#the reason I thought it was normal to be in extreme pain while jogging and running so I’d just grin and bear it and hate myself

[anoddrock]

‘Feel the pain’ ‘no pain no gain’ ‘it’s a good burn’ you have caused me severe back and joint pain that I have found ZERO long term solutions to, so you can fuck RIGHT OFF with that bullshit

[charliedawn]

Imagine being in a hate love relationship with Peter Hale

Warning : attempt of rape

You were on Peter duty..Again. Since Peter Hale was the man that everybody feared, it had been decided that you would be the one keeping an eye on the overly fool-of-himself werewolf with the power of your mighty patience. Scott and Stiles stop in front of Derek's loft and he jogs out to meet you.

" Thanks Y/N. I owe you one !"

He says with a grateful smile and you smile back.

" Big time. But come on, you three go hunt whatever creature you have to hunt and I'll stay to take care of Mr Smarty-pants up there !"

You say enthusiastically and they all smile apologetically at you, knowing how the two of you were not exactly on friendly terms.

" Be careful, okay ? And tell him that if he touches you, I'll kick his ass !"

Stiles says confidently, which makes you laugh.

" Don't worry, Stiles. If there is any problem, I'll call you guys immediately and plus, I have a way to take care of moody children.."

You tell him with a mysterious smile and Stiles nods understandingly.

" I know..Just, stay safe."

And with that last warning, they are all out of here. As soon as they are out of your sight, your smile leaves your face and you sigh loudly before turning towards the building and whisper to yourself.

" Welp..Here we go.."

As soon as you enter, you smell something burning and see the stove on fire. You run towards it and take a glass from the cupboard to fill it with water in order to stop the fire. When you're done, you are panting because of the effort and look murderously at Peter that is sitting calmly on the couch, as if nothing had happened.

You glare at him while he doesn't even raise his eyes from his book.

" Let me guess..You couldn't smell the smoke ?"

You ask annoyed and only then does he look up at you with a small mischievous smile.

" Aren't you supposed to be the one keeping me out of harm's way ? You are here to keep me from doing anything stupid, not the other way around..I create chaos and you're here to stop me. Do your job and stop whining."

You grit your teeths in anger before sitting on the couch, as far away from Peter as possible. You can't believe the nerve of this man that was ready to burn the entire flat only to prove a point !

" I don't know why you're so eager to unnerve me. Does it entertain you ? Would it kill you to be nice and helpful from time to time ?"

You ask while taking a nearby book and starting reading yourself, not really interested in his answer that you knew would not be anything but upsetting.

" I'm the spark that lits your fire, sweetheart..Try to let go sometimes, you would actually enjoy it. Why don't you try to be less of a killjoy ?"

You raise an eyebrow at that before returning to your book and replying nonchalantly.

" Have you ever considered, even for only a moment, that I simply don't like you ?"

He fakes being offended by putting his hand above his heart and widening his eyes dramatically at you.

" Oh darling ! Me who thought that you were about to ask my hand in marriage ?! How disappointing ?!"

You snort.

" Hard pass."

He sighs in false disappointment before taking his coat and walking towards the exit.

" And where do you think you're going ?"

You ask with an eyebrow arked in curiosity.

" Out."

He answers simply before opening the door. You sigh before taking your coat and running after him.

" Didn't Derek warn you that I am allowed to use silver bullets if you disobey me ?"

He scoffs before shrugging, not bothering waiting for you.

" I'm going to get a beer, not kill a bunch of innocent virgins.."

He winks at you cheekily before stepping inside the bar that was the nearest to the apartment. You role your eyes at his comment before entering the bar after him.

You look around and are amazed to see that the place wasn't as bad as you had previously thought. It had good background music and not a lot of customers, besides a couple of drunk friends who were talking in whispers at their table. However, Peter isn't visible and you sigh again before walking towards the counter to ask the bartender if he had any idea of where your irresponsible dog had run off to. You sit down and attract the attention of the bartender by raising your hand. He walks towards you and leans in to listen to your order.

" A soda, please."

He arks an eyebrow at you, nearly amused, before turning around and getting out what you asked.

" Are you sure you don't want anything else ? Anything stronger ?"

He says while eyeing your bottle of soda warily, as if it was an insult to his establishment for you to order such a drink. You smile, tempted beyond reason, but then remember that you had a werewolf to find.

" Sorry. Can't. I'm on the job. By the way, have you seen a man ? Sarcastic. Arrogant. Energic. Tall. Very annoying. Awfully blond. Seen him anywhere ?"

He looks suspiciously at you before asking in a slightly worried and even threatening voice.

" You're a cop ?"

You can't help but laugh bitterly at the question before replying.

" You could say that. But I am only responsible of one criminal, and the only crime he committed is to not have messed up my night, yet.."

He smirks when he understands the irony in your tone and was about to answer when someone puts his hand on your shoulder. You turn around to see a very smug Peter with a huge grin.

" Oh ! Look at that ! The overly confident puppy is finally back ! What ? Got lost on the way ?"

You ask sarcastically and he only humphs in response before sitting next to you, the grin not leaving his face.

" Why ? Missed me ?"

You scoff before taking a sip of your drink.

" As much as a needle in my heel..But, if Derek was to find out that I've let you out of your cage, he would have my head.."

He wraps his arm around your shoulders and makes you spill your drink a little over yourself.

" Aww..You do care ! My cold heart warms at the thought of the packs brat worrying about me !"

You groan in annoyance before biting his hand off. He hisses in pain before retrieving his hand and massaging it while glaring at you from the corner of his eyes. Just at that moment, the bartender comes back to get Peter's order and eyes Peter suspiciously before looking back at you with an inquisitive glance, asking discreetly if you needed an escape. You could have laughed if it wasn't so sad. Peter was such a nuisance that people were now wondering if he was the one bothering you, when in fact it was the opposite. However Peter, that had not missed the silent conversation, growls when the bartender gives him a warning side glance. But, not intimidated the nearest, Peter smirks a toothy grin at the bartender before showing his bitten hand.

" Careful. The brat bites. I've seen what it is capable of, first hand..literally. Don't worry, if you should be worried about anyone around here, it's everyone else besides her."

He cautioned and the bartenders eyes widen at the mark that would certainly have left a scar if he was a normal human being while you snicker in your corner. The bartender quickly runs towards his other customers at the far end of the bar, leaving you two in your sudden awkward solitude.

" Well..Isn't he a gentleman ? Thinking you need saving from me. Not even considering that I could be the abused one in this relationship ? How rude !"

You try to stifle a laugh. Unfortunately, he hears you and smirks proudly at his small victory.

" I'm not the psychopath that tried to murder a bunch of teenagers just because I wanted to become the big bad alpha.."

You taunt while giving him an amused side glance. He groans in annoyance as you make him remember his past and he gulps down his whiskey, an attempt to make him forget faster.

" Aren't you a delight ?! Playing unfair by spreading out the touchy subjects like that..No wonder Stiles rejected you. You would have chomped his lips off !"

You glare at him as he talks about Stiles before replying harshly.

" Says the man whose only date was Scott's mom, and that was to trap him ! You're so terrible that nobody could stand being with you more than 5 minutes without hating you ! I would tell you to go to hell, but it would be unfair on Satan !"

He chuckles at that last part and you take your drink in order to take a sip and calm your nerves, but grimace at the awful taste. You had asked for a soda, but it tasted more like salt with water..He cackles at your expression before whispering mockingly in your ear with false concern.

" Oh ! What ? Ain't sweet enough for you, sweetheart ?"

You only raise a very distinctive finger at him, warning him that one more word from him would result in extreme pain and look around the room to distract yourself from his presence..and from the fact that you were his entitled babysitter. Your eyes wander and finally settle on the nice bartender that winks at you when you meet his gaze. You blush slightly before smiling back at him. He wasn't bad-looking and everything would be better than bantering with the overly sarcastic and confident werewolf that couldn't seem to leave you be. You were about to stand up and walk towards the cute bartender when suddenly, a hand raises to lay on your shoulder and pin you down to your seat. You were about to complain and even yell at Peter when you hear him growl from deep withing him while he shoots a dirty glare at the poor young man. You frown in incomprehension and grit your teeths in annoyance, thinking it was one of his attention seeking gesture. You then take his hand and force him to let go of you to walk towards the exit. Here you go again, you couldn't even enjoy your night without having to take care of the sulky werewolf. You soon hear his footsteps behind you and when he is about to grab your arm, you turn around abruptly and glare at him with such seriousness that it freezes him on the spot.

" How about you and your insanity stay the heck away from me ?! I'm so tired of your bullshit, Peter ! Why can't you just leave me alone ?!"

At your harsh words, Peter's gaze hardens and he retracts his hand to only smirk at you and tilt his head a little bit to the side, as if he didn't understand the question.

" Oh darling..I would love to ! But, you see, it seems that me and my insanity are often required to solve your friend's little problems !"

Suddenly, unnerved beyond belief and having had more than enough of him, you feel tears threatening to spill from your eyes and yell at him, so loud that it surprises the werewolf himself.

" Leave me alone ! Why am I the only one who always has to handle you?! Why do you always ask Derek for me to keep you, even though you don't even like me ?! If I'm such a bother, why not just get rid of me ?!"

He doesn't seem to be able to find an answer and you don't even let him reply. You start running until you reach a small and dark alley. When you're sure you are far enough for the werewolf not to hear you cry, you crouch down and start sobbing. When you've spilt all of your frustration and sadness out, you wipe your face with your sleeve and stand up to get back home. However, when you are about to leave the alley-way, you see someone else blocking the exit. You first think that it's Peter, but the more you approach the individual, the more you have to admit that it doesn't look like Peter. You try to walk past him, but he brusquely grabs your arm and throws you to the ground. You want to get your phone out of your purse, but the man stomps on your hand and you scream in pain. The man takes you by the jaw and forces you to look up at him. His disgusting breath hitting your face, smelling of alcool and his evil smirk making you want to puke even more.

" Aren't ya a sweat ass ? Tell me, what does a young lady like yourself doing here by herself in the middle of the night, hmm ?"

You want to scream for help again, but another individual behind you puts his hand against your mouth to muffle your screams and you feel the familiar shape of a knife against your throat. When you know that there is nothing else you can do, you close your eyes and try to stop the new tears from leaving your eyes..You didn't want to cry for those men, they didn't deserve your tears..

" Now..You're going to be a good girl and let us take care of you, okay ?"

The one posted behind you whispers in your ear and you clench your jaw, your last thought going to Peter. You had been awful to him, even though you knew he wasn't a bad person..You had let out your frustration on him and you were now regretting it bitterly. You should have sticked to your job and stay with him. If you had, maybe you wouldn't be in your current situation. Reality hits you hard when you feel one of the men starting to open your blouse. When you thought that that was it, that you were going to be raped in that dirty alley-way and probably killed, you hear the hurried footsteps of someone running towards your location. You want to scream again, but the knife is raised once again against your throat.

" One peep and nobody will even find your body.."

You whimper and nod in understanding. The footsteps stop and you hold your breath.

" Sweetheart ? Are you there ?"

You hear the familiar voice of Peter and feel relieved to know that he is near. However, the man whispers instructions in your ear and you can't help but nod in agreement, knowing that he wouldn't hesitate to slice your throat if you were to disobey.

" You're going to tell him to go away, that you don't want him to come any closer..I know what he is and the knife is made of silver and has been dipped in wolfsbane for a while..Don't play smart or you'll lose more than your life.."

He uncovers your mouth and you respond in a shaky voice.

" G..Go away, Peter..I don't want you near me ! I hate you !"

You bit to your inner cheek, wondering if he would insist or know that something is wrong. You know that even if he was to guess that something is wrong, you couldn't afford to lose him as well..However, you hear him take a step towards you and sniff the air. He suddenly growls animalistically and his eyes light up in the dark.

" I can smell the stench of two putrid little humans that shouldn't be touching what isn't theirs.."

You start panicking, knowing that he could die if he was to step any closer and yell in a last attempt to protect him.

" Don't, Peter ! They've got wolfsbane ! Run !"

One of the men muzzles you again, but Peter doesn't step back. He gets his claws out and snarls.

" Alright boys. Let's rumble."

The two men stand up and face Peter that doesn't seem scared. He doesn't keep his eyes off them while they circle him. The man with the knife tries to attack him first, but Peter grabs his arm and tears it off from the rest of his body. The man screams in agony, but Peter slashes his throat before turning towards the other man that is shaking with terror.

" What ?! You are brave enough to attack a defenseless woman, but not enough to fight a werewolf ?!"

He roars and the man suddenly gets out a gun that he points at Peter. Before he could react, the man shoots and the bullet goes through his abdomen. Peter falls on his knees and the man runs away, leaving you and him behind. You force yourself to get up and crouch down in front him to see that the wound is not closing itself.

" Wolfsbane bullet.."

He affirms what you already suspected and you have to take deep breathes in order not to panic. You know what to do, you had seen Derek do it a thousand time already. You need to cauterize the wound. You close your eyes and try to calm yourself before trying to carry him back home. When you finally enter the building after a few grunts and moans of pain from the both of you, you lay Peter down on the couch and look around for something hot enough to burn the poison. Suddenly, your eyes fall on a blowtorch and when Peter understands what you were thinking about, he looks pitifully up at you.

" I have a very bad tolerance to pain."

He warns you, a warning that sounds more like a desperate plea for you to reconsider your plan..But you know that you don't have much time and address him a silent apology with your eyes before taking the handle of your purse and make him bite down on it.

" This is gonna hurt. Bad. But, I'm going to try to be as fast as I can, okay ?"

His nostrils flare in fear for the pain to come, but he nods in agreement and you take a big shaky breath before using the blowtorch. As soon as the fire gets in contact with his skin, Peter visibly whitens, his eyes flash blue and you can see his claws digging in the soft material of the couch. You don't know what to do to attenuate the pain, so you do the first thing that comes to mind to distract him..You kiss him. His eyes widen perceptibly at your action, but he doesn't hesitate before burying his hands in your hair and reciprocating the kiss, even though the handle of your purse forms some kind of barrier between you and him. When you take a step back, he seems more relax and you glance down at his wound before switching off the blowtorch. You are relieved when you see the wound closing and smile widely at him. But, before you could truly process what was happening, Peter had gotten rid of your purse and had bounced on top of you to pin you to the floor and kiss you passionately again.

" Stiles doesn't deserve you..Nobody does..Nobody needs you like I do..Nobody can handle me the way you do..I don't want them to take you away from me..Stay with me..If you leave, I'll lose my fucking mind.."

He mutters between each breath he takes while kissing you and you blush vividly at his words. He looks up at you with his bright blue eyes and you can't help but smile up at him before kissing him back yourself and petting the top of his head appreciatively.

" You damn nut job, if you wanted me that bad, why didn't you tell me ? Instead of making me lose my mind.."

He grins before nuzzling your neck and wrapping his arms around your waist.

" Because I like when you get mad.."

You chuckle before returning his embrace.

" Bad pup.."

" Stiles lover"

You ark an eyebrow at the odd insult before replying teasing.

" Does that mean I won't be able to go back to his place and sleep on his couch ? Do I have to remind you that I live with him ?"

He tightens his hold on you and grumbles tiredly against your ribcage.

" Over my dead body. The only thing you will be allowed to sleep on from now on is me, got it ?"

You seem dumbfounded for a second and Peter picks on your uneasiness before laughing and looking up at you with a sly smile.

" Not what I meant, you pervert."

You blush a deep red and hit him on the back of the head playfully.

" Hey ! You're the one always insinuating things !"

He genuinely smiles at you before lowering his chin on your belly and tilting his head to look at you with fake innocence.

" I'm not the one who kissed me.."

You sigh, it was becoming a competition, like many things with him. You sit back up and make him fall at the same time.

" Yeah ?! Well, you were badly injured..and you reciprocated !"

You don't know why you wanted to defend yourself, you just know that you can't allow yourself to succomb for the man that had nearly killed all of your friends. Plus, you had just been attacked and were too weak to make any decisions. He seems to notice your worry and takes a step back immediately to get up and extend his hand towards you.

" I'm sorry. You helped me and I was being an idiot. You need to get some rest. Come on."

You look at his hand for a few seconds before slipping your hand in his. He yanks you upwards and proceeds to carry you back to your room where he lays you down on your bed. He leaves the room promptly afterwards, mumbling a small goodnight before walking out. When you're sure he is truly gone, you curl up into a ball and try to muffle your sobs. You couldn't sleep, every time you would close your eyes, their hands were there, touching you and making you feel as if you were weak..So weak..You whimper and cry as silently as you can until someone opens the door suddenly and blinding light surrounds the room. You turn around to see Peter standing there, his eyes glowing with such an intense color that it shocks you, you then notice the slight rise of his shoulders at each of his heavy breathing and finally, his lips curled and teeths grinding in rage.

" I should have killed them both..I should have never left you.."

You open your eyes wide at the realization, he had probably heard you and was reacting to your emotions. He approaches slowly and tenderly strokes your cheek, placing his forehead against yours.

" I'm so sorry, darling.."

You feel as if he's been crying too and step back. He seems to be hurt by your sudden distance, but you quickly indicate the spot next to you.

" Come on, I need a bed warmer."

His eyes light up like a happy puppy and he crawls next to you in order to cuddle you, making sure that you are comfortable every step of the way. You sigh in contempt before feeling sleep slowly taking over your tired body. Just before you fall asleep however, you mumble sleepily at Peter.

" You were right..I won't be able to sleep when you're not there anymore..You're too good of a bed warmer.."

You feel him chuckle behind you and smile as you realize that being best bud with Peter wouldn't be so bad..and maybe with time, a bit more.

The next day :

Derek finds the both of you on the sofa: you reading a book out loud, and Peter with his arms wrapped around you, listening attentively.

" So, I guess the babysitting went better than our stake out last night ?"

He asks, amused by your sudden friendliness towards each other. You look up at him with a small smile while Peter chuckles against your ear, the sound alone making you feel things you shouldn't be.

" Best of friends, aren't we, sweetheart ?"

Instead of answering his question, you try to change the subject.

" What happened to the stake out then ? I thought you were supposed to catch a couple of bounty hunters ?"

Derek shakes his head before shrugging his shoulders.

" I know, but when we got there, there was only one of them, and he was screaming that his friend had been murdered by another werewolf in town..I wonder if there are any others like us that we've not yet been in contact with ?"

At his explanation, you feel a lump forming in your throat, but when you were about to tell him what happened last night, Peter beats you to it.

" Funny, your description of the scene exactly matches what happened to me last night.."

Derek frowns before looking up at Peter with his jaw clenched.

" I thought I was pretty clear when I said stay put ?"

He glares at Peter, but then his eyes shift to you.

" And you, where were y..?"

But before he could finish his sentence, Peter cuts him again.

" Asleep. I waited for her to fall asleep before going out. Poor humans, can't manage a night without craving sleep.."

You look up at him with your mouth wide open, ready to deny everything he just said when you see him wink at you..He wasn't trying to make you look bad at your job, he was trying to save you the embarrassment. You close your mouth as fast as you had opened it and turn around towards Derek that was looking at you with an eyebrow raised, waiting for your confirmation. You nod and he sighs.

" Maybe it was a bad idea to leave you alone with him, you're still young and he's had plenty of experience when it comes to get what he wants..I'll ask Scott or Stiles next time."

You feel the lump in your throat slowly making its way to your stomach and your expression twists into one of pain and regret.

" No !"

To the surprise of everyone in the room, including yourself, you're the one who just shouted your disagreement. Derek frowns again before crossing his arms and waiting impatiently for an explanation while Peter only tightens his grip around you, a silent warning as to what you are about to say. You take a big breath before glancing up at Derek and saying in a calm and unfaltering voice.

" This is my job. I'm part of the pack. It's bad enough that I'm completely useless when it comes to working on the field, I can't let my only participation in all this go to someone else. I made a mistake, it won't happen again."

Derek seems to believe you, even though he shakes his head in hesitation.

" I don't know, Y/N..I was allowing this to continue since it seemed to work..But, Peter succeeded in complicating things, again."

He emphasizes on the last word while staring at Peter accusatively. Peter flashes an innocent grin at him before agreeing with you.

" I promise to behave from now on. Please, dad ? Can I please keep my plaything ? It gets lonely around here when you're all running around, chasing your own tails over and over.."

You elbow him as a warning, but Derek is already shooting daggers in his direction, on the verge of growling in annoyance. Fortunately, Derek succeeds in keeping his cool and only sighs in defeat before walking away.

" Fine. But, I warn you, one more mistake and I'll personally kick you out.."

" Can't do that, chief. It's my house !"

Peter answers with a big shit-eating grin, but Derek frowns at him before looking straight at you.

" I was talking to you, Y/N..I can't allow you to become a weakness, we've got already too many and Peter is the master of manipulation, dont fall for his tricks. It's a warning, let it be not a premonition."

And with those last words, he is gone. You both stay still for a moment until you decide to stand up and make yourself a cup of coffee. The words of Derek are swirling around in your mind and you glance at Peter when you think he's not looking..Were you really just another pawn in his mastermind plan to bring down the pack ? He seems to feel your stare and points it out.

" If I didn't know you the way I do, I'd say that you actually believe this idiot.."

" Why did you protect me ?"

You ask him abruptly, still not sure about what to make of last night's rescue. He seems to thinks about it for a while before answering you with such honesty that it surprises you.

" Because there was no reason for me to talk about it..Unlike what you all think of me, I'm not such a monster. I feel no satisfaction in a young girl's life being ruined by such macabre events. I care about you more than any of the other dumb teenagers of your group, even my own cousin. You're nice, kind, smart and you don't judge. You never told me that what I did was despicable or that I didn't deserve to live. You did what you had to do and tried the best you could to help. I agree that we have had our disagreements, but it was always playful and never really serious. Why would I ever want anything bad like this to happen to you when you're the only person who ever believed that I could become an ally ? Tell me, how many people do you think ever read to me or felt safe in my arms ? Not even my own family ever believed I could change..So, yes. I protected you, because you would have done the same thing for me. Your strength remains in your humanity, Y/N. Stiles may be the voice of reason, but you're the voice of mercy.."

You are awestruck by the words that seem to be tumbling out of his lips and surround you like the warmest of blankets. You would be happy to listen to him all day. You genuinely smile at him and, before you could stop yourself, you kiss him. He relaxes under your touch and wraps his arms around you to close the gap between the both of you. He finally breaks the kiss and laughs softly before adding.

" You also have very nice lips.."

You playfully punch his torso before laying down on top of him, finding the rhythm of his heartbeat oddly soothing.

" You're a jerk..But you're still a good person.."

You whisper while closing your eyes and you can hear him snicker above you.

" Congratulations, you just qualified me with two opposites. Jerk and good normally don't go together."

You don't answer, already snoring softly on his torso. He smiles sweetly at the sight before kissing the top of your head.

" Sweet dreams, darling.."

[persephone-plasmids]

Trying

A Danse and Nora fic

[Part 1]

[Read on AO3]

Danse woke up before the sun, his chest heavy with the memories of the night before. Nora had kissed him. But she’d also been drunk, so it hadn’t counted.

Of course, that didn’t stop him from reliving the moment in his mind over and over again. He’d hardly slept as he wondered what was worse: Nora remembering the kiss and regretting it, or forgetting about it and the two of them never addressing it again. He wasn’t sure what he could even hope for if she did remember. She’d never reciprocate his feelings. And he couldn’t fault her for that. He was a Synth. An abomination.

Danse scowled up at the ceiling before rolling out of bed, pulling his boots on, and leaving the partially destroyed house in Sanctuary where he now stayed. The settlement had turned into a place for all of Nora’s strays to reside; himself included.

Fog hung heavily in the early morning air as Danse began his normal jog around the perimeter of the settlement. He’d run up the rocky hills to make sure no Raiders had taken up residence overnight then splash through the river a few times to cool himself down before making the jog up the hill to the entrance of Vault 111.

Today, the sight of the large metal vault entrance only made his stomach turn. It reminded him of his interaction with Nora the day before. She’d been grieving the loss of her husband. She’d gotten drunk. And she’d kissed him.

