#your reputation speaking louder for you than who you actually are

[babycupart]

to write out or not write an in depth analysis on earthborn shepard being touch starved and having a praise kink

[caapsiizzereads]

Tell me that I’m all you want

Jamie Tartt x f!reader

Words: 3,8k

Warnings: language, angst, unrequited love (on both sides somehow)

Jamie Tartt coming back to Richmond was surprising news for everyone, including you, even though you learned about it a bit earlier than the others. You’ve only been working at AFC Richmond for a few months, so you haven’t actually ever met him, but his reputation precedes him. Fortunately, once all the legal bullshit is handled, he’s not going to be your problem to deal with.

Or so you thought.

Jamie has been back at Richmond for a few days now, and everybody fucking hates him. He can’t exactly blame them, but he’s trying his best here, and no one seems to give a shit.

Jamie comes in a bit earlier today. He wants to change and get out of the locker room before everybody else gets here. He’s tying his shoelaces when he hears the clicking sound of high-heeled shoes getting louder. He thought it was Keeley or, maybe, Rebecca, but instead he sees another familiar face. He doesn’t remember your name, but he recognizes you from the time you briefly met during the signing process. You’re like the club’s lawyer or something.

You didn’t expect any of the players to be in yet, so you’re a bit surprised when you see Jamie in the locker room. You knew that he started a few days ago, but you hadn’t crossed paths with him until now. Well, you weren’t exactly searching for him now either, you’re here to go over some stuff with Ted. So you nod at him in acknowledgment and turn towards the coaches’ office. There’s no one in there, though.

You turn back to Jamie, “Have you seen Ted?”

“I don’t think he’s here yet.”

“Shit. Um, can you tell him that I was looking for him when you see him?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Thanks.” You’re about to leave when Jamie speaks up again.

“Wait.” You turn around to look at him. “Sorry, I don’t remember your name,” he admits.

You don’t seem bothered by that at all. “Right. It’s (Y/n), I’m the club’s–”

“You’re the lawyer, yeah, I remember,” he smiles at you.

You nod at him, and then your attention is averted by Ted’s cheerful greeting.

“Miss (Y/l/n).”

“Ted!” you point at him with your finger, “you’re exactly who I’ve been looking for.” The two of you walk away to his office.

The next morning, you’re walking in the parking lot when Jamie catches up with you.

“Morning,” he greets you.

“Morning.”

When you get to the entrance, he holds the door open for you. Both of your hands are busy, one with your handbag and the other with a coffee cup, so you appreciate the gesture.

“Thanks,” you smile at him.

You’re about to leave for your lunch break when you hear a knock on your open door. You’re surprised, to say the least, to see Jamie standing in the doorway.

“Hey. Are you busy?” he asks coyly.

“I was about to go out for lunch.”

“Awesome,” he grins and lifts his hand, a bag of food from the nearby restaurant in it, “I was getting lunch for myself and I thought that I could get some for you too,” he says it as if it’s not the fourth time you’re ever speaking to each other.

You look at him suspiciously, “I’ll never say no to a free lunch, but what’s the catch here?”

“Nothing! I just thought that we could have lunch together.” What you hear is that he wants company, and everybody else here wants nothing to do with him. You decide to take pity on him, your fucking empathy be damned.

“Alright,” you gesture for him to come in. A wide smile instantly grows on his face.

He takes the seat in front of you and lists the dishes that he got. You pick the one that sounds the most appealing, and he hands it to you.

“So how’s your day going,” he asks between chewing, obviously trying to start a conversation.

“It’s fine, just the usual stuff,” you reply. It would be polite to ask him back. He’s obviously trying here. He’s been nothing but nice to you so far. You sigh, accepting your fate. “How is it going for you back in Richmond? Settled in yet?”

“It’s fine, yeah. Yeah…” You both know that it’s bullshit, so you just stare at him with a straight face, waiting for the rest to come out. “It’s shit. Everybody hates me,” he gives up and then proceeds to go on a thirty-minute rant about his life.

You find yourself spacing out somewhere around minute fifteen. It reminds you of a few dates you had, if you think about it. You’re being polite to a guy once, and the next thing you know, he buys you a meal and spends an hour telling you his whole life story like you are his therapist.

Once Jamie’s done talking, he looks at you expectantly, like what you’re about to say is going to determine his foreseeable future.

“Let me check if I got this right. You were loaned here for a year, and you spent the whole time treating everyone like absolute shit. Then you got called back to the club that you loved so much, yet you still left them in the middle of the season to do some reality show, violating God knows how many contracts, by the way. And now you’re back here because, for obvious reasons, nobody else wants you, and you’re surprised that you’re not welcomed back with open arms?” you try to keep your tone neutral, but the irony is still apparent.

“But I apologized!”

You hum to yourself, your eyebrows involuntarily rising, impressed with how ignorant a person can be.

“What?” The look on your face obviously doesn't go unnoticed.

“You don’t have any friends, do you?” you deadpan.

Jamie immediately gets defensive, “The fuck is that supposed to mean?!”

“That you have no idea how human relationships work. You can’t treat people like garbage and then expect one “I’m sorry” to fix everything.”

Jamie opens his mouth again, and before the words are even out, you know that whatever he is about to say – it’s above your paygrade. You are not about to explain basic human decency to a 24-year-old. It’s a good thing that there is actually someone in this building who’s getting paid to deal with this nonsense, and that’s exactly where you send him.

“Can we… be friends?” Jamie asks before leaving.

“Yeah, sure,” you wave him off.

You said it without actually expecting anything to come out of it. But Jamie keeps coming back. Sometimes he brings you lunch or invites you out, and a couple of times he brings you coffee with a dessert before his practice. And all you need to do in return is listen to him talk (complain) about his day. You think about sending him off to Dr. Fieldstone again, but you like having your little treats, and Jamie seems to be satisfied enough with your company.

Then Ted pulls some “Led Tasso” thing. You have no idea what that means, and Jamie isn’t very good at explaining, but whatever it was, it seemed to help him fix the relationship with his teammates.

You think that now that Jamie is in his teammates’ good books again, his visits to your office will stop, but he surprises you by showing up again two days later.

Jamie’s visits do become less frequent, but they continue to happen nonetheless. Except now it seems more out of habit, or maybe even preference, than a lack of choices. And you’ve gotta admit, he’s starting to grow on you. You even find yourself expecting his little visits.

Sometimes he just sits in your office after practice, waiting for you to finish your work, so that you can go out afterwards. This makes your productivity drastically go down because the man can’t sit quietly for fifteen fucking minutes, but you don't have the heart to kick him out, so in the end, you just give up and leave work early.

During one of your lunchtime chats, you mention to Jamie that you bought a new couch, but the guy who was supposed to assemble it for you keeps postponing the date, and it’s getting on your nerves now. Jamie right away offers to help you with it, and after a little bit of convincing, you agree.

Jamie comes over to your place, it’s the first time you’ve met outside of work circumstances. Jamie is definitely not as good at building furniture as he had claimed to be, but two hours and two beers later, you still manage to put the couch together.

As a thank you for his help, you make dinner, and you spend the evening watching “Legally Blonde” (Jamie insists that it’s only appropriate) on your new couch.

That night starts a whole new pattern of you two hanging out outside of work. You spend time with Jamie Tartt. Outside of your work hours. On your own free will. And you like it! Now you have no excuses left for yourself. This little asshole has really become your friend.

It’s a Saturday night, and you’re out in the bar with the Richmond team. They won a match and decided to go out and celebrate, and Jamie obviously invited you too.

You’re sitting on the table with your feet resting on the bench that you’re supposed to sit on. Jamie’s sitting right next to you, his body occasionally touching your legs.

He makes some stupid joke, and it makes you laugh, not because it’s so funny but because of how dumb it is. He props his chin on your knee and looks up at you, grinning, pleased with himself for making you laugh. You look down at him, and without even thinking about it, you gently brush away a hair strand that’s fallen on his face. He smiles at you softly, which makes him look cute so you smile back at him and– Oh no. No, no, no, no.

You spend the next few days telling yourself that you’re just bored, that it’s okay, and it will go away. But weeks pass, and it doesn’t. You are extra aware of every smile Jamie gives you, every laugh you get out of him, every casual touch you've become so accustomed to. This is getting frustrating at this point. It’s just a stupid fucking crush, (y/n). Just get over it, for fuck’s sake.

You get a reminder of how fucked you are when one day Jamie tells you that he’s not happy about how things are between him and Keeley and he asks for your advice on how to mend things with her. Which is a totally reasonable thing to ask your friend. Because that’s what you are – friends. And you’re going to put your own bullshit aside and act like one.

You and Keeley are close enough for you to know that if you were to be honest with Jamie, you would say that she thinks of him a lot less than he thinks of her. But he obviously needs some closure there, so instead you advise him to just talk to her and apologize, while also reminding him that Keeley is with Roy now and he needs to respect their relationship too.

You mentally pat yourself on the back for handling the situation with dignity.

It all goes to shit on the fucking Valentine’s Day. You’ve never been a fan of the day, but this year is just something else.

Jamie invited you to go to some party with him, arguing that since you’re both single, you can go as each other’s “dates”. The implication there was that you come together and potentially leave with other people.

You didn’t have any better plans, and you recently bought a sexy red dress that you were waiting for a chance to wear, so you thought why the fuck not.

You knew that the dress was worth its money when, upon seeing you, Jamie not so subtly checked you out. “You look good.”

“Don’t I always?” you smirked at him.

You’ve been at the party for almost two hours, and you’re starting to think that Jamie has switched his plan to get a hookup to getting wasted instead, as he’s currently on his fifth drink. Another hour later, you all but drag him into a taxi. He’s talking nonsense and laughing at his own thoughts all the way to his place.

You lead him inside and make him sit by the kitchen island while you pour him a glass of water. He’s going to thank you for that tomorrow.

Apparently he decided to thank you for that tonight because when you turn back to him, he’s standing right next to you, and before you can react, his hands are on you and he kisses you.

He kisses you. And fucking let him. For, like, a whole five seconds you let him. Then your brain finally starts functioning properly again, and you push him away. He just stares at you, like he himself doesn’t understand what just happened.

“You’re drunk.” You harshly put the glass of water on the counter, “Drink this and go to sleep.”

You’re out of the house before Jamie says anything.

Jamie wakes up with a terrible hangover. You told him he’d regret it tomorrow, and tomorrow has come. Once he collects himself enough to get out of bed, he starts getting ready for practice. He enters the kitchen and sees an empty glass standing on the counter. That’s when the memories of the previous night come back to him all at once. Fuck, fuck, fuuuck!

It’s only after the practice that Jamie finally mans up enough to face you. Maybe ‘mans up’ is not the most fitting word because what actually happens is him standing at the doorstep of your office with his tail between his legs.

You look at him, your face unreadable.

“Hi,” he starts hesitantly.

“Hi.”

“Can I come in?”

“Since when do you ask?”

Jamie sits in front of you. You don’t say anything, so he takes it as his que to start groveling.

“I’m sorry. I was drunk, I didn’t think.” Obviously.

“It’s fine.”

“Are you mad?”

“I’m not.”

“Well, you seem mad.”

“Well, I am not. Can we just forget about it and move on, yeah?” It comes out a bit too harsh, but you really want for this conversation to end.

“Yeah, sure,” he sounds very unsure.

Jamie really didn’t expect you to be so mad about it. He fucked up, yeah, sure, but it was a stupid drunken mistake, surely you would understand. If anything, he expected you to say something along the lines of “I told you so” and tease him for it for another year. But it seems like you never want to speak about it again. Was him kissing you really that appalling to you? You would’ve pushed him away faster then. Why didn’t you? You weren’t that drunk. Unless… No. You can’t– You don’t– No way.

Jamie has never thought about you in that way. Okay, that’s a lie, he totally has. But you were right when you said that he didn’t really have any friends, and at that moment of time he really needed one a lot more than he needed a hookup, so he buried all the sexy thoughts about you and put all his efforts into befriending you instead. That was working out well for him until now.

One thing about Jamie, he always has everything written on his face. So when the next day he comes into your office with that weird look on his face, you know exactly what’s going on here. You pray that he at least won’t say anything because there’s only so much awkwardness that you can deal with. You stick with acting like nothing happened, and it seems to work because, thankfully, Jamie doesn’t say anything, and you keep talking as usual. Eventually, things go back to normal.

You know that Rebecca wants something from you when she knocks on the door before letting herself in to your office. This clue never fails because she asks you to be her moral support plus one to some charity event for rich people. She says you have a knack for dealing with pretentious assholes. You’d argue that it’s actually more of a professional skill. But either way, you have a weakness for beautiful women asking you to go to fancy events with them, so obviously you agree.

Little did you know.

You notice him for the first time around twenty minutes after you get there. A man, seemingly in his mid-thirties, very handsome. He’s talking to some couple across the room. You watch him for a while before he looks away from his companions and your eyes meet. You look at each other for a few seconds before he turns back to the couple. Throughout the next hour, your eyes find each other in the crowd four more times, until you finally get a chance to talk.

He introduces himself as Jason, and you chat for some time, getting all the small talk out of the way. The waiter approaches you, offering you another glass of champagne, but you decline.

“There’s only so much champagne a girl can have on an empty stomach,” you joke.

“Fancy a dinner?” Oh, that’s smooth.

“Right now?”

“I know a good place.”

“Lead the way then.” You hope Rebecca will forgive you for dumping her.

He offers you his elbow, and you readily wrap your arm around it. You wave at Rebecca on your way out, letting her know that you’re leaving. She smiles at you and nods approvingly, she’s glad that at least one of you is having fun.

The place is, in fact, good, and the dinner goes really well. So well that it turns into breakfast and exchanged numbers.

Jamie’s sitting in your office rambling about the upcoming match while you’re eating your lunch. He’s been speaking for about five minutes when he notices the unusual amount of enthusiasm in your reactions.

He gives you a suspicious glance, “You seem to be in a good mood today.”

“Am I?”

“Yeah.”

It looks like you think on it for a moment, before coming to the conclusion that you are indeed in a particularly good mood. Something along your train of thought makes you smile, but you choose not to elaborate and just prompt Jamie to go on.

A week later, Jamie comes to your office to wait for you to finish your work, only to find you already on your way out. He asks you where you’re leaving so early, and you smile at him mischievously and tell him that you have plans.

The next day, Jamie’s at your office the first thing after practice, ready to interrogate you about those mysterious plans of yours. You tell him that you met a guy at that event you went to with Rebecca and you’ve been going out with him. You sound pretty excited talking about the guy, which makes Jamie feel some weird type of way, but he brushes it off. He’s glad you’re having fun, however long that lasts.

It’s been two months since you first met Jason, and it just might be the happiest you’ve ever been in a relationship. Because that’s where you two are at right now – a relationship. No matter how busy he is at work, he always finds time for you. You go out on dates to all kinds of fancy places, he sends you fresh flowers for your office every week, and when he’s away for business, you get surprise dinner deliveries. Sometimes you even go with him, having already visited New York and Rome. There was also one time where you mentioned being tired of the constant London rains, so he took you to Sicily for a weekend. You have been over the moon.

Jamie met him for the first time when he wanted to hang out with you after work, but Jason beat him to it, as he was already waiting for you at your office. After that, Jamie saw him when he came to the matches with you or when he was picking you up from work. For some reason, Jamie found himself being unreasonably skeptical of the guy. But no matter how hard Jamie tried to find something wrong with him, he couldn’t. Jason treats you in the best way possible, he makes you very happy, and everybody else likes him: Rebecca, Keeley, even Roy shook his hand.

You and Jamie are hanging out at your place with your usual program of takeout, beer, and a movie. Except that Jamie hasn’t been paying attention to the movie for a while now, too preoccupied with other thoughts.

“So it’s serious, between you and Jason?”

You’re a bit taken aback by the question that seemingly came out of nowhere, but then you nod in answer, “Yeah, I think so”.

“Do you… like him?” Jamie can’t bring himself to use any other word.

You chuckle, and a soft smile remains on your face, “That’s one way of putting it.”

“Good, yeah. That’s good,” Jamie smiles at you. It’s not good. It’s not good at all. It fucking stings.

You don’t dump Jamie. You spend less time with him, yes, because now there is someone else you want to spend time with, but he’s still your friend. So why does he feel like he’s lost you?

He knows why. The same reason why when you happily tell him something about your relationship, Jamie feels a lump in his throat. The same reason why he feels a little too disappointed when you can’t hang out with him because you have plans with Jason. The same reason why he’s been coming back to your office this whole time. He is in love with you. He is in love with you, and he’s been too much of a fucking idiot to realize it before it was too late.

Richmond has won the last match of the season. They are being promoted back to the Premier League. That calls for a celebration. Everyone is rightfully cheerful, getting drunk, singing Richmond chants, dancing.

Jamie’s sitting by himself with a drink in his hand, and his eyes are fixed on you. You’re standing with your arms around Jason’s neck and his arms around your waist, your faces are inches apart. You murmur something to each other between smiles and kisses. You two look annoyingly in love.

Part of Jamie is happy for you because that’s what you deserve. To be valued, and appreciated, and loved wholeheartedly. Another part of him wants nothing more than to be in Jason’s place right now. To be the one being loved by you and to love you with all he has in return. To tell you every day how wonderful you are and to be able to make you smile like that.

He did it to himself, didn’t he? If only he wasn’t so stuck in his own bullshit to see what was right in front of him. But that chance is gone now, and all he can do is watch.

A/N: and I’m in the corner watching you kiss her oh-oh-oohh

A/N 2: i started hating this fic by the time i finished it...

A/N 3: will there be a part 2?? who knows…

[kissitbttr]

oh em gee do you think reader and miguel would be homecoming and queen?!?1!1 judging from their reputation from what i’ve read i feel like they’d defo win the titles tbh. imagine them winning it thoo 🥹🥹

“what do you mean i won?” you mutter to yourself as you look around, all eyes are now set on your frozen figure,

“oh my god this is actually crazy. homecoming queen has always been from sorority girls, never a cheerleader. babe you’re making a history!” gloria squeals, squeezing your hand,

this can’t be happening. you didn’t even know that you made it to the candidates list!

miguel, who’s already standing on stage with a big smile on his face and a crown perched on his head. hands clapping louder than the people in the room, mainly cheering for himself because now he doesn’t have to worry about dancing with a random girl.

gloria nudges you in the elbow to get you moving, making you glare at her but your legs finding themself to begin walking towards the stage. with a nervous yet awkward smile, you nod your head to some who congratulates you.

you even catch some of the sorority girls giving you a disgusting look while whispering to each other.

‘fuck. you’ you mouth before blowing a sarcastic kiss, catching them by surprise,

miguel chuckles at your attitude, internally patting himself in the back for having a sassy girlfriend. your gaze move to his, and in seconds your smile turn into a genuine one. big beautiful eyes smiling at him too,

it’s amazing how he can easily tell the difference between your fake and reals ones, isn’t it?

as you begin walking up to the stage, miguel goes breathless. raking his eyes up and down your body shamelessly. he thinks that you look gorgeous every day but tonight is different.

a very simple yet elegant, golden satin dress that hovers just a little bit above the ankles. a slit on the left of your thick thigh, giving him the perfect view of his favorite features from you. the v cut of the dress, giving him a perfect view of your plump breasts. long hair settles into its natural flow.

overall, you look like an angel. and he has a hard time keeping his eyes off of you.

“your homecoming queen and king, ladies and gentleman!” the host announces, making the crowd erupt in cheers,

you giggle at how gloria and beck cheering for you the loudest, giving them a wave. then you finally look over to the side only to see miguel is already entranced with you. his eyes taking you all in. if a gaze could speak, it would tell you that not enough words in dictionary could describe how perfect you look tonight, and how he still needs to wrap around the fact that he gets to call you his.

“why are you looking at me like that?” you smile when he reaches out to slides his hand between yours, pulling you to him,

he shrugs, guiding you down to the dance floor. “you just.. fuck… how is it possible, mi amor? para lucir así de perfecta”

your cheeks warms under his gaze. “i-i don’t know”

“speechless aren’t we?” he pulls a joke, making you roll your eyes,

“don’t make me even more nervous. this feels weird” you confess, his arms move down to your hips. “did you put my name on the ballot or something?”

“i didn’t i swear.” he shakes his head, “but that sounds like something i would do”

“i know” you rest your chin on his chest as you both slowly sway side to side. the song ‘one sweet day’ by mariah carey and boyz ii men playing in the background. both of your favorites.

something, somehow comes over miguel. the way your beautiful eyes glinting with love while looking up to him, soft smile perches on your pretty lips. the crowd circling around the two of you, watching the beautiful couple sharing a dance as a newly wed and—

wait. shit

newly wed?

