#Functions of Sales Management
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salestowns · 10 months ago
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Functions of Sales Management: A Comprehensive Guide
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Sales management is a critical aspect of any business, playing a vital role in driving revenue and ensuring the success of the organization. It involves overseeing a company’s Sales CRM  operations, setting strategic goals, and guiding the sales team to achieve them. The functions of sales management are multifaceted, involving planning, organizing, leading, and controlling the sales activities of an organization. This article will delve into these functions, exploring how they contribute to the overall growth and efficiency of a business.
What is Sales Management?
Sales management is the process of developing, implementing, and overseeing an organization’s sales strategy to drive revenue and achieve business goals. It encompasses a range of activities, from planning and organizing sales efforts to leading and controlling the sales team’s performance. Sales management plays a critical role in the success of a business, as it directly influences the company's revenue generation and market positioning.
Key Components of Sales Management
1. Sales Planning
Sales planning is the foundational function of sales management. It involves defining the strategies and tactics that will be used to achieve sales targets. This process begins with setting realistic and achievable sales objectives based on market research, customer needs, and business goals. Effective sales planning helps organizations allocate resources efficiently and focus on opportunities that will yield the highest returns.
Key elements of sales planning include:
Setting Sales Goals: Establishing clear, measurable, and time-bound objectives. These goals could be related to revenue, market share, customer acquisition, or product distribution.
Market Analysis: Understanding market trends, customer preferences, and competitive landscape to make informed decisions.
Sales Forecasting: Predicting future sales based on historical data, market conditions, and sales team input.
Budgeting: Allocating financial resources for sales activities, including salaries, incentives, marketing, and training.
Read also: Best CRM for small businesses
2. Organizing the Sales Team
Once a sales plan is in place, the next step is to organize the sales team to execute the plan effectively. This involves defining roles and responsibilities, establishing a clear chain of command, and ensuring that each team member has the necessary tools and resources to succeed.
Defining Sales Territories: Dividing the market into regions or segments to optimize coverage and reduce overlap. Assigning territories helps manage customer relationships and ensures that sales efforts are evenly distributed.
Sales Structure: Deciding on the structure of the sales team, whether it be geographic, product-based, or customer-based. The structure should align with the company’s goals and market strategy.
Recruitment and Selection: Hiring the right talent is crucial for sales success. Sales managers must identify candidates with the right skills, experience, and attitude to contribute to the team’s goals.
Resource Allocation: Ensuring that the sales team has access to necessary resources, such as CRM systems, sales tools, marketing materials, and training programs.
Read also: sales force management
3. Leading and Motivating the Sales Team
Effective leadership and motivation are essential for driving the performance of the sales team. Sales managers must provide direction, support, and encouragement to help their team members achieve their targets.
Setting Expectations: Clearly communicating sales goals, performance standards, and expectations to the team. Sales managers should ensure that everyone understands their role in achieving the company’s objectives.
Coaching and Mentoring: Providing regular feedback, guidance, and support to help sales representatives improve their skills and performance. This includes offering training programs and one-on-one coaching sessions.
Motivation: Keeping the sales team motivated through recognition, rewards, and incentives. This can include bonuses, commissions, contests, and other forms of recognition for top performers.
Building a Positive Culture: Fostering a positive and collaborative work environment where team members feel valued and supported. Encouraging open communication and teamwork can lead to higher job satisfaction and productivity.
Read Also: WhatsApp Automation
4. Sales Training and Development
Continuous training and development are essential for maintaining a high-performing sales team. The market landscape is constantly changing, and sales representatives need to be equipped with the latest knowledge and skills to stay competitive.
Product Knowledge: Ensuring that sales representatives have a deep understanding of the products or services they are selling. This includes features, benefits, competitive advantages, and how to address customer objections.
Sales Techniques: Teaching effective sales techniques, such as consultative selling, solution selling, and negotiation skills. Training should also cover customer relationship management and closing strategies.
Industry Trends: Keeping the sales team informed about industry trends, market developments, and changes in customer behavior. This helps them stay relevant and adapt their sales approach accordingly.
Technology Training: Familiarizing the sales team with the latest sales tools and technologies, such as CRM systems, sales analytics software, and communication platforms. This enhances their efficiency and productivity.
Read also: CRM in service sector
5. Sales Execution and Performance Monitoring
Sales execution involves putting the sales plan into action and ensuring that the team is working towards achieving the set objectives. Performance monitoring is critical to track progress and identify areas for improvement.
Setting Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): Defining KPIs to measure the success of sales activities. Common KPIs include sales revenue, conversion rates, customer acquisition cost, and average deal size.
Sales Reporting: Regularly reviewing sales reports to assess team performance, identify trends, and make data-driven decisions. Sales managers should analyze metrics such as sales volume, pipeline health, and win rates.
Performance Appraisals: Conducting regular performance reviews with sales representatives to provide feedback, set new goals, and address any issues. This helps in aligning individual performance with the company’s objectives.
Problem-Solving: Identifying challenges and obstacles that may hinder sales performance. Sales managers should work closely with their team to find solutions and remove barriers to success.
Read Also: Objective of CRM 
6. Sales Control and Evaluation
Sales control and evaluation are essential for ensuring that sales activities align with the company’s strategic goals. This function involves monitoring sales performance, comparing it against targets, and making adjustments as needed.
Sales Audit: Conducting periodic audits to evaluate the effectiveness of sales strategies, processes, and activities. This helps identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement.
Variance Analysis: Comparing actual sales results with forecasts and budgets to identify variances. Analyzing the reasons behind deviations helps in making necessary adjustments to sales strategies.
Feedback Loop: Establishing a feedback loop where sales representatives can share insights and suggestions for improving sales process. This fosters a culture of continuous improvement.
Corrective Actions: Implementing corrective actions based on the evaluation results to address performance gaps and enhance sales effectiveness.
Read also: CRM For Doctor 
7. Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Building and maintaining strong customer relationships is a key function of sales management. CRM involves managing interactions with existing and potential customers to enhance satisfaction and loyalty.
Customer Segmentation: Categorizing customers based on demographics, behavior, and preferences to tailor sales and marketing efforts.
Customer Engagement: Developing strategies to engage with customers at different stages of the sales cycle. This includes personalized communication, follow-ups, and providing exceptional customer service.
Feedback Collection: Gathering customer feedback to understand their needs, expectations, and satisfaction levels. This information can be used to improve products, services, and sales approaches.
Retention Strategies: Implementing strategies to retain existing customers, such as loyalty programs, special offers, and personalized support.
Read also: real estate crm india
Conclusion
Sales management is a multifaceted discipline that requires a strategic approach to planning, organizing, leading, and controlling sales activities. By understanding and effectively executing these functions, sales managers can drive sales growth, enhance team performance, and contribute to the overall success of the organization. The key lies in continuous learning, adaptation, and a commitment to fostering strong customer relationships and a motivated sales team.
Read More: 
Best Sales Company in India  
What is Sales Automation
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7fff00 · 2 months ago
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one of those 'extremely grateful for jarred indian sauces you can stick a protein and some veg into and eat over rice' sort of nights
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pandaspwnz · 9 months ago
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Whoever decided it was a good idea to bake a pie on a fucking wednesday afternoon is a goddamn clown and should be dropkicked into the sun
#🤡#it's me#god it was SO much more complicated than i thought!#i baked pie just a few weeks ago and there was no problem so i figured today would be the same but nooOoO#i can't function in a dirty kitchen so I had to do the dishes first and let my ingredients thaw as most are stuff i buy or gather on sale#and then use when i have energy or want to#but yeah i did the dishes for like an hour and a half yesterday so in my brain baking a pie would just be as easy as me going to the kitchen#and getting started! meanwhile i forgot mom cooked dinner yesterday and somehow that woman uses every goddamn pot and pan in the house when#she cooks#so i had to clean that up plus glasses and utensils and stuff we used since yesterday afternoon#anyway then i started on the actual fucking pie and i semi followed a recipe this time and it called for one and a half TEAspoons of#cinnamon but last time i baked a pie i was just going off my own brain and i used half a TABLESPOON so like. same fucking thing basically#but my brain read the recipe and was like oh that's kind of a lot. double checked yep that says tablespoons okay i mean sally hasnt led me#astray before in it goes THEN MY BRAIN READS IT RIGHT and I'm like fuck#that said 1.5 teaspoons not 1.5 tablespoons#and i had dumped it in on top of other unmixed spices so i couldnt just scoop it out#anyway i think i managed to save it maybe? drained a lot of liquid and reduced it instead and i tasted an apple and it was good though i#havent tried the reduction yet and i only added a little to the pie#AND THEN FOR SOME REASON I DECIDED TO DO A LATTICE CRUST. EVEN THOUGH I'VE ONLY EVER DONE IT ONCE BEFORE#and did i look at a guide? nope. it took forever#anyway girlie is finally in the oven and if it turns out bad I'm throwing out my oven#my post#baking#this took so much more energy than i was expecting it to#it better be fucking good!
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roseband · 2 years ago
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a short list of how the rose are trying to nuke their idol image from orbit:
banana boys
the tour bus question (2 beds, 4 grown ass men)
smoking (sammy)
vaping and talking about wanting unlimited vape fluid (hajoon)
living off of sour candies (looking at you sammy =_=)
one of them wearing a fucking ring on his ring finger during backstage meet and greets (seen by 3 fans now, will not mention which member)
uploading a vid of dojoon yelling at a roadie (but like... guys sound has to work)
every single time ws flips everyone off
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interiorergonomics · 5 months ago
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Latest Stylish Cheap Office Desks In Dubai
Embrace you new year 2025 plans with any of the affordable functional office desks Dubai offers for sale. Surely, these computer office desks are primarily designed and manufacturer in Dubai with eco-friendly wood and steel material which has been approved for crafting the best workspaces. You can choose from a wide collection of modern designs, wooden textures and finishing to match either your corporate or home office. Just hustle free, once you make your order from office furniture Dubai online store, its delivered at your door-step with free assembly.
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catmask · 2 months ago
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meowdy! looks like our move to a new apartment is not going to be so peaceful after all - our old apartment is currently leaking sewage water and we have to evacuate four people and two cats! donations are appreciated, but im opening an emergency sale + commissions too! (more under the cut)
KO-FI SHOP SALE + EMERGENCY COMMISSIONS ARE OPEN!
DISCOUNT CODE IS 'LEAK' IN ALL CAPS
so for this section, i'm going to break down everything thats happening + when things will come off hiatus! i'm hoping that everything will be set up in the new place by JUNE 1st, so that is the hard deadline i'm setting to start all functions up again as usual.
WHAT'S HAPPENING?
two years ago, my fiance and i were offered emergency housing when we (very suddenly and tragically) became the parents to his orphaned little sister. both of us are only 26 and had to move 8 hours from where we had been living at the time, so the housing we had was the best 2 people with few connections and no established jobs could find within a single weeks notice.
since then, we have been saving up and working to finally have a proper place to live. and we did so! at the beginning of this month we found an apartment where all of us can move to. we have a friend staying with us who is helping with the move as well.
i really wanted this move to be seamless - basically, you wouldn't have had to know it was happening. we were going to pay double rent for two months while i would stream and work from the old place, and begin sleeping at the new one. its expensive, but i didn't want my real life to trouble anyone here.
unfortunately this is no longer possible. the old building we were staying at had a pipe begin to leak, then eventually flood our entire apartment. this has been a reoccurring problem the landlord hasn't seemed to find a solution for, and it's led to a biohazard where we were planning on slowly moving from - leading to an immediate and emergency evacuation for the safety of everyone in our family.
SO... STREAMING?
will be back online as soon as possible! we moved out our tech as soon as we could due to fear of water damage, and it seems like everything is A-OK. we just need to rebuild my desk and sound proof the new room, so this will probaaabbly be back online within a week? im just going to take the week off to make sure everything is set up and there are no bugs. (digital. digital bugs.)
LAIKA'S COMET?
for the sake of not losing my buffer crazystyle, i'm pausing laika's until JUNE 1st. but i'm going to post one more page right now to leave you guys on a cliffhanger because i think it's funny. (the ko-fi will still update as regular as i finish pages! tbh, in between moving i am going to be drawing.... a LOT... it's like my only self soothing activity i have access to right now </3)
SHOP STUFF?
you basically won't notice a difference. orders go out every 2 weeks anyway, and literally the day before this happened we completely caught up to date. that + all of the goods we had were already moved over because (similar to the tech) we were worried about water damage, so nothing will be yucky... (i dont know if i can say the same about our furniture or clothes ; _ ; )
FINAL NOTES
while we did manage to get out with emergency bags and a weeks worth of outfits + things to sleep on + cook with, we have no real means of knowing the extent of damage until we bring things out of the apartment and clean them here. thankfully *most* things appear undamaged, its largely the flooring and the smell that are unliveable... walking through puddles of sewage water and having to wear a mask to breathe is not really liveable conditions.
however, considering this move is sped up way faster than planned, and i wont be able to work during it - any sales or donations are hugely appreciated. ; w ;
i'm sorry to ask for help like this, and its only if you are comfortable to do so!!! i can work hard, so i don't mind doing a little extra art to make money, this is just if you feel okay to help out and would like to.
if you read this far, thank you so much - hopefully next time i will return with good news - and maybe a new apartment tour...?
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janitorhutcherson · 2 years ago
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Marked Only for Me (Olderbf!Mike Schmidt NSFW)
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hii!! okay, i have never written smut before, so i am begging you all to plz be patient with me! this is very long, so my apologies.this is a part of my olderbf!mike series, so hope u guys likeee. also, for this let's make the assumption mike went to college and all of that before his security jobs. he just had burn out and was there, hence why he's working for a major company with what would be little experience. anyways, lmk what u think!
summary: mike comes home and needs to blow off some steam
warnings: nudity, sex, name calling, hair pulling, choking, marking, possessiveness, an implied free use situation, fluff at the end!!
word count: 2,925
nsfw after the cut!!
You were sitting at the kitchen table doing homework in the home you shared with your boyfriend, Mike. You're 20, a couple of years into college, drudging through math problems that make your head feel like it's sitting inside a frying pan. You had to admit this wasn't your ideal way to relax after a 10-hour shift at the bookstore you helped run. Things had been hectic with Black Friday, your store doing a special sale where everything was 50% off, and bookworms were coming out of random corners to fill their already overflowing shelves for cheap. Of course, being younger, you were the one who had to do the grunt work, carrying piles of books to and from inventory, dealing with the more demanding customers as your older coworkers would tell you that they "just couldn't handle kids these days" and that it'd certainly be better for the younger one to do it. Luckily, though, Abby was at a friend's house, meaning you didn't have distractions. You were as focused as could be with a cup of coffee beside you, the sunlight that was once beaming through the cracks of the blinds now completely gone. You were focused, your brain functioning as much as it would with the problems. Things were quiet.
...That is until Mike stormed in. He was frustrated, angry, an invisible red-hot aura beaming off him. His hair was messier than it typically was. The softness in his eyes was instead replaced with a cold look. His eyebrows were furrowed together on his forehead, his jaw sharp and defined as he gritted his teeth. Although this wasn't common, it wasn't necessarily rare either. Mike worked for a publishing company as a marketing manager. He'd gotten the job after a few months of hard work to make up for the slack on his resume after working at the mall and the pizzeria. He moved up the ladder quickly, his company admiring his friendly attitude and his somewhat shy but personable behavior. He loved his job much more than his past ones. He felt happier, got more time off, was less stressed, and was definitely safer. Even with that being said, sometimes shit just pissed him off.
Today's big issue was a meeting with his marketing team, which also involved the big guy over his head. He felt like he was criticized, demeaned, dragged through the mud, and all in front of the team he was supposed to be respected by, listened to. On a typical day, this might not have pissed him off so much. He might've mentally plotted the demise of his boss, but he wouldn't have caused the outburst he did at work, and today had been particularly awful. He'd been late, burned his breakfast, knicked himself while shaving, and even gotten into what he considered to be a little fight with you the night before. Even though you'd both settled the argument, made up, and kissed before bed, he had been thinking about it all day. He'd then spilled coffee on his brand new tie, leaving a stain, and then... that happened. Mike snapped. He yelled at his boss, showing his ass in front of everyone, causing a meeting in his boss's office to end with an inevitable write-up. 
Now, he was home, trudging in all his bad energy, disrupting your study time. You couldn't even be frustrated with him, his demeanor proving he'd obviously had a bad day. You went to stand up to greet him with a hug, a kiss or two, but before you could, Mike stormed over to you, grabbing your arm harshly. You gasped, slightly thrown off by his sudden actions. He pulled you closer to him, his eyes locked on yours and his breath heavy against your neck.
"What the fuck, Mike?" you said, your eyebrows furrowed as you stared into his cold brown-green orbs.
"Listen to me," he grunted, his voice low and gravely. "I have had a very, very bad day, and I need you to be a good girl for me, okay? I don't want no shit, no back talk, you'll listen to what I say.. do you understand?" 
His hand still gripped your arm, his fingernails digging into your skin. You could feel yourself starting to drip, your panties feeling damp against your skin as your body buzzed with excitement. All you could do was nod your head, your eyes locked on his as they clouded over with lust. Mike snapped his fingers in your face, looking at you from underneath his eyebrows. 
"Use your words," he demanded. 
"Yes sir, I understand," you stuttered out, your cheeks flushing red. Mike's face was now pleased, his entire demeanor softening a little. His hand stayed wrapped around your arm as he tugged you into the living room, pushing you roughly onto the couch. You huffed from the impact, your eyes widening as Mike dropped to his knees before you. He slid your sweatpants off, prying your knees open to reveal your see-through pink panties soaked beyond belief. His eyes were hungry, his mouth open, almost drooling as he looked directly into your eyes. 
"All for me, babydoll?" he teased, his hand sliding in between your legs as he drew small circles around your clothed clit. You nodded your head as a whimper escaped your lips, the aching in between your legs only growing worse.
"What did I tell you?" he said, his words sharp as he smacked the inside of your thigh.
"Yes sir," you corrected, your words wavering after the impact from his hand. Mike nodded, satisfied with your answer, as he slowly slid your panties down your thighs, wasting no time. You gasped once again as the cold air hit your wet cunt. Mike exhaled sharply, taking a moment to admire you in front of him. His eyes trailed up to your pathetic look, your already-glazed-over eyes, down to your barely clothed chest, only a sports bra covering your breasts he loved so much, then down to in between your legs, where you were so wet, and all just for him. His lips trailed up to your tummy, sucking on the skin in different areas, from above your abdomen all the way up to right below where your sports bra stayed, purple marks forming.