Had he taken advantage of her compromised state? He tried to assure himself that he hadn’t. He’d pushed her away. He’d been the one to stop things before they went further. But he also couldn’t deny that he’d kissed her back. That he’d enjoyed kissing her back. And he couldn’t pretend he hadn’t spent the entire rest of the evening replaying the kiss in extreme detail, imagining what it could have been like if it had gone further.

Danse shook his head, ashamed at his own thoughts as he jogged back down the hill to Sanctuary.

The sun was beginning to melt away the heavy fog and by the time Danse had showered and donned his Brotherhood jumpsuit for the day, the haze was nothing but a distant memory.

There’s no avoiding it forever. I’ve got to go check on Nora, Danse thought to himself as he exited his home and stepped out into the streets of Sanctuary. Settlers were just starting to make their way to their assigned tasks for the day. Some held rifles to guard the perimeter while others grabbed gardening tools. Danse rolled his eyes as Hancock stumbled through the streets with a dazed smile on his face.

“Just getting in, Hancock?” Danse asked, the disapproval heavy in his voice.

“It’s my duty as mayor of Goodneighbor to check on my citizens every now and then,” Hancock replied, the lazy smile still on his scarred features.

“Funny how it’s only the patrons in The Third Rail you seem to check on,” Danse answered.

He hadn’t intended on harassing the Ghoul today. In all honesty, he was trying to be better. Mostly for Nora’s sake, but also because of his own revelation that he wasn’t as purely human as he’d always thought. Danse hated being a hypocrite. But purging his deeply ingrained prejudices from his mind was proving much more difficult than he wanted to admit.

“It’s not my fault I know how to have a good time, Danse,” Hancock said. “If you ever want to loosen the leash Maxson put on you, you’re welcome to join us.”

Danse shook his head at the Ghoul but didn’t respond. He knew he wouldn’t have anything kind to say. Instead, he made his way to Nora’s house, ignoring the stinging reminder from Hancock that he was no longer a member of the Brotherhood.

Standing in front of the door to Nora’s home, Danse squared his shoulders, took a deep breath, and knocked. His body told him he needed to leave immediately, because whether or not she remembered the kiss, this interaction would be painful. Seeing her would remind him just how incredible it felt to kiss her… and that he couldn’t do it again. But he didn’t run. He stayed right where he was.

His heart hammered in his chest as the door knob turned, but it wasn’t Nora who greeted him. Instead, Deacon stood in the doorway wearing Nora’s old flowery apron over his usual T-shirt and jeans, raising his ginger eyebrows behind his sunglasses.

“Morning sunshine,” the spy said with a grin.

“Deacon?” Danse asked, his confusion slowly turning to anger as it always seemed to. He needed to work on that. “What are you doing in Nora’s house this early?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know, soldier?” Deacon asked. “But a gentleman never kisses and tells.”

Danse set his jaw firmly as he stared at the man in front of him. He was already calculating how much physical damage it would do if he punched Deacon right then and there. The spy would live. But Nora would never forgive Danse. So he refrained.

“Oh man, I can see all those little Brotherhood cogs turning in your brain. It would be adorable if it wasn’t so sad,” Deacon said with a laugh. “At ease, soldier. I was totally kidding. Just wanted to get a rise out of you. I didn’t realize it would be quite so effective.”

Danse could hear the laughter in Deacon’s voice, but it was muted by the sound of his own blood rushing through his body.

He definitely needed to work on his anger management skills.

“Where is Nora?” Danse asked simply, refusing to acknowledge just how close he’d been to getting into a physical altercation with Deacon.

Danse was usually close to getting into a fight with Deacon, but the idea that the spy had slept with Nora was definitely the thing that would have pushed him over the edge… had it been true.

“I feel like out of the two of us, you’re the one who should know she headed over to the Prydwyn before dawn,” Deacon answered, turning around and heading back into Nora’s kitchen without another look in Danse’s direction.

The Paladin followed the spy and perched on one of the barstools at the counter.

Deacon, still wearing the flowery apron, was stirring mirelurk eggs in a frying pan.

“Nora went to the Prydwyn?” Danse asked, his mind trying to play catch up. “Why?”

“Personally, I don’t think she needs to keep things friendly with the Brotherhood of Bigots anymore now that The Institute is destroyed, but she said something about an open line of communication between the factions and blah, blah, blah.” Deacon shook his head. “Maxson said he wanted to meet with her about something or other. Probably wants to start a fun petition forbidding Ghouls from speaking or something.”

“Maxson asked for her?” Danse repeated. This gave him pause.

There was a time when Danse had worshipped Maxson. He’d thought the man could do no wrong. That was, of course, until Maxson had wanted him killed for being a Synth. Danse could understand the difficult position Maxson had been placed in, but after their years of friendship, he still had a hard time with just how quickly the Elder had turned on him.

He also saw the way Maxson looked at Nora when Danse had still been allowed aboard the Prydwyn. The Elder was young and Nora was beautiful. It only made sense that he’d look at her the way he did. But Danse didn’t like it, even though he was fairly certain the only reason he was still alive was because Nora had been the one to convince Maxson to spare him. Danse wasn’t sure anyone else could have swayed the Elder the way she did.

“Do I sense a love triangle? Because you know I love some juicy gossip,��� Deacon said, grinning over at the Paladin and plopping some eggs onto a plate for him.

“That’s inappropriate, civilian,” Danse said, staring at the eggs in front of him and wondering why on earth Deacon would ever make him food. They hated each other.

“Hate to break it to you, tin can, but you’re a civilian now too,” Deacon said, taking a seat beside Danse with his own plate of eggs.

“You and I are not the same,” Danse emphasized, taking a bite out of the eggs. They were surprisingly good.

“You’re completely right,” Deacon agreed, though Danse could tell from his tone that he wasn’t going to like what came next. “I’ve been able to let go of my bigoted ways, while you still look at Hancock and Valentine like they’re Mirelurk scat on your boot.”

“That’s…” Danse began, but he didn’t know what to really say. Deacon wasn’t wrong. Danse wasn’t doing a great job of changing his deeply ingrained beliefs.

“Admitting you have a problem is the first step, champ,” Deacon said, with a soft pat on Danse’s shoulder.

It would have been a kind gesture, if the spy hadn’t immediately snorted from trying to hold back his laughter.

“I’m… trying,” Danse managed to say, even if it felt like injecting a Stimpack directly into his temple to utter the words.

Deacon glanced over at Danse for a moment, but it was hard for the Paladin to read his expression behind the sunglasses. He had to remind himself that this was probably the reason the spy always wore them.

“A good first step would be to actually spend some time with the people you hate,” Deacon offered, being surprisingly helpful. “You might find that you actually have some fun with Hancock. Plus, you and Valentine are a bit more alike than you might think. He’s a giant stick in the mud too.”

Danse huffed under his breath and simply said, “Noted,” before taking another bite of eggs.

The two men chewed in silence for a moment before the front door opened and Nora strode in wearing the all-black Brotherhood of Steel jumpsuit reserved for high-ranking officials.

Danse’s eyes involuntarily roamed over just how perfectly the jumpsuit fit her curves, though he immediately hated himself for the very visceral reaction the image gave him.

“Deacon Marie Jones! What are you doing in my apron?” Nora asked dramatically, walking up behind the spy and wrapping her arms around him in a familiar embrace.

This did nothing to lessen Danse’s animosity towards the spy.

“Your middle name is Marie?” Danse asked.

“I just make up names for him,” Nora replied. “Since he won’t tell anyone his real name.”

Deacon leaned backward into Nora’s embrace as she held him tightly before finally releasing him. Danse hated how casual their physical contact was. She wasn’t like that with the Paladin.

“I thought we agreed the apron looks better on me,” Deacon said.

“Everything looks better on you, Deacon,” Nora agreed with a laugh, walking over to the frying pan and scooping a few eggs for herself. “I bet even this ridiculous black jumpsuit would look better on you.”

Danse refrained from pointing out how false that statement was.

He wasn’t sure he’d ever seen someone look so good in a jumpsuit before.

“Give yourself some credit, Charmer,” Deacon said, his voice as smooth as ever. “There are only so many people who can pull off a dog collar.”

“It’s not a dog collar,” Danse mumbled, finding himself irrationally annoyed by the comment.

Nora’s lips quirked up into a grin as she set her plate down and walked over to Danse. The Paladin swiveled in his barstool to face her but he didn’t anticipate just how close she’d get to him. Nora walked right up to Danse, positioning herself between his knees as she grinned down at him.

Danse swallowed hard as his dark eyes met hers. She took one finger and hooked it under the metal ring at the neck of Danse’s Brotherhood uniform and gave it a soft tug. She didn’t manage to pull him closer from his sitting position, but it did cause her to take another step closer to him, now standing squarely between his thighs.

“What exactly would you call it then, Paladin?” Nora asked, raising a challenging eyebrow at him.

Danse felt like his heart might actually beat out of his chest as he stared up at her. She still had a firm grasp on the clasp at his neck and he worried she’d be able to visibly see the nervous way he swallowed.

“It’s… It’s an attachment for the Power Armor,” he managed to choke out.

He hated that Deacon was here to witness just how easily Nora could set him off balance.

“I guess your big brown puppy dog eyes just make the term ‘dog collar’ feel more fitting,” Nora answered with a smirk.

He could feel the heat of her hips against his thighs but tried with every fiber of his being to ignore it. Their close proximity was only making it more difficult for him to focus.

Thankfully, Nora released her grasp on the metal ring and stepped back around the counter to retrieve her eggs. “Thanks for the breakfast, Deeks,” Nora said casually, as if she hadn’t just upended Danse’s entire world.

“Just paying off my debt to society,” Deacon said, finishing his own plate off and rinsing it in the sink. “I should have never suggested that game of strip poker.”

Danse’s eyes widened at this comment but Nora just shook her head with a laugh.

“He bet me that I couldn’t convince a Diamond City guard to give me their uniform.”

“I didn’t take into account that she wouldn’t use stealth to get what she wanted,” Deacon said with a scowl. “I still think it’s cheating if you use your feminine wiles.”

“You’re just mad that you have to make me breakfast every Tuesday for a month,” Nora said with a dismissive wave of her hand.

Deacon shook his head and grinned. “Well I’m off to go start some rumors around Diamond City that Piper is actually a Ghoul. Wish me luck.”

“You’ll need it,” Nora replied before the spy disappeared, leaving her and Danse alone.

Danse took a deep breath, wondering if he wanted to come right out and ask Nora if she remembered what had happened the night before, or if it would be better to just ignore it.

He decided on the coward’s way out.

“What did Maxson want?” Danse asked, trying to sound uninterested.

“Ugh, that man,” Nora began, exasperation heavy in her voice. “He wanted to try to convince me to pledge my exclusive loyalty to the Brotherhood again. But I told him, for the millionth time, I’m not going to abandon The Railroad or The Minutemen. There’s no reason we can’t all play nice.”

“I’m sure he loved that,” Danse answered, a genuine smile now playing on his lips.

“He threw a bit of a tantrum,” Nora agreed. “Luckily no one was around to see it. He had me meet him in his private quarters this time.”

Danse raised an eyebrow, still trying to pretend like he wasn’t incredibly interested in this particular point. “Oh?”

“I think he thought it might intimidate me if we were alone,” Nora laughed. “He poured me a drink, stood in front of his Brotherhood of Steel flag, and tried to look super intimidating.”

“And?”

“And it didn’t work,” Nora said, giving Danse one of the smiles that made her eyes crinkle in the corners while his heart melted into a puddle inside of him. “My affection isn’t that easily swayed.”

“Of course,” Danse responded simply.

He could feel Nora’s eyes on him as he looked back down at his now empty plate. He was running out of reasons to be in her kitchen but he wasn’t quite ready to leave yet.

“How are you feeling?” Danse began cautiously. “Do you have a headache from that bourbon last night?”

That was casual, right? That was something a totally normal friend would say whether or not they’d kissed the night before… wasn’t it?

“I had a bit of a headache this morning,” Nora began. She was pushing the eggs around on her plate with her fork but not taking a bite. Her eyes were no longer on Danse; now she seemed laser focused on the food in front of her. “I told you I wasn’t that drunk.”

Danse’s cheeks instantly flushed at her words.

She remembered.

She remembered and she really was lucid enough to know that she was kissing him.

What did that mean? Did he ask her about it? Did he ask if she regretted it or did he even dare to hope that she actually somehow felt something for him other than friendship or fondness?

“You can hold your liquor well,” was all the Paladin said, also staring intently at his own plate.

If anyone had walked by the scene in the kitchen, they’d think the two were Synths whose recall codes had been read to them.

The silence between them pressed on for a few moments before Nora softly cleared her throat.

“Listen, Danse… I’m sorry about what happened. You were totally right that I wasn’t thinking straight and… I shouldn’t have done that. I’m sorry.”

Danse felt his entire chest tighten at her words.

She regretted it. She wished it hadn’t happened. He’d made her uncomfortable.

And now that he knew she remembered everything, he felt even worse for kissing her back. What could she possibly think of him now? That he was just like the rest of the Wastelanders; ready to take advantage of an inebriated woman at the drop of a hat?

What did he say to make this better?

“I’m… I shouldn’t have… engaged,” he said quietly. It wasn’t what he wanted to say, but Danse had never been good with things like emotions. Synth or not, talking about his feelings wasn’t something he ever thought he’d be comfortable with.

Danse dared a glance up at Nora who was still looking down at her plate. She was frowning with something like disappointment in her eyes.

“I should probably get changed out of this jumpsuit,” she said after another moment of awkward silence. “Preston has a place nearby that he wants me to check out to set up a possible settlement.”

“Of course,” Danse responded, a bit too quickly. “I’ve got some work to do on my power armor.”

Nora nodded as Danse stood up and made his way towards the door.

Before he touched the handle, he heard Nora’s voice, soft and hesitant.

“Would you… want to come with me?”

[dr-spencer-reids-queen]

Extreme Aggressor: Part One

Pairing: Eventual Spencer Reid x Reader

Word Count: 2.3k

Warnings: canon violence, canon language, woman gets killed in an alley, talk of strangling and stabbing a woman

Summary: Jason Gideon is called back from a six-month leave from the Behavioral Analysis Unit to profile a killer. Meanwhile, the team flies across the country to Seattle when another young woman goes missing at the hands of "The Seattle Strangler," another serial killer.

Author’s Note: Here is it finally! After hard work, it is finally ready for your viewing pleasure! Please, feedback is always appreciated so let me know what you like about it and what you didn’t! 

I do not own anything from Criminal Minds. All credit goes to their respective owners. If there is any warnings that exceed the normal death/kills from the show, I will list them. If you’ve seen the show, then it’s the same level of angst unless otherwise stated.

So without further ado, please enjoy!

"The belief in a supernatural source of evil is not necessary. Men alone are quite capable of every wickedness." - Joseph Conrad

Not everyone knows this but each and every person has an aura around their body as if it hovers to remind people like you that they have things to hide. Not many people can see and do what you can do, but then again, you don’t want them to. All your life, you have been able to connect with people on a much deeper level than the average human. Those auras contain energies that you are able to connect with, therefore see more than what the normal eye can.

This ability that you have has gotten you in places you should never be. It’s gotten you where another dare not to venture. It’s allowed you to see the true intention and personality of a person no matter how high and thick their walls may be. Now, some people are better at hiding their true selves than others, but you always manage to figure out what makes them tick.

Your abilities have captured the attention of a really great friend, Jason Gideon. When he figured out the thing you could do, he knew you would make a great addition to his team. Granted, he was on a “summer break” so to speak, but he would be more than happy to give you a recommendation. It’s not that you didn’t want to work for the FBI, you just didn’t know if you would be good enough.

Never have your abilities let you down even if they didn’t always give you want you wanted. No one really knew what you could do, not even your family. It made you feel like a freak, like you never belonged anywhere since all you could do was see on the soulful plane. Maybe the BAU would benefit from having you on board, but would you benefit from having the BAU on your side? Your father always told you never to join any kind of government work, and at the time, he gave a good enough reason to keep you away. Something about them always taking jobs right from underneath everyone’s noses, and you believed him when you were a kid.

Now, not so much.

It was hard to when all you saw was death wherever you go. You didn’t ask for this ability, but you got it, and it was your responsibility to help as many people as you could with it until the day you die. That was the only reason why you were considering taking Jason up on his offer. There was still some hesitation on your shoulder, and you thought a walk would do you nice.

The crowded city rushed on without you, but you only had one thing on your mind. It was the busiest part of the city, but you liked walking through there once in a while. Everyone’s thoughts and feelings came to light when they were in a rush. It bombarded you and often overwhelmed you, but nothing overcame the sickening feeling you got in your stomach when you stepped on Jefferson Rd.

The energy in the air swirled around you, but it wasn’t energy from the people around you; it was from the dead. Even spirits leave energy behind when they pass which allow people like you to snatch it up to figure out their story. The way it works is that you become so overwhelmed with the emotions and the energy that you begin to see some of the last moments that spirit went through before it passed. You are allowed to see it based on how well you connect with it.

Some people have called you being psychic while other people called you a witch. Being an empathetic person helped you see the picture clearly. Not always will you get a clear one, and sometimes, you may not even get a full body. It’s whatever the spirit left behind and wanted you to see. They laid down the stepping stones, and it was up to you to be able to pass them.

Standing still in the middle of the sidewalk, you looked to your left to see a woman appear out of thin air. She was a bit transparent which is how you were able to spot the difference between an energy source and a real human. She was maybe in her mid-twenties, and she was jogging with headphones in. She passed by you without a second glance, and everyone around you seemed to disappear since the only person you were able to focus on was her.

She jogged for a few more seconds when a black apparition came out of the alley not far from you. The black shape grabbed at the woman, but you needed to replay that scene over if you wanted to connect with his spirit. Sometimes, when a picture isn’t clear, you have to replay the mini silent movie over and over again until you can either get a clear picture or you knew that you weren’t getting anything more.

As if you had a remote in one hand, you pressed it which rewound the action. The woman jogged backwards past you to where she first emerged, and you hit the play button. Just like before, she jogged past you, minding her own business when the black shape came at her. This time, he was a bit clearer. Repeating this process over and over again, you watched the woman get kidnapped about twenty more times before you could see the exact details of the man’s face.

He grabbed her and pulled her into the alley, but you couldn’t seem to move. The clearer the picture, the stronger the energy. The stronger the energy meant the event you watched happened recently. The longer the event goes unsolved, the less amount of energy you are able to connect with.

Something happened in that alley, but you dreaded going anywhere near it. However, this woman’s story was untold, and her spirit won’t rest unless someone tells it for her. Taking a deep breath, you looked at the busy street and suddenly remembered that you were in the middle of a city with a bustling amount of people around you.

Pushing past the crowd, you made your way to the alley until you were completely alone as the rest of the world left the single girl who was in the alley alone. There was one particular spot that drew you in, and you took a few steps towards it before getting another vision. The man jammed a knife into the woman’s abdomen, and you gasped when you felt her emotional pain. Being an empath is really hard work since you had more than yourself to worry about.

The woman dropped to the ground with a loud thud, and the man kept stabbing her over and over again until she was way past dead. Once he was satisfied, he took the murder weapon with him and fled the scene, running right past you to do it. It took everything in you to look away from his eyes despite your body telling you to do so.

The noise of the busy city drowned out the sound of a body thumping on the ground, and you crept to the area where she was stabbed. Instead of a body, there was a thick blue tarp covering the ground. It looked like a body was underneath it, but it could be trash. Please let it be trash. Please let it be trash. Picking up the end of the tarp with your gloved hand, you peeked underneath it to see wide soulless eyes staring at you.

The shock overwhelmed you, and you dropped the tarp in shock. Tears threatened to escape your eyes, but if it wasn’t for you, this woman probably would have never been found—or, at least, not right now. From what you could gather, the body was still fresh with only sight signs of decaying. If you called the police now, they might be able to find her killer.

Taking out your cellphone, you dialed 911 and put in an anonymous tip before getting the hell out of there. It didn’t take long for first responders to arrive on scene, and you watched from the deli across the street as they uncovered her. She was found because of you. She is going to get justice because of you.

That was all the evidence you needed to make your decision.

Taking out your phone once more, you called your dear and beloved friend. It took him three rings to pick up.

“Jason, it’s me, Y/N. I’ll take it.”

Gideon was sucked back into the BAU on a case after he needed to take some time for himself. He was involved with a bomber that took out one hostage and six agents, so you could understand why he requested for your help. He trusted you to aid this team in finding a killer, especially when he saw what you can do first-hand. It was hard to explain your abilities to someone who couldn’t possibly understand, but you knew you had to since he had a jet full of his other teammates.

It didn’t take long to get to the airport where the jet was waiting, and before you ascended the stairs, you could feel everyone’s emotions—impatient, curiosity, calmness, and eagerness. They were all waiting for you, and you needed to show them that you belonged on their team. Walking on the jet, all heads turned at the new presence. Gideon stood up and approached you with a welcoming smile on his face.

“It’s good to see you again,” he stated.

“Well, you needed me. Here I am,” you nodded, looking at everyone else on the jet.

The person you noticed first was what you assumed to be the second person in charge. He had almost black hair and a hard gaze since he didn’t really like newcomers. The next person was a black male who emitted impatience since he just wanted to get in the air. The last person was a scrawny young male which is where the curiosity was coming from.

“Y/N, this is my team. Agent Aaron Hotchner, Derek Morgan, and Dr. Spencer Reid.”

“Spencer Reid?” you asked, and the young man perked up at the sound of his name. “Sorry, but I’ve read everything you have ever written especially Identifying Non-obvious Relationship Factors Using Cluster Weighted Modeling and Geographic Regression. You have a very intelligent mind.”

“Thank you,” he smiled, clearly impressed that you read his work.

“Guys, this is my good friend Y/N that I’ve asked to help us on this case.”

“Is she FBI?” Hotchner asked.

“Not exactly.”

“I am what’s known as an empathetic psychic. If ‘witch’ makes you sleep better at night, then call me that. I see things that most people are not able to see. I connect with people’s energies, especially the dead. Believe it or not, I see events that lead up to someone’s death due to the energy and the spirit they leave behind. The more recent the event, the stronger of a picture I get. It doesn’t always give me what I want, but it always provides me with what I need. I’ll be a valuable asset to this team.”

“I already approved it with the board. She has her firearm qualification and she passed the academy with flying colors,” Gideon sided with you.

“We need to get going. We’ll see how you do on this case,” Hotchner nodded.

With that, the plane was off. It wasn’t until the pilot let you know it was safe to move around the cabin that everyone start to talk about the case.

“His first victim was Melissa Kirsh—stab wounds and strangulation,” Spencer read from the file.

“Wait, wait. Back up. Back up,” Derek interrupted. “He stabbed her and then strangled her to finish her off?”

“Other way around,” Gideon cleared his throat before turning to you, the hopefully newest member of the team. “Why do you think he started using the belt with the second murder?”

“Strangulation with your bare hands is not as easy as one would believe,” you said, earning a few stares from the others. You knew it would take some time for them to get used to you, especially when they didn’t even know you. The fact that you’re with them is because you’re friends with Gideon. “He tried and probably found that it took too long so he stabbed her instead and realized it would be hours cleaning up the blood.”

“Next time, our boy's got a method—the belt,” Derek added.

“He's learning and perfecting his scenario. Becoming a better killer,” Gideon stated.

“So, Y/N, where did you learn about profiling?” Hotchner asked, taking a break from the case.

“I have a PhD in Criminal Justice with a sole focus on profiling. Another one in Psychology which better helps me connect with others. I thought Gideon told you all of this,” you asked, looking at your friend.

“How old are you, if you don’t mind me asking?” Spencer asked.

“Twenty-three. Well, I turn twenty-three in a few months.”

“Wow, I’m impressed. How did you get two PhD’s at your age?”

“How’d you get three at yours?”

“I’m a genius with an eidetic memory.”

“Yeah, well, I worked my ass off to get where I am so just know that you’re not letting just anyone on this jet with you. I’d be happy to prove myself to you guys. I’ve been doing it since I could read.”

“There’s a few more of us you still have to meet,” Hotchner stated.

