#and i'll only be able to put so much away in savings

[thetrasha]

hiii tasha! i hope ur doing well :)) oof this is my first request for your blog ,,,,

law with fem reader who is a pastry chef? considering he hates bread to death this idea came to mind hehe, it might be interesting

buuut feel free to ignore this if you dont feel like writing it (⁠´⁠ ⁠.⁠ ⁠.̫⁠ ⁠.⁠ ⁠`⁠) ive read almost all your works i think and i can tell you put a lot of effort and all of your passion into your blog, so i wouldnt want you to do something you dont want to. take care

ps your writing tastes like my favourite kind of soup . do whatever u wnat with that infoidk

Hello my dear reader (❁´◡`❁) I am indeed doing quite well even though it's getting unbearably warm here (sigh). It is what it is... I hope you're drinking enough water!! Thank you so much for sending in your first request on this blog! :D Means a lot to be able to write this for you~ Especially because you've been so loyal to my silly little works 🥺Thanks for sticking around and sharing your thoughts, so happy my passion is received well LOL

PS. That's a strange compliment, but hey, I'll take it. I hope this right here is some good fucking soup then (This was so much fun and it's a lot lighter than what I usually write, I hope you like it!! It's a lot of comedy too hooray)

As always, take care as well (✿◠‿◠)

I c o o k e d (you're very welcome)

Sweet As Pie

includes: pastry chef/ baker reader

feat. LAW

You haven’t been a member of the Heart Pirates for terribly long – maybe eight to nine months at this point – but you’ve been integrated into the team quite well, thanks mostly to Law. He was the one to recruit you after Bepo has taken a quick liking to your family’s bakery back on your home island. You remember it like it was yesterday… how you helped out at your father’s little shop, watching your mother arrange the baked goods and greet every customer with a smile just to hear that pirates have docked at the harbour. Most people were terrified to hear that ruthless buccaneers have emerged from the depth of the ocean in a submarine and they started barring the windows to their homes and businesses with planks, but you were located in the city centre; you’d been too late.

You shooed your dear parents away, thinking that you’d save them from falling victim to a bloodbath, but you were picturing a different sort of person running into the business when Bepo walked into your little bakery.

You could only chuckle at your expression back then, mouth agape and totally in shock, presumably. And then your eyes sparkled, eager to feed and befriend the humanoid polar bear who was shyly asking for some supplies and fiddling with an empty wallet while he was at it.

…Who could judge you, honestly? Bepo was just too cute!

You immediately took a liking to him, not yet aware that he was a pirate. You’d just assumed that he’d needed all that food for hibernation… even if polar bears don’t need to do that… and it wasn’t winter, either. Still, you couldn’t deny his requests and handed your goods over, dismissing his apologies immediately. He tried to barter and offer some things he’d picked up on his adventures, but you were having none of it.

Until the Surgeon of Death walked in.

You froze up, gulping at the man whose bounty poster you were more than familiar with… There was no marine base anywhere nearby, which meant that lots of posters ended up on display near the city hall on the regular, just to keep citizens like you informed. Law had made his way through all of the North Blue at that point, having just started sailing the Grandline… and his infamy was horrifying. Your knees were shaking at the sight of him, believing that the sword he carried would soon be lodged deep into your chest while he he robbed you all of your livelihood. At the time, you didn’t know, however, that Bepo and Law belonged together –

– which meant you looked indeed pretty stupid when you instinctively jumped in front of the polar bear whose origin you couldn’t know, shouting at a known pirate to leave both of you alone and that you were now out of supplies. You even tried your absolute hardest to deceive the pirate captain that led this godforsaken submarine here, claiming that your parents were both members of the Navy and that he’d better turn his ship around now…

You didn’t even realise that you were crying in fear, hiccuping on your own snot like a child, until Bepo rested a paw on your shoulder and wiped your face down with his fur.

And Law, apparently, saw something in you that day.

You didn’t know what he saw, certainly, but you’ve been recruited as a bit of a back-up chef. Well, they had a cook, but it turns out that storing lots of perishables – things an actual, real chef would need to use to whip up a meal – on a submarine wasn’t really the smartest idea. They couldn’t carry fresh produce, milk, eggs and meat when they were travelling through the deep ocean for days on end… you may be able to outrun the Navy quite efficiently with that strategy, but it doesn’t boost crew morale by one bit.

You used those perishables to make things that could be frozen but still taste delicious and those things would always offer vital calories to a hungry group of pirates. Adding someone like you to the crew was just a natural consequence, Law had thought all along. He was, however, glad that it was you and often told you that you should take pride in your work. He made you feel welcome despite his distance, always there to praise you when you needed it the most. And, most pleasantly, he was also quite nice when you talked to him. He was perpetually stressed but your captain never took it out on any of you.

In fact, he was most likely to take it out on himself, you noticed.

So… even though Law usually gave you an allowance to buy whatever you wanted, you decided to use your own funds to stock up even more and take over the entire kitchen for today.

You were eager to help out after they all made you feel like you were part of the team. Shachi and Penguin even taught you how to perform basic ship maintenance! You’d turned into a proper pirate and you were genuinely happy that you could see the world. Because you had no bounty, Law even allowed you to write letters to your parents every once on a while, thanking the crew for surfacing briefly just so you’re able to hand a Newscoo seagull a handwritten letter and see it off with a wave. You’d always make a large meal after that with the chef.

...But what none of the other Heart Pirates knew: Every night when Law caught you sneaking off into the library, when he was grabbing either a medical journal or a book about local flora and fauna you’d find on the next island, you were going through all the cookbooks on the sub.

You’d often talked at night, but you kept this one thing a secret. He might know what you were up to at all times because you loved sharing these things with him, but he’d never know that you were about to become a masterful cook as well as a killer baker.

That’s why you were able to stand your ground as the sole chef in the kitchen today, once again showing gratitude for everybody’s care towards you when you sent away another letter that told your parents more about your grand adventures… and how happy you are now that you’re seeing the world.

You were dying to show everyone what you’ve learnt and combine all of your skills to make this culinary experience truly worthwhile for everyone.

You’d thought about it all – there would be three rounds, totally cliché. Appetiser, a main course and dessert. And everything would be absolutely delicious!

Shachi watched in amusement as you kneaded a delicately fluffy dough to perfection, all the while keeping an eye on the fish filet you were grilling. The kitchen looked like a total mess, but your total zen did give him the chills. He’d offered his help, but you firmly declined. You wanted this to be a surprise for everyone, but it seemed that it just wasn’t meant to be.

“Wow, this smells heavenly, (Y/N)!”, Penguin commented with a drool as soon as he entered the battlefield that was your workplace right now. He’d tried touching the potatoes you were boiling, but you swatted his hand away with a colourful spatula and a glare.

These two… they were always goofing around. If you hadn’t been the target of their terror, you would have laughed at the way they were lusting after the crème chiboust you’d just put in the freezer.

“Shoo! Shoo!!! Go away or I’ll call the captain!”, you whined, pushing Shachi out of the way which got flour all over the two of you, just to see how the bread you’d put into the oven was doing. You smiled as soon as you saw that it was almost done.

You were ready to get your mittens, but another presence startled you.

Law was casually leaning against the door frame, watching the chaos unfold. Shachi and Penguin had handprints all over them because they kept running into each other like idiots, but the captain certainly didn’t have the energy to entertain these two.

“Oh my God, try this, Sha-”

“Hey!!”, you huffed angrily, pushing a mitten into Penguin’s chest, “You can’t have this! I’m making éclair, I need every bit of frosting I can get!!”

“It’s caramel. This… this is amazing!”, Shachi echoed enthusiastically.

You smiled bashfully, feeling your gaze avert away from them. You knew that you were good at what you did, you’d learnt a lot when you were still an apprentice under your parents, but you’d really outdone yourself here, you thought. Your eyes briefly met Law’s and he nodded bluntly, though the hint of a smile could be seen on his lips. You swore his eyes looked a lot softer, too.

“Thank you… That’s all I did before I became a pirate.”, you fondly looked at everyone, and if there wasn’t the ghost of a certain someone looming behind Shachi and Penguin, they would have blushed at your sweet and joyous expression, “Ah!! The fish!!! You guys are distracting me, go away!”

“You’re very versatile, (Y/N)-ya. I’m proud of you.”, Law spoke up, putting a hand on his two subordinates shoulders and pulling them back from the stove – which made them both gulp. The captain continued without paying them a second thought, “Can we take anything to the dining room for you?”

You nodded, watching the fish filets carefully before you flipped them around. The aroma of the rosemary you’d put on them immediately filled the room, almost lulling another member of the crew towards the kitchen, but Law firmly blocked anyone’s track before they’d consider bothering you.

You suddenly put on your mittens and hastily explained what you were doing, “Yes! I’m still perfecting the main dish and the dessert. I hope you guys will like salted potatoes and fish, and I’m leaving my prized éclairs for last. I’m really proud of them! But I’ve just baked a fresh bread as an appetiser. The garlic butter’s over there, you can just take it. Thanks.”

All three eyes darted down towards the warm tray you’d just pulled out of the oven… a large loaf pan sat in the middle of it, almost hypnotising them.

Law’s eye twitched. And he tensed up.

Penguin could just smile awkwardly, looking back and forth between your cute face and his captain’s clearly disgruntled one, “Oh, uh… Law actually h-”

Penguin felt as if the air got punched out of him when Law squeezed his shoulder full-force, wheezing at the pain and cutting himself off rather quickly. Shachi just whistled, not daring to look at either of them, instead licking his lips at the sight of a plain wholewheat loaf of bread…

“Thank you very much, (Y/N)-ya. I’m sure it tastes as good as it looks.”

You just beamed up at him, continuing to work your magic in the kitchen while the three men left the room.

Somehow, Shachi and Penguin were snickering.

You couldn’t join the crew for the appetiser, but as soon as you rolled out the fish, you noted the expressions of horror on everybody’s face. You were suddenly self-conscious about your skills, your smile turning into a frown… until you noticed that they were all looking at Captain Law who was peacefully munching on a thick slice dripping with garlic butter. It was totally overloaded!

Now that they were so obvious about it… yeah! You, too, were surprised that Law ate with all of you in the first place, he usually ate in secret in his study, but you didn’t want to make him feel weird about his habits, putting the filets on the table and offering some perfect potatoes to along with it. Maybe he just really liked garlic butter.

You felt the captain’s stare on you, but you just munched on your own food now.

Yeah, you’d definitely have to make it again for him.

Other than that brief moment, dinner was totally normal. Everyone chatted with each other and everyone who gave you a compliment was echoed by a chorus of agreements. The captain nodded along – and even though you didn’t expect him to have a sweet tooth, he even ate one of your pastries… somehow, you felt your heart skip a beat at such a simple gesture.

You shook your head as soon as you remembered that embarassing moment. Law had caught you staring at him with a goofy smile and he’d blushed bright red before he pulled down his spotted cap to hide his face from you. You scrambled to save face, too, attempting to look around the room while enjoying the taste of your éclair filling…

Right now, despite everyone’s protests, you were doing the dishes. Today, it’d technically be Bepo’s turn, but you couldn’t make your cute fur friend work a sweat like that. Besides, most of the plates had been licked clean, which was pretty satisfying. Though you couldn’t take care of your parents’ bakery like you’d hoped, you were on a much more exciting path now. If you looked outside the bullseye windows, you could see entire schools of exotic fish swim by, and the occasional whale would be there, too. An every time you’d surfaced to explore an island, bringing Law closer towards achieving his own goals, you loved travelling alongside the crew. They were your family now, too. Shachi and Penguin were like your annoying older brothers – they protected you from harm and included you in most activities, but they were also an embarrassing duo to be around. Bepo was definitely your adorable baby brother.

Well, there was someone…

“If I knew you were serious about this, I would have helped you. You need to rest. Now, preferably.”

You dropped a plate in shock at hearing that voice so close to you, but your captain quickly switched the falling object with a nearby kitchen towel.

Your face heated up in shame, but he either didn’t even see it… or he chose to not acknowledge how sheepish you were right now. He just stood there, crossing his arms over his chest and sighing as if he was silently scolding you. To he credit, he probably was, but he had the decency to let it slide on this special day.

“Did you like it?”, you asked meekly as you picked up the kitchen towel, putting it behind you on a counter you’d just wiped down.

“Hm? Oh… yes, of course. I’m very… I mean, I liked it.”

Your captain was so awkward, but you liked his unfiltered brutal honesty. The man you’d been so afraid of back then truly was nowhere to be seen these days. Law was just… so raw, so himself. It soothed you.

“I’m glad. I saw how you were munching down on the bread, I’m sorry I made such a small loaf.”

Law nodded, swallowing dryly.

You clapped your hands together in excitement and beamed up at him, “It really means a lot that someone appreciates the plain stuff around here. Thank you, captain."

You two heard Bepo, Shachi and Penguin pass by the door, giggling to themselves.

Law turned his head with a glare, but once his eyes focused back on you, his cheeks turned pink.

He sighed, clenching his fists in nervousness.

“(Y/N), I… I don’t like bread.”

“Huh?”, you tilted your head. Every thought was wiped from your memory then and there.

“I dislike bread.”

“I understood what you said, but… I saw you eating it. With my own two eyes. Live. I… Do you want me to make a gluten free version next time? It’s not easy, but if that’s an issue, I can-”

Law took one step closer towards you, eyes meeting yours in a heavy stare.

“I don’t like it in general.”, he grumbled.

“But…?”

“I ate it because you made it.”

You blinked, feeling your lips curl up at that. He was… that’s exactly why everyone liked Law, even if he had trouble accepting it.

“I appreciate it…”, you muttered, kicking your feet.

He’s always been so thoughtful and caring. Funny how he doesn’t see himself like that at all, projecting those traits onto everybody else because he just can’t seem to view himself in a good light, but you’ve seen it in the way he treats people – friends and foes alike. Despite what the rumours suggest, he’s never been cruel. Intimidating… maybe, but all you get to see these days was a guy who kept taking notes on all kinds of plants in the dead of night while you were asking him about various dishes. Sometimes, you just talked about your adventure; maybe you threw in some personal anecdotes. Whatever it was, you’ve always thought highly of Law and trusted him with your whole being. He’s shown you the world and you… really liked him.