He then dove in without hesitation, his large hands gripping your sides as he leaned in, moving one hand to take his index and middle finger to spread your pussy lips. His mouth instantly attached to your clit. You yelped as you bucked your hips forward, his lips meeting the sensitive area. Mike pinched your thigh, a sign to quiet down until he said to do otherwise, two of his fingers reaching out to be shoved into your mouth.
“Suck,” he demanded, his fingers going as far back down your throat as they could. You did what you were told, sucking on his fingers and drawing your own circles with your tongue. His tongue drew tiny and slow circles against the set of nerves, your hands reaching down to tangle in his hair from desperation. God, he loved eating you out. The way you yelped, quivered, shook underneath him, your hands tangled in his hair to keep yourself from going over the edge. He fucking loved it, you were the perfect cure to his anger, calming, something he could take it out on in a productive way that made everyone feel good. Your whines were suppressed as you bit your lip, your teeth digging into the softer skin. Mike pulled away for a moment, his eyes locking with yours once again as he admired your face, your now swollen lips.
“You know what, baby? Be as loud as you want for me now, princess,” he mumbled, going back to attacking your wet cunt. Slurping sounds filled the living room mixed with your moans and whimpers as his tongue slid up and down your slit, his lips wrapping around your clit to suck as hard as possible when his tongue wasn’t fucking inside of you. He moaned against you, the vibrations sending shivers down your spine. His cock was rock hard inside of his work pants, his own face flustered as he rocked back and forth against himself. His tongue continued to lap at your clit as he slid two of his large fingers in and out of you, your walls clenching around them. You could feel yourself drawing close and Mike could tell. Your thighs attempted to clench around his head, but before they could his calloused hands pried them open, holding them apart. Just as your eyes began to clamp shut, your thighs shaking as the knot in your stomach started to untie, Mike pulled away. You gasped as he slipped his fingers out, furrowing your eyebrows as you stared at him with an angry glare. He chuckled as he stood up, raising his eyebrows up and down as he leaned down, his hand lifting your chin up.
“Poor baby, was all ready to finish for me, hm? You were gonna be ‘Mikey’s little slut,’ weren’t you? That’s what you tell me you are, right? My little slut?” he teased, no remorse behind his eyes. You huffed, punching his arm before crossing your arm, too out of it to say anything from the knot that remained in your stomach but too angry to take initiative.
“Awh, don’t be mad, princess,” he snickered, shaking his head as he leaned further down to press a gentle kiss to your lips. “You really think I’m done with you?”
With that being said, Mike pushing you back on the couch. His right hand held you down as his lift struggled to unbutton his pants. He pulled his pants down, letting them fall around his ankles as he yanked his boxers off, his cock springing out. He stepped out of them, letting you go for a moment to unbutton his shirt before tossing it off as well. Mike then looked over to you, leaning forward, ripping your thin sports bra off of your chest, your breasts now exposed to him. He licked his lips, excitement overflowing his body. He crawled on top of you, attempting to make the two of you fit on the couch. His mouth attacked your nipples, biting and gnawing at your skin. His mouth moved up to your neck, sucking and prodding and biting until purple marks were left all around, ones you were all too aware would be impossible to hide later on. He moved down to your chest once again, marks all across your collarbone, your tits. Mike’s hands gripped onto your neck as he sat up, looking into your glossed over eyes. He pressed his lips to your ear, a soft kiss against your earlobe.
“’M about to fuck you so hard you see stars,” he said, his voice causing prickles to cover your skin. Then, without hesitation Mike slammed into you, his pace staggered. Your moans were as loud as could be, the sound of skin hitting against each other and the echoes of both of your voices filling the living room. His thrusts were sloppy as he felt himself starting to get close to the edge, his hands pushing your hips down and into the couch. Your entire body sunk into the cushions as he used everything in him, his cock abusing your poor cunt. You swore you saw stars until you felt his hand gently smack against your cheek, your eyes averting back to his gaze.
“You’re gonna look at me when I fuck you, princess,” he growled, his hand sliding up to your hair as he tugged. You grew close, clenching around his length, your thighs starting to shake. Your core was threatening to come undone.
“Fuck, Mikey, baby, I’m gonna fucking cum,” you whimpered out, closing your eyes as your head leaned back against the side of the couch.
“Cum for me, baby,” Mike stated. You did as he demanded, finishing around his cock as your liquids gushed against him. His thrusts grew sloppier before he pulled out, pressing a kiss to your lips.
“You’re such a good girl, you know that baby? You did so good for me, listening to what I said, letting me use your pretty cunt,” he stated, his thumb caressing your cheek. He then resituated, pulling you off the couch, pushing you onto the ground. You were now in the same position he was in earlier, completely fucked out. Your lips were dull from exhaustion, your cheeks red and your hair knotted in certain areas. Mike’s cock was directly in front of you, his hand guiding for you to suck on him. Your lips wrapped around his tip, the tip of your tongue licking his slit. You worked your mouth down his length, licking the sides. Mike’s moans became frantic, desperate as your mouth worked its magic. His hand tangled in your hair as he pushed your head up and down, thrusting up into your mouth.
“That’s it, baby, feels so good,” he grunted. With no warning, Mike pulled out, spilling his load all over your face. He twitched, his moans loud and low, your tongue stuck out to catch his cum. His body laid against the couch, feeling heavy as his head leaned against the back of his couch. A tired grin was on his lips as you also smiled up at him, licking yourself clean. Mike looked down at you, a chuckle releasing his lips. It was obvious all of the tension and anger was gone, as his once cold eyes were once again the soft loving brown they used to be. He looked at you with adoration, always amused by how gorgeous you were even after rigorous activity and getting your face painted.
“Let’s get you cleaned up,” he said, picking you up bridal style as he leaned down to kiss you, not caring about his own load that was now on his face. He sat you down on the bathroom counter, grabbing a washcloth out of the cabinet, running it under warm water. He started to wipe away all of the liquids covering your face, pressing kisses to your skin here and there, looking your body up and down as he admired all of the marks he left.
“You always know how to make me feel good and how to take care of me after,” you croaked out, your voice laced with exhaustion as you smiled. Mike smiled back at you, his hand tenderly touching your cheek before pushing your hair behind your ear.
“I love you, of course I want to make sure ‘m taking care of you,” he said softly. His lips once again pressed against yours. “Thank you for letting me… you know.. blow off some steam,” he said, wiggling his brows.
“Of course, honey. I was worried, though. Is everything okay? Do you want to talk about it?” you asked, leaning forward as you slid off of the counter, grabbing a new washcloth and beginning to wipe his face with it as well. Mike sighed, shaking his head as he looked at her with sad eyes.
“I just- I got into it pretty badly with my boss at work and got criticized, I felt like a wounded animal, like I had to fight. I’m so used to having to fight that I don’t know how to shut up and listen,” he mumbled. “It was so bad, Y/N, and I got written up after that awful day I had this morning… I just.. I don’t know. I do know I feel better now, and would feel even better if we cuddled for a bit and then went out for food?” he suggested, spilling his thoughts to you. You giggled, nodding your head as you reached up to press a kiss to him. You dragged him into your shared bedroom, the two of you cuddling up together under the blankets. You turned to your side, your eyes locked with his.
“I love you, Mike, so much. And I’m so, so unbelievably proud of you. Thank you, for always making me feel good too, for taking care of me, for being such a good brother to Abby, just… thank you,” you said softly. Mike looked back at you lovingly, his appreciation for you apparent.
“I love you, princess, you don’t even know how much,” he mumbled. His eyes were heavy. He leaned over and set an alarm for an hour from now, the two of you planning on a night of dinner out and grocery shopping. He curled his arm around you lazily, your body limp and exhausted against his as you yawned.
“Oh, and baby?” he asked. You hummed, lifting your head to meet his eyes. “Wear a crop top when we go out, I want everyone to see you all marked up.” You giggled as you laid your head down, drifting off to sleep.
When you two went out, you did just that, wearing a cropped scoop neck shirt with a low-rise flowy skirt. He showed off any marks you’d left, too, your possessive boyfriend holding you close anytime someone’s eyes linger too long. Mike was strange, possessive, and sometimes a little of what most would say was unsettling, but to you, he was the love of your life, the man who made you feel good, the one who fucked you until you couldn’t think. You loved him, and you always would, blessing you with a lifelong supply of angry sex and aftercare cuddles.
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valiasims · 4 months ago
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WIP#51
Hey everyone!
Sorry for not updating earlier! I've been so busy with work lately that I hardly had any time to make progress on this set.
But I managed to get the wisteria to work—it now changes colors and states with the seasons. In winter, there will only be bare branches, and at the start of spring, it will appear less leafy and full. I’ve created five variations.
Aside from the wisteria, I also tested how the new pack works so I can implement its functionality (if it makes sense). For small businesses, if you want to sell items—in our case, baked goods—you need to place a special display. When you add products to it, they’re automatically put up for sale, and you can set the price directly through the display. I’ve decided to include a display in this set with that functionality, which will require the newest pack, as well as another version that will be base game compatible. The base game version will work with Get to Work, allowing you to set up a store.
The only difference is that the first version will have built-in glass display cases, while the base game version won’t. This is because if you place the small business display and put decor on top of it, the game will treat it as a sellable item, and customers will buy it.
With that in mind, I won’t be making two versions of the glass cases, so they’ll only be usable with Get to Work stores—or, of course, as decor in a small business alongside the new clutter I’m creating for the next set. I’m currently working on the cabinets for the kitchen set, and hopefully, I can finish the swatches next week so I can upload the set by next weekend.
Have a nice day everyone and thank you so much for over 16 000 followers!
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aaushie · 11 months ago
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On the fifth of August, 2024, the Bangladeshi prime minister was forced to resign the flee the country following civil riots after 16 years of autocratic rule. What followed was political violence against minorities, looting and burning of public property and historical museums. The infrastructure that kept these things in check, the police and the army, had fallen in a matter of hours and 4 days letter the new government has still not formed and neither have the infrastructure.
Yet, after the first wave of confusion, what happened was incredible. Students and citizens alike gathered to clean the city and repair public property to the best of their abilities. Traffic was the best in decades thanks to teachers volunteering to manage them. Food prices halved as the corporate syndicates and cartels fell. Muslim religious schools stayed up overnight to protect Hindu temples and Christians churches. Communities prepared local night guards to protect from thieves. All of this, without a formal government or any sort of authoritarian institute to compel them.
Today might be the last day, as the interim government is formed and volunteers move on to their lives. There was still mob violence, lynching and killing of cops and burning of minority houses, and many of the poorest people suffered immensely from lack of sales and not enough food drives were started to support them.
What i want to say is this: this is living proof than a people can function without government, even if it was for a short time. That when people take responsibility and do not rely on a government or party for their problems, true anarchy emerges. It might all go to waste as the interim government is filled with right winged conservatives and centrists as well as army generals, and the eventual elections are taken by the Islamic fundamentalists and the conservative party. But if i have learned anything these past 3 days, it is to never let anyone tell me anarchy is naive or unrealistic. I have witnessed living proof.
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saintobio · 2 years ago
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sincerely yours. (8)
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↳ gojou satoru/reader
when a twist of fate led their marriage to the path of a quintessential tragic romance, two past lovers go through another series of experiences on love, heartbreak, identity, illness, and trauma along the road to a happily ever after. 
genre. heavy angst, amnesia, modern au, 18+ 
tags/warnings. profanity, mentions of cheating, implied suicide attempt, toxic relationship, explicit smut
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series masterlist -> episode nine
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9:21 AM.
Tap. Tap. Tap. The sound of your index finger drumming a slow and steady cadence against the table was nearly in perfect synchronization to the tick tock of the clock above the wall behind you. An icy, uninviting atmosphere was the best way to describe the current situation inside the conference room at this time of the morning, with the gelid detachment between the boss and her employees as you built a wall—an impenetrable wall—around yourself to keep the inner turmoil you had in your head. 
So, you listened. You succumbed to silence as a result. 
“I’d like to present this new idea that we, along with the ecommerce team, have come up with to increase engagement on our website.” Even as the marketing manager started to speak, you remained frigid. “We did go through some feedback that people have been posting online and they’re mostly saying that the current web theme is too plain and that they’re hoping to see a more engaging website, so we would love to propose some ideas that could improve Hearte’s overall online presence. We know that keeping the brand’s look consistent is very important, especially now that Hearte is still establishing its own name in the fashion industry, and we have currently done a phenomenal job with our brand style. However, as the online website is our visual storefront, not only is its functionality critical, but we also have to ensure that the web design is in line with our aesthetics.” 
9:26 AM. 
You leaned back on your chair with your arms crossed, looking up to speak to the manager from across the conference room. “Let’s keep the unnecessary introduction short and just go straight to the point,” you strictly announced, receiving curious eyes in return as it was their first time seeing you becoming all stern and unamused. Such an odd sight to see from a boss who used to have the brightest of sunshines reflecting on her smile. “What’s the proposal?” 
The marketing manager cleared her throat and moved her presentation onto the next slide. “Yes, Ms. Y/N. So… uh, based on the data that you can see on the screen, our online sales increased by 15% for the past two weeks, but we still have about 10% of shoppers abandoning their shopping carts. Earlier this week, we set up email campaigns and social reminders to decrease our abandonment rate and urge shoppers to return to their carts. While working with the IT team, we did some A/B testing to determine which version would drive our business metrics. We’ve also reached out to The Society Management and added Kendall Jenner to our PR list so that possibly, in the future, we can get her as a model for our landing page and attract the western market,” she continuously explained in a manner to convince you of how much effort their department was doing to increase Hearte’s sales, “But what we believe could bring a tremendous improvement on our website engagement is by introducing style guides. This will capture the interest of the audience now that they can mix and match some outfits based on their own style, and—”
9:32 AM.
Sigh.
“Ms. Ono, I have to be honest, but I expected more from you,” you cut her off by leaving a frank comment on her presentation, “Fashion brands have been doing style guides for years. You make it sound like it’s unique, but it’s nothing new. How sure are we that it will actually bring a dramatic improvement on our website engagement? I doubt most of them would even browse through it.” 
“Well, uh…” The marketing manager faltered, glancing at the head of the social media team for some help, which she didn’t end up receiving. “I think it’ll work the way we want it to as long as we introduce engaging copies that make buyers fall in love with the designs.” 
“You think?” You criticized her word of choice. “Ms. Ono, I gave you enough time to brainstorm with your team, so the moment you step inside of this conference room, you should have prepared whatever strategy you had in mind. I don’t settle for ambitious words like ‘I think’ or ‘I believe’. I want to hear a proposal that’s original, unique, and captivating. I want you to be a hundred percent sure that you know what you’re doing before you waste everyone’s time like this. Do you understand? Am I being clear? I want a proposal that would definitely get us somewhere and not just by assuming we will.” 
Were you being too harsh? They said that the fashion industry in itself was harsh, so what was so surprising about seeing you being strict, candid, and business-like? This was the nature of your job. This was normal. 
9:47 AM. 
Very timidly did Nobara raise her hand beside you to chime in on the discussion. “I know I’m not in the position to make suggestions, but…” She pressed something on her laptop before carefully sliding it to your side of the table, showing you what appears to be a classic early 2000s ‘dress-up game’ with a base model and a selection of outfits that were inspired by your designs. “I just wanted to show you this, Ms. Y/N. I do agree with Ms. Ono’s idea to introduce style guides, but maybe we can do it in an interactive way. I know the dress-up game idea may look childish and unsophisticated, but I was kinda hoping that we can just make certain adjustments so that it could match Hearte’s classy and simplistic style. We can have base models in different body types and skin tones to show our brand’s diversity, then we can have shoppers try dressing them up using the outfits on our current collection. That allows them to easily visualize how the pieces would look on a certain skin tone and body type.” 
The way everyone else in that conference table looked at Nobara was very obvious that they were expecting you to reprimand her for even having the guts to offer such a farcical idea. What does she know? They were probably thinking that. You’re just an intern. You knew they were saying that in their minds. On the other hand, you surprisingly liked her proposal and enjoyed the unique idea of introducing it to the website because her proposal actually did make sense. People would be curious, people would try it out by interacting with the website, and that means the engagement would rise up. 
“I like that idea. We can go with that,” you said, sliding the laptop back to her while nodding at the marketing and social media managers, “I need the team to discuss Nobara’s idea further and polish it thoroughly before we can start adding it onto the website. Make adjustments as needed and ensure that everything is still in line with our brand. If you notice any flaws with this proposal, you can flag them with me and I’ll review them.” 
9:54 AM. 
Just as you were about to wrap up the meeting, a certain someone entered the conference room in haste—panting out of breath with her long, wavy hair and creased red pants. “I’m so sorry, I’m late.” 
Her casualness made you clench your jaws tightly, fueling the fire to your already terrible day. You could no longer stop yourself from unleashing your rage as you looked up at her with a critical squint. “Ms. Hirai, what time’s it?” 
“It’s ten, I know. I’m so sorry,” she repeated her apologies and paid an apologetic bow to everyone in the meeting room, “I’m sorry, everyone. I was caught up in heavy traffic today.” 
You let out a silent scoff and ignored her compunctious act. “How long are we gonna keep using that excuse, really?” you questioned her, earning the intrigued eyes of your employees who were all sensing the sudden tension between you and your best friend, “As the fashion merchandiser and my second-in-command, you should’ve been here in this meeting with me, but where were you? You anticipated that there would be heavy traffic, yet you couldn’t be responsible enough in coming to work early knowing that we have a meeting? Or was it because you’re too busy doing other things so you’re no longer interested in showing up to work on time?” 
Akemi shook her head, contritely. “It’s… It’s not like that.” 
“Not like what?” Your icy stare bored into her. No trace of compassion was present in your eyes. “I’m sure you’re living a very blissful life outside of work and I’m glad you are, but is that also why you don’t bother with anything else anymore?” 
“Y/N—”
“Miss Y/N,” you corrected, “I’m your boss, so treat me like one.” 
Wide, chocolate brown eyes greeted you in response. It was clear that she was at a loss of words and could only repeat her meaningless apologies a thousand times. “I’m really sorry, Ms. Y/N. It won’t happen again.” 
