#your truck breaks on the side of the road in the middle if nowhere

[sparklehoard]

One of my coworkers is missing

[rafesangelita]

rafe + cnc

warnings: consent no consent (read at your own discretion), dom!rafe and bambi!reader who reenact a kidnapping, roleplay, brief mention of stalking, reader is tied up the whole time, unprotected sex, rough sex, degradation (just a lil), rafe and reader break character towards the end

a/n: got the kidnapping idea after i watched buffalo ‘66, pls tell me someone has seen that scene </3

the sun was beaming down on you, your babydoll dress swaying in the light breeze as you walked along the dirt road, twirling the ends of your hair as you did so. turning around at the sound of a vehicle approaching, you watched as the window rolled down, revealing a stranger that wore an unnerving smile.

“are you lost?” his eyes trailed down your legs, making a shiver run down your spine. “uhm, not really i-” he opened the door, “a pretty girl like you shouldn’t be roaming around all by herself.” your breath hitched when the stranger stepped out of his truck. “don’t look so scared, i just wanna help you.”

you stepped back, letting out a scream when he lunged at you, his hand clamping over your mouth as he pulled you against his chest. “shhh, shhh, it’s okay, i’m only gonna rough you up a little bit.” you whimpered, feeling helpless as ever as he dragged you over to his truck, grabbing a worn out rope before tying your hands behind your back.

“where are you taking me?!” tears were running down your cheeks now, your hair disheveled as he slammed the door shut. “don’t you worry about that.” your heart was pounding in your ears, your vision blurry with tears you weren’t able to wipe. it wasn’t until he pulled off of the road, driving towards a sketchy looking shed that you started to kick the back of his seat.

“hey! don’t make me change my mind about going easy on you.” his words made your stomach plummet, your blood running cold once he parked in the middle of nowhere. “no, no, no, no, no..” you whispered as he got down, flashing you a smirk before opening the door closest to you. “no, please! i’ll do whatever you want!” you cried out, wincing when you felt the rope burn against your skin.

he laughed. “of course you are.” he cursed under his breath when your foot landed square against his chest. “still kickin’ huh? should i tie your ankles too?” the man yanked you up by your hair, almost making you lose your footing. “please, i’m begging..” he ignored your pleas, pushing you inside the wooden shed before turning on a single bulb light that hung from the ceiling.

“you already pissed me off.” he circled around you like you were prey, grabbing another rope from a nearby table. “lay down.” you stayed still, your chest rising and falling with each breath. the stranger’s jaw clenched, his nostrils flaring as he laughed bitterly. “okay..” he forcefully got you on the ground, a whimper sounding from your mouth, “since you want to make this hard for me, you leave me with no choice.” you gasped when he bent you over, forcing your ankles to cross one over the other.

he took his shirt off, balling it up and placing it under your head. “i could be an asshole and shove your face in the dirt, but i’ll be nice.” your body jolted when his hand slammed down on your ass, the force of it making your flesh sting. “don’t do this, please, i don’t want it..” you screwed your eyes shut at the sound of his belt unbuckling. he grabbed your dress from the back, pulling it hard, making it rip all the way down to the hem.

you had given up at this point, staring blankly at the ground as he roughly moved your underwear to the side. “fuck.” he hissed, running a finger between your folds. “and to think.. this pretty pussy was right in front of me all along. i knew you were perfect when i started following you home.” you shivered at the revelation, swallowing thickly as you felt him line himself up with your entrance.

he didn’t waste another second, thrusting into you with a groan. “oh, my god.” he drawled out, fingers digging into your hips. you couldn’t help the whine from leaving your lips, your walls fluttering around the intrusion. “you’re so fucking wet, ‘just slid right in.” you shuddered, the head of his cock hitting that sensitive spot that made you mewl delightfully.

“you like this, don’t you? you’re taking it so fucking good.” he grabbed the base of your neck, pulling you up so your back was flush against his chest. “stop.. stop..” you muttered, still trying to resist him even though your body was giving in to every one of his ministrations. his hand snaked down your body, your eyes rolling back once he started working your clit.

“you want me to stop?” his lips were next to your ear, the tone of his voice taunting. you stayed quiet, eliciting a laugh from him. “that’s what i thought.” he shook his head, pushing you down into the ground again. his thrusts were nothing short of sporadic, your mouth hanging open as he fucked into you mercilessly. “oh, yeah, you’re going to cum soon aren’t you, you fucking slut,” he slapped your ass again.

it wasn’t long before you found yourself moving your hips against his, chasing his cock so you could cum. “oh, fuck!” you squeaked, pulling your bottom lip between your teeth. with both of your hands still restrained, you laid helpless as the man brought you to your orgasm, a sob erupting from your throat. “rafe!” you couldn’t hold in your cries, your boyfriend rubbing your skin soothingly as your thighs shook. “keep going for me, baby, you’re doing so fucking good.” he nearly whimpered.

you were sure he was going to leave marks with how hard he was gripping your waist, rafe doubling over on top of you. “i’m gonna cum, holy fuck i’m gonna fill you up, baby.” you squeezed around him, the death grip on his cock making him fall over the edge. your knees ached from being on them for so long, a thin sheen of sweat making your body glow with the small streaks of sunlight peeking through the wood.

rafe stared gloriously at where you two were connected, his jaw slack as he watched his cum spill out of your soaked cunt. “shit,” he felt like he was going to pass out, your pussy still sucking him in like a vice. you were only able to make little noises, your eyes half closed as you went through the aftershocks of your orgasm. rafe continued to thrust into you with long, slow, strokes, the action helping both of you come down from your highs.

it wasn’t until you felt him untying the ropes around your wrists, that you sighed in relief, your boyfriend immediately leaning down to check on you. “baby, you alright?” he moved your hair out of your face, meeting your shiny gaze. you fell flat on you tummy, flashing him an exhausted smile. “you did amazing.” he pecked your lips, leaving the shed before coming back with a different change of clothes.

“let’s get you cleaned up, yeah?”

[amaranthineghost]

˗ˏˋ꒰ 🥥 ꒱ in the tumbleweeds ( lando norris. )

cowboy!lando norris x city girl!reader

your car breaks down in the middle of nowhere. just when you begin to lose hope, a big truck pulls up in front of you and out hops two country boys to help you get your car up and running again

authors note: in honor of me going to the austin grand prix in october, here's cowboy lando (ft. cowboy oscar)

“NO, NO, NO,” YOU HAD WHINED as your car had slowed to stop. the tiny dial on the speedometer had slowed bounced its way down, and down, and down until it had hit zero. now here you were, in your mysteriously broken down car on the side of the road! not to mention, you were in the countryside, the middle of nowhere.

all you could do was groan as you twisted the keys out of ignition, after you had smacked the horn with your palm in frustration. you could already feel the heat seeping through the window as the air conditioning had given out—as well as the entire car. 

a frown etched itself on your face, sighing as you used the parking brake—just in case as you would’ve just ended it if your car had begun rolling off after getting out to check. a huffed groan fell from your lips as you struggled with the stubborn brake, which hadn’t been used since you’d gotten the car. 

swiping a hand across your forehead at the strain, you opened the driver’s side door to step out—not before checking the road to see that the way was clear of upcoming cars. 

as soon as the door had cracked open, you could feel the blistering country heat beating down on your body. a soft whimper fell from your lips as the car door slammed shut behind you, raising an arm to cover the sun rays that hindered your sight.

you felt helpless as you turned to look at your car—you had no clue what you were doing! you were not a mechanic, and you were sure as hell not built for this type of heat. you pulled out the phone you had slipped into your back pocket, hand on your forehead as you fingered through your hair. 

your jaw clenched at the no service signal, rendering the device completely useless. just your luck to be stuck, in the middle of nowhere, with no cell service. just you and your broken down car, a few items of belonging in the trunk for your road trip.

hopelessness and panic started to sink in as you bit your cheek to hold back the tears, a hand still on your head as the other went to your hip. you circled the car in ponder—you had no clue where you were. you had no clue where the nearest repair shop was—if there even was one in this barren land. you huffed as you looked at the desert surrounding you—an impeccable view you do admit—with tall mountains in the distance and sparse cacti—and to your surprise, a lone tumbleweed that danced its way across the asphalt road.

your eyes followed the dead bush as it blew, somewhat bewildered at the sight since you’d never seen such in person—only in western movies you’d watch in the comfort of your apartment in the city.

your gaze from the bundle of weeds was torn away when you heard an approaching car from further down the road—actually, you had heard the obscenely loud and blaring country music from the vehicle before the wheels of the car against the road. your brows furrowed on your face as you glanced with squinted eyes at the approaching truck. an uneasy feeling bubbled in your tummy and you felt your hair standing on end at the sight of the big, intimidating truck that was getting closer and closer.

you swallowed thickly as you watched the truck pull off the road right after where you stood in front of your—much smaller and noticeably cleaner—car that looked massively out of place in the dusty surroundings. the music that disrupted the silence was cut-off as the keys were ripped out of the ignition, now met with tranquility as the air around settled.

it wasn’t long after that two guys had opened their respective doors, stepping out of the tall, dirtied, scraped truck. their boots scuffed against the tiny pebbles that littered the asphalt as they slammed the doors shut once again. 

you eyed the pair—but it was the driver who initially caught your eye. with dirtied cowboy boots, tight jeans that hugged his thighs and were speckled with dirt, a button-down shirt with a few too many undone—enough to show off his tanned and toned chest—a dusting of facial hair on his face, and curls peeking out from the cowboy hat that sat a little too low on his head, he walked his way over. alongside him, you assumed was his friend, who wore basically the same thing, except lacking the attempt to be a piece of eye candy.

you were a little stunned as they approached—i mean what if these incredibly attractive and muscled cowboys tried to kill you? it's not like you’d mind, they were hot enough to get away with it, but you just had to trust they wouldn’t—that they had the best intentions at heart.

you watched as the driver had taken the toothpick from between his teeth in between his index and middle fingers, his voice coming out gruffly with a heavy accent, “howdy, li’l lady,” he tapped his hat with a finger in greeting, seemingly too lazy to tip it off after a long days work, “wha’s wrong wit’ y’car?”

you watched his eyes dance between your face—and appearance—and back to your car, which appeared to be fine, but they had seen you standing on the side of the road.

you hummed, pursing your lips as you scratched the back of your head nervously while glancing back at your ride, “uh…” you stuttered slightly, letting out a breathless, nervous chuckle as you grimaced at your inability to get your words out, “it just stopped working.”

“well, tha’s no good,” he mumbled, a smirk on his face as he listened to your smooth voice, another nod to the fact you were not from around these parts, “mind if me and my buddy, oscar, here take a look, ma’am?” 

he threw a thumb in his friend’s direction, who was much paler in comparison, an eye squinted because of the sun as he stood awkwardly with his arms crossed against his chest.

you breathed a sigh of relief, saving you the pain of having to ask for his help—making him go out of his way if he didn’t offer to begin with. you nod, “please, if it's not too much of a hassle for you-”

he waved his hand dismissively, “nonsense, ‘s no problem to help out a pretty girl such as yerself,” he ignored the eye roll from his buddy beside him, nodding his head in gesture to the front of your car, “pop the hood f’me, would ya?”

you nodded quickly with a hum in response to tell him you heard him as you quickly did just that. you opened the car door, another noise surpassing your lips at the heat that had already accumulated in the car. the fact it was humid was just the cherry on top to make you even more miserable. nonetheless, you shook your head and dismissed the heat. Instead, you had done what the country boy had asked—after oscar had leaned against your open passenger side window to tell you how because you had never needed to before. 

a breathless thanks falling from your lips earned a small smile from him, tilting his head in acknowledgement as you once again stepped out from the car. you walked to the front of the car, hands on your hips and eyes squinted as you felt the sweat drip down your face.

you turned your body away from the sun, watching intently as lando had rolled up the sleeves of his button-up, revealing sweat-dirtied skin and veins from hard, strained work. you eyed his hands—already messy from the day's work they had done—and he had noticed, but he decided to not comment on it so soon.

part of you felt bad—they had probably just got done doing laborious tasks in the blistering, country heat and now you were making—they offered—them help you get your car up and running again.

you heard a hum fall from his lips as he settled his sleeves at his elbows, “le’s take a look ‘ere,” he mumbled to himself, taking the gloves that hung out of his back pocket and slipping them on to protect himself from the heated engine. a tinge of disappointment ran through your body at the fact he was covering up his hands, but there was plenty more of him to stare at—what?

you mentally shook your head—you just met the guy! he could probably—he did—see that you were checking him out head to toe. the way his biceps clearly filled out that button-up, the outline of his chest against the loose fitting torso of the fabric, the way the blue denim hugged his thighs just perfectly and fell loose below his knees, the bunched fabric at his elbows, the toothpick bitten between his teeth that slightly indented his bottom lip. you had to force yourself to peel your eyes away from the poor guy before you got lost in the way the sweat dripped down his neck.

his forearms leaned against the front of your car as he hunched over the engine, his gloved hands working through all the possible problems. every now and then, he swiped the back of his hand across his forehead to rid his face of the sweat.

you watched as his friend hovered beside him, offering enlightening suggestions to what could be wrong-

“aha!” his small celebration cut through the silence as your gaze once again settled on him, watching as he stood up, stretching an arm across his chest and his neck to the side briefly, “i see wha’s the problem.”

you looked to him with widened eyes, finding his gaze already on you as you swallowed nervously, “can it be fixed?” you asked, your voice sounding smaller than you would’ve liked—i mean the possibility of you getting out of here relied on the men in front of you.

“no, yeah, ‘ll be able to fix ‘er up in no time, but���” he shook his head, shutting the hood back as he leaned forward on his hands as they rested on the car, “ ‘ll hafta come back t’morrow, y’know.”

you nodded in sullen understanding—even though, no, you didn’t know—you sighed at the thought of sleeping in your hot, humid, broken car on the side of the road for the night, in the middle of nowhere.

oscar piped up, uncrossing his arms to lift his hands as he spoke, “actually, i might have a few tools-”

lando patted his hand against oscar’s chest, chuckling as he shook his head, “don't listen to ‘im ‘ere, he don’t know what he’s sayin’! must be the heat gettin’ to that empty head of ‘is! y’know wha tha’s like, yeah?”

you hum in confused agreement, your lips pulling into a straight line as you nod slowly, “uh, yeah… sure.”

he chuckles breathlessly, raising a hand towards you that says ‘see, you get it.’ “musta forgot we left them tools back at ‘r house!” he shakes his head as his empty chuckles die down, ignoring the glaring side eye from his friend, “now won't you give us a minute ‘ere, li’l lady.” he flashes a smile before grabbing a fist full of oscar’s shirt, hauling him off to the side of the road as they stand off in the dry, dusty dirt.

you watched as they seemed to get into very passionate conversation—and listen in. it's not like they were being quiet in the first place, you couldn't help but hear the words that left their mouths in hushed whispers—though most of it was in a thicker accent than when she spoke to them directly.

“what are you sayin’?!”

“what am i sayin’? what are you sayin’?” he shakes his head with a scoff, throwing a hand back in gesture towards the car, “y’know we can fix the damn car with the tools back in ‘r truck!”

“c’mon, osc, jus’ humor me this once!”

“yer bein’ an idiot, off yer rocker or sumthin’” he shakes his head with his hands on his hips like a disappointed mother as his boot taps against the ground, “yer hopeless.”

lando ignored the last comments from oscar as he walked back towards where you stood as he peeled the gloves from his hands, shoving them into his back pocket once again. he stood before you with his thumbs through his belt loops, looking down at you as he spoke.

he sniffled quietly, his nose scrunching, “we’ll give ya a ride to the next town over, missy,” he nodded his head once, his index finger swiping away the sweat over his top lip.

but before you can respond—tell them that it’s okay, you can sleep in the car—he makes a disapproving noise as he looks towards the sun. your gaze follows his, furrowing your brows as you don't seem to notice what he does.

he shakes his head, inhaling through his teeth, “actually, ‘s gettin’ dark out, darlin’,” he said slowly, gauging your thoughts by the way you react, “next town’s probably quieting down right about now.”

“oh,” you say simply, “well, that's alright, i can just sleep in my car, i guess.”

he dismisses your suggestion, “no need for that, missy. we can set you up at ‘r place?” he offers, an eyebrow raised at the suggestion, sensing the hesitation in your expression and body language.

you shook your head rapidly—they had already took the time to even look at the problem with your car, but now taking up space in their house? you felt like you were being greedy now.

“no, i don’t want to intrude!” you try to decline politely, waving your hands dismissively in front of you, “besides you’ve already helped plenty by even offering to fix my car.”

he chuckles, shaking his head in return, his curls bouncing slightly, “ ‘s no biggie. take yer in ‘r truck,” he nods towards the scuffed up vehicle behind him, “set ya up in ‘r guest room all nice and cozy, have yer car fixed before you even wake up. how’s tha’ sound, darlin’?”

you bite your lip as he looks at you, brow still raised in the question of ‘will you come with us?’ and how can you refuse the nice country boys, with their funny accents and silly words, who just want to get you on your way?

you nod reluctantly—it's not like you didn’t want to go with them, but you still felt like you were being a bit of a leech, “yeah, okay, if it's not too much of a hassle-”

“atta girl!” he smacks a hand down on your shoulder, almost too eagerly as he guides your path towards the passenger side of his beat-up truck. you tense under his hand, glancing back at the car with a frown.

“well, hold on now, lando,” oscar calls out, shaking his head as he mutters something about the eagerness of the man, “she might need to get a few of ‘er things from ‘er car! practically kidnappin’ her with how fast yer tryin’ to stuff her inside!”

lando tsk’s his tongue, pointing a finger in agreement at oscar’s words, “ah, suppose yer right,” he reluctantly drops your hand from your shoulder to let you back to your car. 

you awkwardly shuffle your way to the trunk of your car, acutely aware of their heavy gazes—especially as they studied you.yYou knew they knew you weren’t from around here, that you were not used to being in the weeds as they were and it heated up your cheeks to be so out of place and awkward next to them.

you quickly fill your hands with a small blanket and a change of clothes for the next day before shutting the trunk again, locking the car behind you as you walk back to lando’s side. his hand goes to the small of your back as he convinces you to ride shotgun next to him.

oscar opens his mouth to protest, his hand raised as he’s about to speak when lando feverishly waved his hand next to his neck—cut it out, osc! he could practically hear in his thoughts.

after he had gotten you settled into his car, he handed you his keys to give it a start—it's okay, climb over the center console and put yer foot on the brake to get ‘er started! don't want ya to burn up now!

once again, he grabbed a fist of oscar’s shirt as he tugged him to the side again, glancing back towards the truck as you settled in the seat after starting the car.

“mate, i know what yer doin’,” he spoke in an exasperated tone of disapproval as he too gazed back at the truck.

lando sighed, clambering a hand on his shoulder and massaging the muscle—weirdly enough for oscar to shrug it off with a grimace look of disgust. lando rolls his eyes, his hand falling back down to his side as he huffs out a sigh, “look, i told you-”

“i get it, she’s a pretty thing, but ‘s unnecessary,” he tells him, raising his brows with his head tilted down, “you should’ve jus’ fixed ‘er car and sent ‘er on ‘er way.”

he sniffles, swiping the back of his dirty hand across his nose, “if you don’t want ‘er back at the house, i understand, osc…”

he shakes his head, “it’s not that i don’t want ‘er in ‘r house, i mean she seems like a nice girl, but-” he cuts himself off, pursing his lips as he closes with eyes with a big sigh before looking at lando seriously, “listen, i just don’t want you takin’ advantage of ‘er.”

“y’know me, osc, and you know i won’t.”

“yeah, but that was before i saw you lay yer eyes on her, and saw them bug out of yer damn head.”

