#.....................maybe i can find a summary of the route somewhere or something

[asexual-levia-tan]

aaa im switching to a new phone soon but i never finished my route in paranichi and the data doesnt transfer.......................

[eightstarr]

visions — abby anderson.

summary: a love letter to trying (or the time when you met your favorite people in the world, an overly stressed med student and her overly adventurous one-year-old, in your apartment's hallway).

notes: constantly suffering from chronic baby fever so this is a present from me to you because i spend way too much time thinking about abby as a mom <3

do not support zionist neil druckmann or any future tlou realeases.

a daily click to help palestine.

donation links, educational resources and ways to be useful.

୨・┈﹕✦﹕﹕✦﹕┈・୧

You’re stepping out of the elevator when you suddenly hear it— a series of light thumps on the floor, fast but determined like a tiny little elephant who really has somewhere to be right now. Another step and then you stop clumsily when a flash of golden hair comes rushing past you. You follow the sight with your eyes, tilting your head. A little girl is walking, no, stomping through the hallway. She’s no older than two years old, her thin shining hair in two short braids, blue jean overalls and red socks on her feet. She moves so confidently that you almost don’t think about it, almost have the instinct to look away as if to not accidentally appear nosy, but her tiny stature and wobbly sense of direction keep your attention.

You look around the hallway, expecting surely the sound of the little girl’s parent calling her name (something sweet and pretty and classic, you imagine; it’d suit her). You picture her name being followed by a tired sigh before her patents rush to catch up, maybe rolling their eyes in a way that pretends to be annoyed but unmistakingly holds a million times more affection. A perfect family, a tiny glimpse of a full life somehow existing right in your unimportant building.

The hallway is long and terribly empty. You look back at the little girl who is striding forward in less of a rush now, with no worries, like this is the same route she’s taken for years.

What are you supposed to say to get a kid’s attention when you don’t know their name? What’s something concise, yet nice, yet simple enough to be understood? Babysitting as a teen has prepared you for a lot, just maybe not all of it. It's been a little too long. You linger on it for just a second before spitting out the first thing that comes to mind. “Hi, princess,” It’s a little awkward, but you’re relieved when she immediately stops and spins around, like something about it sounded familiar— could be your sweet tone or the nickname, you’re not sure. The little girl tilts her head to the side, round cheek lightly squished against her shoulder. It's the cutest thing you’ve ever seen and it makes you giggle like a charmed kid. “Where did you come from?” you ask, but before you have the chance to reach her she pouts her lips, as if just now realizing that you’re not who she thought you were. And then she turns her back, like there's no time to waste, to return to her journey with renewed enthusiasm.

In a scarily fast moment, you realize that she’s going for the stairs. It would maybe be a slightly less terrifying idea if that stupid door actually worked— but it doesn't, it broke sometime last May and now it's awfully easy to open, no strength or shove required. Sometimes, if it's windy and quiet enough, you can faintly hear it swing back and forth from your apartment. The little girl reaches a hand out, not intimidated by the tall door more than three times her height. If you weren’t this terrified, you’d find it amazingly admirable. 

You don’t register you’re running until you reach her, don’t register the sound of fast steps behind you or the scream of Rue! or anything else other than the heavy relief on your chest when you lift the baby by her armpits and hold her over your hip against your side. She’s fussing in your arms immediately, upset that she’s being interrupted, especially by a stranger. “I know, I’m sorry, baby. It’s okay, you’re okay,” you coo, though trying to be soothing when your heart is beating this fast is admittedly not the easiest task.

“Rue!” Someone repeats, and this time you do hear it. A woman is running down the hallway, hand coming down to mindlessly drop a tote bag bursting with groceries on the floor by the time she’s in front of you. The little girl reaches out her arms immediately, tiny fists opening and closing furiously and you sigh with relief as you carefully pass her over to the arms of the tall stranger. Her hair is blonde but darker than Rue’s, held back in a braid that looks both pretty and messy, like it was once pristine and then slept on. She’s wearing jeans and a half unbuttoned white shirt, a black tank top underneath. Her chest rises and falls and you notice that yours is no different. Adrenaline is a strange bond to share with a stranger, but it does make things less awkward, knowing you’re both here, feeling the same thing. You meet her expertly focused eyes for just a second before she turns to look at the little girl, searching for anything that could be wrong. “I’m so sorry, sweet girl. You’re okay, right? You’re okay,” the baby flashes a precious, wobbly smile at the sound of her voice, but she’s quickly distracted by the endlessly fascinating rainbow of groceries that lie on the floor. Her tiny head peeks over her mom’s shoulder to observe and it’s like you both can take a more soothing breath now, knowing she’s okay. “Thank you so much,” Abby says. You blink a couple times before you realize that she’s talking to you. “Sorry, I really don’t know how that happened. We were— we just got home from the store and I hadn't even put down all the bags yet and I thought— I was convinced that I shut the door, but…” her rambling drifts off and the stranger takes another breath, reddish embarrassment crawling up her neck.

You understand, suddenly, that she’s not only struggling with the stress of losing and finding her baby, but also the shame of having to face a stranger who might judge her for it. It feels insane to you, to think that she would be forced to prioritize that right now. “Oh, no, it’s okay!” you rush to respond. “I saw her immediately, and you were here in seconds! She wouldn't have gotten any further than that,” your smile is soft, but you speak with enough confidence to be reassuring (babysitting lessons, perhaps), “It was just a scare— don’t be too hard on yourself, please.”

Abby looks disarmed by your answer, her eyebrows raised in surprise. A short moment passes before she nods and smiles back, a small gesture without any less warmth. It’s the most relaxed you’ve seen her so far and it suits her beautifully, enough to make your face feel warm. Her blushing is much less forgiving though, more physically evident on her skin, spread over her cheekbones and the bridge of her pretty nose.

Rue giggles and it distracts you both, her hand waving excitedly at the colorful bird printed on a box of cereal as soon as she spots him. Abby looks at you for a second too long before she clears her throat, joking, “Sorry, she really loves that guy.”

You hum. “He is pretty cool, to be fair.”

Abby tilts her head, copying your sincere tone. “I don’t know, I always thought he’d be kind of a dick in person. He just looks like the type.”

Your startled laugh makes her smirk but she's frustratingly good at hiding it, free hand covering her mouth casually enough that you don’t notice. You look at the grabbing motion of the baby’s hands and pout with sympathy. “She loves him, though. We should probably get him off the floor.”

“Yeah, I should get that— I guess I just ran out with the bag, huh?” Abby huffs. She looks and sounds, physically, a lot less anxious now, less ashamed and more annoyed at herself.

“Would you like some help?”

“That’s okay, I got it,” she’s not sure that she does but she says it anyway, instinctively. Abby tries to lean down and Rue clutches her shirt, pulling enough to communicate that she is not ready to be put down yet. Abby straightens her back quickly enough to communicate that she is not ready to risk getting her any more upset for today. She meets your eyes for just a second. “Well, maybe some help.”

“Sure, just some,” you chuckle. “I’ll get it, don’t worry about it.”

People say that to Abby a lot— don’t worry about it! She hears it from her colleagues when she inevitably asks for the notes from the last class she ran a little late to, from a few of her kinder professors when she’s a day past some assignment’s deadline, from the guy at the grocery store that picks up the packets of M&M bags from the floor when Rue’s curious hands knock them over, from her dad when she asks if he’d be okay with babysitting for just a tiny bit longer. It always makes her stomach turn with guilt, some cases more intense than others, her lips usually pursed as she turns around and takes a breath. This time when you say it, she finds the guilt passing through her with ease, a short visit that makes her shoulders tense before it gets replaced by something else. She believes you, for some reason. Her brain is quiet except for thinking, for once, that there could really be nothing to worry about.

Your hands move casually as you pick everything up, resting on your knees like it’s not uncomfortable, like they might as well be your groceries. The idea is startling. Abby thinks, suddenly, that if someone were to walk into this scene, they wouldn’t read you as a kind stranger. Your ease would hint to something else, a friend, a lover, a picture of a family. Abby finds herself looking at your hands again, brought back to reality only by the slight tug of her hair. Rue plays with her braid distractedly, mumbling to herself about her froot loops friend— except she hasn’t quite learned to pronounce it yet, so it sounds more like oot oops.

Abby chuckles, brushing some of her loose baby hair behind her ears, mumbling back answers to her gibberish to keep her entertained even if Rue doesn’t seem to need it. She’s always endlessly thrilled to just be outside, perhaps the one trait she got from her grandpa rather than her mom. Other than her light snoring.

“She loves you a lot,” you comment, rising from your knees with the bag hanging on your shoulder. You don’t ask and Abby doesn’t think about it—  you just start walking back to her apartment together. “Don’t you, Ru-Ru?” the baby giggles, her head turning to you, blue eyes sparkling. You laugh, “Oh, you like that name. It suits you, Ru-Ru.”

“That’s what my dad calls her,” Abby explains.

“He sounds like a man with taste,” you say. “What do you call her?”

“Princess.”

Your smile is wide and pleased. “That suits her even more, I fear.”

“I think so, too,” Abby agrees, a proud little glimmer in her eyes. She stops in front of her door, B06 engraved in silver. Is it always such a short walk from the elevator? She’s seriously thinking about it until, after realizing in an embarrassing second that she never introduced herself to the person kind enough to chase after her baby, help pick up her groceries and carry them home, Abby suddenly turns to you with widened blue eyes and pretty, reddened cheeks. You forgive her before she even says anything, and forget your traitorous reason before it gets a chance to warn you about how dangerous that thought is. “God, sorry, I never told you my name. I’m—”

“Abby, right?” you smile softly at her surprised face, chuckling before you explain, “One of our neighbors is an old friend of mine and she kinda threw this welcome party for me when I moved in. I promise we weren’t gossiping, but I think someone mentioned you.”

“Oh,” Abby nods casually, brushing it off as if she won’t be spending all night thinking about what your first impression of her might’ve been like. Rue fusses in her arms, a little grunt as she kicks her legs to be put down. “Sorry— I‘ll be right back,” Abby shares a quick look with you and you wave goodbye, not surprised to be missing Rue as soon as she turns around. You watch them walk inside together, a tiny hand waving back at you and making you smile as she excitedly makes her way to her playpen, shrieking bye-bye! Abby places a kiss on top of Rue’s blonde hair and makes her laugh with some noise that you don’t quite catch. She’s comfortable here, walking amongst colorful toys and biology books. She moves like an expert, pulling down her shirt where it rode up somewhere along the way. You make half an effort not to stare, but it’s half more than the effort Abby makes to not let it get to her head. The most confident she’s felt so far, she asks you, “Did that totally innocent welcome party of yours happen, like, two weeks ago? I think I heard some music.”

“It was extremely innocent,” you insist, eyebrows raised teasingly, “And no, sorry, not sure what that was— I moved here like a year ago.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

You grace her (or yourself) with a second of silence before you laugh at her awkward expression, the way she brushes a hand over her flushed face and huffs. “Fuck, that’s embarrassing. I’m kinda terrible at keeping up with this type of, uh, social stuff.”

“It’s not embarrassing, I promise. It’s a big world,” you reassure her. “Even bigger when you’re doing a million other stuff.”

You tell her your name and Abby, who is young like you but also highly knowledgeable on little specific human interaction cheat-codes that come with being a mom, nods her head and makes her eyes light up with what seems, to the naive eye, like recognition. “Oh, that’s right!”

You stare for a second before squinting your eyes. “Are you lying to me, Abby from B06?”

Abby grins, wondering when was the last time she found being caught this funny. “Yeah, sorry. I’ve never heard that name in my life.”

You laugh the loudest you have so far and a daydreamed life flashes in Abby’s head— in that big, dramatic way that it does only when you’ve been watching too many rom-coms every night, or when you’re getting too much dating advice from your friend who’s been married since eighteen, or maybe when you fall in love with a pretty stranger who seems to be able to read your mind. It’s an idealized vision of an idealized world, and Abby finds herself being completely okay to clutch it in her fists to keep, because it’s fucking lovely.

“Well, I forgive you,” you tell her, unaware (maybe?) of the chaos that you’ve induced inside of her. “You’re a busy girl.”

Abby tries to think of a good, smooth way to tell you that she could see herself saying your name everyday, placed adoringly after good morning and I miss you. All she comes up with is, “I got enough time to learn it.”

—

You play with the hem of your shirt, pajamas made of mostly Abby’s clothes every night, a scent on them that’s not yours but it might as well be. It’s yours in all the ways that matter, in the same sense that she is. Abby walks out of the bathroom wearing her usual pajamas— a shirt that fits too loose and boxers that are a little too tight around her thighs. She doesn't seem to mind them, and you don’t seem to wanna complain. She knows by the way you look at her. You’re leaning back on your palms, your head tilted, the same shyness and sparkly adoration in your eyes that you’d get when you didn't know each other all that well. It’s not too often that she sees that nervousness anymore, but she still gets glimpses of it, a blink of something on your face or your tone or your breathing that says I have a crush on you and I’m hoping you can’t tell. She likes that nervousness the best right now, the way it’s timid and then settles into something like cockiness when you remember that she’s looking at you just the same, when you remember how much you like the way she copies the tilt of your head and teases you as if she's not also smiling like you’re the most beautiful thing in the world.

Abby loves every moment like this, loves getting home and helping prepare dinner and making Rue laugh before kissing her goodnight, loves doing the dishes with you and flirting and talking about the day. Today, she’s especially looking forward to the latter.

“So, how was it?” she asks, the back of her thighs resting against the dresser. She’s trying to play it cool and she's annoyingly good at it, even now.

“Hm?” you hum, leaning further back to rest on your elbows, your back almost fully touching the bed. Abby feels a little bad keeping you up, but she knows she’ll be tossing and turning all night if she has to wait until the morning to ask.

“The school meeting.”

“Oh,” you smile wide enough to look silly and beautiful, sweet enough to rot teeth. She feels like she could sink in it, your smile and the relief it brings to her well hidden nervousness. “I loved it so much, Abs.”

Abby is smooth when she walks closer, soft when she cups your cheek, but there's something anxious in her eyes if you know where to look. “Yeah?” she insists.

You nod your head and kiss the palm of her hand, your lips pressed together in that funny way of trying to hold back an excited giggle. Abby smiles and feels nostalgic for the time, many many months ago, when she’d bring a finger to her lips to shush you and then remind you in an expert whisper that Rue is sleeping in the other room. She doesn't have to teach you much at all anymore, and every moment that proves that to her feels like the most beautiful, unfamiliar peace.

“I’m so happy,” you announce, looking up at her. You’re tired enough that it feels almost like being drunk, which is maybe why a short giggle manages to escape. Abby finds it contagious, your joy moves through her as naturally and importantly as the pumping of her blood. “I’m so excited for all of it.”

It’s the second parents' meeting that you’ve attended at Rue’s school— but you spent that first one sitting quietly by her side, practically hiding behind her, too aware of yourself and of the fact that you don’t really know what you’re doing. “Nobody knows,” Abby confessed on your way home, a hand on the steering wheel and another over your leg, her fingers tapping a comforting rhythm. “Parenting is beautiful, it just comes a lot less naturally than you’d think. That thing about a biological, primal wisdom or whatever— it’s a nice concept. But the best things I know came from me actively trying.”

Her words echoed in your head when you said yes to attending this school meeting alone, when you smiled and made the effort to look as calm as you could, kissed her cheek and said “of course!”. Being Rue’s parent doesn’t always come naturally, but it comes from the most genuine love, every single time. Of course you can go to her meeting when Abby can’t reschedule work, because of course you want to know about how Rue is doing in school. It’s an honor to be there for her, to speak for her when you know she needs you to. This is you actively trying.

“How were the other parents?” Abby asks, lying on her side now, her finger tracing unreadable patterns on your cheek. She craves physical contact more than she’d like to admit— but it works great, because you never ask her to admit it if she doesn't want to. The pads of her fingers say enough.

“They were cool, they were all very sweet to me. Well, Leo’s mom is a little passive aggressive but she’s that way with everyone,” you comment through a yawn, the side of your face comfortably pressed against your pillow. Abby hums, agreeing. “Sophie’s mom was the nicest, she sat next to me and invited me to join her and Jade’s mom for brunch.”

“Which Sophie?”

“The one that gave Rue a Valentine’s gift, that milk chocolate that she loves.”

“Oh, I like that Sophie.”

“Me too. I think I wouldn't mind joining a weekly brunch cult with her mom.”

Abby laughs in the way that she only does when she’s sleepy, where she sounds almost like her teenage self, shy and sweet. By the time it dies down, you’re almost asleep. But then, softly enough that you almost don’t hear it, she asks, “How do you think you would feel if she called you that?”

You make a questioning little sound that sounds like "what?" but not quite.

“If Rue called you mom.”

Your eyes open in a second, though not without effort. You look at Abby’s face, her pretty, relaxed features, and answer honestly. “I would probably cry. And then kiss her cheeks for as long as she let me.”

Abby chuckles. “Like when she fell off the swing and got the tiniest scratch on her knee?”

“Yeah, just— the joyful version of that, I guess. They would be the happiest tears ever spilled,” you explain, so sincere that Abby almost tells you. And you know her enough to read it on her face, the way she barely parted her lips and then pressed them back together quickly. Your head lifts from the pillow. “Wait, why? She told you something? Did she ask about that?”

Abby is great at keeping it cool, but less so once she’s been caught. Her nervous chuckle says it all. “I…”

“Abby, I swear to god, I will not let you sleep until you tell me.”

She more than believes you, but a flash memory of her pinky finger wrapped around Rue’s holds her back from spilling any more details. “Sorry, baby, I’m not allowed to say.”

“Oh my god,” you drop back onto your pillow, this time lying flat on your back. “You think she’s gonna say it?” you ask, and Abby is unsure if you’re asking her or the ceiling or a godly presence way above it. Or yourself, most likely. “It’s okay if she doesn't, maybe she was just curious. Maybe she needs time. I mean, obviously. She probably won’t say it, like, tomorrow, right?” you turn your head and look at her, so wrapped up in your inner monologue that you don’t process the amusement and adoration that’s all over your girlfriend’s face. “What if I react super weird and she doesn't say it again?”

Abby’s lips stretch into the softest smile, so in love that she almost forgets to answer and instead holds her hand on the back of your neck and pulls you close to press a kiss against your forehead. Your eyebrows are still furrowed worriedly when she pulls away, and she brushes her thumb over your cheek as she lets out the kindest hum, acknowledging your question. “You’re not gonna react weird, sweetheart.”

Momentarily flustered, you shake your head to remember the point that you’d been thinking about. “But I shouldn't cry, imagine how confusing that would be for her— what if she thinks she made me upset?”

“That won’t happen. She cried happy tears when you moved in, remember? She knows what they are,” she says. It’s one of the best memories you have, the nervous look on Abby’s face when she asked you, rambling, “It would be a big change, but not the worst, right? You’d just be a couple doors down the hall. It would be a lot of the same in a lot of ways, just with us.”

