#and in the later books she pulled a
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Please drop the name of the book that got tea preparation wrong. I'm a big tea lover but drives me up the wall when people get the details wrong too lol. It's not just a cutesy detail to include for the #aesthetic, there's lots of interesting details about the best ways to make different types of tea!
it was A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers, a book which I fully admit I was reading with overinflated expectations after like 6 people had told me it was their favorite book that year. I loathed that book.
I've quite liked some of her other books but once I go into hunting dog "ripping apart the worldbuilding" mode there's no hope.
#tumblr why did you ALPHABETIZE MY TAGS#but maybe that was all setup and you were supposed to be reading critically!#perhaps in the later books the cracked open the worldbuilding a bit#and revealed things were more complex than they seemed#and in the later books she pulled a#ha! I fooled you in my earlier book but actually a community where everyone lives in tree houses would#be inaccessible to the elderly and disabled there was a whole shadow thing of disappearing undesirables from their perfect utopia!#but i was busy being hung up on WINDOW BOXES????#WINDOW BOXES#and the overall philosophical idea that humans interacting with nature is inherently harmful just seemed so disrespectful#of indigenous people in general#anyway i hated it and will never read the later books to find out
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for ruis birthday i gave him 4 seconds of attention (edit: there’s some ramblings about this design in the tags of my main blog’s reblog in the notes if anyone’s curious!)
#i like this design a lot actually#encore au#robonene maybe a little less#my art#project sekai#rui kamishiro#robonene#does robonene have a tag…?#this one probably turned out so well bc i properly warmed up before i started the sketch#also because sheikah clothing is fun as hell#they popped off with this palette#i’m probably going to redo robonene at a later date i want her to look more robotic#she’s basically the ancient oven/cherry but with more capabilities#also she’s definitely subject to change because nene herself is subject to change designwise#her outfit is so simple compared to rui+tsukasas#emu might also be sort of simple but also she’s gonna have a lot of flowers lol#and seams on her dress probably?#i’ll have to pull out the art book for nene. her outfit is supposed to be a bit of a mix between her own casual and the outfit zelda wears#when she’s out#she’s also the one i have the least to draw off of because her role is more flexible than the others#nene and saki are gonna be the ones giving me the most trouble. augh#and toya..but i have put so little thought into toya that idek where he’s going at this point all i know is that he’s….dead#i’m mostly set on everyone else’s roles though. vbs is the easiest and the hardest because i had the others set in stone#from basically day one#and then toya i have not been able to come up with anything for.#whoops
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should i change my headcanons based upon “i saw it in a dream”
#as far as witcher dreams go this one was extremely mid as i actually woke up from it by going ‘but that doesn’t make any sense’#and i should have done that several times earlier#triss dragging geralt onto this cursed ass cruise ship by feigning illness and then lightly crying about it was the most in character thing#the thing is that in the dream the events of it were being presented ‘to me’ as ‘canon’#as in this was a new book or something a la crossroads so this is part of the lore now#so the thing was that geralt had another company in his 20s but they all died/were cursed/some insanity#one of them (and i only remember this bc it was terrifying for some reason) was turned into a tomcat and they couldnt figure out#how to change him back so they left him with other people and came back like 10 years later#it was like he forgot human life and was also a really old cat so they just allowed him to die as a cat#the other ones were not that interesting i think one was a postmaster who did fisstech and the other was a young mentally deficient girl#who had some powers/was a Source but she got betrayed when triss (yes triss was here) basically abducted geralt#and she took him on a cruise ship and then the game vampires (yeah so this is when i was like ‘what’) showed up#i guess they lived on or were haunting this cruise ship#actually was pretty cool because i got ‘POV lady orianna drinks your blood’ i’m OK with that#however regis and dettlaff showed up and immediately started acting like a monty python sketch or something#they kinda entered swaggeringly to start drinking people and#regis was like ‘ok you go around that side of the room and i’ll go around this side and we’ll take a survey’#and dettlaff was like ‘why drink from all of them to judge the taste just take a few … ‘samples’’#and regis went ‘ohhhhhhhh’ and they had this loud conversation in front of a room of terrified humans#and the dream ended with me basically pausing it and arguing to some other people that this can’t happen because so and so#and i started trying to pull examples/quotes about it#this is the most embarassing and unhinged dream i have had about the witcher i’m going to go hide in a hole now#usually my dreams are some semblance of canon or at least what i like and prefer#dude. regis showed up at the end but his game design. and his outfits were ugly 😭😭😭#the elbow-high diaries#oh but the ONE thing that was kind of cool was seeing how vampires are created#they fall from the sky in stormy weather and are invisible to the human eye and then if they come across another they scream them to death#or not death but dissipation and then they absorb the defeated one’s?? traits or whatever#i kind of like my current idea better but maybe this for like a subset of them or something
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I'm getting really tired of seeing an email from fictionpress telling us we have a message, only for it to be stupid drivel from a bot offering to make art, which would be made with AI most likely, and cost stupid amounts of money for nothing actually good. Sad and pathetic.
#Fictionpress#Bots#I need to write more#May pull Crystal up front later when some of the rest of us aren't as busy internally#So she and they can work on our memoir writing for plural systems book
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hi. for people who saw gatsby: an american myth. do you remember mckee asking nick for lunch. and then gatsby in like the next scene inviting nick for lunch. because i remember.
#not pjo#chitter chatter#when gatsby was like 'we should do lunch' i was like. hello. fucking. hello. are we. hello.#gatsby really said we just met literally 5 minutes ago. come meet my father figure. normal normal thing to do jay.#to be clear gatsby also asks him to go to lunch in the book. but like. there's a time skip. and also#in the show after mckee asks they immediately start making out on the couch. none of this ... nonsense#so the vibes are a LITTLE different in my brain.#i saw a few people say they didnt think gatsby and nick flirted enough and like while i do think that think part of it is we're#in nick's pov but not his HEAD#he DOES start singing about gatsby's smile for no reason until jordon is like. alright buddy. lets talk about daisy.#like nick was just Doing That. pull it together carraway.#but i got the vibe (JUST my take) that gatsby was like. kinda into nick. zero reason to be leaning into his space like that sir.#however when he actually MET daisy again he became kinda singularly focused on her again#i mean he built his whole lifeup to this moment#he says it at the end. he murdered pieces of himself to bring himself here. for DAISY.#him snapping back to daisy mode makes sense to me but he still reaches out for nick as a comfort in the sense that hes like#nick do NOT leave please stay with us. daisy does the same. and ofc part is that theyre really. fucking awkward. but like.#LET ME HAVE MY OWN NONSENSE INTERPRETATIONS. HES TRAPPED BY WHITENESS AND CLASS AND HETEROSEXUALITY.#hes already so much of an outsider trying to fit in. (i also think he loves daisy or an ideal at least. and she's EASIER to love. safer.)#nick inherently has more freedom even as a gay man in the sense that hes richer and white and an ivy league dude i mean you understand righ#right????????#even if its in the book i do wanna point out the parallels between those moments. im choosing to see it as deeply intentional <3#this show had a lot of repetition and parallels (see daisy and myrtle in a lot of songs and scenes)#(one i LOVE is tom giving myrtle a necklace and daisy later giving TOM her necklace in case he sees anyone he knows. idk love that shit)#im...gonna queue this#im embarrassed to talk about this show so much. so. into the queue it goes!!!#all the worlds a stage#so like. anyway. thats where i think nick's mind immediately went when gastsby asked him for lunch. personal headcanon <3#gatsby after one convo: we're doing lunch // me and nick immediately: oh ok! guess that's a date then!
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Sometimes when i’m playing Zelda games I randomly think
Wait
My first game was Windwaker
I was six
How tf did I get as far as I did
When i first encountered the game i watched my brother played cuz he’s was a bitch then(and now) and would never let me play anything besides Mario and Nintendo Land. So i just made a new save file and played myself and ended up getting past the first two dungeons and only got stuck in the forbidden forest. This is before I had any device so i couldn’t look up what to do. I got through all of the dungeon though. I was stuck finding the Big Key. I knew where it was on the map I just didn’t know I had to use the Deku Leaf to get there.
I specifically remember restarting my game multiple times because i couldn’t figure out how to solve it.
I also need to ask when i learned to read because i was reading chapter books by that age.
