#[ elijah: EYES HIM WARILY ]

[athenamikaelson]

Klaus Mikaelson X Soulmate!Reader x Elijah Mikaelson Written in the Stars-Ch. 27

Word Count- 5.6k

Warnings- SMUT- SHITTY SMUT MIND YOU I’VE NEVER WRITTEN IT BEFORE SUE ME, ****Bloodplay kind of??????****Mentions of burns, mentions of burning bridges, swearing, making out, nudity, sexual thingies, !!!!!!ELIJAH!!!!!! 

A/N- Ya I’m going to hell. This is so bad. I might delete. We all know Elijah gives off Daddy vibes so I want none of you hoes messaging me and telling me his actions are out of character in this chapter. Got it? GOT IT!? 

A/N- for those who don't want to read the smut I wrote where it begins and ends!

Elijah’s pissed. 

He’s like really pissed. 

I’m screwed.

-10 Minutes Earlier-

“You burnt down a bridge?”

“Why didn’t you invite me?”

“I was going to do that.”

I blow out a breath as I glance from Finn, Kol, and then Rebekah. 

“Um, not me,” I gesture to Sage, “We.”

Sage deadpans a look at me and I give her a shrug. 

“Why did you burn down a bridge, Y/n?” 

I turn back towards Finn who seems bewildered.

“We,” I gesture to Sage again, who rolls her eyes, “Burned down the bridge and the bridge’s sign because Sage found out that the wood that created both was made from White Oak…you know…the same White Oak that could kill the lot of y’all.”

“Pardon?”

I turn to Kol who is looking at me skeptically.

“The last of the white oak was burnt down over a millennium ago. We made sure of that.” 

“Brother, it’s true,” Bekah says, “I was going to burn down that bloody bridge myself tonight.”

“How is this possible? How do you know this Rebekah?! And why did you keep it to yourself!?” 

Klaus yells at his sister after being silent for the first time in his life. Elijah on the other hand, who is leaning against the staircase behind him, hasn’t made a peep.  

I eye Rebekah warily and side-eye Sage who side-eyes me.

“The Salvatores!”

I quickly yelp out trying to help Rebekah from having to admit that she had a threesome with both Sage and Demon.

“Yep. I was snooping as I usually do and overheard Damon asking the Mayor about some records about the town's bridge and such. And then Sage here did some digging, the same digging I’m sure Bekah did,” I nod to Bekah who is nodding along with me, “and then that’s when Sage found out from Damon and some records he has at the boarding house that the bridge is made from White Oak.”

I finish my dialogue off with an almost convincing smile and look at the vampires around me. Rebekah gives me a soft smile and nods, agreeing with me, Kol still looks skeptical, as does his Hybrid brother, Finn looks confused, per usual, and Elijah…hasn’t looked away from the wall in front of him in the past 5 minutes. 

Everyone is silent.

“This is the part where you guys say thank you,” I give them an awkward toothy smile.

“Thank you,” Kol yells sarcastically, “Thank you for what?! For one, you burnt down an entire bridge on the ramblings of a vampire that wants to kill our family, and if that’s not bad then you went and burned down an entire bridge…without me. Who do you think you are?”

“Watch it,” Klaus snarls at his younger brother. 

“Who am I?!”

I begin to march over to Kol with my finger pointed and Klaus walks in front of me, stopping me.

“Easy, Astin Min,” Klaus tries to calm me down but I shove past him.

“Who am I? One, I’m the one who just burnt down the thing that would kill you and your entire family. Two, I’m also the one who some weird ass fate thing decided that I’m supposed to carry the souls of your brothers?! AND to remind you all if those two,” I point towards Klaus and Elijah, “were to die, so do I! So if you’re having a fit about me burning down a bridge, literally shut the fuck up because it’s self preservation.”

I rub a hand over my face in exhaustion.

“Y/n, are you alright?”

I take my hand off my face and look at Finn, who is frowning at me, “I’m all good, Finney. Just past my bedtime and incredibly exhausted and not in the mood for that,” I point a finger at Kol, “Right now.”

“What the hell did I do?”

I roll my eyes at Kol’s comment. 

Klaus sniffing the air catches my attention, “Yes, I know. I’ve got to take a shower to get this gas smell off of me.”

Klaus takes a quick stride over to me and grabs my shoulders and his eyes frantically look over my figure, “You’re hurt. Where?”

I try to shrug his death grip but he just holds me in place, “I just got a little burnt from a stray flame. Nothing bad.”

Klaus’ eyes darken, “Where Y/n?”

I shrug off my loose sweatshirt and show him the not so small burn that runs across my upper forearm. 

“Ok, yikes,” I breathe through my nose as I process how it kind of actually stings like a bitch, “Not so little.”

Klaus releases a growl and he quickly goes to bite his wrist but I stop him, grabbing his hand. 

“Nope. Every little booboo I get doesn’t need your blood.”

Klaus narrows his dark eyes at me.

“Y/n, to be honest with you, the little “booboos” you always have aren’t as little as you think they are,” Rebekah comments with a judging look.

“You’re being delusional,” I scoff. 

“Were you not shot?”

I gasp at Finn’s words.

“Phineas, I told you that as a secret.”

Finn frowns and mumbles an apology. 

“Secret? You quite literally told me that 30 minutes ago,” Sage raises an eyebrow at me.

“Yes and?”

“We met 40 minutes ago.”

I suck on my teeth. Oh. 

“Wait, you got shot?”

I side-eye Kol, “No.”

I hear Kol mutter something but I don’t pay attention as I watch Elijah shake his head and walk back up the staircase, his left hand gripping the bannister as he goes. 

“All of you leave,” Klaus’ voice booms, and I nod and begin walking towards the door.

“Bloody hell, luv. Not you,” I feel him grab my hand and pull me back towards him. 

I hear Kol mutter something again before leaving the room, Sage and Finn both look at me and Sage sends me a small smile before looking back up to Finn with stars in her eyes. Finn stops for a moment before me and raises his hand. He pauses it midair, as if he’s not quite sure of his movements, but then he places his hand on my shoulder and squeezes.

“Thank you, Y/n. You’ve given me something I’ll never be able to thank you enough for…but I will try to repay you for this.”

I smile at Finn, “All in a day's work, Phineas. No need to thank me.”

Finn lifts his hand and spares his brother a fleeting glance before leaving the room with Sage in tow. 

“Bloody hell, everyone in this family is so dramatic,” I look over Klaus’ shoulder to where Rebekah is leaving the room. 

“Good night Rebekah,” I call and she waves her hand.

“I should probably go check on Elijah,” I say to Klaus, and begin to move past him, but as I graze his shoulder, a gasp escapes my lips as I’m whipped back around and Klaus’ lips are pressed onto mine. 

It takes me a moment before I process what’s happening, but after a second I’m drowning in Klaus’ lips. I reach my hand up and run my fingers through Klaus’ dark blonde hair and suck in a breath as I feel Klaus’ toungue fight its way into my mouth. I don’t put up a fight and open my mouth slightly more to grant him leeway. He uses this opportunity to sink his tongue into my mouth and massage my tongue with his. I feel Klaus’ hand lower from my upper back down towards my ass and it doesn’t take him but another second to use his big hand to squeeze it, making me gasp.

“Fuck,” Klaus takes his toungue from my mouth and uses his teeth to pull on my lower lip.

“You’re perfect.”

I feel the tips of my ears warm at his comment and I use all my strength to shove him slightly back.

“You’re distracting.”

Klaus’s blue eyes are no longer dark, instead they have a small shine in them that makes them look similar to a small pond in springtime. 

Klaus leans down to meet my eye level, “You seem to like how distracting I am.”

I fight back a smirk, “Shut up, Mutt.”

Klaus smiles at me. Not his usual smirk, or his annoying ass snarl, but an actual smile. 

“You should do that more,” I point to his face and his eyebrows furrow.

“Do what?”

“Smile.”

Klaus smirks, “I do smile a lot.”

I shake my head, “Nah, you smirk a lot. Like you’re doing right now. I mean an actual smile. You have a pretty one.”

My comment seems to have taken Klaus aback and he clears his throat, “I am not pretty.”

I smirk at him, “Oh yes you are. You’re so pretty.”

I don’t give him the chance to rebut my statement as I lean forward and place a quick kiss to his warm cheek. 

I quickly move past him and head towards the stairs where Elijah went. 

“Thank you,” Klaus’ voice comes from behind me. 

“For calling you pretty? Anytime,” I turn over my shoulder and wink at him and he rolls his eyes.

“No. Not for that. For burning the white oak and protecting myself and my family.”

I shrug, “All in a day's work.”

—

I release a shaky breath as I knock on Elijah’s door. I hum to myself as I wait for a response and it takes another moment before I hear a low, “Come in.”

I grab the nob and gently open the door. I’m not quite sure why I’m being so cautious. I’m not scared of Elijah by any means but I just have an uneasy feeling in my stomach. It’s been there since I saw him make his way up the stairs earlier. 

I open the door and step in. I glance around the dimly lit room, and a smell of leather, bourbon and something earthy fills my nose. 

“Elijah?”

“What, Y/n?”

I whip my head to see Elijah exiting from an adjoining room. His suit jacket is off and his white button up is rolled up at the elbows. I watch as he walks behind a dark wooden desk and sits down in a maroon leather chair. He grabs a glass bottle of some dark liquor and pours it into a glass. 

I continue to watch silently as he downs the glass in one go and then begins to pour himself another. 

“Are you alright?”

Elijah holds the glass in his hand as he leans back in his chair. For the first time tonight he finally meets my eye.

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

His normally calm gaze his gone and replaced by a look I’ve never seen on him before. It unsettles me. I’m not sure if in a good way or bad.

“You left quite quickly,’’ I say softly. 

Elijah is silent for a moment, giving me more time to glance around his room. Dark wooden bookshelves line the walls from corner to corner, filled with hundreds of books that appear to be of all ages. A grand stone fireplace is at the forefront of the room, and a small couch is planted in front of it, and a king-size bed with dark blue bedding is to my left. All of it is so him. So, Elijah.

“Hmm.”

Elijah’s hum almost sounds sarcastic, which makes me raise an eyebrow at him. 

“What?”

Elijah looks back towards his drink and mixes it, “How's your burn?”

I eye the red burnt skin on my arm and then slit my eyes at Elijah.

“It’s fine. Why do you ask?” 

My answer seems to have amused Elijah because he huffs out a laugh and then downs the rest of his drink. 

He puts the glass back down so hard I’m surprised it didn’t shatter.

“Why do I ask? Why did I ask?!” 

Elijah runs a hand over his face and then undoes the top two buttons of his shirt. He stands up from his chair and places his hands atop his desk and stares at me. His dark brown eyes are black in this light and I notice the frantic ticking in his jaw. 

Oh.

He’s pissed. 

“Elijah…did I do something to make you mad?”

I take a small step into the room and Elijah’s eyes mark every move I make. With Klaus there were many moments where I felt like the prey and he the predator, but never with Elijah. Not until now. Something about the way his left index finger keeps tapping his desk, his clenched jaw, and his dark eyes make me feel like he could pounce at any moment and I wouldn’t be able to do anything. 

“Did you?”

Again his reply comes out almost mocking and if I weren’t dealing with a ticking time bomb right now I’d probably yell at this bitch.

“Elijah, if I did something to make you upset I need to know what that thing is before I can apologize,” I try to reason with him as I take another cautious step forward.

Elijah tilts his head, “And if I said I didn’t want your apologies?”

Ok. Now I’m getting annoyed.

I shrug, “Then I can just leave you to be in your mood and we can talk tomorrow when you want to discuss things like adults.”

Elijah’s lips twitch into a dark smirk, “Like adults? Really? And who exactly here is an adult? You?”

I frown at Elijah’s tone, it’s something cruelly sarcastic and for the first time since meeting Elijah I realize I’ve never seen him this unnerving. And I’ve literally watched him murder people. 

“Why are you being like this?”

Elijah moves his hands off his desk, stands to his full height, and begins to move from behind his desk. I watch with bated breath as he comes around the desk to stand in front of it. He leans back against it, using his arms to hold himself up and places his right leg over his left. If someone were to walk in right now, it would almost appear that he was relaxed or casual, but as soon as they’d notice the gleam in his dark eyes, they knew they’d have been mistaken. 

“Come here,” He says simply. 

I furrow my eyebrows and shake my head, “What? No. You don’t get to just beckon me after being rude.”

“Y/n, come.”

His tone leaves no room for argument so I do what he says. God I’m a little bitch. 

I take a few steps forward and eye the man in front of me, Elijah watches my every move like a hawk.

I stamp my feet into the ground and pretend to bow, “Happy now.”

Elijah narrows his eyes, “Don’t be a brat.”

I choke on my words at the tone he uses to say “Brat.” God Damnit. Wait.

Am I turned on right now?

No. 

No?

Definitely not. 

I think…

“I am not a brat,” I counter.

Elijah raises an eyebrow and then raises his hand and uses his index finger to call me closer.

“No. If you want to be fucking face to face you come over here,” I finally stand my ground. 

Not thinking he would actually listen to me, you could imagine my surprise when he pushes himself off the desk and practically stalks towards me. My mind pretty much goes blank as he comes to stand so close, the tips of our shoes are touching. 

We’re both silent as we stare back at one another. Or more so I slightly glare at him while he accesses me.

“Do you know how irresponsible you were tonight?”

I frown, “Excuse me? What the fuck do you mean irresponsible?”

“I think it would be in your best interest right now if you watched that mouth of yours. I’m already fighting back every thought in my mind to not punish you for the actions you’ve made tonight. Those nasty words coming out of your mouth are not easing any of those thoughts.”

Punish me? Who the fuck is this guy and where is my sweet blushing Elijah?!

“Elijah dude, I think you just need to chill out, alright?”

Elijah’s upper lip twitches and I realize I’ve said the wrong thing.

“Number one, Gemæcca, I am not your dude. So stop referring to me as such, and number two, I will not “chill out” especially after how childish you acted tonight.”

Alright fuck this guy. 

Oh, I’m sure you want to freak. 

Shut up!

“Is this about the fire? Is this why you’re being such a dick right now?”

My language seems to piss Elijah off even more, “I’m being a “dick” right now because my mate seems to have no sense of self preservation or thought.”

I clench my hand over and over again to not start throwing punches with this bitch. 

“What did you just say to me,” I bite out.

“I said I was done with dealing with you, just throwing yourself into stupid and idiotic situations when your life is too fragile. Niklaus may get proud and turned on enough to swallow your tongue in our foyer at the thought of you putting yourself into danger like you did tonight,” Elijah leans down so our faces are a mere few inches apart, “But I assure you, I do not.”

Oh so he heard that. Oops. 

“Well, maybe I let Klaus stick his tongue down my throat because unlike you he doesn’t treat me like a child, Elijah. Ever think of that?”

Elijah narrows his eyes at me, “I do not think of you as a child. But, when you make childish decisions that put you into harm's way-”

“I can make my own decisions, Elijah!”

“Just because you can doesn’t mean you always fucking should!”

Elijah’s booming voice shocks me and makes me step back. 

He must’ve realized he went too far because his face drops slightly, and he rubs his hand over his face again. 

“Elskan I-”

“No, Elijah, don’t apologize. I should be the one apologizing to you, how sorry I am that you had to end up with such a childish annoyance as a mate. Sad and poor Elijah,” I fake a frown and then go back to glaring at the man. 

Elijah’s face darkens and he closes the gap between us and before I can react his hand is grabbing my lower face, “Your existence has never and will never be an annoyance to me. Do you understand that, Y/n? Never. Do you not realize the decisions you make don’t just affect you but everyone around you? If something were to happen to you, if you were to,” He releases a harsh breath, “If you were to die, do you not understand the pain and ruin you would be leaving behind? What of Theo? What of your friends? What of Klaus or I?”

Elijah uses both of his hands to push my face closer to his, “Y/n, I need you to understand this, if you were to perish…I would not survive it,” Elijah clenches his jaw and shakes his head as if just the thought of me dying is too much for him to bear, “Do you know I’ve already decided what I would do if something were to happen to you? I would make my brother dagger me in my heart and put me out of my bloody misery because leaving in my mind and being cursed by that bloody dagger until the end of time would still be an easier burden to bear than having to wake up every morning knowing that I would never lay eyes on the love of my life ever again.”

I don’t even realize I’m crying until Elijah’s thumb brushes away a stray tear.

“So yes I am mad, Y/n. I am enraged that you do not realize that every fleeting decision you make, every wound you collect,” He grabs my arm and makes me look at my burnt skin, “Isn’t the most horrifying thing to me. When I saw you walk in smelling like smoke, and burnt skin, I couldn’t bear it. I can’t bear it. Never in a thousand years have I felt the type of pain you bring me.”

I stare wide-eyed at Elijah and don’t speak. I don’t speak because I truly, for the first time in my entire life, have no idea what to say.

Elijah must realize this because after a moment of silence, he leans down and places a soft kiss right next to my lips, he leans back slightly and looks at me, and I lean back into him. Elijah leans down again but this time kisses my lips. He leans back after a moment with a clenched jaw. 

“You smell like my brother.”

I reach my hand up and run it along his face, “Then make me smell like you.”

*start of smut*

In a flash my body is moved so my back is pressed to Elijah’s front and his mouth is attached to my throat. I release a low moan as Elijah's teeth graze my neck and I angle my head so he can have better access. He takes this opportunity to run his tongue along my throat and this is when I feel his sharp canines graze my skin.

“You can,” I turn my head to look at him, which was honestly a mistake because the crazed look in his eyes is making me feel things I don’t even think I felt while reading Fifty Shades. 

Elijah shakes his head, “Did I not just talk to you about wounds?”

I shake my head, “You can heal me after, do it Elijah. I want you to.”

Dark veins appear under Elijah’s eyes and I reach out to run my finger over them, making Elijah release a low groan. Elijah pulls me in by my hair and smashes his lips to mine. A fast movement later and Elijah has his hands on my ass and my legs are wrapped around his neck as he carries me to his desk. 

His mouth is still on mine as he swipes a hand over his desk and everything on it goes flying off. I hear glass breaking, which turns my attention, and I go to say something, but Elijah sucking and kssing my neck makes my mind go blank.

“Holy fuck,” I feel myself clench my legs together but am blocked by Elijah’s frame.

I feel Elijah’s smirk before I hear it, “Language, Elskan, or I’ll stop.”

“Oh God, please don’t.”

Elijah places another kiss to my neck before looking back up to me. It takes me only a moment to realize he’s checking to see if I’m alright.

“I said you could, Lijah” I stretch my neck so he has more room.

Elijah slowly nods his head and begins to press more gentle kisses to my neck but as I feel his fangs graze my neck, I release a deep breath. Not another second goes by before I’m closing my eyes in pain, from the sharp searing in my neck. I release a shaky breath but oddly enough the pain starts to change into…something more pleasurable after a moment. Don’t get me wrong it still hurts like a bitch but with the mix of Elijah’s sucking, his toungue cleaning the wound, and his hands: which have now found themselves massaging my underwear line, all of it is so…fucking good.

Elijah licks up my neck once more before standing back and staring at me.  I feel a cold liquid run down my neck and I watch as a line of dark crimson blood flows from my neck down over my chest and through the valley of my breasts, staining my white pajama top. And holy fuck I’d be lying if I said this wasn’t the hottest thing I’ve ever fucking seen.

I look up to Elijah…I stand corrected. The blood was the second hottest thing, because the look on Elijah’s face right now, a look of pure depravity, is definitely the hottest thing that I have ever laid my eyes on. 

“Poetry was created to describe women that look like you.”