After that came the late nights at your apartment, dates hidden behind the excuse of packing, half empty boxes on the floor and Abby stuck to you like glue, a kiss or ten whenever she got too carried away with excitement. A couple weeks later came your clothes in her closet, your favorite blanket on the couch, and Rue’s eyes glimmering with happy tears as she hid her face on your neck and tried to understand her feelings. Then, after a few minutes of patiently rubbing her back, came her little frown of concentration and the way she attentively listened to you and Abby explain that her reaction was normal, that sometimes happiness feels like too much to hold in just a laugh or a dance. “Oh, okay,” she’d said, in this cute proud tone that she gets whenever she learns something new that makes sense to her. It was the sweetest thing. She’s the sweetest thing— and you can’t believe this is your life, that you get to take care of her and hang out and teach her new things to be proud of.

“You think she wants me to be her mom?”

Abby smiles. “You are her mom, baby.”

Rue doesn't say it the next day. You don’t overthink it— couldn't if you tried. It's a nice feeling to be so happy that you don't feel the need to think. She doesn't call you mom that morning, but she runs to the doorway where you’re putting on your shoes to get to work and wraps her arms so tight around your legs that you have to balance yourself with a hand against the wall. Her hair is messy from sleep, her yellow pajama shirt wrinkled, her eyes blinking lazily as she looks up at you and asks, “Back soon?”

“Soon as I can, princess,” you promise, leaning down to kiss her head. What is there to overthink? What more could you possibly need?

You can do this forever, have mornings like this and feel grateful in a way that you didn't know existed until now. You love the way it comes at random times, the way you’re still you, still grumpy when your coffee tastes watery, still a little bad at getting to the train station on time, still learning not to burn the first batch of pancakes. It’s a big change, but not the worst, right? It’s a lot of the same in a lot of ways, except Abby is there at the kitchen kissing your cheek, and a tiny head of blonde hair is peeking from the back of the couch, gummy smile and freckled cheeks, saying, “I like my pancakes like that, mom!”

[chasedbyatlantic]

flawless, joel miller

masterlist summary: IN WHICH — joel miller comes to you hurt and in pain, after realizing that you are the only one that he can find peace with - you're there to welcome him with open arms.

warnings: post outbreak!joel, boston qz era!joel, gender neutral!reader, no use of y/n, frenemies to lovers type trope, angsty to fluff, mentions of blood/injuries/death (lightly mentioned), joel being so sappy i love it, swearing, cute ending. lmk if i missed anything!

wordcount: 2.9k

a/n: i hope u love this as much as i do. i've been meaning to write it for a while, and it's a bit of a diff style from my writing but i love how it turned out! make sure to reblog, like, comment and follow for more! xoxo

—

It had to have been three in the morning by now. When Joel said he was going to be at your place by seven, you believed him. He was a man of his word after all - or at least ninety nine percent of the time he was. He had told you this morning that he was heading outside of the walls after his shift at the "graveyard" (the nickname given to where the bodies of infected were burned), and he would be back just after sunset. You had protested to join him on his well-travelled route, but he had forbid you from going with him. Despite not going with him, he had promised to swing by your place once he was back and drop off any goods he may have scavenged while out.

You weren't sure why he wouldn't agree to let you come, it wasn't like he was your father, or brother, or boyfriend - you guys were friends. Sure, the two of you had hooked up every so often, but that gives him no right to make decisions for you, about what you can do or where you can go. It's the zombie apocalypse for Christ sake, you can do what you want when you want.

You had been up for an extra few hours, it was way past the time you would usually be asleep. You were waiting for that knock on the door, you were waiting for the bickers on why you were awake and waiting for his return, you were waiting for Joel. In all honesty, you weren't sure why you were up. Maybe it was the thought in the back of your head that he was dead, or stranded alone somewhere far outside of the walls.

You had to shake those gruesome thoughts out of your head as you were forced up and toward your window, having to close it due to the newly started rain. As soon as the window was shut, the sounds of pitter-patter were echoed through your entire apartment, the only thing it did was put you on edge. He was probably at home, you thought to yourself, thinking it was too late to bother you and that he would see you first thing tomorrow. You could only hope for that.

You had decided it would be best to go and sit down on your sofa, the one in front of the TV that hadn't worked for twenty something years. It wouldn't hurt you if you remained up for the next little bit, just in case. In case there would be a knock on your door, in case he showed up. You took a seat on the well weared in part of the sofa, kicking your shoes off and cuddling up to the blanket covering the arm. It wouldn't hurt you if you stayed up waiting with your eyes shut, would it?

It was a quarter to five when a few sets of knocks went off at your door. You had shot up from the light rest you had fallen into, mentally cursing yourself for not being able to stay up. Was it Joel? You really shouldn't be caring this much about him, or this situation. You were sure it wasn't anything serious, but this is what friends do for each other, right?

You had gotten up as quick as you could, tripping over your shoes and almost face planting on the ground. Without spending any time to worry about it, you moved over to the door. Whoever it was on the other side, Joel or not, mustn’t have heard you make your way over to the door since there was another set of desperate knocks. It felt like an eternity while you undid all four locks, before swinging it open.

Your eyes could only fall into the gaze of the grey ones in front of you. You weren't sure if he was crying, or if the paths under his eyes were extra watery from the torrential downpour happening outside (though, you wouldn't question him about it). Your eyes had scanned over his saddened face, to the puddle of water beneath his shoes. Your hand had automatically found its way to cup his cheek, your thumb running over his skin as gentle as possible, "Fuck, Joel."

You could feel him soften his muscles when you did this, despite his facial expression remaining neutral, "I gotta come in." He had mumbled, just loud enough for you to hear. You had immediately dropped your hand from his face, and moved out of the doorframe, allowing Joel to enter. It was only when the dull light from your candle lit lamp engulfed Joel that you could really see what had happened to him.

A black eye, a busted lip, small bruises littered around every masculine feature he had. You were going to kill whoever did this to him. "I got clothes that'll fit you, hold on." You had turned and shuffled your way into your room, digging through the drawers when you had reached them. You had a pair of black sweatpants that were too big on you, but would most likely fit Joel. Before leaving the room, you swiped a shirt that was laying in the pile of clean clothes off to the side.

You emerged not long after, seeing the barely-clothed man remove his last sock off his right foot. You two were past the point of being embarrassed in front of each other, you had learned to adapt due to the many years spent surviving together. As you walked past Joel, toward the kitchen, you shoved the clothes into his arms. You wanted to give him a little privacy, so he could hold onto his pride, if he managed to have any left.

Making your way into the kitchen, you immediately got out a mug from your tiny mug collection, and turned the gas-powered stove top on. Placing the mug beside the stove, you had brought over a little pot and dumped an entire bottle of water into it. It didn't take long for the water to boil, so once it was done, you immediately put it in the mug labeled "World's Best Boss" and started to scavenge. You hadn't opened the box of tea you were looking for, you wanted to save it for a special occasion. Tonight was special enough, right?

You had found it after a moment of searching, taking a packet out of the box and moving back over to the living room. Your eyes fell on the emptiness of the sofa, the man nowhere to be found. He couldn't have left, you didn't hear the door open or close. Just before you were going to call out for him, he walked out of the darkness (his limp more noticeable than before). "Put the clothes'n y'ur bath tub, didn't want the floor all wet for ya' to clean." His voice was hoarse.

You shot him an almost unapologetic look as you placed the mug down, dropping the tea bag inside. "Stop worryin' 'bout that, now sit down and let me help." For once in his life, Joel Miller kept quiet and did what you told him. You had wished it would be under different circumstances, but a win is a win. "Now," You began, "I know you like coffee, but this was all I could find."

It had to taken Joel a moment before he realized that there was a warm drink waiting for him, his nose too stuffed to have taken in the scent. It had been a while since Joel had something warm to drink, a while since someone's cared enough about him to make him something like that. Even though he despised any sort of drink other than coffee (and water, of course), he would not complain about this. Not now, not ever. He reached forward for the mug, carefully bringing it back to his lap. "Best boss, hm?"

You could only giggle as you were now opposite of Joel, instead of being on the couch, you had pushed it away and were digging on the floor. Months ago, you had figured out there were two layers of wood that divided you and the person who occupied the apartment below you. That space served as a cubby, so you figured why not use it for its purpose? "You're gonna be jumpin' with joy, Joel Miller." He looked puzzled, trying his best to ignore the immense pounding that came from everywhere in his body. That's when he caught glimpse of what you were holding, headache medicine.

Sure, headache medicine was some measly little thing that probably didn't work as well as it used to anymore, not many people would bat an eye at it before the apocalypse. But now, it was gold. People were sentenced to the firing squad if any guard in the QZ found out about medicine that wasn't recorded, since it was so scarce. "Why the fuck do you have that?" Was all Joel could say, forgetting about himself for a moment, and worrying about you. That's what friends do, right?

"For emergencies like this." You had gotten up from the floor, kicking the wooden plank back into its home before moving over to Joel. You had opened the cap, taking out four. Four would send you into the doctors office if you took them before they expired, but since they expired twenty years ago, they only worked half (if you were lucky) of what they usually would. You had reached out for Joel's hand and placed the pills in there, "Drink tea with'em to help them go down easier."

He listened to you, silent for a moment. After he had swallowed the mouthful (literally) of pills, he broke silence. "I don't want you runnin' 'round'n gettin' shit like that." He was referring to the pills, "You know what happens if ya' get caught." How could even talk this much with a busted lip, you thought to yourself. You repeated the 'if ya' get caught' part to him as you slipped away once more into the kitchen.

Joel called your name out a few times as you left, leaning farther back into the couch each time. By you talking to him, he was distracted. Distracted from the crushing headache, the horrible tension that rose to his lips every time words were escaping from his mouth, the pain throughout his body. He would tell you what happened, when you came back, but only if you asked.

You returned with a small bowl and a rag, something to clean up his face (and anywhere under the clothes he may want cleaned). You sat down beside Joel, on the sofa, "Lay down." He looked confused, not really understanding what you had meant. Not wanting to waste anymore time with those open wounds leaking every so often, you grabbed his shoulders and forcefully (yet carefully) brought him down so his head was rested in your lap.

You could tell that it hurt Joel when you did that by the small grunts he had managed to let escape his lips. You didn't mean to hurt him, not at all, but you couldn't deal with any bickering if he decided to start now. "So, Mister Miller," You began, dipping the rag into the bowl, "How did you get your shit rocked so badly?"

He wasn't impressed by the way you put it, shooting you a quick glare, "Runners." Was all he said. Runners? How could runners do this to him? A million thoughts ran through your head, but you quickly cut yourself short. "Are you-" Joel knew what you were asking, was he bit? "No." He responded, a bit too quick, before continuing his short, yet descriptive, story, "Was with a few people ya'dunno, came across Runners out in a building, they all turned on me'n tried to get out." He paused for a moment, "Four'o them plus two runners on me, would've killed 'em myself if the runners didn't get 'em first."

You could tell Joel was hesitant to tell you, thinking you would see him as weak. No, far from that actually. You could only think highly of the man laying in your lap, for he's how you were thriving in this apocalypse. You brought the dampened rag to the gash on his cheek, he jumped as it was alcohol, and not water, "Don't beat yourself up too much for it," Joel flinched at the stinging sensation, "Your secret's safe with me."

Joel had crossed his arms, his hands brushing past your thighs. You felt as if they lingered too long, maybe it wasn't a passing matter. He's comfortable with you, you know that. This is what friends do, right? You had assessed the other wounds on his face, almost all disinfected completely. The bowl of alcohol now having a slight red tone to it.

After a moment, Joel broke the comfortable silence the two of you were in, "I shouldn't have came. Wastin' all y'ur supplies'n all." This didn't impress you, so Joel had earned a slight slap on his shoulder. "Just let me take care of you, god dammit. How many times have you done it for me?" He was silent after that, knowing. Countless times, after roudy street fights for ration cards, Joel had cleaned you up. Cleaned the blood from your face and stitched the deep gashes that would appear. You were only returning the favour, because that's what friends do.

"Plus," You added now, "we can just scavenge more stuff the next time we take a vacation from this place." If you taking out medicine for him didn't piss him off, this sure as hell did. Without thinking, he reached forward and grabbed your wrist, the wrist that was cleaning up his purpled lip. "Ya' ain't goin' out there, not now, not ever." You had shooed his hand off from you, brushing the comment off, "Can't protect me forever, boss. What's a little fun anyway?" You shouldn't have had the playful grin on your face, but you couldn't help yourself.

Joel could only give you an unhappy look, knowing that you couldn't be stopped with it, as much as he might've tried. He wasn't in the mood to fight you, he wasn't ever really in the mood to fight you. Joel had sat up without a warning, almost causing whatever was left in the bowl to go flying. This earned a whack from you.

"Uhm, ow." He muttered, maybe you shouldn't have done that, added to his pain and all. "Gotta get goin', though." He didn't want to say that, you could tell. It was the tone that he said it in. You could only meet his gaze for a moment, "Stay the night." When someone was hurting like this, how could you say no. How could you turn your best friend away, and let him go home, when he wasn't okay?

You weren't expecting Joel to agree to stay, or at least not cave in without any convincing. It was strange, really, he was acting different. It had to have been the drugs that you had given him, you thought to yourself, maybe it had something that made you nicer to the people you're close with.

You had helped the man up, and left the dirty rag on the table. That was tomorrow (well, when you woke up)'s problem. You took his arm and wrapped it around your shoulders, helping him walk better. You would mother him about his limp and legs when he was recovered. Joel was holding onto you as he moved in sync with you to your room.

Once you got there, you had let go of him. He looked at you for a moment, before turning away. "Can ya', uh, help with my shirt?" He asked. You could only nod your head, maybe a bit too quick for your liking. "Yeah, o'course." Then, following what you just agreed to do, you grabbed the hems of the shirt Joel was wearing and helped to slide it off of him. This is what friends do, right?

You tried your best not to stare, you really did, but the marks on his chest pulled you in. After taking a moment longer to let your eyes linger, you pulled away and helped him under the comforter. "I'll take care'o those tomorrow." You had turned to make your way the door, to sleep on the couch, to give Joel as much space as he could. He grabbed your wrist, though, before you were able to get too far from him. "Can you, er, stay?"

Joel wasn't looking at you when he asked that, he was looking anywhere but. You wanted to stay, really did you, but you felt like you couldn't. "Listen, Joel, I want to, bu-" You were cut off by him interrupting you, "Please." Please. Joel Miller doesn't say please. This took you almost by shock, but you tried not to show it. You only nodded your head, and moved over to the other side of the bed.

You could feel Joel watching your every move, but you didn't care at this moment. You removed your pants, but kept your shirt undergarments on. You would call today a day of victories, not for Joel, but for you. He had listened to you so much, and didn't fight it. You wish it was under different circumstances, but a win is a win. You knew he wasn't up to his usual par, but it still counted.

It happened with a blink of an eye. First you were hesitant to get into the bed with him, not wanting any mixed signals to be sent at the current moment, next you were laying right beside him, and his current good arm wrapped around your waist. If Joel was happy, you were happy. The sounds of rain made it better, made it more peaceful for Joel. He could relax, and take his mind off of the pain he was feeling. This is what friends do for each other.

—

flawless, the neighbourhood

[mysticallystilinski]

can u write a fluff where stiles has another panic attack and the reader is there to comfort him :D

trepidation | s. stilinski x fem!reader | fluff/angst

summary: you and stiles get trapped in the winter night of beacon hills, something may change it all

warnings: swearing, panic attacks, slight angst, anxiety, and mentions of harm

a/n: { hi! it’s lav, i hope you guys enjoy this, and please request more, as i’ve literally have no ideas.. }

trep·i·da·tion

noun: trepidation

a feeling of fear or agitation about something that may happen.

———————————————————

the night was cold as you held your hands in between your warm thighs. stiles was driving his jeep in the sleet, ice roads. the power previously went out, and now you and stiles were heading to the pack. before your phone died, lydia had called you when she sensed something was happening. she had a hard feeling in her conscience, but she couldn’t pinpoint on what it was exactly. her breathing fell short onto the phone as your battery level promptly went to zero.

“stiles, my phone died. do you have a charger?” you lifted your head up to catch the gaze of the quiet boy. he tilted his head slightly, and licked his lips in attempt to chap-pen them. “uh, i think it’s around here somewhere.” he states. he uses his free hand to navigate around the back of the jeep in attempt to find the missing cord. he directed his gaze to the back seats for a split second to try to find it. his other hand, controlling the wheel, slightly tilted to the right and you felt a bump hit the tire.

you and stiles both looked at each-other in accord as he released his right hand from the backseat and placed both hands on the steering wheel. the car slowly went for a stop as something got lodged into the old jeeps tire. “you have got to be kidding me,” you huff out. “stiles, please tell me you still have that spare tire on the back of your jeep?” you smile shyly in attempt to butter up his reaction to the unfortunate event.

“remember that day last year when me and scott were playing around.. with the tire,” he laughed playfully, but with a sense of frighten. “you have got to be fucking kidding me,” you grit straight through your teeth. stiles smile fades into the black of the night as you open up the jeep door, and head out by the back of the car.

it wasn’t an ideal night, it was freezing cold, the power went out, and not to mention you guys were in the middle of the woods.

you heard the jeep door ram as stiles emerged from the left side of the car. “who’s idea was it to take the shortcut route,” you sneer. stiles gave you a menacing look as he popped open the back of the trunk. the jeeps blue figure moved up slowly with the guide of stiles hand. his eyes scanned the messy space in front of him in search of something that may help. he sighed for a few seconds in defeat as nothing came up in his scan. “maybe you should look with your hands”, you snickered. you took a step closer to the large vehicle and dived straight in. you began to shuffle around the papers, and the tools in attempt to at least find something useful.

you couldn’t manage to find anything helpful in this situation. stiles was still behind you, and you felt his cold gaze latch onto your soul. “what if we never get this car started,” he questioned frightfully. “trepidation”, you said. “what?”, he asked. “trepidation.. a feeling of fear or agitation about something that may happen.” he fell silent at the sound of your quip words. the cold was bustling as the night grew darker. you knew stiles was panicked, and not knowing what to do. but you didn’t know to what extent his fear was at.

you heard staggered breathing from behind you. quickly, you whipped your head to see stiles on the floor, tears dripping down his eyes. “it just came out of nowhere”, he yelped in pain. “what did? what came out of nowhere?”, you briefly asked. stiles eyes were as cold as stone. he stared into the open gape of the trees from behind you. you quickly got onto the floor next to him. stiles was known for loving physical touch from you during these episodes. you pulled him into a hug, his head laid onto your chest. “stiles, it’s gonna be okay”, you whispered while hugging him. your hands got trapped into his brown locks of hair. his cold body shook while he whispered some words of breathe and it’s gone. “stiles what happened?”, you ask persistently.

his breathing began to get heavier, and heavier. you strained at the sound of him gasping for air. it was like his head was underwater, and you didn’t know how to drain it. “stiles, please, look at me”, you plead. he stares into your lighted eyes, and starts to breathe. “listen to me sti.. trepidation”, you speak. his eyes grew warmer as your voice seemed to echo in his entire mind. “trepidation.. a feeling of fear, or agitation about something that may happen”. you see his body move up and down with the beat of his each breath. his face was less tense, and his body more relaxed. panic attacks weren’t uncommon for him, but this one sparked fear into you.

