Tumgik
#He hears someone call ‘’Graves’’ and immediately goes ‘’Yeah that’s me.’’ Like he’s had a lifetime of practice.
msfcatlover · 1 year
Text
I see your “Jay Peters is Jason’s most common alias (because it’s funny,)” headcanons, and raise you:
James “Jamie” Graves.
Because Jason thinks it’s funny.
#Jason todd#jason wayne#jason peter todd#red hood#red hood jason#red hood jason todd#red hood!jason#red hood!jason todd#mine#my writing#//#First rule of an alias is: You want a name whose first sound is close enough to your own that you’ll respond easily (and cover your ass#if you react to the ‘’wrong’’ name where anyone can see.)#Second rule is: Too bland sounds more suspicious than too specific (but don’t ever be too specific.)#Third is: You’re never gonna sell it if you can’t comfortably wear the name.#James is extremely bland. Having a nickname makes it more personable but Jamie can be a nickname for literally dozens of things#ironically making it more forgettable. Graves isn’t a name you see every day but it’s not one that grabs the eye or sticks in the mind#just ordinary enough#Jason can react to the ‘’Jay’’ syllable no problem and the morbid joke of a last name makes it easy to remember/respond to.#He hears someone call ‘’Graves’’ and immediately goes ‘’Yeah that’s me.’’ Like he’s had a lifetime of practice.#(Invented this for a fic that’ll probably never exist; Jason was doing pre-RH recon in Gotham and this was his cover.#Jamie’s a self-taught art student doing odd jobs for cash. Tim spots him at a local cafe and is like ‘’JASON?!?!’’#Tim investigates. Jason accidentally becomes Tim’s friend while trying to gather information. Jason doesn’t realize Tim’s recognized him.#Tim thinks Jamie Graves is either a runaway clone or Jason with amnesia. Then UtRH starts and Tim realizes Jamie’s the Red Hood.#Things spiral from there.#)
50 notes · View notes
heroofshield · 6 months
Text
Whumpcember Day 17- Fire (Mass Effect, Vega/Ryder)
@whumpcember @anderfels
Anna Ryder woke up coughing and smelling smoke.
Opening her eyes as she sat up in bed, she glanced towards the window, just being able to see the haze of smoke.
"What the hell?" she thought, her throat burning from the smoke and letting out another cough
Then the fire alarm started blaring.
The muffled blaring meant that it was coming from the complex hallway.
Bolting out of bed, Anna felt the door to her room to see if it was hot.
It wasn't and opening it told her that at least her rental wasn't on fire. Moving into the hallway, she paused only long enough to slip on her shoes and grab her bag. "Everything else is replaceable." she told herself while pausing at the outer door way, repeating the process.
Feeling that it was warm, but not hot, Anna opened the door and instantly regretted it; thick smoke billowed through the open door and she started coughing, covering her mouth and nose with the neck of her sleep shirt. Her eyes stinging from the smoke, Anna dragged a hand along the wall as she moved towards the stairwell to keep her situational awareness.
"I guess I should thank the Alliance for all those safety drills. The fire one really came in handy." Anna could dimly make out the 'stairs' sign at the end of the hall, it getting brighter the closer she got.
Pushing the fire door open and stepping into the stairwell, the smoke wasn't as bad but still present. Still coughing, Anna melted into the stream of people moving down the stairwell and soon out into the fresh air. Letting her shirt drop, Anna moved away from the building as far as she could and inhaled the fresh air.
"What happened?" she asked someone nearby as everyone started mingling now that the immediate danger was over.
"Dunno. Although the fire department should be here soon and I'm sure that they'll-."
Shouting at the exit caught Anna's attention and she missed the rest of the statement. Gently pushing her way through the crowd, she asked, "What's going on?"
"Part of the stairway just collapsed and people are trapped."
Anna peered back into the building, knowing that as a biotic she could help lift the debris and get people out. Taking a deep breath of smoke-free air, she headed back inside while calling over her shoulder, "See if you can find any more biotics in the crowd."
--
James walked down the hallway of the hospital, ignoring the recognition looks that he was getting. Reaching the sem-private room, he quietly opened the door and stepped inside. Seeing Anna on the bed, asleep and breathing eased some of the tension in his body. Hearing about the fire through the news, he'd all but left the Alliance compound; having to wait until he was off-duty to raced over to the hospital after hearing how biotics had lifted debris so people trapped could get free but were being treated for second degree burns and smoke inhalation.
"That was reckless and just like her." James thought, running a hand through his hair and leaning against the windowsill- noting the white gauze wrapped around her hands.
Anna had dozed on and off through out the day, the pain meds and medigel helping to numb her aching hands and start the healing process. The coughing had started to subside as the day went on though, only the occasional fit pulling her from sleep.
The coughing waking her up again, Anna tried to go for the cup of water on the tray table off to the side but was having trouble gripping it with the bandages on her hands. Feeling a solid hand gently on her back, she heard James say, "I got it for you, babe."
The cool water felt good as it slid down her throat and helped ease the scratchiness some. As the coughing fit subsided, Anna relaxed against the pillows and focused on James in the low light. "When did you get here?" she asked, her voice still somewhat gravely.
"Just a few minutes ago. You okay?"
"Yeah. It comes and goes but better than before."
"That's good to hear. You scared me, what were you thinking going back into the building?"
Anna didn't want to have this lecture now, but with how infrequently they saw each other knew it was gonna have to. "They were trapped, and my biotics could help get them out. And I wasn't the only one who went back in either."
"But you're the only one I care about!" James was trying not to shout, but couldn't help but let the concern through. "I was driving myself near crazy today, hoping that you were okay."
"I mean, I am."
"The bandages on your hands say otherwise."
Anna let out a sigh, rubbing her forehead with the pads of her fingers and ignoring the dull ache of pain that flashed through at the action. "Can you not? I'm tired and have to call around tomorrow to get a motel room while the complex is closed and fixed."
"I already did that and have a room for you at that one place we first went to. And got you some clothes that don't smell like smoke." James grumped, folding his arms across his chest and leaning against the wall.
"Thank you." Anna sighed, knowing they were going to have another argument about it all when she got out, but for now was grateful that was one less thing she had to worry about. "I appreciate it."
"You're welcome. I'll let you rest and come back when it's daylight alright?" James gently pressed a kiss onto Anna's head before slipping out of the room.
4 notes · View notes
watchmegetobsessed · 3 years
Text
The Hottest Avenger - Bucky Barnes
a/n: im warning you, i will probably not stop for a while with the bucky fics so... brace yourselves lol! also i wrote this before ep 5 came out so its placed in that time
pairing: Bucky X Reader
warnings: TFATWS spoiler, some violence? nothing extreme
word count: 1.8k
summary: Being locked together with Sam and Bucky brings the worst out of you, picking on each other constantly. Following an arguement Bucky accidentally calls you his girlfriend in front of Sam when your relationship was supposed to be a secret.
masterlist
Tumblr media
“Did you fucking eat the last dumpling?” you accuse Sam, holding up the empty takeout box where you thought were one more dumpling, one you’ve saved for yourself, but now it’s gone as Sam is eyeing you with his mouth full.
“Thought it was mine,” he mumbles, his words barely understandable from all the food in his mouth.
Taking a deep breath you’re trying not to jump at his throat right then and there. You’ve been locked up together all damn day in the trashy apartment across the street from the building where’s Zemo supposed to be hiding. Sharon had a tip about a possible place where he might be found, but you’ve been waiting to no avail for now. You’ve been growing stressed and impatient. You lost track of Karli and her people and now you can’t seem to find Zemo either. If it wasn’t for the Dora Milaje, you wouldn’t bother to be so after the asshole, but Bucky said if Ayo finds him first, he is dead and every useful information he holds goes to the grave with him so now you are forced to look for him. One failed mission has been following the other these days, that incompetent dickhead John is on the loose too after murdering that man in front of civilians and you feel like control has slipped out of your grip a long time ago. Now you’re stuck with Sam and Bucky in this crappy place, waiting by the window, watching out for Zemo and on top of everything… Sam ate your last dumpling.
Just when you’re about to snap at him, you feel a strong grip on your shoulder. You don’t have to look up to know it’s Bucky right behind you, but not just because he is the only other person in the room beside you and Sam, but also because you know his touch probably more than anyone. Only that most of the times it’s not your shoulder he is gripping…
It’s been going on for a long time between the two of you. Started with just some innocent flirting and you never thought it would grow into something more significant, but it did. And now you are officially in a relationship with none other than the Winter Soldier, only that no one else knows about it and you plan to keep it that way. You don’t need the teasing and jokes and the Avengers are known to be dicks sometimes, especially Sam.
Glancing up your eyes meet Bucky’s blue irises and he sends you a look that says “just let it go”, and though every fiber in you wants to whoop Sam’s ass, you let it slip.
“Don’t tell me you’re gonna get mad about a dumpling,” Sam chuckles as he chews on the food that you should be enjoying right now.
“I can get mad about whatever I want to,” you growl back, growing quite irritated of him at this point.
“Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed,” he huffs under his breath, clearly not as bothered as he should be. Before you could do any harm in him, you leave your spot by the window, needing a breather from… well, from him.
“Hey, it’s still your turn!” he calls after you.
“I need a break,” you growl back.
“Get your ass back here, we agreed to switch every two hours!”
“Sam! I’m walking out because I’m way too tempted to punch you in the face right now!” you snap at him, losing your patience. He rises from his seat with a hard expression, not quite a fan of the way you just talked to him, but you couldn’t care less.
“You think you could actually throw one? Because last time we fought you couldn’t really get a hold of me,” he narrows his eyes at you, coming to stand tall in front of you, trying to intimidate you with how much taller and stronger he might be, but you both know you’re a better fighter.
“It’s easy to talk with your fancy tech stuff. Why don’t we see who wins in a simple battle?” you challenge him with faked boredom.
“Guys, stop. We should be looking out for Zemo, not tearing each other apart,” Bucky tries to end the staring contest, sticking his metal arm between the two of you in case any of you decides to launch at the other one.
“Then tell her to stop bitching!” Sam nods in your way.
“I’m not bitching, I’m just fed up with your bullshit!” you spat back at him, leaning closer, your chest coming in contact with Bucky’s extended arm.
“Don’t talk to her like that, Sam,” Bucky warns him, but Sam snorts dryly.
“Don’t tell me you are taking her side, she is throwing a fit for a fucking dumpling!”
“I’m not taking sides, just trying to settle this stupid disagreement here,” he defends himself and you roll your eyes.
“You can’t tell me she is not overreacting it, Buck!” Sam laughs in disbelief, taking a step back, dropping the act that he wants to fight you. He probably knows he would come out as a ridiculous loser. “This is fucking insane, I’m not in the mood to deal with your shit, Y/N,” he shakes his head.
“Hey!” Bucky snaps at him. “Don’t talk to my girlfriend like that, okay?!”
“I’m just—wait, what?!” Sam’s eyes widen and you freeze too.
Your dumbass boyfriend didn’t just out the two of you, did he? What else is about to come?! Sam’s shock turns into a cocky grin as his eyes shift between you and Bucky.
“You guys… you guys are fucking?” he asks with a delightful laugh and you close your eyes sighing, already tired of his shit.
“That’s not—We’re not fucking, I mean… It’s not like that,” Bucky stutters, but it’s just making it worse. He looks at you with terror in his eyes, but you are way too drained to deal with it the right way.
“Yes, we are fucking! And we are in a mature adult relationship! Get yourself over it!” you bark at Sam before turning around and walking out.
You faintly hear the two men talk inside, but you don’t make out the words. You don’t go too far, sitting on the steps leading up to the third floor. Soon enough you hear the door of the apartment open with a creak and a moment later Bucky shows up in your sight. He sits beside you, remaining silent for a little before speaking up.
“Sorry for running my mouth,” he mumbles, his head hanging low.
“It’s… fine,” you breathe out. Bucky fidgets with his fingers and you know he wants to touch you in any kind of way as a reassurance that it really is fine. You don’t want to hold a grudge, it was an accident, you’re just a little bummed it’s not gonna be just the two of you anymore. Reaching out you take his hand, the real one that’s flesh and meat and you lace your fingers together as he peeks at you, still reserved and hesitant.
“Is it really fine or are you just bottling it up?”
“It really is fine,” you chuckle softly and leaning closer you kiss his scruffy cheek. “The only reason I wanted to keep it a secret is because you know how vickery the guys can get. I just didn’t want them to pick on us.”
“They do it because they are just jealous,” he smirks playfully, his shoulder bumping against yours.
“Yeah? Of what?” A soft chuckle slips through your lips.
“That I scored the hottest Avenger,” he replies smugly and you can’t help but laugh with your head snapping back.
“I didn’t know you were fucking Thor!” you retort and immediately see his smirk vanish from his lips as he stares back at you, not enjoying your joke as much as you are.
“Thor? Really? Not this shit again, Y/N,” he narrows his eyes at you. Back when you were just skirting around each other, you loved pulling his leg, joking about how much you are into the hottest Avenger, aka Thor. He never appreciated it, usually earned you a tight-lipped smile before he mumbled “Tarzan’s got nothing on me” before walking away, leaving you laughing like a hyena.
“Come on, you know I’m more into super soldiers,” you grin, leaning closer as he pepper his sharp jawline with more small kisses.
“You know, it’s not the best thing to say to your boyfriend when there are now about eight more super soldiers running around,” he huffs.
“But none of them has a metal arm,” you point out, finally making him laugh.
“So that’s your kink? A vibranium arm?” he asks with faked shock and you curl your arms around his bicep, resting your chin on his shoulder.
“How haven’t you realized yet?” you chuckle. Bucky turns his head until his lips can capture yours in a sweet, lighthearted kiss that makes you forget about everything that’s been clouding over your mind these past days. All the failures, the mistakes and chaos fades into nothing, because you have him and he has you.
Walking back into the apartment Sam stares back at you, neither of you entirely sure how to act after what just happened. He then grabs his phone from the dusty table before holding it up.
“I could order some extra dumplings,” he offers and you crack a smile shaking your head. This was his peace offering, both of you knows he won’t straight up apologize for the way he talked, but this is already more than what you were expecting from him. Bucky must have had a few words with him before joining you outside.
“It’s all good.”
The three of you get back to work, taking your previous spots, returning to the task on hand as silence falls on the room once again. You catch Sam glancing at you and the Bucky and you can tell he is about to make a snarky comment on your relationship. And just as he is about to open his big mouth, Bucky moves to silence him, but you’re faster. With a simple move you throw Sam to the ground, keeping him down with your hand wrapped around his neck.
“Don’t even think about teasing, understood?” you hiss at him as he gasps for air, his hands wrapping around your wrist as he tries to fight you off, but you hold him a second longer to emphasize the importance of your words. Then you finally let go of him and he coughs for air, fixing him up from the floor as you simply walk back to your spot by the window.
“Hottest Avenger, huh?” he breathes out, revealing that he heard what you talked about out on the stairs. “More like the Avenger with the most anger issues…”
You just grin, glancing over at your boyfriend who is now standing with his arms crossed over his chest, not even bothered by his friend’s struggles on the floor as he smirks back at you, nodding proudly as if he was saying: “That’s my girl.”
Thank you for reading, please like and reblog if you enjoyed it!
1K notes · View notes
lucytara · 3 years
Note
Yeah I get wanting some variation in your writing and whatnot. Hmm.
Gold. "I defy you. I defy your god. The laws of the universe said my love was gone from me. I said watch me save her." Bumbleby.
Have fun!
it’s possible. that i went. a little overboard with this prompt. 
"I defy you. I defy your god. The laws of the universe said my love was gone from me. I said watch me save her."
All four candles are lit in the corners of the small room, wicks burning purple and melting black wax. Her offering sits in a dish at the feet of the small statue - an old, worn piece of paper, bent and torn around its edges - and she herself kneels in the center of the floor, her hands clasped.
“I’ve never done this,” she begins, “but my name is Yang Xiao Long, and I humbly request an audience.”
Nothing happens, though she isn’t sure what she would’ve expected even if it had; the flames flicker with her unsteady heartbeat, the blood in her ears crashing as if waves in a storm. For some reason it’s embarrassing, calling on a higher entity who decides to put you through to voicemail.
She tries again, and aims for theatrical exaggeration; maybe the gods like a bit of a show. If she’s making a fool of herself, she might as well do it brilliantly. “O, Great Goddess! I call upon thee - All-Knowing Ruler of the Dead, Empress of the Night, Most Holy Lady of Darkness, Reigning Queen of Entropy--”
“I think that’s probably enough,” a voice comes from in front of her, amusement evident beneath its tone. “What was that one in the middle? ‘Empress of the Night’? I might keep that.”
Her head whips up towards the sound, and a woman in a deep purple cloak is leaning against her own statue, arms crossed and watching her performance with a look that can only be described as shameless delight. Gorgeous black hair framing golden eyes, like the sky wrapping itself around stars; the statue doesn’t do her justice.
“Oh my God,” Yang says, sitting back on her heels. All the preparation and rehearsing she’d done isn’t enough to conquer the shock of a beautiful, unearthly woman appearing in front of her and--
“Yes, I get that a lot.”
--mercilessly mocking her.
“Well, Yang Xiao Long?” the woman continues. “Why have you called upon me?”
“How do you know my name?” Yang says stupidly.
“I’m a god,” the goddess replies, a smile pulling at a corner of her mouth. “I’m the all-knowing ruler of the dead or whatever. Also, you said your name when you summoned me.”
“Fuck,” Yang says, struggling to regain her composure and failing spectacularly. “I - yeah. Right. Okay. Is it rude to swear in front of gods? And what do I call you?”
“I’ll allow it,” the woman says. “And you can call me Blake.”
“Blake,” Yang repeats; her hands open and close like a nervous tick. The name is a heavy weight in her mouth, settling her into steadiness. “I’ve come to request guidance.”
“Guidance?” Blake repeats, and gently lifts the note from the offering dish, turning it carefully around her hands without opening it to read it - she doesn’t need to. Yang registers faint surprise in her expression; yes, she’d assumed the sentimentality would fetch a rather large price. “This is quite the payment.”
“It’s the last note I have from someone who loved me,” Yang says. “I figured it would be sufficient.”
Those bright, inquisitive eyes glance over to her, and now the playing field has been reversed: intrigue and curiosity outweigh Yang’s atrocious initial delivery.
“Stand, please,” Blake commands softly. “I want to get a good look at you.”
Obediently, Yang rises to her feet, and with an odd jolt realizes she’s a few inches taller than the goddess. It’s unexpected, and it seems to unnerve Blake for a moment, too. Or maybe that’s the candlelight, throwing shapes and colors, turning the room cavernous. Maybe Blake is shrinking and she’s growing. Maybe once she was so tall the entire world trembled beneath her feet.
“You already have power,” Blake says, circling her curiously, and now she’s seeing what isn’t visible, looking for handprints on her soul. “You have been claimed. Whom do you answer to?”
“I didn’t receive this power from a god,” Yang says quietly. “I’ve had it as long as I can remember.”
“That’s impossible,” Blake says, and her gaze is piercing into Yang’s heart; she sees its strength, but she sees its scars, too. And its emptiness. There is plenty of that.
“Touch me,” Yang says. “You’ll find no prior claim.”
“I don’t need to.” Blake takes another step closer to her, the way you’d inspect a painting in a museum. Hands at her sides, cautious of glass and rope. “I can see your aura. But it’s impossible.”
“I’m looking for something,” Yang says, and Blake glances up, briefly meeting her eyes. “I don’t know what it is. But I’ve been looking for something for what feels like my entire life.”
Quizzical, now. One by one the candles are burning down. The room is collapsing in on them, or perhaps that’s simply the god in front of her, looking like she’d dive into Yang’s veins and unravel her if it were permitted.
“Why me?” Blake asks finally. “You know what I’m the goddess of, don’t you?”
“You guard death,” Yang says, her voice impossibly gentle; dusk flows river-like from her mouth. There is a world Blake can almost see. “But you can’t guard death without also guarding life, right? I don’t know what I’m looking for, but whatever it is, I imagine you encompass it.”
“Poetic,” Blake responds, and waits further. “I would like the truth, please. Our time is running short.”
There’s no point in playing games with gods. “The truth is stupid,” Yang says bluntly, and the corner of Blake’s mouth tilts again.
“Try me.”
“I’ll make you a deal,” Yang says, and Blake’s eyebrows raise in amusement. Bold, reckless, and absolutely pushing her luck to the furthest corners it can inhabit. “Accept me as yours, and when the time is right, I will tell you the truth.”
“Is the truth that powerful?” Blake says, curious despite herself.
The last candle flutters, throwing shadows from Yang’s eyelashes to her cheek. “I think it is.”
--
“Welcome back, Empress of the Night,” Ruby says upon her return to the Kingdom, giving her an exaggerated bow. “I hope you enjoyed your summon, My Lady of Perpetual Darkness.”
“What the hell was that about?” Weiss asks. “I haven’t even heard you crack a joke for, like, a millennia, and suddenly you’re the court jester?”
“She was amusing,” Blake says, shrugging. “Usually people are so timid and terrified. I felt like having some fun.”
“You?” Weiss says dubiously.
“Shut up, Weiss,” Ruby says. “You mustn’t speak that way to Our Patron Saint, Duchess of Death.”
“Now you’re not even trying.”
“Don’t you both have work to do?” Blake says, ending the interrogation before it can really begin. She’s not sure she’d have the answers for them, anyway.
--
Yang journeys east.
Find me again, Blake had said. The closer you get to my temple, the more I can see of you. She’d brushed aside Yang’s bangs, touched a single finger to her forehead. It felt like a teardrop, or a meteor shower. It felt like digging up a grave, or chiseling into stone. It felt like the last explosion. It felt like the first breath.