“Lucky you, Reid,” Derek grinned. The young doctor stared at his friend in confusion. “You’re not the youngest one here anymore.”

wanna be tagged? add yourself to this document! if your tag doesn’t work, find out why!

@averyhotchner​

[elliesguitarstrings]

Silence (Part 4)

Masterlist//Series Masterlist

Peter Parker x Stark!reader

Summary: You and Peter have been best friends ever since he stepped foot into the avengers compound. After a year of being friends you realize you’ve developed a crush on him, but he doesn’t feel the same way… at least, you don’t think he does.

A/N: This is the second to last part I think! I was gonna do just one more long part but I want to keep this series going for a little longer so I decided to split it into 2 more parts so this one is kinda short. Please keep sending requests bc I’ve really enjoyed writing them and I’m hopefully gonna post more of them soon <3

Warnings: language, little bit of angst

~~~~~~~~

It’s been three days since you last spoke to Peter. Three long, antagonizing days.

The fact that Peter kept ignoring you for MJ just pushed you to your breaking point. Plus, your chance with Peter is slim to none at this point, and it would just hurt more to stay so close to him knowing that he would never love you as much as you love him. Despite all the shitty things he’s done in the past few days, you still love Peter, which makes ignoring him all the more painful. But you had no other choice.

You hadn’t had a proper conversation with him since the dreadful events of your “friendiversary,” which for you and Peter was practically unheard of. You passed him in the halls of the compound and occasionally shot him a glance at team meetings, but other than that you ignored him completely.

Sitting on your bed, you pick up your phone.

14 New Messages from Peter

P: Y/N?

P: Y/N can we please talk

P: why are you ignoring me  

P: what did i do wrong can we please talk

P: Y/N why won’t you respond

P: how long are you gonna ignore me for

You stop reading after the sixth text. He’s been texting you constantly, but you never respond. To be honest, you don’t actually know how long you plan on ignoring him for. Obviously, you have to hash it out at some point, but you don’t think that will be anytime soon. Well, at least you hope it won’t be anytime soon.

Suddenly, FRIDAY announces, “Miss. Stark, Mr. Stark has requested you in his lab.”

You sigh, “What for?”

“Official Avengers business, so I would hurry.”

That peaks your interest, so you quickly leave your room and jog downstairs to your dad’s lab. You scan your fingerprint on the keypad, and the glass doors automatically side open, granting you access.

“Y/N, great, you’re here. I’ve got some big news,” your dad states.

“Really? What is it?” you ask excitedly.

“I’ve talked it over with the rest of the team, and we’ve all decided that you’re ready.”

“What!? Like ready to be an Avenger?” at this point, you’re practically shaking with excitement.

“Yes. You’ve had plenty of training, and we could use some extra help, so I’ve decided to make you an official part of the Avengers. Congrats honey.”

You rush to hug your dad, squeezing him tightly, “Thank you thank you thank you! You’re the best!” You pull away, “Does that mean I get to go on missions now?”

“Not just yet Y/N, you’ll just be starting off with patrol right now. I want to make sure you’re really ready.”

Normally, you would be opposed to this, begging him to let you go on a real mission, but at this point any excuse to get out of the compound and away from Peter was good enough for you.

“Okay! Can I go today?”

“Actually, that works out great! Peter has patrol in Queens tonight, so you can go with him. He can give you the lay of the land, tell you how stuff works and all,” he smirks.

“No, absolutely not,” you answer sternly, “I am not going with him.”

“Then I guess you won’t get to be part of the team.”

“WHAT? THAT’S NOT FAIR!”

“Y/N, now is not the time to be raising your voice at me. You can’t pick and choose who you fight with, just like you can’t pick and choose who you fight against. If you can’t figure out how to work out your stupid teenage problems, then I can’t have you on the team. I don’t want you jeopardizing a mission because you can’t work out a stupid problem with a boy.”

“But dad-“

“No buts. You either do your job or you’re not a part of the team. Understand?”

“Fine.” You storm out of the room, upset that yet another exciting thing is ruined by Peter.

As you hurry back to your room, you glare at Peter who is sitting on the couch watching TV. He starts to get up to talk to you, but is stopped by Nat, who follows you upstairs. Before you get the chance to slam your door shut, she catches it and slips into your room after you, shutting the door behind her.

“Okay, what’s going on with you and the kid?”

“Nothing.”

“Come on Y/N, it’s obviously not nothing. Everyone’s noticed that you’ve been ignoring him. Even Clint commented on it this morning, and he doesn’t give a shit about anything that goes around here.”

“Why does it matter?”

“Because I know you have feelings for him.”

Taken aback, you stutter, “W-what? No I don’t. You have no proof.”

“Oh please, I see the way you act with him, or well, how you used to act around him before you decided to start ignoring him for no reason.”

When you don’t respond, she sits down next to you on your bed. “Look Y/N, I know we’re not best friends, but you can talk to me. Just tell me what’s going on and maybe I can help. You can’t just keep your feelings bottled up like this. Trust me.”

“Fine,” you huff, “I do like him, but he doesn’t like me.”

“Is that why you haven’t been talking to him?”

“Sort of. But there’s more to it. He likes this girl from his school named MJ, and he’s been choosing her over me for a while now. And then the other day I had this whole day planned out for us because it was our one year anniversary of first meeting and becoming friends, and he invited MJ and one of his other friends to come with us,” tears start to roll down your cheeks, “And he spent the whole day with her, like he was purposefully avoiding me and rubbing it in my face that he doesn’t like me like that, that he’ll only see me as a friend.”

You scoot closer to Nat, and surprisingly, she pulls you into a short, but comforting hug. It actually means a lot to you, given that she’s not really the hugging type, and it makes you feel a but better knowing that she’s willing to comfort you.

“I’m sorry about that Y/N. It doesn’t seem like something Peter would do.”

“I know, which is why I’m even more pissed at him.”

Nat stares at the wall for a few seconds, seemingly deep in thought.

“I think you should tell him how you feel, tell him that you like him.” she states pointedly.

“What? Why would I do that?” you exclaim, taken aback.

She stands up off the bed and starts to walk out of the room, “Trust me. I have a hunch about it.”

She smirks and swiftly walks out the door, leaving you completely and utterly confused. For the time being, you decide to ignore it, ruling out the idea of confessing your feelings to a boy who doesn’t even like you, and who you are extremely mad at. That would be insane, right?

~~~~~~~~

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[chloelucia13]

Chapter 17: The Flayed

Pairing: Jonathan Byers x Henderson!reader

Prompt:  You always thought Hawkins was the most boring town of all, stuck in a vacuum void of excitement and entertainment. Well, it seems that way until the world decided to flip upside down, literally.

Chapter Summary: After what had occurred the night before, everyone was on edge. However, when everyone is grouped back together to combat this monster that was once thought to be gone, things take a dark turn.

Warnings: more angst bc what else do you expect from me, the tiniest bit of fluff if you squint, language, violence, gore, descriptions of possession

Word Count: 2441

A/N: We're getting close to the end of season 3!!! I've got a lot of ideas planned for the finale, and I've also been thinking about maybe posting some filler drabbles for the story while we wait for season 4! Let me hear your opinions and head canons, and as always, my taglists and requests are open!

Tags: @just-my-fandom​ @nightbu-g​

The cold concrete of the warehouse made your skin sting, nipping at the exposed flesh despite the nearly-impermeable humidity that blanketed the air. 

You couldn’t force yourself to move, staring idly at the mind flayer that laid just feet from you as you thought of what occurred between you and Jonathan earlier in the night.

You knew it was wrong, it was stupid and impulsive and damaging. And it wasn’t you. If you were in your right mind, you never would’ve even gotten close to kissing him. You would’ve never betrayed Nancy.

Maybe it was a good thing that the creature took over when it did. If it didn’t, you truly couldn’t imagine what else would have taken place. 

The creature lifted its head slightly as you thought of it, reminiscent of a dog that heard the crinkling of a wrapper. A mutant, rotting dog that made you nauseous whenever you looked at it. But now, staring at it was the only thing that kept you grounded, keeping you in the horrifying reality that you were unfortunately living in.

It was moments like these, your mind caught in a loop of morbid curiosity, that you wished you had El’s powers. The ability to look into people’s lives without anyone else being aware of it. You just wanted, for a moment, to check on Jonathan and make sure he was okay. Though, you couldn’t decide if you wanted to stay away to keep him safe or if you wanted to keep yourself safe.

As the creature settled back onto the ground, you let out a huff and silently cursed yourself for getting into this situation (well, whatever this situation was).

***

“Are you positive?” Nancy questioned, everyone eyeing Jonathan worriedly. 

After coming to the conclusion that Billy’s surge of power was linked with what Nancy saw happen to Mrs. Driscoll that same night, Jonathan had realized that what happened with you also fell into that same time period and also sounded extremely similar. He debated bringing it up at all, but knowing that this put so many people at risk, he spoke about it. 

He explained to everyone what happened with you last night (minus the kiss, for obvious reasons), claiming that you seemed normal until you just... weren’t. He also noted the black veins that were present on Billy and Mrs. Driscoll as well, another thing that held many similarities to Will’s case last year.

“Yes, I’m positive,” Jonathan responded, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Did she feel cold?” Mike asked, his brows furrowing.

Jonathan froze for a moment, panicking at the question’s possible insinuation. He thought back to the night before, feeling your lips against his and the gentle touch of your fingers on the back of his neck. He didn’t remember you feeling cold, but at the same time, he wasn’t really focused on the temperature of your skin when it was pressed on his.

He shook his head and shrugged. “I-I don’t know. Like I said, she seemed normal. And she was wearing a sweater and jeans, too.”

This made Max look at his confusedly. “Why would she be wearing a sweater and jeans in the middle of summer?” she pondered. “Especially if she’s one of the flayed, she’d want to stay as cool as possible.”

Nancy gnawed on her bottom lip as she thought. “She knows how we got the mind flayer out of Will,” Nancy began. “Do you think... She’s trying to sweat it out?”

Again, Jonathan shrugged. “Whatever it is, we need to find her and get this thing out of her. Out of all of them.”

***

The search for you, Billy, and Heather had led the group to the Holloway house. After walking through the hallway and into the kitchen, they stumbled upon a slew of cleaning products and other chemicals scattered along the surfaces, the containers crushed as if they were emptied hastily.

As everyone discussed the possibility of the flayed consuming these chemicals to make a new substance within themselves, Jonathan’s mind once again wandered back to the previous night. There was no way that the same Y/N who ate ice cream with him less than 24 hours ago had also ingested copious amounts of cleaning products. It just didn’t make sense to him.

He didn’t have much time to think about it, though, as Nancy led the group through the dining room and into the living room. She glanced at the wine bottle that was discarded on the floor before kneeling down in front of a puddle of a red substance. “Blood,” she whispered, glancing over at Jonathan when he knelt beside her. “Yesterday, Tom had a bandage on his forehead.”

As Jonathan watched Nancy slowly pick up the blood-stained wine bottle, he was struggling to wrap his mind around the fact that you hurt someone, or at least assisted someone in doing so. 

“He was attacked,” Nancy continued. Nancy began to walk, following the trail of drag marks and disturbed rugs that led to the garage where a pile of rope laid. “They must have tied them. They must have taken them somewhere.” Nancy stood silently, thinking for a moment. Mrs. Driscoll, she kept saying ‘I have to go back.’ What if the flaying, it’s taking place somewhere else. There must be a place where this all started, right? A source.”

“Somewhere he didn’t want me to see,” El added.

“If we can find the source, then maybe we can stop them. Or at least stop it from spreading, or whatever the hell they’re doing with those chemicals.”

“How do we find it?”

“Mrs. Driscoll,” Will spoke. “If she wants to go back so badly, why don’t we let her?”

“Okay, but this doesn’t make sense,” Jonathan argued, unable to pull his eyes from the rope that laid at his feet. “Y/N wouldn’t be able to hurt someone, let alone tie them up and drag them god-knows-where.”

“Jonathan, this isn’t Y/N,” Nancy argued.

He huffed. “Last night, when she changed, I tried to stop her from leaving because I was worried. I-I didn’t know what to do, but I knew I needed to help her, so I grabbed her arm.” He gulped. “She begged me to let her go. She said that she didn’t want to hurt me.”

A silence fell over the whole group as his words sunk in.

“Maybe she can control herself around you. But around other people, she can’t keep the flayer from taking over,” Nancy spoke finally, reaching out and touching his shoulder. “But you’re her weakness. And that’s gonna help us a lot.”

***

Silently watching Mrs. Driscoll’s body melt and condense into a meaty mush made you want to retch, but your body stood stock still as the lump inched from the room and down into the pipes. Once the mass disappeared from sight, you wandered out of the room, down the hall, and out into the stairwell, aimlessly walking down the stairs to pass time as you waited for whatever task the mind flayer would assign you next.

For once, you wish you were working at the pool, boiling under the scorching July sun. At least you’d have something to do.

Those thoughts left as soon as they came, however, when that strong fog began to flood your mind, your body switching onto autopilot as your feet led you onto the second floor.

A sharp pain stabbed through the right side of your head as you were about to turn the corner, doubling over in pain and clutching your head as you heard quick footsteps coming down the stairs. Immediately, you straightened up and jogged down the hallway, grabbing a pair of scissors from a nurse’s station before rushing into the wing of the hospital that was under construction and slipping into a room.

You heard the heavy footfalls sprint past your door, followed by another flayed that stalked slowly behind them. You stepped out of the room and walked beside him, tightly clutching the pair of scissors in your hand as the lights flickered around you.

The man beside you led you both over to a locked door, two voices echoing through the door. You nodded your head at the door and he slammed his fist through the glass, screams sounding from the two within the room as he peeked his head in before undoing the lock. As he pulled the door open, you stepped inside, a sinister grin on your face.

But that grin immediately fell when you saw who exactly was behind the door.

The man pushed past you, disregarding your clear shock as he threatened Nancy in a sing-song voice. Jonathan, who clearly was also reeling with shock but shoved it down, stepped forward and pulled his fist back, ready to attack the man. the man’s hand shot out and grabbed onto Jonathan’s neck, choking Jonathan and shoving Nancy away with his free hand.

The flayer’s control faded from your mind and you took advantage of it, hurrying over to Nancy and trying to help her up. “Y/N?” she coughed out, her eyes wide with fear. 

“You have to go,” you forced out, using as much strength as you could muster to pull her to her feet while also fighting to keep your consciousness. 

Behind you, you heard a groan of pain coming from Jonathan, and you and Nancy turned to look just in time to see the man slam a metal stool down on Jonathan’s back.

Nancy finally got onto her feet and you threw your scissors to the ground when you felt the flayer’s control slowly start to seep back into you. Through blurry vision, you watched Nancy take the scissors you discarded and embed them into the back of the man. 

You and the man hunched over, and you let out a groan of pain as he pulled the scissors from his back. The man cursed at her, quickly regaining his composure and stalking over to her. 

“Run!” you and Jonathan screamed at her, and you waited until she had led the man out of the room to go run over to Jonathan and help him.

"Jonathan,” you whispered, crouching down next to him and gently resting your hand on his back. “Are you okay?”

He gasped in pain, turning his head to look up at you. “What’s going on? How are you-” he began before you shook your head.

“I don’t know. Come on, let’s get you up.” You pulled the stool over to him and he gripped onto it, lifting his upper half up with all his might.

Moments later, the stool fell from his grip, Tom menacingly grinning down at the two of you. “Where are you going?” he hummed, nudging you to the side so he could pick Jonathan up by his shirt.

“Let him go!” you screeched, stumbling to your feet.

Tom held Jonathan by the collar of his shirt, locking eyes with him before glancing back at you. “Let him go? Sure.” He picked Jonathan up and threw him into the lockers, Jonathan’s body falling to the linoleum floor a moment later. Tom picked him up once more and threw his body into a cart, letting his body crumple to the ground.

You watched in horror as Jonathan crawled along the floor towards the pair of scissors, your whole body exhausted from all the strength it was taking to keep the monster at bay. Tom knelt beside Jonathan and grabbing him by the hair, lifting his face from the ground before slamming it down.

Once Jonathan finally fell unconscious, if only for a few moments, Tom grabbed the scissors and lifted them over his head.

“I’m in control of you! Stop!” you screamed, allowing the creature to take hold, black veins snaking up your face and arms. “Leave him alone.”

Tom turned to you, the scissors still held above his head. Tears streaked down your face as you glanced down at Jonathan, your vision slowly going dark. 

However, before the creature fully took hold, a harsh pain cracked across your face, making you cry out in pain. You clutched your nose and watched Tom stumble away, only for the two of you to be tossed around by another strong force.

Jonathan and Tom both scrambled to their feet, the scissors held tightly in Jonathan’s hand. Jonathan hesitated though, looking down at you on the floor. He had realized that whatever happened to one of the flayed was felt by all of them, and that meant that whatever he did to Tom, you would feel as well. 

“Do it,” you gasped out, rising to your feet with the gracefulness of a newborn fawn. 

“I don’t want to hurt-” Jonathan stuttered.

“Do it!” you screamed.

Tom lunged at him, and Jonathan plunged the scissors into Tom’s throat. Both you and Tom let out a ghastly gasp/moan of pain as you collapsed onto the floor.

As the lights continued to flicker overhead, Jonathan rushed over to you and turned you onto your back, clutching you in his arms.

Your eyes searched his, both of your chests heaving with ragged pants while you both silently communicated to each other.

“You need to go, I can’t control it anymore,” you choked out before rolling out of his arms and crawled over to Tom’s body. The two of you silently watched as Tom’s body began to convulse and turn to that all-too-familiar mush (well, familiar to you, at least). Jonathan let out a gasp of horror, though his eyebrows furrowed in slight confusion when your body didn’t do the same.

He realized then that his theory was right. You were different than all of the other flayers. On one hand, he was relieved because he knew it was truly you. On the other hand, though, it horrified him that it was you who committed all of these horrible acts. That, and the fact that you somehow had control over these creatures truly made his skin crawl.

He realized he didn’t have much time to dwell on it because the strange mush of blood and meat and bones slowly began to inch out of the room the same time that your eyes fluttered closed. He contemplated staying to check on you, but decided against it after a moment, instead following behind the disgusting mass.

A strange sense of calm washed over him when he saw Nancy standing at the other end of the hallway, following her own strange substance. Silently, the two masses led the two teens down the hallway, joining together in the middle and morphing into something even more sinister.

[rheawritessometimes]

Simple Promise

{ Childe x GN!Reader }

{ Summary } You broke one of Childe's bones and feel a little bad about it. Series Masterlist

{ Warnings } Swearing, Violence, Injury, Physical Intimacy.

{ Notes } The first part of Let's Make a Deal with minor edits. I dislike the later parts of the series so I decided to rewrite the whole thing. Masterlist

{ Word Count } 2,759

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Meeting Childe at the Golden House every week had been your routine for a few months now. After you had defeated him the first time, he begged you to spar with him again at the first opportunity. You agreed to his request after being unable to resist his puppy dog eyes. And the entire week he spent pestering you about it.

The whole fiasco with Osial had been put behind the both of you almost immediately after the god returned to the bottom of the sea. It was probably true that you were too quick to forgive Childe, but he was just so charming. The fact he frequently paid for your meals after sparring sessions or whenever the both of you had free time also helped him remain in your good graces. On a few occasions, you had been out eating with friends or on your own and found he had picked up your tab.

Since Liyue hadn’t been destroyed and you got free food out of it, you weren’t all too upset about the situation with Childe. The Snezhnayan was actually pretty easy to get along with when Fatui matters weren’t involved, or at least when those Fatui matters didn’t conflict with your own interests. He made you laugh too, so you supposed you could tolerate the once-weekly sparring sessions with him, even if he was a bit rough. You supposed the fact he was pretty cute didn’t hurt either.

Childe called it sparing, but normal people didn’t spar with actual weapons and fight like they were going to kill their partner. At first, you had tried to convince him it would be much better and safer for the both of you to use practice weapons instead of sharpened blades and arrows. He was quick to decline, saying something about both of you being competent enough not to get seriously hurt.

You thought about refuting that on the basis that he had yet to beat you even once but he always brushed you off. Childe never even gave any reasoning as to why he insisted on using real weapons and you suspected that he was just being stubborn.

Even so, each week you made your way to the Golden House to meet Childe for your sparring session. You’d never gotten there before him and wondered if he intentionally came early. You wouldn’t be surprised if that was the case, he probably paced the room plotting his seemingly unobtainable victory.

Childe would have made for quite a formidable opponent if he wasn’t so careless in battle. His combat experience and weapon mastery alone were impressive and the addition of a Hydro Vision and Delusion made a fight with him all the more fierce. But his lack of strategic ability and defensive technique made sparring sessions between you and him fairly one-sided. Childe might have been careless because it wasn’t a real fight, but somehow you doubted that. He seemed the type to always give it his all, which could have been his problem since his loss usually came due to exhaustion. Maybe if he didn’t spend so much energy trying to show off he’d actually be a proper challenge.

“You’re finally here,” Childe exclaimed dramatically, voice echoing off the walls, “I thought you might have gotten lost on the way or something. Was starting to worry I’d need to go out and rescue you.”

“I’m fifteen minutes early, Childe. How long have you been waiting?” you asked dryly, raising your eyebrow questioningly. You took a moment to shrug your adventuring pack off your shoulders and drop it near the door. You rolled your shoulders, relieved to be free of the weight.

“Ahah, anyways, we should get started. I have some business to attend to today,” he responded, indiscreetly ignoring your question. It shouldn’t have come as a surprise that he didn’t wait for your response before sending an arrow flying in your direction, but you were a little annoyed he hadn’t even waited until you were paying attention. Usually, he was more considerate than this.

Materializing your sword out of reflex, you raised the blade to block the arrow flying in your direction. The arrow bounced off the metal with a weak dink, clattering to the ground. If you’d reacted a moment later it would have pierced you.

Childe was smiling despite the dirty look you shot at him, irritated by the cheap shot. His grin only widened as he took aim again and you silently promised that he would face your wrath shortly. Someone needed to wipe that cocky grin off his face, after all.

Advancing towards him, you swatted the arrow flying your way with your sword. A bow would be less effective at close range, so you intended to close the distance. The redhead laughed, a hint of nervousness creeping into the sound at the pace of your advance. Or perhaps it was the building rage in your eyes.

The bow dematerialized, freeing Childe’s hands for his signature dual Hydro-blades in anticipation of close combat. Once in range, he immediately swiped at you with a blade in a predictable motion. You stepped back out of the way, quickly bringing up your sword to parry the next slash coming from the opposite blade. His movements were rash and you were beginning to think he would never learn anything from these weekly training sessions.

Childe seemed encouraged by you backing away, a smug look crossing his face. You furrowed your brows, surely he wasn’t so thoughtless. He insists on using real weapons, shoots at you before you’re ready, and now he has the audacity to get cocky. The audacity to get cocky even though you evading his attacks was draining more of his energy than yours.

Annoyed by Childe’s ego, you raise your blade to swing down at him and he catches your sword on crossed hydro-blades. He lets out a little huff of air, not expecting you to strike with such force, but his arms hold steady. You swiftly draw your blade back to slash at him again. Thorough training has you swiping at him with practiced ease while Childe is forced to switch to the defensive.

It gives you a sort of satisfaction to see his expression change to one of worry, it was your first time seeing such a look on him. You had no intention of actually hurting him, but it was nice to scare him a little. Maybe after this, he’d take the dangers of sparing with actual weapons a little more seriously. But probably not.

Quick, relentless strikes have Childe growing tired as he continues to evade your blade. You’re trying not to smirk as you move him around the arena, watching his chest begin to heave as breathing becomes labored.

Your intention was only to scare him when you struck his side with the flat of your blade. Of course, it wasn’t nearly as dangerous as using the sharpened edge but the sound of a soft crack barely loud enough to reach your ears made your blood run cold the same as if you’d sliced him open. A look of surprise crosses your face when he lets out a pained grunt, what had happened finally being processed in your mind.

On instinct you step forward, reaching out to Childe as your sword clatters to the ground before dematerializing. You were internally relieved to see his hydro-blades dissipate too, it would have been terribly unsportsmanly of him to stab you now. But even without being stabbed, you pause at the realization that you’re not sure what to do.