But nonetheless if I wasn’t put back by that one thing i probably could’ve finished the game when i was six
Also dang i yapped in the tags
#i finished it like five years later#cabbage randomness#but really i was a good reader#i remember my second grade teacher pulling me and a few others aside and giving us a different book to read than the picture books the rest#of the class had. It was like the first Geronimo Stilton book i think and i was so excited because bu that point i had read almost half the#series. I also remember there was a japanese girl in the class who is now in my French class and everyone praised her for knowing japanese#and reading japanese books#like she was just reading manga bro#But thats besides the point#The point is that i somehow was smart enough to read at a higher level than the gifted one#maybe thats why state testing was easy this week#i mean#theres definitely a reason i’m a grade ahead in the subject
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Although the lighteyes/darkeyes conflict was completely bungled (I think we all agree on that), I do appreciate the moments in Words of Radiance where it was good. Or handled in a way that was far better. Even if a lot of the book was still showing signs of the decline.
specifically: I’ve noticed a lot of authors tend to ignore certain moments that are used for jokes or metaphors in regards to their implication. I would not have been surprised if the boots scene was forever forgotten in the plot outside of ‘silly Kaladin grumbling about being robbed’ . That would have been very much expected. But I’m glad that it is at least acknowledged as a shitty thing for Shallan to do. She gets called out on it and is definitively the bad guy in that circumstance.
still though, he should’ve also acknowledged all her worse moments of supporting the lighteyes/darkeyes hierarchy. And literally everything done with the plotline in later books does more than cancel it out. But I think it’s good to remember days when it was in fact not a trainwreck and seemed to have some self-awareness.
#Thinking about Shallan as a character and why she annoyed me in wor#I think part of it was I was still recovering from my being a shit person phase and also I saw too much of myself in her.#So a lot of things I wrote off as annoying and unnecessary were in fact just me being salty#But I have to also say that the chasm sequence really didn’t help#She should not have won any of those debates with Kaladin- except where he wrote her off as cheerful and shallow#But otherwise insane that she basically won the argument#An early sign of the forever decline#Which tbh was there through all of WoR#twok is the only book that I think pulls the plotline off without significant exceptions#Words of radiance is better than the later books but the foreshadowing is there.#I am trying to think of the good moments few as they are#Idk#I am happy that the boots thing was acknowledged as a bad thing and it’s painted as#Kaladin forgiving her and not him admitting that she was right#It does become a joke as I thought it would but they did just enough leg work to pass#Okay I really need to stop having rants this long in the tags#You get the point#shutting up now 🫡
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Tanya the Evil always gives me Emotions when I try to read it, which does make it harder to get thru each book despite how much I love it, but I think I've made a Mistake by trying to read it while listening to Sabaton's "The War to End All Wars" album.
Y'all, I hit the song Versailles while reading Tanya's internal monologue about the cost of war while she was in the mop up of Operation Lock Pick. Y'ALL, when I say I had Too Many Emotions to continue reading, especially while on an airplane surrounded by strangers, I mean I had SO MANY EMOTIONS.
#there's always so much going on in the Tanya books#like I'll literally laugh out loud at something and then three pages later i'm having FEELINGS and need to put the book down to process#like.. objectively Tanya's protagonist halo letting her trigger coincidence after coincidence which makes the Commonwealth foam at the mouth#hunting for the mole/traitor that doesn't exist#and then you'll just get straight up gut punched with the most straightforward “hi yes war is hell and glorifying it is terrible” shit ever#combined with musings about a soldier's duty and the tightrope of survival as a soldier with limited options#and then the gut punch random reminders that Tanya is a super decorated war veteran with a Reputation and she's tiny! she's a child!#and after a point most everyone starts ignoring that outwardly she's a CHILD!#no one knows she's a transmigrator! no one knows she has an entire other life in her head!#they're just running with war genius child mage! she enlisted herself at NINE YEARS OLD! THIS WAS ALLOWED!#She saw her first action at like TEN!#(objectively she IS actively a bit of a war genius tho u know?)#(like she brushes it off as remembering essentially the history of war in our world but y'all..)#(y'all she's pulling memories of war tactics and maneuvers from her mind WITHOUT ABILITY TO REFERENCE ANYTHING)#(she's starting with what little she's being given as orders and what little she knows about the state of the war and the area terrain--#--and repeatedly putting these clues together into the Correct Answer to the point where she startles several superior officers)#(like yes she's not coming up with any of this on her own but she's remembering things she learned about and adding--#--the dimension of magecraft and repeatedly producing the same plan as her superiors without nearly as much current info)#(the amount of memory she needs to have for all those tactics/maneuvers/etc is incredible and shouldn't be discounted)#.... i had Feelings Again whoops#look she's not innocent or kind or good or even a RELIABLE NARRATOR but i love her so much
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Chizu's childhood friend and second-in-command:

So Kaiyo/Fumiko.... What's up with the name change? A mistake, continuity error, they straight up forgor☠️ what they named Chizu's friend, or did the showrunners mean for Fumiko to be totally unrelated to Kaiyo?
Also when I was trying it figure out name meanings Kaiyo is traditionally masculine... And my mind immediately went trans👀?
This cat is trans and there's nothing you can do about it! (yes I know calicos are only female shhhhh)
Also does this imply that Lady Fuwa and whatever ninja in kidnapping children duty didn't check the sex of the baby before said kidnapping? Yes, does this also imply that Lady Fuwa can excuse child abuse but draws the line at transphobia? Also yes. (This is a joke)
Anyway personal headcanons ramble:
Kaiyo/Fumiko is pretty emotionless externally, but inwardly feels and talks a lot
In fear of punishment, I feel like a lot of conversations and bonding happen purely through eye contact in the Neko Ninja Crew, hence thats how Kaiyo/Fumiko keeps staring at the gang
No Gen, they're not staring into your soul and finding it wanting, its how they bond
Also idk if Mandela effect or not but flashback Kaiyo/Fumiko had the same design as Hanna right? I didn't imagine that? Anyway Kaiyo/Fumiko recognizes a kindred spirit and gifts their old scarf
Also! I don't think I mentioned this in last post about Kaiyo/Fumiko but their design is based off concept art Chizu and the Neko Ninja uniform
Is so so excited that Chizu has friends!!!! Multiple!!! And they care about her!!! And she cares about them!!!
Kitsune's their favorite cuz she talked shit directly to Lady Fuwa and wanted to squash her with a mech
There's 3 days left!!! For Korat Neko Ninja Name Poll
#samurai rabbit: the usagi chronicles#samurai rabbit the usagi chronicles#samurai rabbit#the usagi chronicles#srtuc#srtuc neko ninja#srtuc neko ninja crew#samurai rabbit neko ninja#samurai rabbit neko ninja crew#for transmasc lady fuwa has like a book of names that she makes the children pick from and thats how Kaiyo got a traditionally masc name#and wont be years later till they realize why Kaiyo insisted on a *boy* name#also i pulled an all nighter doing the other neko ninja and orphans lol#dw i took a nap later in the day#i looked at the time and it was almsot 5am i was in The Zone#srtuc chizu#samurai rabbit chizu#tumblr poll#tumblr polls
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see the thing is i do have two different tiefling bard ocs who live in the city of baldur’s gate. but i can’t think too hard about both of them being in the same place at the same time. like it just doesn’t compute. i struggle to imagine them interacting bc i think rhapsody would be head over heels obsessed with xarrai instantly but idk that xarrai would necessarily even notice that she’s there? which is an extremely silly dynamic. rhapsody like, isn’t shy at all either but i still don’t even know if she would Approach xar bc i think she would be wildly intimidated right off the bat by a 6’3” bard who is actually good at their job and not just book smart. i think she would go “well okay i guess they’ve got this bard thing covered! got to go bye!” and try her best to sneak out of the bar without being noticed
#the problem is i think they Will need to interact sooner or later bc i know xarrai is lurking somewhere in this campaign#rhapsody is just a silly little nerd who occasionally pulls of some decent barding#but mostly she is traipsing around with her lyre and getting attacked by sentient bookshelves bc she can’t resist a good book#and occasionally sentient brooms i guess.#like she did finish off one of our major boss fights once but it was just kind of a fluke bc she also missed him like 3 times before that#she got a good grade in circus tho.#that did happen to her.#which was awesome.#meanwhile i guess in this universe where they weren’t the protagonist of bg3 xarrai has mostly been chilling#like realistically i think that motherfucker is dead in any universe where they Aren’t tav but in this one i guess they like#idk.#left the city for a few months while all that bullshit happened and came back like nothing ever happened LOL#漫言#oc. xarrai#oc. rhapsody
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remembering thatpart of the chronicles or prydain where taran asks eilonwy to gird his new sword about him and she is thrilled at first before he comments that its because shes just so happens to be the only girl around
#ngl id cry a little bit if my leman girded my sword on me#in the books this is before they stop being young and dumb about it#later on she pulls an arwen and sews a war-banner for him#peak romance
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una cosa va la otra……..