You are mine, Blake had said, and something about it had felt far too right.
She crosses from Sanus to Anima, spends days traversing forests and mountains, fending off bandits and monsters. Eyes flashing red and fire licking up her skin. Aura glowing golden before breaking. There is something wrong with the trees, she thinks; there is something wrong with the sky. Like I’m looking at them from the wrong side.
Nobody is there to answer her, and not for the first time, she wonders how she came to be so alone.
--
Blake watches Yang’s power unveil itself from above. Yang is hers, now, and though she can’t make house calls to the world below without a summon, she at least has instant access to her claims. There aren’t many of them, and Yang is different.
It reminds her of the God of Vengeance, almost - how he absorbs power before returning it, strike by vicious strike - but Yang’s is personal, sacrificial. She feels the pain before she can utilize it, and her anger is never cruel, her actions never misplaced. And she doesn’t complain.
Sometimes, Blake wishes she would: she can hear when she’s being talked to, even if she can’t respond. Every prayer, every curse, every devastation, every hope.
She waits for the sound of Yang’s voice, but it never comes.
--
There’s a small shrine in a village called Shion, which is still weeks out from the docks where she can potentially get a ferry to Menagerie, but the locals are kind, and honor her far too greatly for being touched by their ruling god. They direct her to their place of worship deep in the woods, and leave her without looking back. It’s a sacred thing, a bond between a god and their chosen, and law forbids them from watching her ceremony.
Yang pulls the candle from her pouch, lighting it at the foot of the shrine. She kneels down on the stone, worn with the imprints of a thousand prayers, and says, “Blake.”
“I was wondering when I’d hear from you again.” The voice comes almost immediately, as if its owner had been waiting to be beckoned.
It’s still a bit of a shock, though she’s much better prepared for it this time. “Hi,” Yang says, and stops there before she can fuck it up.
“Hi,” Blake says, and seems to be amused against her will. More guarded, less open. Yang can read the warning signs, but she’ll cut them off at the source.
“I’m sorry,” she says, and she means it, getting to her feet. “If I waited too long to contact you, I mean. I’m...not familiar with this area.”
“Don’t worry,” Blake says, lowering her arms. “It’s only been a few weeks. I won’t smite you until at least a month.”
Yang laughs, and unexpectedly to the both of them, Blake goes deadly still. Her body language says Yang’s done something wrong, but her expression says she’s hearing music.
The candle is burning. The moment can turn itself over gently, if Yang knows how to guide it. She keeps her smile on, but makes it quiet. “You know, I didn’t expect the Goddess of Death to have a sense of humor.”
It seems to work. “I like to surprise people,” Blake says, and moves closer. “Can I ask you something?”
“Of course.”
“You never talk to me,” she says, pretending to be in control of something she clearly isn’t. “Why not?”
Only the forest speaks for a moment, branches creaking, leaves rustling. And then: “Do you want me to?” Yang asks.
“It’s...something people tend to do,” Blake says slowly. “But not you.”
“I didn’t want to bother you,” Yang says.
“It’s not a bother.” The words come out too quickly, tone too reassuring. Blake’s own want is what laces the conversation, rather than Yang’s uncertainty. That’s a new, dangerous line.
Yang takes a careful step forward, her eyes lowered to the ground as if in apology; they raise slowly, trailing over Blake’s form until meeting her gaze. Looking for lines she’s crossed, and should step back over; searching for lights that say go. Instead, she only finds an intense, hungry confusion - I want it without understanding what it is.
“You know,” she murmurs, “these statues - they never do you justice.”
And she lifts a hand to Blake’s cheek, hesitating over her skin - is that Blake’s catch of breath, or is it the wind? - before gently cupping it in her palm. She could lose an arm for this; touching a god without being explicitly asked is the greatest sin a mortal can commit, but Blake only stands there, unmoving, eyes wide and lips parted, the moon sitting in the hollow of her throat.
“Blake,” she whispers, and it can only be a god’s strength keeping her voice steady, “I’m never not thinking of you.”
The candle goes out.
--
Nobody is waiting for her when she returns. This is how gods give each other gifts - by saying, no, I see everything but I didn’t see you.
--
Yang starts talking to her, and changes her routes so that rather than taking the most direct path to Menagerie, she’s able to stop at some of the smaller shrines on the way. There are only two more, and she hasn’t called Blake since Shion. Yang hopes she’ll still come.
“Isn’t it strange,” Yang says, “how much easier it is to think about someone than to talk about them? I think about you differently than I can talk about you. I don’t even know if that makes sense.”
No response; not that she expects one. At this point, she assumes Blake’ll just kill her if she gets too annoying. Maybe a tree will fall on her, or she’ll do something embarrassing like trip over a rock and break her neck. “I can’t remember much about my life. I know there were people I loved, but I can’t see their faces. I must’ve traveled a lot; I don’t like sitting still. I don’t know how old I am, or even when my birthday is.” She’s never admitted this before; never admitted she came to lying on the ground, with only her name left ringing in her skull and a note in her pocket.
“I think you’re beautiful,” she tells the warm night air. “That’s what I was trying to say. Before. Blake, I think you’re beautiful.”
A star shoots across the sky, light trails leaving imprints against the swirling blue-purple-black of the galaxy, but it must be a coincidence.
--
Another shrine, another candle. This one burrowed into the side of a mountain, a dome of a room with a hand-woven rug for kneeling, several long benches behind. The statue sits against the far wall, centered.
“They’re getting better,” Yang says, getting to her feet. “This one, at least, gets your eyes right.”
“Hm,” Blake says, pressing her lips together. She moves to stand next to Yang rather than in front of her, and they both examine the statue together. “I suppose you’d know, wouldn’t you?”
“Were the compliments too much?” Yang asks, impressed with how light her voice sounds. She nudges Blake’s elbow with her own. Oh, she’ll see how much distance she can cross. She’s already walked miles - she’ll swim oceans, too. “You said you wanted me to talk to you.”
“I didn’t say that,” Blake denies unconvincingly, and then pauses. “And in regards to your first question - I didn’t say that, either.”
Yang could tease her - so even gods like being called pretty, huh - or she could be brave, turn to Blake, take her face in both of her hands and lean in--
“Yang,” Blake says, and does step one of that plan by turning to her. “What do you want from me?”
Maybe the idea’s overwhelmed her to the degree that she can no longer see its risks - its potentially horrible, literally life-ending consequences - and that's what drives her to do it. Maybe it’s that Blake is looking at her like a poem; something beautiful, not to be understood by anyone but the artist who made her.
“What would you do if I kissed you?” Yang says, as if it were merely an interesting, hypothetical concept to explore and not the end of the world. “Is that possible, even if you wanted me to?”
This room is warm and close and silent. The clay is cracking where the floor meets the walls. A tunneled-through skylight is the only thing that keeps Blake from swallowing the place in shadows, instead coating them in an amber, dream-like glow. Like if you mixed the two of them together, you’d still be left with light.
“I think,” Blake murmurs, “we’re both going to have to find that out.”
Step two of her plan. Both of her hands cupping Blake’s cheeks. She’s strangely aware of her lifelines - do they mean anything to you, she wants to ask, does my life mean anything to you now and if it doesn’t, will my death - she leans in, their noses brushing, Blake’s breathing as if she needs to, Yang isn’t and she does; teach me about magic, teach me about memory, tell me how I knew you before I knew myself--
Blake kisses her, tired of her caution and hesitancy, lips parting and fists knotting around the fabric of her shirt. Yang expects them to crash together, like comets. She expects them to crumble and collapse under the impact, buried in the ruins of each other and suffocating. She expects them to decay there, reveling in their own destruction.
What she doesn’t expect is sunlight.
Her skin set aflame, Blake’s tongue in her mouth, hands traveling from her face to her lower back and pressing close - somewhere a rule is being written about the gods and desperation - Blake pulls away, gasps, her fingers begging for Yang’s heart.
“This power,” she says, mesmerized, staring at things only she can see, golden gossamer roots running up Yang’s veins. “Where did you get it?”
“I don’t know,” Yang breathes out, and kisses her one last time before the candle burns out. “But I swear I’ve never felt closer to finding out.”
--
Nobody attempts to stop her from barging through God’s door. Weiss and Ruby, Sun and Neptune; they all avert their eyes. I see everything, but I do not see you.
“What is she?” Blake asks, standing before them with her head bowed. “Please, God. I need to know.”
“If you weren’t already sure,” God says, “you wouldn’t be here.”
She hates it when they’re right.
--
Yang hits the docks; situated on the outskirts of a fishing village called Ito, and with constant transport to Menagerie, their shrine to Blake is the largest one yet.
“And this one?” Blake asks, before Yang has even begun to pray.
“How did you do that?” Yang says, staring up at her, startled. “Are we, like, super close now?”
“Shut up,” Blake says, but she’s smiling. She extends a hand, helping Yang to her feet. “Your soul calls me. You barely even have to light the candle, anymore.”
The sound of the ocean knocks on the door; the smell tackles the windows. Above, the seagulls are crying out, angry at all the fish they can’t have. Yang says, “Hi.”
“Hi,” Blake says, and kisses her. Soft and chaste. Something so human and so immortal. “I missed you.”
“I’m your favorite, aren’t I?” Yang teases, her fingers catching Blake’s chin in her hands.
“No,” Blake says, and for the first time, smiles with her teeth. Oh, this is happiness. “I do this with everyone who requests my presence. I’m very popular.”
“I can imagine,” Yang says, brushing a thumb across her bottom lip. “So what else are you the god of?”
“You had a few of them right,” Blake says nonchalantly, settling against Yang’s body. She could be taller, if she wanted to be, but there’s so much beauty to see when looking up. “Night, and all things within it. Darkness, shadows. Death.”
“What else?” Yang says, watching her mouth shape every letter.
“Forgiveness, and justice,” Blake murmurs. Oh, there’s a fine print for this, and she’s violating every word. “Promises,” she continues. “Seduction.”
Hook, line - a heavy wave rattles the walls; oh, the sea, the sea! - Yang shudders against her mouth, salt sinking into her blood. Leaves her bouyant and floating, the earth bubbling up beneath her. Rising and rising and rising.
“Shockingly,” Yang says, letting Blake press kisses into the crook of her neck, “I don’t find that hard to believe.”
--
“God,” Blake finds herself standing before them once again, hands clasped and head bowed. She speaks formally in the presence of God, as is customary of respect. “Please, God. I am supposed to be guiding her, but I fear all I’ve done is lead her astray. I need to know where she came from, and where she is going.”
“Blake,” God says, and touches the top of her head with their hand, “she is close to your temple. Look at her, and tell me what you see.”
--
Menagerie is a busy, populated island, and Blake’s temple is the primary reason for that. Pilgrimages are made from around the world to pray at her shrine and leave offerings at her feet. Protect me from loss, help me navigate my grief, let me fulfill my promise.
Yang is none of those things. And when the keepers of the temple ask the reason for her journey, she says, “I am in love with her.”
“You have been touched,” one says, and bows to her upon entry. “You have as long as the goddess is willing to give you.”
The heavy doors close, but the room shimmers, firelight glittering over golden-accented walls. A large moon is carved into the marble floor, crossing over a sun. Before her is the largest, most intricately carved statue of Blake she’s ever seen, and it looks exactly like her.
Yang kneels.
“You know,” Blake says from behind her, “you don’t have to do that anymore.”
“No,” Yang says. “But it - it’s been a long journey. And I’m only here because of you.”
  Blake’s footsteps echo, her boots stopping at the north point of the sun. “How do you feel?”
It’s enough to make Yang smile. “I know you heard me,” she says pointedly, but her amusement is apparent. “You hear everything I say.”
“I thought I’d give you the chance to tell me yourself.”
For the last time, Yang rises to her feet. Blake’s eyes glitter, mischievous and playful. She looks as she always has, but clearer, somehow; defined and resolute. She carries the truth in the way she extends a hand, in the way she searches for Yang’s mouth. When they kiss, Yang swears she can see another world.
“I’ll tell you something better,” Yang says. “The truth.”
She leans down, bumps their foreheads together. Blake’s arms loop around her neck automatically. Oh, Yang thinks, if I were the god of anything, I’d want it to be habits.
“So what’s the truth?” Blake asks.
“The truth,” Yang says unshakably, “is that it was you. I woke up with no memory and a note, and somehow, I knew I had to find you. The only thing I’ve been searching for is you.”
It’s you, she says. It’s you. You. You.
--
“God,” Blake says, and this time God is ready for her.
“Blake Belladonna,” God says, and inclines their head. “Come. Show me what you have.”
In her hands is a small slip of paper, worn and ripped around the edges. “It is a note,” she says, and unfolds it gingerly. “It is a note, God, in my handwriting.”
“And what does it say?” they ask.
“Find me,” Blake recites, “and I promise I’ll bring you home.”
“Well,” God says whimsically, “you are the Goddess of Promises.”
--
Tears build in the corners of her eyes, shipwrecks gaining water. “Yang,” Blake whispers, and now that she is close, she can see everything. Meteors falling from their showers; the day the sun went out. “Yang. I’m sorry. I’m so, so--”
“Shh,” Yang murmurs, pressing her lips into Blake’s hair. “What are you apologizing for? I found you, and you brought me home.”
--
“Oh, this is exciting,” God says. “I so rarely get to come to Remnant on business.”
“God,” Yang says, and bows her head. The temple doors remain locked; Blake’s hand is clutched tightly in her own. “It’s good to see you.”
“And you, Yang Xiao Long,” says God. “You fell in the last war, over five-hundred years ago. Do you remember this?”
“Yes,” she says. “I was trying to protect my sister.”
“And what happens when a god falls?”
“We forget them,” Blake says. “Their power is forfeit; they are erased from our memories, and our world.”
“It is not a law of justice, but a law of reality,” God says. “Or it was, previously. Only you did not forget immediately, Blake Belladonna. I did not know it was possible for two souls to be so intrinsically bound that they leave traces in the other, but you did not forget, just long enough to leave her a message. It took five hundred years for Yang to fall to earth, and when she awoke, she did not forget, either.
“Gods are made, and this means that what we are gods of can change,” they continue. “Blake, you were not previously the Goddess of Death. You became it because you believed that Yang had died, and no god had as strong a connection to loss as you. Your power became a beacon, just as it now will be a beacon for Remembrance.
“And you, Yang Xiao Long,” God says. “Goddess of the Sun, of Loyalty, of Sacrifice. You were many things. And now you are the Goddess of Rebirth.”
647 notes · View notes
waitimcomingtoo · 3 years
Text
In Case You Don’t Live Forever
~chapter five rewritten~
Pairing: Peter Parker x Venom!reader
Synopsis: you are Peters greatest love and Spider-Man’s greatest enemy
Series Masterlist
Tumblr media
“Why are you in such a mood?” Ned asked his best friend as they walked to their college campus. Peter had been grumpy all morning and Ned was quick to notice. He usually showed up at Ned’s door exhausted but eager to share the adventures from the night before, but he seemed defeated today.
“I got my ass beat last night.” Peter grumbled as he shouldered his backpack.
“By who?” Ned wondered.
“I don’t even know.” Peter sighed. “I think it was some kind of alien.”
“What’d it look like?” Ned asked. It wasn’t uncommon for Ned to ask a million questions after being told something Spider-Man related. After all, he was the guy in the chair.
“Like nothing I’ve ever seen before.” Peter said swallowed and tried to push the previous night from his mind. He’d rather focus on this morning, and the moment he had shared with you. Peter felt such a strong connection to you, and he would’ve stayed on that rooftop all day if he could.
“Describe it to me.” Ned pleaded, tearing Peter from his thoughts.
“I don’t know. It was like eight feet tall, black, and bald. And it was super veiny.” Peter grimaced while Ned’s eyes widened.
“Oh my God. You fought Shaquille O’Neal?” Ned gasped.
“Keep your voice down. I did not fight Shaquille O’Neal.” Peter whispered harshly. Ned always seemed one step away from blowing Peters cover. Peter gave bashful smiles to the passing students who gave him weird looks upon hearing Ned’s words.
“Terry Crews?” Ned continued. Peter rolled his eyes at his best friend and starting walking to class.
“No. This is serious.” Peter said, his voice heavy with annoyance.
“I know it’s serious. You got beat up by The Rock.” Ned remarked. Peter fidgeted with the strings on his backpack, still bothered knowing he was beaten so easily by Venom.
“The Rock is Samoan, not black.” Peter corrected.
“I know. But I heard “bald” and I just automatically envisioned The Rock.” Ned defended.
“There’s another thing. It had this huge, gaping mouth with rows and rows of teeth. I keep thinking about it.” Peter shivered. “It came so close to me. And its tongue was super long. It was like a cracked out frog.”
“So a ninja turtle? You got beat up by a ninja turtle?” Ned gawked.
“It wasn’t a ninja turtle.” Peter snapped. “ It was black, remember?”
“So an emo ninja turtle.” Ned deadpanned.
“It kept saying “we”. “ Peter remembered.
“What do you mean?”
“There was only one of them, but they only referred to themself as “we” as if there were multiple of them.” Peter explained.
“Do you think there could be more? Like an alien army or something?” Ned asked incredulously. Peter hadn’t even thought about that.
“Maybe. I remember something else, it’s name was Venom.” Peter recalled. He distinctly remembered those words coming out of the creatures mouth.
“Venom?” Ned repeated, clearly finding it cool.
“Yeah. And I told it my name. I used my regular voice too.” Peter realized. He usually disguised his voice when speaking, but he had been so scared that he forgot to. It haunted him knowing the creature now knew who he was and he wondered if it knew both of his identities.
“Wow. This is so cool. Not cool for you, because you might die. But this is super cool for me.” Ned smiled as he envisioned what Venom might look like.
“Thanks, ned. Actually, wait.” Peter stopped in his tracks. “One more thing happened.”
“What?” Ned whispered as they approached their class.
“Venom was about to eat me but then it started talking to itself. It sounded maybe like it was having a conversation with someone? I’m not sure, I could only hear one side of it.” Peter explained. “It put me down, well it threw me down, and let me go. But before it left, it said something about a girl. I don’t really remember. I was too focused on catching my breath.”
“Catching your breath? Were you running?”
“No. It choked me.” Peter told him as he lightly touched his neck.
“Kinky.” Ned smirked as he took a seat next to Peter in their class.
“That’s gross.” Peter stifled a laugh. “Did I tell you about this morning with Y/N?”
“No. Tell me.” Ned said. He wasn’t disappointed in the change of topic. He was glad Peter had moved on on from Liz, finally. Peter recounted the discussion he had with you that morning, barely getting through it without blushing and laughing at certain parts.
“I really like her, Ned. More than I’ve ever liked anyone. She’s so amazing. I barely know her, but I can tell already. I want to know everything about her. I want to hear her full story. And most of all, I want to be a part of that story.” Peter declared but frowned suddenly.
“What’s wrong?” Ned asked.
“After our talk, we just kinda sat there staring at each other for a while.” Peter began. “She kinda leaned in, and I did too, but then this seagull flew by and scared us half to death. We laughed about it but the moment was gone.”
“So you almost kissed her?” Ned smiled. “Why is that upsetting you?”
“Because what if that was our chance and I blew it?” Peter feared. “What if that seagull was a sign from above that I was in way over my head? Like God was asking me who I was to think I could just kiss the most perfect girl in the world? She’s so cool, Ned. Way too cool for me. She’s already had a boyfriend and I’ve never even kissed anyone.”
“If it’s meant to happen, it will happen.” Ned assured him.
“Or, the same thing that happened with Liz will happen.” Peter argued. “I won’t tell her how I feel and then she’ll be gone forever.”
“Then don’t let that happen.” Ned reasoned. “Tell Y/N how you feel. Do it tonight, before you go on patrol. And if she doesn’t feel the same, then at least you’ll know. Isn’t it better to know?”
“When did you become such a love expert?” Peter teased as the professor walked into the room.
“Since I started dating Betty. She’s opened my eyes to what love really is.” Ned shrugged. “Tell her tonight. Then tell me how it goes. I’m here for you either way.”
Peter nodded and gave Ned a thankful smile before turning his attention to the professor.
On his walk home from campus, Peter spotted you walking down the sideways. Ned’s words of encouragement rang in his ears and he made a brash decision.
“Hey, Y/N, wait up!” Peter called after you, making you turn around.
“Hey Parker. How was kindergarten?” You teased him.
“Alright alright. Majoring in chemical engineering is hardly kindergarten. And I’m only one year younger than you.” Peter reminded you. “I don’t want you to have a heart attack on me, grandma.”
“Watch it, sonny.” You kept with the joke. “I’ll hit you with my purse and then say something mildly racist.”
“Just like my grandma.” Peter laughed in amusement. “We’re gross. And not funny.”
“We really are.” You scrunched your nose. “Couple of gross ass orphans.”
Peter laughed again, feeling comfortable enough with you to joke about a tragic situation.
“Look, Y/N, I really enjoyed our talk this morning. I really enjoyed all our talks so far actually. I guess I just like talking to you. ” Peter began. He looked nervous all the sudden, like he lost his stamina. You raised your eyebrows hopefully, as there were only so many ways this conversation could go.
“I like talking to you too, Peter.” You said honestly, hoping he’d continue. Hoping he’d ask that question. Your answer seemed to give Peter the confidence he needed to go on.
“Really? Um, that’s great cause I really like talking to you too. I already said that. Oh god. I’m crashing. I-“ he began to flail and you calmed him down by taking a few steps closer. You were almost touching at that point. He stopped talking immediately and looked at you with wide eyes.