Elijah’s words come out rushed and breathless as he runs his eyes over my body, as if he can’t believe he’s seeing me like this. And honestly if you told me 20 minutes ago I’d be bleeding on Elijah’s desk all hot and bothered I’d laugh in your face. But right now all I want is this man between my legs and his lips on mine. 

Never thought I’d say those words either.  

Elijah takes a step towards me and but stops as he sniffs the air.

“What?”

Fuck right now would be a horrible time to forget deodorant. 

“You smell like gasoline,” Elijah says darkly.

“Oh…sorry.”

“Take your shirt off,” He takes a step forward and I notice the dark look he had on his face from before is back.

“Take my…”

“Your shirt. Take it off.”

Elijah’s words come out simple and harsh and without even thinking about it I grab the hem of my night shirt and pull it over my head and toss it behind me. 

“Good girl. Now the pants.” 

I raise my eyebrows in surprise.

“Excuse me? You do it,” I say bewildered.

Elijah quickly steps forward and within a second he fucking RIPS my sleep short into two leaving my sitting on his desk in my fucking bra and undies.

“Elijah, I meant you take off your pants!”

Elijah leans back and his eyes slowly make their way down my body and oddly enough I don’t feel an ounce of shame. Usually when it comes to my looks and body there's always that voice in the back of my head telling me that I’m too ugly or too much in some places but right now, right here with Elijah I don’t hear that voice. All I can focus on is the man before me who is looking at me like I’m the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen. 

“I much prefer you without pants than myself,” Elijah remarks and I use my foot to push him slightly.

We stare at each other for a moment before Elijah gets a gleam in his eye and he leans down to press a soft kiss to my cheek. He then kisses my lips, then my neck, then the valley between my breasts taking the moment to swipe a finger over my blood and painting it across my chest, he then presses that hand onto my chest and pushes me so I’m laying flat on my back, I stare at the ceiling as I continue to feel Elijah plant kisses over my stomach. I feel his hand grab my ankle and I lean up on my elbows to watch as he places a chaste kiss to my inner ankle. 

“What are you doing,” I give him a tilt of my head, and a nervous smile.

Elijah smirks and I watch confused until he drops to his knees in front of me. 

Oh. 

OH!

“Elijah, what are you doing?”

A squeak leaves my mouth as Elijah grabs my thighs and pulls me to the edge of the desk. 

Elijah places a kiss to my inner thigh, “I want to show you just a fraction of how you make me feel. Can I?”

Fuck we love a man that asks for consent.

“I’ve never…I mean no one's ever…,” I gesture towards down there hoping he gets the idea and Elijah’s eyes darken. 

“I’ve guessed.”

I don’t really take offence to that because I quite literally scream “VIRGIN.”

“You don’t have to,” I shake my head. 

Elijah gives me a bewildered look, “Trust me, Elskan. The image of me between your legs is something that has haunted my greatest dreams and nightmares since the moment Rose-Marie brought you to me. This will be more of a gift to me than it will be to you. I give you my word.”

All I do is nod, because HOLY HELL.

“Words Elskan. I need words,” Elijah chastises.

“Yes. Um, yes, please.”

As soon as the words leave my mouth, Elijah’s mouth presses itself to my clothed core. 

“Holy shit!”

I throw my head back onto the desk as I feel Elijah swipe his tongue over my core through my now very soaked underwear. I let out a sound I didn’t even know I could release as I feel Elijah’s tongue take one more swipe, starting from my clit to my hole. 

I loud snap and a wave of cold air against my cunt makes me realize Elijah just ripped another piece of my clothing. I go to chastise him, but go fucking blank in the mind as I feel Elijah finger run itself through my folds. 

“Oh fuck, Elijah,” I breathe out through shallowed breath.

“You’re doing so good, Elskan. Smell so fucking sweet. I bet you taste even sweeter.”

Elijah’s words only make me close my eyes and pray that any of my dead ancestors are not watching this sinful act.

Like he’s been starved his entire fucking life Elijah dives his head into my core and swipes his tongue everywhere. 

My eyes roll to the back of my head.

“I was right,” I hear Elijah say to himself, “Just like nectar.”

Elijah doesn’t give me a second to adjust because the next thing I feel is his thick finger enter my throbbing hole. 

“So tight, so perfect,” Elijah says as he massages my inside with his finger and- 

“OH FUCK!”

Elijah’s finger curls inside me and if every Smutty book I’ve read is true then I’m pretty sure he just hit that spot. 

Elijah fucking chuckles! And then dares to enter another finger. I let out a breath of pain at the sudden tightness but release a breath of pleasure as Elijah leans down and begins sucking on my clit. 

A tight feeling builds in my lower gut and I feel like I can’t breathe.

“Elijah…I-”

“Let go for me Elskan, I want to see you cum on my fingers.”

Elijah’s nasty mouth, literally, is all I needed to hear before an unbearable wave of pleasure flows through me and I feel my whole body tighten.

“Elijah!”

I throw my head back onto the desk in exhaustion as my lungs fight for breath.

I feel Elijah presses a soft kiss to my center, making me squirm from sensitivity. 

“You did so well, My love.”

*End of smut*

I absentmindedly nod as I feel Elijah pick me up bridal style. I open my eyes as Elijah places me carefully on my two shaking feet. He presses a soft kiss to the side of my face before walking over to a white claw foot tub. Oh. We’re in his bathroom. 

I watch half naked and kind of self-conscious now as Elijah turns the tub on, and adds soap, making the water bubble up. 

“Come,” He reaches out his hand for me to take and I fight the urge to crack a joke at his words. He gives me a look which I’m guessing means he already knew I was going to tell a joke. I take his hand and slowly dip down into the warm water.

A low hiss escapes my mouth as my core touches the water and I feel a sharp pain. 

“You might be sore for a little while,” Elijah comments as he comes to sit beside me. He reaches his hand to the latch of my bra and I nod giving him the okay to take it off. As he slides the bra straps down my arms, he places feather like kisses to my shoulder. 

“Was I too rough,” His words come out hushes as if he’s afraid of my answer. 

I shake my head, “No,” I lean down into the water so the bubbles come up to my upper chest, “You were good.”

Elijah chuckles, “Just good?”

I shrug playfully, “I’d give you a good 7.5.”

Elijah lets out a loud laugh, “Oh really? I must have misheard you because I thought I heard you scream out my name over half a dozen times. My mistake.”

I use a sud-covered hand to shove him. 

“How is it that I’m completely naked and you’re still dressed in head to toe Versace?”

Elijah shrugs, “Is that a problem?”

I lean forward and start undoing his buttons, “You could at least lose the button up.”

Elijah smirks but still agrees as he undoes his top leaving him in a wife beater.

Elijah takes a glass from beside him and fills it up with water before pouring it over my hair. I lay back and close my eyes as Elijah makes work with shampooing my hair, his fingers massaging circles into my scalp.

“Feels. So. Good.”

—

My eyes open briefly as I feel myself being carried again.

I look around confused for a moment before I hear Elijah’s voice.

“Go back to sleep, Elskan. Everything’s alright. I’m right here.”

Hmm. 

I like the sound of that. 

[r-memberme]

only a fool for you | k.m

⎯⎯ He scoffs, shaking his head with an exasperated huff. “Hardly a feat of mind-reading, love. I say that at least once a week.”

warnings: fluff

The first time you do it, Klaus barely reacts.

“You’re about to say that Elijah is a sanctimonious bore and that you’d rather rip your own heart out than listen to another one of his lectures,” you remark lazily, plucking a grape from the fruit bowl and popping it into your mouth. Your tone is casual, almost bored, as if the thought has simply drifted into your mind rather than been pulled straight from his own.

Klaus pauses mid-motion, one hand resting on the arm of his chair, his expression shifting ever so slightly. His lips part, as though to say something, but then he hesitates. It’s brief—almost imperceptible—but you catch it. A flicker of something in his eyes, a tiny, fleeting crack in his usual unwavering confidence. Then, just as quickly, it’s gone.

He scoffs, shaking his head with an exasperated huff. “Hardly a feat of mind-reading, love. I say that at least once a week.”

You only hum in response, letting a slow, knowing smile curl at the edges of your lips as you turn your attention back to the fruit in your hand. You roll the grape between your fingers, feeling the smooth skin before popping it between your teeth. You don’t push, don’t argue, don’t try to convince him.

Because you don’t need to.

You felt that tiny shift in his demeanor, the barely-there hesitation. He doesn’t believe you. Not yet. But he will.

༊*·˚

Over the next few hours, you push further, testing the limits of his patience. You answer his questions before he asks them, your voice calm, offhanded, as if the words had simply been plucked from the air. You finish his thoughts mid-sentence, stealing the words from his tongue before they ever get the chance to form. You respond to things he never speaks aloud, offering up the exact phrasing he would have used himself, as if you had reached inside his mind and sifted through his thoughts like pages in a book.

The first time it happens, he merely eyes you warily, a flicker of something unreadable passing over his features before he brushes it off. The second time, his frown deepens, his gaze narrowing ever so slightly as he studies you in quiet calculation. But by the third time—by the third time, he stops speaking altogether, lips pressing into a thin, tense line, his mind working double-time to solve a puzzle that shouldn’t exist.

You say nothing, offering no clues, no explanations. You only smile, letting the moment simmer, letting him stew in his own suspicions.

At dinner, you sit across from him, idly swirling your wine, watching the way the candlelight flickers across his face. He’s been silent for a while now, brooding, his expression drawn tight with barely concealed scrutiny. You wait until you can feel his gaze settle on you again, that piercing blue stare searching for something—some tell, some trick—before you sigh, feigning exasperation.

“Yes, my love,” you murmur, lifting your glass, “I would absolutely despise a honeymoon in Paris.”

Klaus stills. Entirely. His shoulders go stiff, his fingers tightening around the stem of his glass, his jaw locking in an instant.

“I—” His voice cuts off, his breath catching on the syllable. He blinks at you, eyes dark, sharp, disbelieving. “What?”

You take a slow sip of wine, watching him over the rim of your glass. “You were thinking about our hypothetical honeymoon destinations,” you explain lightly, as if the answer is obvious, “and decided I would loathe Paris.”

For a long moment, he says nothing. Then, almost imperceptibly, he leans forward, his forearms braced against the table, his entire posture shifting into something calculating.

His gaze, sharp as a blade, lingers on yours. “How did you know I was thinking that?” His voice is quieter now, lower, threaded with something dangerous.

You merely smile, placing your glass back on the table with an elegant clink. “I told you,” you say smoothly, tilting your head, eyes gleaming with something just as sharp as his own.

“I can read your mind.”

༊*·˚

He doesn’t believe you. Not yet.

But the doubt is there now, an insidious thing creeping into the spaces between his thoughts, weaving itself into the cracks of his certainty. You can see it in the way his gaze lingers on you a fraction too long, in the way his expression shifts when he thinks you aren’t paying attention. He’s thinking about it, turning it over in his mind, dissecting every moment of the last few hours, trying to find the trick, the deception, the logical explanation.

And yet—he can’t.

The next time he catches you off guard, you’re curled up in the library, skimming the delicate, timeworn pages of an old book, when the door swings open with a sharp thud. Klaus strides in with purpose, his gaze alight with triumph, something razor-sharp and wicked curling at the edges of his smirk.

“If you can truly read my mind,” he announces, folding his arms over his chest, his stance one of self-assured challenge, “then tell me what I’m thinking right now.”

You lift your eyes from the book, arching a brow at him, entirely unbothered.

“Oh, that’s easy,” you say, turning a page with lazy precision. “You’re trying to throw me off with something ridiculous.” You let the words settle for a beat before tilting your head in mock consideration. “Perhaps something utterly nonsensical, like… ‘Would an elephant look dashing in a three-piece suit?’”

The silence that follows is deafening.

Klaus stares at you, his blue eyes widening, just for a fraction of a second, before narrowing into something far more suspicious. His jaw ticks, his fingers flex where they rest against his arms, his smirk flickering like a flame in the wind.

“That’s—” He cuts himself off, lips pressing together in a hard line. “You cheated.”

You only smirk, utterly composed, lifting the book slightly in emphasis. “Did I?”

He watches you for a long moment, his scrutiny burning, but he isn’t one to concede so easily. No, Klaus Mikaelson is nothing if not relentless.

So he tries again, this time with something sharper, something specific, something you couldn’t possibly guess. You answer without hesitation, the words slipping past your lips like they had always been yours to speak.

His expression darkens.

Again, he tests you, his thoughts shifting, reshaping, dancing through fragmented memories, searching for something you won’t see coming. But you do. Every single time.

His scowl deepens, his frustration a slow-growing storm gathering behind his eyes. “This is madness.”

“Is it?” You tilt your head, the picture of effortless amusement. “Or is it simply inconvenient for you to know that I now have unfettered access to your thoughts?”

Klaus exhales sharply through his nose, his gaze flicking away, jaw tight, as if physically restraining himself from tearing apart whatever trickery he believes is at play. He lingers like that for a moment, caught between disbelief and intrigue, something thoughtful stirring beneath the surface.

And then—just when you think he might let it go—he smirks.

It’s a slow, dangerous thing, curling at the edges of his lips, something gleaming darkly in his eyes.

“Well then,” he murmurs, stepping closer, his voice dropping into something smooth, velvety, deliberate. “Let’s put this to the test, shall we?”

༊*·˚

For the next two days, Klaus subjects you to an unrelenting barrage of trials, each more absurd than the last.

He starts simple, rattling off random numbers and demanding you guess them. You answer without hesitation, much to his growing irritation. Next, he moves on to trivia, digging through the depths of his own memories, conjuring details you shouldn’t know. He asks you to name his childhood pets (trivial, truly). He quizzes you on the exact number of times Kol has irritated him to the point of attempted murder (an estimate will do). He even tries to catch you off guard by suddenly blurting, “What am I thinking right now?” at the most inopportune moments—once while you’re nearly asleep, another while your mouth is full of wine.

You get it right every time.

His suspicion deepens. His tests grow more elaborate.

At one point, he ropes Elijah into the ordeal, dragging his older brother into the room and snapping, “What am I thinking, then?” with the expectation that this will be the thing to finally stump you.

You don’t even glance at Klaus. Instead, you look at Elijah, who has barely lifted his head from his book, and reply, “That I should tell you, because Elijah is far too obvious for this to be a challenge.”

Elijah exhales sharply through his nose, the closest thing to a laugh he’ll allow. “She has a point.”

Klaus shoots him a venomous glare before returning to you with renewed determination.

And so, the trials continue.

He writes words on scraps of paper, clutching them close to his chest like a deranged magician preparing for the grand reveal. He narrows his eyes and focuses, willing his thoughts to be unreadable, only for you to recite them back to him with eerie precision. He even attempts to picture something truly mortifying—Kol in a tutu, Elijah with a mustache, himself in an era so atrociously styled that he grimaces at his own imagination. But you only laugh, completely unaffected, relaying every detail with delightful accuracy.

By the end of it, Klaus is both thoroughly vexed and genuinely alarmed.

By the third day, he’s staring at you as if you’ve grown a second head, pacing the length of the room like a man on the verge of spiraling.

“This isn’t possible,” he mutters, running a hand through his curls, voice half-wondering, half-infuriated. “Even for you.”

You watch him with barely contained glee, draped lazily across the couch, fingers idly tapping against your thigh.

“Maybe I’ve ascended,” you suggest lightly. “Reached a new level of enlightenment. You always said I was remarkable.”

He stops pacing to fix you with a sharp glare. “You’re remarkable,” he agrees, voice edged with grudging admiration, “but you’re not a bloody psychic.”

You sigh, tilting your head, a mockery of contemplation. “Well, technically, I don’t read minds.” You pause for effect, then smile sweetly. “I read your mind.”

Klaus groans, dragging a hand down his face in visible exasperation. “You’re insufferable.”

You only grin, stretching luxuriously before folding your arms behind your head. “And yet, you love me.”

“Unfortunately.”

༊*·˚

You keep it going for nearly a week.

A full week of carefully chosen words, eerily precise predictions, and watching Klaus spiral deeper into the rabbit hole of disbelief. By the end of it, he is fraying at the edges—his scowl more permanent, his glares laced with something dangerously close to paranoia.

And then, at last, he snaps.

“I demand you tell me how you’re doing this,” he growls, backing you into a corner with swift, deliberate steps, hands braced against the wall on either side of your head.

You press back against the cold surface, heart kicking up its pace—but not from fear. No, from something else entirely.

His breath is warm, his body close, his blue eyes burning with frustration and something darker beneath.

“Now.”

You bite your lip, feigning consideration, dragging it out just to see the way his jaw tightens, his fingers twitch.

Then, with a slow, wicked smile, you lift onto your toes, press the lightest whisper of a kiss to his cheek, and murmur—

“April Fools’.”

For a moment, nothing.

Then—

The sound Klaus makes is nothing short of an indignant squawk.

He jerks back, staring at you, aghast, mouth parting slightly as if the betrayal is too great to put into words. His chest rises and falls, shoulders stiff, and then—realization dawns in full, devastating force.

He looks betrayed. Utterly, profoundly betrayed.

“You little—”

But he doesn’t finish. He just lunges.

You shriek, laughing as you dart away, weaving through the room with the desperate knowledge that escape is impossible, but that won’t stop you from trying. Klaus is faster, stronger, hungry for vengeance.

“Oh, love,” he calls smoothly, but there’s a deadly gleam in his eyes, a promise wrapped in velvet. “You know I can hold a grudge.”

Your heart pounds as you skid around a table, using it as a barrier between you. “Klaus, wait—”

“Days,” he reminds you, circling like a predator, his lips curling. “Days of torment.”

You dart left—he’s already there. You whirl right—his smirk only widens.

“You wouldn’t hurt me,” you try, breathless, your grin betraying you.

His head tilts. His fingers flex.

“No,” he agrees silkily. “But I will make you suffer.”

You don’t even get the chance to scream before he pounces.

And, oh, you pay.

happy april 1st!🤪

taglist: @ohapple@myworldrightnow@deactiveblogx@witch-of-letters @xtwistedchaosx@liataylorsversion @pardonmydelayyy

ps; there will be a part 2 to this story that will explain how she can "read his mind" <3

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Tenebrific

Warnings: non/dubcon, blood, and other dark elements. My username actually says you never asked for any of this.

My warnings are not exhaustive but be aware this is a dark fic and may include potentially triggering topics. Please use your common sense when consuming content. I am not responsible for your decisions.

Part of Roo’s Pajama Party (October 7-8)

Prompt: Tenebrific - causing gloom or darkness (List of prompts here) + this look

Note: Please leave some feedback and reblog <3 As always, I love to chat with you all. I hope you enjoy this one and have a lovely weekend.

**for this drabble, I have named Syverson Elijah as he does not seem to have a canon first name

The message was sent almost half an hour ago. You check the time again. Actually, it’s been longer than that. You swear, men have no concept of time. 

You sigh and put your phone on the side table. Your glass is empty. You really didn’t want to indulge in a second before Andy got there but alas, he is pushing your tolerance, in more ways than one. After the day you’ve had, you desperately need to unwind. 

You get up and the sheer layers of fabric tickle along your lower stomach. Ugh, you should just get out these ridiculous pajamas. Simple is better. He probably wouldn’t even notice the effort. It hardly matters. It’s just sex. 

You take your glass and clink it down on the kitchen counter. You pour some more merlot and swirl it as you consider the dark depths. You taste it and the bitterness stains your tongue. You should just reply and tell him not to bother. You’re tired of more than waiting. 

