#Spring Release '25

[technologyblogofmohit]

Salesforce’s Spring ‘25 is packed with new features to enhance efficiency & automation. Permission changes for Einstein Activity Capture, ICU locale format enforcement for global consistency, and enhancements to Apex operations are some key updates.

Read more!

[depresseddepot]

made an irresponsible lord huron purchase tonight but what the hell else am I supposed to do when their next album is overdue

[juniperhillpatient]

based on my current creative project, I like to use mood boards I make on Canva as my laptop background. anyway now that the draft for 'we all scream' (which I think I might retitle "ice scream") is done, it's time to make one for my new idea. so I'll miss this background rip.

might as well share the aesthetic background for my antiheroic vigilante girls tori & bee here before I get rid of it x

[k-hippie]

k-707 ( 2025 EDITION ) RELEASE - FIRST WAVE

It’s finally here! Well, the first part of it—because let’s be real, this beast of a project is too massive to drop all at once ( unless we suddenly gain the ability to compress/expand time ) ;)

For now, we’re rolling out the first wave of k-707, covering :

- Base Game/Seasons ( Willow Creek, Oasis Springs, Newcrest ) - Get to Work ( Magnolia Promenade ) - Outdoor Retreat ( Granite Falls ) - Vampires ( Forgotten Hollow ) - Cottage Living ( Henford-on-Bagley ) - High School Years ( Copperdale ) - Life & Death ( Ravenwood )

Yes, we know ... you want more—but trust us, this is already a lot. The rest will come soon-ish ( don’t ask for dates, we’re not EA ) and as we say again and again, this is a work in progress, time for us to understand some more things with blender managing vertex painting and so on ;)

For everything related to instructions, how-to and so on, see the previous post or the "Download Page" of the k-707 on our website.

We replaced, reshaped, optimized, and obsessed over hundreds of trees and plants. Everything is optimized for directX11 ... Now, in theory, all should move right, look right, and fit right :D If you encounter a purple question mark on this new release, just send us a message. We'll see this together :)

Do not be surprised, some trees ( very very few ) are not yet modified ( -> I think about topiaries ) and some others have been fully replaced ( such as the ugly majestic and royal palms in base game )

Never forget this is still a work in progress and some changes will be done later ;)

As soon as we do some minor modifications and checks, we'll release a SECOND wave ( which should be very soon indeed )

Later ( End of February ) a THIRD and final wave will be released ...

Installation & Warnings

Each Expansion has 2 folders : one for plants, one for trees

The base game is split into 4 folders : 2 lots + 2 debug

Expansions with minimal greenery ( City Living, University, Get2Work ) are in single folder named k-hippie-k707-multi-greeny-2025

Do NOT mess with the folder structure unless you love chaos. If you merge files and something breaks, that’s on you. We won’t be able to troubleshoot Frankenstein mods ... More information on our website or into the previous post ;)

Final Notes

K-707 isn’t perfect ( yet ) :D We’re still tweaking, improving, and fixing things. We are aware some textures and styles need to be refined/modified. It will be done in time. But this is already a massive upgrade. So, enjoy your lusher, greener, better-integrated Sims world—and if you spot a tree acting weird, just pretend it’s haunted until we fix the green :D

Remember the k-mods are still and always free. Thanks to freely give a little something if you can. This is a massive piece of work and so, a massive piece of time ;)

If you think it’s good enough to drop our way : PayPal link

...

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > UPDATE ! February 25

We added few missing plants to the base game ( both lot & debug ) and some modifications to some plants ( azalea - hydrangea ) ... Some textures have been fixed. As we said, there will be adjustments and tiny updates. You know, a work in progress ;)

Tonight, a bit in advance, we release too :

k-707 ( 2025 ) for Sulani ( Island Living )

k-707 ( 2025 ) for Tomarang ( for Rent )

We know the gameplay bug related to for rent expansion but we finished trees & plants for this expansion, so better to release :)

By the way, as Windenburg and Britechester, Sulani will get a small k-505 redux quite soon. It won't be huge but it will correct details here & there. That was the Sunday late news and releases. Have a great week everyone !

Sorry for the delays but real world got massive changes and I confess I didn't have time to make more k-707 stuff this time ...

See you soon fellows :)

Download the K-707 mod HERE

...

[sundays-sims]

L I N W O O D . (early access, patreon)

Hi everyone! ♥

I decided to go for a bedroom set this month, it's cozy, warm & perfect for spring! Linwood set contains 11 new meshes, including a beautiful handman cannonball wooden bed, all bedding & pillows, an ottoman, table lamp, nightstand & dresser and, as usual, some cute clutter.

I hope you like it, happy simming guys! ♥

↓ details & download link under the cut ↓

D O W N L O A D  L I N K : [X] (patreon, early access)

SET DETAILS:

bed & duvet – 25 swatches

nightstand – 5 swatches

dresser – 5 swatches

books – 6 swatches

table clock – 6 swatches

large pillows – 4 swatches

throw pillows – 5 swatches

ottoman – 20 swatches

bamboo tree – 12 swatches

small picture frame – 7 swatches

table lamp – 6 swatches

** linwood will be released (free) on May 23rd**

** WCIF: I used more cc in this preview post than usual, but everything in the pictures is made by me. So all the cc you see has been part of a previous set of mine.**

→ terms of use / TOU ← / / → instagram ←

[vexxandra]

25 predictions for 2025 (pick-a-card reading)

happy new year sillies <3 01-01-2025 ☆

disclaimer: all of my readings are just for fun, you write your own story every day of your life, dont let me tell you how to live it

pile 1 > pile 2 pile 3 > pile 4

pile 1

biggest theme: change

reflexion and redirection are major elements of the new year

breaking free of past shackles : discarding old things

miracle year, a lot of wonderful things are coming

be selfish. you are in charge of your own happiness

you will learn to love yourself this year

fulfilling year especially in terms of career or academics. make sure to properly prepare in order to gain an edge over others

early bird gets the worm mentality

"winter arc" mindset the whole year. "lock in"

first six months will be very busy, you'll focus on yourself and not have the time for romance

learning how to collaborate with others

big lesson: learning how to work through burnout

august 2025 will be a very happy month for you

potential summer fling, will reginite flames you didn't know you had

some kind of soul fulfillment, could potentially be romantic or personal

imbalanced feminine energy, learning to reconnect with your divine feminine

a turbulent period will occur (im hearing mercury retrograde)

last half of the year might be grey

sleepy energy, taking things slower

make sure to rest, dont push yourself to move when sluggy

you're going to end the year with a nice energy. i see you surrounded by lots of family, friends and people you hold dear

if last year did not feel chrismassy, dont worry, because this year will

an extra message about children and new families. pregancy within you or another may occur

releasing all anxieties caused by this year, and a lot of reflexion

overall a pretty good year, some guidance i might give would be to not push yourself over the edge, and try not to drink too much caffiene <3

pile 2

biggest theme: self love

i get the feeling you've lost someone very important this year, most likely a break up, but you still have feelings for them

disillusionment and prioritizing yourself are big themes for this year

you're going to recognize that this person was pretty toxic and will take them off of their pedestal

learning how to fall in love again, with yourself and with life

reconnecting with your femininity

a lot of themes about toxicity and distancing yourself from people that don't have your best interests at heart

crown chakra healing by taking one day at a time (a LOT of light purple imagery in this reading)

very tumultuous first few months of the year, you'll feel like your life is flipping upside down and rightside up for a while

reconnecting with your spiritual guides and your spirituality/religion will bring you peace

if you're not religious, exploring some concepts may occupy your time

potential new romantic interest, but you must fall in love with yourself first

advice i can give would be to start something new, and to spend a lot of time by yourself. take yourself on dates and spend time with loved ones

sleep is very important this year, maybe consider starting a dream journal

i feel like most of you will get into some kind of artsy hobby this year. this can be anything from visual to musical to physical, but i can see it becoming a big passion

learning how to be more flexible in your thoughts and actions is a big lesson

springtime (particularly may) will be an amazing period

indie movie life in the spring, it'll feel like your life is straight out of a book

productivity, creativity, and happiness will be at an all-time high

you'll meet so many new people during this time, and im seeing some travelling too

child-like energy, almost like a giddy joy

make sure to not forget your responsabilities, i can see that you might be too caught up in your excitement and forget to balance work and play

overall very good year. it might not feel like it right now, but things are guarenteed to get better <3

some guidance i would give would be to reflect on your past, but never to dwell in it

pile 3

biggest theme: new beginnings and hope

amazing potential, i can see you're carrying something precious from 2024, and wanting it to grow in the new year

it will, but be sure to wait for the right time and approach it with dedication, consistency and care

strong foundations are laid, but be sure to not be reckless

good communication and problem resolving skills are going to be very important this year

flexibility and detachment are going to be vital too, dont try to control situations and dictate outcomes

forgive others for their mistakes but be sure to be assertive too

for those in a romantic relationship: this relationship will last a long time <3

messages about changing your identity, there will be a time when you dont recognize yourself, take some time to reconnect with your inner values

"lucky girl syndrome" mindset. you'll be attracting so many blessings this year

abundance really is yours this year, the cards are showing so many blessings coming your way

affirm to yourself that you have everything you desire, and it will appear

summertime will be an extremely happy period for you. i see a lot of happy memories being made, and a lot of productivity as well

the end of summer and fall might be when things slow down a little, i see a little more uncertainty and anxiety, but it will all pass

big emphasis on relationships this year, but mostly romantic

for those currently in a relationship, here is confirmation that your person is a soulmate and will be in your life long-term

for the singles out there, you'll soon meet an amazing person (timeframe: june or july)

in terms of academics and career, your year will be pretty tame

there will be important decisions to make, and that might stress you out, but the outcome will be good

bottom line: the ending of this year will be good, and there's nothing you can do to change that

important lessons you will need to learn will be to think things through before acting upon them, hanging with people you feel truly appreciate you, and walking away when you feel they don't

appearances may be deceiving, make sure the people you surround yourself with have your best interests at heart

do not compare yourself with others, this year will hammer in that lesson time and time again

overall a very good year, some guidance i would give would be to guard your heart from people with negative intentions. there are snakes and backstabbers everywhere, keep yourself safe <3

pile 4

biggest theme: self-improvement

this year you'll return to your roots, fully shedding your old life to try and reconnect with your innermost values

reassess what works for you and what doesn't, i sense a lot of toxcitity in your life

this year you'll develop many new relationships with many new people

these relationships will provide interpersonal insight: remember that you are who you surround yourself with

this year, you'll practice setting boundaries

its never aggressive to be assertive, and those who matter won't mind

despite the heavy focus on new relationships, prioritize yourself

going on walks, meditating, journalling and going on solo dates are all amazing ways to start to feel comfortable alone

this year will be full of endings, dont resist it, embrace it

change isn't inherently bad, just like how difference isn't inherently bad

very financially stable year, you'll be more open to taking career risks

if there were any financial struggles in the past year, take comfort in knowing there will be little to nothing of the sort in the future

be careful to not be boastful about your finances though, as its better to succeed in silence

you create your own happiness, you are the main character, stop relying on others to save you

this year, you'll stop seeking others validation and look inside of yourself to find what you've been searching for in others

you'll be stepping into a bad bitch energy this year, one that feels comfortable being alone or with others

strong leadership is something you'll be developping this year, as well as strong manifestation skills

you want it, you're going to get it!!

go after all of your goals this year, hesitance will do you no good

i can see that at the end of the year, you'll emerge a totally different person

you'll be more confident, self-assured and more joyful (i sense that autumn is an important time period)

overall, this year will be a fresh chapter in your life

you'll shed the old you, bad habits, and negative aspects to make way for a life and personality that's authentically you

some advice i would give would be to not be afraid to stand apart, dont worry about the opinions of others

speak of success, and it will come to you <3

[oozedninjas]

Spring fleeting

A/N: Fucking rude of me not to have fed my pretty girlies in this much while. In compensation, I offer you: a mating season special!!! You can shoot in a prompt and I'll turn it into a short smut ;) ily!!

Warnings: 18+ / MDNI / Smut / NSFW / edging, orgasm denial, dom!turtles, oral sex / General verses / Mutant guys are 25-29 y/o and they're suffering from spring heat!

Leo doesn't want to breathe because if he does he might get carried away by your scent. He watches from a safe distance never leaving sight of your neck and shoulders. Fuck, he wants to bite them, suck on them, lick a stripe over your pulse line that would cut your breath sharply. Shit, he wants you to hold from the upper end of his shell, begging. Before he registers he's calling your name. Let him lure you elsewhere, yeah?

Raph loves fucking you stupid. Your eyes closed and gaped mouth have him on the verge of coming. Words scarcely coherent enough to moan for more. He's balls deep in you, aching to fill you up once more. But Raph edges himself, just for the bliss of numbing everything away with each crashing orgasm. 