“Is there someone you wanted to ask me, Peter?” You asked slowly as you looked at him through your eyelashes.
Damn. He was tall too.
“Yes, actually. I, um, will you…would you maybe want to-“
“Hiya kids!” A gravely voice came from the front stairs of your apartment, completely cutting Peter off. Peter looked up and angrily rolled his eyes.
“Don’t look now. It’s Henry.” Peter grumbled. Henry was the creepy neighbor with the foot fetish.
“Oh Dear God.” Peter said in a low voice.
“What?” You panicked when you saw Peters expression change.
“You’re wearing flip flops.” He pointed at your black painted toes and you felt the color drain from your face.
“Run!” He whispered harshly. You bolted into your apartment and Peter ran into his. Once inside, Peter blew out an angry breath. He had been interrupted twice in one day when trying to talk to you, and he worried that it was a sign.
Back at the apartment, you sat on your bed with headphones in. You were prepping for your interview with Cletus Kasady by writing down some questions you wanted to ask him. It was hard figuring out what to ask a serial killer. You looked at your notepad and sighed. All you had written down was “but why tho?” in sloppy handwriting. You tore out the page, crumbled it up, and threw it at the trash can. When you went to write something else down, you noticed the paper ball still stuck to your hand. You shook your hand but it still wouldn’t come off.
“What the hell?” You grumbled as you shook your hand.
“Oh. This might be our fault.” Venom said suddenly.
“What might be your fault?” You asked as you continued to shake the paper off your hand, but to no avail.
“We sort of went inside Spider-Man when we were talking to him yesterday.” Venom said timidly and the paper ball dropped from your hand.
“What?” You demanded and Venom went silent.
“Come out here.” You said, like an owner to a dog.
“We’d rather stay inside.” Venom said softly.
“Get out here now. You need to explain yourself young lady.” You said sternly. Venom slowly manifested and looked at you with sad eyes.
“I’m 600 million years old, by the way.” Venom added. “You can’t call me young lady.”
“What do you mean you went inside Spider-Man?” You ignored her comment.
“When we were choking him we put one of our tendrils inside him and swirled around.” Venom explained. “He didn’t even feel it. We did though. He’s very squishy on the inside.”
“You…what?” You didn’t even know where to start. “How does that explain the paper sticking to me?”
“We think we absorbed his powers.” Venom said. “We used to watch videos of him on YouTube after you went to bed. He can stick to walls and stuff. We think that’s why the paper ball stuck to you.”
“Since when can we absorb powers?” You wondered as you looked at your hands.
“We never had a host before. We don’t really know how it works.” Venom reminded you. “But back on Klyntar, our home planet, the Grandmaster used to tell us we could absorb the powers of superhuman beings. Judging by your newfound stickiness, we think it worked.”
“What else can Spider-Man do?” You asked. “Since you’re such a big fan.”
“He can shoot webs out of his wrists. And he can return lost dogs.” Venom answered, sounding a little annoyed.
“Do you have something against Spider-Man?” You chuckled a little at her tone.
“We hate what he did last night. He thought we were the bad guy, and he let the real bad guy get away. He judged us before he had the full story. We’re not a bad guy.” Venom defended. You were surprised to hear how passionate she was about this and gave her a soft smile.
“Let’s not worry about Spider-Man right now. I want to test out our new abilities. Let’s rock and roll, baby.” You cheered, complete with rock and roll hands. The second you touched your middle finger and ring finger to your palm, a black, web-like tendril shot out from your wrist and stuck to the ceiling. You stared at the web with a gaping mouth, weakly shaking your wrist to see if it would stay attached.
It did.
“Maybe that’s one of our new abilities.” Venom said. You looked back and forth between her and the gooey web coming out of your wrist.
“Oh my God! What’s happening?” You screamed. You took your fingers off your palm and the web retracted back into your wrist. Looking at your wrist incredulously, you made the rock and roll hand again and the same web shot out from your wrist. This time, it grabbed the ceiling fan.
“V-Venom?” You asked. You didn’t know what to say.
“Try to aim it at something.” She suggested. You aimed your wrist and the lamp across the room and touched your fingers to your palm. The black web shot across the room and grabbed onto the lamp. You quickly yanked your arm back to pull the lamp towards yourself. The lamp flew across the room, smashed you in the face, and left you with a bloody nose.
“Ow.” You cried, gingerly touching your nose.
“We see this as a absolutely win.” Venom cheered. You shot her a look and went to get cleaned up.
After about a week of practice, and very little work on your questions for Cletus, you had a better handle on your webbing ability. Of course, the week also consisted of long talks with Peter on the roof, late patrols of New York, the occasional run in with a criminal, late night FaceTime calls with Peter, and beating the shit out of Spider-Man, twice. Venom eventually grew bored of using the new powers around the house, so it was time for the final test.
You stood at the rooftop ledge and looked down, talking a deep breath to calm your nerves.
“It’s a long way down.” You commented.
“Yep.” Venom replied in your head.
“We could die.” You added.
“Yep.”
“Ready?”
“We’re ready.” Venom grinned as you transformed. You stepped off the ledge and fell freely for a while, screaming the whole way down.
“Stop being a little bitch! Shoot a web!” Venom yelled. You aimed a web at a building and began to swing. You were too close to the ground and ended up knocking over a bunch of tables at an outdoor restaurant. People ran away in fear while others took out their cameras and recorded.
“We’re not here to hurt you! Peace and love!” Venom shouted as you continued to swing through the steers of New York. People began to cheer upon hearing your words.
“Do you hear that, Y/N? People are cheering. They love us.” Venom said happily.
“I love us too.” You replied. You were even happier than she was. You knew how much it hurt Venom to be seen as a monster, it was why she hated being called a parasite. You also knew it was why she hated Spider-Man. He was praised for stopping bad guys while Venom was seen as one of the bad guys he needed to stop.
“Hey, what is that thing?” A man called from the street. Venom stopped swinging and landed on the street. You proudly turned to the crowd of people, a massive grin on your face. There it was, our favorite question.
“We…are Venom.” Venom growled. People took pictures and videos of you from a distance.
“You can come closer. We won’t hurt you.” Venom assured the crowd.
“Are you like the anti Spider-Man?” Someone asked.
“Spider-Man is a joke. He can’t protect this city like we can. We are no Spider-Man. We are Venom.” Venom roared. A few people took a step back and you began to feel uneasy.
“Hey, King Kong. I want a word with you.” A sassy voice quipped from the crowd. A man in yellow sunglasses and a suit stepped forward, and you bet your ass you recognized him.
“My name is Tony Stark. Heard of me? Of course you have. Would you mind coming back to my tower with me?” He asked, but it felt more like a demand. The people in the crowd slowly dispersed and soon, you stood there alone with Tony.
“Be nice. Say yes.” You told Venom.
“Who is this guy?” She asked out loud.
“I just said my name.” Tony said, slightly annoyed.
“He’s a really famous inventor. I’ll explain later. Just follow him please.” You begged. Venom gave Tony a once over and followed him to a limo.
“Yea, you’re gonna ride up top big guy.” Tony said, patting the roof of the car.
“Girl.” Venom growled. Tony looked surprised.
“My apologies ma’am.” He raised surprised eyebrows. You rode on top of his car all the way to his tower, wondering what he could possibly want with you.
The inside of his tower was huge. Tony lead you to a lab that was bigger than yours and Peters apartments combined.
“I’ve seen videos of you on YouTube. Seems like you and Spider-Man aren’t the best of friends.” Tony remarked as he pulled out an iPad.
“We will crush his bones and snort them like cocaine.” Venom growled. Tony was just as surprised to hear that as you were.
“Now that’s a visual.” Tony smirked. “I’ll have you know, Spider-Man is a friend of mine. He’s not your biggest fan either but from what I’ve seen, you’ve done this city some good since you’ve been here. How long has that been?”
“Two weeks.” Venom answered.
“I thought so. I’d never seen you before then. And since your arrival, petty crime has dropped significantly in Queens. Criminals are too scared of getting eaten to do anything. Don’t get me wrong, I love Spider-Man and I’ll kill you if you tell him that, but no one fears him. He gets the job done, but there’s always another job to do. With you, on the other hand, your mere presence is preventing crime before it even happens.” Tony smiled to himself, like he was just given a new toy. “You’re scary, is what I’m trying to say. But you’re a good guy. It’s rare. I want it to stay that way. I want you on my team.”
“Team?”
“We’re called the Avengers. We had a bit of a falling out but the name still stands.” Tony waved his hand. “We fight bad guys together. Really, really bad guys. I think you could us some good. Plus, you’ll be taken care of for life and we’ll only call you in for serious threats. But I need a few things from you first.”
“Like what?”
“Your story.” He pointed a finger at you. “How does a giant, anthropomorphic alien wind up in New York City?”
“It’s a long story.” Venom answered.
“We can trust this man, Venom.” You told her telepathically. “I’m gonna come out okay?” Venom hesitated and Tony looked impatient to know more.
“Are you sure?” She asked you. Tony looked confused.
“Am I sure?” He pointed to himself.
“Not you.” She said. Tony looked around for who else Venom could be talking to and found no one.
“I’m sure.” You decided. “This guy is one of the good guys. We can trust him. I promise. I’m coming out.”
You slowly transformed back into yourself in front of Tonys wide eyes. Venom stayed in her snake-like form and rested on your neck.
“Hello, Mr. Stark. My name is Y/N L/N.” You shyly introduced yourself. “This is Venom. We want to help.”
Tony’s face shifted from shocked to impressed as he looked you over.
“I gotta say, I did not except someone like you to be inside that scary monster.” Tony chuckled.
“We’re not a monster, Mr. Stark. We want to help people.” You reminded him.
“I can see that.” Tony nodded. “That’s why I’ve been developing you a suit.”
“When did you do that?” You wondered. “We just met.”
“Oh, I know. I’ve been designing it while you talked. I want you to have it incase you and Venom get separated. That way, you’ll be protected until you’re back together.” Tony explained as he showed you his ipad. Sure enough, it had a drawing of a suit on it.
“I’ll get started right away. I just need a little piece of Venom. If I make the suit using her skin, you’ll have the total protection you need.” You looked at Venom for consent, who nodded and extended a tendril towards Tony. He quickly snipped a piece off and put it in a container.
“When will the suit be ready? A few months?” You asked as Tony tapped the container. Tony stopped looking at the container and laughed.
“Y/N, I’m a genius inventor. Go get lunch. It’ll be ready when you’re done.” He said.
And he wasn’t kidding. An hour and a half later, Tony presented you with a suit. You ran my fingers over it slowly, not wanted to disturb a single thing. You looked at it in awe, completely speechless at what he had created.
“Go on, try it on.” He shrugged casually. You grinned from ear to ear before rushing to the bathroom to put it on. You came out soon enough with tears in you eyes.
“You like it?” Tony asked. You looked at your covered hands in amazement. The suit was jet black, like Venom was, and hugged your body like a second skin. There was a big white spider symbol on the front, the complete opposite of Spider-Mans small black one. You figured it was a nod to being called the anti Spider-Man and it was perfect.
“Well?” Tony was still waiting for an answer. You looked up at him just as a few tears fell down you cheeks.
“We didn’t celebrate my birthday growing up because it was the anniversary of my moms death. I used to be so upset every year.” You blurted. Tony looked like he didn’t know what to say and you couldn’t blame him. That was something deeply personal and you had only just met him.
“What I’m trying to say is, I get it now.” You explained. “All those missed birthdays were for a reason. I didn’t get gifts those days because I’m getting the ultimate gift right now. This is the most amazing thing I could’ve asked for. I cannot thank you enough Mr. Stark. I’ll never take it off.”
“You can’t take it off anyway.” Tony told you. “When you don’t want to wear it, it absorbs back into your skin like Venom does. And it’s equipped with Venoms essential abilities. It’s bullet proof, knife proof, taser proof, spork proof and so on. And you can still shoot your webby things. You just won’t have super strength, super speed, or that Venus flytrap mouth of yours.”
You tested it out and shot a web towards his desk. You grabbed a pen and caught it with ease, then looked at Tony for approval.
“That’s the best I could do. It’s no Iron Man suit but it’ll suffice.” Tony said casually. You couldn’t take it anymore and rushed towards him to hug him tightly.
“Thank you.” You said into his chest. Tony patted your back awkwardly and you let go.
“It’s nothing. You can thank me by not eating Spider-Man. I know he’s annoying but he doesn’t mean any harm. Now go forth and do good.” Tony requested.
You swung back to the apartment and landed on the roof. You turned back into yourself and made your way down the steps to your floor. After this mornings conversation with Peter and the incredible suit from Mr. Stark, you were having a great day. For the first time in years, you couldn’t wait for tomorrow.
562 notes · View notes
moldisgoodforyou · 3 years
Text
on my mom's grave
wordcount: 3.7k
warnings: n/a
Tumblr media
______
“How drunk do you think we’re going to get tonight?” Sophie asked, tipping back the last of a lemon White Claw as the two of them got ready for the night in her room.
“Dunno. I’m not really feeling it tonight.”
She paused, glancing back at him. “Do you not want to go?”
He shook his head and took the can from her, disappointed to realize there was nothing left. “No, no, it’s fine. I’m cool. Probably just won’t drink.”
“Is this about the phone call with your dad earlier?”
Rafe sighed, gritting his teeth. “It’s not - I’m fine, Soph.”
She crossed her arms and eyed him over, trying to get a read on his body language. “You’re sure.”
“I’m sure.” After Rafe tugged his shirt over his head, ready much faster than Sophie, he paced around the room for a few seconds before speaking up. "Hey, so...Sarah's getting presented at the annual deb ball in spring."
Sophie seemed unbothered, turning her back to him as she wrestled her way into a crop top to get ready for the night. "Those are still a thing? Cool, so you're going home for it?" She paused, glancing over at him in his polo. "Undo another button."
He did so, then rocked back on his heels with his hands in his pockets, trying to figure out what to say next.
She slowly turned back to him, realizing he was still tense across his shoulders. "What?"
Rafe rubbed the back of his neck, a tell-tale sign he was nervous and Sophie wasn't going to like what he was about to say. "Yeah...my dad wanted you to come home for it too."
"What? Ward? Why?"
"He, kinda, uh, wants you to be presented too?"
She just laughed, turning back to the mirror with her brow furrowed in slight concentration as she applied another coat of mascara. "Okay. Sure." But when he didn't elaborate, she turned back to him again, lips pursed. "Cameron. Tell me you told him no."
"...I didn't not not tell him no."
"Rafe."
He cracked under her stare. "I'm sorry, okay! Look, it's easy, all you have to do is throw on a pretty white dress and gloves -"
"A dress that costs thousands of dollars -"
"Hundreds, but - I'll cover you, obviously -"
"No." She turned back to the mirror, shaking her head. "Fuck no. I'm not going."
"Sophie." He nearly begged, stepping closer and running his hand through his hair. "Baby. C'mon."
"Don't call me that. No. I don’t fit into that part of your world.”
"Not even for me?" He pleaded, giving her a half-hearted grin. He ignored her last sentence, knowing any argument he had for her point would be dismissed in two seconds. "I wouldn't ask you if it wasn't important, you know that."
She turned back to him with crossed arms, fixing him with a glare. "Do I know that?"
"Soph."
"Don't, Rafe." She warned, holding one hand out, but he stepped closer anyways.
"Angel. Please. For me." He forced a smile, tried cracking a joke. "I really don't want to have to call him up and get read the riot act."
She furrowed her brow and Rafe reached out and smoothed out the lines in between her eyebrows before he could stop himself, making her soften just a little. "If I were to say yes. What would I have to do?"
"Just wear the dress, attend a dinner, party the night before and party that night." He paused, thinking. "And stay at my house for the weekend. Be civil to my dad.” At her eyeroll, he fixed her with a more serious gaze. “Meet my grandparents. Hang with my sisters. C'mon, Wheezie adores you."
"You're lying."
"I'm not. She thinks you're cool. Sarah too, but she’s less likely to admit it." He kissed her forehead, hands going to her waist. "Please?"
"It's that important?"
"I swear. On my mom's grave."
Sophie frowned immediately, reaching up to fix his hair. "That's not necessary."
"You'll do it?"
"...Yes." When he made a small fist pump, she fixed him with a glare. "Only because I love you."
“I'll go down on you every night for the next two weeks -”
She rolled her eyes at his promise, shoving lightly at his chest. "You basically already do that anyways, Rafe -”
"Okay, fine, I'll tie you up, something, anything, god, thank you, Soph. You don't know how big of a favor this is. I mean it." He sighed in relief, the tension draining from his body.
She ignored him, turning back to the mirror to apply lip gloss, carefully smearing the wand across her lips. “Why does he want me to do this? I don’t understand.”
“Is that the sticky stuff? I hate that stuff, it gets all over me when we’re kissing -” He started, then quickly shut his mouth as she flipped him off without looking. “Uh, ‘to integrate you into our society.’ Direct quote.”
“Oh god.” She groaned, setting the lip gloss aside after applying it, then started searching through her jewelry case. “So I’m gonna have to be on my best kook behavior?”
He snorted. “Sophie Flint, a kook. Not likely.”
“Watch it.” She pointed a warning finger in his face. “You don’t see anything weird with this? Your dad hates me.”
“He doesn’t hate you.”
“Rose does.”
“That’s not true either.”
Sophie raised her eyebrows, challenging him.
He shrugged, relenting with a sigh. “You’re not her favorite person, no, but neither am I.”
“You think this was more her idea? For Sarah to do it too?”
“Nah, actually, pretty sure it was my grandparents’ idea. Probably Granddad. My mom went through all this, so…”
She turned her back to him and gathered her hair, offering the clasp of her gold chain to him. “Your mom was a debutante?” She questioned with interest.
_______
Rafe rarely ever talked about his mom - Sophie had only found out how she died from a newspaper article in the online archives, and hadn’t wanted to bring it up since. All she knew was that Mrs. Cameron had passed away in a car accident when Rafe was fourteen.
Both Sophie and Rafe’s schools shared a building, despite them going to private academies, and overlapped for certain advanced placement classes. In freshman year, they were together for AP chemistry, with Sophie sitting proudly at the front of the class while Rafe sat in the back with a group of his friends, often cracking jokes at inappropriate times or throwing wads of paper at each other. Freshman year Sophie was the epitome of stuck-up - she resorted to insults instead of making friends and kept to herself, terrified someone might find out that she was on scholarship and wasn’t truly meant to be there.
The day after the car accident, Rafe was unusually quiet. Sophie hadn’t heard the news yet, it was barely second period and she wasn’t looped into the trail of gossip like the rest of the girls at Greenville. They were partnered for an experiment that day - Rafe had groaned when he heard Sophie’s name after his from the teacher, and Sophie barely suppressed a roll of her eyes. She took charge right away, getting all the supplies and set up their work station without even addressing him. After a few minutes, she slid the small glass of solution to Rafe, raising her eyebrows. “You can do the work too, you know.”
He was completely spaced out, only glancing up when she said something. “I wasn’t paying attention.”
Sophie rolled her eyes, lifting a beaker and extending it to him. “Yeah. I know. Just drop in 10 milliliters of the solution, it’s not hard.”
Rafe sighed as he rested his elbows on the edge of the table, rubbing his temples. “Look, can you just do it?”
She finally took note of the dark circles under his eyes, the way his shoulders were slumped, but misinterpreted it all. She smirked, taking on a taunting tone. “What, you’re still drunk from last night or something?”
He gritted his jaw, his entire body growing tense, and tugged at the collar of his polo. “Fuck off, Flint. Not in the mood today.”
She recoiled immediately, setting the beaker down with a little too much force. “Don’t be an asshole.”
“Don’t be a fucking bitch.” He spit back, standing abruptly. She winced as the stool squeaked across the floor, drawing everyone’s attention - as if they hadn’t had it already. Kelce stepped over and went to grab Rafe’s arm, possibly pull him away, but Rafe just wrenched his arm out of his grip. “I’m fine.” He growled, storming out of the classroom without looking back.
After a few moments of stunned silence, with Sophie on the verge of shocked tears, their teacher cleared her throat and redirected everyone’s attention, pointing one of the girls over to join Sophie instead. Molly made her way over, occupying Rafe’s seat in the space across from her. “Poor Rafe,” she murmured.
Sophie frowned, pulling her jacket tighter across her chest like a shield of armor. “Poor Rafe? What?”
Molly nodded, lowering her voice a little. “Yeah, you didn’t hear? I’m surprised he’s at school, honestly.”
“I didn’t...what happened?”
“Oh.” Molly frowned. “Um. You know that winding road, the one that goes downhill toward the ballet studio?”
Sophie didn’t, she didn’t even have a clue - the ballet studio was on the entire opposite side of the island from where she lived, the height of Figure 8, and she hadn’t ever had a reason to even venture that way. “Yeah? What does that have to do with Rafe?”
“Um, well, it was pouring last night, and his mom was driving down that road. I heard she lost control of the car and wrecked it. There was, like, a drunk driver that swerved into her lane, but she tried to avoid him and hit a tree.” Molly told her, careful on the details.
“I’m pretty sure the Camerons can replace a car.” Sophie replied, not wanting Molly to confirm where she thought she was going with the story. She dug her nails into the skin of her thigh anyways, feeling anxiety bubble up in her chest.
Molly shook her head, slowly. “Mrs. Cameron died, Sophie.”
Her heart dropped and she bit the inside of her cheek, hard. “Oh.”
“Yeah. I’m surprised you didn’t hear the sirens last night, I saw like eight police cars last night headed toward his house. I heard Sarah was in the car too, I think -”
“Is Sarah okay?” She couldn’t concentrate on anything but her ears ringing, her heart pounding in her chest.