You spin and a knock sounds at the door. Too late. He’s there. You roll your eyes and set the glass on the granite once more. You sweep through into the entry way and steel yourself. You try to figure how you should proceed. You could get some steam off. It would do him well to be used and tossed back out into the night. 

You open the door, ready to reproach Andy for his delay but stop short. Your hand pauses midway into an accusatory point and you lower it slowly. You purse your lips as you swallow back your surprise. 

“Elijah,” you greet the bearded man, overly aware of your current exposed state. His eyes betray his notice of your limited attire. You can’t recall if you can see through and you’re too embarrassed to look down. 

You stare at your unexpected visitor. The implications of his unannounced appearance do not elude you. Not only do you wonder why he is there but how he knows where you live. 

“Doc,” his voice is grizzly as he rubs his buzzcut, “hey.” 

“Hello,” you respond tritely, “you are aware that it is after midnight, Elijah?” 

“Syverson,” he closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. “Doc, please...” 

You watch him warily as your unease rises. He’s in one of his moods. He’s walking the tightrope and one slip will send him plummeting. Of all your patience, he has shown the most progress yet the most concern. 

“We have an agreement. We use our names. Our real names, yes? You are not Captain Syverson here.” 

He sucks in a breath through his nose. His hand twitches at his side. The tick in his cheek and the restless sway in his stance unsettle you. He’s about to bubble over. You can’t let him go, as much as you want to tell him too. He’s in a dangerous state. 

 “Well, come in. I’ll make you some tea and we can talk,” you step back and open the door wider. 

“Thanks,” he accepts the invite and you wait for him to enter then shut the door. 

“Please, have a seat,” you gesture him into the front room. 

He all too easily accepts. He goes into your living room, boots still on, and drops onto the couch. You give him a clinging look then detach and proceed into the kitchen. You turn on the kettle and circle around through the other doorway.  

You come up at the other end of the sofa and slide your phone off the end table. You quickly send a message and hope it reaches your intended company. 

“So,” you put the phone down again and move to stand behind the arm chair, hoping to block out the whimsical pajamas. “Elijah, what brings you here tonight?” 

“Doc,” he fidgets and turns his head back and forth. “I...” he tilts his chin up and inhales again. “I’m struggling.” 

“And what brought this on? Was there some event?” You prompt gently. 

“Mmm, no... maybe...” he drones and drops his head into his hands. His elbows rest on his thighs as he shudders. “I did... something. I...” 

You notice then the split on his knuckle. Smaller cuts higher up his fingers, his skin is tinged around his nails. Is that blood? 

You glance over at your phone. 

“What did you do, Elijah?” You ask. “Did you hurt yourself?” 

He whimpers and shakes his head. He rocks and pulls a large hand away from his skull, only to box himself in the ear. He whines. 

“I didn’t want to. It happened fast.” He gulps in air and sits up slowly. “There was a noise. Like thunder. Then it all--” He claps and winces at the loud impact of his palms. 

“Right, well, let’s have the tea and we’ll talk about it,” you say calmly as you sidle out from behind the chair.  

You subtly reach for your phone as you brush against the table. He’s faster than you think. He puts his hand over yours and stops you. Before you can recoil, he latches on. You repress your alarm and look him in the face. His eyes are foggy. They don’t stay on your face. They slowly scale down your body. 

“Doc, you look nice,” he says. 

“Thank you, Elijah,” you bring your other hand to pat his. “That’s a very nice compliment. Let me go get the tea and a robe.” 

He doesn’t let go. He stands, keeping hold of you, stretching your arm over the table. He leans his head to one side as his gaze roves up and down your body. 

“You dressed up for me?” He rasps. 

“Now, Elijah, I wasn’t expecting you,” you say. “Please, let go so I can get dressed.” 

He breathes heavily. He grabs the table with his other hand and shoves it aside. Your phone and the lamp crash onto the floor, the latter bouncing over your foot. You gasp as he yanks you closer. 

“Elijah,” you say more firmly. “You’re scaring me. Remember our exercises. Let’s count and breathe--” 

“For me,” he pulls you against him, hooking his arm around you. 

“No,” you push on his chest, barely tamping down your panic. “Ten, breathe in-” 

“Stop,” he warns as he hugs you closer. He toys with your hand and angles it to kiss your knuckles. Your eyes snag again on his tortured skin. “I just wanna...” 

He doesn’t finish his sentence. His touch slides down your back and he gropes your ass. You squeal in surprise and slap his chest, “Captain Syverson,” you slip as you snarl through your teeth, “you quit this right now. Get off--” 

“Captain,” he repeats and nods. “Yes, you can call me captain.” 

He digs his nails through the flimsy shorts and pulls your arm over his shoulder. You try to pull away but he’s too strong. Your fear breaks through in a throttled whimper. 

“Elijah--” 

“Captain,” he corrects you and once more slings his arm around you. 

“You are being--” 

He encircles you entirely with his arm and bends his knees. He lifts you off your feet and swings you around. You kick out in shock and wrestle with him as he carries you around the room. He falls onto you, crushing you into the couch cushions. 

You wheeze as his weight knocks the wind out of you. He untangles his arm from under your and grabs your face. He turns your head straight as you grit your teeth. You slap his thick arm. You can smell his sweat and the iron of blood. 

“Elijah,” you whittle out, “please... let’s just talk...” 

The kettle quakes noisily from the kitchen as he keeps you pinned. You squirm but can barely move. He smothers you with his body. You feel how the cushions thin under both of you. 

He pushes his knees down and forces them between your legs. You whine and clasp onto his camo shirt. You puff out in short spurts, your ribs aching beneath him. 

“I’ll be nice, doc. I just wanna be nice,” he purrs and rubs his nose against yours. “Like you want me to. You told me... told me I can be good. I wanna be good for you.” 

“Eli--” you chuff out and your eyes sting. You’re not used to feel like this. To being powerless. 

The kettle clicks off.

He plants his elbow and keeps your head locked in his hand. With his other, he feels along your side and plays with the blousing of the shorts. He pinches the sheer fabric and growls. 

He slides his hand under you and reaches up to the elastic. He tugs the shorts down past your ass. You whine again as he digs his feet into the couch and lifts himself. He strips the shorts down your legs as you kick desperately. 

He feels along your pelvis and pets the trimmed hair along your vee. You twitch in horror as he hums and kneads the flesh of your thigh. You fight as hard as you can but he’s too strong. He drops onto you again as the shorts hang from your one ankle. 

“Elijah,” you beg. 

“Call me captain, doc,” he snarls. 

“You can’t-- my boyfriend is on his way--” 

“Shh, shh, shhhhhhh,” he hushes you. 

He scratches your naked thigh as he picks at his fly. You stare past him to the ceiling as your stomach knots and your breaths trap in your chest. You push on his thick arms. 

“N-n-no,” you croak out. 

He wiggles as he leans into you. His length presses against your triangle of curly hair and he shifts back. He prods at you as he blindly guides his tip down. You squeak and jab your nails into his rounded shoulders. He rubs his fingers along your cunt as he nudges his pulsing dick back to your entrance. 

You bend your legs, heels jabbing down into the couch, and try to push him off. It does nothing. He presses against your cunt and you open around him. You feel as if you’re tearing as he dips into you. You snarl into a shriek as he sheathes himself in your walls. 

You whimper and groan as he thrusts to his limit. You drag your nails down his cheek and clutch onto his beard, tugging as you roar. 

“Arggh! Get off!” You go to claw him again and he swats away your hand. 

He clasps onto your wrist, then the other as you thrash with that. He pins both above you and lifts himself. He rocks his hips as your legs slips over the edge of the couch. You scream as he keeps his motion steady, each pump straining you past your limit. Each intrusion is fiery and dry. As if he’s scraping your inside. 

His eyes fixate on the joining of your bodies as he puffs through his nose like a bull. His eyes are dark as he watches himself impale you over and over. Your tits bulge against the cups, falling out as he hammers you into the cushions, bouncing your body like it’s nothing. 

He ruts down into you with all his weight and force. You fear him breaking your bones as each tilt of his hips is harder than the last. Your lashes web with tears and you bite down into your lip. 

“Stop, please,” you babble, “my boyfriend--” 

He snaps his hips up and you cry out again. You push your head back and choke through the pain. He slams down, over and over and over. 

He lowers himself over you, resting his arms around yours as he squeezes your wrists until the ache. He presses a kiss to your cheek as you stare at the wall. You shake and spasm, giving into the futility. 

“He’s not coming...” he sneers as his motion slows to long but just as torturous strokes, “I... I made sure.” 

[morningstargirl666]

WIP WEDNESDAY

A snippet from the new chapter 23 of tbbw I'm writing. Just like Elijah and Kol, Rebekah's getting her own character-focused chapter...

Hvítreikland, South of Vínland.  988 A.D.

Rebekah stared up at her father’s rack of weapons, gaze fixed on the beautifully forged blade hanging on the topmost slot. It shined brilliantly in the sunlight, beams flooding in through the open shutters of the longhouse and glinting dangerously under their glare. Rebekah clutched the worn, woollen sheep-doll her mother had weaved for her when she was but a babe tighter, holding it close to her chest with one arm as her brow scrunched up adorably in thought.

“What do you think Lami?” she said in a hushed whisper to the little sheep. Her eyes narrowed on the blade. “I think we can reach it.”

She couldn’t. She barely reached up to Lijah’s knees and Finny practically towered over her - he was taller than the trees! But the little sheep was but a bundle of haphazardly sewn cloth and wool, so could not tell her this.

With a nod of determination, Rebekah placed Lami on the floor, tilting his head to the open doors. “You keep look-out, in case papa comes back.”

The little sheep slumped forward, falling flat on its face.

Rebekah didn’t notice, turning back to the weapons rack with a huff, eying it like it was some great enemy. Then she raced off to find her father’s stool, which he sat on while he polished his sword in the late evenings. It was too big for her to pick up but she grabbed the wooden legs with her little hands and heaved it towards her, beginning the long process of dragging it over to the weapons stand. All the while, Lami continued his faithful watch of the floor.

It took a while but Rebekah was a stubborn girl, just like her brothers, and she would not be bested by a hunk of stupid wood. Eventually — with great effort and several huffs and puffs on her part — she managed to get the stool beside the weapons rack. Then, hands on hips as she admired her work, she climbed up onto the stool and stood on her tippy toes, reaching as high as she could. Her fingers were still too far away, a fair gap between them and the blade. She huffed, falling back onto her heels.

She really wanted the blade. Mother said she couldn’t play with swords yet, not like Nik, Lijah and Finny could. It was too dangerous and she was too small. But she wasn’t small! She was nearly as tall as Kol! And this blade wasn’t a sword, just a knife - her father’s favourite. It was exactly the right size for her! Maybe if she practised with it alone, grew as skilled as her brothers, mother would finally allow it…

Glaring at the blade for daring to be higher than her, Rebekah tried again, standing on her tiptoes and reaching as high as she could. Her attempt failing, she leaned forward, raising one foot to climb onto the rack, her fingers just grazing the edge of the blade—

Beneath her, the rack wobbled, offset by her weight. She ignored it, sticking her tongue out as she reached further, climbing higher-

“Rebekah, STOP!”

Rebekah whipped her head towards the door, frowning when she saw Niklaus running towards her, expression panicked. The distraction cost her, balance wavering as the entire rack shuddered, over encumbered by her weight. Eyes wide, she screamed as it began to tip forwards, in real danger of being crushed and impaled by a dozen gleaming weapons-

Suddenly, Niklaus was there, his arms wrapping around her middle, yanking her out of the way and curling protectively around her. Behind them, the rack crashed to the floor with a loud clatter, upheaving dust in its wake and smashing the stool Rebekah had been standing on on the way down.

When the dust settled, Rebekah warily pulled away from her brother, just as he uncurled from around her to eye the mound of metal, still in a state of shock from what he’d nearly witnessed. 

“LAMI!” she cried out when she spotted her beloved sheep-doll under all the destruction, rushing forward to free him from under the heavy weapons. As soon as she yanked him out, she clutched him desperately to her chest, swaying as she hugged him with all her might. Then she noticed the gleaming blade on the floor, glinting dangerously in the sunlight. She gasped in excitement, holding onto Lami with one hand as she leaned down to pick up the knife with the other.

“Wait, what are you doing?” Niklaus asked, snapping out of his shock. Her brother rushed forward, reaching to snatch it from her hand. “You can’t have that, Rebekah!”

She dodged out of her brother’s reach, glaring at him angrily.

“I can!” she declared, lifting her chin imperiously. “I want to learn how to play with swords, like you. But mother said no, so I’m going to show her I can do it.” Niklaus gaped, opening his mouth several times, trying to formulate an argument. “But that’s father’s favourite knife!”

Rebekah pouted. “I like it.”

“So you thought you’d just take it?” he accused, his tone suddenly turning furious. The look on his face made his sister finally cower. “Rebekah, you could have gotten hurt! And when father finds this mess-”

Niklaus glanced at the toppled rack of weapons and broken stool, abruptly cutting himself off. He swallowed. It wasn’t anger in his eyes now — it was pure, unfiltered fear.

Rebekah followed his gaze, looking at the mess she’d made. She suddenly felt incredibly small, reality crashing down on her. Father would be angry, she knew. He was scary when he was angry — he screamed and he roared and sometimes his touches hurt. She thought, if she just took the knife, father had so many other weapons he wouldn’t notice one was gone but that was before the entire rack tumbled to the floor, destroying whatever order her father kept them in. Rebekah felt tears well in her eyes, so very lost on what to do.

Nik would know.

Nik would fix it.

“What do we do?” she whispered, hugging Lami tighter.

Before her brother could answer, a distant voice from outside silenced them both, their father’s voice travelling to their ears as he laughed at something another man had said. Nik paled, all the colour completely draining from his face.

[braveclementine]

October 31: Monster Fucking (Niklaus and Elijah Mikelson, Damon Salvatore)❤️

Warnings: 18+ readers only, Monster fucking, probably some name kinks, probably some title kinks, I haven't edited.

Copyright: I do not own any TVD/TO/Legacies characters. I also do not condone any copying of this.

You were both nervous and horny as you eyed the three delicious looking men in front of you. Elijah was busying himself in a book, brow furrowed slightly at whatever he was reading. Niklaus was staring off at something, his pencil lightly dancing over the paper that he was working over. Damon was sipping a glass of bourbon while flipping through Pinterest on his phone, putting cute animals on his board.

"I want to do something different." You declared.

You know they all heard you, having superb hearing.

"What's that baby?" Damon asked.

How could you explain what you wanted? You four often had sex, yes, but you wanted it to be different this time. You saw how sexy they looked with their veins popping out when they killed someone or the way Niklaus' eyes turned yellow.

Well, maybe you should just blurt it out, yeah?

"I want you three to fuck me in your primal state."

Their reactions varied greatly. Damon snapped his head up to look at you over his shoulder. Niklaus' pencil skimmed off the paper and he cursed. Elijah simply shook his head and said, "No."

Disappointment furled in the pit of your stomach.

Nik leaned on his hand, glaring at the paper in front of him. You winced. You hadn't meant for his drawing to be ruined. He glanced over at you, eyes softening at your guilty expression. He sighed, "Sorry love, but no."

You wanted to complain, wanted to ask why, but you didn't want to be a brat.

"O-okay." You murmured. Damon hadn't said anything, eyes slightly narrowed.

After a moment of awkwardness, you quickly scurried off to the bedroom upstairs. You felt terrible, like they had rejected you. You swallowed hard, but quietly, trying not to make a noise. But for some stupid reason, a sob had built up in your throat.

You quickly turned on the music, putting it on a specific singer/band that they knew you liked so they wouldn't get suspicious. And then you let out that sob stuck in your throat into the pillow.

It was just one and you sat up, waiting to make sure that the others weren't going to come into the room.

You sighed, flopping back down on the bed, staring at the ceiling. What was wrong with the idea? Was it simply unappealing to them? Or maybe they were getting tired.

Tired of you.

Your heart thumped unpleasantly in your chest.

Was that possible?

Probably. They were vampires after all. Living eternal lives. They probably got bored easily.

That thought settled uncomfortably in your stomach.

"Y/N." Damon's voice broke you from your thoughts.

You snapped your head up to look at him. You realized there was one tear coming down your face and you quickly wiped it. "I'm not crying. I just had my eyes open for to long and they started to water."

Damon raised an eyebrow, coming in and shutting the door behind him softly. He set his glass of bourbon down on the table, kicking his shoes off as he came. You eyed him warily as he crawled up onto the bed.

Once he was inches from your face, he snarled lowly, his veins popping out, his fangs lowering, his eyes darkening. "Is this what you wanted?"

You swallowed hard, feeling the lust pool at your core. "Y-Yes."

"Do you know how dangerous this is?" Damon asked quietly, but he didn't change his appearance, "How easily one of us could let go and hurt you. Our senses are heightened in this form. Your blood smells so appealing." His nose glided across my jaw and down my neck. Your eyes stayed on his to the best of your ability, unable to look away. "I don't like when you put yourself in danger baby."

"I want it like that." You whispered.

He chuckled before moving his lips inches before yours. Tired of his teasing, you smashed your lips to his, feeling his sharp teeth pull at your bottom lip. He growled, biting it, sucking at your blood.

You moaned into the kiss, pulling him closer. His hands were iron at your hips, probably leaving bruises there tomorrow which would probably piss Nik and Elijah off. You weren't really supposed to fuck one of them without the other two. It was very rare and they usually asked the others ahead of time.

Damon pulled off your lip, leaving it swollen and numb. He ripped the clothes from your body, leaving you completely naked as scraps of fabric floated down like feathers on the bedroom floor. He discarded his own clothes in a similar manner.

The veins grew more prominent on his face. His eyes were so dark from his primal, monster-like state.

He pressed you down on the bed, disappearing and reappearing in an instant, your hands magically tied to the headboard from his speed. Tightening the rope slightly to make sure you couldn't escape, he moved lower down your body.

He didn't say anything, diving straight into your core, making you scream in pleasure. None of them had ever eaten you out like this. They were either teasing, or making you feel pleasure, but not like this.

His tongue thrusted so deep inside of you, you wouldn't have believed it wasn't his fingers. His nose bumped your clit in stimulation, his teeth scraping your walls.

"D-Damon." You gasped, feeling your toes start to curl on instinct, body shaking. Cold and hot flashes washing over your body from the pleasure he was giving you.

He said nothing, did nothing and you cried out his name again through your orgasm. It was the quickest orgasm ever, only having taken him thirty-seven seconds. That was it. Not even a full minute.

Your head was still in the clouds, gazing with bleary eyes at the satisfied vampire in front of you. He lowered his head back down, biting on the inside of your thigh, sucking your blood. Only doing this for a few seconds before leaving a similar bite on your other thigh.

Nik and 'Lijah would be ripping mad now.

Damon moved all the way up to your neck, biting into it softly. You let out a soft cry. It was a little painful, like a shot, but once he started sucking at your blood, it felt good almost.

That was when Niklaus threw open the door, eyes narrowed. Elijah was by his side, hands in his suit pockets.

"Damon." Niklaus snapped before Elijah had sped across the room, throwing Damon off of you. You yelped, his teeth scraping your neck as he attempted to pull out, blood dripping down the side of your neck, dropping onto the pillow you were laying against.

"I knew it." Elijah murmured, "Y/N, we can't make love to you in that state. We'll hurt you."

"N-No." You gasped. "He wasn't hurting me."

"I had it under control." Damon snarled, on his feet in seconds. He wiped blood- your blood- from his lips.

Elijah kept a protective stance over your body, ready to mitigate whatever fight Niklaus and Damon were about to have as they glared at each other.