“thinking quite hard there, baby” you drop a comment at the way his eyes seem to look.. gone. “care to elaborate?”

“just… this” he gestures,

“us dancing? why?” your hands on his chest now, head tilting to the side in curiosity,

“it’s like taking a glimpse of us getting married someday” he blurts out,

and there’s where you feel your heart fails to find a steady rhythm of its beat. his eyes wander across the room, mentioning a couple of things about how he would love it if ice sculptures didn’t make it at yours and his wedding. he thinks it’s useless,

you guess he can’t exactly spot the look on your face being both stunned and warmed by his confession. too busy taking notes on what you both should and should not have at the reception.

he.. thought of getting married ? to you ?

“would you like that, muñeca? white and pink flowers too. for the decorations. they would look so pretty”

all of these words jumping off his mouth seems like nothing to him, because maybe he thinks of it as one that he is so sure of and that you would probably agree with.

but little does he know, it’s everything to you. and you are trying your best to act your cool

“as long as i get to pick the flavor of the cake” you smile up at him

[simphornies]

So my sad gay self found this while scrollin: https://youtube.com/shorts/KTjKsm2uLPA?si=aHCxEMjey1iZ_u0A

Very cute, very wholesome I AM YEARNING. So if I may request a mlm!reader who will just casually people soda tabs as a subtle means of flirting or asking for affection (mostly because its such a uncommon practice that it removes most of the actual stress of flirting) with Vox?

No pressure, please take you time! Kisses darling <3

-📽

A/N: Honestly the soda tab thing is SO CUTE. I'm experimenting with more with how I write Vox so hopefully this is good

Word Count: 1.7k (1,755)

Soda Tab [ Vox x M!Reader ]

“Vox what the fuck is that?” Velvette pointed at a jar full of soda tabs on his desks.

“I’m gonna be real honest with you.” He took a deep breath in, “I have no fucking idea.”

You were just a regular sinner in the Pride Ring. You grew tired of the one time dates that ended with your date wanting to take you home into their bedroom. You held yourself to a standard. It made sense why you were placed in this ring considering your pride never allowed you the speak freely, not wanting to damage whatever was left of your reputation after a failed relationship.

You eventually landed a job with VoxTek as an operation’s manager. The job wasn’t easy but it paid and gave you shelter. Your soul remained intact but your sanity was slipping.

Then it all changed when the fire nation attacked when Vox personally invited you into his office to discuss a promotion. He needed someone that could hold their composure better than the Vees during important meetings and speak on their behalf. You were basically Vox’s representative so they wouldn’t have to deal with whatever, or whoever, you had to deal with. You held your status with pride and Vox admired the way you didn’t take anybody’s shit professionally.

After years of working with the Vees, you became close with them. Conversations with the three weren’t easy but they were mandatory for you to be able to represent them properly. You and Vox were particularly close.

So when he invited you to a celebratory dinner, you donned yourself in the best suit money could buy and set off. You never admitted it but Valentino definitely caught onto your secret crush on Vox.

Vox rarely faltered his usual persona in front of you, only losing composure a couple of times when his emotions were at an all time high. What you didn’t know is how he admired your consistency with perfection. Perfection. Running this business with Velvette and Valentino, who are both hot-heads in their own way, was difficult at times but since you stepped in, it’s been smooth sailing. Your constant shower of praise fueled his ego and he enjoyed keeping you around, just so he can get his fill of ego juice.

This dinner he arranged was to celebrate your work, and to boast about how he’s so smart and picked perfectly because of course he picked perfectly. He was the Vox after all. So when he saw you running up to him a couple minutes early before the arranged meeting time at the limo, he was taken aback at your suit. He was enamored.

You matched him in colors, even wearing the same bowtie as him but blue. Your suit was a darker shade of his and he loved it. It was perfect. You were perfect to him. He didn’t know why his heart pounded louder so he assumed that he was just excited to talk about how he made an amazing decision to you.

“Vox, sir! I hope you weren’t awaiting my arrival.” You said, anxiously fixing your suit and straightening out any loose ends.

“Oh don’t worry about anything. I just got here. The suit is perfect. Where did you get it?” Vox spoke, looking down at you with his hands behind his back.

“I listened to your suggestion, sir, and went to Velvette to get suited. I paid her in full, of course.” You spoke formally. So formal that it somehow bothered Vox in a way. As much as he loved being perfect, he wanted to see you when you weren’t so…tense.

“Paid? You shouldn’t have to worry. You are a part of the Vees, services are free for us.” He laughed. He took note of how you looked in front of him. You stood up straight, not a single thing out of place. He wondered what exactly could break this perfectionist standard you held yourself to.

.

“He likes you, Vox.” Valentino said, “I’m fuckin’ blind and I can see the way he eye fucks you whenever you start talking about how you’re the shit and you know what’s right or whatever.”

“And how can you be so sure, Val? I think he just respects me.” Vox scoffed, “Not any of that nonsense.”

“Yeah and because any other demon would willingly hang out with your egocentric bullshit. I’ve known you for years and I can’t stand hearing you say you were right. Even if you were.” Velvette rolled her eyes, “He literally posts romantic bullshit all the time and they’re all about bosses.”

“Are you stalking our employees?”

“Cut the shit. It’s not ‘stalking’ if his account is open to me.” She flipped him off, “And he’s basically a Vee. He likes you. And now you’re going on a date. Be a dear and stop beating around the fucking bush and own up to it.”

.

Vox recounted the conversation he had with the two other Vees. This wasn’t a date. Or at least he didn’t arrange it to be one to begin with but with this revelation, it might just turn out to be just that.

As the limo began to slow, he glanced over at you. He sees you fiddling with…a soda tab? He squinted at it, trying to understand why you kept fidgeting. “We’re here.”

You quickly shoved the tab in your pocket and looked at him, “I’ll get the door for you sir.” You reached for the door on your side but he stopped your hand with his own.

“No, I got it. Come on.” He opened his own door and pulled you out, keeping your hand in his as you stepped on the curb. Your hands were warm and he enjoyed it. He looked at the way you instinctively held his hand back and he couldn’t help but feel how perfect it fit in his own.

“Thank you, sir.” Your thanks got a scoff and you stiffened, pulling your hand back down to your side. “I’m sorry.”

“No. Not that.” He said, grabbing your hand again, “For tonight, call me Vox. No more of that sir bullshit.”

You nod in response, unaware of why he’d grab your hand to say that. You were even more confused when he didn’t let go until you had to sit across from him.

“Regarding today’s meetings, I’d like to discu—”

“Hush. Please. No business talk. This is to celebrate you!” He proudly spoke, “I picked the best demon to be our representative and I’d like to give you another promotion. To be one of the Vees.”

You choked on your wine, “Excuse me? Me? No, I can't possibly be a fit person for that.”

“Look. You’re aware of our image, correct?”

“Yes. Perfection.”

“Well that’s exactly why you’re going to stand by us and be part of us. I have contracts ready for you to sign so you can get a couple of souls under your belt. Some goons to do your dirty work.”

“Sir—Vox. Vox, I thought this was a business dinner regarding my work quota for the week?” You questioned.

“What—No. You already exceed the quota triple the amount majority of the time. Consider this a…date.” He grinned, taking enjoyment in your flustered state. “A congratulatory gift for your hard work and your promotion. I called it too, by the way, your success with us.”

You were dying on the inside. He just gifted you a promotion and a dinner and now the dinner’s actually a date? You panicked, not having anything to give him.

“Well…I’m flattered but I don’t have anything to give you a gift in exchange.” You rummage through your pockets. Your fingers grazed the soda tab and your cheeks flushed a light red. “Actually…Here. A small token of my appreciation.”

Vox squinted at the soda tab you held towards him. “A soda tab?” He asked, “Do you just carry soda tabs? Why?”

“Just…trinkets! You know, my little collection. Actually you’re right, I’m sorry. It’s probably stupid.” You start to retract but he swipes the soda tab out of your hand.

“No. I’ll keep it. It’s weird and a little stupid but it’s…” He flips the soda tab around, looking at it from different angles, “Admirable. In a sense. Thank you.”

Oh if only he knew what he unlocked. Ever since the date, he’s been getting soda tabs from you. You were greeted with confused acceptance every time you gave Vox one out of nowhere. He tried asking you what they’re for exactly but you’d just run off, using work as an excuse.

“Vox, when are you going to cash these in?” Velvette asks, picking a pink soda tab out of his container.

He looked up, confused, “Cash them in? What are you talking about?”

Velvette bursts into laughter, “Oh my god. You’ve just been collecting these and didn’t know?!” She taps through her phone and shows him a video explaining the soda tab trend.

His face turned red, “These…these are for kisses? He didn’t tell me these were for kisses—I thought they were just trinkets! That’s what he said!”

“Vox for someone as smart as you, you’re really fucking dumb.”

“Velvette.”

“What?”

“Can you go get him for me?”

“I guess.”

.

You walked into his office thinking it was to talk about the latest update on his Angelic Security System. “Vox, I’m pleased to inform you that production is 80% complete. I was thinking the best workers get compe—” He cuts you off by placing a single soda tab on the stack of papers you had in front of you. You look at him confused.

“I’d like to cash one in.” He says, looking at you with a confident smile.

“Cash one in…” You think for a bit and as soon as you realize he knew what they were for, panic sets in and your face turns red. “Oh! Uh—Haha. What do you mean?” You lie.

“Y/N, dear, you’re terrible at lying. You’re perfect at everything but lying. And if you wanted some special attention, you should’ve said so.” He leans closer to you as he gestures to the jar on his table, “Also. I’d like to cash in half of this jar. 280 of them, including this one, I believe.”

“Sir! I can’t possibly—” He shuts up you with a sudden peck on your lips.

“Ah ah. None of that sir bullshit. I told you to call me Vox. Now…” He leans back and pats his lap, “I believe I have 279 left? Chop chop.”

[anotherstudtouse]

Fixer Upper

Catori x Fem!Reader

Summary: Catori needs you to fix her snack rack again.

Warnings: SMUT. That's it, I think?

The day starts like any other. Your shrill alarm clock startles you awake at seven in the morning and you rub the sleep from your eyes before getting dressed, deciding to wear your Civil Corps uniform today with the jacket unzipped, a plain white t-shirt underneath. You make your way out to your workshop, but before you start trying to knock out some early morning commissions, you check your mail, and that's when your plans for the day change. Like so many recent days, Catori needs your help fixing something up at the Golden Goose.

Nobody bothers to ask why you keep taking commissions from a woman who hardly ever pays with actual money, instead thanking you for your hard work with tokens for her game center and swearing she'll have the money to actually pay you with soon. They all assume you do it out of the goodness of your heart -- and, sure, that's part of it, definitely. The reputation you've built in Sandrock over the past year speaks for itself; reliable, efficient, empathetic, you've made a name for yourself as someone who just likes to help out where you can.

It's a little different when it comes to Cat.

You really did just start out wanting to help your fellow Sandrocker! Really, you did. The more time you spend with the older woman, though, the more that desire to help turned into a different kind of desire entirely.

Simply put, you desire her. You've always had a thing for older women in general, now that you think of it, but you also have just come to really enjoy Catori specifically. She works hard despite the challenges a place like Sandrock constantly presents, and she genuinely wants to make people happy with her endeavors. She perseveres no matter what, and even when she's discouraged, all it takes are some supportive words from you to relight that fire you've come to love seeing in her.

You haven't found a way to express these feelings other than the occasional flirtation, something you don't think Catori's actually picked up on -- or if she has, she hasn't reciprocated, which, honestly, she probably wouldn't. Oh well. A little harmless flirting never hurt anyone, and if she were uncomfortable with it, you're confident she'd let you know.

On your way into town with a backpack filled with the materials needed to fix the snack rack in the game center again and your tool belt, you spot Grace walking in the opposite direction. Making eye contact, you smile and give her a small wave as you get closer, and she returns the smile readily.

"Hey, you. Don't tell me -- On your way to the Golden Goose?" The blonde says with a knowing look, provoking an eyebrow raise from you.

"How'd you figure that one out?"

"You're in there almost every day these days," she points out with a small laugh. "If I didn't know any better," she adds a little too slyly for your liking, "I'd think you've taken a liking to our resident entrepreneur."

"Yeah, yeah," you respond with a chuckle as you begin to move on. "Get back to the saloon; I hear there are some omelets that need mutilating."

You can feel the tips of your ears beginning to warm, but you're quick to shoot back. "You're too observant for your own good, you know that?"

She laughs louder as she passes by you, reaching up to squeeze your shoulder. "Good luck, firecracker. And stop by the Civil Corps office soon, yeah? I posted some commissions and you're so much faster than the boys."

"Careful, I know where you live!" She jokingly calls out over her shoulder as you both walk away from each other.

Not long after that, you push open the door to the Golden Goose. Catori's shuffling some papers around on her desk, but when she sees you enter, her face lights up with a warm smile as she stands.

"There's my favorite builder," she greets, rounding the corner of her desk on her way to you. Something on your person catches her eye and her gaze lowers as she reaches out to straighten your tool belt that had become a little crooked during your walk here. Your breath hitches at the feeling of her fingers brushing against the zipper of your pants before she returns her hands to her sides. "There, that's better."

"I-- Thanks," you barely manage to get out, warmth creeping up your neck against your will. Clearing your throat, you move on both figuratively and literally, making your way to the broken snack rack in the next room. "So what happened this time? The Punch-A-Tron isn't enough for Heidi anymore?"

You can hear Catori snickering behind you and you smile to yourself, pleased to get a laugh out of her. She deserves to be happy. You enjoy being the one to make it happen.

You're already couching down and slinging your backpack off your shoulder when you hear the woman respond. "It, uh, was an accident, actually. I was on my way to restock it and I just tripped."

This causes you to pause, looking over your shoulder, concern clearly painted across your face as you search her body for injuries. "Are you okay? That had to have been a pretty hard fall."

"Oh, me? I'm fine; barely a scratch on me! Promise," she's quick to reassure you, leaning against the nearby game machine. You examine her for a second longer than you probably need to before returning your attention to your backpack to unload the materials. "But you're sweet to ask."

You're blushing again. Thank the Light your face is turned away. "Well, this shouldn't take too long, at least."

And it doesn't. In no time at all, as you and Catori converse about current events and her son who'd just received the model train you'd built for him, the snack rack is as good as new. Standing, you stretch a bit, the action tugging your shirt out of its spot tucked into your pants, revealing the slightest sliver of an abdomen well-defined from long hours spent walking, working, fighting. You just barely catch Catori's eyes trained on it before she meets your gaze.

"Can I be honest?" She asks, an uncharacteristic nervousness to her tone.

"'Course. Always."

She chews on her bottom lip for a moment, and your eyes are drawn to the movement. You swallow.

"I kinda... sorta... broke the rack on purpose."

Your eyes snap back up, brows furrowing in confusion. "What? Why?"

"I just-- I like having you around, okay? We've spent a lot of time together lately, you and I, and... You're really spectacular, Y/N. You do so much for this town, for me, so much you don't have to do at all. And not even just that -- You're sweet, and smart, and funny..." There's a pause, almost as if she's trying to decide whether or not to say whatever she was going to say next. "... and beautiful. Inside and out. You're kinda the whole package. I can see why that Nia girl's so taken with you."

You're stunned for more reasons than one. For a moment, you just stand there, your grip on your backpack loosening. "First of all, Nia and I are just friends."

"Really? I coulda sworn I heard you two were a thing."

Clearly there are some folks you're going to have to speak to after this. "She's like my sister. Seriously, I think my parents would've adopted her a long time ago if they could've."

You drop your pack on the ground and step into Catori's space. She's taller than you; you've always loved that about her. "You don't have to break things to keep my attention, Cat. It's always been on you anyway."

The way Catori looks down at you after this has your heart rate picking up speed. Before you register what's happening, her hands curl into fists around both sides of your Corps jacket before tugging you into a kiss that feels like she's been holding back from this for quite some time. It already starts out passionate but it quickly grows heated as well, and as Catori slips her tongue past your parted lips with a sigh of contentment, she turns you, pinning you against the game machine behind you. You slide your tongue against hers with a moan, one hand reaching up to tangle your fingers in her hair while your other one grips her hip.

Breathless, she breaks the kiss to trail hot, open-mouthed kisses along your jawline, down your neck. She tugs your jacket and shirt collar down enough to expose your shoulder, and as soon as her mouth reaches it, she begins to suck a possessive mark onto your skin.

"Shit," you gasp, your grip tightening in her hair, causing her to groan against your shoulder. As she pulls away to admire her handiwork, her knee nudges your thighs apart and presses firmly against your crotch, causing you to suck in another breath. "Ca-- Cat, someone could walk in."

"Let them. I've been waitin' way too long to touch you like this," she husks. You've never heard her voice so low and it's more than enough to convince you to let this woman do whatever the hell she wants to you.

"Yeah, okay," you agree eagerly, your hand leaving Catori's hair to slide down her chest, your other hand joining it to begin unbuttoning her shirt.

With a giggle, her hands grasp your hips, guiding them back and forth until you're grinding against her thigh pushed up against your cunt. "That's my girl."

The sound you let out at that is downright desperate, and now you don't even need the help of her hands to keep rolling your hips into her thigh. Her shirt is significantly unbuttoned when you become too impatient to keep going, instead reaching underneath the fabric to roughly tug her bra up over breasts you've been fantasizing about holding in your hands for ages. As your palms brush against her nipples, she pushes her chest into your groping hands with a shuddering moan.

"You're needy, huh? Let me take care of you like you've been takin' care of me, sweet girl," she whispers in your ear, her breath hot and heavy, and immediately afterward her lips are on yours again, her tongue pushing into your mouth and pulling a groan from your throat. You pinch her nipples and her thigh presses harder against your bucking hips.

There's an urgency to both of your actions, the culmination of weeks of want all leading up to this. Trapped between Catori and the game machine behind you, there's no place you'd rather be, no one you'd rather be doing this with, no one you'd rather be with in general.

Her teeth are buried in your neck and her hand has just slipped underneath your shirt when your hips still, your thighs tightening around hers. "Fuck, Cat -- I'm cumming--"

As fast as her hand had slipped underneath your shirt, she shoves it down your pants to rub circles around your wet, swollen clit. "That's it, baby, cum for me."

You ride out your high on Catori's hand until you've finally come down, panting. She rests her forehead against yours, breathing just as heavily. When she pulls her hand out of your pants, her fingers are glistening with your juices. She makes sure your eyes are on her before she puts them in her mouth, sucking the cum from them with a satisfied moan as her eyes flutter shut. The sight of her takes away any breath you had left.

As soon as she's done, she kisses you, her tongue sliding between your lips. You can taste yourself on it, and just as things start getting heated again, she pulls away.

"Come back." As you speak, your hand leaves her breast to pull her back in by the back of her head. She gives in for a moment before breaking the kiss again.

She laughs a little at the disappointed whine that leaves your throat. "As much as I'd love to go another round, I do still got a business to run, pretty girl. And so do you."

You sigh. "Yeah, yeah." Slowly and very unhappily, you fix Catori's clothes before moving onto your own. She steps away from you and watches as you sling your backpack back over your shoulder and start heading toward the door.

"Blue Moon tonight?" You throw over your shoulder, a hopeful look in your eye.

Catori smiles, bending down to press a quick kiss to your lips. "You got it."

You return the smile before turning to head out the door and back to your workshop.

[ggensblog]

over-the-ocean call | j.p.

summary: you and james tried to make long distance work

inspired by over-the-ocean call by lizzy mcalpine

warnings: no war au! , fem! reader , swearing , fluff to angst , maybe a resolution ??? , a vague understanding of how collect calls work, bad writing (probably), unedited, use of 'y/n' a couple times

i do not in any way endorse or support j.k. rowling

word count: 3.9k

masterlist

---

third year

“Before we begin please make sure your partner next to you has properly secured their earmuffs”

Professor Sprout circled the rows of desks as students turned to one another, chatting for a bit while they waited for the next set of instructions. In the back of the classroom James Potter laughs at something Sirius Black says then looks at his own partner. He hadn’t had the need to speak to you all year, but all of the sudden there you were and he couldn’t think of a single reason why he hadn’t tried.

“How loud do you reckon they actually are?”