#lena.txt#talking to myself#okay three tasks down and three more to go 😅#i had my therapy session and i made parking reservations for next sunday with alex#i made an appointment with my psychatrist and booked therapy for next week#i still have to call my obgyn about my birth control#i still have to file my taxes and the big one is my appointment with the snap benefits person 🤞🏻#and if i still have any steam after that i have messages to respond to 🫣#it’s been a very productive week so far i have made 90 watermour text post memes#but i did an important thing by bringing my cat to the vet to get her echo (which came back all clear)#i feel so bad she has to get a few teeth pulled tho and she hates going to vet so much 😔#but i’m really glad that besides the dental issue she’s in good health and all her vitals and yearly tests look good#maybe if i’m feeling extra brave later i’ll even watch all of the tiktoks my friends and family have sent me the past few weeks#and i’ll probably watch some sopranos and obviously my daily asmr to get me through the day#personal
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Today was pretty dope.
First, I pulled this one full art vmax umbreon with trainer karen card from my calendars booster pack, then we could leave school earlier due to a teacher still being sick, then the birthday gift from my sis arrived and it was the GF comic!!! and lastly I got pictures of two villagers today.
Really really awesome.
#dragon's stupid thoughts#I'm telling you pulling this card and that lil dopamine? serotonin? rush had the same effect as coffee to me#i was awake pretty quickly and not tired at school#still got that nap attack later at home...#anyway. my sis is THE BEST. she as good as always gets me my most wanted item on my wish list#sadly I couldn't read it yet cuz it was late and I wasn't done with my dailies in acnh yet#but tomorrow!!!!#finally after all these years. I've got them all. all three books. he he
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After Hours

pairing | au!bucky x teacher!reader
word count | 7.8k words
summary | when bucky barnes keeps showing up early to pick up his nephew from school, it’s definitely not just about being a good uncle—it’s about the sharp, no-nonsense kindergarten teacher who won’t give him the time of day. one desperate club night and a locked bathroom later, you finally do.
tags | (18+) MDNI, unprotected sex, p in v, semi-public sex, rough sex, oral sex (f!receiving), dominant!bucky, flirty!bucky, modern au, cocky!bucky, no-nonsense!reader, slow burn to smut, mutual pining, enemies to lovers-ish, no description of reader, BUT reader does have surname (racially ambiguous as always), ABBOTT ELEMENTARY CROSSOVER (this is fanfiction so I can do whatever I want)
a/n | this is filthy you guys, based on this request, and after reading this if you haven't I beg you to watch abbott elementary, literally rewatching for the fourth time, it's everything and changed my entire personality
likes comments and reblogs are much appreciated ✨✨
ᴍᴀsᴛᴇʀʟɪsᴛ
divider by @cafekitsune
“You do realize we’re ten minutes late, right?”
The voice came from the backseat—small, unimpressed, and filled with the kind of quiet disappointment usually reserved for tax season and slow Wi-Fi.
Bucky glanced at his rearview mirror and caught sight of his nephew, Danny, hair flattened oddly on one side from sleep, Superman backpack twice the size of his torso, and the most judgmental frown a five-year-old could possibly muster.
Bucky cleared his throat, shooting the kid his best reassuring grin. “Ten minutes is nothing, buddy. Trust me. Back in the day, I once showed up to basic training a whole hour late.”
Danny blinked. “Did you get yelled at?”
“Oh, absolutely.”
“Did you cry?”
“…No.”
Danny leaned back in his booster seat like a seasoned war general staring down a doomed campaign. “Ms. Lane’s gonna be mad.”
Bucky huffed a laugh as he pulled into the parking lot, spotting a scattering of parents still dropping kids off at the entrance. “Your teacher’s not gonna be upset you when I explain. You’re five. You’ve got diplomatic immunity.”
Danny shook his head slowly, solemnly.
“Not with me. You.”
Bucky paused mid-parallel-park, one hand still on the wheel, his brow furrowing. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Danny didn’t answer. Just stared straight ahead at the entrance to Abbott Elementary like it was the last checkpoint before war. Like he was waiting for the music from The Godfather to start playing.
“You’ll see,” he said simply, grabbing his backpack straps like they were armor.
Bucky frowned as he helped him out of the car. “What’s with the dramatics, huh? She gonna throw a book at me?”
Danny shrugged. “She’s just… Ms. Lane.”
And with that, the kid marched ahead like a tiny soldier into the building, leaving Bucky trailing behind, wondering what the hell kind of teacher scared a kindergartner more than a DC-level supervillain.
He was about to find out.
Bucky followed Danny down the hallway, trying not to feel like he was walking into a parent-teacher trap. It smelled like crayons, wet sneakers, and disillusionment.
A cluster of teachers loitered near the front office—one of them with an armful of broken rulers, one loudly arguing with a printer, and one sipping coffee with the grace of a woman who’d already survived decades of nonsense.
He made a beeline for her. Elegant, composed, a pearl necklace that said “respect me,” and an aura of calm he hadn’t felt since his last decent nap.
“Ms. Lane?” Bucky asked, offering a smile that had gotten him out of more than one parking ticket. “Sorry for the delay, I was doing my sister a favor—her son, Danny? He’s in your class.”
The woman blinked up at him, unimpressed. He could practically hear the mental pen clicking as she filed him under Oh no, not another one.
“I am Mrs. Howard,” she said, calmly correcting Bucky like he'd just misquoted Scripture. “Ms. Lane is the other kindergarten teacher.”
Bucky opened his mouth to apologize, but she wasn’t done.
“She’s just down the hall. Room 3B.” Then came the pause. The head tilt. The look.
“Young man…” She gave him a once-over. Not flirtatious. Not judgmental. Just quietly disappointed—like he'd shown up to church in jeans.
Bucky blinked. “Yes, ma’am?”
Mrs. Howard offered a solemn shake of her head. “Good luck.”
And with that, she turned and glided off, coffee in hand, already done with his entire existence.
Bucky stood in the hallway for a second, frowning. How bad could this Ms. Lane be? What, was she going to quiz him on phonics or glare him into a coma?
The door was already open a crack, but Bucky still knocked first, because that’s what you did when walking into enemy territory.
There was no chaos. No screeching. No glue sticks flying through the air. Which was immediately suspicious for a kindergarten class.
Instead, he stepped inside to find… silence.
Twenty tiny heads bent over worksheets like they were prepping for the SATs. Crayons moved in eerie unison. No one screamed. No one licked a desk. A kid in the back raised his hand quietly—quietly—to ask if he could use the bathroom.
That was his first warning.
Because when were kindergarteners ever quiet?
Bucky hesitated in the doorway, feeling like he’d just stumbled into enemy territory. What kind of boot camp were they running in here?
Danny nudged him forward, but Bucky’s attention was already drifting to the figure at the whiteboard across the room—spine straight, skirt fitted, heels clicking as you scrawled a date across the board with clean, efficient precision. You didn’t look up. You didn’t need to.
You radiated authority from thirty feet away.
He half-expected to see gray hair, maybe glasses on a chain. Strict. Sharp. The kind of teacher whose name gets spoken in terrified whispers on playgrounds.
Then you turned around.
And Bucky’s mouth dried up instantly.
You weren’t old. You weren’t scary. You were stunning. Not just pretty—gorgeous. The kind of beautiful that hits you like a left hook. And you didn’t smile when you saw him. Of course you didn’t.
You just turned, one brow raised, assessing him like a problem you were deciding whether to fix or eliminate.
Bucky cleared his throat, defaulting to his most practiced, most lethal move: the smile. The one that had gotten him out of bar fights, jury duty, and once, weirdly, an IKEA return policy.
“Hi. Sorry—I’m Bucky Barnes,” he said, stepping inside. “Danny’s uncle. Rebecca asked me to drop him off today. It’s my first time—”
“Kids are supposed to be in class by eight,” you interrupted, voice calm, level, and sharp enough to slice drywall. “It’s eight fifteen.”
Right. Okay.
The smile faltered just a fraction.
You crossed your arms, waiting, watching him like you were unimpressed by his entire bloodline.
Danny, standing a little behind Bucky now, mumbled, “Told you so.”
Bucky sighed and shot him a look before stepping forward a bit, trying again with a little more Sergeant, a little less smug.
“Yeah,” Bucky said, holding onto the edge of that smile. “That’s on me. My sister got called in early, and I didn’t realize traffic near the school was… a situation.” He gave a little shrug, trying to soften the blow. “It’s only fifteen minutes.”
One kid—front row, bowl cut, way too invested—visibly winced for him as you took a step closer to him. Bucky barely caught the movement before he felt the weight of your stare.
“Danny,” you said, never breaking eye contact with Bucky, “you can go take your seat.”
