#you wanna publish some stuff because I will GLADLY read it

[wroteclassicaly]

sigh...okay...yall got me. Tw for misogynistic views...and straight up smut

Gator stood with his arms crossed, your eyes drawn to them. The blue cast on his arm like a beacon. "Like I said, don't worry your pretty little mind about it." Gator glared at you. "You broke your arm!" You throw your hands up and stand. You hate how your eyes go back to his biceps. The stupid tattoo he got one night when he was drunk.

The tattoo he got and immediately called you crying because the needle hurt. You don't even know how he ended up at the tattoo parlor. He only drank because his father's view of bonding was a whiskey and card game. At least he claimed. Sometimes you couldn't tell if Gator was telling the truth or not, but he is your friend. Having grown up together, the once sweet boy you knew who helped you up from falling and scraping your knees has become a hard headed idiot.

"Let the men think Hon," Gator snipped at you, rolling his eyes. An idiot who believed men were better then women. You knew Gator was only listening to his father. You hoped Gator would get out, but for whatever reason he clung to his dad further.

You scoffed at Gator," One of us has to think around here, and we know damn well it isnt you." "I do-" "You don't! You just follow your dad blindly!"

You go to say something more, but Gator stomps towards you, finger pointed in your face," You shut up now! You know nothing about what's going on." You blink and Gator pauses, hand lowering," I uh...I...you don't know what's happening okay?" You frown but stay silent.

Gator draws in a deep breath and your eyes dart down to his chest as he does it. You suddenly realize how close he is to you. One step closer and your chests would touch. You could simply lean in and kiss him and-

"Dad knows what he's doing. He's great. That's why he's the leader." Gator nods, as if trying to convince you or maybe himself of what he is saying. "Your dad is a hypocrite. Breaks the law all the time." You mumble, but Gator hears. "Dad says if you are pure, your actions can only be good." "Neither of yall are pure, unless you're a virgin," you smirk slightly.

"I am!" Gator pauses, realizing what he said as your eyes widen slightly. A slight blush spreads across his face as he rocks back on his heels," I mean uh I have experience. Yeah uh totally. Got plenty of it. Not plenty, I'm not a slut i-"

You hadn't expected that. You raise an eyebrow," You think you're pure?" Gator nodded. You hummed before saying," Really? Well, Gator, how many times have you fucked your fist to that picture you took of me in my red bikini?"

Gator's face bloomed red as he cleared his throat," I dont uh dont know what you're talking about." "No? You almost dropped your phone in the water, tried to play it off as if the sound of the camera didn't go off." You smirk at the awkward man in front of you. Gator took a deep breath in as his eyes darted around the room, looking anywhere but at you.

You glance down and see a very distinct bulge in his pants. You lick your lips at the sight. You knew he was going to be big. You take a step forward, causing Gator to stumble back. "How many times?" You batted your lashes at Gator, trying to give him big doe eyes. "Once or twice i uh sorry?" Gator cleared his throat again, voice sounding low and gravelly sending shivers down your spine. You shake your head condescendingly and Gator whines," Your tits were right there, you can't blame me for looking."

"What? These?" You strip your shirt off in one motion. Gator's eyes dart back to you and widen at your bra covered chest. "Oh fuck," he groans. His eyes are glued to your chest, watching each inhale and exhale closely. You lightly trace your bra with your fingers as the man whimpers slightly before looking up at the ceiling. "Fucked your fist to the thought of these?" You chuckle. "...yea.."

You aren't sure if Gator is cursing you or thanking the Lord with how his eyes are stuck on the ceiling. "How about fucking something else?" You drop to your knees, hands coming up to rest on his thighs. Gator's face snaps down to look at you, mouth dropping open. You can see a wet patch on his pants already forming from his precum. You lightly trace the button on his pants," Wanna fuck my mouth baby?"

Gator's eyes are wide as he nods furiously. He quickly unbuttons his pants and pulls them down to his thighs. You weren't expecting him to be commando underneath. His thick cock bobs in front of you. A thick vein runs along the underside, head turning a purple from how hard he is. You lightly grasp him and his stomach flexes, " oh shit." "Poor thing," you mumble. You lean forward and swipe some of the precum from his tip with your tongue. The whine Gator lets out is like music to your ears.

You look up at him and slowly lick along the vein. Gator is staring at you in awe. Instinctively, he grabs the back of your head with his hand. "Oh shit," Gator moans. You slowly envelope the tip in your mouth and swirl your tongue around it. You barely finish the circle before Gator thrusts forward slightly and you feel warmth hit the back of your throat. You didn't even get to suck him off and he was coming down your throat.

Gator moaning and whining as he gripped your hair for life, legs shaking from the best orgasm he's had. And you barely did a thing. Kind of pathetic really...but you felt a rush of power. You pull back and look up at him after he finishes as he breathes heavily. His eyes snap open and he stares down at you in wonder and lust. "Can we do that again?" He asks softly. "You liked my mouth baby? Could barely handle it." "I can handle it, promise." "Hm. We'll see."

[chelleztjs18]

First, how are you today? I hope you have a good day so that you can answer this message without making us start animosity or problem

Secondly, I appreciate your answer, as you understand what I said, but I am afraid that we are on opposite sides here ، I was a former writer myself and my message is not directed at you What I meant by attacking or I will not follow you and I will not recommend you to anyone else (I am not a hostile person the most I can do is say that you are neglectful to your followers)

Thirdly, there is a certain category of authors, I mean they are not busy or who have jobs, etc. I did not mean that some of them log in and publish things and write other requests, and I am like Did you not receive my order or is there something wrong???So I wait weeks and it really pisses me off

I'm ready to wait years, not just months, that's okay, I may understand your situation, but the simplest thing you can do is tell me that at least you'll write it down, or tell me you can't.

Don't make me look stupid, just tell me, that's all I ask I'd be glad if my letter angered at least some of the authors (the intended category) who'd start moving their asses and work on their requests.

have a great day sweetheart

-🌿

I was okay until i read ur ask.

Oh no, anon. I never start problem. The only one who started problem was u.

I will put a pict or link from your previous ask just in case some people missed it from yesterday that you started all this.

So u came to my inbox, n ranted a paragraph about how u r running out of patience or what u think about authors and u act like u weren't the one that started the problem?

How do u expect me to react at what u said yesterday? u said that it wasnt directed to me but u literally show up out of the blue saying all that stuff. Directed to me or not, I don't like what u said, I am an author and i have a lot of other author friends n of course I wasnt gonna stay quite about it.

yes, we r totally on the opposite on this. I'm on the author sides and u sound like one ungrateful bossy follower who r upset because us authors dont write ur requests or dont notify u.

The fact that u r a former writer, it makes u sound a lot worse. U should've understand or even know better that it's not easy to write fics, write requests, all while trying to continue things on ur life.

u say that u r not a hostile person, but telling us that we r neglectful to our followers sounds pretty mentally hostile. u hv no rights to tell that to us. No offense to my lovely n sweet followers, but we owe nobody anything.

most of us write for ourself but we gladly want to share it with other n like i said, taking request from them is one of our way to appreciate them n interact with them. I write to help myself from drowning in my depression but im grateful that people like my writing enough to even send requests n i appreciate every single one of them.

u don't know how our lives is or how our days are so u have no right to judge saying that we r lazy or whatever u wanna say. I dont have a job, i'm a full time mom n it still hard to find time to write.

it's our blog n we can do whatever we want. we can NOT notify u whether we will write ur request or not. like i said, u r on anon, how r we gonna notify u where we dont even know who u r.

I don't reply or notify if im gonna write a request or not because i try not to put people hopes up if i say im gonna write it but i end up dont write it, I dont notify or answer the request until i actually post the requested fic because i like to keep the request in my inbox so i can keep it in track.

we have the right to pick n choose what we r going to write.

n you know what? the way u call ur request to some author as ur "order", i hate it because u r not our boss or leader or king or whatever who order us what to write or when or tell us what to do.

n u have the audicity to say this "I'd be glad if my letter angered at least some of the authors (the intended category) who'd start moving their asses and work on their requests." ? why don't u move ur ass out of my blog and stop sending me entitled demanding narcisstic ask.

"Dont make me look stupid.." no, anon, we didnt make u look stupid. U, urself who make u look stupid by acting like this.

How dare u to come to my blog talking shit n trying to guilt trip me, making it seems im the hostile one or cause problem.

I am asking u nicely to leave my blog n u r more than welcomed to unfollow me or im gonna block u.

P.S: yes u angered us authors n no, it wont make us writing ur request if u act like this.

[reachfolk]

1, 6, 13, and 16 for Alexi and Ursula and shoot anyone else you wanna answer for

💛 from @korvanjund

thank you sm for the ask darlin!! i decided to also include my little haglet ophelia since i've been adding more to her storyline today, and it's about time i start talking more about my other character lol.

who are they closest to? how did they meet and what do they like to do together?

i already answered this for alexi here!

ursula: she's obviously very close with her wife, bothela. like i said in her chara sheet, the two met when markarth was under reach control and they worked together as healers. they spend most of their day running the hag's cure together and training their apprentice. when they aren't doing that, they mostly focus on their own little projects and research; bothela seems to somehow never tire of alchemy even long after the shop closes, and ursula likes to tinker around with dwemer texts and tech to see what she can find out. then they get back together and discuss whatever interesting things they learned. she's also super close to her niece and nephew! isobel doesn't love having the kids spend time with her, but the few times they are together, they love hearing all her stories from when she was in the uprising and just stories of the reach in general.

ophelia: she'd literally lay down her life for every single person in her coven dklfjskdj, she's very dedicated to them!! but of course, she's closest to her mother, helle. helle was in the forsworn uprising, and she had ophelia not long after markarth was secured. after it all fell apart, she raised filly to continue fighting for the reach, but the rebellion was never the same after madanach was imprisoned. eventually, the two (along with some of ophelia's closest friends from the forsworn) disbanded and formed an independent coven. ophelia supported her mother through the ritual to become a hagraven matriarch, and she's gladly willing to take on the same burden should anything happen to helle. helle taught ophelia a LOT about everything she knows about magic, and she's working on honing her skills as a seer to better guide the coven. although helle is the matriarch, her daughter is her right hand man of sorts and is just as responsible for everything they do. she runs around the coven doing just about anything that needs doing to help the members, whether it's hunting with hypatia, babysitting honey while beatrice is busy, or assisting esmeralda in her expeditions to old ruins.

on an average day, what can they be found doing after dinner?

alexandria: the short answer is: way too much !! the long answer: girlie has the worst case of insomnia ever and she compensates for that by using Way Too Many stamina potions, so it's usually her companions that even have to remind her to stop for dinner at all. even after dinner, she knows she wouldn't be able to sleep unless she majorly tires herself out, so she likes to run around doing more and more stuff. if her companions are too worn out from the day to do that, she likes to restock their potion supply or practice her spells. if after that she still can't quite fall asleep, she'll usually go on a late night hunting trip. there have been a few times when the local blacksmith tries to open shop and just finds her tanning leather at their station lol

ursula: she's quite the scholar, especially when it comes to the history of the reach! this goes beyond just the reachfolk; she also studies the history of the dwarves in the reach, the dragon cult, etc. she's published a few books covering the subjects, and is considered a leading expert on the matter. if she's not having a chill evening with her wife, she likes to continue working on those books, whether she's writing for them or just doing some research. she makes occasional visits to isobel's family, as the kids absolutely adore her, but those are few and far between.

ophelia: she's a little like alexi in that she does way more than anyone has any business doing kdsjfhd. she doesn't have the same ailment of course, but she wants to take off the pressures of managing the coven from her mother's shoulds, at least as best as she can. by the time they finish dinner, she's already thinking about where to go hunting for the next day's meal. she prays at the shrines to the old gods, who often send her visions to guide her. she checks in on each of the members and their individual duties and their work. she'll sometimes read honey a story before bed or sing her to sleep when her mother is away. she takes care of helle when she's in pain (i hc that the hagraven transformation can be pretty painful and draining, not unlike the briarheart transformation). when she does have a moment to relax, she likes to spend it by the river, soaking her feet and watching the stars.

what special abilities or talents do they possess? did they develop through training or were they born with them?