You’re pulled out of your daze, shifting your eyes to meet the hazel ones of your partner. You knew of James Potter and his friends. You were lucky enough to have never been subject to their merciless pranks, but heard tales of the four’s reputation and their seemingly reserved seats in detention. And now here James Potter was, asking you about Mandrakes and ‘how loud you reckon they are’

“Not louder than your mum in bed last night” Sirius interrupts in the background, James whips his head around and grimaces, “Gross mate, really?” Sirius shrugs, cackling to himself, and moves into conversation with Remus beside him. You laugh once and the ice between you and your tablemate is broken at long last. James smiles at the sound of your laugh, mentally making a note that he should hear it more.

“Sorry about that-” James starts but is quickly interrupted by Professor Sprout resuming her instruction.

“And now once you’re sure your ear muffs are on- grip the mandrake by the stem and pull firmly.”

Students all around lift their mandrakes and re-pot them according to the professor’s specific directions.

It wasn’t until after the class ended that James had the opportunity to speak to you again.

“That was some handiwork with those screechers.” You turn to him as you close your textbook. 

“What can I say, I guess I’m a natural” you muse and James’s smile only grows.

“I’m James by the way. Potter” he offers a smirk but not in a way where he expects you to be impressed but more in a genuine boyish way.

“I know who you are. I mean- everyone knows who you are. I’m Y/N. L/N.”

---

“Lily I mean it- he blew up the poor bird, it was awful.” You walk next to Lily Evans between classes, a normal occurrence but somehow never dull. The two of you had been friends since first year, finding solace in being the only two of your roommates with any connection to the muggle world.

“Evans! L/N!” Sirius Black shouts down the hall. The pair of you stopped short, silently agreeing to continue your conversation later. Sirius, Remus, James and Peter pick up their pace to meet the two of you.

Months had passed since your first interaction with the marauders and since then you found yourself around them more often than not. You didn’t complain though, it was nice to have a secure group of friends at hogwarts, especially if it meant you didn’t have to awkwardly squeeze between random students in the great hall.

"To what do we owe the pleasure of your company?" You jest. James eyes you fondly, taking note of your warm smile. You met James’s eye and your own heart began to race. A moment of silence passed before Sirius stepped forward.

“Nothing at all, lovely L/N. Dearest Evans, will you accompany Remus, Peter and I on a stroll through the courtyard” Sirius winks at Lily, a mischievous glint in his demeanor. You looked between the trio and your friend, confusion taking over.

“But we were just-”

��Of course, Black. Let���s be on our way. I’ll catch up with you later,” Lily patted your shoulder once before leaving you in the hallway. You watched them walk down the hallway, a shortlived sense of betrayal overcoming you.

“Uhm- hi.” You looked back to James who watched Sirius and the other’s walk off just a moment longer. When he looked back to you a soft smile overcame his face.

“Hi.” James offered back then continued, “uhm I wanted to ask you something”. Your eyes widened slightly at the stutter in your heartbeat. You and James have spent loads of time together in the past. Why was now any different? Was it related to your sudden longing to run your fingers through his dark curls? Or the giddyness you felt whenever he called you something sweet?

“Yeah of course,” You shook your head and brought your thoughts back to the present conversation, “What’s up?”

“Well, you know there’s a Hogsmede trip coming up,” James started, his head dropped to watch the shuffling of his feet, “I was- well I thought maybe you’d like to, uhm, come with me? To the three broomsticks or anywhere else?” James didn’t meet your eye again until he finished his statement. He brought his hand up to rub the back of his neck. Your eyes brightened and you took a step toward the boy.

“Like a date?” You asked, hopeful. Jame’s features lit up. “Yeah, like a date.”

---

seventh year

The marauders sat in the Gryffindor common room, celebrating finally being done with their N.E.W.T.s. While Lily cradled a bowl of popcorn in her lap on an armchair, Peter played a card game Remus and Sirius watched his boyfriend with adoration, you and James sat on the couch in complete bliss.

The past few weeks had been stressful on everyone, studying for exams and keeping up with classes meant very little time to galavant around the castle or even converse with friends for more than a few minutes. Exams finally being over was the best thing to happen to your friends. Relief washed over not only you and your friends but the entirety of Hogwarts. Where once the libraries were full and free spaces were sparse- now that same population was found out on the green or near the Black Lake.

“I am so glad we’re finally done. It feels like I can finally breathe” You let out a sigh, playing with the few rings on James’s fingers. Sirius nodded enthusiastically and Peter looked up for a minute, missing the jack that had just been laid down and thus losing that round of cards.

“I think it’s best for all of us that we are never given a test again” Peter concludes and sits back on his knees, taking a few chips from one of the bowls of snacks placed around the floor. Lily hums in agreement.

“It’s strange to think that we’re almost done with our studies altogether” Remus comments, “Hogwarts feels like my entire life”. It was James’s turn to nod now. “Now is when the rest of our lives begin.” Dorcas and Marlene walked into the common room then, swinging the fat lady portrait open, Mary not too far behind them. The three girls joined the group in front of the dormant fireplace. Mary ruffled Sirius’s hair then stole a handful of popcorn from Lily. 

“So, how are we celebrating?” Dorcas grins, leaning against the back of the couch where you and James are sat.

“This isn’t celebrating?” Peter asked, his eyebrows raising slightly.

“Heavens no!” Sirius jumps up, “We have to take on the town, we are done with the last ever standardized tests we will have to take! We don’t have to worry about remembering the ingredients to whatever bloody potion Slughorn demands ever again!” James laughs at this, having had to study particularly hard for the potions exam.

You look up at your boyfriend, quickly pecking him on his jaw then looking at the rest of your friends.

“I’m out, I still have muggle studies tomorrow” Remus sighs, beginning to put the card game away.

“Booo” you exclaim.

“Speaking of, Y/N, aren’t you supposed to leave after we graduate? For America or something?” Peter inquires. Eyes are suddenly on you. Your neck grows hot at remembering your father’s request to join him in America to get in touch with your muggle half.

“Uh, yeah…” You trail, finding your thumbs twiddling more interesting than anything else in that moment. James slings an arm over your shoulder and rubs it comfortingly, pressing a kiss to your temple.

“What’s your guys’ plan for that? Surely long distance?” Sirius swat’s Remus’s thigh at his statement. 

James looks down at you, a certain fondness having never left his eye since that first day in Herbology. The two of you had held off on talking about life after Hogwarts. You had tried to bring it up to James, but the boy deflected the topic each time- ‘we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it’- but now the bridge was a mere few feet away and no plan had been made.

You were nervous, scared even and if James was too- he didn’t show it.

“We’ll work it out.” He was terrified.

---

months later

You stopped in the middle of the airport. Your friends rallied behind you, not quite ready to say goodbye but ready to see you move into the next point of your life.

You turned to face your friends, a suitcase on either side of you. Lily took a step forward and was the first to bring you into a tight embrace.

“You have my number- please call. I don’t care how much it costs, I can't not talk to you ever again.” She muttered so only the two of you could hear. You wrapped your arms around the redhead and tears pricked at your eyes. Before now you and Lily hadn’t been apart for more than a few months over 7 years. You didn’t know what you were going to do without her.

After a moment Lily stepped back, she wiped a few tears from her vibrant eyes. Remus and Sirius were the next to step up.

“Good luck out there Y/N, it’s been a pleasure.” Sirius put a hand on your shoulder and you laughed at his serious expression. “I’m not going off to war, Black, I’ll be back to visit soon enough.” you pulled the boy into a hug. When the two of you broke apart you turned to Remus. You and him hadn’t been very close, but he was still a very dear friend in your heart.

“You’re going to do great things, Y/N.” He offered a small and sad kind of smile. You nodded “You will too Lupin. You’re one of the smartest people I know.” You and Remus hugged each other, he patted your back a few times then went to join the group.

Your remaining friends- Peter, Dorcas, Marlene, Mary, even Regulus (though you were sure he was there because his brother was his ride)- said their goodbyes, and with each hug from your loved ones, it became clearer to you how hard this was going to be. You couldn’t believe you were leaving. It didn’t feel real and you didn’t want it to be.

James stood at the back of the group, taking a few steps forward. His eyes still puffy from your joint crying session the night before.

“I- I don’t know where to begin-” he started, in front of you now. You took his hands in yours, trying to keep yourself from sobbing in the middle of the airport. 

“We’ll be okay, James. I promise. I will call and write and I’m looking for times I can come visit.” You sounded like you were trying to convince yourself. Hogwarts had been your entire life, you didn’t think you’d ever truly be prepared to leave. You lifted a hand to brush the side of his handsome face, pulling lightly on a stray curl.

“I know.” James responded and moved his hands to wrap around you. One last hug. You squeezed the boy for what seemed like forever. James pulled back for a moment and dipped his head down to yours, capturing your lips with his. One last kiss. This kiss was made of eagerness and uncertainty. You wanted to believe you would see him soon, that you would see all of your friends soon but the only thing you were sure of was that you couldn’t be sure of anything.

When the two of you broke apart you looked up at a clock on a wall and dropped your head. Your flight was leaving in an hour and a half and you still had to make it through security. Sorrow swallowed your heart, and you couldn’t bear to look up at your boyfriend- it would only make it harder.

“I have to go.” your words were soft, barely above a whisper and even if James didn’t hear you, he could’ve caught the message.

“What if I came with you-” Your head sprung back up, meeting James’s eyes once more. Your brows furrowed, “What-?”

“I can still buy a ticket, probably. I’ll come with you, I’ve always wanted to go to America.” James grabbed your hands once more and tears pricked your eyes.

“James…” you trailed and the boy nodded in understanding. His head dropped and he nodded. James knew he couldn’t go with you. Not now as he is starting his quidditch career. When he looked back up his eyes were glassy, leftover tears threatening to fall. He couldn’t cry though, he knew it wouldn’t do anything in the grand scheme.

“I love you,” He whispered, rubbing his thumb over your knuckles. You sniffed, smiling sadly.

“I love you too. I’ll call you as soon as I can find a phone.” You pulled your hands from his and took your suitcases. James took a single step back and watched you take a deep breath and begin to walk towards the security line.

It took everything in you to not look back, because if you did, you knew you’d never make it to America.

---

approximately two months later

You knew it would be hard accommodating to your new life, but you didn’t think you would be so immediately homesick. The culture shock wasn’t even the worst part. You could get used to the different accents and driving on the other side of the road but what you couldn’t get used to was your roommate.

Lydia seemed nice, she really did, and you tried your best to get along with her when you initially moved into the university dorms. She just- wasn’t around much. Constantly partying and going out with her American friends meant you were alone most of the time in an unfamiliar city.

You tried your best to keep in contact with your father but his job left him unavailable as well for most of the day.

But by now you had established a routine- go to class, stop by a little cafe on the way home, study, call whoever was awake back home, go to sleep, repeat. Tonight you called Lily.

“So your roommate is out again?” Lily sat on her own couch, the chord of her phone stretched almost to capacity in an effort to catch some privacy from her family in the other room.

“Yeah, I don’t even know how she finds something to do every night. I mean- it’s Wednesday, there can’t be much open tonight.” You laid your head back onto your pillow, staring up at your ceiling.

“I mean, it sounds like she’s got wicked stamina,” Lily joked. You laughed with her. You missed her knowing smirk whenever she joked with you.

“Yeah I guess so. Hey, have you heard from James recently? I keep trying to catch him but haven’t been able to get through.” Your smile fell a bit, hoping Lily would offer some reassurance about your missing boyfriend.

“Uh yeah- him, the guys and I went out the other night to a pub- that’s why I didn’t pick up Saturday. I thought he would’ve called you afterwards.” Your frown deepened. You knew Quidditch was going to eat up his time but you didn’t think he wouldn’t have any time at all for a quick catch up.

“He didn’t- but I’m sure he’s fine. I’ll try him again a bit later” You and Lily talked for a while longer before she had to leave for work. You checked the time- you should get to bed soon but you couldn’t without trying James one more time.

Ring. Ring. Ring. Ri-

“Hello?”

“James? Finally- I feel like I haven’t heard your voice in forever.” You smiled.

“Love, I am so sorry about not picking up- I know these collect calls are a lot- I’ve just been busy with quidditch and work-”

“Hey no- I get it. I’ve been pretty locked in too.” You sat up, turning to look out the window next to your bed. “I’m just glad I got through to you.”

You and James talked for what seemed like forever, though in reality it was only an hour or two. When you two finally hung up you felt a sense of relief wash over you. In the back of your mind you were worried James might have been avoiding you for whatever reason. 

Yours and James’s calls became more frequent after that- even if it was just a quick call to say “I love you”. You even started going out with your roommate- maybe she finally caught on to your loneliness and started inviting you out with her and her friends.

Things were looking up. For a while.

You had originally planned to return home for the winter holidays, wanting to check in on your mother and friends, but as work picked up you began to doubt that you would make it back. For some reason your professors believed it was a good idea to assign a ton of homework for the winter break- and your father began insisting on you getting a part time job to fill some of the empty spaces in your life.

“James I-”

“No I understand- you’re still adjusting over there. I just thought it wouldn’t be this long until I saw you again” James was pacing in his kitchen. Euphemia and Fleamont watched their son with worry. They had never seen him so distressed.

“I know darling, but I didn’t think I would be this busy during the holidays.” You were sat on the edge of your bed. A stack of paperwork waited for you a couple feet away. “And I’m really busy right now so could we just- talk about this later?” You felt yourself getting a little choked up- but held back any tears.

“Yeah- yeah whatever. Talk to you later y/n.” James sounded defeated as he slammed the phone back on the hook. He grabbed his coat and walked out the front door.

You on the other hand tried to get your bearings together because no matter what the state of your relationship was- your homework wasn’t going to wait.

---

You and James didn’t talk much after that. You didn’t know how to talk to him since it looked like you would be in America for longer than planned. The next time you called him you were on spring break.

“Hey James.” When you spoke your voice was nervous. You didn’t want to fight with him again.

“Hi lovely.” There was a moment of silence before he spoke again. “Uhm, how’s school?”

“Good, it’s good. Lot’s of work, per usual. But… good.” It was awkward. It was never awkward. Not with James.

“That’s uh- good to hear. Quidditch is going well. We won this past weekend and everyone came to see it. Remus got trashed at the after party if you can believe it,” You smiled at this. You knew he would be doing great things. You wanted to be there for him more than anything.

“That’s amazing,” You wanted the best for him, and since your last talk your mind has been racing. In the back of your mind you knew you needed to let go before it was harder for both of you.

This was the farthest thing from what you wanted to do.

“Jamie,” James stopped his ramble about how the weather had been recently, “James, I-” you started tearing up. Despite your best efforts your voice began to betray you.

“What’s wrong lovely?” Oh how you wanted one of his famous James Potter hugs right now.

“I- it’s been really hard being so far from you all. And all I want- all I’ve ever wanted is the best for you. I just- I don’t think-” You stopped to take a breath “I think we should break up.” 

“What? Y/N what are you talking about?” James swore he could feel his heart shattering.

“I mean think about it James, we never have time to call- who knows when I’m going to make it back over there. It’s just- it isn’t realistic for us to stay together. It’s hurting us both. I want you to go far in your career and you can’t do that if you’re staying up until the crack of dawn to talk to me” It took everything for you to not break down. “I don’t think this is working anymore.”

James was quiet for a moment, on his end of the line he was in shock. He knew things had been hard and the two of you had been distant recently but nothing could have prepared him for this.

“Is that what you want?”

No.

“Yes.” You squeezed your eyes shut, a single tear rolling down your cheek. You ran a hand over your face before speaking again. “I love you so much James, I think I always will. But this is too hard on the both of us to prolong the inevitable any more than we already have. I hope we can still be friends but the pressure of a relationship from so far away and so much uncertainty on when we’ll even be able to talk to each other…”

James was quiet again.

Fleamont had walked into the kitchen where James was sitting on the counter next to the phone. His son had been worried about the state of his relationship- even going so far as to inquire about plane tickets to America but he couldn’t find a good enough time.

On a certain level James knew what you were talking about. He was only getting busier the more he practiced for quidditch and looking for a place to move out into now that he had a steady income.

On a certain level, James agreed with you. He just didn’t want to.

“We can work it out. I’ll call more and- and I can come visit you-” You shook your head even though he couldn’t hear you.

“James…” You trailed off. Just like you had at the airport when you left. He knew that you had made up your mind. “This- calling every night, and then having to do work after, it’s- it’s exhausting. I’m so tired of giving myself hope that a relationship over the phone will work forever.”

“You’re-” James sniffed, his own tears forming in his eyes, “You’re probably right.”

With that you hung up the phone, finally allowing yourself to break down. Your roommate came in, stunned when she saw you hunched over and crying. She sat next to you on your bed and held you. You sobbed into her shoulder for the rest of the night.

After you had hung up James didn’t know what to do with himself. He hung up the phone and walked past his father and out the door. He soon found himself at Sirius and Remus’s apartment a couple blocks away and when they answered the door it’s like they could tell what happened.

An over the ocean call is how I told him ‘this isn’t working anymore’...

part 2 (ish) here; over-the-ocean call ending request

[dasrupesh]

Reputation

When you possess good behaviour then you will have good reputation automatically.Good heart, good behaviour, good ethics and good morality are the basic fundamental things to possess a good reputation.The reputation is your image, it is not your reality.You have different images because you wear different masks.You wear mask to hide your real face.The real face is not the image of your head but your real face hides inside your head.You pretend to be of good reputation and character.Pretending is not the actuality of your reality.Action speaks louder than your words.Your actions speaks louder than your reputation and character.Character is not the reputation.It is so absurd that people give character certificate but some bunch of people don't give reputation certificate as if character is of prime importance.Of course, character is as important as reputation because your character shapes your reputation.Your reputation doesn't shape your character.Character is inherent quality.The person is born with the good character but the person makes the reputation in his life.Once the character is lost then the reputation is also lost subsequently.Actually, when character is lost, everything is lost.Your structure of life depends upon your character because character is the bedrock of life.Reputation is the honor given to you by people.Character is not given by people.Reputation lies in the eyes of people because people decides the reputation of a person through judgement with certain parameters.Character lies in you which other people notices.If you possess bad character, you may rectify yourself towards making good character within you.If you possess good character, there is always a possibility that you may loose your good character towards bad character because man is variable.

            You cover your bad character with good reputation.If you have high reputation, then your bad  character is overshadowed by your pretending good reputation.You wear different masks which has many layers.Life is multifaceted, multilayered and multifunctional.You try to make good reputation despite of your bad character.This is not possible.You can only hide your bad character by good reputation.It's like a suspended animation state.You shadow your real character with reputation because you know your qualities and flaws.Character is inside you but reputation is outside you.Badness can't have good reputation.It is very simple that bad person have bad reputation and good person has good reputation.Good heart is good person.Bad heart is bad person.if the person is born good, he will be always good in his life if he doesn't deviate from goodness.If the person is born bad, he will be always bad because good hearts and bad hearts are born but reputation is earned in life.Reputation is not born.Good reputation and bad reputations are not born when somebody steps in in this world.The person earns good reputation and bad reputation through his action because life is free will.You will reap what you sow.False people with false pride may have good reputation.It is the people who decides and judges your reputation.You can't decide and judge your reputation by yourself.Judging always comes from others in case of judging someone's reputation.This is the world of judges where everybody is judging everybody.

            Everybody is talking about everybody.They just talk and talk.They don't speak with the conscience that what to speak and what not to speak.They don't know how to be silent because they have not known and tasted silence.Speech is silver and silence is golden.They talk everything under the sun and the moon.They even talk about galaxies and existence and ultimately about the life.The way you talk, the way you behave gives the certain reputation.Mannerism is the part of reputation.Being silent is also the reputation you make which is of the highest quality.The objective is that you want good reputation.Nobody wants bad reputation.Not everybody have good character and good reputation.Individual character is more important than the reputation judged by the mass.The majority of mass can be fooled by the person but the person can't always fool the people showing good character certificate.The certificates given to you by the people and the world is not the actual and exact valuation and identification of an individual.One day the truth comes out because truth prevails.The character certificate doesn't gurantee that you possess good character because man is changeable being.Good character can change into bad character and bad character can change into good character.Man changes with time because change is the only constant.Reputation also changes with time depending upon your actions.If you act good, reputation will be good.If you act bad, the reputation will be bad.There is no provision of reputation certificate.No organisation is giving you the reputation certificate but they are giving you character certificate.Reputatipn is important in life to be remembered as good person if you have a good character.The certificate given to you by the people regarding your reputation is sensical but the certificate given to you by the people regarding your character is absurd.

Email: dasrupesh22@gmail.com

[moonshine-nightlight]

Nothing’s Wrong with Dale - Part One

Inspired by the following writing-prompt-s: You’re pretty sure your boyfriend was replaced by an eldritch being that can barely emulate being human. Weirdly, you enjoy a better relationship with them than your actual boyfriend.