Danny didn’t hesitate. He made a beeline for his desk like he was escaping a hostage situation, never once glancing back at his uncle.
You turned your full attention on Bucky then, your eyes sweeping him head to toe in a single motion so dry, so thoroughly unimpressed, it made his spine straighten instinctively.
“Fifteen minutes,” you said, voice still perfectly pleasant, “is long enough for a child to lose their morning routine. It’s long enough to miss foundational learning, to feel behind before they’ve even started the day. It’s long enough to build a habit of dismissing responsibility.”
Bucky opened his mouth.
You didn’t stop.
“Fifteen minutes late to school turns into fifteen minutes late to interviews. Fifteen minutes late to jobs. Fifteen minutes late to life. That might not seem like much to you, Mr. Barnes, but to a five-year-old trying to learn structure in an unpredictable world? It matters.”
A low “oooh” rippled through the class like someone had just witnessed a verbal assassination.
You turned your head—just slightly—and every single one of them went silent like a switch had been flipped.
Then you turned back to Bucky with a smile so polished it might’ve passed for genuine, if not for the gleam in your eye that said this isn’t over, and you will remember me.
“Have a good day, Mr. Barnes.”
He blinked. “I—”
“Have a good day, Mr. Barnes.”
His mouth shut. His posture shifted. He nodded, respectful this time. “Of course.”
You turned back to the whiteboard without another word, already moving on like he was just a bump in your perfectly structured morning.
As Bucky stepped out of the classroom, he glanced back over his shoulder one last time.
The kids were still silent.
You were still terrifying.
And now?
You were stuck in his head.
From then on, Bucky made a small but strategic adjustment to his week.
He got Rebecca to agree—grudgingly, at first—to let him handle school drop-off twice a week and pick-up three times. It was about being involved. Showing up. Being a solid, male figure in Danny’s life. A steady one. That’s what he told himself. And his sister.
And sure, maybe it was also because Danny’s kindergarten teacher was the most infuriatingly magnetic person Bucky had ever met.
Ms. Lane.
You.
Every time he stepped into that classroom—on time, now, thank you very much—you were there. Clipboard in hand, spine like steel, eyes that didn’t blink when he smiled at you like he’d invented it.
You never giggled. Never blushed. Never let him get so much as a twitch of a lip curl when he dropped a line like, “Careful, you keep looking at me like that and people are gonna think we’re in a PTA scandal.”
Nothing.
You’d just stare at him, arch a brow, and hand him a paper that said ‘Parent Reading Night RSVP – Required.’
At one point, he was pretty sure you gave Janine more reaction for sneezing glitter.
And the worst part?
The kids loved you. Danny adored you. Sure, you also partially terrified them all, but you had their respect. Which meant Bucky couldn’t even pretend to resent the way you owned every room you walked into. He just had to lean in, play along, keep showing up, and try not to let it get to him when you ended every conversation with a clinical “Have a good day, Mr. Barnes,” like he was some stranger in a waiting room.
So he tried harder.
He wore better jackets.
When Becs didn't have the time, he made Danny’s lunches look like they were packed by Pinterest moms.
He learned all the traffic patterns around Abbott to avoid being even one minute late.
He even tried calling you “Ms. Lane” in that flirty voice he’d once used on girls outside jazz clubs in Brooklyn.
You looked up from your lesson plans, dead-eyed, and said, “Are you choking, or is that how you normally talk?”
You were unshakable.
Immovable.
He was in hell.
Beautiful, dry, completely-uninterested-in-him hell.
And he couldn’t stop coming back.
The door creaked open just as you were nodding along to whatever Janine was rambling about—something involving manifesting healthy communication with her plants or possibly something about moon phases and exes.
You barely suppressed a sigh. You liked Janine in small doses. She was enthusiastic. Kind. Chronically incapable of taking a hint. And lately, she’d made it her personal mission to turn your life into a rom-com, complete with imaginary “will-they-won’t-they” tension and way too much commentary.
“See, what I’m saying is, if he keeps showing up early, that’s basically a love confession. And if you weren’t so emotionally repressed—”
The door opened and he walked in.
Bucky Barnes strolled into your classroom like he owned a portion of the lease. Jacket unzipped, sleeves rolled, hair an intentional mess. He gave Janine a familiar nod and then locked his gaze on you like he always did—like you were the only person in the room.
He smiled. That easy, smirky, I-know-you-hate-this-but-maybe-you-don’t kind of smile.
“Ladies,” he greeted smoothly. “Miss Teagues. Ms. Lane.”
You didn’t look up from your clipboard. “You’re early.”
“Yeah, figured I’d show up before the bell, for once.” He leaned against the edge of a desk, far too casual. “I hear being punctual really impresses a certain someone.”
You deadpanned, “My class is in the library for story time. They won’t be back for another twenty minutes.”
He grinned. “Guess I’ll just have to entertain myself then.”
“God, you two are so adorable,” Janine burst out, hands clasped like she’d just walked in on a Hallmark movie climax. “The way you flirt—so classic enemies to lovers. It’s giving Pride and Prejudice. But like, modern. And in a school.”
You didn’t even blink.
“Janine. Leave.”
You looked at her. Just looked. One long, unimpressed, soul-shearing glance.
“Right. Right, right, right,” she mumbled, fumbling for her tote bag. “I have… bulletin board stuff. Laminating. Paper… science.”
She took two steps backward, then paused, giving Bucky the most exaggerated wink a human could physically perform.
You didn’t react. You were too tired.
She nodded like she was passing the torch of your romantic destiny and literally backed out of the classroom like Homer Simpson into a hedge.
The door clicked shut.
Bucky exhaled dramatically, like he’d just survived a natural disaster. “She’s like a human glitter bomb. No warning. No escape.”
You didn’t look up from your clipboard. “She’s enthusiastic. It’s exhausting.”
He chuckled, low and knowing. “So I guess that means I’m not your type either.”
“You’re not glittery.”
“Oh, come on,” he said, stepping closer, that damn smile still lingering at the corners of his mouth. “I sparkle a little.”
You glanced at him then—slowly, flatly.
“You always this persistent?” you asked, voice dry as ever.
He tilted his head, hands sliding into his jacket pockets like he had all the time in the world. “You always this impossible to impress?”
You shrugged, tapping your pen once against the clipboard before setting it down. “Only with people who try this hard.”
He gave a low whistle, grinning like you’d just scored a point in a game he didn’t mind losing. “Damn, but I bet if I said I was here for the stimulating curriculum and not to see you, you'd kick me out.”
“I’d consider it,” you said coolly. “But I’m invested in Danny’s education.”
“Ouch.”
He stepped a little closer again, but not too close. Like he was testing a line with his toe, just to see if you’d swat him back or finally step over it yourself.
“I ever make you laugh, Ms. Lane?” he asked, real curiosity under the velvet of the question.
You raised an eyebrow. “Do you want a sticker if you do?”
His grin turned into something a little rougher. “I’d rather earn one of those gold stars I see on your discipline chart.”
You didn’t smile. Not quite. But there was a flicker in your eyes he caught anyway, and his grin deepened like he’d won something.
You turned back to your desk, flipping a folder open without looking at him again.
“You know,” he said, glancing around your empty classroom, “this is the quietest I’ve ever seen it. Kind of eerie. I was starting to think the kids were fake—like one of those training simulations.”
You gave a low, unimpressed hum. “If they were fake, they wouldn’t sneeze directly into my coffee when I’m not looking.”
He chuckled, eyeing your desk. “Is that why you’ve got three different mugs over there? Just in case?”
You didn't respond. But the faint upward curve of your mouth—blink-and-miss-it—was the closest he’d gotten to a laugh since the first day he met you.
It made something curl low in his stomach.
“I know I keep saying this, but I’m not just here to bug you,” Bucky said after a beat, his voice edging toward sincere despite the grin still playing at his mouth. “Danny likes it when I pick him up. Says it makes him feel cool when I show up.”
You looked up, just slightly. “He does like showing you off.”
Bucky’s smile softened, just a little. “Kid’s got good taste.”
Then his eyes slid back to you, the cocky glint returning. “Speaking of good taste—what are the odds I could convince you to grab coffee sometime?”
You gave him a long, slow blink. Not mean. Just… devastatingly neutral.
He added, “I’ll be on time. And I promise not to flirt with the barista.”
You opened your mouth—possibly to respond, possibly to destroy him—but before a single word could land, the bell rang.
Shrill. Loud. Unforgiving.
You sighed like the universe had interrupted you on purpose.
“Danny’ll be waiting for you outside the library,” you said, already picking up the clipboard again like this was over and done. “Probably trying to con the librarian into letting him borrow another comic book.”