"I asked for it." You said desperately. "I want it."

Elijah and Niklaus looked at you hesitantly.

"Please?" You asked, giving Elijah the puppy eyes. He almost always crumbled to those eyes so you rarely used them, not wanting to have an unfair advantage. But now, you were so desperate you were going to use everything you had.

Elijah groaned softly. Niklaus huffed. He wasn't as easy to convince as his brother, but he still had a soft spot for you.

Damon came back to your side, climbing back onto the bed. His veins popping out once again as he kissed you.

Elijah and Niklaus' eyes both flashed. Elijah loved you a lot. Sometimes to much where to the point that he could get jealous of even Niklaus and Damon being around you. He was afraid, at the moment, that should he let his primal side out, he wouldn't be able to get along with Niklaus or Damon and you'd get hurt in the process.

Niklaus was there in a flash, untying your hands. His eyes were glowing yellow as he climbed into the bed behind you. One hand around your throat, his fingers flexing, making sure he wasn't to tight. "This is what you wanted, right love?" He growled seductively in your ear, your eyes rolling back in your head.

"Yes sir." You murmured.

You felt him start to kiss down your neck, teeth scraping your sensitive spots. Damon had settled back down between your legs, lapping at your cunt again, your legs shaking as another, lightning-quick orgasm started to build up again.

You reached out to grasp Damon's hair and pull him closer, but Niklaus grabbed your wrists without lifting his mouth from your shoulders.

Elijah continued to stand there, torn between joining this mess or leaving. He was terrified of hurting you.

At that moment of indecision, you looked up, catching his eye. Your far gone expression pushed him over the edge. He was quick to get out of his suit, neatly folding every article over the chair before joining the three of you on the bed.

He hesitated before tentatively becoming the monster you wanted him to be.

Damon leaned back from your last orgasm, licking his lips of your sweet juices. He was pleased with the way you cried out his name.

Elijah slowly pressed his lips to yours, getting the feel of this. "Fuck 'Lijah, you're so sexy." You whimpered.

He lost his control, smashing his lips to yours fiercely. One hand snaking into your hair to pull you closer, the other firmly teasing your clit, sensitive after Damon's treatment. You moaned into his mouth.

Finally, the three of them pulled away from you slowly before Niklaus commanded, "Roll over."

You did so, laying on your stomach, propped up on your elbows, legs bent at the knee. You found yourself eye-to-eye with Klaus' delicious looking cock. Apparently becoming primal included a few extra inches to the already dripping appendage.

It was both thicker and longer, and a quick glance over your shoulder showed you that both Damon and Elijah had gotten the same treatment. Oh dear.

Where they were usually all around nine-eleven inches depending on the time of the day and if they were already aroused or not, they were now all pushing twelve-fourteen, maybe even bigger. There was no way they were going to fit, but you didn't voice that aloud.

Klaus' hands found either side of your face, making you look up at him. You could feel four hands roaming your lower body. Elijah's fingers were slightly longer whereas Damon's hands were calloused.

You pulled yourself up so that you were propped on your hands and knees, opening your mouth. Klaus smirked down at you. The combined effect of yellow eyes and red veins was absolutely astounding.

"We're going to absolutely destroy you love." Klaus said, thrusting his large cock into your mouth on the accented word. You moaned softly around his cock as you got to work, sucking, licking, bopping your head up and down, twirling your tongue over his slit, and wrapping your tongue around it. You could feel the veins against your tongue and that made you curious.

You moaned louder at the intrusion of three fingers going into your pussy, two straight into your ass.

Klaus thrusted into your mouth again, hitting the back of your throat. You gagged, tears starting to stream from your eyes at the brutal treatment. You didn't care, you were loving every moment of it.

"Fuck, you're so good love." Klaus groaned, head thrown back as you let him use you like a toy. You just continued to breathe deeply through your nose, your tired tongue still working.

You jerked your body a little as the fingers started pushing you to an orgasm. The two hands not inside of you held your waist to keep you from moving.

The fingers in your pussy increased, the thumb circling your clit harshly now. You felt soft kisses on your ass before one of them bit you there, making you squeal around Klaus cock.

You felt him twitch before he released with a, "Fuck love!"

You swallowed everything, before letting him pull out. Saliva connected between your lips and his cock, before breaking. Some of it landed on your chin, some of it on the bed. Your arms were exhausted and Klaus pulled you a little so that you were laying flat on your chest.

"P-Please." You begged now as the fingers in your tight core started to tease, instead of letting you cum.

"Beg." Elijah hissed.

"Please 'Lijah, please I wanna cum. Please 'Lijah, please, please I've been a good girl."

"No, you've been a fucking tease." He hissed. "Putting yourself in danger like this. One of us could snap and you'd be dead in a heartbeat. Why we're letting this happen, I don't know, but you've been far from good."

You let out a cry as he jerked his fingers from your warmth before slapping your clit.

You heard Damon chuckle darkly and thought he might pull out too, but instead, he pushed a third finger into your tight ass, drawing another cry of pain and pleasure from you.

Klaus was surprisingly being the less vocal one, letting Elijah completely degrade you for him.

Klaus pulled you away from the others, drawing a snarl of fury from both Damon and Elijah. He ignored them, pulling you onto his lap, sinking his teeth into your neck on the opposite side of where Damon had already bitten you.

You let out a soft gasp, eyes closed, feeling his teeth in your skin. You knew that with mates, blood sharing was a big deal. He wanted to leave his mark since Damon had already left his.

Elijah's growl was definitely primal and furious as Niklaus finally pulled from you. You were in Elijah's arms in a flat second, his bite right into your shoulder. You panted, feeling a little hazy now. Elijah pulled away, licking the wound firmly before he laid down flat on the bed, laying you over him, spearing you with his dick.

The guttural groan that left Elijah's lips, combined with the absolute sexy veins underneath his eyes completely fueled you. You lay against his chest, paralyzed almost as he thrusted himself into you. A shaky hand reached out, your thumb caressing his veins softly. They trembled under your touch and his pace increased even more.

It took you a moment to realize that you were taking everything he was giving you, balls clapping against your ass as he jolted up into you. You could now feel the bulge that seemed to come between you and Elijah as it appeared in your stomach on every upwards thrust. And all you felt was pleasure.

Until Niklaus decided to get on his knees behind you. You'd always had a tight ass and you had never liked really having to take it there, but with all three of them, you didn't have much choice and after a while, it was even good to have one of them in there.

"K-K-Klaus." You stuttered out and then yelped when you felt the sting against your ass. "I mean sir!"

Klaus was the only one that didn't like being called by his name in bed. Elijah and Damon on the other hand craved it.

Damon knelt in front of you now, his knees close to Elijah's head. His large dick waving in your face. You opened your mouth and he slid right in. Elijah pulled you closer to his body, his teeth nipping at your nipples and breasts.

Your legs were tangled with Klaus and Elijah's, your arms hanging limply on either side of Elijah's head. You had ceased to become nothing. They let you orgasm, and they cummed after you but didn't stop, didn't cease, continuing on and on without having to wait for refractory periods.

Eventually they changed positions, your throat sore, you ass spent, and your pussy leaking fluids all over Elijah's dick.

Klaus was quick to claim your pussy, sliding right in while Damon went behind you and Elijah let you suck him off, tasing yourself and him on his length.

You swirled your tongue around Elijah's length as his hands held your face. He bent over, pressing sweet kisses to the top of your head, veins wavering for a second before returning.

Damon was a biter, your back littered with small bites and hickies as he pounded furiously into your ass.

Niklaus meanwhile kept biting around the same area, sucking blood, marking you as his.

Tears had streamed down your face, your makeup a mess. A light coat of sweat covered your entire body as they tossed you around like a fucktoy.

"You're so good baby." Damon murmured, kissing your back. "Taking us so well."

"Yes." Elijah agreed, wiping tears away, leaving black tracks of mascara. He gave a particular rough thrust to make you gag. "Being such a good little whore."

Words like that should be illegal from Elijah's mouth. Seriously. A waterfall seemed to gush out of you at that comment, soaking Klaus.

Klaus chuckled as he spurted his ropes into you as well. "I think she liked that comment brother."

"Is that right?" Elijah asked, narrowing his eyes at you. Your soft face was still in his hands as he slid his cock deep down your throat, "You like this? You like being nothing more than a fucktoy for three vampires that are hundreds of years older than you?"

Another gush of slick down Klaus' dick. Klaus chuckled again, fingers reached up to manhandle your breasts.

You moaned around Elijah's dick at his words as well. Damon started to slow down in your ass as he shot his own hot cum into you. He stilled inside, catching his breathing, reaching around for something as he waited to cool down.

Elijah's dick twitched in your mouth, the grip on your face a little tighter, "Fucking cock slut."

You literally squirted on Niklaus' chest with another moan and Elijah finally released into your mouth. You swallowed and dropped your head.

Damon pulled out, only to shove a plug into your ass. Since Elijah was done with your mouth, he pulled you up a little to murmur in your ear, "That's just to keep my hot cum inside of you a little longer baby girl. Gonna keep in there like a good little slut until you get to the showers."

You moaned again and you couldn't but release all over Niklaus again. It was like they were making you cum with their words.

Niklaus wrapped his arms around your waist, pounding into you from below. His eyes glowed an even brighter yellow as he growled, "I think she does like being a little slut for us, hmm? She loves being absolutely degraded, loves being a little cum slut."

With those words, you finished together before you finally collapsed on his chest.

Taking a moment to settle down, their veins slowly went down, their breathing evened. Elijah pulled you slowly off of Niklaus, holding you in his arms.

"Hey kitten, how are you doing?" He asked softly, pushing your hair back from your face.

You were completely blissed out. Your body wasn't yours anymore, limbs weak. All of their release and your own was still leaking out of your pussy, onto the sheets. Your body was littered with red, purple, black, and blue marks. Teeth imprints were starting to show and they all winced a little at their ruthlessness.

"Baby, you okay?" Damon asked with a worried look on his face. After all, he'd started it.

You just nodded and mumbled, "Tired."

"I'll get the shower running." Niklaus murmured.

"Maybe the bath." Elijah and Damon called after him.

Elijah cupped your face, "C'mon kitten, I need to know that you're alright."

"I'm in heaven." You murmured, "That was amazing, can we do that again?"

Damon chuckled, "I think you need to get cleaned up and get some sleep instead."

"I can do a few more rounds." You mumbled, closing your eyes and falling asleep promptly on Elijah's shoulder.

Damon and Elijah grinned fondly at you.

Klaus poked his head out the door. "Bath is ready."

Elijah and Damon stood as Elijah carried you into the bathroom. Damon quickly pulled the butt plug out of you, tossing it back into the bedroom before Elijah laid you in the bath.

"We'll go handle the sheets and stuff," Klaus said, "You got her taken care of?"

"Yes." Elijah said, kneeling in the water in front of you, already reaching for the sponge to carefully clean you up.

As he cleaned, he started to feel worse and worse as all of the bruises and bites were revealed. You flickered your eyes open as he started to clean your inner thighs and pussy, taking extra care not to touch your sensitive nub.

"Hi 'Lijah." You said with a small smile.

"Hey Kitten." He murmured back. "How are you feeling?"

You sat up a little more in the bathtub. "Good. Although we might have to wait a few days before I can make love to any of you again."

"Make that two weeks." Damon's voice drawled in the doorway. He moved forward- fully dressed- to kneel by the bathtub edge. "How are you baby girl? We didn't meant to hurt you so badly."

You blinked, confused. "Huh? You didn't hurt me."

Damon gestured to your body and you finally actually looked at your arms. "Oh. Oh yeah. Eh, they don't actually hurt. I kind've like them. You guys are cute when you're possessive."

Elijah let out an astonished chuckle. "We can heal them with our blood if you want."

"Nah, I'm good." You said with a grin. "I like it when others know who I belong to."

Damon groaned, "You're making it very hard for me to keep it in my pants baby girl."

You gave him a teasing smile, "Oh?"

"Don't tease him Y/N." Elijah warned seriously. "You need some rest."

You pouted, "Fine 'Lijah. I'll tease you later Dae."

"And I'll make sure you pay for it." Damon said with a wink.

"I look forward to that." You giggled.

Elijah finally cleaned you up before helping you out of the towel. Klaus already had your pajamas laid out, although you didn't feel like putting anything over your ass or touching your clit so you just grabbed one of Klaus overly large T-shirts to wear.

Klaus had also brought up some of your favorite foods for you to eat. Damon had stripped the sheets to put fresh ones on and then you and Elijah joined the other two on the bed, falling asleep in your monster pile.

.

.

.

.

.

AND. . . That's that! Honestly, the last three were kind've my favorites. Although I'm not entirely sure if I did the Monster fucking right. But I love Stucky, I love Severus Snape and Remus Lupin action- Lucius just there for benefit, and I love my two favorite vampires and one hybrid.

Hopefully you enjoyed some of these- at least half. I'm kind've already looking forward to next October, although of course, the idea of making a fandom smut book is still on the table if enough people want it (at least twenty).

Anyways- Happy Halloween! 

[silver-rings-and-rabbits]

Open Heart - Chapter 13

Triage

The two of them stood on either side of the locker room, staring each other down. Matthew’s fists clenched at his sides. Everyone had been worried that Landry was burning out, what with him constantly being on edge and snapping at everyone. Matthew had even tried to help. He had worried about Landry’s health and told him the competition wasn’t worth stressing over. He had told Landry he would have his winning streak in time.

And Landry had been lying to his face this entire time.

“Why?” he asked, softly. His friends had meant the world to him. He felt idiotic now.

“How can you even ask that?” Landry said. “You got a woman killed when she could have lived for another decade!”

“And the sabotage, the rumours? That was you too?”

Landry finally dropped his gaze as he admitted it was.

“Landry…”

Indignation and anger started burning through his veins as he thought about how Landry had tossed him aside for his own benefit while Matthew had trusted him with everything he had. If Landry had a glass of water and Matthew was on fire…Landry would drink it.

“You snake! I thought we were friends!”

“So did I! You’re not so perfect, Matthew!”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You knew how badly I wanted to work with Dr Ramsey! I told you that on our first day! It was all I wanted but apparently you didn’t even care to remember.” Landry straightened his shoulders, collecting himself. “I did what I had to do to level the playing field.”

“Level it how? By hiding my charts and turning off my pager?”

“Yes. You had an unfair advantage. If you hadn’t been skulking around with Dr Ramsey and Banerji, I’d be number one! I have better outcomes than you, I study harder than you and I practically live at the hospital!”

Despite their height difference, he was looking right down his nose at Matthew. Matthew couldn’t stand him.

“You think you’re so great,” he snarled. “But are you even listening to yourself? You genuinely think you have the superiority because you wouldn’t break the rules for Mrs Martinez but you have no problem endangering my patients by making it as difficult as possible to treat them? We’re paged because someone’s life is in danger and they need us, but that’s an acceptable sacrifice to make you look good?!”

He advanced on Landry with each sentence, towering over him. Landry paled but stood his ground.

“Are you really so insecure that everything is someone else’s fault?” Matthew wasn’t stopping now. “Did it ever occur to you that you didn’t place number one because of your shortcomings? Maybe instead of going behind my back to get me fired, you could be learning how to care for your patients!”

Landry went from white to red.

“How dare—”

“What the hell is going on in here? You’re scaring people in the hallway!” Someone interrupted. They both whipped round to see Jackie, accompanied by Elijah and Sienna. The three of them looked between them, stunned, taking in Matthew’s clenched fists and Landry’s red face.

“Guys?”

The three of them shuffled further into the room, Jackie closing the door warily. There was a pause. Landry gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes. Matthew was left with no choice.

“Landry told Mrs Martinez’s family what happened.”

“Excuse me?!”

Jackie gave Landry a look of utter disgust. Sienna’s mouth was open in shock as she lowered herself onto a bench.

“He gave them my name and now they’re planning to sue the hospital.” Matthew’s voice was flat and cold.

“Dude, what the hell?” Elijah spluttered.

“It was my obligation as a doctor. I sent them an anonymous message.” Landry’s voice was still slimy with superiority.

“How could you, Landry? Matthew could lose his job!”

“Maybe he deserves to.” Landry spoke so coldly, Matthew winced and turned away momentarily. Sienna moved to stand by his side. Elijah was shaking his head.

“That’s not fair, man,” he growled. “Matthew trusted you. We all did.”

Jackie looked positively murderous. Landry looked back at her in bewilderment. Somehow he thought they would have shared his twisted moral compass.

“So…you’re all on Matthew’s side, then?”

“Take a wild guess,” Jackie snapped.

Elijah and Sienna shared a nervous glance. They didn’t know what to say and the situation was fraught enough without either of them making it worse. But the fact that they weren’t disagreeing with Jackie was enough.

“Fine,” Landry muttered. “I’ll start looking for a new apartment this week.”

He shoved his locker shut and left. He had the damn nerve to be shaking his head.

“Unbelievable,” Jackie scowled, glaring after him.

Matthew exhaled deeply, slumping down onto the bench, running his hands through his hair. He suddenly felt very, very tired.

“Matthew, are you OK?” Sienna asked.

“Just…stunned,” he said, heavily. He looked up at the three of them, anxiously. “Wait, you guys…you didn’t know…?”

“I had no idea. I thought he was a good guy. You know, since he was so quiet and sweet,” Sienna said with a frown.

“Same here. He tricked all of us,” Elijah said.

Jackie was chewing her lip, then she sat beside Matthew.

“Listen, we all know I’m a bitch, especially when you started moving up in the rankings. I thought it was BS at first—”

“Jackie—”

“Listen. You have been busting your ass and you really do deserve the number one spot. And I would never stoop so low as sabotage to get one up on someone. If I beat someone, it’s fair and square.” She patted his back. “I’ve got you. Promise.”

Matthew appreciated Jackie’s brutal honesty. He appreciated her.

“Thank you. All of you.”

The four of them just sat together in silence for a minute.

“So we just…go back to work like nothing happened?” Elijah said.

“Guess so. We’re doctors after all.”

“I think you should take an extra minute to chill out,” Jackie said, but then her pager started buzzing and it was exactly what she had to do. She left with an apologetic look.

“I can tell Danny and the nurses about…well at least about the rumours, just in case anyone’s still suspicious of you?” Sienna offered.

Matthew hesitated…but why should he be worrying about how anything would reflect on Landry?

“Go for it,” he said. “He made his bed, he can lie in it.”

Matthew might as well as have had a physical weight on his shoulders when he did return to work, the events of the day wearing him down. There were still four hours left to go. Signing Tommy’s discharge paperwork was slightly uplifting but it was harder than ever to keep up a positive demeanour for the rest of his patients.

As he left a patient room, he heard his name being called and turned to see Jackie walking towards him.

“How are you holding up?”

“Actually, still kind of hurt,” Matthew said. “I thought we were friends but apparently he couldn’t care less. I worried about his health, he threw me to the lions.”

“I know, and he sat back whilst we blamed Aurora for his crap! When I think about how easily he’s been lying to our faces…it makes my blood boil!”

Danny was at the nurses station and he glanced up as they walked over.

“Talking about Olsen?” he said. “Sienna caught me up earlier. You know, he always treats nurses like an afterthought.” He rolled his eyes and gave Matthew a sympathetic smile. “Anyway, you’re in the clear with the nurses now. They know the rumours were false.”

“Thanks Danny.”

The relief didn’t last long when Matthew noticed a group of attendings narrowed their eyes at him as they walked by.

“What’s their problem?” Jackie muttered.

