#Catch & Release

[alessandro113]

Catch & Release

Catch & Release

open.spotify.com/track/11BAVEGi1ivJ6JWLqKUNrZ

[susanhannifordcrowley]

Beach Reads: EverWarm By Susan Hanniford Crowley

[danielleurbansblog]

Meet This Author: Richard Levine

Meet This Author: Richard Levine

Q: When did you begin writing stories? I dabbled here and there when I was in high school. This never amounted to more than a collection of unfinished meandering thoughts that I attribute to a combination of ADD which, at the time was unheard of, and a total lack of life experience. It wasn’t until 2011 when a series of personal challenges brought me to a crossroads in my life and writing became…

[newleasemusic]

Jayd Ink Returns With Enticing EP, ‘Catching Red Lights’

@Jayd_Ink Returns With Enticing EP, ‘Catching Red Lights’

Riding the tidal waves of success from her recent, return single and video ‘Queen St’, which was a collaboration of royal heights featuring SZA’s ‘Good Days’ producer Los Hendrix, Toronto based R&B songstress JAYD INK has unveiled her new EP ‘Catching Red Lights’. The three-track EP is Jayd’s most vulnerable compilation to date. Consisting of the meditative and introspective lead single ‘Queen…

[callie-the-creator]

being bigby wolf’s mate would include… (sfw and nsfw)

nsfw below the cut. mdni. warnings: tried to make the reader as gender-neutral as possible, mentions of jealous, creampie, heat cycles, aggressive smut, biting, etc.

author’s note: i cannot wait for the second game to be released. i’m so excited! 💗

sfw:

• you are one of bluebeard’s ex-partners, having escaped him and avoided decapitation in the old days. sadly though, you didn’t get to meet bigby when he was in his prime— only heard stories and legends about him— until you along with all the other fables moved from the homelands to the mundy world.

— more specifically, you were brought into questioning since you knew a thing or two about brutality against women (which is exactly what was happening with the working girls at the pudding & pie, like faith) and you helped snow and bigby’s investigation at times…

• that’s how you two acquainted yourselves.

• it should also go without saying that you are filthy rich and since you’ve grown an attachment to sheriff bigby, you came to find out that he lives in the smallest apartment in the woodlands, you’ve invited him over to your place countless times at the beginning of your relationship so he can get out of that crowded space and sleep in an actual bed.

— that and colin can be a real pain in the ass. it’s good for bigby to be away from him, even if it is for a few days.

• bigby always found you to be attractive. it was a bit part of your fairytale back in the homelands, but he tried not to show his attraction toward you…but it was hard for others not to pick on the big bad wolf after they see him tucking a strand of hair behind your ear, helping you out of cars, holding doors for you, having a special soft spot for you, all sorts of chivalrous shit.

• you two ended up being a thing a few days after the investigation about faith and the crooked man came to an end. more specifically, you were outside with bigby when all of a sudden you were pushed by a mundy and you lost your footing. luckily, bigby was able to catch you and pull you close to him, cursing the blatant rudeness of the mundy, under his breath before checking up on you to see if you were okay.

— then, what followed was you two looking deeply into one another’s eyes before you wrapped a hand around bigby’s tie and pulled him closer, kissing the sheriff.

nsfw:

• i want to say that bigby’s libido is average. nothing too unbearable, but as soon as spring rolls around, it does a complete 180° and bigby becomes the epitome of needy.

— during this time, he can be a bit rough, he gets way more animalistic than usual and there are times when bigby takes a brief vacation from work just so he can pound you all day, leaving you unable to walk on your own.

— his favorite thing to do is to put you into a mating press, so he can penetrate you deeper as he fills your hole with his cum. the alternative, of course, is him mounting you.

• he always wants to be able to mark you, in some way, whether that be by leaving bite/scratch marks all over your body or hickeys. it’s bigby’s way of telling the world that you’re already taken and satisfied sexually.

• it’s hard to hide whenever you’re in the mood from bigby because of how strong his sense of smell is. once he catches a whiff of your arousal, he almost loses all strength in his body, his mouth watering, but if he’s in a public setting, it takes every fiber of his being to go against of his instincts and you know the power you hold over him at times like this because of the way bigby stares at you, raptured with barely contained lust.

• it’s only when bigby regains his senses, he apologizes for being so rough on you (he is scared that because of how rough he can be, he’s a terrible mate and you’ll want to leave him for someone better). soooo…he tries his hardest to make it up to you by doing whatever you want him to, amping up his arm, and overall being super gentle and sweet.

[apocalypse-shuffle]

JASON TODD | RED HOOD (generalized canon)

────────────────────

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“Lick” (Jason Todd x Fem!Reader)

| Jason rushes to pay you a little visit.

| NSFW, 18+, minors dni, cunnilingus, fwb to more, Dick Grayson has a big mouth

| 1k+ words

| One last treat from me for Halloween! Happy Spooky Season!

Jason has you on your knees, arms crossed over the back of the couch, and mewling into the bend of your folded limbs.

It’s not fair. An hour out of his patrol, time where he was supposed to be debriefing with the Bats, and instead he’d slipped through your window and dropped to his knees for you like a man starved.

Jason didn’t always start a whole conversation when you guys met unplanned like this, but it was uncommon for him to not chat you up at least a bit before reducing you to thin gasps.

You moan, muscles in your legs straining due to the way you’re writhing against the broad strokes of his tongue. He might’ve switched up on you but it was a great switch.

“S-shit Jay,” you pant. He groans a muffled ‘mhm’ into your folds before tightening his grip on you and bearing you down on his face.

The lingering keen that move pulls from you is not voluntary.

The heat that travels up the low of your stomach has your brown skin glistening and chest heaving. Clearly Jason was on a fucking mission. Your toes curl, and Jason undoubtedly notices how close you are because he starts moaning like it’s his clit being abused, and then your eyes are rolling to the back of your head. Your orgasm crashes through you so suddenly that in order to not wake your whole floor you’re forced to bite into the couch cushion. Moaning and desperately grinding down on him all the while.

Your legs lock together as you cum, only not crushing Jason’s head because of the vice-like grip he’s got on them. Glutton for punishment he is though, you don’t think he’d mind much if they were actually squeezing around him. But that was something to bring up later when you weren’t full body shuddering through catching your breath.

“What,” you gasp. “Was that for?”

Jason, who for all intents and purposes hasn’t moved, barely responds. He’s too busy licking the cum from your dark lips and making chills run up your spine from the oversensitivity. Your only saving grace is that even with him occasionally dipping into the pink of your vagina to hungrily lap up your juices he at least wasn’t still attacking your bud like it personally betrayed him.

Eventually he hums from between your trembling legs, gives two more long broad swipes up your pussy that make your breath hitch, presses a kiss to your clit, and then pulls himself away. The cool air hitting your skin is a disappointing but instant balm, however, so at least there’s that.

You managed to get the question out but whether post-nut clarity would’ve hit in time for you to elaborate on it is a different thing entirely. It’s for the best. With a sigh you turn around.

The large man’s just kneeling on the floor, and still tasting you on his tongue if the delirious look in his eyes is anything to go by. Despite your confusion it makes you smile.

“Jay? You gonna answer me?”

He licks his lips slowly and drags his gaze up, taking his time unashamedly going over your naked form, till you lock eyes. It’s a little intense. His eyes are usually blue with flecks of green swirling around in them but the green overwhelms his eyes whenever he’s amped up, the last remnants of the pit within him. It’s teal that bores into your brown and you shiver.

The shrug he gives you is so nonchalant it throws you off for a second and you find yourself giving an amused scoff.

“Dick told me something earlier,” he rumbles. It’s because he was just neck deep in your pussy you know that but shit if it doesn’t make your face heat up.

A nod from you and he keeps talking, clearing his throat.

“You told him we were -ah- seeing each other?”

Oh. Oh.

The veil of blissful release leaves you in seconds and you sit up fully with a wave of your hands. In your rush the tentative (because of a certain jackass interrupting your night routine) hold your bonnet has on your head gives way and the satin lands in a heap beside you.

“Shit! I’m sorry Jay, I just responded I wasn’t even thinking. It’s just we have technically been seeing each other for a while and it slipped out…”

At the look on his face you trail off. He’s smiling. At you. Not with his I’m-deflecting-and-full-of-shit smile either.

A small quirk of his lips and then he eases out of the kneel and into your space in one effortless swoop.

“I’m not mad or anything,” he shrugs and glances away. “Just- you meant it right?”

You let out a puff of air and your own smile rises, pulse ratcheting down. “Yeah I meant it, you fucking dork. I claim you once and you rush to make me cum?”

Jason rises with a huff of laughter, hands wrapping around your waist and gliding over your rich skin with the tenderness someone might handle porcelain figurines. The sharp urge to kiss him makes itself known and you don’t fight it, bending down to meet him halfway like you need it to survive.

The way your lips connect makes your heart fucking flutter and you can’t be alone in that if the smile you can feel pressed against your mouth has any say.

How he looks at you when you separate, hard gaze gone soft, is even better.

“I just wanted to show you how much I appreciate it,” he inclines his head. “And you.”

Jesus, this man was gonna make you pass out if he kept making your heart flip like this.

“Well consider me very appreciated, Jay,” you peck him on the lips before huffing and moving to shove at his shoulder. He doesn’t remotely budge but it’s the principle of the matter. “Now go clean up and get to your debriefing, you know how Bruce gets.”

Jason rolls his eyes as he rocks back and runs his hand through his hair, white streak catching briefly.

“B can kiss my ass,” the smile he throws your way this time is tinged with suggestion as his voice drops. “I have way better things to be doing right now, Beautiful.”

A cool wonderful thrill goes up your spine at the promise in his gaze but you refuse to get caught up in it. So what if the way you kiss him after is a little desperate. He’s earned it.

“As amazing as that sounds,” you say against his lips, hand holding onto his jaw so he won’t chase your mouth for any more. “It’s not happening until I know I can thank you properly without a bat or a bird scratching at my window. Understood?”

He groans and gives you a pleading look you know you’ll be drawing out of him later, but you only press another kiss to the tip of his nose before pushing his face away from you.

“Oh, come on!” He gets up and leaves though. Eventually, and with a hard on after you’ve made out for twenty more minutes and damn near made him cum in his pants.

NOTES: as per usual hope you enjoyed! (ps: I rewrote it just a little since I had to rushed to get it out on Halloween but, yeah. I needed to add the flavor real quick.)

EDIT: Slightly rewritten again on 1/17/23❤️

[neteyamssyulang]

⌖ Lustful Vengeance ⌖

⌖ Part 1 ⌖

⌖ Pairing: So’lek x Fem human soldier reader ⌖

⌖ Based on this request ⌖

⌖ Part 2 here ⌖

⌖ Background: Once the RDA returned So’lek celebrated. Finally able to take revenge he killed your fellow soldiers and was going to do the same to you but a different idea played in his mind.

⌖ Warnings: Dom So’lek, Sub reader, Dark, P in V, Mentions of death, Marking, Breeding kink, Creampie, Choking, Spanking.

⌖ Total word count: 1557 ⌖

⌖Translation(s): Muntxate -> Female spouse, yawntutsyìp -> darling/little one, Tawtute -> Human

⌖ A/N: I hope this turned out the way you wanted anony

⌖ Tagging: @ikeyniofthetayrangi

It was just a normal day, the colonel had tasked you and a few other soldiers to fly up to site 46 and stay there while also scouring the area.

The pilot took off towards the site, you couldn't help but look out the window of the helicopter. Pandora is beautiful it really is, it would make the perfect home for humanity once the natives were no longer a threat.

As the helicopter landed you all got out and headed inside the portable, taking off your exomask you made it to where your room would be at the back of the place and began unpacking all your belongings.

Eclipse soon covered the pandora sky, 2 loaded up their guns while 2 more got into their AMP's and began scouring the area. The rest of you just stayed inside talking about how this would be a peace of cake.

Once eclipse fell he went into action, tonight he would finally take his revenge on these sky demons for what they've done to him and his clan.

He saw two of the humans just walking with guns while the other ones looked to be in some type of metal suit.

Pulling an arrow from the cylinder on his bow he drew it back till finally releasing it into one of the humans in the machine, the arrow making a clean shot flying through the glass and into the persons head.

Gunshots rang out pointed in his direction, So'lek sprinted while taking another arrow out, quickly turning he released it into the other one in the machine.

Two down two to go.

The last two were easy to take down and eywa did it feel good watching the life drain from their eyes, now for the rest of them.

He stalked back to the site and lit one of his arrows on fire, holding it steady he took a deep breath pointing it at the window where he could see the rest of you.

Finally he released the arrow watching it go through the window shattering it and landing on the floor inside. The entire portable was going up in flames, you didn't want to leave your fellow soldiers but you had no choice.

Quickly putting on an exomask you run to the emergency exit and dash through the thick pandoran forest.

Back at the site So'lek had slashed every one of the soldiers throats before running after you. Eywa be damned if he let you escape.

Your heart was thumping loudly in your chest as your legs threatened to give out, you could hear footsteps behind you getting closer but saw no one as you glanced back.

Somehow you managed to run into a giant clearing, thinking your safe you stop to catch your breath.

Lord was that a big mistake.

He was on you within second, his knife pressed against your jugular while his other hand held your wrists above your head.

"Foolish human, did you really think you could get away from me?" He taunts staring down at you. "P-please don't kill me! I'll do anything!"

The na'vi chuckles in amusement, "Kill you? Whereas I was planning on it I don't think your cut out for that." Confusion settles on your face "What do you mean?-"

Removing his knife he places it back in his sheath before taking off his metal chest piece littered with dog tags he took after killing RDA members and placed it on the ground.

"Instead of killing you I'll just make you my darling little mate." Panic starts settling in and you scramble to get away from the na'vi, he pulls you back by your legs immediately tearing off the blouse you wore along with your shorts and panties.

Tears prick your eyes threatening to fall "Please don't do this.. i'm begging you" , "Don't worry little one, you'll be begging for me to take you soon enough."

Untying the knots of his tewng he lets it drop, his cock springs up hitting his stomach. Beautiful patterns of tanhi cover it not to mentioning how big and girthy he is.

"That will never fit, you'll break me!" Your tone raising slightly, the na'vi leaned over you teasingly swiping his cockhead through your folds.

So'lek smirked looking down "Look at you, already so wet for me, it will fit I'll make sure of it."

Without warning he pushed past your entrance with a pop making you cry out in pain, he inched his cock inside you little by little. When you thought he was done you sighed in relief till he rolled his hips finally bottoming out.

"Such a good tawtute taking me" he coos, giving you only a mere minute to adjust he pulls out till only the tip remains and slams back inside knocking the air out of your lungs.

His pace is brutal, one hand holding him up from crushing you while the other holds onto your hip. Your hands find their way to his shoulders holding tightly onto him.

Your moans fill his ears as he angels himself so now he's repeatedly hitting your sweet spot. "Be a good girl and cum for me" he whispered in your ear sending shivers down your spine.

Not being able to hold back anymore the coil in your stomach finally snaps and you cum leaving a white creamy ring at the base of his cock.

"P-please I..I can't anymore.. your too big.." you whined beneath him, the na'vi only chuckled speeding up his movements, his cock bullying your insides and threatening to pierce through your cervix.