Perhaps that’s what startled you so much about him – he was… actually so sweet. The way he looked at you right now, for example… his eyes were always filled with admiration. These eyes do not belong to a cruel monster, they have such a raw sadness to them. Deep down, you know that he’s hurt. You don’t know if he’ll let you mend those wounds, but he’s always trying to patch you guys up for the most ridiculous things, so…

Someone really needed to take care of him.

“You could have still told me. I… would have made something else, just for you.”, you offered shyly, wringing your hands in bashfulness.

“You already do so much, (Y/N)-ya. More than you realise.”

“Says you.”, you chuckled as you shook your head in amused disapproval, “You’re always nagging everybody, demanding that we should take care of ourselves… I want to repay you for the kindness you’ve shown me, Law. I wouldn’t be the same person without you.”

He drew in a breath, eyes straying away from you. You swore he briefly bit his lip, too.

“That’s because… I…”, he coughed and you immediately handed him a glass of water, pouting when he dismissed you, “I, uh… I only scold you.”

He cringed, shoulders tensing up. He knew what was coming.

“HUH?!”, you shrieked, almost crushing the glass in your grasp.

His eyes widened, taking it away from you and putting it away on an abandoned sideboard.

“I… didn’t mean it like that.”, he admitted quietly.

“You only scold me?! Why? Wait! No! You scold everyone, you don’t have to lie-”

You were pulled into an awkward hug all of the sudden. He was patting your back like you’d just gotten accepted after a professional job interview, but you melted into the hug nonetheless. You, too, wrapped your arms around his torso and let his tall frame engulf you whole. For someone who didn’t know how to hand out affection, he was surprisingly comforting.

The Law you knew was just naturally soothing like that. Always calming.

“I… Is your heartbeat arrhythmic right now, too?”

…?

…Oh.

“You’re really bad at this, Captain.”, you giggled, letting go of him. He slumped in on himself, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration, “But… yeah. It is.”

Law gulped, but hugged you much more naturally now. This time, he just held you… like he knew you wouldn’t reject him now… or misread his ‘signals’.

“I can’t believe you made me eat bread.”, he sighed into your hair.

“Hey…! I didn’t know. But now I know why you drenched it in garlic butter.”

“That obvious?”, he asked sarcastically.

“That obvious, Law.”

You couldn’t see it, but his eyes were alight with… love.

[betrayedbycinnamon]

Looks like I finally finished this. :) Gonna put this whole thing up on Ao3 at some point, debating if I'll leave it as is for posterity or tidy it up a little bit first.

Bucky moved to hide under his covers, wondering if he could force himself to go back to sleep and maybe get a redo on the whole miserable day. Before he managed to escape the reality of his own making, Steve knocked on his door. He considered having JARVIS send him off but knew he’d have to face the music sooner or later.

“Just spit it out,” Bucky said, from the depths of the blankets he had wrapped around himself, when he heard him hovering in the bedroom doorway.

The mattress dipped beneath Steve’s weight as he sat on the edge and put a heavy palm on Bucky’s side.

“Are you okay?” 

That wasn’t the question Bucky had been expecting and he wiggled himself just enough to peer out from the blankets. 

“I fucked up Stevie.” The words felt thick in his throat. He did his best to flatten the emotions. He had no right to be upset, he was not the injured party in this scenario. 

“The hell you did!” The vehemence in Steve’s voice startled him. What came next was worse. “You didn’t ask to be assaulted this morning.”

Bucky sat up to stare at Steve, the blankets dropping from his shoulders as his mouth hung open. It was a few moments before he managed to ask, “What?”

“He’s lucky Natasha asked me to let her deal with him. Team dynamics be damned. I was going to—“ Bucky cut him off, not wanting to hear how Steve had planned to handle Clint. 

“Nobody assaulted nobody.”

“Everybody knows you hate to be touched and for Clint to throw himself all over you like that—“

“It was a kiss.”

“It was your personal space and it’s not okay for him to just take whatever he wants. You wouldn’t standby if he’d assaulted some woman on the street like that, you shouldn’t let him get away with doing it to you.”

“Steve—” Bucky was bewildered. He’d expected Steve to come chastise him for coming between Clint and Natasha. Not this. 

“How can you possibly defend that?”

“Steve he didn’t—“

“I know you still have a hard time thinking you’re a person after Hydra, but Buck. You aren’t a play thing for someone to pick up and do whatever they want and if Clint—”

“Clint didn’t do anything!” Bucky yelled, it was hard to get Steve to stop when he was on a roll. 

“I watched him grab you this morning, Bucky. And if you think I’m going to sit by—”

“My tongue was up his ass last night,” Bucky snapped, going for shock value. And it worked, Steve looked like a landed fish. “So I imagine he didn’t think a little kiss was that big a deal in comparison.”

“You…”

“I told you. I fucked up.”  

“Bucky.”

“Save it. I already know I’m a piece of shit, okay?” And the pressure behind his eyes was back. He blinked rapidly at the wall, no longer able to meet Steve’s eyes. 

“What happened?” The gentle tone hurt; Bucky shrugged miserably, unsure how to answer.  “Talk to me Buck. What’s going through that head of yours.”

“How long should I wait to apologize to Natasha? How much time you figure she needs to cool off before she won’t kill me on sight.”

“Why would you need to apologize to Natasha?” Puzzlement overwrote the previous gentle tone.

“For sleeping with Clint.”

“What’s she got to do with it?”  Bucky turned back and stared, looking for the joke, but couldn’t find any humor. 

“‘Cause last night. I got swept up. Forgot that he was taken.”

“I’m gonna remind you Bucky, that it takes two to tango. Whatever you two did, it’s not just on you. But — you think they’re together?”

“They’re not?”

“Why would you do that if you thought they were?”

“I didn’t. I wasn’t thinking. It just. Really?”

“Just close friends.”

“They’re always all over each other. They sleep together almost every night.”

“No different from how we were, before.”

Before Bucky had had his boundaries violated so thoroughly that an unexpected hug from his best friend used to throw him into a panic attack. That had gotten much better, now his heart rate only elevated a little at an unexpected touch, but Steve still handled him like unexploded ordnance and Bucky’s touch starvation had gotten worse. 

The fact that Clint didn’t treat him like he’d self-destruct at any moment, and followed Bucky’s lead instead of assuming he hadn't improved at all was a large part of what had drawn Bucky in in the first place. Bucky wasn’t going to tell Steve that, he didn’t know how to explain how things had changed from that first month, the nuance of desperately wanting to be touched but needing to see it coming. Not after it had taken so much to convince Steve that he didn’t hate him just because he kept panicking when Steve acted like their relationship hadn’t been affected at all by the intervening years. With Steve it felt like everything had to be extremes — all or nothing; so Bucky had tried getting by with nothing.

“So I didn’t ruin everything?”

“I wouldn’t go that far. You sure thought you were sleeping with someone off limits. And it doesn’t seem like you think very highly of Clint if you think he would be willing to trample all over his relationships.”

Shame crept back up over the hope that had started to blossom. 

“He looked pretty hurt when you ran off this morning,” Steve added and something deep in Bucky’s gut twisted. It was an ugly feeling. He rolled back into his pillow, back to Steve and refused to talk any more. 

Bucky wanted to cry. Wanted to mourn the relationship he’d destroyed before it even had a chance to develop, but the feeling that he didn’t deserve to be upset wouldn’t let the know of tears loosen. It just sat painfully lodged in his throat.

***

Clint was still staring up at the ceiling when saw Natasha walk into his bedroom out of the corner of his eye. He ignored her and she didn’t try to force him to talk. She just curled into his side and let him keep his silence.

“What did I do wrong?” Clint asked eventually.

“Nothing.”

“People don’t run away from nothing. He literally <em>ran away</em> from me this morning. Guess I shoulda taken the hint when he didn’t stay in bed. It’s like I forgot every rule of hook up culture. Stupid.”

“You aren’t stupid,” she corrected. “He’s the idiot this time.”

“What? Why?”

“Apparently, he thinks we’re together.”

“The fuck?”

“He is not the first to think it.”

“I know, but. What, he just thinks I’m some kinda cheating asshole?”

“What happened last night?”

“We were fucking around on the couch, throwing elbows over the game, then, I dunno. We started wrestling and ended up on the floor, and I just. He was too pretty not to kiss. Nat,” he whined.  “What do I do?”

“Think about what you want and decide if it bothers you that he didn’t stay because he thought I was supposed to be in your bed instead.”

“Can’t you just tell me what to do?”

“I cannot. I am aromantic, any decision I make for me will not fit for you.” Clint groaned and turned on his side and scooted down the bed to press his forehead against her collar bone. 

“Does it have to be a romantic decision?” he asked, slightly muffled.

“It does not have to be, but for you it is. I know you Clint, you fall hard and fast and Barnes knocked you on your ass months ago.”  The use of Bucky’s last name illustrated how irritated she was with Bucky over his actions.

“If we were together,” Clint said seriously, “I wouldn’t have cheated on you.”

“If we were together it would be an open relationship,” she corrected with an indulgent smile. “Be easy, I am not worried about you.”

“You can’t beat him up over this,” he said with a frown.

“Can’t I? He trampled all over your feelings with his idiocy.”

“Not on purpose.” At least, Clint hoped it hadn’t been on purpose. He was going to have to think long and hard about the whole situation. Which sucked. He really liked it better when he got to just fall into bed with someone and let things work out from there.

***

Dinner was an awkward affair. Bucky didn’t show up, and Clint wasn’t sure if he was relieved or not. Steve clearly knew what had happened and kept shooting him sympathetic looks, while giving him wide birth to avoid talking about it.

Sam, Bruce and Tony just as clearly didn’t know what was going on, and kept sending quizzical glances around the table, but Natasha’s aggressive demeanor kept the questions at bay for the first half of dinner.  Frankly, Clint was impressed. He couldn’t point to any one thing Natasha was doing differently, but something about the sharp way she was using her steak knife and the set of her mouth clearly communicated her displeasure.

When she spoke her voice was silky smooth — butter wouldn’t have melted in her mouth — and it seemed like Tony decided that meant he was misreading the other cues she was giving off. 

“Where’s the other half of the Twin Pop?” he asked the table at large.

“What?” 

“Its a popsicle with two sticks,” Sam explained to Steve.

“Why would you want two sticks?” Steve asked, brow furrowed, and Clint just knew he wasn’t mentally picturing the frozen treat correctly. Sam opened his mouth to clarify but Tony spoke over his attempt.

“You know who I mean.”

“Guess Buck’s just not hungry,” Steve said, voice tight.

“Seems fake. I’ve seen the way that cyborg eats.”

“There was a misunderstanding this morning,” Natasha said. “He’s probably taking some time to process.”

“Ah. Lover’s quarrel?” Tony asked Steve who glared back. A jolt of guilt hit him before Clint realized that Tony was being sarcastic and meant between Steve and Bucky. When Steve continued to remain silent Tony persisted, “What happened?” 

“It’s none of your business, Stark,” Clint snapped.

Sam, who had noticed Clint’s reaction gave him a thoughtful look before asking. “What about you. You doin’ okay tonight?”

“I’m fine,” Clint bit out, glaring at his plate. He managed two more bites, then shoved away from he table.

***

Sleep eluded him and eventually Clint’s feet found their way to Bucky’s quarters.  He knew it was later than was polite but he had a feeling Bucky would be up, and knocked before his misgivings could drive him away.

Bucky looked soft and tired in his pajamas, but he didn’t look like he’d just woken up.

“Missed you at dinner,” Clint said, when nothing else came to mind.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. Did you eat? We can go get something?”

“I don’t know about going out,” Bucky prevaricated, looking down at his clothes. “And. We probably need to talk. I, uh. Don’t want to do that out in public.”

Clint grimaced, but couldn’t argue the point. “Want me to cook something here?” he offered instead.

“Ain’t really hungry.”

“You need to eat though.”

“Gonna longer without. It’s fine.”

They migrated to the living area, both of them perched uncomfortably on opposite ends of the couch.

“Did I ruin everything?” Bucky asked after a prolonged silence.

“Not gonna lie, it really sucked to have you run off like that after I thought we were gonna wake up together.”

“Is that something you’d want to do?”

“Yeah? I’ve thought about waking up with you in my bed for a while now, but… I didn’t think you were ready to try anything. Then last night, well. Seemed pretty ready then.”

“I thought you were with Nat,” Bucky blurted, looking like he wasn’t sure it was a good idea to admit it.

“Yeah, she told me.”

“Wish she woulda told me. Woulda saved a lotta trouble.”

“I don’t think she realized until this morning. She wouldn’t have kept that from me, or you, if she’d known.”

Clint studied Bucky’s face while he was busy staring down at his bare toes while they sat in an uncomfortable silence. 

“So,” Clint said eventually, and Bucky turned to meet his eyes. “Are we just going to sit here and mope, or what?”

“Sorry.”  

Clint wasn’t sure how much that apology was supposed to encompass, but he wasn’t really interested into hashing out all the things it could be for either. 

“I can think of more interesting things for us to be doing.”

“Is that so?” The hangdog look was lifted a little, hope shining through. It was a much better look on him.

“You were pretty talented with that tongue last night. I bet a repeat performance would make up for leaving me to wake up cold this morning.”

“You cold now? Need me to warm you up?” 

“I dunno. Might be a little tired. Maybe you should take me to bed.”

It was stilted, not quite their usual comfortable banter, but it was miles better than when Clint had walked into the room. Clint shifted on the couch, so he could sprawl back against the couch arm in a provocative pose, legs spread wide, and tilted his chin in challenge.

Bucky was a little tentative as he first moved into Clint’s space, but when Clint yanked him closer by his shirtfront he lost all reservation and captured Clint’s mouth in a fierce kiss. Bucky kissed him like he was starving for it, pressing his body hard against Clint’s. He slid his mouth along the edge of Clint’s jaw until, the worked his teeth on the line of his neck.

Clint’s hips were already shifting restlessly, trying to get some friction on his dick. Bucky encouraged Clint’s arms to wrap around his shoulders before his slid his own hands underneath him. 

Surprised to find himself suddenly in the air Clint scrambled to get a tighter grip around Bucky’s neck and wrapped his legs around his waist. There may or may not have been a high pitched yelp.

“What the hell?” he demanded, sounding a little breathless, and Bucky laughed.

“Takin’ you to bed. Gotta make sure I do it right this time.”