He trembles inside you, cum dripping from your abused cunt as he thrusts. Fuck you love him, you're crazy about him, and he just grins, amused at your stupid failed attempts to communicate it.

Donatello's knowledge of each sensitive part in your body borders on mean when he uses it like this. From your neck to your back, to your lower half. He's held you still for what feels like ages, nibbling, marking, and kissing the bruise after. But none of what he's done equals the cruel way he's sucking your clit: just enough to make your back arch, but never quite granting release. 

Begging wouldn't suffice, it wasn't about that. It was about him showing you how fucking good he could make you feel if you let him, how hard you could come just by his expert tongue. And shit, who are you kidding? You fucking adore it.

Mikey loves how hot you look riding his cock. He's got the best of views! Everything in you is perfect. He reaches up, palming every bit of skin he can get his hands on, squeezing, pinching, scratching. He loves it when his touch makes you weak enough to lose the rhythm, seemingly tumbling over his plastron, finally giving out. 

He's softer when he's had enough, and brings your mouth to his gently, big hands covering your back, pushing you down to his chest before he thrusts up. He reaches that sweet spot so easily like this, and your clit rubs so deliciously over the lower part of his plastron. Come on, don't hold back, you don't gotta do nothing, just relax.

[mylittleponyoh]

Coming Soon : Splash Trash - 43 Dirty Pool Items - RELEASED 23/05/25

Download Here

About the Pack This custom content pack was created as a subgoal gift for the Kapands Twitch community, and more specifically for the amazing Pêches 🍑 — the loyal and creative subscribers who helped shape its theme: Grimy Poolside.

Most of the objects were directly inspired by suggestions from the community. Of course, I couldn’t resist adding a few extra items and quirky touches here and there — it wouldn’t be me otherwise! Every texture was lovingly handrawn using Procreate, GIMP, and sometimes Canva, depending on the vibe I wanted to achieve. While working on the pack, I couldn’t help but picture a group of teens hanging out in this run-down pool — skateboards, spray paint… and before I knew it, I had a whole story in my head. Just goes to show that creativity really has no limits !

I teamed up with @emany-sims, who is currently building the perfect lot to showcase the pack. You’ll be able to find it in Kapands’ Fresh Start save — so keep an eye out!

Hope you have as much fun using this pack as we did dreaming it up 💦💖 And with that, i'll let you read a short story about these teens I've pictured !

The Hideout

Charly, Armin, and Inès quickly found one thing in common: skateboarding. In Oasis Springs, there’s not much to do — so when something actually makes your heart race, you hold on to it. For them, it was their boards. That kind of obsession that makes you forget you’re stuck in a dusty nowhere-town where even dreams seem to dry up in the heat.

O.S. Highschool was no exception — dull, faded, full of students with no spark and teachers stuck on autopilot. But somehow, the three of them clicked. No long conversations needed. Just a glance after class, a failed trick, a laugh, and that was it.

It didn’t take long before they started wandering the town together after school, boards under their arms, old speaker blasting music, looking for spots to skate and escape the boredom. Oasis Springs had no shortage of forgotten corners — rusted warehouses, cracked parking lots, dead-end streets. But their real find came one spring evening, when they followed a half-ripped sign: Public Pool – Closed Until Further Notice.

The place was perfect. Empty, wrecked, abandoned by time. The drained pool made the perfect natural bowl, the crumbling locker rooms became little shelters. It didn’t take long before they claimed it as their hideout.

There, they’d practice new tricks, spray paint the walls, sneak a smoke, and laugh about everything and nothing. It was filthy, falling apart, smelled weird most days — but it was theirs.

Far from adults, far from rules, far from the blank stares at school. Out there, with the sound of wheels echoing on broken concrete and their voices bouncing off the cracked tiles, they actually felt alive.

I always use @franzillasims fonts every time I need simlish fonts !!!

[slvt4buffw0men1111]

Assistance

Lawyer!SevikaxFem!Reader

Modern AU

18+

made up last names.

Jan 28  

6:17am 

“Oh my god, fuck yess” you moan.  

“Yeah, you're taking me so good baby”, a low yet feminine voice growls. 

 “I'm gonna come, please don’t stop” 

Before you could reach your climax, a blaring sound interrupts you. You spring up from your bed. 

“fuck” your groan “another dream” you say as you rub your eyes. 

You look to your nightstand and see the time. 

“SHIT!” Your suddenly wide awake. Today is your first day as a receptionist at some law firm. It is currently 6:20 and you have to be there by 7. And it's a 25-minute drive! 

Jumping out of bed and practically running into your bathroom to brush your teeth and wash your face. No time for your skincare routine you just slap a bunch of moisturizer on your face. Hurrying to your closet to get dressed. You grab the first thing you see. A pinstripe long sleeve top with a plain black pencil skirt. Putting a quick coat of mascara and lipstick and you're out the door. Bag, shoes, and keys in your hands struggling to unlock your car. Once you get it you see your tank is nearly empty. You were going to fill it up last night but you decided to wait until this morning big mistake. “6:36” on the clock you have no time for gas.  

You arrive at the office 7:03 am, parking is a bitch. Walking up to the building, it’s older looking maybe 30 years. Big letters “S.V & S.D Law Firm” hang over the entrance.  

“Your late.” Is the first thing you here as you walk through the double glass doors. There stands a man looks about in his 50’s, kind of scrawny looking, his left eye seems to be prosthetic, but with glare that could kill.  

“ I know I'm so sorry Sir, parking was-” 

“I don't care for excuses.” He cuts you off. 

“Right I'm sorry Sir it wont happen again”, you say very intimidated. 

“ Yes it won’t, as you probably know you are replaceable so don’t let it happen again.” he sternly said. 

“Jesus Silco already belittling people before the day begins?”, a voice that is familar says. 

“i was just-” 

“ Just what...”, out walks from around the corner a beautifullly handsome woman. Her muscles look like they are begging for release from her biceps. Dark skin, with scars on her perfect face leading down to her neck. And oh my god her nose. 

She is all too familiar.

“Hello, did you hear me?” you barley hear her voice say. 

“Yes, sorry can you repeat that.” you say barley able to look into grey eyes. 

“See we hired an idiot” the old man mutters as he walks out he main entrance into what you guess is his office. 

“Your y/n right our new receptionist?” 

“Yes, I am” 

“Pleasure to meet you” she says reaching out her large hand.  

“You as well ma’am”, you shake her hand. They seem to be almost double your size and her fingers are so long and thick. 

*I know those come in handy* you think to yourself.  

“Please address me as Ms. Verma and this is Mr. Davies”

“Of course, Ms. Verma” 

She smirks at you looking you up and down. “Skirts a bit short, no?” she says quietly. 

Caught off guard you feel your face heat up in embarrassment, or is it arousal? 

“I’m sorry if I'm not in dress code I was in a hurry getting dressed this morning”, you quickly say.  

“I never said I didn’t approve, did I?” she smirked. “I’ll show you to your desk” 

You follow closely behind her as she leads to your desk. She looks even taller from behind, she probably about 6’2”. 

“Here is where you’ll be spending most your time if you're not running errands for Mr. Davies and I.” She quickly shows you how to work the phones and makes appointments.  

“I assume you know how to send emails so I’ll leave you to it” 

“Alright thank you” 

“Hey and don’t worry about Mr. Davies he's not exactly a morning person”, she says with a hand on your shoulder that slides down your arm before she walks off to your office. 

“What kind of job is this?” 

Pt. 2

[brittle-doughie]

A KR Q&A livestream went down this morning for me and here’s the things that were talked about in it.

The director is very thankful for the playerbase and says "they provide very pointed feedback".

In regards to future CN cookies, they will "look over the cookies for balance, there is a possibility but there is no set date".

More stuff for returning/new users.

The DE story will be over within the next year and the story for afterwards has already been planned out.

Fire Spirit + Millennial Tree are releasing 2025, Timekeeper will be released after the DE story has finished, the other Dragons will release after this.

The mines are FINALLY releasing in Spring 2025, mines will require you to use "a lot of your cookies creatively".

For Beascuits, resetting single stats will permanently cost 25 radiant dough, the 50% off tag will be removed, plans to nerf it to 20 radiant dough, plans to turn normal beascuit dough into radiant dough, more ways to obtain radiants.

Milky Way will be getting a MC, she’ll also get a skin that everyone will get for free.

More Master Mode episodes will be released immediately after the 4th anniversary update.

The Holiday Express event (Linzer/Creme Brulee) will return.

There will be no anniversary concert this year, but there will be something even larger.

Oh and Shadow Milk stuff and teases.

And whole lot of Shadow Milk teases.

These two unknown Cookies are raising questions. Are they NPCs? MyCookie stuff? Maybe even the Epics of this update with the girl on the right being the leaked Candy Apple Cookie.

Note: This is NOT Awakened PV on the left, this is just a costume set.

[jilyawards]

April

late afternoon, early spring light (completed, 2.2k) by @ohhevans. Rated G.

“You’re causing a raucous, Evans,” he says, “drunk, knocking over glasses, tickling me, very unbecoming behavior of a Hogwarts Head Girl, if you ask me.” “The Head Boy is the one who got the Head Girl drunk,” she says, “so I think you’d be better off blaming him for the raucous.” -OR- one more happy birthday to james potter

it’s a game of give and take (completed, 10.2k) by @fishyspots. Rated T.

That horrible Halloween night, James and Lily wake up with matching curse scars and a missing child. Six years later, they get him back.

all your life you've never seen (completed, 4k) by westeriss. Rated G.

Lily knows all his friends; of course he’s probably curious about hers, about her whole life outside Hogwarts since she doesn’t really talk much about it during term. “I wasn’t really friends with anyone in primary,” Lily tells him absently, words fluttering from her lips, then sips at her coffee to stop any more. It's bitter, without cream, and ugh. Her quip has James shifting, though, leaning a bit closer. He sets his cup on his knee. “What d’you mean?” ----- James visits Lily the summer before seventh year, and accidentally, maybe, sort of learns she's Cokeworth's resident enigma. Just a little scene in the middle of their early months of dating, between sixth and seventh year of school.

You light up... my phone (completed, 247 words) by @abihastastybeans. Rated T.

March Jilymicrofics Prompt no.25: Echoes Lily receives texts from a drunk James

Big Plans (completed, 3.7k) by @yallthemwitches. Rated E.

A menace. That’s what she had called him yesterday when he had pushed her up against one of the wooden beams under the quidditch stands. “You’re going to be the death of me,” she had said, her hands easily undoing the drawstring of his quidditch trousers. “You’re going to be the death of me because I could shag you everyday for the rest of my life and still not be satisfied.”

birthday mornings (completed, 807 words) by @petalsandantlers. Rated G.

in honor of james' birthday, just a short, fluffy microfic of jily being cute

(be) as you've always been (completed, 2.7k) by @juniperpyre. Rated G.

it's the morning of James' 21st birthday and he's in bed with Lily and Harry. they discuss having another baby, fear, and hope.

emergency contact (completed, 1.8k) by @gigglesandfreckles-hp. Rated G.

The intern clears his throat. "I can’t legally—" He swallows, eyes darting up at her like he already knows this is about to go badly. “Release private information about Mr. Potter to you.” Lily blinks. “I’m his wife.”

Dinner Can Wait (completed, 4.7k) by @livelaughlovetoread. Rated E.

James made eye contact with Lily and immediately knew they were not going to make it to dinner without getting their hands on each other.

Method Acting (completed, 23.6k) by @yallthemwitches. Rated T.

“Tell me what to do and I’ll do it.” How many times over the years has he said those words and when did he actually start meaning them? All of them--every single bloody time.

a love that won't ever let go (completed, 1.2k) by @petalsandantlers. Rated G.

written for jily challenges march 2025 prompt: drown in my own tears by ray charles partner: Merlinsbbeard

Oh My God, She's Insane (completed, 7.6k) by @annabtg. Rated M.

When the Order of the Phoenix discovers that Lucius Malfoy, rich bachelor and womaniser extraordinaire, may secretly be a Death Eater with access to an item that could be the key to bringing down Voldemort, Lily Evans comes up with a brilliant plan: to seduce him into inviting her to his house, and then take the opportunity to snoop around for information. James Potter, her mission partner, is less than thrilled with this idea.

I’m So Afraid I Sealed My Fate (Even Statues Crumble If They’re Made to Wait) (WIP, 75.6k as of 30 April 2025) by tulipslilliesiloveyou. Not rated.

Six years ago an owl with Lily Evans’ Hogwarts letter was sent—six years ago, that owl never made it. Until now. Following a great tragedy, with nowhere else to go, Muggle-raised Lily Evans has no other choice but to accept her identity as a witch and enroll at Hogwarts as a seventh-year. Six years ago, James Potter started at Hogwarts—with just one year left, he already has his future figured out: move-in with his mates, help stop the Blood War, win the Quidditch cup. But the moment he lays eyes on Lily Evans, everything changes. A beautiful mystery tangled in a hidden destiny that threatens to break them both—as long as it doesn’t tear down the rest of the world first.