Childe’s hand moves to the side of his chest as he coughs a few times, face scrunching up in pain. A flood of panic washes over you at the sound as your thoughts race. The cracking sound suggested you’d at least broken one of his ribs and if his coughing meant a lung had been pierced, well the outcome could be very unpleasant.

“Fuck, that hurts,” he huffed out before he attempted to gingerly sit down, right in the middle of the Golden House. Childe winced at the movement, but he managed to settle, leaning back on his arms for support. His breathing was heavy from the strain of sparing and you felt extremely guilty, broken ribs had a tendency to hurt terribly and pain would flare up with every breath. But he didn’t seem to be struggling for air, so you assumed his lungs were intact.

“Let me get something to ease the pain,” you said hastily, jogging towards the door to grab your bag. Your thoughts were still a bit scattered but since Childe wasn’t actively dying you were a bit relieved. After a moment of thinking, you decided the best course of action was to numb him up before bringing him to Bubu Pharmacy to get some proper help.

“Aw, are you worried about me?” he cooed teasingly, maintaining that signature annoying grin despite the pain he must have been in. It was easy to ignore him as you rummaged through your bag for something useful.

It crossed your mind that it would be exceedingly difficult to get him all the way back to Liyue if you gave him anything too strong. That limited your options rather greatly, considering your lacking medical knowledge and limited variety of resources left you with fewer options than you would have liked already. He probably could make it back without any anesthetic but it would be slow and you’d feel terrible for it.

Even with your lack of selection, you were thankful to have some knowledge and materials for this sort of thing, adventuring made you better at improvising and you learned a lot along the way. Taking everything into consideration, you decided it would be best to go with something topical. You could make a salve to numb up the area and then hopefully drag him to Bubu Pharmacy.

“I’m sorry, Childe,” you apologized, “I didn’t mean to hurt you. Not that badly, at least.”

“Oh don’t worry about it, this isn’t the first time I’ve broken my ribs. Probably won’t be the last, either,” he replied with a laugh, which caused him to wince. You only frowned at him as you pulled out some plants to grind up. A rock would have worked, but you kept a mortar and pestle for this kind of thing after realizing you’d be doing field medicine often.

You were soon mashing some leaves and a few petals into a paste, with some water Childe so graciously provided. Having a Hydro user around was rather convenient, you were almost jealous of all the practical uses a Hydro Vision had.

“Whatcha makin’?” Childe asks after a short period of silence, leaning over to get a closer look. You wonder if he’s actually curious or if he just can’t tolerate the quiet. It seemed the two of you were always talking when you were together, save for when your sparing got too intense to spare the breath.

“A salve to numb you up so I can drag you to Bubu Pharmacy,” you responded, most of your focus on getting the paste to the right consistency.

“What? No, I can’t go. I’ve got work to do,” he argued, moving to stand up now that he was aware of your intentions. You were quick to grab his wrist to prevent him from getting up, looking away from your work to frown at him. Childe paused, waiting for your explanation.

“You have at least one broken rib, whatever you need to do can wait,” you told him sternly, maintaining eye contact. He turned his gaze away from you to hum in contemplation. He knew well enough that giving injuries time to heal was important, but so was his job.

“Fine, I guess it can wait until later,” he relented, leaning back into a comfortable position once more. Childe had a feeling that if he had insisted on skipping out on the doctor’s visit you would have actually dragged him there.

“Can you take off your shirt?” you asked, trying to sound as casual and not awkward as possible once you were satisfied with the consistency of the paste. You would have offered to allow him to apply it himself but you figured it would be less painful this way, plus you’d need to bandage his chest afterward, so it didn’t make much of a difference.

“Oh my, you’re not usually this bold,” he teased, reaching to begin undoing the clasps holding his jacket together. His remark made you decide against offering your assistance despite the awareness that even just wriggling out of the jacket probably hurt. It’s okay to be a little petty sometimes. As a treat.

Once his torso was bare you shifted your position to be a bit closer and examined his side. There was already the beginning of bruising, but it would get much darker by tomorrow. You ignored the scars and old bruising that was present, very aware of the fact the redhead would tease you for staring if you looked any longer.

“I promise I’ll be gentle,” you assured, “But it’ll probably hurt a little.”

Childe just hummed, waving off your warning, so you gathered some of the salve on your fingers. You wished you’d had gloves that weren’t absorbent with you so your hands wouldn’t grow numb later, but there was no helping it now.

It was a quick process of spreading the paste over his ribs, but his eyes remained on you the entire time. You couldn’t be sure if he was just interested in what you were doing, but it surprised you that he remained entirely silent. His steady gaze did make you feel a bit awkward, though.

“It’ll take a little while to numb up. I’m going to bandage your chest for support. This will hurt more than applying the salve,” you informed him, dragging your pack towards you to dig out a roll of bandages.

“Don’t worry, I’m pretty tough,” he laughed in response, and you could only smile and shake your head at him. You had faith in his strength, but that didn’t stop the guilt you felt over being responsible for his pain. It did make you feel better when he started reminiscing on past injuries he’d sustained in battle once you began bandaging him. How he could look back on them so fondly was a mystery to you.

At first, you were mindful to touch him as little as possible while you were wrapping the bandages. They needed to be a little tight to provide support but you tried to ensure they put as little pressure on his ribs as possible. Unfortunately, your fingers started to grow numb and you hadn’t realized you’d been bandaging too tightly until Childe let out a soft grunt of pain.

“Fuck, sorry,” you apologized, quickly unraveling the last section of bandaging to rewrap it more loosely.

“Don’t worry about it,” he said, thinking for a moment before adding, “But, if you want to make it up to me, a kiss would make me feel better.”

Pausing in your ministrations, you looked up to see a cheeky grin on his face. You raised a brow, giving him an entirely unimpressed expression. It wasn’t entirely uncommon for him to flirt like this, trying to get a reaction out of you. But as you reached one hand up to gently grab his chin, it was his turn to become flustered.

Leaning up, you pressed a chaste kiss to his cheek before moving away and releasing your hold on him. You patted his cheek twice, giving him an amused grin.

“You’re welcome.”

“Hey! That doesn’t count!” Childe immediately whined, pouting at you. You could only laugh at his playful antics as you finally finished wrapping his chest.

“You’re cruel, you know that?” the Snezhnayan grumbled, eyebrows still furrowed as he continued to pout. He really did seem like a spoiled kid at this moment and you laughed again, causing his frown to deepen.

You knew his demeanor was all theatrical, but as you stared at his expression you found yourself leaning towards him again. You gently pressed your lips to his, smiling into the kiss when his hands eagerly flew up to your face. You indulged in the kiss for a few more moments, smirking when he followed you as you pulled away. Putting a hand on his shoulder, you halted his attempt to continue.

“You can have another kiss once you get checked out at Bubu Pharmacy.”

-

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[bluegarners]

“someone slips on ice and gets hurt... hurt/comfort pls!” ~anon

For 12 Days of Batfam prompts! 

Gotham is cold.

He doesn’t mean that metaphorically, like Batman would normally brood over. Sure, Gotham was pretty heartless when it came to certain things, and yeah, Bludhaven wasn’t any better, and sure, Gotham sometimes felt like one endless cycle of insanity day after day, but he’s getting away from the point.

He’s talking about the frigid kind of cold. Not the kind of cold where snow falls lightly from the sky and dusts the world in white. Not the kind of cold where it’s just chilly enough to put on a jacket and some gloves and start a fire (a contained and safe fire, mind you- arson is not part of that description) and maybe sip some hot chocolate and roast a couple marshmallows for the heck of it. 

That’s the kind of crisp weather Dick would like, but as he said: Gotham is cold.

Which brings him to where he is now, jogging in place and trying his best to stay warm on what may be the most boring stake-out he’s done in months. His suit isn’t built to be warm. It’s not bulky and though it has kevlar in it, the material is meant to help stop bullets and deter knives from gracing themselves into his, unfortunately, vulnerable organs. Point being, the skin tight and relatively thin suit he’s wearing isn’t built for Gotham’s icy chill. 

His fingers had gone numb a while ago, and Dick’s absolutely sure he’s sporting a new shade of blue lipstick from Fenty Beauty, and were someone to see him, Dick’s also certain they might mistake him for Rudolph. He wouldn’t mind being recognized as such an icon, but it wasn’t exactly the sort of thing to intimidate criminals with.

Efforts at staying warm prove futile, and the exercise he tries to do without being obvious also does little to put back some feeling into his toes. He’s thinking about calling it a night, the drug deal he’d been hoping to catch the last few weeks a bust, when a classically suspicious white van pulls up. It’s laughable, in a way, how stereotypical some of Gotham’s “lesser” villains could be, but Dick’s not one to complain.

Makes his job easier after all.

Two men exit the van, shuffling through some contents in the back. They’re both wearing ski masks, somewhat appropriate for the weather actually, and seem to be in a hurry. Hushed whispers go between the two as they wait stoically by the front doors of the van, what looks to be a small ziploc back clutched in one of the goons hands. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that it’s a drug deal, or at least something related to it, and Dick feels a smile creep onto his frozen face as another person slowly walks up to them, shifty and anxious.

A newbie then, Dick thinks, crouching down and carefully making his way closer to them from his vantage point. Must be a kid then.

Based on the height and general demeanor of the newcomer, it’s safe to assume that the buyer is indeed a teenager, at most a young adult. Perhaps not even old enough to buy alcohol. How they heard about the new drug, and where to get it, was a bit surprising, but seeing as the deal was happening in the poorer districts, Dick was sadly not perturbed. 

There are few quick words exchanged, an envelope of cash being handed over for the ziploc baggie, and Dick knows it’s time to finally take action. A good thing too, seeing as it feels like the soles of his boots had become suspended to the frozen concrete.

His entrance startles both parties, the men in ski masks immediately reaching for weapons and the teenager backing away, stumbling over himself in an effort to run. Perhaps if they were more experienced, or at the very least a second more prepared, they would have been able to put up some sort of defense. As it were, though, Dick had been stalking this particular drug for weeks. He knew where most of the suppliers were, knew what areas they liked to sell in, knew their demographics and the supply chain, and also knew who and what the dealers consisted of. 

This “new” drug was really just a potent mixture of PCP and bath salts. A dangerous combination, but not valuable enough to have competent dealers and proper weapons for protection. 

Which is why the take down of both men lasts all of about seven seconds, Dick easily knocking them out before they could reach for any weapons they happened to have in that van of theirs. He’ll give them props for trying though- it’s not everyday Nightwing, of all people, decides to ruin your one job.

With the dealers out of the way, Dick turns back around to see the teen, baggie in tow and still clutched tightly in his fist, booking it across the street. It’s dark enough to the point where the boy just looks like a flighty shadow in the night, but the flickering lamp-posts give just enough light to show exactly where he was heading. The confidence in his gait suggested that he knew where he wanted to go, and if Dick had to make a hypothesis, he’d say the kid was heading home. 

The only place in the world that could feel safe after something like this.

Dick feels a frown pull on his face, the skin tight from being exposed to the bitter air, and not for the first time, feels a smidgen of sympathy for the situation. He brushes it off though, shelving that particular thought of his to the back of his mind, and grapples onto the building over, pulling himself over the ledge. 

He follows the kid from the rooftops, leaping over gaps and darting across fire-escapes to keep up with the twists and turns the teen took. If he knew he was being tailed, then the kid was doing a pretty good job at evading, but he was no match for someone who had trained for years doing this exact thing. Dick may live in Bludhaven now, but Gotham would always be his first home. He knew this city almost as well as Bruce, and the only reason he didn’t know just as much was because he hadn’t given his soul away to it just yet. Bruce had shaken hands with the city and signed away his being when he donned the cowl. 

Dick was attempting to do the same with Bludhaven.

The kid bolts into an alleyway, coat flying behind him in his mad dash, and Dick thinks now is the time to stop the chase. He descends from the rooftop, landing in front of the breathless teen, and holds out a hand firmly. It’s a little funny, the scene he makes. Not only does he look like Rudolph, but with the pose he’s made for himself, he might as well be a crosswalk guard with his hand up to halt speeding cars.

“Alright, that’s enough,” he says, not unkindly. “Let’s do this the easy way, kid.”

The teen takes a step back, the drugs held tightly against his chest. “You’re… you’re Nightwing.”

“The one and only,” Dick smiles, taking a step forward. 

“But-but this is Batman’s city. Why are you here? You’re not supposed to be here.”

“Honestly, kid, that’s not your biggest concern right now. If I were you, I would be worrying about how to explain those drugs you’ve got there.”

As if realizing the contents of the baggie for the first time, the teens eyes dart to it, panic setting in as the situation’s gravity, and what it could mean for him, overwhelms him.

“Th-These aren’t mine,” the kid tries. “I-I swear I wasn’t gonna use them.”

“Uh huh,” Dick says, taking another step closer. “Why don’t you try again, uh, what’s your name?”

“I’m not telling you that.”

“Okay,” Dick shrugs, easing his way nearer. “That’s fine, I’ll just call you Buddy. Now, Buddy, there are two ways this can go. One, you give me that bag and you’ll only be reported for minor drug possession. Gotham has a fine ranging from 30 to 50 dollars for that sort of crime, so it won’t be too bad. The second option is, well, I don’t think you want the second option. So, what’s it going-”

Now, Dick could blame about ten different things for what happened next. He could blame his mouth, as he gets too chatty with the younger ones sometimes. He could blame the poor lighting, seeing even more difficult at this time of night. He could even blame the wind for being too loud, lest he would’ve heard the quick intake of breath and shuffling feet. 

Dick could blame many different things, but as it were, Nightwing was being pushed, hard, and he hadn’t seen it coming. 

The unexpected shove throws him off balance, arms waving in the air for some sort of hold, and Nightwing probably would’ve been able to stop the fall on any other night, but, as he keeps being sorely reminded, Gotham is cold tonight.

Gotham’s cold was unforgiving and instead of snow, it produced ice. And, lucky him, a patch of black ice presented itself right where his unfortunate footing was trying to find some stabilization. His feet fly right out from under him, all four appendages now in the air and flailing comically.

Dick has the awareness to at least look where he’s falling, craning his neck just so, and he internally groans as the sight of an open garbage can meets him. For whatever reason, Gotham liked using metal cans, of all things, and this one did not have a lid on it. 

Fantastic.

He can’t catch himself, his arms out of his control (Dick also blames the cold for the numbness in his hands and, hence, lack of grip), and it’s all he can do but brace for impact. Oh, he’s so going to-

The side of his head slams into the rim of the metal bin, and the world goes white. He crumples against the frozen ground, boneless and suddenly without vision. Something warm, or decidedly extremely cold, slides down his neck and Dick can barely keep his eyes open. There’s no pain, at least not yet his muddled head reminds him, but he can’t seem to move or do anything for that matter. Sensations fail him and the lack of any visuals besides the blaring white and static in his eyes scares him. His tongue feels fuzzy, and there’s something smooth and metallic dribbling past his lips, but his biggest concern right now is getting up.

Laying here, injured, was a big no no. Vulnerability was a dangerous thing. If he could just… If he could just move his arm, he might be able to do something. Call for backup maybe. There’s a drug bust that’s going to go down soon and he’s been tracking these guys for weeks now and it would be a shame if they were to get away. Those drugs were dangerous after all, and in the wrong hands could get someone killed. It could get kids killed. It could get his… his buddy killed. Did he have a buddy? Buddy?

“Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god.”

Dick hears the distorted voice from above, the sound crackly and pitchy. 

“Oh, god, I-I swear- oh my god. I didn’t mean to do that, I swear, I swear. Oh my god, what do I do. What do I- oh my god, I killed him. I killed him.”

If he could, Dick would roll over and try to console the obviously panicking person. He can’t exactly make out everything they were saying, but it sounded bad. What happened? Were they hurt?

A hand is jostling his shoulder now. 

“Sir, Nightwing, I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Please wake up, I didn’t mean to do that. I didn’t mean to hurt you. Wake up, wake up please. I’m sorry, oh my god, I didn’t-”

Another sound pings in his ear, like the toll of a tiny bell, but Dick doesn’t have the presence of mind to really register it. It’s the last thing he hears before the static overpowers him and the white disappears.

.

.

.

Tim hates being sick. He hates being benched even more, but he’s only benched because he’s sick. So maybe he actually hates being sick more than being benched. He’s not sure.

The head cold he’s been nursing, begrudgingly, the past few days has been steadily getting better. He woke up this morning without feeling like his head was being squeezed into a compressor, so it was progress. Alfred still won’t let him drink anything but water, something about hydration being key, but as he sips some hot chocolate from his favorite mug, Tim thinks that what Alfred doesn’t know won’t hurt him.

He’s on monitor duty currently, a task assigned to anyone who wasn’t out on patrol. Barbara was on a break tonight, taking the time off to sleep and try to catch up on other things, so it was left to Tim to handle the comms. It’s boring, horribly so, but it’s the only thing he’s allowed to do without being wrestled to his bed to rest.

He begins pinging everyone for their hourly check-in, a new protocol Bruce decided to implement after “the incident” (Tim still believes that the check-ins are unnecessary- it only happened one time! One time!), and waits for their response. He gets a few pings back, Spoiler being the only one to actually say hi, and waits for Nightwing to answer. 

A minute go by and Tim pings Nightwing again. Most likely, Dick was distracted. He’d said he was on a stake-out tonight, hopeful to catch some dealers in the act. Maybe he finally did. Maybe he didn’t. Tim doesn’t really care; the warm drink in his hands was making him sleepy.

Another minute passes, and Tim lethargically pings again. Concern is slowly seeping into his stuffy brain, but he’s deciding to give Dick a little more time to answer. Dick was a chatter-box sometimes, and though he doesn’t have a headache right now, Tim’s not eager to gain one.

“This is Red Robin, requesting a check in,” he says into the comms, frowning a bit when there’s still no answer. “Nightwing, report.”

He’s technically not supposed to do this, privacy being a very important part of all their lives, but the silence was making him nervous. With just the slightest bit of hesitance, Tim opens the communication line so he can listen to what, exactly, Dick is doing. The comms are two way, and with Tim having access to the main port, he can time into anyone's’ comm and hear the situation. Typically it’s yelling or curses on the other end, the normal reason for not answering the ping being a fight or some unavoidable situation.

What Tim isn’t prepared for, however, is the labored breathing that sounds horribly wet and pained. Like someone was breathing through a straw and drowning at the same time. Okay, not a great analogy, but he’s caught off guard and suddenly very aware of the fact that Nightwing is injured and, probably, incapacitated. 

There’s someone in the background as well, their voice not quite decipherable but panicked all the same. It’s definitely not a voice Tim recognizes and that amps up his anxiety a bit more. 

Quickly tuning to the shared channel, Tim urgently says, “Nightwing’s down. I’m sending out his location. Whoever is closest needs to get there ASAP. Someone’s with him as well, but I don’t know who it is. They might’ve been the one to attack him.”

“Robin and I are close. ETA two minutes,” Batman grunts, the slight pitch change an indication of his worry. “Is Nightwing’s comm broken?”

“No,” Tim sighs, unable to do anything more but listen to it all unfold. “He didn’t report in for the hourly. For whatever reason, he can’t respond. He’s injured, but I don’t know to what extent. He might be unconscious.”

“How long has he been down?” Robin demands.

“I don’t know,” Tim responds, growing frustrated. “He didn’t say anything earlier or call for backup.”

“Have Agent A prepare things,” Batman orders. “Treatment for hypothermia may be needed. Batman out.”

“Robin out.”

The moment of silence after is haunting, but the feeble breaths that come through a second later make Tim’s stomach churn. It fills the Cave, echoing and reverberating sounds of sickness and hurt.

He can’t turn it off though. He has to make sure Dick is okay. That he’s still breathing because although it’s grating and gut-wrenching to listen to, it’s a sign of life.

Tim hates being benched.

.

.

.

The one hundred and twenty three seconds it takes to get to Richard’s location is tense. It’s a blinking blue dot on the radar, flickering in and out as they draw nearer and nearer to the dank alleyway Nightwing was laying in. 

Batman and Robin had opted to patrol with the Batmobile that night, the bite of Gotham’s frost a needless pain to endure. Damian hadn’t made a comment about Richard’s foolish idea to do a stake-out in below freezing temperatures, it wasn’t his place to ridicule the man he looked up to on something so trivial, but Damian thinks he’s regretting that decision a bit. 

Richard listened to him. Not all the time, and frequently the older man possessed more knowledge on what was to happen, but he did consider Damian’s advice and for that, he was grateful. Now, Damian wished he had just slapped the man to get him to see straight. Clearly, the plan had been inane from the beginning, and now Nightwing needed to be rescued and assisted. 

An imbecilic situation.

They reach the entrance, or perhaps exit, of the alleyway, the path too dark to see clearly through. As soon as he opens the door, Damian hears the sounds of flighty footsteps and immediately plunges into the dim. He can see the figure now, a gangly and awkward excuse of a man running to the other end of the alley. Damian can sense Batman behind him in his pursuit, the comfort of backup strange. 

If this man, who they were chasing, was strong enough to incapacitate Nightwing, one of the best fighters in the world, then they may have a problem on their hands. 

Damian stops short though, almost falling onto his face as the gleam of ice appears in his peripherals. It catches the light of a dull and yellowing streetlamp, but it’s just enough to reflect onto the ice and reveal yet another figure, slumped over and unmoving.

Careful of the ice, Damian approaches cautiously, peering closely at the lump of mass laid against the brick wall. Batman keeps in pursuit, and soon, his cape disappears from the alley, determined to catch the fleeing perpetrator. Robin is alone now.

Taking out a flashlight from his belt, Damian directs its beam to the form and nearly gasps.

It’s Nightwing. Richard.

Immediately rushing closer, Damian is startled to see the sheer volume of blood weeping down the older man’s face, a stream of red that flows down his jaw and soaks the hemline of his suit. Taking in the situation, Damian sees the knocked over trash bin, a corner of the top suspiciously rust colored. Additionally, the ice patch that’s near the base of Richard’s feet, and the position he currently lays in, would suggest that Richard had fallen or been pushed over, slipping due to the ice. 

The amount of blood still flowing out of Nightwing is concerning, but if it was from a head wound, then it wouldn’t be surprising. As Richard liked to say, head trauma was the most dramatic trauma. 

The older man is unconscious, lips blue and face much paler than would be healthy. He doesn’t respond to Damian’s attempts at waking him up, including shining the flashlight directly into his eyes after peeling away his mask. However, in doing so, Damian also learns that Richard may be suffering from a concussion or worse, as his pupils barely contract when he passes the light back and forth.

“I have the suspect,” Batman says into the comms. “A teenager named Ben Purole. He claims he pushed Nightwing, resulting in him hitting his head on a garbage bin.”

Damian nods to himself, satisfied with the confirmation. “That is likely,” he responds, applying pressure to the now located head wound. “Nightwing is suffering from head trauma, perhaps a concussion, but appears to have no other wounds. He is bleeding and unconscious though. It would be wise to get him treated quickly.”

There’s a grunt on the other end to signal affirmation and less than twenty seconds later, Batman appears, carefully taking Nightwing into his arms and walking towards the Batmobile still parked at the entrance of the alley. Without prompting, Damian opens the side door, crawling in after Richard had been set to lay down.

The movement and sudden change in temperature seems to rouse him, a groan escaping his lips. Before Damian has properly fastened his seatbelt, the Batmobile is off, gliding easily across the icy roads. Father doesn’t like to drive fast during this kind of weather, though he knows the tires of the vehicle are built to grip onto slick surfaces, but there is a sense of urgency in the way he weaves between cars and runs lights.

“Wh’ happn?” Richard slurs from where his head rests in Damian’s lap.

“You were being brainless,” Damian responds, sniffing slightly, “and slipped gracelessly into a trash bin.”

“Skate?”

“No, you did not skate. What you did could hardly even be called falling. It was tasteless.”

“M’ head hurts.”

“Like I said,” Damian whispers, annoyance fading, “You fell. I believe your head collided with the edge of a metal bin.”

“Bleedin’?”

“Yes.”

“Con..concuss...con…”

“Yes, it is likely you have a concussion. You will be scanned when we arrive at the Cave to be sure.”