“Word must have gotten out about the investigation. I’m not the number one intern anymore, I’m Dr Valentine, Patient Murderer.” He ran a hand through his hair, wishing he had a place to hide in.

“They don’t actually have any proof of that yet,” Danny said. Matthew and Jackie blinked at him. “The administrators have been combing hospital security footage for proof of what you did. But thanks to budget cutbacks, security doesn’t keep the camera footage for more than twenty-four hours. They just record over it.”

It was as if Christmas had come early…for Jackie. She turned to Matthew with a grin.

“Rat-Face must not have given enough evidence to the family…hell yeah! If you keep your head down and your mouth shut, this might just blow over.”

Matthew didn’t say anything as she pondered the exhausting possibility of keeping quiet about this for months on end.

“Why are you not as pumped as this as I am?”

“I hate all this lying and pretending I’m not ashamed of what I did. Maybe I could just explain the situation to the chief—”

“Good Lord, Matthew, no. This isn’t the time to take a moral stand,” Jackie said, firmly. She glanced around before adding: “Whatever your reasons were, you broke the rules in a major way and could lose your medical license over this. I believe you did the right thing. There’s zero reason to give Chief Emery the chance to make that call.”

“Agreed,” Danny said, just as firmly.

Before Matthew could say anything else, the tannoy system screeched to life and paged Dr Mirani and Dr Delarosa to emergency. They came running down the hall, on cue, with serious looks.

“You three, come with us. A subway train derailed nearby,” Ines reported, frantically.

“Oh my god!”

“Emergency is already filling up, and there are more victims on the way. It’s all hands on deck!” Zaid called to them as they continued down the hall without stopping. The other three scrambled to keep up.

The ER was in complete chaos. Matthew had never seen anything like it. Every bed and chair was filled with groaning, bloodied patients. Some of them had even resorted to lying on the floor where there was no available bedspace. Doctors and nurses were darting around, tending to several patients at once. They tried to be professional about it, but as Marlene hurried past, Matthew could see the fear and anxiety in her eyes.

The doors crashed open: a team of paramedics were bringing in yet more patients. Matthew quickly scanned the crowd but Rafael wasn’t among them.

“Dammit, the OR schedule is completely full,” Zaid frowned. “Sarah! Was triage performed at the scene?”

“No, the emergency teams had to get victims out of the collapsed tunnel in waves. They’ve been sending them over as soon as they get free.” She spoke at a thousand miles per minute.

“We’ll have to run triage here. Varma, Valentine, I need you to assess the patients. Determine the urgency of their situation; we have to prioritise those in the most danger.”

The interns were each handed a stack of triage tags with a colour-scale. Green tags went to minor injuries, these patients were to wait in the atrium for examination. Yellow tags meant serious but not life-threatening – major fractures, or spinal cord injury – and the patients would need a bed as soon as possible. Red tags were for urgent conditions – respiratory, haemorrhage, major head damage – that would require surgery as soon as possible. A black tag meant there was no more to be done for them.

Matthew swallowed and glanced back at Jackie. She nodded at him, readied for challenge.

“Work fast, OK? These people are counting on you!” Zaid reminded them as he dashed over to explain the triage to another group of interns who had just walked in.

Matthew took a deep breath. He was ready for this. Time to push his worries aside and devote himself to the task at hand. Except instead of the task at hand being med school revision, it was saving lives for real. He couldn’t get distracted by his own problems now.

He and Jackie were faced with three patients: an unconscious man, a hunched woman with a thousand-yard stare, and another woman who howled in pain.

“I’ll take the screaming lady,” Jackie said.

“OK. I’ll take the unconscious man.”

Matthew dashed to the man’s stretcher, took another breath, then calmly tapped the man’s collar bone and asked if he could hear him. Nothing happened. Matthew had to force the man’s eyelids open and check his pupils: they didn’t contract or dilate. With a sinking feeling, Matthew measured the man’s blood pressure…but it was too low to sustain brain function. The man was left with a black tag.

He had probably just been heading home from work, or perhaps visiting somewhere and would never go home again. Maybe a partner was somewhere waiting for him…or a child…

Matthew shook his head, blinking furiously, and turned to the woman who was still hunched over. She flinched and winced when Matthew knelt in front of her.

“Hello, my name is Dr Valentine. Can you tell me your name?”

“T-Tamara.” She barely spoke above a whisper.

“Why are you whispering, Tamara?” Matthew asked, shuffling a little closer to hear.

“H-hurts…”

Tamara indicated her stomach. Matthew put a light hand on it, but even that was enough for Tamara to gasp in agony and tears to spring into her eyes.

“I’m so sorry, Tamara,” Matthew apologised, removing his hand. Her stomach was distended and rock hard. She was bleeding internally…and fast.

“Dr Mirani, this woman needs immediate surgery. She’s bleeding into her abdomen.”

“Tag her and get her somewhere safe. The surgeons will be with her as soon as they’re available.”

“But—”

“Valentine, this is triage. I know you want to stay and help, but you have to assess and move on. More patients are on their way.”

As if on cue, a patient screamed as a doctor examined their broken bones.

Matthew cursed internally as he tore a red triage tag for Tamara and scribbled on it ‘profuse internal bleeding’.

“Someone will be with you soon, Tamara,” he said, reassuringly. Dr Mirani nodded approvingly.

“Can I get some help with this chest wound?” someone called.

“On it!” Sienna flew past Matthew and started applying pressure to an old man’s chest wound. “I’ve got you, sir.” She was completely calm and in control, the same determined expression he had seen on Jackie earlier.

As Matthew pointed someone towards the atrium – they were very lucky to only come away with bruising – Chief Emery herself joined the fray.

“Chief Emery, should we call Dr Ramsey? We could use his help!”

“He’s not even in the city right now. We can do this everyone, stay focused!”

Matthew turned to his next patient: a man with a bloodied nose who cradled his arm.

“What’s your name, sir?”

“Manuel.” The man was barely looking at Matthew. His looked around frantically.

“Tell me where it hurts, Manuel.”

“I was with my daughter, but she was trapped…I begged them not to take me without her…”

Matthew would have given anything to stop time and find the man’s daughter, but everything moved too fast and Zaid had already told him off once.

“I’m sure she’s coming on the next load of ambulances. Is your arm hurt?”

“Can you look for her? Her name’s Lucia, she’s scared of hospitals…”

“Please, Manuel, I need you to focus and tell me where it hurts.”

“Just…just my arm. I think I broke it when I hit a handrail.”

Matthew carefully probed Manuel’s arm until he located a fracture. He assigned Manuel a green tag.

“When Lucia turns up, you have to get me, OK? I have to see her!”

He sounded so desperate, but Matthew had to keep moving. The cries of his patients cut him like a knife. His head spun. The room seemed to be getting smaller. Too many people were having to be left behind.

“Ow! Doctor, please, I’m afraid of needles—”

“You’re not in any immediate danger, just relax and let me work.”

Landry was methodically administering pain relief, moving with cold and clinical precision, machine-like in efficiency.

I guess it helps not having a conscience in times like these Matthew thought, grimly, but he was distracted when he spotted Aurora torn between three patients. Two of them were bleeding, hollering for her attention, whilst the third just stared at the ceiling.

“Doctor, I need morphine, you have to do something!”

“Oh god, it hurts so much!”

Caught in headlights, Aurora looked between them. She had frozen with indecision,

“I…I…”

“Aurora.” Matthew hurried to her side. “It’s OK, just think.”

Aurora looked at him with a wild expression.

“I don’t know who to help first!” she gasped. Her panic started to rise when a patient cried that he couldn’t breathe.

“Come on, you know this,” Matthew reminded her. “Who needs help the most urgently?”

“Uh…one needs intubation…one needs a chest tube…I think the quiet one needs a neuro consult.”

“Exactly, so what do you do?”

“I…” Aurora froze again. Matthew put his hands on her shoulders, making her look directly into his eyes.

“Aurora, look at me.”

“I’ve never seen trauma like this before,” Aurora whispered, on the verge of tears. Matthew was no stranger to that feeling.

“You were the best intern, remember? You know what to do.”

“I…” Aurora looked back at Matthew and he saw her collect herself. “I treat and tag.”

“And delegate if you can,” Matthew reminded her, with a gentle squeeze of the shoulders.

Aurora nodded, gathering confidence, her shoulders loosening as Matthew let go.

“OK, I’ll do the chest tube, you intubate. Um, Jackie! Can you order a neuro consult for this yellow tag?” She looked much more like herself.

Meanwhile, Jackie didn’t miss a beat. “On it!” she called over to them. Aurora gave Matthew a small, grateful nod.

The evening wore on. Matthew didn’t know how many patients he saw, but it was dozens. His feet hurt. His back hurt. His head hurt. The only slight solace came from the fact that he was saving so many lives, exactly what he should be doing at Edenbrook. But he still felt sick when he got a chance to ask a passing doctor or nurse if they had treated a little girl named Lucia; no one had.

Finally the room started to clear. Green tags were being treated, some had even been discharged to rest up at home. Yellow tags had hospital beds rather than the floor. Red tags were in surgery (the only times Matthew had seen Bryce was when he came rushing in, grabbed a gurney, and wheeled it to the OR). Black tags had been taken to the morgue. Families were being called.

Zaid clapped his hands together for attention.

“Good work, everyone. Grab something to eat and drink, rest if you can. We’ll begin our new rounds in twenty minutes.”

A relieved murmur ran through the group of interns. Aurora was leaning against the wall. Danny was breathing deeply on his inhaler.

“Cafeteria?” Elijah asked as the roommates regrouped, except Landry. He had already gone marching off ahead.

“I’ll catch up in a minute. I need some fresh air,” Sienna said.

“I’ll stay with you,” Matthew offered.

“We’ll bring you some nasty coffee,” Jackie said. She pushed Elijah’s wheelchair so he could rest his arms.

Matthew and Sienna walked out into the ambulance bay and sagged against the wall. Matthew shivered a little: autumnal weather was drawing in.

“Oh man,” Sienna groaned. “That was…something.”

“Are you OK?” Matthew was worried about how she felt in the aftermath, but to his surprise she broke into a big smile.

“I’m great! Think how much good we just did! How many lives we just saved! I know it’s hard but that right there? That’s why I became a doctor.”

Her adrenaline had left her breathless and buzzing. Matthew couldn’t remember the last time he had seen her like this at work. It was about time.

“Sienna!” A vaguely familiar, somewhat nasally voice cut through the air.

“Oh no!” Sienna gasped. “I was supposed to meet Wayne for dinner tonight!”

She pushed herself off the wall and started hurrying towards her boyfriend, limping a little. Matthew followed, with a bad feeling.

“I’ve been waiting out front for ages!” Wayne shouted. “I had to come out front and ask where you were!”

“Wayne, I’m really sorry, there was an emergency—”

“Seriously? You’re always nagging me to spend time with you, so I travel all the way across town, pay for an Uber because the stupid subway was closed, and now you stand me up?!”

“Hey, come on, she had a good reason!” Matthew said. “The subway was closed because of a massive derailment. Sienna’s been busy saving lives!”

Matthew thought Wayne ought to be more concerned about the fact Sienna was covered in blood – who wouldn’t be concerned about their partner covered in blood? – but Wayne instantly became ten times worse in seven seconds.

“Was she? Or was she handing things over to the real doctors so they could save lives?”

Matthew’s jaw dropped.

“Excuse me?!”

“Sienna, you’re, like, an intern. The interns at my company pick up my coffee orders.”

It was happening right in front of him, and yet Matthew could hardly believe that someone would be so self-absorbed. Sienna’s eyes were narrowed in fury and she was shaking her head.

“Sienna…?”

“He’s my boyfriend, Matthew, but I don’t think I can handle another second…”

Matthew squeezed her shoulder encouragingly. She bit her lip, and then turned back to face Wayne.

“Wayne…I’m sorry, but…this is over. We’re through.”

Wayne blinked, frowning in confusion, and then his eyes widened in shock.

“You’re dumping me? What for?!”

Matthew couldn’t hold back his snort.

“Right now? For being a condescending jerk!” Sienna’s voice was rising with her incense.

“Wait…OK…we can handle this…it’s just, I’m tired and hungry. I probably haven’t handled the situation well, but you know how I get if I haven’t eaten for two hours.”

“You do get hangry.” Sienna admitted.

“How about we go home, you cook us something nice, and we’ll maybe talk about this later?”

Wayne was so slimy, Matthew wanted to puke. He was not about to let this waste of space slither all over his best friend.

“Seriously, you’re using hanger as an excuse? And now you want her to cook for you?”

Sienna’s face hardened again; Matthew needn’t have worried about her.

“What? You love cooking!”

“But when was the last time you did anything for me?!” Sienna shrieked as months – possibly years – of pent-up frustration was finally unleashed. “You don’t hold my hand, we don’t cuddle anymore, and whenever I come over, it’s just dinner and watching you play video games!”

Not to mention how he’s only visited you once Matthew thought. Sienna didn’t need him to say anything, she had control of the situation.

“But…but I’m tired after work, babe!”

“So am I!! God, I am so sick of you not taking my work seriously. I’ve come home exhausted every day, but I’ve still made time to come over and see you and cooked dozens of times, but you won’t even spring for take-out even though you don’t stop talking about how much money you’re making!”

Wayne scoffed, trying to regain his upper hand. “Wow, I had no idea you were so materialistic.”

“It’s not materialistic to ask my boyfriend to not treat me like dirt, but you can’t even handle basic affection.”

Wayne had genuinely thought he would be able to talk Sienna into submission, and spluttered at her resistance. “I just…I…oh come on, babe, gimme another chance!”

“You’ve had plenty of chances, Wayne, you…er…” Sienna faltered as she tried to come up with a good insult.

Matthew had had just about enough of Wayne. He stepped forward and launched into an expletive-ridden tirade that stunned Wayne into silence, made Sienna look up at him, mildly impressed, and even the nearby staff were stopping to stare.

“…Harsh,” Wayne said, after a minute of stunned silence.

“Actually I agree with every word Matthew just said,” Sienna shrugged. “We’re through. Bye Wayne.”

“Hey!” Wayne snapped. Matthew and Sienna glared at him. “I thought you moved here for me!”

“And I’m staying here for me!”

Sienna stormed into the hospital, her head held high and her ex-boyfriend floundering behind her.

Matthew was beaming as he caught up with Sienna and put an arm around her.

“That was amazing! How do you feel?”

“Honestly…a tiny bit weird. I used to think he and I would get married, have kids…and now I don’t have to pretend to love him anymore!” She suddenly laughed, euphoric, and Matthew gave her a big hug that lifted her off her feet.

“I’m so proud of you!”

“I’m proud of me too!”

“We got you guys coffee, I’m proud of us!” Jackie said, as she and Elijah joined them, bearing takeaway cups of coffee. “What did we miss?”

“Sienna dumped Wayne!”

“I dumped Wayne!”

A cheer went up from their other two roommates, and the four of them toasted to Sienna’s newfound freedom. A moment of celebration after a long day was never wasted.

They had to return to their rounds after downing their coffee. The residents seemed to have momentarily forgotten that they were supposed to be partnering up for cases, but it didn’t seem the right time to ask.

Matthew knocked on the door of Manuel’s room. He looked better, with the blood cleaned off his face and his arm in a cast, but he was sitting up straight and when Matthew entered he whipped round to face him, only for his face to fall when he saw Matthew was alone.

“How’s your arm feeling, Manuel?”

“I don’t care about my arm! I still haven’t seen Lucia and no one’s told me a thing!”

Manuel was pale and Matthew was pretty sure he wouldn’t leave until Lucia was found. Dread stirred in his stomach and he hoped it wasn’t showing on his face.

“How about I ask around the hospital? It could be that she’s here and no one’s told us.”

“Thank you…” Manuel murmured. He didn’t relax as Matthew left the room.

It wasn’t unlikely that Lucia was somewhere in Edenbrook, unidentified, but wouldn’t she be asking for her dad too? Shouldn’t someone be looking for Manuel?

Matthew pushed the ‘what ifs’ out of his head as he ran back down to the ER. It was half-empty at this point, but none of the patients were a young girl.

“Are you alright, Doctor?” Sarah asked. Matthew was breathing heavily.

“Have you seen—”

There was a commotion outside and then the ER doors burst open and another gurney came crashing in.

“Two more here, we only just dug them out,” the paramedic cried.

Matthew’s hope lifted when he saw the young girl on the gurney.

“Are you alright?” he asked. “What’s your name?”

The girl coughed weakly. She was alert, but covered in soot and dust, except for the tear tracks on her face. It was difficult to see where she might be hurt.

“Is my dad here? I need my dad!”

“What’s your name? We’ll find him for you.”

“Lucia.”

Matthew felt immense relief. He carefully rubbed Lucia’s back.

“Your dad’s right here in the hospital, Lucia, he’s been looking for you.”

“Where are you hurt, honey?” Sarah asked. “We’ll fix you up and take you right to him.”

“I got stuck in the tunnel and my ankle was caught…that guy got me out right before it collapsed.”

Lucia pointed to the other stretched that had rolled in behind hers. Whoever was lying on it had to be in such bad shape that even the paramedics were frantic. And then one of them moved enough for Matthew to see who it was.

“Oh my god…Rafael!”

Rafael was lying still and unconscious, bleeding from a large gash on his forehead and cuts all over his face. His uniform was torn and bloodied. Matthew darted to the side of his stretcher, forgetting everything else. The only thing that mattered now was Rafael’s life. It wouldn’t end now, it couldn’t.

“Rafael? Can you hear me? Can you open your eyes?” Matthew asked, desperately searching for a sign of life.

Rafael didn’t move. Matthew pressed his fingers to Rafael’s wrist and neck. His pulse was there, but a little too shallow for comfort.

“We told him not to go down there, it was too unstable!” One of the paramedics groaned. Matthew recognised her ass the one who had accompanied Rafael in the helicopter when they rescued Sandberg: Lucie.

“He was in the tunnel?”

“He heard the little girl screaming and went after her. Raf forgets about himself when he hears someone else at risk.” Lucie sounded scared and frustrated. “Can you help him?”

Matthew glanced back at Sarah, who was holding Lucia’s hand as they watched anxiously. She nodded at him.

“I’ll help Lucia. I can find her dad on the server,” Sarah said.

Her calmness reminded Matthew of where he was and what he should be doing. He nodded back and returned to Rafael, preparing to check his vitals. His hands shook the whole time, even worse than they had during that first haemothorax so long ago.

“His vitals are weak…by the looks of it, he has massive internal injuries,” Matthew reported. He sounded braver than he felt, but seeing Rafael on the stretcher had put him at a loss. He didn’t even notice the sound of heels on the floor until the voice spoke.

“Is that…Rafael Aveiro? The paramedic?”

Harper was almost frozen in shock. Matthew’s heart raced as he explained the situation. Harper shook her head, almost as distressed as Matthew was.

“What the--?!”

Bryce had just walked into the ER. He looked completely shattered, but the sight of Rafael barely clinging to life had stopped him in his tracks.

“Lahela.” Harpers voice took on her Chief of Medicine tone. Matthew felt a shred of relief; the best people were here to help. “This patient needs an operating room immediately. What do we have available?”

Bryce tore his eyes away from Rafael to answer.

“OR2 is free…but all the senior surgical residents are in theatre. I don’t think anyone’s available!”

Chief Emery turned back to Rafael, her jaw set.

“I’ll take him myself. You’re my second, Lahela, let’s go.”

Bryce’s eyes widened and he nodded enthusiastically. Harper glanced at Matthew, still at Rafael’s side.

“You too, Dr Valentine. I’ll need all the help I can get.”

“What?! B-but I’m not a surgeon!”