“shut up.” he grumbled, rolling his eyes with the shake of his head as he walked back around to the driver’s side door, watching poor oscar who was forced into the backseat of the car because of you—the pretty little thing in their front passenger seat.

the drive back was awkward to say the least. silence hung in the air, the only sound was the heavy hum of the car and the scrape of the tires on the asphalt. you tried to keep your eyes forward, ignoring the man beside you who drove with a single hand on the bottom of the steering wheel. whenever you’d glanced over, you could see the paled skin of his knuckles from his hard grasp on the wheel.

you had to forcibly peel your eyes away from the sight of his hands​​—his dusty sleeves still rolled up to his elbows, which exposed the smeared dirt across his tanned skin from his outside work. you couldn’t see, but a smirk etched its way onto his lips, his thumb swiping across his lips as if to wipe it away before you or oscar would notice.

the truck jostled to the side a bit as the road changed to rough gravel, hearing the crunch under the weight of the car. the house—that you assumed belonged to the two guys—came into view.

your eyes scanned the land—plenty of trees surrounded the property with a few animals here and there, a red barn further back near the edge of the forest, and the house itself. 

you didn't know what to expect when the thought of their house had first crossed your mind—but it hadn’t been too far from what you were seeing. the house looked quaint—a single story with a wrap-around patio, another vehicle parked up outside a good distance away from a red, wood dog house that had a water bowl next to it.

as lando pulled up to the house, parked up next to the other car, he killed the engine before getting out. you swiftly followed by unbuckling your seatbelt as you reached for the door handle, but you were beaten to it by the poor backseat dweller.

you gave him a soft smile—which he returned—muttering a ‘thanks’ as you took the hand he offered as he guided you down from the tall truck. he gave you a nod, dropping your hand as he shut the door behind you before looking over at lando, whose jaw was noticeably clenched. all oscar did was roll his eyes and begin to show you around the property, inviting you into their cozy country home.

lando quickly found himself by your side, gently taking your belongings from your arms with a friendly smile as he interrupted oscar, “ill get you set up in ‘r guest room,” he offered, taking great care in holding your precious belongings, “osc, why don't you go show ‘er them barn cats in the meantime.”

he watched the way your eyes lit up, failing to realize that the smile on his face grew bigger at your reaction—he enjoyed the way the tension slowly filtered from your stance at the thought of seeing some cute cats.

the air had begun to cool now, they had finally finished naming off all the little critters that lived on their property and were now taking you back to their main house for a bite to eat before hitting the hay. you would’ve denied being hungry if it weren’t for your tummy grumbling for nearly ten minutes.

you would’ve denied being hungry if it weren’t for the smell of a nice, home cooked meal that made your mouth water and your tummy growl even most incessantly. it was by far the best meal you had ever eaten in your life, and you started to relax and loosen up a bit more in their presence.

so now you were all sitting around on the couches, one was worn leather and the other some frayed corduroy fabric with several different patches sewn onto it. oscar had his head leaned against the backrest of the leather couch, his cowboy hat over his face and arms over his chest that moved with every soft inhale and exhale. in one of his hands, tucked in his elbow was a green, half drunk beer bottle that was still cold as the condensation dripped down the side.

lando, on the other hand, had taken his spot in the old recliner, a beer also in hand as he sipped causally, eyes glued to the old tv—it still had antennas and you were perplexed on how it still worked. still, you watched whatever old movie lando had claimed was the best movie that had ever existed—it was older than you.

it was late in the evening, the sound of cicadas and other loud insects chirping away as the sun had finally fallen from the sky, painting the sky a dark black with speckled stars. you were confused at first as to why lando had ushered you out onto the porch so late at night, but once you glanced up to the nice sky, it had all made sense.

a view like this was never available to you in the city, but here and now, it was. away from all the light pollution and tall buildings of the city, you stood under the porch, leaning against the white railing in awe at the unfiltered night sky.

lando had smiled at your mumbles, countless words of how pretty, gorgeous and striking the view was, how lucky he was to be able to see this from where they stood. you shook your head in disbelief, “‘s so pretty,” you had mumbled breathlessly, turning your head to find that he hadn’t taken his eyes off you.

he leaned next to you, a beer still in hand—no doubt it wasn’t his first of the night. your arms barely grazed each other, the fabric of his long sleeve against your bare arm sent tingles over your body.

“sure is,” he whispered back, a smug smile tugging at his lips as he glanced appreciatively over the features of your face before tilting his beer bottle towards you. all you did was smile, feeling the heat rush to your face at his incentive—that you were his best view. you hesitantly took the bottle in your hand, swooshing around the liquid before taking a sip.

he chuckled as your face contorted in a grimace, taking the bottle back from you as he watched your reaction with deep enjoyment, “not a fan, eh?” he teased before taking a sip himself.

“definitely not,” you cough out once you managed to get it swallowed, smacking your lips as you still feel the taste on your tongue, “never had been before.”

his brows raised at your admission, “is that so?” he hums, nodding as he looks back over the property, “so what do ya drink?”

you hum, taking a moment to consider before listing off a few fruity cocktails that you had tried during your club outings. you watched the look of confusion come over his face, the sight making you giggle.

“wha’the hell is tha?” he questions, his voice raised an octave.

all you can do is shake your head and laugh as you nudge his shoulder, promising him, “i’ll have to take you to the city someday.”

“yeah, sure ya will.”

instead of responding, you just rolled your eyes and fixed your gaze back at the awe-striking view. you stood contently for a long time before lando had to force you inside to finally get some rest after a long day, muttering promises that your car would be fixed before first light tomorrow.

cock-a-doodle-do!

when the sound reached your ears, you slipped in consciousness, confusion and disbelief as you sat up in the wood-framed bed. you groaned, your shoulders hunched and hair heavily disheveled. you would’ve slept longer if it were for the rooster that had loudly crowed at the crack of dawn. you had hardly believed that it was something that roosters actually do—you were a bit naive. 

you rolled back in bed, shoving a pillow over your head to block out the sounds of incessant crowing until you had fallen back into a light sleep—stupid chicken.

and when you awoke again a couple hours later with a knock to the guest room door, you stirred. again you sat up, groaned at the forceful waking, but this time you stayed up as you called out for whoever knocked to come in.

the door creaked open, and there was oscar, a smile on his slightly sunburned face, as per usual, talking about how there’s some food left over that you can heat up. though, not all the words make it to your sleep-fogged brain so you just hum and nod, adjusting to the bright sun slipping through the curtains.

you sighed when you realized that by now, your car was probably fixed, that this was the last yummy meal cooked by these nice—and strangely attractive—country boys. surprisingly, you felt your heart ache at the thought of leaving. they had been so nice to you, inviting you into their home with nothing, but care and generosity.

but of course, leaving had come all too soon as you were driven back to where your car had broken down—oscar suffering in the backseat after being forced once again to sit back there. being lead to your car with small talk as it sunk in that the pretty little lady who’s car they fixed was now going on her way.

they stood either side of your car, oscar on the passenger side and lando on the driver's side. you had the door propped open, starting the car with a smile on your face, but it quickly turned sad.

as you closed the car door, you rolled down the window to look up at lando as he stood closer, hands in the front pockets of his jeans, a small smile on his lips as he looked down at you. you held out an arm to which he leaned over, allowing you to wrap in around him, his arm snaking around your back. he lightly patted it after a few moments, relishing in the affection before inevitably pulling away.

“thank you again, mr.—” you paused, realizing you hadn’t gotten as acquainted to learn their full names, suddenly feeling a bit red in the face as you blanked.

all lando did was smirk as he leaned against your car door, arm over the window as he bent down to eye level with you. his other hand snaked its way up to the hat that sat atop his head. he revealed the dark curls beneath as he lifted it from his head, situating it on yours the best he could—it wasn’t as secure of a fit on your head compared to his. “norris,” he finished the sentence for you, now holding out his hand for you to shake—which you do—“lando norris. it was nice to meeting ya, darlin’, see ya around.”

—

taglist (found here): @slut4lrh @kaa12 @taylorslovesswifties13 @sbella13 @nhlfs @poppyflower-22 @beskardroids @hiireadstuff @sapphiccloud @lorenica @delululeclerc @c-losur3 @namgification @casperlikej @darleneslane @soamericn @decafmickey @tellybearryyyy @geniusalpaca @somanyfandomsbruh @mel164 @littlegrapejuice @rylieverstappen-sargent @prudyhoo @ahnneyong @ln4smiamitrophy @jiggly-puff-12 @jamieebuolos @ireadthensuetheauthors @jaasworld

proofread by @foreveralbon <333

[veltana]

Stranded - Intro

✦ Pairing: Bucky Barnes/Fem!Reader ✦ Word count: ~400 ✦ Rating: Mature ✦ Warnings/tags: Grumpy mountain man!Bucky, don't ask me about US geography just go with it, eventual relationship/romance/smut. ✦ Summary: Your car breaks down in the middle of nowhere. ✦ Note: You voted for it, so here he is! I'm trying something new with this and making this an interactive story! I'm gonna post a poll tomorrow and you get to vote for what happens in the next part. You're also invited to send suggestions for what you want to happen in upcoming parts! I'm gonna be tagging everything with #stranded series.

Masterlist | AO3

It wasn’t your plan to be stranded in the middle of nowhere, but you are nonetheless.

A slew of curses fall out of your mouth as you stand in the freezing cold, trying to get a signal on your phone. It is still light out, but the sun is starting to set and the road you’re on has been deserted since you stopped.

Accepting defeat, you tuck your phone back into your pocket and try to devise another plan.

You can wait by the car, hoping someone will come by and be willing to help you. But you also remember seeing a small sign up a gravel road some way back.

Either stay out in the cold and die of hypothermia. Get murdered by someone stopping under the guise of helping you. Or get murdered by a loner in the mountains. None of the options seems very appealing to you. Walking back to town is not an option, either way, it’s too far.

After some thinking, you decide you can't stay and put a note in the window of your car that you’ve gone for help, and please don’t break into your car.

Fortunately for you, you’re actually kind of prepared for this. You have reasonable boots, a thick coat, beanie, and gloves. Rummaging through your suitcase, you stuff some other useful things into your backpack, before locking the car and starting to walk.

The gravel road is steep, but at least you’re warm, and not thinking about the chill that will come when your sweat cools. You catch a glimpse of a chimney and a thin trail of smoke rising between the hills and that keeps you going. Dusk is closing in, and you hope to reach the place before the road fades into darkness.

As the hill crests, you take a few seconds to catch your breath and get a better look at the house for the first time. Or, it’s more of a cabin, low and simple, but its windows glow warmly in the fading light, and a truck sits outside.

At least you’ll be warm when you get murdered!

You knock firmly on the door and wait. For a few seconds, there is nothing but stillness from inside, before you hear heavy footfalls on the other side of the door.

As the door opens you put on your best smile.

“Hi!” you introduce yourself. “My car broke down on the main road and I couldn’t get a signal, but I saw the sign and walked here. Do you have a working phone or wifi that I could use to get in contact with a towing company?”

The man eyes you up and down. He’s so much bigger than you, with blue piercing eyes, long hair held back by a black cap, and a scruffy beard. The silence stretches and you’re starting to think that maybe he didn’t understand you.

Then he grunts and says, “Come in, I’m Bucky.”

[toomanystoriessolittletime]

Roadside

Summary: On your way back from a long weekend that you got to spent with Joel, his car breaks down. While you both waited for Tommy to get there to help, Joel has some ideas on how to spend the time waiting.

Pairing: Joel Miller x fem. reader

Wordcount: 792

Rating: T

Warnings: roadtrips, falling in love but slowly, car trouble, implied smut, kissing, flirting, feelings, teasing, kinda secret dating, fourteen year age gap

A/N: I'm missing references to three pics I think, but it doesn't get better than this lol (technically I am not here, because I am on a writing break) The moodboard screamed road trip to me, so this is what I did. This is for @iamasaddie 24 hour writing challenge and I hope it does not suck 🙃

follow @toomanystoriessolittletime-fics and turn on notifications to get notified when I post new fics

Full Masterlist // Joel Miller Masterlist

„What are you gonna tell him when he gets here?“ You hummed, looking up at Joel. He gave you a small smile before he stepped closer, his big, strong hands coming down to part your legs for him, stepping between them so he was towering over you, the sun slowly setting on the horizon.

You had almost made it home. 

After a long weekend of having Joel to yourself without the fear of running into someone you both knew (if you left your hotel room at all) that you had spend in a tiny town in close to Dallas, you were on your way back, just an hour out of Austin when his truck made a very sad noise until the engine went out and the car stopped on the side of the road. 

He had tried to get it to work before, with a long groan, he told you he had to call Tommy cause the something something needed a something so he could fix it. He had kept his eyes on you the whole times as he made the call, looking beyond sexy in the shirt you bought him, with his too long getting hair that you had spent all night running your fingers through as he made you cum over and over again until you both passed out. 

You had met Tommy before. You just hadn’t met him as Joel’s girlfriend.

Things between you and Joel had been… slow until they weren’t.

You’ve known each other for almost two years due to you working as an interior designer occasionally with his company. But it was six months ago that you had gotten closer as you worked on a very time consuming project where the client brought you both to the verge of insanity with how often they were changing the plans. 

He had finally asked you out one night and the rest as they say, was history. 

„Guess I’m finally gonna introduce my controversially young girlfriend to him,“ Joel smiled before he kissed you softly. You gasped in mock offence, before tilting your chin up to meet his lips with a smile, your hands running up his broad back until your fingers slipped into his hair on the back of his neck. 

„Not that controversial,“ you grinned and he chuckled before his lips kissed down your neck. 

„Fourteen years is a lot,“ he mumbled against your neck and you sighed, letting your head fall to the side to give him more access. One of his hands slowly drifted up your thighs, his fingers pushing the fabric of your skirt up. 

„Only if you care what other people think. Last time I checked, we’re both very consenting adults,“ you said and he playfully bit into your neck making your shriek. 

„How consenting are we talking about here exactly?“ He asked and you looked up at him as one of his hands slipped between your legs, his fingers brushing over your damp panties. 

You could feel your nipples harden against the fabric of the shirt you had put on this morning and Joel seemed to notice too, his other hand coming up to cup one of your tits, his thumb playing with your nipple.

Looking around you realised that you were pretty much in the middle of nowhere. You couldn’t even remember when you had seen a car drive by the last time. 

„Consenting enough to let you fuck me in the middle of nowhere until your brother gets here,“ you whispered against his ear and he groaned, letting his forehead fall against yours. 

„Atta girl,“ he grinned, before he kissed you again while his hands made quick work of your underwear. 

You could still feel him dripping out of you, your legs a little weak, when you jumped of the back of the truck, Joel taking your hand as the door of the car that had parked behind his opened and a man jumped out, looking between the two of you. 

The sun had set by now, the cold air making you shiver and Joel let go of your hand, to put an arm around your waist, pulling you closer against him, the warmth of his body helping instantly. 

„So this is how I get to find out the mysterious woman that makes my brother grin like a teenager with a crush when he looks at his phone is you?“ Tommy Miller approached with a wide grin. You could practically hear Joel roll his eyes and you smiled at his brother. 

„You got a crush on me, Miller?“ You teased and looked up at him. 

„Brat,“ he sighed, fighting a smile.

„You love it,“ you winked, feeling him pull you closer. 

„Yeah, I really do,“ he hummed before he kissed you softly. 

[pedrospatch]

not a thing l part ii

Post Outbreak! Joel Miller x Female Reader

part i

summary: You fess up and tell Joel about how Ellie overheard the two of you during the private moment you two had in the woods; Ellie confronts Joel about you while you’re asleep in the truck.

warnings/tags: 18+ ONLY, MINORS DNI. IMPLIED AGED GAP (no specific age mentioned for reader, Joel is canon age) Joel is kind of an asshole, Ellie is a wiseass, mentions of Tess.

word count: 4.7k

a/n: decided to write a second part to the first Joel fic that i ever wrote! i am so, so stunned that one fic turned into more and that people actually want to read my stuff for Joel/TLOU. thank you all sm for everything and for interacting with me and my content. it means a ton!

“Think this might be a good time to stop?” Joel asked you, quietly.

You hummed, glancing back over at Ellie through the rearview mirror.

Even through the darkness inside the small cab of the pickup truck, it was almost too painfully obvious as to how fucking exhausted the girl was and how much this journey had already taken out of her after only just a few days on the road. Although she was on the smaller side and had an ample amount of space to stretch out her limbs, lay down, and get a decent night’s sleep in the backseat of the truck while you and Joel both took turns driving through the night, Ellie had expressed to you on more than one occasion that she’d rather stop to make temporary camp somewhere for a few hours and continue the drive in the morning once everyone had the chance to take a break. You honestly couldn’t blame her, not even if you tried—it was taking its toll on you too, a lot more than you let on to both Joel and especially to Ellie.

Being the adult, you kept your complaints to yourself, but the truth of the matter was that at the end of each day, you were also getting sick and tired, so damn sick and tired, of the ungodly amount of time that you were spending cooped up in the pickup, just sitting on your ass.

Sure, it may have been a little bit of extra work and it was keeping the three of you from reaching Wyoming as fast as Joel would have liked given the nature of the smartass, teenaged cargo you two had on your hands—but you also preferred to stop and make camp for the night.

After realizing that Joel was still waiting for a response, you nodded.

“Yeah, we should probably call it for the night,” You told him, glancing down at the map of the country in your hands. The three of you made it to the state of Indiana; Missouri was your next planned stop to find gas to siphon and refuel, and even though it was just a little less than six hours away, you figured an early morning wakeup call could have you all there by tomorrow afternoon. “Only problem about a state like Indiana is that it’s flat as fuck. There’s nothing but wide, open grassy fields around here.” You peered out of the window, then turned back to Joel, frowning. “Think we’ll find a safe enough spot?”

“We’re just gonna have to make do with what we got,” Joel stated as he carefully veered the vehicle off of the highway and to the left, onto the aforementioned grassy field. “You think about a mile out from the highway is decent enough? Mile and a half, maybe?”

“Let’s make it two,” You suggested. You neatly folded up the map and stuck it into the glove compartment in front of you. “I doubt we’ll run into anyone or anything out here in the middle of nowhere, but might be best not to risk being too close to the highway, just in case.”

He looked over at you, nodding his head in agreement. “Two it is.”

“Aww, teamwork,” Ellie teased from the backseat. “How fucking cute.”

“It’d be real cute if you’d shut up,” Joel quipped. Once he pulled the truck about a couple of miles out onto the field, he came to a stop and then cut the engine. “We’re gonna take a breather for a few hours,” he said to Ellie over his shoulder. “But only for a few hours, and not a minute more. Come sunrise, we need to get movin’ again, understood?”

She saluted him. “Aye aye, Captain. Whatever you say.”

The second that you hopped out of the pickup, you started shivering. The chilly evening breeze nipped at any patch of exposed skin it could find. The days had been pretty decent, but at night, the temperatures would drop drastically—it couldn’t have been warmer than forty or so degrees. Instinctively, you reached into the top of your pack, pulling a second jacket you carried for yourself out of it. You handed it over to Ellie and instructed her, “Put this on. Cordyceps infection might not have taken you out, but hypothermia will.”

She took it from you, shooting you a tiny, grateful smile. “Thanks.”

Joel eyed the interaction, his lips pursed together in displeasure.

He didn’t want you and Ellie getting attached to one another, but he feared it was too late. The girl had taken an instant liking to you and you seemed to have taken a liking to her too. “Here.” He tossed Ellie her blue sleeping bag. “Go lay down on the other side of the truck.”

“I’m already so fucking itchy just thinking we have to sleep here.” Ellie wrinkled her nose down at the grass under her shoes. Lifting her head, she took a glance around before turning her attention to you. It was written all over her face, evident in the way she started to shuffle nervously from foot to foot; she was afraid. “I feel so exposed. Are we really going to be safe? There’s fucking nothing out here, not even a single tree. What if someone finds us while we’re all sleeping?”

Before you could reassure her, Joel stepped in.

“No one is goin’ to find us out here,” he grouched. “We’ll be safe. Now quit your complainin’ and go get settled for the night. And don’t even think of askin’ me for a fire in the middle of a goddamn field. Got it?”

Ellie rolled her eyes at him. “Oh, it’s fine. You know, I’m actually kinda starting to get used to freezing my fucking ass off anyway.”

You lifted a hand to your mouth, trying to hide your snort of laughter.

She was too fucking quick for her own good.

Joel glared at you. “What? You think she’s funny?”

“Actually, I think she’s fucking hilarious,” You shrugged, causing him to let out an exasperated sigh. “What? It’s true! She’s made me laugh more in the last week than I have in the last two fucking decades.”

Ellie beamed at you. “At least someone still has a sense of humor.”

“Alright, that’s enough,” he snapped, irritably. “Both of you.”

She leaned over towards you, muttering the question right under her breath, “Jesus, has he always been this fucking crabby?” She nudged your shoulder with hers. “You must have the patience of a fucking saint to be able to deal with this on the daily. I would have killed him by now and then offed myself too with that fucking attitude.”

He stepped towards her. “What’d you just say—”

“Ellie.” Although you tried your hardest to reprimand her, instead, you found yourself fighting back another laugh. “Come on, let’s go before he strangles us both.” Taking her arm, you started leading her around to the other side of the truck. Dropping her arm, you reached for your own sleeping bag from the bed of it and started rolling it out. Though you were still fighting back a fit of giggles, you found it in you to offer her some words of advice. “Ellie, I know Joel is not the easiest person to deal with, but you really have to stop giving him so much shit, kid. The man has enough gray hair as it is. Take it easy on him, will you?”