“just remember stiles.. trepidation.”

———————————————————

[heesdreamer]

SILENCED (2)

MASTERLIST

GENRE ➩ enhypen zombie apocalypse au!

SUMMARY ➩ navigating life 1 year post end of the world was already difficult as you avoided rotting corpses with hefty appetites and groups with various bad intentions. things get harder when you run into a group of survivors, 7 boys who make it impossible to run away.

WC ➩ 5k

WARNINGS ➩ everything the zombie apocalypse could bring lol, gore, mentions of death and injuries and lots of talk abt starvation and hunger this time around

AUTHORS NOTE ➩ this is a really short update but it was starting to bug me the longer it sat in my notes so i hope short is better than nothing. not proofread as always

Even small trips weren’t easy in the apocalypse. Runs to grocery stores could be the last thing you ever do and getting a few hours away could take weeks as you navigated rocky terrains and avoided uncrossable areas.

Transportation was something you’d taken for granted back then before the world had fallen apart.

You can remember tapping your foot impatiently against the subway station floor, arms crossed as you huffed and checked your watch for the umpteenth time. Maybe you were running late for school or you had just gotten off of work and wanted to get home fast so you could eat something.

Thinking about this now you felt utterly ridiculous, spoiled and sheltered from how good you truly had things.

But it wasn’t you alone who had these trivial problems and you considered that too as you walked with the group of boys, trailing behind a few feet but never left unattended considering they kept looking back to make sure you hadn’t disappeared into the woods at some point.

You wondered if you’d ever been somewhere at the same time as them. Seoul was big but it wasn’t spacious enough that this was totally an impossible thing to have happened. Maybe they’d been on the same train as you at some point, leaving school together and crowding around each other as they pulled playing cards.

It wasn’t a complete far fetched idea that you could have passed Jungwon on a crowded street when you went to get lunch or narrowly missed Heeseung as he rushed to an appointment he was late too.

You didn’t like to think about them like this, as people who all had lives and families before this all happened. You didn’t even like to think of yourself this way, chest tightening with the reminder of how much you’ve lost as this world changed.

It’d been days now since the camp had gotten overrun and you’d practically spent the last 72 hours straight doing nothing but walking. The straightest route to your destination hadn’t been safe enough to travel through, adding even more time onto the walk.

Most of it had been quiet, only hearing the boys speak in hushed whispers to each other every so often. It was hard to hold a conversation when you were all exhausted and hungry, running on autopilot and the fear filled adrenaline that built up every time the sun started to set.

Heeseung had been the quietest of everybody and he barely looked at the rest of you, his gaze sharp and focused as he continually scanned the surrounding areas. You thought back to your talk, the responsibility he held on his shoulders and you felt troubled for him now that such a major setback had occurred, now that their only home was gone.

He was closest to you as you lagged behind the group, keeping his eye on the boys ahead of him as the trudged along.

You were picking up your pace to catch up to him before you even confirmed within yourself it was a good idea, slowing back to a casual pace once you were side by side and reaching your hand out to gently tug on the sleeve of his long shirt. His eyes were shooting down to the point of contact and then back up at you with a frown.

“Hey.” You breathed out, trying to calm him down before you made your request. His eyes softened just slightly at the sound of your voice and he raised an eyebrow. “If we find somewhere safe to stop and rest for a few hours I can go try to get us something to eat.”

He watched you as you spoke and you knew he didn’t like your suggestion judging by the way his face hardened again, his jaw tensing as he scoffed and looked away from you. You figured he thought this was you finally putting your plan into action, leading them into the wilderness just to ditch them.

“I’m serious.” You had kept your hand on his sleeve still as you spoke and only now moved it, wrapping it fully around his arm so he could understand your earnest words. “They can’t go on like this much longer.”

He looked back over at you as you said that and you felt guilty at the sad expression on his face, knowing he had been thinking the same thing.

It must’ve been impossible for him to deal with the past few days, watching his family and the boys he was meant to lead barely make it through the day. The younger boys were stumbling as they walked, holding each others shoulders occasionally in an attempt to keep steady under their own crippling weight.

“Where’s safe?” He was genuinely asking but his voice broke around the word, already hoarse from not using it or having anything to drink. He sounded disbelieving that it was a possibility and he staggered slightly, knocking into your side.

Sunghoon had been lurking a few feet ahead and hearing this conversation he slowed a bit, letting you and Heeseung catch up as he leaned towards the two of you. “There’s a neighborhood or something up the ways a bit.” His tone was low so the other boys couldn’t pick it up.

You gave him a questioning look and he glared at you, eyes shooting down to your hand on Heeseung’s arm and your close proximity. “I saw it on the map.”

Heeseung nodded at his explanation and pat his back a few times in thanks, walking away from the two of you to alert the others you’d be stopping soon for a bit.

You had expected Sunghoon to follow him or at least drift back to his previous position, furthering himself away from you. It surprised you a bit when he continued to stand next to you but the look on his face didn’t, a suspicious glare as he watched you with no sign of care at your uncomfortable shifting.

“Something on your mind Sunghoon?” You were mumbling in irritation. You didn’t expect to become best friends but you hadn’t done anything to warrant him treating you like a criminal.

“Why are you still here?” He was saying it quickly like it had been on the tip of his tongue and you looked at him from the corner of your eye. “What are you planning?”

“I’m not planning anything.” You scoffed and took an offended step away from him, stopping in your slow pace. “And in case you forgot, I wasn’t given a choice in being here.”

He was stopping too and turning to look at you, sparing a glance behind him at the other boys who had continued walking. They weren’t going fast enough to leave you behind and the road was a straight shot surrounded by trees and no connected off paths so you wouldn’t lose them by stopping.

When he was facing you again he looked more angry and if you didn’t know any better you’d consider him a threat right now, a danger to you. However you’d seen the way he interacted with the group, with the dead even, and he wasn’t any issue. He was more gentle than he appeared regardless if he disliked you and was frustrated.

“Don’t bullshit me. You could’ve left if you wanted to, don’t be stupid.” He was shaking his head and you gave him a confused look so he explained further. “You didn’t even try to get away from them, no tears no questions. I can tell you’re smart and good at this world so I know you can tell the difference between a good person and a bad one.”

“Then what’s your problem with me?” You spat at him and cut him off, not wanting him to say more.

You could tell he was the most observant of the group but you didn’t like what he was implying. Your stomach turned at the thought of him seeing how much you didn’t necessarily want to be alone again, despite knowing it was the best option in the long run.

If you were alone you wouldn’t need to worry about things like this. You wouldn’t have to think about feeding them before you fed yourself because there would be no ache in your heart at the thought of them going hungry.

“My problem?” He was sneering but his voice was desperate like he wanted you to understand his point. “My problem is how excited Riki is to have a friend to talk to. My problem is that Sunoo basically thinks he owes you his life for getting you into this situation in the first place and my problem is that you aren’t going to stay.”

You both fell silent after that and he looked away from you, visibly upset and frustrated at the idea of you disappearing before you got to the place you’d showed them.

He flinched when he looked at you and saw your lips opening and closing, parting as you tried to think of something you could tell him that wouldn’t give him false hope but you also didn’t want to lie to him. Despite his wincing he waited patiently to hear what you had to say.

“Tell Heeseung I’ll catch up with you guys.” You muttered back and he watched in bewilderment as you turned and disappeared into the woods.

——

It took you an hour to stop replaying the conversation in your mind and you were glad considering you hadn’t managed to catch anything since leaving the boys on the road.

Part of you was laughing at the fact that, here you were. In the woods with full freedom and capability to disappear and never come back and yet you were sat crouching behind a log as you attempted to get them all something to eat. You quieted the voice with the reminder you could leave whenever you wanted and you would, you just didn’t want to leave them hungry and lost.

That’s all this was, you kept telling yourself over and over as you continued to track whatever animal was leaving small footprints in the dry dirt.

This was simply you being a decent person, not letting the apocalypse shred you of your morals and humanity. It wasn’t because you were starting to grow used to the boys, starting to care about them and their safety as individuals and a whole.

You’d finally caught sight of the animal as you slowed to a stop, a hefty raccoon shifting over some sticks and rocks just off in the distance. It hadn’t noticed you yet and you were glad for this considering you only had a knife to work with.

Before you could make any attempt at approaching in, steadily planning out the right angle to pounce forward, it was falling on its side and hitting the floor with a cry and a thud.

Your eyes widened in surprise, rushing forward to see what had happened to it. It’s face was bloody and you quickly realized it had been shot in the head by something, more accurately someone. You knew who it was before you turned around to check.

“You’re a good shot.” You sighed as you spoke and glanced over your shoulder to see Jungwon stepping out from behind the tree.

He was definitely the most skilled when it came to weapons, especially in accuracy and you’d quickly noted a few days ago that he was the only boy to have a silencer on his gun of choice. You knew it was him considering the fact there’d been little noise as he killed the animal.

“Took archery in highschool.” He shrugged like it was a casual skill to have as he approached you and the raccoon. “Guess I don’t have to tell you about that though do I?”

For a second you weren’t sure what he was referring to before you realized he was alluding to the fact you also shot with a bow typically, looking up at him with widened eyes which caused him to give you a half smile as he shrugged again.

“Can tell by the way you carry yourself I guess. Plus you’re a hunter, can’t imagine your weapon of choice is a knife.” He was explaining and he crouched down next to you, examining the animal for any bites or signs of disease.

“If you see any bow shops around here feel free to let me know.” You were mumbling back and he chuckled a small laugh. “They send you out here to follow me?”

He was shaking his head and you were slightly surprised at this considering you assumed he had been tasked with making sure you didn’t run away, potentially bringing you back if you made any attempt to. You were reminded of what Sunghoon had said about being able to leave whenever you wanted.

“I was looking for food just incase.” He didn’t finish his sentence but it was obvious what he was implying. Incase you didn’t return and they still needed to eat something.

Jungwon offered you a hand so he could pull you up off the ground where you were still crouching, you eyed him hesitantly but took it with an appreciative nod and stood slowly after you grabbed the animal by it’s tail in your free hand.

You followed behind him in silence as you made your way back to the road, back to where the boys had set up camp for the night. You tried not to think about what this meant and how you coming back willingly was going to come across to them. They were going to find out what you’d been trying to deny since running into them and your stomach was turning.

By the time you got there, the sun had nearly finished setting and it was almost too dark to see in front of you.

The fire the boys were sat around made you nervous considering how exposed you were and how near the woods lingered, the light and crackle of the flames potentially drawing the undead out of the woods and giving you all a replay of what had happened earlier this week. Four sets of eyes turned towards you when you and Jungwon popped out from the woods.

Heeseung was standing up and coming over to the two of you, patting Jungwon affectionately when he spotted the animal you’d handed to him at some point during your walk back.

“You okay?” Then he was turning to you and your face flushed as he grabbed you, his hands holding onto both your arms directly underneath your shoulders as he scanned your face for any sign of distress.

You were nodding awkwardly but your hands were instinctively coming up to cup around his elbows, leaving you both holding each other at an awkward distance. The other boys must have thought you were crazy as you touched their friend and leader but a large part of you felt connected to him after the auto shop, him having saved your life so directly.

When you both made your way over to the fire, Heeseung was clearing his throat and catching the attention of the older boys and Jungwon, who began to shake Riki and Sunoo awake at the signal for directions.

“We’re going to clear the house on the corner.” Heeseung was speaking in a low voice and you took the opportunity to observe where you were sitting.

The neighborhood, if you could call it that, was only a few run down houses neatly tucked away outside the main road. You imagined it had homed one or two families of rednecks in its prime, roofs titled and covered in roots and leaves. The boys had set up the fire in the middle of the three buildings, seemingly waiting for you all to be here before they entered.

“Shouldn’t we clear them all? Eliminate any potential surprises?” You were shocking yourself and the others as you voiced your suggestion casually.

Heeseung was looking at you with a bewildered look for a few seconds before glancing back towards the houses and nodding in agreement, realizing your idea was better than his.

It wasn’t the most grueling task and you’d cleared areas must bigger than this with much more active dead, yet you still had a sick feeling in your stomach as Heeseung leaned his shoulder against the first door and prepared to ram into. It only took one corpse to end everything and you tried not to think about this as he was pulling back and slamming forward against the decaying wood.

He was stumbling forward into the house and again, you could smell them before you saw or heard them. There was three inside and it looked to be a family, one significantly smaller than the other as it attempted to get closer to Heeseung and take a bit out of him. Jake was moving forward in a rush and taking out the biggest one, axe swinging over his shoulder and landing directly between its eyes with a loud crack.

The second was on its knees before you even processed it and you knew it must’ve been Jungwon from the doorway judging by the way it simply crumbled onto the floor without any fight or noise.

Riki was inside the house and tasked on the third walker, the smallest one that was clearly just barely older than him if at all. She had a large blood stain on the front of his pajama sweater and you tried not to wonder what had happened here that left them all like this, what measures were mistakenly taken to try and prevent them from turning. You didn’t like to think about the walkers being people similarly to the way you didn’t like to think about survivors in the old world, easier to make the separation and get it over with.

You could immediately tell Riki was struggling with doing this judging by the way he was frozen in the middle of the room, watching the corpse approach him.

He was facing away from you so you couldn’t see his expression but you didn’t need to anyways, knowing from his stiff back and hands fidgeting around his crowbar that he was hesitating and hesitating was one of the deadliest things you could possibly do. He had told you before that he didn’t kill as much as the other boys, being kept away from it all the best they could manage up until more recently when they started to take him out to practice in small intervals.

You were moving before you thought about it, circling in front of him and taking out the small corpse as cleanly as you could. You cupped your back of her head as she dropped, motionless now, and you tried to help lower her body onto the floor so the impact wasn’t as upsetting.

“I could’ve done it.” Riki’s voice was sounding behind you and you turned your head to look at him, standing back to your full height and giving him a confused glance once you noticed how agitated his expression was.

Before you could ask him what was wrong, if you’d done something or if maybe he was just upset you’d stepped in on his kill, he was turning on his heel and leaving the small house. You were fearful for a second watching him leave and then you remembered Sunoo, Sunghoon and Jay were just a few feet away at the other house over.

You almost followed him out the door in confusion, wanting to understand what exactly had made him look at you like that just to storm off but you were stopped by Heeseung stepping in front of you, bringing a hand up to your chest to stop your advances completely as he looked down at you with an apologetic glance.

“What happened?” You whispered to him, eyes wide slightly with confusion. The look the youngest boy had given you was deadly and the energy in the house had shifted drastically now. “What did I do wrong?”

“He’s just sensitive about that stuff.” Heeseung mumbled back, keeping his voice low in case the boy was still able to hear just off in the distance. The other boys in the house with you weren’t saying anything and eventually filed out once they realized your conversation was taking a private turn.

“Because I took his kill?” Your voice was cracking with disbelief, not able to understand what he was attempting to get across to you. Riki didn’t seem like the type to have an ego so large it would be damaged by you stepping in for an assisted kill. “It was about to grab him.”

Heeseung was sighing softly like you were poking a bear, glancing over his shoulder out the open door for a second before taking another step closer to you. You didn’t lose your confused expression, eyebrows furrowing further when he was bringing a hand up to gently touch your cheek before pushing a few loose strands of hair behind your ear.

He was clearly trying to soothe you and help you calm down but if anything it upset you further, solidifying it in your mind that you had done something wrong.

“You’ll have to talk to him about it. It’s not my place.” He was eventually continuing on when he realized what he was doing wasn’t working in taking your mind off of it.

You nodded softly and made a mental note to bring it up after things calmed down and you were certain things were safe for the night, vaguely hearing a sharp whistle outside that you’d learned to understand meant things were clear for now. The other boys must’ve cleared the other two houses while you were talking to Heeseung and now you were able to eat and get some rest finally before talking to Riki.

——

The food wasn’t a lot but it was enough to help everybody feel a bit better, passing each other small portions around the fire before retiring into one of the houses to rest.

You all decided to sleep together on the living room floor to minimize the risk that being spread out would being, somebody always staying awake in different shifts to keep watch outside on the porch. You laid in silence while you waited for your turn, knowing you wouldn’t be able to sleep in such a foreign place.

When it was the youngest turn to take watch, you sat and tracked his shadow as he left the dark room and slipped out the front door, mumbling a small greeting to Sunghoon who was finally coming in and joining the rest of the boys who were already asleep. You got up as slowly as you could and gently stepped over the bodies on the floor so you didn’t wake them up from their much needed rest, following Riki outside.

He whipped his head over when the door creaked up and sighed when he saw it was only you slowly closing it behind you. You glanced at him awkwardly and tried to decide wether to stand weirdly or to take the seat next to him on the small outside porch couch and risk upsetting him further.

“Just sit down.” He was mumbling once he noticed your dilemma and you hesitantly took the offer, sitting as far away from him as you could.

The two of you sat in silence for a while, listening to the sounds of the night and the woods while you ignored each other. You weren’t sure if you should speak first but he clearly knew why you followed him out here in the first place so you bit the bullet and started to talk before his shift ended.

“I have a brother around your age.” He picked his head up when you started to speak but you avoided looking at him for now. “You actually remind me of him sometimes, just the way you joke around. You’re a bit braver than him though but I’m sure he would’ve grown out of that eventually, you know? I didn’t mind it though… it came easy to me to take care of him.”

Riki wasn’t saying anything just yet but you could hear his breathing increase and you didn’t feel him looking at you anymore and he slowly understood what point you were trying to get across by opening up to him about this. You wanted him to understand why you did what you had for him and why it was second nature for you to step in like that once you thought he was in danger.

“I never though he was childish or a coward for needing my help sometimes, that’s what big sisters are for.” You took a pause so you could breathe, playing with your hands nervously. “It took him a long time to want to ever ask for it though… just too long I guess.”

You didn’t need to finish or directly say out loud what had happened to your brother, he picked it up as soon as you started talking about him.

He was scooting closer to you on the bench and you felt him grab your hand that was in your lap, stopping you from picking at your skin anxiously. You turned your head to look at him with a sad smile, biting your lip to try and stop from crying when you noticed how equally teary his expression was.

“You could’ve killed that walker.” You stated firmly and he nodded along with you, now fully understanding why you had. “Maybe I just didn’t want you to have to.”

Riki was still nodding and you felt slightly guilty now as you watched tears run down his face, avoiding looking at you again out of embarrassment. You wanted to tell him that it was okay if he wanted to cry, it was okay to still feel things in this world that weren’t fear and hunger but you weren’t sure that was even true so you didn’t dare voice it.

You stayed with him for the rest of his shift and when he eventually started to yawn and lose focus on your surroundings, you reassured him it was okay to go to bed and that you weren’t tired.

He hesitantly was leaving you out there and you although you were glad things were patched up between the two of you for the most part, you also felt a wave of relief over having a moment alone. It wasn’t lost on you that you were being trusted as part of the watch shift cycles, despite the fact you could easily disappear in the night and leave them with no warning if something stumbled upon the sleeping boys.

It was getting harder to deny what you were feeling more and more every passing hour the eight of you survived together.