“Oh, yeah, I think so. But god, how awful, right? The funeral is next weekend, Ward Cameron told my dad this morning. Is your family going?”
“Um...I don’t know.” Sophie glanced toward the door, hoping to god he would come back through the door and Molly would confess that it was all a joke, that she hadn’t just started something with Rafe on that day of all days.
________
Rafe nodded. “Yeah. ‘Course she was. I think she really enjoyed it, actually, she’d always tell Sarah when she was little about how pretty she would look in the dress, how important it was to learn the right etiquette and -” He cut himself off, realizing he was sharing too much, and deftly fastened the clasp before pressing a kiss to the top of her head, letting her step away. “All that.”
“Huh.”
He smiled to himself, thinking about how his mom would let little Sarah play dress up in her old ballgown with gloves that went up to her armpits, wobbling around in high heels twice the size of her feet. His mom would tell Rafe he’d have to watch out for Sarah with her escort, keep him in line, and that when he was in college he’d be presenting a girl as well. But he was nine and didn’t think of girls in that way quite yet, so he always scowled and left the room.
“It’s kind of cool, I think. The tradition of it all.”
“The ball? Have you been?” She caught his eye in the mirror as she adjusted her top, not wanting to push for too much information before he’d shut down altogether.
“No...I was gonna present Brooklyn at the one here in Columbus, sophomore year’s normally when the girl gets presented, but. Yeah. No, I meant, it’s kind of cool that you’ll be doing something my mom did.” He rubbed the back of his neck, meeting her gaze for a moment then looked away.
“Yeah?”
“She would have liked you. I know it.”
Sophie perked up a little, cocking her head. “You really mean it?”
“Yeah. She would have liked that you have an attitude with me.” He grinned when she turned back around and took his hand, tugging him over to sit on the bed next to her. “She was always saying I needed to find someone to match my energy, keep me in check. I wish she could have met you.”
“I did meet her. Once.”
He perked up, cocking his head. “You did?”
“Yeah, I served her when I was working at the restaurant at the country club once, I was only fourteen. I remember she made some comment about me being too young to work and I told her I liked it. Then she asked my name, and I remember she seemed like she knew already when I told her.” Sophie nodded. “She was really nice, left way too big of a tip and wrote my name on the bill. I always thought that was funny.”
Of course she knew, Rafe thought as he smiled to himself. She knew, because Rafe had come home and complained about a girl getting on his nerves every single week since seventh grade. She knew, when the complaints turned to “why won’t just be nice to me” and his mom had quipped that Sophie probably liked him - he had scoffed and walked away. She knew, because his mom had come home from the country club and told him Sophie Flint was a much nicer girl than Rafe painted her to be, and Rafe had immediately turned bright red and been embarrassed that his mom sought her out.
“I like that.” She leaned into him, taking his hand to play with his rings. “Will your grandparents be there? At the ball?”
“Oh, yeah. They sit on the board, I’m pretty sure, it’s this gigantic charity event. I’ll introduce you, but don’t worry, they’re chill. Nothing like my dad.” He adjusted himself so she was comfortable, then pressed a kiss to the top of her head.
She chewed on the inside of her lip, treading carefully. “I thought your dad grew up on the Cut.”
“He did. But my mom, no way. Kook through and through. That’s, uh, where a lot of my trust is from. After she died, um. She wanted to be sure me and Sarah were set.” He shrugged, ears turning red as he felt his throat getting tight.
Sophie frowned, feeling him closing off, and leaned closer to hug him, arms wrapped tight around his waist. “You know you can talk to me about this stuff whenever, Rafe? I’d like to hear more about your mom. She sounds like an amazing woman.”
“She was.” He nodded, settling his arms around her shoulders and rested his chin on the top of her head, closing his eyes for a moment. “Thanks, Soph. This is a really big deal to me, that you’ll go. I know it’s not your scene.”
“Love you.” She murmured. “You’d better buy me a pretty dress.”
He laughed, leaning back just enough to tip up her chin with one finger and kiss her. “You’ll be the best looking one there. I swear.”
“Oh, I already knew that.”
“Okay, okay, big head -”
She swatted his arm, laughing as she ducked out from under him. “Watch it, or I won’t go -”
“I was kidding!” He exclaimed, wrestling with her for a moment before grabbing both her hands and pinning them above her head.
Sophie sucked in a breath, caught off guard. “We are going to be late.”
“We’re already late.” He pointed out, taking a moment to realize the lack of innocence in the position, then slowly smirked. “We could be later. They’re not gonna miss us.”
“Rafe.”
“Sophie.”
“No.”
“You’re positive?”
She just gave him a look, staring him dead in the eyes and willing herself not to react when he leaned down with a grin and kissed the bridge of her nose.
“Please?”
“Fine. The ball or sex right now. You choose.” She raised her eyebrows, arching her back a little on purpose, pressing her hips up against his.
“That’s not fair.” He frowned, immediately shifting his hips away and moving so both his knees were on either side of her instead. “This is blackmail.”
“Your choice.” She reminded him, biting her lip for good measure.
He faltered, sitting back on her thighs and letting go of her wrists. “Soph, it’s - it’s for my mom. I swear. Not for my dad, Rose, anyone else.”
Sophie dropped the teasing act right away, propping herself up on her elbows. “Right, right, sorry. I won’t push it.”
“It’s alright.” He climbed off her, standing, and offered his hands. “Five bucks James makes some joke about us being late because we were having sex.”
“I’m not taking you up on that.” She rolled her eyes, accepting his hand and pulled him into a hug. “Love you long time, Cameron.”
He smiled, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “Love you too, favorite girl.”
“What do the dresses look like?”
“Uh...white?” Rafe shrugged, tugging on her hand to get her to follow him downstairs. “I dunno. When we go home for Thanksgiving I’ll book you an appointment to get fitted, I think it’s at some bridal shop on the mainland.”
“Sounds expensive.” She muttered, shaking her head.
“It’s…yeah. It’s not cheap.” He admitted, then shrugged as she followed him out the door, starting their walk toward the bars. “I’ll take care of it though. All of it. By the way, have you booked your flight home for Thanksgiving yet?”
“Um...no. I was going to look this week, it’s probably too late now though.”
“Hm.”
“Hm? Why, are you going home?”
Rafe nodded, not looking her in the eye. “Taking the plane.”
“Oh. Of course.”
“The plane...that no one else will be on...and it’s kinda ridiculous for you to waste money and carbon emissions on a separate flight…” He tried convincing her, a small smile playing on his lips as she rolled her eyes.
“You need to learn how carbon emissions work if you’re going to use that as an argument with me.”
“So that’s a no to sex on the plane?”
Sophie stopped in her tracks, confused. “That wasn’t - Rafe, what?”
“You, me, alone on the plane. Sorry, was I not clear enough?”
“I didn’t even say yes -”
“Oh, so you’re going to leave me all by myself on our one-year anniversary -”
She raised her eyebrows, challenging him. “When’s our anniversary, Rafe?”
He raised his back, stopping on the sidewalk to face her. “On my terms or yours? Because if we’re going with mine, it’s Halloween -”
“No, I had to ask you to be my boyfriend, it’s November 18th -”
“That is such an arbitrary thing, Sophie -”
“Hey! Stop stealing my vocabulary.” She interjected, pushing at his chest. “It’s the 18th, because I had to ask you out.”
“Okay. Whatever story makes you happy.” He shrugged, laughing when she shoved at him again. “Come on the plane with me.”
“...Fine. Only because I don’t want to miss our class reunion party on Wednesday night, I’m pretty sure some people still don’t believe we’re together.”
Rafe laughed loud at that, looping his arm around her shoulders and started walking again. “Pretty sure Topper still thinks it’s all an elaborate lie.”
“Does he know that we nearly hooked up in his room last winter break?”
“No.” He grinned. “Are you forgetting that you had to sprint into his bathroom right when I was about to kiss you because of some tequila thing you had?”
She tilted her head slightly. “You’re remembering wrong. That was sophomore year, before we were dating, I barely drank last year...you almost kissed me?”
“What? No, I think...remember, we were arguing over something, then you whispered in my ear to go up to his room and left. I went up a couple minutes later.” He shook his head. “I wasn’t going to make a move, Brooklyn and I were together then.”
Sophie scowled at the mention of Brooklyn. “I must have been hammered, I don’t remember any of this.”
“You wanted me.” He smirked, trailing his fingers along her collarbone. “One might say desperate.”
“No, no. All I remember is waking up in Topper’s bed feeling like shit, I had some crewneck on from your academy.” She ignored the blush creeping up her neck.
“How do you think you got there and got the sweatshirt?” He frowned. “I took care of you, Sophie. You really don’t remember?”
“I think I blacked out.” She confessed, shaking her head. “You took care of me?”
“Of course I did. Plus, I thought I was about to get some, I would have done anything for you.” He grinned, laughing when she shoved his shoulder. “Really thought that was the night I’d finally win you over.”
“Yeah, well, you can blame Sarah for her heavy pour that night.” She shook her head, smiling fondly. “I really wish I remembered that.”
“I wish you remembered too. Maybe you would have given me a chance before then instead of setting me up with Julia.”
“I - no! She asked to be set up with you, no, I did not instigate that at all.” She defended herself straightaway, cheeks flushing pink. “She said if I wasn’t going to make a move, then she was going to.”
“Sure. Whatever you believe.” He teased, pressing a kiss to the top of her head as they arrived at the bar. “Hey, Soph.”
She rolled her eyes, going to get in the winding line outside until he tugged her wrist back, pulling her to his chest. “What?”
“Thank you. I mean it.”
Sophie softened, smiling as she rose up on her toes to kiss him. “Of course, baby. I’ve got your back.”
taglist: @drewstarkey @lemur46 @jjmaybanksbaby @edgeofgr8 @quxxnxfhxll @obxtess @hoodpankow @vtgirl802 @outerbankies @messagesinthesky @nicolecarsley @svechnikolan @ilovejjmaybank @obxtess @abbyj1822 @oopsiedoopsie23 @g4bster @jjmaybankzz @freddymaybank @dontjinx-it @illbesafeforyou @moniamaybank @tovvaa @jailcalledlife @sunshineitsfine44 @randomficsandshit @outerbankspreferences @outerbanksbro @karsinner @kkmaybank @whoeveniskendall @lemur46 @outerbankies
142 notes · View notes
marvelwritings · 3 years
Text
A piece of me has disappeared
Summary: By day three, the first doubts set in. He’s convinced Tony is still out looking for him, but putting in the effort doesn’t always guarantee results. These people that abducted him are clever, and they know about his spider abilities. 
or: Peter get's abducted and Tony goes to rescue his son 
Everyone’s sleeping, their breaths loud in the evening quiet. Morgan is in her bed and there’s no doubt that tomorrow at seven am she’ll be up and at ‘em to wake Peter up. Tony and Pepper are across the room of his, their frantic work attitudes finally put to the sleep they so desperately need. Peter is blinking up at his roof in his bedroom, feeling fine, good even, peaceful and sated and most importantly, safe.
Everyone’s sleeping, their breaths loud in the evening quiet. Morgan is in her bed and there’s no doubt that tomorrow at seven am she’ll be up and at ‘em to wake Peter up. Tony and Pepper are across the room of his, their frantic work attitudes finally put to the sleep they so desperately need. Peter is blinking up at his roof in his bedroom, feeling fine, good even, peaceful and sated and most importantly, safe.
Everyone’s sleeping, their breaths loud in the evening quiet and …. The repeats stops working once Peter’s stomach gnaws again, the hunger he’s so gravely experiencing has switched to a whole new level. No longer the petty grumbles of an empty stomach, instead it’s replaced by the need to eat anything, despite Peter’s rationality telling him he can’t. He’s been locked up for at least seven days, but he’s still to sceptic to eat anything his captors offer him. He’s very close to breaking.
He tries to hold on by imagining that he’s at home, but he’s so tired, yet so fitful he won’t close his eyes for more then 10 seconds, and the constant torture is so jarring it hurts worse to imagine home, then be woken up in reality, than to just to be present. Peter wonders if Tony is every going to find him.
The first day, he had no question about it. Tony is scarily determined and protective to anyone who dares come after the people he considers family, Peter got a first row demonstration when some journalist tried to bad mouth Spiderman and he got clocked in the jaw, so Peter knows it’s just a matter of time.
By day three, the first doubts set in. He’s convinced Tony is still out looking for him, but putting in the effort doesn’t always guarantee results. These people that abducted him are clever, and they know about his spider abilities. So much so that they keep him sedated at all times, just enough sedative to keep him conscious, but not too little that he can tap in his superstrength. Peter will never be able to escape on his own.
Maybe if the avengers got called in they were close, but Peter’s not sure Tony would call in people he hasn’t spoken to in a few months, purely to find him. He can hold out hope though.
The third day is also the day his captures, he hasn’t seen any faces so far and the sedative contorts their voices too much to match them to somebody he knows, start with the emotional manipulation. So far, they had stuck to electrocution by tazers and punches applied to any sensitive area of his body, but Peter must not have been broken fast enough for them.
‘You know, you remind me of the stereotypical bad guys in movies, like in kids movies? Do you like kid movies? My favorite is Frozen’, Peter had once babbled in between punches through bitten teeth, trying to keep up his high spirits.
They didn’t like that one bit.
They claim all sort of ridiculous things, like that the Starks paid money for them to have kidnapped him, that Tony never started searching for him, that he might as well give up because no one was coming to fetch him. Peter laughs in their face, witty even in the face of extreme danger. It was still funny to him then. Now, on the evening of the seventh day, he stares unblinking at a wall, only moving when the physical pain becomes too much and he needs an outlet to scream.
‘Please’, he pleads sobbing. If he wasn’t so starved as he was, so mentally vulnerable, he would have been embarrassed. As it stands, Peter’s just so incapable of resisting, he simply gives in.
‘Please stop,’ Peter whimpers. If he had anything to give he’d bargain, but money is tight for May and him, and he has no knowledge of anything avengers related that could be of interest to these people. Mister Stark told him it was for his own safety, so it wouldn’t be used as leverage against him, but in Peter’s warped mind it further adds proof Tony never trusted him.
‘Ahn’, a captor coos, ‘he’s begging already, how cute.’ The voice is distinctly that of a woman’s, but it hold nothing of the warm timbre both aunt May and Pepper possess. He misses them.
The woman slides a hand up in Peter’s hair, and for one confusing moment Peter thinks she’s going to start stroking it, like Tony does, but then she balls her hands into fists and pulls his head aside. The next tazer gets placed in his neck.
‘This wouldn’t be happening if your so beloved mentor would just give up the plans for the new shield initiative, but alas, as long as he doesn’t you’ll be stuck here. The tazzer buzzes to life and Peter seizes up. It’s the so many’th time today, that Peter gives up on holding back, his scream ricochets in the room.
‘Then again, maybe we went after the wrong kid. Maybe we should have taken Tony Starks real kid? The one he actually cares about?’
Tears stumbles down his cheeks and he wishes he could fall back into unconsciousness, but of course life is not that kind. No, he begs inside his head, to warm out to speak. Not Morgan, never Morgan. He’d die before he’d let anything happen to her.
‘What do you think soldier,’ she addresses the second captor in the room, ‘perhaps a phone call would speed Stark along? A sign of life and how close to it being snuffed out the child is? What do you want Peter?’ She asks sickly sweet, as if it’s a regular question and not a taunt.
Still, Peter can’t help but reach out. He longs for one phone call so wholeheartedly. Maybe, maybe he can convince Mister Stark to get him out of this mess. He could promise to do every task Mister Stark ask of him, he could even offer to work for Stark industries until he could pay back the money he’d pay Peter’s kidnappers, anything to get out of here. Peter will do anything.
‘I think he’s agreeing.’ The woman grins, pulling out a burner phone out of her back pocket. She types for several excruciating moments, in which Peter begs to every god listening that Mister Stark will pick up. That he’ll hear Peter out.
‘Hello,’ the woman greets the phone, her smirk so evil Peter’s spider senses warm him to run, fighting through the drugs. ‘I think I have something that belongs to you Stark.’
She lowers the phone to a few inches from Peter’s ear, because Peter is too tied up to hold it on his own. ‘Speak loudly kid.’
The use of the nickname causes shudders to run down Peter’s back. Why can’t he go home?
‘Mister Stark, please help me, I don’t know where I am, but- I want to go home, please mister Stark I-. I’ll do anything you want, just please.’ Peter’s whines gain pitch, until he is nothing but a sobbing mess, barely worth the name Peter Parker, let alone Spiderman.
The phone clicks shut.
‘Whoops, looks like he hung up’, The woman snickers, patting Peter’s cheek with fake compassion. Peter bellows, heaving so severely the nonexistent food he ate threatens to come back up.
He’d never find out the phone was never connected in the first place.
---
By the grace of Peter doesn’t know what, he drops unconscious after the failed phone call to Mister Stark. The sleep is fitful at best, but at least it helps restock his powers. When Peter comes too, there are loud sounds just outside of the room he’s captivated in. He thinks there’s screaming and pleading, but he’s so exhausted he can’t bring himself to care. His hands drop uselessly by his side, his head turned away from the door as he squeezes his eyes shuts.
Why can’t this be over yet?
The door busts of his hinges, the door falls inwards. Immediately, the yellow and red armor, belonging to the iron man suit, rushes in, with the faceplate down. Now that the door is open, or gone more like, It’s clear that all the sounds Peter had been hearing where the scream of his captures. There are many of them, but they’re being taken down one by one.
Peeking aside the Iron man armor, Peter sees a flash of red and blue, and captain America’s shield knocking someone out cold.
‘Kid, kid’, Mister Stark draws his attention in a panic. The faceplate is still down, which means that Mister Stark is either not here, like he wasn’t when the vulture first dropped him into a lake, or he’s assessed the situation and deemed it too dangerous to lower his defenses.
‘You’re okay underoos, we’re getting you out of here.’ With very little effort, Mister Stark snaps restraints on Peter’s wrist and ancles, all the while murmuring under his breath. He’s trying to reassure Peter, but it’s not having any type of effect.
Instead, the comfort causes Peter to burst into tears once more, his body begging for food and pain medication that will make everything stop hurting. He doesn’t care that Mister Stark is doing this out of rightfulness, or maybe out of debt out of some kind that he’s trying to even out, Peter just wants to go home.
Once the restraints are all loose, and Peter is free of them, Mister Stark waits for a tense second, maybe expecting Peter to hob off the table and join the fight or something. That doesn’t happen. Peter lays motionless on the table, looking intensely at the glowing eyes of the iron man suit, maybe trying to convey a message that Mister Stark can’t decipher.
‘Come on Pete, we have to get out of here before they bring backup. I can only hold them off for so long.’
‘Back up?’ Peter ask nonsensical, his spider senses blaring danger at him.
‘Yeah, they’re big fans of the avengers, they’ll all be swarming in here for autographs soon, but we’re kinda busy so we really have to go now.’ Mister Stark turns frantic, his hands carefully, oh so cautiously, gripping at his shoulders.
Peter allows his muscles to turn limp, pliant under strange hands. They belong to his mentor, to one of the only touches he has ever felt that don’t originate from people who are trying to hurt him, but he’s so very terrified, it doesn’t register. Peter holds still, submissive to whatever is about to happen because the pain always seems to end faster when he doesn’t struggle.
‘Peter’, Mister Stark anguished voice insists, his faceplates lifts up, and the dull eyes of who Peter has come to think of as a father gaze upon him with despair. Mister Starks hair is greasy, his mouth is pulled down in a grimace, and his eyes are, for a lack of better word grief stricken. He’s so much older then he was before Peter was taken. ‘Please buddy, we have to go.’
Mister Stark’s calloused finger strokes Peter cheek with the utmost care, barely even pressing firm enough for Peter to feel it. He does though, and traps the touch between his check and his shoulder.  The dam breaks, and the barrier of terror that clouded Peter’s judgment lifts with it. He gasps, coming up for a breath of fresh air, and the moment between mentor and son brings at least a sliver of clarity, before he sinks back under the enormity of his panic.  
‘I can’t walk’, Peter rasps, his throat torn from all the screams. He refuses to let that stop him, he’s so close to safety, he needs to push on further just a tad longer. ‘Please Mister Stark, I can’t walk.’
‘It’s okay Pete’, Tony soothes, pressing an unyielding kiss to his forehead, and if at all possible, Peter see the rage harden his face even more. ‘I’m going to get you out of here, but it’s gonna hurt, I’m sorry.’
Before Peter can begin to process that statement, Mister Stark puts the weight on his knees, the iron man suit helping to lift Peter as if it’s no trouble at all.  Tony is no liar, Peter finds, as his body begs to be placed back on the uncomfortable bed. Even places that had been relatively unharmed ache, and Peter feels like a broken doll.
‘It’s okay Kiddo we’re almost there, just a minute longer.’ Peter clings to Mister Stark, using every ounce of strength to hang on, despite the fact that Tony has a tight grip on him as well. Iron man isn’t fighting alone, as the avengers are here to back him, them, up. In any other situation, Peter would be gushing. Not only is he seeing his heroes in action, but they’re in action for him, to help him, but now, Peter only turns his head to burrow it into Mister Starks chest plate.
‘Please, please’, Peter whispers the entire way to the jet, not even realizing he’s begging for something.
‘I got you Pete’, Tony assures, one hand briefly leaving Peter’s back to shoot at a capture that’s standing in the way of the jet. Other than that, he doesn’t interfere with the fight one time, but he must itch too. Peter hears him bark orders at captain America, telling him to take some of them alive.
‘Please don’t leave me here, I’ll be good, I’ll be good.’