“You didn’t even let me know that you’ll be coming in late,” you continued and ignored the pitiful expression on her face, focusing on her swollen red lips and her dewy, rosy cheeks. She must have had a really good morning to look like a cherry blossom on a spring day. Was she so preoccupied being all lovey dovey with your ex-husband this morning? Did she sleep comfortably on the same marital bed you used to share with him? Your jaw tensed visibly. “You’re just coming in whenever you want. You don’t respect people’s time. You don’t respect my rules. You don’t respect me.” 
Yes, you were overreacting by taking things too personally and it was the reason why you got up from your seat and bolted out of the conference room upon realizing your unusual outburst. You could hear the clicking sound of your stiletto echoing across the corridor as you stomped towards your office, swinging the glass door open and heading straight towards the ceiling-to-floor window to have some peace of mind. Peace? How ridiculous. How could you find peace? You couldn’t even grasp the fact that your best friend was acting like everything was normal. You couldn’t understand why she was rubbing her relationship to your face as if she wasn’t just a placeholder to somebody’s ex wife.
“Y/N?” Akemi’s voice cut you out of your toxic trail of thoughts—your mouth thinning with displeasure while you didn’t bother turning around to meet her gaze. Breathe. You had to breathe and think rationally. “I…I understand you’re really angry right now, but I was hoping we can have this much needed talk.” 
You could feel her reaching for your hand at the height of your frustration and your defensive instinct led you to angrily swing your arm away, accidentally hitting her cheek as you pivoted on your heel to face her. It took two seconds for your eyes to shift from glaring in frustration to widening in surprise after seeing the small cut your diamond ring left on her cheek. “Are you okay?” 
“Y-Yeah, no, it’s fine,” she insisted with her palm pressed onto the right side of her face. “I deserved it.” 
Good lord. What was happening to you? Despite having all these unspoken rage and unresolved conflicts between the two of you, you would still drop everything and be concerned for her. You would still let your walls collapse. You were the villain that couldn’t stick to being a villain. Why? Why did you feel this way? Was it because you knew she wasn’t technically doing anything wrong? Or was it because you were just projecting your personal frustrations onto her? Was betrayal really the issue here? Or was it the huge possibility that she could in fact be Gojou’s one true love? You had thought of this before, but the same questions in your head never stopped. And never did they stop from invading your headspace as you made your way towards the small fridge to grab an ice pack that you soon offered to Akemi, leading her to one of the couches while finally coming into your senses. 
Yet there was silence and nothing but awkward silence when you two sat at a safe distance from each other. 
“I’m shameless.” She was the first one to break the uncomfortable atmosphere. “I know you’re thinking that and I do agree with you. I really am shameless to even look you in the eye right now.” 
You sighed and looked away, only to keep yourself from the furnace of pain that you had been bottling inside. “Stop. You’re making me seem like a villain right now. I’m tired of seeing myself this way.”
She closed her legs and sat humbly, reaching forward to squeeze your hand. “You’re not. You’re not a villain and you never were,” said the same woman you accidentally smacked a few minutes ago, “I understand why you would feel a certain way towards me. I’d even understand if you hate me so much that you wanna murder me. I’m your best friend and I know about your history with Satoru, yet here I am seeing your ex-husband behind your back. I didn’t mean it. I didn’t plan it. I truly didn’t. Even though you’re not together anymore and I’m technically not homewrecking anyone, I’m still putting us—you and I—in a really awkward position. You didn’t deserve any of that and I’m very sorry.” 
At least, she was self-aware. But looking at the brighter side of things, you were getting calmer now that you were hearing her side of the story, though that didn’t stop you from feeling any less horrible. “I don’t really care who you date,” you claimed, adamantly, “And I most definitely do not care who Satoru chooses to date. We’ve been divorced for three years.” 
“It’s still not right that I’m seeing him.” She let her guilt speak up for her. 
And you let your resentment speak for you. “Then, why him of all people?”
“It’s…” 
“Complicated?” 
“Y-Yeah…” 
You decided to keep a straight face. “How did this happen?” 
Akemi looked as if you had just forced her to be on the hot seat because of the apathy on your visage. “It was a drunken mistake at first and we kinda just…”
“I’m not asking about when you two started fucking,” you replied, bluntly. Something you had never done before in your usual sophisticated vocabulary. “I’m asking when you realized you have feelings for him. When did you fall in love with him?” 
She had trouble finding the right answer. “It just happened. I d-don’t really know. Whenever you asked me to look after him, I guess the bond he and I developed from that made me see him in a different light.” 
You disregarded the pain in your chest and let the volcano explode on its own, because her answer only meant that she was already growing feelings for your ex-husband at the same time you were confiding to her about him. That was the worst part of it all. 
“Why do you like him?” you questioned further, “Despite knowing what happened while I was married to him, why did you still end up falling in love with him? If that’s so hard to answer, then don’t think about us or me or our friendship. Just think about the decisions you made for yourself. Why are you with Satoru?” 
Her gaze found the floor. Hesitance. Guilt. Shame. Those emotions were all dancing in her eyes in a complete roundabout. While she took a moment to fully reassess her decision, you weren’t sure if you deserved to still feel hurt when she gave you an honest answer. “When I met Satoru, I didn’t meet the toxic, cheating ex-husband that he was known for,” she said, slowly, “I met a man who holds such a high respect for his ex-wife, adores his son like his greatest gift of all, and values his marriage more than anything else in this world. I met a vulnerable man who isn’t afraid to open his heart to strangers. A man who gave me emotional support even when he’s the one who needed it the most. I… It’s hard to explain, but…” 
Was there really anything left to say? Her point was clear, and your silence while she was speaking was more so because you were trying not to let the tiny pricks in your heart affect you further than it already did. The fullness of her voice and the way her eyes shined when she talked about him were enough to tell you that your best friend had truly fallen in love and you would be cruel to take that away from her. Even from him. They would not have been involved in such an intimate relationship if there had been no attraction between them to begin with, so then… Why did it feel like you were being cheated on? She was no Sera, and he was not the Satoru that only used you for his corporate ambitions. It was just Akemi and Satoru—they were each other’s right person at the right time. The only thing blocking their path to a loving relationship was you. 
You. The irrational and spiteful ex-wife. The ex-wife who always played the ‘victim card’. The selfish ex-wife who wanted all the good things to only come her way. 
Well, god be damned, because you were beginning to confuse yourself with the version of you that wasn’t even remotely like you at all. She was just a mirrored image of yourself that you thought people perceived. 
“You can do what you want.” The moment you spoke again, you were already creating a huge wall between you and your best friend, making sure that there were boundaries that none of you should ever cross now that she had chosen to be with someone you had sincerely loved in the past. It may sound like you were letting go, but truth be told, you just didn’t think that you even had the option to hold onto anything. Satoru wasn’t yours and you weren’t his anymore. You were two individuals living separate lives. “If you wanna be with him, that’s your choice. I don’t plan on intervening. It just… just really surprised me that you didn’t have the decency to tell me at all.” 
Akemi nodded, apologetically desperate. “I understand how you’re feeling and I’m sorry. I really, truly am sorry, Y/N.” Her voice and her countenance did show the genuineness in her plea to be forgiven, but you were too numb to feel anything else. “I hope we can stay friends despite everything.” 
How could you even stay friends in a situation like this? 
First option was to keep pretending that their relationship wasn’t bothering you. Second option was to focus on your own relationship with Toji to the point where everything else just didn’t matter anymore.
Yeah, you thought. You could certainly choose the latter. 
“Our friendship isn’t my top priority at the moment,” was your straightforward response to her, “I wanna focus on my son and his relationship with his father. That’s all.” 
Any regular person would have thought: ‘Wow, Y/N. You handled that well.’ ‘You’re so mature.’ ‘You’re a lot calmer than we expected.’ The thing was, you really did think that you had been way too calm about it. In spite of the scene you caused at the conference room, or the dramatic exchange you had with Akemi in your office, you still handled it much better than one would think. In TV shows or movies, the ex-wife would have dragged the best friend to the ground, slapped her face, pulled her hair, started a nasty catfight, and called her all the terrible labels you could think of. Look, part of you wanted to do that. And the other part of you—the sympathetic, altruistic part of you—thought you shouldn’t do that. You would only look pathetic. 
Of all the negative things Satoru had made you feel over the course of your failure of a marriage, this aftermath was probably the toughest. 
You just weren't in the right state of mind to justify why. 
You also couldn’t justify why you had been looking for unhealthy ways to cope with stress and anxiety. If anyone from your family saw you standing at the smoking area near the parking lot right now, they would have given you an earful of how you must be out of your mind for even putting a cigarette stick between your lips. How exactly could tobacco be good for you? You would say, first of all, that nicotine does in fact cause pleasant feelings to distract you from unpleasant ones. You couldn’t find any other way to relax your mind any faster than one cigarette stick could. Besides, staying in the office and seeing Akemi around was getting too suffocating and you couldn’t afford to have your negative mood lingering in your mind for the rest of the day. One stick wouldn’t hurt. Another one wouldn’t, too. And another one should be fine, right? 
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” 
The irony. You didn’t even have the time to recoil before the main cause of your stress showed up in front of you, frowning after he snatched the cigarette stick out of your lips. He was quick to throw it to the ground, stomp on it like he would do with your heart, and give you a questioning look that made you scoff at the ridiculousness of this situation. This could be a dream for heaven’s sake. Or a hallucination. There was no way Satoru Gojou would be standing right in front of you just as you were thinking about him.
“Since when have you been doing this?” he questioned again, holding your wrist this time to make you realize that his presence or this interaction wasn’t just a figment of your imagination. It would have been better that way, but the reality was, Satoru was there and he wasn’t the least bit pleased. “I know you’re mad at me and this isn’t the right time for me to chew you out like this, but…” he paused, taking your cigarette pack. “I can’t believe you’re fucking smoking right now, Y/N. Did you get this habit from Toji?”
Okay. Gojou could be way out-of-line sometimes, but this was the apex of it. 
“Don’t bring Toji into this,” you snapped back, shooting him a glare that could easily kill. “What are you doing here?”
You could see how deep his inhale was just by the loudness of his sigh after it. His face showed a combination of yearning, regret, frustration, and pity as if he was deciding which emotion should dominate him more. But among the multitude of emotions that were drowning him right now like a tidal wave, he looked all the more exhausted. Whether it was dealing with you, trying to make amends with you, or simply being around you—you could tell that he wanted to drop his constant need to care for you because it was beginning to tire him out. 
He didn’t really answer your question, and instead, asked one of his own. “Are you smoking because of stress?” he asked, trying to mask the sympathy in his eyes. “It’s bad for you. Set a good example for Sachiro.” 
You’re bad for me, you wanted to say. Why did it even matter to him, anyway? You were nothing more than just a mother to his child. Anything outside that role was completely not his business anymore. The fact that he was even within the vicinity of your office was ridiculous, because you were already having a bad day and his presence was adding further into it. “Don’t you dare talk about setting a good example to my son like you’re so righteous yourself.” 
“Y/N, come on.” He reached for your hand once more as if trying to show how much he cared or how worried he was with what you were doing to yourself because of him. “I don’t want you to—”
“Keep your fucking distance, Gojou. You’re not in the place to give a damn about me anymore,” you raged, withdrawing your wrist and breathing heavily as you tried to keep yourself from further exploding. You would have. You were so close to cursing him off, but you saw the flash of pure shock in his eyes, and that was how you realized what you just did. All these violent reactions, these unusual outbursts—these were not you. This was not the meek, soft-spoken ex-wife that he was once married to. 
“Toru?” 
Unfortunately, Gojou no longer had enough attention span to listen when he looked away, only to turn to his new woman with a genuinely worried expression painted on his face as soon as he saw her coming out of the building with a hand on her cheek. You realized that he was actually here to pick her up and was doing everything that a caring boyfriend would; checking every inch of her face to see how bad she was hurt and asking her what happened and whether she was okay. You didn’t know how to react the moment he turned back to you with his tired, yet passively accusatory eyes. “Did something happen?” 
You knew that his question actually translated to: ‘Did you slap her?’ With your thorough knowledge about his acquired trauma from physical violence, you felt the sudden need to clear your name, but you didn’t know if you should be grateful that it was already your best friend who did the part in doing such. “Nothing happened. It was an accident.” Her tone was almost begging before she started tugging his arm. “Let’s just go, please.” 
Satoru didn’t want to let it go, but decided that it was best to just leave it be as he glanced at you with a slightly detached gaze. “I’ll see you in a couple of days,” he reminded, referring to the dreaded New York trip together with Sachiro. 
A conflicted look from him and an apologetic gaze from her. That was all that you received before they got inside the car and left you alone and miserable in that parking lot. You watched his car fade into view with her on the passenger seat and him probably holding her hand as he drove through the street. Just when you thought you could actually stomach the sight of him and her together, it would be a big fat lie to say that it didn’t sting. It stung worse than the times he ran after Sera than to stay behind with you. Worse than when he used to treat you like a mistress rather than a wife. 
You must be going crazy, indeed. Who in their right mind would cry over her ex-husband in the middle of the parking lot? Why would you even shed tears when you were the one who wanted him to find someone else and move on? This was becoming a never-ending loop because you were letting yourself be affected by it. It shouldn’t be that way. Never. 
“Toji.” You were doing your hardest to conceal the weakness in your voice as you pressed your phone into your right ear. “I-I need you… right now. Please.” 
“Hey, I was just about to pick-up Sachi from daycare. Is everything okay?” 
Wiping your eyes, you looked at the dull skies wondering if the universe was trying to reflect all these emotions running inside of you. “Yeah… Can you come soon?” 
He didn’t really hesitate to answer, quickly understanding that he had to drop everything else right now and be with you. “Alright, I’ll be there.” 
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Satoru was conflicted, but he didn’t know what exactly made him feel that way. Was it because he saw you smoking in the parking lot? Or was it because he could tell that you gave Akemi a tongue-lashing after catching her half-naked at the penthouse a few days ago? Either way, both options were not very you. And he couldn’t understand why you were slowly starting to look less and less like the person he knew, which was confusing on his part because you had been adamant on telling him to forget about you. You were rigid on your decision to not let him enter your life as your husband for the second time around. He told you he still loved you, but you said you loved another. He told you he wanted to work things out and make your family complete again, but you said you were already doing that with someone else. Gojou knew his hands weren’t clean and the reason you may be acting that way was because out of all the women he could have been with, it had to be Akemi Hirai. Your best friend. Your confidante. Your business partner. She was a territory he shouldn’t have crossed, yet he did. 
But, at the same time, she was the only person who had been there for him during his lowest. She was the company he needed when his heart was the loneliest. He couldn’t even remember the amount of times she came to his aid when he was crying over his memories of you, memories that he could no longer hold onto. Akemi brought peace to his heart, and if there was anyone else he could be with, it would be her. 
It was becoming more and more clear to him how he felt about her. 
Although, voicing that out loud was a different story. Keeping it in his thoughts was for the best because he didn’t want to lead Akemi on. She didn’t deserve that nor did she deserve to feel like a substitute for someone else. He wanted to be a hundred percent sure about being with her before he could fully confess his real feelings for her. It could still develop through time, perhaps far better and more passionate than what he was sharing with her right now, but until then, settling for what they had at this moment in time was for the better. What was important was that both parties were clear about diving into this relationship. 
He wasn’t ready for commitment and she understood that. She was willing to wait for him. She was helping him move on in the least painful way. Where else could he meet such a person like her? 
She was gentle, motherly, sensitive, and intuitive. She was classy and sophisticated. She knew how to dress nicely. Her nails were always clean and pretty. Her smile was very charming. Her laugh, endearing. She was the perfect woman anyone could have. 
“Why’d you suddenly want to go to the mall?” she asked, intertwining their hands together as she looked up at him with her beautiful doe eyes. Her question made him cut out of his trance, remembering that they were strolling around the galleria. 
He touched the small wound on her cheek as if stroking it could make it heal faster. “Nothing,” he said. “Just a last minute idea.”
Truthfully, Gojou wasn’t sure why he had brought her there. All he knew was that he had a lot going on in his mind while he was driving through the city and the next thing he knew, he was already pulling up at the galleria out of his natural instinct. But since they were already there, he might as well buy her a little something. Anything. And then his eyes caught sight of Chanel as if the high-end boutique was pulling his feet with such gravity that it led him to go inside the store while hand-in-hand with the woman next to him. 
“Mr. Gojou, how are you?” 
Right. The staff knew him so well, especially for the amount of times he had been there with his ex-wife when you two were still married. 
“Are you looking for anything specific?” One of the familiar ladies that used to assist you approached him with a lingering stare towards Akemi. “Perhaps for your…?”
He cleared his throat. “Yeah, can you… uh,” he turned towards the rack of tweed sets, “Do you have any new collections?” 
“Yes, absolutely,” said another lady, “Right this way, sir.” 
It was easy to notice how the staff were exchanging glances at the sight of Satoru and Akemi together, but his mind was far too distracted by the nostalgia of being in that place alone to even care about his surroundings. All he did was look back at Akemi and encourage her to try out the newest collections that they had, thinking that she was oblivious about what was going through his head. “You go and pick whatever you like.” 
Although she was clearly not used to it, Akemi did eventually try on some of the outfits he specifically had chosen for her. They were Chanel’s signature tweed sets that he always found to be very elegant, and he definitely wasn’t wrong that they would suit her when she came out of the dressing room to show him how the clothes wrapped her small frame perfectly. 
He could see your smile through her face, your excitement when you tried the outfits on, and the shine in your eyes when you looked at yourself in the mirror. Except, Gojou had to remind himself that you weren’t her. That his mind was just messing with him. 
No, this was wrong. Why was he thinking about you while he was with her? 
He had to have some sort of distraction. Something so tangible that all of his senses would go numb. 
The one way he was able to overcome that dilemma was by sharing yet another steamy exchange with Akemi later that night. He couldn’t remember who initiated first, but it must have been the equal desire that they had for each other when they dove straight into a heated makeout session the moment they stepped inside his bedroom. One thing led to another. First he was kissing her lips, then her collarbones, then her inner thighs—devouring her completely with his lust-driven actions, doing the most by pleasuring her body using his own. 
She was a giver just as she was a receiver. Not that he didn’t expect her to be so experienced when it came to sex, but she definitely knew what she was doing without any guidance from him. Perhaps he just wasn’t used to it anymore. Perhaps he had just forgotten how it felt to have sex with someone who didn’t rely on him to initiate the next steps they should do. Fuck, he couldn’t even remember the last time someone stared at his eyes while putting his hardened member inside her mouth the way she did. She knew her power over him while at his most vulnerable state, ruining his masculine ego and destroying it with her own feminine pride. 