It had bothered you when Riki was upset with you, deeply bothered you to the point of your skin crawling in nerves that you had done something wrong. You were distraught watching them all face hunger earlier this week and you felt deep sadness when they lost their camp and their home.

You especially didn’t want to consider what it meant that you liked listening to their stories around the fire. You thought Sunghoon was funny even when he didn’t seem like he realized he was telling a joke and it made your heart warm when Sunoo and Jungwon covered the sleeping older boys with blankets.

Heeseung was the worst of all, the most confusing part to all of this. You’d been most fearful of him at the beginning but the more you thought about him and his resolve, his brave heart taking leadership and treating the boys like they were more important than his own safety and survival, the more you liked being in his company.

He made you feel seen and human whenever he turned to ask for your opinion on something and he was surprisingly gentle whenever he spoke to you in hushed whispers or helped you over bits of debris in your pathway.

You liked these boys and you liked their hearts and love for each other that this world was slowly running out of.

Yet you couldn’t stop hearing the screams of your family and others you’d encountered, people you knew for months all the way to people you’d simply passed by on one of your runs. People didn’t last long in this world and it was a miracle that all seven of these boys were still together, still without major injury or setbacks.

Maybe that was the secret trick to it all, maybe their care and love for each other above all else was helping them survive and manage without facing the reality of your loved ones being tore away from you and ripped apart limb by limb.

It still made your stomach hurt to think about any of it though, it was never apart of your plan to care about somebody again after everything you’d lost and you were only feeling more and more certain in your decision to leave as fast as you could.

No matter what it takes.

[lewsnumerounofan]

party foul part 2 (jeremiah fisher x reader)

summary: so what if you're in love with your best friend jeremiah fisher? one drunk kiss won't change anything. right? (spoiler: it does)

notes: not biblically accurate conrad, kissing, smut, unprotected oops, somewhat public, 3k words, reader previously dated co**ad, angst/miscomm., not proof read at all

+ part 1

+ i fucking hate htis one its so bad i'm so sooryim gooo fuckjuhnbsorry oh my god and dw abt the header image!!!!!! it's okay!!!!!

your phone hit voicemail again. it was the seventh time you’d tried calling jere, but still no luck. 

“maybe he’s staying at a friends place,” belly supplied, but she looked worried too. ever since you and jere had kissed the night before, he’d been mia. steven, you, conrad and belly had all taken turns trying to reach him with no success. at first it had been expected, but it was now rounding out on 24 hours since he’d left, and worry was starting to permeate amongst everyone. well, everyone except taylor. she wasn’t too worried about it. he’s probably just moping around feeling sorry for himself, she’d said. 

unfortunately, you couldn’t quite master taylor’s level of nonchalance. in fact, you felt awful. for a few minutes, everything had been perfect. you’d been kissing the boy of your dreams–the boy you were in love with. and then…

“yeah, he kinda checks out when he’s upset. he did the same thing after mom died.”

conrad, this time. him and nicole had just come back from driving through town trying to find him. you nodded, but a tightness was slinking into your chest. jere hadn’t ‘checked out’ after suzanna died. he’d called you, and together you’d talked for hours as he wandered the streets of boston. never before had he shut you out like this. it made you worried. more than worried; it made you feel scared.

“i think i’ll try him again, just in case,” you said. because you couldn’t not do something. because you were scared you’d messed things up permanently, because jeremiah had never, ever ignored your calls.

“okay, well i’m ordering pizza. jere disappearing or not, i’m fucking starving,” said taylor. she’d hopped off her place on the counter and now started flipping through the take out flyers stuck to the fridge. steven and belly sounded their agreement. 

“i can pick it up,” you offered, “it’ll give me a chance to go look for him too.”

you were out the door soon after, steven and taylor’s argument about whether pineapple belonged on pizza still lingering in the background. feeling a bit better now that you had something to do, you let the warm summer air breeze through your car windows. jere was out there somewhere, probably doing just fine. it’s not like he’d do something dumb or get himself hurt. if you were honest with yourself, he’d most likely just crashed at an old hook up’s house. there were plenty of those around in cousin’s, and they’d likely all enjoy having jere back. you tried not to think about it. 

-

the pizza place was a 20 minute drive from the fischer’s, and you took the long route along the beach. it was a perfect summer night: seagulls called off shore, the sunset lingered to the west, and couples lazily strolling back to their cars. it was the type of night jere loved.

you were a couple minutes early for your order, so you decided to make the most of it and join the sparse crowds decorating the beach. you pulled over and parked, grabbing a light sweater for the evening weather. 

amongst the waves and people’s quiet chatter, the beach possessed a lingering hum. it was a sound that accompanied many of your fondest childhood memories, and you took comfort in it’s familiarity and peacefulness. you couldn’t help but think of jere–think about what had passed between you last night, mostly. 

did you finally tell her you're in love with her? 

you hadn’t been able to get steven’s words out of your head. the thought of jere ever liking you was one thing, but love? it felt too good to be true. 

and besides, it’s not as though it would matter if you never even got to see jeremiah again. for the first time, you almost felt annoyed at his vanishing act. he’d left you confused and frustrated and wanting more.

just then, as if you’d conjured him yourself, you noticed jere on the beach before you. his curls were unmistakable–almost the same colour as the sand. his hands were tan and strong as he leaned back on them, sun-bleached bracelets wrapped around his wrists. you wanted to take a picture of him there. keep this precious moment of discovery and summer immortalised forever.

and then he turned around, blue eyes catching yours. 

you could see the moment worry set in by the tight line that furrowed over his brows. he started to rise from the sand and you moved towards him, carried by adrenaline and anger and a little bit of excitement. halfway down the beach you caught each other, but before you could speak jeremiah was shrugging past you.

“you shouldn’t have come.”

the waves and gulls seem to mock you then–the whole perfect august night laughed in your face as you stopped, stomach sinking. it took a few moments for his words to register, and a few more for you to whip around and catch up to him. he was almost past your car when you finally managed to grasp onto his sleeve. deja vu hit you hard enough that you almost stumbled. just last night this same action led to jere’s lips on yours, his mouth hot over your body. today’s jere must have seen the memory on your face because he scoffed, pulling back sharply.

“see? you can’t even think about what happened without looking disgusted,” he said. his voice was low but convicted. closed. you hated it. 

“jere, what are you talking about? you wouldn’t know anything about how i feel–you ran away last night and no one’s been able to contact you since,” you tried. he made an attempt to keep walking but you didn't let him, this time coming to stand between him and the road. ridiculous.

“no calls, no texts, nothing. do you have any idea how worried everyone has been?”

at this jere’s eyes blazed and he took a step forwards, letting his head lower as he spit the words into your face, “yeah, i’m sure you and conrad were just about worried sick huh.”

it took quite a lot of effort on your part not to roll your eyes. what was with this boy. had the kiss not been enough? did he really think, after all this time, conrad stood a chance?

“you’re such an idiot sometimes jere,” you said, regretting it as his chest shuddered under a heavy breath. 

he laughed and looked away. his eyes were bright in the dwindling sun, his jaw harsh as he fought to control himself. slight smudges under his eyes, extra tangled curls, slightly red eyes. now that you were up close, jere looked a mess. heart hurting you reached for him, wanting to smooth back the stray hair falling over his cheekbones. to smooth over this, over him, to let him know everything was alright. he caught your hand. even this, even his firm grasp on your skin, had your body lighting up. awakening in a way it only would for jere. 

“you sure know how to make it hurt. why can’t you just fuck off and we can pretend this never happened, okay?” he hissed, but you knew jere. the way he blinked more and the way his voice changed. “just- just please go home. it hurts me to look at you right now. it hurts.”

his voice broke and he dropped your hand. you couldn’t stand the look on his face. you didn’t let him turn away from you though. this was your boy, the boy you’d been in love with every day for a year. and you wouldn’t have him thinking otherwise.

your pulse raced as you said, “it’s you, jere. it’s you and it’s always been you. not conrad. and it would hurt me if you thought anything otherwise.”

he flinched at your words but there was something in his face that changed. something small, something that took you having to know how he breathed to notice. hope. 

“jere, look at me. look at me,” you said. and he did, his eyes wide and blue. the same eyes you dreamed of. 

“i love you. i love you, jere.”

you folded the words onto his lips as you kissed him. wrapped them in sugar and pressed them onto his mouth, begging him to understand. to see what had been obvious every night you’d called him, every time you’d hugged him, every time you’d smiled at his dimples.

“i love you.”

and then you couldn’t say anything else because he was cupping your jaw, tilting your face and running his tongue over your teeth. panting as he consumed your gasps. pulled the air from you. 

jere shuffled you back until the cool press of your car met your hips. under him and the way he kissed at your neck, you had no notion of what surrounded you. no idea of anything except the heat of his tongue against your throat. your ear. your lips. 

“up,” he mumbled. that was all the warning he gave before lifting you onto the hood of your car. the metal was cold beneath you but his hands were burning as they circled your thighs, coaxing your legs apart until he could press himself against you. 

he was so big in front of you. the wide span of his shoulders, the strong shape of his hands. he was kissing like he’d hurt if he didn't. you felt feverish, you felt elated. jere broke away enough to rest his forehead on yours, chest rising and catching.

“need you,” he said. his voice was tight.

“what?” 

“said i need you.”

“here?” 

you were incredulous at first, but jere didn't even bother to look embarrassed. his gaze was level with yours and you had to blush and look away.

“we could- i mean, we’ve got my car…”

he grinned as he pulled you down, and the giggle came before you can stop it. around the vehicle and into the back seats you were both trying to stop from laughing. it was such an encapsulation of being a teenager. of sneaking around and driving each other crazy and being in love. the feeling had you collapsing onto his lap as he pulled the door closed, huffing onto the tan skin of his neck.

“this is so stupid,” you said. the grin jere gave leaves you breathless. your fingers pressed over his smile, tracing the red line of his mouth. the car was warm and dark and protected. 

“you have no idea how long i’ve waited for this,” he said, “waited for you.”

you wanted to laugh again but his hands were pulling up your shirt. goosebumps followed the path of his thumb over your bra, under your bra; when he put his mouth on you you moaned. in this little space you’d made the sound was a feeling and jere grinded into you at its touch. focused as he toyed with you, painting your chest red and purple with his lips.

baby, baby, you were saying as strong hands held you close. even as you tried to pull away–push closer?–from the intensity of his kisses. of having his curly hair fall against your chest and stomach. of his eyelashes brushing over your collarbone. you molded your palm to the thick muscle of his shoulder, watching it shake as he took his time drawing you out.

“please, jere.”

he knew what you meant. off comes his shirt, crumpled on the ground beneath the drivers seat. outside the sun had set. gulls still called from offshore, quiet on the other side of the car’s window. 

neither of you bothered getting fully undressed. after struggling with both your pants, he tugged down his boxers enough and helped your trembling fingers pull aside your own underwear. he was whispering you’re sure? even as you raised up on both knees, murmuring in your ear until you had him notched inside you. 

except for your stuttering breaths, it went silent in the car. jere’s hands were at your back, gently gathering your hair into a loose ponytail. he was shaking too then. 

it almost doesn’t seem real–that moment. the press of warm, bare skin. that just days ago you were best friends, and hours ago you weren’t sure you’d have a relationship at all. and now you were here on top of him, having sex in your car at the beach. you wanted to laugh again, but you were seeing white as jere filled you.

you couldn't keep your head up. you were dizzy as you fell forward into his warm chest, taken over by the stretch of him, the perfect fit. he found his breath again, enough to murmur that you were taking him so well. that you felt so good. 

“jere,” you said as his hands found your hips. nodding, kissing the top of your head, he guided you forward and then back, transfixed as he watched where you two fit together. 

it was a tight fit in the car. you had to bend over him so as not to hit your head, and jere’s long legs pressed against the back of the front seat. you don’t care much though, not when you could grind down and watch him tense up, muscles in his neck tight. it should have be criminal to look that pretty. his hair, slightly damp from fucking, curled tighter around his temples. his eyelashes were long over his cheek bones as he tilted his head back, eyes closed. leaning down to lick his adam’s apple you listened to him groan.

“can’t believe ive been missing out on this,” he said. his voice was breathy and quiet and warm on your face and you drew even with him. you wanted to arch into his hands, to bend yourself around him until every piece of your skin was held by his. you felt crazy. 

talking to him like this, when he was still inside you, when you were riding him, made you clench. already you were aching for it. jere knew it too. he was watching you, watching the movement of your body and your face like it was a special act just for him. like you were beautiful.

“jere,” you said. it was just about the only word you can remember.

he shifted beneath you, one hand coming to map the side of your ribs, the other between your legs. the rhythm changed as he began to meet you with his hips, and every breath became hinged on a moan. the way he thumbed over your clit, the way he mouthed at your tits. control was slipping away from you. fast. 

the new angle was almost too much, and as jere buried deep you gasped. your body was liquid and you almost tipped backwards, grabbing at his shoulders. like a man possessed, jere didn’t even pause. his large hand gripped the front headrest above you as he laid you down over the armrest between the front two seats. 

lying prone and naked half in the front of your car, you realized something quite quickly. your back windows were tinted. the front ones most definitely were not. 

“someone could see, jere!” you said, attempting to lift yourself up. most beach-goers had cleared out after the sunset, but faintly you could still hear the sound of people playing in the surf. jere’s tan hand on your chest stopped you.

“we’d better be quick then.”

before you had time to try reasoning, jere was pushing back into you. unable to argue, unable to say anything, you found his hand and laced your fingers together. it was all you could cling to as he fucked into you, as the heat of his body spread over you. it was warm and close and dark and when you finished, together, he stopped breathing. just for a second. then, while your mind was still hazy he pulled you back onto his lap and kissed you. hard. 

holding you there, safe in his arms. at some point he found his sweater and pulled it over your head. warm against his chest, body and legs aching. he whined when you clenched, absently, around him. still pressed inside you. it’s funny so you giggled and he groaned again and threw his arm over his face.

“don’t do that,” he grit out.

“why not?”

you were teasing. his eyes found you, tongue already in cheek. you couldn't look away from his red mouth.

“because i’ll get hard again.”

it amazed you how ready you were at the possibility. your spine already straightening. you don’t think you’ll ever stop wanting him.

but, faintly, you heard your phone ring. it was beneath a pile of clothes and it was on the last ring when you finally managed to snag it. 

“hello?” you said. jere watched you lazily, still smiling. 

“hey, uh where are you?”

you pulled the phone from your ear. the caller id read conrad. shit. pizzas. you’d gotten a bit… distracted. jere caught the name too and though his expression faded slightly, his gaze remained on yours. you smiled at him and couldn't help but kiss him. quickly. 

“yeah sorry about that conrad. listen, bad news is the pizza might be a bit cold,” you could hear groans from the other end of the line, “but uh. good news is i’ve found jere.”

you didn't bother to listen to the response, instead you leaned up to the boy you loved. kissed over his cheek and his dumb grin.

“i found my jere.”

[mrs-barnes-rogers-writes]

Sometimes Your Soul Family Is The Only Family You Need - Part 1

Marvel AU

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x reader x Steve Rogers

Summary: 18 months ago you were a mess but with the help of your close friends you start to rebuild your life. Your soul friendships maybe chaotic but they're your family, just as you're theirs. With one of them about to have a baby, you and your misfit friends are here to visit. But will you stay? And what will the small town think of you having two soulmates and why do you keep finding yourself in the same place as a bunch of hot bikers.

"Sometimes families are assholes, sometimes your soul connections mean far more than family ever can. Sometimes your soul family is the only family you need." - Nurse Maggie

Chapter Warning: Premature labour mentioned, brief mention of sexual harassment in the workplace.

Chapter Summary: We meet our reader and one of her soul friends. Does she need a bat?

Message Received Daniel Are you on your way yet? I think she might be calmer if she knew you were at least on route.

Daniel, soulmate to one of your best friends, had woken you this morning with a frantic phone call. Annemarie, one of your soul friends was in labour, but it was too early for baby to make an appearance and you and your other best and soul friend, Ryan, were her other birthing partners and were now in a race to get there.

You were all in. You’d taken classes, baby first aid, read books and had your bag packed for weeks already just in case. You were going to be a godmother and this was serious shit. Ryan had watched most of the online labour classes from behind a pillow like he was watching a Blumhouse horror.

You sent a quick reply to Daniel.

I’m just waiting for Ry, I’m going to start beeping the horn in a minute.

Ryan often kept you waiting. Always a change of outfit or something he’d forgotten. He hated the impatient beeping.

You leaned your head back against the head rest and let out a yawn. Not the best start when you had a 6 hour drive ahead of you.

You were startled by the ringing of your phone coming through the hands free, Ryan calling displayed on the dashboard.

“Why are you calling me? Hurry up, Annemarie is freaking out that we aren’t on the way yet.”

“Start the car and get ready to floor it?”

“What? Why?”

Your attention was caught by a familiar figure entering the stairwell that you could see from where you were parked.

"Why are you running?"

“They wouldn’t let me leave!”

“What do you mean they wouldn’t let you leave? This was all agreed! You’re owed the time!”

“I know! But she’s not here!”

By she, Ryan meant his boss, Jo, who also happened to be your old boss. You’d both sweet talked her into letting him have the leave when the baby was on the way. Short notice leave was never agreed to but Ryan had gone in early and stayed late, covering for others and helping out as much as possible. Being the life and soul of the office and covering for others so they could leave for their kids or appointments meant his colleagues had also been ok with it too. You and Jo were good friends and had stayed in touch after you’d left. She’d been a huge support to you since your almost (it probably was) breakdown post breakup, so you’d thrown in some babysitting for her adorable twin boys and a deal was made. But Jo and her adorable kids, and her soulmate husband were currently sunning themselves somewhere exotic. That’s management earnings for you.

“Brian is pissed off, I may have told him to go fuck himself when he said he wouldn’t let me leave and he’d sack me if I did.”

It was then you spotted Brian at the top of the stairwell in pursuit or Ryan.

“He’s following you. I’m getting the bat.”

“Alright Harley Quinn calm the fuck down.”

“You’re the one who said he wouldn’t let you leave.”

“Yeah well he can go fuck himself.”

“Wait why do you have a box? Are you stealing? Am I an accessory? I’m getting the bat.”

“Just start the car!”

You started the car and put your seatbelt on. The fire exit flew open as Ryan dashed through it, jacket a mess, backpack half on and the box still in his arms, Brian and now a security guard on his heals.

Ryan practically threw himself into your car, partly falling onto you in the process.

“Go, go, go”

“Why do I feel like there’s more to this?”

“Go!!!”

You spotted Brian nearing the car and put your foot on the accelerator.

A mile down the road with Ryan still squished in the passenger seat you’d pulled over to sort out your chaotic friend. You placed the box in the backseat, along with his backpack, spotting he’d stole the office plant, as Ryan took off his jacket and stretched like a cat. You smirked at him.

“What?”

“What the fuck was that? And you stole the plant!”

“He’s an asshole!”

“Oh I know, my ass still lives in fear of his grabby hands!”

“Exactly!! I may have brought that up, along with a few other things.”

“So are you fired?”

“Possibly.”

You pulled him into a hug.

“Proud of you.”

He laughed into your shoulder. You were always proud of each other in weird ways.