Bucky hesitated. “So… is that a maybe on the coffee?”
You didn’t even look up. “It’s a ‘your nephew’s in the library.’”
He grinned, slow and crooked. “I’ll take that as a soft yes.”
You arched an eyebrow. “Take it however you want, Barnes. Just go get your kid.”
He turned toward the door, still smiling, still smug—but quieter now. And before stepping out, he glanced back one more time.
You were already back to your paperwork.
But you hadn’t said no.
Bucky was still smirking to himself as he stepped out of your classroom and into the hallway—clearly riding high off your non-answer like it was a personal victory.
And, as luck would have it, he walked directly into Principal Ava Coleman’s path.
She had sunglasses on indoors and a folder she clearly hadn’t opened all week tucked under one arm.
“Good afternoon,” he said politely, offering her a nod and a half-smile.
Ava turned so fast it was like she’d been waiting for this exact moment. “Oh it is now,” she said, eyes raking over him so blatantly Bucky actually paused mid-step.
She watched him until he rounded the corner, then turned on a heel and bee-lined straight for your classroom, heels clicking like trouble.
She leaned into your doorway with no regard for your personal space or your peace of mind.
You didn’t even look up as she strolled through your door, “Girl.”
You kept sorting worksheets. “Ava.”
She gave you a look like she just walked in on free tickets to a concert and front-row seats.
“Now that is the finest white man I’ve seen this whole year,” she said, plopping down into one of the tiny student chairs with zero grace and maximum chaos.
You glanced up, deadpan. “It’s March.”
Ava rolled her eyes. “I meant school year. Don’t try and be smart with me.”
You arched a brow. “Wasn’t trying.”
She pointed a perfectly manicured nail toward the door. “You better quit playing with that man’s heart before I mess around and pull rank.”
You blinked once. “I’m not playing with anything.”
Ava smirked. “Girl, please. You’ve got him showing up early on purpose. That man’s in here more than Gregory and he actually works here.”
You didn’t respond right away. Just gathered your things slowly, expression unreadable.
Then: “He’s annoying.”
Ava stood, smooth as silk. “Mm-hm. And yet he’s got you so annoyed you keep your lipstick fresh after lunch.”
You glanced at her, unimpressed.
“I’m just saying,” Ava continued, striding around the room like she owned it (she technically did, unfortunately), “if you don’t take him, I will. That man is gonna give me some fine, emotionally stable mixed babies.”
You looked at her. Just looked. Slightly disgusted, mostly exhausted.
“Ava. Seriously?”
“What?” she asked, clearly unbothered. “You’re the one over here acting like you don’t notice. Always so uptight, hair all sleeked back like you’re about to defend someone in court. Girl, this is a school.”
You pinched the bridge of your nose. “Ava, what do you want?”
“I’m going out tonight,” she said, waving a perfectly manicured hand like this was some kind of decree. “Clubbing. Drinks. Vibes. You’re coming.”
You didn’t even flinch. “Absolutely not.”
She pointed. “You’re coming.”
“No.”
“I’m your boss. You’re forced to. It’s in your contract.”
“It’s really not.”
“Also,” she added, shrugging, “you’re the closest thing to an equal I’ve got in this place. So you’re coming for moral support.”
You finally looked up, full eye contact. “Ava. No.”
She pointed at you. “Nine o’clock. I’m texting you the address. Now go home, let your hair down and let your scalp breathe for once. Wear something that says ‘I’m open to bad decisions.’ Not ‘I’m about to read you your Miranda rights.’”
You opened your mouth to decline again, but she was already halfway down the hall, yelling something about “energy healing” and “pre-gaming with affirmations.”
You sighed.
Loudly.

“You gotta stop lookin’ like someone stole your dog,” Sam said, nudging his shoulder as they walked toward the club entrance. “You’re killin’ the vibe.”
Bucky shot him a look. “You dragged me out.”
“I’m saving your sad, one-woman-man life,” Sam said. “You need to remember other women exist, Buck. The world’s bigger than that kindergarten teacher who makes you sweat like you’re back in basic.”
Bucky sighed, scanning the line outside the club. “You’re not gonna let this go, are you?”
“Nope.” Sam clapped him on the back. “C’mon. Maybe the actual girl of your dreams is in here.”
“Already found her.”
“You are so damn whipped, man,” Sam muttered.
Inside, the club was all neon glow and bass-heavy music. The air pulsed with energy and cheap cologne. Bucky kept his hands in his jacket pockets, jaw tense as Sam tried to steer him toward the bar.
And then he saw you.
You were standing near a tall cocktail table, back to him, dress hugging every curve like it was tailored by sin itself. That deep burgundy color against your skin, the sheer lace sleeves, the neckline that made his mouth go dry—fuck.
It was like the air got sucked right out of the building.
He stopped walking. Just… stopped.
Sam bumped into him. “What? Don’t tell me you already gave up—”
Bucky lifted a hand, pointing without looking away. “That’s her.”
Sam followed his gaze. “That’s Ms. Lane?”
Bucky nodded, dumbfounded. “Yeah.”
“She teaches kindergarten?”
“Yeah.”
Sam stared a moment longer. “I’ve never wanted to re-enroll in school so bad in my life.”
Bucky’s jaw worked. You hadn’t noticed him yet. You were talking to someone—smiling, even, which was a rare enough sight that it nearly took him out.
Then he saw who was beside you.
“Oh. Ava’s here too.”
Sam turned. “Who’s Ava?”
“The principal.”
Sam blinked. “You’re telling me the tall one with the long hair and wearing that is the principal?”
“Yep.”
“I’m calling Sarah,” Sam said, already reaching for his phone. “We’re transferring my nephews.”
Bucky didn’t respond. His eyes were locked on you—his teacher, his girl, his quiet obsession—laughing in a club with a dress that made his palms sweat. All those weeks of buttoned-up shirts and sarcastic dismissals, and now here you were, looking like a damn vision.
Sam nudged him. “You gonna stand there drooling or go say something?”
“I can’t.”
“Why?”
“I think I’m in love.”
Sam rolled his eyes hard. “God, you’re so dramatic.”
But Bucky didn’t hear him. You’d turned just enough for your eyes to start sweeping the room, and the moment you looked in his direction—
He knew you saw him.
And he knew everything was about to change.
The club pulsed around you—sweaty, crowded, way too loud—and you were already regretting everything.
You weren’t the kind of woman who went out on Friday nights. You were the kind who wrote parent emails about glitter-related injuries and kept a drawer full of emergency dry-erase markers.
The kind who dodged PTA moms like landmines and maintained a firm no-nonsense reputation because the moment you didn’t, someone’s child would be climbing the bookshelf like it was Everest.
But here you were. Burgundy dress, heels too high, lip gloss too shiny, sipping on a drink that tasted vaguely like regret and melted candy.
Ava was beaming beside you, obviously thriving. “Now this is what I’m talking about,” she said, swaying to the music. “You, me, outfits that should be illegal. This is the energy we need.”
You took a sip, trying not to look like you wanted to crawl out of your own skin. “I already want to go home.”
“You always want to go home. You're, like, emotionally married to your couch.”
You opened your mouth to reply, but then Ava froze—gasped like someone had pulled the fire alarm—and grabbed your arm with enough force to startle you.
“Girl. Girl. You will not believe who just walked in right now.”
You frowned, confused. “What—”
“Look.”
You followed her eye line. The club suddenly felt ten degrees hotter.
Bucky Barnes stood at the entrance, taller than anyone else around him, leather jacket open over a dark henley, hair tousled, mouth set in that stupid half-smirk like he knew he didn’t belong there and didn’t care. His blue eyes scanned the crowd like he was looking for someone.
And then they landed on you.
Oh no.
No.
“This is not happening right now,” you muttered, nearly tripping over your own words. “I have got to get out of here.”
You turned, already strategizing your exit route, but Ava threw an arm out in front of you like she was stopping traffic.
“Girl, forget you. Look at that man’s fine ass friend.”
You blinked, turning your head just enough to catch him—Bucky’s friend. Broad shoulders. Clean-cut. Smiling already like he knew how this worked. His eyes were on Ava like she was a problem he was already planning to solve.
“Hell yes,” Ava said. “That’s my man. Manifested. Claimed.”
You were too busy trying to make your brain reboot. Because Bucky was still watching you. He hadn’t looked away once. Like you were the only person in the club. His mouth curved slightly. Not cocky. Not playful. Just… locked in. Sure.
And damn him—you felt it. That same heat in your chest you pretended didn’t exist every time he came to pick up Danny. Except now, there was no desk between you. No escape.
And then, the inevitable.