alexandria: she's always had a knack for alchemy, like i said in the other post! it was why her tutor encouraged her to apprentice at the hag's cure, where she built on that natural talent with a lot of hard work. despite her young age (around 22-27 depending on her point in the story), she's practically a master alchemist already. she'll insist she's not a master—"well i don't think anyone could ever know everything there is to know about alchemy. it's an evolving discipline and—" she's the worst lol. but the point is, she's one of the best ones you'll find around!! she's not an expert in things like sword fighting or marksmanship, but she makes up for it with her potions and poisons, making her a formidable foe.

ursula: she's pretty well rounded i think, having been a fighter and a healer for much of her life. she's also fairly good at alchemy herself. a lot of those things weren't really inborn, but she had a lot of great guidance from the other people that were part of the uprising. since it was in the works for many years, and ursula joined in during the early stages of its planning, she had a lot of time to hone her skills. by the time of the main story with lex, she's pretty much a master at restoration magic in particular, as that's the one she's used most in the 30 years since the city was reconquered by the nords. when the temple of dibella is closed, she's looked to as the town's primary healer.

ophelia: like i said before, she's a seer. it was always an inborn gift she's had, but her training with her mother as well as her devout worship of the old gods give her visions a significant boost. she's most devout to vaermina, who shows her visions of omens and looming threats to both her and her people in her dreams. she's actually the one that told alexandria to go to helgen, because she got a vision of what was going to happen and knew alexi was central to it. her visions can sometimes come in the form of metaphors rather than exact tellings of what'll happen, so she thought that alexi being personified as a dragon in these visions was some odd metaphor, as was helgen being burnt to the ground. needless to say, she later realized those visions were more literal than initially thought lol

how do they like their baths/showers? hot/cold, long/short?

alexandria: like absolutely scorching lol. when she bathes, she often uses a flames spell to get the water damn near boiling before she hops in. when it's revealed that she's the dragonborn, she makes a lot of jokes that it's because of her dragon blood, but tbh she's just Like That.

ursula: warm, but not as much as lex. she's still spry and healthy, but she is Old (tm), so she finds a warm bath nice and soothing, yk? especially since most of her work is on her feet.

ophelia: cold or lukewarm at best. she loves bathing in the karth river, and she appreciates it regardless of the weather. the karth is practically sacred to the reachfolk, and she finds the embrace of the cold water bracing and energizing! lord knows she needs that considering how much is on her plate.

[rosepetals-flyingbirds]

What?

With: Venom/Eddie x Reader.

Note: Much love.

Word Count: 1,800.

Kisses being trailed up your bare back woke you up, it was a soft gesture Eddie did.

“Good morning.” He said, his morning voice even sexier than the original one.

You stiffed and turned your body to lay on your back, humming you cleaned your eyes looking at the nightstand seeing it was 08 AM already. “Already?”

Eddie chuckled and kissed your collarbone while Venom got out of his back looking at you. “Can you believe that is what happens when you sleep? The hours’ pass?” He tricked and you rolled your eyes. Eddie chucked at the symbiote’s joke.

“We have a comedian today eh?!” You smiled and extended one of your hands to touch Eddie’s hair and then you touched Venom’s head.

Eddie kissed your arm but started to leave the bed. “Come on, we need to get ready.”

“I don’t wanna go.” You whined.

Venom got back to Eddie’s body and thought. “CUTE.” He loved how you looked in the morning.

“Whose idea was it again?”

“Mine?” You mumbled.

“Come on. You promised Charles we would help him paint the baby’s bedroom.” Charles was the owner of the building and a nice dude, when you and Eddie -and Venom- moved in him and his wife was really nice and welcoming.

“Why he wouldn’t start later on?” You complained while getting up.

“He wanted to start at 6:00, baby. Get happy he changed to 9:00.”

Yeah right, you forgot the man woke up with the sun to jog and enjoy the day.

“Isn’t today the publishing of your book?”

“Mhm.” Eddie became a writer so in that way he could spend more time inside and don’t have to worry with evil people trying to kill him and steal Venom. And actually Eddie showed that he was a great writer, he could write anything!

Even the groceries list could make you smile.

But he didn’t like the fame, the covers of his book didn’t have his photo, at least not the profile, it was him sitting on a bench, the photo was only his back covered by a black trench coat.

A lot of people heard about him and he didn’t want that type of fame. It was actually pretty great the idea of writing, of course you and Venom were the biggest fans, well, that after you explained to the symbiote what a writer was.

Eddie was surely talented and it sort of soothed him, of course, the money and how people mentioned his stories made him happy, but fame? Photographs and autographs? Not really for him. Especially with Venom living within him.

“Okay Simon Summers, let’s go.” You mentioned his writer name and he chuckled, yep, the name has nada equal to Eddie Brock, but that was the intention.

°

Painting the walls of the soon to be born child of Charles, the man was dead tired, apparently when he went to his jog -at 6 AM- with his dog Brutus, he enjoyed the early hours to buy a few things for the baby, which tired him down since he had to carry heavy stuff back home managing his best friends to keep at his side.

Eddie gave you the look while painting and you rolled your eyes. “Come on its nice to help!” Eddie nodded and made sure Venom wouldn’t appear and suddenly screw everything.

You started to laugh and looked Eddie up and down. “Why is she laughing, Eddie?”, “What?”

“Is just… You stood months writing your book, then it was published and today is the day people will be able to buy and read it. And you are here with your girl painting wall from a dude’s house.”

He chuckled. “The sex scenes are great though.” You blushed.

Eddie needed inspiration and since he says you’re his muse he had to find extra ideas for his story. Which you didn’t complain at all.

Neither did Venom.

Brutus was laid near the door and his eyes were gazing every movement the brush would go. Venom has asked Eddie why the dog was so weird, and Venom got out of Eddie’s back the moment you got the dog in your arms and lifted him with all the strength you could muster. “We need one.” Venom said, of course you told him to hide because Charles could appear in any moment but Venom stood to gaze at the sight of you loving something so pure.

°

After the painting, Charles thanked you and Eddie for all the help and even offered some money, which you declined.

The painting was tiring and you wanted to sleep already, glad you had the week off and could enjoy your sweet home and sweet lovers.

After dinner -which Eddie made while Venom helped here and there- you laid on the couch with your laptop on your right tight scrolling through the comments sessions of Eddie’s new book and the other hand on his fluffy hair.

He was laid on his back with his head on your left tight already with a pen and paper on hand, he had an idea after you two came back and he was already creating a new story.

Venom was like a snake form and his head was on your shoulder delivering licks in your face here and there.

You just laughed and closed the laptop placing it on the central table. “Eddie?” He hummed and you lowered your body kissing his forehead, nose, and lips. “I love you.”

“Venom!” The symbiote said and you laughed kissing his face and allowing his tongue to lick your face and neck -his type of kisses-.

He smiled and gave your lips a small kiss. “I love you too. We love you.”

Next Morning.

That time you were the one that woke him up. Venom took control the prior night and let’s say his tongue really did wonderful things.

Chucking at the thought you looked at Eddie sleeping. His hair haphazardly on the pillows, his firm chest with his amazing chest up, his pouty lips so pink you wanted to bite it! So pretty.

You straddled his lap and laid slowly above him, kissing his neck and jaw up you felt him starting to steer. “Good morning.” You said softly and kept your travel of kisses.

Humming Eddie grabbed your hips with both arms and pushed your down against his chest, he was still asleep and you took the opportunity to be laid above him. 

The warmth irradiating from his psychic making you feel oddly loved. Your right ear was against his left breast hearing his heartbeat. His large hands massing your back and hair slowly with his eyes still closed.

Venom’s reached to you and laid on your back like a coat.

You didn’t mean to fell asleep again, but how could you not? Eddie was so warm and comfortable, that you just drifted! And Venom right there protecting you was like a bubble of endless love.

A couple of hours later you heard a knock on the door and got up slowly from Eddie’s chest.

Placing a small short, since you were only in panties and Eddie’s shirt, you opened the door and was greeted with Charles and Brutus.

“Good morning Y/N.”

“Good morning.”

“I need to ask you a favor, I have to stay the noon on my Grace’s family house but Brutus here doesn’t get along with the other dogs, I saw how Brutus was calm around you and Eddie yesterday and I thought that maybe you could stay with him until I get back? Has no problem if not, I just don’t want to leave him alone.”

Scratching your neck you couldn’t help but look at the poor dog, even at an age his eyes still shone like he was a mere defenseless puppy. “Sure. But you’ll come back today right?” Stay with someone’s dog? A big responsibility.

“Yes. Is just some lunch she wants to do with all the family like a baby shower. But I swear I’ll come back today. Here.” Placing the dog near you the cute creature ran inside the apartment. “Thank you Y/N.” He nodded and left.

Closing the door you rubbed your face. ‘I need to start asking Eddie and Venom things before doing so.’ Thinking you searched the dog around, only to find him sat on the floor near the bed barking to Venom.

Eddie woke up and jolted in bed, you held Brutus and told him to calm down, Eddie said the same to Venom and after Brutus saw there was no danger he calmed down.

You decided to prepare breakfast and Eddie was sat at the table with his laptop in hands reading his e-mails.

Differently than you, he just liked to read the e-mails that his agent sends him saying what people thought about his books.

Placing your mugs of coffee near him and the extra things to have breakfast you two ate in silence while Brutus was laid near your feet under the table and whined every time Venom said something.

Eddie sipped his coffee and kept reading the e-mails. A small talk was made here and there and Venom was still watching Brutus and how secure the animal felt by your side.

You said you needed to go shop to buy a nice baby present and Eddie clearly didn’t want to go, you went to take a shower and asked if Eddie would manage Brutus and Venom just right.

Eddie looked down at Brutus and smiled when the dog stared at him with his tongue on display, the dog smile some people likes to call. “Just we and you today buddy? I guess I can add a dog to the new story.” He said to the new friend and over the shower you heard his words.

Always finding inspiration for his books.

Before leaving your kissed Eddie, Venom and petted Brutus.

“Why the baby needs gifts, Eddie?”

Eddie started to do the dishes and shrugged. “Because a baby it’s a small human, they need to be taken care off.”

“How are they made?”

“With sex, without protection.”

“So if Y/N got pregnant would be half you and half her?”

“Yeah.”

Venom hummed and kept looking down at the dog, who gladly started to accept Venom.

Fixing things here and there Eddie laid on the couch and started to watch t.v. with Brutus on his side and Venom in the other.

You finally arrived with a big box and Eddie smiled at you. “Hello boys.”

“Hey.” “Hello.”

“Everything is fine? Brutus didn’t attack Venom nor the other way around?”

Eddie laughed and assured everything went okay.

Later that day when Charles came to get Brutus and Eddie took the gift with him to the elevator, you and your guys got back to the normal state.

It was all calm before Venom started to talk. “We want a Brutus.”

“A dog.” Eddie corrected.

“Yes.”

You smiled and found it cute how Venom got found of the dog, well, more found of you all mother-like with it.

“And we want a baby!”

“WHAT?” You and Eddie yelled in unison.

                 ... 

[alifeincoffeespoons]

a moony has spawned in the server, chapter six

Tell us about a place or community you call home. How has it shaped your perspective? (250 words)

To me, comfort is long, sleepless nights spent under the covers of my bed, scrolling through Submittable entries in search of the best poetry to publish in the next edition of The Quibbler.

I joined The Quibbler back in ninth grade, when I thought that slant rhymes were the height of poetic genius. They were looking for poetry readers, and despite the fact that the only poetry I had ever really read was Shakespeare and Frost, the editor-in-chief took me on.

As a poetry reader, I was responsible for scrutinizing and editing every piece of poetry that was sent into our Submittable inbox, from haikus to limericks to long-form prose poems. And as I read, I realized what the draw of poetry was. There are things we can say in poetry that we can’t say in any other form. Where else can love be so visceral, so terrifying than in a poem?

In poems, I read about experiences that I’d never had myself. I traveled to Istanbul, Beijing, and Rome; I was an astronaut, a selkie, and god i hate supplements so much when will this bullshit be over

Remus (9:25 AM): lily why are college essays the worst

Lily (9:28 AM): because colleges want to see your “true self” but you can never be too truthful because they only want to hear the good stuff, which is usually something “unique” that only super privileged kids have done anyway

Lily (9:30 AM): oh and the prompts are really dry

Remus (9:31 AM): all very good points

Remus (9:32 AM): btw are you busy right now?