A moment of silence passes, nothing but the growl of the Batmobile’s engine to shake it.

“Richard?”

“Mmfph?”

“Are you… Are you alright?”

Two seconds.

“M’ cold.”

“Oh,” Damian says, slightly embarrassed. That was obvious, really. Why had he not provided a blanket yet? Or any sort of jacket or heat pad? Perhaps it was not just Richard being brainless tonight.

Gingerly, Damian shifts about, searching for anything that might provide warmth for the duration of the drive. He finds nothing though, the majority of their winter equipment most likely in the trunk. Richard’s lips are still blue and his shoulders shake in what might be shivers. His skin is cold to the touch, eyes squeezed shut and pained, and Damian cringes at the drying blood beginning to crack around his cheeks.

Now, Damian could provide multiple excuses for his next course of action. Not excuses, no, not that. He’d come to the reasonable conclusion that Richard was cold and may have hypothermia. There was also the conclusion that Richard most likely needed comfort, as he was still greatly disoriented and concussed. Damian’s actions were for the sole purpose of providing means of ensuring Richard’s safety as well, as even though Father was a good driver, one could never be too cautious, especially on such icy roads.

So, yes. Damian draping himself over Richard’s body in an awkward hug was purely for safety reasons. He intended to provide warmth with his own body heat and it was purely for Richard’s comfort. Nothing else. It was to help Richard. Damian did not need anything nor did he seek comfort. 

The hug was for survival reasons. Yes, survival. Exactly that.

Damian will never admit to the small smile that crept up his face when Richard hummed, a small and frozen grin of his own spreading.

The rest of the drive was spent in easy silence and when they arrived at the Cave, Tim and Alfred were waiting for them. By then, Dick had become slightly more coherent. Not exactly lucid, he still slurred his words just the slightest bit, but it was safe to conclude he was in no real danger.

Of course, as soon as he was cleared, Bruce took one last glance at Dick before heading back out again. Damian stayed in the Manor, watching his brother sleep on the cot they kept out for occasions like this. Dick had been given three blankets and a hot pack to hold onto. Hypothermia hadn’t set in, but the bright pink of his fingers and toes were a sign of future trouble if they didn’t immediately correct it.

Hours later, some time in the early morning when the sun had just barely begun to rise, did Bruce return. Alfred had sent both Tim and Damian back up to the Manor, a reprimand of something along the lines of, “Heaven forbid you two be the ones to catch a cold rather than Master Richard tonight,” shaming them enough to carry themselves to their respective rooms and settle in.

Taking off his cowl, Bruce’s eyes instantly travel to his eldest, still swamped with absurdly fluffy blankets and a ridiculous amount of pillows. He’s by his side in seconds, gazing at the color that had returned to Dick’s cheeks. Running a hand carefully through his son’s hair, Bruce frowns as he feels the familiar bumps of fresh stitches, his mouth pulling down further when he sees Dick’s brow twitch in irritation.

He keeps his hand there for a moment longer though, closing his eyes in what might be thankfulness. He’d left to check the garbage bin Dick had slammed into, scanning it for signs of rust or other ill-effects of time. Bruce had felt a surge of relief when he found no signs of oxidation in the metal, calling Alfred to tell him that tetanus was unlikely. Seeing Dick lay there, unresponsive and slurring, had scared Bruce more than he wanted to accept.

He’s a man always prepared for the worst, but never knowing what to do in the aftermath. That part of him that whispers his greatest fears screamed at him tonight, only subsiding once he’d returned. He was a coward, he knew this, but there was hardly anything else he could think to be.

“Bruce?”

He opens his eyes to look down, taking in the sight of his eldest son, rosy cheeked and smiling, no longer covered in red stains and frost. It was a good sight. A great sight. Bruce isn’t religious, but he might even call it a blessing.

“Hey, chum. How are you feeling?”

Dick responds by leaning into Bruce’s touch, content and warm. There’s a suspicious wetness building in the graying man’s eyes, but neither make a comment. It was rare, these moments between them. Far and few between, but appreciated nonetheless.

“I hate the cold,” Dick grumbles, sinking further into the mass of blankets. “Winter in Gotham sucks.”

As if on cue, a hearty sneeze erupts from out of Dick’s nose, startling the both of them. Dick sneezed like he was a married man with three children; purposely loud, dramatic, and with enough force to throw his back out. Bruce blinks, processing the sneeze and trying to decide if something like that was even meant to come out of a person, much less a concussed person. 

He needn’t think too hard about it though as a giggle, yes a giggle, makes itself known, filling the Cave with a lightness it doesn’t often experience. 

Dick is laughing and it’s one of the most beautiful things Bruce has ever heard, and he can’t help but chuckle too.

Gotham is cold, but the small med-bay felt like the warmest place in the world.

[theyscreamjade]

i love your writing so much! i was wondering if it was okay to request headcannons of dabi, bakugo, and todoroki and how they would handle or babysit kids. the thought has been living in my head for so long 🥺

Dads

I simply turned it to if they had kids, I wanted to dive into a bit to their lives with kids.

Disclaimer: Super Hot Dads.

——————————————————————————————————————

* I see Dabi as the type to be surprisingly good at taking care of kids.

* Remember he’s had brothers and sisters before you, which means he’s probably had to take care of them before.

* If they’re babies, he’ll of course change their diapers and everything, he’ll even incinerate the dirty ones so the stench won’t be as bad.

* Kids on the other hand, may be a issue. They’re curious and will always want to know what happens to him and how did he get this way.

* Hell, they might be scared of him all together.

* I know for a fact, babies will be attracted to him because of how warm he is and how calm his heartbeat would be.

* He’ll hold the little one close to his chest while your knocked-out in bed, sleeping away.

* He’s no chef but he can try. If the baby likes smashed fruits. He’ll make it happen, mashed bananas and strawberries and he’ll feed them until their chubby cheeks came take anymore.

* Dabi would do the things his father would never and be better than him in every way.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* Katsuki, Katsuki, Katsuki.

* This poor man was raised...ON VIOLENCE!

* Nah, foreal though. He may not be like that to the little one. He may yell but not at them. Maybe at a toy that hurt their hand, or the bike they fell off of.

* I believe he’ll treat his kids like they’re the best things in the world, constantly making sure they’re fine.

* He may be scared to hold them at first because of his quirk. He’s wouldn’t want to make them explode or something, but once he’s calm. It’s over with.

* For some reason, he’ll explore everywhere with them.

* He’ll sit them in a stroller and push them along or have them on a baby carrier and continue through the day like he normally would. He’d jog or walk and constantly look down at them.

* He’s a walking heater, skin to skin is right up his alley. It always happens, no matter how old they are.

* The child could be five, laying in their fathers chest, hugging him tightly while he sat on the couch shirtless.

* Katsuki wants to be a good father like his, along with his mother. He knows she tried her best, just not in the way some would recommend.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* I don’t care how old you are, trauma will stay with you forever.

* The moment he sees his child, he’s immediately worried. He doesn’t want to hurt them in anyway. He probably won’t even hold then when their first born because of how scared he is.

* It’ll take a day without you and they started crying and won’t stop. You come home and you see a sleeping Shoto with your baby on his left side, curled up and sleeping peacefully.

* His steady heartbeat would be a favorite for them, how it beats calmly no matter what. Instant knock-out every time.

* Now, the moment when they start crawling or walking, ready to explore. He may get a bit over-protective. Unlike his father who saw him as a prize. He’d see them as something extremely fragile.

* He wouldn’t want them to be hurt, in pain or anything but that’s a part of life.

* He nearly sat a bike on fire when they fell off and cried, or how he wanted to burn all the paper when they got a paper cut.

* Explain to him that it is a apart of life that can’t be blocked out no matter how much he tries.

* I believe the child will think that their dad(s) are the greatest no matter what, and that alone will leave happiness in his heart.

[sup-hoes-its-me]

Before You Go (All Might x Reader)

Part One/Part Two

A/N: okay, so this is gonna be pretty sad all around. Ultimately, Young!All Might x reader, but with Aizawa Shota undertones. Aizawa was giving me some mad professor snape vibes in this, and I sincerely apologize for that. I love him too but this isnt his story.

word count:4000

“Y/N, you seriously need to sign up with that energy quirk hero’s agency...shit what’s his name? It’s on the tip of my tongue,” Yamada remarked, tapping his chin as if that might help him remember. He sat at the lunch table with the rest of his friends, Shota and Oboro. Y/N was right beside him, but it seemed his words, despite being loud as usual, went through one ear and out the other. 

“Don’t bother. She’s a lost cause.” Aizawa replied tiredly. 

They all followed her gaze, only for their eyes to land on Toshinori Yagi. The blond walked by, carrying his food to his lunch table with his friends, people Y/N didn’t know, nor could she ever even hope to know. To be honest, Y/N was kinda sorta a loser. She was lucky that she even had friends considering she was awkward beyond belief.

“He’s too full of himself to notice you, Y/N. I’d just give up on that one,” the dark haired boy added, bumping his shoulder with the girl’s. She frowned, shaking her head to get back to reality. Aizawa was right. Not even once had the blond glanced at her or said hello. He was too cool for her. He was going to be one of the best heroes to ever exist and she was just average at best. None of her teachers ever saw potential in her, just saying that her strength was great, just that the side effects of her quirk were far too destructive.

She took a hefty scoop of rice and shoved it into her mouth, chewing grumpily. 

“Come on, Y/N! It’s alright. You could just date me or Yamada!” Oboro laughed, clapping a hand on her shoulder from where he sat across from the girl. 

“You don’t have to ruin my fantasies, Aizawa-kun. I know I don’t have a chance, but it’s nice to think about,” she snapped, sending a sideways glance at her friend who shrugged. He tried to tell himself it didn’t matter if Y/N obsessed over that muscle-head, but it bothered him. She was their friend: she should pay attention to them, no ogle over some narcissist. “He’s going to be the greatest hero this world has ever seen, I just know it. There’s something special about him, his quirk-”

“We get it. Toshinori this, Toshinori that. You know, if you like him so much, why don’t you go talk to him?” Yamada suggested. He wasn’t upset with her talking on and on about her crush, but he just knew Aizawa was about to burst with a couple more remarks. When she didn’t make an effort to move, he smiled knowingly. “You’re such a scaredy cat, Y/N. What’s he gonna do, bite you? If he’s a nice guy, it wouldn’t be a problem-”

“If it’s so easy, Yamada, why don’t you go find Nemuri and tell her how you feel?”

That shut him up very fast, as expected. Their cloud quirk friend broke through the tension swiftly, “Well, instead of talking about stupid crushes, why don’t we talk about our plans for this weekend? Karaoke and Barbeque, dudes! It’s gonna be awesome.”

“Oh my God, I totally forgot about that!” Y/N exclaimed, shoving more rice in her mouth so it bulged in her cheek like a squirrel. She probably should take smaller bites, but it was more fun to see how many grains she could fit in her mouth at one time. “Hizashi, I swear if you eat all the spicy pork again...”

“That only happened once-”

“Twice, actually!” she corrected, poking him on the forehead with the end of her chopstick. They laughed and all was well again, if not for her lowering self-esteem. If only Aizawa believed in her. He was her best friend, the only one who’d been there since the beginning. If he pushed her to talk to Toshinori maybe she would have the courage to actually do it. 

But that wasn’t important. She had friends who actually enjoyed her company, and that’s what mattered.

The weekend was two days away, and a lot could happen in those 48 hours, she found. 

_____________________________________

“Fucking useless. So weak,” Y/N cursed, staring down at her burning hands. Blisters had yet to form, but she could feel the pain of her training. She could accumulate heat from her surroundings and expel that from any part of her body. Yet, it seemed that there were more downsides than perks with this quirk she inherited from her parents. Firstly, she could not consciously choose to concentrate the heat in any one area. Usually, it did come from her hands, but often she would find other parts of her body scalding to the touch when she was using her power. Secondly, using her power at high heat would leave her with terrible burns. 

Thankfully, her mother gave her bits of a regeneration quirk, meaning the burns only lasted for a couple days, most of the time less than that. Hopefully, with time, she could control the quirk so the damage wouldn’t be so bad.

She hated her quirk. It sucked. She couldn’t do anything much with it or else she would hurt herself and have to stop. Once she was burned so badly that the hospital almost had to amputate one of her limbs just from that. 

Sadly, she fell to her knees on the sandy training grounds, just staring down at her hands hopelessly. How could she ever become a pro hero like this? She’d never be able to compete with the other UA students, especially people like Toshinori or Todoroki or even Aizawa. 

“Shit,” she shouted angrily, shutting her eyes and slamming her hands against the sand. Her hands lit up a bright red for a quick moment as heat ran through them into the ground. Sand blew up all around her face and rocks were sent flying in all directions. As the dust cleared, she could see a small crater in the ground where she channeled her energy, it wasn’t huge, maybe enough for a person to lay in, but not much bigger. 

Her hands stung terribly, and blisters started to bubble up on her skin. She was so full of adrenaline and hate for herself that the pain hadn’t entered her mind. She was just so fucking angry. She would never be good enough. Why even go to UA if she was just gonna get a job outside of the quirk realm? If anything, she’d probably get left behind to be a civilian while everyone she knew got rich and famous from quirk work.

“Hey, are you okay?” a familiar voice asked from somewhere behind her. She turned her head, tears stuck in the corners of her eyes as she drifted out of her reality into the real world. If it didn’t sting so badly, maybe she would have been more excited to see Toshinori Yagi walking in her direction. She hissed, turning back around and shaking her hands to get some cool air on them. 

He jogged to her side, kneeling beside her. His eyes widened at the sight of her hands, but also at the hole she left in the ground. “That looks really, really bad. We should get you to Recovery Girl-”

“It doesn’t matter.”

He looked up to her face, his brows raised in surprise. Why would she deny going to the infirmary for an injury like this? She had to be insane, he thought. “What? Why?”

“It’ll heal soon.”

“Do you have a regeneration quirk?” he asked, but as he did so, he gently took her hands in his, which were in comparison, freezing cold. He felt like he was touching fire, but he knew his body was strong enough to handle a little heat. Her skin was already blood red, but him touching her so delicately left her feeling faint. The school’s star pupil was holding her hands. She couldn’t believe it. Even through the pain, she felt bashful.

She nodded. “Yeah, but it will take a day or two.”

“Well then, we’re going now.” He didn’t even wait for her to say anything in reply before picking her up in his arms, one behind her shoulders and the other under her knees. In shock, she could only lay there limp, her burnt hands face up in her lap. “How’d you do that anyway? You have a heat quirk, right?”

“Yeah. I just put too much energy into my hands. I have to use my quirk in moderation,” she explained. “Also, I can walk. It’s fine, you don’t need to-”

“No! You need to save as much of your strength so you can heal your wounds. Recovery Girl can’t heal you completely, I’m sure.” 

“Okay. Thank you.”

He walked inside the school building and started talking again. She didn’t know for sure why he was giving her so much of his time and effort. She could have taken herself to the nurse or easily gone home. It was after class. He might have been coming out to train himself, actually. Either way, he was being extremely kind.

“I’m Toshinori Yagi. I’ve seen you around school before, you always hang with the boy with that erasing quirk.”

“Yep. He’s one of my best friends.”

“If I remember right, you’re L/N Y/N? Heat manipulation quirk? You were 4th in this year’s sport’s festival,” he smiled down at her, and she felt herself light on fire once again. How did he remember her? She was such a background character, and even if she did mildly well, her quirk and face weren’t much to remember. “You were super impressive out there, I was surprised. You seem so shy, but really you’re a powerhouse.”

“Not really. I have to hurt myself to do anything good.”

“If you could learn to control your quirk, imagine what you could do with your power?! You made that giant hole in the ground out there in a matter of seconds.” That made her feel good. People normally brought her down, telling her that she would just have to deal with it, that it was a condition of her power. For some reason, this boy believed in her. It made a bit of a smile come to her lips. 

His grin felt contagious, and it only grew brighter seeing her lips curl up. 

“I guess so.”

“You should let me help you out. I know a lot about control from my own quirk. We’d be a good pair, I think.”

That was when her heart officially stopped beating. He wanted to spend even more time together? He wanted to take time out his day to help her improve? She began to rethink what her friends said about the boy. He didn’t seem full of himself at all. He was generous and kind from the looks of it. 

And to think she had a crush on him before. Now she felt her heart swelling up in her chest so much it might explode.

“Really?”

“Yeah, of course.”

That’s how Y/N met the famous All Might, and the moment she started her downward spiral in love with him.

_________________________________

Y/N sat at the lunch table once again with her normal squad of friends, Aizawa to her right as usual. She had one of her books sitting out on the table, a textbook Toshinori gave to her. He said that his own mentor had given that to him to help learn control and moderation of his quirk. She studied it religiously, and surprisingly, it was beginning to work. She had less and less incidents where she had to go to the infirmary or have to extensively heal herself. The training still hurt like hell, but it was less serious.

“Y/N, you’ve been studying a lot lately. Something up?”

“Just trying to get over my weaknesses. Figured I wasn’t working hard enough.” 

Just as Aizawa was about to say something else, a loud, excitable voice yelled from a few meters away. “Y/N!”

It was The Toshinori Yagi, the best student at UA. To think two weeks ago, they were telling her he would never know her name. Turns out he already knew, and apparently they were friendly with each other. Oboro’s eyes widened and he elbowed Hizashi beside him, who was jamming on his headphones. Aizawa’s eyes only narrowed. 

Her eyes lit up at the sight of the blond boy. He walked over to her seat and leaned his hip on the table, crossing his arms over his broad chest. “You’re really studying that book I gave you, huh? Even at lunch?”

“Of course! I have to do all I can before training.”

“You’ll be fine. You’ve been improving like crazy these past few weeks.”

These past few weeks? Just how long had they been talking?

He smiled kindly at her, and she blushed, hiding her face toward the table. It was weird for the boys to see their little Y/N talking with a boy other than them. And while two of them were ecstatic she seemed to have bagged the hottest boy in the school, one was particularly stormy about it.

“Well, I just stopped by to tell you, you look really beautiful today! You’ve been practically glowing with confidence lately; it’s a really good look on you.”

“O-Oh, thanks, Toshi-kun.”

“I just call it like I see it, Y/N,” he winked, and that sent her heart into overdrive. “Well, I’ve got to go eat, but I’ll meet you outside class later?”

“Yep.”

He left for his table with his super cool friends, leaving her sitting there a flustered, awkward mess. She shoved some rice into her mouth and chewed, trying to hide her embarrassment.

“Sooo, you gonna explain what that was?!” Yamada cried out, clutching at his chest. “Your vibes were too intense, I almost couldn’t handle it.”

She waved the boy off with her hand, trying to downplay it all. ‘It’s really nothing. He’s just helping me train. He has a really good handle on damage control, since we both have stockpile type quirks. I’ve actually gotten somewhat better since then.”

“Seemed like more than that, L/N-chan,”

“I’m telling you, he's just a really, really friendly guy. That compliment was just a friendly one.”

Aizawa sighed, leaning back in his chair. “You’re so dumb, Y/N. He seems like he’s playing with you.” He said it so matter-of-factly, and she glared at him. 

“I’ll have you know he’s been helping me a lot with my training but also my healing. He’s very kind and always helps me with anything. He’s never once shown signs he’s not genuine.”

“That’s what a narcissist does to get you comfortable with them, stupid.”

“Can’t you just believe that my crush actually wants to be friends with me and help me? That he’s not just some malicious monster?” When he rolled his eyes, she stood up abruptly, grabbing her book and shoving it into her bag. He sat up quickly and went to grab her wrist, but she moved out of the way swiftly. 

“Aw, come on, L/N. Dudette-” Yamada whined, but he knew that Aizawa’s jealousy was getting to the tipping point for the girl. Years went by of him just pushing her away from other guys who liked her and were genuinely kind. Whatever Toshinori was doing with her seemed to give her enough strength to reject the boy’s malice words.

A little bit of him was even proud, the loudmouth admitted to himself. 

 She kept her head held high, eyes glaring down at the long-haired scruffy boy. He’d never seen her like this: standing up for herself. If she were angry at anyone else, he would be cheering her on, but now he just felt furious. How could she be angry with him? He’d been there since they were children and she just leaves because of some blond himbo. 

Her words cut clear in the bustling lunchroom. “I don’t need any negativity right now, Aizawa. If all you want to do is bring me down, then so be it.” After slinging her bag over her shoulder and grabbing her tray, she waved and walked away. As they watched her, she approached the table of her new friend, who greeted her happily. She sat next to Toshinori with a smile on her face, one that Aizawa hadn’t seen directed at him in weeks. 

Maybe he was wrong to be bitter, but he just couldn’t believe there wasn’t some conspiracy to all this. How is it that the coolest guy in school goes for Y/N? He thought she was amazing, he had for years, but no one else ever thought that. 

Whatever, it didn’t matter anyway. She could do whatever she wanted, and if she got her feelings hurt, so be it.

_________________________________

The pair sat outside the school as always. She munched on an icecream bar from the cafeteria while he leaned back, arm across her shoulders and his eyes drawn to the sky, fading from dimmed orange into deep violet. He had guilt hanging over his head the past few weeks, and it was finally time for him to explain himself. 

“I can’t believe we’re done. School went by too quick.”

“I think it goes by faster when you’re fighting evil a couple days a week.”

She nodded, humming in agreement. Her senior year was full of battles, emotional and physical. She was broken to bits when her friend Oboro died or when Toshinori was left to mourn his mentor and they only had each other. Being a hero comes with a cost, but no one expects to be 17 and watch the people they love die all around them. It’s worse when you’re strong enough that you know you could have saved them but you just didn’t. “It was worse than I imagined. I know we’re going to do this for our whole lives, but I don’t want it to hurt as much.”

“That’s why you have to always be better than the villains, Y/N. I know I’m going to be.”

 She tucked the clean popsicle stick into her bookbag when she was done with it, not wanting to throw it on the ground. Her hand found its way to his, curling her smaller fingers gently around his. Her smile was all too bright, a trait of his that seemed to grow on her the longer they spent together. “We’ll do it together, right? You and me on top of the charts, just like we dreamed of?”.

He relished in the warmth of her hand pressed to his, even if it was just a friendly. He was going to miss moments like this, dreams of the two of them...All that planning for nothing. He sighed, his eyes going from the sky to the dirt beneath their feet. “Y/N, I have something to tell you.”

With a furrowed brow, she asked, “What’s up?” It couldn’t be bad...

“Tomorrow I’m leaving for America. I don’t know how long.”

“What do you mean you’re leaving for America tomorrow?” Y/N asked her best friend, eyes wide with fear. He knew he should have told her earlier, but he couldn’t explain why he was leaving, and he knew the more time she knew the greater chance he would reveal the reason. She couldn’t know about All For One. It would only put her in danger.

He sighed, placing a heavy hand on her shoulder. “I have to go to America. I’m really sorry I didn’t tell you before-”

“I can’t believe this. You waited until the day before to tell me I’ll basically never see you again. You expect me to be satisfied with a two minute goodbye today and just forget about you- about everything?” she asked, a stone sinking to the pit of her stomach. She felt like she was going to cry or get sick. How could he do this to her? 

“I know. I know. I should have told you sooner but I couldn’t.”

“Why?”

“Y/N, I’m sorry, I just can’t tell you.”

That answer wasn’t good enough. It was wrong to pry, but the betrayal was too much for her to handle rationally.

She turned her head away from him, staring bitterly at the wall beside her. She refused to meet his eyes. “I thought I could trust you.You’re one of my closest friends, Toshi, but now I know you don’t care. If you cared you would have at least given me a heads up, maybe spent more time with me before you just decide to abandon me,” she sneered, the anger building up in her chest. “You’re too good for someone like me. Shota-kun was right this whole time. Everytime he told me you were just playing with me, that you didn’t actually care about me; he was right, wasn’t he?”

All Might shook his head, trying to reach out to grab her, bring her back to his side. He didn’t want her to turn against him now. He didn’t want to say goodbye with her hating him, her last memory of him being so terrible. Still, she jumped away from her seat, stumbling over her feet to get away from him. “Don’t touch me.”

“Y/N, please. I just want this goodbye to be happy.”