It’s been a week, but you’re fairly certain your fiancé accidentally got himself replaced by an eldritch being from the Depths. Deciding that he’s certainly not worse than your original fiancé, you endeavor to keep the engagement and his new non-human state to yourself.

However, this might prove harder than you originally thought.

Fantasy, arranged marriage, malemonsterxfemalereader, M/F

AO3: Nothing’s Wrong with Dale Chapter 1

Part One [Part Two] [Part Three] [Part Four] [Part Five] [Part Six] [Part Seven] [Part Seven.5] [Part Eight] [Part Nine] [Part Ten] [Part Eleven] [Part Twelve]  [Part Thirteen] [Part Fourteen] [Part Fifteen] [Part Sixteen] [Part Seventeen] [Part Eighteen] [Part Nineteen] [Part Twenty] [Part Twenty-One] [Part Twenty-Two] [Part Twenty-Three] [Part Twenty-Four] [Part Twenty-Five] [Part Twenty-Six] [Part Twenty-Seven] [Part Twenty-Eight] [Part Twenty-Nine] [Part Thirty] [Part Thirty-One] [Part Thirty-Two] [Part Thirty-Three] [Part Thirty-Four] [Part Thirty-Five]

You wince as you avoid looking at your fiance as he eats. You can still hear the sound though, far louder than the clink of cutlery, than the murmur of the others at the high table with you. A bone clatters to his plate with thud, the sound of him licking his lips before he guzzles the entire contents of his wine goblet without a breath almost echoing due to the uncomfortable dip in conversation that accompanies it. You set down the spoon you’ve been using to sip from your own bowl of soup silently. “More wine, my Lord?”

“Yes,” his voice is a hiss, but its the polite appreciation that still truly catches you off guard. You stand up to heft the jug to your right in order to refill his goblet on your left. When the cup is full and you tip the jug up to stop pouring, his hand grasps the bejeweled cup, skin paler than it used to be, veins more prominent.

Your eyes meet his automatically. They are too dark and too kind as he smiles at you with too many teeth. “My gratitude, Lady.”

You murmur a polite response out of habit as you sit back down. You’re sure now.

This isn’t your fiance, not anymore.

You had only come to live with your fiance’s family a couple weeks ago in preparation for your upcoming wedding. Your father and his grandmother had negotiated the betrothal. As the youngest child of an otherwise relatively well-blooded and well-off family, your status was hard to determine, but your family had been determined to marry you off and your bride price, while not overly generous, was perhaps more substantial than might have been expected.

As the only heir to a small house, who’s parents had died in service to the king, with good deal of land containing pockets of profitability, Dale could have perhaps done better than you—if his reputation hadn’t proceeded him. In the end, the match had seemed fair enough. You knew you were as unlikely to get a say in the matter as you were to get another offer. So you’d held your tongue and decided to try to make the best of it. It’s not as though any of this was a surprise to you. You’d long known how to expect your life to unfold.

Mother called you an unexpected blessing in mixed company, who persevered through struggles with a gentle smile. Behind closed doors, you knew you were an unwelcome child, born more than a decade after your other surviving siblings, and a sickly one at that. Your family had expected you to die before you could walk or speak and were subsequently unprepared to deal with you once you had, against all odds, survived. The easiest solution was to marry you off so your family could both feel they’d done their duty by you and no longer have to worry about you. You’d actually been hopeful about this new start.

Then you actually met Lord Dale Tiberius Archibald Remmington Quincey of Northridge.

Unfortunately, it quickly became apparent that every rumor you’d managed to gather together about him was, in fact, true. He was pompous, entitled, and vain. Obviously spoiled by his grandparents since his parent’s death, he seemed to have gotten used to walking all over people and expecting them to thank him for the privilege. He’d made it abundantly clear that were it not for his grandparents stipulation that he marry and produce a legitimate heir in order for him to inherit, he wouldn’t be bothering with it. The first semi-private moment you’d had with him while his grandfather attended to something on the other side of the grand-hall, he’d looked you over and proclaimed you passable.

Lord Dale did seem to listen to you when it suited him and had been quite willing to provide you with the means to pass time. He’d shown you around the estate you would manage as lady of the house which was appreciated, even if the current steward was doing most of the teaching since the initial tour. He seemed more or less content to leave you to your own devices, with the expectation you always come when he called to give him the attention he felt deserved. At least, he took charge in the couple of social situations with visiting nobility and courtiers that had arisen.

You’d begun to grow rather resigned to your fate of a lackluster, but not all-together miserable, future with him when it all changed.

The other tidbit you’d managed to gather about Lord Dale was that he was rather poorly hiding an interest in demonology. You’re not sure if he didn’t care if you knew, expecting you to keep his secrets as his soon-to-be wife, or if he merely overestimated his own ability to keep secrets. The large collection of poorly disguised books full of eldritch writings was one tip off. The other was the secret room hidden in his study, the one he frequently left you in unattended. Not to mention the artifacts and materials he traded in that had little other purpose aside from the occult.

At first, you believed that his interest stemmed from morbid curiosity over the cause of his parents’ death. A rather nasty encounter with a small herd of demons wherein they had protected some of the youngest children in direct line to the throne at the cost of their own lives. Or perhaps in response to his grandmother’s fierce hatred of all things demonic due to the incident that lead to her son’s death. Or even some leftover foolhardy youthful spite. By the time the month was out, you were certain he was just a reckless, thoughtless man after power.

He’d been particularly twitchy and smug all throughout supper that night. He’d even had the audacity to steal a kiss from you when his grandmother had dropped her glasses while chaperoning you that evening—hard and quick with an entitlement that made a bolt of fear go down your spine at the thought of your wedding night. Then he’d made a comment about celebrating the coming downfall of his rival, a lordling two fiefs over who had a better fashion sense than he did and none of the cruelty. His explanation to his grandmother about needing to finish some accounts in his study—leading her to compliment his hardworking tendencies—only adding to your apprehension. That night every stray sound had seemed like it could herald some coming catastrophe caused by his foolhardy arrogance.

In truth, when told he was ill the next day, you’d thought it a rather polite way to say he’d been brutally murdered by a demon. You’d been focusing your thoughts on preparing to be sent home when he appeared at breakfast with everyone else the next morning. He’d certainly looked ill, but it had been more than that—the drawn nature of his face, his slurred speech, the unnatural movements. You’d thought the end was only drawing itself out. Then all of his symptoms, to your mounting surprise, had improved as the week wore on, only to make it more and more obvious to you something beyond the physical had transpired. The suspicion of demonic possession that had slowly formed in your mind is only growing more concrete.

However, you aren’t sure what to do with your suspicions. Likely you will not have much longer to figure what to do given the way others have begun to notice the change in him. To your surprise, you find that you very much do not want them to conclude what you have.

Because the truth is, whoever—whatever manner of demon—that is now masquerading as Dale: you like them far better than you ever had the original man.

[Part Two]

[delusional-mishaps]

Epic x S/O headcanons (fluff and NSFW)

Fresh x S/O headcanons (fluff and NSFW)

Pleeeeeeeeease?

what is with u silly silly pea pole wanting nsfw sharty bae i dont do that here READ MFS!!/lh

Epic (am i gonna have 2 come up with names for these mfs too or smth):

he's soso silly and he's such a good partner look at how kind and silly and splorbo he is

i feel like he'd be the type to spoil his s/o idk why! but your house is probably filled with gifts and/or trinkets he bought you. most of it is the most bizarro stuff you've ever seen and when you ask him where he got them he just replies, "doesn't matter, i thought of you when i saw it" sweet but?? menacing.

the amount of inside jokes the two of you would have???? how do u guys remember them all pls

u guys have a secret handshake. he has one for everyone he's close with but yours is special because it involves a kiss teehee

he's a very friendly person so ur friends with all his friends and they all love you if they see him without you they'll ask where you are. he starts to think they like you better than him BAHHAJC

he'll whine like a little baby to you about it too. "bruuuuh you stole all my friends how could you do this i thought you loved me 🥺" he's only joking ofc he's rlly glad they like you so much

in case you haven't read the other post with him, i'm convinced he wouldn't use any pet names and he'd only ever call you "bruh" in the most affectionate, romantic way possible

you can carry this man around like a toddler and he'd thank u

"hey thanks bruh my feet were starting to hurt anyway" and he instantly passes out on ur shoulder and drools on you

sometimes, if you listen close enough, you can hear him singing and/or talking to himself in the shower <333

Fresh:

mf doesn't know what dating even includes he's clueless

he's just a naturally touchy-feely person,,, skeleton,, so he never correlated that that's,,, smth ppl who date do??

THAT BEING SAID he takes the dating pass to go above his normal physical invasiveness, he's constantly touching you (get ur mind out of the gutter.) and holding ur hand and snuggling you and giving you those weird skeleton kisses they all like to do,,!!!

he's at ur house all the time :) mostly cuz he doesn't,,,, actually,,,, have his own house,,,, but it's fine cuz you don't mind, right? :) yeah :)

ok tbh he's a bit over bearing and extremely clingy and possessive. he's like the stereotyped "don't even look at my s/o that way i'll kill you" man yunno

and he will kill them. he is not innocent 🌝

ok not a relationship headcanon but i feel like he'd use neo(n hehe) pronouns like neon/neons or smth idk but he would 100% use neos

tbh you two also probably have a secret handshake except fresh always tries to switch things up on you every time and you never actually know what to do so you just stand there with your hand out while he goes slapping and punching it and stuff

"babe what would you do if i had a parasite?" "idk why" "cuz i do 🥺"

mf doesn't even have a parasite he is the parasite. but it's easier on him if you just,,, think he has a parasite. maybe he'll tell you one day, maybe he'll go batshit and possess you who knows. fresh roulette 🤪

sometimes i think it's funny if he actually swears and had a sailor's mouth but i also think it's really funny if he comes up with really obscure replacements for swears like how my mom will say "fudgesicle" instead of "fuck" so as a compromise he has a potty mouth but never actually swears, it's all really weird alternatives. he also only ever does it around you because he otherwise has a reputation to uphold. he'll still censor you though 😋

he's never actually said the words "i love you" to you unprompted bcs he just!! doesn't think to say it????? actions speak louder than words and all that jazz. but if you tell him you love him, he'll say it back

[likeahorribledream]

ʙᴀᴅ ʀᴇᴘᴜᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴ

» CHAPTER SIX: SURPRISE

Summary: Jace shows up at the garage and leaves a mark.

Pairing: Biker!Bucky x Female!Reader

Word Count: 6.2k

Warnings: Mentions of cheating and sex. All I know about MCs is what I saw in SoA and Mayans M.C. so please take this with a grain of salt.

Note: In this story, Biker!Bucky looks like Chris from the movie Destroyer (with better tattoos). Bucky also has two flesh arms and never had to get the left one amputated. Biker!Steve looks like Nomad!Steve with lots of tattoos and rings.

Due to the nature of this AU, this series will be 18+. Minors DNI. If you chose to read this, you are responsible for your own media consumption. You have been warned.

ᴍᴀꜱᴛᴇʀʟɪꜱᴛ

» CHAPTER FIVE: REPUTATION

𝚂𝙴𝚁𝙸𝙴𝚂 𝙼𝙰𝚂𝚃𝙴𝚁𝙻𝙸𝚂𝚃

‘’Hey, Lovebug.’’

You stare at the man standing in the doorway, not believing your eyes. Maybe it’s a lot hotter than you think outside and you’re suddenly having hallucinations? Because there’s no way in hell that he’s actually here, smiling at you like he’s missed you.

‘’Jace? What are you doing here?’’

You’re relieved that the door between your office and the garage is closed and that no one can see him.

‘’No hello?’’ Jace fakes a pout and you almost roll your eyes.

‘’Hello, Jace. What the hell are you doing here?’’

‘’I missed you.’’

You laugh. ‘’Nice try.’’

‘’I did!’’ He steps inside.

You stay behind your desk, preferring to have some kind of distance between the two of you.

‘’How did you even find me here?’’

‘’Your parents told me. I called them, saying that I was worried about you because it seemed like you were getting yourself involved with a bad man. They were just as worried as I am, so they gave me your address to check up on you.’’

‘’I highly doubt that because I speak to my parents every day and they know that I’m perfectly happy and safe here.’’

‘’How can you be happy here when your fiancé is in another state?’’ He sighs.

‘’We’re not engaged anymore, Jace. We never should have been in the first place.’’

‘’We love each other!’’

‘’No. No, we don’t. You love yourself, maybe that girl you were screwing for our entire relationship but you definitely did not love me. I thought I loved you, but I think I was more in love with the idea of who you were, what you represented, than actually you.’’

Jace takes a few steps forward. ‘’Look, I messed up. I know that. But now I know that you are the one for me, not her.’’

‘’Jace.’’ You sigh and lower your head, pinching the bridge of your nose and closing your eyes for a second to gather your thoughts. You look back up. ‘’What do you want from me? Why are you here? Because I’m not leaving.’’

‘’I want you to come home.’’

‘’I am home.’’

‘’No.’’ Jace raises his voice. ‘’This isn’t your home. Your home is with me.’’

‘’Lower your damn voice.’’ You hiss through gritted teeth.

Jace glares at you. ‘’Watch how you talk to me.’’

‘’Listen to me. This is my home, we are over and I’m not leaving. Just move on with your life and find some other girl to cheat on. Now get the hell out of my office.’’

You put your hands on your hips and nod towards the door behind him.

‘’I don’t think so.’’ Jace grabs your arm and pulls you closer to him. ‘’You’ve had your little fun, your revenge or whatever but now you’re done. We’re getting your things and you’re coming home with me. Where you belong.’’

‘’Let go of me.’’ You warn him.

He tightens his grip around your arm. ‘’No.’’

You use your free hand to push against his chest, but he grabs that arm too and pins you to his chest.

‘’Jace, let go!’’ You say louder this time.

‘’No.’’ He almost yells in your face. ‘’You belong to me.’’

Peter has had a bad feeling since the guy asked to see you. He decided to linger around the door without being obvious and when he saw the man grabbing you, he ran in the garage to find Steve.

‘’Steve!’’ He yells over the loud noises.

‘’What?’’

‘’There’s some guy in Sweets’ office. He’s yelling at her and grabbing her.’’

‘’Shit.’’ He drops his tool to the ground. ‘’Go get Bucky, he went to grab something from the kitchen.’’

Peter nods and runs back to the clubhouse while Steve rushes to the closed door of your office and opens it. He steps into your office, appearing behind you and his jaw clenches when he sees what’s going on.

‘’Is everything ok here?’’

You jump at his voice, you hadn’t heard or seen him walk in. Before you can say anything, Jace speaks for you.

‘’Yes, everything’s fine. You can go back to work.’’ He gives Steve his best fake smile, but that doesn’t fool him.

Steve stares at Jace. ‘’Sweets? Are you ok?’’

‘’Yes. I’m fine. He’s leaving.’’

‘’We’re leaving.’’ Jace corrects you.

‘’I don’t think she’s going anywhere with you.’’

Jace’s fake smile disappears. ‘’Can you just leave me and my girl alone? It’s just a little lover’s quarrel, she’ll be fine. Right, lovebug?’’

Suddenly, Steve regrets having sent Peter to get Bucky.

‘’Ha. So you’re Jace.’’

Jace smiles, but this time it’s genuine. He looks down at you and loosens up his grip around your arms. ‘’You’ve been talking about me to your friends?’’

Steve notices Jace’s attitude changing and uses it against him. He takes a step closer to you and smiles.

‘’Oh, yes man. She talks about you all the time.’’

Jace’s now grinning.

Steve was hoping that he would have enough time to sweet talk him into letting go of you before Bucky gets here, but he should have known that Bucky was going to sprint over here like the building was on fire.

‘’What’s going on?’’

You look over Jace’s shoulder and see Bucky staring at you. Your whole body relaxes when your eyes meet with his. Bucky looks over at Steve and they seem to be having a silent conversation that lasts a few seconds before Steve starts speaking again, telling him to just follow his lead.

‘’Sweets, how about we go outside and you introduce him to everyone?’’

‘’That’s a great idea.’’ Jace smiles and finally lets go of you. He steps aside to let you lead him outside.

Jace looks at Steve. ‘’Could you stop calling my girlfriend Sweets? She’s engaged you know, if people heard you call her that it could give them the wrong impression.’’

‘’Yes, of course. My bad.’’ Steve raises both hands in surrender, to show he didn’t mean any disrespect.

You look at Bucky and you see the exact moment he realizes who’s there with you.

All of you walk out of your office and the moment you aren’t all crammed together in your tiny work space, Steve drops his act.

‘’Toots, come here.’’ Bucky holds out his hand for you to take, which you do and he pulls you into his side. He looks down at you, clearly worried. ‘’Are you ok?’’

‘’Yes.’’ You smile. ‘’I am, now.’’

Jace turns around and frowns. ‘’What are you doing with my girl?’’

Bucky kisses your forehead softly. ‘’Stay behind me.’’

You nod and watch as he stands in front of you.

‘’I thought we had already established that she was my girl.’’ Bucky crosses his arms over his chest. ‘’You know, when I said not to call her again it wasn’t an invitation to show up here.’’

Jace seems confused, trying to understand what Bucky meant and then it hits him.

‘’You’re the guy that’s been keeping her from me?’’

Bucky shakes his head. ‘’I’m keeping you from her. She’s done with you. She made herself pretty clear, multiple times.’’

‘’You know nothing about me and her, you have no right to get between us.’’

Bucky scoffs. ‘’I know everything there is to know.’’

Jace takes a step towards Bucky, trying to look menacing but when he sees that Bucky is taller and a lot bigger than him he regrets it immediately. Bucky steps closer, towering over him. He drops his hands at his sides and stares Jace in the eyes.

‘’You pathetic excuse of a man. You had the most perfect girl in the world and you dared to break her heart. You lost her, she’s gone. She doesn’t want anything to do with you, so go back to your little fucktoy and leave her the hell alone.’’ Bucky leans in closer. ‘’Get this through your thick skull: you don’t deserve her. Never did.’’ He leans back.

Jace scoffs. ‘’And you think you do? She’s just using you to get back at me.’’

Bucky walks back to you and wraps his arm around your shoulders. He looks back at Jace and smirks. ‘’She can use me anyyy way she wants.’’

You feel heat rushing to your cheeks and almost hide your face in his chest at his tone.

‘’Have your fun all you want, but one day you’ll be bored of her and she’ll come back to me.’’

Bucky laughs. ‘’She won’t come back to you and there’s even less chances of me getting bored of her so don’t hold your breath.’’

‘’Stop putting her on a pedestal and lower your expectations, otherwise you’re going to be extremely disappointed. Believe me. I’ve been there.’’ Jace scoffs.

Now you feel like hiding for a very different reason. Waves of embarrassment and humiliation are washing over you and you wish the ground would open up under you and swallow you whole.

You had this discussion with Bucky last week at Sam’s house and Bucky had managed to convince you that it wasn’t your fault if Jace cheated on you but you’ve just gotten confirmation that it was. You bite the inside of your cheek and look at the ground, trying not to cry in front of them. You move away from Bucky, wondering if you had enough gas in your car to get the hell out of here and disappear.

Bucky tries to take your hand, but you move out of his reach averting your eyes. He feels his blood boil in his veins, Jace had just ruined all the efforts he had made, all the hard work he had put into making you love yourself again. You were finally letting yourself be happy and with one sentence he managed to destroy everything.

He looks between you and Jace, hesitating. Should he comfort you right now or should he rip Jace’s head off first and then comfort you? He decides that you’re a lot more important than he is so he turns his back to him and moves to stand in front of you. He bends his knees just enough to grab your hands and stands back up to his full height.

‘’Toots.’’ He whispers, not liking how you were doing everything you could to avoid meeting his eyes. ‘’Look at me.’’

You shake your head, too ashamed.

‘’Please.’’

When you don’t move, he takes a deep breath to calm himself down so he doesn’t turn around and kill Jace right here, right now.

Bucky lets go of one of your hands and puts it on your hip instead to bring you closer to him. He’s scared that you might fight him, but thankfully you let him move you. The hand on your hip moves up to your face and he gently cups your cheek. He doesn’t move your head, he doesn’t force you to look at him. Instead he simply strokes your cheek with his thumb until you feel ready to look at him.

He intertwines your fingers with the hand he’s still holding yours with and leans in to kiss your forehead.

You finally look up and your eyes meet for the first time since Jace humiliated you. What he sees in them breaks his heart and he feels the strong urge to protect you. He gives you a small smile.

‘’Hi, beautiful.’’

You try to look away but Bucky doesn’t let you. ‘’Uh-uh. None of this.’’