"You will take it, my little mate will look so pretty walking around with a bump" So'lek murmures moving the hand that was on the ground to your stomach pressing down on it.

Your backed arched as you came again squirting your juices on him, he could feel your walls convulsing around his cock. "Oh great mother.." So'lek groans.

So'lek moved his left hand to wrap around your delicate little neck while his right now now held onto your hip. He drove his cock deeper into your pussy, his mushroomy tip kissing your cervix each time.

If you would've known that signing up with the RDA would lead you to this you would've never done it. His cock was stretching you out ruining you for anyone else, shit you didn't even know the males name and now he expects you to be his mate?

What would the colonel think? His #1 soldier getting fucked by the natives they wanted to drive out to make pandora the new earth for humanity.

So'leks teeth grazing along your neck pulled you out of your thoughts, before you have a chance to say anything he suddenly pulled out flipping you onto your hands and knees.

Wasting no time he slams his cock back inside your aching pussy hitting a new angle this time making you see stars "Hold it for me little one..I'm almost there" he pants from behind you.

Your whimpers and moans only drive him closer to that sweet release he's been trying to reach, feeling your walls clench around him he grit his teeth.

His hand came down harshy onto your ass making you yelp and shift forwards a bit, "What did I say? You will cum when I say you can" each sentence was delivered with a smack across your ass.

Tears are now falling down your face and onto the mossy ground below you. "P-please let me cum.." you plead with him.

Another smack comes down on your ass "No, when you cum you will scream my name, understand?"

"I don't know your name!" You manage to shout at the male behind you but it only earns you another slap on your already reddened ass.

Pulling out once more he flips you onto your back again before plunging his length back inside "It's So'lek yawntutsyìp" he sends a cheeky wink down at you.

His hands move across your chest groping at your tits, his fingers pinch and roll your sensitive peaks between the pads of his index finger and thumb instantly hardening them.

Leaning down he sucks and bites you all over your neck leaving his marks for everyone to see. "Fuck! Cum now!" He moans in your ear as he thrusts one final time before stilling his hips.

His seed spills into your empty womb triggering your own climax, your arms wrap around his neck as you scream his name.

Your both still panting as he leans up taking in your flushed state. Your hairs all messy from being tossed and turned like a rag doll, your face holds a bright pink hue.

So'lek leans back down placing his face into the crook of your neck, deciding on the perfect spot he sinks his fangs into you finally marking you as his mate.

Instead of fighting it you give in finally accepting your fate, your fellow soldiers that you once thought of as friends are dead by the same person who is now your mate.

He unlatches from your neck licking the small droplets of blood off before trailing his kisses up your neck, to your jaw, to your lips. He captures them in a slow passionate kiss before placing his forehead against yours.

"Your mine now, my little muntxate."

[thefreakandthehair]

@eddiemonth prompt, oct 19th: Scifi/tech | Electric Eye - Judas Priest | Bewildered a/n: eddie pov, eddie & dustin friendship, dustin & steve friendship, and an excuse for me to weasel one of my favorite steve headcanons into something. un-betaed because I'm challenging myself to write these in under an hour. read on ao3 + masterpost | tumblr masterlist

After his release from the hospital and the unfortunate news that his trailer had been destroyed, Eddie goes from functionally homeless to having multiple spaces that feel like home. 

He’s been all but adopted by Claudia at this point, an offer extended immediately after hearing the version of the story everyone’s agreed upon— that the ground split open and Eddie nearly ate it pushing Dustin out of the way. It’s not quite the truth, but the theme is the same and anyone who’s willing to sacrifice themself for her son is welcome any time. 

Especially when he’s been called upon to help with Dustin’s science fair project. It’s out of Eddie’s league a bit, the actual science part, but he and his mechanical brain prove helpful. Kinda nice, actually, to use those hotwiring skills for good. 

Of course, it also helps that the government set him and Wayne up in a modest two bedroom house down the road, and that Eddie can practically smell Claudia's cooking when the windows are open. Like Garfield, he’s drawn to the Henderson house with the scent of a fresh lasagna. 

Bellies full and completed project sitting confidently on the kitchen table for tomorrow, they’re watching Star Wars movies in Dustin’s living room, one after another, and he feels just a touch like a traitor. Star Trek will always have his heart and Wayne can never know. 

“How’d you get into Star Wars anyways?” Eddie asks, sprawled across Dustin’s couch. 

“Can you believe Steve actually got me into them?” Dustin replies, curled up on the recliner. 

There’s an infinite number of ways a child might be introduced to the Star Wars franchise— a parent, a trailer before another movie, a carrier pigeon dropping a flier at their fucking feet— and they’re all more believable than Steve Harrington introducing Dustin Henderson to the sci-fi epic. 

“I’m sorry,” Eddie turns with wide eyes and a crooked grin to face Dustin. “What?”

“I know, right? It was uh, okay this is a little embarrassing.” Dustin cuts himself off, justifying some secret Eddie somehow hasn’t been told yet. 

He knows about the Mind Flayer and the Russians, and all the other Dungeons and Dragons lore that’d lived beneath his feet for years. What could possibly be left to make Dustin cringe like that? 

“Oh, do tell.” Eddie raises an eyebrow and gestures with an arm towards the expanse of space between them. “Floor is yours, young Bard. Spin the tale.”

Dustin rolls his eyes and throws popcorn at him. He tries to catch it in his mouth but he’s never been that coordinated. 

“It’s not really a tale. A few years ago, there was this school dance, the Snow Ball. I got all amped up, Steve helped with my hair, and then the night was a total fucking dud. Nancy danced with me which was like, super awesome of her, but I felt like shit after anyways.”

Eddie listens with rapt attention, pissed off that Dustin had such a relatable middle school experience and intrigued at this new sliver of Steve lore. Not that he cares. Obviously. Why would he? The idea of Steve helping Dustin get ready for the Snow Ball doesn’t conjure up words like adorable at all. 

He nods him on. 

“And uh, I called Steve the next day. He came over and we had pizza and he brought some of his favorite movies he thought I’d like. Star Wars had spaceships so obviously, easy choice. And here we are now with Return of the Jedi.” 

Okay, yep, that’s gonna be hard to tamp down the next time he sees Steve. Stomping his ill-advised crush into the ground beneath his Rebooks has been hard enough but now? Motherfucker. 

It’s also not lost on him that Dustin chose these movies today. Eddie feels like he’s stepping into some tradition that doesn’t belong to him, but he can’t squash the kid’s enthusiasm with his own insecurity. 

Instead, Eddie goes for the low hanging fruit.  

“Wow. Gotta tell you man, that’s maybe weirder than finding out about the monsters and shit. Steve’s favorite movie is Return of the Jedi?” 

Dustin snorts and laughs, toothless and free. Happiness isn’t new for Dustin, not anymore, but it’s still nice to see after all they’ve been through. 

“Well, that’s one of them. He always calls it ‘the ones with the teddy bears’, so people assume he means Return of the Jedi. But I know the truth. That dork loves Caravan of Courage.”

Eddie flips through his mental catalog of sci-fi movies and lands on a VHS cover: a couple of humans, a few Ewoks, and something that looks like a machine gun. If he remembers correctly, it has something of a cult following but wasn’t touted as a high point in the series. 

… And it’s Steve’s favorite. The one with the teddy bears. 

“Wait… what?!”

[wormswurld]

nerd!ollie x jock!felix ideas & hcs! 🌟

- felix plays lacrosse and obviously is the best player on the team,, always getting his team wins and taking them out to the pub to celebrate afterwards

- ollie is a science/anatomy major!!!!!!!!! my man is a true nerd: had a space themed bedroom as a kid, does math problems & puzzles in his free time,, the whole 9 yards!! ppl probably pay him to do their homework and write their essays for them (he “can’t” say no)

- their relationship dynamic gives introvert x extrovert, black cat x golden retriever, sun x moon trope if y’know what i mean

- since ollie is majoring in anatomy he really likes dissecting things….HES A FUCKING WEIRDO WHAT DO YOU EXPECT OKAY (always going to the lab to do his little freak boy experiments & to study etc etc)

- felix has the same personality he does in the movie but imagine if amped the fuck up since he’s a jock: loud (no matter the situation), touchy (definitely smacks his teammates ass, shoulders, scruffing up their hair out of excitement etc)

- all the girls at oxford pack the stands of felix’s games just to fawn over him and hope to get his attention so they can sleep with him

- ollie memorized felix’s schedule, dates of his games, probability of him going out to the pub outside of winning a game etc; when i tell you he is a grade A stalker i mean it!

- when ollie watches felix play he fantasizes about what his body and muscles look like moving under his jersey,, probably getting hard when he sees a sweaty felix yelling at his teammate to try harder

- ollie catches felix making out with a girl and this infuriates him so what does he do? give felix the wrong answers for an assignment so he fails as revenge,, but he doesn’t get off that easy because felix comes storming into his room cursing and pushing ollie up against a wall !! probably asking if ollie was jealous and that’s why he did it…maybe threatens to release a picture of ollie in a very compromising position (on his knees cum all over his face and glasses just the usual lol)

- felix probably teases ollie about how needy and weird he is, “you probably wanna smell my jersey huh? get off on it right?” nothing like some good old humiliation <3

- felix’s teammates picking up on felix spending more time with ollie instead of them so they corner ollie and beat him up and obviously felix “saves the day” by telling them to fuck off and helps tend to ollie’s wounds…that may or may not entail kissing the bruises on his face no homo™️ style

- ollie reading out loud to felix to prepare for a test and feix just touching up on ollie to see how hard he gets…loving the sound of ollie’s voice cracking as he reads and ultimately loses he place

- ollie likes “accidentally” running into felix after his practices once they get to know each other more so he can see how sweaty and out of breath he is after practice (it’s obvs turns him on)

- felix likes getting ollie plastered just so he can have even more of an excuse to walk ollie to his dorm and help him get ready for bed

- sometimes when they are blackout drunk they hump each other (felix oftentimes comes too fast and they both laugh it off)

i hope you enjoyed! here’s some pics of the boys i think fit the nerd! x jock! vibe 😇

@fuckingwoodfuckingpaneling the hcs have dropped!!!

[lost-in-lamentation]

hi! i am new in your account and i really loved your writings! * chef kisses * i was wondering if you could do some comfort fic for mc comforting a crying solomon and mc like uhhh hiding his face in the crook of their neck and pats him? thx🫶🏻

a/n: heheh hi anon ♡ one sad sorcerer, coming up!

content: this is an implied anxiety attack on solomon. just a lot of comfort from you to him.

warnings: solomon is a sad boi (again). it's a lot of physical comfort rather than verbal.

hurt/comfort. solomon × gen!reader (you/yours).

word count: 1.1k.

the sound of pen against paper echoed quietly throughout your room, accompanied by the occasional sigh and the sway of the music that played out from your d.d.d.. you sat at the table close to the foot of your bed, textbook open in front of you and flash cards fanned out in your hand as you cross referenced your notes. meanwhile, solomon sat cross legged on your bed while leaning against the wall, head in his hands as he tried to comprehend the extra work that the professor had given him. it was a pattern you had grown accustomed to; these after RAD study sessions with the sorcerer. but today, you couldn't shake the feeling that solomon looked more tired than he usually did. you snuck glances at him every so often, worry amping up when you realised he hadn't moved for the last 20 minutes. silently, you slid out of your seat, heading down to the kitchen to grab a snack and some water for the both of you. solomon still hadn't moved by the time you returned, and a part of you wondered if he had fallen asleep like that. 

"solomon," you called softly, sitting on the edge of the bed in front of him. "you should drink something. here, i brought water." concern gripped at your stomach when solomon made no move. "solomon," you said again, placing a hand on his knee this time. 

startled, solomon snatched your wrist and pulled it up, frantic eyes meeting yours. his mouth hung open briefly, incoherent stammers and cut off words unable to make their way out. "MC, i-" panicked, he released your hand. solomon dropped his gaze down to where his legs crossed. a few beats of silence later, solomon forced a laugh, subtly wiping the corners of his eyes. "sorry, i must have scared you," he struggled to keep his voice stable. "i should head home so you can get some real studying done." solomon pushed past you, never raising his face to look directly at yours. 

"wait, sol-" 

"i'll see you tomorrow at RAD, hm?" his head remained lowered. 

"solomon, just hang on a second," you pleaded, scrambling off the bed to catch him.

the witty sorcerer, quick as ever, slid away from your grasp, a feigned smile resting on his features. "i'll be excusing myself-" 

"solomon!" you shouted at him, voice bouncing off the walls. when he finally looked up at you, you saw the red that outlined his eyes. your heart fell, a mix of confusion and sadness infusing into your expression. exhaling a sigh, you reached for his arm, taking him by the elbow and leading him back to your bed. the mattress creaked under the added weight as you shuffled to lean back against the headboard. you kept your grip on solomon's arm just tight enough, pulling him to lay flight on top of you when you adjusted yourself comfortably. only when he resigned himself to you did you finally release his elbow from your hand. "you could have said something, you know," you stated, voice firm, but still soft around the edges. 

solomon didn't say anything in return, instead choosing to curl his fingers into your clothes and hold tight. if it weren't for the unspoken anxiety that solomon was battling, you would have enjoyed the way his head rested on your shoulder. 

"tired?" you asked through a whisper. 

the nodding of his head was barely noticeable. he was barely moving other than the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed. 

you sighed into his hair, legs wrapping around his and hands massaging the small of his back. "rest, then." you stole a glance at his face, just catching the way his eyes blurred with tears. holding solomon close, you brought him up just a bit higher so he could hide his face away against your skin. 

one tear fell first, and a second. before long, a full sob broke from his throat as he bowed his head into the crook of your neck. you rested your chin gently atop his temple, shielding him from the outside world. his hands tightened around the fabric of your shirt as he burrowed himself deeper into your touch, longing to be surrounded by you and only you. you drew him in even further, as far as you could, until his tears seeped into your clothes and marked your skin with sadness. solomon shuddered against you, his sobs tearing into his body. 

"breathe, solomon. i'm right here," you reassured him, taking one of his trembling hands in yours. slowly, you pried his clenched fist open so that you could slip your fingers in between his. when you did, solomon tightened his hold on you, gripping onto you like you were a lifeline; and you were. your other hand fell to his waist, rubbing circles ever so softly into his side while you waited for him to calm down. his tears changed from individual droplets to gradual streams as he let himself go. 

solomon hated this part of himself; the one that didn't know how to stop himself from completely shattering. but he knew another part of him wanted this, wanted to be stripped away of his walls and barriers and be laid bare, heart on his sleeve as he released an eternity's worth of emotions into the open. into you. 

he'd find another day to tell you everything, but for now, with your fingertips ghosting up and down his spine and your voice echoing the words he needed to hear, he rested, and he gave his whole being to you. 

you hugged him tightly when you felt his breathing begin to even out, pulling your head back to see if you could look at his face. "do you want to talk about it?" you prodded gently. 