The Jet is nice and warm, something Peter relishes in, but when Tony tries to lower Peter on a medbed, that’s objectively much more comfortable then the bed he was on before, Peter screams. No words are spoken, but the scream startles Mister Stark just the same.
‘Stark, the base is cleared, get him strapped in, Banner is coming’, Natasha ushers, ignoring Peter’s cries and running to the cockpit. Stark has him, she argues, and it does the kid no good to have more prying eyes on him.
‘What is it, are you in pain?’ Tony asks franticly, without responding to Nat, hands hovering over Peter’s body to check for injuries, the light dims when he spots just how badly he was treated in captivity.
Peter screams again when Mister Stark pulls away too far for his liking, latching onto the suit so rigorous it creaks in protests.
‘Please, I’ll be good, don’t leave me, please. I- I know… I’m sorry, Morgan- I’, Peter can’t talk with how much he’s weeping, there are so many things to say and all of them are fighting one another to be said first. Eventually, after everyone has already touched base, the jet leaves and Doctor Banner urgers Tony to place him on the bed, Peter settles for; ‘Don’t leave me here.’
‘Peter’, Tony spits, so harsh that Peter snaps to attention, letting go of the armor and limply following where mister Stark wants him. He gently grips Peter’s chin, mindful of the bruises, and with glistening eyes, he conveys; ‘I’m never leaving you here, do you understand. I don’t care what else you have in your head, but right now, all I need you to know is that I’m not leaving you. Ever.’
He waits for the conforming nod, which Peter only gives when Mister Stark clasps his hand into his. ‘Beside, May would kill me if I came back without her nephew, and I don’t want to be the one to receive her wrath.’ Tony laughs faintly.
He wants to cry at that, good or bad he’s not sure, but instead he allows himself to be lowered, giving in only because Tony is crouching down with him, shielding Peter’s body with his own. It’s unsensical, there in the jet and there’s no danger, but if Peter feels protected Tony will do it, no questions asked.
As soon as he’s in a horizontal positions, Doctor Banner injects him with pain medication, and within seconds, Peter has floated away, dreaming of the lake house with Morgan, Pepper and tony and May at the end of the hallway.
---
Peter knows he’s in the medbay before his body has even fully awoken. He’s been here before, perhaps one to many times for it too be so familiar, and he can recognize the atmosphere from anywhere. The smell of disinfectant lingers around the room heavily, but so does the smell of motor oil, coming from Mister Stark’s lab the floor below the medbay. Usually he’s not alone when he wakes up either, accompanied by Mister Stark or May, maybe even both, and so despite the room having a different connotation, it holds security for Peter.
When all his senses click into place, with an almost audible snap after being out of commission for a week, the burning anguish joins it. It’s almost worse than during the torture itself, because it’s hitting him all at once now, and after stewing for a day his body is one big bruise, but it’s also better, because no more hurt can be added.
Blinking his eyes open, Peter glances around the room and notices that he’s by himself. He hasn’t made up his mind yet whether that’s a good or bad thing. Despite being alone, Peter very nearly cries out for the pain medication he’s sure Tony has at hand. His metabolism runs through painkillers faster than a normal body, but Mister Stark has experience in that department thanks to captain America, which is why Peter never wakes up in the medbay feeling sore.
He’s hoping to snatch some of the good stuff before he can sink away in sleep again, until a dark thought pops up in his head. What if Mister Stark purposefully didn’t give him enough medication so he wouldn’t stay asleep? What if Peter is expected to pay of his debt starting this very moment? It would make sense. Mister Stark is a man that likes to get a move on things, and this is probably no exception.
He bites back a loud whine. He’s so tired and sore, and if he could be anywhere in the world right now he’d choose the lakehouse and rest on the back porch, while looking over Morgan and ensuring she’s safe.
Still, it’s heaps better then what was waiting for him before, so Peter sucks in a deep breath and lifts himself up. He’s dresses in a hospital gown with socks on his feet, the only reprieve of the cold of the tiles that he has. His body fights in protest against the jolting movements, and Peter sinks back into bed three times before finally managing to stay upright. He swallows back bile, and blinks away the disorientation woozing its way through his head.
‘Friday’? He whispers, voice cracking on every syllable.
‘Yes, mister Parker, the AI replies easily, as chipper as a computer can possibly be. ‘It’s good to have you back,’ she adds, when Peter takes too long to reply. It’s not out of rudeness, but the words take a while to be processed in Peter’s hazy mind.
‘Can you tell me what Mister Stark wants me to do?’ Peter finally asks after coughing to clear his throat. Pride flows through his bloodstream when he manages to sound fine.
‘Mister Stark has not given me any directions, but by the distress and elevated heartbeat he experienced whilst at your bedside last, I hypothesize that he would like you to rest Peter.’  
Confusion laces Peter’s next move. Rest? But if that was the case why wasn’t the man here, ensuring that he does like all the other times he’s been in this position?  Deciding not to ask the AI anymore questions, while simultaneously ignoring her advice, Peter focuses on setting one foot in front of the other. If he can’t get a direct answer out of Friday, he’ll just get started on cleaning up in the lab.
The last few times Tony and Peter worked in there, Mister Stark had jokingly grumbled that the lace was getting to disorganized even for his taste, which definitely means something. Peter limps his way to the door, already breathing more heavily and deciding to take a rest against the still closed door. His foot throbs, so Peter switches to put the most weight on the side of his foot, instead of on the balm.
The small trek has left him bone tried, and the lab still seems so far away. Peter tries to calculate how far the lab still is, and agrees with himself to divide the length into smaller stretches. His next stop is at the elevator, so Peter shuffled along the floor, ignoring the black spots that dance before his eyes and threaten to have him collapse.
The extortion reminds him of the time that Toomes dropped a building on him, which is just plain ridiculous, this shouldn’t be half as tough. Peter scolds himself to man up when about halfway to the elevator he bumps into a cart and whimpers.
After finally finding support on the elevator beams, Peter allows himself a twenty second break to cry. At this point, the exact reason for crying is unbeknownst to him. All that he does know is that he feels like a mess, like someone took all the spiderman away from him and left him as a pile of uselessness. He shouldn’t have the right to complain however. Mister Stark rescued him from a fate much worse, the least he could do is help him out.
‘Friday’, Peter pauses to gulp in more air, and to force his tears back. ‘Open the elevator.’
‘Mister Parker I would advise-‘
‘Please’, he begs, voice barely louder then a whisper. The AI complies without further disagreement. The elevator begins to move the floor bellow it, soundlessly passing Peter along. The theme song, a little joke that Tony had installed after they made a song about spiderman, which plays during every elevator ride when Peter is present, stays off. The doors open, and Peter stumbles out, cheering up a dash when the mess doesn’t look as bad as he had imagined it. The clean up should be doable within two hours, even in Peter’s injured state. Most of the mess comes from scattered papers and documents that Tony tosses aside and never bothered to do anything with, and of mechanical parts that are ready to be thrown out.
All in all, not a lot of weight that Peter has to pick up. He has barely started on five pages when the elevator behind him opens again. Peter hadn’t noticed it going to a different floor in the first place.
Lister Stark burst out of the room like the devil himself is after him. He pauses for one second to observe what Peter’s doing -he’s in the middle of bending down at a very lateral pace- and then he’s off again, cursing under his breath.
‘Jesus Christ Peter what are you doing?’
He pulls out a rolling chair from behind his work bench and rushes it to Peter side. ‘Come on, sit.’ He says already clenching a hand around Peter’s bicep to guide him down. In his confusion, Peter follows his instruction.
‘Mister Stark?’ He questions, eyes tracking his mentors movement as if he’s afraid he’s done something wrong and punishment will follow.
There is none, all that Tony does, is fall down on his knees in front of Peter, so they’re making direct eye contact. Peter gulps at the sight. He’s sure those jeans cost more than half of what May ears a month, and if Peter is expected to repay those too, he’ll never be able to pay of his debt.
‘Kiddo, what are you doing?’ Mister Stark asks incredulous, his hand never leaving Peter’s arm. His eyes sweep over Peter’s form, noticing the ailments that he aggravated by walking all the way down here. ‘Why aren’t you in bed?’
‘I thought you wanted me to get started already.’ Peter admits shyly. He can’t understand why he’s being treated with such kindness all of a sudden.
‘Started on what Pete? I don’t understand.’ Mister Stark shuffles closer, one hand coming up to cup Peter’s chin, sweeping gentle circles that are meant to calm himself down as much as Peter.
‘Paying of my debt.’ Peter replies confused, wrapping his arms around his stomach area and bending downwards in an order to self sooth. He needs to get up soon, are Peter’ not sure he will be able to. Now that he’s granting his body some rest, the pain he forced to the back of his mind is rushing back in.
‘What debt kid, you need rest and you need it right now. Stay here, I’m going to go get you a gurney so you don’t require any more walking.’
Right as Mister Stark gets of his knees, Peter’s hand shoots out, gripping the older man’s wrist.  The action was pure habitual, but now that he’s initiated contact he doesn’t know what to do.
‘When will I have to start working then? I’d rather get started as soon as possible, to thank you for everything Mister Stark.’ Peter’s voice pitches even lower, letting his head hang down in shame. He really doesn’t want to offer his suit back, Spiderman is what gives him purpose, but the sooner he no longer has a debt, the sooner he can start working to provide May with an extra income as well. He has no choice.
‘I can give you the suit back if you’ll accept it.’
Tony regards him with perturbation for several long lasting moment. Then, he gasps, finally clicking in his head what Peter is going on about.
‘Oh kiddo, that’s the concussion speaking. Listen to me,’ he sinks back down in front Peter, taking his hand in his. ‘You have done so much for me. If anything it’s me that should be in debt to you.’ Peter pens his mouth to argue, but Tony hushes him softly.
‘You’re not thinking straight buddy, that why spider baby’s need their rest. But truly Peter, you don’t owe me anything. Well except maybe you owe it to  be safe, I think I’ve earned that much.’
‘Really?’ Peter asks optimistically, his whole body filling up with a feeling he can’t name, but it chokes him up until he’s bursting with the urge to give a hug to his mentor.
‘Yeah Peter of course. All I want is my kids to be safe.’
Kids. Tony sees Peter as his kid, as equal to Morgan. A person to love unconditionally without needing any favors, without having any debt. Of course Mister Stark won’t ask that of him, despite his front, the man has a heart that’s made of gold. Mister Stark, his mentor, and his father figure.
‘Dad,’ Peter sobs, almost falling out of the chair in his rush to get to Tony. The man immediately returns the hug, holding Peter up in a way that he hopes will be the least painful for him.
‘You’re okay Peter you’re okay.’
‘I’m so sorry, I don’t know what I was thinking’, Peter confesses, deeply ashamed of how low he thought of his dad.
‘It’s okay Kiddo, like I said it’s the concussion. Of course you were scared, I can’t blame you. I promise that I tried so hard to find you bud. I’m sorry it took me so long.’
Peter says nothing, he’s had enough encounters with Tony now to sense that the man wouldn’t believe him if Peter told him it’s okay. Instead he just nuzzles closer, accepting all the love and affection radiating from Tony, and giving back what he hopes is just as much.
‘Can we go back to the lakehouse?’ Peter asks softly, burring his head in Tony’s neck. It might be a weird question coming from him. He liked the beach house enough, but he has never actively asked to go there when they could stay at the tower as well. But now, Peter won’t feel safe unless his down there, in the cabin hidden behind threes, where the environment is quiet that he can hear everyone’s heartbeat, and can confirm that everyone is safe.
‘Sure kid.’ Tony responds, a tad bewildered, but happy to provide anyway. ‘We’ll leave as soon as you get check out okay. I want to make sure you didn’t rip anything.’
‘Okay’, Peter mumbles, a bone deep tiredness washing over him, and letting him sink down into Tony. ‘Thanks dad.’
If Peter were more awake, he would have noticed the silent tears of happiness streaming down Mister Starks cheek at the name. As it stands, Peter just hums contently when a kiss is pressed at the top of his head, and Tony strikes a hand through his hair.
‘Anything for my son.’
62 notes · View notes
warmau · 4 years
Text
☆ [nostalgic] summer romance!au chenle happy (once again late) birthday lele ! ~ find others here: johnny | haechan | taeil | taeyong | mark | jaemin | yangyang | yuta | sicheng
maybe the heat has gotten to chenle 
when he sits down on the last step of the long staircase nestled between your building and the twenty four hour grocery store
the stairs lead up to the next block, where you can hear the vague sounds of kids playing on the street. one of the voices might be haechan, he’s shouting for someone to come back
but you look at chenle and he’s looking at his knees
freshly bruised from where he and jisung both fell off their bikes a couple days ago, it’s starting to scab and he looks like he’s trying not to pick at it
“sorry, you want me to do what?”
“don’t make me say it again.”
he mutters and he won’t look at you
you know even if you ask him too - he’s probably the most stubborn person you’ve ever met -  he won’t
“no, i didn’t hear - well i did, but i mean - you’re crazy.”
“you can just say no.”
he shifts his gaze from his knees up to the sky and then after you wait patiently for another minute he finally does look at you
“do you really hate the idea of it?”
“it’s not that. it’s just.......if you really like this person, you should just fall into it naturally with them. you shouldn’t have to practice - you should just do it when it feels right.”
his mouth twitches like he’s about to scowl and roll his eyes and stomp away
because that’s what he does when things don’t go his way but instead he just stares at you and says;
“i won’t know what feels right until ive at least tried it.”
you should argue back, you and chenle are notorious for always bantering and quarrelling and leaving all of your friends either annoyed or doubling over with laughter
but you can’t think of something witty to say. something at least convincing because he makes a point
but also
how is he not embarrassed to ask me of all people that?
sighing, you’re the one who looks away and over your shoulder up the stairs
no one is around - their voices are - but they’re distant and chenle is close
so close that bruised knee of his could brush yours if he just inched a little to his left
“fine.”
you give in and turn your shoulders back toward him
“you might as well practice with me, anyone else and you might actually catch another crush on top of the one you have now.”
chenle half smirks and you don’t register the emotional shift in the light brown of his eyes
you just think he’s going along with your joke - well not really a joke, more like a statement
and that’s how you end up leaning in, one hand on the stairs as if to keep your balance even while sitting down
and the other on the side of chenle’s cheek
you hover just a moment before you kiss him - a split, wordless millisecond of hesitation - and then you let your lips gently press to his
it isn’t even a real kiss but it is the first moment of the rest of a summer you never expected
of course, you and chenle tell no one about this weird, awkward, beyond the boundaries of friendship thing you are doing
mostly because if you did haechan and jaemin would not let it go, not until you were all rolling in your graves and jisung would probably be scarred with crippling doubt of where every friendship of his stood
so you only naturally have to sneak around
chenle is a good liar though, well better than you who has trouble even looking renjun in the eyes when chenle says you and him have to leave a little earlier from the backyard barbeque someones throwing because oh right, you forgot your allergy medicine at home and chenle promised some old lady across the street he’d feed her cat while she was on holiday
they’re half-assed, badly timed lies but it is summer
and if you and chenle don’t want to have fun with the rest of the group then so be it
you guys just get teased and called debbie-downers and then you’re home free
well home free in a sense that you know have some time to sit on the rug of your bedroom and kiss
for the sake of learning
“where do i put my hands?”
chenle asks one time and you move instinctively to put one of his palms on the side of your waist. 
that’s where i like to be held-
you drop his hand as soon as the thought crosses your mind and stutter out
“well, that’s more a question for your crush. different people like it in different places.”
he nods and thinks for a second
“we’ve only kissed a couple of times but i think i like putting my hand on your waist.”
his palm ends up just where you had wanted to lead it and when a little swell of butterflies flutters in your stomach at the fact, you quell the feeling and shove it deep deep deep down 
this persists throughout the weeks, and each time you try and introduce chenle to a tier higher of kissing, if that makes sense
you’ve got down the leaning in, the hand position, the tilting your head, the emergency breath mints, the lead up or lead out, the avoid nose smashing or teeth clanking and then there’s only really one last thing you can graduate too and it’s 
“tongue?”
you almost hark on the ice-cream sandwich you’re eating when jaemin says the word
“yeah, he got his tongue pierced. are you ok?”
renjun turns his long gaze to you, the poor ice-cream melting all over the wrapper and on your fingers
“fine, yeah, it’s just - super hot. i think im gonna go home and lay under the ac.”
your eyes go from renjun to jaemin to chenle who gives a little nod and stands up from his side of the table with a groan
“sorry guys, i got a text from my mom. i gotta go now too.”
no one says anything. renjun taps his fingers and doesn’t look away from you as jaemin tries desperately to convince you both to stay and when you both say no he sticks his tongue out and asks you a question that you thought would sooner come out of anyone elses mouth
“are you two like hooking up behind our backs or something, you’re always gone when we’re having the most fun!”
you think you might really fall over - renjun, sure you could have seen him figuring it out. haechan - definitely. even jeno......but 
jaemin?
“what? like i’d ever hook up with them.”
chenle’s voice comes out, high and mocking 
it’s pretty good and you almost believe it for a second - turn around and tell him hey, you’ve been making out with me this whole entire month so if you want to end up practicing on a stuffed animal back home you better take that back!
when you realize - right, he’s covering up
you scrunch up your nose and chuck the icecream into the trash
“right, like id ever let him touch me.”
jaemin is convinced, he goes back to laughter and obliviousness, but renjun chuckles when you pass by and the undertone of it makes you shake even in the heat
“renjun knows.”
you and chenle are not in your room for once, you’re outside in a small park that’s been abandoned as the summer moon switches places with the summer sun
chenle is swinging back and forth and you’re leaning against the side of the swing set nervously biting your lip
“he gave me a look when we left.”
“are you going to teach me it by the way?”
“teach you what?”
you hear the swing come to a stop and he stands up, you don’t know if now the summer heat is getting to you
because when you look at him he looks different
he looks handsome, not just cute and sweet like you’re used to seeing him - all round faced and smiley - he’s gotten taller and is still so naturally thin it brings out the defining cuts of the sharper parts of his face
you look away immediately when you start cataloging all of this in your brain
people only do that with people they like, you don’t look at your friends and start painting their best features in your head like a psycho ........ ok not a psycho but someone that’s.....that’s in ......
“you know, how to actually kiss. not little pecks or whatever, like actual deeper kissing.”
it is obvious what he’s asking and you are pretty sure it’s just his drive to be better at all this for that person he likes 
but you feel shy about it, even a little uncomfortable with the idea of being slightly closer to someone who is using you as what could be compared with a scientific mannequin 
a how-to user guide, a one time trial period
you feel light headed and when chenle comes into your personal space and reaches out to hold you, you jerk back
“stop - wait.”
he listens 
“w-who do you even like, you never told me.”
“why’s that important?” 
his eyes widen a little and you are racing through a hundred different excuses and reasons to prolong this conversation
“well i want to know. i mean, i mean everything we practiced you’re going to use with them so i just i guess i feel like im at least entitled to know that.”
“it’s a secret, it doens’t matter either way.”
“do i know them?”
chenle frowns, “no. they don’t live near here. anyway are you ok why-”
you walk backwards, up until your back hits the fence that runs around the little park
chenle’s ticked off look turns into genuine concern and he stops a couple of feet from you and asks this time if you’re really ok, if you don’t want to do this anymore than that’s all you have to say-
he’s speaking, in almost something akin to a whisper, and the sound along with the dawning of the evening makes you remember that first kiss you gave him on the stairs
his bruised knee, haechan’s voice in the distance, the long steps leading up to the entire world and away from chenle
if you really had felt nothing for him but friendship, you would have gotten up and told him to stop playing around
you would have trotted up those steps and joined everyone else
you would have never leaned in and kissed him first
but you had and the secret that you’d stowed as far back in your heart as possible had slowly, with each day of this summer, been pulled out and out and out
and now it was big and shining and the only thing you could think about anymore
i like chenle
and everytime he kisses me
he’s thinking of someone else
“i can’t, i can’t do that with you.”
you finally find the words and then clutch your fingers into fists at your side when chenle gives you a sad look you almost never see him wear
“it’s not that i don’t want to, i do. i want to. and not to help you learn or whatever but because i really just........want to.”
that sad look is turning into something you’re too scared to look at - but you know he’s following your train of thought now
“and you should want to do that with the person you like, not a replace-”
“it’s you.”
he cuts in before you finish your sentence and like a train going at full speed you brake and everything crashes in at once
“-ment......sorry, what?”
“it’s you. you’re the person i like.”
“but- you - practice- you - what?”
the starstruck look on your face makes chenle laugh and you can’t believe the audacity, buy you also want an answer so when he wipes away his chuckling he nods
“it was you all along. do you think i’d ever want to spend days making out with someone i didn’t like?”
when you had thought something had been wrong with him on the day he’d asked you to do this the first time, you really had thought either he’d gotten heatstroke or been brainwashed
it was so unlike chenle to 1) admit he needed to practice something and 2) want to practice it with someone he wasn’t at least fond of
so really, maybe something had been wrong with you, when you had failed to see that his whole plan this time was
“you just wanted an excuse to kiss me all summer?”
he shrugs and grins, “it was nice right?”
you can’t argue or lie or disagree - it was nice - and now you’re standing here in this park with no one around and you think maybe you shuold teach chenle the last and final thing about kissing
so you finally let him come closer and with his hand on your waist, just where you like it, he leans in again
but just before you do anything else you pull back and mumble
“jaemin is going to freak out when we tell him he was right, we have been sneaking out around behind everyones back to make out.”