And in the midst of their intimate session, Gojou was zoning out while he was sliding a condom across his shaft, ready to enter her from the back. His mind was giving him a flash of memory, not a distant but recent one from two days ago.
“I still can’t believe you did that, Mom. You’re being ridiculous.” 
His mother wasn’t exactly showing the slightest hint of regret on her face despite knowing full well that sending the custody claim almost made you lose your mind. She was keeping a straight face as she sat on the barstool next to him, taking a sip of wine from her glass while he, on his own, was downing a glass of scotch. “She had it coming.”
Satoru sighed his frustration away. “Don’t do that again or today’s the last time you’ll ever see me.” 
“What are you talking about?” His mother frowned. “Who was there for you when you were trying to end your own life because of the lies she told you, huh? You’re feeling bad for her now, but did she feel bad for you back then? You missed three years of your son’s life because she was being too spiteful towards you.” 
He had never met someone more stubborn than his own mother, but maybe this was a clear sign for Satoru to realize where he must have acquired that one similar trait of his. After all, people always made it seem that he was more like his dad even though he despised being compared to his father. To say that his mother was a complete angel was a lie. But neither was he. “Whatever, just don’t… Just leave Y/N alone. She’s still the mother of my child and I don’t want us to keep fighting. At least, for Sachi’s sake.” 
His mother finished her glass of wine before turning the stool towards his direction. There was a minute of silence that passed between them before she spoke again. “I just don’t want you to get back with her, darling. You two are toxic together.” 
Funny, because he could say the same thing for her and his father. “Well, it’s not gonna happen now. Y/N’s gonna hate me forever.” 
“What, ‘cause she rejected you again?” 
“No,” he countered, shaking his head and chugging all the remaining liquor on his glass. “She knows about the thing I have with Akemi now.” 
Her mouth fell open, gasping as she did so. “Y-You… and Akemi? Are you together?” 
Satoru expected this reaction from her, but didn’t think she would actually be more fixated on his new relationship than the effect it would bring on her ex-daughter-in-law. “It’s not something to be proud of, Mom.” 
“Well, I’m proud of you,” she still stressed that fact, “It’s nice to hear that you’re finally moving on, Satoru. Y/N is not good for you, but I know Akemi will be. I like her and I know she’ll make you a lot happier than Y/N ever did.” 
“You’re still awake?” Gojou let out a yawn as he felt the heaviness of his eyelids telling him that it was time to sleep. He tried checking the time on his phone, but realized that he still had the photo of you and Sachiro as his lockscreen. He wasn’t planning on changing it anytime soon, but considering that Akemi saw it, he was expecting that she would have something to say, yet nothing came out of her mouth. She simply stayed silent while laying on his chest, letting him touch the slope of her naked back as she slightly raised her head to meet his eyes. He had already closed his phone and placed it back on the nightstand. “What, did I not tire you enough?” 
“Shut up.” She hid her reddened cheeks and smiled on the crook of his neck. Her hand was placed on his chest, fingers tracing his collarbones. “No, I’m just thinking about how you’re gonna manage New York and all.” 
Satoru’s breathing was still for a few seconds, keeping his eyes glued on the ceiling as he held her on your marital bed. “You’re scared that the infamous cheater is gonna cheat on you or something?” he joked, a distasteful one, but still meant to ease whatever was burdening her mind. “Not gonna happen even if we’re in an open relationship.” 
“That’s not it,” Akemi quickly replied, denying his claims, “I’m more like hoping that you’ll be patient with her. She gets angry a lot these days and we know we’re the main cause of it, so please. Please don’t try to argue with her, okay? If she says hurtful things, learn to understand her.” 
He wrapped his arms tighter around her smaller frame. Gojou was certain that he was about to doze off soon now that he had closed his eyes and let the exhaustion pull him into a good night’s sleep. “I won’t,” he spoke his words slowly, drifting off to dreamland, “I won’t make her angry.” 
“Okay.” He felt her lips kissing his jaw just before the both of them gradually matched the calmness of each other’s chest. One heart, one soul, two bodies.  “Good night, ‘Toru.” 
In the middle of his sleep, he mumbled, “Good night, Y/N.”
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On the other side of the city, you woke up in the middle of your slumber, facing the handsome face of your fiancé, Toji Zen’in, who had already drifted off to dreamland while holding you in his muscular arms. No wonder people were jealous of you for having such a refined man like him in your bed every night you go to sleep. The thing was, you had no reason to feel discontented with your life since you already had everything. You were wealthier than the average person, you ran a business that you were passionate about, you had an adorable son who meant the world to you, and you had Toji. There was nothing else you could ask for. And if by remembering Sera’s words back then, you would be selfish to ask for anything more because others didn’t even have half the fortune you had. 
So, in that sense, you should be happy. 
You had to be happy. 
You were happy, right? 
“Go to sleep,” whispered a half-awake Toji, stirring from his sleep as he held your waist tighter like you were his comfort pillow. “You alright?” 
Sighing inwardly, you traced the scar on his lips. “You’re so gorgeous.”
His lazy, boyish smile came into view. “I know that,” he joked, closing his eyes as if succumbing into a few more minutes of sleep. “Don’t tell me you’re turned on right now ‘cause I can go all night. Doggy. Missionary. Cowboy. Reverse cowboy.” 
Were you? Maybe a little. And maybe you had to have a distraction from your ‘source of happiness’. 
“That’s very naughty of you, Mr. Zen’in,” you replied, cheeks heating up from his vulgar words. Your hand was finding its way to his toned chest, while his were traveling to the curves of your waist and hips. You could feel him angling his body to make sure he had access to slide your underwear just a little above your knee, gliding his hand along your thigh before letting his fingers touch your sensitive bud. “T-Toji—”
A smirk appeared on his lips. “Hm? I thought you wanted this?” 
You nodded, taking a deep breath. “Y-Yeah, I…” There was no use holding back from moaning because his fingers knew how to move perfectly well, playing with your clit in circular motions before sliding two of them into your entrance. “...Fuck.”
“Feel good?” His hot breath tickled your neck, moving his mouth from your collarbones down to the valley between your breasts. “Wish you knew how delicious you are.” 
Another moan, much louder this time around, escaped your lips when he attached his mouth onto your breast, sucking the round mass with his tongue doing God’s work. You were so high into sexual desire that your back arched on its own, dominated by the pleasing sensation all over your body. You could barely even respond to him when he started asking why your mood had been so down when he picked you up after work or why you still wouldn’t tell him whatever happened back there. 
“It’s nothing,” you replied, disregarding the painful encounter you’ve had with your ex-husband and your best friend. “...Just work stuff.” 
As you closed your eyes, you could feel Satoru’s fingers entering deep inside of you, deep enough to have reached your g-spot and have you moaning wildly. It felt unreal. It felt goddamn out of this world. But since Satoru was familiar with every inch of your body, his touch alone could easily send you to seventh heaven. He was heavenly. He was saintly. That mesmerizing gaze of his paired with his sky blue eyes and messy white hair. His beautiful, beautiful face, watching you beg for him to do more. More. More…
“Satoru…”
The intense feeling suddenly stopped, awakening you back to your senses as you opened your eyes and saw the dark, animalistic gaze of Toji Zen’in. “What’d you say?” he asked in a deep voice. 
Out of panic, you slightly pulled away and shook your head. “N-Nothing. What did I say?”
“I thought I heard you say his…” he trailed off, pulling his fingers out of you and instead, placing a tight grip on your hip. “Did you?” 
“No, no. Not at all.” Your voice came in a hushed tone, looking at his eyes intently. “Why would I do that?” 
He let out an exasperated sigh, falling back into the bed with one arm under his head. “Don’t play games with me, Y/N.”
Desperation led you to climb on top of him, sitting on his crotch before encasing your lips with his soft ones. “I’m not,” you mumbled, kissing him again. “I never did. I promise.” 
Yet, despite your attempts at inviting him for an open-mouthed kiss, he had already lost the interest to engage in sexual activities with you. He didn’t say anything nor tried to argue about the shit that you said, but he did stay silent for a couple of minutes, simply holding you on top of him without another word to utter. It scared you to think what was going through Toji’s mind, but this was also all your fault. Why, in the first place, did you even let your mind imagine that white-haired toxic ex-husband of yours when you had Toji Zen’in in front you? 
Perhaps in this relationship, you were the toxic one. 
You were the poison that could kill the life out of the man who only wanted to love and heal you. 
“Toji, I’m sorry…” 
He held his breath. “Should I be concerned that you’re going on a trip with him?” 
“No, it’s…” Pulling away, you gave him a look of combined sincerity and denial. “We’re just gonna fix Sachiro’s papers, you know that. We won’t even be staying in the same room.” 
Fixing Sachiro’s papers. Dealing with his dual citizenship. Changing his last name to Gojou. Solidifying your son’s identity as the son of Satoru Gojou. That’s all there is to it. All the technical matters. 
“Is he staying at a hotel or are you letting him stay at your apartment in Manhattan?” he asked, although there was no hint of suspicion in his voice. Or at least, he must be good at hiding it. 
You chose to be honest. “I have to let him stay at my apartment,” was your answer, leaning your head on his shoulder. “Only because Sachi wants his dad around all the time. We’re just trying our best to co-parent.” 
Toji’s dry humor took over. “You sure you’re not gonna let him fuck you senseless?” His tone was laced with resentment. “And then you’ll come home to me crying about how he got you pregnant for the second time. You’d better kiss our marriage goodbye if that happens.” 
“What kind of person do you think I am?” you retorted, annoyed by his word of choice as if you were a cheating scumbag. “If he’s gonna get someone pregnant, that won’t be me.” 
His eyes sparked with curiosity. “What do you mean?” 
Deciding between telling and not telling, you figured that the latter would only cause more drama to bounce back at you like a boomerang. “He’s with Akemi.” 
It looked like Toji didn’t hear it right. “Akemi? How’d that happen?” 
“I don’t know what kinda relationship they have, okay?” you snapped, no longer wanting to keep up with this topic further. “I just caught them. They said they’re seeing each other, but it’s complicated or whatever—I don’t really give a damn. But he’s with her is all I know.” 
Toji went silent for a few minutes, unable to determine whether he should find the situation pitiful or humorous. One thing for sure though, was that he found it unbelievable. “That son of a bitch,” he muttered under his breath, smiling in disbelief, “So this is what’s ruining your mood these days, huh?” 
Your eyebrows furrowed in response. “It’s not.” 
“Your ex-husband slept with your best friend. Yeah, I’d be mad, too.” His comment wasn’t really meant to irk you, but he successfully did so. Minus the intention. “Getting mad is understandable, getting jealous is questionable. Which one are you?” 
Fuck it. “I said I’m not jealous. Will you stop now?” You sunk yourself under the covers, turning your back on Toji. “I don’t wanna talk about it.” 
Now that he knew and you saw his reaction, you wondered what it would be like if Gen and Ian knew. Or if your dad knew. What would they think of Satoru? What would they think of Akemi? No, nevermind that. What would they think of you? Another fool in a deck of cards? Another game that was played with? 
You didn’t want to know. 
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Ideally, you and Satoru really shouldn’t have gone to this New York trip together as if your family was still intact, because as much as you wished that that was true, you were far from that. You were only playing house for the sake of your son, but that also meant putting you in a painfully awkward situation together as ex-spouses. He had a girlfriend back home and you had a loving and loyal fiancé who proved the whole word that he was loyal to you. And although your respective partners were supporting the whole co-parenting situation, you knew by yourselves that this was nowhere to near to being comfortable for them, too. 
“Everything okay?” You heard the familiar voice of your past, only to see his dull, blue eyes taking a peek at you. 
“Yeah,” you replied, almost inaudibly. You just boarded the plane while Satoru was talking to the pilot, and found your spot on one of the beds in his private jet. It took a few minutes for him to get to where you were now. “Why?” 
He shrugged, eyeing a sleepy Sachiro next to you. “Just wanna make sure you and Sachi are comfortable.” 
You didn’t know what else to say, so you just looked back at your peaceful son who was hugging his elmo plush like the cute angel he was. Even though he was growing so fast, you could still remember how he was just as small as a puppy in your arms when he was first born. The memory of it caused you to press your lips on his forehead, caressing his soft, white hair. At some point while observing the scene, your son’s father thought it would be a good idea to slide the blanket further up your shoulders, acting as though he was only doing it to keep Sachiro warm. And later, he sat on the reclined airplane seat, drinking the coffee that was served to him by the stewardess. 
It was crazy. 
Crazy that Toji could be lying next to you and you would feel nothing. But Gojou was meters away from you and your mind was on a never-ending race. 
Just before noon, the airplane landed safely at JFK airport and Satoru’s driver took you straight to Central Park Towers, treated like a V.I.P. by security just because your ex-husband was Japan’s third richest person and second most influential businessman. At times like these, you would almost forget the power Satoru held even before he was the chairman. You two were almost royalty. Now that he was leading the Gojou Group, his reputation only grew more despite the scandal of your broken marriage. He knew not to share his relationship publicly anymore nor did he expose Sachiro to any of his social media. It was a mutual decision for you to keep your son away from the spotlight knowing the scrutiny and the lack of privacy that would enter your lives once again—all the unnecessary noise, the unwanted comments, the unruly attention. Besides, for safety reasons, Sachiro had to be hidden from the public since he would become the sole heir to his father’s conglomerate, inheriting his parents combined assets that could one day make him the richest and most sought after bachelor in Japan. 
“Mamaaa!” A lively Sachi came running to you as soon as he entered the lobby of the apartment suites, his father following him behind. 
“Careful, baby!” you said, standing at the lobby while talking to your housekeeper, “You might trip.” 
Satoru decided to carry his son after noticing your worried expression and immediately walked towards you. He was all smiles as he looked at Sachiro’s cheerful blue eyes. “He seems a little excited, isn’t he?” 
“He lived here for almost three years,” you answered, signaling a quick ‘thank you’ to your housekeeper before guiding your boys to the elevator. “He must’ve missed the place. Did you, Sachi?”
“Yes, mama~”
It was a little bittersweet for your ex-husband, though. Especially the moment he stepped inside the apartment, looking at every corner and realizing that it was the same place you had lived in back when he was suffering from emotional distress on the other side of the world. This apartment was where his own child grew up in and he had no idea he had even existen then. Not only did that make you a terrible ex-wife, but it also made you a heartless mother. You had separated them and now you were taking him to the place where you had his son hidden from him. 
That wasn’t your intention. That was never your intention. 
“I’m glad you chose a nice place,” he complimented, acting as casual as possible. “Does your father own this place or?”
“Gen loaned it to me,” you said, holding Sachiro’s hand while letting Satoru follow you closely. You stopped at one of the guest rooms and urged the tall man to feel at home. “You can stay here for the meantime.” 
“I don’t wanna make things uncomfortable for Akemi.” He looked away, avoiding your eyes. “I can just stay at a hotel—” 
“Dada!” His mini-me tugged at his hand along with yours. You already knew that those puppy eyes would look back at the both of you. “Sachi wants Dada to stay.”
Frankly, you weren’t upset a while ago, but since he had to bring up Akemi and make it seem like her feelings were his priority, you lost all the will to be kind. Was their relationship that deep for him to act like such a loyal, righteous partner? Where was that same loyalty when he married you? “Do whatever.” 
Noticing the tension between his parents, Sachiro’s eyes started to well up with tears and that was all it took for you two to completely focus your attention back to your 3-year old. 
“Sachi…” Satoru tried to reach for his son, but you (spitefully) beat him to it. 
“It’s okay, my baby. Don’t cry,” you comforted your son, picking him up and carrying him in your arms, “Daddy will still visit you every day even if he's staying at a hotel.” 
Satoru, as guilty as ever, shook his head and wiped his son’s eyes. “No. I’ll stay here for Sachi, okay? Don’t cry anymore.” 
It felt like hours sitting on that enormous sofa, staring at the television screen even though your mind was miles away. You had already texted Toji good night and reassured him that everything was fine, but you still couldn’t stop thinking about what he was doing back home. Sachiro had fallen asleep almost half an hour ago, and how you wished you could also enjoy your slumber while snuggling under those heated blankets, but how could you? How could you be comfortable in the presence of an ex-husband who was coming out of his room, freshly showered in his low-waisted sweatpants and tight-fitting black shirt? Not to mention how he was obviously flexing his arms while drying his mop of messy, white hair with a towel. Ridiculous. A little seductive, but definitely ridiculous. 
“Still up?” His sky blue eyes met yours as soon as he looked up. 
You adjusted your position on the sofa and leaned on the corner, pulling a small cushion to place above your thighs. “Can’t sleep.” 
And the night went on just like that. You, sitting on the couch. Him, sitting on the other end as if going near you might suffocate him. It didn’t help that the silence was beginning to be too uncomfortable. You couldn’t tell what he was thinking of. Perhaps Akemi? Perhaps you? You doubted the latter. 
“I think…” You cleared your throat to escape from the awkward tension. “I think I’m gonna go for a night swim. You can go to sleep next to Sachi tonight, just make sure not to wake him up.” 
Satoru’s curious gaze trailed on you as you got up and tightened your robe. “It’s a little too late at night to go for a swim, no?” 
You couldn’t even face him as you responded. “I need to clear my mind off some things.” And by things, you meant him and this whole mess of a situation that you had put yourselves together. Two divorcees staying in the same living space wasn’t exactly a brilliant idea to begin with.
“Want me to join you?” asked Satoru, and he himself could not believe he asked that question. He may have asked it out of his innate care for you, probably worried for no damn reason. What he didn’t realize was how wrong his suggestion was, especially that you two were dating other people now. 
If only you were such a cruel person, how ironic would it be if you allowed Satoru Gojou to join you for a quick night swim? 
How ironic would it be for you to feel each other’s warmth under the crystal pool, getting carried away by the romantic lights that lit the city? 
How ironic would it be if the intense sexual tension ended with you doing things under the sheets, completely disregarding the fact that the both of you had respective partners who were overthinking this exact NYC trip?
How ironic would it be if, for once in your life, you became the cheater? 
Thankfully, you didn’t have the mindset of a cheating person. 
However, it was Satoru who took back his initial offer. “Never mind. Forget I even asked that,” he muttered, sounding annoyed more so to himself rather than at you. 
You offered a nonchalant shrug. “Okay.” 