"... not today, please," solomon whispered out, shutting his eyes. "just let me stay here." 

you hummed your approval, nuzzling onto the crown of his head. "take as long as you need. i'll be right here." 

the sorcerer gritted his teeth, desperate to stop the tears from overflowing once more. much to his disappointment, he could not, but perhaps this time, it was okay. after all, you were right there to catch them when they fell. you were always there to catch solomon when he fell. you had done it today, and you'd do it again in a heartbeat. solomon knew that, and at the thought, he smiled for the first time that day. 

and for the first time in a long while, solomon felt loved.

a/n: solomon gets the highest form of affection; putting him through pain and suff-

[susanhannifordcrowley]

Writing Tools: What Does Getting A Rejection Mean? By Susan Hanniford Crowley

[bippot]

Ooo can I please request an Adrian Chase/Vigilante x fem!innocent!reader where she is Peacemaker’s younger sister who’s in her early twenties. She hasn’t seen her brother since she was around 5 years old because her Mom took her far away from the horribleness that is Peacemaker’s Father, not wanting her to grow up around that awful environment that Peacemaker was forced to grow up in. Peacemaker wanted to find his baby sister after he was released, but he got wrapped up in Project Butterfly. The butterflies find out about Peacemaker’s sister and threaten to go after her, but Amanda Waller won’t let him leave to go make sure she’s safe, so he sends Vigilante to go get her before the butterflies can get to her and bring her back to the team so that she’ll be protected from the Butterflies. Vig showing up at her apartment, not even explaining who he is or why he’s there before just picking her up in his arms and throwing her in his car lmao (leave it to Vig not to explain why he’s basically abducting her), she’d be crying and hitting him, trying to get away and he’s just like, “Hey hey hey, I’m just saving your life!!”and attempting to calm her down, she eventually calms down and he (finally lmao) explains that her big brother sent him to keep her safe, because bad people are after her. They have to hide out for a while, so it takes them a few months to even get back to the 11th Street Kids HQ. In that time, the two of them get really close and start a romantic relationship (starting to fall in love), him protecting her along the way any time danger happens. When they get back to where the team is, Peacemaker and Y/n have a sweet reunion, and also he’s pretty angry at Vig when he catches the two of them kissing lol

Summary ~ Peacemaker's mother fled with her unborn child when Chris was a teenager. He'd always wanted to find his family again, but he was too slow. After annoying Waller, he must send his friends out to help save his family, and Adrian finds out that he is more than willing to throw himself into danger to ensure that Peace's sister is unharmed.

Additional Tags: Canon-Typical Violence, Post-Canon, Rescue Missions, On the Run, Enemies to Lovers, Fights, Car Chases, Car Accidents, Unexpected Visitors, Mild Sexual Content, Alien Invasion, Bad Parenting, Happy Ending, One Big Happy Family, Idiots in Love

Peacemaker, Adrian Chase Masterlist - here

August Smith had pretended to be a nice guy for the first couple of years that Annabelle had been married to him. He'd seemed like a gentleman when they first met. Yes, he held some old fashioned views but so did her father and he was a nice enough man, so Annabelle didn't have any worries about their relationship in the beginning.

It was when Keith was born when his rhetoric began to amp up. Back then Annabelle had chalked her husband's actions up to feeling misplaced because he'd been fired from his job and replaced by someone who was far better suited in that position - who happened to be born with black skin - and needed time to sort out his feelings. But, Chris was born a few years later and he was still spewing vitriol so she came to the realisation that this was who Auggie truly was.

The White Dragon appeared in Evergreen and anyone with a functioning brain cell knew who was behind the mask. There was one guy in town who was gathering a white evangelical cult and going to every protest or social issues discussion to act as abhorrent as they could. And Annabelle was married to that guy. At that point, she had her boys to think about. She wanted to leave her god awful husband in the dust, but didn't want her boys to take up his views and had to go along with what Auggie said or she'd be punished for it.

Keith and Chris were homeschooled for as long as Annabelle could convince Auggie to let her, which didn't take much arguing when she pretended that she was concerned with their boys coming into contact with 'unsavoury folk'. In all honesty, she knew that they deserved to be taught about right and wrong from their parents - Auggie taught them about wrong, so she would teach them about right - but eventually the cult got big enough that there were enough children to create a classroom.

Then, the curriculum was set by Auggie and Annabelle was replaced as the sole teacher by a racist radical. She still tried to guide her sons when they were at home - Keith, maybe due to his age, seemed more receptive to her preaching of kindness than Chris was - and had to make it very clear to her sons they should never repeat her lessons in front of their dad.

As the cult grew, so did the number of Auggie's wives. Annabelle no longer had to deal with whatever he wanted because he'd moved into a separate trailer where he'd be free to do whatever debauchery he pleased without being interrupted by his annoying sons.

When the boys were old enough, both of them preteens, Annabelle had decided to pack all their stuff and drive away with her children. Auggie must've caught wind of this or maybe it was just chance, but the date she'd set for their departure was the day Keith died. After that, all of her hope disappeared and she allowed herself to be trapped in the hellhole her husband had created.

Years passed. Chris became more violent. Auggie was building an army. Annabelle had given up on anything resembling a happy life outside their trailer. It was then that a glimmer of something appeared in her life - saying it was hope that appeared seemed too hopeful at the time - so Annabelle just referred to it as 'something'.

To give her one last shot at making him his heir, Auggie paid attention to Annabelle after ignoring her for so long - he'd been preoccupied with the other women of the cult who were younger and more radical for some time - but now, he was pretending to be the nice gentleman he'd been when they first met. She knew it wasn't true. He was manipulating her to get her pregnant. Yet, Annabelle was so tired and it was nice to live in that fantasy for a few months more, so there was a brief but blissful part of the late 90's in which August Smith didn't abuse his son or wife.

Obviously, once the White Dragon found out that the baby was a girl, he went back to being a piece of shit. Annabelle knew she was on thin ice. And she also knew that Auggie had killed people - so many people - before. She never would've guessed that he'd demand that their baby girl was to be 'discarded' as soon as she was born because he didn't want his followers to think his seed was weak enough to produce a girl and abortions were a sin (any good evangelical can tell you that). The second that came out of his mouth, she knew that this fire under her ass would cause her to flee.

And despite all of her pleading, Chris decided to stay with his father. He was almost 18 at that point, almost a man, and she knew there was no way he was going to be swayed at this point in time. Maybe when he grew up a bit would he finally realise that his father was an abusive, controlling bastard who needed to go to jail for the rest of his days.

14 weeks pregnant and completely alone, Annabelle took what little belongings she had, stole a bag of cash that she knew Auggie left under his bed, and hit the road, never to come back to Evergreen ever again. She changed her name, made her situation known to the police and witness protection services, kept off the Internet, stayed as low profile as possible and tried to give her daughter the life her son's deserved to get too.

Y/N knew all of that. Her mother had been very honest and up front about what the horror she'd escaped when Y/N was old enough, and the entire time, Y/N couldn't help but feel for her brother. He had to deal with that monster all alone and was turned into a weapon because of it. She had vowed that one day she'd meet him and offer a helping hand if he wanted one.

During the whole Butterfly thing, Peacemaker demanded that Economos needed to do him one small, tinsy winsy favour to get back in his good books. Because John had framed Auggie, John now had to discover where Annabelle Smith was as payment. Economos didn't find any paper trail on Annabelle's location, but he did find Y/N. She had school reports, college admission, job applications that all had been saved in a witness protection file that John certainly should not have had access to - obviously witness protection needed to up their security system - under the umbrella name of 'Dragon'.

The file had led him to another that had lots of information about Auggie and Chris that accompanied the two women. It was a simple deduction, but one that John felt really proud about. And just like Economos, the butterflies had people who were collecting data about Peacemaker. Since he'd become their downfall, they'd purposefully taken over a hacker that could get into witness protection just as quickly as John did. They had the same information to make deductions on.

There was a few Glan Tai like institution's around and as The 11th Street Kids made their way through another, Adebayo locked herself in a control room to escape from a horde and - later down the line - a bomb that Vigilante had stole from Peacemaker's belt because he wanted to see the huge jar the aliens kept their nectar in go boom. Whilst killing time, Leota had searched the room and found a file cabinet just under the computer desk that contained information about every member of their team and secrets the Butterflies had found out about them.

Weirdly - or not so weirdly because he rarely takes off his mask - Adrian's file was the shortest. It was a list of his crimes and, though it was a fairly long list, there wasn't a through line that could point to his identity.

Leota's was useless. The big secret they'd attributed to her was who her mother was and, yeah, she'd admitted that on national TV.

Economos had two restraining orders against him. He wasn't allowed to come 100 yards from both Joan Jett and Dolly Parton until they were lifted in 2012 and 2015 respectively.

Inside Harcourts were pictures of a very pretty, dainty young ballet dancer. It took Leota a few minutes to realise that the girl was Harcourt. These weren't damning on their own, but when they were paired with the paper clipping that said, 'The Sun. Ballet Bash - Young Immigrant Taken In For Questioning Over A String of 'Accidental' Deaths' and an article about many suspicious murders that had happened when Emila had been a student at The Royal Ballet School in Covent Gardens, London.

Peacemaker's file was a hefty one. There was so much documentation. About his prison time. About Corto Maltese. About the White Dragon. And the situation around the White Dragon's death. About the cult. About Keith. About what little they could find about Annabelle. About Y/N.

In the depths of her search, Adebayo didn't hear when the remaining butterflies were shot and Vigilante yelled on the other side of the door for her to come out. She had noticed that whoever had been on the computer last hadn't logged out and was getting video updates about where the girl from Peacemaker's file was. As clear as day, whoever this girl was, she was walking around a grocery store without a single clue that she was being watched by a bunch of aliens.

Another one of Peacemaker's bombs was detonated to blast through the control room door. Peace and Vigilante entered, guns drawn, and were prepared to save Adebayo from an alien weirdo. "Dude! You're not dying?" Vigilante called out after taking in the scene in front of him.

She ignored him and chose to ask, "Chris, who is this?" as she gestured to grocery shop girl. Both heroes rushed to catch a glimpse of what the hell Adebayo was pointing to.

"That's my sister." Chris held his finger up to his ear and clicked on the comms to declare, "Harcourt, tell Waller that I need a team to put my remaining family back in witness protection."

Waller wasn't one to be ordered around so was it any surprise that she declined the request for Y/N and Annabelle L/N to be found and placed in a safe house until further notice? And she forbade Peacemaker from making contact with his family to warn them in any way. The 11th Street Kids were ordered to do another sweep of the facility and head back to HQ as quickly as they could.

"Why are you freaking out?" Adrian questioned, bewildered that Peacemaker hadn't come to the same conclusion he had.

"I swear your head is filled with dogshit rather than actual functioning brain goo sometimes, asshole," Chris sighed, slumping against the van seats.

He'd always intended to make contact with his mother again. Chris had no idea whether she'd want that but it was worth a shot, right? Once Economos dug up the fact that he had a sister, Chris had promised himself that as soon as the butterflies were dealt with, he'd reintroduce himself to them. It seems that life has a way of messing with your plans.

"That's rude but I know you're going through some mental shit right now so I'm going pretend that you said something really complimentary to me, and for that, I thank you."

"Can you shut up for five fucking minutes? I need to think and your annoying bitchass voice is interrupting that!" Peacemaker stressed and let his head fall to his hands, his thumbs rubbing far too aggressive circles on his temples.

"Woah, all I was going to say was that Waller said you weren't allowed to go."

"Yeah, no shit, dumbass."

Adrian pulled off his visor and nudged his elbow into the meat of Chris' bicep, suggesting that, "She didn't say I couldn't go. Or Harcourt couldn't. Adebayo will probably get loads of shit from her mom if she did so she's out too. Economos is a pussy."

For once, the idiot had a good idea. "I get your sister. Harcourt gets your mummy. Badda bing, badda boom. You get what you want without disobeying Waller," he explained as if it should've been the first thing on everyone's minds. He looked at Chris expectantly with a smug expression plastered across his face.

Everyone was astonished. They were speechless until Harcourt confirmed from the passenger's seat, "That actually works."

"I'm a genius, yeah," Adrian preened, leaning back against the cool metal side of the van, only to jump away and complain, "Wow, that's really cold against the back of your head! It's not comfy at all!"

It was settled. Vigilante had come up with a plan and they were going to execute it. They'd get to HQ. Adebayo and Peacemaker would stay back and feed other Vigilante and Harcourt updates on the L/N's position so they could have plausible deniability if Waller looked into it as Economos set up the safe houses.

Darkness had arrived by the time everything was ready to go. Harcourt was very polite when she knocked on Peacemaker's mother's door at an ungodly hour and she explained the situation to Annabelle so swiftly that left her house without much fuss. Vigilante went down another route.

In the dead of night, he decided that the best course of action was to smash one of her windows in and climb through there. He stalked through her house in silence but took a misstep and caused the floorboard under his foot to squeak and reveal his position.

"GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HOUSE!"

A baseball bat came swinging around a corner and, if he didn't have such good reflexes, would've hit him in the head. He dodged it expertly and dropped his shoulder closer to the ground so he could rugby tackle her into the next room, which happened to be a bedroom. His shoulder connected with her collarbone, the momentum of the push sending them both plummeting onto her mattress with a bouncy thump.

"Sh...Shh...Don't yell at me!" He whined quietly as he tried to calm her down. It didn't work. She tried to wiggle her arm free from under him and take another swing, but he caught her by the wrist and disarmed her. "You're being so no cool right now."

"Get off me, you rapey motherfucker!"

He eased off her because, duh, he was a random man in a mask who'd broken into her house and tackled her onto a bed. He didn't think of the implications of that when he'd done it. "Oh shit, my bad."

"What are you doing in my house?" she demanded, pushing him off her and sitting herself up. Obviously, she didn't trust him one bit and had clocked where he'd thrown her bat and four other things in her room that could be used as impromptu weapons if need be.

"Hi, my name is Vigilante - no, that's not my real name."

"Yeah, no shit."

"Sorry about the, y'know, breaking and entering thing. I know a guy who can fix that window for you in no time. I'll give you his number when we're done with this whole thingamajig," he said so casually it made her even more suspicious.

She crossed her arms over her chest and gave him a look that screamed, 'what the fuck are you talking about?' so he felt the need to do more explaining. "You're being watched, by the way. Just so you know. I saw on the cameras that you bought a bunch of pads and tampons at the store today so I know what's going on down there, don't you worry. I'll be gentle," he admitted and even winked at her in an attempt to assure her that everything would be okay. It didn't. Y/N was fully convinced that he was a creep about to kidnap her for nefarious purposes.

Just as she lunged for her alarm clock to smash over his head, he caught her by the waist and hoisted her over his shoulder. No matter how much she punched and kicked him, he continued to march straight out the door and towards the Vigilante-mobile parked outside the house. None of her neighbours made any indication that they were aware something was going on, despite the fact a woman in pj's and fluffy socks was possibly being abducted right outside their windows.

"Put me down! Put me the fuck down!"

"Please stop making a scene! I'm trying to save your life and you're making that super difficult right now!"

Completely unfazed, he walked past the vehicle like nothing was happening, opened the back seat door and tossed Y/N inside before getting in the driver's seat. He turned to face her to warn, "You really should put your seatbelt on," and drove off to the coordinates John sent.

"Who is Economos?" she asked when John's caller ID popped up on Vigilante's phone in the car stand thingamabob. Vigilante pressed to answer the call and soon found out that it was a video call, the faces of Chris and Leota appearing on the screen.

"Is Y/N secure?" Chris greeted, his voice racked with worry.

