle, she manages to hold it in.

So, no. She can’t forgive you.

She will never forgive you. 

Well, you suppose you can’t keep putting this off forever. 

It’s finally time for your date.

“As always, I am simply blinded by your radiance,” Rowan says, bowing deeply before you. It’s still quite early in the morning, just barely past breakfast. Having your ass kissed first thing is certainly one way to start your day off. 

“Thanks,” you reply coolly. “I am very beautiful, to be fair. So I guess I can’t really blame you for being a simp.”

“Simp…?” Rowan tilts his head to the side and frowns. “I’m afraid I’m not familiar with the term. Would you care to elaborate?” 

You chuckle. Sometimes it’s funny to throw slang at all these people, just to see how they’ll react. Like with Lucy. She’s so earnest that you get the feeling that she might actually end up using ‘sup at one point or another. Even if you won’t get to see it, the image alone is still pretty cute. 

“A simp is someone who’s very over-the-top with their affections. They aren’t shy about showing how they feel. Even if their feelings aren’t usually reciprocated.” 

Rowan pouts. “Well, that’s not an awfully flattering term. Are you implying that my feelings are purely one-sided?” 

“I thought that was pretty obvious, to be honest.” 

His pout deepens. You can’t tell if he’s actually annoyed or if he’s just trying to act playful, but it’s nice to see him without that overly bright, overbearing smile every now and then. He seems like he’d be pretty fun to tease. 

“Like I said, I don’t know you very well yet, so I’m trying to withhold judgment for the time being. But I don’t fall in love easily. I want to make sure I’m confident about the person I choose to spend the rest of my life with.” You lean in closer for a moment, and the faintest smirk creeps onto your lips. “I guess you’ve got your work cut out for you. If you really plan on winning me over.”

You gently flick the tip of his nose before stepping back, your smirk now morphing into a full-blown grin—which is almost too infectious to even put in words.

Rowan tries his best to maintain his composure. He desperately hopes his expression isn’t too telling. 

Just then, he swears his heart skipped a beat. 

“Okie-dokie,” you say. “That’s our carriage over there, right? I’m excited to see what you have planned for today.” 

You confidently march over to the driver, and Rowan hurries to collect himself in time to help you step up into the carriage. There’s no reason for him to be nervous. After all, he’s a member of the esteemed Calderwood family. Alistair may hold his head up high and act all pretentious and mighty, but Rowan is a man of impressive caliber nevertheless. He has more marriage prospects than he can even count. He’s a cunning, charming man, and a measly little date is nothing for him to get worked up over. 

Not to mention that now, he finally, finally has something that Alistair doesn’t. He finally has something, or rather—someone that is out of Alistair’s reach. 

He has you. 

There’s no way he’s going to squander the greatest opportunity of his life. 

“What a beautiful clear sky,” Rowan happily remarks, staring out the carriage window. Truly, the weather is perfect. He couldn’t have picked a better day for a date. 

“Yeah, it’s nice,” you agree. “If not for our date, I would probably have gone sunbathing for a little while.”

“Sunbathing?”

“Out on the lawn of my estate, I mean. I could have changed into a bikini—ah, I mean, I could have gone out in my undergarments for a little while to let my skin soak up the sun. But that’s hardly appropriate on a date, so here I am, wearing this long-ass dress,” you sigh. 

There’s a slight delay between when you say the words, and the time it takes for Rowan’s brain to come up with an appropriate mental image. 

By that point, he’s already blushing ear-to-ear, though. 

“Th-That sounds very relaxing,” Rowan stammers, awkwardly clearing his throat. “Uh, but perhaps we should steer clear of those kinds of topics. If you speak of such things so freely, others might frown upon it.” 

“So? I don’t care what others think.” 

“You… don’t?” 

“Not really,” you shrug. 

Well, as long as their perception of me doesn’t get me killed, that is. That’s the number one thing I’m worried about.

Rowan just stares at you. To some extent, he supposes he already knew you didn’t much concern yourself with the opinions of other people. You’re infamous, after all. Hailed far and wide as the lady with the most notoriously foul reputation. Under ordinary circumstances, if not for how much weight your family carries and the speed at which your household name is gaining acclaim, Alistair would never have been engaged to someone like you. Even Rowan himself wouldn’t have actively sought you out. 