“I’m well aware of that, Dr Valentine. Can you follow orders?”

“I…yes?”

“Did you go to med school?”

“Yes!”

“Then you can help. You know enough anatomy to assist, and I’ll need a third pair of hands.” She grabbed the gurney and marched on, surprisingly fast in her heels. “Come on, boys, the clock is ticking!”

Matthew and Bryce had to run to keep up. Bryce clapped Matthew on the back.

“You’re about to witness something incredible, Matthew,” he said, excitement burning low in his voice. “Harper Emery, back in the saddle. I’ve had literal dreams about this.”

Matthew felt like he was dreaming now, barely able to believe what was happening. Patients weren’t supposed to be hospital staff. His heart pounded as Harper paged for any available surgical nurses, then they entered the surgical floor.

Harper and Bryce each pinned their hair back, and the three of them donned surgical scrub caps. Bryce helped Matthew into a gown, snapping the gloves over the sleeves. He did it with the ease of someone who had done it a thousand times before. A surgical mask was stretched over Matthew’s face: it made his breathing sound loud and much too fast.

Stepping into the OR felt like something from a sci-fi film. Matthew blinked at the bright lights that flooded the room and bounced off stainless steel surfaces. Surgical gear made them almost unrecognisable, with only eyes visible above masks. Rafael lay in the middle of it all, trapped on a table with an oxygen mask over his mouth and nose. His bloodied uniform had been removed and he was only covered with surgical sheets. The one surgical nurse currently available was carefully tending to the cuts on his face. He must have been under anaesthesia, but Matthew still wanted to hold his hand.

Instead he had to watch Harper pick up a surgical scalpel and slice a long incision in Rafael’s abdomen. Matthew winced at the gush of blood, but Harper was calm and Bryce waited patiently for instruction. They had done this too many times to be deterred, and Matthew wished he could have borrowed their confidence. All the injured patients from the triage, and everyone who had come through the ER over the last several months, every cadaver he had examined at med school…none of it came close to seeing Rafael open and vulnerable on the operating table. It shouldn’t be happening…except that it was.

On Harper’s orders, Matthew passed her a surgical clamp. Rafael’s body was pulled apart but he remained motionless. It was a small mercy.

“Suction.”

Matthew jumped.

“Yes Doctor!”

He carefully aimed a suction pump into Rafael’s cavity, willing his hands to remain steady. Harper and Bryce leaned in for a closer look as Matthew cleaned up the excess fluid. Bryce gave a low whistle.

“Thank you, Dr Valentine,” Harper murmured. “Do you see it, Dr Lahela?”

“There’s a lot of damage to his spleen and kidneys.”

“Good eye. Let’s get to work.” Harper sounded like she was smiling.

Matthew stood on guard, ready for orders from Chief Emery, or looking for signs that the anaesthetic was wearing off, or – heaven forbid – that Rafael was slipping away. Meanwhile, Bryce started on Rafael’s kidneys. Matthew couldn’t help but be impressed at his confidence and how relaxed he was. His hands never shook once.

But Harper was something else entirely. She worked quickly and skilfully on Rafael’s spleen. Over her mask, her eyes shone as her deft hands made complicated stitches and incisions. Matthew wondered why she had ever given up surgery for administration, he doubted her eyes ever shone like that when she sat at her desk. It was also hard to imagine she was ever an intern crying in the closet, or having a patient reminding her to breathe. Rafael really was in the best hands.

A sudden geyser of fluid spurted from the cavity and Matthew jumped.

“His appendix just burst,” Bryce reported, and Harper cursed. Matthew’s heart started pounding again as he looked between the surgeons in alarm.

“Dammit, I can’t get to it right now. Can you?”

Matthew wanted to cry when Bryce shook his head.

“Not without giving up on his kidney.”

Harper paused for a fraction of a second.

“Valentine, I’ll need you to remove his appendix.”

“What?”

Matthew’s hands started to shake again, and Harper noticed.

“Calm down,” she reassured him. “Just follow my instructions and you’ll do fine.”

Matthew hadn’t been so shaky since his first few days on the job. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath and counted to three; Mrs Turner’s advice had never failed him. The nurse handed him a scalpel, he nodded his thanks and turned to Harper.

“You need to make another incision one-third the distance from the anterior superior iliac spine to the umbilicus.”

McBurney’s Point. Matthew had seen it labelled hundreds of times. Matthew started to sweat as he ran his hand over the area – which was already swelling – and prepared his scalpel. With another deep breath, he cut right through Rafael’s skin and muscle.

“Oh my god, I’m actually doing surgery,” he muttered.

Bryce winked at him. “Welcome to the big leagues, Matthew!”

“Locate the appendix,” Harper instructed. Matthew’s fingers gently wrapped around it. It felt odd handling Rafael’s inner organs. He could do a lot of damage here. Matthew looked over at Rafael’s face, so peaceful that he could have been sleeping if it weren’t for the oxygen mask. If he was dreaming, Matthew hoped they were good ones. Rafael. His hero.

“Feel for the opening of the appendix and place a staple to seal it from the intestine.”

Matthew felt the opening, took the staple from the nurse and nervously set it into place before pulling the trigger. It gave a loud click as the staple snapped into place. Harper glanced up with approving eyes.

“Good job, Valentine. That should buy us a few minutes.”

“Now, help me with this kidney. I’m going to need you to train a light just here…”

Matthew held a small torch over the kidneys.

“Like this?”

“A bit more of an angle. Just…” Bryce quickly adjusted Matthew’s hand. “That’s it, good. Now, keep this area suctioned. Repairing the valve is delicate work…”

Bryce frowned in concentration as he worked on the kidney. Matthew stayed very still. After a few harrowing minutes, Bryce relaxed.

“The kidney’s stable.”

“Hang on…”

Harper placed a clamp before checking over Bryce’s work. She gave a satisfied nod.

“Excellent work, Lahela. I know surgeons with ten years on you who couldn’t pull that off.”

Bryce’s eyes twinkled.

“I’m glad it’s up to your standards, Chief Emery.”

“Alright, Lahela, finish removing the appendix. Valentine, I’ll need you over here.”

After that, Matthew mostly remained on suction duty. Occasionally he would step aside to hook up new IVs of blood as the hours ticked by. Every time an organ was repaired, it gave him a small shot of relief, but he could never fully relax.

Slowly, slowly, the bleeding receded until it had stopped completely. Matthew poured water into the cavity: bubbles were a bad sign that meant hidden damage, but they were in the clear.

“We did it!” Bryce said, happily.

“Yes we did. Lahela, that was incredible.” Harper’s voice was victorious and Matthew finally let out all his breath. His knees sagged and he leaned heavily against the edge of the table.

“Valentine,” Harper continued. “I have to say, I’m impressed. Not many doctors could step up like you just did.”

“I’m just happy Rafael’s OK.”

“Without you, he might not have been.” She was sympathetic now. “You should be proud of the work you did today.”

“Excuse me, Chief Emery.” The three of them looked over to see Dr Tanaka poking his head round the door. “Do you have a spare set of hands?”

“Take Dr Lahela. He’s done some excellent work today.”

Pride for his friend bloomed in Matthew’s chest as Bryce winked at him and left the OR with Dr Tanaka. Bryce had just impressed his own medical hero with one surgical procedure. If he was being honest, Matthew thought Bryce sometimes exaggerated his surgical abilities…but he really wasn’t.

“Suction.”

Matthew sucked the water out of Rafael’s cavity for Harper to stitch him up. She did so methodically and it was oddly calming to watch. Matthew absently brushed his thumb against the back of Rafael’s hand.

“I know you did it, Valentine.”

Matthew froze.

“And what’s more, I know why you did it. If I’d met her when I was young and idealistic, I’d have wanted to break the rules for her too.”

Matthew tried to deny it.

“Chief Emery, there have been a lot of rumours about me since I topped the ranking—”

“I’m aware of them. And I’m aware that most of them are false.”

“But…not this one?”

“No. You ignoring pages and disrespecting nurses goes against everything I know about your character. But what you did to Mrs Martinez…allegedly…that matches everything I know about your character.”

Matthew didn’t know what to say to that. She’d nailed him.

Harper just sighed. “Listen, I wanted you to build on your potential and become a great doctor, but it’s too late for that. Your decision has consequences that may just cost your future and I can’t have anyone else thinking they can make the same mistake.”

She didn’t sound angry, she sounded disappointed. Matthew would have preferred rage. He kept his head down as they scrubbed out and took Rafael into a recovery room on the fourth floor, where he was carefully transferred into a hospital bed. Matthew watched Harper check his vitals again, and report them as normal.

“Now it’s just a matter of time until the anaesthesia wears off and he comes round,” she said, half to herself. “I’ll assign Lahela to monitor his progress. Won’t hurt to check in myself from time to time.”

She turned to Matthew and gave him a small, understanding smile.

“Get some rest, Valentine. You’ve done all you can.”

Matthew dragged his feet to the on-call room to take a very quick shower, washing away the last remnants of sweat and blood, before dragging to the locker room. He shrugged his backpack on to his shoulders and paused as he wondered how long it would be before Rafael woke up. Had his phone been recovered and returned to him, or had it been safely stashed away before the call-out? If Matthew called, would someone be there to pick up? He hated the idea of Rafael waking up all alone and in pain.

It was gone 11PM and the hospital was finally quiet for once. Matthew only passed Sarah and a group of nurses who all gave him a tired nod. Matthew wondered how many patients they had had to fix. He thought of Manuel and asked Sarah. She confirmed he had been reunited with Lucia, who had come away with only minor scratches and a twisted ankle. Sarah had set up another bed in Manuel’s room for the two of them to get some rest before they could be discharged in the morning.

Matthew thanked Sarah in relief, and continued to the exit. Lucia was incredibly lucky to have been rescued by someone so brave and selfless. Rafael was incredibly lucky to have Harper Emery walking into the ER as he was being wheeled in. If Matthew had had to look for available surgeons in the shaken state he was in…every second counted, and Rafael had almost run out.

Matthew turned on his heel and raced back up to the fourth floor.

Rafael was still asleep, looking peaceful apart from the patch on his forehead and the dark bruising on his face. Matthew tossed his backpack into the corner, pulled a chair up to Rafael’s bedside and collapsed into it, his head in his hands.

His breath was shaky and his eyes were aching he was so tired. He couldn’t fall asleep, if he did, he didn’t know what might happen. He knew it was stupid: he wasn’t superstitious and if anything were to happen to Rafael, him being awake or asleep wouldn’t change that. But…he had to be there.

He jumped when the door opened and Harper walked in. She frowned when she saw him.

“Valentine? I thought I told you to go home…”

“I can’t, Chief Emery. I…I can’t leave Rafael now…I tried, but I won’t be able to sleep until I’ve seen for myself that he’ll be alright.”

Harper looked at him thoughtfully. No one reacted the way Matthew reacted over someone who was just a friend.

“I understand, Dr Valentine. I know better than to start a fight I can’t finish. But don’t wake him, let him come round on his own.”

“I know,” Matthew said, sitting back in his chair as Harper fixed a chart to Rafael’s bed.

“He’ll be fine, Matthew,” she said, gently. Matthew gave her a weak smile as she left. He would believe it when Rafael woke up.

He continued to wait by Rafael’s bed-side, raking his hands through his hair as he watched the steady rise and fall of Rafael’s chest. He wanted to hold his hand or stroke his hair, but Harper was right; Rafael needed rest and Matthew didn’t want to disturb that.

His exhaustion started to overcome his anxiety and his eyelids grew heavier. Only once before he had spent the night beside a hospital bed, sitting in a hard chair in a darkened room as he watched his twin die. Thinking about it now brought back the ache of his ancient grief that had shaped the rest of his life. He was tired of keeping vigil at hospital beds of people he cared about. It was so unfair that it happened to good people. Casey was only a child. Rafael was just trying to save lives. At least he could do that without endangering himself, Casey never had a choice…

“Uggghhhnn…”

Matthew’s eyes flew open and he jumped to his feet.

“Rafael?!”

Rafael turned towards Matthew as he groaned and his eyes fluttered open. Beyond relieved, Matthew grabbed his hand.

“You’re awake!”

“I think so…Matthew?”

“Yeah, it’s me,” Matthew said, squeezing Rafael’s hand as Rafael’s eyes focused on him. “Do you remember what happened?”

“I was…at work…there was…something happened at the subway…I guess I was hurt?”

“You threw yourself into a collapsing tunnel, you idiot!” Matthew burst. He shouldn’t be calling patients idiots, but he couldn’t think straight.

Rafael didn’t seem to mind. He just gave a guilty smile.

“Sure sounds like me,” he sighed. He tried to sit up, but yelped in pain and lay back down, cautiously feeling the bandages on his stomach. “Uhh…did I have surgery?” he asked. The pain had woken him up properly.

“You had major surgery,” Matthew nodded. He tried to act casual. “And, uh, surgical was short-staffed so I had to help.”

“Hold on…you were in here?”

“Oh yeah. Wrist deep, actually.”

“Damn, that’s…intimate.” Rafael laughed weakly.

Matthew smiled. “Stop laughing. You’ll pop a stitch.”

The idea of popping a stitch through laughter only made Rafael laugh harder. It was kind of funny…until his laughter became a series of painful coughs and Matthew remembered how scary the situation was. As Rafael calmed down, Matthew teared up.

“Hey…what’s wrong?”

“I just…” Matthew sniffed and blinked. “I keep thinking about how your face looked when you came in. Rafael…you can’t keep doing this to yourself.”

“What? My job?”

“It isn’t your job to die for your patients!”

“But it is my job to save them.”

“You can’t save everyone,” Matthew reminded him, desperately. He’d had a hell of a time accepting it himself.

Rafael was non-plussed. “I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night if I didn’t at least try.”

“But what if trying kills you?”

“Then I’ll die well.”

Matthew cringed, having to turn away for a moment. He trembled with distress. How could Rafael be so accepting of the idea that he had to trade his life for someone elses? He was important too. How could he not believe that?

When Matthew turned back to Rafael, there was sadness in Rafael’s kind eyes.

“Matthew, I am who I am. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Matthew couldn’t think of what to say to that, besides, he didn’t trust himself to speak calmly. Rafael watched him warily, not wanting to upset him…but also not changing his mind. They stared at each other for a few seconds until movement at the door caught Matthew’s attention. Bryce was there.

“I’m…I’m gonna see what Bryce wants,” Matthew muttered, picking up his backpack. “Get some rest, OK?”

“Sure,” Rafael said, a tiny bit disappointed as Matthew left the room to join Bryce outside.

“Man, you look exhausted,” Matthew said, gently. “Have you been in surgery this whole time?”

“I’ve been on three more since I saw you last,” Bryce grinned. His hair was greased with sweat but he looked like he was having the time of his life. “Today’s been insane.”

“It sure has,” Matthew said, wearily. He glanced back into Rafael’s room, watching him wince in pain as he reached for the TV remote.

“Hey.” Bryce laid a sympathetic hand on Matthew’s shoulder. “Chief Emery caught me up with Rafael’s condition, and he’s gonna be fine. Barring any complications, he’ll make a full recovery. Superman’ll be back to running into burning buildings and saving kittens from trees in no time.”

Matthew rolled his eyes but smiled.

“That’s great news, Bryce.”

The two of them started wandering slowly down the corridors.

“Looking exhausted yourself, Matthew.”

“Today has been pretty stressful.”

“When did your shift end?”

“…Couple hours ago?”

Bryce chuckled, but then grew serious. “Is Landrat at your apartment? I can put you up if you don’t want to see him for a while.”

“You know about all that?”

“Elijah told me. I really didn’t have him pegged as that kind of guy. I mean, what kind of person can just lie like that?” Bryce looked angry as they started walking again. Matthew thought about the investigation.

“I’m lying like that.”

“Wha--? C’mon, you’re lying to protect yourself!” Bryce spluttered.

It didn’t feel that way sometimes.

Matthew sighed, and leaned against the wall. He really needed to rest his feet.

“If I get through this with my career intact…and that’s a big if…I’m going to play by the rules from now on.”

“What?!” It was as if Matthew had announced he was leaving medicine to join a travelling circus. “You can’t be serious!”

“I am if it means I get to keep being a doctor.”

“But fighting for what’s right is what makes you a great doctor!” Bryce argued. “Mrs Martinez wouldn’t want you to change, or surrender. She’d want you to keep helping people stuck in the system.”

Matthew pondered that. He had never forgotten how Mrs Martinez’s eyes had shone with hope when Matthew procured her treatment. The photo on the fridge was a daily reminder that during her last few days, she had experienced freedom like nothing else.

“You’re right,” he said. “I guess Mrs Martinez would want me to keep fighting for my patients.”

“I don’t think you could stop if you tried. You’re not a robot.”

Matthew thought of Landry moving smoothly between patients, never losing focus or getting upset.

“Sometimes it feels like robots would make the best doctors,” he said.

“Nah. Someone like Landry or Jackie can fix them up, but it takes someone like you to really heal them.” Bryce was completely serious as he leaned against the wall beside Matthew. “Ask Rafael if you don’t believe me.”

Matthew blushed a little.

“I’m gonna stay with Rafael a bit longer,” he decided. “I got kind of upset with him just now, and should apologise.”

“He was in bad shape, of course you’d be upset. I’m sure he’ll forgive you,” Bryce said. He gave Matthew a big hug. “Just make sure you get some sleep tonight too. And if it’s any consolation, that was some of the best appendix stapling I’ve ever seen!”

It was a silly attempt, but it cheered Matthew up as they pulled away. “Thanks. It was cool to watch you in surgery too. I pity the ones who will have to compete with you someday.”

Bryce laughed and sauntered away with a wave. Matthew returned it, before knocking on Rafael’s door and poking his head round. Rafael, who had been watching TV with disinterest, suddenly perked up.

“Hey. What are you doing back here?”

“Keeping you company.”

“You need to sleep—”

“I need to make sure you’re OK. And that includes making sure you don’t die of loneliness and boredom.” Matthew tossed his backpack aside and sat back in the chair. “And I’m not taking no for an answer.”

Rafael grinned. If it weren’t for the bandages he would have looked perfectly healthy. Matthew reached over and covered his hand with his own.

“Listen…I’m really sorry I snapped at you earlier. It was unprofessional of me: you’re a patient, and my personal feelings shouldn’t get in the way of your recovery.”

Rafael blinked, and his grin softened as he turned his palm to intertwine their fingers. “I forgive you, but you have nothing to apologise for.”

Matthew didn’t realise he was nervous until his chest loosened. He blushed and cleared his throat.

“So, do you have any plans for tonight?”

“Well, of all the many options available to me in the hospital, I thought I’d watch some TV.” Rafael flicked through a few channels. “Hey, here we go! Boston Community Television always delivers.”

A man and a woman were passionately kissing on the screen.

“You watch soap operas?” Matthew sniggered.

“Nooo, this is a telenovela. They’re way better than soap operas. I used to watch them with my mom and my avo when I was home sick from school. This one in particular is The Burning Desires of Desiree Oliveiro. It’s my avo’s favourite.”

He always spoke so fondly of his family, and Matthew already knew how much his grandmother loved him.

“Will your family come to visit you?”

“Sure, when I tell them.”

Harper hadn’t got round to it yet: she had decided to wait at least until she knew Rafael had woken up.

“You haven’t told them yet? I could call them for you,” Matthew offered, but Rafael shook his head.

“Let them sleep. I’ll call them in the morning.”

Matthew nodded. Sleep sounded good. It sounded comfortable.

“Is there room for two on that bed?”

Rafael looked at him, a hopeful smirk playing at the corner of his mouth.