And as you were heading to the poolside, you could sense Gojou’s presence behind even though he just very clearly rejected the idea of going on a swim with you. He was still the same confusing man that you married before. Only now, he was ten times worse. “Wait, Y/N.”
“What?” You turned around, annoyed at his push-and-pull behavior. At this point, you didn’t really care what he was thinking of anymore. All you did was to take off your robe, leaving yourself with only your underwear on before you slowly got down on the pool. 
Gojou, on the other hand, was ridding himself of his shirt and sweatpants to join you in the pool with just his boxers on. What even was this situation? You two had that same question in your head despite swimming at the edge of the pool to stare at the cityscape. “I only asked to join you because I wanted to talk. That’s all.” 
You wanted to laugh at how he was clearing his intentions to you. 
“Why do you sound defensive around me?” He couldn’t see it, but you were rolling your eyes as you leaned against the pool coping. “I never knew Akemi would be the jealous type.” 
Satoru looked surprised by your claim, seeming as though he didn’t recognize the kind of person you were anymore. You were never this unreasonably sarcastic nor acidic with your words during your marriage even at the height of his affair with Sera, yet you had just become the worst version of yourself. “She isn’t,” he muttered, finding his spot next to you, “But I don’t wanna give her a reason to be.” 
You huffed. “Don’t get ahead of yourself. You make it sound like I’m gonna make a move on you or something.” 
“I never said that.” 
“You were thinking about it.” 
“Says who?” 
What is it about Satoru Gojou that makes him so irritating? Was it the way he talks? The way he thinks he’s always right? The way he acts like he’s such a clean person? 
“Please,” you retorted, bitterly. “Toji isn’t comfortable having you around me, either. Just so you know.” 
“Can we just—” There. His last string of patience finally snapped and his true colors came to show when he grabbed your wrist and made you face him. The spiteful Satoru. He was back, even just for a second. “Y/N, I’m not trying to argue with you here. I’m trying to talk to you like a civilized person. You’re the mother of my child and I respect you. I’d still care for you and will always protect you, but I want you to at least act like a fucking person around me. You’re a grown woman.” 
Wasn’t it bad that he, of all people, was basically telling you to grow up? Memories of your marriage and all the back-and-forth arguments that you had with him flashed before your eyes. He should be the last one to say such a thing. “You’re the one who’s been crossing the fucking line with me since day one, Gojou. Don’t tell me to—”
“And do you wish I had just killed myself for you to forgive me?!” The ridges of his neck became prominent, making his anger much visible now. He was staring down at you intensely, backing you against the edge of the pool, trapping you in between his arms. “I’d have probably done that. But you…You did unforgivable things to me and look how easy it was for me to forgive you.” 
You looked away, not trying to have this conversation again. Not trying to have your guilt eat your heart out. Maybe your behavior really had become too much and it was about time you take a step back and realize how ridiculous you had been acting because no way was this man trying to make a better point than you. 
“I slept with Akemi, I know. She’s your best friend, I fucking know. But I never did that to get back at you,” his voice bore so much authority in them. “I begged on my knees just to be with you again. Swallowed my pride just for you to be my wife again!” His breathing became ragged. “But you chose to move on. You said you love Toji. You said you’d be happier without me, so why don’t I deserve to be happy without you?” 
The inability to speak wasn’t because you were at a loss of words. The problem was choosing the right ones. Words that wouldn’t put you in a disadvantageous position. Words that wouldn’t make you look like an unreasonable person. 
“You wished me well when you first found out about Akemi and I. You said you don’t care who I choose to date even if that choice is her,” he said, much calmer this time. He was placing his forehead against yours, body pressed against each other. “If that was true, then why are you still so angry with me?” 
Your heart raced as you locked eyes with him. His eyes were the same kind of blue that reflected off of the surface of the pool. Anyone could easily get lost in it, but you knew where to place yourself in order not to. “I’m… not angry…” 
“Baby, you and I both know that’s not true,” he said with a serious gaze, lifting your chin with his hand. 
But you swatted it away, averting your eyes. “Don’t call me baby. You’re being ridiculous.” 
With a loud sigh, Gojou gave up and simply placed his forehead on your shoulder, letting you feel the weight of his head and the warmth of his breath. “If you were still my wife, I’d have kissed you right now,” he declared, breathing heavily as if stopping with all of his will to do what he just said. “I’d touch every inch of you, tell you how much I love you, carry you back into that room, and make more beautiful babies with you…” 
“Satoru,” you warned just as he pulled away, smiling despite the sorrow in his eyes. 
“…But I won’t do that. I’m not gonna do that,” he claimed and sounded like he was convincing himself rather than clearing it up. “Akemi doesn’t deserve a partner who can’t move on from his ex-wife, so I’m doing my best to forget about you.” 
Your breathing took a halt. You weren’t sure where those tiny pricks in your heart came from. Toji needed the same. He deserved a wife who wasn’t pining for her ex-husband. Satoru was just being true. 
“Then, forget about me,” you gave a barely audible reply. 
Gojou pulled away and kept his distance now, showing that he was indeed trying to stick to his words. “I will.” 
Why did it hurt when it shouldn’t have? 
“Good.” 
He looked at you with eyes that carried a million emotions. But what was most visible was him seeing the light, probably realizing that he truly was doing the right thing and that he was proud of himself for being able to resist you. Because then, that only meant he was only a few steps away from the path of moving on. That if he could let you go, then he could live a better life. 
It only made sense why he pulled that little stunt back there—being close enough to you was probably his way of differentiating how his body reacted to you versus how it reacted to Akemi. And now that he was able to determine whatever difference that might be, it would be easier for him to know what exactly to avoid. 
After all, you two would be spending the rest of your lives as a present mom and dad to Sachiro. Co-parenting was your only connection and the only way to make that work without falling for each other was to rid yourselves of any kind of attraction towards one another. 
Good for him. 
“Let’s be good parents, Y/N.” Satoru looked at you from across the pool. “Let’s set a good example for Sachi and show that divorced parents can still be good parents. Let’s not be toxic to each other, especially not in front of him.” His words were coming from his personal experience and as you knew the whole history behind the mess within his family, you were truthfully considerate of his words. His traumatic experiences were what shaped him to become the problematic man you once married, and he was doing his best not to let his own son be the same. “I’ll provide Sachiro with everything he needs and I’ll always be present in his life, so please let me have as much time with him as possible. I’m making up for the three years I lost with him.” 
You nodded. “I don’t have a problem with that. 
As the established relationship you had with Gojou became more professional and strictly transactional, the distance between you two also grew more and more. There was no longer any space for love and intimacy. There was only familiarity and acquaintanceship. 
“Go to sleep soon,” he said without sending another glance your way, climbing out of the pool and reaching for his clothes, “We have a long day tomorrow.” 
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all-theabove · 11 days ago
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𝑃𝑎𝑦𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑎𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑝𝑡𝑒𝑑 - 𝑀𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑜 𝑥 𝑓𝑒𝑚!𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑟
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𝑃𝑙𝑜𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑝𝑒𝑎𝑘 (𝑎𝑏𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑒𝑙𝑦 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑙)٫ 𝑙𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑐𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑜 𝑖𝑠 𝑝𝑒𝑎𝑘 (200%)٫ 𝑠𝑚𝑢𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑝𝑒𝑎𝑘 (𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑔𝑢𝑎𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑒) 𝐼𝑛𝑠𝑝𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑦 "𝑅𝑢𝑙𝑒 𝑀𝑎𝑘𝑒𝑟٫ 𝑅𝑢𝑙𝑒 𝐵𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑘𝑒𝑟" 𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑏𝑦 𝑀𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑣𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑜
𝑇𝑊: 𝑔𝑟𝑜𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑔٫ 𝑏𝑟𝑎𝑡 𝑡𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑔 (𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑑 𝑜𝑓?)٫ 𝑠𝑢𝑠 𝑡𝑜𝑢𝑐𝘩𝑖𝑛𝑔 (𝑓 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑒𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔)٫ 𝑠𝑒𝑥
𝑤𝑐: 5.1𝑘
Your assassin droid, IG-11, kept up, sending blaster shots towards the Mandalorian whenever you stumbled on your steps, reminding you of just another business deal you'd made with the man. He’d traded the droid to you after a piece of the Crest had malfunctioned, all since you'd refused to take his credits, determined on acquiring a bodyguard instead. People knew not to trust you and what you sold. Half of the time it was broken, or defective, you being too lazy to fix it. But you were one of the only people in the galaxy to have certain parts, so they landed on faith. It didn't get many of them too far. It made you hated, and a couple of unlucky sales later, it made you wanted. 
You managed to evade the bounties thanks to Mando’s IG-11, but you knew it was he, himself, who’d come after you if you ever did such a thing to him. But you needed the credits, and a functional engine capacitor was just not in your cards when he came asking. 
A quick turn of your head revealed a green blaster shot heading straight for the droid, hitting the coolant pipe on his left arm. Fuck, you thought to yourself as thick gray liquid began to pour form the punctured pipe. IG-11 wouldn't last long without it, especially not in the Naboo heat. 
And you were right, nearly 10 seconds later, it crumbled to the ground, leaving you no backup and a shitty aim to hold the bounty hunter off. He was relentless. No wonder he was so notorious. Notorious was not what you wanted after you right now. 
“Mando,” you yell without looking back. “Ill fix the fucking piece for cheap,” you try to reason with him, though you’re quickly shut down by a blaster hitting your close right, shuffling dust and debris on the ground, making you yelp, “for Maker’s sake, Mando!”
“Free,” he gruffed, you not realizing just how much he’d gained on you without IG-11 holding him off. “Yes, fine, fine- just put the blaster down,” you say, slowing down, turning around to see him slow to a walking pace as well. You back up, keeping distance between you. 
But he doesn't set his blaster back in its holster, rather pointing it directly at your temple and saying, “get on the ground.” 
“What?” You practically blubber. Did you just fall for a false promise?
“On the ground” He repeats, his voice a bit louder now through the modulator in the helmet. 
Without much of a better choice, you do as asked, lowering yourself to your knees, your hands up in surrender, eyes where you'd imagine his own were under the visor. 
Approaching you, he pushes your shoulder down into the dirt, removing the cloak off you and tossing it aside. 
He looks down your body, searching for any weapons, the useless blaster you'd been trying to shoot at him having been dropped somewhere along the way. 
With one hand, he pats down your sides, your legs, the edges of your boots. You wished you’d stored that knife in the footwear today, even if you knew it would make no difference against him.
With a pleased grunt, he cages your hands with cuffs, which you knew better than to question where he procured from. 
“Mando, please,” you utter as he pulls you to your feet, though keeps that insolence beneath the mask, straight backed and not bothering to look at you as he practically paraded you down the street. 
Heads turned and whispers shared, some of the men you’d stolen from, and some you’d sold to, cheering. 
It took more than a comfortable amount of walking to reach the Razorcrest, parked in Pell Motto’s workshop, and seeing the hunk of metal it was truly made you wonder what it would feel like to be frozen alive. 
You spot her, pit droids chirping at the sight of you restrained, and she gives you a solemn nod, greeting you before your imminent death. She was one of the only few people you purely sold undamaged goods to, so she had no problems with you, though she knew interrupting a Mandalorian from a bounty was not a good idea. 
As you pushed towards the door of the Crest, he instead threw you off to the left, towards the engine, which he’d needed the piece for. “Fix it.” He commanded. 
Your eyes turn to him for a moment, and you let loose a breath you didn't know you were holding. You felt like rambling of your thankfulness and extensively cussing him out at the same time. Instead, you settle on offering him your hands to remove the restrains. 
It took hours under his intense gaze, sweat and grease on your face and clothes and hands by the time you finished, an assortment of tools and metal scraps all around you. Turning back to him finally, silently commanding him to run it. 
He simply nods, the helmet dipping as he walks towards the hull’s entrance and disappears inside, a roar in the metal making you jump and retreat away from the ship. 
After a moment of steady humming, he turns it off once again, standing at the top of the ramp and saying, “Come here.” 
You're conflicted wether trying to run again or actually following direction. You knew that if you tried to escape him, you wouldn't get far, not without IG-11. 
So with slumped shoulders, you stride, ever so slowly, into his ship.
He doesn't make move to restrain you again, leading you through the cockpit, past the carbon freezing chamber, and towards a small cot, him resting his back on a storage container. 
“Like to play with your food, or..?” You ask, clearly a bit intimidated but not afraid enough to not poke at him as you usually did. 
“You pull some bullshit like that again, y/n, and I swear-- a bounty won’t be why I kill you.”  
The words make you sink back into the wall a little bit, his helmet fully trained on you, all dirty and disheveled after being chased, pushed, and forced to work. 
“You need to work better on who you trust then,” You respond through the clenching in your gut. 
You could tell immediately that he did not like that. As he takes a step forward, you raise your hands up in surrender for the second time today. 
“Business is business, Mando, and unless you think I’m pretty enough to be a working girl-- money is made however it needs to be made.” I say with a shrug of my shoulders. “I fixed it, didn't I?"
“After I wasted my time on you.” 
You scoff. “That was a great chase, im not sure what you’re referring to.” 
He took a long pause, not to agree, but also not to disagree. “You better get IG-11 before the Jawas get to him first.”
You took that as the last free pass you'd get to leave the ship alive. 
──────────═━━━┈┈━━━═───────────
It only took him a few weeks to return to your shop, if one could even call it that. It was a small hut set up near the outskirts of town, near the landfills, so that anyone passing by would think what lay surrounding your home was nothing more than scraps. The assassin droid had let him in, though his blaster had remained trained on a joint in the armor as the Mandalorian approached your work bench. You were hunched over the droid’s broken temperature regulator, a worn welding mask over your face, stick welders on either hand, melting a tube to the side of the device to replace the one Mando had broken. 
Right now, IG-11 had some scrap piece you knew would break down within weeks, something to hold him off while you worked on his actual replacement. 
“I need a landing foot.” 
Not hearing his words over the buzzing of the wands or noticing him from the blocked view of the mask, he hunkered behind you, gripping the wire running power to the equipment and pulling it. As they shut down, you look back, confused, and catch a glimpse of the beskar on his thighs, letting out a sigh that made him aware of your resignation. 
“Landing foot. Now.” He repeated as you raised the mask, your only response being, “1400 credits.” 
He let out what sounded like a smug chuckle. “Ill give you 400.” 
You twisted your face in slight offence “Are you insane?” your tone a lot more disrespectful than you knew you could afford to be to him. “400 or I take you in.”
Huffing, you say, “With his gun on you? I don’t think so,” gesturing towards IG-11.
“Oh, please, he makes one move too sharply and that haphazard tube will pop out of his arm.” He replies just as fast. “Don’t think the helmet is too thick for me to realize what a coolant device looks like.”
Watching him for a long moment, you get up and walk towards a pile of opened boxes, unorganized scattered pieces inside. “1050,” You finally say as you pull out a piece of clean metal, wide in your hands, the strip to support the ship the size of your abdomen alone. 
“600” 
“1000”
“800”
“900”
The mandalorian pauses for a moment. “850”
“Fine.” You utter, tossing the mask hovering over your head onto your desk, placing the foot in front of him, stretching out your hand. 
“Ill transfer you after it’s installed into the ship.” He says as he looks down at your palm, calloused and covered in cooling liquid. 
“Its a fucking landing foot, Mando, how could it be defective?” 
“You always manage to find a way.” 
“Maybe you just like me,” You shrug, knowing better than to tease him but unable to help yourself. 
A scoff from under the helmet and a shift in the cape around the skin of his neck, “Don’t start.”
And so, he made you come back with him to the ship. 
Kneeled under the raised hull, you twisted the wrench with a push to loosen the heavy screw, the muscles in your arm aching with the resistance of old metal. You gritted your teeth, finally feeling the bolt give, and reached back without looking.
“Smaller one,” you muttered, hand blindly searching.
He let out a grunt, clearly unamused by your tone, but passed you the thinner screwdriver from the box beside him. The thick fabric of his gloves grazed your palm, the contact hot despite the barrier. You felt it. You knew he did too.
“You're breathing on me,” you muttered, annoyed, but not enough to actually shift away. He was close. Looming, really. 
“I’m not leaving you unattended,” came the low, flat reply.
You snorted softly. “Afraid I’ll sabotage it again?” “No. Just know you like to test people when they’re not looking.”
Your hands paused.
You twisted your head over your shoulder to glance at him. He hadn’t moved. Still standing solid behind you, close enough that if you pushed back even slightly, youd hit hard, cold beskar.
“You always assume the worst,” you say, fingers still moving as you twist the next piece into place.
“I’m usually correct.” His voice dropped slightly. It wasn’t harsh if it was a simple fact.
You felt heat curl up the back of your neck. Maybe it was the sun. Or the proximity.
Still working, you asked, “Get tired of watching me yet?”
A long pause.
“Not yet.”
“Fuck,” you yelp suddenly, bumping back as a hinge from the top of the rusted landing foot almost lands on your stomach, making you drop the screwdriver, your back now pressed hard against the armor. 
He reached his hands under your arms to catch you from stumbling back further, his visor trained on you, as if silently asking if you were alright. 
“I’d bet all my credits this is the closest you’ve been to a girl in m-”
“You don’t want to finish that sentence.”
The stern words made you swallow whatever smart-ass remark you’d tried to make, his commanding presence practically beckoning you to never speak again. But his hands remained on you, one splayed across your ribs, the other just a fraction lower, right above your waist. His fingers had a firm grip on your shirt, as if you'd just fallen, as if he wasn't quite ready to let go. 
Still, you swallowed whatever begged you to just shut up and finish the job.
“Didn’t take you as the handsy type,” You say with a mocking smile, head tilted up to be able to meet the helmets view. 
“I’m not,” he replied, though it was low and cut short. 
He still hadn’t moved. The beskar pressing into your spine, the silence thick enough that you could hear the faint hum of the ship behind you, the sound of your own breathing. You were sure he could hear it too.
You twisted slightly in his grip, just enough to glance over your shoulder. “Then let go.”
His hands didn’t budge.
“You’re reckless,” he said simply like it explained everything.
“And you’re still here,” you shot back, barely a whisper.
Silence.
“Turn around.”
Your heart jumped. It wasn’t loud. Wasn’t threatening. But something in the way he said it, unreadable with that authority of his made you move before you even realized what you'd been doing.
You turned. Slowly, hesitantly, rotating in the tight space between him and the hull, until your chest brushed the curve of his chestplate. You had to look up to meet the black of his visor.
He didn’t step back.
The space between you felt too small now, filled with dust and tension.