“But I need to keep myself entertained somehow,” she replied with a small, innocent shrug of her shoulders. She unrolled her own sleeping bag, laying it out right beside where you had laid out yours; you saw a pensive look cross her face and after a second, she moved it closer to yours, leaving about a one inch gap of space between the two. For as scared shitless as you had been to take someone like her under yours and Joel’s care, the mere fact that Ellie seemed to feel safer being so close to you must have meant you were doing something right.

“Jacket,” You reminded her.

“I know, I know.” Ellie tugged on the spare jacket that you’d given her just minutes ago, zipping it up to her chin. She yawned, crawling into her sleeping bag. Before rolling over onto her side, she stopped and a tiny, tired smirk tugged at her lips as she looked up at you. “Wait. You and Joel aren’t going to bone each other tonight, are you? Because I might actually have to suffocate myself in this thing if you do.”

You sighed heavily. “And here I thought you were actually going to do me the favor of never bringing it up ever again.”

“What can I say? Giving you shit is almost as fun as giving it to Joel.”

You nudged her lightly with the toe of you worn, brown leather boot, chuckling as you told her, “Go to sleep, you little jerk.”

“Remember. Protection.” Ellie yawned again, rolling over. “G’night.”

“Goodnight, Ellie.”

The minute that you heard her soft snores coming from inside of the bag and you were certain she was asleep, you made your way back to the other side of the truck where you found Joel busy loading up and checking his rifle. Thankfully, hadn’t seemed to have heard what Ellie had just said to you. “I’ll take watch tonight,” You offered, holding out your hands and beckoning for the weapon. You instantly noticed the all too familiar look of protest on his face. “Joel, you were the last one to drive today and you’re fucking exhausted. Just let me take watch.”

“The whole damn point of me drivin’ all the way out here was so we can all get some rest without worryin’ about anyone findin’ us,” Joel reminded you. “And besides, I wasn’t plannin’ on standin’ watch. I was just makin’ sure this was ready to go, in case of an emergency.”

You chuckled softly, shaking your head. “Joel, please. I know you like I know the back of my own goddamn hand and I already know that I’m going to wake up in the middle of the night and I’m going to find you standing watch, regardless of how safe you say we are in the middle of bumfuck nowhere.” You continued holding your hands out for the rifle. “Look, my arms are getting tired here. Can you just give me the fucking gun please?”

“You need sleep—”

“We can swap places in a couple hours,” You compromised. “Deal?”

Knowing that you could be just as stubborn as he was, Joel grumbled something incoherently under his breath before finally shoving it into your waiting hands.

“Thank you. Now, was that really so hard?”

Joel scoffed, shoving past you. He reached into the bed of the truck and grabbed his own sleeping bag. “You really need to stop talkin’ to the kid so much. She’s startin’ to rub off on you and I don’t like it.”

“Sweet dreams, Joel,” You replied, watching as he stalked around to the other side of the Chevy where Ellie was fast asleep.

An hour later, you found yourself leaning against the cab of the truck, the sound of chirping crickets your only companion. You held the rifle gently, but still firmly in your grasp, your index finger gingerly resting on the trigger. You tilted your head backwards, gazing up at the stars in the velvet night sky—you tried not to let your mind wander off very far, but you couldn’t help thinking of what Ellie had said to you earlier that morning back in the woods.

He’s a guy who doesn’t seem to give a shit about too many things or too many people. But I know he does give a shit about you. He cares about you.

She was wrong. She had to be wrong. She was fourteen, she was just a kid, after all. Besides, what the fuck could she possibly know about you and Joel, especially after only having been with the two of you for about a week?

Ellie was sorely mistaken.

Joel only kept you around for his benefit.

And the meaningless sex wasn’t the benefit you were referring to.

Joel had always been the brawn, but both you and Tess had been the brains of the operation. That’s how it had always been, at least for the better part of the last few years. You might have been on the younger side in comparison to your smuggling partners, but for some reason, Tess had seen something in you—what it had been, you never had the opportunity to find out, but it made her take a chance on you.

Against Joel’s wishes, she decided that she would take you under her wing; at eighteen years old, you’d been closer to being a child than an adult, but that only meant your mind was still pliable, and she could work with it. By the time you reached your twenties, it was apparent that Tess had all but molded you into a miniature clone of herself—she’d shown you how to think outside the box, taught you how to be persuasive, how to keep trades or deals from going south, and most importantly, what to do if they somehow did go south.

Now that she was gone, you were all that Joel had left. You were what he was stuck with. After Tess died, there was a part of you that had to wonder if Joel felt the wrong person had been infected and killed. It’s not that you thought that Joel would rather it was you who were dead but the reality was that if he’d been given the choice between having you or Tess at his side for this, you were certain it wouldn’t be you.

But he hadn’t gotten a choice. 

It was you he ended up with, and you were his only shot at getting to Tommy and getting Ellie to where she needed to be. He needed help, and now that Tess was no longer here, you were the next best thing.

That was it.

A rustling sound nearby pulled you out of your train of thought. You immediately lifted your head and pushed yourself away from the cab, readying your weapon. You took quiet, careful steps and then sharply turned the corner around the bed of the truck, aiming the rifle at the figure in front of you with your finger still on the trigger.

“Fuckin’ relax!” Joel hissed at you, holding his hands up. “It’s me!”

“Jesus Christ!” You exhaled a sharp breath, lowering the gun. You narrowed your eyes at him. “You scared the fucking shit out of me, Joel! I just about shot your head off of your shoulders!”

“Your aim ain’t all that good, darlin’,” Joel stated as he walked up to you, a slight hint of amusement in his Southern drawl. “You keepin’ watch or zonin’ out over here?”

You ignored his teasing remarks. “You’re supposed to be sleeping.”

Your heart squeezed tightly in your chest as Joel fell into step in front of you, an all too familiar lustful glimmer in his eyes.

“Couldn’t really sleep,” he stated with a shrug of his is shoulder. “Had somethin’ on my mind. But from the looks if it, I ain’t the only one lost in thought.” He peered down at you. “What were you thinkin’ about, anyhow?”

“Nothing,” You fibbed. “Just, uh, just how fucking cold it is.”

Joel reached for the rifle, taking it out of your hands. He leaned over and placed it in the bed of the truck behind you. “And you tell me that I’m a shitty liar?” he asked with a small scoff. “Let’s pretend that for a minute that I actually believe that’s what you were really thinkin’ about.” With every word that he spoke, his voice became lower, huskier. “If the cold is what’s on your mind, I know a couple different ways I can help get your mind off of it.”

“Joel—”

“C’mere.” He hooked his index fingers through two of the front belt loops of your blue jeans, yanking you forward until you came crashing against his chest. He dipped his head, his lips eagerly meeting an exposed patch of skin on your neck. As he kissed and nipped at the delicate flesh, he started to move his hands from the belt loops of your jeans over to the buttons instead.

“Joel, wait,” You mumbled weakly, cursing how your body just always seemed to melt right in his fucking hands. “Joel, stop.” You’d said it so softly into his failing right ear that he hadn’t heard you.

Joel’s mouth left your neck, finding your own mouth instead in a way that made every single nerve in your body light on fire. He started to walk you backwards until your back hit the bed of the pickup, a soft thud noise filling the air around you. He pinned you tightly between it and himself as he kissed you fiercely, hungrily. The physically intimate moments that you two shared over the years had always been relatively short due to never having the time nor the place, but maybe that’s why he kissed you the way that he did—with such urgency, with such desperation, as if his fucking life depended on it. Because it never lasted as long as he would have liked and he never knew when he would be able to get his hands on you again.

Breaking away from you slightly, Joel placed his hand on your hip, his index finger grazing the soft skin right above the waist of your jeans as he murmured breathlessly against your lips, “I want you. I gotta have you. Right fuckin’ now.”

It took just about every last ounce of strength that you had inside you to place both of your hands on his chest and gently push him back. “I don’t think we should do this, Joel. Not with Ellie being so close by.”

“She’s asleep.” He frowned, taking your hands off of his chest as he took several steps back from you looking dejected. “Unless you just don’t want—”

You were quick to stop him. “Of course I want you.” You swallowed, your throat having gone dry. “It’s just that—see, the thing is that—”

“Fuckin’ spit it out.”

So you do.

“Ellie knows, Joel.”

“What?” Even in the darkness, you could see the color draining from his face. “How?”

“Look, I really didn’t want to tell you about this. But last night in the woods when we were—” You trailed off, shifting your weight from one foot to the other almost anxiously.

“She saw us?”

“She heard us,” You corrected him. “She confronted me about it this morning before we left. I pretty much made her promise to keep her mouth shut because I didn’t want her saying anything to you about it. I didn’t want her giving you grief like she did to me.”

Joel ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “That little fucking shit—”

“It’s not her fault, Joel. And you know that. We shouldn’t have done it with her being so close by.”

You watched as he dropped his hand from his head, his jaw clenched.

“Joel, come on. Please don’t be mad about this.”

Joel fixed his eyes on the ground and tightly shook his head. “Go get some sleep. I’ll take over watch.”

“But Joel—”

“Just drop it,” he said, rigidly, his gaze refusing to meet yours. “Go.”

Knowing better than to push it, you simply nodded. “Okay.”

The moment you crawled into your sleeping bag next to Ellie, you’d tried your absolute hardest to get some shut eye, but what happened with Joel had you much too worried, and rightly so. Still, you prayed for sleep to come, but it never did and the rest of the night dragged on for what felt like a fucking eternity.

Hours later, when sunrise finally came around, you got up to find Joel had already been packing up the pickup truck, getting it ready for the long drive ahead. The second he saw you approaching him, he simply told you to wake Ellie because the three of you needed to get a move on sooner rather than later. After that, he’d hardly said another word to you.

He couldn’t even fucking look at you.

Halfway to Missouri, during a quick pitstop, Ellie had noticed the odd tension in the air between you and Joel. She’d also noticed how tired you looked. She offered to trade places and sit in as Joel’s copilot for the rest of the day, at least until you reached Kansas City.

“I think he’d actually prefer you as his copilot,” You’d muttered to her in reply, hopping into the backseat. Between the motion of the truck, the soft country music playing from another tape Ellie found, and the open windows bringing in fresh, crisp air, you’d curled up into a little ball in the backseat and passed out within minutes.

Ellie glanced over her shoulder at you, making sure you were actually asleep before turning to Joel. “She told you, didn’t she?”

“Zip it,” Joel ordered. “Ain’t none of your business.”

Ellie hummed. “Well, seeing as I had the absolute delightful pleasure of having to hear the two of you go at it like a couple of cats the other night, I think it actually is kind of my business now.” She paused. She could physically feel the way he was wincing beside her, though what was causing him to be so uncomfortable was left to be determined. Ellie would imagine that it was getting caught in the act itself, but for some reason, she sensed there was a lot more to this mess than met the eye and she wanted to get to the bottom of it. “She told me that you guys aren’t a thing—”

“We’re not a thing. We’re nothin’ at all, alright?”

Ellie blew a raspberry. “Yeah, alright. I see you’re both sticking to that story. That you’re not a thing.” She raised her fingers in quotations.

“It ain’t a story, it’s the truth. We’re nothin’ more than just a couple of smuggling partners tryin’ to get you to where the you need to be.” He glanced at her briefly, then turned back towards the road. “And if you want to make it there unscathed, I suggest you shut your mouth and focus on that map in your hands instead stickin’ your nose where it doesn’t belong.”

“I think I at least deserve an explanation after you two put me and my innocent little virgin ears through the wringer.”

“Ellie,” he warned.

It was almost kind of scary how she was already used him saying her name in that tone already. “You’ve been treating her shitty as fuck today, you know.”

Joel frowned. Even though he knew he didn’t need to defend himself to a fucking teenager, he found himself doing it anyway. “The hell are you talkin’ about? I haven’t said a single fuckin’ word to her today.”

“Exactly.” Ellie pointed her index finger at him. “It’s bothering her.”

“She’s a big girl, Ellie. If somethin’ is botherin’ her, then she can come and talk to me about it. She doesn’t need some kid helpin’ her out.”

“That’s the thing. She can’t talk to you about it.”

“Beg your pardon?”

“Well, you’re not exactly the most approachable guy, dude.”

Joel gripped the steering wheel tightly. “Why the fuck do you care so much, anyway? You have other things to worry about. Like findin’ the fuckin’ Fireflies and helpin’ them create a vaccine that’s supposed to save the goddamn world.”

“Because,” Ellie said, refusing to allow him to change the subject, not when she felt like she was finally getting somewhere. “I like her. She’s a good person.”

Joel glanced up at the rearview mirror and looked at you as you slept soundly. He couldn’t deny that. Even in this shit world, even after the things you’d seen and all the people you’ve lost, you really were still a good person. You still hadn’t lost touch with your sense of humanity—that was one thing Tess never managed to change about you, the one thing that kept you from being identical to her, identical to Joel. You somehow hadn’t let this world turn you into stone, and maybe that is why you meshed well with them from the start. You brought this odd kind of balance that they hadn’t even known they needed.

That Joel didn’t know he needed.

“She likes you.” Ellie’s voice caused him to snap back to reality. “Lord fucking knows why.”

“The hell’s that supposed to mean?”

“Oh, did I offend?” Ellie quirked an eyebrow, feeling a teeny smirk tug at the corners of her mouth. “Listen. All I’m saying is that she’s really young. And she’s really pretty. She’s nice, and smart as fuck, too. I bet she could probably have any guy that she fucking wants.” Her smirk only grew noticing how her words had gotten a rise out of Joel. Ellie could tell by the way his fingers had the steering wheel in a death grip, his knuckles ghost white. “And yet for some reason, she chooses to stick with you, you old fucker.”

“Listen here you little shit—”

She quickly held her hands up. “I’m just saying. She’s a good one, Joel.”

The words left his mouth before he could stop them. “I know she is.”

Bingo! Ellie thought to herself. Now we’re making progress.

“So, then why not treat her the way she deserves? Why just—what’s that saying? Hit it and quit it?”

Joel tossed a glare at her. “Don’t ever say that again.”

“I’m not wrong though. That’s what it is, isn’t it?” Ellie prompted.

“No!”

“But just a minute ago you said you two were nothing. So if you two are boning, but you’re nothing, that’s like a hit it and quit it, isn’t it? Or is it a fuck it and chuck it? Hump it and dump it?” She scratched her head, wracking her brain as she tried to figure it out. Beside her, Joel was about ready to implode. “Wait a minute, that can’t be right because you guys do it all the time. You’re not actually quitting it. So, it’s hooking up, right?”

“I swear to Christ I’m gonna make you fuckin’ walk to Wyoming if you don’t shut—how the fuck do you know all that? That what they teach you kids in FEDRA school?”

“Don’t change the subject.” Ellie grinned, crossing her arms over her chest. “Level with me, old man. Do you like her or not?”

Joel’s teeth were gritted together, his sights fixed on the road ahead.

“Or do you love her?” She practically sang.

“Ellie.” He said her name warningly once again, his eyes flickering to the rearview mirror. The last thing he needed was for you to wake up and hear this conversation; thankfully you were still out cold.

Ellie waved a hand at him. “Oh relax, the woman’s sleeping like a bear in hibernation. Now, answer the fucking question.”

Joel didn’t respond. He couldn’t respond.

He willed himself to open his mouth and say something—anything.

But he just couldn’t. He’d been stumped by a fucking fourteen year old who was too damn smart for her own good.

“Interesting,” Ellie mused after a minute of silence, curiously rubbing her chin. “How you can’t even deny it. Very, very, interesting.”

Before Joel could even think, the sound of you moving around in the backseat caused him to jump, the internal panic flooding him in one single wave. As soon as he was certain you were still fast asleep, he let out a breath of relief and turned to Ellie. “Now, you listen here—”

“Ah, ah, ah.” She held up her finger to her lips. “Let’s not wake Sleeping Beauty back there.” She dropped her hand down into her lap and glanced out the window, grinning to herself. “Besides, I have the answer I was looking for anyway.”

[gogogodzilla]

✧ 𝔻𝕒𝕪 𝟠 : 𝑀𝑒𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑐  ✧

【 𝑇𝑜𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑟𝑜𝑤 】

╰› 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑖𝑒 𝑠𝑤𝑎𝑛 𝑥 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑟

╰› 〖 𝑆𝑦𝑛𝑜𝑝𝑠𝑖𝑠 〗: Your car breaks down in the middle of nowhere, allowing you to reunite with Charlie after all these years

╰› 〖 𝑊𝑎𝑟𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠 〗: nsfw 18+, slight age gap, light angst, charlie's pov, slight dirty talk, unprotected sex, creampie, fingering

╰›  ✧ 𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑘𝑡𝑜𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑚.𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡 ✧ 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑 𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑜3 ✧ 𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑡𝑝𝑎𝑑 ✧

Rain patters against the roof of Swan Auto Repair, and the smell of motor oil, grease, and the remnants of old coffee fills the air. Charlie sits slumped at his desk in the back office of his shop, his head propped against his arm wrinkling the papers underneath. His faded flannel shirt is worn and rolled up to his elbows, exposing his oil-smudged hands and forearms. A distant ringing pulls him further out of his slumber and he blinks blearily as he attempts to regain his senses. 

He sits up with a groan, his back aching from his uncomfortable position. His steps toward the reception area are uncoordinated and he stumbles a little as he reaches for the phone on the wall. 

He picks up the phone and presses it against his ear. 

“Swan Auto” he answers, his voice thick with sleep. 

“Charlie?” your voice rings out on the other line. 

He straightens at the sound of your voice, and he’s surprised his heart didn’t lurch out of his chest. He can’t remember the last time he heard your voice, but it sounds just like it did the day you left.  

He forces himself out of his thoughts. “Been a while. Everything okay?” 

Your voice quivers as you speak. “I’d be better if my car didn’t break down in the middle of the night. Would you be willing to give an old friend a tow?” 

He likes to think you were more than old friends. The nights you used to spend tangled in his sheets surely meant something to him.

“Where are you?” 

He holds the phone with his shoulder as he searches for his jacket. You rattle off your location, which is mostly just a combination of landmarks. 

“Stay where you are. I’ll be there soon,” he says before hanging up. He grabs his jacket from a nearby coat rack and heads toward his tow truck. He wonders if you’ve changed at all. Forks had been a constant in his life, even after it felt like his world had been turned upside down by your departure. He figured the same could be applied to him. He hadn't changed except for a few more gray hairs and the sense not to get attached.

He sighs as he climbs into his ancient tow truck. It sputters to life, and Charlie begins his drive towards your location.  

He pulls in front of your car on the side of the road and hardly has enough time to throw it in park before he jumps out to meet you. You’re standing near your car, soaked to the bone. 

“Charlie!” you call as you head toward his truck. 

He wraps an arm around your shoulder and ushers you toward the passenger side of his truck. He practically shoves you in the seat before slamming the door behind you. 

He clambers into his truck, grateful to be out of the rain. He turns to look at you, taking in your appearance. The rain had soaked through your clothes, forcing them to cling tightly to your form. He can’t help his gaze from wandering, watching as water trickles down your neck and dips between the valley of your breasts.

“You’re drenched,” he says, forcing himself to look anywhere else but your tits. Your teeth begin to chatter and he reaches over to turn the heat up. 

“Why didn’t you just wait in the car?” he questions, his voice rough but not unkind. 

You shrug, “Felt weird just sitting there.”

His gaze softens as he looks at you, really looks at you, not just your soaking wet clothes. You hadn’t changed a bit. He couldn’t count the number of times he’d dreamed of just being in your presence once more, and now that he was really with you he didn’t know what to do. 

You turn to face him, “Thank you, Charlie. I don’t know where I’d be without you.” 

“Probably getting hypothermia,” he sighs. “Stay here while I hook your car up. We’ll take it back to the shop, and I can take a look at it there.” 

He doesn’t wait for your reply before jumping out of his truck. He works quickly to hook up your car, the rain only slightly inhibiting his progress. By the time he returns to you, he’s drenched and shivering. He’s thankful you’ve cranked the heat, and he takes a moment to defrost. 

“It’s good to see you, even if the circumstances aren’t exactly ideal,” you said, cutting through the awkward silence that fell upon you.  

He cleared his throat and started his truck. He was silent as he pulled out onto the road. Pine trees passed by in a flash as he picked up speed. The sooner he could get you back to his shop, the sooner he could get away from you. That’s what you wanted, right? 

“I told you to get rid of that piece of crap when you had the chance,” he mentioned, nodding his head toward his rearview mirror. 

You grinned, “It got me this far, hasn’t it?” 

“Speaking of, why now? Couldn’t find what you were looking for halfway across the country?” he questioned and it came out harsher than he intended. 