‘’Buck…’’ You whisper.

‘’No. Don’t listen to that asshole. He’s just mad because you realized you deserve what’s best in life and he’s not even close to making the cut.’’ He speaks loud enough for Jace to hear him then whispers again. ‘’My gorgeous girl. Inside and out.’’

Bucky leans down and rests his forehead against yours. His heart flutters when he sees the tiny smile you give him.

‘’There she is.’’ He smiles and rubs his thumb across your bottom lip. ‘’I want to kiss you so badly right now.’’

You chuckle. ‘’Steve’s standing right there.’’

He shrugs. ‘’I don’t care.’’

‘’What about hiding in our bubble?’’

‘’You know, I’ve thought about that and I’ve realized something.’’

You smile. ‘’What is it?’’

‘’Keeping you just for me is nice, but showing everyone that you’re mine is even better.’’ He grins.

Jace rolls his eyes. ‘’You’re so desperate for her man. It’s sad.’’

‘’Shut the hell up, asshole. No one wants you here so feel free to fuck off whenever.’’ Bucky says, still looking into your eyes.

He tilts your head back and leans in to kiss you. Not caring if Steve’s there, if the entire garage’s watching or if Jace has murderous eyes. Right now, all that matters to him is you and making you feel loved.

You hesitate to kiss him back, very much aware of the two men looking at you but you can’t resist Bucky for long.

Bucky lets out a small sigh when he feels you kiss him back and smiles against your lips. He tries to keep it PG-13, having an audience and all, but his hands are just itching to grab at all the skin he can find.

You break off the kiss, because it doesn’t seem like Bucky was going to do it and he lets out a whine, an actual whine, when you do.

Jace laughs. ‘’This is your ‘’man’’? The one that acts like a tough guy on the phone?’’

Bucky groans. ‘’I forgot that asshole was still here.’’ He pecks your lips and lets go, turning around to be face-to-face with Jace.

‘’Ok, what do you want? Why are you here? Most importantly, why are you still here? You want her, she doesn’t want you, you had your temper tantrum, you said all your little mean comments; now what?’’ He takes several steps forward and looks down at Jace. ‘’Want me to show you how much of a tough guy I am? Because I don’t have any problem with performance, which from what I understand, you can’t say the same.’’

He grins.

Jace glares at him. ‘’Remember that promise I made you, about my friends paying you a little visit?’’

Bucky throws his head back and laughs. ‘’Bitch, how dumb are you? Look around you.’’

His laugh startles Jace a little, it wasn’t the reaction he thought he would get from Bucky. He does look around when Bucky tells him to and that’s when he notices where he is. The bikes, the giant M.C. tag on the clubhouse’s wall, the big tattooed guys standing in front of him. Colors slowly drain from his face with each new thing he notices.

‘’You fucked with the wrong man, little Jacey.’’ Though Bucky is smiling, there’s nothing reassuring about it. It’s actually quite terrifying. ‘’In fact, you fucked with the wrong man’s girl. Coming here thinking she was yours.’’ Bucky tsks, shaking his head. ‘’Bad move. Putting your hands on her? Bad. Fucking. Move.’’

Bucky grabs him by the arms like he had done with you in your office and tightens his grip until his knuckles turn white and Jace winces. ‘’Now, listen to me and listen to me carefully because this is the last time I’ll be telling you this. You stay the hell away from her, you don’t call her, you don’t send her texts, you don’t even think about her. If you do any of it again, it’s gonna take a lot more than your little paid goons to stop me from tracking you down. Got it?’’

Jace just stares at him with wide eyes. Bucky shakes him a little, not liking his silence.

‘’I said got it??’’

Jace nods slowly.

‘’Good. This was your last fucking warning.’’ He says through gritted teeth, his jaw clenched. ‘’If there’s a next time, and if you’re somewhat smart there won’t be, you’re going to pay for all the times I did warn you. Now. I’m gonna let go of you, you’re gonna get into your car and I’m going to escort you out of my town. You better never cross the townlines again.’’

Bucky lets go of him and pushes him back towards his car. Jace looks at you and opens his mouth, making Bucky shove him harder.

‘’What the fuck did I just say to you? Get in your damn car.’’

Bucky takes his keys out of his pocket and walks back to his bike. ‘’I’ll be back.’’ He tells Steve, straddling his bike.

‘’I’m coming with you.’’ Steve quickly gets on his bike.

‘’Go home baby. I’ll come over later, ok?’’ He smiles brightly at you, remembering the date he had promised you earlier this morning.

‘’Ok.’’ You smile. ‘’Be careful, both of you.’’

You look at Steve.

‘’We will.’’ The blonde nods and a few seconds later they speed out of the lot, following Jace’s car.

They escort Jace all the way to the town line and watch as he keeps driving away. When they can’t see his car anymore, Steve turns his head to look at his best friend.

‘’Are we going to talk about it?’’

Bucky keeps looking in front of him, as if he expected Jace to come back.

‘’About what?’’

‘’About what happened at Sam’s. You kissing Sweets.’’

Bucky arches a brow and turns to look at Steve.

‘’It depends. Are you going to apologize for what you said to me?’’

‘’Look, I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings or insult you but-’’

‘’But you did. Everytime you want to talk to me about her, you always end up insulting me. What’s going on between her and me, is our business and no one else’s.’’

‘’How long has it been going on?’’

Bucky hesitates. ‘’Officially? Since Thursday, after coming back from Sam’s.’’

‘’And unofficially?’’

Bucky shrugs. ‘’For me, since her first day at the garage.’’

Steve sighs. ‘’Bucky…’’

‘’Don’t ‘’Bucky…’’ me. I’m not a dumb teenager anymore. I know what I’m doing and I know what I want. I like her, ok? Like really, really like her. I think I might even be falling in love with her. So crawl out my ass. I know you all think I’m pussy whipped or whatever, but I haven’t even slept with her so you all need to stop acting like I’m just thinking with my dick.’’

Steve’s eyes widened. ‘’You haven’t slept with her? Why?’’

‘’What do you mean why? Because we’re not at that stage.’’ Bucky crosses his arms, holding his bike up with only his legs. ‘’Jace really hurt her. He broke her heart and her trust. Trust in others and in herself. The fucker managed to make her think that something is wrong with HER and that’s why he cheated.’’ His jaw clenches and he turns to look back at the road in front of them. ‘’I don’t want to push her. We’re taking it slow and going at her pace, right now she needs to know that she can trust me.’’ He uncrosses his arms and reaches over to his handles. ‘’You constantly hovering and warning her about me isn’t helping. At all. I know you mean well, but if you keep doing what you’re doing you’ll fuck everything up for me with her and I don’t think I could forgive you for taking her away from me.’’

Steve listens without interrupting. He knew that Bucky liked you, but he didn’t think it went this far. He feels bad for standing in his way and for making you doubt Bucky’s intentions. Sometimes Steve can get overprotective and even if he has good intentions, he ends up hurting people. Like his best friend.

‘’I’m sorry, Buck. I didn’t know it was this serious.’’

‘’Because you don’t listen to me.’’

Bucky starts backing up his bike to turn back around.

‘’Don’t tell Nat about me and her. She won’t care if I love toots or not, she’s just gonna rip her away from me.’’

‘’She’s going to find out at some point. Especially if you keep kissing her at work.’’

Bucky sighs. ‘’I won’t. She just looked so hurt. I- I needed to do something.’’

‘’Just don’t let Nat see you. Because Sweets won’t be the only thing she’s going to rip away from you.’’

Bucky winces. ‘’At this point, I don’t even know which one would be more painful.’’ He shakes his head.

Steve laughs. ‘’You’ve got it that bad, uh?’’

‘’If you only knew.’’

They make their way back to the garage to help the other guys cleaning up and closing, Bucky is happy to see that you listened to him and went back home for the rest of the day.

Once they made sure all the doors were closed and locked, most of the crew went back home while Bucky rushed upstairs to his room to clean up before meeting you.

After getting out of the shower, Bucky takes his phone and calls you.

‘’Hi, James.’’

‘’Hi, beautiful. How are you feeling?’’ He sits on his bed, holding his towel around his hips.

‘’I’m ok.’’ You sigh. ‘’Is he gone?’’

‘’Yes, Steve and I made sure of it. I won’t let him get to you again, I promise.’’

‘’Thank you, Jamie. For taking care of him, and me.’’

Bucky smiles. ‘’You never have to thank me for that, toots.’’

‘’I want to.’’

‘’Are you still feeling up for our date?’’

‘’Of course.’’ You smile, excited.

‘’I was thinking that maybe instead of staying in, we could go out. If you want. Otherwise we can stay in.’’ He suggests, nervously.

‘’What if someone sees us?’’

‘’I don’t think anyone will, and if they do it’s not a problem for me. We’ll do whatever you’re comfortable with. I just want to spend time with you.’’

You grin. ‘’Where are we going?’’

‘’It’ll be a surprise. Just wear something you feel cute in.’’ He chuckles. ‘’Do you mind if you come meet me at the clubhouse and we take your car from here? I don’t want to take my bike.’’

‘’Whatever you want, Jamie.’’ He could hear the smile in your voice. ‘’When do you want me to come pick you up?’’

‘’Whenever you’re ready, toots. I’ll wait.’’

‘’Ok, I’ll text you when I leave.’’

‘’I’ll see you soon.’’

You both hang up and start getting ready. There was this small diner near the edge of town, not a lot of people knew about it because it was kind of hidden but Bucky has been going there for years and he loves it. They kept the 50s look, even the jukebox, and the food is really good. It’s the perfect spot to take you to eat and maybe even dance if he’s lucky. It was nothing fancy, like the restaurants Jace probably used to take you to, but that’s all he can afford so hopefully it’ll be enough.

Bucky chooses to wear some cleaner clothes than he usually does, he usually always gets dirty while riding his bike but the car will keep him clean so he can wear his ‘’fancy’’ clothes.

Instead of his usual blue jeans, he wears his black skinny jeans with a white t-shirt. He takes out his neatly polished combat boots and his leather jacket, because they were taking your car he didn’t need to wear his kutte. He’s going to bring it with him, just in case he needs to flash his colors but he intends on wearing only his jacket.

He looks at himself in the mirror and tries not to think about how embarrassing it is that those are his fancy clothes.

When Jace showed up earlier, he was wearing clothes that were probably more expensive than his bike, and his car is probably worth more than the clubhouse and the garage combined.

You’ve already told him that you didn’t care about those sorts of things but having Jace’s lifestyle shoved in his face just proved how their lives were polar opposites. He’d never be able to offer you that kind of life, no matter how many jobs they pull with the club and cars they get into the garage.

He moves to sit on the edge of his bed and nervously fiddles with the rings on both of his hands.

Not to mention he’s living in a room over the clubhouse whereas Jace probably lives in a house 15 times bigger than this.

He’s pulled out of his thoughts by his notification ringtone going off behind him. He reaches back and takes his phone, unlocking the screen.

[My best girl] I’m downstairs :)

[Me] I’ll be right there!

Bucky gets off his bed and checks his pockets to make sure he has his wallet and keys. He grabs his kutte then he rushes downstairs. He walks outside and locks the door behind him, just in case someone would be stupid enough to try and rob the clubhouse.

He turns to look for your car and sees you leaning against it, waiting for him. He looks you up and down, grinning.

You weren’t sure where Bucky was taking you, a black summer dress seemed to be the safest option. It has long sleeves that are off the shoulders and it’s long, stopping a little above your ankles. The top of the dress is a little form-fitting while the skirt is more flowy. You thought about wearing heels but it sounded exhausting so instead you wore a nice pair of black sandals that were a lot more your style.

‘’I feel underdressed.’’ Bucky jokes as he gets closer to you.

You shake your head and smile. ‘’Stop. You look very handsome. As usual.’’

Bucky blushes at your compliment, his cheeks turn a light pink just bright enough for you to notice and you internally swoon because of his reaction.

He kisses your cheek. ‘’You look gorgeous, toots.’’

‘’Thank you.’’ You smile shyly.

‘’Are you ready to go? I’m starving.’’

‘’Yes, me too!’’ You chuckle and pull yourself away from the car, handing the keys to Bucky.

He takes both the keys and your hand, lifting it up to his lips to press a kiss to your knuckles before letting it go.

He sits behind the wheel while you sit in the passenger’s seat.

Bucky puts down his kutte on the console between your seats and starts the car. He smiles at you one more time before driving out of the lot and towards the diner.

You look down at Bucky’s kutte then back up at him. ‘’I thought you needed to wear it every time you were out?’’

Bucky glances at you. ‘’When I don’t ride, I don’t necessarily have to wear it. It’s better if I do, but tonight I want to be a regular guy.’’

‘’Really? Why?’’ You ask curiously as you watch him drive.

‘’Because,’’ He shrugs. ‘’It’s what you deserve.’’

You tilt your head to the side to really look at him, look over his features and body language. It seems like you aren’t the only one who’s shaken up by Jace’s little surprise visit. You sigh, a new wave of anger towards Jace washing over you.

Not being able to hold Bucky’s hand because he needs them both to drive, you reach over to the back of his head and try to appease him by gently rubbing his scalp. You want to tell him that he shouldn’t worry about that, that he shouldn’t even think about those kinds of things because you don’t care but you know that he cares.

You both stay quiet until you reach the diner, your hand never left his head for the whole ride and when you have to pull away to get out, you just want to move your hand back to keep doing it.

Bucky locks the car when you’re both out and then offers you his hand that you gladly take once you’re close enough to him.

‘’I know it doesn’t look like much, but I promise the food is good.’’ Bucky has been nervous since he hung up on the phone with you but had managed to keep himself, somewhat, collected but slowly you could see the telltale signs of his nerves getting the best of him.

‘’I trust you.’’ You offer him your best smile and you notice his shoulders relaxing, only slightly but it’s better than nothing.

He holds your hand all the way to the door, then lets it go to open the door and holds it open for you. Once you pass him, he follows right behind you and guides you with a hand on the small of your back.

‘’Hey, Bucky.’’ A waitress greets him. ‘’Sit wherever, I’ll be right over.’’

‘’Thank you.’’ He smiles at her and takes you to a booth at the back of the diner where you’ll have plenty of privacy and be able to enjoy yourselves without worrying about someone seeing you.

You sit on opposite seats of the table and once seated you start looking around the place. ‘’I love that they kept it looking like this.’’

‘’Yeah, me too. I’ve been coming here since I was a kid and it never changed.’’

The waitress from earlier comes over and smiles down at Bucky. ‘’We haven’t seen you in a while, we thought you abandoned us.’’

Bucky chuckles and shakes his head. ‘’Y’know I’d never do that to you.’’

The waitress turns her attention to you. ‘’And who do we have here?’’

‘’Beth, this is Toots; Toots, Beth.’’ He introduces you.

‘’Nice to meet you, Beth.’’ You give her a warm smile.

‘’You too.’’ She nods and looks back at Bucky. ‘’She’s real pretty, and she must be real special if you brought her here.’’

Bucky blushes for the second time tonight and Beth looks at you with an amused smile. ‘’I’ve known him since his ma brought him here for the first time when he was a little kid, and you’re the first girl he’s ever brought here.’’

You look at Bucky curiously, arching a brow. ‘’Am I really?’’

‘’Yeah.’’ He looks up at Beth. ‘’Stop embarrassing me and go take care of your other customers.’’ He almost pouts, making Beth roll her eyes.

‘’Fine.’’ Beth gives you a small smile. ‘’I’ll tell you what he said to me about bringing girls here when I come back.’’ She winks at you and leaves to go take care of the other couple sitting at the front of the diner.

When your eyes fall on Bucky again you find him reading the menu very intently, clearly trying to avoid looking at you.

‘’Bucky.’’ You call his name with a teasing tone, but he pretends not to hear you.

‘’Jaaames.’’ You try again, with a big grin.

Bucky huffs. ‘’You always play dirty, woman. Stop using my weaknesses to get what you want.’’ He shakes his head, still looking at the menu.

You chuckle and put your arm on the table, resting your head on your hand. You stare at him and you can see him squirm in his seat. You almost have him.

‘’Baby.’’

Bucky groans and drops the menu. ‘’You’re mean, you know that?’’ He says, finally looking at you.

‘’You’re a liar, you know that?’’ You smirk.

Bucky bites back his smile.

‘’So… I’m special, uh?’’ You grin.

He rolls his eyes. ‘’That’s not a secret, I tell you all the time.’’

‘’But how special am I? If I’m here?’’ You continue teasing him, loving to see the pink on his cheeks getting brighter.

‘’You’re losing your specialness with every second you enjoy making me squirm.’’

‘’Damn, it’s going down fast then.’’

Bucky stares at you. ‘’You’re lucky you’re so damn cute, you know that?’’

You smile brightly at the compliment. ‘’What should I order?’’ You ask, changing the subject.

But not because Bucky wants you to, but because Beth will be back soon and you know she won’t hesitate to answer you.

‘’Well, it’s not really fancy food.’’

‘’When’s the last time you saw me eat fancy food?’’

He nods his head. ‘’Fair point.’’ He looks over the menu, and finds the perfect thing for you. ‘’Do you trust me enough to let me order for you?’’

‘’I usually never let anyone order for me but… I trust you.’’ You close your menu and point at him. ‘’If you order me a salad, I’m walking out of here.’’

He laughs and closes his menu too, putting it on top of yours. ‘’I promise, nothing healthy.’’

‘’Good.’’ You smile.

Now that you’re sitting in front of him, Bucky takes some time to really look at you for the first time since you picked him up. You have your hair down, which he hasn’t seen since before the heatwave. He loves when your hair is up, but he has a soft spot for when it’s down. You barely have makeup on and he finds you gorgeous with or without it.

Your neck and shoulders are bare, except for a dainty necklace with a small pendant that lays right in the middle of your collar bone.

All he wants to do is come sit in your booth and kiss all over the skin of your neck and shoulders, he bites his lower lip and quickly looks back at your eyes.

He clears his throat and holds his hand up to his neck. ‘’What’s on your necklace?’’ He points to his own neck where your pendant is.

Your hand instinctively reaches up to touch it. You hesitate to answer. ‘’It’s a fairy.’’

‘’Does it mean anything?’’ He asks curiously.

You simply nod without answering and you look away, focusing on all the tables around you but your own.

Bucky’s brows furrows and he sits up closer to the table, moving his arm across the table to hold your hand that isn’t up to your neck.

‘’Hey.’’ He says softly to catch your attention. ‘’What’s wrong?’’

You look back. ‘’My parents gave me the necklace when I was little because I loved fairy tales. They’re all I could think or talk about. They loved to kill me princess, so in my mind that meant that they were the king and the queen.’’ You let go of your necklace.

Bucky’s eyes soften and he smiles fondly at you. ‘’Did they pass? Is that why you looked sad?’’

‘’Oh no, no. They’re fine. It’s just that I hadn’t worn it in a long time. Jace thought I was too old to wear this kind of things and that it made me look stupid.’’

‘’I should have kicked his ass before he left town.’’ He hisses. ‘’I think it looks beautiful and I love that you thought you were a princess.’’ His thumb swipes across your knuckles a few times.

‘’You really think so?’’

‘’Absolutely.’’ He smiles. ‘’You’d make a really beautiful princess, by the way.’’

You laugh quietly.

‘’But you’d make an even more beautiful queen.’’ He brings your hand to his lips and presses a few kisses on the back of it.

Your heart flutters and you grin. ‘’I guess that makes you my king, then.’’

‘’If I was so lucky.’’ He winks and before you can answer, Beth is coming back.

‘’Are you two lovebirds ready to order?’’

‘’Yes! I’ll take the usual.’’

‘’Extra fries?’’

‘’Like you even have to ask.’’ Bucky rolls his eyes playfully. ‘’She will have the cheese sandwich, with bacon, and a chocolate milkshake.’’

You nod, approvingly.

‘’How did I do?’’ Bucky asks you.

‘’Well. Very well.’’

He grins.

‘’Letting him order for you, uh? You’re lucky he didn’t order you a salad.’’ Beth jokes.

‘’He’s lucky he didn’t order me a salad.’’ You say menacingly.

Beth chuckles. ‘’I like this girl.’’

‘’Yeah.’’ He squeezes your hand that he’s still holding over the table. ‘’I do too.’’

‘’You did say that if you ever brought a girl here to meet me, it’ll be the one.’’

You look at Beth, shocked while also being very glad you are sitting down because you feel your knees growing weak.

‘’You said that?’’ You ask, almost whispering.

Bucky has suddenly forgotten how to speak, his mouth keeps opening and closing but nothing comes out.

Beth takes this as her cue to leave, though you don’t notice because your eyes are glued to Bucky.