"Yeah, she almost bludgeoned me with a baseball and kicked the shit out of me, but yeah. She's safe, I guess," Vigilante said, trying to sound nonchalant but failing. In the moment, he'd done a great job at pretending that her attacks hadn't hurt. They had. He'd definitely be littered in bruises tomorrow.

"Chris?" Y/N leant forward and got in between the gap in the front seats, her head emerging into view. "Hi, um, why did this masked guy just kidnap me?"

There was a brief moment where Chris just stared at the video call, his brain unable to process the fact his sister had just spoken to him for the first time in his entire life. Leota nudged him with her elbow, mouthing at him with wide eyes, obviously asking him if he was okay. "Hi?" Y/N repeated, waving at him and looking confused. "Can you guys hear me? Hello?"

"Hi sis," he managed to reply after a moment.

The smile tugging at the corners of his mouth made it apparent that despite everything, her brother must trust Vigilante enough that he knew she wasn't in any danger. Then, he realised that she was under the impression that she was being kidnapped and that smile faltered. Vig did say she tried to get away from him.

"Adrian, what the fuck did you do?"

"Dude, you know not to use my real name!"

"How did you approach Y/N's retrieval?" Adebayo cut in, preparing herself to calm Peacemaker down when he heard what Vigilante had done. She didn't know exactly - well, she had a guess - but she knew they hadn't had a quiet and peaceful introduction.

Y/N answered for Vigilante. "He smashed one of my windows in and I thought he was an intruder ready to assault me."

"Vij! I'm going to punch you in the dick when I see you next!"

"Hey, hey," Adrian interjected, "What did I do wrong?!"

"Speaking as a woman, that sounds really scary. I'm sorry he put you through that, Y/N," Leota apologised. "He means well but tends to not think things through. I doubt he intended it to happen in the way that it did. Still, Vig, you should really apologise."

Sheepishly, Vigilante rubbed the back of his neck. "Erm, yeah, sure, sorry. Sorry about that. I didn't mean to... That was an accident. Not intentional, I swear to God. I thought you'd be asleep and I'd carry you to my car without any fuss and, yeah, saying it loud makes me realise how fucked up it sounds," he thought out loud, his focus flitting between the road and what her reaction was.

When all she did was stare at him, unimpressed, he felt the need to continue speaking. He began to ramble, "I imagined it like falling asleep on the couch when you were a kid and then waking up in your bed because your dad carried you there, and like, you're not mad because there's this brief window of time where you thought you had teleportation powers. Who doesn't want superpowers? I know I do, man, but..."

His rant trailed off and a small silence fell between them as he struggled to find the words to express himself adequately. The only thing he could think of doing was repeating, "I really am sorry" again. This seemed to ease some of her worries. She crawled into the passenger's seat and crossed her legs underneath her in an attempt to get somewhat comfortable.

"Why is this happening?" she wondered aloud, grabbing the phone so she was in frame. Vigilante looked across at her as she reached across the console, his gaze lingering slightly longer than strictly necessary on the expanse of bare thighs that were visible thanks to her sleep shorts riding up. He coughed and averted his eyes, focusing instead on the street signs as the city lights flashed in front of them.

"Some alien assholes are trying to get revenge on me but they can't get to me, so the next best thing is to get to you and mom," Peacemaker responded bluntly, yet as the subject of Annabelle came up, his voice got quieter and a little smaller as he added, "How is mom? Well, I got Harcourt to bring her to a safe house so I know she's physically okay, but how is she, like, doing doing? Generally? I haven't had the chance to speak to her yet."

Not having the chance wasn't exactly right. He did have a window of opportunity to video call with Harcourt and his mother but had been nervously freaking out at the time. It had been years since he'd talked to his mom, and he was scared she'd be disappointed with who he'd become. Y/N had never known him when he was a nice, naive kid so she had no idea how unsatisfactory he'd grown to be.

"Mama's doing great actually. She got her doctorate in child psychology last month and she's been working on some new programs for the kids she helps out at the community centre and stuff. Our mommy is a doctor," Y/N told him, pride evident in her voice as she spoke about her mother.

Times had changed, it seemed, and Chris felt a pang in his chest that he hadn't witnessed Annabelle in all her doctoral glory. He didn't know her while she was the best version of herself, but he would eventually.

"Yeah, that's cool."

Their signal got all wobbly as they got further away from the city, the trees thickening as their surroundings grew increasingly wilder and more remote. "We're breaking up, Peace. I'll message you when we get to the house," Vigilante announced before hanging up abruptly, not bothering to ask for permission. He glanced at Y/N. "Me and Peacemaker are BFF's, by the way. I mean, yeah, sure if you ask him he'd definitely say that Eagly is his ultimate best friend - twin flame kinda shit - but I'm his human BFF who saved his ass a bunch of times."

Letting out a sigh, Y/N let out a hum as a response - because, honestly, that's all she had to give - and shifted in her seat to try and get comfortable. She tested out a few positions and found that taking off her cardigan to roll up as a pillow, demanding that Vigilante turn up the heating so she'd be toasty (he was absolutely sweating in his suit and mask but thought he better get on her good side), and resting against the door window with her legs bent at the knee resting on the cushion was the best option. Her foot occasionally dangled near enough the gearstick that Adrian had to swat at them every once in a while so he could change gear.

"Stop touching my feet, creep."

"Stop getting in the way then, weirdo."

A smile crept onto Adrian's face as she stretched to kick him in the thigh. He caught her ankle in his hand and held it there, unconsciously caressing her skin in slow back and forth motions with his thumb, causing her lips to quirk up ever so slightly. When he was sure she was comfortable with him touching her, he pulled her foot into his lap then reached to the same with the other.

"We've still an hour and a half to drive, get some shut eye. I promise I won't shatter any windows and wake you if you promise that you wont try to batter me with the headrest as I drive. Deal?"

Y/N nodded her agreement and settled down to sleep. In her head, Y/N thought over exactly what had happened to her in the past few hours as she drifted off. It was a lot to make sense of and even if she somehow figured out how to wrap her brain around the fact she'd been kidnapped by her brother's BFF on his orders because aliens that look like little beautiful bugs were trying to hunt her down, she would've been more vigilant, but strangely, she felt comfortable enough in her kidnapper's presence to kick her feet up and turn her consciousness off.

There might be a lot more to understand in the future but for now she was too tired to care.

Looking at her, you wouldn't be able to figure out that Y/N and Peacemaker were siblings just by their faces. They didn't look anything alike. Adrian thought that his buddy was a good looking dude, but he wasn't on Y/N's level of beauty. As she slept, Adrian had to refrain from staring at her so he'd focus on driving to, y'know, not make them into roadkill but it was like tearing your eyes away from a Van Gogh painting or a Greek statue made out of the most perfect marble ever created.

Although, she snored so loudly that he had to turn the radio up just a smidge so he would actually be able to hear the songs that were playing in the background.

They were almost at the safe house when whoever was behind them drove straight into the back of the Vigilante-mobile, which perked Y/N up in an instant and made Adrian yell so many profanities. "What the fuck is going on?!" Y/N snapped awake, any grogginess that she might have felt directly after waking was pushed aside by her sheer panic.

"They found us!" Vigilante said, his voice tight and tense as he fought to hold the car steady, "There's a gun in the glove compartment, do you know how to shoot?"

The car sped up to come up right beside the side of the Vigilante-mobile and veered to smash right into it, breaking the window in one bang. "My mother escaped a redneck cult headed by a super villain, so yeah, I know how to shoot," she quipped, opening the glove box to retrieve the gun. She clicked the safety off, aimed the gun towards the vehicle's tyres when squeezed the trigger with no trouble.

"Shoot the people! Shoot the fucking people, not the car! Shoot the fucking people!" screamed Vigilante frantically, his voice growing louder and higher with each word.

"I don't want to kill anyone!" she yelled, shooting another bullet into the back tyre. "Oh my god! Oh my god, I'm gonna die. We're gonna die. Holy sh-"

"Give me the gun, Y/N!"

Vigilante snatched the gun out of her hands roughly and fired at the driver without hesitation or mercy. The driver was killed instantly, causing its head to slump against the wheel and press his forehead against the horn. The butterfly in the passenger's seat made a move to grab the steering wheel, but Vigilante took another shot and put them down quickly.

With the car now unmanned, it continued on its path to collide with the Vigilante-mobile, swerved it off the road entirely and pushed it onto its side. The moment it came to a halt, Adrian was urging her out of the broken windscreen - yeah, he accidentally put his whole palm on her ass to push her in the right direction - and scrambled after her to escape the crash zone.

"Oh shit, my car!" Vigilante whined as he saw his precious Sebring destroyed beyond recognition in a matter of seconds, his heart racing and feeling extremely uneasy. "Fuck! RIP the Vigilante-mobile, you were the fucking best. I fingered Tracey from the Starbucks opposite the cinema twice in there!"

"Do cars blow up? Or is that just a movie thing?"

"Fuck, I don't know. We better run just in case. Shit shit shit!"

He picked Y/N up like he'd done previously that night, but unlike last time, she went willingly and didn't kick him at all this time. He started running as fast as they possibly could away from the scene of the ambush. Once he was a distance he believed was adequate away, he gently set Y/N down.

"You okay?" Vigilante asked worriedly.

She sighed and glanced down at herself. Some of the broken glass had cut parts of her skin that was showing, so anything under the sleeve of her t-shirt and below the hem of her shorts was littered with nicks of varying severities and sizes.

"I think this looks worse than it actually is," she suggested, holding her arms up to show the cuts on her forearms and making Adrian wince sympathetically. He tenderly placed his fingers on her elbow and turned her arm so he could examine them further.

"They hurt."

"Yeah."

"Okay, shit... lemme think for a minute."

Adrian rubbed his temple as he pondered over his options. He knew there was a first aid kit in the safe house, but where was it? He'd never been great with orienteering and getting places without Google maps, and he'd left his phone in the Vigilante-mobile. So, he could either lead Y/N through a forest even though he had literally no idea what direction to go in, or risk climbing back into the possible exploding car to have a guide.

"I'll be right back," he warned Y/N before he started heading back in the direction from which they came.

"What the fuck are you doing?" She followed after him, her gaze shifting nervously around the area as if she expected to be ambushed again any second.

"Gonna find my phone. It shouldn't take more than two minutes."

Like an idiot, he climbed back into the car to retrieve his phone, the gun, and the packet of Jolly Ranchers he usually kept in the cup holder but had flown to the dash when the car turned onto its side. He also wrestled with the boot in an effort to get it open because there was extra clothes and snacks stashed inside a gym bag in there, and eventually yanked it open out of pure brute force.

Once he got the goods, he was hurrying back to Y/N. "Do you want a Jolly Rancher?" he offered casually, brandishing the packet in front of him. The packet was squished in between them as she trapped him in a hug.

"What's going on here?" Adrian wondered as he peered down at her curiously. "Are you at the cryie, emotional stage of your period?"

"I'm not on my period. Women tend to buy sanitary products before their periods start. That is, unless they've still got some or forgot and left it too late so that's the instance when they buy them during."

"Ah," Adrian said, nodding in understanding although he didn't really understand. She hadn't explained why she was hugging him, but it still was nice of her to do so and gave him some kind of comfort after he'd risked his life for a mobile phone.

Oh! She thought the car was going to explode and that he was going to die in a big fiery bang while she stood helplessly by as her mind raced in circles, wondering if she was going to have to fend for herself.

"I'm okay," he reassured, patting her hair softly and a little awkwardly. This kind of concern was new to him, giving and receiving. His hand lingered near the back of her head as he stroked her locks in what he hoped was a soothing manner since he certainly noticed that she leaned forward until her head laid against his chest piece and was taking deep breaths to calm her nerves and relax herself in his embrace.

He didn't know whether to feel happy or scared that someone cared enough about him to worry about his well-being, so he settled for a mixture of both. "We should start walking to the cabin," he suggested quietly and cleared his throat as he pulled away to get enough space to rifle through the bag to pull out some warmer clothes for her to wear.

"It's getting cold and your clothes have shards of glass and blood on them and your shirt is a little ripped, so yeah, you should put these on. I'll, uh, I'll give you some space to do that." He walked backwards, putting a few steps between them as he turned away shyly. "Just tell me when you're all done."

If somebody had told her that she would be changing out of her bloodstained pj's and practically getting naked on the side of a remote road in the early hours of the morning, she would've laughed at them and gone on her merry way to buy tampons in preparation for next week when Aunty Flow arrived with an achy fury.

"Does that bag have any shoes in there?" she questioned once she was dressed and tapped him on the shoulder, signalling him to turn around.

"Uh, no. I guess not." They both diverted their gaze to her dirty fluffy socks and realised they'd be less than adequate when trekking through a patch of thorny forest and mud. "I could give you a piggyback?"

"You really jump at any opportunity you're given to carry me, huh?" she teased playfully. "I'll take it, thank you."

So, with Y/N on his back like Yoda on Luke, the pair delved deeper into the forest and followed the inconsistent Google maps directions until they finally reached the safe house. They made it to the front door to find it open and a police officer already standing outside, inspecting the scene.

"Is everything alright?" the man inquired, looking up at Adrian from underneath his brows.

Vigilante let Y/N's feet drop to the floor and pointed his gun at the officer. Why was he here? Why was he the only one here? This was supposed to be a top secret location, so why somebody here? Economos was the only other person who knew. Was this officer at the wrong place at the wrong time? Or had they been compromised? Shit, they'd been compromised. How else would the butterflies have known on what road their car was on?

The cop was dead before he reached for his gun. Adrian pulled the trigger, and he heard the satisfying click as it hit its mark, killing the butterfly instantly. The sound seemed to echo in the forest for a brief moment before stopping, leaving nothing behind but the dead body of the officer - which wasn't a great look, but hey, the pig had an alien in his head - lying lifeless on the ground.

Kicking the body out the way, he pulled her through the threshold. "We don't have much time. There should be a landline in here, I'll call. You find the first aid kit," he ordered. Y/N nodded and ran off towards the bathroom as she assumed that was where it would be while Adrian found the landline to make the call.

"Economos? Hello... hello! Are you there? Hello?!" Adrian squawked into the receiver, panicking when the call wasn't picked up. "Come on, dye beard! Come on, man, pick up the fucking phone!"

"I thought I told you guys to stop calling me that," John complained on the other line. "What's taken you guys so long?"

"We were hit off the road and our cabin had a butterfly waiting outside it."

John swore under his breath and could be heard calling for Harcourt to figure out what to do next but she wasn't there. She was at Annabelle's safe house - which actually was safe and there hadn't been any problems on their end at all - and would have to be called to get her opinion.

Peacemaker, who'd been asleep because he fully believed his family had been safe when he lay down on the couch, was startled awake at the sudden yelling and rushed to his feet to investigate the commotion. "What's going on?" he asked, rubbing at his eye with the back of his hand.

"Dude, Economos's safe house wasn't fucking safe at all!" Vigilante whined to his best buddy.

"Is my sister okay?"

"She's got some minor cuts and scrapes, but she's fine," Vigilante assured him before glancing over to see that Y/N had come out of the bathroom with a bright red suitcase that had a cross stitched in the corner in her hand. "We've got a bandages and stuff but our main problem right now is that the butterflies know where we are, so we need to get the fuck out of here. Any ideas, gang?"