How to Not Win Friends (with your girlfriend's father) and Influence People (completed, 1k) by @eastwindmlk. Rated M.

James and Lily have the house to themselves... Or so they think.

Find the previous months' recs: November & December | January | February | March

[prxnce]

Welcome to The Love Letter Save File V.3

Where timelines combined from previously loved (or overlooked) sims installments…

DOWNLOAD (info below)

From: Prxnce xoxo

What is it?

In this timeline there is room for every simmer… Drama based simmers will love to lock in with the Caliente sisters, whose parents are hopeful of adding GRAND before the parent soon, or maybe going over to Britechester and seeing how much of a strain Gabe O’Mackeys fling with Patricia Wan has caused on his relationship with his daughter, Jules. Legacy players can find comfort in continuing the family line with the Monty boys.. Or just any Monty that is… Actually! Go across the street to their rivals, the Capp family! Yeah those teens will happily carry on the family name for generations to come! Occult players, I could never forget about you! Dive deep into the Windernburg School for the Young and Gifted!.. Teen occults aren’t for you? Head over to Strangerville and see how a coven of vampires do in the desert sun with the Constantine Coven! All players… with no discernable style of playing but a love for the sims have something to enjoy here. Go out on a date in downtown Willow Creek or get married in a drive-thru wedding chapel and see a flick after the ceremony in Newcrest! In my Love Letter, you will find nods to shows like The Vampire Diaries, H2O: Just Add Water, Game Of Thrones, and more! You will see familiar faces from Sims 1 - Now! Blending the personalities of Nancy Landgraab from all of her previous portrayals into one, where she can exist at her Adult age at the same time as Stella and Richie Striker exist entering their grand-parenthood. When The Sims 4 released, the gurus decided that it existed in an alternate timeline from previous games… this save does not restore the old timeline.. It crashes into it! Sims who were passing of old age in Sunset Valley as someone on Lunar Lakes was marrying someone who was being born in Pleasantview! Familiar names like Beaker, Wolff, Wan, Frio, Martinez, Loner, Smith, AND MORE lie within this file.

Also as a longtime simmer… there are faces and stories you haven’t seen, my own original tales and sims. Dabble with the tragic life of Maria Perez in Oasis Springs, or her pink-obsessed sister in Del Soy Valley. I hid plenty of easter eggs from various forms of media in this save too. This save is for the lore lovers and casual players who might be bored of the same starter homes and venues.

Why V3?

New packs! New builds! New faces (but also technically old faces)! As time moves on there are old builds or faces I know I could do better on and ideas that I want to explore.

This is the most COMPLETE version of my save to have existed but it is not the end… enjoy ;)

Required?

Every DLC up to 5/23/25

I also want to give a special thanks to LifeSimmer, who permitted me to use the Fenderson family in this save. I have been playing the sims since I was 9 years old and all these years later that family is just as special to my inner child as the Goth family.

Warning! This is a BIG save! In order to combat bloating, I recommend monitoring and controlling auto spawned NPCs in managed households often. If you don’t, the game may make surrounding lots appear as EA defaults, I’ve done my own testing and due diligence THIS IS NOT CORRUPTION! It’s simply a mechanical issue within the game from having such a large save to keep track of.

[fookinhellcurlyyy]

McDon't Pap Recap

Got busy right after I posted the new articles earlier lol. I thought of making a rundown of what we got so far. (I've added all of these info in the 2025 Timeline also; ALL IN UK TIME.)

PARKING LOT PAP PICS (4/16/25, 12:00 PM)

First articles (The S*n / DM) dropped at 12:00 PM. L looked like he couldn't give a f*ck. And the video made it look so much worse—you can see how orchestrated and unnatural the whole interaction was.

The first released articles didn't seem to get enough clicks, so they repurposed the content with the same set of photos (which did not reach DM’s homepage and main entertainment page) for a new one released a few hours later, at 12:44 AM on 4/17/25. They added comments from a “body language expert” (+ adjusted SEO), essentially saying that L is “falling in love quickly” while Zara is being cautious. Even the GP wasn't convinced.

Extra: Somewhere in between those two articles, GQ released the article confirming H was wearing a classic Tank Louis Cartier with blue crown and hour/minute hands from the pap photos. We still don't have a clear photo of him wearing that watch though.

LOUCHELLA PHOTO DUMP (4/17/25, 4:30 AM)

L posts his photo dump (4/16/25, 8:30 PM in LA time).

Tabloids like DM and Metro were quick to pick it up and look into it, acknowledging that there was no trace of Zara. She did like the post, which they noted to be a "seal of approval" or "sending support."

PETE'S SHADE (4/17/25, 11:50 AM)

Later in the morning, articles about Sam T’s bff Pete “breaking his silence” dropped. He threw some major shade (video here):

"That's amazing, I've seen the pictures they're walking through a car park, really romantic…I'm really struggling not to say anything but it is good gossip. I might tell you some more off air."

GARAGE PAP PICS (4/18/25, 1:00 PM)

L was wearing the same exact outfit from the first set of parking lot pap pics we got on 4/16/25. He really couldn’t care less lol These were probably taken the same day they did the parking lot pap walk.

The S*n mixed things up and saying it’s from his Malibu home. (No, he doesn’t have a Malibu house. They used an AirBNB rental in Malibu—same one they used last year).

Speaking of rental, that rental was available as early as 4/11 to 4/14/25 (checked). My theory is L (and the team) did arrive on 4/1/25 or even a few days earlier. The guitar post on 4/1/25 was new and real-time, then he deleted it. Riccardo and Zak only posted IGS of the pool area of the place on 4/10/25, possibly before they left for Palm Springs (so I guess they could only share they were there at that time before they officially left the premises).

Extra: I don't think it's the same rental they used for this sesh based on the peeking pillar + bush in the photo, but won't elaborate since I'm not sure about some things.

Update: Confirmed that they used a different property (still in Malibu) from the same company to do the garage pap sesh (thanks @omglarryrabbit). They likely borrowed (since L's a regular client, maybe?) / rented (seems to have been rented; Riccardo posts a series of IGS photos from Coachella weekend, one of which is the poolside of the 2nd Malibu rental) that other Malibu rental for at least a day or so. It's a house at the end of a cul-de-sac, with a very open street and garage entrance. L's too high profile and too private to pick that location for himself. And I don't think he'd bring #her and the paps at the very place he regularly stays at.

SO. There's that. She's giving reality TV show.

Watch Lou eat avocados next.

[honey-on-your-tongue]

Kinktober day 25

Mutual masturbation

You'd been shy at first, a little reluctant and embarrassed. Really, you were still sometimes a little surprised by how kinky and crazy Logan could get. And the mutual masturbation thing he'd suggested made you a little uneasy. More than anything, because you were a little afraid of how you'd look like touching yourself.

But on a tranquil night that you and Logan had been drinking a little, you found your courage. So, you told him you wanted to try it out.

You hadn't thought it go like this, Logan making you lie down all spread out for him.

“Go on, baby. I'm watching ya.” He nods for you to begin.

Nervously, you move a hand between your thighs. You touch yourself gently, cheeks heating up from the intensity of his gaze.

He grunts softly as you touch your cunt, his eyes glued to the way your fingers move. He's aching to touch you himself, put his fingers in your pussy and feel you clench around them. But there'll be time for that later.

His hand moves down, adjusting his cock that's getting painfully hard in his pants. The slight friction has his eyes almost rolling back, and he knows he won't be able to hold back.

He undoes his pants quickly and with ease, and be kicks them off. His cock springs free, hard and ready. The tip is a dark red, just begging for release.

He fists himself, his hand moving up and down his cock slowly.

Your eyes are wide as you watch him, your stomach fluttering. He looks so perfect like that, his cock hard, his strong hand jerking it slowly how he likes it…

You slip a finger into yourself and he groans, his cock twitching at the sight.

“Fuck, bub. You tryin’ to kill me?” he mocks, rubbing the bulbous head with his thumb before he continues to jerk himself.

You blush, but any embarrassment is long forgotten. You're just enjoying this. You want him to fuck you, so bad, but this is good too. Watching him, seeing every little expression on his face…

You kinda wish you'd agreed to this earlier.

---

Taglist

@wolviesgirl @sad0ni0n @hottiehotline @seasonofthenerd

---

Blog masterlist

Kinktober masterlist

[burntheedges]

Pas de Deux Chapter 1

Din Djarin x f!reader | 2.9k | fic masterlist | main masterlist | ao3

fic summary: When Din Djarin – principal dancer at Concordia Ballet Company and generational talent in the classical style – suddenly left CBC and joined the Nevarro Ballet Theater mid-season, it shocked the ballet world. You never would have guessed that he would change your life, too.

a/n: here we go! Chapter 1 starts sometime in late fall, November-ish. See my notes on the masterlist about reader in this fic and ballet in general. Thank you @katareyoudrilling for being the best beta, as always!!

chapter tags/warnings: gen, ballet terms (see end notes and the masterlist for definitions), a bit of angst

Chapter 1

“‘In a surprise move that shook the dance world, the Concordia Ballet Company announced yesterday that they have parted ways with principal dancer Din Djarin.’”

You could hear the sudden gasps through the open door of the large studio as you walked towards it. You recognized Clara’s voice as she read the news aloud, you assumed from her phone. 

“‘Djarin, 27, who trained at the rigorous Concordia Ballet School from a young age, has been with CBC for 10 years and is in the prime of his career. He was promoted from soloist to principal two years ago, as is the norm at CBC, where they do not promote dancers younger than 25 to principal. His performances have been highlights on the CBC schedule over the last two seasons, earning many rave reviews.’” 

You turned the corner to enter the studio and found most of the company class crowded around Clara as she looked down at her phone.

“‘The CBC press release did not indicate the reason for the split, which only makes this mid-season decision more disconcerting for fans and donors alike.’”

The group around Clara murmured and shifted their weight. You had just read the article on the bus and knew what was coming next. You slid down to sit against the wall by the door, watching.

“‘This decision comes amidst the company’s preparation for spring and for the last show on their fall schedule, Don Quixote, with no explanation as to how their roster of principals and other dancers may be adjusted to compensate for this enormous loss. Djarin is well known for his powerful physique, technical mastery, and classically perfect performances.’” Clara paused, and then continued, “then it talks about some of his work, we know all of that already, blah blah blah, ok whoa!” She gasped. “Ok. Listen to this – ‘Djarin has not been available for comment, but was seen boarding a flight to Nevarro two days ago before the announcement was made public!'”

You started to put on your shoes for barre and watched as everyone else in the room started to completely freak out.

“Here?!” Owen exclaimed, hand thrown over his mouth. “Is he coming here here?” He gestured around the studio as he asked.

Clara shrugged. “It doesn’t say, look, that’s the end of the article.”

Sophie had started rising up and down on the balls of her feet by one of the barres and you weren’t sure if she was aware she was doing it. Her tone was excited as she asked, “would he come here? Why? We’re, like, not his style.”

The room broke down into several noisy conversations at that point, and you felt your friend Adrian slip down the wall to sit next to you. “So, what do you think?” he asked, nudging your shoulder. 

You shrugged. “No idea. I can’t see any reason he’d even want to come here. CBC is so…” You trailed off, but he knew what you meant.

“Yeah. Traditional. Rigid. Not like us at all.” Adrian waved his hand towards the mismatched group of dancers in front of you and you both smiled. The Nevarro Ballet Theater was different from the Concordia Ballet Company in many ways, and the diversity of dancers in the company was one of the things that set NBT apart the most.

You nodded. “Right. If his flight destination even means anything.”

“If it does, what would that mean for us?” Adrian looked around the room. “We already have a full roster of soloists and principals.” He bit his lip. He looked nervous, and he wasn’t the only one — you noticed Sasha, Lu, Carlos, and Isaac were huddled around the bar, clearly worried. All principals, you assumed they were nervous about losing out on parts. For Adrian, you knew it was because he had just made soloist at the start of the season. A new superstar coming in might shake things up too much.

You nudged his shoulder with your own. “I was thinking about that when I read it on the bus. I don’t think you have anything to worry about. I heard what Karga said, about how good you are.”

He nodded, but didn’t look reassured. “At least you don’t have anything to worry about, Ms. Soon-To-Be-Principal.” 

You rolled your eyes and shoved down the anxiety lurking in your stomach. You’d made soloist a couple of years ago, and then first soloist this season. There were some people (including Adrian) who seemed to think you’d be promoted soon, as early as the end of the current season. But there were at least a few critics who disagreed, and for months you’d been having trouble putting the words of one in particular out of your mind. You could quote it from memory:

“While her lyricism and skill are undeniable, one wonders if she has the artistry or stage presence to carry a narrative. She more than deserves the promotion to first soloist, but is this her ceiling?” 