‘’What is it with everyone trying to make me look like an asshole in front of you.’’ He mumbles under his breath.

‘’Buck?’’

He sighs and lets go of your hand, bringing it up to his face to rub nervously at his beard. ‘’I did say that, I just didn’t think she was going to rat me out.’’ He glares at Beth when she winks at him, then his gaze finds yours again. ‘’I’m sorry, toots.’’

He leans back against the booth. ‘’I keep screwing this up.’’ His leg starts bouncing under the table. ‘’I understand if you want to run out of here. I know I’m going way too fast and I’m probably scaring you. It’s way too much, way too fast for you. I mean you were engaged a few months ago and today your ex shows up and now this.’’

He shakes his head.

‘’Bucky.’’ You say softly.

‘’No, no. It’s fine. I get it. Don’t worry.’’ He takes your car keys out of his jeans’ pocket and puts them down in front of you. ‘’You go, I’ll find a ride back.’’

Bucky doesn’t let you say anything. You watch as he gets up and walks to the restroom, disappearing behind the door.

» CHAPTER SEVEN: BREATHLESS

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[sukirichi]

acquainted

You had no intentions of becoming acquainted with the clan your family had cut ties with, but when Naoya Zenin himself is willing to teach you a lesson and you’re determined to show him what you’re capable of, it becomes a silly game of power and dominance.

REQUEST. naoya putting reader back to her place

WARNINGS: Naoya Zenin, rough sex, orgasm denial, face fucking, slight voyeurism, degradation, slight bondage, cowgirl riding, manhandling, spanking, hate sex

WC. 5.4k+

NOTES. Because Naoya is my favorite, his fic is the only one I’ve ever edited, LOL. Even though this is requested, this is written out of self-indulgence, purely because I love Naoya and even though he’s nasty, he’s my comfort character. And freaking FINALLY I have written more for this man. I worship this King 👑

There were so many ways this day had gone wrong. First, your shower broke. Second, the maintenance men couldn’t come until late in the afternoon, so you had to drive all the way to school looking like a half-mess. You weren’t a slob, of course, but you were beyond irritable at the thought your hair felt greasier than most.

So when an unfamiliar mop of blonde hair sat at your place, the sight of pierced ears meeting your gaze as you smiled at the young man, you had to clutch your bag tighter. No need to be harsh to anyone; you reminded yourself.

“Hi,” you greeted as politely as you could.

The young man in your seat was handsome — terribly so — feline eyes emphasized with an eyeliner, and stunning green eyes that peered up at you with utmost boredom. He looked familiar, but you couldn’t pinpoint where you’d seen him before.

“I believe you’re in my seat.”

You expected he’d kindly take another seat since the hall was empty, but he only leaned back in your seat, brow raised with a slight smirk. “So?”

Your mouth fell agape, hands falling at your sides. Who was this guy? “What do you mean, so? Get the fuck out of my seat.”

“Women,” he rolled his eyes, “Always so tempered and dirty mouthed,” the words felt like stinging slap in your face, and he easily read through you when he snickered to himself, waving a hand in the air as if he was swatting a fly away. “I’m already sitting here, so go find someplace else. I came here first.”

“You little — who do you think you are?”

“Who do you think you are for speaking to me? Did I give you permission?”

His condescending voice made you lunge at him if not for your friend’s hand wrapping at your arm, shooting worried glances over the guy. His smirk deepened when your friend pulled away, the words mutter under her breath. “Come on, let’s go,” she tugged you away despite your protests, pushing your shoulders down to make you sit. Once out of earshot, she rolled her eyes. “I seriously hate that guy. Don’t you ever involve yourself with him.”

“Who’s that prick anyway? He acts so high and mighty like he’s some rich daddy’s son. Look, he’s totally claiming my seat as his!”

“That’s Naoya Zenin, and yeah, he is some rich daddy’s son,” she confirmed, shivering at the mere mention of his name. “He’s an absolutely big misogynist. Don’t be fooled by his pretty face — he’s the worst fuckboy to ever exist. That dick of his isn’t worth getting fucked over. He’s already made half the women in school cry and run after him like a horde of lovesick zombies,” your friend gagged with a shake of her head, “It’s terrifying, actually.”

“Fucking asshole,” you hissed under your breath, sending side glances at the corner of your eye.

That stupid guy was still in your seat, a bored expression on his handsome face, his long lashes fluttering against his cheeks at every blink. He just had to be a sexist pig with that gorgeous face — no good men existed anymore. “Whatever. He’ll get a taste of his own medicine soon.”

“Whatever it is you’re planning, I wouldn’t recommend it.”

“I’m doing this for all of us,” you announced with your spine straightened. “I’m not letting a man walk like that acting like he’s got the whole world at his feet. I’ll teach him a lesson or two.”

“You do know he can sue you if you punch him right?”

“Who said I was going to punch him?” a smirk painted your lips at the same time he felt your eyes burning holes at the side of his face, your expression even more triumphant when he tilted his head to the side, eyebrow cocked at your gaze. He must’ve assumed you’d fallen for his looks judging by the satisfied smile on his face, making you laugh because it would be fun to teach him a lesson.  “No, I have a much more interesting plan in mind.”

It turned out that Naoya wasn’t that much of a stranger.

You had his reputation to thank for — people spoke his name left and right that it was nearly impossible not to know of him. It had you wondering how you managed to live through university so long without knowing him when the name drowned you; he was a Zenin.

No wonder that name was so familiar.

The Zenin’s were a close business partner of your family, but they cut off ties with their company years ago due to them having an intolerable attitude. Clearly, it ran in the blood, and their heir manifested it so well.

Thoughts of Naoya and his stupid face were soon drowned out by expensive champagne, the golden liquid sparkling in your hands. You had to attend this dinner gala where businessmen and powerful families alike conjoined for a formal opportunity of forming connections and solidifying deals, pressuring you to be at your best behaviour lest you wanted your black card to be cut off.

You made your way through the crowd to get another one of those hors d oeuvres, opting to just sit in the corner while you watched your family plaster on big, fake smiles with even louder, faker laughter.

It was quite sad, really, that people had to do stuff like this, but who were you to complain when it was what fed you on a silver plate all the time?

For now, you just wanted to enjoy the new dress your mother had gotten you, the silk black material hugged around your curves delectably. Pearl drop earrings hung to frame the sides of your face, legs lengthened and accentuated with stiletto heels.

You felt sexy — especially when you got lingering gazes from men who were slightly older and definitely richer, though you made no move.

The last thing you wanted was to become someone’s trophy wife when you could become so much more.  Plus, only your parents had the task of befriending people and building trust with others. You were only here to help represent the name somewhat with your pretty face, not really having much of an intention to be acquainted with anyone.

You swiped another glass of fizzy alcohol from the waiter that passed by, glossy red lips pinched around the glass when a sultry voice mused at your ear, “Still can’t find a seat?”

Swirling around so fast that the contents nearly poured out the glass, you weren’t surprised to see Naoya fucking Zenin stood before you, his tall stature draped in only the finest and hand-stitched three piece suit.

He looked absolutely delectable this way, earrings glimmering under the golden chandeliers and eyes lined with kohl, the aura of elegance that perfectly concealed his less than pleasing personality excessively charming.

You were beyond appalled.

“Still can’t find a brain?” you retorted with a roll of your eyes, eyes still narrowed at Naoya’s displeased ones as you dunk your drink in one go. “What are you doing here, pig?”

“I’ll let that comment slide once — only because you look hot tonight,” his predatory gaze ran over your form, the careful pattern of him pausing at the swell of your breasts sliding to the curve of your hips heating up each inch of your skin. “And it’s Naoya for you. Naoya Zenin, the rightful heir of the Zenin Corp—”

“What’s that scent you’re wearing? Baby powder? Fitting for your cute face, actually.”

Naoya’s jaw clenched, clearly unaccustomed to people cutting off his holiness, and you had to bite down on your lip to prevent the chuckles from slipping through. “It’s Tom Ford.”

“Hmm, why am I not surprised? My horrible ex also wore the same scent. Maybe it’s a trademark for all limp losers, huh?” Naoya opened his mouth to speak, but you beat him to it, stepping forward to grab at the space between his tie to pull him down. His face was mere centimetres away from you, close enough that his breath ghosted over your lips, the intense anger flaring through those eyes hot enough to burn you. “You act so smug and defensive, Naoya. Trying to have a big man personality to conceal a small dick?”

“I have nothing to prove to you.”

“You don’t need to prove me anything,” you glanced down at his pants with a smirk, ignoring the heat pulsing in your veins because the sight contradicted your words. There was a noticeable bulge inside those shiny black slacks, though the last thing you wanted him to see was the way your mouth watered in anticipation. “I already know what I need to know.”

“Yeah? You and your shitty girlfriends can’t stop talking about my dick?”

You shrugged sarcastically, “You know women. We’re tireless complainers.”

Naoya’s jaw ticked upon you using his words against him, his hands coming up to caress at your neck, his nails scratching behind the thick silver chain you wore.

From afar and in the eyes of others, people would’ve thought you and Naoya were simply getting a little too heated, his lips dipped to graze your ear while his slender fingers pressed a little tighter into your air pipe. Your positions could easily be mistaken for Naoya seducing you, and you supposed he was, since your body responded differently from your verbal protests.

“You should watch what you’re saying,” he warned, voice low with warning. “I could easily dump your body into a river and no one would even notice. In fact, maybe the world might even thank me for doing them a service and ridding them of a spiteful woman like you.”

“Oh, pretty boy,” you chuckled back and stood to your tippy toes. One of your hands wrapped around his neck to forcefully tilt his neck to yours, nose pressed above his collar to inhale the intoxicating masculine scent he wore. “You’re all bark and no bite. Why don’t you show me what you’re capable of? If you’re as awful as they make you out to be, maybe I’ll shiver enough to drop my panties for you.”

You didn’t miss the way Naoya’s hands gripped at your waist to pull you close, enticing you to continue with your insults because maybe Naoya liked this a lot more than he let on. Could it be his superiority complex didn’t always like submissive women, after all?

Well, it would make sense; everyone always liked a little challenge, didn’t they?

If that was what he wanted, then you’d be generous enough to grant it to him.

“Wouldn’t you like to get a chance to put me in my place, to teach me a lesson for defiling the oh-so-mighty Naoya Zenin?” you purposefully toned your voice down to a more breathy tone, your chest swelling with pride when Naoya sucked in a sharp inhale beside your ear.

God, he sounded beautiful — and you hadn’t even fucked him yet. Now, you were eager to hear what else those disgusting lips could be capable of other than degrading you.  

Pulling away from him just to bat your lashes at him, heat pooled straight into your core when Naoya’s gaze had completely darkened, dark orbs pooled with lust and anger. Only he could make such an expression look so good.

“You don’t scare me, Zenin. You’re nothing but a small boy wearing big man pants.”

For a moment, your smile widened, believing that you’d won this time around. Naoya was still breathing hard at each brush of your stomach to his now hardening erection, but then he smirked and gently pushed you away from him. “I’m not fucking you here,” he stated calmly, not even bothering to keep his voice low. “You’re a lot dumber than I thought you’d be if you really think I’m whipping my cock out during this dreadful dinner.”

“This dreadful dinner you speak of is an opportunity for people like us to establish connections. I would’ve assumed you wanted nothing more to impress others but it seems I was wrong. If you hate this event so much, why bother coming here in the first place?”

“Just had a feeling I was going to meet a little minx,” he watched you seductively, his smirk adorned with his tongue peeking out to lick his lips — in turn wetting you in places he promised to make his by the end of the night. Curse him, you chanted in your head, curse him for being so attractive. It would’ve been easier if he was ugly. “And as always, I’m right.”

You tilted a brow, slightly impressed. “So you’ve done your background check on me. That doesn’t explain why you’re still here though. Surely a woman couldn’t be enough for a reason to make a man like you go all this way?”

“You’re right, a woman would never be a good enough reason, but I wanted to put you in your place,” his eyes flickered back up to you, now twinkling with danger and something else entirely. “Bad little girls need to be a taught to a lesson.”

“So what’re you waiting for? Go ahead and show me your ways, Zenin.”

“I will,” he nodded to himself, “I’m about to,” Naoya was nothing but confident as he strode your way until his arms was locked with yours, his breath tickling your collarbones that had unknowingly exposed itself at each heated touch. “You’re not that bad for a slut. You look like one, smell like one — I bet you also feel like one.”

A dry laugh left your lips as you fisted his shirt, mirroring his smirk to show that if a match was what he looked for, then a match he’d find indeed. Only this time, you would be worse.

“Why don’t you go ahead and find out?”

Naoya, despite being an absolutely poor excuse of a human being, was somewhat redeemable for being a man of his words. Find out he did, and he wasted no time into shoving you inside his McLaren, barely able to keep his hands off you the whole way up to his penthouse.

It was a blurry mess from there.

Moans spilled from your lips while he ripped your clothes off, not bothering to apologize that he’d just ruined one of your most prized possessions, his lust-clouded haze mumbling that he’d just buy you another one.

It was the last thing you expected to hear from him, but you couldn’t protest, not when he’d angrily snapped the buttons of his shirt away, a low growl mixing with your breathy whines as he loosened his tie.

Your eyes widened at the sight, legs rubbing together as you imagined what else he could do with that pretty tie of his.

Would he tie you to his bed, fuck you stupid and call you useless? Or perhaps, you could do it?

Naoya cut off your train of thought by pushing you back to his mattress, his hands tugging at his belt before he pulled his boxers down, his thick length slapping at his abdomen. Your mouth immediately watered at the sight. You were beyond wet from nothing but your sloppy make-out sessions, but would he fit?

Just the thought of him giving you that burning stretch made your legs spread beside his sides, the sardonic laughter ripping from Naoya’s lips absolutely disgusting.

“Fucking pathetic. You’re just like everyone else; submitting to me at the sight of my cock, but that’s not true, is it? Moment you saw me, I knew you were clenching around nothing,” he gripped at your jaw to force you to look at him. You glared up at him from his bruising hold, your cheeks squished under his rough hands. “But that’s okay; wanting me is not something you should be ashamed about. Although you should be thanking me I’m even letting you near me like this.”

“I’m so honoured. Come on, Naoya, let me feel you — let me make you feel good.”

Naoya, too lost in his ego, missed the sarcasm dripping in your voice. “So eager to be my cock sleeve, huh?” he grinned, tugging at your hair to push you deeper into his mattress.  “Get on your knees. Now suck.”

He was too harsh in his pace, determined to exert his dominance over you. You could feel every ridge of his vein as he continued fucking into your mouth, his abs rippling above you. It felt like witnessing a Greek god come apart, and you took pleasure in being his ruin, prompting you to hollow your cheeks and bob your mouth up and down on his cock harder.

Naoya’s chuckles were broken and often mixed with curses of fuck, you feel so fucking good, his nails now scratching at your scalp.

Soon, Naoya stilled inside you, his hold around your head deadly to keep you in place. Tears flowed down your face as he kept thrusting inside, making sure to hit the back of your throat before his muscles tightened. Spurts of warm cum followed after that, but instead of swallowing it like you expected he’d command you to do, Naoya whipped out his cock and came all over your face, his seed shooting all over your cheeks and lips.

You took it all obediently, just enough to give him the false pretense of submissiveness that he was so willing to force from you.

While he was occupied pumping his still rock hard cock, eyes closed and massaging your scalp almost soothingly, Naoya failed to notice your hurried movements of standing from the bed, fingers looped around his tie.

A small wail resonated from him when you shoved him down onto the bed, knees locked at either sides of his waist before you tugged at the cloth wrapped around his neck. Naoya kicked his legs behind you as you tied his wrists to the bed hard enough that Naoya winced, the tie only forming tighter at each lame grapple of his.

You looked back at how he got more beautiful laid out in front of you like that, chest heaving up and down while he struggled against the restraints, face flushed with anger — no, this wasn’t anger anymore — he was furious.

“What are you doing?! Get this off me — how dare you!”

“How dare you,” you spat back, discarding your lace bra off to wipe his cum away from your face, gagging when the bitter cum left a tang on your lips. “I just got my skin appointment last week and you came on my face like that?”

Naoya kept fighting back before he realised it was a futile attempt, leaning back down onto the pillows, though that didn’t soften his heated eyes on yours. You cooed at how adorable he submitted to you, running a finger down the sides of his jaw. “Aw, don’t look so angry, baby. I’m just starting my fun,” you purred, “You should’ve known better than to mess with me, Naoya. I’m not as nice as the others. And I’ll show you just how awful I can be.”

Naoya’s breath hitched when you shimmied out of your underwear, a dark glint in your eyes as you stretched the elastic into a fake arrow until it snapped into his face.

“You fucking bitch,” he growled, turning his face away from your panties soaked with arousal. “Once I get out of here, I will ruin you.”

“Huh, yeah, sure,” you mumbled incoherently, too lost in the pleasure as you sunk down on his cock. You were right, he was fucking thick, stretching you out better than any of your toys could. Plus, he was warm and leaking with pre-cum that he slid in easily, erotic groans leaving both your mouths once he was finally seated inside you.

Naoya was growling at you to let go of him when you laughed, lifting your hips up slowly before sliding back down on him just as slow, almost as if you made love to his cock the same passionate way you did with a lover. “You do have a wonderful cock, though. I’ve never felt this good in my life,” you leaned down to lick a stripe down to his neck, allowing him to hear the needy pants you graced with him. “You feel so good, Naoya, oh. If you weren’t such an asshole, I might even fall in love with you.”

“Go faster. This is unfair!”

Naoya tried thrusting deep into you, evidently unsatisfied at this torturous pace you set, but you only gripped at his thigh in warning, your eyes no longer sweet as you glared at him.

“Nothing’s ever fair in this world, sweetheart,” you reminded him, shivering every now and then as you bounced on his cock, his length slipping past through your walls magically. “Like how such a gorgeous face and amazing dick is paired with the most disgusting personality ever. No, it’s not fair, indeed...”

You closed your eyes with your head thrown back, placing your hips flat on his pelvic bone instead, fingers rubbing at your clit while Naoya throbbed inside you, desperate for release.

The little whines you gave were nothing but mocking. You knew that Naoya suffered through this position, but did you care? Absolutely not. With Naoya’s cock stretching you full and his tip kissing your most sensitive spots, in addition to your fingers rubbing and tweaking at your clit, this was the most pleasure you’d ever gotten from sex.

You were stimulated everywhere, your other hand reached up to tug at your hardened nipples.

Your walls clenched around him, signalling him that you were close and you let out a broken moan, falling forward to gyrate your hips around his cock to push you over the edge. It wasn’t enough to get him off since you were mostly still fondling with your clit, the sounds of your moans like torture to his ears.

“No, don’t you dare cum, I swear if you—” Your orgasm washed over you comfortingly like a warm blanket. Instead of seeing white, it was like your vision cleared, the sight of the sweat that made Naoya’s hair stick to his forehead in clumps crystal clear. You prolonged your orgasm by thrusting your hips in a sickening rhythm of thrust, pause, thrust, stop ­— and by then Naoya was losing his mind.

Naoya lost control as he snapped his hips upwards inside you hard enough that you winced in pain, pushing off his dick until he’s left humping the empty air, his body drenched with perspiration. “No, no, no, fuck you! Get back here you useless slut!”

You lay beside him, giggling in post-orgasm bliss. Just to tease him, you rolled to his side to press a kiss to his cheek, laughing harder when your lips came in contact with his flushed skin.

“You’re so adorable like this,” you cupped his face tenderly, perfectly aware that Naoya had begun to growl, his wrists almost bruised from how hard he brawled against his tie. “If I didn’t hate you so much, I would’ve let you cum inside me,” you offered with a pat to his chest, moving off the bed with wobbly legs.

“Well, whatever, that was fun. I would say we both had the most sensual sex of our lives, but that would be a joke for you, don’t you think?” you snorted as you inserted your arms to his discarded suit jacket.

Naoya stayed still on the bed, his cock still painfully hard and slick with your cum. “Don’t look so angry, Naoya. You had it coming for you. Don’t worry, though, as a thanks for letting me cum that hard — though I mostly did all the work — I’ll keep this between us so you at least get to keep whatever’s left of your dignity,” you blew a kiss his way, “Bye, sweetie. At least now I know people weren’t exaggerating when they called you a good fuck.”

Not bothering to slip your heels back on, you looped your shoes into the curls of your fingers, about to button Naoya’s jacket as you made your way to his door.

You never got halfway across the room when strong arms suddenly lifted you off the ground, your vision transitioning from his door to the pads of his feet, your body slung across his shoulder. Naoya gripped at your ass in warning when you kicked your legs, leaving him with no choice but to hug your thighs with one arm.