“yeah but renjun definitely knows right?”
you nod, right, maybe that’ll soften the shock for everyone
(it doesn’t)
and sometimes you also get another wave of shock, even after dating chenle for so long 
not much has changed - you still like to push each other and tease and pretend like you aren’t head over heels in love with each other 
if only because that’s one way to show that you are, in fact, very much attached 
and because even when you kiss in front of the group - jaemin still says it blows his mind
the only person who keeps reminding everyone that he saw this coming, even before you and chenle spent that summer locking lips 
is renjun who looks at you and chenle and is like, “one day ill probably be helping plan their wedding.”
you and chenle look at each other and pretend to gag, wedding? no way? to each other? you’d both rather die!
and then you grin and kiss and tickle noses and disappear into a bubble of your own
every time you get to be alone though you whisper against his cheek that you love him, he knows exactly how to make you happy
and he reminds you hey - you taught me everything i know, that one summer all that time ago.
461 notes · View notes
winterscaptain · 3 years
Text
a horrible first.
Aaron Hotchner x Gender Neutral Reader a joyful future fic
a/n: this takes place during rite of passage, where the unsub is the cop committing murder of undocumented immigrants crossing the border. we pick up right at the end, at the quasi-standoff in the desert. let me know what you think and i hope you enjoy it!! 
words: 1.3k warnings: language, canon-typical violence and death, reader shoots and kills the unsub, mild dissociative symptoms following trauma, nothing too horribly graphic
summary:  “the true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him.” ― g.k. chesterton. au!march 2010
masterlist | a joyful future masterlist | ajf faq | taglist | what do you want to see next?
You brace yourself for a screaming stop in the SUV, immediately following Aaron to cover as Boyd flies out of the decrepit structure on an ATV, firing an automatic weapon of some kind. 
You take a shot.
Time seems to slow as you watch Boyd go down, tzhe innocuous red dot in the middle of his forehead beginning to weep even before he hits the ground. 
Derek fires his rifle from inside the car, but the deed is done. Boyd’s dead. 
Aaron raises his head. If you had your wits about you, you’d see him counting off, making sure all of you are there. “You all right?” 
“Yeah!” Morgan shouts as he leaves the car, but you’re stuck in place. 
“No!” Emily immediately answers, turning on Derek. “Are you out of your mind? You blew out my eardrum.”
Aaron’s been there - the ringing is damn near unbearable. 
“What did you want me to do? He was coming right at us!” 
“I told you I had him.” She’s holding both hands over her ears, but you’re sure that’s not the only reason Derek’s raising his voice. 
“He was shooting at us, Emily.” 
“Well, you could have given me a heads-up!” 
“The loaded MP-5 and the lunatic shooting at us wasn't enough? Come on.”
Aaron lets them bicker, but notices something odd. 
You haven’t moved. You’re staring at Boyd’s body, your service weapon still in your shaking hand, your breath shallow. 
He approaches you slowly from the side, extending a hand toward your gun. He says your name quietly, but you can’t hear him. He repeats himself and you startle as he gets a little closer. 
He’s not as brave as you were when you pulled him off Foyet. He’s almost afraid to touch you, afraid you’ll hurt yourself or draw away from him. 
The look on your face also scares him - it’s simultaneously blank and absolutely horrified. For a moment, he thinks back and realizes, with a little bit of shock, that he knows what it is.
You’ve never shot to kill before. 
“Hey hey hey,” he says, his voice barely more than a whisper. He places a hand over the barrel of your gun. “Give that to me, okay?” 
Another voice echoes in front of you. It’s Derek, who’s reached Boyd’s body. “Great shot, kid! Right between the eyes on a moving target. They teach you that at the academy?”
You let Aaron take your weapon from your hand, blinking a couple of times. He flips the safety and tucks it into his pants at his lower back, keeping his hands free.
Derek catches on, turning around and sobering. 
Aaron can feel the rest of the unit creep up behind him, but he waves them off. They take a few steps back, watching with bated breath. 
They all remember the first time they shot an unsub, their first kills in the field. A horrible, wretched first. 
“Can you take a step back toward me?” Aaron asks.
You take a step back and trip, stumbling over your feet. 
Aaron’s there to catch you under your arms, pulling you close. All at once, the levee breaks and you let out a sob, turning into him for refuge. 
He closes his eyes and wraps around you. “It’s okay. You’re okay. You did the right thing. It’s okay.” He huffs, and it’s almost a laugh. “That was a really good shot.”  
You clutch his vest, your arms locked around his waist. He keeps whispering to you as the crime scene techs arrive and start their work, shielding you with his body. 
+++
You sleep on the plane home. Aaron sits across from you, working on the after-action report on your behalf. He looks up every couple of minutes as if he’s afraid you’ve disappeared in the time between his last check-in and that moment. 
Derek, Spencer, and Emily watch him watch you. 
“That sucks,” Emily says. “My first hit me hard, too, I think, but like… days later.” 
Derek nods. “Yeah. It’s a shitty first, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. I’m glad Hotch is over there. Probably the best person for this kind of thing.”
“Best person for the kid, too,” Dave says. Derek and Spencer frown. 
Dave continues, clarifying, “Every one of us has someone we prefer when the day gets hard, whether we know it or not. Anchors, if you will. Good to have.” He looks over at the two of you again and doesn’t elaborate further. 
You stir, and when you open your eyes, there’s a fresh glass of cold water next to you on the little side table. You take it gratefully, taking a couple of sips.
Aaron watches you orient yourself, check the time, and start your search for your report. 
“I’ve got it here,” he says, offering it to you. “You have a bit more to do, and I have to keep your gun until all the paperwork goes through - protocol for use of lethal force with a firearm. It’s a simple review, no need to worry.” 
You nod, taking it and thumbing through the extra pages in the back. You’ll probably ask Derek about the best way to fill them out. 
Could ask Aaron, too. 
Hotch. 
Ask Hotch. 
“How should I fill these out? 
He takes a second, interrupting his own reply to stand and promptly plop himself in the seat beside you. “First things first - tell the truth. You did the right thing and nobody in their right mind will dispute that.” 
“Thanks.” 
The shadow of a smile passes across his face. “You’re lucky - this is cut and dry. Not all of us get a dirty cop on an ATV wielding an MP-5 for our first review.” 
“Lucky?” You sound skeptical, at best. 
His mouth quirks. “I know. Poor choice of words. You’ll probably have some rough nights. Do you want me to set up an appointment with the psychologist? The unit technically has one on retainer but -” 
“You never use them because you’d rather hold all your emotions right there -” You poke his chest “- until you die?” 
 The little smile appears again. “You been listening to Haley again?” 
“What, from beyond the grave? You bet. So, watch your ass, Hotchner.” 
He shakes his head. “I’ll be sure to do that.” He sobers, his eyebrows pinching in an adorable look of concern. “But really, if you want…” 
“That might be nice, actually. To talk to someone.” 
“And you know you can always come to me, right?” 
You nod. “Of course.” 
The dull hum of the plane fills the silence between you for a little while. 
“I was really scared, Hotch.” 
He resumes his listening posture, leaning on his elbow with his fingers laced together. 
“It all happened so slow - and so fast? - at the same time. I don’t know. He just… He went down and I was so afraid that he’d shot Derek or Emily I mean -” You take a breath. “I heard the gunfire behind me and the glass breaking and I just didn't want to turn around and find them dead you know?”
“Yeah,” Aaron whispers. “I know.” 
“I was so stuck that I didn’t even realize Derek was talking to me - he was right in front of me and I couldn’t see him. And then I started thinking about Boyd and all that hate and…”
You trail off, unable to continue with any degree of coherency, so you ask a question instead. 
“Is it always this hard? Does it get easier?” 
Aaron wavers for a minute. “Yes and no. It’s never ideal - you know you’ve made a mistake when you have to use lethal force, but you get more confident about making the right call in those situations as you see more of them. You’ve been with us for two years - I’m - No.” 
He stops and his brow crumples. 
“I was going to say I’m surprised you made it this far, but I’m not. I’m impressed. And proud. It took a dirty cop on an ATV -” 
“Wielding an MP-5?” You finish for him. 
“Yeah. It took that much for you to pull your trigger with any lethal intent, and even then you didn’t want to. The entire way you were talking about a de-escalation strategy - don’t think I didn’t hear you.” 
A flicker of warmth blossoms in your chest and maybe, just maybe, you feel a little better.
+++ 
tagging:  @avengersbau @ambicaos @angelsbabey @arganfics @averyhotchner @bwbatta @capricorngf @cevanswhre @crazyshannonigans @criminalsmarts @deagibs @forgottenword @genevievedarcygranger @hotchsflower @hotchslatte @hurricanejjareau @joanofarkansass @kelstark @kerrswriting @little-blue-fishie @lotties-journey-abroad @mandylove1000 @missdowntonabbey @mrs-dr-reid @pan-pride-12 @popped-weasels @quillvine @qvid-pro-qvo @reidingmelodies @reids-mismatchedsocks @roses-and-grasses @shesbiochem4 @ssahotchnerr @ssaic-jareau @ssareidbby @starsandasteroids @stxrrywildflower @sunflowersandotherthings @sunshine-em @teamhappyme @this-broken-band-girl @ughitsbaby @unicorn-bitch @venusbarnes @violet-amxthyst @word-scribbless @writefasttalkevenfaster @zizzlekwum @iconicc @avatarkorraswife @mooneylupinblack @ssworldofsw @nuvoleincielo @kaemarie23 @violentvulgarvolatile @abschaffer2 @ellyhotchner @rousethemouse @baumarvel @reidtomestyles @dreamsonthewall @jhiddles03 @willlemonheadsupremacy @infinity1321 @messyhairday-me @itsalwaysb33nyou @s-unflowxr @imlottiie @stummdummrumstehen @hqtchner @finnologys @hotch-meeeeeuppppp @hothothotchner
370 notes · View notes
Note
i'd like to hear some headcanons for your "georgie can see dead people" au! :0
oh thank you so much!! this is probably going to be a little messy, since i haven't actually started the fic, but!! here is something!! :) (also i am so sorry for all the sixth sense references. the actual fic will undoubtedly be worse.)
1. So the basic premise of this AU is that the end result of Georgie's encounter with the End is that, instead of losing her ability to feel fear, she gains the ability to see the dead. Everything goes the same otherwise: the protest, Alex, the dead woman, Georgie waking up days later at home, the months of strangeness and unfeeling. The difference is that when Georgie wakes up, she can see the dead woman, too. Never too close—only in corners, behind doors, in the window. And never always, but only in the moments that feel crucial. The moments where she's searching for something of herself. Her mother hugs her and she sees the dead woman over her mother's shoulder. 
Georgie sees Alex, too, sometimes. Closer and more head on; she is always looking back. But she never speaks, and neither does the dead woman from the room. It isn't until she begins to see other ghosts that she realizes they can talk, if they want to. If they choose. 
(Six months later is when Georgie figures out how to lock the dead woman out. She stops seeing Alex shortly after, except on occasion. Sometimes she'll see a flash of those familiar eyes in the mirror, over her shoulder, and they always seem to be apologetic. But Alex still never says anything. Georgie gets good at pretending that this doesn't hurt nearly as much as losing her.)
2. Jon is the first one that Georgie almost tells. Almost. They're honest with each other in a way that Georgie usually isn't, when they first meet, and she almost thinks he'd believe her. They talk about ghost stories all the time. 
She mostly thinks about it when she sees Jon's ghosts. It isn't often but she sees them. He'll talk about what little he remembers of his parents, or pull out some old, faded pictures, and she'll see the faces reflected in the kitchen, the bathroom mirror, Jon's bedroom. He never talks about the apparition of a strange teenager that appears, once, when they both wake up sweaty from frantic nightmares and he refuses to explain, and Georgie doesn't press. He doesn't tell her about Mr. Spider and she doesn't tell him about the ghosts. Much as they love each other, they do still have secrets. 
Georgie goes to his grandmother's funeral years later, even though they're barely talking at this point, and almost tells him then. Seeing him stand mostly alone at the grave, looking monumentally alone, and then a flicker of his grandmother behind him—she almost does. But still she doesn't. She's never told anyone before, and she and Jon aren't really in touch, so she just hugs him and tells him she's so sorry, and doesn't meet the eyes of the woman watching behind the fresh grave. 
3. Melanie is another person Georgie almost tells. They still meet through their connections—Ghost Hunt UK, What the Ghost, and Georgie's power is (probably unsurprisingly) very useful for the paranormal podcast business. (All her episodes aren't pulled from real life, from her own experiences—that would be irresponsible, and there's more clout in retelling familiar stories. But sometimes when Georgie runs out of episode ideas, she'll visit a spooky place, write down what she sees, do a deep dive on the history, and fill in the gaps by attributing her sightings to "unnamed" witnesses.) She's met a lot of people in the ghost hunting business, but Melanie stands out, because they hit it off so immediately. Start hanging out outside of work drinks, at parties or pubs or research stints. Melanie starts inviting Georgie to consult on the show, or to collaborate, and Georgie uses what she sees to point Melanie and her team towards real sightings. Why not? Might as well have the horrible power be useful for something. Haley Joel Osment solved his problem by helping people, and this isn't the same at all (and that's a movie, anyways), but it is something. 
So she and Melanie become fast friends, faster than Georgie is used to, and Georgie genuinely thinks about telling her. She trusts her, and she doesn't think Melanie would laugh, or call her a liar. (Melanie's got stories about not being believed, too; it's common in the paranormal business.) She thinks Melanie might be the right person, maybe. Just maybe. 
(She doesn't end up doing it. She's still a coward when it comes to that. But it isn't because she isn't tempted.)
(The idea to tell Melanie comes before she starts seeing Melanie's father. But that fact doesn't help her decision, either. In quiet moments with Melanie, Georgie starts seeing the man in Melanie's framed photos in the shadows, looking at Melanie with sad eyes, calling her little moth. But Melanie can still barely talk about her dad, and the accident, and it feels even more wrong after he starts showing up, to tell her. Georgie worries Melanie might think she's making fun, or making something up to make her feel better, and she doesn't see this going well.
Instead she says, sometimes, I know your dad loved you a lot. Melanie says, Yeah, I know, too. Georgie says, And I bet he misses you, even though it isn't a bet; she knows. But she can't tell Melanie, and that's as far as it can go.) 
4. The most significant time Georgie wants to tell Melanie, but doesn't, is the one she'll end up regretting the most in the end. When Melanie gets out of the hospital, first, and then when she comes back from India; when Georgie is basically the only friend Melanie has left from her old life, and therefore is probably the person Melanie goes to the most. The person Melanie confides in. 
So Georgie is there to see it all. She'll be sitting across from Melanie in a pub, or beside her on the couch; she'll brush Melanie's hand with hers, or their knees will knock together, and Georgie will see flashes of blood, violence. Hear screaming. She'll see haunted faces out of the corner of her eyes: soldiers, doctors. Muzzles of guns. Once, a stained hand gripping Melanie around the leg. 
She'll regret it, later, but Georgie doesn't say anything; she doesn't know what to say. She's never seen anything like this, even with over a decade of seeing ghosts. How is she supposed to explain it? She doesn't really know what it means. Melanie talks about war ghosts, and Georgie listens, and she rationalizes that Melanie will have to be okay. (She was okay, when it was her, and if—if this is something serious, something worse, than… then Georgie will be there. Melanie will have someone who understands.) 
5. One night in February of 2018, Jon shows up back in Georgie's life, looking shell-shocked on her doorstep. He stands in the hall looking mildly terrified, when Georgie opens the door, and behind him stands a dead woman, looking desperate and furious all at once. 
"Georgie," Jon says weakly. "I-I know it's been a while, but…" 
"Jon! Christ, what happened to you? Are you all right?" Georgie says, trying to take in Jon and the dead woman all at once. (She is new—Jon must have had someone else close to him die.) She focuses on Jon, puts a hand on his shoulder. "Are you hurt?"
"I… I'm fine." Jon's hands twist in front of him. "I… didn't know where else to go."
Georgie swallows hard and says, "Are you in trouble?" The dead woman is looking right at her. Georgie keeps looking at Jon. 
"I… yes." Jon chews on his lower lip. "If… I know it's a lot to ask, b-but I… could I… possibly stay here for a little while?"
Georgie swallows hard. She has a dozen questions—what's happened, why he needs somewhere to stay, why he looks like this—he looks like he's been through emotional turmoil, through hell—and worse, why a dead woman has followed him here. But she doesn't know how to ask these questions. And she can't just turn him away. Jon helped her heal during one of the worst periods of her life, even if he doesn't know it. And she can do the same. 
"Yeah," Georgie says, and leans forward to pull Jon into a hug—tentative at first, and then stronger, when Jon latches on like he needs it. "Y-yeah, Jon, of course."
Jon rambles out a frantic thank you, layered in with apologies and copious promises to pay rent, but it becomes harder to listen. Right over Jon's shoulder, the dead woman is staring right at her, her mouth hanging open. She's got long hair and glasses, and she looks exhausted, and it isn't immediately obvious how she has died, which is unusual. And she's looking right at Georgie. She says, suddenly, "Can you—can you see me?"
It isn't the first time a ghost has spoken to her, but it's a rare enough occasion to be shocking. Her throat is thick with surprise, and she can't say anything in front of Jon, so she just sort of imperceptibly nods. Holds the dead woman's gaze for a moment. 
"Fuck," says the dead woman. "Thank—thank god, thank Christ, I…" She pauses and looks at Jon, then back at Georgie, still numbly hugging Jon there in the hall. "My name is Sasha," she says, and Georgie thinks of the scene in The Sixth Sense where the sick little girl under the blanket asks for help. "Can you… can you help me?"
(send me an au and i'll give you 5+ headcanons)
89 notes · View notes
lifewithdavefarts · 3 years
Photo
Tumblr media
DaveFarts - Episode 10 “The Elevator” [Episode List] After visiting a friend’s house, Tim and the gassy-as-usual Dave take a really slow elevator together.
The Elevator
I took a quick sip of beer as our friend Adam left the living room to get another can in his fridge. What was left was a weirdly awkward silence and Dave, with his own beer, glaring at me.
“Dude,” he whispered. “It’s been a hour. I thought you were gonna tell him.”
I chose Adam as the first non-Dave bud to come out to, but it ended up being surprisingly hard to do. It’s not like Dave was forcing me or anything, or that Adam was a bad person; on the contrary, Dave was simply there with me as my emotional support in case things go south (but we both know they won’t) and Adam was, well, just Adam. Dave’s rightful reaction to me not coming out as planned didn’t bother me and as I said he wasn’t there to intimidate a confession out of me.
“Look, I don’t feel ready, okay?”
“You’ve been talking about the weather for 20 minutes.” he hissed. “What’s next? Geology?”
I chuckled. “Actually, this reminds me that they found this weird rock in South Amer-“
“I can’t believe this.”
“What’s not to believe? You take a big shovel and-“
“And I’m gonna dig my own grave if you start talking about rocks.”
I chuckled again. I know he wasn’t really mad.
Annoyed? Maybe. But mad? Nah, that’s a stretch.
He had all the rights to be annoyed though, but in the end it was my decision to make and he knew this.
We kept whispering as we heard Adam rummaging the fridge like some kind of raccoon longing for a cold drink.
“Look.” I said. “it’s late now anyway. Let’s just leave. Sorry I wasted your time.”
“Fine.” he replied. “Let’s finish our beers first at least.”
“That goes without saying.” and I took a long sip.
Truth is that I hadn’t any real reason to hide my homosexuality from Adam or any other of my buds actually. First, we’re in our 20s, we’re all mature and open-minded here. And in the end, excluding the whole fart-thing going on with Dave, they were all like him, chill guys. Adam, despite always sounding like someone who wants to have none of your shit, or anyone’s shit really, more than once proved that it’s just a facade and not-so-deep down he’s always ready to listen and back you up whenever you needed it. He did just listen to me talking about the weather for 20 minutes, so either he’s fascinated by the subject or knows I’m trying to tell him something else and is just patiently waiting.
The thought of wasting both of my buds’ time in a way or another kind of bothered me to be honest, so I was more than okay with wrapping things up and just leave, which me and Dave did mere minutes later.
“See you bro.” my bud said to Adam, standing by the door, as we went outside in the hallway, not far from the stairs and the elevator “Tim wants to talk about rocks so I’m taking him out of here before he kills you with boredom.”
“The one they dug up in Colombia?” Adam asked, much to our surprise.
“Yeah.” I answered. “They know it’s andesite but it has some interesting carvings on the surface and-“
A startled “What the fuck.” from Dave echoed in the hallway and the entire apartment building.
“What the fuck indeed.” Adam uttered, rather excitedly, completely missing the point. “This could change the archeo-history of the entire region.”
“I heard enough.” Dave said as he walked towards the elevator.
Both me and the other rock-enthusiast laughed at his reaction.
“By the way, I’m going to join you for a bit as I gotta walk the dog.” Adam remembered, reaching for a leash behind him.
“We’ll see you outside then.” Dave replied and then turned to me. “Tim, elevator, now.” he ordered.
“You sure, guys? You remember that thing is slow as shit, right?”
“We’ll be fine.” my bud said, patting my back. “I guess I’ll make Tim last longer then.” he joked.
“That only happens when you call me ‘daddy’” I joked back, as we walked towards the elevator, leaving our common friend behind.
“Rrrright.” Adam said. “I’ll get the dog while you two solve your sexual tension. See you outside.”
I pressed the button to summon the lift, Dave’s arm still around my shoulder as if he had something to show me. Truth to be told, I somehow knew where this was going.
As the panels of the door opened, we stepped into the elevator cab. I pressed the “G” on the control panel. I heard a mechanical noise and the elevator started its long, slow descent (we were at the 10th floor), after the doors closed behind us of course.