You wished you’d never read the article, but it had seemed to be the usual season preview and you hadn’t been expecting the targeted commentary. You’d spent the last few months trying not to think about it too much, or you knew you would get all in your head about it.

“Shut up.” You nudged him again and he laughed.

He opened his mouth to respond, but he was interrupted by the door opening next to you. It wasn’t your teacher who walked in, though, and once you saw who it was you both leapt to your feet.

Greef Karga, director of the Nevarro Ballet Theater, looked happy, but then he usually did. 

“Good morning, dancers!’ His voice was deep and loud and you all scrambled into a semi-circle facing him at the door, where your ballet instructor, Alexa, followed him in. You chorused a “good morning” in response.

“I’m sure you’ve all seen the news,” Karga continued, with a knowing smile on his face. “And you must be wondering why I’m here!” You glanced in the mirror and noted that everyone did indeed look both curious and a little wary. “Well, I am very pleased to confirm that Din Djarin will be joining us for the rest of the season here at NBT.”

There was some general murmuring and shock in response, but he was not deterred.

“I know we’re in the middle of the season, with many roles already planned. Din and I have agreed to try not to disrupt that too much this year. We’ll be adding some things to the anniversary gala and the mixed programs.” That made sense — the latter were showcases of the work of different composers and choreographers and could be more easily rearranged to include a new dancer. “We won’t be making any changes to Midsummer, Swan Lake, or Cinderella, which I know we’re already planning for and rehearsing.” You felt Adrian take a deep, relieved breath beside you. He was supposed to be Puck this year for the first time and it sounded like that wasn’t going to change. 

“Din will start joining your classes and the rehearsals for the gala and other programs over the course of the next two weeks. Please introduce yourself and welcome him — we are very excited to have him join us.”

You all nodded, of course, even though you knew a lot of your fellow dancers would be wary of the newcomer. 

“Well!” Karga clapped his hands together and smiled. “I’ll let you get started. Continue with your rehearsals as normal unless you hear otherwise. Have a wonderful day, everyone!”

Alexa moved towards the stereo system in the corner as Karga swept out of the room, and you turned to look at Adrian. 

“Well,” he said, turning towards his usual place at the barre. “This should be interesting.”

You nodded as Alexa turned on the music and you took your usual spot next to him at the barre. It definitely would be.

…

After all that excitement, you didn’t even see Djarin for a few days. He didn’t join the morning company classes right away, but you couldn’t really blame him — moving suddenly across the country wasn’t easy. It didn’t stop you from glancing around every room as you entered, trying to catch sight of your elusive new company member. 

You heard from the others that he’d dropped by a couple of rehearsals, and they’d overheard him talking about plans for the mixed programs with some of the choreographers and other staff, including Talia and Jee. You wondered if he’d ever met Kuiil, the current guest choreographer in residence, who traveled and usually worked with different companies every few years. You somehow doubted it — Kuiil’s style was much too contemporary for CBC.

You’d been in rehearsals for Nutcracker and Midsummer all week, though, so you weren’t really surprised that you hadn’t run into him yet. 

Finally, on Friday morning, you arrived early for class to find a group of your fellow company members huddled by the mirror and staring awkwardly across the room. You followed their gaze and found Din Djarin, in the flesh, warming up at the barre. For a moment you couldn’t reconcile the sight of him in your familiar space. He was tall and imposing, and dressed all in black — black ballet shoes, black tights, black sweats that cut off below his knees, and a tight black long sleeve shirt that showcased the breadth of his shoulders and just how strong he was. His curly brown hair was tousled. His signature mustache, somewhat uncommon in ballet, was in place, though you knew he often shaved for performances — there had been articles about his daring breach of the Concordia status quo when he didn’t. At least at NBT he’d be allowed to keep it, you thought. His face was blank, completely expressionless as he stretched. 

You knew he had to know the rest of the group was watching him, and when you glanced back and found them still huddled you sighed. You felt someone step into the room behind you and turned to find Adrian taking in the standoff. 

He shook his head. “Great start.” His tone was dry, and you laughed under your breath. 

“Should we say hello?” You sat to put on your ballet shoes and Adrian sank down beside you.

“Who, us?” Adrian raised an eyebrow at you. “Do I look brave to you?” 

You laughed again, and were about to suggest going together for moral support when Alexa walked in. She took in the situation and sighed, shaking her head as she crossed the room to where Djarin was still warming up alone.

“Look! Alexa took care of it.” Adrian nudged you and smiled. “No need for us to take one for the team after all.”

The two of you watched as she spoke with him, though you couldn’t hear what they were saying. He nodded at her, and she smiled before walking towards the stereo.

“Alright, let’s get started!” She called out without looking to see if anyone listened, but you all did. You realized as you took your normal spot that you were diagonal from Djarin across the space between two of the barres in the middle of the floor. You’d be able to see him whenever you were working your left side, and somewhat in the mirror on your right. You resolved not to stare.

You only sort of succeeded.

The problem, you quickly realized, was that his movements were beautiful. Even while doing simple pliés or tendus you could see the power in his body, the strength in his muscles, the rigor of his training. Every movement was precise, clean, and perfectly placed. The elegant line of his arm and the curve of his hip drew your gaze like a magnet, over and over again. His effortless coordination and control were mesmerizing. You watched the slow extension of his leg into grand battement until you had to force yourself to tear your eyes away.

Well, you thought, he certainly lives up to all of the hype about technique. CBC had a reputation and he more than exceeded it.

It made you painfully aware of the limits of your own abilities. You knew you were good – you’d made it this far, of course, and now you were first soloist, despite having what was seen as a late start in ballet (at age 7). And despite what the critics said, you were considered to be one of the better technicians at NBT. But you were no match for his level of skill, for the rigorous training you’d heard about at CBC. That much was obvious just from looking at him. 

You tried to clear your mind as the class continued, knowing your worries would start to show in your movements if you let them. It was hard to do that when so much strength and technical perfection stood only five feet away from you, demonstrating the ideal version of every move and transition that you attempted.

As you finished at the barre and quickly put on your pointe shoes to work in the center of the room, you finally put it out of your mind. There was no use in comparison, you’d learned that a long time ago. In the end, the only dancer you could compete with was yourself. And NBT was not a company that encouraged that kind of competition among dancers anyway.

You found your feet going across the floor, letting yourself sink into it as you moved through some jumps and short combinations. You tried to feel nothing but the pull in your muscles and pattern of your breath. By the end of the class you felt a little steadier, a little more centered.

Alexa dismissed the class, and you started to gather your things. As you slipped off your pointe shoes, you felt someone brush past you, heading for the door — Djarin didn’t look back as he crossed the threshold into the hall. You realized as he did that he hadn’t spoken a single word for the entire class. You wondered if he was unhappy to be here, after all. 

By the time you stepped into the hallway, he was nowhere to be seen.

Adrian fell into step next to you as you walked towards the larger rehearsal studios at the other end of the building. He hooked your arms together and looked around quickly to see if anyone was nearby. He leaned in to whisper, “did you see that? He was amazing!”

You nodded. “I know. I didn’t think anyone could live up to all that hype, but he does.”

Adrian shook his head, looking dismayed. “I know they said some roles wouldn’t change but, ugh. I wouldn’t blame them.”

“Hey,” you elbowed him lightly. “Don’t. You’re going to be amazing as Puck. And you know that role plays to your strengths. I don’t see him taking that one from you. It’s not really his style.”

He sighed. “Yeah, I guess. Ok, let’s hurry, I need to tape my knee before Nutcracker.” You winced in sympathy, knowing how much he’d be jumping in practice for both the Russian dance and the jack-in-the-box roles. But his words jogged your memory.

“Shit.” You froze in the hallway. “I left my tape in the studio. Go ahead, I’ll meet you there.”

He nodded, but you were already turning as you said it, waving him on.

You heard him jog off towards the rehearsal rooms behind you as you walked quickly back the way you’d come, turning past the bathrooms and the administrative offices. It didn’t take long and your tape was right where you’d left it. 

Tape in hand, you turned around again and started walking back down the long hall. 

As you approached the offices, though, the sound of Karga’s raised voice stopped you in your tracks, just around the corner from his office door.

“We talked about this, Din. It's part of this company’s identity. You want to break away from them? You need to make a statement.” You heard the slapping sound of one hand against another and imagined Karga hitting his hand with his fist for emphasis. 

“No, Greef, listen. I don’t—“ You startled. It was the first time you’d heard Djarin’s voice and it was much deeper and more pleasant than you would have imagined. 

Karga interrupted him. “No, you listen. Din, you can do this. I know you can. And it will show them everything they’re missing, everything they let slip through their fingers. They are so stuck in their ways, they have no idea what you can really do. What you’re capable of. Let me help you get there.”

You heard Djarin sigh. “This will go badly and I’m going to blame you.”

Karga chuckled. You tried to picture Djarin looking amused, too, and failed. All you could conjure was the expressionless mask he’d kept in place for all of class that morning. Karga continued, “I’ll take it happily. This is going to be great, don’t you worry! We’ll ease you into it. Now, let’s go share the news.”

You heard them start to move around in the office and startled into motion. As you turned the corner, the door to Karga’s office swung open in front of you and Din Djarin stepped out of it. He was moving quickly, shoulders hunched, brow furrowed. He barely glanced in your direction, but when he did, you took a surprised step back at the fierceness of his glare. It was the most emotion you’d seen from him so far, and it wasn’t exactly pleasant. He didn’t stop, though, and quickly turned away from you to move down the hall towards rehearsal. You blinked, frozen mid-step, unable to shake the look he’d just given you. What was that about?

...

| next

a/n: sooo what do you think? ballet terms in this chapter:

see the masterlist for principal, soloist, class vs. rehearsal, season

plié - a bending of the needs (you've probably seen dancers standing at the barre and bending their knees -- that's a plié)

tendu - tight or stretched out - stretching one leg out long, often in brushes along the floor

grand battement - the leg is raised from the hip into the air and brought down again, both knees straight (with apparent ease)

barre - the rail that ballet dancers use in class (don't lean on it!). usually you'd wear normal ballet shoes at the barre and switch into pointe shoes (toe shoes) to do exercises in the center or go across the floor

and if you'd like a visual aid, one of the dancers I'm mentally modeling Din after is Carlos Acosta, who you can see in this compilation (~6:49) doing a variation from Don Quixote.

tag list coming in a reblog!

[veebeeboo109]

Cleaning up the Timeline

{You have a chat with Xavier, and Caleb is granted some well-deserved mercy.}

Read on ao3. Part One.

Tags: Reader/L&DS Men, Romance, Caleb-centric, Polycule, some brat-taming Xavier. Caleb gets some love in this one!! 10k words of depravity.....

Chapter 25: Invitations

With spring in the air, the sun was greeting you earlier and earlier in the morning. No more waking up to pitch darkness, which made it remarkably easier to detangle yourself from Rafayl and Sylus this morning. 

You were going back to work today, after a week of recuperating you were done hanging around. It took some convincing on your part, Sylus assuring the others that there were too few agents of Ever left in the city to form any sort of organized retaliation, and even if there were they’d be too busy picking up the pieces of their organization to worry about you. Not to mention the facility that kept the records of you and Caleb was destroyed, which would put a damper on them as well. 

Caleb greeted you that morning already in the kitchen. The smell of something savory cooking filled the air, and he approached you with more vigor than necessary for so early in the morning. 

“Morning pipsqueak!” He says, holding his phone and showing you the screen, which is playing a morning news report, “Check this out.”

You blink away the remaining sleep in your eyes as you watch his screen. A well-groomed gentleman in a pristine cobalt suit sits sternly at a newsdesk.

“Another bad day for the Ever Group as their CFO resigns today, effective immediately. No public statement has been released by the international group, and told us here at Linkon Channel 10 News that they were dealing with the changes internally when we reached out for comment.” The anchor explains in an even tempo. He shifts his hand across the desk, shuffling papers that were likely only for show, “This comes as only the latest in a string of bad luck facing the conglomerate. Experts worry about the sustainability of the company as one of its subsidiaries, Xander Sciences, is now facing intense government investigation for alleged animal and human testing. As of now, the Ever Group is remaining quiet on the continued issues, but we’ll be the first to know if and when they decide to speak.”

Caleb pulls the phone away, grinning that spectacular victorious smile. The one that made him the cover boy of his university groups, and the star of any sports team he joined. “Isn’t that awesome?”

He looks so young when he’s happy. You think. Like the boy you knew before, cheering about the new release of a video game he was excited about, instead of the downfall of an evil corporation.