The next thing you knew, he slammed the balcony doors open with one hand and slammed you on the pool table. His rough hands yanked his jacket away from your body, the chilly night of the air bringing a shiver down your spine as it hit your drenched core.

Naoya had pinned your arms flat on your back in a painful angle, making you cry out just as he kneed your legs open, his free hand that wasn’t pinning you down aligning his cock against your hole. You were a moaning mess underneath him, the pain only an intoxicating addition to the pleasure he was pounding into you. Naoya then leaned to whisper your ear, the sudden movement making his cock slide deeper into you, the pleasure overwhelming.

“Oh, Naoya, fuck—”

“I am not just a good fuck,” he corrected you, “I am Naoya Zenin — and you will do well being silent and submissive while I fuck you, do you understand?” You were too lost in the feeling of him rutting deep into you that he had you seeing white this time around. When you didn’t answer, Naoya slapped your ass, your yelps echoing from the dead night. “I asked you a question.”

“No,” you bit back, “I refuse to—” you were silenced when Naoya hit your sweet spot, laughing at your state that you were too fucked out to give him a proper answer.

Naoya’s pace was merciless as he fucked deeper into you, the hand on your ass moving up to grab at your waist to keep slamming you back to his cock. He watched as your lips sucked him in so tight that he didn’t know whether you were pushing him out or refusing to let go. Turning your head to the side to gasp for air, you opened your eyes, only to be met by the sight of men crowding on the building across yours to witness your undoing by Naoya’s hands.

“I’ve barely started and you’re already so wet for me,” he mocked in your ear. As if on cue, squelching sounds accompanied your desperate moans, hands grabbing at nothing in particular. “Shall I try upping my speed?”

“N-Naoya- there are people looking.”

“Let them see,” he seethed, using one arm to lift your other leg up to the table to gain him more access into your warm, wet cavern. The sudden stretch made your muscles ache until you lay there limp; jaw clenched at the pleasure Naoya drowned you with. “Let them know how much I’m making this pussy mine. Gosh, can you hear yourself? You sound like a dirty fucking slut,” another slap landed on your ass, hard enough to leave a mark there for tomorrow. “You claim to hate me, so then why are you dripping all over me, huh? Pathetic whore. You women are nothing but cum dumps to me.”

Naoya spread your butt cheeks open, laughing at the silly way you clenched around him every time he pulled out, your puffy lips sucking him back again until Naoya buried himself to the hilt. His dick did wonders in letting out the most erotic whines and whimpers you never thought you’d be capable of, leaving you a drooling and panting mess under him.

“You little fucker, don’t even think about cumming inside me, I will literally castrate you and feed your balls to yourself.”

“Such a dirty mouth. Though that’s expected of a nasty woman like you,” he sassed, his thrusts faltering while his hand clenched your flesh tighter. That was enough to send you over the edge when Naoya slammed his hips harder and more desperately this time around, his cock twitching against your walls. “You wish I would cum inside you. But I have a better plan in mind.”

All it took was one rough hand for him to pull you before him, pushing you down into your knees again as he came inside your mouth. You could feel your cum and his dripping onto his dark marble tiles, the white pool of liquid shining.

Naoya thrusted lazily into your mouth, a sickening grin on his face while he kept you down there. His glare deepened when you tried to pull away from him. “Swallow, you slut. Or I’m fucking your face until I break your jaw.”

Furiously, you swallowed around his cock, Naoya groaning at the feeling of your walls convulsing around him. The moment you gagged from when his tip poked the back of your throat, Naoya pushed you off him until you were left choking on the ground. You gasped for air, hands clasped around your neck, sure that you were going to have a sore jaw and a fucked throat tomorrow.

You kept glaring at Naoya, but this didn’t deter him from gripping your chin down, humming to himself upon seeing that his cum was now gone in your mouth. “Hmm, so you did swallow it like a good girl. I’m glad I’ve disciplined you well.”

“Go to hell.”

“I’m King there already, baby,” Before you could retort, his arms encircled your waist until you were heaved in his arms again. You pounded against his back because you were too done, you couldn’t do another round. Naoya sighed as he threw you in the bed as if you were a ragdoll, disappearing in the bathroom for a while before coming back with a wet towel, which he rudely flicked your way. “Clean yourself up and then leave. Take the back elevators. I don’t want the staff to see a whore leaving my place.”

“You’re the one who brought me here.”

“Only because I had a duty to put you in your place,” He stared at you with his smirk now permanent in his face, admiring the bruises he left on your body.

“We’re not over yet, Zenin. I’m going to break you one way or another.”

You rolled your eyes at him, walking to his closet to wear one of his shirts. Naoya was silent the whole time as he watched you button his shirt with trembling hands, his presence hot on your heels as he followed you out the large room.

As you were about to leave, you picked up the towel you used to clean your cum with and threw it right at his face.

Naoya dodged it easily, eyeing the towel with a scoff. “Still resilient, I see,” settling down on one of his lounge chairs like it was a throne, Naoya rested his cheek on his fist as he stared you down. “But fine — I accept your challenge. A true man never backs down from a challenge, after all.”

“Oh, honey, I’m more than just a challenge,” you sneered.

Naoya’s gaze left your eyes to stare at your perky nipples that poked through his shirt, feeling his cock swell all over again. But he was a man of control and dignity — he wouldn’t do anything more with you, not when it was clear you’ve had enough for tonight.

It didn’t bother him though, he knew he’d have more opportunities to put you in your place.

“We’ll see about that. I’ll be the one to decide your worth,” he declared oh so smugly, the mere sound of his voice pushing you to slam a fist to ruin that pretty face of his, though you held your ground, far too tired to move a muscle. Naoya saw this too, and he smiled to himself, head tilted to the side as he studied the mess he’d made of you. “Tomorrow, same time same place?”

There was no telling what pushed you to agree, but the words left your lips far too confidently for you to even wonder why.

“Be ready for me, Zenin.”

“I always am.”

All the way back to the back elevators that Naoya had directed you at, you pondered on how you’d be able to tell your parents you suddenly needed a ride home when they had no idea you left the dinner gala in the first place. But most of all, how were you supposed to tell them you’d acquainted yourself with the Zenin clan all over again?

[pastxlscorp]

Bully / Tsundere Mitsuya headcanons

Disclaimer: This was inspired by that Bully Baji story I read on here but I couldn’t find the post, also this features sexual tension and the enemies to lovers trope.

Bully-leaning headcanons

Big sweetheart to everyone so I’d imagine hes not much of a bully (cough, takemichi) BUT if he were to be, I’d imagine he’s not the physical type of bully

He wouldn’t push you or anything but absolutely would bother you during class, calling you stupid nicknames or degrading you with “dumbass” or “loser.” Maybe a little nudge in the hallways, but would never hit you.

You ever slip up in class? Will absolutely correct you when called on by the teacher and say “since y/n was clearly having a rough time, I’ll help them out…” and his comment is followed by snickers to your demise

Won’t go out of his way to bother you per say, he takes his opportunities when you pass in the hallways or literally anywhere. He tends to avoid the physical opportunities in the presence of teachers and will just end up whispering a comment in your ear like “I’ll see you later~”

Absolutely the most seductive bully ever, makes you flustered EVERY TIME he bothers you because he knows what he’s doing

If you dress up nicely or better than usual, you’ll bet he’ll have a comment: “Awh, you tried to dress up nice, how cute~”

Plays with your hair or anything you have on you bc sexual tension (enemies to lovers arc when?)

If you’re in his home economics club, he’d absolutely humiliate you even if your work is good, just to be a dick:

“Looks like someone wasn’t paying attention,” or “Is this the best you can do?”

Will find an excuse to keep you behind after club hours, either you didn’t complete your work, he wanted to scold you, anything.

Sees you smiling with someone else? Absolutely comes to ruin your day by bothering you in front of them. Doesn’t matter who it is and what they say to confront him, his ego is up his ass.

Tsundere-leaning headcanons

Won’t admit it but absolutely loves seeing you smile, he actually wishes he didn’t bully you enough to make you hate him. Otherwise, maybe he could make you smile like that.

Doesn’t really want to bother you, he only does it for attention. He has a hard time catching your attention when he’s being nice because he’s nice to everyone so... it’s hard to tell what’s different about his behavior with you. You’ve learned that he doesn’t mean what he’s saying, he’s just being a dick.

His club will absolutely treat you like a joke, but he’s a tsundere so he’d make it clear that he’s the only one allowed to bully you. However, it’d come out as something like “Now everyone, let’s focus on our work! Y/n isn’t worth the time.” and of course all his simps laugh. Despite this, his simps envy the attention he gives you, even though he’s always making fun of you.

Not THAT cruel, start crying in front of him and any bully gene in his body vanishes and he will absolutely feel like shit, but he’ll come out pretty cold.

“Why are you crying? Such a crybaby-- dumbass. It’s not that serious, no need to ruin your makeup.”

Actions speak louder than words, and he’ll actually wipe away your tears with his thumbs or a handkerchief if he has one. He’ll help you fix up your makeup if you’re wearing any and makes sure you look presentable so nobody knows you were crying. Don’t expect too much from him though, he’ll tell you this is a one-time thing and it’s only because he doesn’t want people knowing he made you cry— it’s bad for his reputation.

The only people he’ll allow to bully you is his friends, only because they know he has the fattest crush on you

When going to meet Mitsuya after he finished his club activities, they noticed how he was teasing some girl. They carefully watched the way he twirled their hair or pulled the chain on their neck to pull them closer as he pinned them to the wall, and best of all, the biggest shit-eating smirk growing on his face upon seeing their flustered reaction. They instantly knew he had a crush on the girl, since Mitsuya is generally soft and they could smell the sexual tension.

Eventually begins inviting himself to lunch with you and so on, and he begins to turn more into a tsundere instead of a bully as the two of you get closer.

a/n: I have a fanfic idea based on this concept, so if it does well I’ll get to working on it!

[dragonsareourfuture]

Hi!

It was recently my bday and uh I wanted to ask- could I have head cannons for the Wammy Boy's celebrating their s/O's bday?? If it's not too much trouble! I don't wanna stress u out at all <3

Aww happy belated birthday! Of course you can have some headcanons. Consider it my gift to you for being awesome. I’ve had a lot of stuff to do recently so this is pretty late :/

Wammy Boys When It’s Your Birthday

L

- bitch forgets lol

- it’s not that he doesn’t care it’s just that he has a lot on his plate

- if you remind him beforehand he won’t exactly lie and say he remembered. He just won’t tell you that he forgot.

- even then I don’t think he’ll organize something huge. Or at all. He kinda just mentions the fact that it’s your birthday to the task force and lets them take care of it. He can do work, AND you get a lovely celebration thrown by people that actually know how to throw parties. Win-win.

- he wears a party hat for you. It’s adorable.

- but he also eats the majority of your cake so-

- he does take the time to help clean up. Mostly because he does want to spend time with you but during a time when everyone’s calmed down. If he has to clean solo cups off the floor to do that, then so be it.

- you’re both shoving trash into trash bags when L notices that the room has completely cleared. He takes this opportunity to press a quick kiss to your jaw and mutter a “happy birthday” in your ear.

- he holds you that night. He’s got his computer in his lap to make up for the time he lost while helping you clean but he’s there, typing with one hand so he can mess with your hair with the other.

Mello

- he forgets too lollolol

- again — he’s simply busy.

- one day you casually mention it being your birthday in a conversation and he just kinda freezes like “….oh shit.”

- but he has to remain calm. He’s supposed to be the best boyfriend anyone ever did see! How would it fair for that reputation if he admits he FORGOT your birthday!? Not well at all. So he has to make due with the time he has in order to get you something you’ll like.

- of course that is easier said than done and he really only ends up getting you something he likes.

- took the “if it was my birthday, what would I want?” Method of picking out a gift a little too far.

- he got you chocolates.

- he decides to present them to you when he gets home that night and you’re not really surprised (or expecting much) so you take the free candy and give Mello a kiss in return.

- his natural actions always speak louder than his carefully calculated ones, so he pretty much makes up for his slip ups while you’re cuddled on the couch later that evening. He’s running his fingers up and down your spine, holding you to his side.

-He finds the right time during the movie you’re watching to nuzzle into your neck and mumble his admission that he forgot your birthday.

- you don’t hesitate to forgive him…or admit you knew that all along.

Near

- can you see a pattern yet…? Yeah, okay, he forgot too.

- BUSY BUSY BUSY

- this whole family is busy all the fucking time what do you expect?

- honestly he doesn’t really care if you know he forgot. Just “it’s your birthday? Hmm. That’s news to me.”

- he does care though, so he’ll have the SPK take a small break from their work (a very small break) to organize some decorations for you. Honestly it’s for the best that Near doesn’t do that himself. If he did, be prepared for the “It Is Your Birthday.” Vibe.

- Halle makes him wear a party hat. He does it just for you. He is a little peeved when he realizes she didn’t give anyone else a party hat, though. But he keeps it on once he sees the smile on your face when you see him in it.

- low key blushing while you laugh at his hat and he mentally shoves away any previous notions of wishing you a happy birthday.

- he won’t say it until later that night when everyone but you two have gone home. It’s a whisper echoing off the walls but you hear it clear as day and it warms your heart.

Matt

- to be honest, I think he’s the only one who doesn’t forget your birthday.

- whether he does something for it is a whole other story.

- he doesn’t want you to feel bad if he does do something and it’s not to your tastes. If it’s too much or too little. Whether he admits it or not, Matt might be a little scared to do something for you and then for you to hate it. He might even get so overwhelmed that he just asks you what you want.

- he’ll cater to whatever you want, unless it’s way too lavish for him to execute. Usually that’s not the case though.

- lazy day in? Check. Amusement park? He’s ordering the tickets with a stolen credit card right now. Getting food at your favorite restaurant? Again — stolen credit card. He’s cool with whatever you need to feel special.

- he casually slips in words about how glad he is to have you in his life throughout your day together. He feels like that way you won’t bug him too much about how sappy he’s being.

- alas, he was wrong. You still bug him. A lot.

[jishyucks]

The L Word ‣ hjs

‣ genre: angst with a fluffy ending, arranged marriage, sort of modern royalty (rich kid!au), female reader

‣ wc: 2.1k

‣ summary: “Tell me, Han. Has she ever explicitly told you that she loved you?”; in which Jisung's afraid that Y/N's going to leave him in rising of rumors but learns he shouldn't judge a situation from the words of others

‣ warnings?: The Hwang 'sibs' are mean in this (just a bit), lowkey rushed, jisung runs off because of overthinking

Looking at the ballroom’s appearance, Jisung feels as though he shouldn’t even be there in the first place. Like some puzzle piece placed in the wrong box. The people attending the party lived lavish lifestyles, knowing the difference between the different forks placed at the tables. Etiquette was more important to them than the basics a middle-class person would even care about.

Though Jisung had good ideas of such subjects, it wasn't forced onto him like those around him. The only reason why he was able to attend the party was because of a marriage arrangement your father and his father had made as some kind of sick ‘contract’ regarding business. Though he wasn’t complaining, feelings for you developed through the years of knowing you since childhood, he couldn’t help but feel self-conscious about a handful of things.

For one, you guys were engaged through the arrangement. It’s been three years since the announcement, and even if Jisung believed you were fine with it, even if you ensured to Jisung that you were happy with the engagement, intrusive thoughts started keeping him up at night.

He knew you. You hated speaking out your feelings, whether it led to consequences or not. What if you actually weren’t fine with it? What if you were somehow threatened by your father and the contract to actually speak out about the engagement? He didn’t want you to feel forced to marry him.

Then there was his family’s reputation. His family was deemed drastically poorer than yours by the other associated families and businesses. He was afraid of tainting your family’s reputation or seeming like one of those leeches found at the bottom of murky ponds. Though it was an arranged marriage, Jisung had genuine feelings for you. It was his father that was in it for the money and Jisung was nothing like his father.

“Hey, scrounger!” Jisung turned to find Hyunjin and his sister Yeji approaching him from the opposite corner of the room. They both were dressed in clothes that were probably a lot more expensive than his own, his clothes being hand-me-downs from his father.

“Fancy seeing you here,” Yeji smirked, “You don’t even have business here.” She shifted her weight from one leg to the other, eyeing down the boy.

Jisung didn’t cower under their gaze, instead of straightening his back, “I’m here because I was invited. My father was invited as well.” Don’t show fear, he told himself, That’s what they want.

“Ahh~,” Hyunjin chuckled, “Good way to disguise 'because of Y/N.' Tell me, Han. Has Y/N ever explicitly told you that she loved you?”

Yeji butted in, laughing, “I think love is too strong of a word… how ‘bout like? Has she ever told you that she liked you? Cause rumor has it she’s planning on breaking your engagement.”

Jisung gulped, “S-she has… and gossip is bullshit.” He lied. When the arrangement was created, there was some kind of unspoken assumption that you both liked each other. As a result of this, no confessions were made from you both. Sure it was stupid, but in Jisung’s eyes, actions spoke louder than words, and just by how he treated you and you treated him, you both cared very much for each other. Of course, other people never paid attention to actions and relied on direct statements.

“We don’t gossip, Han,” Hyunjin scoffs, “Who would pass up the opportunity to marry Bang Chan when he’s the son of the top businessman in all of Korea?”

“What do you mean?” Jisung’s heart skipped a beat, eyed widening slightly at the mention of Bang Chan’s name.

“His father apparently wanted to create a deal with her father that was a lot better than his deal with yours,” Hyunjin explained, “Isn’t your engagement part of that poorer deal?”

Jisung chose not to reply, biting his tongue. Instead, he shoots Hyunjin a narrowed glare, not up for defending himself or arguing. With the lack of response from their target, the siblings simply rolled their eyes and walked away, taking a seat at their designated table.

When the attention was diverted away from him, Jisung couldn’t help but let his shoulders fall. He feels his heart beating quicker than at rest, thoughts running through his mind like crazy. You wouldn’t leave him just like that right? You wouldn’t.

Then his mind wanders back to Hyunjin and Yeji’s question. Yes, he did think that actions were undoubtedly stronger than words, but now that a spotlight was shone on the hidden yet obvious fact that you both hadn’t said anything about each others’ feelings, he couldn’t help but believe that you could possibly be leaving him. But then again, he has never said anything to you and his feelings existed.

He felt the sudden urge to look for you, who had been busy accompanying your father with the guests. Maybe he will actually confess how he truly felt, just in case you were actually thinking about breaking the engagement. Maybe he could save it somehow, just in case your father was willing to make the deal with Mr. Bang.

Chewing the bottom of his lip, he scanned the room, looking for the lavender dress you were wearing. But with the clumps of people, his line of sight was constantly stopped abruptly.

“Excuse me,” he mumbled politely, making his way through the crowd, “Excuse me.” He ignored the looks some people gave him, still slithering his way between the socializing people. Though his hair was parted in a way that exposed part of his forehead, he felt the need to hide under his bangs, keeping his head low as he did.

The familiar sound of your father’s laugh drove Jisung to stop and look around his area. If he was close, you’d be close. Scanning his surroundings completely, he finally spots your father, with you standing close beside him. He feels a smile rise on his lips as he begins to make his way towards you both, heartbeat racing just as his thoughts were.

Opening his mouth to call out for you, he quickly stops himself when he realizes that you and your father were holding a conversation with Bang Chan and his own father. His feet abruptly stop, allowing him to overhear the exchange of banter.

“Well, it was a pleasure having this conversation with you,” Mr. Bang chuckled, “I will see you on Monday for the papers?” He held a hand out for a handshake, a smile filled with pride appearing on his lips.

Your father nodded, “Likewise. I’m looking forward to it.” He completes the handshake, which then queues for Chan to lean in for a hug.

Shit, Jisung gulps, feeling his heart drop to his stomach, What the hell just happened?

You take a step forward and hug Chan back for a brief second before pulling back, “I hope you enjoy the rest of your time here, Chan.”

Chan’s dimples appeared as he smiled genuinely, “Thank you, Y/N.”

Jisung was frozen on the spot, unsure whether or not he should say anything. The notes that he had mentally jotted down in his head were suddenly ripped into pieces and he was practically speechless.

Obliviously, you turn to follow your father, who was already ready to move on to another conversation. Mid-turn, the boy dressed in a striped, navy suit had caught your attention, giving him a double-take, “Oh! Jisung!” The corners of your mouth rise higher, eyes lighting up at the sight of the familiar boy. A wave of comfort washed over you. It was refreshing to see him after interacting with so many strangers and acquaintances.