It’s strange, though. You’re certainly blunt, and you rarely hesitate to say what’s on your mind, but you don’t seem anywhere near as heinous as the rumors would suggest. You’ve been depicted as a crooked, dastardly woman. Shallow-minded and rotten to your very core. Many have gone so far as to call you a villainess. 

Perhaps Rowan is the one who’s strange. There must be something wrong with him, too. 

Being around you is the most fun he’s had in a long time. 

“Anyway, did you bring snacks for the road?” you ask hopefully, leaning forward in your seat with an excited little smile. 

“Forgive me. I planned for us to dine later in the day. I was told that you’d eaten breakfast not long ago.” 

“Boo. This date is already off to a rocky start.” 

You cross your arms and stick your tongue out at him. The gesture is incredibly childish, and certainly not what a high-ranking noblewoman would ever be caught dead doing. It’s a good thing there aren’t others privy to this conversation. He’s glad it’s just the two of you. 

Because he thinks you’re utterly adorable. 

The carriage ride passes quickly, thanks to how easy you are to talk to, and the banter between the two of you comes naturally, for the most part. Even if you treat him like a pest most of the time, you don’t actually dislike him. You’re waiting to properly assess his character before coming to a decision. 

“Ah,” Rowan blinks, and his expression brightens up even more. “There it is. We’ve finally arrived.” 

You turn towards the window right as the carriage slows down, only to find that you’ve stopped in front of a massive floral arch, and just beyond the entrance, you can see a vast expanse of gardens. They seemingly go on forever. This plot of land is absolutely massive, and it looks like you’re about to step inside some magical fairy forest or something.

“Ooh… pretty,” you can’t help but mumble, somewhat in a daze. 

Rowan chuckles. “You like it? I asked your parents beforehand, and they told me you’d never been here before. I’m surprised that you’ve never stopped by for a visit, but it worked out for the best, because you get to see it for the first time while you’re with me.”

The carriage stops completely, and Rowan helps you step down, despite your insistence that you’re perfectly fine on your own. He’s very eager to be close to you, it seems, and he even loops his arm around yours once you disembark. Well, you are technically on a date right now, so you suppose it won’t hurt to act the part. Besides, by modern-day dating standards, holding onto your date’s arm is like, not even a quarter-way to first base. 

“The gardens here are truly something to behold,” Rowan beams. “They’re home to the most impressive collection of flowers, trees, and rare plant specimens I’ve ever seen. You’ll think you stepped into a whole new world.”

Ha. If only you knew the half of it.

To his credit, he isn’t exaggerating. Everything is gorgeous and perfectly-maintained. There are bright, extravagant flower arrangements and displays that adorn the sides of the paths, and some areas smell so fragrant and fresh that you swear it helps you think more clearly. On a warm, sunny day like this, strolling through some pretty gardens is pretty much the ideal. 

Or, it should have been. 

Too bad it started pouring all of a sudden.

“But… why?” Rowan gapes, staring up at the cloudy sky as if it’s just betrayed him. “It was so beautiful out until just a few moments ago. How is this even possible?”

“The weather is just unpredictable,” you simply shrug. “It can be incredibly deceiving at times. You’ll think you’re in for a nice day, then it’ll turn to shit out of nowhere. It doesn’t matter how abrupt it feels. Sometimes there’s really no way of knowing.” 

Like all those times the weather forecast assured you it would be sunny all day, only for you to be randomly hit with hail while you were in the middle of a nice hike. Shit happens. Life goes on. You’re used to this kind of thing, so it hardly fazes you.

But it looks like Rowan isn’t taking the news so well.

“We just barely even got here,” he mumbles, visibly upset. “I had everything all planned out. I wanted it… to go perfectly.” 

This kind of downpour is impossible to ignore. Since neither of you was expecting this turn of events, it goes without saying that you didn’t bring an umbrella. If you stay out here any longer, the rain will soak into your clothes, and in just a few minutes, you’ll be a cold, shivering mess. Unfortunately, hanging around just isn’t an option. 

Still. Given how much Rowan was looking forward to today, it’d be a shame to end things so soon. You promised him a proper date, and that’s exactly what he’ll get. 

“Come on, Rowan,” you say, smiling as you tighten your grasp around his arm. “Let’s head back to the carriage.” 