“It’s good, right?” You ask, a little hesitant to celebrate just yet. Your arm is still bandaged, more so a comforting thing for Zayne at this point than for need of it. You also can’t stand to see the scars just yet. The perfect little squares so meticulously taken away. 

“It’s good.” The more bright flares of Caleb’s excitement dwindles down, “Sylus was right, they’re scrambling right now. If this much has leaked out, it means they’re way worse on the inside.”

You imagine an office scrambling with men in suits, frantically trying to piece together a plan to save their sinking ship. It’s mildly comforting, but less so compared to the softness of Caleb’s shirt. You hold his sleeve pinched between your fingers, needing an anchor to keep you from wondering too long on things you’d rather forget. 

Caleb looks at you and his eyes soften. Gently, he grabs the hand trying to tether you two together. He squeezes it firmly, pressing his thumb into your palm and lifting it so you look at him, “I made you breakfast, and a lunchbox to take.”

You blink. Struck out of the tar-like sensations of what it felt like to be strapped down and prodded at. With a simple tug, Caleb unties the knots in your stomach and draws you over to the kitchen. 

“Geez,” You say as you see the spread laid out on the counter, “When did you wake up?”

Caleb laughs sheepishly as he lets go of your hand, fingers lingering for as long as possible before they fall away, “Early. I knew Zayne left early, and I knew you were heading back today. I wanted to make sure you had plenty to fuel you for your return to work!”

You giggle softly and sit down at the bar, “What a good housekeeper you make. I never would have guessed.”

“Seriously?” Caleb says with a scoff, “C’mon pips, you didn’t set me up to fail did you?”

You laugh again a little stronger this time, shaking your head as you take one of the slices of toast with orange marmalade, “Of course not! I just didn’t think you’d be so good at it! Makes me feel like I was doing a bad job.”

Caleb leans on the counter across from you, leaning on his elbows, “You were always more of a fighter than a chef. But that’s okay. That’s why I learned to do it so well. So you didn’t have to.”

You pause in taking a bite of toast and look at him, something odd bubbling in your chest. Some mixture of fondness and pain. Nostalgia swirling alongside the bitter taste of uncertainty, “Caleb, can I ask you something?”

The amusement in his expression shifted with a touch of confusion, “Of course. Anything.”

“Why didn’t you just come to the Sanctuary?” You ask, but the words feel like sand against your tongue. You don’t really want to ask because you don’t really want to know the answer. Why bring up the past when you’re trying so hard to move forward? How can you ever forgive Caleb if you don’t forcefully just forget what he’s done?

Internally, you know that’s not the way. Just pretending he never did anything wrong wouldn’t work in the long run. It’d be okay for a while, but like a dormant disease it would rear its ugly head again. All that pain. The resentment. The heartache. There was no moving on from a wound like that without proper stitching, and only you held the needle and thread. 

Caleb’s face drops and he pushes up to stand up straight. The shimmer in his galactic eyes fades into the darkness of the void between stars and you bite down the urge to take back the question as guilt rises inside you. 

“Sylus mentioned the same thing,” Caleb laughs self-deprecatingly. “That if I hadn’t been such a coward and just came to the Sanctuary, that everything could have been different. That world…there wouldn’t have been a spell if not for me…and I…I can’t answer your question, pipsqueak, because I don’t know.”

He covers his face with the chrome of his prosthetic hand and inhales sharply, “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. Why do I always make the wrong choice?”

You toss your toast down and round the counter, his distress calling out to something undeniable inside you.

“Caleb,” You say gently, taking a hold of his wrist and pulling it away from his face. He looks down at you and his eyes are glassy, “Hey, it’s okay.”

“It’s not okay. How can I…I shouldn’t even be here….I wrote myself in and…” Caleb breathes heavily and like some magnetic pull overtakes him, he collapses into you. Wrapping his arms around you and hugging you tightly. “If I hadn't interfered, I wouldn’t have known you at all.”

You take a moment before hugging him back, and letting yourself take a deep breath.You consider his words. You consider his actions. You remember that little boy from the past timeline. One you had only known for moments at a time. One who had, for inexplicable reasons you didn’t know, cared for you– even if you had been blind to him. 

“I don’t think that’s right.” You start by saying. “Even in that other world…we knew each other. In passing and only briefly, but who’s to say that would be different here? There isn’t–” You pause to sigh, unsure of where to even go from here, “That world was hard…it was unforgiving and it was cruel to all of us. I think…I think I like this one better. Even with everything that has happened. I like this world better.”

Caleb lifts his head from where he’d hidden his face in your shoulder, “Really?” He asks so pitifully you can’t help but smile.

“Yeah.” You whisper, “I have everything I could ever want and then some. I have my family. And everyone I love is here.” You draw away to look him in the eyes properly, “I think the last piece has always been you. I think…Or I like to think… that in that world…if the spell hadn't happened…you would have found your way to us eventually.”

Caleb’s breath catches, and exhales like it releases the weight of the very galaxy from his shoulders. The dewiness in his eyes slowly leaves, blinked away as he studies your face for any falsity. “The others…”

You smile and reach up to pinch his side, “It’s not perfect. Not yet. And maybe it never will be. The others are their own people. They feel how they feel about things and I can’t change that. But they can’t change my mind either. Though, I would appreciate it if you tried to be friends with them at least.”

“How?” Caleb whispers, his arms around your waist tighten a little. Reluctant to let you go. 

“Well…Xavier is tough. He was a hard shell to crack when I first got here too. But he likes food– good meat in particular.” You begin explaining, letting yourself settle into this embrace for a moment while you think, “Rafayel is a creative, so his moods vary. But deep down he’s a deeply untrusting person. It takes a lot for him to feel secure and to trust someone else. He likes baths….he likes art…. You know Zayne already. But he’s a little warmer in this world, if you can believe it. He takes his job at the hospital very seriously, but he also likes to have fun– he’s just not the type to suggest it. And Sylus….Sylus likes guns. Or he alters guns. There’s a workshop downstairs where he works on classic cars too. Maybe try that?”

Caleb’s face scrunches, “That is…kind of helpful.”

“Good morning,” Zayne greets as he enters the room, eyes glued on his phone screen as usual. Though Caleb drops you like he’d been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. 

You nearly fall on your ass, but you’re laughing the whole time, “Morning Zayne.”

“A seven car pileup on the freeway this morning,” Zayne replies as he sighs heavily, “It’s going to be a long day.”

“Saving lives though, right?” You cheer as you return to your seat, “Do you have time to eat this morning? Caleb made a spread!”

Zayne finally looks up from his phone to the spread of food on the counter and his eyes fall on the gooey sticky buns dripping with creamy icing. You see the little boy inside Zayne begging for a taste, but the doctor tells him no.

“I can’t.” Zayne says mournfully, “The attending on call isn’t confident in trauma cases so I should go in as soon as I can.”

“Here!” Caleb speaks up, going to the fridge and pulling out a bento box.  “I made you a lunch. It’s a sweet and sour chicken stir fry with veggies– no carrots though, right?”

Zayne takes the bento a little stunned, “Yes, that’s correct. Making my lunch isn’t necessary. I can always–”

“Eat a sugary pastry from the hospital cafeteria?” You accuse with a smirk, “That's not a lunch.”

Caleb chuckles and leans back onto the counter, “Yeah, Zaynie, take the lunch your poor housekeeper made…I worked so hard on it.”

Zayne’s face falls, “I forgot how efficiently the two of you can gang up on me.”

You snicker alongside Caleb, and from the corner of your eye you spy Xavier entering the room. He rubs at his eye sleepily with the back of his white glove, his hunter uniform always spotless as ever– sure to be riddled with dirt and soot by the end of the day. 

“Morning…” Xavier rumbles softly, walking into Zayne’s offered hand and resting his pretty blond head on the doctor’s shoulder. 

“I have to get going.” Zayne says, pressing his hand gently to Xavier’s back and nudging over to you. Letting the lethargic Hunter move from his arms to yours, leaning heavily against your chest as he fights for consciousness. 

With Xavier leaning against you, it makes it easier for Zayne to press his signature kiss goodbye to your temples. You first, and then Xavier– who mumbles a sleepy goodbye into your shoulder. 

Zayne takes the lunch and the wrapped breakfast to go, giving Caleb a firm nod of gratitude before he turns to go. You wonder if one of these mornings Zayne will forget and kiss Caleb on the forehead like he did you all those weeks ago. 

“Have a good day!” You call as Zayne leaves. 

“Save lots of lives!” Caleb echoes the elevator ding signalling your beloved doctor’s exit. 

Xavier’s breathing is too slow for how soon you need to get going, so you try to coax him awake. You nudge your shoulder a little, making him lift his forehead and you whisper to him, “C’mon Xavier. You should eat before we go.”

“Just a little longer.” He breathes, turning his face into your neck and pressing his lips to your pulse.

“N-no.” You say weakly, the heat of his lips making your head a little foggy, “We only have ten minutes before we have to go. Look, Caleb made bacon and sausage.”

Xavier mumbles something incoherent into your neck and with firm hands on your waist he finally stands up straight. “Are such extravagant breakfasts in the grocery budget?”

You return to your toast and roll your eyes. Xavier will find anything to nitpick about Caleb at this point, but Caleb seems to be handling it very well. Never taking it to heart and smiling.

“Don’t worry. I’ve been very careful.” Caleb assures as he motions with his head to the plates of food awaiting the blond. “Though, if it’s not to your liking…I can always make something else.”

Xavier frowns softly and shakes his head as he sits down next to you, “This is fine.”

Munching away at your breakfast, Caleb returns to tidying up the mess of making it, and you glance between the two men. 

“So,” You begin, “We don’t have any big missions today. So we should be home around Five-ish.”

“Good,” Caleb says, pleased, “I’ll have something ready for you then. How about some dumplings?”

“Sounds good!” You say with a happy nod. There’s a worm of guilt in your chest because Xavier is still frowning, and you’re wondering if it will ever get better. 

The two of you finish your breakfast and Caleb gives you both your own lunches to take. Xavier looks at him like he’s grown another head for such an absurd action, and so you carry both. Laughing at Xavier’s reaction. 

You’re in the car and heading to work when you lean over and smack Xavier in the arm. He flinches slightly– not hurt but surprised by the sudden action. 

“What’s the matter with you?” You bark at him, more frustrated than properly angry. “You could try, you know?”

Xavier hums softly and returns his full attention to the road, “Try what, exactly?”

“To be cordial, if not nice.” You add, crossing your arms, “It’s been over a week, and you’re still treating him like a criminal.”

Xavier’s expression doesn’t change, “He is a criminal. An enemy of our house– our family. I won’t forgive him, and I certainly will not forget.”

You sigh and just look at Xavier for a moment. From the passenger seat, you examine the unmarred skin of his cheek. The place on his jaw where a deep scar had given him pain in his teeth when it was cold. It’s smooth skin now, free from the mark where one of his own men had betrayed him.

The car falls into silence, and you wait until he’s parked in the darkness of the Hunter’s Association garage before you speak again. 

“You were the enemy,” You say very very gently. Barely a whisper, “Once.”

Xavier’s face jerks to look at you, a look of flayed shock in his eyes. He doesn’t say a word, but his eyes say enough. 

“You were the Prince of Philos.” You continue. “You led battalions that killed hundreds. Uprooted families. I remember…I remember the color of the banners being something we used to fear. Astra was a threat once, and so were you.”

Xavier’s mouth is open and he speaks slowly, “I never…I never betrayed you.” 

“That’s not what I mean.” You say quickly. “I’m not saying it’s the same, it's just…when you first came to the sanctuary, Zayne didn’t want me to help you. Lots of the people there…they wanted to let you die. I couldn’t….I just…They told me about who you were, what you’d done– what your family had done. I guess…I thought maybe you could find it in your heart to cut him a little slack? You don’t have to be buddies with him but…maybe you can understand what he’s feeling, you know?”

Xavier pauses, letting your words settle in the air before he responds. “It’s not the same thing.”

“Isn’t it?” You reach out and take his hand, feeling the soft leather of his glove, “We make choices from the options we have available. If  your men hadn’t betrayed you and left you for dead, would you have ever been on our side? To be honest, I try not to think about what could have been or what we could have done differently– it doesn’t change anything now. And I’m happy here. Aren’t you?”

The steel in Xavier’s eyes loses it sharp glint. The blade he’s been wielding so tightly since the moment you were kidnapped is finally finally sheathed. “I am.”

He whispers so gently, and when he reaches for you, you meet him halfway. Nothing but binary stars in orbit of one another, drawn by each other’s gravitational pull. He kisses you gently, the barest of pressure that you press harder into. 

It’s hard to reach him leaning against the console between you, and so you push yourself up onto one knee. You need to feel him closer. Just a little stronger taste to get you through the day, and Xavier is silently agreeing with the sentiment because he’s pulling you in. 