“Goodbyes are never fucking happy, Yagi. You’re so stupid.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.”

“How could you not?” Y/N bit back her sadness, letting anger take over. “Just forget it. It’s not worth fighting over. You’re leaving, so goodbye. Maybe we’ll see each other again, maybe not. But just know, I would have done anything to stay by your side if you really cared about me.” With those words lingering in the air, she turned on her heel and started to walk away. 

“Y/N, please don’t go yet,” he paused, trying to gather himself. She was walking away, her back turned and her head hung.  “I love you.”

But she didn’t turn around. What was the point now? She’d lost him already, no use in saying anything back or confessing her love as well. He would still be leaving tomorrow, and they would probably never see each other again. It would break her heart to run back there and hug him, confess her long time feelings to the boy. They were never an item. Maybe if he stayed, they could have been something more. 

If he really loved her, he wouldn’t leave her behind. If he really loved her, he would have shut his mouth before those three little words, and saved her the broken heart.

Part Two is up!

[dreamescapeswriting]

Fake It ~ KTH [Request]

➟➟➟Word Count:1.8K

➟➟➟Pairing: Kim Taehyung X Reader

➟➟➟Genre: Fluffy

  ➟➟➟A/N: DEAR GOD SOMEONE HELP ME WITH NAMES

It had become a tradition for you to go running every morning with Jungkook it was just what it was like every morning, you'd wake up at 5 am and go and meet him down the road before going on a run together. Normally you would be back before Taehyung even woke up but lately he'd been getting up with you so he could see you before the studio.

"You run every morning." He grumbled on Saturday morning as you tried to get out of the shared bed you had together, he was clinging onto your waist so you couldn't leave him just yet.

"Not every morning, we hike on Sundays." You giggled looking at your boyfriend who was pouting at you, he started yawning so you told him to go back to bed.

"I never see you." You stared at him putting your hands on your hips as he said that,

"Baby, we live together. You see me all of the time." He groaned watching you get out of the bed and get changed into your running gear, he knew he should have hidden them the night before but he was too tired from all the early mornings he'd been having with you.

"Go back to sleep baby, I'll be back later." You kissed his forehead before leaving the bedroom and going out of the house. It was nothing new to your life, you had always been close friends with Jungkook since he was your best friend after all. He was also the reason that you and Taehyung met and Tae knew that but he couldn't help but feel jealous when you were spending all of your time with Jungkook instead of with him. Taehyung hated that he was feeling jealous because he knew how close you and Jungkook were he just hated that he was being left out in a way, he got up and watched you walking down the road to meet Jungkook and he made a plan to ask to go hiking with you tomorrow so he could start spending more time with you.

"You hate Hiking." You said as you added a blueberry to your mouth, Taehyung had made you both a big healthy breakfast to come home to and to sort of bribe you into letting him go with you the next morning.

"No I don't, I love it." You blinked at him and then nodded in agreement. It would be nice to have him come with you for once instead of leaving him at home the whole time,

"We're leaving the apartment at half four, Jungkook will drive us." You told him trying to let him not subtly that he would have to get up earlier than usual but he nodded, excited that he was going to go with you for the first time.

"That's fine, we can have an early night." You nodded in agreement and looked at him wondering if he was going to actually get up early or go to sleep earlier, he wasn't the kind that went to sleep early.

"Alright baby, I'm going to shower." You giggled getting up from the kitchen dining chair and going to the downstairs bathroom to have a shower, you felt gross from your morning jog.

"Tae. You promised you would get up early." You groaned at 4:14 am seeing your boyfriend still half asleep in the bed, you were dressed and ready but he was still laying there.

"Just five more minutes," You looked out of the window to see that Jungkook was pulling up into the driveway with his car,

"Jungkook is here, I'm leaving." You whispered into his ear but he shot up and rushed around the bedroom quickly getting changed and coming out to see you again,

"I don't think I've ever seen you move that fast in my life." You giggled as he came back into the room with a smile on his face, he was panting a little which made you laugh so you hooked your arms together and began walking.

"What do you do on a hike?" He asked when you got to the bottom of your staircase so you began to tell him what you and Jungkook normally did on a Sunday morning, Jungkook would take his camera or his video camera and make videos and you would normally go for the fresh air and thinking space.

"It's just nice to get out for a while, right Kookie?" Jungkook nodded hanging you a coffee and then handing Taehyung one who was still half asleep walking in the direction of the car,

"He can nap on the way." You giggled watching your boyfriend grumpily open the door and get inside of Jungkook's car.

The morning was perfect the air was fresh, you were alone with your two best friends and Taehyung seemed to be really enjoying himself out with you both.

"What else do you guys do?" Taehyung asked looking as Jungkook was filming some of the scenery, you began telling Taehyung about the time you went out with Jungkook to some abandoned Palace and got chased out by the police but it was long before you started dating Taehyung.

"We were supposed to do some extreme sports in the break, but she's chickening out." You stuck your middle finger up at Jungkook and took Taehyung over to your favourite place on top of the hill.

"Is this where you push me and kill me?" You giggled pointing out the view, you could see everything from up there, including the car park where Jungkook's car was parked alone.

"It's huge." You whispered slowly easing yourself down to sit on the rock you were sitting on and Taehyung did the same,

"You come here to get peace?" He questioned looking at you as you stared out at the trees and things in front of you,

"It's stunning, I remember when Jungkook first brought me up here." You moved closer to Taehyung laying your head down on his shoulder while Jungkook walked away to find something else to photograph.

"I'd just gotten out of a bad breakup and he brought me out here to think. Then the second time was when I was crushing on you, he brought me up here and the whole time I was thinking about how I couldn't wait to bring you out here and just spend quiet time with you." He smiled before a frown was replacing it,

"Y/N! YOU HAVE TO CHECK THIS OUT!" You got up and left him on the floor and the feeling of jealously began to creep back into Taehyung once again. He began thinking about how Jungkook was the one who got to experience all this with you first and how he was the one with special memories with you and what was supposed to be a relaxing morning was making him feel worse about everything.

"No way!" He heard you scream and he rushed to get up and see what all of the screaming was about when he lost his footing, slipping and twisting his ankle against the ground.

"TAE!?" You screamed sprinting over to find your boyfriend on the floor clutching his ankle in pain,

"Jungkook go and get the car to the gate." You whimpered looking at your boyfriend who was trying to walk on his ankle, you stopped him and lifted up his trouser leg to see it already swollen and you hissed.

"What are you doing?" He asked when you helped him stand up and begin limping towards the exit of the hiking trail,

"I think you've broken it," You whispered taking him down the trail and towards the direction of the car park, he looked at you and your face was full of concern for him.

He would be lying if he said he didn't like all of the attention he was getting from you, you were walking around and looking after him like he was some kind of child but it felt nice to have his girlfriend back.

"Baby if you're not better by tomorrow I'm taking you to see someone." You whined looking at Taehyung, it had been a week since he slipped at the trail and you had been looking after him all week making sure he was icing it and then heating it to bring out any swelling and he was still badly brusied.

"I'll be okay Jagi, but will you go to the shop and buy some more heat cream?" He whined, he was laid down on the sofa with a bag of frozen peas across his ankle. You brushed the long black hair from his face and nodded bending down and leaving a kiss on his forehead,

"I'll be right back, I'll pick up your favourite ice cream as well." He watched you leaving through the window and once he knew that the car was gone he jumped up from the sofa and began stretching his legs to try and stop them from cramping up. He wasn't lying to you, it did really hurt for the first two days but after that his ankle was fine and he could walk without your help he just enjoyed having you around him and caring for him.

"Taehyung I forgot my-" You stopped yourself when you walked into the living room to see him standing in the middle of the room without leaning on something to support him.

"Purse." You finished your sentence and stared at him blinking as he began to hiss in pain and sit down on the sofa.

"Jagiya I really needed to get my-"

"Save it, how long has it been fine?" You giggled walking into the living room and sitting down on his lap, he groaned kissing your lips to try and soften you up for the news.

"Just the last couple of days." You shook your head at him, you knew he was jealous that you spent so much time with Jungkook but you never thought he would so something like this.

"If you were jealous baby, why didn't you just tell me?" He sighed laying his head down on your shoulder and shaking his head,

"I didn't want you to think I was some kind of child." You sighed at him leaning down and kissing his lips softly,

"You just seemed so happy to be spending time with Jungkook and then when I hurt my ankle you started caring more-"

"Baby I will always care about you more than anyone else, I love you so much." You told him and he began blushing so you bent down to kiss him again, his hands sat on your waist as he pulled you closer to him to deepen the kiss.

"Never do something this stupid for my attention again though." You warned him with a giggle and he nodded in agreement, promising to tell you next time he was getting jealous or needy for your attention.

Tagline: 

@writingdreamsnottragedies​ @yoongisdumplingcheeks​ @snowy-meowl​ @lynnthevirgo​ @jooniesdarlingdimples​ @chimchims-stories-and-tales​ @rjsmochii​ @lyoongx​ @callingmyangel​ @mitzwinchester​ @btsiguess-kpop​ @fan-ati--c​

[captain-tch]

Feel the Burn (Modern AU)

You're a shift worker and he's an insomniac - that explains why you run into each other at the gym at 3AM

Working as an EMT didn't have a good impact on your social life. Shift work meant you'd either go to bed as the sun was rising, or be leaving for work as the sun dipped beneath the horizon. As much as you loved your job, you resented the late night shifts, your bed calling you as you worked to save lives.

Maintaining a level of fitness was also extremely difficult. Constantly your body felt sapped of energy, and you could barely muster the strength to eat before sleeping, yet alone exercise. But you made a New Years resolution and you were stubborn - you could do this. So you'd been heading to the gym before or after a shift, no matter how late or early it was. Twenty four hour gyms became your friend as you slowly grew stronger and faster.

Tonight was no different. You'd just finished a more tasking shift than usual, yawning as you stumbled into the entrance of the gym at 3AM. You changed into your workout gear in a daze, slipping your shirt on back to front to only swivel it around.

Really, if you had planned your day better, you could have gone before your shift. You blamed your sweet bed and Netflix for that, only pulling yourself from the sheets at the last possible second. If you weren't so bloody stubborn you'd write this gym trip off - but you couldn't.

Finally, you were ready to start your workout. With a sigh you made your way into the large room, eyeing the equipment with hatred. God, you hated exercise.

Dragging yourself to a nearby treadmill, you slotted your headphones in and started blaring music. The treadmill began to move rapidly under your feet, the beat of the song matching the thud of your footfalls. For a while you zoned out, listening to the music and jogging, trying to ignore the tiredness in your limbs.

When you reached the cool down, you were gasping for air. Sweat was dripping from your forehead and making your clothes slick. Your body cried out as you clambered off the treadmill, a wide smile of victory plastered to your face.

You did it.

Taking a deep swig from your water, you caught a glimpse of yourself in the reflection of the mirrored wall. Good god, you were glad other people didn't come this late. You looked a mess, with your hair sopping wet and face bright red.

Almost as if some higher power was mocking you, the studio doors opened and in walked the most beautiful man you had ever seen. Dark hair pushed back from his face. Small, but wide build. A confident gait. A blank face.

Subconsciously you flicked some of the sweat off your forehead.

He seemed to notice you in the same moment. He didn't acknowledge you, just walked straight past you and advanced to the equipment. You weren't surprised really. A lot of people kept to themselves, especially at the gym.

Shrugging it off, you carried on with your workout, doing a bit more cardio. Your limbs ached as you pushed your body to its limit, feeling each breath rip out of you like a hurricane.

Taking a small break, you leaned against the counter, taking a quick drink of your water. Naturally, your eyes caught onto the only movement in the room. The mystery man was benching some weights. You felt your jaw drop as you witnessed his muscles tense and flex with each movement, the man seeming unfazed by the extra weight.

You needed to distract yourself, otherwise you'd be stood drooling at his arms all day. Mentally preparing yourself for the physical pain you were about to force on yourself, you breathed deep, taking a seat at the bicep curler.

You gripped the handles, determined to do more reps than you usually did. Carefully, you started to pull the handles towards yourself, feeling the weights attached to them resisting you. You strained your arms, pulling the handle as close to your chest as you could before you lowered it, repeating it until your arms trembled.

"You're doing it wrong." The man's voice echoed out the room.

You jumped. Your heart raced at the sudden voice, hand flying to your chest. The man didn't appear apologetic at all for nearly causing you a heart attack, only waiting for you to gather yourself before responding.

"How so?" You trusted his judgement more than your own, especially considering how your arms were no where near as toned as his.

He sighed, climbing off his own equipment and making his way over to you. You resisted the urge to flatten your hair down, watching as he got closer. "If you keep doing it like that you're going to pull a muscle."

You hadn't thought of that. At the time you felt like your muscles burned because you were building up their strength, but maybe you were causing more damage than good. A subconscious hand drifted to your arm, massaging it slightly.

This didn't go unnoticed by the man, a small smirk working its way on his lips. "I think you already have."

"Work is gonna be a pain in the ass," you muttered, thinking of how you often had to help lift people up onto stretchers, or shift their body to the side. You already weren't looking forward to your next shift.

He was walking away when you surprised yourself by speaking up. "Can you show me how? For next time?"

The man reluctantly paused, doubling back and sitting on the machine next to you. He showed you the correct form, and most importantly how to position your wrists so you got the full benefit of the workout.

You attently watched him, asking questions where appropriate and taking a selfish moment to enjoy the way his arms moved with the machine. If he caught you staring he didn't say anything.

When you finally had a grasp of how to do it, you went to try it yourself. A hand flew out, gripping your bicep. "Might not be the best idea."

You'll be honest - his words barely processed in your brain. You were hyper focused on the skin contact. You had to be imagining it but you swore he held on for a beat more than he should have.

His grip quickly left your arm. You tried not to be disappointed, flashing the man a smile. "Thank you."

He nodded in acknowledgement, moving away to continue his own workout. Your gaze followed him for a while, curious as to who he was, what he did, why he was here at this god foresaken hour of the night... Or morning, depending on how you looked at it.

Not long after that, you decided to go home. Your body was on the verge of collapse and you made a mental note to avoid going to the gym that late ever again. You were extremely grateful that you had the day off.

For the next few days you were far too busy to go to the gym. Your shifts were chaotic, and you had to do jobs around the house that took priority over exercise. But your thoughts drifted often to the black haired man with muscles like a god. You wondered if you'd see him again.

The next time you saw him was nearly a month later. Once again you hadn't gone to the gym earlier in the day and your shift ended later than you'd have liked. You told yourself you didn't go earlier because you wanted to relax, but really, you just wanted a reason to run into the handsome stranger.

A higher power was on your side. There he was, working out on the very machine he taught you how to use. You sent him a timid smile, going about your workout as normal, tracking the man's movement from the corner of your eye.

He went to the water fountain. You took this as an opportunity to jump into conversation, slowing your run to a stop and sitting on an unknown piece of equipment.

"So, Mr Muscle, how'd you stay so fit?"

He shrugged, screwing the lid on his water bottle. "Insomnia."

"Is that why you're here so late?"

"Early." He corrected, nodding. "Might as well do something productive with my time."

You agreed. It made a lot of sense really. If you struggled to sleep you would try to do all of the things you couldn't be arsed doing during the day. And you also imagined it helped get some sleep in eventually.

"Why are you here?"

So you'd spiked his curiosity too? You felt a sense of victory at the revelation. "I do shift work."

"Dedicated."

"More like procrastinator."

He huffed a laugh, taking a sip from his drink. He looked at the clock, biting at his lip. "I've got to go. Don't go pulling any muscles."

The remark made you smirk.

The third time you met him in the gym, he finally told you his name.

Levi.

It felt like a door to getting to know him better. And you liked that. A lot.

You started to hope you'd get to see him a fourth time.

Suddenly you found yourself volunteering to do as many night shifts as possible. Especially since you had a reason to stay awake.

[jombocostello]

first dates (joskue x reader)

anonymous asked: omg i saw ur new and i already loveeeee your writing!! can i request a Josuke x Reader they both grew up together and never imagined themselves to end up as a couple. but then they start realizing their feelings for each other and they go on a date and at first it’s pretty awkward cuz they’ve been friends their whole life but then they finally let loose and do dorky stuff like going to the arcade or even pranking Rohan as a couple? thank u!! xoxo

hello!! this request is supremely adorable oh man, i hope you like it!! (and requests are open!)

Sometimes you resent the fact that Morioh is such a small town. When you peer outside your window every morning and watch the same several people start their morning commutes, doing the exact same thing every day, you sometimes feel a little sick, honestly. The humdrum of this small town life really isn't meant for you.

But every morning, once you head outside and meet your best friend at the corner of the street, those feelings disappear completely.

You and Josuke have known each other for your entire lives. You live three doors down from each other and your parents have always been friends, so it was pretty much inevitable that you would meet. Luckily, you get along extremely well! He's got a perfect sense of humor that you always appreciate, and you always manage to think up weird things to do to pass the time in your boring little town. Being best friends with Josuke is the easiest thing in the world for you.

That is...until it's not.

You roll out of bed, yawning loudly. It's Saturday, so you have essentially nothing to do today. You stand up and head to the bathroom, and after fifteen minutes you've hustled through your morning routine. As you're fixing your hair, you hear the phone ring. You hop up and grab it, pressing it to your ear. "Hello?"

"(Y/N)! Hey." You grin; it's Josuke!

"Hey, dude, what's up?" you ask, leaning against the wall.

"...Nothing, really." He takes a little while to answer, but you don't really pay any mind to it.

"Oh, okay." You laugh a little, furrowing your eyebrows. "Was there a reason for this call, then? You could've just jogged over and knocked on the door. Or just punched it down, I don't care."

Josuke huffs out a little laugh, rather humorlessly. This you do notice, and you frown a bit. "Are you okay?" you ask.

"What?! I'm fine! No, I'm good." The speed of his response doesn't really assure you, but you just go with it.

You start to speak again, but before you do you hear muffled whispers on the other end that don't belong to Josuke. "Hey, is that Okuyasu?" you ask brightly. "What the hell, you guys are hanging out without me? Assholes." You laugh.

"N-no, we're not. He's just... Uh, Okuyasu, say something!" The phone is passed over to someone else, and before you know it Okuyasu is borderline screaming at you.

"(Y/N), hi! How's it going?" You can hear that he's wearing that ridiculous grin he always has.

"Hey, it's alright!" You twist the phone cord in your hand. "So what's up? Are you and Josuke plotting something without me, then?"

He scoffs. "No, not really." There's a flurry of movement on the other line, and you frown. "Listen, I'm putting Josuke back on. I, uh... I have to piss." He practically throws the phone back into Josuke's hands and you can hear him scramble away.

"Um... Hi again."

"Seriously, dude, what's going on? I feel like you two are hiding some horrible secret from me. We, ah... I feel like we're close enough that you can tell me anything." It's true; the two of you are nearly inseparable. You hope that there's nothing that Josuke ever feels too nervous to come to you about.

"No, don't worry! Nothing's wrong." He pauses for a second. "I... I just wanted to ask if you wanted to go to the cafe today."

Your face lights up. "Dude, I'd love to! What time?"

He sounds a little more normal as he answers. "Uh, noon would be good."

"Great, I'll be there." You turn and glance at the clock; you've got an hour. "Is Okuyasu coming?"

"No." The answer comes way faster than you'd expected.

You laugh a little. "Oh. What, is this a date?" you ask, raising your eyebrows with a grin.

"Yeah."

You freeze. Did he just - did he just say... "Uh... What...?" you say weakly, holding the phone with both hands.

Josuke sounds panicked. "I-I mean yeah. As a date. If that's alright with you."

You really don't know what to say, but you know you have to do something. Your brain hasn't fully processed this yet. "Um... Okay. Yeah, I'll see you then."

A giant sigh startles you. "Awesome! Great. I'll see you then, (Y/N)." And before you can even try to get a word in, he hangs up.

Well, that was... Wow. You set the phone down gently and lean back, staring into space. You had never even considered that Josuke liked you in that way. Your face flushes a deep red and you step into your room, still completely blindsided. Now that Josuke has just essentially admitted to having feelings for you, you really don't know what to do.

Josuke is hot. You've always known that. You'd only entertained the idea of dating him a few times; you can recall a couple instances where he'd looked at you with the biggest, goofiest smile on his face and just for a moment, you felt like you were in love. Still, you figured that he just saw you as a friend - well, his best friend - and that he really wasn't interested in pursuing any sort of romance with you. After all, pretty much every girl in your school was chasing after him. Surely he liked one of them...?

Josuke's recent confession has thrown all that out the window. You sit down in front of your mirror and just stare at your face for a minute. Josuke had never dropped hints that he likes you. Maybe he'd just come to that conclusion recently. God, you can't stop agonizing over this. You brush your hair - again - and ponder over what you should wear.

It's odd, feeling this giddy. You're excited and terrified at the same time. As you rifle through your closet, you replay every conversation you've shared with Josuke in the past week over in your head. Now that you think about it, he had been acting a little strange when you hung out with him a couple days ago... Maybe he was already thinking about asking you out? God, this is too crazy.

You get dressed and get ready, and once you're done you scrutinize yourself in the mirror. You put on a little more blush, smiling at the way it looks when you scrunch up your nose. You try to stop worrying about how you look, though; Josuke has seen you at your best (performing at the summer festival, dressed to the nines) and your worst (crying over getting seventh place in Mario Kart in his basement at 3 AM), so he clearly doesn't care too much about appearances.

The cafe's a short walk from your house, about five minutes, so you leave with a few minutes to spare. It's a really nice day outside, and you try to pay more attention to the cloudless sky than the butterflies in your stomach. The thought springs into your mind that this might be a joke and you nearly turn around and head back home - but a moment later, you realize that Josuke would never do that. He's the nicest person you know, and he's cared about you for a long, long time. He'd never be anything but genuine with you.

You get to the cafe right on time. Before you head inside, you catch your reflection in the window outside. After subtly adjusting your hair, you suck in a deep breath and open the door.

It's not too crowded; there's probably ten people inside. You look around for Josuke's big pompadour, and it only takes you a second to find it. He's facing away from the door.

"Hey!" You walk over and put your hand on his arm, smiling. He nearly falls out of his chair before pulling himself together and smiling back.

"Hi, (Y/N). Thanks for coming."

"Of course." You sit down and hang your bag over the back of the chair, leaning back in your seat. Josuke folds his hands and rests them on the table. You feel your nerves come back with a vengeance. "So, uh..."

"So!" He cuts you off without realizing it, and his eyes widen. "Shit, sorry. Go ahead."

"No! I-I really didn't have...anything to say." Good God, this is painful. You can't help but notice that Josuke is blushing horribly, and oh man, does he look adorable. In turn you become equally flustered. You both stare at each other, unsure of what to do, until finally the waitress arrives.

"Hi. What can I get you today?"

You let go of a giant breath and smile, turning to her. "Hi. I'll have a coffee with cream and sugar, please."

She nods and jots the order down, then turns to Josuke. He clears his throat. "I'll have an iced tea." She writes down his order and leaves after setting two little menus down in front of you.

You're alone again. You brush your hair behind your ear just to do something. Josuke just watches you. One of you is going to have to speak first... You decide you'll do it. "So how's it going?"

"It's alright." Josuke also reaches up and fiddles with his hair for a moment. He really doesn't have to; it looks as perfect as it usually does. "It's really beautiful out, huh?"

"Yeah. Good day for the beach." You smile as you glance out the window; it really is gorgeous. You consider asking Josuke if he wants to go to the beach later, but your cursed brain is too flustered to even try.

"I'm sorry I'm being so weird." You blink, glancing up at Josuke. He turns his gaze downward. "I just... I don't really know how to go about this. I really like you, (Y/N). A lot."

Your face goes bright red, and you quickly look back at the window. He's being so forward...and so nice. You don't know how to respond. "If you don't feel the same way, I totally get it. But I just wanted you to know that I've liked you for a while now."

You manage to pull yourself together and you meet his eyes. "I'm sorry too, I'm really not doing a great job at socializing right now." You laugh a little, and so does Josuke. "But I - "

"Here are your drinks." The waitress is back, saving you from awkward conversation yet again. She sets your coffee and Josuke's iced tea down gently. "Let me know if you two want anything else." With a smile, she hurries away to go conveniently interrupt some other couple.