“Just don’t ram me into a door frame and we should be good,” Clint said easily, before bending himself down to suck an earlobe into his mouth. Bucky was just as sensitive as Clint remembered and he stumbled a little, groaning.

“Is dropping me part of the plan to impress me?” 

“It’ll be your own fault if I do,” Bucky retorted, and managed to navigate them to the bed, where he set about doing his best to make up for the shitty day.

"I... did not mean to do that," Clint said, looking down at his coffee.

"I... did not mean to do that," Clint said, looking down at his coffee.

“Yeah? Cause it looked pretty intentional,” Steve ground out, clearly angry. Clint darts a look up — and yeah, those are the Eyebrows of Righteous Fury — then focuses back on the bubbles lazily floating at the top of his mug. One pops and he wishes he could disappear with it.

“I didn’t think he’d react like that.”

“What then, pray tell, did you expect to happen?” And oh god, that’s Natasha chiming in. Clint shrugged his shoulders miserably.

“Well, I guess I had been hoping he’d kiss me back.”

[queenerdloser]

i'm going to see an apartment i really really like on wednesday (it is SO BIG! right in the neighborhood i like best! outside building is beautiful, on a tree-lined street, hardwood floors, so many windows!!) but i like. am trying to keep myself from getting too attached ahead of time bc it's just like a littleeee too expensive and i really should be realistic and get something about 100-200 dollars cheaper. but i love it soooo much, i want it so bad lmao.

[cherrygirlfriend]

── COME HOME TO US 🧸

🧸 pairing .ᐟ dad!spencer x lovely wife!reader

🧸 summary .ᐟ missing your partner while he's away and you're juggling motherhood.

🧸 warnings / tags .ᐟ fluff!

🧸 author's note .ᐟ this is my first fic for spencer on here! i've written some before but i just posted them on ao3 lmao. i hope yall like it!!

something every mother knows for a fact: being a new mother is an especially exhausting part of motherhood. what a lot of them don't know is that it's even more exhausting when said baby's father was an fbi agent who often didn't stay in the same state as you for longer than a week straight.

you loved spencer, but you were also tired of having to do so much all on your own. you couldn't remember the last time you showered, and you definitely couldn't remember the last time you slept for more than two hours in succession before your daughter started screeching in a way that put many an opera singer to shame; the little girl always saving it just for you, because the moment her father comes home, she acts like an angel.

you also worried that little penny wouldn't even be able to recognize her own father; the two of you facetimed whenever he was away for cases, but when you did, the infant was more focused on putting the remote control in her mouth rather than babbling to her father.

but what you missed the most was simply just having him next to you; to fall asleep and wake up curled up in his arms, to have him wrap his arms around your waist while you cooked, softly humming in your ear, and pressing kisses to the side of your head. talking late into the night, your feet on his lap as the two of you read together (at dramatically different speeds) and seeing him rock penny to sleep.

you were woken up from a nap by the sound of a key being fitted into the front door and having it be opened and closed. you smiled into the throw pillows, your eyes still closed as you listened to spencer dumping his satchel on the floor and letting out an exasperated sigh as he took his shoes.

he padded into the living room, and you turned your head to look up at him with a weary smile, the man returning it as he ran a hand through his dark curls, "did i wake you up?" he asked in a soft tone as if you were still asleep. "mmhm." you mumbled, watching as spencer made his way to the couch, sitting down at the edge and tugged a loose strand of hair behind your ear "but 's okay... just hold me?"

"sure." spencer smiled, pressing a gentle kiss at the side of your head as he started to settle onto the couch and wrapping his arms around you and pressing himself as close to you as possible, the green couch much too small for both of you, but it didn't matter. spencer's hand stroked your head gently, and closed your eyes, breathing in his scent; after coming back from a case, he just always smelled so... him. any trace of cologne was gone, only things lingering on his skin were his natural scent, his sweat, as well as coffee.

just as you were about to doze off again, though, the moment was stolen from you, a familiar whiney noise coming from the baby monitor, a sign that penny was about to start crying. you let out a sigh, but just as you were about to get up, spencer sat up instead. "get some sleep. it's my turn. i'll be right back."

"don't drop her." you said teasingly.

"i'll try not to." spencer chuckled softly, pressing a kiss to the side of your head before standing up and stretching his limbs, "this cuddle session isn't over."

[cakypa120]

The time of adults has passed. The time of young heroes.

Dick notices everything. Bruce has been twitchy and darker than usual lately. The man's gaze has become heavier and more piercing. He also began to disappear into the Batcave. Dick goes into the files and freezes. It was a clear plan to save Captain Marvel. This is unexpected. Dick calls a family meeting and they all hack into the security cameras in the Watchtower. They see and hear things they did not expect.

Dick: Now I know why he thanked me when I first met him. Shit. Shit. Shit!

Tim: Why did we attack him? How did we kill him? Did we get data on his weakness?

Jason: I want that notebook.

Damian: I don't believe John and I are capable of cruelty.

Stephanie: You're right. You're the only one who's cruel, John's one of the few who can keep you in line.

Cass: Is he...mad at us?

That question makes everyone think. Was this overly cheerful man mad at them? How could he even smile in their faces when he remembered everything they'd done? How?

Tim sends this video to all the young heroes. Their reactions are different, some don't believe it, some quietly panic, some scream that they won't do it, some deny it. But everyone calms down and makes a decision.

Be nice to Marvel!

They don't want him to associate them with their versions. So that he doesn't look at them and remember everything that killed him. But they also want him to forgive them. To some extent. They knew that those versions weren't them, but the guilt was still there and they couldn't stop thinking about it.

Unfortunately, Marvel notices everything.

Marvel: You found out about my notebook?

Dick: It's that obvious?

Marvel: Yeah. Let me guess, hacked the cameras?

Dick: Yeah.

Marvel: I'm not surprised.

Dick: Are you mad at us?

Marvel: No. I was never mad at you. I was mad at myself. For not being able to stop it, for you having to do it. The Titans and Young Justice were the only ones who hesitated to kill me. I wanted to help you somehow. I'm not mad and I don't blame you. Dick, you're great people and the best heroes I've ever known. Trust me, I've seen a lot of heroes.

Dick: Why did I kill you in the past reality?

Marvel: The League and Batman's rift led us to this situation. You and your brothers were caught in the crossfire. B still found a way to take me out. I'll say it again. Your version did a great job. There's no pain at all. *Marvel puts his hand on the Dick's shoulder* You're not your version. You'll never be them.

They calm down a little, but curiosity is a terrible thing, and if you mix it with guilt, you get a very strange cocktail.

Conner felt like shit. Maybe he had killed Marvel once. The one who had replaced his father, the one who had not turned away from him, the one who had become his family. The clone wanted to know why he had killed him, why he had killed his unofficial father.

Conner: Marvel, I want to talk to you.

Marvel: Sure, what do you want to talk about?

Conner: How...I...

Marvel: Killed me?

Conner: *Nods*

Marvel: Sivana teamed up with Luther. You and your friends were captured, I volunteered to help you, but Sivana incapacitated me. Then Luthor gave you a choice, either me or your team.

Conner: So I...

Marvel: You shot me yourself.

Conner: I couldn't! I would never do that! You... You... *tears welling up in his eyes*

Marvel: *hugs Connor* I know, man, I know. You didn't want to kill me, you believed that we would win, that we would find a way out of this. But I know Sivana, I know Luthor. There was no way we could all get out of this together. Someone would have stayed in that lab forever. I'm not mad. I have never been angry.

Conner starts to cry. Billy's heart breaks from the sound of crying. Then he couldn't hug Conner, that he pointed a gun at him. The guy asked for forgiveness so many times, for Marvel not to be angry. Billy wanted to hug him so much then, but the chains held tightly, slowly sucking the strength out of him. Billy hugs this Conner tighter, as if protecting him from all the bad thoughts.

Then the nightmares appeared. In all of them, they saw how they personally killed Marvel. It bothered them, they could not sleep normally, it exhausted them and then they often made mistakes on missions. Bart almost got stuck in the wall, Tim almost blew himself up when he was defusing a bomb, Wally could not concentrate on explaining the mission.

Then there comes a day when Bart almost dies because he's too tired. And that day, Captain Marvel is watching over them. So Bart is called in for a one-on-one talk.

Marvel: Impulse! What's wrong?

Bart: Sorry, I just haven't slept enough.

Marvel: You look like you haven't slept in days.

Bart: *Nervous laugh* What makes you think that? I sleep well. Really well, in fact!

Marvel: Bart. Please be honest with me. What's going on.

Bart: I didn't...I didn't...

Marvel: Bart...

Bart: I killed you! We've killed you! So many times! Why aren't you mad? Why do you keep smiling at us? Why are you so cute? We're... I'm...

Marvel: Are these the questions that keep you awake?

Bart: No, the nightmares. I see myself killing you. It always...it always hurts so much.

Marvel: *sighs* I've said it before, and I'll say it again. I'm not mad at you. I never have been. You're good heroes and great people. And I'm guessing the rest of you have nightmares, too, huh?

Bart: *nods*

Marvel: Then call me. I'll be there. Wherever you are. Okay? Will you tell the others?

Bart: *nods quickly*

Bart runs away, and Marvel watches him go. From then on, the young heroes began calling Marvel after another nightmare. Marvel stayed by their side and answered their questions, repeating over and over that he was not angry with them. Sometimes they had sleepovers, where Marvel was used as a big pillow. Billy even convinced Sandman to give these poor kids good dreams more often, where everyone is happy.

Billy just hopes that they can overcome this.

The sword of Damocles hung over Billy. And the only question was.

Who will cut the rope?

[peachesofteal]

Through Me (The Flood) - secret baby fic Simon Riley/female reader

"Simon?"

Your voice wavers, rich with uncertainty, and he's around the corner into the kitchen before you can blink. "What is it?"

"I... do we still have the large blue mixing bowls?" Orion is between your legs, arms curled around each knee. He's been doing this since you got home, positioning himself so he's almost always touching you, a tether desperate to remain unbroken.

His nightmares are back, too. And yours are worse. Only Nix sleeps soundly, Simon hardly sleeps at all.

"I wanted to make muffins." He finds them in the top cabinet, and then shifts his attention to his boy who clings to you.

"Want to go outside for a bit Ry? Let mama make you some muffins for later?" Orion shakes his head, fingers tightening on your sweatpants. You give Simon a pained expression, and he crouches to be eye level with his son, knees cracking. "She'll be right here when you're done, little man, and I'm here, remember? We have to share." Share. It's the only concept he's managed to come up with that makes sense after Orion tearfully confessed he has to be able to see his mum in order to 'save' her.

So now they share the responsibility. Two men of the house. Two of Mama's protectors.

Simon doesn't know what else to do. He put him in therapy months ago, but his son is slow to trust now, fear and danger lurking around every corner in his mind.

"I'll push you on the swing. Want to get your jacket?" You pet his head soothingly.

"It's okay Ry. Go play for a little bit and when you're done you can have a muffin, how's that sound?" He shrugs, but finally unglues himself and toddles to the door to get his coat on.

Simon takes the opportunity to pull you into his chest. "She's due to get up soon," he murmurs, tracing your spine, "just yell and I'll-"

"I can- I'll get her."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah... I want to." You've been locked in a delicate dance with the baby. A slow, unsteady, hesitant dance. Sometimes, you hold her, you rock her, you change her. Sometimes, she's crying in her crib, and you're standing in the doorway of her room, frozen, eyes wide and wet. He catches you studying your body in the mirror when you think he's not looking, hand pressed to your belly, thumb stroking your scar.

"I can come back in." He presses a slow kiss to your forehead.

"It's okay. If I need you, I'll let you know."

You're tired by the time evening rolls around, and once the kids are down, he settles you beneath the covers beside him, enjoying the heat of your body, the way you fit to him. It doesn't take much to exhaust you, but the doctors assure it's normal, you're recovering well, you'll be okay.

It's a funny thing, to be told you'll be well, that you'll recover. He remembers it, how the words were so confusing when a war was raging in his mind, when he was being torn to pieces over and over again every time he closed his eyes.

"Do you think she knows who I am?" He does. The hospital encouraged as much skin to skin as possible, going as far as letting Nix live in your room for weeks just so she could sleep on your chest, and it soothed her like nothing else.

Those things don't matter. What matters is the reality of the situation, your losses. The loss of her first cry, her breath on this earth. The loss of watching her roll over for the first time, her first smile, her first giggle. All of these moments have been stolen from you, and there's no way to give them back, no matter how hard he tries.

"Yeah, mama. I think she knows." You lapse into silence, breaths slowing, limbs relaxing, and he thinks you might be asleep when you whisper into his skin.

"Does it ever go away?"

"No." He croaks. He can't lie, not to you. "No, it doesn't, but it does change. Eventually, it's not a wound, it's a layer. The pain becomes something else, but it never goes away." You sniffle, but don't respond.

It's the last thing he says to you before you fall asleep.

He wakes instinctively to an empty bed. Cold sweat immediately breaks out across his skin, stomach churning in a storm of panic.

Lightning rarely strikes twice, but that doesn't mean it couldn't. 

But before he can fully start calculating and preparing a plan, he hears your voice down the hall.

You're in Nix's room, in the rocking chair, baby tucked against your chest, cradled in your arms. You rub her back, twirl her hair, kiss her cheek, all while cooing into her ear, and when you catch his eye, he sees a well of emotion, love, longing, sadness. Grief. So much grief.

"Y'alright?" He whispers from the edge of the room, and you nod. It feels like a moment he shouldn't intrude on, a sacred, special thing not meant for him.

And that's good. 

"I'm okay." You reassure him, trying to imbue your words with strength. It's enough for him.

He takes one last look at his girls before he closes door.

And then he smiles.

[svetamillss]

Headcanons: their language of love💗

Featuring: Cho Hyun Ju x Reader(f), Kang Sae Byeok x Reader(f), Thanos (Su Bong) x Reader(f), Kang Dae Ho x Reader(f), Nam Gyu x Reader(f)

A/N: Orders are always open for you!

💗💗💗

Cho Hyun Ju

The language of love is words.

She always says nice words about love to you. He calls you cute nicknames, but the most important nickname: "baby". If you are at a distance, she writes you a lot of messages or sends you various funny pictures to cheer you up.

Also, she is always ready to support you, even when you don't need much support, she will still do it.