Soft pecks turn into slower, harder caresses. His tongue darts to taste you, and you nip at the tip of it playfully. He exhales sharply through his nose, and pulls you away from him an inch with a firm hand in your hair. 

“You’re asking for it.” He warns breathily. 

“We can be a little late, right?” You whisper, and usually there’s another one of your lovers there to talk the two of you out of getting carried away. Zayne, Sylus, and Rafayel all know how you and Xavier can bring out the worst in each other– forgoing anything else to indulge the way you so enjoy. 

Xavier groans into your mouth and you can feel his internal debate. He has to close his eyes tightly and grip your waist to stop from immediately caving in and throwing you in the backseat– work be damned. 

“N-no.” He whines. “We can’t be late today. Not on the first day.”

You hum, pressing another short kiss to his lips before you back off, “Bummer. Maybe tomorrow then.”

Before you can leave the car, Xavier grabs you and hauls you back to him. Devouring your lips in an orchestrated assault on your senses and sanity. He doesn’t let you go until it’s you who is breathless and dizzy, and he mumbles the warning so deeply into you that even your hazy mind hears it, “You’ll regret that later.”

Caleb wasn’t one to complain. Not really. He was used to doing things he didn’t enjoy, but he couldn’t say he hated his new position as housekeeper. 

Cleaning was methodical, and cooking enjoyable. Seeing the carefree look on your face as you ate something he made was even better. You loved food, you loved good food, and Caleb had spent so long perfecting it that it felt heavenly to see all that effort come to fruition. 

He didn’t mind the laundry, which he noticed wasn’t a part of your list, but had somehow become a part of his. And the grocery shopping was easy because the other four men were oddly specific, and Caleb knew your preferences like the back of his hand. 

His only complaint? The Rules. 

Caleb wasn’t entirely sure if Sylus had been serious, but he wasn’t about to risk his road to redemption by testing it. However, it was leading to some…unusual side effects. 

Caleb couldn’t touch you, but it seemed as long as you initiated it no one made a fuss. A loophole for which he was grateful you took advantage of. At least it was something to tide him over before he inevitably went insane. 

He also couldn’t touch himself. Caleb believed the dragon when he’d said he’d know. That damn beast's sniffer was worse than the siren’s, and Caleb wouldn’t put it past any of them to punish him if he tried to take care of the unbearable tension he was experiencing. 

It would be easier if he couldn’t hear everything. Plagued by insomnia the way he was, Caleb was up at all hours of the night. Listening to the horrific, terrible, no-good, vile, delirious…cross-eyed, gorgeous, sybalitic, divine things that occurred between you and your lovers. 

This was torture of a new breed. A kind that Caleb found himself dumbfounded for not thinking of earlier, because he was going insane. Insane in the way that makes people desperate. That makes their minds melt and become people they don’t recognize. 

Because he found himself hard and aching even when you weren’t involved. When he’d accidentally walked into the gym and found Xavier sprawled across the training mat, the purple haired siren– Rafayel, Caleb’s traitorous mind purrs– between his legs. 

Caleb hadn’t considered what the blond might look like with his cock balls deep in someone’s throat, and so the sight of it was novel and branding. It was a lack of imagination on his part what the sound of the artist gagging might do to his fraying psyche, and how he almost fell to his knees and begged for mercy then and there. 

Seeing Zayne was worse. There was something frighteningly powerful about seeing Zayne with his hand around Sylus’s throat, pressing him into the couch and pounding into the other large man like he was a doll to be controlled. Perfect, poised Zayne was red-faced and sweating, mumbling out curses and so engrossed in the tight heat around him he didn’t even notice Caleb. 

But Sylus had. 

Sylus with those beastly carmine eyes had focused on him like a predator in the jungle, stunned at first, but then he smirked and Caleb the movement jolt down his spine straight to his already-hard cock. 

Zayne was ruthless– his pace was punishing, and Sylus looked like he could take more. At least, that’s what Caleb’s celibacy-addled mind whispered. 

Caleb shook his head, trying to get back to cleaning the firearm Sylus had left for him. A crate of them to be dismantled, cleaned, and put back together. After their chat, Sylus seemed to take pity on him– or he just enjoyed the torture– either way. Of the four men, Zayne was too busy to talk and the other two didn’t want to talk. Sylus was the only one who had made any sort of effort to interact with him. 

He sighed, placing the cleaned firearm back into its case before moving onto the next one. Only, before he could open the case, the elevator dinged. Checking his watch, Caleb cursed– it was you and Xavier coming home!

He rose from his seat, ready to greet you, but was met with the heart-stopping sight of you thrown over Xavier’s shoulder, giggling and kicking your feet slightly. The blond wasted no time in giving you a harsh smack on the ass for your antics, and you squealed like it was just the beginning of some horrific game. 

Caleb was frozen, watching with his jaw ajar as Xavier smacked your ass again– only this time, Caleb got a full view of your face. The way your eyebrows drew together and up, a tantalizing mixture of pleasure and pain as you jolted from the harsh treatment. The sound of it was enough to make Caleb’s gut twist, suddenly, painfully hard. 

He hadn’t actually seen you in the thralls of pleasure yet. Only heard. Heard night after night this week as you meticulously undone in so many various ways. Sometimes slowly, softly, gently. And other times hard, rough, violent. 

Words bubbled at the back of Caleb’s throat. Objections to the rough treatment and defense on your behalf. The tender skin of your bottom should never feel such disrespect. But also, Caleb didn’t want to say anything because then he might get to hear it again. 

“Xavier!” You cried as you were hauled past the living room– not even a step of hesitation from the prince’s feet as he carved a path upstairs, “I’m sorry! It was just a joke!”

Another smack. A perfect, echoing slap of Xavier’s white leather glove against the black leather of your hunter’s uniform. Oh Caleb would never get the sound out of his head– he’d cling to that auditory memory because it might be the best he could get. 

Xavier didn’t reply and disappeared with you into the hall and away upstair. Caleb flinched at the harsh slam of your bedroom door, and began to worry for the safety of your beautiful skin. He wouldn’t leave lasting marks right?

Caleb hears the footsteps only a second before he sees him. The devil incarnate come to rub salt in his wounds. Sylus slides around the corner like a snake, grinning, and Caleb has all of half a second to press himself up against the counter to hopefully hide the evidence of his painful arousal.

“Was that Xavier I saw walking by just now?” Sylus’ drawls, asking in such a clearly rhetorical way that it makes Caleb’s irritation spike.

“What do you want?” Caleb bites out harshly, “I’m not done cleaning the guns yet.”

Sylus’ brows raise in mock surprise, “Oh? Such attitude for someone in your position, and here I thought I might grant mercy to you.”

Sylus hums and turns away, taking two steps and shrugging theatrically. 

“What?” Caleb hisses, “What do you mean mercy?”

Sylus pauses, turning to look over his shoulder at the violet-eyed man, “I mean mercy. You’ve been good. Following the rules. Keeping up with the chores and making good meals. I think you’ve suffered enough, though I’m not the only one you have to convince.”

Caleb can’t breathe. He’s not entirely sure what Sylus means but it’s promising. Does that mean he can touch himself? Does that mean he can touch you?

Sylus chuckles and it sounds like sin, “Here, come with me.”

The devil offers Caleb his hand, and god forgive him but he takes it.

He’s drawn up the stairs to the hallway outside your room, and Caleb shudders when he scales those last few steps and hears the muffled sounds from behind the door. 

“Xavier!” You voice is high and pitchy, the ending of the name breaking into a long, drawn out moan, “Please– oh god! – Slow d-down!”

You devolve into rhythmic sighing moans, squeals of pain that come a moment after harsh slapping sounds. Caleb jolts forward, determined to come to your rescue because you’ve asked Xavier so nicely to slow down and he clearly hasn’t.

“Woah there,” Sylus catches him with a wide palm on his chest, “Where do you think you’re going?”

“She asked him to stop and he didn’t! He’s hurting her and you’re okay with this?” Caleb snaps, yanking Sylus’ hand off of him.

“It’s their game.” Sylus says with a slight roll of his eyes, “It’s how they play. The prince and his bunny. They have a safeword set up– if she really wanted him to stop, she would use it.”

“How do you know? How do you know that he would stop?” Caleb asks a little too desperately. 

“Because he’s done it before.” Sylus assures, taking on that low rumbling tone, “Xavier can get carried away with overstimulation. The prince of Philos is a glutton for when her eyes start to cross. When she starts to drool and can’t even form words anymore…One time…”

Sylus’ voice drops into a whisper, and Caleb is now hanging from his every word. A sick cacophony of secrets hushed to him alongside the symphony of your pleasure.

“She had to use the safeword because Xavier nearly passed out. Blue in the face and everything because he wouldn’t come up for air.” Sylus’ chest rumbles in dark humor, “So pussy-drunk that he forgot to breathe while eating her sweet cunt. But…you know how that is, right?”

Caleb blinks and is momentarily distracted as the wet slurping noises from within the room turn into rhythmic slaps. Hips crashing against hips– and its so fucking wet sounding that Caleb’s mind short circuits enough to get the Toring chip involved. 

“I don’t…” Caleb mumbles before shaking his head, “I don’t know what you mean.”

Sylus’ eyes narrow and he crowds Caleb against the wall, “You don’t? You mean to tell me you spent all those years with her and you never returned the favor? Never tasted her?”

“We never–” Caleb grits his teeth, “We never did anything like that!”

“Oh you poor sap,” Sylus growls, “Now I really do feel bad for you.”

“Shut up.” Caleb barks and debates shoving Sylus away. 

“Don’t be upset. Here,” Sylus coos and with one arm braced against the wall to the side of Caleb’s head, he uses the other to drag down the pilot’s chest. Giving little warning before dipping his fingers into the hemline of his pants and cupping Caleb’s throbbing cock, “, let me help you.”

Caleb gasps wantonly, a high pitch pitiful thing as it’s the first real touch he’s had in months. “F-fuck…”

“Tell me now if you want me to stop…” Sylus whispers in his ear, pressing harder against him and Caleb’s vision whites out.

“No. No.” Caleb pleads under his breath, “Please…”

“Such a good puppy you’re turning out to be.” Sylus lifts his hand and uses two fingers to hook the waistband of Caleb’s pants and underwear, dragging them down to let his poor, neglected cock free. 

Caleb is panting madly, hands pressed flat against the wall and his hips pushed out in desperate seeking of more. Sylus’ large hand encircles his cock, and Caleb is whining before he even moves. 

“If you keep behaving so nicely,” Sylus drawls as he slowly pumps his hand up and down Caleb’s long, thick member. A fat glob of pearlescent precum drips out and onto Sylus’ fingers, which only smooths the path for him to go a little faster, “Then you’ll be in our bed in no time. You’ll get your turn to taste her. Is that what you want?”

Caleb’s quiet moans are nearly drowned out by yours, and he realizes Sylus is matching the rhythm of his hand to the hedonistic slapping happening behind the door to your bedroom. 

“Y-yes…” Caleb groans, and his hips are thrusting up without even thinking. Edged for so long in this prolonged punishment that he couldn’t stop it even if he wanted to. “That’s what I want. It’s all I want. Fuck~ I need to f-feel her. I wanna’ – oh god, yes– I wanna’ be i-inside….her.”

“She’s like heaven,” Sylus continues, squeezing a little tighter. “Better than you can even imagine. Did you know she can take two?”

Caleb’s hips jolt at those word– images flashing behind his eyes, “Oh god! You’re fucking lying. You’re a liar– she wouldn’t–”

Sylus growls, smiling with those sharp venomous canines, “Took me and Zayne so well. We took it slow of course– the last thing we want to do is hurt our girl, but oh…she did so well. Took both of us at the same time. Oh– You really like that, don’t you puppy? Don’t try and lie to me I can see how much you’re leaking…”

“Oh god…I’m– nng–” Caleb is whimpering, pushing his hips into Sylus’ warm hand, wishing desperately it was more. That it was wet, and and hot, and cried out as he fucked up into it. 

“Please, please, please!” Your wail is barely muffled by the door and your poor, lovely voice is so hoarse, “I’m sorry! I won’t— ahn, oh god yes….hit me harder. Ung, it feels so good. So good.”

Caleb’s knees buckle but he catches himself by grabbing Sylus’ arms at the last second. “Is she always…” Caleb has to swallow hard before he continues, “Is she always so responsive?”

Sylus rumbles with laughter, oh so casually leaning down slightly to spit right onto Caleb’s cock head with deadly precision, and then, smirking like it was nothing Sylus replies, “Of course. She has a hard time keeping that pretty mouth of hers shut, but I prefer her like this….don’t you?”

Caleb only grunts softly in response, the added wetness making his head spin. He’s tumbling headfirst towards a long overdue orgasm, but won’t let himself completely succumb. Not yet. Not yet.