“I’m not going to run,” you said, voice quieter than before.
“I know,” he replied.
His helmet tilted, just a fraction, as if scanning you. His gloved hand lifted and hovered near your jaw. Like you were a malfunction he couldn’t fix, just had to keep coming back to. 
He didn’t touch you. Not yet. Just traced the air near your face like he was deciding something.
You didn’t blink. Didn’t breathe.
Then, his voice came again, no less sharp.
“You think this is a game.”
You blinked once, slowly. “No,” you said. “I think it’s a job.”
His hand lowered to your side, settling at your hip, possessive in its stillness.
“I should lock you in the carbon chamber,” he muttered.
You smirked. “But you won’t.”
Another beat. Another breath.
“No, I won't."
You raised an eyebrow, heart thudding loud in your chest. “Then what?”
His hand slipped down, enough to curve around your lower back. 
“You fix things with your hands. Break them, too.”
A pause.
“I’m still trying to figure out which one you’re doing to me.”
Your mouth opened, but you didn’t have a witty comeback for that. Not when his hand stayed right where it was, not when his body was a wall of heat and beskar mere inches from yours.
“I’m not doing anything,” you murmured.
He leaned in just slightly, visor inches from your face, voice sharp and quiet through the modulator, “Exactly.”
Then his hand shifted once again, curling tighter on your waist, the leather of his glove warm now from your burning skin under your shirt. He leaned in, not enough to touch, but close enough that you felt the air shift when he spoke again.
“Inside. Now.”
It wasn’t a question. It wasn’t even a threat.
It was a command.
You swallowed hard, smirk twitching at the edge of your lips. “You ordering me around on my own sale?”
“You're not selling me anything.”
His voice was measured, dangerous. You didn’t push further as he took a reluctant step back, his hand falling to his side. 
Stepping out from under the ship towards the ramp, you became aware of his steps behind you. The ship loomed, a dull silver in the afternoon sun. The air felt heavier with each footstep.
By the time the Razor Crest’s ramp closed behind you with a few clicks on the control panel at his wrist, your breath was shallow and your palms were sweating.
You turned, maybe to tease, to ask what the hell this was, but he was already a breath too close again.
“Don’t play dumb now.” His voice was a rumble at your ear, the modulator not doing much to mask the timbre in his voice.
You tilted your head up at him, biting back a smile. “I thought you didn’t come back for second rounds.”
A beat passed.
“Neither do you.”
The words between you sparked the memory; oil-stained hands on your hips, the sharp edge of your workbench digging into your stomach, biting back moans because his hand was over your mouth. The fact that you hadn’t spoken of it since made it burn hotter.
“I figured you were too proud to admit you liked it,” you murmured, stepping back toward the wall of the hull, letting it catch you, letting him corner you again once again.
He didn’t take the bait. Of course he didn’t.
Instead, he just stared. Helmet angled slightly, like he was assessing damage, or weakness. With a scoff, he took a step forward, knowing he was letting you win. His gloved hand came up slowly, dragging two gloved fingers along the underside of your jaw.
“You talk too much.”
You smirked, chin lifted. “You do too little.”
His hand moved in a blur, catching your wrist as you attempted to pull him closer, pushing you back, your spine thudding gently against the wall behind you. His other hand was already sliding down your side, trailing across waistband.
“Still remember how to beg?” he asked, tone flat, unbothered, his hand dipping under the pants and palming your ass roughly.
You refused to flinch. “I didn’t beg last time.”
He laughed, not much more than a sharp huff of air through the modulator, and bent forward, voice low.
“You know you did.”
You opened your mouth, something defiant on your tongue, but it turned to a breathy curse when his gloved hand raised back up, hooking on the loop of your pants and pushing them down, just enough to see your simple black underwear, expecting you to do the rest.
Which you gladly did, hastily removing them and tossing them god-knows where while he removed his gloves and discarded them as well.
His warm hand ran slowly down your thigh, hooking on your knee and raising it to give him access to your cloth-covered cunt.
Once raised, you knew, placing your thigh on his hip, calf wrapped around the back of his thigh as his hand traced back up, thumb kneading the soft flesh. 
But he just kept going up and up, thumb pressing into sticky fabric, tracing slow circles over your already throbbing core. 
“Already soaked,” he murmured. It wasn't a compliment, more like a confirmation to suspicion.
“You gonna stand here narrating it, or—”
His fingers wrapped around your throat, gentle but not soft, thumb pressing into the edge of your jaw. He leaned in close again, visor nearly touching your skin.
“You’re not in charge here, mesh’la.”
You shivered. It hit you harder than it should’ve: the nickname in that voice, underlined by steel. You remembered the first time he used it, gritted out under his breath as he fucked you from behind, fingers tangled in your hair. You’d asked what it meant, and he’d told you it was the word for “beautiful” in his language. You hadn’t been able to forget it since.
Now, his hand slipped between your waistband and skin, calloused fingers dragging rough over you as he pushed further down.
“You remember how to say thank you?” he asked.
Your breath only hitched.
“No?”
Two fingers pressed your clit teasingly, refusing to give you what he knew you needed as you practically dripped precum.
“Then I’ll make you remember.”
“Mando,” You utter, eyes lowering slightly, refusing to show him how good he made you feel without even being inside you. You knew he could tell anyways, skin burning and heartbeat pounding southward. 
You can practically hear the smirk in his voice when he responds, low and demanding. 
“Say it.” 
“Come on,” It’s an annoyed tone you take with him, and it makes him squeeze your throat just a bit tighter, dip the tip of one finger into you then remove it just as quickly to let you know exactly what you were missing. 
“God- Please,” you beg, whinier than intended. 
“Please what?” His voice was silk over steel, a rasp because of the modulator that somehow made everything worse. Or better. You couldn’t decide.
You tried to shift your hips against his hand, chase the friction, but his arm locked around your waist and held you still.
“Use your words.”
You scowled, even as your breath trembled. “You’re such an—”
He slipped two fingers into you, sudden and deep, and your insult died as a strangled moan instead. His other hand held you firm, pinned with nowhere to go but onto him.
“Don’t start something you can’t finish, mesh’la,” he growled, voice low and amused, but there was a warning in it too.
You clenched around his fingers, hips rolling instinctively. It wasn’t enough, not with how slow he moved, not when he deliberately avoided that one spot you needed most.
“I didn’t know you were such a tease,” you gasped.
“I’m not teasing,” he said, curling his fingers just slightly, dragging a delicious moan from your lips. “You’re the one who begged last time, remember?”
Your head remained tipped back as you bit into your bottom lip to keep from groaning again. You hated that he remembered that. You loved that he remembered that.
Still, your voice came out sharp, defiant. “And what? You think I’ll beg again?”
His hand withdrew entirely, leaving you clenching around nothing. Cold air hit your slick skin.
Your eyes flew open. “Wait- !”
He tilted his helmet. “You were saying?”
“Fuck you.”
“Eventually,” he said, tone maddeningly casual.
You tried reaching for him, grab his wrist, to drag him back where you needed him so desperately, but he caught both your hands in one of his and pinned them to your chest. His other hand dipped back down slowly, so, so slowly, and you squirmed against the wall, practically panting.
“You don’t get to take,” he said, pushing your thighs wider with a knee, “until you give.”
You let go of your lip with a slight pop. “Fine.”
A pause. Then, “Please. Touch me.”
And Maker, he did.
His fingers worked you open with ruthless control, stroking slow and deep, your whimpers caught against the inside of your teeth. The sound of your slick was obscene in the silence of the ship, each motion dragging you closer to the edge.
“You’re gonna come like this,” he said, helmet pressed right at your ear now. “Just from my fingers. And next time…”
His hand slipped lower, thumb grinding over your clit, puffy and pink as you bucked against him.
“You ask nicely from the start.”
Your hands curled against his chestplate, nails scraping the cool beskar, desperate now.
“Say it again.”
“Please—fuck—please, Mando, don’t stop—”
“Good girl.”
That did it.
Your legs shook, body clenching tight as the orgasm hit you sharp and fast, his fingers never slowing. You gasped his name again, louder this time, barely caring how wrecked you sounded.
He didn’t stop until you were twitching, breath gone, head falling back against his shoulder.
Then, finally, he eased his fingers out and wrapped both arms around you from behind, holding you steady.
“Are you going to be good now?” he murmured, voice still dark, still in control.
You were already nodding, a little too fast.
Your legs still felt weak when he pulled you toward the back of the ship, your shirt pushed halfway up your abdomen. He didn’t give you a chance to fix it, only guided you forward with a hand firm on your hip, thumb stroking once through the fabric as if to remind you who put you in this state.
“Box,” he ordered simply, nodding toward one of the metal crates bolted down along the wall. You recognized it; some forgotten supply locker you’d helped him dig through once, heavy with scrap and spare parts. Now it looked like an altar.
He turned you around, hand on the back of your neck, pushing until you were bent over it, the metal seeping cold onto your chest flush against it.
“This feel familiar?” he asked, voice thick through the modulator as his fingers hooked onto your panties, pulling them off this time. “Last time it was a workbench.”
“Yeah,” you muttered, breathless. “You didn’t even buy anything.”
“Didn’t need to.” His hands ran down the curve of your back, stopping to grip your ass in both palms. “You offered.”
“I didn’t—fuck—”
He cut you off with a sharp slap to your ass, making you jolt forward with a gasp.
“Offered,” he repeated. “And begged.”
Your fingers dug into the edges of the crate as he spread you open with both hands. 
His thumb slid between your folds again, spreading the mess you’d already made. “Still soaked.”
“You gonna keep stating the obvious?” you shot back, trying to regain some control, even with your knees trembling and your spine curved just right.
Another slap. This time lower. You cried out.
“You gonna keep talking?” he said.
Then you heard it: the sound of his belt unfastening, that familiar shift of armor plates as he freed himself just enough.
A rough hand wrapped around your waist, hauling your hips back slightly, angling you where he wanted.
“Stay still.”
You barely nodded before he pushed inside—slow at first, thick and long and unrelenting, stretching you until you could barely breathe.
“Fuck—Din—”
He didn’t answer, only groaned low behind the helmet, hands tightening around your hips. His thrusts started slow, controlled, brutal. Every motion shoved you harder into the crate, the joining of your stomach and your thighs hurting from the sharp edge, but you didn’t care. All you could feel was him.
You could hear the restraint in his voice when he finally spoke again, his voice rough with strain. “You act like a brat just to get fucked like this?”
You moaned, louder than you should’ve. He snapped his hips harder.
“Answer me.”
“Yes—shit—yes.”
“Good.” His hand reached up, fingers tangling in your hair, yanking your head back just enough to see your face as you moaned for him.
Each thrust hit deeper, timed with the curve of your spine and the helpless gasp you let out every time his hips slapped against the backs of your thighs.
You couldn’t find words anymore. You just breathed, shuddering and barely holding yourself up on the crate as he used your body exactly how he wanted.
“You like being taken like this, huh?” he muttered. The modulator distorted his voice just enough to make it darker, more guttural. “Bent over. Obedient.”
You whimpered. Nodded. That was all you could do.
He fucked into you harder for that. One sharp thrust that had your toes curling inside your boots.
“I didn’t say nod.” He let go of your hair just long enough to slap your ass again, the sound echoing off the hull. “Use your voice.”
“Yes,” you choked out, teeth sinking into your bottom lip as your neck gave out, forehead now resting against your crossed forearms. “Yes, fuck—yes.”
“Good girl,” he growled, and you felt the shiver that rolled down your back like he’d pressed a cold blade there.
Then his hand returned to your hip, anchoring you in place, while the other found your clit again, fingers still bare, working quick, tight circles that had your thighs shaking.
“You’re gonna come like this,” he ordered. “Just like last time.”
You remembered last time. The mess. The way you’d been too dazed to speak after. And now, with his body pressed so tight behind yours, with his cock filling you just right and his fingers coaxing every bit of sensitivity from you, you were close, too close.
“Din, I—I can’t—”
“Yes, you can.” His voice left no room for argument. “You will.”
Your body snapped.
You came with a cry that wasn’t a word, wasn’t even a thought. He didn’t stop, kept fucking you through it, letting you tremble, fall apart around him, squeezing tight, soaking his cock as you pulsed and gasped under him.
And only when he felt you start to come down, did he finally taper off. His hips slowed to a halt, body tense, hands gripping you hard enough to leave marks.
The air was thick with heat and the scent of pleasure. The only sound was your breathing, rough and shaky, and the low mechanical hum of the ship.
He didn’t speak. Just rested a hand on your upper back, slow and grounding, tracing along your spine with the pads of his bare fingers like he was checking that you were still whole, still alive.
You stayed like that a moment, bare and used, before finally murmuring, lips curved against the crate:
“So... do I get a bonus?”
But he moved. Stepped back, adjusted his armor with a quiet huff through the modulator. A moment later, something soft landed beside you on the crate. Your pants, folded haphazardly. Then your underwear.
And then the jingle of credits. A small handful of them, tossed down casually onto the same box you were still bent over.
“Keep the change,” he said flatly.
You turned your head to glare at him, but he was already walking off. Composed again, like nothing had just happened.
He paused at the threshold of the cockpit.
And with just the tilt of his helmet over his shoulder, voice low and dry, he added, “Next time I won’t let you overcharge me.”
Then he disappeared into the piloting room, the door sliding shut behind him.
Leaving you half-dressed, a little wrecked, and already thinking about that “next time.” 𝐼𝑓 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝘩𝑖𝑠٫ 𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑐𝘩𝑒𝑐𝑘 𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑚𝑦 𝑝𝑎𝑔𝑒٫ 𝑖𝑚 𝑡𝑟𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑛 𝑚𝑦 𝑜𝑐 𝑥 𝑜𝑐 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑦 "𝐶𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑒"٫ 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑡ˊ𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑡𝘩𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑎 𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑖 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑚𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑔𝑜𝑜𝑑٫ 𝑠𝑜 𝑎𝑛𝑦 𝑟𝑒𝑏𝑙𝑜𝑔𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑔𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑙𝑦 𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑!
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axolterp · 1 month ago
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Axolt: Modern ERP and Inventory Software Built on Salesforce
Today’s businesses operate in a fast-paced, data-driven environment where efficiency, accuracy, and agility are key to staying competitive. Legacy systems and disconnected software tools can no longer meet the evolving demands of modern enterprises. That’s why companies across industries are turning to Axolt, a next-generation solution offering intelligent inventory software and a full-fledged ERP on Salesforce.
Axolt is a unified, cloud-based ERP system built natively on the Salesforce platform. It provides a modular, scalable framework that allows organizations to manage operations from inventory and logistics to finance, manufacturing, and compliance—all in one place.
Where most ERPs are either too rigid or require costly integrations, Axolt is designed for flexibility. It empowers teams with real-time data, reduces manual work, and improves cross-functional collaboration. With Salesforce as the foundation, users benefit from enterprise-grade security, automation, and mobile access without needing separate platforms for CRM and ERP.
Smarter Inventory Software Inventory is at the heart of operational performance. Poor inventory control can result in stockouts, over-purchasing, and missed opportunities. Axolt’s built-in inventory software addresses these issues by providing real-time visibility into stock levels, warehouse locations, and product movement.
Whether managing serialized products, batches, or kits, the system tracks every item with precision. It supports barcode scanning, lot and serial traceability, expiry tracking, and multi-warehouse inventory—all from a central dashboard.
Unlike traditional inventory tools, Axolt integrates directly with Salesforce CRM. This means your sales and service teams always have accurate availability information, enabling faster order processing and better customer communication.
A Complete Salesforce ERP Axolt isn’t just inventory software—it’s a full Salesforce ERP suite tailored for businesses that want more from their operations. Finance teams can automate billing cycles, reconcile payments, and manage cash flows with built-in modules for accounts receivable and payable. Manufacturing teams can plan production, allocate work orders, and track costs across every stage.
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sgiandubh · 6 months ago
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Delulu vs. trululu
As expected, promo for the overall stodgy TCND just started in NYC, including with this released and then quickly deleted Instagram pic, shared by the Sassenach Spirits' account:
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Not the cleverest marketing & sales move, if you ask me. Knowing this fandom's usual bigot and/or scoffing triggers (which I tend to think S & team do, and rather very well), why even entertain lurid speculation and, by the same token, an unnecessarily juvenile image of The Co-founder? Oh, how I wish they'd step up their game a bit and perhaps be more coherent with that fresh, witty sales approach that first caught my eye!
Why. A rhetorical question that never grows old, as far as SC are concerned. Take for example the latest interview released yesterday by the Fangirlish.com website, which is barely a blurb in the great Instagram tapestry. 6k followers do not a great media outlet make, I believe and they've been around since 2011 (!).
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Perhaps on design or perhaps because both of them DGAF anymore, we were treated to these parallel public statements on a rarely brought about and carefully censored calibrated topic: personal lives.
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[Source: https://fangirlish.com/2025/01/12/interview-sam-heughan-and-caitriona-balfe-on-jamie-claires-growth-in-outlander/]
While C ambiguously mentions what Claire's character brought to who she is now, she is probably throwing to the scrapheap that constipated but convenient braggadocio that she was 'totally able to separate between Claire and herself'. Something we kept on reading ad nauseam from EFH to the Remarkable Week-end and beyond. She now readily acknowledges she has led 'this project alongside S', all the while - which is even more telling - 'assuming everything that implies'. For some reason, I doubt she simply meant the rather decorous EP functions, but also the entire emotional burden of it all, to which this damned fandom is not exactly a stranger. As we have long surmised, they are in this thing together and they did it together (been together, loved together, lived together, lied together...) all along this tortuous path. Cue in the usual venom that they can't stand each other anymore, I don't really care, at this point in time.
S dutifully obliges as C's sounding board and takes it the needed (but completely unnecessary, Narrative-wise) extra mile: JAMMF has given him 'an incredible relationship, one I never thought I’d have'.
Surely he does not mean Flukenzie Floozy or the entire Fitness Harem panoply, Ha-wa-wee 🐰and Dubai Burlesque included. And she could have rectified on the spot or poked fun at him or anything in between. Yet, she did not: surely Tracula is again the 'very understanding' character of that plot!
Why even bring it up all of this now? Why even mention personal stuff both of them have a rather appalling PR management of, from unnecessary exposure to gaslighting an entire fandom and probably also the kitchen sink?
For the sake of an ending series?
Oh, come on - give me a break, here. We are neither delulu, nor stupid.