“The ten years ago Ryan would never.”

“Well I learnt my dramatics from the best?”

You gasped in mock horror.

“Meeeeee, no you meant Darcy right? Or Wanda? It was Wanda, wasn’t it?”

“Really? Wanda is the least dramatic of us all!“

“She set fire to her ex boyfriend’s clothes and got us to dance round it in our underwear.”

“Oh I miss that little witch.”

“Speaking of the little witch. You’re on phone duty, get those two on a group call but call Annemarie first. She’s in a state and we need to move our arses. Then call the lady re the Airbnb.” You replied, moving back to the drivers seat.

Ryan slipped on his sunglasses and leaned against the car. You pressed the horn hard.

“Hey unemployed, get in the car!!”

He startled and got in.

“Asshole.”

“I learnt from the best” you said pulling on your own sunglasses and turning on the radio.

“I love it when you’re assertive!” He replied as you snorted with laughter.

You were half a mile down the road when Ryan spoke up again, as he looked for his phone.

“I wonder if we’ll see any hot bikers this time.”

[chrisevansonly]

Pesky Paparazzi (harry’s angel au)

pairing: harry styles x female reader (angel)

summary: Amsterdam is so beautiful, until you’re being chased by paparazzi and some crazy ‘fans’

warnings: slight angst, protective harry, fans that def aren’t fans, swearing + some fluffy goodness

a/n; i know this isn’t the best and i’ve written better, but i wanted to get this finished and out! thank you everyone for being so patient with me; and for enjoying this au as much as I do🩷

You knew as much as Harry did just how crazy touring can be, especially when it comes to visiting landmarks and exploring the cities you’re both so fortunate to see throughout the months your on tour. Harry also loves finding new places to go on runs or work out in, while you’re more of a tea and coffee lover, trying to find the cutest and of course most local shops to visit and try.

It wasn’t that surprising to see a group of people in the distance on your morning walk, Harry’s hand holding yours as you walked around Amsterdam. He hadn’t yet noticed them but you did, and figured now maybe be the time to find an alternative route; it wasn’t easy running from crazy people being 5 months pregnant.

“H my love, I think we should maybe find a different route”

You stopped walking, your hand tightening on his as he looked towards the group of people up ahead of you both. Glancing at him you could see his shoulders tense

“Fuck..”

“It’s alright, they’re still aways up from us, let’s just figure out where to go”

He nodded and looked around the two of you, although you remained calm, Harry was in overdrive trying to find a safe way for you both to get back to the hotel. You weren’t very far from it, probably a 6 minute walk, but every way he turned people seemed to show up.

“What about through there? Between the shops?”

You pointed at a walkway, the cobble stones quite bare in comparison to the walkways along the channel

“Okay, let’s go, i’ll get Jeff to send us a car or something”

With his arm now wrapped around your lower back as opposed to holding onto your hand, a sign he was beginning to get slightly anxious. It was only quiet until he heard a plethora of footsteps echoing down the corridor followed by Harry’s name being called

“Harry can we have a photo?”

“Harry we love you”

“Can you sign this?!”

Soon enough you were surrounded by a small group of people, the sounds of excitement filling you with a sense of dread as your hands navigated to your bump just out of instinct

“M’sorry guys, I can’t stop, we’ve got to go, can we have some space?”

Some of the fans respected that, others were getting irate over the fact that Harry didn’t want to stop, that only made him become more agitated especially considering he was with you and his unborn daughter.

“H, i’ll walk ahead, im starting to cramp anyway…i’m sure they won’t give me any trouble..?”

Harry shook his head

“You’re cramping?”

“Minor…I think it’s anxiety…”

“You’re not going anywhere without me when y’not feeling well, come on.”

As much as you figured you’d be okay to walk alone, Harry wasn’t about to let you out of his sights, even if he had to fight through people to get you somewhere safe. Thankfully before it got too crazy, you noticed four of your teams bodyguards approaching and a car waiting at the end of the alley, which you were ushered into.

“Sorry that took so long Y/N, this place is crazy with the shows here”

You smiled in Jeff’s direction, the pains in your stomach not dissipating very much

“It’s alright, more worried about Harry honestly”

Jeff went to respond to you when the door opened again on the other side and Harry slid in next to you, his eyes raking over your form to check for any discomfort; which you were already trying your hardest to hide.

Harry wouldn’t give up that easily if he knew you weren’t feeling well..

“You sure you’re okay angel..? I knew we should have stayed in today..”

Placing your hands on his you shook your head

“I’m okay, obviously not feeling very well now but im fine, baby girl is fine…we’re all okay H, promise…we can’t just hide away forever in a hotel room you know”

“Yes we can.”

Rolling your eyes you turned to face him a little more, wincing at a few strong kicks from your little girl

“No we can’t, because I’d go stir crazy and you’d get bored, I know there are always chances of what happened today, but I still love experiencing all of these countries and cities with you, it’s not your fault some people can’t respect you and your privacy”

Harry stayed quiet, you assumed lost in thought or letting his anxiety take grasp of his already racing thoughts

“H, will you look at me please my love?”

“I’m sorry”

“Hey, none of that”

The car stopped outside of the hotel’s entrance, your eyes still locked on Harry’s, hands grasping his cheeks so he would look at you

“I love you, we’re safe and now we can go have a cuddle and watch a movie, nothing bad happened to us, you kept us safe and got us back here without any issues, so no more being pouty and blaming yourself understood?”

After a few seconds he gave you a tiny smile, which was enough for you in this moment

“I love you too, no more being pouty, I promise”

Harry carried his heart on his sleeve for you, always wanting to fill your days with love and comfort, not even some pesky and overbearing fans could keep him from letting you know just how much he loves you, and how far he would go for you..

[questionableratatouille00]

ʜɪɢʜᴡᴀʏ ᴛᴏ ʜᴇʟʟ ᴄʜ. 2

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Fem!Reader

Summary: In an effort to get the two of you to bond, Tony Stark sends you and the ex-assassin Bucky Barnes on a road trip together. The problem? You hate each other. The situation? Two weeks in a car together. The reward: three days of a resort vacation. And the problem? He's kinda cute.

Warnings (Entire Series): Enemies-to-lovers, cursing, sexual tension, angst, fluff, crying, fighting, violence, chaos, mentions/talk of trauma, discussions of mental health, and potentially more.

Warnings: Enemies-to-lovers, cursing, sexual tension, food and eating, insecurity on Bucky's part, and Bucky is probably written wrong. (Trying my best lmao)

Part 1 || Part 2 || Part 3 ||

[Series Masterlist]

---------------------------------------------

𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒚, 𝑻𝒘𝒐 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒉𝒐𝒘

🄳🄰🅈 1

It had been twenty minutes into the drive. Tony had specifically picked out a route for the two of you to follow, which was saved into your phone.

Neither of you had said anything since the whole 'who's-driving' thing. Part of you was grateful, but at the same time it just made the whole situation awkward.

As your playlist filled the car with noise, you attempted to just ignore him.

"What time is it?" You ask, quickly glancing at him. He tapped your phone with his flesh hand, reading the time as it opened up to your lock screen.

"11:00am." He answers.

"You wanna stop somewhere for lunch? There's a cluster of fast food places about fifteen minutes from us."

He nods.

When you get to the nearest fast food place, the two of you notice the long Drive-Thru line. "I know you don't like being in public or whatever," you begin, "but the line is super long. You wanna head inside?"

After a brief moment, he nodded again. Smiling slightly, you led the way into the restaurant.

--------------

Bucky sat across from you in silence, sipping on his drink. He wanted to make an effort, to try and befriend you, at least for this trip. The only issue is that he's not sure how.

After an insanely quiet argument disagreement at the ordering counter over who was going to pay for the food, Bucky wasn't ready to piss you off again. Especially after he had won said disagreement. He realized right after the two of you had sat down at the booth that you could've just ordered separately, but it was too late.

"Is it alright if I drive?" He asked as the two of you walked to the truck. He watched your expression, studying the changes in it. You were about to argue, but a yawn stopped you. "Sure." You answered finally.

Opening the truck door and hopping inside, Bucky buckled his seatbelt, listening to you do the same. He started the truck, watching you lean the passenger seat back. "I'm gonna plug in my phone. The route's on it." You say as you do so. "I'm taking a nap. Wake me up if you get tired."

"Alright." He drives in silence for a while. He can't quite tell how long had passed. It could've been five minutes or four hours. It was 9:00pm when you woke back up. "Good morning." You muttered. "You can't drive all night. How far out's the nearest hotel or something?" You picked up your phone, realizing there was no cell service. Checking the map, you scrolled around on it. "Two hours and forty-five minutes. Jesus--you look half-dead, dude."

He yawned, side-eyeing you. "I look fine."

"You look like Victor from The Corpse Bride. That's not 'fine', man." You countered. "Just find a place to pull over for the night. We're in the middle of nowhere, so there's probably a little trail or something we can drive down." He nodded at this suggestion. "Alright. Tell me when you see one."

Maybe fifteen minutes passed before you told him to slow down. "Right up there. Look." You pointed through the windshield, and he drove the truck down a small path leading to a little clearing in the woods.

"Just put it in park off to the side." You told him, and he complied. "Do you wanna sleep in the backseat or anything?"

He shook his head. "You can have it."

"I'm too lazy to crawl over the seat, and I don't wanna get out." I sighed. "I have a couple episodes of Dance Moms downloaded if you wanna watch it with me." You glance at him for approval as you pick up your phone. He doesn't stop you, so you pull up the show.

You grin as you successfully balance your phone on the shift stick. It was fun for you, studying Bucky's expressions. He even made you laugh once in a while, when his eyes widened and his brows furrowed at Abby talking to one of the moms.

Eventually, the two of you drifted off, Bucky making sure to turn off your phone before he fell asleep.

--------------

🄳🄰🅈 2

You woke up to the sun shining right into your eyes.

"Morning." Bucky said, looking up from his book. When did he get that? You considered it for a moment, before your brain fully woke up. He probably just grabbed it from his suitcase. Duh.

"Morning." You replied, checking the time. It was just a little past eight.

"I'm gonna drive for a little while." He said as he started the truck.

"Kate packed a snack bag for me. You need breakfast, Super Soldier." You reached into the floor of the backseat, grabbing the grocery bag and pulling it into your lap. "We got..granola bars, juice boxes, Goldfish, pretzels...And a bunch of other things. What do ya feel like?"

After he decided on a granola bar, you picked your breakfast snack of choice.

"There's a little town a couple hours out. If you want, we can just wait to get food and stuff until we get there." He suggests.

"Sure." You agreed, wondering why he wasn't being as asshole-ish as usual. "Sounds good to me."

--------------

You did end up reaching that town by lunchtime. The old and faded sign indicating so was perched off to the side of the main road. 'Welcome to Brandon Briar!', it read.

"We should just get a hotel room. My back hurts like hell, and we can just get back on the road tomorrow."

"Can you make it until the next town?"

"What? No. I haven't pissed since we stopped for lunch yesterday, Bucky."

He rolled his eyes, and you mentally took back everything you said about him not being an asshole today. "Look, there's a hotel right there. I will personally pay for the rooms, just get in the parking lot."

"You don't have to." He sighs, pulling into the hotel's parking lot.

You lift your suitcase and backpack out of the backseat, before heading into the lobby. Bucky follows as you approach the receptionist.

She's an older lady, some sections of her hair gray, other sections a warm brown. Her eyes match the brown, and she smiles when she sees the two of you walk in.

"Hello. Welcome to the Brandon Briar Hotel. How may I help you two today?" She asked, looking up at the two of you. She has wrinkles by the corners of her eyes, and smile lines around her mouth. Her voice is warm, as is everything about her. A quick glance to her nametag revealed that her name is Barbara C.

"We'd like two rooms, please." You smiled politely.

"Alright, and how long will the two of you be staying, dear?"

"Just for tonight, if that's okay."

"Wonderful. Is it okay if it's a connecting room? The festival always brings in a lot of tourists." She smiled proudly.

"Festival?"

"Yes, Brandon Briar has it every year. Here's a flyer, if you're thinking about attending." She slipped a brightly colored flyer over the counter, sliding it in front of you. The main colors, yellow, blue, and white, were eye-catching and pretty.

"Now, is the connecting room okay, sweetheart?" She asked again, though there was not a single note of annoyance in her voice.

"Oh--yes. That will be perfect."

You pay quickly for both of the rooms before Bucky--who had been standing behind you silently--could fight you on it. Barbara hands you the two key cards, and you hand Bucky one. Taking the flyer with you, you give Barbara one final 'thank you' and a smile, before heading to the elevator.

Bucky presses the button for the 2nd floor, where your rooms are. You study the flyer.

"This is pretty cool. It's like a 'this-town-through-the-decades' kind of thing. There's a 40's style dance thing tonight." You state, reading the first event listed. The festival is a week long, starting tonight, Monday, and ending on Sunday.

Bucky nods, yet he says nothing.

"Do you wanna go? It sounds fun."

"No." He answers simply.

"Why not?" You furrow your brows, confused.

"I don't dance."

"Okay, Chad from High School Musical." You side-eye him. "Please can we go?"

"Neither of us have anything to wear to it." He tries to reason as the elevator door opens. Walking down the hallway, you continue to argue with him. "I'm sure there's at least one store that sells stuff specifically for the festival. Barbara--the receptionist--said that the festival brings in a bunch of tourists, so they have to have something around here."

"We're both Avengers. We could be recognized."

"So? Either way, we're in a tiny ass town in the middle of nowhere. If we were recognized, it wouldn't even matter."

He looked down at his gloved left hand. He always wore thick jackets or long-sleeved shirts, paired with gloves.

"Nobody's gonna care." You reassured quietly. It was true that the two of you didn't get along very well, but you didn't think it was fair to make personal attacks. You knew his arm, and basically his entire past, really, were sensitive topics.

When you opened your room, you immediately rushed to the bathroom, dropping off your stuff by the door.

--------------

Bucky took off his gloves, stepping into the hotel room. Quickly opening the door that connected to your room, he sighed. He couldn't handle the stares from random civilians whenever he went jacketless. But the way you looked so excited when you talked about it...He wanted to go. He really did.

He looked at you when you opened your door to his room.

"I'll go with you. If you want."

"Really?" You grin. He nods, already regretting his decision.

"Come on, we gotta find 40's shit." You decide.

[youaintnothinbuta]

Hello! I know you've written a lot of Jack Kelly lately, so please disregard this if you're feeling burnt out. I was wondering if you would be in the mood to write a Jack Kelly x reader where the reader is scarier to the newsies than Spot but during the strike, she and Jack start working closely together and it's clear that she's not all that bad, just tough on people that do her dirty.

“Who would have thought?” — jack kelly x reader

Summary: you and Jack are up all night together planning the way you’re going to stop the wagons. The morning after, the wagons have successfully been stopped, and the pair of you share an intimate moment of rest, as you realise you don’t always have to protect yourself from everyone.

Pairing: jack kelly x fem!reader

Word count: 908

Warnings: none, fluff, probably some typos you know meeee

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You sat together in a dimly lit alley that separated Brooklyn and Manhattan, with a map spread across a couple upside down milk crates.

Jack glanced at you, his cap casting a shadow over his eyes. “So, you got a plan?”

“Why am I here, again?” You sighed.

“Because, Y/N, you want better pay too, whether you admit it or not. And people listen to you.”

You studied the map intently, tracing the routes of the wagons with your finger. “Your area’s the smallest and theres more of you, I think your boys can handle that, we should be in Queens for when the bell rings.”

Jack nodded. “We need distractions, too. Get 'em looking the other way while we make our move.”

“Next time you speak, can you make it something helpful?” You snapped, his brows furrowing in response.

Hours passed, and the alley echoed with the soft murmur of your voices, punctuated by the occasional sound of a distant shout from the newsies preparing for the confrontation. The adrenaline built, but amidst the planning, a shift occurred – a subtle transformation in your disposition.

Jack stole a glance at you, a genuine curiosity in his eyes. “You know, you're kinda nice.”

“Nice?” You repeated.

“Yeah, you’re actually not as scary as everyone says.”

You looked up from the map, meeting his gaze. The walls you'd carefully built around yourself seemed to soften, if only for a moment. “We all got our roles to play, Jack.”

Jack leaned back, a smirk playing on his lips. “I've heard the stories. Brooklyn's enforcer, they call you. Meaner than Spot.”

A rare chuckle escaped your lips. “Spot's got his way of leading, I got mine. Keeps the streets in order.”

As the night wore on, the initial skepticism that Jack harbored began to dissipate. The shared purpose, the planning, and the unspoken camaraderie melted the icy reputation that preceded you.

Jack's playful banter continued, each word chipping away at the tough exterior you'd carefully crafted. “You gotta have a soft spot somewhere in you, you know.”

You shot him a sidelong glance, a hint of a smile playing on your lips. “Maybe, but you'll never find it.”

The atmosphere shifted as the night wore on, the impending confrontation with the wagons looming over your plans. You were up late into the night, and then early into the morning, making sure every newsie knew what the plan was, in order to actually make this strike a success.

***

As you approached the Manhattan lodging house, Jack, with his cap pulled low to shield his eyes from the early morning sunlight, greeted you with a half-smile. The adrenaline that fueled the morning’s activities still pulsed through your veins, a shared victory in your tired yet satisfied eyes.

Jack spoke first, his voice raspy from the long night. “Well, we did it. Those wagons won't be rolling through today.”

You nodded, a sense of accomplishment washing over you. “Yeah, we did do it.”

The night's successful plan to halt the wagons had taken its toll, leaving both of you fatigued and in need of a moment of respite. Jack's room offered a brief refuge, away from the clamor of all the other newsies sharing stories and reveling in the victory.

As you entered, the worn-out furniture and scattered newspapers created a cocoon of familiarity. Jack, with a reassuring smile, gestured toward his bed, teasing you slightly, “Sit down, tiger. We've earned a break.”

The weariness weighed on your shoulders, and without resisting, you sank onto Jack's bed. You and Jack exchanged a glance, the unspoken acknowledgment of shared victories and silent pride.

Jack, with a knowing smile, settled beside you, his presence offering a sense of security that allowed your guard to momentarily slip away.

As your eyes fluttered closed, your body drifted closer to his. The protective aura he exuded made it easy to surrender to the exhaustion that had accumulated throughout the night. For once, it felt like you didn't have to protect yourself. Your head gently found its way to his chest, falling asleep curled up on him.

Unbeknownst to you, Jack, too, succumbed to the weariness. The room, draped in a calm silence, cradled the two of you in a moment of reprieve.

Time slipped away as both of you rested. Yet, as the morning sunlight continued its ascent, your brain had finally caught up to you. Panic momentarily gripped you as you realised you had fallen asleep with Jack.

Startled, you jumped off of him, the remnants of sleep dissipating quickly. “I— I shouldn't have—“

But before you could finish your sentence, Jack's reassuring voice cut through your anxiety. “Hey, settle down, tough girl. Our secret. You deserve this.“

His words lifted the weight off your shoulders. Jack pulled you back into his embrace, dispelling the fear that had momentarily clouded the room. Jack's arms wrapped around you once more, holding you close as you let your eyes fall shut again. You got comfortable, laying on his body, his fingers beginning to trace patterns on your back, causing you to let out a relaxed sigh.