“Not yet?” Sylus mimics the chant Caleb was unknowingly whispering, “I see. Good boy, waiting for her to finish first right?

Shame slaps Caleb hard in the face, making him flush the prettiest pink because his cock throbs, more slick threads of pre forced out of his desperate plying cock. 

“Ah, ah, ah!” Your succulent moans are punched out of you, the reverberation of a gorgeous string instrument smacked with the violence of a drum. Caleb’s mind scolds Xavier for his indelicacy to you, but also begins planning how best to prepare a nice, fat steak for him. A gift for the prince for such a unique gift.

Caleb faintly hears Xavier hiss out a curse, then your name, and then, “Oh bunny—ngh—you’re so close….you’re gushing. Such a good bunny I’ll be kind. — At the count of ten, you can come ok? Oh mmmh— yeah you can come on ten. Ready?”

Caleb knows the words aren’t directed at him, but his breath hitches like they are. You’re struggling already, making these high pitch animal whines as you grapple against your own pleasure.

“One.” A loud smack, and you keen— squealing as Xavier must have placed a debatably-deserved slap to your perfect ass.

“Two.” Xavier’s pace is fast but not frantic, and Sylus mimics it perfectly. The precision, the harsh but not painful thrusts. Perfect damnation wrapped in fair hair.

“Three.” Sylus is grinning like a conqueror, clearly enjoying the show.

“Four.” Xavier’s voice is getting strained, pushed to his limits by his own games.

“Five.” Caleb’s not gonna’ last, he just knows it. So he bites his lower lip and stops thrusting his hips in a desperate attempt to slow the inevitable.

“Six.” You’ve devolved into breathless pants at this point and Caleb can only guess was depressed look is on your face.

“Seven.” So close. He’s so so so close. 

“Eight.” Almost there. Sylus squeezes him a little tighter and hums like a satisfied beast. The silver haired man’s breathing is faster than normal, the only outward sign that he’s thoroughly enjoying himself— besides the massive hard bulge he presses against Caleb’s thigh.

“Nine.” Xavier sounds strained and the sounds from the collision of flesh have grown a bit softer. 

It’s finally here. Caleb’s mind chants in utter jubilation. A dedicated worshipper finally feeling rain after fasting for a hundred days. Right there. He’s right there.

“Ten.” 

Caleb clenches his mouth shut on pure willpower— fighting against his voice’s involuntarily exultation of pleasure so he can hear you instead. He can’t waste this opportunity with trivial things like his own white-hot, bone melting, knee-buckling orgasm.

He holds onto Sylus so tightly to weather the storm, rope after steamy rope of pearly cum shooting across the silver-haired man’s arm and hand. 

And oh, you’re perfection. The cataclysm of a summer storm. Thunder and lightning and rain combining into some heady combination that both sets his primal mind alight and sends into some sleepy stupor. He could get drunk on the sound of your orgasm alone, and maybe he has because his mind is swimming with it.

Xavier is breathy and quiet, muttering filthy but reverent praise as he no-doubt fills your heavenly cunt with his cum. 

You repeating thanks over and over again, voice cracking and fading into whimpering whispers,

Caleb can barely catch his breath, so sunken in the quicksand of orgasm and struggling to come up for air.

“I…” Caleb doesn’t even know what he’s about to say, only that when he looks up at Sylus there are words forming.

Sylus looks smug but not demeaningly so. Proud of his accomplishment and admiring the sheer amount of come now striping his tanned skin. 

“Hm…” Sylus hums thoughtfully, lifting his hand and Caleb gasps like a wanton whore as he watches Sylus’ tongue dart out to take the tiniest taste of come from his fingers.

“Oh fuck…” Caleb curses under his breath, in between gasping swallows for air, “That was…”

“Our secret.” Sylus finishes for him, “For now. You have my trust, and I thought you deserved a treat. Did you enjoy it? Your treat?”

Caleb’s face feels too hot, “Y-yes…”

“Good.” Sylus says with a slight grin. “The rules still stand with the others— no touching, and no touching yourself— but I will…help if you need it.” 

Sylus slowly helps Caleb to lean against the wall instead of clinging to him, and only when the brunette is steady on his feet does Sylus back off. 

“T-thanks…” Caleb mumbles lamely, unsure of how to act now that he’s just been jerked off within an inch of his life by the man before him. 

He’d never actually considered your lovers or men in general before, and so his mind is having trouble catching up to this new reality. 

Sylus smirks, “Go get cleaned up. Xavier probably knows we were out here, but better to be safe and escape while we can.”

Caleb rushes to put his flagging cock back into his pants and pull them back up, “Did I fuck up? Is he going to hate me more now?”

Sylus pulls out a red silk handkerchief from his pocket and begins to wipe his hand clean, “So worried. Aren’t you concerned what kitten will think if she knew what a voyeur you were?”

Caleb falls silent, following the dragon down the stairs and back to the dimly lit living room. It’d only been a day and a half since Caleb had walked in on Zayne plowing Sylus on the couch, and Caleb wonders if Sylus thinks about it as much as he does.

Sylus looks over his shoulder at the violet-eyed man and chuckles richly, “No I suppose she already knows, doesn’t she? Tell me, were you pressing your ear to her door as a teenager? Or sneaking pics of her in the shower?” 

Caleb’s face scrunches at the accusation, “I would never!”

Sylus, however, continues, “Did you sneak into her room at night and watch her sleep? Or steal her panties from the hamper?”

Caleb opens his mouth to deny the first allegation, but at the second, Caleb’s jaw clamps shut.

“So that’s it…” Sylus hums, “Don’t worry, puppy. I don’t judge you for it. Just be careful pulling that here, you’re still on punishment for now.”

“So what was this?” Caleb asks quietly after he lets his shame subside, “An act of pity?”

“Partly,” Sylus replies honestly, “but also a peace offering. Relax a little. You’re down two out of the four— possibly three.”

“Two? Three?” Caleb repeats in confusion, “Who do I have on my side? Zayne?? Zayne doesn’t remember, if he did—“

“I can’t speak for Zayne or the others for that matter. I don’t care to try and put words in their mouth.” Sylus says with a shake of his head, “But what I can say is this. Zayne is in the same boat as our lovely kitten. She was your friend in this life and cared for you before she remembered. Zayne doesn’t prolong grudges that don’t serve him— he finds it a waste of energy. And Rafayel only bothers to hate those who are deserving. Are you deserving?”

Caleb pauses and his brow furrows, “I…I don’t know.”

“Get cleaned up.” Sylus continues, “Tell the others I have business I have to see to that’ll keep me out until tomorrow, would you?”

The silver haired dragon turns on his heel and waltzes down the hall, going towards the back staircases and disappearing.

Caleb takes a second to collect himself and then hastily rushes to the hall bathroom to tidy his appearance. Luckily, there’s no come on his clothes, but he escapes downstairs to change anyway. 

Sylus has already disappeared from the halls by the time Caleb gets down there, and the brunette changes and fixes his hair in less than three minutes.

He’s in a rush to get back upstairs, the idea of making Xavier a steak having stuck. The two of you would probably be hungry, and he wanted to somehow, someway thank you for letting him listen in— even if you didn’t know.

Caleb is a good cook, and knows enough about cooking that he can make lots of dishes from memory alone. He’s got the steaks seasoned and resting on the chopping block while he heats some butter in a pan. A tray of seasonal veggies is already in the oven when you and Xavier show your faces.

Flushed, but not debauched— Caleb’s only slightly disappointed that the evidence of your coupling is so subtle.

“Oh that smells so good!” You coo as you collapse onto the couch— wearing an adorable peach colored lounge set. “What are you making, Caleb?”

“Ribeye with roasted vegetables.” He answers with a pleased smile. 

Xavier walks in the room like a conquering hero— a pillager who laid claim to the spoils. Though he’s not gloating, just preening. A sort of peacocking glow about the blond’s face that reveals he’s indulged in something Dyonisian. 

“How do you like yours cooked, Xavier?” Caleb asks, feeling like he’s tiptoeing around a sleepy lion. 

Xavier’s sharp sapphire eyes land on him, and Caleb freezes— waiting for the reprimand. For the threats of violence and decapitation— but none comes.

“Medium-rare.” Is all the blond says and finds a spot next to you on the couch, leaning heavily into your side while you begin to browse for something to watch on the television. 

Caleb breathes a quiet sigh of relief, “Coming up!”

It was like the house itself breathed a sigh of relief— at least that’s how it felt to Caleb. He no longer felt like he was tiptoeing around landmines and peering around corners to avoid hateful eyes. 

After his treat, Caleb was even more on edge. Certain that you and Xavier would find out and kick him out. He broke the rules, even if it was Sylus that dragged him across that line in the first place. 

Though after a day or so, Caleb could rest easy. Sylus made no overt effort to pressure the others into forgiving Caleb, but he also didn’t partake in anymore in the group flagellation— which at this point only consisted of Rafayel pelting him with schoolyard teases and taunts. 

Xavier didn’t even bother with it at this point. Which was good— right? It felt good. Caleb wasn’t sure what he’d done, but it felt like Xavier’s ire had simmered down considerably. No longer did the blond’s hands shimmer with the anticipation of his Lightblade whenever Caleb got too close to you. 

Three days since his treat, and Caleb felt like he was on the right path. A path to redemption and being welcomed back at your side. You were spending more time around him, opening up almost as much as you used to do. Such progress, and Caleb was living for it. 

It was a peculiar happenstance that evening. Earlier that day, while you were still at work, Rafayel had stormed out of the house– grabbing a lemon glazed scone from the tray that Caleb was working on and mumbling something about “Stupid publicist. Stupid magazine. Can’t believe I have to– ugh! This is good, by the way.”

Caleb was so dumbfounded by the compliment that he didn’t manage a word before the artist was gone. 

Then, you arrived home, dragging your feet and face covered in the ash of Wanderer dust. However, Xavier wasn’t with you– and you informed Caleb that he’d been called in on a specialty mission and wouldn’t be back for a few days. 

Two down. A few weeks ago, Caleb would be elated, but now he was sitting in a confusing puddle of disappointment. He’d spent the afternoon deboning rainbow trout and hoping to finally impress Rafayel with it. Xavier always preferred red meat, but Caleb was so sure that he’d like this fish that he’d staked more than he realized on that hope. 

Then, even worse, Sylus came in. Complimenting the smell of roasted fish and turnips but politely declining on joining. He was dressed to the nines– shiny black shoes with flashy red bottoms and an onyx black suit with silver detailing. A business meeting is what the dragon claimed, and Caleb wondered if this business meeting would lead to blood stains or wine stains. 

Three down. Three left. You apologized so sweetly, offering to help finish up the meal while you waited for Zayne to come home. 

You were sitting on your barstool, snacking on a piece of raw baby carrot when the elevator bell dinged. You turned, seeing your cool-headed paramour enter the living area with a slouch to his shoulders and exhaustion coloring his features. 

It hadn’t gone beyond your notice that he no longer wore his white lab coat in the house anymore. Kept neatly folded in the car and laundered using a service at the hospital. By the time you saw him in the evenings, all evidence of the hospital was gone from him– save for the remnants of stress that remained on his noble features. 

“Evening.” Zayne offers the two of you as he enters, looking up and coming to your side. An arm around your waist and his chest pressed into your back in an uncharacteristically affectionate gesture. Zayne must have had an unusually difficult day– seeking comfort so quickly after coming in. 

“Dinner’s ready.” Caleb says, and from the look in his eyes you could tell Caleb notices it too. The heaviness to Zayne’s form, the darkness around his eyes. “And I made a mousse for dessert.”

Zayne sighs and looks over to Caleb, “A mousse?”

Caleb chuckles at the soft eagerness in the doctor’s voice, “Yeah. Chocolate and caramel. But it’s still setting, so we have to eat normal food first.”

“You alright, Zayne?” You ask softly, turning your head to look up at him properly. “How was work?”

Zayne hums and tightens the arm around your waist, “Busy. Do you remember that pileup I mentioned earlier this week?”

“Oh, yeah.” You say, “I saw pictures on the news– it was bad.”

“Yes, well,” Zayne slides into the barstool next to you and offers Caleb a polite nod when the brunette slides a glass of lemonade to him. “One of the patients was still in severe condition. They’d taken the brunt of the trauma directly to their chest. They were stable since their emergency surgeries, and were in the ICU.”

You recall your brief stint in the ICU and shiver slightly, “I heard there were some children involved. It wasn’t one of them was it?”

Zayne shakes his head, “No, fortunately, all the minors involved sustained only surface injuries. This was a single woman– one of the smaller cars that was caught beneath the larger truck.”

“Yikes,” Caleb remarks with a cringe, “Well, she’s lucky she has such a talented doctor looking after her, right?  No better place to be than in your ICU.”