Lily (9:33 AM): nah multi was cancelled today because of some junior-only assembly

Remus (9:33 AM): wanna call

Lily (9:34 AM): yes always

Lily (9:35 AM): i have so much to tell you about

When Remus picks up Lily’s call, the first thing out of her mouth is, “Hi, hope you’re having a good day, and do guys make bets on girls in real life?” Today, she looks strangely frazzled—her hair, usually impeccable, lies in a tangled heap around her shoulders, and there are worryingly dark circles under her eyes.

“What?” Remus scrunches up his nose, confused. “Do you mean like how people bet on dogs and horses?”

“No, I mean like how assholes bet on girls for prom night in movies like She’s All That and How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days,” Lily replies. She huffs, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, and taps a pen impatiently against her desk.

“I don’t think so? Why?”

“Potter,” Lily grumbles. “He’s up to something, I just know it.”

“What do you mean?”

“Ever since school started, he’s been nice and helpful,” Lily says, with the reluctant air of someone admitting that they really, truly enjoyed The Emoji Movie, and would gladly pay money to watch a sequel.  

read more on ao3!

[kristoffsloveisntfragile]

Snow Day Spent Shoveling Away. Part 2

Rating: T (some swears, kissing scenes, mostly just fluff)

Pairing: Kristoff/Anna

Summary: Modern AU; Anna calls Kristoff in desperation, as she needs to shovel her apartment complex's front and back steps, along with the sidewalks in the front of the building. It was a promise she made to her sister that the landlord needed help with the incoming storm, but she went away for the weekend for her job. Her being the procrastinator she is, its the last day she has to do it and the snow is piled up. Will they be able to do it in time?

Notes: If you saw my tumblr post (a while back-sorry about that) when I shoveled the snow on the first snow day in my state, it read that I had a fanfiction idea brewing in my head the whole time I was shoveling. This is my first real time that I'm writing Kristanna fanfiction, I've written little stuff in the past, but it never made it past my notebooks/laptop. So this is the real first published piece. I hope you enjoy! (also i really tried with the title, idk if I like it still but there you go lol.)

~~~

They went around to the back where the stairs were, there was one set, but 4 flights high.

“Well that’s a task…” Kristoff muttered. “We better start at the top, so it’ll be easier.” Anna nodded and started to head up, it wasn’t that thick of snow since people have already walked up and down it.

They made it to the top and remarked at how they’re gonna get the snow off.

“...We can just chuck it over the side. It’s after work hours so I doubt anyone will go over there and we’ll hit anyone.” Kristoff shrugged and agreed, he didn’t have anything better than that.

And so they started again and got down 2 flights, exhausted again, but believe it or not, the stairs were easier, they just shoved it off the stairs and didn’t have to worry about where it would go. Kristoff stepped down and could feel that there was ice on the step.

“Careful, there’s ice starting to form.” He continued down and as Anna was behind him, he kept an eye on her in case she slipped.

Which she did, she was cautious when stepping down, but nature took its course and so did her clumsy self, she slipped forward and Kristoff reach out his hand and caught her arm, her other arm, which was in a fist holding the shovel, swung around and got his upper back, he didn’t get hurt by it but he definitely felt it.

“I’m sorry! Ugh I’m so clumsy…” Anna said, really saying sorry to the punch in his back.

“It’s okay, I barely felt it, and you’re okay.” Kristoff looked at Anna, who was really close to his face, and they both smiled, Anna’s was more out of embarrassment, and he could actually tell she was blushing, it wasn’t just the cold.

“Here, how about you get the platform down there, I’ll help you down.” and by that, Kristoff just picked her up by the waist and rotated her so she was below him, making her avoid the ice.

“Heh, thanks.” she smiled up at him, then turned and saw the snow. He turned too and started again.

They got another 2 flights done, and were on the last steps and the ground. Kristoff let Anna take the last 4 steps, and didn’t want to feel useless, so he made the area look nice, seeming how they chucked a lot of snow over there. 

Kristoff was facing back to Anna, when he heard her say, “Kristoff!!” 

Concerned, he turned and looked up, but immediately met with a snowball to the face. It didn’t really hurt, it was just cold. 

Anna was laughing hysterically. “I didn’t mean to get your face, but that was so funny!” Anna said through gasps for air.

Kristoff put on a devilish grin and bent down to grab a ball. Anna was still laughing, but once he turned and was perfecting the ball, she realized what he was doing and protected her face. Like he was really going to hit her face anyway. He threw it and got her side,she screeched, and then went over to another pile and grabbed a handful.

“You are so dead!” she yelled and threw another ball at him.

It was a war between them. They wouldn’t have time to create a snowball so there were just snow chunks flying around. Soon, Kristoff got close to Anna and took a chunk and shoved it down the back of her coat.

“AHHGHG!!! It’s so cold!!!” she shrieked. She had a chunk in her hand and since he was behind her, she just turned and smashed it into his chest. Kristoff was laughing so hard while Anna attacked him, just swatting at him. They were entangled in each other and they soon fell into the pile of snow next to them. They didn’t care that it was cold seeming how they were pelting snow at each other for a while. They were laughing so much that tears came out their eyes. They started to die down and they just stared at each other. There was a piece of hair draping over her nose and Kristoff pushed it behind her ear. He held his hand there and just admired her beauty.

She stared at him, admiring his features. Her hand was on his chest, and she slowly slid it up to the nape of his neck.

They both knew what they wanted. But it was scary for both of them.

But Kristoff couldn’t bear it anymore. She was so beautiful.

‘Fuck it, now or never right?’ He pulled her forward and met her lips. It was electrifying, they’ve both kissed people in their past, but none of them compared to this one. It lingered for a while, until Anna pushed him away with a resounding “Wait, wait, wait…”

Kristoff was confused and said “What? Why?”

Anna looked down, “I’m sorry, but...don’t you have a girlfriend?”

‘Oh. Right. That.’ Kristoff thought. “Oh, yeah um.. That’s over. I broke up with her about..3 weeks ago.” He turned away trying to remember when they break-up date was, and he looked back at her with a smile and he caressed her face.

“Oh! I’m sorry I didn’t know.”

“No, no, it’s okay, we weren’t meant to be,” Kristoff played with her hair. “I liked someone better anyway.”

Anna looked deep into his eyes and smiled. He tilted down and kissed her again.

“Mm,” She mumbled and broke the kiss, “We should get out of the snow.” Anna laughed.

“Good idea.” He started to get up, and once he did, he reached out to help her up, she took his hand and leaped up.

“Uh, I just gotta finish the stairs.” Anna turned and grabbed the shovel.

“Okay…” He smiled as he felt his heart warm up, as he finally got what he wanted.

He watched as she scraped off the last chunk of snow off the stairs.

“Okay, all done.” She beamed and put the shovel against the railing of the stairs. “Thank you so much again for doing this.” Anna came up close to him.

“Oh, it was no problem, especially if I get to do this now.” She was already expecting another kiss and he gladly took up the offer. He cupped her face and it only helped deepen the kiss.

They separated and Anna let out a little hum, buzzing with satisfaction. They opened their eyes and both smiled brightly. Then Anna looked down and giggled and backed away, leading towards the stairs.

“So, you wanna take up on that hot chocolate?” Anna asked, and it was really hard to say no to it.

“Hell yeah.” Kristoff laughed and followed her up the stairs to her apartment.

~~~

Kristoff took off the clothes that were wet from the snow, and Anna had a change on clothes that fit him, surprisingly. “It was from my aunt, and she’s, well… big to say the least.” Anna defended her reason. Kristoff was just a little glad with wasn’t like, old lady style clothes. 

He was finally starting to warm up and dry off, and when he came out of the bathroom, Anna had changed too and finished making the hot chocolate. Kristoff could really start to feel the soreness in his shoulder and lower back kicking in. 

“It’s done,” Anna noticed that he was rubbing his right shoulder, “Come on, I’m good at massages, I’ll rub your shoulder.” Anna walked into the living room and set the mugs down. “Why don’t you sit on the floor so I can really get it.” Kristoff followed her words and sat on the floor in front of where Anna was sitting on the couch. Kristoff grabbed one of the mugs and took a sip, and did a moan of satisfaction as it was really good. Then Anna started working on his shoulder and he was already feeling less pain from her tender loving fingers and let out a groan because of it.

“Wow, you really worked up a knot here, it’s so tense and tight.” Anna didn’t want to hurt him but she felt like she needed to really put her whole weight into it. But he didn’t seem to mind. She kept at it for a while.

But her thoughts were barely able to contain inside her head. “So.. I don’t mean to pry...but you did kinda drop the bomb that you’re not with your ex-girlfriend anymore...but, well, what happened? If you want to tell, you don’t have to.” Anna rushed through.

Kristoff chuckled. “Like I said, it wasn’t meant to be. Of course, I thought she was attractive and smart, and that got me interested. But over time, as we were together, it just became a little boring. So, I had to end it, before it was too late.” Kristoff explained. Anna was still working his shoulder, but not as intense, as she was listening to him.

“And...what about...me? You said earlier that you 'Liked someone better anyway'. So does that...I mean...h-how long have you..?” Anna couldn’t finish, she cleared her throat, but Kristoff knew what she meant.

“Heh, well, it’s gonna sound cliche, but...I kinda knew ever since I first talked to you. Maybe not as strong as it is now, but there was something there.”

She was almost completely stopped massaging. “...How strong is it now?” She quietly said.

Kristoff smiled and started to get up and sat next to her on the couch. “I don’t want to scare you away, because of this all, just being so new. But Anna, they are very, very strong.” Anna blushed and looked at her lap. “You are really extraordinary, loveable, and just a fun person to be around ‘cause you bring a light to my life I’d never known that I needed.” Kristoff took Anna’s hands in his.

“Kristoff…” She was mega blushing, so flattered by his words, almost putting tears in her eyes.

Kristoff adjusted his shoulder, it wasn’t hurting as much, “And you must have magic healing hands or something, because I’m in much less pain.” He looked at Anna, she still was flushed. “I hope that wasn’t too much on you, I just, think you should know how much you mean to me.”

“No,” Anna nearly whispered. “It was just enough. You’re just enough.” Anna caressed his hands with her fingers. Then let go of them and grabbed his face and kissed him. He leaned into it and grabbed her waist. They were already so comfortable with each other, I mean they knew each other for years, but this just felt natural. Kristoff kept leaning Anna back until she was up against the edge of the couch. They barely broke for breath, they just wanted to be connected like this forever. 

When Kristoff decided that he needed air, he breathed and then went for her neck, and just planted kisses on each of her freckles, and she has them everywhere. She giggled and bit her lip and ran her hands through his hair. “I’m so glad this is how the night ended.”

Kristoff looked up at her, “Who said the night is over?” And he went back in for another intense kiss, she smiled against his lips. Kristoff went away from her lips again and just started planting kisses on her cheeks and nose, and everywhere he could.

Anna looked over to her right and saw the mugs of choco, and couldn’t help but say, “Mm, our choco is getting cold.” Anna closed her eyes as Kristoff went to a sweet spot on her neck. 

“Hmm, but you’re just so sweet and warm just like it. I don’t wanna stop drinking you.” Kristoff retraced his kisses, Anna couldn’t help but be so, happy. Same with Kristoff, I mean, he didn’t even get to ask her how long she’s liked him too, because it definitely wasn’t tonight that she started liking him. So he knew that they both had been wanting this for a while. 