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PS: Thank you for the pic. You know who you are ;)
Later edit: I am told with good reason that is was not Sassenach Spirits which posted that pic, but the Instagram user @stevieme88 - a bartender at that last SS event in the US. He then proceeded to go private again, but the pic was downloaded and shared by that very well informed vigilante account, which then chose to tag Sassenach Spirits (why?).
Gracias a ti, siempre.
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fuck-customers · 3 months ago
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Managers grow a spine challenge!
Everything in the store is final sale, NO RETURNS. There is a gigantic ~4'x4' sign on the wall behind the register. The sign in neon yellow, with big bold letters and it's on the wall at about 6' above the ground. It is very hard to miss. It also says on the top of every receipt "all sales are final"
Occasionally someone will want to return something and I just professionally say "sucks to suck" and point at the sign and usually they get embarrassed at not noticing the gigantic sign and leave.
Except this one Karen who made a big stink because "you should've told me how much this would cost" when I 100% told her the total before she paid and she put her card in anyway. Not my fault. So I called the manager to tell the customer the same thing I already told her, because these dumbass Karens have to be told the same thing 20 different times before they give up and my spineless manager just did the return for her anyway!
And to be clear, I physically cannot process a return. The register will not let me. Apparently, managers are still able to process returns, but non-managers have had the return function blocked.
Can't wait until the dumbass Karen tells everyone she knows that we can do returns and now we'll have people coming in all the time trying to do returns and arguing about it.
Posted by admin Rodney
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tswhiisftteedr · 1 year ago
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Heyyyy, could you do a oneshot f!reader x Zestial nsfw pretty please ? 🙏
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Tea Salon ☆ One Shot
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Zestial x Salon Owner Sinner!Fem!Reader:
A young woman with big dreams ready to be achieve was what you were, after making a deal with Overlord Rosie you soon found out that your Salon wasn't the only thing that would bloom in your afterlife...
Warning: Mature Content, Explicit/Graphic Language, Honestly Nothing Kinky, Husband and wife, Praise kink, Creampie, Oral(Female receiving), Old English, NOT PROOFREAD.
Words: 5907
Note: okay if you know anything about business, I am so sorry cuz I don’t, I just did some quick research so if it just looks like a bunch of gibberish (Rosie and reader’s meeting), I am sorry! Also a lot of Rosie in the beginning, like zestial is mentioned but doesn’t show up until the shop is open for a little while.
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☆ more under the cut. ☆
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In your living, you've always appreciated the simplicity of nature-oriented lifestyle reminiscent of earlier eras. It's not that you have anything against new technologies; you own a smartphone and laptop, after all. What irks you is the over-consumerism perpetuated by planned obsolescence.
Your expectation when purchasing something is that it should function and endure, offering value for the time and money invested. The capitalist mindset, with its overproduction and resulting overconsumption, is something you strongly dislike.
Capitalism inherently creates a class conflict between capital and labor. While capitalists aim for high profits, workers may endure exploitation, receiving wages consistently lower than the true value of their labor.
When you had finally passed away due to a malfunctioning smart car and had discovered that even in the afterlife, people still had to work tirelessly to meet end means, you couldn't deny that you felt disappointed.
With a background in restoration, you secured a position in a somewhat upscale restaurant – well, upscale for Hell's pride ring standards. Although you initially started as a garbage boy, you quickly ascended the ranks to become a server.
Devoting longer hours than your colleagues, by choice, you harbored a goal beyond mere survival in the hellscape. You held an ambition, a genuine dream – to establish a tea salon and sustain yourself through it.
Envisioning your own establishment, you aimed to offer freshly baked treats and brewed tea for guests to enjoy while engaging in lively conversations and gossip.
You were well aware of whose assistance was crucial for your project. Overlord Rosie served as your golden ticket to a thriving salon. You needed her help to secure a building in the border zone shared by her and Overlord Zestial, as both of their people were of interest when envisioning the kind of establishment you hope to open.
After three months of relentless work and an additional month of patiently waiting for an appointment on her end, you finally managed to secure a meeting with the elegant cannibal;
"So, what do you have for me today, darling?" she inquires.
"Well, Madam Rosie—" you begin, but you're promptly interrupted by the demon before you.
"Oh, dear, no need for all those 'madam' formalities for a sweet thing like you. Just call me Rosie. But if you insist on honorifics, then ‘Miss Rosie’ will do!" The leader of Hell's cannibal district and owner of the Rosie emporium cheerfully encourages you to address her casually. Despite the power difference, her amiable attitude eases any tension surrounding your sales pitch.
"Oh, very well then. Ahem, Miss Rosie, I'd like to seek your assistance for a passion project of mine," you pause, collecting your thoughts.
"I'm interested in opening a tea salon. It's been four months since I arrived in hell, and I've been searching extensively for the perfect building. Coincidentally, it's situated on your side of the shared border zone with Overlord Zestial. I understand it's not owned by you as part of the border zone, but being on the edge of your colony grants you some jurisdiction."
"Is that so," she replies, sipping her tea. "I appreciate the idea of a tea salon near my territory. Please elaborate more about the idea itself."
"Of course! I personally dislike the over-consumerism that existed on Earth and persists in hell. My goal is to establish one or two shops at most—something familial and local instead of a big chain. I aim to offer freshly baked and brewed drinks for my customers, who would come from all over the Pentagram. I do acknowledge that most of my clientele would be from your people, Overlord Zestial's, and those from the Radio Demon's territory. A simple analysis suggests that sinners from those areas may be more in tune with the concept, as they hail from eras when such establishments were more common," you explain.
"Well, that's all delightful, darling, but, as you rightly point out, the concept isn't foreign in these circles. Your salon is certainly not the first in these parts. No offense to your aspirations, but I'm struggling to see what sets you apart, something that would entice me to invest."
"As for standing out, I may or may not have direct access to products from the living world," you reveal, prompting Rosie to set down her cup.
"Well, isn't that interesting?" she remarks, now more intrigued.
"Yes, indeed it is. I can assure you that not only would my products be fresh, but they would exclusively feature ingredients from the living world – a culinary experience many down here yearn for. Additionally, I can promise you the highest quality of tea, such as Ceylon," you confidently declare.
"And how would someone like you, who sought an Overlord's assistance, have access to such materials? I'm not necessarily doubting you, but connecting the dots is a bit challenging," she says joyfully.
"Oh, I apologize, but I cannot disclose the identities of my procurers. I've signed an NDA as obtaining items from the world upstairs isn't their primary business. Additionally this avoids attracting requests from other companies, I'm afraid they'll have to remain nameless," you explain.
"Well, isn't that convenient for you, fufufu~ I suppose you'll have to prove your word in other ways," she remarks.
"Indeed, perhaps I have an idea on how to do so that you'd like to hear," you suggest.
"I'm all ears," she replies.
"I've noticed there's a kitchen in this building, so I was contemplating rescheduling another meeting soon after this one. During that meeting, I plan not only to bring in earthly ingredients but also to bake something for you. This would showcase my kitchen skills while simultaneously proving my capability to provide the desired products," you express.
"Well, that does seem feasible. I'll pencil you in for next Monday," she replies, jotting something down on her notepad that had been on the coffee table since the start of the meeting. "Now, shall we discuss payment?" she asks.
"Yes, please. As mentioned earlier, I'll handle the supply for my business. What I need from you is assistance in acquiring the building, help with renovations since it's a bit run-down, and perhaps some promotion to your people concerning work, as I'll still require staff when I eventually open. I've checked the listing for the building itself, and I have more than enough for the purchase. However, when renovations and promoting are considered, my budget becomes a bit tight. I was thinking of a BNPL for that part," you explain.
"Alright then, that doesn't seem too bad. How about this: I get 10% of the overall monthly revenue from your establishment. I still need to make some money, after all, fufufu~ Additionally, we can consider a 1-year BNPL plan to repay the renovation loan. And one more thing: to prove your establishment's worth, aim for a minimum 20% net profit by the end of the year since opening day. How does that sound to you?" she inquires.
"10 percent isn't too stiff, but a 20% net profit may be a little challenging in only a year of business. However, I believe in my dream!" you cheerfully exclaim.
"I'm glad you agree, though I still need some collateral for your loan. But let's discuss that after I get to see your skills in action," she tells you a bit more seriously.
"Makes sense," you reply.
"I think that's all for today unless you still have something to talk about," she asks.
"No, that's all from my side," you tell her.
"Wonderful, darling! I hope to see you Monday at 12:35 a.m.," she says as she stands up and points to the door.
"Yes, so do I," you respond as you exit the room.
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Leaving her building, you were more than pleased that the meeting had gone well. Once home, as you collapsed on your couch, releasing all your stress, you couldn't help but feel grateful for the chance encounter with that imp during your first month in hell;
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On that day, you had ventured to imp city for errands, finding Carmine products a bit too pricey for your liking. Seeking an alternative for self-defense, you visited a gun shop there.
Exiting the store, you witnessed a heartbreaking scene—an imp being beaten up by a group of sinners, degrading names thrown at him. While you refrained from intervening, as it wasn't your place, the revelation that they were targeting the imp simply because he was an imp, compelled you to approach and ensure he wasn't fatally harmed.
Before you could rouse his battered form with a shake, he uttered, "The hell you want."
"Oh, I just wanted to make sure you were okay," you reassure him.
"Bullshit," he retorts loudly. "Listen, fucking pickpocket, those assholes already took everything I had on me, besides my clothes. And I sure as hell won't be stroll down these motherfucking streets in my underwear. So, if you wanted anything, too bad, now you have until the count of ten before I blow a hole in your skull," he rudely warns.
"First of all, I'm not going to rob you. Second, how are you going to shoot me if you just said you had nothing on you? And thirdly, I was serious about checking on you. It's unfair that they beat you up just for being an imp. It's messed up, honestly. Since sinners don't have specific races like back on Earth, they just go after other beings to exercise their racist ideology," you say.
"Humans sure do love their racism," he remarks, still untrusting but more open to conversation.
"Sinners are down here for a reason, but hellspawns are different. They're currently living their lives, just like humans did back on Earth. And yet, the damned are considered superior? That's just messed up," you express sincerely. In your view, hell's hierarchy wasn't fair. ‘If this was the sinners' punishment, why categorize them as better than imps—creatures born here, not getting punished for misconduct.’
With that sentiment resonating in your words, the imp seemed more at ease as he responded to your next words. "Anyways, you need medical attention. Let's get to a hospital."
"Do you have the money for medical bills, or even the admission fee? 'Cause I sure don't," he replies, a grin on his face, strangely charming despite his black eye and cut lips.
"Yeah, sorry, pal. I can't afford the rates for treating you; I'm saving for something big," you convey with sadness in your voice.
He chuckles at your honesty. "Thought so," he replies, allowing his body to rest against the brick wall of the alley even more, as if surrendering.
"My place is far from here. Do you have any first aid supplies at yours?" you inquire, a slight panic setting in, concerned that if he fell asleep, he might not make it, even though he wasn't bleeding excessively. Yet, he didn't appear likely to stay conscious much longer.
"Yeah, but it's too far from here," he begins, heightening your anxiety. "Though my office isn't. There's some there too," he adds, his eyes glossy, appearing on the verge of passing out at any moment.
"Alright then, just give me the address, and I'll take you there," he somewhat reluctantly grumbled out the location before passing out.
Entering the address into your phone's search engine and hoisting the imp onto your back, you walked to the location.
Quite aware that cab drivers might attempt to take extort you, especially considering you were a human carrying an injured imp, you opted for the slower but more cost-effective walking route, reaching the destination in about 25 minutes.
Climbing the stairs to the seventh floor drained your energy, but your adrenaline surged upon encountering a hellhound and two imps inside the office.
The hellhound growled and barked aggressively, while the female imp simultaneously yelled and prepared for a fight. The only one not seeing red was the male imp, who was trying to make sense of the situation.
"What the hell happened to Blitzø!??" the hellhound demanded.
"Yeah, what the hell did you do to him!?!??" the female imp added, brandishing a knife.
"Millie, calm down. If they brought him here, they're most likely not the ones who hurt him," the male imp reasoned with the female.
"Yeah, it wasn't me. He got beaten up by a group of supremacist sinners," you explained as you gently placed him on the couch in the room. "He told me he had a first aid kit here, so I brought him here as neither he nor I could afford the hospital bills."
"And how can we be sure you aren't part of the jerks who hurt him, huh?" the female imp asked, her nerves still on edge, clearly showing concern for the imp. ‘Well, no, Millie showed concern a lot about Blitz.’
"You can just ask him when he wakes up, but right now, he needs help. So, can any of you bring the kit, and we'll get this over with."
With reluctance, the hellhound, whom you soon learned was named Luna, retrieved the kit and left the healing to the male imp, Moxxie. They preferred you not to touch him any further.
After briefly stepping out to grab some missing antiseptic, you observed as they took care of him. You had convinced your way into staying until he awoke; the thought that his injuries might be worse than you initially thought haunted you, and you couldn't bear the idea that he might have died if you hadn't brought him here fast enough.
After Blitzø had regained consciousness, he thanked you and offered a 50% discount on your first kill. Curious about the statement, you informed him that you weren't aware of what his company specialized in. He somewhat joyfully played their commercial for you.
Finding it all very intriguing, you inquired about the possibility of them visiting the living world for a different purpose, which he confirmed but clarified it wasn't their company's business.
Tugging a bit at their heartstrings, particularly after saving Blitzø, you divulged your ambitions. To stand out and make your dream a reality, you needed something unique, and they held the key to it. Your request was for them to procure ingredients from the human world.
Blitzø exhibited reluctance, but Millie underwent a 180-degree shift, genuinely eager to assist you, with her husband supporting her. After some persuasion, you struck a deal with I.M.P. In exchange for 5/7 of the usual kill price and keeping things on the down low, they agreed to provide you with a weekly shipment of the groceries.
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Returning to the present, it was now Monday, and you found yourself 10 minutes ahead of schedule, standing in front of Rosie's emporium with a large cooler containing your ingredients.
An employee inside noticed you through the sizable glass entry doors and came out to guide you to the kitchen. They assured you that they would inform Rosie of your arrival and gave you the green light to start setting up.
True to your word, you efficiently prepared the kitchen, and right on schedule, Rosie arrived to find a clean and ready-to-use workspace, along with the promised fresh and earthy ingredients;
"Looks like you're a woman of your word, aren't you, dear?" Rosie remarked as she grabbed some dairy products and checked the expiration dates on them.
"Of course, and I wouldn't even dream of lying to you in the first place," you assured her.
"Oh, how trustworthy you are, fufufu~" she teased.
"Of course, now should I begin?" you asked, and she replied affirmatively.
With that, the baking commenced. Your choice of treat for today was a Charlotte au fraise. In about 35 minutes, you finished the preparation.
The dessert needed to chill for 8 hours in the fridge, but anticipating such a wait, you had invested in a 'chill crystal' for today and the future. This crystal is essential for cooks and bakers alike in hell as it significantly reduces the time a dish needs to be refrigerated.
Using it, your 8 hours turned into 25 minutes. During that time, you cleaned your equipment and the kitchen and, of course, brewed some tea for Rosie.
Upon reaching the 25-minute mark, you brought out the cake, cut a slice for Rosie, and served her a cup of tea. She relished every last bit of it;
"This was all wonderful, y/n," she expressed. "I am sure of it now, I will definitely invest in your dream!"
"Oh, thank you, Miss Rosie! You don't know how much this means to me!" you exclaimed joyfully.
"I'm glad I can help. But now that we've agreed I'll lend my assistance to you on your adventure, I still need you to agree on the collateral for the BNPL I want."
"Oh, of course. What is it?" you asked.
"Well, it's elementary, dear. What I want is... your soul!" she told you.
"Oh, well, that's only until I pay you back, right?" You asked worriedly.
"Yes, of course. If everything goes well and you pay me back before the deadline, you'll get your soul back. But if you exceed the time limit, your soul will indefinitely belong to me. I hope you understand that," she explained.
With a gulp, you spoke up, "I understand, Miss. Rosie."
"Wonderful, then... 'It's a deal,'" she declared, and with those words, a bright pink contract materialized, altering the entire room's shade. Nervously, you picked up a pen from the table and signed your soul away.
As you pulled away from the contract, a pink chain momentarily appeared around your neck, then vanished in a flash along with the contract.
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The demonstration went well, and you got what you wanted. While having your soul signed away was nerve-racking, you believed that if you made your vision work in time, it would return to you.
You begin to double your efforts, working your ass off harder than before. On your days off from the restaurant, you checked on the renovations of your building, and about a month later, everything was completed. After a long time of sucking up to the influential guests of the restaurant, you earned enough money to quit and open your shop.
With Rosie's promotion to her people, you efficiently built a staff, even recruiting some from other districts. On the 7th of August, you finally opened the doors to your shop, and it turned out to be a tremendous success.
The turnout exceeded expectations, but you had trained your staff to handle it. Business was booming, meeting Rosie's conditions in about 5 months instead of a year.
Just as you had envisioned, people from all over the pentagram flocked to enjoy the services your establishment provided. Surprisingly, sinners from Zestial'd district emerged as your number 1 clientele, surpassing even Rosie's people.
With your salon becoming the hot topic of his district, it caught the interest of the governing overlord. Since his people were captivated by your establishment, he decided to pay a visit himself. And so he did.
Upon the first approach to the building, he was delighted by the overall aesthetic.
While he wasn't from the era when salons first became popular, being about two centuries older, the entire ambiance brought a sense of nostalgia, even though he wasn't alive when they gained popularity.
Another aspect that pleased him was the evident respect guests and staff showed to the establishment during a service. People were polite, and the quality of the food served was impeccable.
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He was currently enjoying a cup of tea with none other than Rosie, discussing the success of the establishment;
"You've madeth a valorous investment, mine lief friend. This salon is nothing but successful; you've hath found quite the gem,” Zestial complimented Rosie as he sipped his tea.
Setting her cup down, Rosie responded, "Oh, quite the contrary, Zestial. My dear little owner was the one who reached out. Sparkles in her eyes and a big dream in her heart. With hard work, she achieved those ambitions, beating my expectations and regaining her soul in less than half the time I expected."
"is yond so? Quite the guts and perseverance the lady hath,“ he replied, taking another sip of his tea.
"Yes, though I honestly didn't expect your people to enjoy this place so much. Really messed up my calculations," she said, playfully feigning frustration.