Adebayo spoke up, "What about your car?"

"Totalled."

Some rustling outside caught their attention and Adrian was handing the receiver over to Y/N so he could go to check that out, taking his sword from his sheath as he walked. "Hi, Vigilante has gone to - I don't know - do something incredibly reckless, so hi, it's me talking to you now," Y/N greeted the others on the other line, nervously shifting her weight from foot to foot whilst keeping one eye on the window as she listened carefully.

"Yeah, he does that often," a male voice said. She knew it wasn't her brother's cause she knew what he and Adebayo sounded like thanks to their previous call, so this must be the one Vigilante named Economos. "You two have limited options, okay? We can't ask for backup or any additional means of transportation, but there should be a wad of cash in the jewellery box in the bedroom."

Y/N went to find that immediately and opened the top drawer of the jewellery box, finding the money neatly tucked inside it. It was only at that point she noticed that this safe house only had one bedroom - which kinda made sense as it's supposed to be small and inconspicuous - but she was a little conflicted about the fact she wouldn't get a 'there's only one bed, we'll have to share' romance cliche was the masked idiot.

"Okay, got it. What now?"

"There's a gas station about four miles down the road. Gather what you need. Pay in cash. Steal a car if it's possible. If it's not, there's a junkyard another two miles east of there that will probably have a working rust bucket or -"

Two shots rang out and thudded into the front door, interrupting Economos and causing Y/N to flinch involuntarily. Five seconds after that the phone line cut off and Vigilante was running in, yelling, "We've got to go now!" He grabbed her hand and began yanking her away from the cabin.

One more body was sprawled by the door - though this one had obviously been decapitated rather than shot that time - and another would hit the deck as the pair went to go around the side of the cabin and come across another butterfly. Once again, Vigilante was quick to draw his gun and shot at it, shooting the damn thing dead and sending it tumbling into the bushes nearby while Y/N watched, dumbfounded.

"You're really good at this!" she exclaimed when the last of the visible bugs were killed. He shrugged (his brain was going fucking wild and he was trying not to show it) and held his free hand out to help her step over part of a fallen tree.

It took them the rest of the morning to find the petrol station and, despite the fact he kept offering, Y/N declined when he offered to carry her. They had a lot of walking to do. It would slow him down, and therefore them down, if she was lazy and continued to be carried around like some damsel in distress - which, yeah, she technically was. She would have to deal with soggy socks that had so many rips and holes in them that she may as well have taken them off to venture into the forest barefoot.

As soon as they reached the gas station, they were both beelining for the bathroom, but since he hadn't surveyed the place yet, when Y/N went to close the door behind her, Adrian was barging his way in. "Hey!" she said far too loudly, so Vigilante pushed her further into the loo with his hand over her mouth.

"Quiet!" he whispered harshly. "There are other people here that can hear you."

"I'm not the one being suspicious! You just shoved a woman into a bathroom dressed in hockey pads and a ski mask, dumbass!" she hissed, yanking his wrist away from her face so she could speak properly.

His eyes widened comically for a second. "Yeah, it would probably make it harder for the butterflies to spot us if I wasn't in uniform," he mumbled sheepishly, scratching the back of his neck as he looked up at the ceiling. There was another set of clothes in the bag that he could use. "I'll clean your wounds and then I'll get changed, sound good?"

She made a face. What he said did sound good, but Y/N had some other things to take care of first. "I came in here because I need to pee."

"Okay, then pee." He turned away as he started to unzip the bag to pretend he was really thinking through his clothes choice - there was only one set of joggers and a black shirt, exactly the same as she'd gotten - and not watch her as she peed. He laughed to himself, "Go piss, girl."

Sat on the loo, Y/N reached out to swipe her hand under the automatic drier so the room wouldn't be filled with the sound of her pissing. Hey, everyone's gotta do it, but it's still awkward if that's the only sound bouncing off a gas station bathroom when you're stuck in there with a guy you met earlier that night. It wasn't her fault that his male anatomy meant that he was more than happy to take a break whilst they were in the woods to piss against a tree.

If she knew that hiking was on her agenda that night, she may have invested in a She-Wee.

"I'm, uh, I'm done," she squeaked once her bladder was dealt with. Her face scrunched slightly, but the embarrassment faded when she looked up to see the back of his head. The actual back of his head, showing off the hair that he'd been meaning to get cut because it was getting long enough that it was starting to curl again, and then he turned around slowly and she felt her heart rate spike.

They were staring straight into each other's eyes without any red pane in the way, neither backing down nor looking away, and Y/N couldn't help the smile that spread onto her lips as his lips parted and let out an involuntary breathy laugh.

"Um, hey."

"Hi." His voice seemed to crack, just a bit, and he cleared his throat before he tried again. "Hello."

"Hi," Y/N repeated quietly.

She could feel the heat rising to her cheeks, the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, and for a second she wondered if maybe she was dreaming - a really weird and violent dream - because this guy was so fucking cute. And hot. Like, super hot. Not just hot, but dorky hot too, with his adorable messy hair, and big, green eyes, the kind of jawline that could cut glass, and those lips.

"What's your name?"

"Adrian."

"Nice to finally meet you, Adrian."

In an instant, his face lit up as he heard his name come out of her mouth and he grinned from ear to ear, looking so relieved that his shoulders dropped down a bit, and the tenseness he'd been feeling about her seeing his face had been building up dissipated.

"I should, uh, y'know, start on your..." He trailed off but gestured to her wounds so she knew what he was trying to say.

"I think the ones on my arms are okay. There's a few on - on my - on my thighs that are, yeah, they're painful," she started, biting her lip before smiling softly, almost shyly.

"Can I see them?" She nodded but stayed perfectly still. "You'll have to... and I don't want you to get the wrong idea here; you're really pretty and, yes, if we were in a totally normal situation and I told you to take your sweatpants off, it would definitely be because I want to eat your pussy, but we're not in a sexy situation so it's for a complete different reason... and that reason is that you'll have to pull your sweatpants down so I can give you medical aid."

Without his mask on, Adrian lost whatever filter he may have had as he stared at her, his eyes wide, his breathing shallow, and it was obvious he couldn't believe that he was saying the words that were coming out of his mouth. He didn't want to offend her - god knows he doesn't want to offend anyone really - but the way she was looking at him like he was some kind of prince that had saved her from distress really made him nervous. He wasn't a prince, he knew that. He was a trigger happy imbecile with no immediate family and no prospects in life.

"Is... is that... is that okay?"

"Yeah, that's okay."

Y/N pulled down her sweatpants slowly, her face growing warmer with every inch of exposed skin exposed to the light, and as she sat herself down on the toilet lid, she braced herself for the moment the hot superhero dude put his hands all over her. He knelt between her knees and ran his fingers gently across the worst injuries first, his face screwing up in concentration. He paused momentarily to look at her thighs before moving on, making sure that her cuts hadn't got infected during their journey out here. Luckily, they hadn't.

Adrian was so gentle with her. It took her all her will not to cry because, fuck, it hurt like hell when he pressed a little too hard or moved a certain way, but she couldn't help it as tears pricked at her eyes, blurring her vision as he worked. When it became apparent to him that she was crying silently, he stopped altogether.

"Hey... hey, I know it feels so bad but you're fucking killing it. You're doing so good." He brushed the back of his hand along her cheek to wipe away some stray tears, leaning towards her and brushing a strand of hair out of her face that had fallen forward to cover one eye. "Just a few more for me, yeah? It'll be over so soon now."

Sniffing, Y/N nodded, hastily wiped at her eye and dealt with it. It was difficult not to squirm underneath his touch, but she managed it. When he was satisfied and gave her a thumbs up that everything was bandaged and cared for, Y/N thanked Adrian by giving him a sweet kiss on the cheek, which earned her an even bigger grin.

Then, it was her turn to look away as he got changed and she resisted the temptation to take a quick glance. That would be rude. He didn't take a peek when she got changed... Did he? She spent her time transferring the first aid kit into the gym bag so they wouldn't have to 1) have two bags, and 2) answer unnecessary questions about why they were carrying a bulletproof suitcase filled with bandages.

Obviously, it's not immediately suspicious to carry around a first aid kit, but it comes with the assumption that they had medical knowledge - neither of them had did - and that ensured that people could ask them questions that they'd have no idea how to answer.

They managed to leave the bathroom at the exact right time to see a drunk driver barrel into the gas station, park up and leave the ignition on as he went inside to buy a four pack of beer, slamming the door shut and giving them a perfect opportunity to steal his pick up.

"We're actually doing a good thing," Adrian reasoned as he drove away. "That asshole was drunk as a fucking skunk and it's, what, 8 am. He could've got in a serious accident and killed an innocent family of Mexicans on their school run."

"Is the fact that they're Mexican relevant in any way?"

"No, I don't know why I added that detail," he shrugged.

He kept checking the rear view mirror every now and again to make sure they weren't being followed as they got back on the road and headed towards the nearest populated area, where they could hopefully find a cheap motel to rent a night or two.

"Do you wanna switch? You've been awake all night. I can drive if you want a rest," Y/N offered, knowing full well how tired he must be after a long, strenuous night of car crashes, gun fights, fireman carrying her, and hiking through nature. Y/N had only done two of those and was feeling the exhaustion.

"Nah. I'm good." He flashed her another bright smile and patted her leg in reassurance. "Thank you, though."

Eventually, they came across a grimy and Bates Motel looking place and, although Y/N wanted nothing more than to sleep, she decided it was best that they check if there's a peephole in the shower. They'd find out that there wasn't one, thankfully.

It was just as dingy inside as it had been outside with its faded yellow paintwork, stained carpet and cheap looking furniture that were probably older than their entire lives combined. The whole motel had a creepy vibe but it was cheap and the receptionist didn't bat an eye when they didn't sign the motel ledger when they checked in. It seemed that they had to swap out comfort for their anonymity.

"One bed," he pointed out as they opened the door and stepped inside.

Ah, her 'there's only one bed, we'll have to share' romance cliche was back in full swing! Y/N smiled, shook her head, and placed a do not disturb sign on the handle before heading in behind him and setting the bag down next to the mini fridge. They stood idly at the foot of the bed for a while, not exactly sure where to go from there. They'd managed to survive long enough to earn a rest and, now it had arrived, neither of them knew what to do with themselves.

"Do you want to use the shower first?" Y/N suggested after about three minutes of silence.

"Sure."

"Shall I order takeout? I saw some menus downstairs that I could grab to see if they do lunch deliveries. Or something."

"On your own?"

It wasn't supposed to sound so patronising but it did, which made him cringe. He meant it as a 'remember aliens that look like ordinary people are after you so going out in public probably isn't the best' but his tone was far too condescending. He looked away, ashamed, and ran a hand through his hair in frustration. Shit, he didn't mean to sound that shitty.

"Fine! I'll sit down and - I dunno - read the fucking bible while you show off how competent you are! Wow, Adrian, do you want me to put in a good word for you with my brother? Maybe then he'll actually like you over his weird ass bird!" She stormed towards him and grabbed the front of his shirt, yanking him towards her until they were eye to eye, staring each other straight in the eye. "Don't treat me like I'm a fucking child."

The look in her eyes was terrifying - he could tell exactly who her father was at that moment - and he couldn't help but feel intimidated. Adrian had a gun in the back of his trousers and she was completely unarmed, why did he feel so threatened? She was smaller, weaker, more defenceless than he was, and yet there she stood, staring him dead in the eye without blinking, with a look in her eyes that told him he better apologise.

But, he didn't. Words wouldn't form. His brain was running wild and somehow devoid of any coherent thoughts, his tongue felt heavy in his mouth, then his focus flitted down to her lips, just for a moment, and then back up again.

"Look, do whatever you want. Shower/don't shower, I don't give a shit. I'm hungry so I'm going to find some way to acquire food and if I get murdered by a bunch of bugs, well, at least you don't have to play babysitter anymore," she said before turning on her heel and attempting to storm out. She didn't get far however; Adrian reached out and grabbed her arm to pull her against him roughly, grabbing hold of her waist, holding her firmly against his body.

For a split second, she froze up, surprised by his sudden display of strength, then attacked him with a kiss that sent both of them tumbling backwards onto the wall. Adrian's back hit an awful picture of Elvis onto the floor as he wrapped his arms tightly around her waist, lifted her, and pinned her to the exact spot where Mr Presley had been hanging.

"You're so annoying," she snarled as his mouth moved along her neck and sucked on a particularly sensitive part of skin, causing her to gasp sharply and arch her back. Her hand automatically curled up against the back of his head, gripping onto his hair.

"You're a spoiled brat," he countered with a growl as he threw his glasses off and dragged his nose down her collarbone until it was firmly in her cleavage, inhaling deeply as he let a soft sigh escape him. It was intoxicating; she had gotten under his skin, taken control of his heart and made it pound erratically in his chest. If she asked, he would do anything she asked of him without hesitation. Anything.

It took a lot out of him to fight the desire, to keep his emotions in check because he knew it wasn't going to go down well with his BFF, but Adrian couldn't help himself. In that moment, he wanted nothing more than to lose himself in the warmth of her body. All he wanted was for the both of them to forget everything else, for them to live in this moment forever, with her clinging on to him desperately like her life depended on it and his hands travelling everywhere they wanted to.

There was no time for restraint anymore. There was only lust. A primal urge to taste and touch her, taste her and touch her in ways that left her breathless, touched her like it was forbidden, like it would destroy his sanity if it wasn't allowed to.

In 3 big steps, he carried her to the bed and laid her down. Their lips reconnected, their tongues tangling together hungrily, desperate sounds escaping as Y/N yanked Adrian down on top of her and pulled at his clothes to get rid of them as fast as possible. She mumbled, "Take everything off," into his mouth and he did just that.

Adrian stripped down to his boxers as quickly as he could, then did the same for her - although his touch was a lot less frantic and heavy-handed so he didn't press down into her injuries - and just stared at her chest, drinking in the sight of her naked body underneath him.

His attention was so consuming that it caught her off guard. The intensity of his stare was overwhelming and she had no idea how to react to such intense scrutiny. "Stop acting like such a virgin," she complained (half-heartedly) as she propped herself up on her elbows. Despite her words, he could tell she was enjoying his gaze immensely.

"Geez, you really need me that bad, huh? We only met yesterday and you're already so impatient," Adrian teased against the shell of her ear. He nibbled on her ear lobe gently before moving his lips behind her ear directly on her mastoid bone and perching his butt down on her thighs. She rolled her eyes, her cheeks burning, and she averted her gaze bashfully.

And when he added a cocky, "Either you really like me or you're desperate. Maybe it's both," she was tempted to smack the grin off his face, but she refrained from doing so because it was hot. So damn hot. Y/N bit down on her lip to stop herself from insulting him further.

Any and all of her sharp tonguedness vanished as the tips of fingers mapped the contours of her chest, caressing and teasing and leaving goosebumps wherever they went. "What's got you all quiet? Don't tell me you've turned shy, Y/N."

"You're so hot, oh my god," she breathed, saying exactly what was on her mind.

All of his life, Adrian never considered himself to be hot. He'd been a butt baby for most of his existence and had only noticed an increase of romantic interest in him in the past couple of years. Thanks to Vigilante, he knew he was more muscular and well built than he had been but he was still the same big ol' nerd who'd spent his formative years getting picked on and berated for being weak and small and lacking confidence.