“Who would have thought? Your soft spot is here, in my bed.” He whispered, teasing you.

“Wrong. I don’t have one, remember.” You mumbled, a small smile tugging on your lips.

“Yeah, sure.” Jack laughed.

[incomingalbatross]

I gotta check in on Slaybel and Slipper, I know there's been some backstory changes lately and am very very curious.

Thank you! I am going to give you a Lengthy Summary of the backstory, because I can.

So on the surface it looks pretty similar to my previous version (which I may or may not have described before). As follows:

Dipper, twelve, alone, wakes up in some kind of safe house. His parents have just been killed by vampires and a teenage girl busted in and saved him just as the vampires were about to turn him. He was taken away from the house and fell asleep somewhere en route, exhausted.

Someone comes in and tells him he's being relocated to foster home in a different town for his own safety, since he has no relatives to go to.

Either during this conversation or at some later point where he's slipped out of his room, Dipper has a run-in with a strange six-fingered man who wants to know about the vampire attack. Dipper's memories of it are fuzzy, and it's only after prompting that he remembers the lead vampire called him "Slayer's twin" and said something about a prophecy right before the older girl staked him. Six-fingered man writes all of this down, looking concerned.

They have a little more conversation. Ford gives him more info than anyone else has about Slayers and Watchers, but then someone else comes in and Dipper's getting shipped off.

Dipper starts journaling in imitation of Ford, because I love Dipper's journal-writing and I think it's a fun narrative tool.

Bothered by that "Slayer's twin" bit and by various odd feelings/dreams that he's missing something, Dipper goes Kid Detective in his new home and starts trying to track down vampire activity. After several months, he spots the Slayer again, and manages to trace her to her base of operations. Somehow he gets in there and finds Watcher info on him. (I DON'T know how. He may need help.)

Finds out he has a twin sister. Being raised by the Watchers.

Finds out where she lives and sneaks in to see her. They bond immediately. There's an Awkward Sibling Hug. (WITH the pats. The pats happen spontaneously. Maybe it's something they did as toddlers? They're really not sure when Mabel was taken.)

Mabel hides him for a day or two, but then they get caught. Brought before the Watchers' Council (American subsection) to figure out what to do with them.

Turns out not only is Mabel a Potential Slayer, there are prophecies about things happening when a Slayer has a twin. Apparently Dipper would share some of her powers and that could lead to very good or very bad things happening down the line. The Watchers have been trying to figure out how to control the situation - at first they were trying to cut Dipper loose from the equation but, well, that's not happening. So is it safer to train them for Slayerhood together or separately?

There are factions for each position. Dipper and Mabel obviously want to stick together, but they don't get a vote.

Finally the "separation" spokesman argues "and anyway, are any of you prepared to train two children at once, with different needs and regimens? It's not fair to make the girl's Watcher take on a second charge against his will"

And Ford breaks his pen against the table and goes "If that's your biggest problem, I'LL take them."

This takes the wind out of the opposition's sails. Ford "has only ever done research, never trained a kid in his life" Pines is ADAMANT that he'll take them. Everyone else just ends up glad to be done with the issue.

(Ford spoke up because raising twins separately is Wrong and Unthinkable. Not that he'd say that part out loud.)

They become Ford's charges. Dipper is very bristly and defensive at first even though Ford is really cool and smart and willing to teach him all this stuff. Mabel is more willing to make friends. Over time, they all sort out that they're on the same side.

There is more to the backstory but it's a Twist, and I keep going back and forth on whether to add it here. Might put it in a reblog? Under a readmore? Or might save it for the hypothetical time when I have this written out into a full draft.

[secretswiftymarvelfan]

Court Of Public Opinion - Andy Barber x Reader (Part 3)

A/N: This is the sequel series to Memory Served and will contain major spoilers for that series so go read that one first if you haven’t already!

Summary: You continue to try and act like everything was normal but its easier said than done with nosy neighbours and niggling doubts

Word Count: 7.2k

Warnings: Language! Angst! Talk of Abduction! SMUT! 18+ ONLY!

Dividers by me!

Series Masterlist / Masterlist

Chapter 3

Today had been a good day, Andy had been riding on a high ever since he left the courthouse. They were at a crucial point in the case and when Andy presented the best piece of evidence in the drug trial he had actually seen the defendant begin to nervously sweat. When court was adjourned for the day he’d seen the defence lawyers scrambling with despondent looks on their faces. Come Monday morning Andy wouldn’t have been surprised if the plea had been changed to guilty.

As soon as Andy got home he made his way upstairs to start packing his weekend bag so that come morning he could get straight on the road and back to you. He was in such a good mood he was even whistling as packed, he even considered driving up to Vermont tonight.

He was just walking into the closet to grab the ring from the drawer when he heard his phone ringing. Walking back out he grabbed it from his bedside table, frowning slightly when he saw it was your mom calling him.

“Hello?” Andy answers.

“Andy, is Y/N home with you?” Your mom asks barely waiting for the line to connect.

“No, she left this morning, why? Is she on her way back or something?” Andy says frowning in confusion.

“Andy she never turned up” your mom tells him.

Andy’s heart stops for a moment “What do you mean?” He mutters, trying to stop his mind from thinking the worse.

“She should have been here hours ago, we gave it a couple of hours because we know she likes to stop at the pancake place in New Hampshire but she still should have been here by now” your mom explains as Andy began to pace back and forth.

“Have you called her?” Andy questions.

“Yeah but her phone is off or out of battery or something, it just keeps going straight to voicemail” your mom sighs, “we thought she might have changed her mind and gone to see you in court today and just forgot to tell us”

“No, no she didn’t” Andy mutters running his hand down his face “Look it’s probably nothing and she’s probably fine, maybe she just broke down somewhere and is waiting for her phone to charge in a garage but…” Andy sighs really wishing he didn’t have to say the next part “But you should probably call the police just in case”

“O-okay” your mom mutters her voice shaking.

“I’m sure it’ll be fine, Y/N is sensible there’s probably a reasonable explanation for all of it,” Andy says trying to reassure himself and your mom “But what I’ll do is I’ll call that pancake house see if they’ve seen her and that’ll help narrow down where she might be and I’ll drive the route see if I can find anything”

“Good idea we’ll do the same here” your mom agrees.

“One of your stay home though just in case she turns up” Andy tells her.

“Of course, thank you Andy hopefully I’ll talk to you soon with good news” your mom sighs.

“I hope so too” he mutters before hanging up.

After he called the pancake house and found out you hadn’t made it there, he first passed that on to your parents before grabbing his coat and making his way out to the car. The front door slamming shut behind him.

Andy woke with a start, his eyes screwing shut as he tried to forget the dream he’d just had. But it was impossible, he knew the day you disappeared would haunt him forever. He lets out a deep sigh as he opened his eyes and glanced over to your side of the bed empty.

His heart stopped as he leapt up from the bed. Beginning to panic when he couldn’t find you in the bathroom. Had this all been one cruel nightmare, were you still missing? He practically ran down the stairs only stopping to breathe when he found you curled up in your reading chair.

You were startled as he rushed into the living room, eyes wide as you looked over at him. Your eyes searched his face for a moment before your lips parted.

“Sorry, I woke up early so thought I’d come down and read” you apologise quietly.

Andy shook his head gently as he walked over to you “No, no it's okay, no need to apologise” he says bending down to kiss the top of your head “Are you hungry for breakfast? I- I can make some pancakes?” He offers forcing a small smile.

“Yeah sounds lovely, I’ve brewed a pot of coffee already,” you say nodding in the direction of the kitchen.

“Great, thank you honey” he smiles nodding his head quickly before walking into the kitchen.

After he grabbed a mug from the cupboard he took a moment, bracing himself against the counter as he tried to calm himself down. His heart still thundering in his chest from the fear he felt that you were gone again. It had been a few days since you had been found but still Andy found it hard to believe you were home. Often finding himself just watching you, scared that you’d disappear if he took his eyes off of you.

“Do you want a hand making the batter?” You asked pulling Andy from his thoughts.

He quickly filled his cup with coffee taking a sip as he turned around to face you “I’m good, unless you want to help? I could cook up some crispy bacon to go with it?”

A smile tugs at your lips as you nod your head “Yeah that sounds lovely, cooking breakfast together” you say as you walk over, tucking yourself into his side.

Andy smiles wrapping his arm around you, pulling you closer into his side and kissing the top of your head “Sounds perfect honey”

You smile up at him before stepping out of his embrace to open the fridge and grab everything you needed, passing Andy the pack of bacon. Andy smiles as he grabs the pan to start frying up the bacon, watching as you easily walk around the kitchen grabbing a bowl and whisk to make the batter.

The morning carried on peacefully, you chuckling when Andy got syrup in his beard. Andy smiled to himself as you saved the leftover batter and he washed up all the dishes.

Once everything was cleared up and both you and Andy were dressed for the day you settled down on the couch together, Andy grabbing the TV remote before wrapping his arm around you.

“We have a couple of hours before your parents stop by before they head on home, wanna watch a movie or something?” Andy suggests.

“I don’t mind, you pick something,” you say shuffling closer to him, head resting on his chest.

“Okay, super boring documentary it is” Andy smirks as he turns on the TV.

You laugh slapping his chest gently, but your laughter dies out when the news starts and you disappear was the main story. Andy looked down at you to see you nervously swallow.

“I’ll turn it over” Andy says reaching for the remote.

“No… it's okay” you mutter quietly, shaking your head.

Andy nods shifting in his seat so he could hold you closer as the news anchor introduced the story.

“Newton town police were pleased to announce missing women Y/N Y/L/N was found safe and sound, this is what the lead detective had to say,” the Anchor says before the shot changes to Lieutenant Elliot walking out for a press conference.

“Thank you all for coming” he greets nodding to the crowd of journalists “As many may be aware we have been working tirelessly the past four months to find Y/N Y/L/N and bring her home safe, we can now announce that we managed to accomplish that and she is now home safe with her parents and partner Andy Barber,” Elliot says periodically glancing up from his sheet of paper “we can also confirm the cause of her disappearance was abduction and false imprisonment and we have already arrested and charged her kidnapper” he continues taking a moment to pause as the journalist clamber for more information “as investigations are still ongoing that is all the information we can release at this time, we ask that press and members of the public respect Miss Y/L/N and her loved one’s privacy as we continue to investigate and bring justice” Elliot finishes before walking away before the press could ask any questions.

Andy finally turned the channel over when the piece was over, running his hand up and down your back in a soothing manner “You alright?” He asked quietly.

“Yeah…” you mutter nodding your head “Just wish they hadn’t mentioned the whole abduction thing” you sigh looking up at him.

“They have to” Andy explains with a sigh “It’ll stop speculation and other wild theories to run wild that might affect a court case”

You nod your head in understanding “Guess that makes sense” you hum before looking up at him “I’m glad I have you Andy… to help make sense of it all”

A small smile tugs at Andy’s lips as he leans in to kiss your forehead “Anything for you” he whispers.

Andy rested his head on top of yours as you settled back down into his side. Taking a deep breath as he tried to focus his mind on the here and now. You were back with him. You were safe. It was just a regular old day, one where you could both just relax and watch old sitcoms.

It was barely 15 minutes later there was a knock on the front door. Andy muttered he’d be right back as he went to go see who it was. He was expecting and maybe hoping it would be the police with a decent update. However, when he opened the door he was greeted with Mrs Ethelridge, the elderly lady who lived down the street.

“Oh um hi, is everything okay?” Andy asks, pulling the door closed slightly when he caught her glancing inside.

“Yes I just saw the news and just wanted to say how happy I am that Y/N is home safe and sound” Mrs Ethelridge says clapping her hands together.

Andy forces a small smile nodding his head “Yeah we all are too” he says.

“How is she? God what a horrible thing to go through” She mutters shaking her head.

“She’s fine” Andy states, wanting the conversation to be over as quickly as possible so he could get back to you.

“I just don’t understand it all, Y/N’s a smart girl I don’t see how someone could take her, how did it even happen?” She continues.

“Like the police said on the news the investigation is still ongoing” Andy gritted through his teeth, Mrs Ethelridge was just trying to get some good gossip to spread around the neighbourhood.

“But surely she knows,” she says with a light scoff and condescending smile

Andy lets out a deep and irritated sigh, his irritation doubling when he noticed passersby looking over and watching. The street was far busier than its ever been before, all of them desperate for information. Mrs Ethelridge was just the first with the balls to knock on the door.

“The investigation is still ongoing” Andy repeats trying to keep his voice level “Is there anything else you need? I should be getting back inside”

“Oh no I-“ she starts but Andy doesn’t wait any longer, he had his answer, shutting the door to end the conversation once and for all.

His fists clench as he takes a couple of deep calming breaths. As he walks back into the living room he glances out of the window to make sure no one was trying to peer in.

“Who was at the door?” You ask making him turn towards you.

“Oh, it was uh-“ he started before pausing, you wanted normal, nosy neighbours were not normal. If he told you that it was Mrs Ethelridge at the door you would know exactly why she had popped around and Andy didn’t want you to have that added stress “delivery guy, got the wrong address, zipcode was wrong or something so I was just giving him directions” he explains as he walks back over and sits down on the couch.

“Oh okay that’s good” you hum shifting so you were curled up beside him.

“Yeah” Andy sighs wrapping his arm around you “nothing to worry about”

Your parents arrived for lunch just after 12, walking up the path of the house just as another neighbour was stepping away from the front door. Andy watched from the door as the neighbour greeted your parents, giving the same spiel that they’d just given him. Your parents gave them the same tight-lipped smile that Andy gave them.

“I guess they’re not the first you’ve had today,” your dad said to Andy quietly as they stepped inside the house.

Andy sighs shaking his head “It’s been fairly consistent since the news broke” he admits “We’ve already been given 3 lasagnas”

“Well I’m glad we didn’t bring lunch” your dad jokes lightly, earning a small chuckle from Andy.

The two men linger by the door as your mom goes into the living room to be with you “How is she doing? With you know?” Your dad asks quietly nodding towards the door.

Andy lets out a long sigh resting his hand on his hips as he shrugs his shoulders and shakes his head “I dunno, fine I think” he admits “I didn’t tell her about Mrs Ethelridge’s visit”

“The OAP TMZ?” Your dad says pulling a laugh from Andy.

“That’s the one, I was hoping she’d be the only one but more have been turning up so I couldn’t hide it” Andy sighs shaking his head “I just didn’t want her to worry about that right now, the other’s have been fine but I know they’re just desperate for information” Andy explains.

Your dad nods his head in understanding “Yeah, our phones have been blowing up” he says pulling out his phone to show Andy the screen full of notifications.

“I can turn those off if you want” Andy offers.

Your dad gives him a grateful smile “Thanks Andy, I have both phones” he says passing Andy both his and your mom’s phone.

“It’s alright, I do it all the time for work,” Andy says gently shaking his head as he quickly turns off notifications on both your parent's phones, making sure they’d only get the important ones they’d want.

“Thank you Andy,” your dad says as Andy passes the phones back to him “And how are you?”

Andy lets out a long sigh, resting his hands on his hips “Honestly… I’m okay, just trying to do whatever is the right way thing I’m just… part of me is still working on believing this is all happening, I keep worrying that if look away she’ll go again” he admits with a small shake of his head.

“I know we feel the same way too” your dad reassures him, resting a hand on his shoulder “And I know you’re worried but I can promise you that you’re doing the right thing, just being here is the right thing”

Andy lets out a shaky breath, nodding his head “Thank you” he says gratefully.

“It’s nothing, now let's go join our ladies” your dad smiles nodding his head in the direction of the living room.

For the next few of hours, everyone just relaxed, Andy put in one of the many pasta dishes your neighbours has brought over. Your parents took it in turns answering the door, giving Andy a bit of a break from it.

Much sooner than you wanted, your parents had to get on the road home. Your parents gave you a long hug goodbye making you promise to call whenever you needed. Andy stood beside you, hand on the small of your back as you waved goodbye to your parents with a sad smile on your face. When Andy heard you try and stop a shaky breath he wrapped his arm around you pulling you closer and pressing a kiss to the top of your head.

“We’ll see them soon, we can try and get up to visit them for a long weekend” Andy suggests as he rubs your back soothingly.

“Yeah… yeah that would be nice” you sniffle nodding your head as you turned into him more and buried your head in his chest.

You then pulled away and started walking back into the living room. Andy not missing you trying to slyly wipe away your tears as you went. Andy let out a small sigh before following after you, spotting you already curled up in your reading chair book in hand.

Andy wanted to go over and just curl up with you, hold you for just another moment. But you clearly needed some space, if you wanted him you would have sat on the couch or somewhere that he could join you.

“I’m just gonna tidy up the kitchen, do you want anything?” Andy asks breaking the silence.

You hum glancing up from your book “Oh no I’m fine thank you” you say with a gentle shake of your head, already returning your attention back to your book.

Andy mumbled a “sure” as he turns and walks back into the kitchen.

There wasn’t really that much to clear up, just putting the plates in the dishwasher and clearing out the dish the pasta bake came in ready to be returned. Not that Andy remembered who to give it to, so many had stopped by that they all blended together.

Andy still took his time though, maybe he needed a bit of space too, he wasn’t sure. He should just add it to the growing list of unknowns. He didn’t know how to help, didn’t know all this happened, he didn’t know a lot of things and he hated it. He liked to be in control, have two hands on the steering wheel. But right now it felt like he was just being dragged along blindly for the ride.

It was about half an hour later and Andy was just wiping down the sides when he heard a knock on the door. Putting the cloth back in the sink he made his way to the door. As he went he spotted you getting up to also answer the door but he held out his hand to stop you.

“I’ve got it” he tells you as he continues to the door.

He expected it to be more nosy neighbours but he was surprised to find Lieutenant Elliot and Detective Wagner and a third man who seemed familiar but Andy couldn’t recall a name.

“Who’s this?” Andy asks pointing to the well-dressed man behind the detectives.

“Well explain inside, we have an update” Elliot explains glancing over his shoulder at the other man.

“Of course, come inside” Andy says stepping aside to let the three of them in.

As the final man passes by Andy he glances around before smiling over at Andy “lovely home” the deep southern accent catching Andy by surprise.

Andy clears his throat and nods “Thank you, uh right this way” Andy says directing them into the living room.

As they walked in, Andy saw you sit to attention, slamming your book shut. You cast a worried glance over towards Andy who gives you a reassuring look in return.

“They have an update on the case” Andy explains walking over, resting his hand on your shoulder.

“And who’s this?” You ask quietly nodding over to the third man.

“This is Inspector Blanc, he’s going to be joining us on this case?” Elliot explains as he and Wagner sit down on the couch.

Blanc remains standing though, one hand resting in his pocket as he studied the room around him. His eyes finally settle on you and Andy feels you squirm slightly in your seat. Andy moves to perch on the arm of your chair, wrapping his arm around your shoulders to calm you. The action makes Blanc’s focus move to Andy, his lips twitching upwards as you leaned into Andy’s touch.

“Why?” Andy questioned, recognising the man now, he was a famous private investigator who worked all over the world. It didn’t make sense to Andy why he’d be taking on this case.