Caleb is clearly trying to cheer him up, but Zayne’s eyes only dim. His jaw clenches softly and he huffs softly in a dry, humorless scoff, “Right. A talented doctor…”

You glance at Caleb and the two of you are thinking the same thing. A part of you wanted it to feel weird, how easily you fell back into routines with Caleb. Silently able to detect what the other was thinking or feeling with a glance. The playful teasing and games you would play as children that prolonged into your adulthood. But right now, it was a blessing, because you were both able to conclude that Zayne was very much not okay.

“What happened?” You whisper, trying to coax more from your stoic doctor. A gentle hand to his arm.

“She was stable.” Zayne is spilling out the moment your fingers touch him, “Critical, but stable. Her incision was healing well, and her blood tests showed no signs of infection. But she just— she just crashed. Her pressure kept bottoming out, and I realized too late she’d thrown a clot.” Zayne sighs like he might deflate into nothing, “I got her into surgery but by the time I found the clot she’d been down too long.”

Your heart twists painfully at the way Zayne’s voice strains as he speaks. He’s not looking at you– eyes foggy as he recalls the memories from earlier today. Zayne was a spectacular surgeon, a talented, wonderful doctor– but he couldn’t save everyone. No matter how hard he tried. 

You're stuck with the memory of a different Zayne. A Zayne with longer hair but the same stricken expression. Lamenting over the loss of a group of refugees caught in the crossfire. His ability to foresee the future had led him to saving dozens of lives, but sometimes…sometimes he couldn’t get there in time. Or if he did, he still couldn’t change their fate. 

It tore at him the way losing patients tore at him. The cold exterior of his heart is nothing but a facade because Zayne is, and always had been, deeply empathetic. Seeking to aid those in need at the cost of his own well-being. 

“I’m so sorry…” You whisper, wishing desperately that Zayne could remember the past like you could now. That you could remind him of all the good he’d once done. The way he’d saved families and bloodlines. The way he’d saved you. 

Caleb clears his throat softly and slides a plate over to him, “Eat up. And then you can have some dessert, yeah?”

You give Caleb a grateful smile, and the three of you eat in silence. Zayne doesn’t like to dissect his feelings like you or Caleb do sometimes. He doesn’t enjoy peeling away the layers of his trauma to hold the core of his emotions delicately in his palm. He processes things quietly, in whispers to himself when he’s alone.

You won’t let him be alone tonight, and when you’ve finished eating you take Zayne gently by his hand. He doesn’t immediately stand; his mind is working around the events of the day like he might find some variable he missed. 

So you play a little dirty, “Zayne,” You hush, “I’m really tired. Can we go lay down?”

Zayne’s golden-green eyes find yours, and you see the cogs of his beautiful mind slow. You’ve called to him, given him something to care for and to fix, and the caretaker inside him jumps at it. He nods softly and rises to his feet. Helping you and Caleb put the dishes in the sink before heading towards your room. 

Holding onto Zayne’s arm, you pause in the archway leading out of the living room and peer over your shoulder. Caleb is wiping at the countertop, keeping his eyes down and avoiding your gaze. 

“Hey Zayne?” You whisper quiet enough that Caleb can’t hear. The dark haired man turns to look down at you, his eyebrows drawn together as he waits for your request. “Can Caleb come too?”

The tension in Zayne’s expression slackens into surprise, and he glances behind you towards Caleb and then back to you, “What are you asking me right now?”

Your stomach flips, the tone in Zayne’s voice richer than the creamy mousse you enjoyed for dessert. “Not for like…that. Just to cuddle or something. All the others are gone….and I thought maybe he might like to have a sleepover? Like old times?”

Zayne huffs in amusement, “We only had a sleepover twice. And we were much younger then.”

“So?” You say, squeezing his hand. “If you don’t want to, it’s okay. I just thought I’d ask.”

“No, it’s fine.” Zayne amends with a shake of his head, “I’m curious what Caleb will think of this sleepover.”

Your face breaks out into a brilliant smile and you can’t help but bounce once in place, “Hey Caleb!”

Caleb freezes, finally looking up from his busywork of polishing the counter for the umpteenth time, “Y-yeah?”

You grin with childlike glee, “You wanna’ have a sleepover?”

Which is how you found yourself in your bedroom, changed into a silky sleepwear set Sylus had gifted you that was the color of the midnight sky, trimmed with feathery lace. Not lingerie by any means, but thin enough you wouldn’t overheat with multiple bodies in the bed. 

Caleb had scrambled like he’d been offered a ticket set to expire if he didn’t jump on it. He’d rushed to go change into sleep clothes and knocked so very politely on your door. 

Zayne was finishing brushing his teeth in the bathroom while you Caleb in, and damn if he didn’t look every bit like a puppy allowed on the furniture for the first time.

“You could look a little less pleased, you know.” You tease, poking Caleb in the side. 

Caleb only laughs, “Why would I do that? When I’m so very happy? I won’t pretend like this isn’t something important to you– and to me.”

“It’s just sleeping.” You try to amend, hoping to temper Caleb’s possible lewd expectations.

“I know,” Caleb replies with a sparkly smile, “But it’s been so long since you’ve let me sleep in the bed with you. You used to have nightmares a lot when we were little, and you couldn’t sleep without me. I just…I miss it.”

Your face heats up, a soft blush rising to your cheekbones and the genuine happiness in Caleb’s voice and expression. It was hard to stay mad at him, and harder still to hate him. 

“Oh, I should mention something,” You say and pull Caleb down to you level with a grip on the sleeve of his band-tee, “Zayne has nightmares sometimes.”

Caleb smirks incredulously, “Okay…? Should I make him some warm milk or something? That’s hardly worth whispering about, pipsqueak.”

“No, I mean,” You sigh, “I mean that he has nightmares about alternate lives. There’s two that I know of. There’s the one I knew– the past timeline we were in. And then there’s Dawnbreaker.”

The mirth in Caleb’s expression melts away as he pales, “He…remembers?”

“Only for minutes  at a time.” You say dejectedly, “It’s not that Zayne I’m warning you about. Dawnbreaker is from a timeline where he never met any of us. He doesn’t recognize anyone but me and he’s…let’s just say he’s a little hostile.”

“So, what exactly do I need to be wary of?” Caleb whispers, finally serious.

“If it happens, just let me handle it okay? Don’t try and fight him because it just makes him angrier. To be honest, I don’t think he’s violent. Just scared.”

Caleb rises up to his full height and shakes his head, “What an interesting bunch you’ve got pipsqueak…”

Zayne exits the bathroom, turning the light off as he leaves and you turn away from Caleb. 

You’re the first to crawl into bed, right in your usual place right in the middle. Your pillow greets you with its overstuffed goose-down and you sigh softly. Zayne is next, coming in on your right and shuffling under the blankets. The cool touch of the silky cotton sheets is nothing compared to the drop in temperature when he draws close. 

Caleb hesitates, kneeling down onto the bed on your left before drawing back the blankets. He laughs a little sheepishly and tries to hide his nerves with a joke, “So, do we start with scary stories? Or truth or dare?”

“How about Never Have I Ever?” You counter. 

Caleb lays down a foot away from you. Curled up on his side and facing where Zayne cuddles up against you. His violet eyes dart a little too quickly around you, down the exposed skin of your collarbone and across your shoulders. He examines the way Zayne sighs heavily, the dark-haired man laying a heavy arm across your stomach and settling in. 

“We could share secrets, or braid each other’s hair.” Caleb says a bit quieter as he notices Zayne’s eyes closed. 

“Or,” Zayne rumbles into your hair, “We could go to sleep.”

“Bo-ring.” You sing-song. “C’mon, Zayne. It’s a sleepover right?”

Zayne sighs, “Hardly.”

“Zayne was never one for the games, was he?” Caleb teases, “I think he’d lose at Never Have I Ever, for sure.”

You giggle, “Hands up Caleb, I’ll go first.”

Caleb is buzzing when he slowly lifts his hands from the blankets, showing you five flesh fingers and five metallic ones. “Go on then.”

Lifting your own hands you say, “Never have I ever…broken my wrist trying to climb a tree.”

Caleb scoffs and drops a finger, “This is a targeted attack huh? Well, never have I ever kept a secret journal about all the people who were mean to me.”

You playful swat at his hand and drop a finger, “Never have I ever burnt a dish so bad I had to throw away the skillet!”

“Never have I ever gotten lost at the mall and had to call for help.” Caleb is grinning and uses his remaining fingers to poke at your arm.

You huff, “Never have I ever kept a collection of women’s magazines.”

Caleb’s smile drops and his ears turn rosy, “Well, never have I ever practiced writing my name Mrs. Li.”

Your jaw drops, and you feel Zayne stir beside you– finally hearing something worth opening his eyes for. Your face is hot and you swat at Caleb’s hands a little harder, “Never have I ever stolen somebody’s panties from the dirty clothes hamper!”

Zayne is snickering down, barely hiding his laughter from Caleb by hiding behind you. 

“You knew?” Caleb screeches, jerking backwards as his entire face turns red.

“Of course I knew!” You dissolve into bubbling laughter, “You were hardly sneaky Caleb!”

Caleb swallows hard and tries to recover as he drops another finger a bit slower this time. “O-okay…well…” Caleb pauses, thinking of some new embarrassing thing he can level at you. “Never have I ever begged someone to spank me.”

“You’re so gross Caleb.” You scold while simultaneously dropping another finger. You’ve both got six fingers left, and you’re not sure if you can handle how much worse this could get. So, you attempt a ceasefire. “Never have I ever…kissed a duck.”

Caleb bursts into laughter, neither one of you dropping a finger. “Kissed a duck? What’s wrong, pipsqueak? Worried about what else I might say?”

“Never have I ever cheated at chess.” Zayne speaks up, and the two of you pause. You can hear the smile in Zayne’s voice and Caleb huffs and drops a finger.

“You’re never gonna’ let me live that down, huh? It happened like twice.” Caleb defends lamely. 

“Oh, that’s two fingers then.” You coo and Zayne chuckles airily behind you. 

“Never have I ever given myself the flu trying to make snowmen for the girl I like.” Caleb says, grinning like a cat. 

Behind you, Zayne tenses and the arm around your waist tightens. When the doctor speaks again, it’s a little harsher, “Never have I ever cried because the girl I liked wouldn’t let me go with her to summer camp.”

Caleb’s eyes light up with a challenge, and you notice that no one is holding up any fingers anymore. Whatever game this is, it’s not the one you intended to play. 

“Never have I ever been in a five-way relationship.” 

Zayne lifts his head, “Never have I ever been a housekeeper.”

“Hey!” You scold, “There’s nothing wrong with being a housekeeper.”

“Yeah, Zaynie. How rude.” Caleb tacks on.

“You are both children, I swear.” Zayne sighs as he rests his head back down on the pillow next to you, “I’m done with this game, can we sleep now?”

“We haven’t decided who won.” You say a little gentler, “Tie breaker?”

Caleb relaxes back into his pillow and snickers, “I think you might have won this one, pipsqueak.”

“Oh really? That’s not like you to give up victory so easily.” You say with narrowed eyes.

“I just don’t know how much more of my secrets I can take being spilled.” Caleb whines theatrically, “Mercy, please….”

You laugh and turn a little more towards him, reaching out, “Alright, then. Mercy.”

Caleb blinks a little stunned. You’re offering a hand to him, inviting him closer, and he looks like he can’t believe his eyes. 

Caleb takes so long to move that Zayne opens one eye and sighs, “She’ll get cold if she doesn’t have someone else. Move over, and go to sleep.”

Zayne acquiescence to Caleb’s presence is the final nail in the coffin. The brunette slides closer into your inviting arms, curling up on the other side of you. Slotting himself into the curve of you and he can’t help but feel like he belongs there. 

This is where he’s always meant to be. Every inch of skin he can press against you is taken advantage of, without preamble or further permission he hooks his legs around your, letting the bare skin of your inner thighs squish together and its perfect. 

Every nerve ending in his body was made to receive you. To experience the softness of your skin. The flush of heat from your blood. The incandescent scent perspiring through your perfect pores.

Caleb isn’t sure he’ll be able to sleep, wrung out too raw like a stripped wire. Flurries of celestial sparks buzzing inside him. 

His mind halts in its crazed worship of you and this when a heavy weight falls on his shoulder. Zayne’s hand, moving to rest so casually on the top of his arm– not holding, not moving, just…resting. 

An anchor that ties the three of you together, and a band of protection across your chest that makes something primal and dark settle in Caleb’s chest. 

For the first time in weeks, in months, in years– perhaps the first time in this lifetime, Caleb can feel the insomnia retreat from his mind. Even when cuddled next to you as children, the threat of Ever snatching you kept him awake, but now? Now there is no Ever, and Zayne is here. A web of protection woven from the threads of dedication from this peculiar love group you’ve founded. What a perfect place to be…his mind purrs as he finally finally sleeps.

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