- Baby, you're the best for me, you'll succeed!

- Hyunnie, I decided to put together a children's puzzle. - you say with a smile.

You will never hear an insult or a bad word from her. She won't allow it. Of course, you also always tell her about love and support her, it is also very important for her.

Kang Sae Byeok

The language of love is time.

She is not a very romantic person and it is difficult for her to express her love in words. But she found a way to fix it. It's important for her to be with you and spend time together. That's why she devotes all her free time to you.

You go for walks, chat a lot or even travel. You also take her younger brother with you, who also loves you very much.

- The weather is terrible outside, I wanted to go for a walk with you so much. - You say sadly when you see that it's raining outside.

- It's not a problem, the three of us can watch a movie or play board games. We'll spend the whole evening together anyway. - she calmly answers, you gladly agree with her offer.

Sae Byeok recently realized that she can't be alone for a long time, she needs you to be next to her for complete peace of mind.

Thanos (Su Bong)

The language of love - gifts.

You couldn't even have imagined that your boyfriend would love to give you gifts. After all, at first he seemed to be a person who would talk all kinds of phrases to you. And then he was able to learn what you love and almost every day brings you flowers, sweets, cute things. Although you began to notice that he does it as well, so that you forget about the bad things he managed to do.

- You took drugs again. - you said with disappointment, when he return home at night, although he was drunk, but at least he did not get lost somewhere.

- Senorita, I didn't come home empty-handed! Here! - and takes out a little Teddy Bear from the back, of course you liked it. He knows your weaknesses.

- Oh, God, thank you, but let's stop with these club parties, otherwise no gift will save you! - you say with a slight anger when you start helping him undress.

Kang Dae Ho

The language of love - help.

Your boyfriend will always be ready to help you, even if you don't really need help.

- Honey, what are you doing? - he asks, entering the kitchen.

- I'm cooking dinner for us.

- Let me help you! After all, you cook meat, and I'm a man, I'll deal with him quickly! - he answers, standing next to you, you can't refuse him, so you agree to his help.

In general, your boyfriend will be ready to carry you in his arms, the main thing is that you feel good and always love each other.

Nam Gyu

The language of love is physical contact.

Oh, what a tactile person he is. You noticed it right away when on the first date he tried to touch you somehow. He even apologized to you, because he thought you might be uncomfortable, but you made it clear that everything was fine and you were just not used to it.

Your boyfriend will always find a way to touch or hug you, anytime, anywhere.

- Nam Gyu, we haven't seen each other for only a few hours, and you hug me like I left you for a week. - you said when you came home after shopping and he came at you with hugs, very tight hugs.

- I'm sorry, I can't help myself, I have a very strong tactile hunger. - he said laughing, but you were satisfied with everything.

💗💗💗

[scarletemeterio]

Wanting for More (Ekko x gn!reader)

Warnings: None

Genre: Fluff

Fandom: Arcane

Summary: Ekko sees you asleep and covers you with a blanket

Word count: 767

•••

You both had lost track of time, that was obvious. You two had been working on something in Ekko's workplace for a few hours, and a while ago you decided to take a break and lie down for a bit.

He'd been really concentrated in his work, but he suddenly realized he hadn't heard you in a while, so he decided to take a look at you, only to find out you'd fallen asleep. He couldn't help but smile at the sight of you, looking so peaceful and dreamy. This wasn't the first time Ekko got lost in his thoughts while staring at you, it was quite common actually, or it had been lately at least.

There was something more than just friendship between you two, you both knew that. But neither of you had the courage to do something about it, and both of you were scared, too. It seemed easier to not act on your feelings and just enjoy the relationship you already had, but the wanting for more was starting to be unbearable for him. He wanted you to be his, as much as he wanted to be yours.

No one understood him like you did, and no one supported him and trusted him like you did. You two had known each other for years now, since you were one of the first ones to join the Firelights, and from that day his life was never the same again. Ekko was genuinely happy when you were around, he saw hope in you, maybe even a future together. When you two were together, he wasn't the Firelights' leader, he was just Ekko, he could relax around you. In a world like yours, having someone like that was a privilege.

He got out of his thoughts when he realized you were curled up into a ball, clearly cold. He quickly got up and looked for a blanket, and when he found it he covered you with it. He got down to your level, next to the bed, and put a strand of hair behind your ear, putting it away from your face and leaving his hand on your shoulder. He smiled again, feeling grateful for having you in his life and being able to share these little moments.

You got a bit startled by his touch and slowly opened your eyes, seeing Ekko at eye level with you.

"Hey," you said in almost a whisper, and he replied with a shy smile. "How long have I been asleep?"

"I have no idea, I just found you a couple minutes ago", he replied, while caressing your shoulder a bit.

You still felt sleepy, but you could see how tired he was, his eyes could never lie, and definitely not to you.

"You should get some sleep, Ekko", you told him. "Here, I'll move so you can fit in here." You did as you said, leaving space for him to hop on the bed and lie down next to you. This wasn't uncommon between the two of you, but lately the tension in these moments had become obvious, even if you tried to ignore it. Still, you were so tired you didn't really care right now, you just wanted to go back to sleep.

"I should keep working."

"Just shut up and come here, working can wait." He was a very self-demanding person, but he knew you were right, so he took off his shoes and did as you said.

You ended up being face to face, and you could feel your heart beating really fast, like it was gonna explode. You closed your eyes and you rested your head on his shoulder. "Thank you for the blanket", you murmured, loud enough for him to hear.

"Anytime", he answered, wrapping his arm around you.

You closed your eyes and enjoyed his warmth and his touch, wishing you could stay like this forever. It didn't take long for you to fall asleep again, and he could tell from the way you were breathing. He gave you a little kiss on the forehead, savouring every second with you in his arms.

"You mean the world to me", he whispered. He imagined sleeping like this every night and couldn't help but smile. He knew life was hard and that the world was dangerous, but he also knew he couldn't live in fear and put a stop to his own life just to help and save others. He knew he had to tell you how he felt, and find a bit of hope with you amongst all the chaos that surrounded you.

•••

okay so this is my first arcane post. i haven't written in a while so i'm a bit rusty and english is not my first language, but i hope you enjoy this!

requests are officially open for arcane characters, you can check my rules in my profile!

[lymtw]

Late Night Phone Calls

Late night phone calls with Toji where he's practically buzzing at the sound of your voice. Nothing special about the conversation, but there's just something so delicious about the static on the line merging with your voice. You sound kind of tired and you're sighing just enough to drive him a little crazy.

You have a history of having to fight to get him to listen, regardless of how many times he says that he is listening. You test him by asking questions about what you just talked about and he gets a solid 90%. Most of the time...

This time he wasn't getting anything. It's been a couple days since you last went over to Toji's so he was missing you a little more than usual tonight. But, you called later at night like you usually do to tell him about your day. You'll never get over the way he answers the phone with the most spine tingling 'hello' you've ever heard, each time better than the last, save for when you call him after he falls asleep and he answers in that raspy voice that shakes you to your core.

"Toji? Are you still listening?"

"Yeah, keep talking, princess. Tell me everything."

So you keep going because you believe him, only to be interrupted a second time by something that sounds like a quiet groan.

"Toji?"

He takes a second longer to answer this time.

"Mm... yeah, doll?"

"You okay? We can go to sleep if you want. I'll see you tomorrow, anyway."

Toji's hand is wrapped around his cock, pumping it as you keep talking. You're kindly offering an out for this phone call. He must be tired. You think maybe that's why he's not talking as much.

"Don't feel pressured to keep talking. If you're tired, you're tired baby. We have all day tomorrow."

He wants to hear your voice as he keeps going, though. If you knew what was happening, would you judge him or would you egg him on?

"Don't worry about it, mama," he groans. "Just really like the sound of your voice is all. Come on. Talk to me. What else did you do today?"

So you tell him about how you went shopping for a new dress to go out in.

"Wanna see me in it tomorrow? Or should I save it for a more formal date?"

He shudders, his abs quivering as he focuses on collecting the pearls of precum that endlessly form on his tip and smearing it all over his shaft. You have him thinking about the last time you wore a dress around him. It ended up being bunched up at your waist as he fucked the soul out of you in the men's bathroom of a restaurant.

"Think you should..." he pauses and clears his throat, muttering an unintelligible curse away from the phone. He's seconds away from cumming all over himself. "Save it for when I can take you out... we're staying in," he pants. "I'm gonna fuck you tomorrow, doll. You won't be able to walk anywhere."

Your face goes so red, and you can't help but giggle to yourself despite the rush of nerves that invaded your body.

"Gonna be good for me, right? You're gonna sleep over and let me play with your pretty self?"

At this point you feel like rolling off your bed to cool yourself down on the cold floor.

"Of course, Toji. I'm all yours."

You can hear heavy breathing laced with the static on the line.

"Oh fuck... say that again, princess. Again for me."

You've caught on to this freak's game. So you do what you can to make him drip like honey.

"All yours, Toji. Yours to fuck, yours to choke, yours to gag. I'll let you have your way with me tomorrow." You grin as you hear the muffled moans on the other end. "You can put it whereeever you want and i'll take it for you. Just promise you'll fill me up, yeah?"

With that Toji cums so hard that he's rocking his hips against the mattress, his back arching in pleasure and a barrage of expletives are released. He sounds strangled, out of breath on the other end, and all you can do is laugh at the silence that takes over the line. You know he's laying there with his eyes closed, trying to come back to reality.

"You dead, baby?"

"Fuck you," he says, breathlessly, a lazy grin on his face. "I'll see you tomorrow, baby. Better not be lying 'bout what you said earlier."

"Goodnight~"

[justabeewithapen]

Sniling so widely at the critters

What’s the dynamic when Doey, Lucas, and Bella are together?

GRINNING SO BIG BACK AT YOU!!! I have so much I am so sorry here, have a doodle before I throw you into the read more:

Their dynamic is very much like siblings. There is definitely a reason they usually only use one at a time as being in a group together emboldens all three of them. It is hard to fully describe the change, but when they are all together you can actually tell they are kids, they act like kids. Being put together is generally a reward for particularly good behavior (conditioning always works better if you mix both positive and negative reinforcement, even if they lean negative) and VERY OCCASIONALLY they are allowed things like crayons or books. Lucas has self proclaimed himself the older brother of their squad which he takes very seriously, which really doesn't mean very much besides the fact he is very loud, loves to "older sibling" brag (make stuff up haha), and thinks he is really funny. He is the one that gets the energy going in a room, and if there is a tussle it's probably his fault. Bella is a very obvious contrast to that, she is quiet and would much rather go with the flow of whatever is happening than take charge like Lucas. However, I think she is hiding a sneaky side under there that doesn't come out very often, but if given the chance to grow up normally she would probably enjoy pranks and get away with them. She likes to draw and she likes listening to stories. She's much stronger than she looks, Lucas knows this first hand (if Doey was in a normal situation/environment he would probably know her "wrath" too.) Doey has the most noticeable shift, and it would be even more if he wasn't in his current circumstances. (I wrote a ton a ton here but I think I'll save it for a second post). It's kinda hard to explain? Big ole' "it depends" I suppose? Sometimes he is more in-line with Lucas, more mischievous and playful, liberally using his abilities to make up for their lack of playthings. Sometimes it is more like a contented air where he will just sit and listen while the other two do their own thing, but he'll still be an active part of conversation. They talk a lot, all three of them, there aren't many occasions where they can talk and feel listened to. Even Bella who is more quiet. It's the only opportunity for play they ever get, unlike some of the experiments in other sections of the building. Obviously if things are not great(tm) for one of them the energy mellows out more, but even if it isn't acknowledged they treat these opportunities like it will be the last time it ever happens. I don't even know if I answered the question right at this point T-T I have been typing and retyping this for hours at this point. It's like, I know it but I don't know how to say it. They act like siblings, sibling who are keenly aware they are all each other has, while still being themselves as much as they can while they have the chance. Being able to all be together without having to worry if anyone is alright genuinely is a reward for them, and it just makes punishments more effective. I think they used to be more reserved, especially Doey who is very keenly aware of being observed like 24/7, but it wasn't worth caring about, they didn't have that luxury. It probably freaked the hell out of several scientists observing him who are generally more used to "Perpetual glower", or "intentionally trying to push your buttons", and on good days "quiet compliance". He got along with critters in places like the courtyard, but he was generally avoided by other toys because he is massive and scary looking, when he walks the ground literally shakes in game. It would be worth looking into more to find a less volatile way to control him, if he wasn't considered such a liability and didn't already have a body count pre-HOJ Man I hope this doesn't suck to read TwT sorry for the messy word vomit here!!

[thebeast-dennis-etcetera]

Alibi

The morning had gone seemingly well, having the day off, you were able to take care of a lot of errands you had been putting off such as pulling all of the weeds from your backyard that managed to weasel their way back in even after drenching them in weed killer.

You were so engrossed with picking them and listening to one of your favorite podcasts, you almost missed hearing the doorbell ringing. Taking the gloves off, you paused your podcast and went inside to answer the door, slightly surprised to see two very professional people standing outside.

"Good evening ma'am. I'm Special Agent DiNozzo with NCIS and this is Agent McGee, mind if we ask you a few questions regarding Karen Moss?"

You shifted your weight nervously, stomach turning at the sound of your friends name.

"What's wrong? Did something happen?"

They shared a solemn look between the two of each other, telling you everything you needed to know.

"Her body was found this morning a few streets away and based on her call history, you were the last person to speak with her before her death. May we ask where you were last night around 11pm?"

You covered your mouth in shock, not believing that they just told you that your close friend died, let alone was possibly murdered and know were questioning you as if you might be a suspect. You thought back about the time they were referring to and memories of Jethro and you tangled together in your bed sheets popped into your mind. You thought about telling them, not sure if they even worked with Jethro, but decided on giving them the simplified version instead.

"I was here. With my boyfriend.."

"Is he here now to verify your whereabouts?" DiNozzo asked, taking a small peek over you as if he'd catch a glimpse of someone fleeing. Were all NCIS so suspicious?

"No, but I can give you his number. His name is Leroy Gibbs. His number is-

"Wait, sorry. Leroy Gibbs?" Agent DiNozzo interrupted, facial expression disbelieving. "Grey hair, high and tight haircut, broody mysterious Leroy Gibbs?"