His words lingered between you, leaving a bad taste in his mouth. The silence that filled the cab of his truck was suffocating, and he counted down the seconds until he pulled into his shop. 

The rain had lightened up only slightly as he dropped your car off at his shop. You followed him into the back office as the tension simmered between you. He leans on the edge of his desk, taking in your appearance. You haven’t aged a day; you just look a bit more tired, maybe a little more sad. 

“M’sorry about earlier,” he begins. 

You wave him off, “I deserved it, don’t worry about it.”

“Still,” he shrugs, meeting your gaze, “it wasn’t fair. You had every right to leave this town and chase your dreams.”

You take a step towards him, “I shouldn’t have left the way I did. That wasn’t fair.” 

He resists the urge to pull you in and kiss all the regrets away. You shift on your feet before taking another step closer, situating yourself between his thighs. It almost seems like you’ve read his mind. 

You cup his face and he leans into your touch. A soft noise escapes him as you drag your thumb across his cheek. 

“I missed you,” he murmurs as he looks up at you. 

Your eyes search his for a moment, and the next thing he knows you’re leaning in. Your lips collide, and it's everything he’s dreamt about for the past few years. You kiss him, and it’s like nothing’s changed. It’s like you never left. 

You tangle your fingers in the hair at the nape of his neck, tugging him impossibly closer. He groans against your mouth and slides his tongue against your bottom lip. His hands wander downward and squeeze your ass, earning a small yelp in response. He uses the opportunity and runs his tongue across the backs of your teeth. 

You pull away, panting, your breath tickling his cheeks. Your eyes meet, and the slight nod of your head is all it takes for the rest of his resolve to crumble underneath your fingertips. 

He grabs you and spins the two of you so you’re pressed against his desk. “Gotta get you outta these wet clothes, baby,” he mentions as his hands wander under the hem of your shirt. 

You hum, pulling him in by his flannel. Your lips meet in a sloppy kiss, and his hands skim across your body, almost as if memorizing the feel of your skin under his fingertips. Although, he doubts he could ever forget the feeling. 

One hand pops the closure of your jeans while the other wraps lightly around your neck, squeezing slightly as you kiss him. 

“You miss me as much as I miss you?” he questions as he dips his hand down your pants. His fingertips brush against your clothed core, and you gasp against him. He hums, “Certainly feels like you missed me.” 

He presses open-mouthed kisses against the side of your neck as he teases you through your underwear. You tucked yourself into the crook of his neck, and your quiet moans quickly turned into desperate pleas. 

The urge to have you desperate and crying for his cock nearly overwhelms him. A small part of him wants you to feel like he felt all those years– release just close enough that you can taste it but too far to fully grasp it. 

A larger, louder part of him wants to bury his cock in you and have you singing his name within the next 30 seconds. That part of him won. 

He pushes you back against the hard expanse of his desk and makes quick work of your jeans and underwear. He tugs them down and off your body, leaving you bare before him. He could’ve come just from the sight of you. You looked up at him as you spread your thighs, baring your glistening cunt for him. Just for him. 

He slides a finger through your folds, and you sink your teeth into your bottom lip, muffling a whine. 

He halts his movements. “Let me hear you, baby. Wanna hear those pretty little noises you make.” 

You give him an obedient nod, and he continues. He swipes a finger through your folds, gathering your slick as he circles your clit. You arch against his touch, moaning a little. 

His free hand moves upward to push up your t-shirt over your breasts. His fingers run over the lacy front of your bra, and when that isn’t enough for him, he pulls down the front of your bra. He circles your nipples, mirroring his ministrations on your clit, and the buds harden under his touch. 

He sinks his finger into your core, pumping it a few times and eliciting a breathy moan from you. He wants to take his time with you, despite the raging desire to ruin you. He wants you to keep crawling back to him because no one can make you feel the way that he does. 

You give him an all too familiar pleading look, and he decides to take mercy on you just this once. He pops the button on his jeans and eagerly pushes down his boxers just enough to let his cock spring free. He pulls out of you and coats his cock with your arousal. He pumps his hand a few times before sliding his cock through your folds. You whine each time his head hits your clit, and it's music to his ears. 

He plunges into you inch by tantalizing inch. Your legs wrap around his hips, pulling him in closer. You felt heavenly against him, squeezing him just right. The plush skin of your thigh sinks under his fingertips as he pushes your thighs near your chest, practically bending you in half. He begins to rock his hips, nearly getting lost in the sensation of you already. 

Your walls flutter and clench around him. You arch your back as he readjusts his angle, hitting the sensitive spot inside you. He reaches down to where the two of you meet and draws lazy figure-eights against your clit, earning a whine in response. 

The familiar heat builds within his abdomen and he wills himself to last a little longer. He needs to feel you cum around his cock, and the thought consumes him as he thrusts harder into you. 

He grabs your face with his free hand and leans down to press a sloppy kiss against your lips. It’s a mixture of tongue and teeth, and he wouldn’t have it any other way. The obscene sounds of your sopping heat and skin slapping against skin fill his back office. It’s nearly enough to make his cheeks flush. 

Your thighs clamp against his sides as you throw your head back and cum with a strangled cry. Your pussy squeezes him like a vice as your release crashes over you, and his thrusts falter. 

He grips your hips and juts into you for a final time as he cums hard, filling you just how you liked. A comfortable silence lingers between you as you both catch your breath. 

He slowly pulls out of you and watches as his release leaks over your folds. He attempts to commit the image to memory, just in case this is the last time you’ll be together like this. 

You grab at his flannel and tug him down for a kiss. It’s much softer than your previous ones. He prays it’s not a kiss goodbye. 

“You in town for long?” he questions as he pulls away. 

You shrug, “For the foreseeable future.”

“You got a place to stay tonight?” 

You shake your head and look up at him with those eyes he could never resist. 

“You can stay at my place, and I’ll take a look at your car in the morning. Deal?” 

You stand and press a chaste kiss to his lips. 

“Deal.”

[shadow4-1]

An Impromptu Punk Concert with Ghost

(What if you and Ghost managed to get into a punk concert last minute?)

"No."

"Why not?" You whined at Ghost from the passenger seat.

He chose silence, which you knew he knew annoyed you. You pushed at his arm, barely even jostling the limb splayed comfortably over the truck's center console.

"We've got a job to do." He mumbled, eyes ever diligently on the road.

"Yeah, I know! But it's on the way!" You huffed. "Please! I know they're your favorite band too!"

Ghost flexed his arm in a display of annoyance, and you flopped back into the passenger seat dejected. You sighed and looked out of the window at the passing landscape.

You were in the middle of nowhere, passing through little podunk towns without stopping. You'd forgotten that a certain band was touring and had gleefully squealed after cheking the map of your route. Your trip was already going to take two days minimum. What was a couple hour break?

"How're you plannin' on gettin' in?" He asked.

With pure delight, you shot up in your seat and squealed. If Ghost had really meant "no" he wouldn't have brought anything more up about it.

"Oh thank you thank you thank you!" You giggled, leaning over the console and his arm. He eyed you with a sideways glance but made no effort to move. "I've always wanted to see them in concert! This is a once in a lifetime chance!"

Ghost scoffed, but his posture was still entirely relaxed. Try as he might to fool you. You knew he was equally as interested in the concert.

"Oh don't pretend like I don't know your little secret." You teased, letting your body flop back into the passenger seat.

He scoffed once again, but you noticed the slight raise of his brow.

"I've seen those raggedy old t-shirts you were to bed sometimes. They're band shirts."

There was a long beat of silence save for the hum of the truck. You narrowed your eyes at your lieutenant, a smirk forming on your lips.

"...yes..." He sighed.

"I knew it!" You giggled and kicked your legs slightly. "This is gonna be so much fun!"

Ghost's usual worried expression became visible in the set of his brow. For what, you weren't sure. He'd seemed relatively relaxed a second ago.

"What's wrong?" You hummed.

He didn't reply. You knew better than that. You frowned.

"Hey, if something's wrong..." You trailed off, showing your concern by placing a hand on his bicep. "We don't have to go. I just figured-"

"We'll go." Ghost nearly snapped. He'd seemed to realize his sudden change in demeanor and decided to walk it back by clearing his throat. His voice was smoother and gentler than before.

"We'll go. Pull up the address."

"Of course." You tapped his arm before pulling away. You flashed him a sweet smile just to let him know you weren't offended.

After a moment of fumbling with your phone, you pulled up the GPS instructions on how to get to the venue. It was actually a bar, but it didn't really matter. You read up on all the information (including the dress code). You giggled some more, knowing it would catch his attention. Sure enough, he glanced at you out of the corner of his eye.

"Hey. It says here masks are allowed!" You grinned. "And with how big you are you'll blend right in!"

"Mm..." He hummed.

"Okay, well, the GPS says to take a right turn in about half a kilometer..."

-

The moment you got there, you were nearly kicking open the truck's door. It'd been hours since you'd last stretched your legs. Despite the very uneven gravel parking lot, you groaned in relief as you popped every joint in your body.

"You never answered my question." Ghost murmured, walking around to your side of the truck. He'd pulled up the hood of his jacket over his head.

"What question?" You groaned out, loving the way your back burned from a particularly good stretch.

"How're ya plannin' on gettin' in?" He asked.

You stopped stretching for a moment. You glanced up at him with a devilishly bright grin.

"Me?" You laughed. "Oh, girls get in for free. You've gotta figure out you're gonna get in."

Ghost narrowed his eyes at you. "Are you fockin' serious?"

"Mhm!"

You scrambled to get your phone out and unlocked. With a quick flash you showed him the rules of the event. Sure enough it was written out in black and white.

Girls get in for free!

A low growl formed in Ghost's throat. He glared down at you, but he didn't say anything. He looked upwards, breathed in deeply before exhaling slowly. He then looked back down at you.

"Fine." He huffed, turning around and walking towards the building.

"Hey! Wait up!"

It took you a short sprint to catch up with his long-legged stride. You fell in beside him. A warm, zing of excitement swirled around in your chest. The closer you got to the pair of black double doors the more the feeling grew.

Luckily, the line out front was short. They had two bouncers (who were not nearly as large as Ghost) checking the men's tickets. Women were easily bypassing the line, as long as they looked old enough. A woman just beyond the door was haphazardly checking their IDs.

"Here." Ghost grumbled, tugging his hoodie over his head. He threw the garment at you, blinding you for half a second.

When you managed to tug the jacket off of your face, your eyes widened at the uncharacteristic display. Ghost always had on a a jacket, or windbreaker, or long-sleeve. To see him in his soft balaclava, jeans, and a t-shirt felt wrong, too...casual.

You opened your mouth to say something but Ghost had already started walking towards the entrance at a decently fast pace. The appearance of a huge, masked man put everyone on edge. You were pretty sure one of the bouncers went a tad pale.

"Hey man, what are you doing?" The other bouncer asked, bless his heart.

Ghost gave him that look.

"Security." He barked.

And that was that. It seemed none of the bouncers were interested in telling Ghost anything. They simply went back to what they were doing.

You nearly gasped when you forgot you needed to follow him. Thankfully, Ghost'd provided enough of a distraction that you managed to come up behind him and sneak in by his side. You were getting in for free anyway, and it didn't matter if the lady hadn't checked your ID since you weren't going to drink.

The first thing you noticed was that the entire building was stuffy. The difference in the outside temperature versus the inside was intense. You wordlessly offered Ghost back his hoodie but he shook his head. It felt strange getting to see his shorn short blonde hair beneath the dingy lighting. He looked...almost like a different person.

So you didn't lose it, you tied his hoodie around your waist. You had to double knot it to keep the large amount of fabric from falling off your hips. Ghost watched you fuss through half-lidded eyes and made no attempt to help you. You scoffed up at him.

There was no way for him to hear you though. An opening band was already noisily playing on the stage at the back of the building. A decent amount of bodies were already crowded around the pink hued platform. They weren't a very good band in comparison to the lead act, but a few of the notes they hit piqued your interest.

For a moment you watched the stage from where you stood at the back of the venue. Out of the corner of your eye you caught Ghost nervously glancing around. His demeanor was off. You'd never visibly seen him uncomfortable like this.

"You alright?" You asked him, although the sound of your voice was drowned out. Ghost's attention snapped to you immediately but he narrowed his eyes.

"You alright?" You asked him again, voice lough enough to nearly strain. Still, he cocked his head. You huffed with slight frustration before stepping up closer to him. He bent his head down, angling his ear towards your mouth.

"You alright?" You tried even louder. This time he seemingly heard you. He gave you a nod, but you weren't convinced. His eyes were flicking from person to person that milled around the two of you.

"We can go?" You offered.

Ghost shook his head.

He then nudged you towards the bar. You didn't want to go but it was obvious that he needed a drink to withstand the stimulation of the place. You admired his commitment despite the fact he knew this outing would make him uncomfortable from the start.

He ordered two drinks. The bartender looked at you nervously, as if he wanted to card you but seemed to think better of it. Ghost lifted up his mask then swallowed down the first drink in one gulp. He half-heartedly offered you the second one, but when you refused, he downed it too.

You sighed at him but finally took a glance around the place. It was surprisingly nice for being out in the middle of nowhere. The bar went around nearly half of the entire atrium's perimeter. There were a few tables and chairs set up in the back for those wanting to rest their feet. But what really shocked you was the amount of men and women alike dressed in dark clothing.

Girls wore tall platform boots with buckles, latex, and black velvet. The guys wore harnesses and tight shirts with steel toed boots. Countless people donned masks of varying sizes and macabre shapes. The way they looked was eerie...yet beautiful.

You were so caught up in a pretty girl with huge wig and glitter for tears that you didn't realize the actual band was getting set up. Their crew fumbled around on stage, moving equipment and strumming the guitars to tune them. People began to crowd the stage, some squealing with excitement. You crawled up onto an empty barstool and sat in a way that gave you a decent view of the stage. Ghost just stood behind you, leaning up against the bar top.

The headlining band finally came out to a roar of excitement. Girls squealed, men whooped, and people whistled. A large group of guys stomped on the floor which, soon turned into nearly the whole building. The lead singer thanked the crowd for coming out before counting down. They started their first song.

You were so enraptured you almost didn't notice how close Ghost had gotten to you. You felt a warm presence against your back, and when you glanced up you were met with his flighty gaze. You noticed his hand tapping nervously on the bar top. You gestured at him to come closer. He angled his head down again for you to speak.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

He nodded.

"I wanna get closer." You pointed a thumb at the crowd.

He didn't move as his eyes swept across the sea of people.

The band started on their second single. It was one of their most popular songs but part of it was extremely loud and a bit grating. The fast paced drums and screaming guitar echoed hard throughout the venue. The main singer began to scream and you could feel yourself grit your teeth. You loved this band but the acoustics were just a little too good here.

It seemed Ghost was feeling a similar sentiment. He tried to covertly cover an ear with a palm but it didn't seem to help. You could tell something was going wrong. The guitars began to chug. The sound of it made Ghost wince hard.

You tapped on Ghost's shoulder to get his attention. He jumped a little but leaned down, angling his uncovered ear to you. You tugged on his arm, shaking your head.

"C'mon, let's go." You huffed. "You're not having fun."

Ghost shook his head no again but you knew better.

The song evened out into something smoother and less grating. Ghost's shoulders seemed to sag in relief.

"Seriously. Let's go."

"No." He shook his head once more, letting his hand fall away from his ear. "Just gotta get used to it."

"No you don't. Ghost let's-"

He pressed a finger to your lips as the best part of the song began. The lead singer burst into a sultry ballad that immediately grabbed your attention. You grabbed onto Ghost's hand, jerking it away from your face, squeezing his fingers tight in your palm. He shuffled closer, his head hanging next to yours as he listened intently with closed eyes.

The song soon ended with a roar of applause. This time Ghost didn't seem as uncomfortable with the volume. You placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Ghost-"

"'M fine."

Another song started. You looked up at Ghost with concern. He looked away, trying to listen. The drums kicked in and the guitars soon after. The singer began to growl about his worship to his lover.

When you looked up at Ghost again he was staring down intensely at you. You quirked a brow but he didn't say anything. He tugged on your palm that was surprisingly still in his. You jumped off the barstool and began to follow him.

Instead of walking you to the doors he lead you deeper into the crowd of people. A fourth song began to be played. The song was softer than the rest. Once again it was about devotion but also the hunger the lead singer experienced for his lover. The guitars began to chug again. Ghost grimaced but he gestured for you to come closer. He moved your body to stand in front of him. He placed his hands squarely on your hips.

"Ghost-"

Before you could even process what he wanted, he scooped you up onto his shoulders. You gasped in shock as you were hoisted up on top of him. It took a moment of your body squirming to find your new center of balance but eventually you righted yourself. You huffed, finally getting a good look over the crowd of people. You got a view that no one else in the venue could ever get.

In stunning clarity you could see all of the band members. Their instruments glittered in the low lighting. The sight of the lead singer's mask and rings made you swallow hard. You gripped tight onto Ghost's shorn short hair. The music seemed to swell in time with your heartbeat. Obviously uncomfortable earlier, Ghost seemed to have relaxed some. You wondered why for a moment then realized how tight your thighs were clamped around the sides of his head...

The bastard was using you as ear muffs!

You almost slapped the top of Ghost's head but the last chorus of the latest song began. The lead singer growled and huffed, squirming his body in a way that had women in the crowd squealing. Just when you were thinking about how childish that was the lead singer seemed to notice you thanks to your extra height.

He shook his hand out in your direction, grasping at the air as he sang his words of devotion. He rocked back and forwards, eyes locked on yours. Some people took notice and gasped. Girls beneath you glared at you with envy. Men's eyes around you sparkled with mischief. Hoots and whistles added to the lead singer's hungry tone.

Just as you began to feel deeply uncomfortable from the attention, Ghost pulled you off of him. You squealed as you fell over a yard towards the sticky floor. He caught you mid air, cradling you. There were a few laughs and jeers thrown your way but the crowd turned back to the stage. Ghost let you down at the way. Your legs shook a little from the adrenaline and also having been pressed hard around his head.

Ghost seemed even more uncomfortable than earlier. He rubbed at his ears through his mask. He looked around at the crowd with a frustration you couldn't identify. You tugged on his hand, forcing him to lean down to listen.

"We're leaving."

He didn't shake his head or protest this time. Instead, he dutifully followed you to the double doors. You walked outside and the two of you were greeted with cooler, quieter air. The people straggling in gave the two of you odd looks as you walked past them hand in hand.

Ghost didn't let go of your hand until you got to the truck. He opened your door and helped you up. He then got into the driver's seat himself. He didn't move to turn on the vehicle though. The two of you just sat there in the quiet, ears still buzzing. While you couldn't hear the music anymore, you could still feel some of its vibrations even at the end of the parking lot.

"You okay?" You asked, this time at a normal volume. "Better now?"

Ghost nodded, leaning back against the headrest. He huffed out a breath it seemed he'd been holding for the longest time. His eyes rolled softly in his head. You felt kind of bad. You didn't realize that maybe a concert wasn't the best idea for him. You'd only been thinking about your own enjoyment.

"I'm sorry, ya know..." You sighed. "We shouldn't hav-"

"Not your fault." He breathed, cutting you off. With that he cocked his head, looking down at you through his mask. His eyes had that half-lidded look you were starting to get used to.

"Had fun, actually."

(A/N: I might make a second, spicier chapter. We'll see how I feel. But trust me when I say this has been in my WIPs for months! The band being alluded to is of course, Sleep Token. But you could honestly imagine any punk band in their place. Also, spot the Chappell Roan reference lol.)

[almostheav4n]

Tomorrow Never Came: Chapter 1

masterlist | ao3

pairing: joel miller x f!reader rating: 18+ warnings: unspecified age gap, hints at past SA, no break-out, no y/n, no reader description, discussion of past trauma, reader develops a reliance on him, hints at a ddlg relationship in terms of a caregiver x little relationship (reader is of legal age), joel is a vietnam war vet with a very tough exterior so it takes a bit to get it moving but it does by chapter 2! <3 word count: 5,495 summary: set in Texas in the 1980s, Joel picks you up on the side of the road when headed west, you embark upon a journey of self-discovery with the help of a seasoned man

“Do you wanna see the west with me? Cause loves out there & I can’t leave it be.”

The cold beer bottle contrasts your harsh, warm, two-handed grip on it as your feet sway from the bar stool sat at. Your cross-country adventure had landed you here, in west Texas, penniless & destitute, nothing but the jacket on your shoulders and the pistol in your pocket. 

You had traveled from west to east in an attempt to meet your father who you later found out wanted nothing to do with you. Having had saved up for years to make the trip, not accounting for how expensive shit was, landed you in the middle of nowhere Texas, trying to make your way back to your home in California. Truth be told, you set your hopes high that maybe your father had just desired to leave your mom and not you but you learned very quickly that wasn’t the case. 