One of the hottest people he'd ever seen considered him to be hot? Well, that surely meant that he was hot. It was a fact. And did he need an ego boost l? To those who didn't really know him, absolutely not. To anyone that made the decision to see past the bumbling asshole facade, they knew he needed it desperately.

"Why don't you show me how much you like me? Huh, babe?"

Peacemaker wouldn't be happy that Vigilante banged his sister but, hey, Peacemaker wasn't there. And he certainly didn't need to know that halfway through, the hotel cleaner clearly missed the do not disturb sign and walked right in to find a guy she didn't know with a girl she didn't know on his lap. Judging by her face and the monotone way she said, "I'll come back later," she'd definitely been through that situation so many times before.

They let out a bunch of giggles as the door shut behind the maid, both laughing away the awkward tension of the unexpected voyeuristic incident. Y/N let her sweaty forehead fall to his temple and let out a snort that sent them tumbling into another batch of giggles. It took a few minutes of catching their breaths until Adrian spoke up, his voice laced with amusement.

"I like your laugh. It's very cute."

"Shut up," she retorted a little shyly and hid her coy smile by kissing him. It wasn't an effective concealment, though, because Adrian could feel the way her mouth was upturned against his.

"You wanna start moving again, baby, or do you want me to take over? Cause I think you should cum again," Adrian taunted, gripping onto hips to begin rocking them both back and forth gently.

There wasn't any other interruption this time. They enjoyed each other slowly, unhurriedly, languidly, and it was wonderful to let themselves be held and worshipped and savoured like that, without any expectations or restrictions. And once they were done and satisfied, they simply lay there together.

Y/N glanced to the side, her breath starting to calm, and asked, "Are you a hugger?"

"Not usually." He mimicked her and turned his head to make eye contact. "Are you?"

"Sometimes."

He gripped onto her biceps and tugged her into a hug. She responded instantly, wrapping her arms tightly around him as her cheek pressed itself flush against his shoulder.

"Sorry that I was mean earlier. The stress finally got to me, I guess," Y/N apologised, her words coming out a little muffled because her face was squished against his skin.

"Don't worry about it," Adrian said. "It was super hot."

Another batch of giggles ensued and then, at some point, they just stopped and fell into a daze. It wasn't quite a nap but they weren't fully aware either. They were just quietly existing in the space that they'd created for themselves, content and comfortable.

Sure, actually getting some sleep would've been better. Or showering. Or finding something to eat. But they'd been moving and thinking and planning every single single moment for the past 15 hours and needed a moment to just be.

That was until Adrian's phone buzzed. It was at 7% and they were surprised it was still going strong. "Can you read this for me? I don't know where my glasses are," Adrian requested, handing Y/N his phone which had been resting on the nightstand beside him. He scooted slightly closer and watched as she took over reading it, a frown settling deep between her brows as she read the words aloud.

Unknown: HQ compromised. Stay on the road until further notice. JE will contact you with updates when we have them.

- LA

It took Adrian a while to remember who the initials related to - to make it easy, couldn't Leota have just said her and Economos' names? - and he could see Y/N working out what her life was going to be like for the next however long. She had a job, friends, and obligations she'd made time for that were being pushed to the side because of her brother that she'd never met before. She had no idea what was waiting ahead of her.

Hell, Y/N had no clue if Chris was still alive. What about her mother? How long would it be until they were reunited? Adrian could see the gears turning in her head as she tried to figure out all of the possible outcomes and he wished he could give her something to ease her pain. Even briefly.

"Hey, looks like you'll have to find a way to deal with me for a bit longer," he announced, looking at her mischievously as he started stroking his hand along her bare hip in slow circles.

"Oh no, how will I ever do that?" she replied sarcastically and gave him a fake frown.

"Looks like I'm just gonna have to find a way to keep you entertained," he continued, leaning down and brushing his lips against hers tenderly. Her eyes fluttered closed and she leaned into his touch, allowing him to deepen the kiss and deepen it even further until it became feverish and passionate yet sweet and caring all at once.

From that point, they were inseparable - partly for survival, partly for their need to constantly be touching each other - and spent the next couple of months bouncing from state to state, city to city, gas station to gas station.

Their first move was to get as much possible of their bank account in physical cash so they took the maximum allowed from ATM's whenever they could. Obviously they were leaving a trail of where they'd been but the wad Economos had left in the safe house wasn't enough to sustain them.

They'd used half of it to buy a banged up minivan that someone had turned into a camper, but they still needed food and clothes and fuel and a charging cable for Adrian's phone.

Neither of them had been particularly well off before this - Y/N was still living with her mother, who at the time of her kidnap had been away on a job interview in the neighbouring state, and Adrian was a busboy that spent a lot of money on weapons - so that money was running out too.

Life in the camper wasn't so bad. It was cramped and tiny, sure, but it was warm and comfy, and it was far easier to flee from suspected butterflies in a house on wheels than have to decide whether to leave all their stuff in some random hotel or take the risk to attempt to retrieve it.

Still, when another update came in, they were more than ready to read it and get back to 'normal' life.

"Darling, your phone just went off," Y/N called out from inside their van, heating up their food from the night before on a tabletop skillet. Adrian was by the creek they'd parked next to, washing blood and dirt from their clothes after their most recent run in with the butterflies, and the moment he heard her, he let a pair of his underwear accidentally drift downstream as he walked away.

On his way to read it, he mumbled, "Smells good, babe. I'm so hungry," and pressed a kiss to her forehead as he passed Y/N, who smiled up at him in a way that made him feel like the most loved man in the world, and was a little confused at first before he realised Economos had sent him coordinates.

He was pushing his hand in her field of vision as soon as he googled where the location was, interrupting her as she was about to give their noodles a mix. Y/N made a surprised face and grabbed the phone to make sure she was reading the screen correctly. "Evergreen? Do you think that means that this is all over?" she asked, a hint of excitement and nervousness in her voice.

Adrian smiled and wrapped his arms around her from behind, his nose poking into her cheek as he confirmed, "I think it means we should start the long drive home."

Y/N smiled and leaned her head back against his chest as she took a deep breath. "Let's eat then get moving," she concluded, laughing when he attacked her cheek with so many excited kisses.

They ate, they got ready, and then they drove. It took them a few days to get back to Washington and Economos' coordinates led them straight to Adrian's house. It seemed that Chris, Leota and Keeya, John, and Emilia had been using his home - without permission but he honestly didn't care - as a base for the past month or so because they'd run out of weapons and thought, 'Where would there be a bunch of unattended weapons that they could use without repercussions for stealing' and Chris remembered the time his buddy showed him his gun collection.

Harcourt and Annabelle had a relatively easy time. Their safe house hadn't been discovered at all in the mess and they only found out something was wrong when John called Emilia for advice about what to do. With the assurance that Annabelle would be fine on her own, Emilia joined her squad to come up with a plan that would wipe out the rest of the butterflies.

And then they managed to find out about a meeting of all of the remaining butterflies and planted a bomb. Completely wiping out an entire race didn't feel great, but they'd been a thorn in the 11th Street Kids side for long enough that that feeling was replaced by a sigh of relief. A 'thank fuck that's over' kind of deal.

Before Y/N had even gotten out of the car, her mother was running out of the Chase home. Annabelle pulled open the passenger's side door and yanked Y/N into a hug. "I'm so glad you're okay, sweetpea! You are okay, aren't you?" she gushed, tears in her eyes as she examined Y/N's face.

"I'm okay, mama," Y/N said, laughing a little. "I've been so worried about you."

"I know, and I've been worried about you too. I whooped your brother and his friend's asses for taking so long to deal with those bug things!"

Peacemaker emerged from the house and Vigilante yelled out a very excited, "Peace! How are you, man?"

"Surprised that a dumbass like you survived!" Peacemaker responded, grinning from ear to ear as he looked at Vigilante. It was obviously still Adrian, but he'd grown his hair out a bit, had a five o'clock shadow, and looked the exact amount of tired you'd assume someone would be if they'd spent months sleeping in their car. "You look like shit, dude."

"Chris!" Both women complained. Annabelle reprimanded, "That is not a very nice thing to say to someone!" while Y/N chose to go with, "I think you look very handsome, babe!"

Then, both mother and son turned to face Y/N and exclaimed, "Babe?!" in shock. Chris was horrified. Annabelle, the opposite - she didn't know the guy but he was her good books for protecting Y/N as well as he had. This hadn't gone exactly the way Y/N thought it would. Honestly, she hadn't really planned anything about how she was going to casually bring up the fact that she'd started a relationship with Adrian, but it definitely wasn't going to be like this.

"Hi," Adrian said, awkwardly, as his BFF and his girlfriend's mother stared at him like he was an alien life form. "Uh... hello."

"Dude! Did I say you could date my sister?"

"No! But you didn't say I couldn't! There were no rules like that!" Adrian turned to Y/N so she'd know that he hadn't accidentally duped her into a 'forbidden' relationship and he repeated, "There were no rules!"

Closing the gap, Y/N comforted her boyfriend with a side hug, a soft "Yeah, I know," and a gentle pat on the chest. "Why don't you show me inside your home, Ade? We've been in the van for so long, I think I'd like to have one night in a normal bed." She then playfully added, "You've got that, don't you?"

Adrian grinned. "Yeah, I've got that."

The pair walked inside to find that his living room had been turned into a technology den of screens and drones and weapons - although those had been there before - and Adrian almost didn't recognise his childhood home. And he definitely didn't recognise the dogs that were running all over the place.

"You have chihuahuas?" Y/N asked, in some surprise.

"No, I'm more of a cat person."

"They're mine!" Adebayo announced as she came in from the kitchen, another dog under her arm. "Sorry! Sorry, I thought Keeya would've picked them up by now. We were all staying here together, me and my wife, John, Chris and Emilia, and -"

"You guys had a sleepover at my house without me being here? That's SO not cool!" Adrian whined.

1) His only friends hung out without him. That sucks. And 2) They did their group slumber party in the very place he owned and lived. That majorly sucks.

"You were literally on the run!" Economos retorted. "And we often thought you were dead!"

"So you decided to steal my house from me?!"

Harcourt gave Vigilante one look, just one, and he stopped whatever he was about to say next. Y/N saw how terrified he was of his boss and part of her was prepared to stand up for her man (despite the fact he was slightly overreacting), but yeah, Y/N had to admit that Harcourt was a little scary and she had mad respect for that.

Everything else that night was smooth sailing. As a big group, they let Annabelle make her signature baked Sausage and cheese rigatoni, and every member of the team ate until they were stuffed and only had enough movement in them to make it to the couch, where they crowded around the TV to watch a bad movie.

There weren't enough seats. Keeya sat on Leota. Y/N on Adrian. Annabelle and Economos a safe distance away from each other on the couch. Chris was sitting on a lazy boy off to the right with Emilia on the floor between his legs. And Peacemaker thought he was being so subtle and slick about playing with the ends of Harcourt's hair, running his fingers through the strands before glancing around every now and then to see if anyone had noticed.

As the movie played on, Y/N dozed off with her temple against Adrian's. She only began to stir when she felt the sensation of being lifted from the couch, and her eyes slowly opened to see that Adrian was making his way up the stairs.

"Are you carrying me to bed?"

"Uh-huh, like my pop used to do for me."

"You're so cute," she slurred, her voice so groggy she wondered how coherent it was to his ears. "You're so cute and so strong."

"Anything else about me that you like?" He urged, hoping that she'd reveal everything because of how sleepy she was.

"I like your smile. It's big."

"Yeah, anything else?"

"I like how you go out of your way to make me laugh."

"I do love your laugh."

"Yeah, well, I love you."

He froze mid-step, an overwhelming giddiness sweeping over him. He'd never expected to even be in this position. He had a girlfriend. And she just professed her love for him! This was better than winning the lottery. Better than finding a huge mob of criminals to shoot in the dick! He loved her too. He was so happy!

"I'll say it back when you're fully awake tomorrow," he whispered before letting Y/N slip onto the bed. She was tugging him down with her, trying to force his body on top of hers.

"Say it," she insisted, pouting like she did whenever she wanted him to give in to her. "Darling, I'd love to hear you say it. Pretty please. Don't tease - " She yawned again. "Don't tease me with this, baby."

"I love you," he said, rolling over and pinning her under him. Adrian grinned down at her, unable to stop the glee from pouring through every pore in his body.

Her forefinger came up to trace his mouth. "Big smile," Y/N yawned out, before moving to get under the covers. "Big bed too."

Adrian laughed as he stretched out beside her, propping himself up on one elbow to watch her as she fell back to sleep. "How'd I get so lucky, huh?" he mumbled to himself.

"When did you get so sappy, asshole?" Chris suddenly said from the bedroom door.

"Shh....she's sleeping."

"Oh my god, you're totally pussy whipped!"

"What are you even doing up here? You saw me coming up here?"

"Economos stunk up the first floor bathroom so I came up here to, y'know, not smell his shit."

"Jesus Christ."

In her sleep, Y/N shifted closer to Adrian, pressing against his chest. He stroked her hair, feeling her strands between his fingers, and he continued to watch her, his eyes tracing every line and curve of her face.

"This is so fucking gross to see," Chris muttered.

"Leave then!" At his raised voice, Y/N stirred. "Sorry. It's okay. It's okay, just go back to sleep," he said, stroking her hair some more.

Vigilante just asked Peacemaker to leave? In what crazy world had they jumped to? Before all this, Vig would do whatever he could to be around Peace for as long as he could. Now? Adrian's idolisation had dampened a little. He'd come to realise that there were other people out there, other people who were willing to be nice and kind and apologise to him, and that he didn't have to put up with all the insults Chris threw his way.

That wasn't a way to have any relationship, friendship or something more, and having Y/N in his life had given him a sense of 'yeah, I'm better than that' that he wasn't going to drop just because his BFF was back in the picture. Plus, he always had the 'I'm banging your sister' card in his back pocket to use whenever Chris got too vulgar.

"You two are really serious then?" Chris asked, his voice a little quieter so he didn't wake his sibling.

"I'd buy a ring if I had the money."

Chris' eyes widened. "You serious?"

"Yeah."

"Ew, I don't want you as my brother in law."

Coming up behind him, Annabelle placed a hand on her son's shoulder. "Hey pumpkin, let your sister sleep in peace, yeah?" She cooed and guided Chris away from the doorway.

Despite his muscles and big stature, Chris seemed to shrink back into a little kid when his mother interacted with him. It always amazed Adrian how much of a pushover he could be. In a small voice, Chris said, "Okay, mama. I will," and went back downstairs without arguing.

"Goodnight, Adrian. Watch over her for me?"

"Always will, Mrs L/N."

"I know you will."

Annabelle left the couple to snooze in peace. And they snoozed for longer than they had done in ages. There was no danger. No need to get up quick and flee. No knocking on the van windows to say 'you can't park here'. Nothing but peace and quiet and the quiet sounds of a house full of sleeping friends and family.