The two pairs drifted toward each other. Like planets colliding. Like destiny had a sick sense of humor.
It was Ava who broke the silence first.
“Hi,” she said to Bucky’s friend, offering a hand like she expected it to be kissed. “Ava Coleman. Principal. Administrator. Visionary. And I know you’re about to buy me a drink.”
Sam blinked once, clearly amused. “Sam Wilson. Nice to meet you, Ms. Visionary.”
“Mmhm. I know.” Ava looped her arm through his like it was nothing. “Let’s go, future Mr. Coleman.”
You turned, shocked. “Ava—”
She didn’t even glance back. “You’re on your own, counselor. Don’t mess this up.”
And with that, she strutted away with Sam trailing behind her, clearly both confused and deeply invested.
You turned back to find Bucky still standing there.
Still watching you.
And now it was just the two of you.
No classroom.
No clipboard.
No rules.
Just you. And him. And the truth you’d been ignoring.
He smiled.
And you suddenly couldn’t remember a single reason why you ever told yourself he wasn’t dangerous.
Bucky stood there for a second longer, drinking you in.
The lace sleeves. The curve of your waist. The neckline that made his brain stop working for a solid five seconds. It wasn’t just the dress—it was you in it. Out of your usual uniform. Out of your guarded shell. Still composed, but softer somehow. Looser.
“You look—” he started, voice low.
“Hot?” you cut in, arching an eyebrow, mouth twitching just enough to betray your awareness.
He laughed, quiet, head tipping slightly. “I was gonna say amazing. But hot works too.”
You rolled your eyes and took a slow sip of your drink to hide the way your pulse jumped.
Bucky stepped closer, just enough to speak without raising his voice. “I didn’t think you went to places like this.”
“I don’t. Ava dragged me.”
You glanced past him, where Ava was already leaned over the bar with Sam looking both impressed and slightly alarmed.
“And now she’s dragging him,” you murmured.
Bucky followed your gaze and let out a soft chuckle. “Should we check on them?”
“No,” you said instantly. “Let natural selection take its course.”
He grinned again—less smug this time. Quieter. More real. The kind of smile that said he’d missed seeing you. The kind that made your breath catch a little deeper than you wanted to admit.
You took another sip, letting the pause stretch, then tilted your head at him.
The music pounded around you. People brushed past. The lights shifted.
But it felt like everything stilled between you and him.
“I thought maybe, outside the classroom... you’d stop pretending I’m not getting to you.”
Your grip on your drink tightened slightly.
You didn’t look away.
You should have.
But you didn’t.
Instead, you held his gaze like it was a contest. Like you were daring him to blink first. Your chin stayed lifted, eyes steady, but something behind them flickered—just for a second.
Bucky saw it. That crack in your wall. And God help him, it made his pulse jackhammer in his throat.
You tilted your head slightly, that same biting calm in your voice. “You really think you’re getting to me?”
He stepped in closer, slow, careful—not touching you, but close enough that the heat rolled off him like static. “No,” he said. “I know I am.”
Your throat worked on a swallow you tried to hide, but Bucky clocked it.
You were still composed. Still wrapped in that hard-earned edge of professionalism, like even now, in heels and lace, you could throw a behavioral chart at him and end the whole thing.
But your body betrayed you.
The shift of your weight. The way your breath hitched when he looked at your mouth.
You didn’t push him away.
“You always this arrogant?” you asked, voice like silk-wrapped steel.
“Only when I’m right.”
You opened your mouth, probably to put him in his place again—but then the music shifted, a heavy, pulsing bass dropping in from the DJ booth. A sea of people moved on the dance floor, but the space between you and him felt small. Pressurized.
His eyes dipped to your lips, then back up.
“Dance with me,” he said.
You blinked. “What?”
His smirk curled slowly. “You heard me.”
You scoffed, already shaking your head. “I don’t dance.”
“Sure you do. You just don’t want to with me.”
“Accurate.”
“But you will.” He leaned in, voice brushing the shell of your ear now. “Because I’m asking. And because for once, I don’t think you want to walk away.”
You hated how that made your stomach flip. Hated it even more when he held out a hand—not cocky, not smug. Just… waiting.
You stared at it.
Then at him.
Then, slowly, you slid your hand into his.
And that was all he needed.
Big win. Massive win.
He tugged you gently into the swell of bodies, his hand warm against yours, his other settling lightly on your waist. And when he pulled you close—closer than you’d ever let him stand before—you didn’t pull back.
You danced.
At first, stiff. Calculated. Like you were trying to make it not mean something.
But Bucky? He knew how to move. Knew how to guide without pushing, how to lean in just enough to make your head spin. Every time your hips brushed, every time his hand slipped an inch lower on your back, you felt it in your knees.
You hated him for being good at this.
You hated yourself more for liking it.
And when his lips brushed your ear again, breath hot and voice low, you barely heard the words over the music:
“Just admit it.”
You swallowed, refusing to answer.
He smiled against your skin.
He already knew.
You didn’t answer.
Couldn’t.
Because something inside you snapped the second his breath touched your neck. And the next thing you knew, your fingers were gripping his wrist, dragging him behind you through the crowd with single-minded purpose. Not speaking. Not thinking. Just moving.
Bucky didn’t ask where you were going.
Didn’t need to.
He followed like a man being led to his own damn salvation.
You found the restroom near the back—single occupancy, thank God—and yanked the door open, pulling him in after you. The lock clicked behind you just as his mouth crashed into yours.
It wasn’t gentle.
There was no space for that anymore.
You kissed like you’d been waiting weeks to do it—months actually. All teeth and tongue and heat, his hands gripping your waist like he still couldn’t believe you were real. You pressed him back against the wall, palms flat on his chest, lips dragging along his jaw, biting at the curve of his neck just to feel him shudder.
His hands roamed—your waist, your hips, sliding lower, greedy, hungry, completely unrestrained. His mouth returned to yours, catching your gasp mid-kiss as he backed you against the sink now, one hand curling around the back of your neck, the other on your thigh, tugging it up around his waist.
“You sure?” he murmured against your mouth, breath ragged.
You answered by dragging his lower lip between your teeth.
“Fuck,” he breathed.
He kissed you harder.
Sloppier.
Desperate.
The kind of kiss that said he didn’t care about the lipstick smudging or the way your dress rode up or how his belt buckle knocked against the porcelain edge of the sink. It was all teeth and moans and hands gripping too tight.
Your fingers slid under his jacket, then his shirt, pushing it up, needing to feel skin—hot, firm, real. You ran your nails over his stomach and he groaned like it physically hurt to be touched that way.
“You have no idea what you’re doing to me,” he panted.
You gripped his belt, pulling his hips flush to yours. “You’ve got a pretty good idea what you’re doing to me too.”
He looked down at you like he was already wrecked—and still starving.
Like this wasn’t enough.
Like it was never going to be enough.
Then suddenly Bucky let out a breathless laugh, eyes darting around the cramped bathroom as he made sure to lock the door behind you. “In here? Really?”
You smirked, stepping backward until your back met the cool tile wall, the sink brushing your hip. “What?” you said, voice teasing, eyes locked on his. “You’ve never fucked in a public bathroom before?”
He tilted his head, a grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Have you?”
You shrugged, that slow, calculated way that always made him insane. “First time for everything.”
He stared at you for a beat, eyes dark and full of heat—then moved.
He was on you in a flash, hands braced on either side of your head, mouth finding yours again in a kiss that tasted like restraint snapping in half. It was messy, all tongue and teeth, lips crashing together.
Your hands threaded into his hair, tugging, nails scraping against his scalp as he kissed you harder, deeper, needier. His body pressed into yours, firm and unrelenting, and you gasped when you felt the hard line of his cock against your thigh.
Then he dropped.
Literally—dropped to his knees, palms dragging down your sides with reverence and greed.
“Bucky—”
“Shh,” he murmured, voice rough as his eyes flicked up to meet yours. “Let me.”
His hands pushed your dress up slowly, worshipfully, bunching the burgundy fabric around your hips. He hooked a finger into your panties, pulled them to the side, and let out a soft, guttural groan.
“Jesus Christ…”
Then he dove in.
His mouth pressed against your cunt like he was starving, tongue parting your folds with a groan that vibrated against you. You cried out—soft, sharp—your hands flying to his hair again as he started to lick, slow and purposeful. Long, wet strokes that made your knees go weak.
One hand clutched the sink for balance, the other fisted in his hair as he sucked your clit into his mouth, groaning like you were the best thing he’d ever tasted.
You bit your lip to keep quiet—pointless, really. Your hips bucked against his face and he held you there, arms locking around your thighs, face buried between your legs like he had no intention of coming up for air.