You chuckled a little at his choice of words to describe your boyfriend, seeing how well he made an impression on people.

"Well not usually broody around me but yes, I guess you could say that. Why? Do the two of you know him?"

Once again, the two agents shared a look, this time one of confusion and awe.

"Uh, could you just hang on one second," DiNozzo asked. "I'll be right back."

You stood there with Agent McGee who looked like he wanted say something, but didn't as Agent DiNozzo walked a few paces, pulling out his phone and dialing a number.

"So was Kathy murdered? You said her body was found. When I talked with her last night, she said she was on her way to meet up with someone for a blind date," you asked McGee who was focused on the phone call Agent DiNozzo was having.

"Well Abby was able to go through the Lieutenant's phone and her number was the last dialed. We were just following- Uh yes- Well I wasn't sure- Of course boss, I'll tell McGee."

Agent DiNozzo came back over before murmuring to Agent McGee.

"Gibbs wants us to bring her in for protection. I told him you'd explain to him why we questioned his girlfriend without letting him know."

"What do mean, me? You're the one that had Abby look up the phone records."

"Just take one for the team McProbie. He's still mad at me for the whole coffee incident. Plus, you owe me."

You watched the two supposed Federal Agents argue like siblings, neither one of them wanting to be in the line of Jethro's mood and honestly it was kind of funny. Jethro never really talked much about his team but you had only been seeing him for a few months and 9 times out of 10, the two of you weren't doing much talking when you saw each other.

You decided to break up the little tiff the two of them were having in order to save some time.

"Alright, well while the two of you sort all that out, I'm going to change and lock up the house before we leave."

"Sounds good," Agent DiNozzo responded before going back to bickering with his partner.

- - - -

You took another sip from the little paper cup of water Agent David had given you as you waited in the conference room. She wanted to know about you and Jethro but you didn't divulge much information, knowing Jethro liked his personal life kept close and unknown for the most part. It wasn't long before the door opened and your boyfriend walked in along with Agent DiNozzo and David. You decided against giving Jethro a hug or kiss in front of his subordinates, although the both of them looked like they'd love nothing more than to see that happen.

You all sat down at the conference table except Agent DiNozzo who was wound up tighter than a jack in the box.

"Did Kathy give you a description of this blind date she was seeing?" Jethro started the questioning with. You spoke about everything you knew from the phone call you had with Kathy, tearing up towards the end, still not believing your friend was dead.

Jethro reached out to hold your hand and give you a tissue to wipe your eyes with, making his agents stare in interest at the caring gesture.

"It's like I'm in an alternate Gibbs reality," DiNozzo whispered to Agent David.

Jethro shot him a look before speaking. "Why aren't the two of you putting out a BOLO on this guy?"

"On it boss," Agent DiNozzo spoke quickly, leaving the room with Agent David following close behind, shutting the door after them.

"I think you should stay with me just in case until we catch the killer," he offered, standing up.

"Ok," you squeaked, not wanting to do much talking anymore.

"Come ere," he ordered softly, pulling you to your feet and into his arms for a hug. You accepted it eagerly, breathing in his scent, calming you down a bit.

Once you were better, the two of you walked out of the room and into the squad room, not expecting to be stared at by almost everyone there.

"What kind of reputation do you have with the opposite sex to make everyone look at me like the new zoo exhibit?" you asked Jethro, making him chuckle.

"They're just being nosy. Ignore them."

Jethro stopped Agent DiNozzo from asking anymore questions about the two of you as well as pulling you away from a very animated Forensic Scientist that seemed to have had entirely too much caffeine.

Jethro accompanied you back to your house where you packed a bag before driving you to his house, making a drawer available for you in his bedroom.

"I get my own drawer now. Things are really becoming serious, aren't they?" you teased him.

"Hey, I'm not the one who told my agents that I was your boyfriend," he retorted.

"Should I not have?" you asked genuinely worried that you had overstepped a boundary. He pulled you into his arms, staring into your eyes and tucking a strand of hair behind your ear.

"I don't mind the title. Just know that they're gonna have a million questions for you now," he stated, referring to his very curious agents. You smiled, giving him a peck on the lips and loving the new stage you both were now in.

"That's alright. I'll be sure to tell them how you love it when I give you back scratches while we cuddle together and watch movies."

Your joking was cut short as his fingers pressed themselves into your ribs, effectively tickling you till the both of you were on the bed, him hovering above you.

"You know, had it not been for you, I wouldn't have had an alibi for last night," you told him, running your fingers through his hair.

"Must of slipped my mind but," he murmured into your skin, kissing your shoulder. "I don't exactly remember how last night went. Maybe you can help jog my terrible memory."

Laughing at his playfulness, you played into it, pulling him in for a passionate kiss, ready to remind him exactly what happened that night.

[omagpies]

Recently saw your roleswap AU and I’m loving it! I have a few things I’m curious about:

1. So by my understanding Anya failed her flight certification 8 times and PE was cheap enough to be fine with that? Did she never pass? Makes sense, I’m just kinda clarifying lol

2. Does nurse!Curly also feel like he wants to try something different in his career like in canon? Did he also not have enough savings after PE went under? Did he go to nursing school or did he also fail his entrance exams?

3. What’s Daisuke’s story in this AU? Did his mom push him to go to trade school to become a mechanic? Did he do that on his own and his mom suggested working with PE?

4. It’s so interesting to me that Anya tried E-dating after getting back to earth and seemingly got rejected based on her appearance, poor girl :( but I’m kinda wondering about Curly’s perspective on this, did he have feelings for Anya while she was E-dating and just sucked it up for her?

5. I’m kinda curious about Curly and Anya’s relationship pre-crash, was it a little bit flirty like in canon? Did Anya try to approach Curly with what Jimmy was doing or was the blackmail powerful enough for her not to say a peep to anyone?

haha gonna answer all of these at once! but first here's something on 5 :)

she never passed the Official Legit certification but passed what counts for it in PE (so, certified only to fly PE vessels) and kind of sees it as her last chance to make it as a pilot. still hopes to get properly certified one day, working at PE to make the money for simulator hours and exam fees

curly actually went to a med school on a football scholarship but had to drop out about two or three years in because he started prioritising studies over practice and the money got pulled. used the money he had left to switch tracks and certify as a nurse. joined PE because space travel sounded fun but is pretty bored of it because he doesn't get to do much on a regular haul. he isn't quite as existential in this regard as canon curly because working in a people-oriented nurturing profession actually makes him feel useful, he just wishes he could be more useful ya kno? has enough savings to be able to rent a place and find a job at a hospital, so overall it all kinda works out for him if you don't count all the horrors

i think in this au daisuke's mother actually pushed him to intern as a mechanic a few years earlier than in canon, which is how he met swansea (pilot with engineering background) and got inspired enough to go into trade school. by the time the events of the au begin he is a certified mechanic though not with a lot of experience :"3

curly has had the biggest fattest crush on anya almost the entire time of knowing her (i feel like he kinda spawns in already in love with anya), so her E-dating phase is kinda rough on him (like, Very rough; mans full on wasting away from his heart getting broken in tiny ways a hundred times a day), but he is king of denying himself and putting others first so he does his best to be A Good And Supportive Roommate about it. he even tries to date other people too! but with not nearly as much gusto and it never goes far. he is too whipped

there was definitely Something. i'll expand on it a bit more in a later ask i got about captain anya, but the tldr is that she goes to great pains to Act Professional and curly is never in a million years going to confess anything. and then jimmy's arrival blows it all up and any kind of romance plummets down everyone's lists of priorities. and anya never tells curly anything -- this is her problem to deal with, and with him being jimmy's friend there is a tiny part of her that is afraid of not being believed even though she overall thinks he's a good guy :")

anya writes all kinds of things, but it's all fiction. she dabbles in poetry, but her two main points of focus in prose are a) long meandering stream of consciousness type of pieces that span generations and have very convoluted plots and interpersonal relations (think woolf's waves meets one hundred years of solitude), inspired largely by the time she had to lie there and do little more than drift in and out of delirium and think, and b) shameless smut that starts out as your run of the mill romance and suddenly changes genres halfway through (funny how life can just Change all at once huh). she never really gains a Massive audience but does have a considerable number of dedicated fans of both categories

(more roleswap au)

[winterzsurprise]

Change My Mind [4]

Pairing: BTS x reader

SUMMARY: As a make-up artist, you were expected to glamorize your clients with brushes and products that cost a week-worth of food, not to befriend them outside of work, let alone have them save you from dates yet here you are five years later as one of their closest confidants.

Being a stylist of the world's biggest boyband is no easy feat, someone is doing flips, someone can't stay still and one's asleep but its fine, you can work around their chaos but then one day, you find out they're all your soulmates, a whole different can of chaos you don't think you can handle.

Tags: Soulmates AU, Friends to Lovers, Eventual Smut, Not Beta Read, Slow Build, Polyamory, Attempts at Humor

Words: 7.2k

nothing much to say this time but this is not beta read, my friend who was supposed to read it is unfortunately unavailable, idk if the argument makes sense in the end cause I personally run from confrontations so idk how to write good arguments so yeah.

ANYWAYS, Happy reading!!

EDIT 03/05/25: changed a few dialogues and added a few things

<<<Prev || MASTERLIST || Next>>>

___________

In all of your years working for Bangtan, as one of their staff and the youngest stylist, you've been included in every life events and celebrations there is. Birthdays, first wins, comebacks, everything there is even something as important as family dinners. You've never skipped or forgot a single member's birthday, period.

But as Guwon stands before you, a plane ticket to Jeju in hand with the departure scheduled tomorrow and returning just a day short before the tour, you find yourself at a crossroad. It’s Jungkook's birthday tomorrow and Jimin has planned a small party tonight at their dorms before the formal celebration at the company the next day.

While you've been trying to rectify the awkward air between you and the maknae since his confession by starting conversations, the maknae only replied to you with silence before promptly vanishing in two seconds flat.

But despite the strain in your relationship, you could never think of not attending his birthday. You'd never thought to be petty enough to return his energy. His present was already wrapped in a pretty bow under your bed for a week now for Christ's sake!

“I-I can't… It's one of their birthday’s tomorrow.”

“Oh.” His smile falls. “Can't you just give your gift today? Surely they can party for one night without you.”

It was a genuine question, logical and true but for some reason, his tone raised concerns within you. You swear to the highest heavens you could hear a bit of irritation hidden beneath dejection.

You winced. “I can't, I'm really sorry… I-I can pay you back what you've spent for the trip. I'm really sorry, I just never missed any of their birthdays. I swear I'll make it up to you next time!”

Guwon's shine dulled the further you went on and your heart twinged with guilt. In another universe where some humans gained animalistic features, he'd have dog ears pressed to his skull, staring at you with wide and glistening eyes.

You waved off the image immediately, disturbed.

“It's also my fault for not asking for your schedule. The tour is next week and then you'd be away from me for months so I kind of… panicked. I'm sorry.”

He should've known better than not to do research on your bosses, a voice at the back of your head scoffed and you waved the thought away as you put a hand over his. 

“I should've notified you as well. Tell me if those are refundable or not, I'll pay you back.”

He waves you off. “Cute but I've been raised well to know not to ask a lady to pay for my mistake, so don't worry that pretty head of yours about not being able to go.”

The date continued and thankfully, no dead air remained and conversation eased out of the both of you. Guwon sorted out his reservations early on, he'd stopped eating every once in a while to pick up his phone to either receive a call or respond to an email.

With how often he answered the chimes of his phone and how long it took for him to finally put it down, you figured he must've prepared a lot for the week and it made you feel more guilty every time he did it.

Today, he brought you both to an indoor park he rented for an hour for a picnic. It was on the outskirts of Seoul and he also cooked most of the food placed between you both, his mother however, was responsible for the side dishes.

Speaking of mothers, yours called earlier to congratulate you on whatever it was she was adamant on keeping secret but you already knew what it was and you were glad Jungkook’s mother gave birth on such a perfect day almost 21 years ago.

Guwon was planning to propose to you during the trip.

It left a bitter taste in your tongue. Sure you had expected to be married to him at some point but you barely knew the man outside of his colorful stories, and knew none of his actual behavior in his home. You haven't even visited his house yet for a vibe check so why is he rushing too fast?

Despite the guilt in your heart, relief is more palpable knowing you'd have more time to figure out if you truly want Guwon in your life.

Your phone vibrated in your pocket and you took a glance at it.

           [17:29] Jinnie: I'll pick you up at your apartment by 6.            [17:29] Jinnie: please be prepared😊

Seeing the t̶h̶r̶e̶a̶t̶e̶n̶i̶n̶g̶ friendly smile attached at the end of his message, you're suddenly reminded of the present. You hadn't told any of them of your date today, something that had drawn out longer than you thought it would. You frowned, fingers drumming on the side of your phone as you pondered on what to reply.

You had promised to help with the food yet here you are, out of town and on a picnic date inside a garden observatory.

“Who is it?” Guwon asks, seeing the frown on your face. Your mind immediately picks up the odd tone he has.

“Their oldest, Jin. We're supposed to cook together before the rest comes home.”

He furrowed his eyebrows. “I thought the birthday was tomorrow?”

“Oh, we're planning a small party before it, just his closest friends.”

Guwon nodded, eyes distant and thoughtful as he took a bite of his sandwich before continuing. “What time are you expected?”

“Their eldest said he'll pick me up at six.”

He looked at his watch and frowned deeper. “It's already 5:30. Maybe I can drive you to their dorm instead?”

You immediately shook your head. Remembering the promise you had with Jin and Jungkook. The maknae had recently begun to look at your direction again yesterday after Hoseok had talked to him, inviting Guwon would ruin the smallest progress you’ve had. 

Not to mention, you can't reveal their dorm location even if he is to be your husband. Company rules and you've signed an NDA.

“Company rules, can't reveal their location.”

“If we're going to be a couple soon, I'm going to need to know more about these guys you're hanging around. I don't trust them.” He says as he turns to the picnic basket to take another sandwich out, unable to see the twitch in your eye. 

“Well, you have to learn how to, they’re my bosses and my best friends.”

“I’m having a hard time believing that. I mean,” He scoffed. “Did you notice how they look at me whenever I’m around? That rapper—Yun–Yoonmi stared at me like I’m an insect he stepped on.”