When you go to approach him, Jisung panics and begins to back into the people behind him. It was then you noticed the look of distraught on his face, causing you to speed up. At this, he turns and runs, causing commotion around him as dodges those who got in his way.

“Jisung!” You called out, turning the heads of those people around you. The music had drowned your voice out from those further away from you, “Jisung!?” You begin making your way through the crowd of people, going as fast as you could in heels so that you wouldn’t lose Jisung. A million assumptions were running through your head, worry lining each and every one of them.

Swinging the door open, Jisung finds himself stumbling out into the empty corridor of the hotel. With the choice of left and right, Jisung stops and impulsively runs in one direction, not minding where he would end up if kept running.

So you were going to break the engagement… without warning? How were you going to break the news to him? How was he supposed to react once you told him about it all? Happy? Sad? Excited?

You finally reached the door of the ballroom, slipping out rather roughly into the corridor. Your head whips left and right, seeing Jisung’s trailing feet to the right of the hallway, turning the corner. You let out a heavy breath before kicking off your heels, booking it in that direction.

Your mind wanders to why Jisung was running. What did he hear? Was he okay? Could it be what other people were saying again? But Jisung was never usually one to let words get to him.

Jisung lets himself rest once he gets to a secluded room. Judging by its content, he realized that he managed to slip into the coatroom, but he didn’t care. He needed time alone to think. He just needed to process this entire situation.

“Jisung?” He hears you call out. Jisung sinks down at the corner of the room, resting his head against the wall. He stays quiet, resting his forehead against his knees.

The door to the coat room opens, revealing your disheveled figure, “Jisung…” You pause and try to catch your breath, “There… there you are.”

Jisung doesn’t lift his head, afraid that if he did face you, he would burst into tears. He could sense you approaching him, though, settling down beside him. He could feel your dress up against him. Soon he feels your hand take his, holding it tightly.

“What’s wrong?”

When Jisung doesn’t answer, you don’t say anything to push out an explanation. You let the question simmer, resting your head against his shoulder.

At this point, Jisung’s mind was projecting none of his thoughts but static. He didn’t know where to start and what to bring up. How was he supposed to confront you about the engagement?

“I’m happy for you two,” Jisung blurted out quietly, avoiding eye contact, “I really am.” Your ears perked up, confused at what Jisung was going on about.

“I think people will like you both together more than us,” Jisung continued, “Just know that I lo–“

You interrupt him, turning to completely face him, “Jisung, what are you talking about?” You turned your body towards him, completely facing the cowered boy. Though your body language was practically begging for eye contact, Jisung still avoided it, playing with his rings to keep him from losing control over his emotions.

Building up his confidence, Jisung let himself look at you before whispering, “Y/N?” He sniffled quietly.

“Yeah, Sung?”

Jisung gulped and asked, “Do you like me?”

You’re taken aback by the question, not expecting it out of all the questions Jisung could have asked. Is this why he was crying?

“Of course I do, Jisung, what makes you thin–“

“I mean genuinely like me. Do you have feelings for me?” Words were spewing out of his mouth before he could even process what he was saying. He could feel his emotions taking control of himself, which often is never a good thing.

“Jisung, I love you, okay? Why do you think otherwise?” The beat of your heart sped up with worry. Your eyebrows knitted together in concern as Jisung’s lips quivered slightly.

“The Hwang's told me you were planning on breaking our engagement because Bang Chan’s father offered a better deal than my father,” he explained quietly. He felt as though that if he spoke any louder, he would break out into tears, “I told them I didn’t believe them… t-then they asked me if you’ve ever told me if you did have feelings for me. I just didn’t know what to think when… when I saw your father accept Mr. Bang’s deal. I was afraid you were actually going to leave me.”

You gently slapped his shoulder in shock, “Han Jisung, are you serious?” Jisung responded wordlessly, though a puzzled look replaced his previous emotion.

“My father approached me beforehand about it. He wanted to break our engagement because of the deal, telling me that it was no longer necessary,” you say, “But I told him I wanted to marry you because I love you, Sung. And if he did threaten to forcibly break our engagement, I would’ve fought for us.”

Jisung wanted to laugh at himself at how much he had overreacted. Overthinking was a bitch and this situation was real-life proof, “Y/N?”

“Yeah, Sung?”

“I would fight for us too.”

[styx1an]

A Chat about Chat

A short fic about how Chat came to be a singular being, written by yours truly. By all means, this isn’t canon, it’s just my interpretation of things.

Word count: 1,863

Fandom: RTGame, Miitopia (NGL I’m a little displeased with how I wrote the ending, but oh well!)

You know, there is this odd sense of irony in knowing how terrified Chat was of Magical John when they aren’t even human nor a singular being in the first place. Wait, so you didn’t know? Of how they became such a being in the first place? (They chuckle.) Then I suppose that means I’ll have to tell you their story. Well then, shall we begin the tale of Chat? (You see the twinkle in their eyes. They must’ve been waiting a while to be able to do this.)

> You nod. You’ve been waiting a while to understand Chat’s origins. Tonight, like many others, belongs to the storyteller.

> You shake your head. No thanks, you think you’re too tired. Dawn shall rise anew soon, and you will not waste your time with tall tales.

(They nod, pleased with your decision.) Then I shall begin to relay their tale.

Our tale begins in the vast lands known as Twitch, a domain that belongs to another, a far crueler being whose tale is for another time. It is a place where one is free to express their opinions and whatnot (as long as it suits the many whims of its Amazonian overlords, of course), and many are versed in the easy to learn, but difficult to master art of gaming. Many such masters have gained a large following, and even if they do not possess such skill, more often than not their humor and charisma paves the way to fame.

One example of the latter would be RTGame, a man of sizable repute. Aside from the frankly ridiculous story of the origin of his moniker, he is also known for doing some… questionable things for the sake of entertainment. There are still tales of his quest in the bathtub along with Gilbert (yes, the very same Gilbert on the quest to defeat The Darker Lord Khadgar!), the night of the Painted Wall’s Communion, the birth of Mr. Compost- But my dear, we are here for one of his lesser-known exploits, one that would change the world as we know it.

> You lean closer to the campfire, watching the storyteller with a renewed interest. Where does the tale lead? Where does it end? You need to know.

> It’s getting even later. You think some rest will be needed before tomorrow’s travels begin. Perhaps the rest of the story can wait another time?

It was a dark and stormy night. The then-Dark Lord Von Karma had just been unleashed upon the land, and I Want Die set along the path of salvation with his fellow party members, Mr. Bean the Warrior, Goofy the Thief, and Mint the Horse. He was pleased with the ease with which they vanquished monsters and saved (literal) faces, but the lack of actual conversation within the party had begun to get to him. Mr. Bean had nothing to offer other than a simple “Bean!” every now and then, and Goofy terrified him with all the “hyuck!” and talks of absolving the world’s many sins. Mint is a horse and therefore cannot participate in a verbal conversation unless you happen to understand what her neighs meant. She also happens to be the most normal member of the party, strangely enough.

Either way, I Want Die longed for a proper conversation.

And God took notice.

It was inevitable. The fourth party member was always going to join, whether he wanted one or not. It shouldn’t be notable in any way whatsoever, yet here I am regaling this tale to you.

It is not how Chat had come to join the party that I wanted to explain, but rather how they came to be.

Do you remember the man I had called RTGame? I hope you had not thought of him as irrelevant to our tale, as he is the patron saint of I Want Die’s adventures. Surely you know of the vast armory that belongs to the party? The various delicacies fed to the team? All his work. Along with his followers’ contributions, of course.

Chat was what he called his followers, the ones who watched his various endeavors as he traveled across the land of Twitch. Oftentimes the crowd would conversate with him (hence their name), offering jokes and sardonic commentary whenever he did anything remotely comedic. Other times, RT would have to tell them off for being such a rowdy bunch- the usual group of thousands could never keep quiet for long.

It happened that Chat witnessed I Want Die’s pilgrimage along with RTGame. They all looked upon him with a jolly sense of humor (after all, their master is well-versed in the art of comedy), some wondering where his travels will bring him. The others who knew how it would all end kept silent at the behest of RTGame. Either way, every single one of them was enjoying the show he had put on for them. 

And came the time to summon the fourth member.

As per usual, RTGame withdrew into his workshop, closing the curtains around him so no curious onlooker could see inside. But that did not stop Chat from yelling their predictions and demands.

“EDGEWORTH” one cried.

Another begged for a certain “End Mii!”

“CHAT CALM DOWN!”

“!uptime”

“69420toesucker just subscribed for 5 months!”

“TURG”

RTGame smiled at them. He wasn’t surprised at all at their reactions, rather it was something he had hoped would happen.

“Alright then Chat,” he said, “here they are!”

His pale, thin hands reached out to open the curtains-

And unveiled a faceless, empty husk of a being. 

Under any other circumstances, Chat would’ve rioted, demanded justice against the irony of sending a faceless doll to retrieve the faces of others. But they had no time.

Almost in an instant, the skies darkened. Clouds swirled up above with vibrant shades of violet, cobalt, magenta. Bright blue lightning strikes a tree and dissolves it into dust. Somewhere distant, something roars. The air feels thick- something magical, something electric is positively buzzing. Magic truly is in the air.

And thunder strikes once again. 

The crowd is gone.

Silence fell. All that is left is the master and the doll, no longer an empty husk.

> You look up to the storyteller, their eyes reflecting the blazing flames. You have a feeling that you know how this ends, but you’d rather have them confirm it first.

> You’re sleepy. As tempting as it is to continue listening to their story, you must admit that the very idea of slumber is even more tantalizing.

RTGame had managed to do exactly what he wanted. Chat’s consciousness, placed inside of a single, physical being. A puppet controlled by a hivemind would not be very easy to control, yes. But the idea intrigued him. And wouldn’t it be better than having a large gaggle of people constantly behind him, watching his every move? It could help I Want Die on his journey too.

So it is settled. It happened that one of the members of his temple had just crafted a rather nice puppet, in case RT needed one. And he did come to use it. It does look a little plain, as both body and head are painted in the same shade of bright white. However, the face was not white like how it was in the beginning, but a disturbingly pitch-black space. No, that’s not the right word.

Rather, it was like a void had formed. That’s also not the right phrase to describe it either, as there were drops of ichor dripping down onto the ground, dissolving the once green grass. But I digress. 

Chat broke the silence that had fallen between them, wailing as a cacophony of noises and emotions spilled out. Despite what RT had done to them, they were still determined to voice their opinions. Quite in character, really. 

“RT WHAT”

“NO NO NO”

���!uptime”

“I'M ON TV!!!”

“bazingabanana just gifted 5 subs!”

“that’s kinda meta”

As their voices grew louder, ichor kept pouring out of the void. As expected, RT thought to himself. He still needs to act fast. So with a quick snap, he fastened a wooden mask the temple-goer made; the same shade of white, a pair of beady black eyes almost as dark and soulless as the void, bright purple ears. 

The yelling and complaining didn’t stop of course. Still, as their voices were muffled by the mask, it was an arguably better experience than the previous ear-splitting wails. And it was less deadly too. Ichor had stopped dripping down onto the grass, which meant that the constant sizzling would finally stop.

Now, one last thing.

RT stared into Chat’s eyes.

This in itself wouldn’t have been quite a remarkable action had it been anyone else, but it’s Chat that we are talking about. The very sensation of doing something as simple as gazing into a hivemind’s many souls wasn’t anything ordinary, either.

It felt like you had just plunged one of your hands into ice-cold water in the middle of winter and not only are you freezing, you’re scared and you don’t know whether you’d come out in one piece.

They all stared back. Thousands and thousands looked upon RT, all different yet whispering the same things, each claiming to be an individual yet virtually nothing distinctive belongs to them. A true hivemind. It’s exactly what he wanted, but he wondered if perhaps other troubles would arise.

He let himself go from their gazes. It asks too much of him.

“Alright then, Chat. Ready?”

A gaggle of voices reply, sounding their agreements.

“OK then!”

--

I Want Die finally opened the inn door, after convincing himself that he’d like this new friend. That this one would be neither an anime villain, a comedy star or a horse. Someone with actual rational thoughts and words to speak.

In front of the door stood a short figure, clad in a purple mage’s robes. Their pitch-black eyes looked at I Want Die, and a chorus of voices came from their permanent smile:

“Hi, I’m Chat!”

And I Want Die wondered if he had forgotten to cross off ‘hivemind’ off his list of potential party members.

Chat’s introduction ends here, of course. But not their tale. The journey was far from over in fact. The party had yet to meet the Royal Court, witnessed the court’s love affair, or get kidnapped by the Dark Lord Von Karma. Even the party wasn’t complete, as it was only the first party I Want Die would encounter in his tale of redemption.

And it’s not the only story either. You haven’t heard of Magical John’s past life, or how Cupcake isn’t as pure as she seems. Gilbert’s fear of the kitchen. How Jefferson came to be, and Obama’s past life with Mr. Bean.

But I’m afraid I must stop here, for it is late already, is it not? Our journey must continue tomorrow. Let us rest. Goodnight, may the stars shine for you. (They head off into their tent, leaving you alone with the flickering embers of a dying fire.)

> You bid the storyteller goodnight. Perhaps they’ll tell you another one of their stories, underneath the moonlight once more.

[serpent-of-the-silver-plumes]

would you mind talking more about bart and unreliable narration? I always hear people say unreliable narration but I've never seen any concrete examples from media I actually consume so I'd love your thoughts

Oh absolutely!! I actually wrote a thing about this a while back but then went 'this is not well written' and it got buried in my drafts, so I’m glad to have an excuse to pull that up and rewrite it. (Also sorry, this got really long.)

Basically, at one point I was listening to a podcast (Be the Serpent, ep 4), and they categorize different kinds of unreliable narrators into three types: the narrator who knows they are lying to you, the narrator who is lying to themself (and therefore you), and the narrator who is lying because they are missing some key information. I would argue that the three main pov characters of the Bartimaeus Trilogy each represent a different type of these unreliable narrators.

Going in backwards order, Kitty is the narrator who lies because she is missing some key information, at least until the third book. As a commoner, even one who is part of a resistance movement, her knowledge of magic is extremely limited and biased. Were we to go off of her point of view alone, we would get an inaccurate view of this world and the power dynamics that exist within it: that magicians are somehow special in holding magic and that they have evil demons who work alongside them in shared mischief/hunger for power/whatever.

However, because the books include other points of view, the full impact of that unreliability is not realized.

Similarly, Nathaniel lies to himself, especially in the later books. He ignores how much he personally contributes to upholding a system that depends on the oppression and slavery of other sentient beings, and squashes down the last traces of his moral compass. I don’t think he ever really questions the system of government or if it should be there and work the way it does.

To some extent, we do see through his unreliability as well, because Bartimaeus is around to keep a check on him and tell the reader that no, the magicians and their imperialism are bad, that spirits have very good reason to hate humans, and give us other world building details that contradict what Nathaniel believes.

But some of it is about what is going on inside Nathaniel’s own head, so there is also a lot that can’t be fully seen by an outside perspective that has to be assumed by the reader. Like he will deny the sentimental feelings he has towards Ms. Underwood and the guilt he had over Kitty’s supposed death and the fact that he even remotely cares about Bartimaeus, but actions speak louder than words.

Because both of these characters’ unreliability stem from a lack of understanding, having other perspectives in the book in some ways cancels out their unreliability, and actually ties their unreliability more to their character development than as a plot/narration device. Kitty grows more reliable throughout the series while Nathaniel gets less so until the end. This doesn’t make that unreliability useless though, especially in a series aimed for children. By getting each character’s point of view, we can see where they are coming from and how the knowledge and views they have affect the way they act, but there is also someone else to point out how they are wrong, to make you question how true what each individual says is.

Bartimaeus is entirely different from the first two characters. His narration is told in first person, unlike Nathaniel and Kitty’s third person. He talks directly to the reader and goes off on tangential footnotes that are not necessarily part of the events currently happening in the story. Because of this narration style, he also has the power to lie more directly to the reader than any of the other characters.

Given his life, it is understandable how he has gotten into the habit of lying. Every moment of his existence on Earth is spent under the power of someone else, so he lies in order to protect himself. There are some instances where he lies to his masters in order to escape punishment or to lead them into danger so he can be set free, but he also lies about his feelings because he cannot afford to be emotionally vulnerable.

For the most part, I think it can be assumed that the dialogue and most actions that happen in his pov chapters are told as they are, since much of that lines up with what goes on in the other characters’ perspectives, and also there are at least a few things that show him in a less-than-flattering light that he would probably leave out or change if he could. Instead, the lies he tells are largely about his past and his emotions, often done through exaggeration or omission, and cannot be collaborated by others.

When lying about his past, Bartimaeus frequently exaggerates his prestige and role in history. In Ptolemy’s Gate, Bartimaeus says that he talked to King Solomon about Faquarl’s tendency to brag about his historical importance. Even beyond the obvious irony, in the prequel we see Bartimaeus’s time at Solomon’s court, and while it isn’t technically impossible for him to have talked to Solomon about Faquarl, the timing and circumstances make it extremely unlikely. Although his other stories cannot be proven or disproven with what we know, this instance and his general tendency to brag outrageously makes it very likely that Bartimaeus at the very least embellishes.

However, despite being super showy about his past, Bartimaeus doesn’t actually include much important information. He very rarely talks about his great feats as a thief or assassin or anything else. When he lists his accomplishments, he describes building walls and talking to important historical figures. There’s a post somewhere (if I find it, I’ll link it) that explains this as being a way for Bartimaeus to try to take control of his reputation and therefore his life; by associating with safer jobs, he is less likely to be summoned for very dangerous and morally reprehensible jobs.

He does generally try to portray himself as clever and collected and just generally more cool than he actually is. There’s a moment at the end of the first book where he describes himself as trying to calm Nathaniel who is freaking out, and then the next chapter is from Nathaniel’s pov which describes him as being the calmer one while Bartimaeus is a fly anxiously buzzing around.

I don’t remember the exact line, but in the second book there’s an exchange that goes something like this:

“____” I said calmly.

“Stop your whimpering,” Kitty said.

The way Bartimaeus portrays himself is straight up contradicted by the more factual account of the words and actions of someone else. And presumably there are plenty of other times that we do not see contradictory evidence where Bartimaeus straight up lies about how he is reacting to something.

But one of Bartimaeus’s most unreliable points centers around humans. Throughout the books, he constantly talks about the ways he has killed and would like to kill his masters, if given the opportunity. Nathaniel is an exception, one that Bartimaeus does admit to the reader, but even in the third book when he talks the most about how he would kill Nathaniel or even join a demon rebellion if Faquarl offered right then and there, Bartimaeus does not actually follow through on these threats when he gets the chance. Despite all of his talk about how much he hates humans, Bartimaeus has as much of a positive relationship he can have with as many humans possible, given the circumstances.

A lot of his unreliability centers around Ptolemy, which is what some of Bartimaeus’s biggest lies of omission are about. In the first book, we do get the sense that Bartimaeus has a soft spot for at least some humans. His excuses of saving and looking after Nathaniel in order to avoid Indefinite Confinement, while likely not entirely false, do fall a bit flat. We even get a mention of “a boy I had known once before, someone I had loved.” Although this is not explicitly connected to Ptolemy at this point, mentions of brown skin and the Nile make a pretty obvious connection to Ptolemy, especially as Bartimaeus describes taking on Ptolemy’s form several times later on. There is a less obvious hint too, “I sat on the ground, cross-legged, the way Ptolemy used to do.” Even without knowing much about what kind of relationship Bartimaeus had with Ptolemy, that kind of detail shows ‘a devotion to detail that could only come with genuine affection, or perhaps even love.’

It isn’t until the third book until we learn anything substantial about his relationship with Ptolemy, and even then he doesn’t tell the whole story. The fandom jokes about how Bartimaeus just casually mentions in a foot note that he prefers a lioness form because the manes are annoying, and it’s not until the flashback that you find out that the mane is part of what got Ptolemy killed. And even with the flashbacks, you still never see the time that Ptolemy visited the Other Place.

There are a lot of posts on this site that talk about how Bartimaeus absolutely was idealizing Ptolemy, and how there’s some evidence that he isn’t the perfectly sweet never-did-anything-wrong innocent child that Bartimaeus describes him as (notably that part where he was vaguely annoyed that people kept coming to him to ask for help and interrupted his research). Not that Ptolemy secretly sucks or anything, but it’s really easy to let nostalgia skip over the less dramatic details of Ptolemy being an actual human being with flaws.

In summary, I would argue that all of the trilogy protagonists are unreliable narrators to varying extents, and Jonathan Stroud is a genius for how he manages to make it all work.