They kiss and held each other for a while, until they were too tired from the shoveling to keep up, so they ended up cuddling together on the couch and sleeping for the whole night.

~~~

Elsa came home early in the morning, and saw that Anna, and little did she know Kristoff, had shoveled just like she asked. She was expecting for Anna to be asleep, but not in the living room..with Kristoff next to her.

She exhaled and then smiled. ‘Fucking finally…’ And then went to her room and acted like she was never here.

[outerspaceisbetterthannothing]

Hey so im new to tumblr, and i plan to post my first fanfic soon (not new to reading fanfiction btw 😂 just writing it), and i was wondering if there was any advice you could give to an aspiring writer? Anything from writing advice to like how to tag stuff properly, how to stay motivated, or anything you can think of! Thanks in advance! I love your blog!

Also, im looking to change my username to something thats a little more neutral so i can write for multiple fan bases, but i’m shit outta ideas. Any help?         

So, i decided to combine your two asks in one answer, hope you don’t mind!

Okay, so, first things first, i think, i should start with saying, that i’m not sure at all i am the person who should give such kind of advise. I’m literally no one here, most of the time i’m just chilling in my little cave unknown and forgotten lol (okay, i can see Anne narrow her pretty eyes on me, not completely unknown and forgotten). So, please, take in consideration, i don’t know much myself and probs some bigger blogs could be more helpful.

From what i do know about publishing on tumblr… Here’s the ugly truth, if you look for popularity or any kind of reaching out to a really big number of readers, i’d say, you’re on the wrong platform. Instagram and Whattpad would give you more (each has it’s own specific and i’m too dumb for both, but it is what it is ig). Writing experience on tumblr is a hella hard work with practically no instant gratification. I was hella happy when my first writings were getting like 10 notes. And i put up with a lot of work to get more tbh. So, please, don’t anticipate too much from the beginning, there are no guarantees here. And a sheer luck is quite important too.

Tagging and “smart” publishing is a way to overcome these obstacles. From what i read when i bothered myself with the same questions as you do right now, your blog needs to  be at least couple weeks old for your content to be up in the tags search. Also i’ve read that only first five of your tags are being searched globally. The rest, as i understood, are for your own blog navigation. So if you wanna make your content search-able, put the most relevant tags in the beginning. Publishing time’s also important to reach out for the audience. The most notes get those posts that are put up in the afternoon (the us time, pref EST) mon-thur and sat afternoon to sunday night. This has a lot to do with peoples schedules, most part of users are students of any kind and really big part of them are american. Have no idea if these change for summer time, but during winter-spring time i really saw that work.

Also tumblr likes visuals, the bigger your writings are, the more difficult it would be to gain audience (in theory). If you create any kind of visual art, it’ll make it easier for you. If not, try to reblog visual content as much, as text content (the rule i’m neglecting lately, but just because of the craziness of time, promise to go back to visuals sooooon). I’d say, try to keep the balance between text and pic posts.

Tumblr experience hugely depends on who you follow and who are your mutuals. You can follow some BNF accounts to see how they work, but they also can make you feel insecure from times. I’d say, follow people you really like. It’s absolutely normal not to like people who have a lot of followers or unfollow someone after some time if you feel like it. Tumblr supposed to be fun, and having on your dash people who don’t bring you joy is a big no from me. Also, engage in communication. If people know you, there’s more chance they’ll read your writings or reblog it, so it’s also a way to reach out, but this is truly extremely secondary. What is more important here, people here are great and i’m sure you’ll find a lot of friends and mutuals. If you need, i can tell you about my fave blogs, just hmu. Take part in ask/tag games, put up followers celebrations (people usually love them), chat, comment, send asks and blurbs (well, you shouldn’t have problems with that lol). Tumblr is not a platform for writers to give their readers content. It’s a platform for communication and co-working. And fun! Fun is important lol.

I’m not sure i can give any advice about motivation. Just because i know pretty much nothing about it. Writing is like breathing for me, i don’t need to motivate myself into it. But if i don’t wanna do sth, no motivation will help. Tho, it’s really good to have this couple of friends, who’ll gladly kick your lazy procrastinating ass from time to time. Well, that’s of course, highly individual! But i love to have my ass kicked by my pretty pixie friend.

I know nothing about changing urls. There are blogs who do it every so often. I’m sure i’ll have this url when i’m 80 lmao. I’d say a url should be sth what is important for you. Like mine combines lines from my fave 5sos songs, but also represents my eternal love to space (which you can see on my blog lol) and  kinda motto, that anything’s better than nothing, which i like to remind myself about. So, i’d say, you should think about what’s important to you.

I’m sorry for this answer being so long, i know nothing about being short. Well, you’ve seen my “blurbs” lmao. Thank you so much for loving my blog and coming to me with this question, i really hope i was helpful! I wish you all the luck in writing and, yeah, come chat any time. Will be glad to))))))

[iamburdened]

Shannon… where do I even start?

I kinda wanna ask you to change the character name and put this up on amazon for printing. Alongside all your other fics, so I can have a copy of all of them and have a shelf exclusively for your writing. Kinda wanna print this myself, and go around giving it to people because no one should go living their lives without reading this.

26k words, Shannon. Let’s start here.

What the fucking hell?

Now let’s do a mea culpa. I didn’t read it as soon as you published because, and it pains me to say to you, I am not that fond of Le Gris. Didn’t watch the film, do not care for period stuff. So I skipped it. Just this once, it would be alright, right?

Wrong.

I wanna give you a hug now (if you are the hug type of person which, I have to say, considering you fics, you may not be) because you just sat down and wrote half a full novel full of all the great stuff and said “yep, I am going to publish it for free and not expect even a fucking essay in return”. Because you have all this unbelievably amazing ideas in your head and instead of letting them die there you put them out and allow the world to see.

I may be going too far? I don’t feel so. Art can be so easily forgotten or not even noticed in this world. This fic right here doesn’t have the thousands of notes it deserves. So if I must be the one to take the time and let you know what a freaking genius you are, than so be it. I will do it gladly any fucking day.

At the start I was like “oh, this is a cute hot fic. No problem” but then I would have this reminder saying “this is Shanon. It will never be just that.” I was suspicious of everyone. Is the reader possessed? Is Le Gris possessed???? What will happen???????

I loved the romance. I loved the hot stuff (pretending to be too shy to say s m u t). And, as one would expect, I LOVED the horror.

I was the embodiment of that Pikachu meme 😦 when reader says “like that dream you had” and I was just frozen here, my mind going in slow motion thinking “but… he never… told you about his - gulp down - his dream………… ohmygod”

(Edit because I forgot to comment on the ending: this end was perfect. I could see it happening in a movie in the theaters. Do I want to see more? Of fucking course, but I love it as it is.)

You are the equivalent of a writing soulmate. You just use every single one of my favorite tropes in your works.

Grumpy and sunshine (kind of)? Check

She is super badass and can keep up? Check

He is obsessed with her from the first glance? Check

Everyone wants him but he only wants her? Check

Flirting with every breath he takes? Check

Unexpected plots? Check

All of this wrapped in a terrifying horror package? Fucking check!

Finding you was a blessing and Adam was the benevolent god.

This fanfic is a work of pure art and I will come back to it always and I love it so much I don’t know what else to say (but this may be because it is almost midnight and I am looking forward to sleep but would not before reading this and after reading I had to let some thoughts here for you).

You are a goddess. Accept my sacrifice (of decent sleep) as a proof of my undying gratitude.

Sinners Welcome

Sinners Welcome

Exorcist Jacques Le Gris x Lawyer Reader

Word Count: 25.9k

Warnings: NSFW. Romance. Smut. Graphic Violence. Gore. Murder. Chasing. Nuns. Demonic Themes. Possession. Heresy. Horror. Priests Behaving Badly.

Summary: Sent to Rome to find an Exorcist on behalf of a client, you are introduced to the most notorious man in the business. Little does he know, his toughest case is just beginning.

Author’s Note: Let’s kickstart October right with some demonic fun and a hot ass exorcist! There are very little actual religious themes in this but plenty of horror, sexiness, suspense, and good times! Sinners are always welcome here!

AO3 Link

Continuar lendo

[milcdixcn-blog]

here we go! hi hello, i’m julie and from the gmt timezone, introducing mr. miles dixon (yes, i changed his name).

( kit harington / 29 / he&him ) is that ( miles dixon ) ordering a ( espresso macchiato ) at mocha? i heard they’re a ( law student ) who’s known as the ( clean slate ) around here. however, they say ( miles ) is very ( enthusiastic ), but ( reticent ). well, better get their drink before it gets cold!

first off, he prefers to go by milo. no one ever calls him miles except his grandma and sometimes his mom when she’s mad tbh.

born in london, england to an english dad and american mom. a very spoiled, only child but thankfully that never really got to his head? at least not these days.

his family moved to chicago, mom’s hometown, when he was eleven so his parents could take over his maternal grandparents’ publishing company

went to an all boys private school in england so it was kind of a shock when he switched schools. it took him a while but he finally adjusted to the whole change.

he grew up with the idea of joining the family’s company and gladly went to college for marketing, starting to work with his parents immediately afterwards

milo really enjoyed it but also kind of felt it just wasn’t the right fit for him? studying law had always been in the back of his mind and while he already had a pretty comfortable life, he finally decided to take the leap. he quit his job (his parents weren’t that thrilled at first but quickly accepted it) and went for it. he just started his sophomore year at university of chicago

he’s kind of really reserved? his usual notion of a good time is staying home and reading a good book or binge watch stuff on netflix, honestly. which is totally fine but he also kinda needs people in his life that challenge him to get out there more?? balance is good

which he ends up really enjoying, so he’s just an idiot basically. he’s super fun, caring and sociable if he’s comfortable with the person/people around him

also sarcastic as hell when he’s not in a good mood. he’s also prone to holding grudges so better watch out here. meaning, if you cross/hurt him, there are little to no chances of fixing it

he isn’t great at relationships. really afraid of getting hurt, he comes off as cold sometimes but that couldn’t be further from the truth. if he cares about someone, he’s there for them through thick and thin. when it comes to romantic relationships, that’s a little harder and more complicated even so he hasn’t had many of those.

i think i’ll leave it at that because i’m still working on several things but i’ll definitely be adding more to this/do an actual bio soon.

you can find his stats here and some possible connections here. like this or hit me up if you wanna plot!

[gourmetbooty]

The One Where Kaneki Tries to Woo Tsukiyama and Nishiki Is Drunk

Here is my first fic! I was thinking about Tsukiyama’s birthday didn’t get any coverage in the story line, so I came up with this. For now I’ll post it here, then I’ll publish it on AO3 too when I’ll be able to open an account, which should be next week. Thank you if you read!!

Flipping through the pictures on her camera, Chie looked up at Tsukiyama, who was sitting on a couch opposite to her, reading a book

. “Next week’s your birthday. What’s it gonna be, 27, 28?”

 “I’m gonna be 25. Stop making me older than I am,” Tsukiyama scoffed, glancing up at his best friend.

 “Stop being so pouty. Are you gonna host a party or something?”

“No. There are too many things we need to take care of, and we can’t really afford to have a party right now, when we could die every moment.”

“Jeez, okay. Stop being so negative,” Chie rolled her eyes, going back to her photos. “But alright, whatever you want.”

 --- 

“Chie, what’s the group chat you created for?”

“I wanted to host a surprise party for Tsukiyama’s birthday next week. He said he doesn’t want to do anything, but it could be an excuse for him to let loose a little bit. The atmosphere here is too tense, you could go shopping with the bags under your eyes.”

“I don’t know… I mean, we are in the middle of a war, are you sure holding a birthday party is okay?”

“Oh come on, as if taking a few hours off is gonna get you all killed. It’s for your dear friend Tsukiyama, after all.”

“Hm… okay,” Kaneki nodded, tapping his chin as he began thinking. “Maybe we could have a little party. The headquarters are pretty big, there’s enough room for everyone, I think. Nothing too crazy, though.”

“I promise we will not blow up anything,” Chie nodded, before scurrying back in the hallways. She pulled her phone out, opened the group chat, and started typing.