Anger boils deep within your soul and you’re sure it's visibly contorting your face at this point but the man didn’t notice it and continued chewing on his food.

“Besides, their location is pretty well known already, no? Just a couple searches away, why be so secretive about it?”

You refrain yourself from frowning and it takes all of the energy within you to not react as wildly as you would’ve. It was amazing how the illusion of something good could shatter with only a few words and you set down the sandwich in your hand, your appetite fizzling away.

There's something terribly humbling upon realization that the man you're talking to is indeed, a man.

Noticing the shift in the air, he set down his cup of coffee with a slight raise to his brows.

“Why are you looking at me like that? It's true though, I just think it's pointless to try to hide it when some people already know, so what's the use of trying to hide their dorm?”

Where's Jimin and Taehyung at times like this?

You dreaded the conversation you're about to bring up to your mother once she calls, and could hear her scolding you for having such high standards. But Guwon being indifferent to the possibility of being stalked, and your boys’ privacy being breached immediately raise red glaring flags over his head. 

A lawyer himself who shrugged at the threat of crimes, the joke just writes itself.

“Don't look at me like that, I'm just… trying to understand why you didn't want me to interact with them after our second date. It makes a man overthink, you know?”

Whatever thread you were holding onto, a sliver of hope that you might've misheard or misunderstood him, decayed within you and you picked up your phone to stuff into your bag.

You had hoped, wished, that after your deep talk on the night Seokjin had scolded your ass to the nines he'd understand your dynamic better with the boys or at least try. You could already hear Yoongi's drawl out ‘I told you so’ as you packed up, even imagine him bringing up Namjoon’s statistical analysis and how I should've listened to it.

“If you're implying what I think you are implying then I don't think we should meet each other anymore.”

Tossing the food back into the basket carelessly, you slung your bag over your shoulder and stand, only for his hand to shoot out to grab your wrist in an iron grip.

“Wait, I-I'm sorry! I just got… jealous, that's all.”

Even with the apologetic look displayed clearly on his face and the fear swimming with them, nothing could bring back to life the trust you had on the man and you pushed his hand away.

“I can't stay with someone who can't understand why those boys are important to me, sorry Guwon but we're over. Don't ever contact me again.”

“You can't possibly be breaking up with me because I said what I felt? Over them? Really?!”

You don't even recognize the man sitting opposite you.

He knew, he saw how close you are with them and even sat through the stories you told him during your dates. Guwon knew you cherished every single boy in the group yet he disregarded it all because of jealousy? If that isn't a warning, then you might be blind.

“It's like I never even knew you at all.”

He scoffed. “Same with you. Can't believe I actually believed your words telling me you were friends but I saw how those boys treated you! No male friends should be that comfortable touching and hugging you like that without a reason!”

Sure your relationship with your bosses is unusual but it was built from hardship and loneliness from being taken away from home and surrendering their time for a glimpse of fame in a field where they're at a huge disadvantage. It was special in ways not many could fathom because in their head, what reason would there be for a man to befriend a girl other than having the intention to fuck them?

It was the mindset of the old and “wise” and it had infuriated you to the nines.

For him to reveal himself as one of those old cogs when he expressed himself as a gentleman and be convinced by his act of kindness, even the word disappointing could express how greatly upset you are.

“Bet you've slept with all of them at least once, hell, I don't even know why your mother bothered when you're already busy whoring yourself for seven men.”

Anger flooded your veins, it was hot and rampaging under your skin. Before your mind could even register your actions, your hand had already moved, making contact with his cheek in one swift motion. The slap echoed like a clap of thunder in the silence of the observatory.

Even after seeing the angry red mark beginning to mar his skin, your anger remained.

“Goodbye Guwon, I hope we never see each other again.”

Walking away was easier said than done.

You got picked up by Guwon earlier and since you've run far enough from the indoor garden, away from your supposed ticket back home, you're now waiting for an uber at a small library sequestered between towering and loudly designed buildings. You had half a mind to ask your friends that lived nearby for a ride but decided against it.

They might be busy with their own family. 

Unlike you.

As you sit there waiting for your ride to come, your mind takes you to your mother and her genuine glee at the thought of you getting married. Ever since your second date, she had been sending you photographs of weddings for inspirations, links to event places and tailors, and flower shops where you could have your bouquet arranged. She was beyond ecstatic, if she heard what had happened, she would be devastated. 

A loud, exasperated sigh left your lips, the volume catching the attention of the bookkeeper who was quick to shush you.

As you waited longer with only the deafening silence of the library to accompany you, doubt began to form at the back of your head. 

Was breaking up with Guwon really the right choice? 

An angry, louder voice screamed at you for doubling down on your decision. You knew your boys longer than you knew him, if the trip had gone through, Guwon would've proposed to you despite the short time you've known each other. Something you didn't want. Not to mention, he would've gone through the idea while contemplating on your loyalty.

So yes, it was the right decision!

But you were to be married.

Your mother was so happy to have finally matched you with a guy you attended three dates with. The thought made your heart clench, she was excited to see you on the altar and has most likely spread it around your town with pride. She was about to have three married children.

Gods, you don't want to imagine the conversation later on, she'd be distraught.

Your phone buzzed and you dreaded looking at the screen to see your mother's name. Luckily, it was Jin instead.

           [18:01] Jinnie: where are you?            [18:01] Jinnie: knocked on your door but the neighbor said you were out.            [18:02] Jinnie: you're late😒            [18:02] Jinnie: I'm going to have them deduct your pay this month for making me wait            [18:03] You: I'm sorry your highness for disappointing you, please forgive this servant of yours🤧            [18:03] You: was on a date            [18:03] You: not that it matters anymore, I broke up with Guwon            [18:04] You: does it even count as a break up? I mean, we weren't official, he didn't ask me to be his girlfriend yet.

You paused, face souring as you realized what you've just typed. 

Guwon hadn't asked for your hand officially even after three dates, he had the chance on your second date during the stroll but he didn't. Despite this, he went and asked your parents for their blessings when he hadn't even asked you first.

           [18:04] You: wow I just remembered that            [18:04] You: then he had the audacity to propose to me!

There's a pause in between his usually instant replies and you had an inkling he's already spreading the gossip around the group somehow.

           [18:08] Jinnie: wow there's a LOT to unpack there            [18:08] Jinnie: but worry not            [18:08] Jinnie: I'll have Jimin get us the strongest drink there is for later            [18:09] Jinnie: we'll drink that sorrow away and you're going to tell me what the hell you meant by proposing while not being official             [18:10] You: I don't think I should tell you that…            [18:10] You: considering… ya know            [18:11] You: also don't you guys have an early schedule tomorrow?🤨            [18:12] Jinnie: bold of u to assume I don't want hear how massive of a failure he is            [18:12] Jinnie: nothing better than hearing your enemy’s downfall😌            [18:13] Jinnie: also what do you mean ‘you guys’???             [18:13] Jinnie: you're literally our make-up artist!

You huffed out a laugh at the message but before you could type up a reply, the notification from your uber app popped out to inform you about your driver now waiting outside the library and you walked out.

           [18:23] You: and just because I'm your make-up artist, doesn't mean I should let you all get away with this            [18:23] You: and I won't even drink much :pp            [18:24] Jinnie: if I ever see you stumbling around the house, you owe me 100000            [18:25] You: WOW            [18:25] You: AREN'T YOU RICH ALREADY????            [18:25] Jinnie: money is money😌            [18:26] Jinnie: just get ur ass over here already before I add more zeros to the bet

_______

The smell of Jin’s cooking, both spicy and something savory, welcomed you first before the sound of sizzles did. At the sound of the door closing, Jin appears round the corner with an apron hung from his neck and a tong stained with red bean paste in the other.

Despite the disappointed look he's going for, reminiscent of a mother who caught her daughter coming home past curfew, the relief you feel upon seeing his handsome face after earlier was palpable and the knots in your stomach loosened.

“I should have your pay deducted for showing up late.”

You winced. “Sorry boss, can I appeal for a heartbreak discount on that?”

“Only if you give me a hug and cry on my shoulder.” 

He opened his arms wide, plush lips widening into a smile when you approached to wrap your arms around his torso. The fabric of his sweatshirt was soft and the scent of new laundry overtook his usual scent of freshly baked cakes and gentle vanilla perfume, it almost made you boneless in his hold. Moreso when he started stroking your head while the other ran up and down your back with his palm, fingers still wrapped around the tongs.

He didn't pull away despite the awkward position with him bending down and practically melting against your smaller form. In your years of being friends, you could never recall Seokjin being the first to pull away from a hug and once more, you're grateful for that.

“You wanna talk about it?”

“I’ll do it while cooking, we might burn whatever you're cooking if I told you all about it here.”

He shook his head, his rubbing motions on your back turning into gentle pats. “We can just order it online if it does, I even bet that they'll still eat it even if it was. Hoba was relentless today.”

His nails raked through your scalp and you resisted the urge to shiver. 

“He was being an ass towards you guys. Then when I defended you all, he accused me of sleeping around.”

His first instinct was to curse the man down to his ancestors who bred with each other until he was born, but stopped himself when he realized what he's about to say and cleared his throat.

His arms coiled tighter around you, you leaned into him further.

“Normally I would say ‘I told you so’ but I know Yoongi has it covered later. So I'll just say—"

"Don't you dare. Jin don’t you dare finish that sentence."

"I did prophesize this outcome, did I not?" he said in the most antiquated Korean ever.

He let out a cry when your hand slapped his arm but it quickly dissolved into a fit of squeaky laughter and he pushed your head back under his chin before you could even continue hitting him. Hand continuing their petting as you let out an annoyed groan.

“My mom was so excited! God. I hate that bastard for disappointing me and her. She was sending me links to wedding planners and dressmakers because apparently he was supposed to take me to Jeju tomorrow and propose.”

He stills in your arms, the hand in your hair stopping its motion as his breath hitched in his chest. It took him a moment before he recollected himself and continued to pat your head, pressing a kiss on top of your crown.

“I'm sure auntie will understand, I know that she would've wanted you to find a good man like she did.”

A voice at the back of your head told you he was referring to himself but you threw the thought away as soon as it went.

“Personally, I would've taken the ticket and ditch him.” He laughed and you hit his arm with a barely concealed grin. “All I'm saying is that free things should be used and if it's gifted then better! You get to decide how to use it so refund it!”

“I don't think it's that easy.”

“Just say Kim Seokjin of BTS asked for a refund and they'll immediately accept it. You know how powerful our name is now.”

Pulling away, you playfully rolled your eyes at him, earning you one last laugh as you walked to the kitchen where the sizzles of the food being fried on the pan had long been muted. Jin followed you with an onslaught of words spilling from his lips, justifying and detailing how he would've done in your place as you placed your bag down on the island counter before reaching for the spare apron.

Hearing his rants filling the silence made it easier to relax, it made forgetting how upset you were at Guwon a walk in the park.

It was familiar and his voice, despite his fiery indignation, was oddly comforting.

Soon enough, your conversation halts and you both position yourself over the counter, following his orders mindlessly; which is mostly dicing the vegetables and the slabs of meat he marinated last night in soy sauce and spices. 

You found the repetitive motions of chopping soothing and silently thanked the man now hovering over the saucepan, gently stirring the seaweed soup. 

As if sensing your eyes boring holes on the back of his head, his ears reddened and he looked over his shoulder to meet your gaze.

“W-what is it? Wh-why are you looking at me like that?”

“Just admiring how huge your shoulders are and… just how reliable it looks.” 

You recalled how dearly he cared for his group despite the exhaustion from practicing singing and dancing the whole day. Despite being the youngest in his family, Jin took on the mantle of the oldest brother in the group easily and selflessly provided for his members alongside Yoongi and Namjoon. 

If it were anybody, you were sure the boys would've been sick or had long given up, especially when the company was about to file bankruptcy in their earlier years.

From the bone shattering dances, exhausting practices and routines stretching from dawn till dusk, you were thankful Seokjin was there to catch the others when they fall.

It was a hard task nobody would've assumed since selfishness is a built-in trait of a human yet Seokjin proved you wrong when he stayed up every night despite the muscle cramps and exhaustion weighing his bones to cook for his members, taking the role of the eldest like it was a second nature despite being the youngest in his family.

He barked out a half-hearted laugh as his red ears brightened from the compliment. “I already know that of course!”

“Thank you for everything, Jin.”

His face crumpled when he laughed bashfully, the bright hue in his ears crawling to dusk his cheeks as well. It didn't take long before he recovered and like clockwork, in reaction to being flustered by compliments, he got defensive and raised the saucer threateningly at you.

“Ya! If you're planning to compliment me, at least be original! I'm done hearing about how wide my shoulders are from ARMY and how reliant I am from the others! We've been together for years, do better and be original with your compliments!”

It was a joke, obviously.

But staring at the older man childishly brandishing his cooking utensil like a bludgeoning weapon, you couldn't help but ponder about what truly pulled you into him only to realize that you've never truly dove deeper than surface level details. 

It was disappointing to find out how shallow you've been when expressing your appreciation for the man.

Like he said, you've always pointed out how reliable he is but never have you pointed out the small things such as the warm food he claimed have been extras and the hot soups sectioned off for you on cold days. He was the youngest in his family yet he took the mantle of the oldest as if it was meant to be, he had taught the maknaes and had stirred them away from diving off of the deepest end of their minds despite being susceptible to them as well.

He was the first to approach you on the first day despite being the member who mostly kept to himself, asking you if you wanted to celebrate their Rookie of the Year win with them instead of the rowdy staff behind you. 

The first one to build a bridge leading to this deep companionship you had with the rest of the members, have you really never thanked him for that?

“You're so caring and humble despite your background and where you are right now. If it was anybody else, they would've left the boys to fend for themselves once they were able to,  yet you didn't stop cooking for them, for us. I don't think I have ever met a man so down to earth and as loving as you are,” You paused. “Well, except Jimin but if you want something more original I'd say I love your hands even when you think they're weird because they—”

You didn't even realize Jin crossed the distance between you both until his hands clasped around your lips, silencing you completely.

Unlike earlier with only his ears blushing, his cheeks now glowed red, the flushed skin spreading down to his neck, continuing past the collar of his dark blue pajamas. When your eyes meet, you find his glistening with unshed tears no doubt touched by your hastily put together declaration of your appreciation for him. 

When it was clear you wouldn't continue your rant, his arms fell to your shoulders and pulled you into a tight embrace. 