“You taste so fucking good,” he growled, voice muffled as he licked deeper, tongue fucking into you before circling your clit again with maddening precision. “Been thinking about this since the first day I saw you.”
You choked on a gasp, head tipping back, the edge already building—too fast, too strong.
And he wasn’t stopping.
Not for anything.
Your grip tightened in his hair as Bucky’s tongue dragged a slow, torturous circle around your clit, only to suck it between his lips with a low, obscene groan that vibrated through your entire body.
“Fuck—” you gasped, breath hitching as your thighs threatened to close around his head.
He wasn’t having it.
His left hand braced against your hip, holding you open, steady, while his right slid up your thigh—palm rough, fingers sure—until he reached your slit. One thick finger slipped inside, slow, dragging along your walls as he moaned like he felt it too.
“You’re so tight,” he breathed against your cunt. “So wet for me. This pretty pussy’s been waiting for me, huh?”
You shuddered, jaw slack, hips rolling down onto his face and hand like your body knew exactly what it needed. He pumped the finger slowly, deliberately, curling just right to make your knees buckle. Then he added a second—stretching you, filling you—and the heat in your belly twisted hard.
“Oh my god—Bucky—”
“That’s it,” he murmured, eyes flicking up to watch your face as his fingers curled deep inside you. “Let me hear you, baby.”
His mouth returned to your clit, licking in messy, desperate circles while his fingers fucked into you faster—his rhythm syncing perfectly with your shaking body. Every thrust hit that spot inside you with aching precision, your thighs trembling as your moans broke free.
You weren’t composed now.
You weren’t silent.
You were his, unraveling in his mouth, pulsing around his fingers, the world narrowing to the slick sounds of your body and the obscene groans he made as he devoured you like it was his last meal.
“I could do this all night,” he panted, fingers curling hard as your hips jerked. “You gonna come for me? Gonna soak my fuckin’ fingers?”
You couldn’t even form words—only nod, only whimper, only clutch at his hair and the edge of the sink like you might float away if you let go.
“Come on, sweetheart,” he growled, tongue flicking your clit fast and filthy now, fingers pounding into you. “Come on my face.”
Your body clenched, the pressure snapping like a whip crack—your orgasm crashing over you so hard you cried out, hips shaking, thighs locked tight around his head. He groaned, licking you through it, fingers still working you until you were whining, pushing weakly at his shoulder.
He finally pulled back, mouth and chin glistening, chest heaving.
He looked wrecked.
And proud.
Bucky stood, chest rising hard, his jaw clenched like he was fighting off every urge he’d ever had. His mouth was slick with you, his fingers still glistening, and he looked down at you like you were the only thing tethering him to sanity.
Then he cursed.
“Shit—” he growled, hand dragging down his face. “I don't have a condom.”
You blinked, still breathless, still shaking.
Then you reached for his belt.
You pulled him close with both hands, grabbed his face, and kissed him hard—tongue sweeping into his mouth, tasting yourself all over him.
He groaned, loud and broken, his hands flying to your waist, gripping tight.
“I’m on birth control,” you panted against his lips. “It’s fine.”
He froze for half a second.
Then everything snapped.
He spun you around, bent you over the sink, and shoved your dress up around your waist again with a growl that sounded like it was ripped from his chest.
“Fuck, I’ve wanted this,” he muttered, dragging his pants down just enough to free himself—his cock hard, thick, flushed at the tip.
You looked at him over your shoulder, eyes dark, daring. “Then take it.”
He didn’t hesitate.
He grabbed your hip with one hand, the other guiding himself to your soaked entrance. He groaned when he felt how wet you still were, and then he thrust in—hard, deep, one sharp movement that made both of you cry out.
“Jesus—” he bit out, buried to the hilt inside you.
You gasped, your hands bracing against the sink, your head dropping between your arms as he pulled back and slammed into you again, rougher this time, like all the control he’d been clinging to shattered in one thrust.
His grip on your hips was bruising.
His rhythm? Relentless.
“Look at you,” he gritted, hips snapping into you again and again, cock dragging perfectly over your walls. “All that attitude. All that sass. And now you’re fucking dripping for me.”
You moaned, arching your back, pushing back onto him. “Shut up and fuck me.”
That did it.
He pounded into you, deep and rough, grunting with every thrust, each one sharper than the last. Your hands scrambled for grip, one of your heels slipping as he rutted into you like he was trying to claim you, pull every sound out of your throat that you’d refused to give him in daylight.
“Been thinking about this since the first time you called me Barnes like it was a threat,” he growled, one hand fisting in your hair to pull your head back. “And now you’re letting me fuck you in a goddamn club bathroom?”
You gasped, eyes fluttering. “Shut up.”
He fucked you harder.
“You love this,” he growled in your ear. “You love the way I feel inside you. Admit it.”
Your nails scraped the porcelain.
He yanked you upright against his chest, his cock still buried inside you, pounding you with punishing, perfect rhythm.
“Say it,” he demanded, voice ragged. “Say you wanted this.”
You moaned, nearly sobbed. “I—fuck—I wanted this—”
He groaned, low and guttural, lips dragging over your shoulder and hand drifting to your neck.
His hand on your throat wasn’t choking—just holding. Just claiming. His mouth was at your ear, breath hot, voice wrecked. You were bent over the sink but upright now, your chest flush to his, and your eyes—
He made sure they were on the mirror.
“Look,” Bucky growled, fucking into you hard enough to make the sink creak. “Look what I’m doing to you.”
Your gaze caught the reflection—and fuck, it was obscene. Your lips parted, cheeks flushed, sweat-damp hair clinging to your temples. His broad chest against your back, one hand gripping your hip, the other still around your throat like he was holding you steady so you couldn’t escape how good it felt.
Every thrust slammed into you from behind, deep and fast, his cock stretching you wide, hitting that perfect spot over and over until your legs were shaking.
You whimpered, unable to hold back anymore.
“That’s it,” he rasped. “Let me hear you. No classroom. No clipboard. Just you. And me.”
Your head tipped back onto his shoulder as his thrusts grew rougher, deeper, fucking you in front of the mirror like he wanted you to remember this—to see exactly what he turned you into.
“I can feel you squeezing me,” he panted. “So fuckin’ tight. You gonna come for me?”
You moaned, body tensing, orgasm coiling hard in your belly, your thighs trembling, the pressure too much.
His fingers moved down your stomach, finding your clit, rubbing tight, fast circles as he slammed into you.
“Come for me,” he growled into your ear. “Come on my cock. Let me feel it.”
You shattered.
It was sharp, messy, loud—your cry bouncing off the bathroom walls as your pussy clenched around him, body locking up, hips jerking uncontrollably. You came so hard you saw white, barely able to hold yourself up as your orgasm rolled over you in crashing waves.
“Fuck, that’s it,” Bucky grunted, and then he lost it.
His rhythm stuttered, a broken gasp tearing from his throat as he buried himself deep one last time and came inside you, hips jerking, breath ragged against your neck.
He held you tight, forehead pressed to your shoulder, still inside you, both of you shaking and panting, sweat-slicked and spent.
The mirror caught everything.
Two people undone.
Two people who couldn’t take it back.
And neither of you wanted to.
The room was quiet now, save for your breathing and the soft hum of music bleeding through the walls.
You blinked slowly at the mirror, still bent over the sink, your hair mussed, dress bunched around your hips, Bucky’s body heavy and warm behind you. He was still buried inside you, both of you barely recovered.
He exhaled, lips brushing your shoulder, then your neck. “Well, damn.”
You let out a breath that might’ve been a laugh if you weren’t still coming down from the best orgasm of your life.
He finally pulled out with a low groan, pressing a kiss to your shoulder as he did, and then helped smooth your dress back down over your thighs. His touch lingered just a second too long, like he wasn’t ready to let go of you just yet.
You straightened, turned slowly to face him, your expression mostly neutral—but your eyes were warmer than before. He saw it. He always did.
Bucky leaned back against the sink beside you, tucking himself back into his jeans with practiced ease, still watching you with that lazy post-orgasm smirk.
“So,” he said, running a hand through his hair, still slightly breathless. “Now that we’ve gotten the hard part out of the way…”
You arched a brow, lips twitching. “That was the hard part?”
He grinned. “Figuratively. And literally.”
You rolled your eyes, turning to check yourself in the mirror. Your lipstick was gone. Your cheeks were flushed. Your neck had the faint outline of his stubble. You looked exactly how you felt: fucked out and dangerously close to letting him in.
You dabbed at your collarbone with a paper towel.
He watched you quietly for a second, then said, softer now, “Come on, baby. Just one date.”
You froze.