“Only if you’re willing to get up close and personal.”

“That was kind of the plan.”

“OK, hang on…”

“Be careful…”

Matthew held his breath as Rafael shifted to the side, wincing. Maybe it was a stupid idea…but then he held out his arm invitingly, and that decided it. Matthew pulled off his shoes.

“Please tell me if this hurts you.”

He carefully climbed into bed beside Rafael – who didn’t bat an eyelid – and sighed in relief as he finally took the weight completely off his feet. He cuddled into the warmth and rested his head on Rafael’s shoulder as Rafael tucked his arm around him. They’d never shared a bed before. He was very comfortable.

“If this is the result, I should get myself into trouble more often,” Rafael joked. He regretted it immediately when Matthew groaned and covered his face.

“Don’t even joke about that,” Matthew said, thickly. “I thought you were dead when I saw you on that stretcher.”

His voice broke, and he hid his face in the crook of Rafael’s neck as his tears started to fall. Rafael was so close and comforting…and had very nearly been wiped out from Matthew’s life. Matthew cared about him so much, he never wanted to say goodbye like that again.

“I’m sorry I scared you,” Rafael said, genuinely remorseful as he tightened his arm around Matthew’s shaking shoulders. He pressed his cheek to Matthew’s head, not caring that it caused him pain: Matthew was worth it.

Matthew sniffled and wiped his eyes as he pulled back to look at Rafael.

“It’s tough seeing any patient that way, but it’s different with you. I really like you, Rafael. I couldn’t bear losing someone I have feelings for.”

A huge smile lit up Rafael’s face, so bright that it washed away his injuries.

“You…you have feelings for me?” he asked, breathlessly.

Matthew was pleased Rafael had reacted like that, but it was slightly unnerving. Literally everyone had teased him about his crush on Rafael. Heck, Sienna had known it before he had.

“Has that not been obvious?”

Rafael laughed shyly, dropping his gaze and pressing his forehead to Matthew’s. “I didn’t want to assume anything…but I hoped you felt the same way as I did.”

He gave Matthew a gentle squeeze and pressed his lips to his forehead. This simple action said more than words could ever say. Matthew closed his eyes, focusing on nothing else except the two of them entwined in that hospital bed. He felt like he’d spent so long trying to focus on something that wasn’t grief, and now he had something that he wanted to hold on to forever.

A loud scream erupted from the TV, making them both jump, as a younger woman slapped an older woman in the face, shrieking obscenities in Portuguese. Matthew’s heart was beating hard, not just from romance anymore; he’d almost leapt off the bed, thinking it was something terrible.

“What just happened?”

Rafael watched for a few seconds, then chuckled. “This is the part where Desiree found out  her husband has been sleeping with her terminally ill mother.”

“Damn.” Matthew settled back into Rafael’s side. “I thought my life was dramatic.”

“What? Why?” Rafael winced as he hastened to turn off the sound. “What else has happened?”

Matthew reached for Rafael’s hand as he explained Landry’s role in the sabotage and the investigation.

“Landry’s been sabotaging you?” Rafael shook his head. “You know, I never really trusted that guy.”

“Really? Why?”

“I saw him in the ER a couple of times. Every time he treated a patient, it seemed like he was weighing up what they could do for him. He always just struck me as a kind of selfish guy. I didn’t say anything because I knew he was your friend…but I’m sorry if that made it worse. Speaking up might have helped.”

“No, don’t apologise,” Matthew sighed. “Some people are just…like that.”

His eyes narrowed as he remembered Matthew dismissing patients fears in an already scary situation, but then it got him thinking about all the other patients that had come through the ER that day, whether they got all the help they needed. He shivered and curled up beside Rafael, resting an arm over his chest, avoiding his bandages but needing to be close.

“Hey, you’re OK,” Rafael murmured, rubbing his back.

“I should be comforting you—”

“No. I slept through the worst of it. You look like you’ve got the weight of the world on your shoulders.”

“I just…wish I could have had time for everyone today. Y’know how it is when you need to move as fast as possible, but someone’s got a fear of hospitals and another can’t find their child, and everyone wants to get in touch with someone?”

“Like we can’t do everything we can, even though that’s what we’re supposed to do?” Rafael suggested, and Matthew nodded glumly.

“I’ve been asking, and the little girl you saved got reunited with her dad,” Matthew smiled at Rafael proudly. “I think everyone who could be saved got the treatment they needed…I hated having them wait for so long though.”

“I know. But it sounds like you’ve done everything you can,” Rafael said, kindly. “But how are you feeling about the investigation?”

“I hate lying, and I’m drawing out the whole process and just wasting a lot of peoples time, and what’s it all for?”

“For you to keep a career that you’ll use to save thousands of patients,” Rafael said, as if that was obvious. “If I could, I’d tell the chief how much I agree with what you did for Mrs Martinez. I’m sure a lot of people would.”

“You didn’t see the way people looked at me today. I felt like a murderer.”

“You’re not. You should be proud of what you did for Mrs Martinez. I know I am, no matter the cost.”

He had so much faith, Matthew was taken aback. Tears pricked his eyes again; he truly was the luckiest man in the world. He moved with caution to kiss him.

“I won’t joke about how it was worth being crushed by rubble just to kiss you.”

“Thank you.”

“…But for the record it was.”

Matthew rolled his eyes, and he kissed Rafael again, more passionately, starting to get a little carried away until the door opened and they sprang apart, cheeks flaming. Sarah stood in the doorway looking faintly amused.

“Are you hungry, Raf? I’ve got some food here.”

“Thanks,” Rafael said, as Matthew hopped off the bed and prepared a side table for Sarah to place the covered dish.

“Holistic patient care?” she whispered to him with a smirk.

“Quiet,” Matthew grinned, and she giggled as she left the room. It was nice to have her on his side again.

Rafael lifted the lid and couldn’t stop his face from falling at the contents: a slab of shepherds pie, with at least two inches of mashed potato on a slither of lamb. There was no sauce of any kind, and certainly no butter on the potatoes. Matthew highly doubted there was any kind of seasoning at all.

“This is…not very appetising,” Rafael summarised. “How long do I have to stay here again?”

“A week or so. But don’t despair, I have the world’s greatest invention!”

He pulled out his phone with a flourish and opened a take-out app.

“Thank god for you,” Rafael beamed. “Isn’t this a hundred percent against hospital policy?”

“Whatever. Harper Emery can add it to my list of indiscretions.” Matthew might have appeared cool, but he couldn’t help glancing over his shoulder should she appear. “C’mon, what do you fancy?”

Rafael asked for “anything with flavour and texture” and Matthew scrolled through the lists of world cuisine. His sensible brain was telling him to go easy as Rafael had just woken up from a major stomach surgery. On the other hand, he wanted to give him anything he wanted…and then he found something that looked perfect.

He didn’t know much about Brazilian food and had ordered a selection: chicken coxinha, cheese bread, feijoada and brigadeiros. Rafael breathed in the smell of food with a happy sigh.

“Feijoada and cheese bread! Oh, how did you know this is exactly what I need?”

“Lucky guess,” Matthew said airily, secretly thrilled.

“You’re amazing.”

Rafael dug into the food with enthusiasm, taking a huge bite and moaning in delight. Matthew couldn’t help laughing.

“You know you sound kind of…horny when you eat?”

Rafael didn’t seem too fussed: “As my avo says, food and sex should both be enjoyed without shame.”

“Wait, your grandma says that to you?”

“Vovó says everything on her mind to everyone. It’s a good philosophy,” Rafael chuckled.

Matthew cracked open two bottles of iced tea and handed him one.

“Thanks.” Rafael took a small mouthful and glanced back at Matthew. “You know, this wasn’t quite what I had in mind when I suggested we get something to eat after work.”

“Oh god, that was today too,” Matthew gasped. His breakdown felt like a week ago. Rafael squeezed his hand.

“Are you feeling better?”

“Much.” It was funny how the worst working day of his life could turn into such a wonderful night.

“Good.” Rafael indicated the spread. “Now, eat something!”

Matthew hadn’t thought about it, but the smell of food made him realise he was completely starving. He bit into a piece of coxinha: tender chicken with a bit of cheese and a good hint of spice.

“These are good,” he said, chewing appreciatively. “Do you make these at home or anything?”

“I do actually. I take it someone’s a fan?”

“Perhaps,” Matthew smiled. “Hey, how was your mom’s birthday?”

“It was really nice. We saw a revival of The Tempest at the theatre and went out for a meal together. It was just nice to spend time with my family without having to think about work.”

“I think you’ll have some more time for that now,” Matthew said, pointedly.

“I know,” Rafael chuckled at the irony. “How was Martha’s Vineyard?”

“Nice. Relaxing. Although it only seemed to work for about five minutes.”

They continued talking and laughing as they shared the food (“How do the brigadeiros compare?” “Well, obviously Juliana’s are the superior ones.”) until Rafael’s eyes slowly started to close.

“I should let you rest,” Matthew said, reluctantly standing to clear their rubbish. “I’ll come by again at some point on shift tomorrow.”

“That’d be nice,” Rafael said, sleepily. “Get home safe. Thanks for keeping me company.”

“The pleasure’s all mine,” Matthew said, giving him a lingering kiss on the forehead.

The adrenaline had gone and he already felt like he was sleepwalking as he stumbled through his apartment and into his bedroom, where he stripped down and collapsed onto his bed. Images of the day kept flitting through his mind as he fell deeper and deeper asleep. Jackie’s advice…Landry’s confession…the triage…Rafael’s injury… When his alarm went off a few hours later, he had made up his mind.

[casspurrjoybell-25]

Skating on Thin Ice - Chapter 10 - Part 2

*Warning Adult Content*

Elijah Ellis

"What are you doing here?"

Trevor's eyes widened as if my words had reminded him that he came here with a purpose.

He fumbled taking something out of his pocket and shoving it toward me. 

I looked down at the item Trevor presented to me and saw that it was a rainbow colored bracelet.

It was different colored strings tied together in an intricate design.

"We made these at GSA today and the club thought it would be a good idea to make one for you," Trevor rushed out.

"To wish you good luck for your away games this weekend."

I grinned at him, taking the bracelet from his hand to get a better look at it.

"It's great. Thanks, Trevor."

He nodded and returned my smile, holding up his wrist to show me his similar bracelet.

I wouldn't call the two bracelets matching but it was obvious that Trevor had made both of them.

"Want to tie it on for me?" I asked, presenting Trevor my wrist and holding out the bracelet for him to take.

He quickly nodded and began tying the bracelet.

"Is that too loose?" he asked me before finishing the knot, looking up at me with a strange expression.

"No."

Trevor finished off the knot and took a step away from me.

I smiled down at the bracelet, that now handsomely decorated my wrist, and then looked over at Trevor whose face was flushed pink.

"I should probably get going," Trevor announced after a moment of silence.

"Okay."

Trevor seemed to be having a debate with himself in his head.

After a moment he rushed toward me and pulled me into an unexpected hug.

I stumbled backward slightly and put one of my arms around him, shocked at his action.

"Good luck," he whispered in my ear before pulling away, looking slightly embarrassed.

I awkwardly scratched the back of my neck in discomfort.

"Thanks, Trevor. See you Monday," and with that, he gave me a small wave and exited my room.

My eyes stayed glued to the doorway where he left for a few moments before Dad appeared there.

"There was no funny business up here, right?" Dad asked, looking around my room as if he would find any evidence.

I let out an annoyed sigh.

"No, Dad."

He warily glanced at me as if he was deciding on whether he wanted to believe me.

"Okay," he replied after seeming to come to a conclusion in his mind.

"But just because you can't get pregnant doesn't mean I'm okay with you having boys up here with the door closed."

My whole body heat up at his words and my eyes shifted toward the ceiling so I wouldn't have to make eye contact with him.

"Got it," I stated, my posture rigid and uncomfortable, matching the way I felt at that moment.

"Good," Dad replied, clearing his throat.

"Goodnight, Elijah. Get some rest."

I nodded.

"Goodnight."

Thankfully after that, my Dad left the room and I could leave my spot in the center of the floor and make my way over to my bed.

Nothing could mortify me more than my father talking about my sex life.

However, the unexpected gesture of affection from Trevor was also a source of my discomfort for the night.

I decided I shouldn't read too much into the incident with Trevor.

There should be nothing strange about a hug, yet here I was obsessing over what hidden meanings and implications it could have.

It was just a friendly hug.

It didn't take long for me to fall asleep once I shut off the thoughts in my mind.

********

Joshua and I were running late, I didn't know how it happened but we were both scrambling to get ready this morning and barely made it out of the house on time.

It was made clear to us that the bus would be leaving no later than nine-thirty and that we were supposed to meet at the school at nine to avoid anyone missing the bus.

It was currently nine-twenty and Joshua and I were still a ways away from the school.

He was breaking just about every traffic law I could think of to ensure we would make it to that damn bus on time and I let him.

I didn't want to face the wrath of our coaches or worse, Fox Ridley.

I held onto the handle above my seat and Joshua whipped around a corner, causing me to slam into the passenger door.

Joshua pulled into the parking lot at nine-twenty-eight and the two of us quickly grabbed our things and sprinted over to the bus where our team was already boarded.

We threw our bags into the storage compartment of the bus before rushing to get on.

"You were supposed to be here at nine," Fox said in an irritated tone as Joshua and I ran up the steps of the bus.

I ignored him while Josh said...

"We're here, aren't we?" Joshua and I sat down across from Fox and Ian toward the front of the bus.

Everyone else was chatting and didn't even notice our late arrival but of course, Fox would be the one to notice like he noticed everything.

I leant my head against the window and put my headphones in, closing my eyes and hoping to get some more sleep for the hour and a half long drive.

It seemed as though I was only asleep for a few minutes when I felt somebody shoving my shoulder lightly.

The force startled me, causing me to shoot straight up in my seat.

"We gotta go to practice," Joshua told me, standing in the aisle and leaning toward me.

As he stood in the aisle, Joshua was holding up the line of our team behind him and causing a chorus of protests and sounds of annoyance.

I nodded at him, throwing my head back with a yawn.

Joshua headed off the bus a few moments later while I gathered myself.

"Let's go, Ellis," Ryan said, smacking my bus seat as he walked by.

I heaved myself up off the seat and made my way off the bus and into the rink where the rest of my team was after getting my hockey bag from the storage compartment.

I quickly got ready in the locker room before making my way to the ice and skating around with some of my teammates while the rest of the team got ready.

I was still tired from my sleep, my eyes feeling heavy.

This was going to be a long practice if I couldn't keep my eyes open.

********

Practice was brutal but it seemed like that was always going to be the case.

When Coach Silva and Merton decided to end it, they brought us to center ice to tell us who we would be rooming with once we got to the hotel.

Of course, I was stuck with Fox, Ian, and Joshua.

The hotel was just five minutes away from the rink and everyone excitedly ran up to their rooms, probably happy to be away from adult supervision for a few hours.

I lazily followed behind Fox, Ian and Joshua into the elevator and then down the hall on the third floor to our room.

Fox opened our door and the four of us went in, Joshua and Ian running to fight for the bed by the window.

"I called it on the bus, Joshua," Ian snapped, lying back on the bed and shoving Joshua away with his foot.

"You know I need to be near the window," Josh complained.

"Can't we share?"

My eyes widened at his words and I quickly shook my head, though nobody was looking at me.

My words were lodged in my throat and I was stuck in a panic.

"You're sharing with your brother," Fox cut in, dropping his bag next to the bed by the window.

I silently thanked him and let out a breath of relief as I sat down on the bed that Joshua and I would be sharing.

If I had to share a bed with Fox, I would have ended up on the floor.

Joshua let out a long sigh before sitting down on the bed beside me and throwing himself back so he was lying down.

I took two pillows on the bed and set up a barrier in the middle, similar to what Ian was doing on his bed.

It was such a straight guy thing to do but it was a force of habit I gained from my old team.

After setting up our barrier and taking my shoes off, I lied back on the bed.

When my head hit the pillow, I crossed my hands on my stomach and began to doze off.

"Are you seriously going to sleep again?" I heard Joshua ask me.

I could feel that he was leaning over the pillow barrier, disregarding it's purpose.

"That's what I'm about to do," Ian said.

"You already slept on the bus this morning," Joshua told me, completely ignoring Ian.

"Wake me up when we need to go," I replied, keeping my eyes closed.

Joshua didn't reply and soon a comfortable slumber consumed me.

[casspurrjoybell-19]

Does it Matter? - Chapter 67 - Part 3

*Warning Adult Content*

"We'll get Brayan's sword cleaned for him so that he can have it with him," Elijah promised.

"We need to keep everything clean to keep him safe, so I'm sure you won't mind waiting while we do that."

"Oh, sure, just clean it..." the woman muttered under her breath as she left, shooting Eliah a disapproving glance.

"I know you're confused," Elijah said softly, watching Bug stare at Brayan.

"But you see now, don't you? We're doing everything we can to help him. It's okay if you don't understand all of this but you know he wouldn't have survived without our intervention."

Bug nodded numbly.

Whatever their ultimate intentions, he believed they had helped Brayan.

It was undeniable.

"I'll bring you some food. Mae will stay with you and make sure you don't touch anything you shouldn't."

Bug didn't bother to respond.

All he could do was stand there and stare at Brayan as one breath followed the next.

He was such a strong man but all it had taken was one accident to reduce him to this, one minor detour along fate's path.

Like he was nothing.

Or maybe like he was everything because fate's path had brought them here.

Not everyone was so fortunate.

Fate wasn't some beautiful force that gave everyone a happy ending.

Some people just hit their heads and then they died and that was the end of their story.

Bug crept closer to Brayan's bedside and his fingertips brushed the back of Brayan's left hand.

His skin felt cool and clammy, alive but not alive enough.

Bug swallowed wetly and blinked back tears.

How was this just some minor detour along fate's path?

How could it be so cruel?

And yet, life was, wasn't it?

He had always known this to be true, only at times deluding himself into believing he was somehow special, protected from misfortune.

Had that been Elijah's doing all along?

Shielding him from other potential fates until steering him to the cruel path he needed him to go down to bring him here?

'Why?'

What was worth all of that?

Bug's hand gently squeezed Brayan's fingers.

Perhaps this man was the answer.

Brayan wouldn't agree, he'd say no love was worth Bug's suffering.

Maybe that was true.

Given the choice to start over, to pick a path with its outcome known, he might choose differently but now, with the price already paid?

He wouldn't wish it all away.

He wanted to be here when Brayan's eyes finally opened.

Yet love wasn't the driving force behind these events.

Bug had few answers but he was certain of that.

If any of them truly mattered in this, it was Maric and the power his position gave him.

Despite all of the surprises this place had thrown at him, that was still what made the most sense.

You didn't involve a Prince in these matters for no reason.

Or maybe you did.

Maybe even a Prince was insignificant to the cold eyes of fate but Bug doubted that.

He knelt beside the bed, seeking comfort in Brayan's familiar scent, only to find it masked by something sharp and unfamiliar that made his nose wrinkle.

The door opened but Bug's gaze remained fixed on Brayan until something cool touched his arm.

Elijah was offering him a large metal cup filled with a thick, creamy liquid.

The unfamiliar substance had a pale, slightly off-white colour and a faint, sweet smell that Bug couldn't quite place.

"Drink this," Elijah said softly.

"It will help you regain your strength."

Bug eyed the strange liquid warily.

It resembled no food or drink he'd ever encountered.

The smooth consistency reminded him vaguely of milk but it was too thick and the color was off.

He took the cup gingerly, surprised by its weight and peered inside.