 --- 

A week later, on March 3rd, in the evening, Tsukiyama was laying on his stomach on his bed, sheet mask on his face and kitten videos playing. Kaneki had told everyone they could take a night off and relax, and Tsukiyama had wasted no time in locking himself up in his private bathroom, take a nice, hot shower and start his skincare routine. He had been putting it off in the previous few weeks, and he couldn’t afford to do that anymore. His skin was screaming in agony.

He was going to stay on Youtube and update his new blog, then read a little and go to bed early. At least, that was what he had planned.

He heard someone knocking on his door and he sighed, pausing the video before going to open up. “Chie. I thought I had told you I wanted to relax tonight. Alone,” he raised an eyebrow.

“Kaneki ordered a special meeting and apologized, but said you guys can take the night off another time, because he has something important to say. Also, you’re spending your first Friday night as a 25-year-old alone and watching cat videos. That’s pretty depressione.”

“I wasn’t… fine, okay. Just… tell him I’ll be down in five minutes.”

“Make it twenty,” Chie interrupted him. “You need to do your make up. And you shouldn’t come to the meeting in you pajamas.”

“I… didn’t think I’d need makeup for a late meeting, but thanks for subtly telling me to cover up my eyebags. Always appreciated,” Shuu rolled his eyes.“You got it,” Chie winked, before turning around and walking away. “The eagle will be down in twenty minutes,” she sent a vocal message to the group chat.

“Alright. Everything’s re-Naki, put that stuff down. We’re gonna eat those later. Anyway, everything’s ready here,” Kaneki replied, gently pulling Naki’s hand away from the bowl full of eyeballs.“Food? Music? The present?” Chie asked.“Yeah, everything. We got coffee, blood, and blood wine, along with eyeballs, fingers and some… stuff… that I’d rather not talk about. Nishiki and Kurona are handling the music, and Banjou and me brought the present.”

“Perfect. I’ll see you in two minutes. I just gotta take a picture of this fly on a wall.”

 ---

Tsukiyama had done his make up, combed his hair and put on a pair of black, skinny slacks and a black button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows, and was now walking toward the main room, which strangely had the door closed. He tilted his head in confusion and knocked gently, and after a few moments of complete silence, he opened the door and walked inside.

Suddenly, all the lights were turned on and a bunch of people jumped out of their hiding spots, screaming in unison “Surprise!!”.Tsukiyama gasped in shock and took a step back, holding his chest with a hand. “What… what’s this?”

“It’s a surprise birthday party, dumbass,” Touka chuckled, crossing her arms. “Courtesy of your tiny friend and Kaneki.”

“Oh… you didn’t… oh my god, you didn’t have to! Thank you,” Shuu exclaimed, looking around the room and already feeling the corners of his eyes prickling. No one had ever done anything even remotely similar to this for him.

“I’m here because there’s free alcohol,” Nishiki joked, leaning against the wall.

“We wanted to do something for you, after everything you’ve done for Goat. You’re… basically running this place now,” Kaneki smiled, taking a step forward to get closer to Tsukiyama. “It’s the least we could do.”

“Thank you so much, I would’ve never expected it. Thank god Chie told me to put on make up and be a little decent, otherwise I would’ve come down in my pajamas,” Shuu laughed, quickly wiping a little tear that had fallen on his cheek.

“What are we waiting for? Turn up the music!” Hinami laughed, before grabbing a shocked Ayato’s hand and dragging him to the empty space in the middle of the room.

“Come on. You deserve to have a little fun,” Kaneki smiled, extending his hand. Tsukiyama gladly took it, and followed him.

 ---

 “I’m… I’m already feeling a little dizzy… I don’t think I can handle any more wine,” Tsukiyama groaned, his face burrowed in his arms and resting on the table.

“Dude, c’mon, it’s your birthday, get wasted!” Banjou hollered, pouring Tsukiyama another glass.“Maybe later… I need to rest a little,” the purple haired ghoul chuckled, turning around and looking at the dance floor, now that the song had just ended.

“And now, ladies and gentleman, a little throwback to almost ten years ago, because I am drunk and I loved this fucking song,” Nishiki announced, before choosing “Can I Have This Dance” from High School Musical 3.

“Oh my god, I can’t believe it,” Shuu laughed, shaking his head at the ridiculous choice, even though years before he had been a fan of those movies.Someone next to him cleared his throat, and he turned to see Kaneki standing at his right. “Uhm… sh-shall we?” Kaneki asked timidly, extending his hand toward Tsukiyama for the second time that night.

Shuu could feel his whole face burning and he was ready to throw up at any second, but he nodded vigorously and stood up, taking Kaneki’s hand and walking with him to the dance floor. Kaneki held Tsukiyama’s hand firmly and put his free one on his waist, pulling him closer and starting to sway slowly.

“…thank you for organizing all of this for me,” Tsukiyama said quietly, sneaking his arm around Kaneki’s neck and pretending not to be on the verge of passing out.

“No worries. You should thank Chie, she had the original idea. I... I only helped with the organization, and the present,” Kaneki shrugged, blushing lightly.“Oh my god, there’s a present too? You shouldn’t have, my dear,” Shuu smiled, shaking his head. He let Kaneki’s hand go and wrapped both of his arms around his neck, and Kaneki took it as a clue to put both his hands on Shuu’s whist.

“Shut up and accept it,” he chuckled, looking up at him fondly.“Anything for you, my King,” Tsukiyama murmured, starting to absentmindedly play with the hair at the base of Kaneki’s neck.Kaneki leaned in closer and closer, until he could feel the tip of their noses brushing gently against each other. He was so close to Tsukiyama, it would only take a couple more inches to… 

“Let’s open the present!” Nishiki exclaimed, and Kaneki and Tsukiyama abruptly pulled away from each other, both of their faces as red as tomatoes. 

There’s a special place in hell for animals like you, Tsukiyama thought, gritting his teeth.

 “Oh. Yes. Uhm… right. It’s in the other room. But first, you need to put this on and let me guide you,” Kaneki said, pulling a piece of cloth from his pocket and tying it around Tsukiyama’s eyes.

“Kinky,” Touka snickered, which earned her a shocked look form Kaneki and a loud laugh from Banjou. Thank God Tsukiyama hadn’t heard that.Shuu was led to the next room, where his blindfold was taken off. In front of him there stood a beautiful white piano wrapped in a huge red bow, so shiny he could reflect his face on it.

“We decided to do it all together,” Kaneki said.“Yeah, but it was Kaneki’s idea. He knows all about you, and how much you like to play the piano,” a drunk Nishiki intervened, before leaning closer to Kaneki to whisper in his ear. “You’ll thank me later when you’ll be making him scream you name,” he wiggled his eyebrows and patted his shoulder, while Kaneki could only stare at him, mildli concerned.

“This is… so beautiful,” Tsukiyama murmured, walking up to the piano and gently running his fingers on the keys, before pressing down on one.“Thank you so much, guys, to all of you. For the party and the piano too,” he smiled, silently praying not to start crying in that exact moment, because his eyeliner wasn’t waterproof and it would be embarrassing.

“No worries. Now let’s go back to the party, I wanna see Ayato try to drink wine for the first time,” Touka laughed, followed by an angry “I’m not a kid, I can handle alcohol!” from Ayato. They started walking back toward the other room but Kaneki grabbed Tsukiyama’s wrist to prevent him from going. 

“Actually… can we stay here for a moment, please?” he asked, and Tsukiyama swallowed thickly and nodded, turning to face him. “I… had another thing to give you. It’s nothing special, but… I dunno, I figured it might be something… nice. You can also not wear it if you don’t like it, it’s okay,” Kaneki added quickly, fishing a light blue-green box from his back pocket and handing it to Tsukiyama.

Oh my god it’s from Tiffany&Co., please let it be a wedding ring, Tsukiyama thought, taking the box with slightly shaky hands and prying it open, gasping quietly when he saw what was inside. It was a thin silver bracelet, a small charm in form of a heart hanging from it with the trademark Tiffany symbol engraved on it.

“Oh my god, Kaneki… i-it’s too much, you… it’s so pretty…” Shuu whispered, gently tracing the bracelet with the tip of his finger.“It’s… it’s nothing special,” Kaneki laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. “Chie told me you liked Tiffany and I thought I could get you something. To thank you of all the hard work you’re doing for us.” 

After staring at him for a few seconds, Tsukiyama suddenly wrapped his arms tightly around Kaneki’s neck and tugged him impossibly close, burrowing his face in his shoulder and closing his eyes. “Thank you. It’s perfect, I love it,” he mumbled, feeling his heart stop for a moment as Kaneki hugged him back, whispering, “It’s no problem.”

They stayed like that for a few moments, before pulling away. Tsukiyama opened the box and Kaneki took the bracelet out, unclipping it and putting it around Shuu’s wrist. “It fits nice, doesn’t it?” he smiled, admiring how the silver bracelet shined slightly and softly caressing the back of Tsukiyama’s hand. “I swear I’ll never take it off. Except for when we spar or actually fight, I wouldn’t want to accidentally break it or lose it,” Tsukiyama said, looking up at Kaneki.

The half ghoul hesitated for a second, before cupping Shuu’s face with a hand and kissing his cheek firmly, still holding his hand with his other one. 

“Happy birthday, Shuu. Now, are you ready to go back to the party?”

“Ready. Can’t wait to see you choke on wine.”

“Hey, I’m not like Ayato, I can actually drink it without coughing! At least it won’t take me two glasses to get drunk, unlike someone here.”

“...I’ll forgive you only because you gave me this bracelet.”

“You’d forgive me anyway.”

“Oh, shut up.” 

Kaneki laughed at Shuu’s response and put the now empty box back in his pocket before they walked together to the other room. Their fingers were still laced together, and didn’t show any sign of wanting to let go soon.

[wordsturnintostories]

7/ Nothing in the Mirror

Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four | Part Five | Part Six | Part Seven | Part Eight | Part Nine

Masterlist

Summary: A lot can happen on a late spring day, especially on a bus. A lot more can happen if the ride ends before you’ve reached your station. If you end up in the Avengers Tower without memories, things have either taken a very good or a very bad turn of events. Too bad you have no clue who you are. Apparently, that’s not the case for everyone. Scarily, not all your secrets are hidden within your head, but you have two men by your side who swear to figure everything out with you.

Warnings: blood, knife (what else do I need to say? pretty self-explanatory), fluff and shirtlessness (only the right people tho), doors, too

Word Count: 1667

_Author's_Note: This one was so much fun. Hope you all love it as much as I do. A little more fluff with Buck and Steve. Sweet @buckyslion and adorable, blushing @aubzylynn , the warmest hugs to you. Xx

„Are you even aware of how many there are?“ „How many what?“ „Scars, doll. Your back is full of 'em.“ His finger trailed a few of them, leaving soft trails on you. He didn’t notice he gave you goosebumps. Forgetting your situation, your eyes closed, tension floated away. Air turned sweeter as the tips of his fingers brushed your skin. It felt good, like an affirmation. You would be alright. It was a promise. Someone else cared. Suddenly, Buck pulled away, ripping himself from the daze. With the metal hand, he pulled a knife from his belt. It still surprised you how smoothly all the plates shifted into each other, each of them working on its own, but belonging together. „Are you ready? I think I found it.“ „Sure.“ The metal shifted onto your shoulder, placed with care while the knife tore a cut into your skin. Blood collected in drops, running down your back as the wounded tissue warmed up. It stung, very much so, but the pain was bearable. Then, the knife went in a little deeper and even though you knew Buck tried to be careful, it made you gasp. The hoodie crumpled up in your fists and you could feel him hesitating back there. „Go ahead, get it out!“, you cried. „Okay, I can’t get it out with the knife. I’ll-“ „I don’t care. Just get it out!“ It hurt. It hurt more than raw wrists due to handcuffs, it hurt more than damaged eardrums. Buck was skilled, he kept his hand from shaking and got the little object out of your back, dropping it into your lap. There was blood all around it and just before Buck could protest, you’d rubbed it off with your - well, his sleeve. He was still fumbling around with the wound, but now you had something to distract yourself with. Although, the little metal thing that resembled a bullet casing was as simple as it could get, round, matte metal, nothing on it. „You’re done“, Buck said, looking at the stitches with a satisfied expression. „How’s the tracker?“ „Beautiful“, you rolled your eyes. Steve checked it out right now. „Well, the inside counts, right? Wanna keep it or should I give it to Tony?“ „Can he say who put it in there? Then yes. I want to know.“ They nodded and Buck put it back into your hand. „You can give it to him yourself, tomorrow, at breakfast. You’re gonna spend your whole day with us.“ He ignored the protest in your eyes, but it made you think. It was probably safest that way and, hopefully, the least boring.