[thetrashbinseries]

— Fahrenheit Part Two ( bangchan x reader )

rated - mature | minors dni

parts - one, two, three

warnings - idol universe, name changed idols, mature themes, drug use, alcohol use, sexual themes, mentions of mental illness, slight angst, explicit smut, 'daddy' and 'babygirl' petnames, light spanking, heated physical domestic argument

x x x

Jake shot me a text as soon as he touched down in his hotel, leaving me to navigate the aftermath of our little gathering solo. I silently cleaned up the traces of the night, letting my thoughts swirl in the quiet aftermath. Shouldn't I be on cloud nine? Chris, I assumed, had already landed by now, maybe snagging his stuff from the baggage claim. Why the resistance to me picking him up? Couldn't he save some cash and avoid those Uber headaches? As I mulled over Jake's words from our earlier chat, a wave of guilt washed over me. If someone messed with my career, I'd probably cut ties too. 

But did it have to be face-to-face? 

Suddenly, two knocks jarred me, throwing my dogs into their usual frenzy of barks. Now? It felt too soon, like breaking a speed record from airport to doorstep, factoring in landing, baggage, and Uber waits. My motion light, unnoticed until now, flickered on as I was lost in thought. My palms got a little clammy as I fished out my phone, checking for messages from a friend dropping by. But all my friends were back in my hometown. 

Unscheduled visits are a rarity out here, that’s part of the reason why I picked such an isolated home. 

Scrolling through my phone, the doorbell rang out, setting my pets into a louder commotion. Activating the security camera app, I saw Chris on the screen—dark hoodie, black beanie, and chill gray sweats. Hands in his pockets, a visible exhale, like he'd been holding his breath. Just one piece of luggage, small enough to be a carryon. Skipping baggage claim altogether, I guessed. 

Maybe he didn't want to risk airport paparazzi, but at this hour, it'd be a ghost town anyway. 

I unlocked the door, slower than planned, giving it a cautious swing open. Stepping back, I left room for him to enter, the question of how to react buzzing in my head. Hug him? Kiss him? Do a little happy dance? God this is awkward. Chris sniffed, a hint of red on his nose, and began shedding his shoes and beanie, shaking out his curly hair. He looked wiped, but it had been ages since I'd seen him without the makeup mask.    His eyes told the tale of tiredness, the faint shadow under barely-there brows, and the shifts in his skin tone—all untouched by the glam squad. Even a touch of facial hair peeked through, a secret sign of the real guy behind the polished pretty boy image, something he religiously stayed on top of. All the things that make him very human.  The things not many people get to see. 

"What changed?" I threw the question at him, arms crossed in the entryway. Our eyes connected for the first time since he rolled in. I caught a flicker in his right eye, a giveaway of stress and insomnia. His tongue darted out to moisten his lips, a nervous move, just enough to reveal a hint of his dimple near his mouth's corner. 

Undeterred, I pressed on, "Channie—" 

His eyebrows pulled together instinctively, a tough look in his eyes. "Don't call me that," he shot back, a stern expression etched on his face. 

Frustration bubbled up, my voice amped up involuntarily, control slipping away. 

"What the fuck is your problem? What? Did you catch a red-eye just to come argue with me?" 

"Yes! I caught a red-eye fucking flight to—"    Chris cut himself off mid-sentence, sucking in air sharply through his teeth, muttering something under his breath in Korean. He ran his hand down his face, eyes closed, releasing a breath before locking eyes with me again. The anger lingered, but it was transforming into something I couldn't quite put my finger on. 

I could feel hot tears threatening, but I held them back, jaw clenched, nostrils flaring, refusing to show any weakness. Was this the end? 

"Of course, I hopped on a flight to have it out with you. Isn't that what you wanted?"    “Don’t you gaslight me Christopher Bang, I’m not your little fucking fans–” 

He looked exasperated, hands out, "What do my fans have to do with this?! You said it's simple, am I coming or not? I'm here, just like you wanted, because it's all about you, isn't it?" 

I turned away, striding off, the red haze building within me. I wanted to lay into him for talking out the side of his neck like this, but I wouldn't stoop to that level. His voice echoed down the hall. 

"Yeah, walk away. It's your specialty—running away." 

I halted, closing my eyes, back turned to him, grappling with the urge. I fought it hard; he was on the brink of hitting below the belt. Logic eluded me at this moment. 

"I'm going to smoke before I physically violate you." 

Attempting to walk away again, his footsteps echoed behind me. Chris wasn't the type to follow for an argument—that was typically my role. I expected him to detour to the kitchen for a drink or something, anything other than what he actually did. His hand seized my forearm, yanking me hard enough to turn me three-quarters around. I saw red, wind knocked out of me as my back slammed into the wall, caged between his big, loud hands thudding against the wall beside my head. A flinch—a moment of confusion. Had he struck me? 

Quickly assessing, no parts of my body ached except between my shoulder blades from the impact. 

Breathing heavier than anticipated, Chris mirrored the sentiment. 

"Physically violate me, then," he uttered, his voice dangerously low, just above a whisper. My body was confused, my brain a tangled mess. His intense gaze bore into my face, forcing me to look away. He tilted his head, compelling eye contact once more. 

"It's not rocket science, Y/N." 

The phrase echoed from our earlier phone argument, reigniting my hostility. I raised my head, meeting his eyes with a narrowed gaze. "I hate you," I snarled, trying to slip underneath his arm to free myself. Chris wasn't having it; he gripped my wrist behind my back, pressing my chest against the wall. His muscular frame kept me in place, his chest against my back. I twisted my wrist, but he tightened his hold. His breath grazed my shoulder, his words so close to my ear it felt like he was feeding them straight into my brain. 

"I hate you too, baby," he murmured. His free hand ghosted the tendrils of hair that had escaped my messy ponytail, tender and gentle unlike the firm grip on my wrist. As his fingers swept the hair away, soft lips pressed against my skin, eliciting a sigh from my lips. Each kiss left thorns of heat, moving along my neck, down to my shoulder. 

"I hate you," I repeated, losing my edge. 

"Mmm, shut up—I know," Chris replied.    Finally, he releases me, his hands finding their way to my waist beneath my baggy sweatshirt. Despite being in my home for a few minutes, his touch is still cold against my warmed skin. I feel a shiver as my nipples harden, and he seems to sense it, cupping them, squeezing. My knees almost buckle as I lean back, my head perfectly resting on his shoulder. Our bodies intertwine, fitting together like a perfect puzzle piece. His fingers pinch the pebbled flesh, drawing a moan from me and an audible sigh from him. 

He wraps an arm around my waist, pulling me closer, and I can feel his hardness against my backside. It's not a gradual thing; he's already rock stiff, hips grinding into me as his hands explore my body with a passionate messiness. 

What were we arguing about again?    Lust swirls, making me dizzy with how good my body feels. My eyes lose focus and regain it with every recovery breath as he squeezes at the extra padding on my hips and waist. No part of my body goes untouched, and I try to shake off my reservations.     No, that was a hang-up of mine.    Christopher Bang is here to touch, lick, and squeeze every inch that belongs to him. 

A tap on my hip brings me back to reality—a gentle reminder between us whenever things heat up in unconventional places. 

Against-the-wall activities are actually pretty uncomfortable in real life. 

Who knew? 

He takes my hand, and I follow him like an excited puppy, almost stumbling over myself to reach his body once we get to the couch. It's my turn now; my hands have a mind of their own too, you know. 

Such a soft face without makeup, I'd almost forgotten the hardness of his body—had it become even more solid? My hands run over his abdomen, feeling something different—less lean, more meaty. Usually, I go straight for what's mine, but now I'm curious. Gripping the bottom of his hoodie, I can sense the muscle shirt underneath, so I yank them both off, the scent of his body wash, cologne, and deodorant hitting me all at once, etching the experience into my mind on nearly every sensory level, except for... 

Taste. 

As his clothes drop to the floor with a muffled thud on the carpet, he turns to face me. His skin is less milky, more sandy tan, and wheat-colored under my warm lights, unlike the artificial ones he's usually bathed in. He must've soaked up the sun in LA, and I can still see it reddening in the places where blood has surged the quickest. 

He's completely under the spell of carnal sensuality—deep in the well, unable to see anything around him, becoming the parts of himself he wouldn't dare confront in the daylight. I notice because I pay attention to things like that—I see the way he looks at me, as if I'm his most treasured plaything. His mannerisms change, slower, with certainty in every touch. He says things you wouldn't dare repeat once he's back to his Earth self, lest he deny, deny, deny, laughing loudly overtop of you, or cringing away from embarrassment. 

Yes, as I drop slowly to my knees, watching him, I see the way he stands in his masculinity, divine, a god in his own right. Just when I think the moment can't get any hotter or I might combust, I hear him—a puff of air through his nose, a lazy, almost entertained, but not quite—chuckle. His lip quirks ever so slightly upwards. 

"You hate me?" 

Heat radiates from my body; I'm certain I'm letting off steam at this point. I feel it, especially in my face, fingers wrapped in the waistband of his sweatpants, hanging loosely as I look down, unable to maintain eye contact, feeling regret building up in me. I can tell by the way he says it that he never believed it—but still... 

"I didn't think so," Chris' voice answers the unspoken questions in my head. His fingers graze the bottom of my chin, urging me to look at him. "Look at me while you do it." 

My engine roars to life without hesitation. I tighten my grip on his sweats, yanking them down with determination. He kicks them off, backing up to sit on the couch, but I'm not waiting. I take the caramel-colored, thick head of his dick between my lips, halting his retreat. The sweetness of his precum floods my mouth, turning bitter as it reaches the back of my tongue and throat. Flattening my tongue against the bottom of his girthy shaft, I open my mouth, letting him rub his sensitive, unsheathed tip against the warm, back wall of my throat. 

Obediently watching him. 

He likes that, making it clear by placing his hand on the back of my head, urging me to stay while he thrusts further, pulling out just a centimeter to plunge into my throat. Small gasps escape his lips every time my gag reflex spasms around him. I run out of breath, choking backward, and he lifts his hand, allowing me to right myself. 

"C'mon, babygirl—thaaaat's it—fuck." Chris grips what's left of my ponytail, guiding me back onto his dick, all the way to the back, with no true mercy. A few more tiny thrusts, and I'm coughing again, my mouth and jaw drenched with slippery saliva mixed with the constant ooze of his precum. He glances behind him, ensuring his seating, then lets himself fall back onto the couch, hand tangled in my thick hair as I wrap both hands around his cock—a pretty, deep brown, a stark contrast to his body tone. 

When I start focusing on stroking his sensitive tip, he drops his head back, emitting the most delicious groan. Pulling back on his sheath, dribbling spit onto his tip, I begin jerking him again, taking advantage of the smoothness the extra skin provides. I follow with my mouth, taking in whatever my hands can't reach, and when I start with the suction, another groan escapes him—this time, broken, his hips rising a little off the couch, encouraging me to keep going. 

"Oh God—that feels fucking—incredible; don't you—fucking stop."    His chest moves with each gasp as I twirl my hand a certain way. I try to stay consistent, but it's been a while, and my neck strains from the bobbing, lips growing numb. But fuck, he's so hot; I don't wanna stop. 

I engage in a slow rhythm, savoring the silky feeling of his dickhead against my swollen mouth and eager lips, pressing loud, wet kisses against it. He's lifted his gaze to watch, and I seize the opportunity to run my tongue along his length, exploring the prominent ridge beneath. 

"Oh my God—" His head drops back, words and vowels drawn out in ecstasy. 

I lean back on my heels, hands taking charge, a twist here, a firm grasp there. When I lean forward and start slurping again, with all intentions of taking this man’s soul—his hips withdraw, and he halts me with a breathless, "Fuck," sounding like he just finished a sprint. "You almost made me cum," He taps my shoulder twice, a signal we both understand, prompting another switch in our silent dance. 

I’m more than happy to obey, feeling how wet I’ve become when he pulls my sweats off as I climb onto the couch on my knees, my arms resting on the head of it that rests against the wall.   I can feel his hands, now warm, even hot almost against my ass as he spreads me open.  I curl my fingers into the couch with anticipation, and then comes the feeling of both of his fingers entering me first.  I let out an eager moan, reveling in the relief and satisfaction of being touched by someone so skillfully.  He’s curling two fingers, stroking my spot, I can feel his pinky and index splayed against my juicy, wet pussy lips.  The filthy sounds amplify as he increases the pressure, prompting me to move against his touch, the base of his hand firmly against my asshole. 

“Mmm, baby, you know how much daddy loves to eat this pretty little cunt—but the way you’re clenching around my fingers, fuck I—I gotta feel you.”  Chris slows down, he speaks again, reminding me of his proposition, “Is that alright babygirl? Hm? Can daddy fuck you now?” 

“Mhm, Mhm!” I can’t think straight, why was he asking? Of course he could fuck me ten ways from Tuesday in a handstand for all I care!  Just— 

“Fuck me.” I beg, unsure if I meant to finish that thought out loud. 

“You’re so fucking sexy, you know that?” The weight of his knee presses onto my leg, his foot securing his position against my other thigh, his thumb against my asshole as I begin to feel his dick stretching me open, eliciting the weirdest, downright feral sound from deep within my gut. He’s raw, and I swore I could feel every vein, every ridge, and his head passing through every sensitive quadrant of my pussy until his balls tickled the lips covering my entrance.  It was then that my walls squeeze around him, desperate to feel him move.  I could almost make myself cum just like that—I begin moving against him, caught in the intensity of the moment, like a cat in heat, and he’s so deep, I feel him in places that make my eyes flutter. 

Thumb leaving my sensitive hole, Chris takes firm hold of the sides of my tummy, rutting into my heat, sending a shiver through my spine that puts me into an arch. He seizes the chance to hold the front of my neck, adjusting me for a slower, more profound connection, exploring every inch of me.  It takes a lot of stamina in the legs for this—of course he’s got that.  I rest my hand on his thigh beside me, feeling the firmness, digging my nails in as I grit my teeth together, the pleasure overwhelming me as our bodies, beginning to get slick with the fluids between us, rock desperately against one another. 

I'm released, and I lurch forward, barely snagging myself on the top of the couch. Just then, I sense it against my left hip— 

 tap tap 

My vision snaps back into focus as I hear him breathing as heavily as I am, flopping down onto the couch. I take the lead, hovering over him. We both gaze as his dick is swallowed up by my pussy, inch by beautiful inch.    I let out an incoherent sound, a mix of a grunt and a moan, my arm draped over his shoulder, fingers entwined in the curls at the nape of his neck as he thrusts. My touch shifts from gentle exploration to grabbing fistfuls of his thick, silky, curly hair at the base of his skull. Using my knees for stability, I sync with his rhythm, adding those addictive hip circles that set every part of me ablaze like a pinball machine. The alarms blare, the lights flash – this, right here, is my favorite way to connect with Chris, where we're on an equal playing field. 

As we delve deeper into each other's gaze, the intensity heightens, but there's always a moment when one of us surrenders, head lolling back, eyes rolling together. His hands work my hips in rhythmic circles, like a baker kneading dough on a board. Yet, I sense when he's had his fill as he takes back control, lifting me up and snapping his hips into me at speeds that defy reality. My cries become a constant stream, shameless screams of his name, erratic and desperate. 

"Yeah, thaat's it—"    I can feel my walls softening as my body begins to literally feel like it's filling up with water that’s threatening to consume me any second now.  I’m gasping, trying to form the words to tell him I’m almost there, that he can’t stop, or even slow up, he’s got to keep going, I’m certain if I don’t get there, I’m going to die. 