“Well, I have been in this state the past couple of months investigating corruption in the emergency services, while doing so I came across your name” Blanc explains pointing over at you.

“M-m-my name” you stutter in shock.

“No, no, not your name,” Blanc says waving his hand before pointing at you again” The name Drysdale gave you, Dorothy” he explains and Andy feels you tense hearing that name again “That name caught my attention as there were little to no records attached to the name, those that did exists were a phoney as cheese from a can, I looked into it further and discovered every nurse and doctor you came across had considerable dirt against their name making them prime for blackmail” he continues.

“Are you saying the doctors were blackmailed into letting her go with him?” Andy frowns.

“We believe so yes, and the police officers who originally investigated the crash, which is why we didn’t originally link the two incidents together its also why Blanc is taking the lead on this case to reassure you no corruption will affect it” Elliot explains.

Andy let out a long sigh as he nodded his head, his blood was close to boiling finding out that corruption had played a part in your abduction. Police officers were supposed to serve and protect not turn a blind eye. At least with Blanc, they could be reassured that it wouldn’t affect the case anymore.

“Do you have any more updates on the case?” Andy questions.

“Yes” Elliot nods before shifting his gaze to you “The reason we couldn’t connect the crash you had to your disappearance was because the number plate on the car involved in the crash did match the one registered to you” he explains “instead the car we found in Sudbury containing all your belongings had your registered number plate”

“But how? I didn’t drive anywhere near Sudbury?” You ask, shaking your head in confusion.

“We believe Drysdale organised the car crash, swapped the plates over with the identical car and stole any personal belongings placing those in the car we found in Sudbury” Detective Wagner explains.

Andy’s eyebrows raise in shock “Didn’t anyone think to check the VIN numbers?” Andy asks agitated.

“They were, however, the officers reported them incorrectly something we only realised when we rechecked the VIN number and number plate on the car dumped in Sudbury, we’ve already identified the uniformed officers who were present at both scenes and they’ve been suspended pending further investigation” Elliot reassures.

Andy lets out a small scoff, he’s worked alongside for years. He couldn’t believe that they’d screwed up this investigation and aided Drysdale.

“And you’re certain there will be no more interference with this investigation because I swear to god if Drysdale doesn’t go down for this” Andy says nearly growling in anger.

“Don’t you worry about foul play” Blanc says calmly, holding a hand out towards Andy “I may not be Batman but justice will be served, my success rate is unmatched”

“We believe that if we can get him to confess to causing the accident or find evidence to prove it, he’ll have no choice but to pleas guilty” Elliot adds.

“And have where are you with that?” Andy questions.

“He’s maintaining his innocence” Elliot answered with a long sigh.

“Fuck sake” Andy curses harshly, his fist clenching in anger to the point he might draw blood.

“Andy” you chastise softly, hand reaching out to rest on his arm.

As soon as he felt your touch he felt all the anger drain from his body. His shoulders slumped as he closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.

“Sorry,” he croaked as he opened his eyes and looked down at you. Your hand slipped down into his and squeezed it, wordlessly accepting his apology.

“We understand how frustrating this all must be and I can only apologise on behalf of the police force for how this case has been handled so far, but I can assure you that we are confident that you will have your justice” Elliot says nodding his head apologetically.

“Thank you, Lieutenant, we appreciate your efforts,” you say small reassuring smile before looking over to Blanc “And its reassuring to know we have someone of your calibre in our corner”

“It’s my pleasure miss, the detectives have already brought me up to speed so I won’t ask you to relive it all again, but I’ll be in touch if I have any follow-up questions” Blanc nods.

“Thank you we really appreciate that” Andy sighs with a small nod of his head, his temper much more under control thanks to you.

“We’ve got a lot of leads to chase thanks to Blanc and we’ll be sure to keep you up to date with any more developments, the only thing left to ask is how you’re doing?” Elliot says clasping his hands together.

“Okay, lots of neighbours have been calling in to check in which has been…. Nice” you say shifting uncomfortably in your seat.

Elliots nods, glancing over his shoulder towards the window that looked out onto the street “Of course, do let us know if the attention gets too much, we can organise temporary accommodation if needed or station an officer outside to disperse crowds” he offers.

“We will, thankfully it hasn’t been too bad so far, just lots of pasta dishes” Andy says a small smirk growing on his face.

“Yeah, you are more than welcome to a couple, we have more than we can possibly eat now” you offer gesturing towards the kitchen.

Andy saw Elliot open his mouth to protest but Blanc interrupted before he got the chance “That would be lovely miss” he smiles warmly.

A short while later the Detectives made their way out each with a pasta dish, Blanc taking two for himself. When Andy walked back into the living room he found you standing beside the window staring out, using the curtains to shield you from those looking in.

“Hey, you okay?” Even though he asked softly you were still startled.

You blinked a couple of times your hand rubbed the base of your neck as you nodded “Yeah I just can’t believe the corruption and the lengths he went to… I- I just don’t get it” you mutter shaking your head.

Andy lets out a small sigh as he nods his head “Me neither honey” he admits as he wraps his arms around you pulling you closer and kissing the top of your head “But you’re safe, we have some amazing detectives on the case so he will go down for this I promise, you’ll get your justice”

A couple of days had passed since the detective's visit, you had let Andy update your parents since you didn’t think you could. They tried to hide their anger and hurt at the situation but you could still hear it in their voices making you feel guilty. You had managed to tell Carrie though when she visited yesterday, whenever she voiced her frustrations about the handling of the case it didn’t seem to hurt you. Maybe because she was a bit more removed from it all.

The evening was drawing in as you lay in a bath Andy had drawn for you, he had put in all the stops, bubbles, oils. It should have felt relaxing but it just wasn’t, you’ve never found baths to be particularly cleansing but now you just hated them. It felt like you were in a pool of filth. You only agreed because you didn’t want him to worry and he had gone to all this effort for you.

You preferred showers so much more, you wanted to wash away the dirt. You enjoyed lathering up with soap, sometimes doing it multiple times just to make sure it was all gone. They had become moments of reprieve from it all, a short period of time when everything just went away and you felt a moment of peace.

After what felt like a long enough period of time you began to drain the bath, using the shower attachment to get the last of the suds and oils from your skin and around the basin. Wrapping yourself in a warm fluffy towel you refused to look down at your leg and the nasty cut that remained.

Once you were dried off you changed into a fresh set of comfy clothes and began to make your way downstairs. You were caught by surprise when you walked into the kitchen and found Andy lighting some candles on the dining table which was beautifully laid.

“Oh, hey” Andy straightens when he spots you by the door “You’re down sooner than I expected”

“I-uh didn’t want to wait until it got cold” you lied picking a bit of fluff off your sleeve “What is all this?”

A smile tugs at Andy’s lips as he closes the distance between you “It’s Wednesday so it’s date night” he grins.

“Oh” you mutter, it had been so long and so much had happened that you hadn’t even thought of date night.

Andy’s smile falters for a second as he glances over his shoulder at the table. He clears his throat as he quickly turns and grabs a bouquet of flowers from the side “For you” he smiles.

A smile grows on your face when you saw it was a bouquet of daisies, your favourite kind of flowers. They were simple but that’s why you liked them, you didn’t need anything fancier like roses. You brought the daisies up to breathe in their scent, as you do so you notice Andy watching you warily. Your brows furrow as you look back up at him trying to work out what he was thinking, was he forcing himself to do this because he felt like he should, did he even want to do this?

“Back to normal right?” he offers.

You guessed that answered that question “Back to normal” you agree forcing a smile of your own as you moved to put the daisies in some water.

“I cooked some Mexican, I thought you might want something different after all those pasta dishes,” Andy says as he pulls a dish of enchiladas out of the oven and sets it on the table.

“It looks lovely thank you Andy, I’m sorry I didn’t dress up” you joke gesturing down to your sweats.

The most genuine smile you’ve seen tonight breaks out on Andy’s face as he walks back over to you “You look beautiful, always do, always will do” he smiles as he leans down to press a kiss to your cheek.

That was all it took to reassure you, if Andy held any resentment towards you for what happened with Ransom he wouldn’t be doing all this. Resentment could fester and grow without the person realising it, so you were determined to cling onto him for as long as you could. He was pulling away when you wrapped your arms around his waist. He froze for a second before wrapping his arms around you, his hand running up and down your back soothingly as he pressed kisses to the top of your head.

“Thank you Andy, this is all that I needed” you smile up at him.

He smiles warmly back at you before nodding his head towards the food “C’mon before it gets cold”

He rests his hand on your back as he guides you back towards the table, pulling out your seat for you. He sits down opposite you and grabs the bottle of wine he’d set out, he offers you some but you shake your head. He gives you a reassuring nod as he pours himself a glass before pouring out some water for you.

“Happy date night” Andy smirks lifting his glass.

You chuckle as you lift your glass to meet his “happy date night”

Andy began to serve out the food and asked you how the book you were reading was going. You felt your shoulders loosen as you began to tell him all about it, lines you had loved and where you thought the story was going. It felt like a normal evening dinner, even though there was less to talk about because neither of you were working or getting out much, the conversation never died out or felt forced.

When you were done you insisted on washing up since Andy had cooked, he tried to argue and help out but you weren’t having any of it. You only got him to give in when you suggested that he went and set up a movie upstairs.

A playful smile appeared on his lips “You might regret that when I pick a boring old movie” he warns as he makes his way upstairs.

Once you had cleared up and all the plates, you wiped down the sides and washed your hands making sure they were thoroughly clean before making your way upstairs. Walking into the bedroom you found Andy reclined back in bed, one arm outstretched behind his head, his other hand holding the remote.

“I found a movie on the History of the Button” he smirks when he spots you.

You couldn’t help the snort of laughter as you walked over “How long is it?” You ask as you climb into bed beside him.

“3 hours long” he smirks.

“No movie should be 3 hours long” you mutter as you get comfortable.

“You had no issues with the superhero movie being 3 hours long” Andy points out with a lopsided smile.

“That’s because it was superheroes, many of which are nice to look at for 3 hours, buttons and dusty historians are not fun” you argue making Andy laugh.

“I’m only joking, I found a romcom that I think you’d like, it came out a couple of months ago,” Andy says as he presses a couple of buttons on the remote, pulling up the movie.

“Oh…” you mutter when you recognise it, it was one of the movies you had watched while unknowingly trapped by Ransom “Yeah it's a good movie,” you say picking at your clothes.

Andy’s brows furrow in confusion for a second before realisation passes over his face, he shifts almost uncomfortably next to you “Oh right okay well we can find something else, um what about this? Only came out last week” he says finding a different movie.

“Yeah that looks good” you say forcing a small smile before moving to get more comfortable.

You shifted closer to him, resting your head on his chest as you tucked yourself into his side. You hear him swallow and blow out a small breath before the arm that was tucked behind his head moved to wrap around you. His fingers lazily running up and down your side.

You glance up at him to see him already looking down at you, his lips pursed for a moment before his gaze dropped as he said “I love you” quietly.

You could feel your heart hammering in your chest, it was all you wanted to hear from him and for a moment it shut up that voice in your head that had you doubting everything.

You let out a shaky breath “I love you too” you whispered.

A smile tugs at his lips as he leans in to press a kiss to your forehead before relaxing back and hitting play on the movie. You continued to watch him for a couple of minutes, studying every inch of him trying to commit it all to memory. His blue eyes with the smallest flecks of green, the gentle slope of his nose, the plush pink lips that poked through the thick beard that had the smallest tinges of red in some areas. You had already forgotten this face before, you never wanted it to happen again.

As the movie played and you watched the two protagonists fall in love you felt a strange feeling blossoming in your chest. It took you a moment to realise it was longing. Even as you lay in Andy’s arms you longed for that kind of ease and connection the characters had, the kind of connection that had felt stilted between you and Andy. you wanted that connection again, you needed that connection again.

Looking up at Andy you gently ran your hand over his chest to get his attention, when his gaze met yours you reached up to cup his cheek your fingers scratching through his beard. Andy blinked a couple of times in surprise before his lips twitched upwards, his hand moving to meet yours, fingers wrapping around yours as he gently kissed your palm.

The movie was forgotten as his attention shifted solely to you, his hand gently cupping your cheek as he leaned down and kissed you softly. The kiss was barely there to begin with, his lips just ghosting over yours. But when you responded so did he, the kiss becoming more eager and firm.

You let out a hum of content when he rolled you onto your back, his knee pushing up between your thighs. You heard him let out a small growl when you ran your nails through his beard, the sound made heat blossom in your core, you needed this, needed him.

It was when you wrapped your arm around his shoulders and pulled him closer that he froze and pulled back.

“Wait. Are-are you sure?” He questions his eyes darting over your face.

“Yeah, I- I want this” you admit but when your gaze meets his you saw the hesitation and realised maybe he didn’t “Uh-unless you don’t want to” you stutter pushing back slightly to give him space.

Andy quickly shook his head and you saw him swallow “Of course I want to I just…” he starts before sighing “It’s not been long since you… got home”

You give him a shaky nod, your hand running down from his shoulder to his chest “I know” you admit, you really did but you also knew that you wanted him, you wanted, needed to feel normal “I want this Andy, I-I need- Please?” You managed to say.

Andy didn’t say anything for long enough that you were beginning to get worried, his eyes just scanning your face and you hated that you couldn’t tell what he was thinking. You were about to push yourself away and tell him not to worry when his eyes flashed with something you didn’t recognise and he ducked down to kiss you deeply.

It wasn’t long until clothes were on the floor and his lips were exploring your body. You clung onto him tightly as he did so, you didn’t want an inch of space between you. Your back arched as his hands found your core, you felt his groan against your neck when he felt how aroused you were.

“Andy- please I- I need you” you whimpered.

Andy pulled back enough to look down at you, his gaze searched yours for a long moment before he nodded “Okay, okay” he whispered.

He leaned down to kiss you softly as he positioned himself between your legs. He seemed to pause for a moment before he slowly pressed into you. Your chest heaved as he filled you up and you felt his heavy breathing against the crook of your neck.

This was what you had been missing for so long without even realising it. This connection as your bodies become one, the unspoken love. It was perfect and it made sense. All the times you laid with Ransom it felt like something was missing, something was wrong, and being with Andy again made it all so clear. You had been missing him.

The way Andy moved was perfect, he knew your body in a way nobody ever did. He knew what you needed and what you wanted without you having to say a word. It had been a completely different story with Ransom, even when you told him what you wanted it always felt like he did what he needed, what he wanted.

When Andy moaned in your ear you snapped out of your thoughts. Your screwed your eyes shut and shook your head trying to shake the thought and image of Ransom from your mind. You took a couple of deep breaths centring yourself, getting yourself out of your head and just enjoying this moment with Andy. The man you loved, the only man you loved.

When you opened your eyes you found Andy already looking down at you. Your lips twitched upwards as you looked into his brilliant blue eyes, you cupped his cheeks and guided his lips down to yours hoping to translate the feeling of love you felt for him through it. He seemed to understand as he kissed you back fiercely.

It wasn’t long until you both found your highs, Andy collapsing back onto the bed beside you. He gave you a lazy smile as he leaned over to press a languid kiss to your lips. He then grabbed the remote and turned the TV off, the both of you too tired to watch anymore.

He let out a long yawn as he lay back down, he wrapped his arm around you and mumbled a tired I love you before settling down for the night. You shifted closer to him, laying your head back on his chest whispering that you loved him back but he was already asleep.

You weren’t sure how long you were laying there awake for, but it was long enough that your mind began to wander and replay the night. It had been sweet what Andy had done for you tonight but your mind then reminded you of all the times he seemed to hesitate and why that might have been.

Had he been picturing you laying with Ransom, did he find the image of that repulsive? Did he see you as tainted? Did he find you repulsive?

The more your mind ran away from you the more uncomfortable you felt. You suddenly felt dirty, like there was a layer of grime covering your skin. You shot out of bed, Andy stirring in response.

“Wha- where you?” he mumbled as he lifted his head from the pillow.

“I’m just getting a drink, I’ll be right back” you lie, he hums in response his head already falling back onto the pillow.

You silently crept into the bathroom, not daring to turn on the lights as you grabbed a washcloth from the side and began to wipe away the grime. The grime that Ransom left of you, the grime that repulsed Andy. You bit your lip as you felt tears beginning to build up, only letting silent sobs breakthrough as you repeatedly scrubbed your skin.

Sharing is caring so please reblog and leave a comment to really make my day!

This series has no schedule, please don’t ask when it will be updated!

Series Masterlist / Masterlist

I don’t have a taglist but follow @secretswiftymarvelfanlibrary​ and turn on post notifications to stay up to date!

[midnightshard06]

Flufftober Day 6

AO3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/50489362/chapters/127906204

Summary: Sonic and Shadow manage to get themselves lost in a corn maze. Well at least that's what Shadow thinks.

Pairing: Sonic the Hedgehog/Shadow the Hedgehog

Warnings: None

Word Count: ~700 words

@flufftober

“We’re lost Sonic.” Shadow crossed his arms and glared at the hedgehog in question.

Sonic waved him off as he glanced around the corn maze the two were currently in. “No we’re not Shads. I know where we’re going.” 

“Then why have I seen that exact same poorly dressed scarecrow ten different times.” Shadow grit his teeth and pinned his ears down.

Sonic was mildly starting to regret his choice of date spot. Well to be entirely honest it wasn’t really a date anymore since his and Shadow’s friends had managed to worm their ways into tagging along. He just couldn’t say no to Tails’ puppy dog eyes, and for some reason Knuckles had wanted to tag along as well. Honestly he had no clue why but it was good for the echidna to get off Angel Island more. As for Rouge and Omega Sonic had no idea how they’d convinced Shadow to let them tag along. Maybe he’d just chalk it up to Rouge being Rouge. Though why had Omega wanted to come? A fall festival like this didn’t really seem like something the destructive robot would enjoy. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. Right not the time for that right now. “Would you believe me if I said I wanted to take the scenic route?” Sonic gave Shadow a sly smile.

Shadow gave him a deadpan look before walking in the opposite direction. “I’ll find my own way out of here.” He grumbled.

Sonic jogged to catch up before slinging an arm over Shadow’s shoulders. “Oh come on, don’t be like that. I swear I know where I’m going. Trust me.”

Shadow kept walking for a moment before glancing over at him. “Forgive me for looking at our current predicament and not believing you.”

“That’s… fair.” Sonic flicked an ear. Maybe he should just tell Shadow. Nah, not yet. “Look, just give me one more chance ok?”

Shadow frowned before sighing and nodding. “One more chance before we do things my way.” He playfully pushed Sonic off him. 

“Alright! Follow me. Next stop freedom!” Sonic took the two down a path he’d intentionally avoided on their several other circles. Shadow seemed confused but also seemed to realize they were somewhere new. Pausing for a moment at a fork in the path Sonic looked around and made a bit of a show of picking the direction before heading to the right. A few more turns later and they were at the exit. Sonic caught sight of their friends all sitting at a table not too far away. They must have been waiting for the two of them.

“How?” Shadow looked at him in confusion. “We were lost.”