He didn’t miss it.
“One date,” he said again, stepping a little closer, voice still low. “Not the club. Not the classroom. Just you and me. Dinner. Or drinks. Hell, coffee if that’s all I get.”
You looked at him, really looked.
He was flushed, eyes bright, hopeful in a way he hadn’t been in weeks. There was something real behind that smirk now. Something open. Unprotected.
You should’ve shut him down.
Should’ve said something cold. Dismissive.
But instead, you leaned in—kissed him, slow this time, less teeth, more tongue. Just a whisper of what could happen again if you said yes.
When you pulled back, your lips barely brushed his.
“You’re gonna regret asking me out, Mr. Barnes.”
He grinned.
“Not a chance, Ms. Lane.”
#bucky barnes#bucky x reader#bucky barnes x reader#bucky barnes fanfiction#bucky x you#bucky barnes fluff#james buchanan barnes#bucky barnes smut#james bucky buchanan barnes
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Headcanon that Jason just kidnaps his siblings instead of asking them to hang out sometimes.
Sometimes he does the normal abduction thing and other times he has his methods.
Dick: Jason sneaks into Dick’s apartment in Blüdhaven at 3 AM, throws him over his shoulder, and drags him to his motorcycle. Dick wakes up mid-ride, half-conscious, groggily mumbling, "Jay, what the hell—?"
- Jason just shushes him and tosses a burger into his lap. "Shut up and eat, Goldie. We're bonding." (Jason, allowing his big brother to ruffle his hair? Nooooo, absolutely not...)
Tim: Jason straight-up drugs him asleep him when Tim refuses to take a break. He wakes up in Jason’s apartment with a cup of coffee and a sandwich waiting for him, while Jason sits on the couch reading a book.
- “You looked dead on your feet, Replacement. Either you napped willingly or I made you. Guess which one you picked.” (Jason totally doesn't rake a hand over his lil bro's hair during this time)
Steph: Jason knows Steph is a wild card when it comes to hanging out, so he has to be a little sneakier with her. He'd show up at her place unannounced, pretending to just be casually passing by, and in one smooth motion, he'd grab her and yank his little sister into his car or bike before she even realizes what's happening. (He totally doesn't do this in time with hard school, noooo)
Damian: Jason scoops him up mid-battle and just walks away with him. Damian kicks, bites, and yells, "UNHAND ME, TODD!" but Jason holds him like an angry kitten.
- They end up at a rooftop picnic with Alfred’s homemade food. Damian eventually eats while grumbling about Jason's “barbaric methods” but secretly enjoys the attention. (Jason maaayybe ruffles his hair a lot.)
Cass: She just lets it happen. Jason shows up, gestures toward his bike, and Cass just hops on without a word. They go on long road trips in comfortable silence, getting ice cream at 2 AM and scaring off criminals for fun. (Jason totally doesn't take the time to help her with her speech-)
Duke: Duke gets fake-napped. Jason tells him, "Be outside in five minutes," and when Duke says no, Jason still shows up, grabs him, and hauls him into a car.
- Duke just sighs and texts Bruce: "Jason's 'kidnapping' me again. Back later." (Jason totally doesn't get the names of school bullies from him and uses them, noooooooo)
Bruce knows this happens. He just sighs and lets it happen because, honestly? It’s Jason’s way of showing love. And at least the kids are getting along.
Jason kidnaps his siblings because it's his way of saying, "You're important to me, and I'm gonna drag you into ridiculous situations whether you like it or not."
He also, however, does it to Bruce.
In fact, it might be one of his favorite things to do, just because Bruce is always so serious and “responsible.”
Jason thinks it’s hilarious to force Bruce to take a break. He just shows up at the Batcave, probably with some kind of overly complicated plan to "kidnap" Bruce without him realizing.
Step 1: Jason would distract Alfred with a "Oh, just a quick check-in, you know, 'cause it’s been a while.’"
Step 2: He would wait for Bruce to get fully immersed in some case files and then sneak up behind him, tap him on the shoulder, and when Bruce turns around, Jason’s already got him in a headlock, pulling him out of the chair like, "Get up, old man. We're going to a diner. No arguments."
Bruce would protest, of course. He'd probably try to get out of it with his usual grumpy “I’m too busy” routine. Jason might fake-sigh and act like he's just trying to help Bruce loosen up, reminding him, "I know you think you’re invincible, but you still need to eat, Batman."
And if Bruce insists on not going, Jason would just drag him anyway. He might even grab the Batmobile for a joyride (he's always wanted to), making Bruce sit shotgun while Jason drives like an absolute maniac (Jokes on both because Bruce taught him to drive-)
Bruce would probably be scowling the whole time, but Jason would know his dad is secretly enjoying it, even if he won't admit it.
Eventually, Bruce would probably give in and get his grumpy little “dad” lecture—“You’re so reckless, Jason—” but Jason would just smile and be like, "Whatever. You’re welcome.”
Jason totally doesn't like it when his dad just ruffles his hair at some point.
#dc comics#good brother jason todd#dc universe#dcu#batman#batfam#batfamily#dc characters#dc hc#dc hcs#good older sibling jason todd#dc headcanons#dc fandom#dc jason todd#jason todd#big bro jason#red hood#dc red hood#dick grayson#tim drake#stephanie brown#dc headcanon#batsiblings#batman family#batbros#batkids#duke thomas#damian wayne al ghul#stephaine brown#cassandra cain
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on today’s episode of career development at the sukuna household, your toddler has discovered a passion for the beauty industry. it all begins with you.
you, a mother with little time, attempting to make your nails look somewhat presentable between juggling a toddler, a husband, a business of your own, and not to mention your sanity. and, of course, sukuna, ever the provider, barks at you the second he notices you even thinking about paying for them yourself.
"the hell do you think you’re doing?"
"painting my nails?" you say, mid-stroke.
"nah, not that. the part where you paid for them yourself," he grumbles, folding his arms. "what kinda husband would i be if i let my woman spend her own money on nails?"
"a normal one?" you offer.
"don’t be ridiculous," he scoffs, pulling out his phone. "from now on, i’ll have someone booked for you. weekly." you sigh, rolling your eyes. but before you can protest, a tiny voice pipes up from beside you.
"…mama, do mine?"
your daughter is fascinated by the process. she watches intently as you carefully paint her tiny nails, eyes wide with wonder. the next day, she proudly declares:
"i be nail artist now."
and so it begins. your toddler, now a professional (self-appointed), practices daily with her little kid-friendly nail polish set. her technique is… chaotic, to say the least. colors clash. lines are questionable. top coats? optional. but her most loyal customer?
her father.
"papa, sit," she commands one evening, patting the floor in front of her. sukuna, who had been minding his own business, quirks a brow. "what?"
"sit."
he glances at you. you shrug. "she’s the boss." with a dramatic sigh, sukuna plops down. his daughter gets to work.
thirty minutes later, sukuna, the big bad wolf of the corporate world, sits with his hands and feet covered in glittery, pastel-colored nail polish. "there," his daughter says, nodding in satisfaction. he stares at his nails.
"…you tryna kill my reputation?"
she gasps, scandalized. "no!"
"then why the hell am i sparkly?"
"it’s good luck," she insists, crossing her arms. "you can’t take it off."
he stares at her. then at you. then back at her.
"…yeah, alright," he mutters.
so, naturally, he goes to the gym the next day with the nails fully intact. as expected, no one dares say shit. except for choso. poor, unsuspecting choso, who is midway through a heavy set, looks up to see his terrifying older brother gripping the weights with glittery, pastel-colored nails.
he immediately fumbles his lift. weights clang to the ground.
"fuck," choso wheezes, sitting up. "what the hell is on your hands?"
sukuna flexes his fingers. "fashion."
choso gapes at him.
"and luck," sukuna adds, smirking.
choso is still in shock. "what—who—"
"your niece," sukuna says simply. "she’s a nail tech now. gotta support the business." choso buries his face in his hands. "i hate this family."
meanwhile, in the background, nanami—who has seen far too much—quietly removes his glasses and massages his temples.
"i should have gone into teaching," he mutters.
#@sukuna#@choso#@nanami#jjk headcanons#jjk x reader#jjk x y/n#jjk x you#jujutsu kaisen headcanons#jujutsu kaisen x reader#jujutsu kaisen x you#sukuna headcanons#sukuna x reader#sukuna x you#ryomen x reader#ryomen x y/n#ryomen x you#ryomen sukuna x reader#ryomen sukuna x you#jjk fluff#jjk drabbles#jujutsu kaisen fluff#sukuna crack#jjk crack#jjk x fem!reader#sukuna x female reader#jujutsu kaisen x female reader
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