His violent heartbeats thudding against his chest was the first thing you've heard before you registered the stuttered exhales and his gentle saccharine scent filling your senses, clouding your brain completely. For a moment, it was just you and him in the kitchen, hugging a little longer than friends should be.

But then again, since when have you guys ever drawn the line on how platonic touches should last?

“God… You gotta stop doing that.”

“I'm just following what you told me like a good junior and I think I did exceedingly well on it. Does that guarantee a deduction on my pay deduction?”

There's an odd, invisible weight that lifted off of you, something you didn't even realize you were carrying. But there's also a tinge of guilt pinching the edges of your heart.

Jin was the first to approach you, and the first to confess four years ago. He was all shy looks and sweet smiles, his sweet words accompanied by a bouquet of flowers that must've cost him more than he could've gotten from being an idol of a new group. 

When Jin loves, he gives his all and doesn't think twice to give half of himself as well. In a way, he and Yoongi were alike, just with different approaches.

He was open and unapologetic while Yoongi was subtle and often silent.

His laugh twinkled in your ears but it dwindled later on, as if he remembered something towards the end of his mirth. “You're driving me crazy, how am I supposed to move on when you're this lovely?”

Hearing him confirm your suspicion about his crush—is it even called that at this point?—relieved you from an unknown anxiety most likely sparked by Jungkook's words a few nights ago. Why are you even relieved hearing him still liking you when all you've done is hurt him?

“You're such an idiot, you know that?”

“Love makes you do the stupidest thing but I don't think I've ever regretted ever falling for you.”

He pulls away, a gentler, softer smile now tugging his lips up.

“God, you made me sappy! My god, my soup!” 

Even without the warmth of his embrace, you could feel it radiate in the small space of the kitchen. You continued your work as Jin fuzzed about the seaweed soup behind you, bathing in the domesticity of it all.

Your phone vibrates loudly in your bag on the island counter. Wiping your hand on your apron, you opened it to see Jimin’s messages.

           [18:56] Mimi: seokjin hyung told me to buy the strongest alcohol             [18:57] Mimi: any idea why he’s being weird?            [18:57] You: I’ll tell jin that you called him weird            [18:57] You: but yes            [18:57] You: I’ll tell you all later why            [18:58] Mimi: 🤨            [18:58] Mimi: not if I get you drunk in the first ten minutes            [18:58] You: I’d like to see you try, pretty boy

Your phone vibrated again. Namjoon had texted you, seeing the preview you rolled your eyes.

           [18:59] Joonie: Seokjin hyung didn’t say but I already figured it out            [18:59] Joonie: You'd hear enough from Yoongi hyung later but            [18:58] Joonie: I told you so            [18:58] You: I hope you trip and fall on shit🥰            [18:59] Joonie: Love you too, noona😁            [18:59] You: blocked🚫

“I'm not seeing enough chopping, young lady. Get back to your station!” Jin jokingly scolds. With a laugh, you return to your spot.

By the time some of the boys arrived—except Jimin, Jungkook and Taehyung, no doubt pre-gaming somewhere—it was already ten and some of the dishes were plated, ready to be eaten in the dining room. If it wasn't for both your and Jin's advanced thinking to ready the bowl of rice and their plates beforehand, they would have starved to death as Yoongi dramatically puts it before blaming Hoseok for draining them out the whole day.

The man in question just laughed in response before shrugging and rebuking their ‘accusations’, saying it wasn't even that hard. To this, Yoongi grumbled under his breath and Namjoon rolled his eyes.

A few minutes later, the maknaes entered, cheeks all flushed except for Jimin who was holding up a bag full of canned alcohol as if it was game from an all-day hunt.

You thanked Jimin silently for drinking the birthday boy tipsy enough to make the dinner energetic instead of the awkwardness you thought it'd be due to what happened a few days ago. There's fleeting eyes you've caught in between jokes he made, either pouring with adoration or longing, you tried to not to pay it much mind.

But of course, the alcohol pouring could only go for so long before you're all lounging in the living room to talk about anything that comes to mind. It was half an hour short from the clock tickling to twelve, signifying Jungkook's actual birthday.

The conversation started off tame with Taehyung questioning the animals who sleep standing to something more elaborate with Yoongi asking everyone's opinion about some decrypt conspiracy theory surrounding the rich of the west. It was all fun and games when Taehyung, lost in his own mind running with the most random thought, sluggishly pointed at you and asked:

“Wh-why aren't you checking your phone? G-Guwon hyung haven't been texting you yet?”

Many heads turned to you who was practically boneless in between a tipsy Hoseok and a still sober Yoongi. You didn't even need to look to know the look of concern Jin was throwing your way.

But everything was hazy, your head throbbing from the alcohol. The words slipped past your lips before you could think about it.

“We parted ways… He accused me of sleeping around when I said I didn't want to go on a trip with him tomorrow ‘cause I didn't want to skip Jungkookie's birthday.”

Hoseok patted your shoulder and Yoongi nodded, face indifferent as usual. Despite the reaction of the boys on both sides, not everyone in the circle held the same opinion it seems.

“You didn't have to decline it, noona. You-you’ve been with us for years, missing one wouldn't hurt me much.”

Jungkook's voice was softer as if he had sobered up from the revelation and you waved him away.

“What are you saying? I couldn't leave when we weren't alright.” You glimpsed at Jin before continuing. “Besides, he was planning to propose and I'm glad he couldn't anymore.”

In your drunken mind, the information didn't carry much weight but the pin drop silence following your words did, you guessed that it must've been. However, it didn't last long when Taehyung jumped up to his feet and punched the air as if Korea just scored the final score in FIFA.

The boys look at him with wide eyes, shocked by his reaction. Jimin recovers and tries to tug him down but a drunk Taehyung is determined, with a will stronger than a monk's resilience and patience, no one could stop him from doing what he wanted.

And that was bumping his glass on your forehead, a little harder than it should've been if he was sober and you reel back, a hand over your forehead.

“Noona! you're free again! Do you know what that means?!”

“Ok that's enough for you tonight. Let's get you to bed.” Jimin says, chuckling awkwardly as he stands behind his best friend, wrapping his arms around his waist before dragging him away.

“Why? Can't I just congratulate noona from recognizing something was off instead of ignoring it like most do? Noona,” He turned to you, bottom lip jutted out. “It's not bad that I'm celebrating right?”

Seokjin’s laugh was nervous when he rose to usher the man away as well. “Alright, let's all calm down so we don't accidentally say something while drunk.”

“Fuck yeah! I-I don’t even know why I even believed his lies, he’s a lawyer for fucks sake!”

“Not that it ever stopped you before. I still don't understand why you couldn't have married one of us instead.” Jungkook cuts in, suddenly irritated.

Somehow, the tension in the room grew tenfold and everyone sits up, alert and ready to interfere if their youngest decides to let the alcohol take control of him. Your brain clears once it registered the annoyance in his voice, heart dropping to the soles of your feet.

“Jungkook—”

“I just think it's a bullshit excuse and you know it. You told that to Jin-hyung four years ago and have repeated it ever since. We’re all adults now, we can handle a little rejection and who’s to say we can’t date when we’re the only idol running the company. You say it's because you don’t want to choose but aren’t you just instilling false hope in us?” 

He stood as he grew more agitated but Jin pushed him down, eyes stern as he stared down at their youngest. Seeing the conflict brew between them, the growing guilt built by years of spending time with them reawakened.

It tied your stomach in a knot and felt like a building had dropped onto your heart.

As if sensing your emotions, Yoongi’s hand found your shoulder to give it a squeeze.

“You’re not thinking straight so stop it,” Jin excuses as he turns to you with an apologetic smile. “He’s just drunk, he doesn’t—”

“I know what I’m saying and I think you’re being too biased here hyung!”

“Jungkook…” Hoseok calls from next to you, voice low, a warning.

“You too! Why aren’t you pointing out how she’s just playing with us? Why are you only calling me out?”

“Because you’re being a stupid drunk right now, Jungkook. Stand down.” Yoongi ordered, voice firm and warning. His arms are crossed as he stared their youngest down but the maknae wasn’t intimidated by it, if anything, the fire in the older man’s eyes only fueled the anger boiling within him.

In years you’ve watched over them, never once has Yoongi scolded their youngest past playful reprimands in Run BTS contents, leaving the lecturing to their oldest and leader. For him to call him out and seeing them grow agitated by each other’s presence, dread loomed over you with your nightmares threatening to come true. 

This isn’t how tonight’s party was supposed to go.

It was supposed to be all about Jungkook, to praise and celebrate his life yet everyone is scolding him.

“Isn’t there anyone who’d agree with me at how absurd all of this is?!” His head snapped at Namjoon who’s watching with a careful eye. “Hyung, surely you can also see it!”

Throughout the exchange, Namjoon had sat back and watched the interaction from the sidelines instead of interfering on the first hint of a fight breaking out. Even when the situation becomes a little aggressive, he stays silent but you don’t doubt that he’d be the first to stand if the disagreement becomes volatile and inching towards physical.

That's what he always has done, observed and let the high rise of emotions eventually tides down to a calm on their own. He's a leader, he's supposed to be fair and to do so, he must first understand both sides before taking action. He also trusts his own team to temper their own ire after years of being together.

But now that he's forced to join the argument, he sighed and stood. Seokjin stepped away as Namjoon approached their youngest with both hands placed on his shoulders to sit him back down. 

Obediently, Jungkook follows.

“While I do see where you’re coming from, I think it's a bit unfair that you’re blaming her for being scared.” Jungkook opens his mouth but a firm shake of Namjoon’s head shuts him up. “Don’t start again. There’s a power imbalance here kid. If her choosing someone could cause a problem, we’d get off scot free but not her. In the eyes of the company, she’s disposable—”

“But she’s not.”

“She is. In their eyes at least. By having her around causing problems for us, she’s nothing but a thorn in their side that they should remove. If she had dated one of us and eventually broke up, it would cause an awkwardness and riff between guys especially if it ended on a bad note and BigHit won't stand for it. You know how important this job is for her, right?”

They stared at each other for a long while, both unrelenting in silence. You all waited with bated breath, Namjoon was the only one who could diffuse the situation and if he fails, then who else could possibly calm the maknae down?

Turning to the clock, you bit your lip at the time.

It was nearing Jungkook's actual birthday, three minutes short before both hands ticked to twelve.

Which meant it would have to start during the denouement of an argument. The thought planting discomfort in your stomach. Such a happy celebration shouldn't be welcomed like this.

In the midst of raised voices and pointing fingers, Taehyung has completely sobered up from where he sat between Jimin’s thighs, staring beady eyed at the situation in his friend’s arms. Sensing your gaze, he turned to you with a sheepish, apologetic smile when Jungkook's heavy sigh broke through the silence.

His head fell to his chest as Namjoon removed his hands from his shoulders yet his eyes remained on their youngest’s hunched form.

“You get what we're trying to say now, do you?”

“Y-yeah…”

“Anything you want to say, gguk?” Namjoon was talking to him like he was a kindergarten teacher and you both were kids who fought on the sandbox for the shovel, warm and understanding but the disappointment in his tone is clear as day.

Jungkook doesn't reply but he shoots up to his feet, surprising Hoseok next to you, with eyes still trained on the floor.

When he did look up to meet your gaze, it was brief and cut off by a deep bow. You reached your hands out, trying to stop him from doing so but Yoongi took one of your hands and pinned them down between his and your thighs.

Jungkook never had to bow for you and it felt wrong seeing him bent down to apologize.

“I-I’m sorry noona, I-–” He trails off.

In his speechlessness in a room full of people who—while understanding where he comes from—stood behind you, he clams up and then in a flash, he’s gone, bolting from the living room and skipping up the stairs. The sound of his heavy footfalls echoing like the clock ticking down to his birthday.

The argument has been dissolved, yet it left a bitter taste on your tongue, it made you feel queasy having everyone back you up without reprimanding you as well. It was true, what Jungkook said. 

Weren't you practically leading them on by not choosing anyone? No matter how unintentional it must be, if he thinks that way then maybe everyone else in the group does, just silently.

You turned to the clock again. A minute closer to the next day.

Frustration made you want to pull your hair out but the long, lithe fingers that have entangled with yours in the middle of it all, forbade you from doing so. As if he could hear the internal debate between logic and emotions, Yoongi gave you a comforting squeeze.

But it didn't feel right, you shouldn't be sitting on your ass while Jungkook blamed himself for expressing his own opinion, sure it was a bit aggressive but you understood his frustration.

“Jungkook!” You called out, rising to your feet to follow him when Yoongi tightened his hold on your wrist and shook his head.

“He needs time to process, leave him be.”

Yet despite this, you shrugged his hold off and followed the youngest’s heavy footfalls upstairs and presumably into his room. You caught onto him in the hallway, with the door to his room opened and half of his body already inside.

“Jungkook, let us talk.”

“I-I don't want to see you right now, noona please.”

The desperation to correct the wrongs gives you a short burst of energy and you catch his wrist.

“Jungkook please, I—”

You heard the joyful chime of the clock downstairs before you heard the sweet jingles of bells.

Then you felt it.

Electric jolts shoot up from your connected hands, waking every cell and your mind awake and you almost keel over from the wave of relieving warmth washing over your body. There’s now a low hum accompanying the bells chiming in the background, the soft harmony between them sending shivers down your spine. 

You've thought of first meetings like those scenes in Hollywood movies where a kaleidoscope of colors explodes behind your eyelids, like fireworks celebrating the precious moment where the protagonists finally meet and fireworks shoot up to the sky. They talked of a brief moment of reprieve from reality, the world slowing down and feeling the most calmed you've ever been with your soulmate in hand.

Like your soul finally recognizing its pair and suddenly, everyone became a blur in the background.

Yet when you stared back at Jungkook's mirrored astonishment, your stomach bottomed out.

Because no way in hell, after all this time, you're soulmates.