"well, sinners art inherently unpredictable creatures by nature. Plus," he paused to take a bite of a fruit tart on his plate, "with desserts like this, i don't expect anyone to intermit long ere coming to tryeth those folk for themselves. Speaking of which, i would love to compliment the owner and chef for such marvelous worketh, “ he said once he had swallowed his bite.
Rosie replied, "Well, that's the fun thing – they're both the same person. She works diligently as both showrunner and employee! But yes, I can get her if you truly wish to speak to her."
"yond would beest appreciated,“ he told her.
Meanwhile, you were on the phone with a decor company, trying to arrange something for Valentine's Day in a month – or more like Valentine's week, with new decor from the 7th to the 14th.
Once you hung up, Rosie entered the office and informed you of the situation. Without questions, you followed her into the main room of the salon, and let's just say you were nervous;
Gazing at your form, Zestial spoke out, "i wilt sayeth, miss y/n, i greatly enjoy thy establishment, and so doth mine people.”
"Oh— thank you so much, Zestial, sir, I- I mean, Mr. Zestial. Sorry, I meant Overlord Zestial! So sorry!" you stammer.
"quite the nervous one, isn’t the lady?" he did add with a bawbling chuckle. he said to Rosie, who only nodded in agreement. "well, nay needeth for worries. 'zestial' is quite fine, child." he added with a small chuckle.
"Oh, alright then. Thank you for your praise, Zestial," you said with a soft smile, which he returned. ‘Satan, was he handsome.’
"Hey, how come you call him by his name right away, and I'm still 'Miss Rosie'?" Rosie teased.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Miss Rosie. I've just gotten used to it," you replied, and they both laughed at your flustered state.
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This soon became a common occurrence for you, and quickly after that, Zestial came more and more often to the point that your salon became Zestial's meeting spot when discussing business. Consequently, he had his own VIP room for such occurrences.
Simultaneously, you grew closer with the Overlord, becoming more comfortable around him. About a month later, you found yourself crushing on the man, giving him a fair amount of treats on the house to show affection.
And don't think said affection went unnoticed by him. Being an old soul like him brought wisdom, especially in the romance department.
Actually, Zestial himself found himself enamored with you, leading to him declaring his desire to court you;
You were tidying up the VIP room after one of Zestial's meetings, swiping down the table. As you prepared to leave the room, the Overlord spoke up.
"y/n, darling, may i hath't a word with thee?” he asked.
"Yes, of course, Zestial. What do you need?" you replied, your voice slightly quivering, because, 'fuck, did you love the fact he started calling you romantic pet names.'
"well, mine lovely business owner, i hath't to admit something to thee, so prithee did put the rag down and sitteth, " he requested. You obliged. "It seems that I have found mys"'t seemeth yond i hath't did find myself having fallen for thee,“ he began, making your breath hitch.
"i eke did notice yond thee seemeth to feeleth the same, or am i wrong?" he inquired, causing you to shake your head and answer with a weak, flustered 'no.' "did doth bethink so," he said with a chuckle. "then, as we both feeleth for one another, i'd like to court thee, unless thee hath't something 'gainst me doing so.”
"Yes— I mean no, well, um, shit," you stammered. Taking a breath, you spoke out again. "What I meant to say was, yes, I would love to be courted by you, more than anything, actually," you admitted.
Standing up, walking behind you, and wrapping his arm around your figure, he leaned down to your ear. "well, isn't yond perfect. I can't wait to hath't thee all to myself still,“ he whispered, somewhat sensually, leaving you in shock yet longing for more when he pulled away.
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And with that, the courtship began. You found yourself taken out for nights on the town to nice restaurants, sweet notes and love poems left in your office for you to see, and evenings spent at his castle in the fireplace room, listening as he serenaded you, oh so lovingly.
You honestly couldn't wait for you and him to become official. You might have thought that being spoken for after such a short time was idiotic in the past, but Zestial was just so perfect and all you needed in your afterlife. It was obvious that you would marry as soon as he asked you.
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About 5 months after your initial meeting, you found yourself dining with your suitor at quite the fancy restaurant, fancier than the one you used to work at actually.
"how art thee liking thy food, mine sweet y/n?” Zestial inquired.
"Yes, it's wonderful. What about yours, Zestial?" you asked back.
"everything is eke wonderful on mine end, " he replied, then added on, "Mine darling, would thee mind stopping thy meal for an instant? I'd like to break with an important matter with thee.”
"Oh, why, of course," you replied, putting down your utensils. You were now accustomed to Zestial and his ways, but his next move surprised you.
Zestial had stood up and got on his knees. "mine love, despite not having known thee for yond long did compare to mine long existence, i cannot see myself spending mine life beyond the grave without thee. Thou art high-sighted, talented, ingenious, and quite quaint, to a sir like me, and i would did bet many others, ye art quite literally breathtaking. Yond is accounting for thee as a whole, not just thy aesthetic attributes. So, y/n l/n, would thee doth me the honor of being thy husband for eternity?” He said as he pulled out a ring box, opening it to reveal a beautiful green diamond ring.
Overwhelmed with emotion, you gasped in surprise, your eyes widened at the stunning ring before you. The green diamond sparkled, capturing the essence of your feelings.
"Oh, Zestial..." You trailed off, a wave of happiness and love washing over you. Tears of joy glistened in your eyes as you nodded enthusiastically.
"Yes, a thousand times yes!" you exclaimed, your heart pounding with excitement. Zestial's face lit up with a radiant smile as he gently slipped the ring onto your finger.
As the dazzling gem adorned your hand, sealing the promise of eternity, Zestial rose from his kneeling position. You both shared a tender embrace, sealing the moment with a passionate kiss. The restaurant's ambiance faded away as you were immersed in the warmth of Zestial's affection.
The patrons and staff discreetly applauded, offering their congratulations to the newly engaged couple. Zestial held you close, his eyes reflecting the depth of his emotions.
"to our dateless love,“ he whispered, and you clinked your glasses together in a toast. The night continued, now infused with the magic of your commitment to each other.
From that moment forward, you and Zestial embarked on a beautiful journey, navigating the twists and turns of the afterlife hand in hand, bound by an eternal love that transcended time and existence.
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And so, your wedding unfolded in a splendid ceremony. Radiant in your role, you felt like a true queen that day, with Rosie officiating and injecting humor into the proceedings, eliciting laughter from you, Zestial, and your guests.
The day was a jubilant celebration, offering you the chance to become better acquainted with Zestial's fellow overlords, including Carmilla Carmine: Holy Arms Dealer and Alastor: The Radio Demon. Despite their contrasting personalities, they played nice for the sake of the occasion.
However, that was a few hours ago. Now, with the reception concluded, all the guests had departed, leaving you and Zestial in the intimate confines of his castle, specifically, his bedroom.
Following tradition, this was the night of your nuptials, the night where you and Zestial would come together as one for the first time;
Seated at the edge of the king-size bed in your now shared room, you adorned yourself in an exquisite, intricately embroidered transparent nightgown, awaiting Zestial.
The faint click of the door drew your attention, and your now-husband entered, pushing the door open with a subtle yet confident gesture.
"Well, mine dearest bride, “ Zestial said, his voice filled with an underlying lustfulness that sent shivers down your spine. "'t seemeth we finally hath't some time high-lone.” He stepped closer to you, his presence filling up the entire room.
You could feel his eyes roaming over your exposed body, drinking in every inch of you like a starving demon discovering a feast fit for a king. While you tried hard not to squirm or show any signs of discomfort, your heart raced faster than it ever had before as he spoke words of praise.
"T-thank you, Zestial," you managed to croak out, trying to maintain some semblance of composure despite the butterflies fluttering wildly in your stomach.
His voice dripping with false surprise. "thee behold absolutely stunning in yond gown, y/n.”
He stepped closer, his hands reaching out to caress your exposed thighs, his touch sending electric shocks coursing through your entire body. You bit down hard on your bottom lip, fighting the urge to whimper aloud as he continued to tease you. ‘Were you always this needy?’
"art thee eft for me to claim what is rightfully mine?” he asked, his eyes flashing with hunger.
You nodded vigorously, as he slowly undressed himself, revealing his tall, imposing frame covered in black fabric that clung tightly to his lithe figure. He kicked off his shoes and stepped out of his pants.
As he stood before you, nude except for his dark briefs, you couldn't help but marvel at his imposing presence. He towered over you like a giant spider, his erect member straining against the thin fabric of his boxers.
Trembling slightly, you open your legs, inviting him to climb onto the bed and join you. Without hesitation, Zestial crawled onto the mattress, positioning himself between your spread legs. He leaned forward, his mouth hovering inches away from your pussy, his breath hot against your sensitive folds.
"Tell me, mine own lief jointress," he purred, his voice low and husky. "Would thee liketh me to gust thee first?”
A shiver ran down your spine as you replied, your voice cracking slightly. "Yes... please..."
Zestial's eyes gleamed with anticipation as he lowered his head, his lips brushing against your sensitive flesh. You let out a soft moan as he began to tease you, tracing light kisses along your thighs and inner thighs before finally reaching your wet, quivering entrance.
He sucked on your sensitive folds, causing your hips to buck and writhe involuntarily.
As he continued his lewd assault on your most intimate areas, his tongue darted out to lick and circle your clit, sending waves of pleasure coursing through your body.
You arched your back, crying out his name, your nails digging into the sheets as he relentlessly pleasured you.
"Oh, Satan... Zestial!" You panted, your breath coming in short gasps. "I'm going to—I'm almost there!"
"Good girl," Zestial growled, his voice thick with desire. He increased the pace of his assault, sucking harder on your clit and thrusting his tongue deeper into your wetness.
Your moans turned into incoherent moans of pure ecstasy as he brought you closer to the edge of orgasm.
Just as you felt you were about to cum, he suddenly pulled away, leaving you craving more. "Not yet, mine own dram naughty bride," he purred. "We haven't begun yet. “
He stood up straight again, his hardened member now fully exposed, throbbing with anticipation. "do thee wanteth me to filleth thee up anon?” he asked, his voice husky with desire.
You panted heavily, your breath coming in ragged gasps. "Yes, please, Zestial," you pleaded, your voice hoarse from your intense arousal. "I need you inside me."
“Are thee sure mine own loveth, thy so bawbling i’m afraid i might breaketh thee. ” He teased, which only made whine pleadingly.
Without further ado, Zestial positioned himself between your spread legs once more. Slowly, he pushed himself into your tight, wet entrance, filling you up to the brim.
A mixture of pain and pleasure radiated throughout your body as he began to thrust rhythmically, his massive member stretching and stretching you further than you ever thought possible.
Each thrust was accompanied by a low groan from both of you, the sounds of your bodies slapping together filling the quiet room.
Your nails clawed at the sheets, leaving long, deep scratches in the fabric as he pounded into you relentlessly. Your orgasm built up faster than before, approaching its peak once more.
"Cum f'r me, mine own lief," Zestial growled, his eyes blazing with lust. "Let wend and releaseth all yond pent-up desire. “
You cried out his name, your body convulsing violently as you climaxed again, your juices coating his member and dripping down your thighs.
Your orgasm seemed to fuel him further, and he picked up the pace, thrusting faster and harder than ever before.
"Yes! More, give me more!" You begged, your voice barely recognizable from the pleasure that consumed you.
As your body continued to shake with each powerful thrust, Zestial groaned deeply, his fingers digging into your hips for support. Suddenly, he groaned loudly, his entire body tensing up before shooting his hot seed deep inside of you, filling you completely.
Finally, he pulled out of you, his cock still twitching as he collapsed beside you on the bed. Panting heavily, he reached over and brushed a strand of sweat-drenched hair from your forehead.
"That wast. quite wond'rful," he managed to croak out between heavy breaths. "Howev'r, i doubteth a single round shall suffice to satisfyeth mine own needeth, consid'ring i've been anticipating this moment f'r months. ”
“Oh.” Was all you had the time to say before your night of passion continues.
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"Thank you, Zestial," you panted, your own breath returning to normal. "That was... amazing."
You reached over and caressed his cheek, your fingers trailing down to his chin. "Could we... do it again sometime?"
He chuckled softly, his eyes softening slightly. "Of course, mine own lief jointress," he replied, chuckling at your somewhat innocent neediness, his voice still husky with satisfaction. "We has't all the timeth in this hellish w'rld togeth'r anon. "
You lay there for a while, basking in their post-coital bliss, their hearts racing in sync. Eventually, Zestial stirred, moving closer to you. "Do thee needeth aught else bef're we retireth f'r the night?” he asked, his hand trailing down your stomach to rest on your hipbone.
“No, I just want you close to me.” You answered,
“Of course.” he replied softly, placing a kiss on your forehead as you fell asleep in each other’s arms….
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Old English in order of apparition;
"You've madeth a valorous investment, mine lief friend. This salon is nothing but successful; you've hath found quite the gem, ” = "You've made a good investment, my friend. This salon is nothing but successful; you've found quite the gem,”
"is yond so? Quite the guts and perseverance the lady hath,“ = "Is that so? Quite the guts and perseverance she has,"
"well, sinners art inherently unpredictable creatures by nature. Plus," = "Well, sinners are inherently unpredictable creatures by nature. Plus,"
"with desserts like this, i don't expect anyone to intermit long ere coming to tryeth those folk for themselves. Speaking of which, i would love to compliment the owner and chef for such marvelous worketh, “ = "with desserts like this, I don't expect anyone to resist long before coming to try them for themselves. Speaking of which, I would love to compliment the owner and chef for such marvelous work,"
"yond would beest appreciated,“ = "That would be appreciated,"
"i wilt sayeth, miss y/n, i greatly enjoy thy establishment, and so doth mine people.” = "I must say, Miss Y/n, I greatly enjoy your establishment, and so do my people."
"quite the nervous one, isn’t the lady?" = "Quite the nervous one, isn’t she?"
"well, nay needeth for worries. 'zestial' is quite fine, child." = "Well, no need for worries. 'Zestial' is quite fine, child,"
"y/n, darling, may i hath't a word with thee?” he asked. = "Y/n, darling, may I have a word with you?"
"well, mine lovely business owner, i hath't to admit something to thee, so prithee did put the rag down and sitteth, " = "Well, my lovely business owner, I have to admit something to you, so please put the rag down and sit,"
"It seems that I have found mys"'t seemeth yond i hath't did find myself having fallen for thee,“ = "It seems that I have found myself having fallen for you,"
"i eke did notice yond thee seemeth to feeleth the same, or am i wrong?" = "I also noticed that you seem to feel the same, or am I wrong?"
"did doth bethink so," = "Thought so,"
"then, as we both feeleth for one another, i'd like to court thee, unless thee hath't something 'gainst me doing so.” = "Then, as we both feel for one another, I'd like to court you, unless you have something against me doing so."
"well, isn't yond perfect. I can't wait to hath't thee all to myself still,“ = "Well, isn't that perfect. I can't wait to have you all to myself forever,"
"how art thee liking thy food, mine sweet y/n?” = "How are you liking your food, my sweet Y/N?"
"everything is eke wonderful on mine end, " = "Everything is also wonderful on my end,"
"Mine darling, would thee mind stopping thy meal for an instant? I'd like to break with an important matter with thee.” = "My darling, would you mind stopping your meal for an instant? I'd like to discuss an important matter with you."
"mine love, despite not having known thee for yond long did compare to mine long existence, i cannot see myself spending mine life beyond the grave without thee. Thou art high-sighted, talented, ingenious, and quite quaint, to a sir like me, and i would did bet many others, ye art quite literally breathtaking. Yond is accounting for thee as a whole, not just thy aesthetic attributes. So, y/n l/n, would thee doth me the honor of being thy husband for eternity?” = "My love, despite not having known you for that long compared to my long existence, I cannot see myself spending my life beyond the grave without you. You're ambitious, talented, ingenious, and beautiful, to a man like me, and I would bet many others, you are quite literally breathtaking. That is accounting for you as a whole, not just your aesthetic attributes. So, Y/N L/N, would you do me the honor of being your husband for eternity?"
"to our dateless love,“ = "To our everlasting love,"
"Well, mine dearest bride, “ = "Well, my dearest bride,"
"'t seemeth we finally hath't some time high-lone.” = "It seems we finally have some time alone."
"thee behold absolutely stunning in yond gown, y/n.”= "You look absolutely stunning in that gown, y/n."
"art thee eft for me to claim what is rightfully mine?” = "Are you ready for me to claim what is rightfully mine?"
"tell me, mine own lief jointress," = "Tell me, my dear wife,"
"Would thee liketh me to gust thee first?” = "Would you like me to taste you first?"
"not yet, mine own dram naughty bride," = "Not yet, my little naughty bride,"
"We haven't begun yet. “ = "We haven't begun yet."
"do thee wanteth me to filleth thee up anon?” = "Do you want me to fill you up now?"
“are thee sure mine own loveth, thy so bawbling i’m afraid i might breaketh thee. ” = “Are you sure my love, your so small I’m afraid I might break you.”
"Cum f'r me, mine own lief," = "Cum for me, my dear,"
"Let wend and releaseth all yond pent-up desire. “= "Let go and release all that pent-up desire."
"That wast. quite wond'rful," = "That was... quite wonderful,"
"Howev'r, i doubteth a single round shall suffice to satisfyeth mine own needeth, consid'ring i've been anticipating this moment f'r months. ” = "However, I doubt a single round will suffice to satisfy my needs, considering I've been anticipating this moment for months.”
"Of course, mine own lief jointress," = “Of course, my dear wife,"
"We has't all the timeth in this hellish w'rld togeth'r anon. " = "We have all the time in this hellish world together now.”
"do thee needeth aught else bef're we retireth f'r the night?” = "Do you need anything else before we retire for the night?"
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winwin17 · 1 year ago
Text
LOTR characters and things from our modern era they'd like (my humble opinion anyway):
Frodo: Duolingo, headphones/earbuds
Sam: refrigerators, Pinterest (would have multiple organized boards for gardening tips and recipes)
Merry: YouTube, thrift stores
Pippin: video games, theme parks (terrified of roller coasters but probably loves going on them anyway)
Aragorn: Google maps, FaceTime (always calling Arwen late at night when everyone else is sleeping)
Legolas: hoverboards, cameras/photography
Gimli: ATV's, drones
Boromir: football (American), laser tag (gets very intensely into the game, but if anyone actually manages to get hurt, he is swift to make sure they're okay)
Gandalf: the Internet, texting/instant messaging, yard sales (has an eye for valuable things everyone else thought was junk; probably would pick up a palantir or something from a seller who thought it was a worthless item with no function)
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Feel free to add your ideas!
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