Sonic tapped Shadow on the nose. “I told you we weren’t. I knew where we were the whole time. You don’t get to run as fast as me and not have a very good sense of direction.”

“Then why were we going in circles?” Shadow furrowed his brow as if trying to figure it out before Sonic just told him.

“Another easy one. I just wanted some more alone time with you, so I kept us going in circles for a bit.” Sonic rubbed the back of his head. “Not my greatest plan I have to admit since it just ended up frustrating you.”

Shadow sighed through his nose. “You know you could have just said that right?”

Sonic grinned widely. “Oh I know, but it was kinda fun doing it this way.”

Shadow rolled his eyes before grabbing Sonic’s hand. “Next time just say something.”

Sonic gave him a small salute with his other hand. “You got it Shads. Now do you think we could sneak away to grab some of that delicious smelling festival food before the others notice we made it out?”

“Unlikely based on the fact I can see Rouge approaching us right now. I’d bet she’ll be keen to try and ask some… prying questions.” Shadow huffed. “We were in there for far longer than most people are.”

“Weeell.” Sonic smirked. “She’ll have to catch us first right?”

Shadow returned the look. “I suppose she will.” Getting in some mild trouble with the people running the festival was worth the look on Rouge’s face as the two hedgehogs sped away from her. Maybe this had been a good date after all.

[airiat]

northern sky, three. ✧˚ · .

{masterlist | beginning}

pairing: joel miller x you / f!reader (wc: 35.3k, 10 chapters)

rating: explicit, 18+

work tags: no outbreak, age difference (27/42), hurt/comfort, ptsd, fate, ldr, explicit sexual content (rough/romantic sex, light d/s & sadomasochism, dirty talk, choking/biting, oral (f & m receiving), unprotected piv, aftercare)

work warnings: themes of death (more details here, contains spoilers), depictions of mental illness/alcoholism, light discussion of theoretical relationship with minor (not condoned by either party), light blood kink

ch. summary: it's been three weeks since you've seen him, but he finds you all the same.

{ao3}

three. {1.9k}

Here you are again. You’re back in your same seat, the same tumbler of whiskey sweating bullets in front of you. The bartender, who is your friend once more, is wiping down the bar at the opposite end of you. The music’s off. It’s just you and her in here.

“You gonna let me drive you home tonight?” she calls down to you.

“No,” you grunt. He has to be coming. He has to be.

He is.

“It’s the middle of winter, honey, and you’re definitely not sober,” she says. “You really think that walking is a good idea?”

“I do,” you say. “I like walking.”

She sighs with a certain kind of weariness. “I’ll send you out of here with a shot if you let me take you.”

“I don’t care. I don’t want it. I wanna walk.”

You want to walk, and you want to fall into bed, and you want to stain your pillow with sobs.

“One of these mornings, I’m going to be driving by and see you dead in the snow,” the bartender says.

“Maybe,” you say. “Would that be so bad?”

“Yes, it would be.”

“Huh. Well, I’m gonna head outta here now,” you tell her. “Could I still have that shot?”

“No.”

You shrug, push yourself up off the seat. “More at home.”

“Great. Then, how about you actually make it home?”

You nod. “I will.”

You will.

“See you tomorrow, then.”

“See you,” you grumble.

You won’t. 

The cold air sinks its teeth into you the moment you step out the door. It doesn’t hurt so bad. You’re deadened by the warm whiskey in your blood, and you’ve at least attempted to dress for the weather: a sturdy coat, knit hat and gloves, actual snow boots. You know the route as well as the lines in your palms, can shut your mind down and just walk. You’ll probably make it home no worse for wear.

Tonight, though, you won’t be finding out. In fact, this night, you don’t even get to leave the parking lot. A truck is pulling in. You can’t recognize it at first; it’s facing you head-on, and the headlights are blinding. But then, it’s pulling up alongside you, stops. It means nothing to you, so you keep walking. It means nothing until the voice that lives in your soul calls out to you. 

You whirl around, and then he’s there.

Maybe you’re a little too drunk. Maybe you really are face down in the snow somewhere, dreaming up something to make your passing go quieter. Because what you’re seeing here in front of you cannot be. It’s been three weeks, and you’ve waited. It’s been twenty nights that you’ve retraced your steps, gambled between your house and the bar as to where he’d come looking for you.

And tonight, here he is. Here he is in his big shearling coat and work boots, with his messy hair and brown eyes that never leave yours. You walk towards him with arms half-raised to hug him, but you falter. You’re face down in the snow. You must be.

“Joel?” you question.

He smiles, and that’s when you’re sure he’s real. Nothing within you would ever be capable of creating such beauty. “‘Course, darlin',” he says. “Who else?”

You let out a tired exhale, surrender into his waiting arms. Into his chest, you say, “It’s cold out.”

“Sure is,” Joel says, leading you to the passenger side of his truck and helping you in, your grip on his hand heavy and unsteady.

When he’s sitting in the driver’s seat, pulling out of the parking lot, you say, “I got a little drunk tonight.”

“And you were still going walk home,” he replies. “Jesus.”

You let your head loll on the seat to look at him, get lost roaming the proud curve of his nose, musing over the deeper downturn of his lips, all alight in soft orange from the dashboard. He never looks back at you, keeps his eyes unwavering on the road.

“I would have made it home,” you say. 

Briefly, Joel glances over, maybe to see if you’re smiling. But you’re not. Your eyelids are heavy, and only your ceaseless wonder at him sitting there next to you props them open. There is no joke. Only the truth, plain and bare.

“Sure,” he says. “Until the night that you don’t.”

You shake your head slowly, the whiskey sloshing like waves in your veins. “I’ve lived in this town my entire life, Joel. That house, too. I could be half-dead and still know how to make it back.”

“Alright, fine, but what about the weather, or an animal…or another person?”

You tip your head back, bare your throat. “Then, that’s just the way the chips fall.”

Joel inhales once, sharply, and then falls silent. His lips curve even more down, and now, his brow is pressed down, too. You don’t like him this way, but all your muddled mind can think to do is reach out and take his hand into your lap. To map all the ridges with your trembling thumb and anchor yourself in his solidness. When his fingers uncurl, you lace yours between them, ever allayed by his warmth. Your eyes sink closed before long.

“Hey, darlin’, we’re here,” the smoke says from the space beside you.

“Hmm?” you murmur, but you’re still motionless.

Your lap is suddenly cold, and a moment later, more cold invades your skin from the undefinable right. You whimper and curl inwards, holding your arms tight across your middle. This isn’t him. Whatever it is, you don’t want it.

“C’mon, baby, let me get you inside,” the smoke implores you.

When hands snake around your back, your eyes spring open, frantic breath holding your throat hostage. But then, there’s the warmth, there’s the sky-forest-blood scent cascading into you. There’s his body sheltering yours like an old oak as Joel tucks you into his side and guides you out of his truck and up to your house. 

At the door, your hands are shaking like so much storm that all you can do is clutch them against your chest, spit out through aching teeth which pocket the keys are in. He produces them, gets the door open, and then you’re with him in the foyer, embraced by the heat and the four placid walls around you. You would sink down to the floor, curl up there–you have before–but he catches you and props you back up.

“Let me sleep,” your small voice whines, shoving weakly at his arm so you can crumple.

“I will, I will,” Joel says in a placating voice. “But not here, alright?”

You have to trust that he knows something you don’t as he keeps you awake long enough to trek with you to your bed, sit you down, and free you of your winter gear. In fact, your body does sing with so much relief when he finally lets you flop into the nest of your blankets. But when he just stands there, looking caught between two places, a hollowness flares in your chest.

Joel’s not going to get in bed with you. He’s going to wait for you to sleep, then slip out into the night, crumble into a wraith, and then you’ll never see him again. A sob drops from your lips.

You blink, and he’s crouched at your side, smoothing a hand over your cheek. “What’s wrong, baby?”

“You’re not a ghost. I don’t want you to leave,” you say through the tears tracking down your cheeks, gathering at Joel’s thumb.

His brow furrows and smoothes just as quick. “‘Course I’m not leavin’. Drove all this way just to walk right back out? I don’t think so.”

You heave a sigh and roll back into the pillow, pull the relief tight around your shoulders. But it lasts only as long as you don’t realize he still isn’t in bed with you. Then, hollowness finds a home once more.

“Why aren’t you here?” you ask him, face to the ceiling, arm slapping down on the mattress next to you.

“That what you want?”

“Yes.” 

You flip over on your side, find him still crouched beside you. You tug at the buttons on his coat, not deft enough to get them undone. His hands ghost after yours, unbuttoning each one you touch. And then, he’s unlacing his boots, leaving his things in an unceremonious pile with yours.

“You sure?” Joel says, but he’s rounding the bed, sitting on the other side twisted towards you. “I could always go sleep on the couch.”

You scowl, yank his arm down until his hand finds the expanse of your legging-clad thigh, roaming up and down, slow. As you bring your leg up, his lips press to the outside of your knee. Under his touch, a new wave of life floods you until you can’t possibly fathom sleep. As you gaze up at him and he meets your eyes, your tamped-down want joins it.

“Kiss me,” you tell Joel.

“You’re not sober,” he replies.

“Sober enough to know I’m safe.” The words, the truth, taste sweet in your mouth.

His worn, beautiful face twists with something painful, but when he leans down, you don’t taste any blood on him. It’s only the ambrosia of his spit and the pepper of his mustache against your lip. His arm sweeps under your shoulders as he shifts to align the length of his body against yours.

“Never should’ve left you,” Joel groans when you cling to the back of his neck.

You don’t know how to spell out agreement without infusing guilt. Instead, you ask, “How was Jackson?”

“Just fine,” he grunts, tracing the curve of your jaw with his mouth.

“No, actually tell me.”

He pulls back to look at you. “Sweetheart, you don’t gotta pretend.”

“I’m not.”

Joel sighs, and you start to fear that you pushed him the wrong way, but then, his eyes become melted chocolate. “Baby’s cute. Evan, they named him. Tommy and Maria are happy. And Sarah…well, we’re on good terms again.”

“Good, that’s good,” you murmur.

“I flew with her to Boston,” he continues. “That’s where she goes to school. Spent some time with her and that girlfriend of hers, then flew back to Jackson, drove home.”

Your heart clenches in a way it doesn’t deserve to. “You went home?”

Joel pauses. His words, when they come out, are careful. “I started a construction company last year. Gotta be there some of the time to run it.”

Of course, of course. It makes sense. It’s not about you. “I didn’t know that.”

“But you wanna know the truth of it?”

You nod.

“Couldn’t even last two weeks before I had to come back to you.”

You exhale, let your eyelids fall closed. See? There’s nothing to be afraid of. You blink open, find Joel looking back at you with his unreadable mask. You don’t know if what you want to say is worth the risk, but logic flutters away. “Maybe it’s good you didn’t give me your number. Maybe you wouldn’t have felt like you needed to come back.”

There’s something Joel’s trying to say with the shape of his mouth and the press of his brow, but you can’t understand it. All you can do is lay back and pull him over you, let his body's weight and warmth tell you of peace. You wander with him towards the darkness and tumble head-first into the fringes of sleep, long-awaited.

“Won’t leave ‘till you tell me to,” the smoke reassures, and that’s when you can finally let go.

[softxsuki]

Hiya! Can I plz request a letter for your Valentine's Day event? 👉👈 I would really love one from 707, established relationship of at least a few years. And reader has had to make hard decisions about removing hurtful ppl from their life. Even when they were once family. The letter would be sent to provide comfort in a physical form and maybe to praise reader a bit for doing the hard work towards recovering. Maybe there is a gift with it, a keepsake. Comfort for the hardship of the past times, and promises of their life together, a home of love and laughter and safety. The 606 is fine for a nickname still (think that is what is was in the game, I am hoping to replay soon), other options maybe babe, or something sorta corny? Like the over-the-top-calling-you-this-cuz-i-love-you-and-we-tease-each-other sorta corny? And he left the letter somewhere reader would find it, but is not present while it is being read. Oh, umm, modern day setting works fine. I think/hope I got it all. P much I am hoping for something comforting I can save and keep w me. And thank you for doing this event!!! 🙏

707's Comforting Letter To His Lover

Valentine's Day Letter Event Pt.2 Masterlist (CLOSED)

Pairing: 707 x Gn!reader

Warnings: mentions of losing people in your life (who hurt you)

Genre: hurt comfort, fluff

Post-Type: Letter

Word Count: 530

Summary: In which Saeyoung leaves a letter for you in the morning to help comfort you through your situation of kicking people who hurt you out of your life.

[A/N: Happy Valentine's Day! I hope this provides you with some comfort and is enjoyable to read. I really have to replay mysme as well as play v and saeran's routes for the first time. It's been so long since I last played, but it's just such a commitment to make it for every chat room. Anyway, hope you enjoy <3]

You stared at the envelope on your nightside table along with the small necklace beside it. You smile to yourself, knowing it was probably something Saeyoung built himself.

The spot beside you in bed was empty when you awoke, only the envelope and whatever it was your boyfriend had made you remained. He was probably out on a mission or something–or perhaps just getting some food, who knows. 

You smile, picking his new invention up and opening it. It resembled a locket, but more modern. Inside was a picture of the two of you together. His arms wrapped around you as you kissed his cheek. Feeling all warm inside, you pick up the envelope, open it and read its contents;

My Dear 606,

Happy Valentine’s Day Agent! Another Valentine’s Day together to add to the list, I love it. I hope you like the locket I made. You can store any pictures from your phone on it and change them around whenever you want. I’ll show you how it works once I get back home. I had a quick secret mission to do this morning, I should be back soon. 

On a more serious note though, I know things haven’t been that great for you recently. You’ve had to say goodbye to a lot of people in your life that you cared about. Trust me, I know how that feels, but it was for the better. 

I don’t want to tell you to just get over it, because I know that’s not possible, but just know that I’m here for you okay? You’re my special partner in crime. My agent 606! Nothing can defeat an agent, never forget that.

But you’re so strong, Y/N…you manage to put on a brave face and fight through each day even though the pain of it all may be eating away at you inside. I’m so proud of you. 

There was nothing I could do about the people from your past, but I promise to always look after you from now on. This is our life and we’ll make it exactly as we want. I’ll make sure our lives are full of happiness, laughter, and protection–always. 

I hope you slept well <3 I should be back soon. Wait for me so we can eat breakfast together. I love you.

Your Agent,

707

Your chest felt light after reading his words. Simple, yet effective at making you feel so much better. You couldn’t wait to hug him upon returning. Perhaps you could even get a head start and make breakfast as his little Valentine’s Day surprise.

So you get to work; throwing the locket around your neck and putting his letter in a safe space, you make your way to the kitchen where you begin planning a romantic breakfast for the two of you. 

Hurry back agent 707, breakfast will get cold. You text him.

Around the corner agent 606. Keep my spot warm! <3 He responds.

He sure knew how to get you smiling. Putting your phone away, you continue to cook, pouring every ounce of love for your boyfriend into the food.

What a great start to a day dedicated to love.

REGULAR REQUESTS ARE OPEN :D

EVENT REQUESTS ARE CLOSED

Posted: 2/14/2023

[dark-frosted-heart]

Hi! So you the next route coming is Gilbert's!

Hopefully soon!

My question is: do you have any theories of how it'll go? Like the start? How will MC fall in love with him (like how? You have to be really messed up to do that) how will Gil fall in love with her? And who will kidnap her (yeah because we know it is gonna happend anyway)?

Please show us your scenarios in this answer

Thanks!

Hello anons! Since both questions relate to my thoughts on how I think Gilbert's route will go, I'll answer them both together.

First off all, to the first anon, there is no news confirming that Gilbert’s route is next yet, even if his VA is going to be in the second anniversary purinama. I’m still thinking that they’ll announce something completely different or announce Silvio’s route next since Sariel and Rio’s routes have focused more on him and Benitoite. Second, I think you just insulted every Gilbert fan out there. Third…why does this sound like an exam question.

I’m not a writer (if you can’t tell from how my summaries are written) but I can word vomit my thoughts on how I think things will go! Also my knowledge of Gilbert is lacking because I still have trouble figuring him out.

On to answering

First, let’s see what we know about Gilbert right now. He’s polite yet manipulative, sadistic, and has a twisted sense of kindness that comes from what he’s experienced growing up in a nation like Obsidian. He's smiling most of the time, but there's no emotion behind it. He's pushy and says his words are absolute; you can't refuse him. He has enemies in both Rhodolite and Obsidian that try to kill him every chance they get. He has his own faction of supporters that are against the emperor. He does not kill indiscriminately, he will get rid of criminals, those that go against the royal family, those that try to kill him, those that may bring embarrassment to Obsidian. He calls everyone his “friends” unless you’re Chevalier. Speaking of Chevalier, Gilbert is also a rare genius that appears once every 1000 years.

Per his flavor text, he has a secret that would get you killed if you were to ever find out. What it is, we don’t know yet. Also anyone that knows what his hobby truly is will wind up missing. In any case, I believe how he portrays himself and how he really is are going to be very different, as that’s been the case with every Ikepri suitor. Maybe he's just a very sad and lonely man that does have a heart. He's good with kids, or so we're led to believe since he's good at performing magic tricks and says he does them for kids so that they'll stop crying. Now with all of that out of the way...

On kidnapping: So when I was asked similar questions in the past, I did think there would be kidnapping involved in the route. But with more Gilbert content I’ve read since that time, I’ve begun to believe that he won't kidnap Emma. At least not in the traditional sense. Blackmailed into going along with Gilbert for the sake of Rhodolite? More likely. OR his detractors learn about the amount of time Gilbert spends fixated on Emma. So they kidnap her instead and hold her hostage.

On...everything else: Enemies to lovers? Yes. At the moment, Gilbert is interested in Emma in a non-romantic way and Emma wants absolutely nothing to do with him. And every time she’s around him, she’s scared of him, though she tries to hide it. Not to mention the number of times she's thought about wanting to cry when she has to deal with him? Not a great way to start off a route to romance. However, at the end of pretty much every Gilbert event story, that fear dies down just a bit, she feels a little something else for him. Sometimes it’s warmth, sometimes it’s something unnamable. Now take that and stretch it out for like 20 chapters. And then she doesn’t realize that she’s in love with him until somewhere in the middle of both the Romantic and Dramatic route. And tries to deny it until the very end. 

But how they fall in love??????? I guess for Emma, the more time she spends with him, especially when she winds up in Obsidian, she learns that Gilbert's not as bad as she thinks he is? Not as bad as how he wants her to think he is? Maybe she sees how he interacts with children. Like I mentioned, in the event stories, Emma always finds new things about Gilbert that surprises her.

For Gilbert, I honestly don't know. Some of us are thinking he'll be yandere. His interest in that defiance of hers despite her fear of him turning to love and obsession when that fear dies down and she shows him kindness. The question is just when and how that change starts. And once he's in love, better not touch Emma. If you thought him beating the shit out of a guy who drugged and kidnapped her in the Chevalier vs Gilbert event was bad...

Btw, I'm also expecting Clavis and Luke to have a lot of involvement in Gilbert's route since they have direct connections with him. And war between Obsidian and Rhodolite being part of the main plot.

Oh and to the second anon, thank you!