TAGLIST: @wildestdreamsblog @canarystwin @prettywheenicry @jmnscutie @sassy-snassy @misuguru @11thenightwemet11 @yoongibaybee @rinkud

[sticktothestars]

𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝 , " 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐢 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 '𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐢 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 . " ⋆✴︎˚｡⋆

a/n: *walks in, twiddling my thumbs* so i watched thunderbolts. we're just gonna say that i totally didn't fall in love with bob. AVENGERS FOUND FAMILY FANFICS ARE SO BACK GUYS. FHDSFFJ I'LL MAKE A SEPARATE POST ABOUT WHAT I THOUGHT ABOUT THE MOVIE, BUT YEAAH. I LOWKEY AM SUPER EXCITED & I CAN'T WAIT FOR YALL TO READ THIS 'CUZ I'VE BEEN HAVING THIS IDEA STUCK IN MY HEAD & IT WON'T GO AWAY. ANYWAY, IMMA STOP YAPPING NOW. ENJOOOYY!!1 (ALSO. you have the powers/fighting style of deadpool!)

paring: robert/bob reynolds x male!reader

word count: 1k+

warnings: slight spoilers for thunderbolts* if you haven't seen it. takes place post movie. slight cursing. contains a shit ton of angst & hard topics like anxiety attacks, child abuse, gore, & character death are mentioned throughout this oneshot. yeah i lowkey kind of spiraled while writing this lmfaooo.

════════════════════════════════════════════

──★

IF you told the [Y/N] from 3 months ago that you'd be working with the new avengers, you would've laughed HARD in your own face. Seriously. It would've lasted for like 7 minutes before you'd probably go tell you to fuck off or something. But now that you was here - saving people instead of being the one to end people for money - it felt trippy thing to even consider. Especially with the things you've done in your past. Despite your initial hesitation on even teaming up with this unstable group of people, you couldn't help but feel a LOT more happier than how you was before.

Maybe it was just the fact that saving people felt good or that you finally had a purpose in life - but no. It was something completely different. You was finally around people who understood what it felt like to not feel like they didn't deserve anything good or be stuck in an endless loop that just hurted you even more. It felt like a HUGE breathe of fresh air. Or maybe it was because you were around him like 99.99% of the time now after everything.

You met Bob in... troubling circumstances, to say the least. Bucky - a good friend of yours - contacted you while you were in New York in retirement from your mercenary past. You were honestly struggling a little. Working as an unsuspecting barista for some cozy coffee shop was nice & all, but it felt.. meaningless. So with one last second thought, you put your suit on & rode your motorcycle to a new mission. Which ended well overall, but with a lot of memories you wanted to lock away unfortunately.

But since then, the two of you have grown closer - especially since you were living together amongst the others in the Avenger's base. Bob obviously couldn't go on the missions due to not being able to control his powers all that well. You try to help him out the best you can when you're there.

...But sometimes that helping could go sideways.

──★

[Y/N]'s flicked open as he noticed the surroundings around him. Where was he? Just a moment ago he was sparring with Bob in the training room & then..

" Oh fuck.. " you muttered with a sigh as you realized what's happening. Your gaze fixes on a teen version of you - freshly scarred, WAY more defensive - yet afraid. Like there was something out for him. You knew what this was. You knew it all too well.

Back before you became a mercenary, you were a cage fighter in Orlando - trafficked at 7 & escaped at 16. 9 years of horror. Yeah that fucked you up pretty bad. Of course it would. But you had friends. It what kept you sane.

But they took that away too along with your dignity.

One night - when you were 16 - a new match was starting. They didn't tell you who the opponent would be. They never did. To them, it was just another body to throw away for entertainment. Having survived for so long & having so much blood on your hands, you'd think that you'd get used to it by now. But it only just got worse from there.

You stood there, watching yourself as your younger self enter the cage - a look of uneasiness on your younger self's face, tuning out the crowd of people as they cheered for blood. But you? You just wanted to know who else? Who else's blood would you have on your hands? As your opponent stumbles out into the cage with a shove from one of the guards just outside the cage, you saw your heart drop. Just by the horror on your own face.

Your opponent was your best friend, Liam. The Liam who stuck by your side through the last 9 years you've been here. The Liam who managed to make you laugh when things got that dark. The Liam who was your anchor. The Liam who you absolute adored like an older brother. You couldn't do it. You refused to. You couldn't do it if you tried.

" ... No.. No I'm not hurting him. You can't make me kill him. " You refused, backing away & banging on the cage's exit. Liam just watched you. He watched you try to figure out something. Anything to stop this match from happening. Liam knew this would happen soon. He was prepared for this. Hell, maybe he even prepared this moment from the start. You know that now. You wish you knew it sooner.

" [Y/N]. " Liam says gently, his voice calm - causing the younger you's attention to snap towards him, eyes tearing up as you tried to say something. Anything. But only a mournful silence filled between the two of you as the crowd cheered for the two of you to fight. You shook your head, keeping your head down.

" [Y/N], you have to. " Liam says gently, putting a hand on your shoulder as he approached. You just shook your head. " No- No- I-i-i can't- " You stammered out, clenching your fists so tight you felt as though you were bleeding slightly through your bandages.

" They'll kill you if you don't, kid. " Liam states. " I don't fucking care. " You say back, holding yourself close as you look back up at the 20 year old you've grown to be so attached to.

Liam sighs. " Well start caring. You're surviving. Even if it means killing me too. " The brunette says sternly.

" No! I'm not losing you! And I'm not listening to them anymore just to survive! " You call out so everyone can hear. The crowd boos, insults rolling out into the arena like a hurricane. The ringleader scoffs, motioning the guards to ready & aim at you.

Liam clocks this & horror enters his face, shielding you as bullets & sparks fly - the crowd falling silent. The bullets stop. Everything stops as a body slumps onto the ground. But it wasn't yours. It was Liam's. You stare at the hole covered body for what feels like a lifetime. You couldn't breathe. You couldn't even think straight.

Only when a guard grabs you is when you react is when you scream, absolute anguish & horror in your voice as it breaks as you're dragged out of the arena - new plans settled for you that changed your dna & life forever. The present you doesn't look away from Liam's corpse. You felt yourself spiraling within your regrets over the What If's.

What if you had let Liam kill you that day? You didn't deserve to live. Especially with the blood on your hands. The things you did without mercy. But Liam? He was kind. He was good. He deserved way better. He was so good & no one else ever got to see that goodness in him.

You scratched at the collar of your shirt, trying to force yourself to breathe but you couldn't. Everything felt so meaningless. You were meaningless. You were the problem because you couldn't keep your mouth shut.

Fuck. Everything felt so heavy. You collapsed to your knees, squeezing your eyes shut but Liam's lifeless body kept coming in again & again like a broken melody.

๋ ࣭ ⭑꒷꒦

" 'M sorry- M' so sorry- I-i should've known this would happen- I'm so fucking sorry- " A panicked & oh so familiar voice called out, snapping you out of your vision to feel Bob holding you in his arms tight as you sobbed. You hold onto his warmth, clenching his shirt. The two of you stay there for a while. Which seemed like forever. But neither one of you complained.

You sniffle slightly, letting your head nuzzle into the crook of the other's neck. And Bob just held you tighter. He couldn't let you go through this again. He couldn't bear seeing you hurt because of him.

You were probably one of the coolest people on the team, but seeing you fall apart like this felt gut wrenching. He mutters out more apologies, his chin resting on your head.

He's made everything worse again.

And to you of all people.

The man he absolutely adores.

──★

lowkey locked tf in on this one idk. hope yall enjoyed tho lowkey !! lemme know if yall want a part two or smthin cuz i'm down. SEND ME MORE REQUESTS PUHLEASEE.

anyways, that's it for now !! BUH BYEEE ^^

── DAMIEN ★

[lanawinterscigarettes]

Negotiations (Joe Goldberg x gn reader)

Summary: Joe puts you in the glass cage and makes you negotiate for your freedom

Warnings: typical creepy Joe behavior (implied stalking, obsessive behavior, kidnapping, etc.), the reader either doesn't understand the full gravity of their situation or just doesn't care

A/N: I realized I never officially wrote something for it so here y'all go (this was written super quickly so idk if it's any good or not)

"So I had to do it, you see. I had to get rid of them. I had to save you," Joe insisted frantically, sounding like he was trying to convince himself as much as he was you.

You'd woken up in the infamous glass cage underneath the bookstore he worked at, curiously looking around. The only thing you'd said so far was to ask where to you, to which he replied "somewhere safe". Talk about ominous.

"What if I need to go to the bathroom?" You spoke up suddenly, as you soon realized upon inspecting the inside of your new home that there wasn't a toilet. There was, however, a bucket.

"Well..." He awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck as he avoided the question. It didn't take much for you to put two and two together.

You gave him a look that was a cross between disgust and disbelief. "I can't pee in a bucket, Joe."

"I'm sorry, but I can't just let you out." He felt bad, sure, but he had to do this. He had to make sure that you were safe, even if it meant making you a little mad at him.

Crossing your arms, you turned in the opposite direction, refusing to look at him. Clearly you weren't too fond of your new living arrangements and were choosing to pout.

"Oh, come on, it isn't that bad," he lied upfront as he watched you. It was that bad, actually. Using a bucket to go to the bathroom was pretty gross.

And now he was starting to feel bad for putting you in this kind of situation. Anger was one thing, that he could handle. He could brace himself against that, or he rationalize away your worries or fears, but you seemed less genuinely upset and more annoyed than anything else.

He let out a heavy sigh as he contemplated his options. You were ignoring him, and he just couldn't have that. "If I let you out, you have to promise not to run away from me or anything like that. Understood?"

As if on cue, you turned back to face him again, a look of hope in your eyes. "Really?"

Joe tried not to let out a laugh when he saw you get close to the glass and press your face against it. "Yeah, really. Just- you have to move in with me. I don't want you living alone anymore. And I have to know where you are at all times."

Sure, he knew he could just follow you like usual, but he wanted you to be able to trust him. "And there's certain people that I don't want you hanging around anymore. Deal?"

Oh, god, what was he saying? This was going to be too much to put on you all at once. He should've just started with one small thing and gone from there, he shouldn't have given you an entire list-

"Deal."

Your voice instantly cut through his thoughts. Part of him wanted to believe you, even if he was a little suspicious that you'd agreed so quickly. Then again, you seemed so sincere, trusting even, observing him the same way anyone who truly loved their partner would: like he was the only thing that mattered.

"Could you let me out now? I really need to go pee."

Rolling his eyes, he made his way over to the door of the cage and unlocked it, letting you out. "Remember what I told you, alright? I don't want to have to put you back in there," he tried to make himself sound stern, to show you that he wasn't playing around when he said that.

To his surprise, you responded by giving him a hug. "You're such a sweetheart, caring about me so much," you muttered affectionately.

He couldn't stop himself from melting into your touch. If this was an act, it was certainly working.

"I'll never, ever leave you."

God, you were going to be the death of him. "And I'll never let you go," he promised in turn.

He really meant it when he said that. He was never going to let you go. Not that you seemed to mind.

End notes: I don't know if this is any good or not honestly. I really wanted to write something for Joe but I was kind of at a loss for what exactly to write about so 🤷 send me some ideas though if y'all want

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[blorbologist]

Y'know, I think I figured out why the Hells still feel like a new low-level party to me, even though they're level 13 and almost 100 episodes in.

I don't quite think it's the lack of conversations, or the fact half the party's plot hooks are big ties to past campaigns - though that definitely plays a part.

... Bell's Hells still primarily rely on quest givers.

Most of their goals are given to them and do not feel organic to the party, and constantly remind us that the Hells are pretty much never the most powerful people in the room. Which is usually something you see with a low-level party.

NPCs offering jobs is not a bad thing; it's a very common plot hook. Matt has been extremely skilled with using NPC quest givers in those two campaigns. Not only do they provide an obvious plot thread, but they can put the party in the path of others (say, the Nein running into the Iron Shepherds while doing a job for the Gentleman and everything that came of that). And the Hells had a solid start with it too - Eshteross was an excellent quest giver!

The problem is that Bell's Hells have never really not had a quest giver.

Maybe it's a byproduct of the more plot-heavy structure of this campaign? But while prior parties have felt like they decided on their course of action and what they prioritized, Bell's Hells feels less like level 13 (13! Level 13!) experienced adventurers and more like an MMO group clicking on the exclamation point over an NPC's head. Where does the plot demand we go next? Who do we report back to?

They're level 13.

At level 13, Vox Machina had just defeated a necromantic city-state to clear their name and Percy's conscience. And, you know, the Conclave just destroyed Emon. No one was explicitly telling the group to gather Vestiges and save the world (though Matt guided them there), and they were usually among the most powerful people in the room. They chose which Vestiges to prioritize, which dragons to tackle when, even if the over-all plot was pretty clear.

At level 13, the Mighty Nein were celebrating Traveler Con (another PC goal, I'll note) after brokering peace between two nations, accidentally becoming pirates and heroes of the Dynasty. The Nein regularly chose what to do based on personal goals, not grand ones. Though definitely smaller fish than Vox Machina at this level, they were very independent and gaining solid political clout.

While we're at it: level 13 is one level lower than the Ring of Brass, who had a huge amount of sway over Avalir. They ended the world, and also saved it, while in the grand scheme of things being only a smidge more powerful than Bell's Hells are now.

Can you really see the Hells wielding that amount of influence, when they're constantly being told what to do next?

The god-eater might be unleashed, so Bell's Hells have no time to do anything but what is asked of them. No time for therapy unless stolen from Feywild time, no travel on foot and late-night watches. They haven't even had time to grieve FCG. Percy was grieved in the middle of the Conclave arc. Molly was grieved when half the party was still in irons.

Matt is in the very unfortunate spot of not being able to give the Hells the same agency as the other two parties. Not only because of the world-ending plot introduced so early on; they are surrounded by characters they know (and the cast knows) are stronger and wiser than them - the familiarity of the past PCs and NPCs is to their disadvantage.

Why would the party reasonably ignore Keyleth's task that will help save the world and go off on a romp? Why would the cast when they know well Keyleth has to be sensible and with the best intentions in mind? The stakes are just too high.

It means that the Hells still feel like they're running errands instead of pursuing their own destiny. Their accomplishments are diminished as just being parts of a to-do list, and any stakes feel padded by several level 20 PCs/NPCs standing 5 steps away ready to catch them.

This isn't Bell's Hell's fault, nor is it Matt's. It could be amended, I think, if the Hells are really left to their own devices for a long period of time without support and shortcuts (like during the party split)... which would be really tricky to pull off at this point in the campaign.

They're level 13. They're big fish, but they're stuck in a pond full of friendly sharks, so they don't feel big at all.