His expression becomes even more downcast. “I’m sorry. I should have planned things better. I didn’t meant to disappoint you by—” 

“What are you talking about? Like I said, you never know what the weather will turn out like. There’s no way this is your fault. You woke up to a clear, sunny sky and assumed the best. I would have done the same. In any case, I didn’t mean for you to take me back home.” 

“...oh.” There’s a bit of relief on his face now. “You didn’t?”

“Nope. Let’s just go into town for a bit. We won’t be able to stay outside, but we can grab lunch someplace. And maybe we can browse a few stores, too. We’ll figure something out,” you grin. “There’s always lots of fun stuff to do.”

You pat him on the back reassuringly, and while holding your smile, you begin leading him towards the entrance. You walk briskly, of course, so as not to get caught in the rain for too long. Rowan finds himself pulled along by you, eyes completely wide. As the man, he’s always been told that it’s his duty, in virtually any relationship, to look after the woman he’s courting and cater to her needs. It’s certainly not your responsibility to coddle him. He’s the one who made a blunder. He’s the one who didn’t account for the fact that the weather could change at any given moment. 

And yet, he doesn’t feel emasculated. He doesn’t feel ashamed. 

Rowan is actually grateful for the fact that you’re walking ahead of him right now, because it means you can’t see how fiercely he’s blushing.

Eventually, you make it back into town, and thanks to all the shops scattered around, you’re able to pick out an umbrella to seek refuge under. 

“It’s cold,” Rowan sighs, making sure to hold the umbrella steady and high. He hesitates for a moment, then wraps an arm around your waist and pulls you in even closer. “Please be careful. Stay close to me, otherwise you’ll get caught in the rain. This umbrella isn’t anywhere near as big as I’d hoped it would be.” 

“Why?” you tease. “Do you hate the thought of being pressed up against me that much?”

His cheeks redden slightly, and he even briefly looks away, but after pondering your words, he ends up smiling. 

“On second thought, I take it back. This umbrella is the perfect size.” 

You chuckle. The weather is gloomy, to say the least, but you’re not about to let that put a damper on your spirits. Hopefully Rowan isn’t too picky about what kind of restaurants he frequents, because even if you’re able to stay dry now, the temperature has noticeably dropped several degrees. The sooner you get inside, the better.

Life always likes to throw curveballs at you, though. Right as you’re about to point towards a restaurant and suggest it to Rowan, someone approaches. A certain crimson-haired knight. 

"Lady [Name]?” 

It’s Carmine again. Damn. You sure seem to be running into this dude a lot. At least this time he didn’t catch you in the middle of puking your guts out, or after you bravely (stupidly) stepped in front of a criminal carrying a knife.

Right now, he’s finally seeing you at your best. Well, as close as it gets, at least.

“Oh. Hi, Carmine,” you greet. “Looks like we’ve run into each other again. I’m guessing you’re busy with knight-related duties, as per usual?”

“Yes, since I am a knight,” he chuckles. His expression is pleasant, which is a relief. He must think you’re kind of funny or something, because he tends to smile around you quite a bit. He’s a protector of the people, but he’s usually pretty stoic. Unless he’s dealing with criminals, when the look in his eyes is nothing short of murderous.  

Also, it goes without saying that he’ll be friendly with Lucy, but from what you remember, they probably haven’t met yet. It’s bound to happen soon, though.

You’re glad that Carmine kind of likes you, since the threat of execution by his hands is one of the endings you fear—and it’s the most likely to happen, on account of your horrible reputation.

The fact that he’s smiling is a good sign. Maybe you’re sort of friends by now. Okay, maybe not friends, but a bit more than acquaintances, surely. Close acquaintances, perhaps? If that’s even a real thing.

Anyways, as long as he’s smiling, you have nothing to worry about, so—ah. Nevermind. 

For some reason, when he glances between you and Rowan, and when he sees the latter’s arm wrapped around your waist, his smile disappears. 

Carmine’s eyes narrow slightly. 

“Forgive my rudeness. Are the two of you perhaps… on a date?”

More chapters are available on Quotev!

⊱.⋅follow + post notifications on for story update announcements or join the author's discord!⋅.⊰

🗡️ main masterlist! ♡ character appearances