The rest of the day you spent with the two men, reading through of the pile of books Steve had supplied you with „so you could figure out what kind of literature you were into“. Well, definitely not romance, that was for sure. Having found another super cheesy line on the second page already, you put aside the third romance. Secretly, you wondered if these books were actually his, the super old ones had yellow-brimmed pages and some were falling apart, they seemed quite aged. There was one in particular that warmed your heart, though, the language and the imagery in it were capturing and in no time, you were so deep in it that you didn’t even notice anymore what was happening around you. The hobbits in it were lovely creatures, you found, and although passages of the text sounded ancient, you sucked them in, hungry for more. Time passed and you were so enraptured, you had unconsciously switched positions various times because stiffness plagued your back. Somehow, it was also becoming harder to figure out the sentences. Suddenly, a flash ripped you out of your reading and your head shot up. The boys just laughed, Buck still holding his phone in his hand. How dare he? „You took a photo!“ „Mmh. You were this close from being sucked into your book.“ He put his thumb and pointer finger together, emphasizing how tiny the space between them was. „This close.“ You rolled your eyes. That was no excuse for disrupting you during reading. „I saved your life, doll. Think that deserves more than an eye roll.“ „Oh yeah? Here, have another one.“ Steve chuckled, looking over your shoulder after turning a lamp on. „Oh, I love that part. I remember when I read it first, the book was a Christmas gift.“ He smiled and there were so many emotions on his face that it almost took your breath away. His jaw looked soft now and the worry was completely gone. If you observed right, you witnessed nostalgia overtake him as he plopped into an armchair. Bucky joined you on the sofa, now interested too. He brought a blanket, which you gladly took, but instead of wrapping it around only yourself, you decided to share.

You tried to go back to reading, but his hand lifted the cover side of your book. „No way“, Buck looked baffled, with wide eyes. „You kept it.“ Steve nodded, sipping on a steaming tea, his smile only growing wider as if Buck had just discovered a wonderful secret. Maybe he had. „Of course I kept it, jerk. Must’ve cost you a fortune, this was a brand new print. I told you how much I loved it.“ Buck still stared at his friend and his lower lip shook slightly. But it confused you, what he said made no sense at all. You went back to the first page, where they the publishing information was printed. 1938. Steve was still talking. „There weren’t many things I could take to Camp Lehigh, but this one was in my suitcase. Peggy kept it stored up, with all the other stuff Fury returned to me.“ Bucky smiled. „Yeah, I remember. It was a horrible Christmas even though you weren’t sick that one time.“ Their eyes did that thing again, exchanging looks you couldn’t understand, looks that only belonged to them and nobody else could share. It was their secret language. „Sorry to disappoint, but I think Buck kinda tricked you. This was published in 1938. Or it’s a different book, not yours.“ Against all expectations, both men laughed, a kind and warm laugh. It filled the entire living room and together with the cackling the fireplace emitted, it sounded melodious, its deepness reaching your bones, making them tingle. You almost laughed with them, but this was a serious question. „Nah, that’s all right. I got this book for Christmas, this exact one. Check the page where they meet the Elven king. There’s a little candy left, right in the crease.“ „Well, that doesn’t prove anything. It’s yours, okay, fine. But 1938? That was before, like, the Second World War.“ Buck next to you grabbed your hand and grinned. „Yeah, sweetie. We were in it. Wasn’t much fun, though, I’ll admit that.“ You stared at both of them. Their eyes sparkled, was that mischief? Steve didn’t reply and he didn’t solve this mystery, so you huffed. „I meant what I said. You’re all crazy.“

With that, you went to bed. Since there wasn’t three of them, you opted for the one Tasha had tied you up to. If they needed to keep an eye on you so bad, you’d totally make use of that. There was no way you’d sleep on this sofa, not after having read on it for so long. You took off your shirt and your pants and checked out the wardrobe. Every single stack of clothes was folded very neatly and you pulled out a shirt and a pair of boxer shorts. The blanket had just become warm when there was a loud roar in the room, one that made you sit up straight. That had been your stomach, demanding food with the authority of a god. So you obeyed, how daren’t you, and strolled into the kitchen. The search for food was successful and after having had a few forkfuls of some pasta from the fridge, you returned to the bedroom. Steve had gone to bed already, the lights in the living room were turned off and his door closed, with a flick of light underneath the door. You opened yours and were met by a shirtless Buck, who stepped out of the bathroom. The combat suit hung on the empty hangers now and his hair was in a ponytail. You quickly turned your gaze towards the floor, your cheeks heating up. Does he always walk around half naked? Goodness. You walked past him, towards the bathroom, closing your eyes just so you couldn’t see his reaction to your cheeks. Of course, you ran straight into the door. It had shut on its own. Now, you were sitting on your bum. What do I do? Laugh or cry? Buck laughed behind you and that set you off. You quickly disappeared in the bathroom, locking it. Goodness. What was that? You were extra slow with washing your face and brushing your teeth, hoping, no, praying that Buck was already fast asleep. You tiptoed back to bed. Whatever you had done in your life, it must’ve been the worst crime of them all, because no, Buck was still up, and in fact, very much in a mood for chatting. „I don’t blame you, you know“, he grinned and you wanted to slap his face. „Losing your memory makes you forget… what a man looks like, I guess.“ „At least we can rule out „assassin“ from my list of possible professions now.“ „Why? They don’t run into doors?“ „They’re just a lot more graceful, I think.“ „Thanks.“ „What? Did you forget to take medication or something? You’re full of bullshit today.“ „Nah, darling“, he grinned at you shamelessly. „Your beautiful little head just can’t wrap around it all yet. Steve wasn’t kidding, I’m not either.“ „Care to explain?“
 „You're lying next to a one-hundred-year-old assassin, doll.“ „Whatever makes you feel good, Buck.“

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[shellelynfandom-blog]

Rileyisms: Part Two

"I'm full." Riley leans back against the couch and sighs.

I look over at him and could swear his stomach grew three sizes in one night. "Are you sure about that?"

He gives me this 'Are you kidding me' kinda look and I realize 'Okay, he's done.'

"Time for bed?" I ask, standing up, gathering some trash as I go.

"I'm not sure. Didn't you hear what is coming on next?" He points to the TV with determination in his eyes.

"Sorry. I was too distracted by your stomach."

He laughs, and so do I.

"It's a special about Area 51 and Roswell. We gotta see this!"

I sit back down next to him and he drapes his arm around my shoulders. I guess I sorta knew why. Area 51 has always been our thing. Ben and Abigail Gates wouldn't take the time to really listen to Riley and I about our assumptions of Area 51. So, it made perfect sense he'd want to stay up even later to watch this show. And really, so did I – because during the commercial breaks it made me remember the time when Riley and I had our own little adventure in the Nevada desert.

It was meant to be a little vacation for us and Ben and Abi. We had spent the day by the pool, walking around various casinos, and taking in the sights of the Las Vegas Strip. When we stopped for an early dinner, Riley struck up the inevitable conversation of Area 51.

"You know, we're probably not too far from Area 51. I wanna try and find it."

Benjamin Gates rolled his eyes, "Riley, we've been over this. Even if you could get a great car with four-wheel drive and somehow manage to drive through an endless desert with no marked roads and suddenly come across what you think is THE Area 51, you'd be shot by law enforcement long before you even THOUGHT about crossing that fence."

Riley wasn't letting up, "Yeah. That's what you would assume. But, my tracking models on my computer will no doubt find me a covert way in."

I sat and listened with heightened interest. Riley's book was full of evidence of the secret base's existence. I don't remember doubting him for one second as he continued on explaining to Ben the possibilities of finding a way in.

Sure, the odds of actually finding the base were slim. I mean, who could drive on that kind of rugged terrain without getting caught by someone or some…thing. Like a cactus.

"We could go tonight!" Riley exclaimed.

"Abigail and I have a little thing to go to. But Riley, by all means…you can go."

I looked at his face, he seemed quite letdown. "I'll go." I whispered, to which I received a bright smile.

Later that night, while Ben and Abi were gone Riley and I made preparations to go. We packed food, bedding (in case we got lost), our laptops, and miscellaneous gadgets that Riley swore we needed.

The drive through the desert was hot and never-ending. But, I didn't mind…I was with Riley. This was our element, and I knew we had to find SOMETHING in order for his night to have been "worthwhile." Our truck seemed to handle the terrain well, though it was bumpy and on more than one occasion I slammed my head into the ceiling. Riley was relentless… so we kept driving, and driving… and driving. I kept an eye on the tracking models, but it seems like the farther we got from the highway… the more… lost… we became. Lost? That thought had never entered my mind until I saw this kinda nervous look on Riley's face. "So…" He began. Great, here it comes.

Before he could speak the truck seemed to leap into the air and land with a hard thump. We were at a complete standstill.

"What did we hit?" Riley exclaimed, shutting off the engine and grabbing his flashlight. He hopped out and began to survey the scene. "We hit a flippin' cacti."

"Cactus, you mean?" I corrected. "Cacti is plural."

He just stared at me blankly, "Kate, I know you got a minor in English. But, please. Now is not the time. This is a rental truck!"

I smiled and then said, "I'm sorry. I'm coming." I hopped out of the truck; we didn't cause much damage, except the front was a little scratched up.

Riley sighed. "I'm a dead man."

"No, you're not. It's just a scratch. We can cover that." I tried to console him, but he wasn't easily convinced.

"Maybe if I had more than one percent."

"Riley," I laughed, "It's okay." I walked around the front of the truck and wrapped my arms around him. "No worries, mmkay?"

"Yeah. Well, what are we gonna do now? We're LOST!" He said it, finally.

"You're tracking modules…..?"

"Yeah, they aren't really workin right."

I sighed, "Okay. Look… it's dark out here. We can't get our bearings. I say we just camp for the night and we'll start with the sunrise."

He shrugged, "Yeah alright. But I'm not sleepin on the ground. Have you noticed the freaky critters everywhere?"

Luckily, the truck we rented had a pretty good sized bed in the back. And, being the smart guy Riley was he had remembered to bring a big ole air mattress. After pumping that up, and piling a lot of blankets on top we climbed into our home for the night.

"There is one good thing about being in the middle of nowhere." I said, trying to find a comfortable spot on the lumpy "bed".

"What's that?"

"The stars, Riley. Look at them!"

He leaned back, "Yeah. Wow. They sure are." He continued, "I'm just really kinda ticked about not finding what we were looking for."

"Trust me Riley, we'll find it someday. We'll keep looking."

He smiled over at me and began to rummage through his bag until he pulled out his book. I rolled my eyes and laughed, "Gonna tell me a bedtime story?"

"Yeah. C'mere." He pulled me toward him, wrapping his arms around me from behind, and I gladly leaned back into his embrace.

He began to talk in a very serious toned British accent, "Ello my dear, today we are reading from the lovely book, "The Templar Treasure and Other Myths That Are True." "This is an amazing epic, which will go down in history forever," He scoffed and pulled me in tighter and then continued on with his commentary, "Chapter 10: Area 51 and Roswell." He continued on with the story, pausing to laugh when he'd mess up the accent.

After his reading was finished, he set the book down and held me close. I was shocked by his affection. It was very rare he was this way with me; I wasn't "his girl" or anything… right? Maybe it was just the fear of the dark? Or was he cold? How can you be cold in a desert?

I sighed, just enjoying the warmth of being next to him. We both looked up in the sky and he whispered into my ear, "Watch for UFO's okay?"

Somewhere between 3 and 5 in the morning, I drifted off to sleep. But, not before we had seen several strange objects darting around the sky. This seemed to satisfy him enough, and I think he must have fallen asleep too, his head resting on mine. I can't be sure, but I think I felt him kiss the top of my head… or maybe that was just a dream.

The show is near over. Riley turns to me with a really happy, content smile on his face and I can't help but just want to squeeze him tight. Yet, like I said… it is a rare moment for that to happen, and I don't want to push it. I smile back and tuck my hair behind my ear, looking towards the screen. He's still looking at me, I can feel it. It kinda… scares me. Or makes me nervous. Or something.

And then, I feel his hand slowly sliding into mine… it literally sends a shiver through me… I didn't expect it at all. I entwine my fingers with his. The show comes back on and his attention is immediately on the television. Yet, I sit there… a small smirk on my face. I look down at our hands clasped together and it makes me want to… cry. It's so sweet and innocent. So, Rileyistic.

I study his hand. For some reason, I can't help but look at every detail… and I adore the way his thumb rubs my finger… up and down. So soft. I love his hands. I've always been mesmerized with the way they fly over the keys on his laptop. Mmm… I adore him. All this, and I'm not even "his girl." Strange.