It was a cold evening and the cab wasn’t any warmer. I turned to Dave, who was wearing a dark blue hoodie and a pair of grey jeans. He looked at me with a smirk, hands in his jeans pockets; he raised his eyebrows and, without warning, a loud thunder echoed in that enclosed moving space.
The roaring fart had a slow start, with some interruptions, actually a sign for how big it was, but Dave, being an expert, quickly tamed the gassy beast and properly “tuned” the sound of the blast after a couple of seconds, keeping a consistent pitch, while also making it sound loud and deep. It felt like he was ripping one of those huge “when the girl finally leaves” farts, only, well, Dave-sized, which is always a sight to behold… hear? In this case there was no girl so he probably simply held all of his farts in to not ruin “the moment”, in case I wanted to come out back at Adam’s place (with beer acting as a bonus fuel).
A silly smile was drawn on my bro’s face as the fart kept going strong and proud, sometimes reaching some incredibly loud moments. He chuckled a bit and even winked at me when the blast made some particularly “meaty” noises, if that makes any sense. The fart was impressive on his own but Dave “interacting” with me while still masterfully passing gas was incredible as well (and, of course, hot).
The number 6 on the control panel lightened up and only in that moment I realized two things: the first being that the elevator was indeed slow as fuck; the second is that around 40 seconds passed and neither Dave nor his fart “flinched”. I was widely aroused by that and I felt the air around us getting more and more “polluted”, but not in an unbearable way actually. The blast kept echoing inside the elevator and I’m pretty sure that it could have been easily heard, albeit a bit muffled, by anyone taking the stairs.
Dave farted in my face many times, but no fart reached the length and power of this one, which is saying a lot. My bud’s butt-burps normally last around 6-12 seconds and don’t get me wrong they’re amazing, but man, maybe this one rip would have been too much to endure even for me: it simply wouldn’t stop. It’s like there was a loud engine in the elevator which couldn’t be turned off as I couldn’t hear anything else.
I was instead the opposite of turned off and teasing bastard Dave Maning knew this and, as usual, had no issue with it. At this point it was a race between Dave’s longest fart and the world’s slowest elevator.
We were now at the 3rd floor and my bud probably wanted to do a “big finale”; he was visibly pushing the blast out now, as if he wanted it to last as long as possible, a smirk still drawn on his face. He closed his eyes and the sound made it look like another fart was ripped over the sound of the previous fart, as if two audio channels in his ass somehow overlapped. The sound was of course louder than ever; the smell now, and only now, getting a bit hard to get used to. But to be honest, Dave’s skills as a sound designer alone were impressive enough.
A big part of me, mainly the one between my legs, wanted to get on my knees and plant my face in his denim ass before the fart faded out, but I knew that would have been too much even for such a chill guy like him. I’m sure he wouldn’t hate me or anything at this point but we both know there are some untold boundaries and honestly it’s better this way. I know how lucky I am to have someone like him around (farts or not).
My farting bro probably read my mind as he slowly turned around and got closer, again without affecting the fart’s quality and, being a bit taller then me, basically farted on the upper part of my hip. It almost made my entire body shake due to its power and it felt good. Now I really wanted to bend down as if I was tying my shoes but what stopped me this time was also the thought of… not surviving. I was familiar with Dave’s farts but this was absurdly powerful even for him.
And finally, as Dave resumed his previous position, again looking at me, the fart stopped, followed by my friend letting out a relieved whistle, and then an immature cackle.
Not even 2 seconds after that the elevator reached its destination, stopping as well. I jokingly clapped my hand and shook my head in disbelief. “Bravo!” I said, as if I just watched some fancy stage play.
Dave simply smiled and turned his back at me to face the exit, as we both waited for the just-as-slow panel doors to open.
“At least not all the time here was wasted.” he laughed.
“Bro, we had a beer together. That’s never a waste of time for me.” I replied.
“Wow. Rocks, gay and cringe. You got it all, Tim!” he replied.
We both laughed at me being needlessly cheesy and finally stepped out of that gas chamber. Someone stepped in the cab as we left it and the doors closed, leaving us in the hallway at the ground floor. We heard muffled coughing noises almost immediately and we laughed again, as we knew the disgusting reason. Poor, innocent soul.
“Ok but bro” Dave then said, looking a bit more serious. “You gotta do it someday. Trust me you can trust all of us.”
“I know man.” I replied, as we walked towards the exit “Next time I meet Adam, doesn’t matter where and when, I’m gonna tell him that I’m gay.”
My voice echoed in the building and through the stairs, but I didn’t care.
“You’re… gay?”
Okay, I cared.
We both turned around, puzzled.
It was Adam, right behind us (with this dog on leash), descending one last set of stairs before ending up in front of us. Somehow he’s been slower than the elevator, which both me and Dave found hilarious but I also had other emotions going on that moment.
Dave patted my shoulder encouragingly and stepped back: it was my time to shine.
“Yep.” I simply said. “I wanted to tell you hours ago but I didn’t have the guts to do it.”
Adam just stared at me with a confused expression.
I didn’t feel as nervous as I anticipated. “Yes, Dave knows it…” I quickly added, noticing him staring at my other straight bud. “And I asked him to not tell anyone.”
A moment of silence followed and those always feel like they last hours.
“I mean you two clearly have been dating each other for years” Adam joked. “So it’s no surprise, really.”
“WHAT WE HAVE IS SPECIAL!” Dave shouted, jokingly faking a desperate reaction.
I simply laughed and before I could process how well everything was going I felt Adam doing something very unusual for him: he hugged me.
“I’m glad you told me, man.” he simply said. “You know you can count on us.”
I know times have changed and all but this felt like a victory. Every time I’m gonna come out to a friend of mine it’s one step closer to the peak of a mountain and once at the top I will finally-
“Fuck, I forgot my phone.” Adam said, patting his pockets. “I’ll just take the elevato-“
“NOOO!” both me and Dave screamed, knowing that it was still a deadly gas chamber.
Adam simply replied with an annoyed expression and went for the stairs, the dog just behind him.
“Oh hey by the way.” I asked. “What took you so long? You said the elevator was slow but somehow we made it here before you.”
“Don’t underestimate me.” he replied. “It’s just that I heard some weird noises echoing through the stairs and me and another guy tried to understand what it was.”
Dave tried to not to burst into laughter, while I simply smiled like an idiot. Adam and his dog then went up the stairs and left us in silence, not until my gassy bro decided to break it the way he usually does.
A loud fart erupted and echoed through the building, only lasting around 4 seconds this time.
“There it is again!” we heard Adam say, a couple floors above us.
Me and Dave shared an amused look and went outside trying to not laugh like immature idiots. I felt the cold weather all over me, which was relieving considering the gas trap I’ve been trapped into only minutes earlier.
Despite a slow, yet really entertaining elevator ride, and my awkwardness, no time went wasted today.
“I’m proud of you, bro.” Dave said, this time serious, but still smiling.
“Wow.” I replied. “Straight and cringe. You got it all, Dave.” and winked at him.
“Don’t get too cocky now, rock nerd.”
I was rock-hard, to be more precise that’s for sure, but that was a detail I’d take care of later, perhaps thinking back of that absurd elevator ride. Whenever I’m with Dave, I’ll make sure we’re never taking the stairs again.
End of Episode 10
48 notes · View notes
jamie-leah · 3 years
Text
MYC Part 1
Bucky x Reader
Mini-Series
Summary: Life gets complicated when your ex comes back from the dead. How the story goes is up to you...
Word Count: 2115
Warnings: angst, swearing, mentions of alcohol
A/N: I lied in the promo, this is going to be a mini-series but released in 2 day intervals so you won't have long to wait. This is something new I'm trying. This used to be a one-shot that you can find in my masterlist that I had so many requests to carry on and also lots of angry people wanting to make different choices. While I always try to write for myself, this one is for you. Enjoy Lovelies <3
Special Mention: My best friend, Jay, has drawn all the pictures you will see in this series. He is amazing and incredibly talented in lots of styles. He is super friendly so please check him out here! And show some love <3 He is also taking requests!!!
MYC Masterlist
“You know I could kick your ass any day of the week, Buck", you say with a smirk and a sideways glance in the elevator down.
Bucky chuckles and turns to you, “only because you cheat".
You look at him, jaw slack in mock offense, “I do not cheat!”.
“Oh please! Last week you started crying and you know I hate seeing you cry! You knew I had you and you took advantage of the fact I’m your boyfriend”, Bucky says, the smirk never leaving his face.
You toss him one of your own and say, “that’s just good tactics, baby. Use your opponent’s weakness against them".
Bucky tips his head back to laugh and it has you grinning when the doors slide open into the lobby of the avengers building. People are milling about like ants but it’s the commotion at the front desk that has you pausing.
A guy with sandy hair that brushes the tops of his shoulders is shouting at the receptionist, “you need to let me see her!”.
Adrenaline starts to flood your veins and you find yourself approaching without thought as you notice his ripped clothes. His voice scratching familiarly at a door you thought you closed years ago.
He shouts again, “you need to get Y/N down here now, you don’t understand”.
The way your name falls off his tongue is like a sucker punch and it takes everything not to double over from shock. You’re vaguely aware of Bucky murmuring, “is he asking for you?”.
But it’s only you and the guy in the whole of the room right now as you say, “Charlie?”.
Charlie, your ex of 4 years, whips around at the sound of your voice. You take each other in for a full minute before he makes his way towards you.
Instinctively, you take a step back. Your ex was dead. You were there when he died. You went to his funeral. This man in front of you is a ghost.
Charlie doesn’t flinch at your reaction, instead taking another step and talking to you like you’re a frightened animal, “Y/N, it’s okay, it’s me, Charlie. Please baby, you’ve got to believe me. I’ve been trying to get back to you all this time and I’ve finally found you".
You shake your head but don’t move away from him, “h-how?”.
Charlie stretches his arms out towards you, “does it matter?”.
The room rushes back as you see Bucky’s metal arm come between you and Charlie, his voice comes out hard and guarded, “actually, yes it does matter. You’re supposed to be dead".
Your head was spinning far too fast to register the switch in Charlie as he replies with equal wariness and steel, “yes, I realise that. Can I have a moment with my girlfriend”. It was a statement, not a request despite the wording.
Bucky doesn’t budge, “I’m not sure, you’ll have to ask her". Neither of them takes their eyes off each other and you can feel the air get so thick with tension you wonder when the lightning is going to strike.
You shake your head like you can clear away the cobweb of memories. You lay a hand on Bucky’s arm but look to Charlie, “I guess you should come upstairs then”.
It doesn’t take long before you’re standing in the kitchen, a fresh pot of coffee made and silence to settle. You stand leaning against the counter, Charlie sits at the island nursing a mug, and Bucky leans against the entryway watching Charlie’s every move.
After Charlie takes a sip of his coffee, he looks to you with an annoyed but desperate look, “why does he have to be here? This isn’t how I imagined our reunion”.
You look from Bucky to Charlie before saying, “he’s staying, Charlie. Bucky is, well, he’s my boyfriend”.
You realise you’re holding your breath, but you can’t help it as you watch for Charlie’s reaction. You think you see shock, but it’s quickly masked by a guarded face that could only mean he was hurt, “oh, I see”.
Your heart squeezes a little and you find yourself speaking before you think, “it’s not like that, Charlie”.
You see Bucky give you a sharp look and your head starts to spin again. How the hell did you end up in this position? There was a time you couldn’t even get a guy to call you back and now you have 2 boyfriends? Well, kind of.
You scrub your hands down your face and let out a sigh before looking to Charlie, “what happened? I saw you die. Where have you been all this time?”.
Charlie nods like he was expecting these questions, “I don’t have all the answers. One second, I have a gun to my head and I’m watching you knowing my number is up and the next I wake up in a dark cell and get tortured for the next 3 years”.
Before you can say anything, Bucky cuts in with only two words, “prove it”.
Charlie stares daggers into Bucky and it leaves a prickly heat spread across your skin, “what the fuck man?”.
Bucky shrugs, unfazed by the aggressive tone, “I know the story. I was the one that found Y/N at a Hydra base. If you were really kept and tortured by Hydra for the last 3 years, there’d be proof”, Bucky pauses to wiggle his metal fingers, “trust me. I know”.
Charlie scraps the chair against the floor, the sound echoing around the room as he lifts up his shirt. Scars of all shapes and sizes criss cross his chest and stomach. It’s a sight that has you step towards him before you finally catch yourself. Your feelings are all over the place. You don’t even know what’s an appropriate reaction anymore.
Bucky is the one to speak again, “how did you escape?”.
Charlie looks to you, anger clearly blazing in his dark brown eyes, “what the fuck is with this guy?”.
They both look to you and it makes you feel like a mother being asked to pick between her children. You want to scream, you want to run, you want to hide, but you know this situation won’t sort itself out. It’ll still be a mess for when you come back.
You look at Bucky and your trust in him is unwavering, woven into the fabric of why you love him, that unbreakable trust.
You look to Charlie and you know you still love him, the man that grew up with you, the man that was taken from you.
You turn your back on them and place your hands on the kitchen counter. You needed a moment to think, to sort through the jumble in your head, without the feel of them watching everything you do. Without the expectations.
You let your shoulders slump and say without even turning around, “how did you escape Charlie?”.
The room goes quiet for a few moments before Charlie replies emotionless, “they let me go”.
Bucky barks out a dark laugh as you slowly turn to face him again. For the first time since you saw him suspicion starts to bloom, “you expect me to believe they just…let you go?”.
Charlie walks around the island towards you and you can practically feel Bucky like a livewire in the room. Charlie grips your upper arms and looks into your eyes with a sincerity that would be hard to fake, but maybe it was the close proximity that had you all out of whack.
Charlie murmurs, “would I lie to you babe? Give me the hard truth or pass me the hard liquor, remember?”.
You smile briefly at the old saying you used to share as you say, “you don’t know where the hard liquor is”.
Charlie grins, “I wouldn’t need to. It was always the hard truth. And telling you that they let me go is the hard truth exactly because of your reaction. If I wanted you to trust what I said straight off the bat I would have made something more convincing up”.
He had a point and it was hard to argue when he was there, standing in front of you. When he was solid flesh and breathing the same air as you. You feel your resolve crumble a bit as you whisper, “you’re really alive”.
Charlie pulls you into a hug as he nods against you, “yeah babe, I’m really alive and there wasn’t a day I didn’t think about you”.
After a few moments Bucky’s voice fills the silence, “you want to hear another hard truth? It doesn’t make sense for Hydra to just let you go. It would be easier for them to kill you than to let you go unless you were still useful to them”.
You step away from Charlie at the sound of Bucky’s voice and turn to Bucky, “you’re probably right, but we have time to figure that out”.
Bucky shakes his head, looking down at the floor before finding your eyes again, “F.R.I.D.A.Y. can you watch our new guest while I talk to Y/N in private”.
F.R.I.D.A.Y. replies immediately, “of course, Barnes”.
You glance back at Charlie before following Bucky out of the room and all the way down the hall, out of earshot of the kitchen even for a super soldier.
Bucky shakes his head again, “I have a bad feeling about this, Doll”.
You roll your eyes, “I wonder why my current boyfriend has a bad feeling about my ex-boyfriend that was supposed to be dead but has come back?”.
Anger flares in his eyes, “it’s more than that, Y/N. There’s something that isn’t adding up, something we’re missing. You can’t tell me you don’t feel it to”.
You cross your arms, “I don’t actually”.
“Oh come on!-“.
“No, Buck. You come on. Someone I cared about…care about has come back from the grave and yes there are questions that need answers but…I saw him die Bucky, can’t I just have a few moments?”, you start the sentence angry but it ends in a whisper.
Bucky’s face softens at your tone. He wraps his arms around your waist to pull you into him, placing a hard kiss to the crown of your head. You breathe him in and take a moment to thank the stars for someone as understanding as Bucky.
Bucky murmurs into your hair, “I’m sorry, I get it, I just want to keep you safe. Besides, we can talk about it more at dinner tonight”.
You pull back slightly to look up at him, “I mean, we’re not going to dinner now”.
Bucky frowns, “what? Why?”.
You pull away from him to see if he was being serious, “did you not just listen to a word I said?”.
Bucky nods, “yeah, of course I did. But we’ve had this dinner planned for ages, Doll, we can’t cancel it now”.
You shake your head at him in disbelief, “it’s not every day that someone’s ex comes back from the dead, so I think that’s a good enough reason to skip the dinner just this once, Buck”.
You start to walk back to the kitchen when “no!”, bursts from Bucky.
You turn to look at him, anger heating up your skin, “what the hell is the matter with you, Barnes?!”
Bucky exhales heavily, head hung low. When he finally looks up at you, he’s wearing his boyish half grin like he’s just accepted the way life has dealt his hand, “this wasn’t how it was supposed to go, and I can’t believe my own goddamn luck”.
“What’s going on, Bucky?”, you ask, confusion tainting your words.
Bucky takes a deep breath before he pulls out a box. Your heart stops at the sight but it takes a few moments for your muddled brain to register what it is until he opens it. A perfect silver ring sits innocently inside.
Tumblr media
Words abandon you as you stare at the man in front of you. Bucky says softly, “I was only pushy about dinner because I was going to propose tonight. I had the whole evening planned and everything. Everyone was involved…but the how and what and when doesn’t really matter. It’s the why. I love you, Y/N. More than I ever thought I could. I honestly don’t deserve you, but you make me a better man and my world is brighter with you in it. So, I want you to stay in it, forever”.
He closes the distance between you, but it gives you little comfort and you will him not to say the words, but he does, and it breaks your heart, “will you marry me?”.
[Are you going to marry Bucky Barnes? Make your choice...]
1st Choice 1 - Yes
1st Choice 2 - No
Taglist: @harrystylesisgolden @stucky-my-ship @savvywords @buckysbaby-doll
34 notes · View notes
crescentsteel · 3 years
Text
Keeping a Secret - Part 2
Tumblr media
pairing: Tsukishima x f!manager of Sendai Frogs genre: sexual tension/crack/fluff/slow burn warnings: lots of swear words, tsukki being a a closet softie wc: 6k (lol no chill as always)
[a/n]
Sorry for the delayed update. I added almost 1k words just to solidify the characters to give depth even more to the story. Feel free to reread. (It's totally not because I started a different series altogether.)
When I say this is slow burn, I meant sloooooooowww burn. 
Let me know if you want to be part of the taglist. :)
AO3 
Part 1 || Part 3 || masterlist
What were you even thinking? Actually,  why weren’t you? Had you used at least two brain cells of yours, you wouldn’t have momentarily lost your mind and kissed Tsukishima. You could’ve justified your actions if you were drunk, but you ingested not even an ounce of alcohol that night.
History will remember yesterday as the day a a sober you and a very displeased Tsukishima who found yourselves smooching publicly in the middle of a club. You’re just glad that no other member of the team goes to the same university you both go to. Else, you'd run the risk of getting seen.
Were so touch-deprived that you couldn’t resist even Tsukishima? And what about him? Why did he get along with it? You don’t think he actually hates you. Hate is such a strong word. He just exceedingly dislikes you. So why would he make out with you? Maybe he thought of it as a way of finally standing up to you?
Ugh.
You’re thankful that you didn’t have training yesterday. You were a mess the whole day trying to make sense of what happened. Not that you’re any better today; you’re still baffled as fuck. But you’re glad you had that day off so you wouldn’t have to face him immediately. 
For the first time ever, you’re dreading going to the gym. Even if you’re tired or you lack sleep, you’ve never felt distressed as the manager of the Sendai Frogs. All this because of Tsukishima. But can you really put the blame on him when it was you who initiated it?
“Good morning, y/n,” Eiji, the captain of the team greets you.
“Morning, Eiji,” you say back. Even though he’s older than you, you dropped the salutations already, same with everybody else. 
“You okay?” he asks worriedly. 
“Oh! Yeah, absolutely! When am I ever not okay?” You toughen it up and erase the troublesome kiss in your head. You are their ever shining manager, first and foremost. Anything outside of that has no place in this gym. 
“Never. It’s almost scary actually,” he answers with jest.
“Right? ‘Cause I’m a freaking goddess.”
He gives you a noble bow. “Indeed, you are, my lady.”
You giggle softly. Your players really are the best on and off the court (except for Tsukishima). “Go do your drills instead of buttering me up, ‘captain.’” He gives you a mock salute then jogs off towards the net. 
“Y/n!”
You saunter off to your coach after you were called. “Yes, Coach?”
“Can you help tape the blockers?” You nod willingly, quickly discarding unnecessary thoughts of Tsukishima. 
“Tsukishima’s free. Go start with him.”
You almost flinch upon hearing his name.
‘Great,’ you groan internally as you get the wrap from your kit and drag your feet toward the source of your uneasiness. But what did you expect? Of course, you’d have to deal with him sooner or later.
“Morning, Tsukishima,” you greet him with forced normalcy, acting like nothing’s wrong. As you take his left hand and you’re instantly reminded of what happened the other night -- how this hand gripped your waist while his mouth moved against yours… how his skin felt against the palm of your hand as he towered over you, body against body in a dance so dangerous and so hypnotizing that you lost yourself in the moment.
You tried your best to calm down yesterday, but seeing him right now makes you want to smack yourself from your momentary insanity that led you to kiss him.
Instead, you give him the nicest, brightest smile to channel your frustrations as you start taping his fingers. You just hope and pray that he doesn’t bring it up.
“Morning,  manager .” It was an indirect jab at you. Even when he says it with a dead tone, you know he’s taunting you by addressing you as manager - a tortuous reminder that what happened last Saturday night wasn’t forgotten.