Now you sit, in a dusty dive bar, men circling like vultures as you try hard to ignore their glances and as one next to you, leans into mumble something you can’t make out. Instead you focus on the sounds if Bob Dylans ‘knockin on heaven door’ that plays loudly from the busted jukebox. 

“Wanna dance?” You slur a bit, not necessarily because of the alcohol, but maybe an attempt to match the demeanor of the man next to you, who bought you the beer. He isn’t ugly, he isn’t pretty. He is drunk though, maybe drunk enough that you can slip some bills from his wallet. 

He’s eager you realize as his hand lands on the small of your back, tripping a bit over his feet to make his way to the dusty center, the wood creaking beneath your feet as you place your hands to his chest, slightly propping him up, the bourbon on his breath quite rich. 

Your eyes scan the room to find men and women watching, finding it a bit silly. Being from California, quite used to others dancing like no ones watching. Finding that in Texas, people are always watchers rather than dancers. 

A watcher catches your eyes, his grayish-green eyes narrowed towards you as he brings a glass to his lips, his face mostly shadowed by a brown cowboy hat as he leans against a pillar. 

You can’t help but be a little taken aback, his aura fogging up the space around him like a puff of smoke, as he tilts his head down, focusing on the drink in his hand, scuffing up his boot on the ground before turning his attention back to you. Swiping his tongue against his bottom lip as he adjusts himself, thumbing his belt loop. 

It fills your belly, the admiration, bubbling up into your throat as you smile, a little quirk of the lips as you stare at him, stupidly and obviously. 

He returns the stare. Not smiling back, but the stern gaze worn on his brows replaced by a softer one, more relaxed. 

You're pulled back into reality as the man’s hand slips below your back onto your behind as you sway to the music, causing you to break apart. Whispering nonsense into his ear comprising of ‘if he wants to get out of here’, knowing he’s drunk enough and will most likely barely make it to his car. 

You’re correct as he piles into his truck and falls asleep halfway out of the lot, allowing you to maneuver the vehicle to the side, eventually slipping into his pockets to pull out his wallet and the forty-three dollars.

Ditching him there, you head for a motel and pay them the $30 fee for one night, giving you enough time to bathe and wash your clothes in the bathtub before eating half of a candy bar and heading to bed. 

The nearest grocery store is a bit of a long haul as you walk a few miles until you head into the small mart. Its the size of a shoe box with people littered up and down the aisles as you make your way to the hygiene aisle, slipping a packaged bar of soap into your deep pockets along with tampons. Wandering onto other aisles, sifting through the snacks before landing on a few breakfast bars, deciding to slide one up your sleeve. Your eyes peeking to the side to find that you’re being watched by a familiar set of eyes. 

You slip up the bar into your sleeve before turning to the man you had seen yesterday, his brow raised curiously, having seen your little trick. 

He strikes you once again in a different light… his worn jeans, scuffed boots, his flanneled shirt, the sleeves rolled up exposing his tanned arms, thick veins roped within them leading to his hands, the one specifically carrying a cart with his own personal items. His dark beard ruffles as he bites on his inner cheek, studying you it seems, his eyes roaming around the aisle and then back to you. The same hat worn yesterday, sturdy on his head. 

You hum a bit, leaning back on your heels, not sure whether he means to turn you in or something else. You simply bring your finger to your lips to create a ‘shush’ sound in hopes he will keep your secret before heading for the exit, stopping to pick up a coke, tossing a quarter to the cashier, and promptly exiting. 

Finding a nearby patch of grass, you pass your time by watching the cars and drinking your Coke until it’s empty. You figure now might be the time to make your way from Texas, heading for the busiest road and sticking your thumb out as you follow along the white line on a dirt path. 

Five cars pass before a blue Ford pickup truck pulls up, the gleaming shine causing you to cover your eyes as they adjust, hearing the driver's door open & close. 

You instinctively take a step back, watching a familiar hat make its way from around the truck as you can’t help but break out into a smile. 

“Third times the charm huh?” You laugh a bit watching him remove a hat, letting it fall to the side in his hand as he runs his other hand through his hair. 

“Uh-huh,” He grunts, leaning against the side of the truck, observing you just as he did in the store and in the bar.

“You a cop?” You question, brows scrunching up to match his hardened gaze. The question makes him laugh, a short release of breath before composing himself. 

“Ain’t a cop darlin’…” He mutters, eyes going to your tattered shoes, biting on the inside of his cheek once more, followed by a clicking sound of the mouth.

“Who are ya then?” you place your hands on your hips, attempting to assert any dominance you have, feeling picked apart by his gaze. 

“Didn’t your mama tell you not to talk to strangers?” He inches closer, calculated, stopping far enough from you to bring you ease, his noticeable large size gaining your attention. 

“Tell me your name and you won’t be a stranger… this being our third meeting I find myself quite familiar with you…” You don’t know why your voice catches in your throat as you speak, but you clear it quickly.  

Maybe because he was unlike the men you came across during your journey. Quite honestly, the men you came across reminded you of the boys in high school. Unsure, dull, weak. A boy in the shell of a “man”. 

He wasn’t a boy in the body of a man, just a full man, through & through. 

“Joel.” He offers, his head pointed towards the ground, focused on a trail of ants, then back to you. It’s difficult to hold his gaze without blushing. “Where ya headed?”

“West… California.” You admit, watching as he nods, eyes searching the sky now, observing as he always seems to do. 

“What’s there for you in California?” He questions, eyes coming back to you as you feel your words stuck in your throat, his stare enough to cause your knees to buckle and weaken. It’s a hard gaze, one you hadn’t noticed as clearly beneath the shadow of his cowboy hat.  

“My mama…” you mutter, words coming out hushed, embarrassed, deciding to focus your own attention on the ants, you stupidly feel naked when he looks at you just bare and open.  

You don’t hear him head for the door, only hear the door opening, your eyes shooting up to Joel as he looks at you, bewildered as if you should know what to do, patiently waiting as your eyes swipe back from him to the truck and back to him. 

“Whatre you waitin on? Get in.” He speaks lowly as you attempt not to feel stupid, the blood rushing to your cheeks with a quickness as you bite your lip back.

“Not gonna kill me right?” You ask, stuffing your hands in your pockets watching as he lets out his same light laugh, just a puff of air. 

“I ain’t planning on it, sweetheart.” He bites on his bottom lip, the thick hair on his beard twitching as he waits. 

You hesitantly approach the vehicle, calculated steps leading you around where he stands by the door, sliding into the truck, the leather seating new indicating a certain amount of wealth that puzzles you. 

To be honest, the men who usually attempted to pick you up were composed of overly excited older men with fast food wrappers & cigarette buds piled up in the passenger's seat and the smell of beer wafting from the vehicle. 

It was rare you ever accepted rides from men, usually finding a chick who could take you a few hours down before dropping you off. 

His truck however seemed almost brand new, and clean, even the trash within it, was still kept nicer than most people who offered you a ride. 

The door shuts beside you with a click as he soon piles in, turning the ignition with ease and one hand steering the vehicle back onto the road with one smooth motion. 

It’s a routine, you think as you watch his legs spread apart along the seat, his free hand fumbling with the volume of the radio as he finds a station playing old country which seems to satisfy him as he relaxes into a manspreaded position. 

The motor and the hum of the songs is all you hear about an hour in as you realize he’s quite quiet. Which is rare. 

He hadn’t pestered you about your past, stared longingly at your exposed legs in the summer heat, or even tried to touch you. 

The few times you had gotten rides for men when you were younger and rather dumb, they had talked your ear off about something irrelevant, asked too many questions, or taken the first opportunity to lean over and try to fuck you right in the seat. 

He is quiet. Joel's quiet… hard set gaze focused on the road, the only constant motion being the rise and fall of his chest & occasional repositioning of the wheel.  

He pays you no mind. You would like to assume he’s gay but you don’t think so 100%

“You pick up strays often?” You break the silence, used to being the quiet one. 

He doesn’t answer immediately, only readjusts himself in the seat. You wonder if he is maybe a serial killer. 

The dirt under your fingernails seems interesting all of a sudden as you focus your attention on cleaning them, the awkward energy looming within the truck, 

“Strays…” He responds, finally, rubbing his hand over his beard before scratching at it with a deep sigh. 

“Don’t usually pick up hitch-hikers if’s what you’re askin’” He grumbles lowly, his Texan accent deep and thick. 

You think for a beat, wondering if his natural nature is stoicism and a cold front or if he’s already annoyed by his pestering passenger. 

“Why’d you pick me up then?” You question turning your head towards him, attempting to read him more. 

God, it takes him forever to respond. You aren’t sure if he’s thinking about the question or just in no hurry whatsoever, but it fills you with anxiety and anticipation. 

“Well…  when you stole from Earl, he sorta went around lookin' for you… Then when I saw you stealin' from that shop, I assumed it’d be best to get you to where you need’ta go so trouble doesn’t find you no more.” He admits shooting you a quick look, a quick raise of the brow in a disciplinary way, he means to scold you, you think.  

“Earl?”

“That man you went home with from that bar…”

“Oh… ha! earl,” you snort a bit remembering him. When you stole, you made sure to never stick around for that reason exactly. 

“Well, my thoughts on the matter are men take advantage of drunk women every day, I’m just leveling the playing field.” You respond in a sassy manner, crossing your ankles to sit up straighter, asserting yourself.  

“I ain’t judgin, I just didn’t want to see him comin’ down to find you.. he’s a drunk & a mean one,” He mentions cracking the window, the summer breeze picking up the strands of his dark brown hair & some gray.  

“You know a lot about this, ‘Earl’ ?” You roll down your window then, the wind blowing over your face a familiar and refreshing feeling, picking up your own hair as it tossles over your face. 

“Knew Earl all my life, worked for me…” He grunts, clearing his throat. 

“You hire drunks?” You giggle, feeling like you caught him, disappointed he doesn’t return the laugh as he only shrugs. 

“Like I said… I don’t judge, ‘f the work is done, it's done.” He switches his blinker on before pulling into a lot filled with shops, your eyebrows scrunching as you eye him. Bathroom break maybe. 

“Bout time to eat and get you some new shoes…” He gestures down to your feet as he parks, slightly far from other cars, maneuvering into the spot with ease as the truck comes to a jolt. 

You giggle dumbfoundedly, tickled by the thought that he thinks you walk around in tattered shoes because you choose to. “Joel… I don't have any money.” 

The sound of his door closing acts as a response as it barely grants you a moment to think until your side door is pulled open. “I am well aware of that, cmon now.” 

He’s confusing, his coldness, and lack of conversation, followed by an offering to purchase new shoes. You feel the need to make it clear to him you aren’t a prostitute. 

“I’m not a hooker,” Your nose naturally scrunches in confusion, ready to bolt if he accuses you of wasting his time or something worse. 

He laughs, a true laugh, his shoulders rising and falling as he tips his head down in a chuckle, the top of his cowboy hat revealed to you. 

“I know darling, now don’t rush on my account,” he teases, still propped up against the door, waiting for you, patiently. 

You bite your lip back to distract from your red cheeks. He’s quick to reach his hand out to help you down from the truck as you take it, calloused and warm. 

You don’t desire to let go, trying to remember the feel as he breaks away once you find your footing. 

His long strides are difficult to keep up with you find, his head moving from left to right then left again, surveying the lot for oncoming traffic or anything else that might come at you sideways in a lot, always on alert it seems as he leads you towards a store reading ‘PAYLESS’. 

The door opens with a jingle as he holds it open for you before leading you down the multiple aisles, past the men's section into the womens. 

You collide with his muscled back as he stops abruptly, your eyes narrowing as you back up slightly. 

It takes a few seconds to realize he is waiting for you. Looking down at you, your eyes connecting up to him as blood familiarly rushes into your cheeks, standing closer to him than you ever have been honestly, allowing you to smell his cedarwood aftershave, makes you wanna purr. 

“Well, you have to go select the shoes now don’t you?” He chuckles as he always does, fast and dry but warm as you look down the aisles, scrunching up your nose in confusion. 

“Where you will be?” It’s stupid to already feel a sort of attachment to him, curious about his well-being more for the safety of your own. 

“I’ll be parked right here,” He gestures to a nearby bench seated across a young child screaming and crying as a mother forces on their shoes. 

You only nod back, not trusting your mouth to form appropriate words as he gives you a nice playful push with his elbow passing behind you, gesturing for you to go on. 

He does just what he said he would and you find yourself slivering between row after row of shoes, eventually finding a nice comfortable shoe that doesn’t cost too much, moving to show Joel before being gobsmacked by a pair of leather western boots. 

You decide to pick both, coming to the conclusion that Joel can decide as you walk towards him with one shoe on each foot.

“Okay, okay, ya gotta choose alright?” You position yourself in front of him, finally getting the chance to be above him, feeling a sort of strength and confidence because of it.

His head rises from where it was slouched on his chest, his hat covering most of it until he takes it off with a puzzled look on his face, probably having just napped you think. 

“I gotta choose huh?” He questions slowly in a drawl, snorting a bit as he rubs his nose. 

“Mhm!” You nod turning to the back of the aisle before walking down the carpet as if it’s a catwalk, giving him a little twirl at the end watching as his brows raise in curiosity. 

He responds with a slow clap as you curtsey to finish it off, eyebrows high as they screw together. 

“Well, aren’t you just the bee's knees…” He smirks a bit turning his head to the side, biting the inside of his cheek in long thought as you rock back and forth on your feet in the silence.

“I say get 'em’ both.” He shrugs. 

“Joel…” you pout placing your hands on your hips, “You’re supposed to choose the best one.”

“Go’n and get both, s’ my choice, like you said… toss that pair on your feet and wear one out of the store. Those shoes have seen better days…” He gestures to worn ones nearby with his foot before sucking his bottom lip in, biting down as you scrunch up your face once again, confused by his generosity. 

You open your mouth to speak until you hear his name called, a gentleman his age heading over with a big smile on his face as Joel gets up to greet him shocked it seems by seeing the man. Before he dives into conversation about some time in Arkansas they shared. 

He seems to forget your presence until he fishes in his pocket before turning to you. 

“Check out baby, I’ll be there soon,” He mumbles, handing you his wallet before turning back to converse with the man about god knows what. 

Baby… 

It sits on your tongue as you repeat the word… baby. 

Once you pack up the western boots & toss your ratty pair, curiosity gets the best of you look through his wallet to find a hefty amount of cash along with a few cards, his ID reading ‘JOEL MILLER’. 

You ponder why he trusted you with it, you could bolt, to be quite honest, live off for months with the amount of cash stored. 

You don’t, finding zero need to. 

Eventually, you realize it could be because he trusts you since he’s the furthest from careless. 

It’s a funny feeling, trust, as you make your way to the checkout stand. A boy maybe a bit older than you reading a magazine as you have to muster up a ‘hello’ to gain his attention. 

“Fuh- Sorry, shi-, I mean, sorry I ain’t see you or nothin’” he nervously rambles taking the boxes, one empty but still necessary to scan.  

“Wasn’t ignorin’ you…” He adds as you smile a bit, attempting to ease his nerves. 

You are reminded of how you are able to make boys nervous, having been able to do so since grade school, and not necessarily because you were some Hollywood star, you simply carried yourself with a certain amount of confidence that had boys sputtering and timid. 

It’s refreshing you find after figuring you don't seem to do that to Joel. 

He is never nervous around you, quite the opposite as you feel as if butterflies are swimming in your belly every time he looks at you.  

The boy with a nametag reading, Ted, begins to bag as you slide the total amount on the counter from Joel’s wallet, your pinky hitting a jar of candy on the counter. 

“These free?” You question eyeing a red lollipop. 

“No, um, you can have it, it’s 25 cents, goes to helping out a kid in need,” He fumbles giving you your change as his sweaty hand releases it into yours. 

You return a quarter and fish out your lollipop, discarding the wrapper into your pocket before plucking it into your mouth. 

It isn’t difficult to notice the boys attention on your mouth as your lips wrap around the sucker as you turn your head a bit, sorta wishing it was this easy with Joel. It makes you smile a bit, the idea of getting this reaction from him but the boy thinks it's for him as he smiles back. 

You make sure to wear a look of disgust to dissuade him from thinking it’s for him, lost in your own fantasies as you stick the lollipop far into your cheek. 

“You uh- need help carrying this back, maybe I can help you carry this back to your car?” He offers a little breathless as you pop the sucker from your mouth. 

“Maybe, uh I don’t know where-” You start

“Sorry bout that darlin’,” the gruff voice behind you is followed by the warmth of a hand on your hip as he picks up the bag with the boxes, ignoring the cashier's hand on it. 

“We all square?” He questions looking down at you in a familiar stern manner, maybe questioning the fact that you didn’t steal this time.

“Uh huh,” you nod, “Bought candy too…”

“Oh yeah I can see that-”

You press the lollipop to his lips cutting him off suddenly, expecting to gain some sort of reaction from him finally, but he only opens his mouth to take it in before stuffing it in his cheek, “Delicious… let’s get a move on.” 

A giggle expels from your mouth as you find yourself bewildered as he leads you out of the store before handing the sucker back to you in which you take it swiftly, before waving goodbye to the clerk who wears the strangest expression of confusion, making you laugh even more. 

You expect to head to the truck, and instead follow him towards a sandwich shop as he holds the door open for an elderly woman before letting you pass in. 

“You know what you want? They got hot & cold sandwiches it seems…” He mutters moving up in the line as there’s a good amount of people in front of you. 

“Umm, just a coke…” you hum happily looking at the glass bottled drink behind the counters before hearing Joel sigh out gruffly. 

“Look at me.” He’s stern when he speaks yet soft as he turns towards you, curling over as he closes the space between your bodies. You attempt to make eye contact with his grayish-green eyes, before looking down at your feet, your stomach turning in on itself. 

It isn’t until his fingers move along your jaw to your chin, tugging it up so you can look at him right there, your face resting in the cup of his hand, his hats shadow covering the both of you, making it feel as if you are the only people in the room as a slow gulp glides down your throat, his eyes searching yours as you can feel his breath on your lips. 

“I need you to get real food, you’re gonna get a sandwich. You understand me?” You open your mouth slightly to breathe in his words, stuck in a trance that has you resting your hands on his forearms for balance. 

You wish to speak, to object but only nod as he seems satisfied before breaking away to move up in line with only two people now ahead of you. 

It feels as if your heart is beating through your throat as you expected him to kiss you then, wanted him to. Yearned for it, lips left unsatisfied as you take them between your teeth to gnaw at them. 

He doesn’t even seem bothered in the slightest as he continues to read the menu, distracted as you size him up. 

His tanned arms roped with veins leading down to his hands, his jeans bolted together with a belt as the jeans hang over his boots, the thick beard that holds specks of gray that creep down his throat. His face littered with scars, the most prominent on his nose… he’s truly one of the most beautiful men you’ve ever come across. 

Why didn’t he kiss you… 

Your thoughts are interrupted as the person making the sandwiches asks what you want. You list off an assortment of turkey and cheese and other veggies before turning to Joel, somewhat seeking his approval as he gives you a little nod. 

You slip his wallet into his jeans before heading to find a table in the back, immediately getting side-tracked by a little kiddie ride shaped as a horse, seen through the glass window of the building, fishing into your own pockets to pull out a little ten-cent coin before exiting through the back door. 

It isn’t hard to settle onto it, clearly made for those younger but something fun to do while you wait as it begins to rock you back n forth, popping your forgotten sucker back into your mouth as you move your hips with the ride, it brings you back to a certain comfort forgotten in your childhood as you close your eyes, listening to the carnival music that exudes from the speaker box next to it.  

“What… are you doing?” You're interrupted by a familiar voice as you turn your head to Joel as he stands by the door, propped up, arms folded across his chest in a questioning way, not judging but curious. 

“Ridin’ a pony…” You hum biting into your lollipop, turning back your attention to the machine as it ceases. 

“Seems like you’re done ridin’ a pony, come on in so we can eat.” He huffs out, wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead, the summer sun shining down as you remove yourself before heading inside, sliding into a seat across for him, unwrapping your sandwich to find he’s already dug into his own, pastrami it seems. 

Your eyes narrow behind him as you find a group of teen boys, three, eyeing you. 

One spreading his legs open as another makes a gesture to sit on his lap, realizing they had seen you from the glass on the ride, a queasy feeling filling your stomach as you remove your hands from the wrapper placing them in your lap.

It doesn’t take Joel long to notice, his brow raising, chewing on the last bites in his mouth before leaning back in his seat, expecting some sort of reason as to why you haven’t touched your food. 