"What do you say we step outside and get some air before going to bed?" Riley yawned and stretched his arms above his head. I looked at my watch. 2am. "Sure." The show had just ended, and my hand feels cold now he has let it go. I secretly feel sad about it… but I can't tell him. I watch as he goes over to the coat rack. He pulls a black hoodie over his head. I grab my corduroy jacket and without saying a word to one another we walk out onto his front steps. He breathes in the night air. It probably feels good considering all the food he has eaten. His stomach needs to breathe. I find myself giggling. Funny, this is the first time in awhile that he doesn't have his laptop with him. I try and choose my words carefully… I'm not really sure how to act, and that is a strange feeling.

"Beautiful night." He says, looking up towards the sky.

"Mmm. It sure is."

"Wasn't that a great show? I swear… we were so close that time in Nevada. Ugh. It just frustrates me…"

I sit down on the steps, and soon he plops down next to me. "Whatcha thinkin'?" He asks, a smile on his lips.

"I was just… I wasn't."

"You were."

"Nah."

Riley laughs and looks straight ahead, probably staring at his Ferrari. I stuff my hands into my jacket pockets, realizing how truly cold they are.

"You know…" He begins, "I don't know if I ever told you this… but I really appreciate the time you take to listen to me."

I shrug, "I'm just glad you let me hang around you. I've learned a lot from you, I really have." I slide one of my hands out of my pocket, and begin to play with a string that is hanging off my shirt.

I can feel him watching me, and I'm nervous. I start to fidget a bit. I pick up a little twig and begin to play with it.

"Kate…"

"Hmm?" I don't look up into his eyes.

"What's wrong?"

And then I realize I have to tell him. It's been a secret, but I don't want to hold it in any longer. I'm just scared of how he'll react.

I look up into his eyes, "I'm… I… Riley… I've been writing a book… and I had a meeting yesterday with a publishing company, and they're really interested."

His eyes get big and curious, and I can't breathe until I hear him say, "That's great!"

"Wai…what?" I thought he'd be upset. I pictured him getting angry… because I was "stealing his ideas" or something.

"No, no… Kate! That's wonderful. It's always been a dream of yours. What's it about?" Riley asks, getting closer to me, a passion in his eyes.

"It's about some conspiracies, the City of Gold… I… just some ideas I came up with."

"Oh… Hmm…" Yup, there it was. My heart sunk into my stomach. I knew he'd be upset.

"I've been meaning to tell you… I…" I can't seem to form proper sentences anymore. I have so many emotions running through me. I want him to hug me. Congratulate me. Something.

He bites his bottom lip, and I feel like crying. Say something, Riley!

"Well… maybe…you'll have better luck than I did." He stands up and stuffs his hands into his back pockets. A tear slides down my cheek. Who would have thought that less than 15 minutes ago he was holding my hand and smiling at me? I shouldn't have told him, but what was I supposed to do? I can't lie to Riley. When there is something wrong, he sees through me. Maybe he has X-Ray glasses or something that can peer into my soul. I shuddered.

I stand up and face him, "Riley…"

"Hm?" He takes off his glasses and rubs his eyes.

I cup his chin in my hand, "Do you want to add some of your thoughts into it? Perhaps a chapter or something?"

He smiles and shakes his head no, "Kate, I'm happy for you."

"Are you?"

"Yes."

He wipes a tear away from my eye with his thumb, "What's that? No tears." He opened his arms to me, "Get in here," I hesitated, "Right now!"

I lean into his hug, burying my face in his neck, letting the tears flow freely. Yet, he just holds me… rocks me back and forth like a child.

I adore him. He's my best friend.

And even though I know he didn't appear upset with me now… there have been times.

I shudder thinking about all the things I said to him that night as he was sitting at his desk. "Riley! I don't understand you! All you ever do is sit on that computer! You don't even pay attention to anything BUT that… Ben has called like…what… six times tonight? Why won't you return his call? Is this all because HE seems to get the glory for finding the treasures…or what? What is wrong? He's your best friend! I guess that means nothing to you."

I know I shouldn't have said all that to Riley. Although it was partly true, it wasn't what he needed to hear at that moment. What I had needed to do was tell him that everything would be okay. I didn't want to be another reason for him to be stressed out or worried. And he had been lately.

When I had gone to see him earlier in the day he told me that Ben had invited him to a convention in New York City at the end of the week. For some reason, he wasn't too happy about it… he told me it was just gonna be a bunch of business people who couldn't care less about HIM being there. For some reason, Riley didn't seem to understand his worth to Ben.

So, the next day while at home I had basically spent the whole day at my computer desk. Thinking. I had a table next to me that was covered in pictures. Out of nowhere I looked up and saw Riley leaning against the doorframe. I whispered, "Riles, hey…how did you… come here."

He seemed shocked to hear my voice and stumbled over himself as he entered the room. He walked over to me and I gently handed him a photo.

"That was a happy day, wasn't it?"

He kneeled down next to the chair I was sitting in, "Yeah. It was fantastic. The day Ben, Abigial, Patrick and I found the Templar Treasure. Wow. I wish I could go back and relive it... incredible."

A small smile formed upon my lips, "I was in New York, visiting some family and such. My friend, who happened to attend the press meeting, called me sometime the following morning and told me what an amazing event it was. I remember him talking so much about you... I was so jealous. I thought I'd never be able to meet you." I laughed softly.

Riley looked up at the side of my face, he seemed to want to be there in my mind, seeing these memories, he placed the photo on the table and grabbed another... "Ah yes, the President's Day bash at the Library of Congress. What a night that was, hm?"

"It sure was. We met that night…""

"I remember." Riley breathed in deeply.

"It was beautiful."

"Yeah, I was total freak." He laughed and stood up and I couldn't help but notice how he was dressed. He wore blue jeans with a black fitted sweater and on his feet were his favorite black dress shoes. His hair was messy just how I had always liked it and his signature glasses perched on his nose. There was no denying he looked amazing. I could tell he was getting ready to go be "famous" at his convention.

He walked around the room a bit, I don't know why, must have been trying to pick his next words. He came towards me, and his eyes seemed to melt into mine. I could barely breathe, just sitting there, taking him in. Somehow, I found my voice, "Are you...getting ready to go?"

"Yeah. You know how I was supposed to leave Friday? Change of plans... they got me on a flight to New York in about 3 hours." He sighed, sitting on the chair next to mine, "I have a headache."

I didn't say anything, just kept staring at his lips as he spoke.

"Are you...okay?" He asked, turning to face me. "You're quiet now."

I pursed my lips tight, to force back the tears and turned away from him, "I'm sorry."

He didn't buy it; he stood, and then kneeled down in front of me on the ground, his chest against my knees. I tried to choose my next words carefully, "I'm sorry about this morning. I'm sorry for making you uncomfortable... and what I said about you and Ben. It's not my place."

I was staring at the top of his head, trying not to make eye contact.

"I'm comfortable when I'm with you... and so it confuses me, I want to help you...make you happy... but I can only make things worse when I act like this. I won't do it again. I'm sorry." My tone was completely serious and sincere. At least, I thought so.

I swallowed back my emotion, my hand had found its way to his hair now, and I played with strands of it delicately, while trying to keep focused. I just wanted him to accept my apology, move on, go on his business trip and still be his friend. The silence was deafening.

I opened my mouth to say something, but he quickly placed his finger on my lips, "No. Don't. Shh.. You need to wait." He began to stand up, my hand sliding down his chest, "I have to go."

I felt a little bit of my heart breaking, not wanting to be parted from him just yet. He leaned down and gently kissed my forehead, "I left some extra pizza in the fridge for ya. If you need to get into my apartment… here's the key." He handed it to me.

Is that it? Is that all you can say Riley? I SAID I WAS SORRY!

He squeezed my hand, and then slowly made his way to the door, leaving me with silent tears falling down my face.

Is that seriously… all?

He turned around, slowly, "Kate… you have nothing to worry about. I'm Riley. And believe me, I deserved what you said." He smiled, "You know I adore you Kate. Just, thank you for making me understand that a bit more." He turned to leave, and I didn't want him to… not at all. "I'll call ya from the car."

After I told him about my book, we both decided it was finally time to go to sleep. Knowing he wasn't upset really comforted me a lot, but I made a promise to myself that I would involve him in every bit of the process of my book release. And maybe, just maybe… he'd want to come with me on my book tours. I wasn't really sure at this point if it would be much of a success, but whatever happened, I wanted Riley to have a part in it.

As I lied down on the couch, finally drifting into sleep, my heart began to swell up within me. There were things about Riley I wouldn't admit to myself, and I was starting to feel it come undone. I rolled over and fluffed my pillow, trying to find a comfortable position so I could clear my mind and get the sleep I desperately needed.

It didn't help that I could hear Riley "tinkering" around in the next room, getting ready to go to bed. I rolled around again, slamming my head into the pillow. This is ridiculous. I looked at my watch: four am. Was it even worth sleeping anymore? This couch wasn't nearly as comfortable as it had been in the past. I laughed, and sat straight up.

Riley was still bumping things around in his bathroom. I heard the sink come on and my silly heart couldn't take it anymore. I just HAD to see him AGAIN before I could fall asleep. I stood up, and adjusted my tee-shirt and pajama pants Riley had let me borrow. Slowly I walked toward his bedroom door, wondering what I would say to him when I saw his face. I stood in front of his closed door, and took a deep breath. Here goes nothin'.

I knocked twice. I heard some footsteps, shuffling and a bump which was followed by a whiny, "Owww.." Ha! That's so Riley. He quickly opened the door, and I just stared at him. He wore only jeans and his hair looked like it had been through a whirlwind. I blushed slightly, "Hi…" I squeaked out.

Riley smiled and looked past me into the living room. "Everything… okay?"

"Mmm, yeah. It is." I bit my bottom lip, and looked straight into his eyes. "I… ehhm…"

"Do you need some sheets? Another pillow?" Riley asked, stepping towards the hall closet. When I didn't say anything, he turned around towards me with sheets in his hands. "Is this –" He looked into my eyes and licked his lips, "Kate? Is this fine?"

A small smile formed on my lips as I shook my head yes, taking the sheets from his hands.

"You sure?"

"Yes… well, no… no, I just… I can't sleep…"

"Oh." Riley chuckled, running a hand through his hair. "Um, tell ya what… you can sleep on my bed, I'll take the couch."

I was shocked. "Oh… no, Riley. I couldn't."

"Come on…" He took me by the hand and led me into his bedroom.

I felt myself blushing even more. Why couldn't I say what I felt?

Riley turned down the covers, "Now you climb on in here and get all cozy."

I couldn't say no to him.

And truth be told, climbing into his sheets was so comforting …

A lot of things are, when it comes to Riley.

For one thing there is something so stable about seeing him at his laptop, typing away and creating some masterpiece. Often times when I'm working at the library he will come and do some research there… I will watch him when he doesn't realize it. He has such focus in his eyes, and it brings me comfort knowing he's content to sit and play on his laptop until closing time.

More often than not he offers to give me a ride home from work. He told me it's because he worries about the creeps that come out at night in that part of town. I can't help but give in to him, and since I moved here I have barely put 300 miles on my car. Riley takes me everywhere, and it's… comforting to him. And to me. I like it that way.

Even though he wears a dress shirt and tie lately, I love when he's simply comfortable Riley. I always have this urge to cuddle him when he wears his signature outfit: blue jeans, a tee-shirt, and a navy blue hoodie and converse shoes. Yet, I still haven't cuddled him. Sigh. Will I ever get that chance? There's something so wonderful and familiar about him when he dresses like that.

I can't help but memorize the way he looks sometimes.

Like that one night about two weeks ago.

"How you two doing?" Benjamin Gates asked, pouring more champagne into his Abigail's glass.

Riley smiled, glancing towards me and then back at Ben. He swallowed, "WE are doing fine."

I couldn't help but notice the emphasis he put on the word – 'we.' I blushed and looked down towards my plate of food.

Ben and Abigail were always taking us on "double dates" and yet, neither Riley nor I ever admit that is what they were. We simply accepted them as "friendly business meetings" because usually Ben and Riley would spend the majority of the evening talking about treasure. Abigail and I would laugh it off and talk about our own lives and work. She and I had always seemed to get along. We were both interested in museums, old artifacts and the men we had dinner with. So, it was always comforting to have her to talk to… though, I never mentioned my thoughts about Riley to her. For some reason, I couldn't. I knew she would tell Ben and then Ben would tell Riley and Riley would hate me. Sigh. At least, that's what I always told myself.