You take a sip of your coffee and wince when it burns your tongue a bit. "Ow!" you yell, setting it down hurriedly. Josuke starts to laugh at your misfortune but quickly stops himself, until you start laughing as well. You giggle together for a while before falling silent.

"I'm the biggest dumbass there is when it comes to hot drinks," you say, letting out one last chuckle before going to take another, safer, sip.

Josuke grins. "Yeah, I know. Remember when my mom made us hot chocolate and you-" he has to hold back a laugh "- you spilled it all over your shirt?"

You burst out laughing, hunching over. "Yeah, oh my God, yeah! I felt so bad cause I got it all over the carpet too." You grin, clasping your hands together. "Oh man, that burned too."

"I imagine it did, yeah." Josuke drinks some of his iced tea and glances down at the little dessert menu. You do the same, but you're not really reading it. You're relieved that you've both been able to loosen up a little bit; you feel so much comfortable with Josuke when you're both laughing. He looks cute as hell when he laughs, too. You've never really thought about it, but now that you are, you have to admit that the way his eyes light up and his eyebrows shoot up is really charming, He's really charming.

"Oh, (Y/N)!" You look up at him, raising your eyebrows. "Have you ever had the cheesecake here?" You shake your head. Josuke grins. "Oh, it's the greatest. Koichi and I tried it last weekend and it's just crazy. We should get some!" The waitress once again flexes her perfect timing by passing by your table. "Could we get two pieces of the cheesecake?" Josuke asks with a smile. She takes the order and leaves.

There's something really cute about the way he smiles. He has such a pretty face and when he grins he looks almost like a kid in a candy store. You just take him in for a moment, smiling faintly. You don't realize you've been staring until Josuke waves a hand in front of your face. "Uh, you there?" he asks, laughing a little.

"Yeah! Yes, sorry." You try not to blush as you drink some more coffee. "But, uh, what I was saying earlier..." Josuke's eyes widen a little and he watches you closely.

You smile. "I really like you, Josuke." He grins widely, almost impossibly so, and practically deflates in his chair. "You're my favorite person in the world and I'd love to spend all my time with you. I mean we practically already do."

He laughs and nods. "Yeah, that's true." His smile softens a bit and he hesitantly reaches out and takes your hand. "I'm glad. I was really nervous about this."

"Yeah, I could tell." You grin. "I guess Okuyasu was in on it?"

Josuke rolls his eyes. "Yeah, the asshole was constantly pressing me and asking if I'd finally told you. But I guess it worked out, huh?"

You nod and smile. "Yeah."

Your cheesecake arrives, and you and Josuke start eating. He was right; it's delicious. Once you two are finished, you pay and head outside.

You both stand on the sidewalk, unsure of what to do next. "So, uh... Are you gonna go home - " you start.

Josuke cuts you off by leaning in and hugging you tightly. You freeze, surprised, but after a moment you hug him back. He rests his chin on your shoulder and you smile. "Wanna head to the beach? You were right, it's the perfect day to go," he murmurs.

You part, and you grin. "Yeah, that would be great. I just have to get my stuff."

"Yeah, same here. Well, let's go, then...?" You both turn and start walking towards your street, and after a minute Josuke reaches out and takes your hand in his. You blush and turn to him, and he's looking off into space with a similarly red face. You just smile and hold his hand tightly as you head back home.

-----

It's been a week of dating Josuke, and frankly, it's been the best week of your life. He's honestly perfect; you spend all your time with him, whether it be studying, playing video games, heading to the arcade, or just walking around town, and he always makes everything so much fun. He's so sweet and loving, and he makes you feel like the most beautiful person in the world.

Okuyasu and Koichi tease the two of you about it (mostly Okuyasu though - Koichi knows that he can't say much, considering his relationship with Yukako), but all you do is punch them in the arm and move on with your life. You're not even a little embarrassed about dating Josuke - why should you be? You're pretty much made for each other.

Saturday eventually rolls around, and you're woken up by a couple loud knocks on your door. Blearily, you roll out of bed and answer it. Unsurprisingly, it's Josuke. "Hey, babe," he says, leaning in and kissing you on the cheek. You laugh and lean back, rubbing your eyes.

"Good morning. What's up?"

He shrugs. "Figured you'd wanna do something today, and I have the perfect plan. Get ready and come outside, okay? I'll lay down my master plot then."

You laugh again and shove him back outside, and he stumbles for a second before righting himself. "Be back in a second." You run back to your room and quickly get dressed, then head back to the door.

"You look stellar as ever," Josuke says sweetly, leaning in and kissing you sweetly. You reach up and run a hand over his impeccable hair, smiling.

"You're looking just as great. God, we're like the power fashion couple of Morioh." Josuke laughs loudly. "So, what's the plan?"

"Well, the first step is heading to a very important house." Yeah, but whose house...? You raise an eyebrow, but Josuke refuses to divulge anything else.

After a few minutes, Josuke stops suddenly. You nearly run into him but catch yourself at the last second. "What, is this where we're..." You look up at the home you've stopped in front of, and you're met with the residence of one Rohan Kishibe.

You turn to Josuke and find him wearing the biggest shit-eating grin. "Wait, what... What are we doing outside of Rohan's house?"

Josuke is making a herculean effort to not burst out laughing. "He's in Tokyo right now at a conference with his publishing team or something, and he'll be back tomorrow. We're here to wreck his shit."

Oh, so he wants to pull a prank on him. You're more than happy to hear that. "You are such a genius," you say, grabbing him and spinning him around. You both laugh as you skip up to his front door. "So what do you have in mind?" you ask, peering into his home through a small window.

"I've been thinking for a little while about this, and I think it's gonna be great." Josuke runs his fingers through his hair and stares at you with bright, excited eyes. "I'm gonna-" he snorts "-I'm gonna unslice all his bread."

You pause, frowning. "Wait... What?"

Now Josuke does laugh, making you jump. "Come on, come on. Let's do it." Josuke summons his stand, and you watch it wind up a punch. (You'd been shot by that freaky stand arrow a couple months ago while hanging out downtown with Josuke and Koichi. Josuke had totally freaked out, but thankfully, you were fine in moments and you had a weird new superpower to boot!) Crazy Diamond smashes through the window, and it quickly shields you from any glass before returning to Josuke.

You both climb in the window and you nearly burst out laughing as you topple onto the floor. "This is so dumb," you whisper at Josuke as you try to hold back your laughter. "What are we even doing? How the hell do you unslice bread?"

Josuke takes your hands and pulls you up, chuckling when you bump into him. "The key to unslicing bread, my dear..." He brushes some dust off of your shirt, and you smile. "Is my Crazy Diamond."

Together, through your uncontrollable giggles, the two of you fuse every single loaf of sliced bread Rohan has back into its original unsliced form. You feel like a bit of an asshole when you get to his impeccably cut homemade sourdough, but the way it looks as it floats menacingly through the air and turns back into a single loaf is so damn funny that you really can't feel bad.

Eventually you've cursed Rohan's entire house with unsliced bread. Josuke and you are barely able to stand because you're laughing so hard. You don't snoop around his house, because you're not that mean (though Josuke is tempted for a moment to fuse Rohan's latest manuscript into one giant rectangle of paper). Josuke helps you out of the window and you land shakily on your feet. You help Josuke get out and watch as he puts the window back together.

You're both a little dizzy from stumbling around and giggling, but you manage to walk back down to the sidewalk. "Just wait until he gets back, he's gonna be so confused!" Josuke wheezes, grabbing onto your shoulder and doubling over.

You wipe a tear out of your eye, taking a huge breath in to try and pull yourself together. "He's gonna lose his mind!"

You stand there together, laughing like idiots, for a few more minutes. Eventually you get it together and start walking into town. "You wanna head over to St. Gentleman's before they're sold out?" Josuke asks, checking his watch. His eyes widen almost comically. "Shit, we've got two minutes before they open, come on!"

He grabs your hand and starts sprinting down the street, and you try your best to keep up with him. You manage to reach the shop after a thirty second mad dash. You stand in front of the door to the shop, doubled over. "Jesus, you're fast," you wheeze, taking a deep breath.

"Anything for a St. Gentleman's sandwich," Josuke answers, similarly out of breath. The store opens a moment later and you hurry inside.

As you look over the sandwiches, musing over which one to choose, you feel Josuke gently take your hand. You smile and turn to him, squeezing his hand. Once you've gotten your food you walk over to the park and take a seat on the warm grass. "Thanks," you say, pressing a kiss to Josuke's cheek. "It's been a really great day."

Josuke grins widely as he opens up his sandwich. "It's not over yet," he says. "Do you wanna go to the beach later? It is our one week anniversary..."

You snort and slap him on the arm; he recoils, mockingly grasping at where you'd hit him. "One week anniversary - God, you're so cute."

Josuke sets his food down and leans over, placing his hand under your chin and pressing his lips to yours. You flush, surprised at the suddenness of the motion, but after a second your eyes slide shut. Josuke leans back after a moment and gives you one of his precious, easygoing smiles. "What can I say, it's been a really great week!"

[freddiesaysalright]

Just Like a Woman - Part 1

A Roger Taylor x Reader Fic

Summary: You and Roger were once in love when you were young. Only, he went on to be a rock star, and you went on to be a lawyer. Now, quite against your will, you’re representing him in his divorce. 

Word Count: 3.5k

Tag List:  @psychosupernatural​, @someone-get-a-medic​, @bensrhapsody​, @deakyclicks​, @crazylittlethingcalledobsession​, @minigranger​, @crazyweirdocalledfriday​, @the-moving-finger-writes​, @assembledherethevolunteers​, @rose-writes-prose​, @queenlover05​, @26-7-49​, @drowsebaby​, @moon-stars-soul​, @im-an-adult-ish​, @ixchel-9275​, @jennyggggrrr​, @zyanmaik​, @mypassionfortrash​, @a19103​, @madeinheavxn​, @beepbeephardy​, @lizawritesthings​, @qweenly, @blisshemmings​ If you’d like to be added, let me know!

A/N: Here we are! The full first part of my new fic is here! Thanks for all the great feedback on the preview, and I hope you all enjoy this :D

Warning(s): None :)

Part 1 here we go!!!

“You want to sue him?”

“Yes.”

“For his thoughts?”

“Yes.”

You sighed and pinched the bridge of your nose.

“Look, I don’t know how exactly things work in America, Miss Thomas, but in England, you can’t sue someone just for thinking about you,” you said as calmly as you could manage.

“It’s not just that he was thinking about me, it’s what he was thinking,” Miss Thomas argued flatly. “I’m penile psychic. I know he was thinking about making love to me, which I find absolutely disgusting and inappropriate. It severely distressed me.”

Her inexpressive face told you she felt nothing, least of all distress.

“I don’t understand what you’re going for here,” you said. “Emotional distress or sexual harassment?”

“Both,” she said. 

“Sexual harassment won’t make it,” you explained. “You’re his boss, it’s not designed that way. And let’s say it was, has he actually said anything to you that was inappropriate?”

“No, how many times do I have to say this?” she complained, rolling her eyes. “It was in his thoughts, I know it.”

You sighed. “On both these counts we would need some sort of action. Your supernatural penis abilities won’t hold up in court as proof, it’s that simple.”

“Look, I have money, you’re an attorney, do your job,” she snapped.

“I can’t if I -” you began, but your boss interrupted with three quick raps on your office door.

“Bill, I’m in the middle of a meeting with a client,” you told him.

“Ditch it, that case is rubbish anyway, I’ve got something better for you,” he said.

“Excuse me!” Miss Thomas protested, turning to face him.

“You’re the one who told me to take it!” you argued. “I told you it was rubbish from the start!”

“Hey!” Miss Thomas cried, only to continue being ignored.

“What’s this new case, then?” you asked.

“Believe me, you want it,” Bill continued. “It’s a divorce case, but you’re going to piss yourself when you see who it is.”

“I’m a paying client, you know!” Miss Thomas interjected.

Finally, you looked at her again.

“I’m sorry, Miss Thomas, but we’re just not prepared to take on your case,” you said. “It will be thrown out and frankly, we’d charge you just for wasting our time. Have a good day, now.”

With that, you rose from your seat, walked around your desk, and crossed the room to Bill. Together, you left Miss Thomas in your office. She huffed and stormed after you.

“So, who’s getting divorced and why is it a big deal?” you demanded as you walked with  your boss to the conference room.

“This is perhaps the most famous client we’ve ever had,” he said, stopping just outside the door. “Go in.”

Brow furrowed, but excited by the mystery, you reached out a hand to open the door. You pulled it toward you and stepped through. Three people sat at the table, but your eyes were immediately fixed on the one. The blonde man who sat alone. He was reclined, with his feet on the table. He sat up and removed his sunglasses when he saw you. His mouth fell just slightly open. 

Yes, you knew who it was. You just wished you didn’t.

Bill blew by you and went to shake the man’s hand.

“Mr. Taylor, this is Y/N Y/L/N, and she’ll be representing you,” he said.

You met Roger Taylor’s gaze for the first time in years. Those blue eyes brought back all  of the love you’d once felt. But there was even more pain.

“They’ve slept together.”

You screamed and jumped away from the source of the voice you hadn’t even realized was in the room. You whipped around and saw Miss Thomas behind you.

“I - wh - oh - what are you still doing here?!” you demanded.

“I still want my case covered!” she cried, stamping her foot.

“Hold on, how do you know we’ve slept together?” wondered Roger.

“Like I said,” she returned with a shrug. “I’m penile psychic.”

“Get out!” you shouted.

She eyed you up and down like a hungry tiger before turning on her heel and sweeping out to the lobby. You looked at Bill.

“Sorry, I’m not taking the case,” you said, then you too left the room, only you were heading for your office.

Roger looked at Bill. Bill had a thousand questions, but first, he had to get you back in the room.

“Just a moment, Mr. Taylor,” he said, and jogged after you.

You were just about to close the door, when Bill slapped his hand on it to stop you.

“You have to take the case, Y/N,” he said. 

“Why does it have to be me?” you wondered.

“You’re the best divorce attorney in the firm,” he reminded you. “That’s always been your specialty. I understand maybe there’s some history there, but can’t you get past that? He’s...he’s so rich, Y/N.”

“So?” 

“So?! We want his money, that’s the reason I started a law firm! If I’m not making money, then what’s the point, really?”

You groaned. “You don’t understand, Bill. This is going to be extremely uncomfortable. Roger and I were in a relationship. For years.”

“Well, time moves on, that’s all over, time to be adults,” Bill said. “You’re doing this.”

You glowered at him. “Fine. But I’m going to complain the whole time.”

“Like that’s any different from normal?” he retorted. “Get in there and get to work.”

Your scowl deepened. Alone this time, you went to the conference room. Roger had resumed his seat at the table and was chewing at his thumb nail. You sighed and entered, notepad and pen in hand.

“Sorry about that,” you said. “We can start the meeting now.”

“No, we can’t,” said Roger. “Y/N, can we talk?”

“No, we can’t,” you replied sharply. “Let’s just begin.”

“Miss Y/L/N, I’m not comfortable with this going forward, knowing that counsel has slept with the client,” the wife’s lawyer said.

His name was Tim Hooper, and he frequently made comments like these.

“Counsel’s discomfort is noted,” you snapped, taking your seat next to Roger. 

“Y/N, I really think we should talk,” Roger said.

“No!” you cried, then stopped yourself and cleared your throat. “We need to start this meeting, your wife has waited long enough.”

“Honestly,” the wife said. “It doesn’t matter. We’d have a hard time finding a woman in London Roger hasn’t shagged.”

“Hey!” Roger started, jumping to his feet, but you grabbed his arm and returned him swiftly to his chair. 

“There’s no need to get personal, Mrs. Taylor,” you said.

“Dominique,” she corrected. “Or Mrs. Beyrand, if you please.” 

“Mrs. Beyrand, I’m grateful that my history with Mr. Taylor is of no consequence to you, but again, we should all be civil to one another,” you said. “Let’s get to the papers, shall we?”

“Yes, let’s,” she agreed. 

“So, you’re filing for divorce because Mr. Taylor was unfaithful to you, am I reading this right?” you asked, holding out the paper. 

“Yes,” she replied. “While touring, he slept with countless other women.”

“Big surprise there,” you muttered under your breath as you made a note. 

Roger’s glare told you that he heard you.

You and Roger ended before you could prove that he cheated on you, though you always suspected it. He had just changed so much. 

You continued through the paperwork, since there was some dispute over the house. Dominique wanted to keep living there, but Roger wanted it for himself.

“I bought that house before we were married,” he said. “With money I earned from Queen. Why should you get to keep it?”

“Because you’re never even there!” she insisted. “You’re always in the studio or touring, I’m the one who lives in it!”

“It’s my house!” he argued. 

“That you don’t even use!” she shot back. “Why should I uproot the kids when -”

“I didn’t say the kids had to leave, just you,” he cut across her. 

“You can’t separate me from the kids, Rog,” she snapped. 

“They’re my children too, Dom, and if you think -”

“Okay!” you interrupted. “Okay, everyone settle down. I’m going to do some research and figure out what the law entitles each of you to.”

“I’m not comfortable with the implication that you’ll be taking care of my client’s needs, Miss Y/L/N,” said Tim. 

“Then do your job,” you returned. “But I think we need to take a break from this and meet again later this week. How’s Wednesday morning at ten sound? Comfortable enough?”

“That’s fine with me, Tim,” said Dominique. 

“We’ll see you Wednesday, then,” he said. 

You shook hands with both Tim and Dominique before they left the conference room. Then, it was just you and Roger alone. You looked at the ground, shifting your weight between your feet as you thought of some reason to escape being in his company. 

“Look, Y/N, you don’t have to take my case if you don’t want to,” he finally said. 

You looked up. “I do actually have to take it. Did you have a problem with the way I handled it?”

“No, you were brilliant, it’s just -”

“Then we’ll continue,” you cut across him. 

A beat passed. He bit his lip and looked around the room before finding his way back to you. 

“Can we talk?” he asked. 

“Now’s not a good time,” you said. “I’m at work.”

“Can we get a drink then?” he wondered. “I feel like we need to clear the air.”

“Roger, we haven’t spoken in years,” you reminded him. “The time for air clearing has long since passed.”

“We’ve known each other since we were six,” he said. “Can’t we be friends again?”

“I dunno…” you trailed off. “You really hurt me, Rog.”

“I know,” he said softly. “I hope you know how sorry I am.”

“Being sorry doesn’t change anything,” you said. “I think it’s best to leave the past where it is. I am your lawyer and you are my client and that’s it.”

“Y/N -” he began, reaching for you. 

“Don’t!” you cried, springing away. 

His eyes searched yours, and he found you unrelenting. 

“Don’t,” you repeated, quietly this time. “I’ll see you on Wednesday.”

Knowing himself to be dismissed, Roger turned and left the room. You let out a slow breath, relief washing over you. There was so much between you and Roger, but you had no desire to air it all out. You were perfectly happy to keep it inside and never deal with it.

“Y/N,” said your assistant, Jane. “Miss Thomas is here again. She’s demanding you take her case.”

Your shoulders slumped as you groaned. “Fuck it, might as well.”

You walked back to your office.

Roger arrived at the studio in a stormy mood. His bandmates knew he and Dominique were splitting, but they had never seen Roger like this. The three of them exchanged worried glances as the drummer started angrily adjusting his set.

“Rog?” questioned John. “How’d it go with the lawyers today?”

“She wouldn’t even talk to me!” Roger exclaimed. “It was ridiculous!”

Brian’s brow furrowed. “I thought Dominique wanted to talk. That was the whole point of getting representation.”

Roger sighed and let his drumstick slip between his fingers and clatter to the floor.

“No, not Dom,” he said. “My lawyer. It’s Y/N Y/L/N.”

The band all raised their eyebrows at that.

“Rog, darling, why on Earth would you choose her?” Freddie questioned. 

“I didn’t,” Roger returned. “I chose the firm because they’re reputation is amazing. I didn’t know she was working there, but her boss assigned her to my case because she’s got the most experience in divorce.”

The band was aware of Roger’s history with you because they had been there for the end of it. They also knew that Roger had never really forgotten you. Even though he never talked about you, if they recalled their uni days, he got this warm, fond little smile on his face. They knew his mind was on you because it was the same expression he used to wear each time you entered the room. Then his face would shift into that same, deep hurt he felt because you were no longer in his life.

“So when you say she wouldn’t talk to you,” John said. “You mean about anything other than your divorce.”

“Yeah,” Roger said. “I thought that if we’re going to be working together on this, we should settle things between us, but….”

“Surely, you understand,” Brian said. “You both went through a tough time after you split, and maybe it’s been long enough now that she feels like it doesn’t matter.”

“Oh, it matters,” Roger argued. “That’s why she won’t talk. It matters too much.”

Brian looked desperately at Freddie and John for something else to say, but they also had nothing. Up until now, they had thought there was no way you would ever see Roger again. The two of you lived in completely different worlds. But now, here you both were, colliding.

“Alright, mate,” John said. “Let’s forget about all that and just play, yeah?”

“Yeah, that sounds perfect,” Roger agreed, snatching his stick up. “Let’s just fucking play.”

They continued setting up in silence before beginning their session.

At your office, you spent much of your morning trying to dissuade Miss Thomas from her ridiculous case against her employee, but you were unsuccessful. She was determined to sue him for thinking about having sex with her, so you were just going to have to take the case as far as you could. You consoled yourself that at least that meant it wouldn’t be long. Your afternoon was more open than usual, so you found your mind wandering back to Roger.

It had been nearly ten years since you had seen him. Since college. Before Queen was Queen. Seeing the success of the band had brought with it so many conflicting emotions. You didn’t hate Roger, so seeing him live out his dream made you so proud of him. But the constant reminder of the man who had broken your heart was a struggle. So, you stayed out of the music scene and avoided the topic in the news.

You didn’t even know that he had gotten married. That stung. You didn’t know why it stung, but probably because you had always thought you and he would….you shook your head.

“Y/N?” said Jane, knocking gently on your office door as she entered. “You alright?”

“Yeah,” you said, voice cracking. You cleared your throat. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Well, I was just wondering because the day is over and you’re just sitting here staring at your desk,” she said. “We’re all going down to the bar. Wanna join?”

“Sure,” you replied.

You got to your feet and grabbed your coat and briefcase before following her to the elevator. 

Next door to your office building was a bar where you and your coworkers went to drink after the long hours of the day. It was a good way to unwind, since the singer and pianist who performed there regularly was very good. She usually performed covers and got people to dance, though that could also be alcohol induced. Anyway, it was always fun.

You came to the bar and joined Bill and the other lawyers who were already sitting at a table. You shot Bill another glare just to remind him you were angry.

“Relax, Y/N, I’ve made it up to you,” he said. “Already ordered your favorite, gin and tonic.”

“I hope this is the first of a multi-step apology,” you returned, taking your seat and sipping the drink.

“God, you’re demanding,” he teased. “How does Mark put up with you?”

Mark was your boyfriend. He was a sweet guy who loved his job as a doctor in a children’s ward at one of the larger London hospitals. He somehow stayed cheerful despite seeing some of what you considered the most depressing part of medicine. Children being ill.

“I’m just incredible in bed,” you shot back.

You and Bill laughed and you were one step closer to forgiving him. 

“Might the second part of my apology be a dance?” he asked, offering his hand.

“Sure,” you conceded, setting your drink down and taking it.

He led you onto the dance floor as the song was changing. You nearly let out a groan when she began to play “Tears on My Pillow.”

“You don’t remember me, but I remember you,” she began to sing. “Twas not so long ago, you broke my heart in two. Tears on my pillow, pain in my heart, caused by you, you.” 

“Look, Y/N, I don’t know the details of you and Roger Taylor’s relationship, and I don’t care to know them,” Bill said, distracting you from the music. “But I put you on that case because you’re not just the best at divorce. You’re the best associate attorney in that whole damn office, and I need you to do it.”

You held his gaze as you swayed to the music, shocked at this burst of earnest praise.

“I...yes, alright,” you said. “I’ll try not to let you down.”