“Theyre just… starin…” You whisper, hushed, scared to provoke them, avoiding their gaze, and chuckles from behind him. You’re older than them, you know it, but there's more of them, and with men, when there's a will there's a way. 

He’s quick to set his food down, not missing a beat as his head swivels over his shoulder before back to you. 

It’s hard to hide your sickening expression, regretting your choice to reconnect with your inner child, “Can we maybe leave?” 

The stupid tears prick at your eyes as you once more feel dwindled to a piece of meat for the wolves to pick at. 

You don’t expect the reaction, you don’t expect Joel to get up with a loud screech of the chair against the tile that has patrons of the shop turning to see the commotion. His reserved, quiet, & sturdy demeanor, now replaced with a brash, harsh, mighty one as he approaches the table. 

“There a fucking problem?” 

He doesn’t yell… you think it’s scarier that way? His anger low and simmering yet already intimidating, you hope you never see his anger come to a rolling boil. 

The men, younger, stupider, shake their heads, one of them speaking up, “N- no just having fun, just fun…” You don’t hear Joel’s response but watch as the boys scurry out eventually, allowing Joel to return to the table after apologizing to a nearby couple for his language. 

He sits back down, not waiting to take a bite into his sandwich before gesturing to yours as you obey, unwrapping it and digging in to eat in comfortable silence, a strong wave of protection washing over you. An unfamiliar one, one never expressed to you before, it isn’t necessarily the possessive protection from toxic boys in the past, it’s healthy and feels good? 

You don’t notice he’s finished, lost in your own thoughts until you hear his mouth ‘tick’ and then feel his thumb swipe at the corner of your mouth getting at a bit of mustard there before pressing it to his mouth, sucking it off with a quick motion that leaves you biting into your sandwich to subdue the need to press your lips to his, squeezing your thighs together. 

It’s nice just sitting in silence with him, as he sips his beer, and you drink your coke, finishing eventually, keeping the bottle cap.

Eventually, you head back to the truck. 

Truth be told you hadn’t had a proper meal in weeks, making it hard to stay awake for the drive, eventually resting your head on the window as you think of telling Joel just that, maybe to show your gratitude. 

Instead, you drift off deciding whether to or not to. 

You don’t notice you’re awake until you collide with a plush mattress, groaning into the comforter as you come to realize you’re in a bed. 

You spring awake, forgetting the day, forgetting where you are, only knowing you are now in a strange bed placed there by a person…

“Easy…” A familiar voice sounds out as you scramble to get up, a warm hand pressing to your chest to ease you back down as you remember, it’s Joel, you’re safe. 

He pulls back the covers as you slip in, expecting to hear him follow in soon, expecting to feel his body heat warm the cold bed.  

Instead, you watch as his figure strides to the door, confusion setting in. 

“Joel… where are you going?” It comes out in a hush, feeling too vulnerable for your own skin, the exterior of hyper-independence you've worn since grade school replaced by an anxious curiosity.  

“Got a room right next door, just holler f’ya need anythin…” He moves to open the door, a gust of warm wind entering as you realize it’s night, a nearby clock reading 8:32 p.m.

You don’t know why you’re frustrated, it’s stupid. Your hands balling up the sheets as you clench onto them, attempting to figure out what it would to get him to stay. 

He’s being respectful you think, but it makes a certain loneliness you are familiar with, creep its way up your spine. You don’t have the guts to ask him to stay. 

“Okay… if some serial killer comes to get me in the middle of the night it's your fault,” is all you can get out, attempting to soothe your own anxiety with jokes. 

You can see him slightly as he exits the door, the soft moonlight reflected upon him in a way that makes your heart flutter, “Not on my watch baby, get some sleep.” 

The door shuts with a hard thud and soon you get up to lock it behind him leaving you wishing he shared the bed with you. 

You drift off that night imagining what it would look like if he did.

[questionableratatouille00]

ʜɪɢʜᴡᴀʏ ᴛᴏ ʜᴇʟʟ 5

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Fem!Reader

Summary: In an effort to get the two of you to bond, Tony Stark sends you and the ex-assassin Bucky Barnes on a road trip together. The reason? You hate each other. The situation? Two weeks in a car together. The reward: three days of a resort vacation. And the problem? He's kinda cute.

Warnings (Entire Series): Enemies-to-lovers, cursing, sexual tension, angst, fluff, crying, fighting, violence, chaos, mentions/talk of trauma, discussions of mental health, and potentially more.

Warnings: Reader wore a dress (past), cursing, mentions and eating of food, reader is called a cow if that’s a warning, both characters being horrible to each other, fighting, mentioned HYDRA themes.

[Series Masterlist] <- Haven’t seen pt. 1?

𝑴𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝑴𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒓 𝑴𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔

Day Three

As you hauled your stuff into the truck once again, you couldn’t help but yawn. You were tired, and maybe still hungry even after raiding the hotel breakfast bar. 

Bucky took the driver’s seat, and you were too exhausted to argue. Your feet still hurt from the night before, all that dancing in those heels. 

Glancing at the man beside you, he didn’t seem to feel the same. 

You put on your playlist, blasting obnoxious pop music. You liked those songs, but you liked messing with Bucky more. 

The two of you stopped at a drive-thru for lunch.

Making the best choice for yourself, you decided to squeeze in a nap before you guys would stop for dinner. Leaning against the window, you closed your eyes and prepared for sleep.

When it finally came, it was a peaceful, uninterrupted darkness that allowed you some rest. 

Until you were nudged awake. You glared daggers at the perpetrator—the monster who woke you. 

“Dude, what the fuck?” You grumbled, rubbing your eyes. 

“You snore like a cow with a deviated septum.” He grumbled. 

“You’re such a fucking dick.” You retorted. “I bet you snore, too.”

“No, I don’t.” He answered back, brushing you off as if you had just said that grass was blue. 

“Yeah, you probably do.” You had no idea, but you were too deep to stop now.

“Okay.” He huffed, shaking his head. 

“Asshole.” You grumbled. 

More minutes passed by. Minutes turned into an hour. And after an hour, you were both bickering over the radio.

”You’ve been playing the same shit for the last two days. There has to be something else.” He said, his tone pointed and his eyes widened.

“Yeah, to drown out your loud ass breathing!” You shouted back.

“You wanna talk about my breathing? Really? After sounding like a broken vacuum for two hours?” He turned his head to stare at you.

“Watch the fucking road, you piece of shit!” You shrieked as he swerved.

“What? Does that scare you? Does that fucking scare you?” He barked back, but he turned his head back toward the road. His right hand’s knuckles had turned white as he gripped the steering wheel. You wouldn’t have been surprised if he had ripped it off, either on accident or on purpose. Wouldn’t have been the first time.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” You spat out. “Are you crazy? Are you insane? Is that what HYDRA did? They made you fucking crazy?” It was like watching yourself from outside your body. You would’ve never said that. Never. Personal attacks were not your style. But something about him—or maybe something about the two of you together—made you act in ways you sometimes couldn’t control.

“Don’t you fucking say that! Don’t you ever fucking say that! You have no fucking clue what you’re talking about!” He slammed on the breaks, pulling off to the little gravel section on the side of the road. You were in the middle of nowhere—surrounded by trees on a mountain.

When he slammed on the breaks, your body hurled forward, your arm slamming into the dashboard. “Fuck!” You groaned, clutching your arm. Your phone slipped from your lap and clattered to the truck floor. “You fucking suck!”

“And you’re a stuck-up bitch!” He shouted back.

“I wish Steve never saved your sorry ass, I wish I’d never ever met you.” You growled, clenched fists trembling with rage.

“You really are the worst thing that ever happened to me. I mean that.” When he uttered the words, his teeth were bared. Like a dog, you thought. HYDRA’s bitch in all his fucking glory.

“Really? Seventy years of shit and it’s me? I’m the worst thing?” You were losing your mind. “Glad to know being even near me is worse than torture! Glad you’re sharing your experiences, Bucky.”

“And how would you know? What, like you’re my goddamn best friend or some shit? You’re fucking not. We aren’t even friends!” He roared the words in the loudest volume you’d ever heard from him.

Of course you knew that you weren’t friends. Obviously. But you didn’t need the bitchy Bucky Barnes to remind you. Seething, you decided that you were done with this shit, and you didn’t care what Nat or Tony had to say about it.

“No fucking shit! Thank you so much, Sherlock Holmes! And for once, you’re actually right! I’m not your friend! Thank you for making that clear for me. In fact, I’m so grateful that I’ll give you what you've wanted since the beginning, you bitch!” You unbuckle your seatbelt, before pressing the ‘unlock’ button.

Hopping out of the truck, Bucky began to copy you. “You can’t leave!” He said, and his tone sounded like he was accusing you of something. You responded by sticking both middle fingers up near your chest.

“Watch me!” You slammed the door shut before turning and stalking off bitterly.

You made it maybe fifteen quick steps away before you heard Bucky’s door slam shut. His shoes made noise against the road. Before he could say anything, you whirled around to face him. He stopped, five feet away from you. He opened his mouth to say something, but you beat him to it.

"Have you ever considered that maybe it's you? Everyone keeps leaving you and you keep acting surprised. It's because you push them away, Bucky! You push them away!" Your voice becomes shrill at the end of your statement.

He flinches at the mention of Steve. "You don't understand." Bucky called out.

"Then explain it to me then, Bucky. Explain it!" It was more of a begging shout than an angry one. "What, are you worried that he'll leave you or some shit? Cause he's not! I followed him halfway across the world for you!"

"He's the only person who's left! He's all I've got left, the last good thing I have!"

"Probably because you refuse to do anything but glare at everybody else! So you can go ahead and be by yourself! Serves you right!" You spin around, beginning to walk down the road again again. You're too angry to check if he's still following you.

You find out once you feel a hand on your shoulder. Filled with rage, you spin around and punch him right in the face. You regret it immediately as you feel the stinging pain in your fist.

He lets out a loud 'fuck!' as he clutches his jaw. His brows furrow and he looks up at you, eyes wide and furious. You knew in that moment that you’d fucked up. Without warning, you turn and race down the road, knowing that he was right behind you. Shit, shit, shit, you repeated in your head.

You trip over a pothole, pausing. Bucky, however, clearly wasn’t paying attention as he rammed into you. You let out a shriek, tripping and falling down right at the precipice of the hill. And then you were rolling. Rolling through leaves, and mud, and sticks as you both swatted and kicked at each other. Then you rolled through a small creek, and you let out a yowl as you felt your clothes get wet, writhing even more as gravity pulled you down.

When it was over, you both laid there for a moment. Bucky had landed on top of you, and you struggled to breathe. Shoving him off of you, you stared up into the starry sky. Something about it made you want to take back what you'd thought about the value of this trip. At least the sky was pretty.

You got up at the same time he did. The two of you looked at each other, tense. You weren't sure if he was still pissed about the whole punching-him-thing. But God, the fall hurt. Your head hurt. Your back hurt. As did your legs and arms and face and literally almost every part of you.

"Fuck you, Barnes." Was all you said, before you began walking forward. Tumbling just far enough that you were basically in the forest, you could still see the hill you fell from. You were insanely dizzy, but the pain in your body and the wetness of your clothes grounded you. You didn’t know where to go, but you knew you couldn’t stand to look at his face anymore. You picked a direction and began to walk. Bucky did not follow.

It was hard to tell how far you’d gone. The darkness, coupled by the fact that all of these trees seemed to look the same, was not helpful towards your already-poor sense of direction.

After a while, you sat down against a tree. Attempting to reach for your phone, you let out a pathetic groan as you realize it was sitting probably under your seat back in the truck.

So you truly were fucked at the moment.

The sky was beautiful. It was the kind of dark, starry sky that had splashes of blue in it. It was like someone had water colored it. You knew you weren't going to die in the woods. You're an Avenger, damn it.

The sound of sticks breaking tore you from your thoughts. You believed it was a wild animal, at first. But even with the darkness, you could tell who it was. Bucky Barnes, the one hundred and six year-old Super Soldier.

"Don't act like you're not happy to see me like this." You called out as he stepped closer.

He was close enough that you could see his face. He looked...almost remorseful.

"Don't look at me like you're sorry. You're not sorry." You groaned out.

He said nothing, but you could tell he disagreed. He stood beside you, and he was quiet for a moment.

“I’m sorry. For punching you.” You say quietly. “I don’t regret what I said, though. It’s true. They all..we all want to help you. But we can’t because—“

“I know.” He cuts you off, scratching at the back of his neck. “I’m sorry too.” He cleared his throat before speaking again. “I don’t…know why I am the way I am. But I don’t wanna be like that. Like this. Not forever.”

When you didn’t say anything, he continued. “Sometimes I think that this is it and I can’t do anything about it. That this is how it goes. That I lived through…it all, just to be fucked over from it forever.” He fiddled with his hands, looking down. “And I don’t…want it to be that way. So I guess I’m saying I’ll try to do better.”

Your head bobbed up and down shakily. “Yeah. And..I’m sorry about bringing that up. That was…shit, that was awful. I’m sorry.”

He nodded too, still not looking up at you. “Did you mean it?”

“What?”

“About..about me being HYDRA’s bitch. Did you mean that?” He looked up and you could see his expression and it burned in your stomach. It was hard to describe—a boyish suffering; like that of a kicked puppy.

“I…what?” Holy shit. Had you said that under your breath on accident? Now you felt truly guilty. “No. God, no. Oh my God. I’m sorry.”

He didn’t say anything, looking back down and watching as he fiddled more with his hands.

“Do you have any idea where the truck is?” You ask after an awkward silence. He responded by pointing behind him. Great, you thought. You’d been walking the wrong way the whole time.

“The serum made my eyesight better. I can kind of see in the dark.” He explained.

You nodded, sighing. “There’s some towels in the back of the truck. We can put them on the seats. To help with all the…mud.” You gestured between the two of you.

You both made the trek back up the hill to the road, and then began to make your way to the eerily silent truck.

You laid down the towels, and then Bucky put the keys in the truck. He twisted them, and nothing happened. His brows furrowed. He tried again.

Silence.

“When we got out of the car,” he began, voice measured. “Nobody turned it off.”

“You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me. Please. Please tell me you’re joking.” You pressed your fist to your forehead.

“The battery must be dead.” He said, staring blankly ahead through the windshield.

You dug under the seat, finding your phone. “I’ll call for a tow truck, or whoever the fuck I’m meant to call.” You groaned.

The two of you stood awkwardly shivering in the cold as you waited for your savior in overalls.

A/N: Hoping that the tag list works well this time! I was previously having trouble with some usernames not being tagged, but that seems to be resolved! (hopefully)

I cannot promise a schedule, but I do want to finish this series this year! Hope everybody had some happy holidays and a wonderful new year!

Taglist: @afraidofshrimp @kandis-mom @laughterafter @cjand10 @emmsybucky @mrsnotfeelingsogood @matchat3a @identity2212 @ilovemcuff @unaxv @mysticalfuncollectorus @highwaytomichelle @lilbloggs @ordelixx @skiemi-blog @allieb913 @winterslove1917 @chimchoom @moonlight-readings @unearthlydreams @emizlav

graphics by the wonderful @saradika-graphics

If you enjoyed, please reblog!

[bigification]

Just one of the Boys

I feel so free now. Being able to go hitch hiking across the country after university is such an amazing opportunity. Some of the conversation is really weird, some of it is just plain boring, but I shouldn't be complaining though considering these people are driving me around for free. I mainly just get truckers who have been driving with nothing but the radio all day. This time was weird though. A truck full of older men picked me up while I was walking on the side of the road.

"Hop in buddy!" The man in shotgun shouts at me as they pull over.

It seems odd, but it beats walking and it might lead to some interesting conversation. As interesting as middle aged men in Texas have to say at least. I hop in the back of the truck and I'm immediately squished from the man sitting next to me and the seat in front of me. All three of the men in this truck must have been around 300 pounds each, I have no idea why they thought there would be room for another person. I can manage because I'm a relatively small person, but fuck is it not comfortable.

"Name's Tom." The man driving says in a deep southern accent. "This here is Kent." He taps the man riding shotgun. "And the fellow right next to ya is Luke."

"Denis, nice to meet you guys." I say awkwardly as they all stare at me.

"So what is a boy like you doin' in the middle of nowhere." Tom asks.

"Well I just graduated, so I figured I would travel the world before I settle down."

"Once you get a wife, they'll tie ya down like a ton a bricks. Better have your fun while ya can." Luke says and punches my shoulder as the three men erupt into laughter. I just chuckle and smile along, I have the feeling this is gonna be a long trip.

"We come out here every chance we get to fish, and it gives us a break from the family. Just a weekend fishin trip with the boys." Kent says.

"Why don't you grab a beer boy, we got plenty."

"Oh I don't really drink beer, but thanks anyway."

"Why, is it cuz your scared it'll make ya look like us." Luke says as he pats his gut.

"Grab one would ya, what's the harm." Tom insists.

I give in, I don't particularly like beer but I'll drink it if they want me to that bad. I open the cooler behind my seat and see dozens of full beer cans. It kinda shocks me given how many empty can are in the truck, they must have already drank nearly a dozen in the car ride and they have that many more. No wonder they're 300 pounds.

"You gotta girlfriend, boy?" Tom asks as I crack open my beer. The question makes me pause for a moment. I'm hesitant to tell them I have a boyfriend back home, but telling them I don't have a girlfriend technically wouldn't be a lie.

"No" I nervously respond.

"Well the girls are dumb to not want ya."

I wasn't expecting such a sweet response, but that was nice.

"Ya plenty of girls are into chubby guys like you, in sure you won't have no problem getting yourself a wife."

The comment kind of surprised me considering I'm a pretty skinny guy.

"Luke! The hell's wrong with you, that's no way to speak to a guest."

I look down and I'm shocked to see a small belly poking through my shirt. What the hell!? I had basically no fat on my body like 10 minutes ago, what happened.

"Don't listen to Luke, he's just being a dick."

Their words surprisingly comforted me. I started to remember all the partying I did in university, and all the beer I drank, it's no wonder I have a little bit of a beer belly.

"Well what have you done since university?"

The question confused me a bit considering I said I had just graduated before leaving for this trip.

"I just graduated."

"Oh, I just assumed it's been a while since you look a bit too old to be just graduatin school."

The comment confused me even more, I don't look a day older than 22. I glance at the rearview mirror and see my face in the reflection. I look.. at least 30. The more I think about it the more it makes sense though, I've been a software engineer since graduating.

"Oh ya, you had me all confused, I'm a software engineer."

"Rich guy over here, that must make you a lot of money."

"It makes enough." I try not to elaborate.

Tom cuts into the conversation. "Why don't you have another beer boy, we got plenty of time."

I might as well, I guess I can stay with them as long as they let me. I grab another beer and crack it open.

"With a pretty face like yours and a job like that, you must have a beautiful wife don't ya."

I just told them I don't have a girlfriend, but I don't know why I lied about that. Now that I think about it, I have a wife and daughter.

"And a beautiful baby back home." I say proudly.

"Well that explains the belly growin on ya. A man your age doesn't get a tank like that unless he's got a kid."

"Luke, would ya stop it with the comments about his belly, your makin him uncomfortable."

I look down at my gut again and see that it's doubled in size since I last looked at it. But then again, I have been gaining a lot of weight since the baby was born, so it makes sense. I might be needing some new clothes now that I look at it, my shirt is riding up my belly.

"It's alright." I respond. "Ever since the baby, I haven't been able to control this belly."

"We know the feelin. We all met before we got married and we were all 150. I still remember Tom hit 300 by the time his first turned 1 and we never let him hear the end of it."

"Don't listen to them Denis. Kent hit 300 before his first kid was even born, those beers really took a toll."

As they're talking, I grab another beer. I feel like I'm going through these beers like they're nothing, they taste amazing.

"Just considering yourself lucky that you didn't hit 300 pounds by the time you turned 40."

"Well I certainly am gettin there." I'm shocked as I hear a southern twang in my voice when I say that.

"Ya sure are, that shirt don't fit ya like it used to."

I look down and see that my gut is spilling out onto my lap, my shirt has ridden up nearly to my chest. It looks more like a bra at this point.

"Why don't you grab one of my fishin shirts back there, it might fit ya better."

It's slightly embarrassing, but I appreciate the offer. I grab a white shirt from behind my seat and put it on. It's surprisingly tight on me considering these guys are so much bigger than me. Honestly now that I look at them, they're not even that big, at least not that much bigger than me. Id say it's about average for a man our age to be this big. Only those millennials with their damn diets stay skinny, it's not our fault real men like their beer and steak. I kinda pause in shock that the thought ran through my mind, but I slowly felt more confident in that opinion.

"So I'm sure you've got teenagers by this age, they must be a handful."