But, hearing him say "we" like that really stunned me. I wondered what it all meant.

"That's great." Ben said, cutting a perfectly bite-sized slice of steak. "Any plans for the weekend?"

"I thought we had that exhibit opening in San Francisco." Riley began.

"No… that's next week. Riley. Didn't you get the memo?"

Riley laughed, "No, I guess I missed that bit of information. It didn't send to my satellite." He shook his head, as if in disbelief.

"Well, since you DON'T have anything going on… maybe you could… FIND something to do. You know - something worthwhile." Ben raised his eyebrow and looked sternly at Riley.

I caught that. I looked back and forth between them. Riley looked totally perplexed. Ben looked like he was going to hurt him. Abigail looked at me and we both smirked. Riiiight. Something was OBVIOUSLY going on. Probably another treasure hunt or something. I sighed. I was going to be without Riley for a whole weekend. I could feel it coming… I just couldn't figure out why it made me feel - sad.

Maybe Abi and I could go shopping.

And I don't know why I was shocked when I realized a treasure hunt was exactly what this was about.

"Riley, I need your help this weekend. How's your computer doing?"

Riley grinned, "It's perfect. As always."

Yup. That's definitely it.

After dinner was over, Riley wanted to go for a walk. I agreed. The weather was beautiful, the moon was full and as we walked around the grounds in front of the Lincoln Memorial I couldn't help but feel my heart beating faster.

"I love this place." Riley said, sitting down on the steps.

I looked up to the statue of Lincoln and smiled, and then took a seat next to him.

"So um… gonna be alright this weekend? You can stay at my place if you want. It's closer to Abigail. Maybe you two can hang out." Riley's face was just a few inches from mine.

"Sure, yeah… or maybe I'll offer to work on Saturday. I could use the extra hours." I bit my lip.

I began to take him in. I literally felt myself looking him up and down, memorizing every detail. Riley wore a white dress shirt, black vest and black slacks. He looked good. Amazing, even. He wore contacts tonight, and his eyes were crystal blue. I watched as he loosened his tie and unbuttoned his collar.

Breathe.

"Mm," He stretched his arms behind his head, "Yeah, that sounds good."

BREATHE! I could literally feel his breath on my cheek, as he scooted closer and draped an arm around my shoulders.

"You alright?" He laughed, obviously noticing the strange look I had on my face.

I smirked, "Yeah. Sorry. Just thinking about how quiet it will be without you for a couple days. That will be NICE!"

"HEYYYY!" Riley whined. "I thought you liked IT!"

"I do." I whispered.

The smile that formed on his lips was adorable. I looked into his eyes. Kiss him.

KISS HIM. I so wanted to kiss him. I longed to know what it would feel like… those soft, happy lips against mine. I just… wanted to know.

Riley reached over and took my hand into his, and I was shocked… I breathed in deeply. It was the first time he had ever done that… I watched him carefully. He squeezed my hand tightly and lifted it up towards his mouth. I nearly trembled as his lips pressed against the palm of my hand.

Oh, Riley… My heart was screaming inside my chest, I wanted so badly for him to know and understand that.

I looked up at the side of his face, finding myself staring at his cheek. It looked so soft, and his eyes reflected the Washington Monument in the distance. At some point he must have realized I was staring at him like some idiot.

Riley turned towards me, a delicate smile on his lips, "What are you looking at?"

"You." I whispered, squeezing his hand a little tighter.

He blushed. I couldn't believe it.

I looked into his blue eyes, and moved a little bit closer towards him. He smiled, and leaned into my embrace. Finding some inner courage I suddenly found my lips pressed against his cheek, near the side of his lips. I kissed him softly and then backed away, nervously awaiting his reaction.

Riley smiled and pulled me into a tight hug. And somehow, I just knew that the simpleness of that affection was more precious than any lip to lip contact. I knew that beautiful things awaited us… and that somehow, when it came time for us to actually TALK about our feelings… it would have been worth the wait.

If only I could keep those thoughts with me all the time.

I snuggled down into his soft sheets that smelled like him. I felt so comfortable and happy. Riley walked over and flipped off the light.

"Need anything else?"

Besides you? I thought to myself.

"No… Riley I…"

"Hmm, Kate?"

"I… thank you."

"Don't mention it!" Riley smiled and turned to walk away.

I sighed and breathed in deeply, "I love you."

He didn't hear me, because he had already flopped onto the couch.

The Next Morning

I was awoken by the sound of a constant buzzing noise inside of my head. It was getting louder and louder to the point where I was about to scream. I sat straight up, rubbing my exhausted eyes and looked to the source of the noise. Riley's laptop had some "alert" message blinking on the screen. Great. I looked at my watch – 9am. So much for getting more than 6 hours of sleep! I stretched and leaned back against the bed frame, taking in my surroundings. Riley's room was one crazy mess. Did the boy ever clean up after himself? I saw piles of clothes and shoes scattered about. Even his suit coat had found a little corner to live in. But, I couldn't help but smile at the remnants of his clothes he wore the night before folded neatly on his dresser. How is it that amid so much mess he took the time to treat his hoodie and favorite tee-shirt with such care? His converses sat right next to the dresser on the floor, neatly placed – ready to slip into at a moments notice. Well, at least he was prepared.

The buzzing was getting intense. I stood up, stretched my sore limbs and pulled my oversized tee-shirt down. I walked over to the computer and looked at the screen. The message simply said, "Alert: New Data Found. Click here for more details." Surely Riley would want to know about this. I stopped in front of the mirror on my way out his bedroom door, taking in my grungy appearance. The sweat pants and oversized Batman tee-shirt of Riley's hung on me like a dress. My light brown hair was tousled all over the place, like I had been riding in the Ferrari with the top down all night. And the slight bags under my brown eyes made it look like I hadn't slept in awhile. Sigh. Lovely.

I contemplated hopping into the shower real quick to wash away the night before but the buzzing continued and I didn't want Riley to miss out on whatever this "new data" was. No doubt something for Ben.

I opened the door and looked into the living room. Instead of a sleeping Riley I found a WIDE awake Riley, perched on the couch stuffing his face with Froot Loops, watching Saturday morning cartoons. I couldn't help but smile.

As he lifted the spoon to his lips, about to take a gigantic bite of sugary goodness, his eyes met mine and he stopped, "Heeeeyyyyy… G'mornin Sunshine."

The smile on my face spread wider, "Good Morning."

"Did you sleep okay?" He patted the spot on the couch next to him, motioning for me to come and sit. The buzzing was behind me, and I knew it was important. But, I couldn't help but want to have him all to myself… even for just a few minutes.

I sighed, sinking down next to him, noticing he still wore the same jeans from the night before only now he had a blue tee-shirt on. It brought out his amazing eyes, and I felt butterflies in my stomach. Not to mention his messy, feathered hair that I just wanted to play with. Crap. Why was this happening to me?

"Want some Froot Loops?" He asked, raising his eyebrows.

I smirked, "Maybe in a bit."

"No. You have to try them. They are SO good." He scooped a spoonful up and held it out towards my lips, "Now darling, be a good girl and eat your breakfast."

Riley's eyes were full of joy, as he fed the cereal to me. "There ya go. That's a good girl. It's yummy, huh?"

I burst into laughter.

"Shhh… Dexter's Lab is back on. I'm trying to calculate how probable his experiment actually is." Riley sunk back into the couch as he continued to eat, his eyes fixed upon the television.

I couldn't help but study him. It had become a habit of mine lately… and there was no stopping it. I became fascinated with his arms, and how they moved as he would scoop up a bite of Froot Loops. His tee-shirt fit tightly to his slightly toned biceps and as he would move they flexed. My eyes wandered down to his forearms. I admit it; I'm obsessed with that part of Riley. I have a strange fetish. Oh my. I'm a mess. This is pathetic. I found myself holding back a giggle.

This was RILEY. MY BEST FRIEND. You're not supposed to feel like this about your best friend. It's not right.

Riley finished his cereal, by lifting the bowl to his lips and slurping up all the milk. "Ahhhh." He let out a content sigh and leaned back, a small smile on his face. "That was good."

Thoughts of the "alert" in the next room entered my mind… just as I was about to cuddle him.

"Riles, the um… your computer was buzzing. That's what woke me up."

"Oh! Really!" He hopped off the couch and ran towards his bedroom. The next thing I know he's cheering. "YES! I KNEW IT! IT WORKED!"

I jumped up and shuffled into the room, he looked like a five year old on Christmas Day. "Ben's gonna flip!"

"Wha..? What is it?"

"Remember that cipher – code – thingy - whatever - we found on that old coin in Ben's treasure box?"

Oh, I remembered. That was the whole purpose of the excursion two weeks ago. Ben had been rummaging around in the attic of his house when he came across an antique box, inside of a hole in a crumbling wall. Upon opening it up he had found photographs, old coins, and letters from Charles Carroll to Andrew Jackson, about the Declaration of Independence.

Fascinating stuff.

"There was an actual cipher on it? Can you make it out?"

Riley's fingers were flying over the keys. "I'm GOING to. Ben and I have never had to try and read something off a material other than paper." He smirked.

I felt excitement rush over me. This was going to be good, I could tell. Maybe Riley would actually let me go with him and Ben on whatever adventure was to come next. My mind was spinning at a hundred miles per second.

What was today? Saturday. When do I work again? Tuesday. School? Heck, I could skip a couple of classes. Do I need anything from my apartment? No. I have extra clothes in my car. My car… does it have enough gas to get to Ben's? Maybe we'll take the Ferrari. What about my book? I had a publishing meeting at 8am Monday morning. Oh well, this is more important. I can deal with that when we figure this out.

"Kate?" Riley's hasty voice broke my intense brain meltdown. "Can you go get my glasses?"

I noticed that he was squinting at the screen.

"Sure."

"They're on the coffee table, I think."

I ran out of the room, my eyes darting everywhere as I searched for his signature glasses. "Where…where… where…" I breathed in deeply, and let it out as I saw them on top of a pile of books Riley had obviously been looking through earlier that morning. Grabbing them off the table, I darted back into the room not paying any attention to where I was going. Before I could even think about it, I tripped and fell flat on my face as I entered Riley's bedroom.

"Are you alright?" Riley ran over. He grabbed under my arms and lifted me up, making sure I was steady. We walked over and sat down on the side of his bed.

"Yeah…I dunno…what happened." I laughed.

Riley scanned the room, "My shoes!" He walked over and kicked them out of the way. "I'm sorry; I've been meaning to clean up this place."

"It's okay. How's the hacking going?" I smiled, offering his glasses to him. Riley took them from my hand and smiled, placing them on his face.

"Great. But, I need Ben. I gotta go." Riley smiled, "Which means I better get in the shower, right?"

I looked down, the sudden thought I might be left behind entering my thoughts. Riley lifted my chin, "And you're coming to." He smiled.

"To the shower?" I held back my laughter.

"Noooo… to Ben's. I'm sure Ben and Abi would love to see you." Riley winked and stretched. "I'll hurry. So, you can take one too before we go."

"Is there time?"

"For you? Absolutely." A wide smile spread across his face, and my heart started beating quickly.

Riley began walking towards the bathroom door, grabbing his favorite hoodie and tee-shirt on the way.

I stood quickly, "Riley!"

"Hmm?" He turned to face me.

"Umm…" I walked closer towards him.

"What is it?"

"You have some milk there." It was true. Remnants of his breakfast had formed a slight milk mustache on his upper lip.

"It'll come off in the shower." He winked, and began to turn away.

I reached out and grabbed his arm, stopping him dead in his tracks. Riley furrowed his eyebrows, and squinted. "Hey, is everything oka-?"

My hands trembled slightly as I lifted his glasses off. I folded them carefully and placed them on the computer desk next to us. His lips curved into a confused half smile. "Thank you?" He whispered. I reached up and moved some hair off of his forehead, as our eyes locked.

Becoming slightly afraid of what to do next, I let the same motherly instincts that had taken care of him when he was sick come over me. I licked the back of my thumb and used it to rub the dried milk away from his lip. He blinked… slowly.

"Kate – you don't have to –"I cut him off by pressing my lips gently against his. At this point, he dropped the clothes he had been holding and wrapped those same arms I was in love with around me. He kissed me back softly, as I ran my hands through his tousled hair.

As our lips separated, I closed my eyes burying my head into his neck. Riley held me tightly, his fingers entangled in my hair.

Breathless, he stuttered, "Wha… was… that… for?"

The butterflies in my stomach were more intense than ever. "Mmm.. sorry love, I couldn't help it."

Riley played with my hair softly. I felt so safe wrapped up against him. His warmth was all around me, how I had longed for this moment – and I was reluctant to let it end.

He patted my head, and lifted my chin to look into his eyes, "We'll deal with you a little bit later." Riley laughed, and bent over to gather the clothes he had dropped.

"Right." I smiled, "We gotta get to Ben's."