Tiny bubbles clung to the sides and the surface barely rippled as he moved it.

He took a careful sip.

The liquid was cool and smooth on his tongue, its thickness coating his mouth with a rich, slightly sweet flavour.

There were notes of something nutty, almost creamy, mixed with an undertone he couldn't quite place... not unpleasant but entirely unfamiliar.

Though he knew he should be hungry, the idea felt foreign in that moment, as if eating wasn't something his body was meant to do.

The drink sat heavily in his stomach but he forced himself to take another sip.

He couldn't afford to become the one starving himself.

"Where is Brayan's sword?" he asked Elijah.

Elijah's hand settled on his shoulder.

"They're determining how to clean it properly without damaging the metal or leather. They want to do what they can for you, just as they did for Brayan. Do you understand?"

Bug gave a small nod, though he wasn't sure he understood anything anymore.

"This is challenging for them, as doctors," Elijah continued.

"Nobody knows your story like I do but they know enough. They understand what it cost for you to get here and not all would have made the same decision I did. Most of us have lived here our whole lives. The kind of suffering you experienced is foreign to us. It's a stain on us all."

Bug looked up at Elijah.

"And you won't even tell me what it was for."

Elijah's smile was tinged with sadness.

"No. Not until you have that man's arms around you. Not until his hand can grip a sword. I've done many cruel things to you but this isn't one of them. It wouldn't be fair to burden you with this when you're alone and vulnerable."

Bug's gaze returned to Brayan.

He had never seen him sleep in a way that seemed so unrestful.

"When he finds out it was you, he might use that sword."

"I know," Elijah replied, his voice level.

Bug looked back up, curiosity in his eyes.

"But you see fate, don't you? You already know whether he will or won't."

Elijah shook his head.

"I don't. My fate here is a minor twist in the tale, just as Brayan hitting his head was. Once I've told you what you need to know, my life no longer matters in the grand scheme of things. I am at peace with that. We all are."

Bug glanced back at the other bed where he'd left Mae to see if she was as okay with this as Elijah suggested but she wasn't there anymore.

When had she left the room?

Everything felt distant and not fully real.

Elijah settled on the floor beside Bug, his posture unexpectedly relaxed.

"Take another sip."

Bug had forgotten he was supposed to be drinking, so he obeyed.

Elijah nodded, waited and then repeated the instruction.

Somehow, this simple guidance made it easier for Bug to focus on the task at hand, anchoring him as his mind threatened to spiral.

He needed to eat.

For now, that was all he needed to do, all he could do.

He managed only half before his body rebelled but Elijah seemed satisfied.

Bug moved to the edge of the other bed, fatigue already creeping in.

"Sleep," Elijah encouraged.

"He won't wake. We've given him medicine to ensure that. It's safer for his brain."

Bug shook his head stubbornly.

"Not until he has his sword."

Elijah pulled a metal chair between the beds and sat.

"I'll stay until they bring the sword. I won't leave."

"Promise to wake me when they bring it," Bug insisted.

"You went to check on Brayan before but I fell asleep and you never came back and told me how he was."

"That was because you needed to rest," Elijah told him.

"But there will be plenty of opportunities for it and maybe you need other things more. I will wake you."

Surprisingly, Bug found he believed him.

He lay down, curling on his side to watch Brayan breathe.

Even with his eyes closed, he could hear the hiss of the machine aiding Brayan's breathing and the steady chirping he'd come to associate with Brayan's heartbeat.

As exhaustion claimed him, Bug let the sounds merge into a strange lullaby, a constant reminder that Brayan was still alive.

That they were both alive, for now.

[niphuial]

Finn's glazed eyes stared uncomprehendingly at Rebekah, tears running down his cheeks. "Shh, Elijah, I know it's not Mother's milk, but she's still upset about Freya. But it's okay. I'll take care of you. I'll feed you. You won't die, not like Freya, I promise. I managed to get work tomorrow under the Bennetts. Ayana just had a baby, and she said she'd nurse you if I brought you with me." He murmured, voice soft and gentle. "So you won't have goat's milk tomorrow."

_____

"Are you drunk?" Katerina asks, golden flecks appearing in her eyes as she settles back on the bed, watching Elijah warily. "You smell like you've been bathing in bourbon." She added, rubbing her forehead. "It's not helping my head," she muttered, but she remained seated beside him, "What's wrong? I know you're angry--but I did try to find my way home. And I did howl for help--multiple times, even." She sighed still rubbing her forehead. "And Lucian was going to take us home that night, but he fell. Like a fucking idiot." She snickered, shaking her head. "He knows I have no sense of direction while drunk, and we obviously need someone to check the Rookery when Lucian isn't here, since no one gets the mail when he isn't here to get it, nor listen to the raven's reports."

this would be fun to watch

[r-memberme]

argument | k.m

⎯⎯His smirk is slow, predatory. “I could steal someone else’s drink for you.”

warnings: flufffff

The room is tense, thick with the remnants of your irritation and Klaus’ perpetual amusement. You stand with your arms crossed, weight shifted onto one hip, glaring at him like you could set him aflame with sheer willpower. He, on the other hand, is lounging effortlessly on the couch, one arm draped over the back, legs stretched out like he owns not only the furniture but the entire damn world.

“You are absolutely insufferable,” you declare, your voice sharp, biting.

Klaus doesn’t even flinch. If anything, the corners of his mouth twitch, like he’s trying not to smirk. “Oh, come now, love. That’s a bit dramatic.”

“You stole my drink.”

“It was a taste.”

“You finished it.”

Klaus tilts his head in mock consideration, lips pursing slightly. “A rather generous taste, then.”

Your breath escapes in an exasperated huff, hands thrown up in disbelief. “You are the worst person I have ever met.”

Klaus lets out a low chuckle, slow and deliberate, like he’s savoring the very idea. “Oh, don’t be ridiculous. You’ve met my siblings.”

“That doesn’t make you any better.”

“Doesn’t it?” He stands now, stretching, a lazy, feline sort of motion—one meant to take up space, to exude confidence. “Because I’m fairly certain I rank higher than Kol. And Elijah, while insufferably noble, does not have my charm.”

You squint at him. “You think you have charm?”

His eyes gleam. “Oh, I know I do.”

You turn away from him with a scoff, trying to maintain your irritation, but he follows, trailing in your wake like a persistent shadow.

“You still owe me a drink,” you say, refusing to look at him, arms folded again.

Klaus hums behind you, a sound that somehow feels dangerous. “Or… I could make it up to you.”

You glance over your shoulder warily. “How?”

His smirk is slow, predatory. “I could steal someone else’s drink for you.”

You stare at him.

He stares back, looking far too pleased with himself.

And, God help you, you laugh. You bite it back almost immediately, pressing your lips together, but it’s too late. Klaus’ smirk widens, victorious, as if making you laugh was the entire goal from the beginning.

“See?” he murmurs, leaning in, voice rich with amusement. “You do adore me.”

You school your expression into something unimpressed, but it’s a losing battle. “I tolerate you,” you correct.

Klaus places a hand over his heart, feigning deep offense. “Tolerate? How cruel.”

You shake your head, stepping back, but he follows. His eyes glint, wolfish and teasing.

“One day,” you tell him, pointing a finger in warning, “I will win an argument against you.”

Klaus tilts his head, voice dropping just slightly. “I’d like to see you try, love.”

And you swear, one of these days, you will.

another short one <3

[morningstargirl666]

If we can’t have little Klaus just yet, then maybe you could share your favorite line or paragraph you’ve written so far? As long as it’s not super spoilery, of course! No pressure.

I mean, I'm pretty proud of this new exchange between Klaus and Henrik:

Niklaus glanced warily around them, keeping his eyes out for any flashes of wolf-yellow. “Wasn’t Kol supposed to be watching you?”

“He disappeared deeper into the caves with Ingrid - said he had better things to do than entertaining me,” Henrik said, mouth twisting with disgust. “I didn’t stick around to hear them going at it like rabbits.”

Niklaus’ scowl deepened, silently telling himself he really shouldn’t be surprised.

“Remind me to murder our brother the next time I see him.”

Henrik scoffed a laugh. “Like your meetings with Tatia Ulricksdottir in the middle of the night are completely innocent-”

“I haven’t touched her,” he snarled, jerking Henrik forward a little more forcefully than before.

The grin on his younger brother’s face could only be described as downright devilish. Kol’s influence, he was sure. “But you have kissed her.”

They slammed to halt. Niklaus stared at Henrik with wide, surprised eyes. “How do you even know that?”

“Kol said you were smiling like a fool a few days ago. I added that up with the way Elijah kept glaring at your head at dinner and made an educated guess,” he said with a shrug. Then his smile widened, eyes brightening with childlike curiosity that was slightly too innocent to be genuine. “Was she good? At kissing? Kol says most girls are shy, but Tatia doesn’t seem the type.”

Niklaus turned away, yanking Henrik forward again without a word.

“What? She’s already been married once, right, so she knows what the kissing leads to-”

“Gods have mercy,” Niklaus muttered under his breath.

“All I’m saying is to be careful, Nik, you know, responsible-”

“Henrik.”

“Yeah?”

Niklaus leaned down, hissing his next words out through his teeth, right in his brother’s face. “Not. One. More. Word.”

Slowly, Henrik dropped the innocent act, that bright smile melting into a smirk. “About the kissing? Or what the kissing leads to?” Niklaus cuffed him round the ear for his insolence, not that it made a difference. The idiot wouldn’t stop bloody smiling.

[mikaels0n-elijah-writing]

Elijah grinned. He loved her obedience, loved how she questioned nothing and did everything he asked of her. There was a warning voice somewhere in his head, but not nearly loud enough to get through to him.

He leant down a little, brushing his lips against her ear. “Yes, show me what you can do, “ he breathed softly so that only she could hear. Would she really put the people here in danger? He watched her warily. He would stop her from actually harming anyone in the end - it would be too conspicuous and he didn't want that - but he wanted to see her willingness. The sparkle in her eyes when she reached for her magic, which was so unique.

There’s a bit of her that returns, now that their eyes aren’t making direct contact, but it’s not enough. No, Rain is still completely under his spell, following behind him without any kind of resistance. It’s the opposite, actually, she makes sure to keep moving so she won’t slow him down.

“Of course.” Oh, she hasn’t used her powers for anything real in such a long time. There is an excitement that comes with this, a side of her kept long dormant that loved to be used for them. It was her original reason for existing in the first place.

“Would you like me to give you a little taste?” She leans forward to whisper in his ear, wondering if he feels any of what she does. The excitement, the warmth. “I want to be whatever you need.”

[elijahgray]

Elijah hovered near the edges of the party. He wasn’t really the party type, and this certainly hadn’t been his idea-- though his fellow councilmembers from the Southern Plains had been quite keen on the idea of promoting unity. Elijah only thought it could end in disaster. He remained vigilant, near the doorway, watching the crowd warily for signs of trouble, a scowl tugging at his mouth. Someone neared him, and he tried to avoid eye contact or acknowledgement, even as they seemed clearly interested in some kind of interaction. While he knew he should be a little more social, now being a representative of the people and what not, he wasn’t in a great mood tonight, nor was he going to be anyone’s idea of a good time. He was doing them a favor.

[casspurrjoybell-25]

Skating on Thin Ice - Chapter 5 - Part 2

*Warning - Adult Content*

Elijah Ellis

"How about some lunch?" Dad asked once we were all in the car.

"I could go for some food," Joshua replied, staring down at his phone in the backseat.

I wasn't necessarily in the mood for lunch, feeling like I had just eaten.

Not only that but my stomach was queasy from the uncomfortable situation that had just taken place a few moments before but I didn't say anything as Dad drove in the opposite direction of our house to go to a restaurant.

We were seated right away when we got to the restaurant.

Joshua and I sat on one side of the booth with Dad across from us.

Our waiter came over to the table moments after we sat down with a wide, friendly smile on his face.

"Hello. I'm Gabe and I'll be your server today. Can I start you off with something to drink?" Gabe asked kindly, letting his eyes linger on me for an extra second.

It didn't take me long to notice the rainbow pin attached to his apron.

My Dad eyed Gabe warily, noticing the boy look at me suggestively.

I prayed he wouldn't say anything about it, but knowing my father, he would.

"I'll have an iced tea," Dad answered, snatching Gabe's attention away from me.

Joshua and I both answered that we would have water before Gabe gave me one last smile and walked away to get our drinks.

"He was flirting with you," Dad said, wasting no time in bringing up our waiter's behavior.

"What?" I asked quizzically.

"No he wasn't."

"It kinda seemed like it, dude," Joshua said with a shrug.

"Can't take you anywhere, huh?" he joked.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Dad asked, his eyes wide.

"Nothing..."

"Didn't you see the cashier giving him the eyes at the sports store?" Joshua teased with a smirk, cutting me off.

"He did?" Dad wondered, seeming to be out of the loop.

"No," I said at the same time Joshua said...

"Yes."

I glared at my stepbrother as Gabe came back with our drinks, his smiling seeming to never have left his face.

"Are you guys ready to order or do you need a few more minutes?" he asked kindly.

"I think we need a few more minutes," Dad replied quickly, causing Gabe to tell us he would be back in a few moments when we were ready.

"What happened with the guy at the store?" Dad asked Joshua and I as soon as Gabe was out of earshot.

The two of them looked at me expectantly as if waiting for me to start explaining.

"Don't say nothing," Joshua warned with a knowing look.

"I saw him looking at you."

I blew out a long, frustrated breath and threw my head back in annoyance.

Dad and Joshua continued staring at me as if they weren't going to let me get out of telling them what went on with Tyler.

"He was just a guy I used to see," I grumbled, taking a sip of my water and biting down on the straw.

"You dated him?" Dad asked, sounding astonished while Josh just sent a smirk my way.

I shook my head.

"Not really dated."

I almost died on the spot at the weird tension in the air as my father connected the dots with what I was saying.

This was the absolute last thing I wanted to talk to my father about.

I would rather us never talk about my sex life together ever.

"He means they hooked up, Dan," Joshua teased, calling my dad by his name.

Dad grimaced.

"I got that, thanks Joshua," he replied sarcastically.

Joshua chuckled.

"I was just making sure you understood."

"Can we stop talking about this now?" I cut in, probably looking as embarrassed as I felt.

Both Dad and Josh dropped the conversation and picked up their menus to figure out what they wanted to eat.

The rest of lunch went by smoothly.

Dad asked Joshua and I about hockey and school and we talked to him about what was going on in our lives.

It was much less disconcerting than the conversation we had earlier.

When we finished our food, Dad ordered some take out for Mandy and Ava, knowing the two of them would be angry if he didn't.

"So, the hockey team is treating you well, Elijah?" Dad asked, sipping on his iced tea.

I swallowed the water in my mouth before answering...

"I think they're still adjusting to me but it's going fine."

Dad nodded in understanding.

"Just let me know if anyone gives you any trouble. I want you to be safe here."

"Coach Silva and Ridley won't allow any bullying," Joshua interjected, reassuring my father.

"And I won't either."

"So Fox Ridley is a good kid, huh?" Dad wondered, looking between Joshua and myself.

I let out a sarcastic, humorless laugh, causing the two of them to look at me.

I quickly changed my expression to appear to be more sincere than I felt.

"He's alright," I told them with a shrug.

"He can be kinda uptight sometimes," Joshua agreed with a nod.

"But he's a good guy, you just have to get to know him."

If only Joshua knew exactly how much I knew Fox Ridley.

Soon enough Gabe came back to our table with the take out and the three of us got up to leave.

As we were exiting the building, Joshua nudged me in the ribs with his elbow.

"You should go talk to him," he whispered so my dad couldn't hear.

The two of us looked back to see Gabe watching us as we left.

He looked away as soon as we made eye contact.

I shook my head and continued walking forward.

It wasn't that Gabe was unattractive, in fact, it was quite the opposite.

He wasn't necessarily my type but he was cute enough to interest me, I just didn't want to get caught up in anything now.

At the moment, I was focused on hockey and school and that was it.

The guys on the hockey team were okay with me being gay but who knew how they would react if I started toting around a new boyfriend.

For the moment, I was content being alone and trying to fit in rather than trying to get into a romantic relationship.

I had never had a real boyfriend before and I wasn't entirely sure I was ready for it and by the way my father acted today, I was sure he wasn't ready for it either.

[korribanarchive]

Breaking Points Chapter 10: Blood on the Stone

Rating:Mature Warnings:Graphic Depictions Of Violence

Fandoms:The Originals (TV), The Vampire Diaries & Related Fandoms

Pairing: Klaus Mikaelson x FOC

Preview under the cut!

“There a particular reason you insisted I meet you at this shady parking garage?” Gen asked as she stepped into the abandoned space and pulled off her sunglasses. 

“As I recall, Little Witch, you promised your loyalty,” Klaus quipped. “And I have need of someone loyal at my side in this trying time. Elijah’s-”

“Yes yes, Elijah’s turned against you, Rebekah’s plotting behind your back, all of New Orleans is planning your downfall,” Gen finished and sighed. “I mean what do you want me to be doing? Locator spell? Cloaking spell?”

“I trust you’ve learned useful things beyond your-- what did you call them…baby witch spells-- in your time studying the collection of grimoires I’ve graciously granted you access to,” Klaus replied. 

“You’d be correct,” she confirmed. “But what do you want me to do with them?” 

“I’ll be requiring your assistance in reclaiming something that’s rightfully mine.”

“And what’s that?”

“My kingdom.”

A dark blue car with heavily tinted windows pulled into the warehouse and Klaus seemed eager as the door opened and Josh stepped out. 

“Ah Joshua. Nice of you to return. I believe you’re acquainted with Genevra here so we can skip the formalities and get to the important information,” Klaus said. 

Gen sighed and offered a small smile to Josh. 

“Wait, you're bringing her?” he asked, his eyes warily going to Gen before turning back to Klaus. 

“Contrary to popular belief, I am actually a competent witch,” she quipped, moving to stand beside Klaus, noting the pinning stare he was giving Josh. “Now that information that Klaus is chomping at the bit for?”

“Right um look not to doubt either of your mad skills, but Marcel’s on high alert,” Josh said, swallowing at the stare Klaus was giving him. “He’s got like an army surrounding him. Might not be the best place to bring your mortal witch.”

“I believe the young Joshua has grown fond of you, Little Witch,” Klaus said with a lilt of amusement in his tone before his expression turned serious. “Now Joshua. I’m sure you can do better than that.”

Josh seemed to hesitate before he spoke again. “Look I… uh heard him arguing with Diego. He’s clearing out the compound for something. A date I think. That’s where Marcel will be.”

Klaus placed a hand on the young vampire’s shoulder. To anyone who didn’t know, this would be a heartwarming sight, but Gen knew Klaus well enough by now. She didn’t have to listen close to know what the hybrid was saying. The offer of a reward for faithful service followed by the threat of painful death for betrayal seemed a common theme with him. 

She moved to follow him out of the warehouse but Josh caught her hand making her turn. The look in his eyes said everything she needed to know. The coming evening was going to be a bloodbath. Whose blood that would be was yet to be seen.

“Gen,” he started to say. The rest of his words seemed to stick in his throat. Klaus was no doubt listening. “Be careful. Okay?”

Gen met his eyes and nodded, offering him a squeeze to the hand. “You too, Josh,” she said.

“Little Witch! We do have a schedule to keep!” 

“I gotta go, but… ya know if you need a hand after all this settles, give me a call. You have my number,” she said and hurried out the door. 

[empyreanchimera]

"I ah - I have to tell you something, but I'm not sure how to say it." <333

“...Are you about to have a feelin’ or are you about to piss me off.”