“Good,” he replied. “Because nothing makes me angrier than wasted talent.”

“Except losing money,” you reminded him playfully.

“Oh, you know me better than I know myself,” he returned.

You continued to dance until the end of the song. On your way back to your table, a woman at the bar caught your eye. It was Dominique. There was a man beside her who was clearly unwelcome, and when she had your attention, she sent you a pleading expression. Without hesitating, you walked over.

“Dom!” you cried excitedly. “Oh my goodness, how are you?!”

“Hi, Y/N!” she replied. “It’s been ages!”

“I know,” you sighed dramatically. “Tell me what’s going on, love.”

“Um, excuse me,” the man interrupted. “I was speaking to Dominique.”

You shot him a nasty smile. “Yes, well, now I’m speaking to her.”

He looked to her and she shrugged.

“Sorry,” she said in a way that was not at all apologetic. “But we need to catch up. Have a good night.”

With an annoyed huff, he left. You started to leave too, but she grabbed your hand.

“No, not yet,” she said. “Otherwise he’ll know we’re faking.”

“Oh, right, sorry,” you said. “Although, I’m not sure Tim would be comfortable knowing we were speaking without him.”

You both giggled.

“God, he’s ridiculous, isn’t he?” she remarked.

“So ridiculous,” you agreed. “Why’d you hire him?”

“Because he’s effective,” she told you. “Even if he is absurd.”

A beat passed as the subject of Roger hovered between you like a dark cloud.

“Dom, I feel like I should explain -” you began but she cut you off.

“You don’t have to explain,” she said. “I know about you and Roger. He’s told me the stories. How you were childhood sweethearts and dated through college before he ended things.”

“I see,” you said, shifting uncomfortably. “I just hope it really is okay with you that I’m representing him.”

“Believe me, it’s fine,” she said. “I’ve been competing with you our entire marriage. Why should the divorce be any different?”

Your eyes widened as you gaped at her.

“I know he ended it, Y/N, but Roger has never stopped loving you,” she went on. 

“Well - that’s - I - Dominique, that’s just not true,” you said. “If he loved me, he -” you stopped yourself, swallowing a lump in your throat. “He wouldn’t have done...well, everything he’s done.”

“Believe it or don’t, Y/N,” she said with a sigh. “But what you two had is what most people wait a lifetime for. And he’s never forgotten.”

Another beat of silence passed. You had no idea how to even answer her.

“I’m gonna go,” she said. “It’s getting late and I’ve got to put the kids to bed. See you Wednesday.”

She gathered her things, left some money on the counter, and slid out of the chair. You watched her go until she disappeared down the street. 

You left about an hour later when you and your co-workers were ready. Dominique’s words were stuck in your mind all the way home. Each step you took reinforced what you had heard. But it confused you. Roger couldn’t love you. There was no way. She had to be wrong.

You were just settling into your decision as you opened the door to your flat. Only, it wasn’t empty. Mark sat at your kitchen table, a cold dinner in front of him, a candle out of wax in the center of it, and another untouched plate across from him. A bottle of wine was out with two glasses served. Flowers that were already wilting were in his hand. He looked at you sourly.

“Hey, Y/N,” he said bitterly. “Happy fucking anniversary.”

[cgmayra]

Sonamy snuggling after the metal virus

Additional notes:  It’s after the metal virus outbreak and healing has begun, Amy is still going around trying to help people out and is currently tending to Sonic before he finally gets some much needed sleep. Sonic notices her still driving herself ragged and tells her she needs to rest as well, not only for herself but for others. This ends up with two sleep deprived hedgies snuggling in for some sleep. -Sonic normally isn’t this affectionate and the intimate closeness spooks him for a second but he’s too tired to do anything about it. And starts to admit to himself he really missed contact with others when he was infected. He also realizes he wouldn’t really want anyone other than Amy this close either. It doesn’t hurt she’s warm, soft, pretty, and smells like flowers.

Me: 

Preview image from @uhsecretaccount (x) Thank you so much! Please support the artist!

Prompt:

Amy put the medical supplies away and shut the lid of the tin box, sighing out her final bit of stress as the peace of success electrified down her weary arms and all the way to her toes.

In a moment of glee, she tensed up and smiled, then shot her arms straight up, “We did it!” she exclaimed, giggling before Tails walks up behind her.

“Did you clear section C?”

“And B, and just finished D.” she threw him a thumbs up as she twisted her back to him, then stuck out her tongue in a silly flare of pride.

Tails’s eyes blinked a moment before the realization of that set in. “You did!?” He flinched himself back, shocked, and stepped back a moment to continue processing how that was even possible. “When did you start-!?”

“11 o’clock.” Amy chimed back.

“O-oh, this morning?” He seemed to be calming down a bit.

“No, last night.” she yawned, lifting a casual hand up to her mouth like it was nothing, then stretched out her hands by putting them together, turning them, and extending her arms with an arch in her back. “The second I got news.... ahhh~ That you had re-intented the cure.” she acted like it wasn’t a big deal, but that was literally minutes after the news got out.

She had woken up, strapped up the injections and wispons and rushed to the many different locations they had localized the infected citizens in.

“A-Amy...” He was jawstruck. “Did you not sleep all day!?” He sounded amazed.

She took that as a sign that she did the right thing, “Cream started helping once she was cured, and then I heard Section A was already taken by Silver and Whisper, so I thought I’d get a step ahead of them and save some of the trouble.”

“W-well, now everyone’s everywhere but...” He scratched the back of his head, “You and him both deserve some rest...”

“Hmm?” Amy tilted her head.

“The virus had been held back so long by Sonic... that when we finally did cure him, it left him with zero strength, and barely any fight left. He wants to help and refuses further care. I figured... I’d come see you and maybe you’d fight the stubbornness out of him with your own will power.” He gave her a sheepish smile, hoping she found that as a compliment and not an excuse.

“Oh...” her demeanor turned solemn again, “He’s probably tired of feeling useless by now...” She pondered out loud, and Tails nodded his head, lowering it to show some respect to that thought, as though he had also shared it too.

Confidently, and trying to gain further energy back for the undertaking, she patted the sides of her hips and let her hands push to straight her back out, standing tall. “Leave it to me!”

“B-but... I didn’t realize you had already-”

It was common for Amy to cut him off at this point...

She placed a hand on his shoulder and patted it twice as well, “Cheer up, Tails! We’re all running on steam at this point! The last of us will become all of us... Let’s not forget that.” She gave him a positive wink and took off, but Tails felt bad... seeing her rush away with barely any juice left in her to do so. She jogged, holding her head down and then whipping it up to say, “Okay, come on, let’s go!” as though trying to motivate her own body not to give just yet.

“We’re counting on you... Amy.” He bent his ears back, worried Sonic may take the last bit of strength out of her.

Upon arriving, she heard munching sounds and turned to see Sonic staring out a window, angrily chewing before driving his hand into a bowl of chips and shoving them back into his mouth.

She smiled weakly, panting in her hurried jog but realizing he was probably just grumpy at not having enough strength to stand... and no one allowing him to try again.

“Hey there, crunch.” she teased, as he smacked his jaw as he chewed before turning to look back at her. “Gonna save any of those for me?”

He frowned, “Resting isn’t my specialty,” He pushed the bowl towards her, laying on what looked like an elevated bench made into a bed for him. “But saving is.”

She found that funny and took some chips, tossing one in her mouth. “Kinda dry.” she complained, wiping her now crumbs-filled gloves off on her dress, not caring while a war was going on.

“That’s what I said.” he quipped back, rolling his eyes back to the window. “They mock me worse than the moon...” He made a tight line with his mouth as he watched Shadow, Rouge, and Knuckles assisting others with shots of the cure. “I could help... I’d get people injected with the cure faster than-”

She flopped on the bench next to him, her back facing him.

“Ah!” He lifted an arm up, unsure if she just passed out or not. “A-Amy? What are you-?”

“...Hmm?” Amy opened her eyes, then pushed herself up, “N-nothing... it just looked... comfy.” she leaned back down to sneak a whiff of Sonic’s scent, but he noticed the rascally move and shoved her up.

“Quit that! Have you no shame?” he shook his head, “Geez, that’s worse than your normal flirtations...”

“Hehe~ Opps.” She stuck her tongue out, but he noticed her shift on her feet and get woozy again.

“...Amy?” He looked back at her and saw her grip her head suddenly, catching herself from falling again as her hand braced her against the bench. “Woah! Hold on, have you rested yet?”

“You know I can’t do that.” She rubbed her eyes a moment, trying to wipe the blackness away from them. “Just light-headed.”

He watched her closely, already leaned up, he reached a hand out to her, prepared to catch her if she fell forward again. “How long have you been up?”

“Working for the two of us.” She turned her head and gave him a thumbs up.

“So that means long.” He narrowed his eyes, putting two and two together. “At this rate, they’ll be dragging you across the field, you won’t be any good to them without taking a second breather.”

“Oh, look who’s talking?” She sassily put her hand back to her hip, still leaning on her hand that pushed off the bench. “Driving myself for others is what I do best.” she took another chip, “And driving you wild.” she winked, charmingly bad at the deliver--per usual--and then took a bite of the chip.

He just stared at her, unamused by her remark. “You expect me to laugh at that?”

“I expect you to sleep on it.” she lifted up her hand she was balancing herself on and pushed her finger against his forehead, driving him to lay back down. “Now... you... just... lay there-!” she suddenly fell forward again and he caught her.

“Sheesh! Cool your jets!” he thought she was flirting again but when he saw the pain on her face, he realized she was suffering. “Amy... Alright, I’m not usually one for deals, but this is how it’s gonna work.” He took on a bit of a leader’s tone and transitioned her off of him, onto the side of the bench. “You’re gonna rest, and I’m gonna take over from- HERE.” he was yanked back as he started to get up, and she caught him in a death grip on the bench.

“Emm... pillow.” she held him there, sounding like she was half-losing it, being sleep-deprived but also knowing she needed to check Sonic’s condition.

The cure was doing well, it seemed the metallic flakes that still remained were chipping off as though fake silver furnishing. 

She smiled, her eyes growing droopy, seeing that he would be alright. He was just as sleep-deprived as her, but he patted lightly against her hand in a panic, spooked that she would strangle him.

It was funny, so she closed her eyes and let him struggle.

“Emm... ow!” with all his minimal thrashing, one of his quills wiggled itself to it’s pointy end and stabbed her closed eye, making the other jump awake and her arms let go of Sonic in a chain reaction to the pain. “Spiky pillow!”

She rubbed her eye as he got up to a sitting position lower down the bench, then leaned over with his hands between his spread legs, still looking exhausted as his eyes seemed to finally reveal his true condition.

“You don’t give up... do you?” There was a tad bit of fondness over her extreme actions to keep him down, but seeing as those weren’t gonna work, she blew a raspberry and got comfy, putting her hands under her cheek to sleep.

“If I didn’t... would you ever notice me?” she yawned, “You’re sleepy. I’m sleepy. There’s a reasonable solution for this~” she wiggled her finger down by him, but he flinched a leg away so she shot her flirty finger up to his nose and started fondling it like a child would play with a door-stopper.

He spread his frown so far down his muzzle that she was surprised it could stretch that long, but continued the insistent, repetitive fiddling and spastic movement with her finger to his nose. “You seem to very much dislike this.” She giggled, finding this so entertaining. “Ohh... look at it go. It’s got more energy than you do right now-Noooo...!”

He pulled his head away from her reach.

“Bring it baaaackkk..!!!”

“You’re acting like a loony, you know that?” He gave her a disapproving look but that only made her ‘pfft’ to hold in a bigger spurt of laughter.

She buried her head into the bench’s actual padding and smiled, “It’s warm... soft... inviting.” she lightly stroked the other side of the bench, looking up to him in weary pleading. “Wouldn’t it be nice... to just take your own advice?”

He lost a bit of his agitation then,... staring at the pretty scene.

“...You calling me a hypocrite?”

“Oh, most definitely, accurate. Shall I get it in writing?” she continued to joke as he sighed and rubbed the back of his head.

After a moment of hesitation, she realized he needed some more coaxing, seeing that he was looking off and to the side, nervous.

“I know you don’t usually do these things... but I’ll probably get up and insist on shaking off the rest of the silver from your fur if you don’t.” the light threat made him realize that further, and far worse intimacies could be had and slowly lowered himself back down.

“Alright, alright, you win. No need to shake me down!” he awkwardly found a comfortable spot but Amy eyed his hands and then looked back to him.

Without a word, Sonic looked away and put his hands around her. “There’s not enough space.”

“I know.” she lightly mouthed, blushing a faint pink that he dared to notice before looking away again.

She softly took a deep, cleansing breath in, before fully seeping into the curve of his body and resting by him.

She could tell by the random twitches that he wasn’t used to her being this close, and mentally pouted at his immaturity.

This was everything she loved and hoped for in their relationship, could he just enjoy it for a minute?! A good solid,... sweet... minute?

But Sonic did miss this. Ever so gently, he pulled her a little closer to his chest, held her a little tighter, and found that her own scent of flowers was like a natural muscle relaxer... and the exhaustion took over from then on.

His breathing became more naturally rhythmic, and good few seconds went by of silence, but not the awkward kind he was so used too.

This one was filled to the brim with security, understanding the other’s needs and giving in to exactly what Amy had stated.

“You’re right.” He finally spoke up, as Amy’s eyes batted as though she was practically asleep before he spoke up again. “Is it warm... and soft...”

“Heee... I keep my quills down for a reason. Shampoo a softener too...” her voice was laxed as she grinned widely and went back to scooting her face closer towards his neck, angling down as not to upset him.

 Amy was probably the only one he would ever feel this comfortable doing this with... he had gone so long without her hugs, without her teasing... that this moment was finally like saying, ‘I’m back’.

As though wondering if her hugs always felt like this, he leaned his head to let her head take some of his own weight, resting it down by it.

Amy tried to not ruin the moment, but that subtle acceptance made her chest jump in puffs of excitement.

She kept her snickering to a minimum, before finally laughing as Sonic looked down at her, confused because he was finally starting to think resting might not be such a bad idea.

“What?” he felt her turning to her back and adjusted his hold on her, loosening but keeping his hands around her still. “Thought we were napping?”

“Hehehe... haha..! Did you just..?” She wiped a tear from her eye, pointing a crooked finger at him, “Smell my head?”

He looked horrified she had noticed.

“BAH-HAW-HAHAHAHA!!!” She clutched her stomach and howled in rolling laughing, picking her knees up as Sonic was tempting to just flop her off and onto the cool, hard steel floor beneath them.

“Yeah, so what? They smell of flowers!” he let her go and turned to his back, pouting that he ever thought snuggling with Amy was actually seemingly alright.

He would have to remind himself from now on, never to let his guard down again!

(I originally thought of something else but I think I like this version better XD)

[idreamtofthereaper]

Trouble Waiting to Happen.. iii

bigbrother!jaehyun x sibling!reader x loveinterest!jaemin

𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘢 𝘗𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘩𝘢𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘰𝘺. But Jung Jaehyun knows better, and that’s why their group remains superior and unbothered -only you didn’t.

𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨: reader x nct jaemin

𝙜𝙚𝙣𝙧𝙚: angst, fluff

𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨: mafia theme, gets dark a little later, mentions of kidnapping, deaths, threats, mature theme, cursing/swearing

𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙚 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙧: hi-  I still haven’t moved on from jaehyun’s kick it get up. reach out to me in anyways if you want to be included in the taglist!

M A S T E R L I S T

Taglist: @hiqhkeybby​  @huangxx​

You hurriedly ran down the stairs after hearing multiple people shouting downstairs. When your feet hit the bottom steps of the stairs, you saw how your front door was still wide open and how the maids were cleaning what seems like drops of blood leading to the kitchen.

Since they were preoccupied, they didn’t notice your presence. “IS THAT JAEHYUN’S?!” You shouted, alerting the maids and before they could even stand up, you were already jogging to the kitchen.

In there, you saw Doyoung and Johnny attending your brother was obviously wounded by the blood stain in his shirt. 

“YUTA WHERE’S THE FIRST AID?!”

“I DON’T KNOW THIS IS NOT MY HOUSE.”

“IT’S IN THE COUNTER CABINET IDIOT.” You shouted, alerting the 4 men inside as you rushed to the counter and knelt down, grabbing the first aid and handing it to Yuta who immediately went to Jaehyun.

“Yn, you’re not supposed to be here. Go to your room.” Jaehyun said before his shirt was ripped open, unveiling a pretty gruesome would by his shoulder. As Doyoung and Yuta fumbled at the kit, Johnny was putting pressure on the wound.

“I said go to your room.” Jaehyun said with a wince, his breathing heavy but like early, you only shook your head and made your way to him. “Johnny, get yn to her room. I don’t want her seeing all this.” Johnny nodded, prompting Yuta to hold the cloth as Doyoung was beginning to remove the contents of the first aid.

“What? No, I’m not going.” You said as Johnny grabbed your arms, beginning to push you out the kitchen but you were resisting hard, prompting him to carry you on his shoulder while you continuously yelled and resisted.

Johnny didn’t even struggled or dropped a sweat when he reached your room, closing the door with his other hand and put you down gently to the floor. When you tried rushing out again, Johnny already closed the door and was guarding it. “He’s going to be okay, just chill out okay.”

“He was stabbed!”

“It’s not that deep.”

“OUR FLOOR IS RED BECAUSE OF HIS BLOOD.” You yelled again, feeling more frustrated with the arguing. “Johnny, don’t act like you didn’t teach me how to break someone’s kneecaps.”

Johnny only chuckled at this with a grin on his face. “And don’t assume I don’t know any counters for it.” You let out a tired sigh, putting your forehead on his chest as he rubbed your back comfortingly, assuring you that Jaehyun will be okay.

And he was. Just like everytime he would come home bloodied and wounded. This was not the first time he came home looking like he was mauled by a wolf. Still, it would always affect and worry you deeply. 

You waking up at early hours in the morning, when the sun isn’t even up, because of a loud commotion happening was normal at this point. Jaehyun’s ‘night job’ would usually end at early hours in the morning with results varying from time to time.

The sun was already making an appearance when Jaehyun opened the door to your room, nodding at Johnny who was seated beside it and was leaning at your dresser while you were at your bed on your phone.

“Thanks John.” 

“No problem, rest up.” Jaehyun only nodded as Johnny patted his shoulder, glancing at you who you gave a nod and a wave before he left the room and closed the door behind him.

You examined Jaehyun firs, who now changed into his sweats and a plain shirt. Peaking at his chest and shoulders was a bandage and on his other arm, was multiple bruises and cut on his lip. 

“You look horrible.” You said as you crawled to the edge of your bed, Jaehyun only chuckling before he took a seat at your desk’s chair. 

“You should’ve seen the other guy.”

“Why do you keep doing this?” You said, not really in the mood to joke around and put this one aside like the others. You were getting tired and extremely worried. At this point, a simple tree branch could knock your brother out. 

“Don’t worry too much about me, I’m okay. Look at me, I’m already feeling better.” Jaehyun said, opening his arms open but you didn’t miss how his face winced in pain when his injured shoulder moved.

You only shook your head, putting your face in your hands before brushing your hair back. “Why do you keep doing this? You act like this is what you live of off and that this is where you get your money, you have a company that’s doing well.” You said, voice slightly raising but you really didn’t have the energy to argue this early in the morning. “You don’t have to prove anything, you’re strong enough and you don’t need to be acting all kingpin and scarface and godfather prove that.”

Jaehyun only looked at you sympathetically before letting out a sigh, his eyes travelling down. “Yn, you don’t understand our family-” Jaehyun couldn’t formulate the correct words, pausing for a moment before shaking his head. “-Our family, I didn’t have a choice. Our father, his father, his father and so on, they set this up. We were born as a target.” Jaehyun explained, leaning forward and putting his elbows to his knees while his head was bowed down.

“Just because dad left the business doesn’t mean it would stop. The enemies he made wouldn’t just move on because he did, his partners wouldn’t just stop because he’s done. If anything, father only left us with enemies I don’t even know. I’m sorry you’re getting in between all of this.” Jaehyun said, finally lifting himself up as you only watched sympathetically. “If you want to move in with mom and dad that’s okay, but I don’t trust dad’s security team and I’ll send in Yuta with others or something.”

You chuckled at this, but shook your head. Jaehyun smiled at your response, the room was then filled with silence as you took up his words. Realizing what he said was true, he couldn’t simply leave this ‘family thing’ and expect safety. Your family was known to be shady even before you were born.

You stood up and open your arms, Jaehyun standing up himself and wrapped his arms around you. Your face landing on his chest, moving slightly as to not make any contact with the wound. 

“Peaches, can I request something?”

Jaehyun hummed, waiting for what you’ll say while his arms are still wrapped around you. 

“Let’s spend the day together, like we used to before. Like going to the park or the mall or something, let’s be normal for a day.” He pulled back and you saw he was hesitating and had a disappointing look on his face but before he could even say an answer, you hugged him tightly again. “Pleaseee Peaches, I don’t ask for much. I just really want to spend some time with you more, we could even just watch a movie here.”

“Fine, fine. But I still need to sleep, let’s go out after lunch.”

--

Not everyone had a happy ending that night though, if one could consider Jaehyun’s night a positive one. 

Some may have came out unscathed at 11:56 pm on a Friday night, they are however still considered the night a fail for different reasons even coming out of the same situation. 

1. The deal they were planning didn’t happen because someone double crossed them.

2. A particular someone couldn’t get someone’s number.

Lee Jeno is the biological son of Lee Donghae, a known businessman of a famous insurance company. However, he became notorious when him and multiple people from his board of directors were tied to a series of drug trafficking scheme.

Lee Donghae and his directors were proven innocent days later, but no details of HOW they were proven to be innocent was revealed to the media, the spokesperson stating details and information about the case are sensitive and everything was just a misunderstanding.

The scandal didn’t affect the company. If anything, it only shone more light about its existence and the charming son of its owner, Lee Jeno- who also has his fair share of ‘shady’ headlines every now and then.

It was then revealed a year later of the scandal that Lee Donghae adopted a boy, Na Jaemin. And again, details were not released about his adoption and who this Na Jaemin is. 

For Jeno, Na Jaemin is the guy who is currently hogging up his bed even if he has his one.

After a failed attempt to negotiate terms with the a holding company to create a partnership, both company and ‘private’ wise, Donghae went home with a black eye and a bruised son.

“I told you not to come.”

“You said I could come when I finish my homework.”

Jeno wasn’t surprised when he saw Jaemin in his bed and still awake at almost 12am. After bathing and freshening up, Jeno immediately went under the covers without even as to greet Jaemin.

He was already dozing off when Jaemin let out another groan, tossing the laptop at the edge of the bed and lay down beside Jeno, whose eyes was closed but was still awake. “How did the meeting go?”

“Someone from another group was there unannounced, the one we’re having a deal with thought they were ours and safe to say the deal is off.” Jeno answered without opening his eyes. 

“It would’ve gone well if I was there.”

“Yeah you would, with your Pink hair and all.” Jeno chuckled, opening his eyes but still under his blanket. “What’s up with you?”

“Do you know how to hack into the school system?” 

“You were never worried with your grades, what changed now?” Jeno asked, his full attention now on Jaemin. “What deal did dad struck with you?”

“No it’s not that, I just need to get someone’s number. When I was asking around, no one has her number. They said she doesn’t really give it out and if anyone has it, they’re not saying.” Jaemin said, remembering how he asked almost all his classmates from different subjects about your number

“Yn? Yeah, the only one who has her number is probably the school system. I’ve been trying to get her number too but she doesn’t even pull her phone out in public that much.”

“Who is it? Maybe I could help.” Jeno said cheekily, earning a roll of the eye from Jaemin, who found out his brother turned out to be a well known ‘brooding prince charming’ knowing damn well his brother couldn’t fully carry a conversation with anyone of the opposite gender.

“It’s yn, not a lot of people have nice things to say about her though.”

“Ahh yn, yeah I know her. I haven’t talked to her though, she’s a daughter of this rich family. Her personal life is pretty private, I don’t know much about her besides that.” Jaemin just nodded at this information, which wasn’t really helpful. “Just forget about it, you just started focus on other stuff. She’s trouble anyways.”