"Oh I've got two, they really push my buttons sometimes. They're why Ive got so many grey hairs already."

"Well you must be pushing 50, just be glad you ain't got more. Luke went full grey by 40."

"With the way his wife treats him, I'm surprised he even has any hair left."

I joke, making the boys erupt into laughter. It kinda felt weird makin a joke about Luke's wife when I've never met the woman, but I met her just last week at the barbeque. She really is a handful. It felt good makin the boys laugh, I really feel like I'm fittin in good with them.

"I wouldn't talk if I were you Denis, ever since you met that wife a yours, that waistline has never been the same."

"That's right, I still remember when we met you way back, you were just a skinny young man. You must have been 140 pounds soakin wet, and now look at ya, you can't even fit into your own damn clothes."

I blush with embarrassment as I look down and see that my fly is wide open. My button must've flown right off without me noticing.

"It's all those damn beers he's been drinkin"

Luke punches my shoulder and points at the pile of empty beer cans at my feet. I didn't even realize how many I went through, and I barely feel drunk. Though it is pretty normal for big guys like me to have to drink more to get drunk, I sure as hell don't mind drinking more.

"Oh get off his ass Luke, you know damn well you drink just as much as him. And by the way Denis, we don't mind if you need to take your pants off if they get too small."

It seems strange that Tom would say that, but we've known each other for so long now so who cares. It's not gay if I still have my underwear on. I struggle to pull the skin tight jeans to my ankles and relax as my legs spread.

"Alright boys, we made it."

We pull into a long driveway with a small cabin by the water. Everyone hops out and grabs their stuff before walkin to the cabin. I sheepishly get out of the truck with my pants at my knees.

"Damn, you've really packed it on since our last fishin trip." Tom says as he slaps my gut, it looks almost like he's salivating lookin at me. "You must be the biggest in the group now."

I blush at the compliment. I fully take off my jeans and walk to the cabin. I'm shocked to see how small the cabin is. It has one room with a kitchen and living room on one side and two small beds on the other.

"Where's everyone gon' sleep?"

"Those two beds right there. Luke and Kent can share that bed, you'll be with me boy."

He pushes me into the bed.

"I'm gonna have fun fattening you up like the pig you are."

I look over to the other bed and see that Luke and Kent are already makin out.

"Hey, eyes on me fat boy. Consider this your initiation as one of the boys."

Tom pins me under his weight and starts kissin me. I'm certainly not gay, but Tom is a handsome fella so I certainly won't mind. Oh and the ways he touches me, my wife could never. It's like the devil is tempting me, I'll just have to confess when I go to church next sunday. But then I'll do it all again next fishin trip with the boys.

[littlemissstel]

Pit Stop - Shiu Kong

On your way to the mechanics your car breaks down and who better to call then your handler?

SFW, no use of (Y/n), name used is "Doll", not proofread, pre-relationship

dividers by @saradika-graphics

You were feeling good about yourself when you woke up this morning. For some reason your body decided to wake up at 6 am yet you have never felt more rested in your life. You had no jobs today- you didn't need to work for the next year if you wanted to with how much your last hit paid and you finally tried that viral french toast recipe that had been sitting in your "favourites" folder for the last 6 months.

You felt good.

And in your productive haze you had decided that you felt good enough to finally go to the mechanics and fix the irritating engine warning light that had been incessantly pestering you for as long as you had the car...Now especially since another light had just come on.

It was almost time to be re-serviced anyway, so what could go wrong?

"no...no, no, no, no- please no"

You were begging your car as it spluttered back. If it could talk you had no doubt it would be swearing at you right now.

The car moved sluggishly as you pulled over, it wasn't a busy road surrounded by nothing but bushes, trees and discarded litter; and you couldn't help but feel a wave of embarrassment as you came to a stop. Turns out the blinking light wasn't just for show.

"fuuucckkkk"

So what do you do now? You had no one to call...well you should probably start with a breakdown service but then what would you do? Even with your hoard of money you'd rather not pay their prices and, if needed, there's no way a tow truck could fit down these roads.

Going down your list of contacts one caught your eye. Shiu.

He seemed the obvious choice, no? The man drove cars for a living if you take out the other details and you're sure he liked you enough to come get you. Maybe you could persuade him by taking him to get those steamed rice rolls he enjoyed the last time you grabbed lunch together.

The debate in your head could go on forever but, either way, he was your only choice. And so you called, the phone ringing for only a second before he picked up.

"Hello?" his gruff voice was instantly welcomed by your ears.

"Hey, are you free?"

"I can be, why?"

You paused for a moment, sheepishly, before releasing a sharp exhale.

"My cars broken down on the side of-" you looked for a sign, "- in the middle of nowhere. I'm kind of stuck. If you're not too busy can you pick me up? I can send you my location and get someone to deal with the rest later."

"Sure. Be there soon"

"Thank you so much"

And with that the call was finished. Simple enough. You could laugh at yourself for overthinking.

It wasn't another twenty minutes before you saw Shiu's car pulling up behind yours, he came into view wearing his signature suit, though his blazer was discarded allowing your eyes to linger on his broad shoulders. You hopped out to meet him half-way with a grateful smile on your face.

"Thank you again"

"Don't worry about it, you really weren't joking when you said the middle of nowhere though Doll. What were you doing? Having a picnic?" He replies walking over, voice dripping in sarcasm. Believe it or not, you don't have to spend a lot of time with Shiu to realise the handlers sassy personality, just somewhat focused, otherwise you'll miss his double sided remarks.

"No, thank you. I was on my way to the mechanic-"

He stifles a laugh.

"A bit late don't you think?"

"Well it wasn't my intention was it- what are you doing?" you ask as he lifts the car bonnet.

"Checking what's wrong. You have problems with your car and don't think to call the man who works with them?"

"I didn't think you'd want to help me out with something like that...I wouldn't. And it was just the engine light before."

He catches your eye, amused.

"I am hurt Doll."

His arms flexed as he tampered with the car, eyebrows knitted into a subtle frown, he focused- you couldn't help but stare. You had known Shiu was attractive, it wasn't a secret and you were sure he knew it too. You've heard the (watered down) stories he's told you about this twenties and though he jokingly refers to himself as an "old man" he carries enough confidence to show he isn't really bothered by it. You were sure he knew you thought he was attractive too, especially with the amount of times he's caught you staring.

Like right now.

"Doll."

"Yes?"

He walks closer to you slowly with a smirk on his face and you start to feel self conscious with the way his eyes stay attached to yours, not straying for a second.

"Your cars fine...Just low on coolant fluid."

"Right...It did say that..."

He shakes his head.

"Thank you for coming out here though, maybe i could take you to the restaurant we went to last week? As a thank you?" You quirk a brow staring up at him expectantly.

You both stay there for a second, matching each others foolish smiles.

"Didn't know fixing your car would get you to ask me out Doll."

Shiu is my husband.

let me know what you think and please feel free to use my inbox to talk or request <3

[cmncisspnandmore]

Coming home to you; Part 4

Parinings: Captain John Price X Wife! Reader

Warnings: none

Word count: 2.1k

New to the series? Catch up here: Part 3

You sigh as you slide off Captain's back, your boots hitting the ground with a loud thud. It was a far drop off Captain, with how large he was. You pat the side of his neck as you grab the reins guiding him over to the fence. 

This was the second section of fence that had been broken in a month. You let go ofC  Captain's reins, and he goes to graze in the grass next to you. A soft breeze blows your hair into your face as you crouch down next to the broken wire fence. You carefully pick up one of the thick wires and inspect it. 

It was cut, not broken by some animal, the break was too clean for it to have snapped under the pressure. Someone had cut your fence, but who? You lived in the middle of nowhere, there was nothing but acres of empty land around you. Most of which was owned by you and the neighbor down the road. You were the only two houses on this side of the road. Your neighbors across the street, the Rosens, owned most of the land over on their side.

There have been a few instances over the last few years that people have wandered onto your property thinking it was hunting ground. There was a lot of wildlife that lived in the woods behind your fenced pastures. But in the past year or so you hadn't had much of an issue thanks to the signage you had put up with your neighbor. You carefully put the cut wire down, your eyes trailing along the fence. 

One of the posts was uprooted, it is now laying on the ground. That was going to be a pain to fix. If there was one thing you hated about fixing fences was digging in the fence posts. The posts themselves were almost as big as you, and they weighed a lot. You sigh, turning back towards the large Shire horse as he grazes. His large brown eyes look towards you as he lifts his head. Grass stuck out of his mouth as he took a few steps towards you. His black and white muzzle coming to bump into your arm. 

“Someone’s messing with our fences… Do you know anything about that?” You ask him, as you pet his neck. Captain finishes chewing his grass before he tosses his head up and down, his top lip pulled up in a smile.

“Oh really? Do you?” You smile at his antics, a soft huff coming from him as your fingers stroke his nose. “Silly old thing, if only you could talk.” 

You spend a few more moments petting Captain, before you glance over your shoulder at the fence post again. With a heavy sigh you pull your phone from your back pocket and dial John. 

“Hello?” His gruff voice answers on the second ring.

“Hi,” you smile into the phone.

“Is everything okay?” He asks, you can hear shuffling in the background.

“Yeah, I mean, no. I don't know,” you sigh, “the fence in the back pasture was cut. And one of the posts is down.”

“Cut?” he asks, “are you sure it was cut?” 

Running a hand through your hair you sigh, “Yeah I'm sure, can you come out and help me fix it?” 

“Yeah, give me a few moments to get the gates open, and everything we need to fix it in the truck.” 

“Okay, i’ll see you when you get here,” you hang up the phone, sliding it into your back pocket. “Looks like we’ll be out here for a while, let's get that tack off you.” Captain seems to understand, as he lowers his head so you can easily remove his bridle. You carefully lay his saddle and the rest of his tack over a portion of the fence and take a seat in the tall grass. It only takes Captain a few moments to notice you're sitting in the grass before he comes over. His large hooves stopped a few feet from you. Glancing up you smile at the huge animal, as he leans his head down and nudges you hard with his head. 

“Oh I'm sorry, did I not invite you to sit with me?” You smile as the large animal maneuvers himself to kay in the grass next to you. He lays on his side,his large head resting on your thigh as you stroke your fingers through his slightly tangled mane. The Captain's mane was long and black, the strands thick and coarse in between your fingers. As the sun warms your skin you, take some time to plait his mane into intricate 4 and 5 strand braids. Weaving in small yellow flowers that were around you. Captain although hard headed at times, wanted nothing more than to please you. He enjoyed laying the fields with you, letting you pet him and do as you pleased. He was tolerant of you grooming him, and he often fell asleep as you braided his mane, or brushed him.

As you tie off the end of your last plait, the rumbling of a truck coming from behind you. The noise causes Captain to stand, getting to his feet as his large ears turn in the direction of the sound. He steps in front of you, putting his large body between you and the truck. As the truck comes closer you move to stand next to Captain as he lets out a whinny. 

“Easy boy, it’s just John,” you soothe him, as he stamps his hooves into the ground.

The dark gray truck pulls to a stop next to the broken fence line. The door  slamming shut as your husband walks around the front. As soon as Captain sees him, he visibly relaxes.

“See i told you, silly horse,” You pat his neck as you walk away from him. Captain returns to grazing as you walk up to your husband. His boonie hat pulled down to shield his eyes from the sun. “Hi love,” you smile as you stand in front of your husband.

“Hello Beautiful,” he smiles, his large hands coming to rest on your waist as he gently tugs you towards him. Your hands lay softly on his chest, the warmth of his chest seeping through his shirt. Through the thin material of his shirt you could feel his muscles flexing, as he leant down to press a kiss to your hair. “Care to show me the broken wire?” He smiles down at you.

“It's over here,” you step away, walking over to the cut fencing. John takes a moment. Bending down to inspect the wire, after a moment he stands, brushing his hands on his pants.

“You’re right, it was definitely cut, and that post was pulled from the ground,” he points over to the fallen post. “I don't know why someone would cut the fence… It’s clearly posted that this is private land not hunting grounds. And even the last time we found someone hunting on the land they left the fences very well alone.”

“I'm not sure, but we need to get that fixed before we let the animals back here. The last thing we need is to find that the sheep have wandered off, or that Captain and Rookie have taken themselves for a hack by themselves,” you sigh, walking over the bed of the truck and grabbing the thick work gloves from the back. You also grab the post hole digger from the back of the truck, as John cuts the broken wire from the other post. 

After he throws the cut wire into the back of the truck he grabs the post hole digger from you. “I can dig the hole if you want to attach new wire to the fence post that's still in the ground over there.” He smiles at you as he hauls the heavy piece of equipment over his shoulder like it weighed nothing. 

“Oh, how cute, you thought I was going to dig the hole?’ You smile cheekily at your husband. John doesn't reply, he just shakes his head as he walks over to redig the fence post hole. 

You pull on a pair of thick work gloves and carefully go about fastening the wire to the standing fence post. The sun beats down on both you and John as you work in comfortable silence. It only takes him 20 minutes to dig the new hole and place the post, where it would've taken you almost an hour. As you twist the wire around itself to fasten it to the post John comes over. His shadow falls over you as he watches you finish twisting it together. 

“You’re better at fastening the wire than I am. The damn stuff just makes me mad, I don't have the patience for such tasks anymore,” he grumbles. You look up over your shoulder, the sun glaring from being John makes him more shadow than actual features.

“Did you lose all your patience in your old age?” You tease. 

“I lost it when they assigned Soap to my task force,” he smiles as he shakes his head. 

“Well, there had to be someone other than me adding to your grey hairs,” you smirk.

“Darling no one gives me more grey hair than you,” John laughs, as he crouches down next to you. You finish tying off the wire and reach over, your hand coming to rest on his cheek. 

“It just adds to your charm, you should really be thanking me, if i'm being honest.”

“Oh? I should be thanking you for aging me?” He raises a brow.

“One hundred percent, gives you that whole sexy older man vibe. You know this younger generation are all about going for older men. The more mature males, the sophisticated ones, the ones who probably know their way around a woman.” 

“And do i?” He asks, standing to his full height, his hand catching yours as he pulls you up with him.

“Do you what?” You look up at him.

He leans in, his lips brushing your ear, “know my way around a woman.” 

A shiver runs through your body, the hair on your arms standing up as his hands circle your waist, pulling you flush against his front. A blush creeping up your neck and painting your cheeks. You could feel the warmth radiating off him, seeping into your skin like, settling into your bones. “You definitely know your way around a woman,” you breathe.

“Good answer,” he smiles down at you, his hand coming up to brush along your cheek. “Look at you, all flustered over a simple conversation.” 

You roll your eyes at him, stepping out of his arms, “what can I say? It’s all the grey hair.”

John smiles, shaking his head as he wipes his hands on his jeans. He walks over to the rest of the supplies and piles them into the truck, making sure to secure the bed.

Captain walks over, his nose bumping into your shoulder, a soft nicker for your attention. You turn towards the horse, petting the sides of his face, brushing some stray grass from his muzzle. He tosses his head up, his lip curling upward in a smile as John walks towards you. 

“Nice smile, Captain,” John laughs at the large animal, pulling a peppermint from his pocket. He holds it out on his flat palm, as Captain eats it from his hand. The loud crunching of the mint between his teeth filled the quiet. 

“The fence is all fixed so there shouldn't be any wandering animals, I have to head back to the house, i need to do some work in my office today,” John's hands rest on your shoulders as he presses a kiss to the crown of your head.

Turning your head you look up at him, a small smile on his lips, “Okay, i’ll follow. Could you take Captain's tack?” 

John gives a subtle nod, “Need a boost up?”

“Yes please,” you smile, grabbing a handful of Captain's mane. John moves his hands to your waist and hoists you up onto Captain's back. As you settle onto his back, John's hand moves to your thigh, patting it gently. 

“Hey Love?” You call as he starts walking back to the truck. He looks back at you over his shoulder, boonie hat blocking his eyes. 

“Yes?”

“RACE YOU HOME!” You yell, giving Captain a kick in the side and the old Shire horse takes off. Your hands gripping chunks of his mane as his hooves pound into the ground. You look over your shoulder, John getting smaller in the distance as he throws Captains tack into the back of the truck and hurries to climb in. You laugh as Captain picks up speed, the sound of the truck turning over in the distance.

Taglist: @a-small-writer-in-a-big-world

[daryltwdixon]

Summary: The journey continues with quiet tension as you adjust to your injury and the isolation of the open road. After setting up camp, you find yourself navigating the discomfort of shared space and thoughts of the danger that lies ahead.

no warnings apply

The road ahead stretches long and unforgiving. The world feels so… vast, and you, so small. Out here, in the open, in the middle of nowhere.

The engine hummed beneath you as you slowly pulled yourself from a heavy sleep. Joel was still in the driver’s seat, Ellie next to him. Sharp, unrelenting aches shot up your leg, and you reached down to check the wound.

Not bleeding anymore, at least. But fuck, did it hurt.

After an hour of driving that first night, you’d stopped on the side of the road. Joel had done his best to check the wound for any remaining bullet fragments. He’d torn your pant leg off, soaked in crimson blood. You were ‘lucky,’ he’d said while stitching you up. The bullet had gone clean through the other side of your thigh without hitting the main artery. But you didn’t feel lucky. Not with the pain still searing through you all night. Not while you were praying for no infection.

Now, the handkerchief around your leg isn’t as soaked as your jeans had been, now cut off into shorts. The stitched skin is aching and painful, but bearable–no longer white hot and blinding. Your knees bruised and scuffed from the fall to the ground.

“Hey,” Ellie says from the front seat, turning to look at you. “You okay?”

You rub your eyes, still groggy from sleep, and run a hand through your hair, looking at her. “Yeah, yeah. I’m good,” you sigh, “How long was I out?”

“’Bout six hours,” Ellie said softly, glancing at Joel.

You looked out the window, surprised to see… nothing. No towns, no road signs, no signs of life at all. Just open overgrown fields against lush forests.

You don’t bother to even ask where you are. It’s not like it really mattered anymore since being forced from the only thing you’ve ever known.

You lean your head back against the seat, eyes heavy, your body still aching from the sharp pull of your leg. The road’s monotonous hum is almost soothing, but the emptiness of it all—the nothingness that stretches out endlessly—settles over you like a thick blanket of hopelessness. It’s so quiet, the kind of silence that makes you feel small. You close your eyes, feeling the exhaustion creep in again, the weight of everything catching up to you, settling in your bones.

Maybe if I just sleep long enough, this will all feel a little less real.

But it doesn’t. You try to push the thoughts away, to bury them under the dull throb in your leg, but they keep coming. The feeling of loss. Of being so far from everything. Of not knowing where you’re going, or if you’re even meant to get there.

The truck bumps over the uneven terrain, jolting you back into consciousness, and you blink up at the roof of the cab. Joel’s voice breaks through the haze of your thoughts. “That’s enough for today,” he says, his tone quiet but resolute.

You hear the truck slow, tires crunching over gravel as he pulls off the road, deeper into the woods. The truck rocks and bumps, the suspension straining as Joel drives farther in, trying to get as far from the road as he can. You let your eyes flutter shut again, fighting the overwhelming urge to just sleep, but the quiet around you weighs on your mind.

The truck comes to a stop, and you feel the sudden stillness in the air. The engine cuts off, and Joel’s voice breaks the silence again as he shifts in his seat, getting out of the truck and opening your door, “Come on now,”

You drag yourself out of the truck, wincing as your leg protests, but you don’t complain. Ellie’s already moving around, taking a look around, chattering about something to Joel that you don’t care to pay attention to. Once out of the truck, Joel’s eyes sweep over you, almost as if he’s making sure you’re able to stand on your own, then begins setting up a small camp for the evening, getting out some plates and forks and a can of something with a faded label.

You reach into your bag, fingers brushing over the pack of chicken you grabbed back at the house. “Might as well eat this,” you mutter, pulling it out with a small sigh. “It’s gonna be bad by tomorrow.”

You hear Joel grunt in acknowledgment, and Ellie offers a quiet “Yeah, sounds good,” but neither of them push you to say more. They know. The silence hangs between the three of you, tense and awkward. You can’t stand the idea of them pitying you, but you don’t have it in you to snap back.

You open your bag and start divvying up the chicken. It’s not the best meal, but it’ll keep you moving. Better than whatever 20 year old substance was in that can they were about to open. You glance around the clearing, trying to ignore the gnawing feeling in your chest. You’d never been out in the open like this before, nothing outside of Lincoln. Not without your secure gate, tall fences, your alarm system.

“How long are we staying out here?” Ellie asks with her mouth full.

“I figure I sleep tonight,” Joel answers her with a straight tone, no nonsense. “Drive tomorrow all day, all night. Get us to Wyoming by next mornin’.”