“D-Daddy, don’t—” I can’t say anything else, I can only hope he gets it. 

And he does. 

Chris always gets it. 

“Gonna stop---all your bitching, hm?”  He’s holding my waist to allow me the freedom to focus on my impending orgasm. “Gonna let me do my fucking job from now on, yeah?”    “Mm--yeah!”      “Say it,”    “Chris!” I whimper in protest, “I’mma s-stop fucking---bitching!” 

“That’s my girl.”    He slaps my ass, sending a shock through my body, but before I can recover, he strikes again, and again, and my body becomes quickly hyperstimulated. I start letting go, my breath held hostage in my chest as Chris lets out a stream of curses, hitting his peak and spilling inside of me.  I can feel it, it’s carrying my climax out even further, and when I finally collapse, with him still inside, I can feel my entire body buzzing, and I’m muttering something that doesn’t make sense to myself or him. 

We're both catching our breath, heart rates settling down, but Chris finds joy in this aftermath. He chuckles, his fingers tracing lazy circles on my lower back, exploring the dimples above my tailbone.    "What are you saying?" he asks. 

"I love you. I love you, and I never want us to breakup. Ever," I say, more composed now, my cheek resting on his shoulder, eyes closed, the pull of sleep threatening to take over like it always did after a proper orgasm. His arms wrap around me, securing them with a grasp on his own wrist. I feel a sense of security. 

"I love you too. I didn't come all this way to break up with you," he reassures me. I lift my head, likely with my hair wild and untamed. 

"Really, Channie?" 

He laughs.  The nickname is cleared for use again. He kisses my lips.

"Of course not. Why would I cross the country just to break up with someone? That seems like a lot of...effort," Chris continues. He tilts his head back to gaze at me, tucking his chin in. Once he sees my focused attention, he looks ahead as he talks. "I want to be with you, or I wouldn't have made you my girl—" 

"You didn't," I interrupt, sitting up. I pull away from his lap, wrapping the knitted throw over myself as I nestle into the couch beside him. 

He looks puzzled, "I didn't? Really?" He shrugs, raising his brows. "I always thought you were." 

The relief floods in. 

So, we were on the same page. 

Curiosity takes over, and I inquire, "When did you start thinking of me as your girlfriend?" 

"Mm." Chris looks up in thought before locking eyes with me again. "The first time we had sex." 

I'm taken aback by the memory. It wasn't a smooth ride, ended up in a heated argument. "When I got caught outside the building after our studio session? Chris, you almost jeopardized your whole career after that." 

Chris tugs at the blanket's end, and I hand it over. As he slides underneath, he takes my foot into his lap, rubbing circles into the center. "That's not how it works—don't get me wrong, it was... difficult. It still is, which is why I couldn't just decide to show up when you asked. I've been allowed, by contract, to date for a few years now." 

"Then why are we sneaking around like you're ashamed of me or something?" I hug the blanket tighter, feeling exposed. 

Chris seems thrown by this revelation. "Ashamed of you for what? You're beautiful, talented. I don't—did I give you that impression, babygirl?" He shakes his head. "I'm protecting you. You've just been signed to a major label, and we've got a good thing going, yeah? Why mess it up now when we can wait for things to level out for the both of us?" 

He makes some valid points. It's reassuring to hear he's not ashamed of me. I start to feel the familiar peace his presence brings. It's been four months since we were last in the same country, let alone the same city. I grew impatient after he came in on business and then left again, making excuses not to see me. That's why this time, I escalated it and added pressure. 

"Level out, what does that mean?" I ask. Chris sits back, mindlessly running his thumb over the pads of my toes while looking at the coffee table's candle. 

"I think we'll know once we both get there." He looks up to me. "I'm sorry, babygirl. I wish I had a better answer for you right now." He sounds sincere enough. I believe him. He's given me no reason not to trust him before, right? His fingers stop on my soles, and he tilts his head slightly, eyes narrowing as if trying to see something better. He leans forward, picking up the knitted beanie near the ashtray. 

My heart drops when I realize what it is. 

But why? I didn't do anything wrong.    RIght? 

"This new?" He turns it around on his hand. "Where'd you get it? I like it." 

Caught in the moment, I blurt, "A gift." I reach forward, taking it before he can spot any stray hair that doesn't match mine. He's not checking that closely, at least not yet. I turn it over in my hands. "I've been keeping it cold in the house, so it helps keep me warm," I say, tossing it onto the beanbag chair. I turn to him, nudging his shoulder as I scoot closer. 

"Sooo, how was KCON?"  - fin

[abibliophobiaa]

Chapter Two of I Will Wait will be released Friday, 3/17 at 5:30pm EST on @abibliophobiaa’s blog

a soulmate!fakemarriage!au with rockstar!eddie and personalassistant!reader (also featuring ronance)

one | masterlist | ao3 | shmackin’ tunes

cowritten by: @abibliophobiaa @blue-mossbird @breddiemunson @fracturedarkness @myosotisa

here’s a little preview to hold you over until then...

Eddie is staring at you.

As soon as you register it— the split second you catch him watching you— Eddie’s eyes widen and dart away, expression flashing with an emotion that looks out of place on his typically-assured face. And then it’s gone. Just as quickly, as though it had never existed, that vulnerable expression is replaced by a quirked eyebrow, smugly narrowed lips, and an even, penetrating stare as his eyes return to yours. Before you can even think about it, he’s beckoning you toward him with a crooked finger.

Obligingly— it is your job, after all— you leave Argyle’s side and pull open the heavy glass door to the recording room.

The space is not overly generous, but it is large enough to give each band member a comfortable buffer of space with his instrument. The drums are set up near the back, with Harry on the left and Jeff on the right, a guitar strapped against his chest but flipped around to the back as he stands in front of the keyboard. There’s a boxy amp covered by a shield to dampen the sound in the corner opposite the door, and Eddie is standing beside it, dark-clad legs spread wide as he hooks a forearm casually against his red electric guitar.

“Yes?” you ask him neutrally, though it’s difficult to hold back the roll of your eyes when he doesn’t reply, merely beckoning you with that same finger again. You breathe slowly through your nose as you walk over to him, planting your feet right before him though your heels wobble slightly on the springy carpet. Your pleasant face grows a touch flatter as he regards you silently, blinking slowly— clearly wanting to keep you waiting, to make you pay for the split-second of whatever he’d felt when you caught him staring.

Eventually, a crooked grin spreads on Eddie’s lips as he looks at you, and your brow twitches in alarm as Eddie abruptly lifts one heavy booted foot and thumps it down on top of the amp. The move stretches his tight pants even tighter, pulling the rips at his knees to reveal pale skin underneath. It draws your eye, tempting it to run over the angular bones; they’re strong and dense, substantial beneath string that cuts shallow indents into his skin.

“Tie my boot.”

[nburkhardt]

You Called My Name (My Whole World Changed)

(Please listen to, Before I Loved You by Phillip Phillips to know the music)

TheHair was a mystery to the public, suddenly appearing one day with ‘Second Chance’ and never posting again. Not even an announcement of an official release of the full song, everyone wondering if the person just left it alone because they wanted people to come up with their own version or if they realized it was a mistake and went back home.

Steve smiled as he heard the music fill the room and he couldn’t believe how well it came together. How he managed to write that in only a year of being together. But it’s here and he feels giddy that others will hear it, that he’ll hear it officially. He’s read the lyrics in the notebook, has felt the words traced on his skin. It’s not that much of a surprise but he knows he’ll love it and Steve can’t wait.

The video that he uses is full of clips of them together from the last year. The first one is of them slow dancing in his living room cropped enough so both their heads aren’t shown, then it’s a mix of clips he’s taken. Of his partner sitting in the driver seat a hand on the wheel and the other shaking in the direction of the camera but the face is blocked by wild curls, another clip is the camera zooming in on someone tuning a red warlock guitar. The clip switches right before the face is shown. Before it ends it’s a quick slideshow of a bunch of their pictures, ending on a single picture of the two of them kissing. Steve’s leaning on an amp and the other is pulling him close.

TheHair: I was barely alive, always hiding the pain. I was nobody before I loved you. #happyoneyearanniversary

He took a deep breath before finally hitting post and immediately putting the phone down and pushing away from the desk. Walking into the other room listening to the laughter and what sounds like an argument coming from the kitchen, he stood against the doorway to watch his boyfriend and his best friend argue over what looks to be their last brownie.

“It’s mine! My sunshine made it, so move away!” His boyfriend moved to grab it but his friend moved again, “come on Jeff! I had like two, Stevie doesn’t bake these often they’re special!”

Jeff rolled his eyes, shifting again to block the counter, “you live with the guy, Eddie! Just ask for more!”

He smiled as Eddie pouted, tried to grab it again before giving up and crossing his arms. “Fine. Take the brownie, I’ll just have- Stevie!” His whole face lights up and he moves quickly to throw himself at him, easily catching him in a hug. “My lovely, beautiful, amazing boyfriend. Stevie, darling, don’tcha think brownies sound wonderful right now?”

Laughing, he shakes his head and presses a quick kiss to Eddie’s lips before pulling away and finding Jeff shake his head and walking pass them, leaving them alone. “Did you and Jeff really just argue over a brownie?”

“Hm, maybe? How much did you hear? Wait, why are you back in here? I thought you had something to do in the studio? Wait, wait! You got the song back today right? How does it sound? Is it the one I read? Did it come together the way you wanted?” Eddie’s words flying out and he bounced out of his arms, looking around for his phone, “did you post it? Where’s my phone! JEFF, do you have my- no wait ah-ha!” He held up his phone with a wiggle before turning it on and facing away from him.

Before Steve knows it, he hears his own voice.

‘I was nobody, nobody, nobody. You called my name and my whole world changed. Cause I love somebody cause I love somebody. I was playing with fire didn’t care if it burned and I was barely alive, always hiding the hurt. I was nobody nobody nobody before I loved you’

“Stevie” Eddie’s voice is soft and there’s a sniffle, turning around he has tears in his eyes and a smile, “Stevie- oh my god. This is, this is beautiful, honey. I love it so much, I love you”

Eddie’s walking back towards him and Steve meets him half way, “I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you, Eddie. I love you so much, happy anniversary my love”

~~~

So, I didn’t plan on writing more of this au. But I heard this song and immediately thought of Steve and of course, Steddie. But mostly Steve writing this for Eddie 🥰

Hopefully everyone also gets the same vibe I got when I first heard this song because I was listening to it while writing this and a little bit of doubt went into my ear and I had to double check with @i-less-than-three-you 🤣

ALSO! Just so everyone knows, Steve landed in some tough spots being by himself and not knowing what he’s doing yet. That’s why his account got ignored. He met Eddie at a bar and they don’t click immediately but became friends and it took another month before getting together officially. Eddie’s band, Corroded Coffin is an up and coming band and their manager ended up overhearing Steve singing to himself one day and fast forward to this fic, is signed and making music officially. (Steve still hasn’t met Robin yet)

[dani-luminae]

The Mariner, and why was he the "Helpful Spook"?

I have more to talk about with the Haunted Mansion 2023 movie, go figure. This time it's about our wonderful new friend, the Mariner!

Slight spoilers for the 2023 movie below.

So what's the deal with the Mariner in the movie?

In the 2023 movie, he is the ghost attached to Ben, haunting him until he returns to the Gracey Mansion. This becomes helpful as the Mariner travels with Ben, Travis, and Kent to Crump Mansion, and while there reveals some of Crump's plot. In return for this, Ben takes the Mariner to the sea and, released from the mansion, the Mariner happily takes a modern fishing boat and heads out to sea, presumably to emulate Deadliest Catch, which he seems fond of on TV.

So what's the deal with the Mariner in The Mansion Itself?

Well, to put it simply, the Mariner may be considered the final, lasting, singular reference to one of the earliest concepts for the Haunted Mansion.

Yale Gracey and Rolly Crump* seemed to have a rather solid plotline for one of the very first iterations of the Haunted Mansion: a wealthy Sea Captain, Bartholomew Gore, is set to marry his longtime love Priscilla (or in some cases, they already are married) before Priscilla uncovered a chest full of evidence revealing that Captain Gore was not merely a sea captain, but the infamous Pirate known as Black Bart. With his secret revealed and Priscilla horrified, Captain Gore disposed of her; varying methods include locked in a trunk and thrown down a well which was then sealed.

If any of you are familiar with the story of how Crump and Gracey were told they had to turn off their special effects at night as the cleaning crew were too frightened to clean their studio space, only to amp it up to scare out the crew entirely, the Gore and Priscilla story was still on the notes at that time. It's likely that the diorama they rigged up to scare the poor cleaners was that of Gore and Priscilla themselves!

So where's the Mariner in the mansion now?

Unfortunately? He isn't. The Sea Captain's plot was discarded in favor of a less structured approach to the Mansion, one more like we have today - not dedicated to any one ghost, but many. And the Mariner himself didn't actually make the cut. The Disneyland Mansion has no sign of him; the Disney World Mansion is a little different.

The Sea Captain, or the Mariner, appears in a painting in the loading area of the attraction, and in fact it's been suggested that the Mariner's appearance was lifted right from some of the earliest concept sketches of Captain Gore. With the addition of the interactive queue outside the WDW mansion, he's more accredited the name of "Captain Culpeper Clyne" (who's allergic to dirt so he's pickled in brine!) or the man in the crypt that's sprung a leak.

Oh, and Captain Gore's design might also have been the inspiration for the infamous Auctioneer in Pirates of the Caribbean (ride).

Prior to the 2006-2007 refurbishment, the Mariner was one of the paintings with eyes that would follow the Guests as they passed by in their Doombuggies; now, however, his portrait doesn't do anything, it just looms over the Guests as they board**. There were also rumors that his story could be found in the Columbia Harbor House across the street, but I have yet to find those rumors confirmed (and I've looked, believe me.)

And why did you make me read all this, Dani?

Because with all this in mind, at least for me, it's nice to see the Mariner in particular - as opposed to a different more marketable spirit, like one the Hitchhiking Ghosts who would seem more obvious - be the Helpful Spook who follows our protagonist. To me, it seems like a little nod that maybe, just maybe, the people who made this movie really knew their Mansion history!

Or it could be a coincidence.

Whatever the case, I'm just really thrilled to see that a spook arguably attached to one of the very first ideas of the Haunted Mansion, who gets no real appearance in the original HM and arguably less and less in the WDW HM, get a little bit of the spotlight in the 2023 movie.

*No relation to Alastair Crump or Edward/William Gracey; the "Master Gracey" character was named after Yale, and I strongly suspect that Alastair Crump was named so as a reference to Mr. Rolly Crump. That makes the Gracey Mansion and the Crump Mansions both direct references to two of the earliest brains on the inimitable Haunted Mansion!

**A similar portrait was April-December; she was recently restored to the Disneyland Mansion as a changing portrait, but in WDW her eyes would also follow guests. Like all the eye-following portraits, she was dismissed in the refurbishment, but she's a prominent painting in the movie; she is the hidden door to the seance room - in fact, the way to open the door is by using the eye-holes as a handle! Clever little referencing there, I think.

Also if you like Haunted Mansion history and just about any tangent you can think of, I encourage you to check out the Long-Forgotten Haunted Mansion blog a little bit more. They know their stuff over there!