“Wyoming?” you ask, mid-chew, not entirely sure you want to hear the answer.

Joel’s eyes flicker to you from where he’s hunched over his food. “Been tryna find my brother—”

“Tommy, right?” you cut in, something in the back of your cobwebbed memories stirring. The name rings familiar, but you’re not sure why.

Joel hesitates, maybe realizing he might’ve said too much in the past when you were just a kid, not realizing how much you’d remember. He looks uncertain about continuing, but after a long moment, he does.

“Tommy joined the Fireflies years ago,” he says, looking down at his plate, “Course, last I heard he left them too. But he might at least know where they are. Last I heard he sent word through the radio from a town outside of Cody, Wyoming. Gotta go get him.”

You pause, your fork halfway to your mouth. So Tommy had been with the Fireflies. That’s the group Joel’s told you about—freedom fighters against FEDRA. You don’t know much beyond that, just enough to make sense of it.

But something about it rubs you the wrong way.

So he’d keep up with the radio for his brother, but not for Bill and Frank. And certainly not for you.

Swallowing hard at the lump of food in your mouth, you do your best to ignore the way the feeling crawls up your throat. It shouldn’t matter. It’s not like you expected anything from him.

Tess and Joel had made it a point to be a part of your life, a part of your dad’s life. And yet, over the years, they’d gone silent. You didn’t know the details, and you sure as hell weren’t going to pry them out of the surly bastard. You were stuck with him now, even though he never showed a care in the world for you, for how you were holding up. Nothing in the past seven years to even ask if any of you were still alive. 

But he’d gotten you out, saved you last night, despite everything. You couldn’t ignore that. So, you supposed you’d have to accept that part of him, even if it didn’t make the rest of him any easier to figure out.

“So, can we start a fire? I’m freezing.” Ellie asks, popping a bite of chicken into her mouth.

“Now why am I gonna tell you no?” Joel looks at her, exasperated and terse.

She rolls her eyes, “Cause infected will see the smoke,”

“Infected aren’t that smart,” you mumble, but Joel hears you.

“That’s right.” he nods, still looking at Ellie, “Fungus ain’t that smart. Besides, this is too remote for infected anyway,” he adds, but his eyes still dart around the clearing you’ve gathered in.

Ellie pauses her chewing, “People…?” she says, her eyes widening. Without an answer, she takes it as an assertion, “So what’re they gonna do, rob us?” she asks, almost sarcastically, but there’s an underlying tone of seriousness to her as she waits for his answer.

“Oh they’ll have a lot more in mind than that.” Joel says darkly, “Did you learn nothin’ from what we just faced?”

You swallow the last of the chicken, and the weight of his words presses down on you. Your dad had never really talked about what was out there. He’d always said that what mattered was the land you could protect, the food you could grow. People? That was something your dad never bothered to explain to you—that was the world he kept hidden from you. As much as he hated the world, he never told you about what the world had turned into. Maybe he was just as sheltered from it all. Only things you know were what Joel and Tess had shared, brief words exchanged, more like scary stories that you never took note of, until now.

You look at Joel, his expression harder than usual, and the knot in your stomach tightens. You wonder what he’s seen, what he knows, that makes him sound this way. All you’ve ever known is the small, isolated world of Lincoln–of what you and your dad created.

You wonder if that was the right kind of world to be raised in. You wonder if you're prepared for what's ahead.

Then your eyes land on the sleeping bags they’ve rolled out. Two, that look awfully a lot like the ones your dad and Frank had.

You can’t help it. “Really?” you call out, voice dripping with sarcasm and thankful for a change in subject. “You were just gonna take my stuff, huh? You didn’t think maybe, you know, asking would’ve been a thing?”

Joel glances up, an eyebrow raised, but you can see the tension in his shoulders, like he’s not sure whether you’re joking or pissed.

You shake your head, “No warning, no nothing—just raid my place for sleeping bags and head out, huh? You’re no better than those guys who came for my shit last night,”

Ellie, not missing a beat, looks over at you with a lopsided grin. “Hey, at least we didn’t shoot you for it.”

“Ellie.” Joel reprimands.

After rolling your eyes, you glance at the sleeping bags, and then back at the truck. You should’ve thought to bring one in those last few moments of packing. The idea of sharing one of those with either of them—Joel, especially—makes your stomach churn with anxiety. Besides, it’s warm enough that you don’t necessarily need the extra warmth of the down-stuffed sleeping arrangements.

You shake your head, standing up. “I’ll take the backseat,” you say, a little too loud. You’re not sure if you’re talking to them or just saying it out loud to justify it.

Ellie looks at you, eyebrows raised. “You sure?”

“Better than sharing one of those with either of you,” you mutter, your voice edged with more than a little sarcasm. “Besides, it’s hot as hell out here.”

You climb into the backseat, using your jacket as a blanket, your leg throbbing under the weight of the day. It’s cramped, but it’s your space, and you can rest without feeling like you’re suffocating in the heat of the sleeping bag.

A few minutes pass, the night stretching longer as the sounds of the woods surround you. The crickets chirp faintly from outside, and for a moment, you feel your body finally beginning to relax, the exhaustion catching up with you.

Then, you hear the sound of footsteps approaching. You try to ignore it, but then the side door by your feet opens.

Joel’s voice, low and rough, filters through the space. “How’s the leg?”

You sigh, looking over at him from where you lie in the cramped backseat. “It’s fine. Just a little sore.”

Joel grunts in acknowledgment, his shadow falling across the truck as he leans in to look at the wound, “You don’t gotta be stubborn,” he mutters, his tone almost too quiet. “Let me check it.”

You stay still, letting him move closer as his body moves inside the door over the bench of the backseat. You can hear the faint clinking and rustling of things as he pulls items out of his med kit. His presence is steady, not quite intrusive, but close enough that it feels a little too... personal. It’s just him, his hands rough and worn, as he reaches in carefully to check the bandage around your thigh.

The touch is gentle, but his movements are stiff, as though he's trying to be as careful as possible without drawing attention to the fact that his hands are on your bare thigh. You force yourself not to think about it. It's just a wound, just a necessary task.

He doesn’t say anything at first, just focusing on the gunshot, checking to make sure it’s as clean as it can be and that the stitches are holding. His hands are careful, methodical. You try to keep your breath steady, not allowing your mind to wander, but it's hard. He’s the only man you’ve known outside of your family, and this... this proximity is something unfamiliar.

Joel doesn’t seem to notice how uncomfortable you are, or maybe he’s trying not to. His attention is entirely on your leg, but you can’t help but wonder if he knows how awkward this all feels. Maybe it’s just you.

You catch yourself thinking about it again and shake the thought away.

“Could be worse,” Joel says, his voice gruff, but there’s something underlying in it. A quiet kind of care, like he’s trying not to make a big deal of it, “Don’t think it’s gon’ get infected,”

You look at him, trying to gauge what’s in his eyes, but the dim light makes it hard to read. His face is shadowed, but you can still make out the familiar furrow in his brow. He’s doing this because he has to, but there’s a softness behind it that you don’t want to acknowledge. It makes the silence feel a little too thick.

You shift uncomfortably, ignoring the flush that creeps up your cheeks, “Uh... thanks,” you mutter, not sure what else to say.

Joel glances up at you, his expression unreadable. There's a flicker in his eyes, like he's debating whether to say something or just move on. Finally, he snorts, breaking the silence. “Yeah, well, don’t get used to it.”

You offer a tight smile, trying to brush it off, but you can’t ignore the awkwardness hanging between you. You pull the jacket tighter around you, wishing you could disappear into it. “I won’t. Don’t worry.”

He finishes adjusting the bandage, his hands careful, deliberate. “Alright, that should hold you for now. Don’t do anything stupid and it’ll heal fine."

You nod, still trying to process the weirdness of the moment. He stands up, his boots shifting against the dirt as he hesitates for a second, glancing down at you.

“Get some rest,” Joel adds, his voice softer now, quieter than you’d expect. “We’re gonna need it.”

You’re not sure how to respond, so you don’t. Instead, you pull the jacket closer, settling back into the seat. You hear the sound of him walking away, the rustle of them getting comfortable in their sleeping bags crinkling in the distance. You let the quiet settle in again, the warmth of the night and the heavy pull of sleep taking over.

[v1nsmoke]

𝑭𝑨𝑴𝑰𝑳𝒀 𝑫𝑰𝑵𝑵𝑬𝑹 // 𝑨𝑺𝑳 𝑩𝑹𝑶𝑺. 𝑿 𝑹𝑬𝑨𝑫𝑬𝑹

spooktober week 5 - psycho ace, sabo & luffy

tw: blood, murder, fire, knife/blades, psychos, fire

summary: you accept the kind offer of a man after your car breaks down in the middle of nowhere. what you don't expect is that him and his brothers are a little... off

a/n: i lowkey have no idea how this turned out, but oh well. i was thinking of giving it up multiple times too, but i liked the idea so enjoy!

tags: -

wc: 2.3k

Even after hours of driving, the view around you was still the same, empty, dried out grasslands surrounding the motorway you were driving on. No houses, no people, no cars on the road except you. It felt surreal, weird. You were not prepared for this, neither was your car's petrol tank.

It was almost out of fuel, it was a miracle that it was still moving, but it didn't seem like you will come across any gas stations anytime soon. You already tried to call for help but there was no connection here in the middle of nowhere, your phone was deemed useless.

Just a matter of time and you will be stuck in the middle of the road alone, with no food or drinks. The chances of anybody helping you out were extremely low, given that it has been hours since you saw anybody on the road.

And there it was. Your car gave up, the engine giving out a strange sound, the gas pedal now not doing anything as the car spluttered to a halt. You let out a frustrate sigh, resting your head on the steering wheel in front of you.

What will you do now? No connection, no fuel, no people. Just you alone, surrounded by empty fields filled with nothing. You didn't expect this journey to take so long, so you didn't even bring food or drinks. Not to mention the hot weather. The only reason you were able to endure it was because the car's air conditioner, but now it stopped along the car.

So, you decided to wait. Just when despair started to pull your spirits into the abyss, you heard someone calling out to you. Suddenly, a beat up truck pulled up beside you. You stepped out of your car cautiously.

A black haired, freckled man sits in the drivers seat, pulling down the window. He took a look at your car and determined the problem quickly.

"Out of fuel?" He jokingly asks, already knowing the answer to his own question. "Seems like it" you shrug.

"You know, me and my brothers live close, I can offer you a ride." He offers with a wink. You accepted hesitantly, wondering what kind of person he might be.

You still had doubts, but you followed him anyway, getting into the seat next to his. You were unsure about the situation, but it was better than being stranded here without anything.

It was a mostly quiet ride on your side, meanwhile Ace was blasting his music while singing along, sometimes asking questions and trying to spark a conversation between the two of you. But you always responded with the least words, not fully trusting this guy you just met.

After about twenty minutes, a house comes into view. Ace slows down near it as he takes a right turn, entering the dirt path leading trough the dry grass to the house, a red barn a bit further, surrounded by tall, unkept grass. He parks the truck next to the house, sighing and sending a smile your way as he steps out.

You didn't want to be left behind, so you did the same, following him. You eventually reached a large, dilapidated house. It was bit further from the road, but at least it had a few trees near it. You felt nervous but Ace urged you to come inside.

Inside you found a sprawling house filled with old furniture, paintings, and antiques. It was surprisingly anything but cozy and inviting. The walls were all an old, discoloured yellowish colour with a few slight stains, which was likely plain white wall when the house was built.

The lighting was dim, just some old table lamps. The furniture was dark and wooden, and upon entering the kitchen connected to the living room, you noticed that the couch was a dusty, olive colour. Ace’s brothers Sabo and Luffy were also there.

You immediately grabbed their attention, both of them turning to your direction and they scramble themselves up, now standing in front of you. Both were tall, though the blonde looked older. Was he Luffy or Sabo? You knew their names because Ace just wouldn't shut up about them.

Though, there was something a bit unsettling about them. You couldn't put your finger on what made you feel like this, but you just decided to shake it off, thinking it was because you don't know the brothers yet. They both had wild eyes and unkempt hair but smiled warmly as they greeted you.

Ace joined the three of you, greeting his brothers with a hug.

"This is Sabo, the middle child, and Luffy, the youngest." He motions at the blonde first, then the black haired guy. They both had scars, Sabo a burn mark over one of his eyes, and Luffy had what seemed like a cut under his eye.

They looked homeless if you were being honest, their house giving off similar vibes. But after a short talk, they seemed like nice people, and the mood was not that bad. Luffy was a little stupid, getting into smaller arguements with Ace, while Sabo was acting like the big brother, despite being the middle child.

But as the night went on, the atmosphere in the house changed. The brothers started to act strangely. They began to whisper and laugh, looking at you with a manic glint in their eye. It became clear that something was wrong.

The brothers asked you to join them for dinner. You hesitantly agreed, not wanting to be rude. You were worried that if you refuse they will throw you out. Were they going to poison you? More and more negative thoughts started to fill you head, leading to a loss of confidence. Maybe it wasn't a good idea, especially after they started taking out the food which was supposed to be your dinner.

It was almost rotten, the disgusting smell filling the air. Yes, this was definitely a bad idea. It was time for you to go before they end up poisoning you. So, you take a few steps back, slowly inching towards the front door.

"Stay." Sabo sternly says. You gulp, attempting to swallow the lump in your throat. You were fucked. They probably had weapons, though anything can be used as a weapon if you use it well. If you tried to leave, they can kill you. And let's be honest, you didn't want to meet your end here.

So, your only option was to stay.

"I was just looking around." You lie.

"Sit down." Ace demands, his cheery tone not present in his voice. It was like it was not even the same man you were talking to in the truck.

Over dinner, the brothers made it clear that they knew more about you than you did about them. They kept asking the same questions, and judging your answers. You felt like you were being put on trial. As the dinner went on, they began to ignore you and forget you were even there.

Once most of the dinner was eaten, Ace gave you a look that sent chills down your spine. It was clear that he wanted you to leave. Sabo and Luffy went out and started a fire, while Ace talked to you in a monotone voice. Suddenly, you were grabbed from behind, and you realized that the brothers had been watching you the entire time.

Suddenly Sabo and Luffy jumped up and grabbed you. Panic took over as you began to understand their plan. The brothers were psycho and were planning to kill you. You screamed and struggled as you tried to break free, but it was no use.

"You know, nobody even comes here anymore!" Sabo maniacally laughs, holding a knife to your throat while standing behind you, your back pressed to his chest.

"Maybe because we made sure that the few people never leave, you stupid!" Luffy adds.

"Oh, right." The blonde sways, still holding you close.

"You know, I kinda liked you. Shame that this is it for you." Ace enters the conversation. "Lucky for you, I'll do the honour instead of this dumb blonde."

"No way that's going to happen. I like her more, I should be the one to kill her!" Luffy raises his voice.

"She likes me the best, is that right dear?" Sabo places his chin on you shoulders from behind, looking up at you with his frenzy-filled eyes.

They had some shine to them, the dim, yellowish lighting reflecting in his blue orbs, his pupils slowly dilating the more he stares at you, waiting for an answer.

"Bullshit! I was the one who drove her here!" Ace counters.

"And I- uhhhh I don't know what I did." Luffy tries to argue, but nothing comes to his mind at the moment.

You were stressed, the knife still at your throat along with Sabo's head resting on your shoulders. Somehow this made you feel less uncomfortable, though you would love to escape from here. But how? Three guys ready to murder you any second, no car, no weapons. Hopeless.

"Why don't we let the guest choose, hm?" Sabo's eyes meet yours, animalistic instincts glistening in his eyes like he will tear your flesh apart this second, some of his blonde hairstrands falling in his face.

"Go to hell!" You scream, swinging your leg, landing a kick on Sabo's leg.

The blonde hisses in pain, letting you go, though his knife manages to scrath your neck. It was time to make a run for it. You wanted to call for help, but the house was isolated, in the middle of nowhere, without any signal. Not even your phone could work here.

But still, you had to get out.

"COME BACK HERE!" Ace shouts, his breathing becomes faster as rage fills him. His boots clatter loudly on the wooden floor as he runs after you with big strides, a lighter in his hand. Luffy runs out the backdoor, likely already having a plan.

Meanwhile, you were already outside. You glance behind you and your heart skips a beat. The three psychos are still chasing you. You knew they were coming, but you hadn't expected them to be so fast.

Your feet kick up dust as you sprint through the tall grass. You weave in and out of the tall stalks, hoping that you can outrun them. You can hear their footsteps behind you, and you can almost feel their breath on your neck.

Tall grasses and wildflowers adding color to the otherwise grey and lifeless land. You can feel the sweat dampening your back as your heart races in your chest.

Suddenly, you come to a dead stop. You glance around wildly, searching for a place to hide, but there's nothing, just an endless field of grass. You take a deep breath and prepare to face your pursuers.

But then you remember the barn. It's on the other side, and if you can make it there, you might have a chance. Maybe it even had a shotgun hidden or just a rake. You take off running again, not bothering to look behind you. You can hear them getting closer and closer, but you don't stop.

Finally, the barn comes into view, and you dive inside. You close the door just in time, and you can hear the brothers pounding on the door, trying to get in. You're safe. At least, for now.

They will likely break trough it, it's just a matter of time. You can hear your own breath reverberating in your ears as you search the barn in hopes of a weapon.

"Dear, come out. I don't want to hurt you, it's just Ace and Luffy who want to have you for dinner!" Sabo says from the other side of the door, his voice laced with honey. Was he joking? Who knows. Probably not.

And then you saw it: a tractor, but with a mulcher installed front. Just perfect for you. There was a nail in one of the pillars holding the barn up, a key hanging from it.

Just then, the doors of the barn catch on fire. This was likely Ace's doing, who rushed after you with a lighter. It was now or never, you had to escape. So, you snatch the key, entering the tractor. You were right, this is what the key was for. You turn the key, igniting the engine of the machine.

Sabo's brows furrow in confusion as he hears the strange sound coming from inside the barn.

"Do you guys hear it too?" He quietly asks, his voice trembling.

"Yeah. She's probably just hungry and it's her stomach." Luffy gives a reply.

"Nah man you are just dumb as fuck."

"SHIT! GET AWAY!" Ace screams as something bursts trough the door.

The pieces of burning wood fall to the ground, the dry, tall grass catching on fire. The brothers make a run for it in hopes of escaping their brutal fate. They had two choices: burn to death in the tall grass, or get shredded to pieces by the tractor equipped with a mulcher in front, driven by none other than you.

Ace was a nice guy at first. Offering helpto a stranger is a kind action. Trying to kill them? Not so kind. Cause of death? You drove too close to him. Oopsie.

Luffy didn't do much harm. Maybe he was the sanest out the three of them. Guess you'll never know, poor guy burnt to death.

Sabo was attractive. And sweet too. Maybe if he wasn't such a psycho you would date him. Oh well, in another universe.

portgas d ace, monkey d luffy and sabo belong to eiichiro oda

© v1nsmokes 2023. Do not modify, translate or rewrite.

[bonny-kookoo]

did night vision jk break out of the research facility with bunny? or did he have to go back and get her?

There's no way he can just forget about you and move on. There's just no way- not after you basically helped him escape in the first place.

So he's back at the facility again- this time with a ton of law enforcement officers after the entire premise had been raided and cleared out, now searching for where you might be. He's hoping that in your frenzy as you'd closed the truck behind him, you had simply ran back to the research lab instead of staying where you were- because if you did, there's no way you would've survived in the middle of nowhere on the side of the road.

If you went back there could be a good chance that no one even noticed you were gone at all.

"Mister Jeon?" An officer taps his shoulder. "We've found a hybrid that matches your description." He informs him, and he immediately follows the man until he can hear you clearly yelling, upset- fighting against a care worker who's trying to pull you out from a plane white padded cell that's been opened. Your fingers are clinging to the edge of the door for dear life, panic very obvious-

Until you spot jungkook, and finally let go, just to run towards him and practically throw your body against his.

"I promised you I'll get you, didn't I?" He hums into your hair, holding you close while you're shaking against him, tail wiggling in all the excitement and probably fear finally leaving. "You're okay now. You'll be safe from now on." He promises you, and you don't really listen- so maybe he's mostly just telling himself that.

You slowly still against him, exhausting finally getting the best of you as he has to hold you upright, slowly helping you sit as you lay against him, barely staying awake. "You can sleep a little, bunny." He reassures you, running a hand over one of your ears, careful not to touch the still clearly not properly healed tear where you've ripped out the tag for him. "I'll stay with you." He says.

"When I wake up..." you start, and he nods, smiling towards you.

"I'll be there." He nods. "Promise."