Instead of yielding to the provocation, you respond with your own. You might have messed up, but you’re not letting him get the upper hand. “How was your weekend, Tsukki?” 
“Horrible,” he quickly answers without even thinking.
“Ditto. What happened to yours?” you ask with fake curiosity, already knowing why. Even if you didn’t kiss him then, he was already acting up like an angsty teen forced by his mom to attend a children’s party within the neighborhood.
“Went to a disgusting party.”
You nod pretentiously. “Mine’s horrible too. I got g-”
“I didn’t ask,” he interrupts.
“Well, you’re still going to hear it,” you respond just as distastefully as he cut you off. “I got groped by some perv, but I kinda punched some good manners unto him.” You release his left hand and take his right one to tape it as well. 
“And?” He asks.
You shrug your shoulders. “That’s it. After that, I just went home from how  horrible  the experience was.”
You look up to him, meeting his sardonic gaze paired with a raised eyebrow from what you just said. You know that he understood that you were referring to something else other than the perv incident as horrible.
“How about you? What happened to that disgusting party of yours?” you press on.
“I bumped into someone I didn’t really want to see.”
“And?”
“Do you really wanna know how horrible it was for me?” A smirk creeps up on the corner of his mouth as he asks. There were many times before that you’ve wanted a taste of Tsukishima’s vile sarcasm, just to know what he’d say to you. Today is not one of those times. You don’t want him using that reckless kiss against you. 
“Actually, no. I don’t really care.” You let go of his hand you just finished working with and look around to look for anyone you could use as a distraction from Tsukishima’s attempt to retell the kiss from his perspective.
“Kogane!” you brightly call the setter as you bounce cheerfully towards him. 
Even if you don’t show it, Tsukishima knows he’s gotten under your previously impenetrable thick skin. He detests what happened last Saturday. The more he remembers it, the more he abhors it. The only reason he’s not totally hating himself for getting swept along with your shit is because he knows you hated it too, probably more than he does since it was you who kissed him first.
His smug grin only spreads when you march to Kogane with that cutesy act you only show to players from opposing teams to unsettle them before matches. You take both Kogane’s hands and beam at him. “Do you want me to tape your fingers?”
“Y-you don’t have to, y/n. I can do it myself!” Kogane blurts out, panicking at your sudden closeness and physical touch.
“But I love taking care of you guys,” you pout at Kogane, which only makes the setter blush a shade almost close to red.
Tsukishima follows you to help his babbling, flustered teammate.
“You’re going to kill him, y/n,” he says as he passes by you and Kogane who now looks like he stopped functioning.
You blink at Kogane, realizing what you’re doing to the poor guy.
You must have been really bothered by Tsukishima and unknowingly projected it to someone else.
Tsukishima sneers as he sees you try to ease Kogane from his severe fluster but only make it worse by rubbing his shoulders. 
A dash of pride and satisfaction swells on Tsukishima’s chest as he watches you get agitated with the situation you, yourself caused. Getting back at you feels even better than he imagined it would be. 
--
Even though you and Tsukishima are in the same class, you don’t really notice his presence. Sometimes you’d even forget you’re classmates. Now, though, you are more aware of the fact that he’s actually there than you ever have.
“Alright, class. For your main project this semester, I’m going to have you partnered up. You need to come up with a comprehensive report on mating behavior of reptiles. I’ll randomly generate your assigned reptile.”
You groan. Another collaborative work in the same subject. You don’t like working with others because you don’t want to adapt to anyone’s schedule. You like to get things done ahead of time. You hate procrastinating because you don’t want your uni requirements getting mixed up with potential tasks from your managerial job, especially whenever tournament seasons come. 
The last collaborative work you worked on is a group project where you did most of the work yourself. You wouldn’t have minded if you didn’t have fucking freeloaders as groupmates.  The little shits made you do 90% of the project because you wanted it done early.
You just pray that this time, you get to be paired with someone responsible. You tap your pen on your desk while you wait for your name to be called.
“L/n and Tsukishima.”
You drop your pen at your professor’s announcement. It bounces twice on your desk before rolling to the floor, but you don’t move to pick it up. Your gaze immediately flies to where Tsukishima is seated and find him glaring at you already. You almost want to laugh at how ridiculous this entire situation is.
Seriously? Were you a serial killer in your previous life or something? Did some higher power decide to punish you for your grave sins like this? 
Whatever. You’re not having any of this shit. 
You wait until the class is over and approach your professor. “Sir. I’d like to do this project alone.” Or at least with someone else. 
He continues to type something on his laptop, not bothering to look up at you, as he asks, “Why is that?”
“I just feel more comfortable doing things on my own, Sir. Please.” You try to give him your nice student smile but his eyes don't leave his screen.
“Then what? Have you increase my workload?”
Shit. You forgot that this particular professor of yours is known to not budge to anyone. You scramble your brain for another excuse.
“Sir. Can I do this project alone?” you suddenly hear Tsukihima’s voice behind you.
Finally, your professor closes his laptop and eyes you two unenthusiastically. “My answer is no to miss Y/n, so my answer to you, Mr. Tsukishima, is also no. I don’t know what the deal is between you two, but you’re doing this together.”
You can’t help but scowl despite being right in front of your professor. If it wasn’t for that darn kiss, you would’ve loved working with Tsukishima. Even though you don’t have the same classes, his schedule won’t be that hard to match up with because you two have the same training days. Secondly, he’s smart. You won’t have to carry the whole weight of the project. 
“You know what, I’ll reconsider.” A glimmer of hope lights up in your chest as you hear your professor’s words. “I’ll allow you two to work individually — but with an automatic ten point deduction for this project.”
“No,” you and Tsukishima respond at the same time. 
“Great! You’re already getting along swimmingly.” Your professor picks up his stuff and stands up. “Enjoy,” he waves a dismissive goodbye and leaves.
You slowly turn around to face Tsukishima and find that you share the same lour that he has. You cross your arms and lean on your professor’s desk. “Guess we’re together, Tsukishima.” 
--
You allowed yourself one week to compose yourself before you agreed to start the project with Tsukishima. You still saw him at training days, and even then, you tried to have the least amount of interaction with him so the ‘incident’ wouldn’t be brought up again. Meeting him for a project where it’s just you two is different and you needed time.
As much as you don’t want to be with him, you told yourself that it’ll be over soon. You just pushed the kiss in the back of your head and convinced yourself that it was just a stupid kiss. It didn’t mean anything. He probably just went along with it out of spite, so it’s best you think of it as a spur of the moment madness. That way, you won’t be bothered if he sordidly brings it up again. At least now, you can go back to your usual, cheeky self around him.
You’re about to text Tsukishima that you’ve arrived at the station you agreed to meet up at but you already see him there standing while he’s scrolling his phone with his usual white headphones on.
Unfortunately for you and him, the reptile assigned to you two are crocodiles. It’s the worst possible assignment you could get among the roster of reptiles assigned. You need to travel all the way to Wakabayashi for a legitimate crocodile farm to observe, compared to other reptiles which are easily accessible with nearby zoos in Miyagi. You just pray that you’ll only need this one trip to get all the data you need for your report.
You walk towards him and instantly regard how he looks. Despite being in the same university, you don’t see him around much. Even in your sole class together, you’re seated way too apart from each other to even look at each other’s direction. Not that being seated beside each other would’ve made a difference. You’re not friends. There’s no need to talk to him since everything that’s volleyball-related is relayed through line. To you, he’s just one of your players. As far as you’re concerned, the only Tsukishima you’re aware of is the one sweating his white shirt and training shorts during practice. 
To have this much involvement with him outside the gym is throwing you out of your usual loop. You continue studying him at a distance. Today he’s wearing white plaid pants, black turtleneck (probably long sleeves) with a lighter shade of black coat on top, and a brown wool scarf. He also has a gray bonnet that makes his blonde locks frame his face nicely. 
What the heck? Did he always dress like this even in class? How come you never noticed? 
He finally notices you. He puts down his phone and removes his headphones. “How long have you been there?”
“Wow, Tsukishima. You look kinda hot,” you blurt out without thinking.
His eyes expand at your statement that came out of nowhere. “Huh?!”
“Oh, sorry. That must’ve been random. But you look really good though. I kinda feel like I’m meeting a date,” you say with objective candor as you continue to stare at him. 
That catches him completely off guard. The other day you’re on the edge around him. You weren’t even paying much attention to him during training, but now you’re back to being a headache whose mouth knows no bounds as you faze him with your unfiltered thoughts. Now, it’s him who is uncomfortable again with your thorough eyes scanning him approvingly. 
“As if I’d ever date you,” he snaps back at your remark to which you scoff at.
“I didn’t say you would. Maybe you’re forgetting, I’d never go out with a member of the team.”
“Right. But kissing one is totally fine, huh?” he retaliates in an instant with a condescending look. He waits for your reaction, eager to see you distraught and bothered by it. To his dissatisfaction, you don’t behave in such a way. Instead, you sigh defeatedly.
“Yeah. Sorry about that. I got a little crazy that night,” you say casually to a degree that you sounded like it was just a petty accident. “You kissed me back, so I’m sure you were too. Right?” 
The last word is conniving, and he can tell why you phrased it that way. You’re leaving him no choice but to disregard what happened or else it’s going to seem like it meant something to him. The hell it does. It simply resurfaces back on his mind sometimes because of how unpleasant the memory is. 
‘Devious woman,’ he snarls in his head.
It should be okay. Your reason for what you did can also be his excuse for how responded to it. What he didn’t like is that he hasn’t even managed to make the most out of that incident, while you immediately found a way to undo the grave you dug for him to bury you into.
Plus, the only advantage he sees out of partnering with you for this project is the possibility of being able to pester you the way you pester him during practice. Obviously, that’s already thrown off the window. Now, there’s nothing in it for him for the duration of the project. He is left with nothing but the fact that he has to endure your company. To think that he’s already so miserable when this afternoon has barely even started.
“Yeah,” he answers with contained resentment. “Can we go on the bus now?” He asks to deviate away from the topic already. He was hoping he could still use the incident to unnerve you, but it’s for naught now. 
He enters the bus first and assumes you’ll follow him, which you do as you take your seat beside him. You get your shoulder bag and take out a notebook.
“Can you take a look at this outline I made for our report?” you ask while you hand him your notebook opened at a certain page.
“I can’t read while the bus is moving,” he says then waits for a lame comeback from you. But you don’t comment about it. Why must you keep on being such a wildcard?
“Ah, okay. I’ll just tell it to you then,” you smile at him. “This trip is going to take long. It’d be a waste of time to not make use of it, right?”
He groans internally. Why must you be right all the fucking time?
He also made an outline last night, but he didn’t tell you because he thought it’d be better if he just did the data-gathering himself and let you take the pictures the report should have. He forgot that you’re not as irresponsible and carefree as you present yourself to be.
He listens to you explain your outline, looking for flaws in it for the sake of his grade and also for his self-satisfaction. And he does find a few.
“You should have separate discussion points for mating characteristics for male and females. I’m sure they have distinct traits. Also, I think we should include more than just one species, preferably three if the farm has it.” He continues, “Maybe we can note certain unique behaviors per species. It would be inconclusive, but it would still be nice to include it as a commentary.”
He hopes to extract even just a tiny hint of embarrassment from you for he’s thought of it better than you did. But you just stare at him for a good few seconds before you break into a dazzled smile.
“Oh my God. Yeah, you’re absolutely right!”
You open your notebook and scribble the changes in your drafted outline. “Is there anything else?” You consult him genuinely. You accept his criticisms with an open mind, which vexes him even more. 
“Nothing,” he grumbles.
“Alright. Let’s just revise it again once we see what’s on the farm.”
He doesn’t bother replying anymore since you’re once again right.
He puts on his headphones again to drown out whatever chatter you plan to have with him since you’re done discussing the project for now. Instead of bugging him, you take out a bunch of readings and focus on them intently, completely ignoring him. 
With nothing to entertain him aside from the music on his ears, his peripheral keeps going back to you and how hard you’re concentrating with the papers in your one hand and a pen in the other. 
He removes one muff of his headphone from his ear and asks you, “Don’t you get motion sickness?”
You really must be into what you’re studying because you flinch when he speaks, causing you to drop your pen. 
He feels responsible for it so he leans down to pick it up, but you also do the same. As you both reach down to grab your pen, your temple collides with his. 
“Ow,” your fingers go to massage the spot, failing to notice as he does that your faces are too close for comfort. He watches you wince for a quick while before looking at him, finally realizing that he’s within a proximity familiar to you both. 
It’s reminiscent of that night except this time, the natural light affirms that it wasn’t just the ambiance of the club that made you attractive enough to pull him in and share that heinous kiss. With your well-lit features, he can see that you’re thinking about the same thing he is.
Your eyes fall on his lips and for some illogical reason, he does the same.
Like last time, you’re the first to act on it. The major difference is, instead of leaning in, you retreat. You sit up straight with your fingers still on the side of your head and smile graciously at him. “It’s fine, Tsukishima. I’ll get it,” you say, which he finds half-witted because he’s still bent down and he can already grasp the pen.
He sits back up and hands you your pen. You use the hand on your temple to get it.
“Oh, thanks.” You stare at the pen for a second, then tuck it in your pocket. “Anyways, yeah. I don’t have problems reading in a moving vehicle.”
You dive back to his question and disregard what just happened. It works for him. He’d rather not think about it as well. 
“Have you not seen me scrambling paperwork on our bus rides to and from tournaments?”
“No.” He prefers not to pay attention to you. Hell, he pretends you don’t exist when he can. So naturally, he doesn’t know what it is you do when you’re not being your pestering self. It pains him to admit it, but you do get shit done -- efficiently, too. He should be glad because at least, you won’t be like his previous groupmates.
Still, just you being … you, ticks him off.
You laugh out of nowhere. “For someone who doesn’t speak much, you’re so fucking transparent.”
He frowns, not being able to grasp what you meant.
“Okay, look. I like pissing you off. I really do. And you, you don’t like me a lot. But for this project. Can we pretend that I’m not your annoying manager and you’re not the nasty Tsukishima I know?” 
“How the fuck can I do that when we see each other almost everyday as such?”
You roll your eyes and smirk. “Right. What was I even thinking? Go ahead and be emo with your music over there while I study here, yeah?” You pat him on the shoulders twice with that patronizing grin you always give him before pulling your pen back from your pocket and focusing once more on your readings, completely paying no attention to him for the rest of the trip.
As soon as you reach the crocodile farm, Tsukishima suggests that you two roam the area separately to cover more ground. In reality, he just wanted to get rid of you even for just a few minutes. He needed a break from you.
He does so by taking his time strolling around the place, observing how the area is situated. It looks like a park with its vast lush green environment and man-made waters to habituate the crocodiles. There are four main areas: the museum, the hatchling house, the zoo, and the breeding pens. He first goes to the museum, looking at the skeletal structure of some crocodiles. It isn’t really significant to the project but he can’t help admire it.
When he realizes that he’s taking longer than he initially thought, he starts looking for you. He sends you a text, but you don’t reply. You had gone to the zoo’s direction so he assumes you’re somewhere around that area. 
When he does find you, you’re not alone.
There you are near a crocodile pen, getting friendly with a guy he’s sure you just met.
It’s so familiar. The only difference is that you’re not wearing the Frogs’ jacket and you’re not in the Sendai gymnasium. He walks towards your direction, not caring if he’s going to cut off your little chat. You’re there for the project, not to snag some random bozo.
As he closes in behind you, he hears your conversation.
“Actually, birds are more closely related to dinosaurs than crocodiles. You couldn’t tell, right?” you explain with zeal. 
Tsukishima stops in his tracks at the foreign feeling in his chest. Wait a minute. Is he actually impressed? Moreover, what the heck is he impressed for? You should know that. You are both in a higher herpetology class. Even though it hasn’t been discussed during lectures, it’s natural that you know that. However, the guy you’re talking with isn't as enthusiastic. 
“Can’t blame you though. Crocs and dinos share the same sexy vibe with those chill eyes and scaly skin. Also, look at those smokin webbed feet. Fucking work of art, dude. You feel me?” you press on fanatically.
The stranger looks at you with a forced smile, obviously weirded out by your ‘passionate’ description of the reptile. “Yeah, sure. I have to go now. Bye,” the guy bows and storms away from you. 
You turn your attention back to the lowered pen in front of you with a satisfied smile and shudder when you see Tsukishima already there beside you. 
“Gah! You scared me. Why didn’t you say anything?” you ask with your hand still on your chest.
“I didn’t want to interrupt you creeping out that stranger.”
You tither at his answer. “Glad you didn’t. It was fun seeing him all freaked out.” 
He finds it weird. He thought you just had an aversion towards athletes. That’s why you keep driving away anyone who’d approach you during matches. Apparently, that’s not the case.
“He looked like he’d follow you back to Miyagi if you didn’t go all freaky nerdy on him.” 
You jeer at his comment. “He could follow me to the ends of the Earth and I still wouldn’t give him my number. I’d rather date Mr. Crocodylus siamensis over here than boring dum dums blinded by how hot I am.” 
“Then why do you entertain them?” he follows up.
“Caaaauuusse it’s fun to see them squirm,” you declare cheerfully as you veer your gaze at him. “Why the sudden interest with the way I handle men, Tsukishima?”
You raise an eyebrow, the corner of your lips tugging up to form a playful smirk. “Don’t tell me you suddenly find me interesting?”
You really do know how to push the right buttons to provoke him. He grits his teeth from your audacity.
“I’m joking for fuck’s sake! My god. I already know that even if it’s just the two of us on this planet, and we’d have to procreate to restart the world population, you’d rather choose to doom humanity than have anything to do with me.”
Among all the correct things that came out of your mouth, that was the only thing he could verbally agree with. “Good you know,” he retorts. 
You don’t seem to take offense though. You still keep your unwavering smile as you get your phone out and take a picture of the Borneo crocodile. 
“Should we go see the breeding pens now?” you ask nonchalantly, dismissing the previous conversation like it was nothing. 
--
You both decide to hire a designated tour guide to assist you while you observe the crocodiles, particularly the ones for breeding. 
“Hi, Ms. l/n. I’m Sara and I will be your guide for today,” she introduced herself with a dedicated smile.
“I’m so thrilled that you and your boyfriend decided to learn more about crocodiles for your date,” she adds. 
You and Tsukishima glance at each other before turning back to her. 
“She’s not my girlfriend.” “He’s not my boyfriend.”
You both say simultaneously, except yours sounded like a friendly correction while his sounded like a dead announcement. 
“We’re just classmates for a project,” you correct her.
She bows apologetically with embarrassment and worry. “I’m so sorry for assuming that.”
“No worries, Sara,” you reassure her before Tsukishima says something unnecessary. “Can you lead us on the breeding pens? We’d like to observe the whole thing.” 
“Of course. Right this way.”
Aside from the mishap earlier, you find Sara competent at her job as she fills you in with details not included in the sign boards in the pens. She gives you information about the mating process that you didn’t find when you researched about the subject. You assume Tsukishima’s thinking the same because he doesn’t say anything out of the blue.
“By any chance, will we see a pair mating today?” he asks after a while.
“I’m not really sure, Mr. Tsukishima. It’s really up to the animals.”
You tug on Tsukishima’s sleeve when you catch sight of one crocodile latching himself on top of another.
“What?” he asks irritatedly, but follows your line of sight. 
“Oh, lucky. There you go.” Sara announces with a pleasant smile.
You get your phone and your notes. You multitask listening to Sara, taking photos, and scribbling notes on your paper pad. 
On the other hand, Tsukishima multitasks observing the crocodiles in action and observing you. 
You’re asking important questions to the guide while juggling other tasks. Yes, he doesn’t like you and loathes being partnered with you. However, that doesn't mean he won’t cooperate with you. He won’t mind if you ask him for help, but you seem to have even forgotten that he’s there. 
He grabs your phone from your hand, garnering a confused look from you.
“I’ll take the photos. You take down notes.”
You flash him an honest, grateful smile. “Thanks, Tsukishima.”
Then, you proceed with the things you’re doing more at ease. 
He can’t tell who he’s more pissed at, you or himself. Something about that display of productivity and wit unnerves him. It’s as if it’s telling him that his chagrin over you is unreasonable because you’re actually reliable when it counts. What’s worse is you’re completely oblivious to it. In fact, you’re almost ignoring him.
Goddamn it. What’s he doing? He’s completely distracted now from the project and is solely focused on you. He quickly shakes it off and calms himself down. His attention should be on the reptiles, not you.
He turns his attention back to the crocodiles, but the mating act only lasted a few minutes. After that, you both barrage Sara with an array of questions that she looked too overwhelmed by the end of your tour. 
You’ve covered almost everything for the day and it’s already around 6 in the evening when you get on a bus on the way back to Miyagi.
“That was fun!” you comment ardently with an abnormal shine on your face when you sit down on the bus on the way back. He wears his headphones on before you start a conversation he’s not willing to have. From his peripheral, he sees you turning to him and as he predicted, your mouth begins moving while you animatedly narrate words he could not hear. 
He’s already acting as if he can’t hear nor see you, but you still don’t stop. Knowing you, you will not stop until you make sure he notices you. He wearily removes his headphones only to see you not saying anything and only mouthing words with hand gestures. 
“Seriously?” He scowls at you. He’s already exhausted at having to deal with you even for just half a day, but you still have the energy to mess with him. 
You cover your mouth with your hand as you snicker but it erupts into a hoot of laughter shortly. You gasp ridiculously after you ride out your stupid amusement from poking at his patience. “Tsukki, I swear to God. You make the best faces,” you say while wiping away your joyous tears.
“Were you even going to say something worth listening to?” he questions sourly.
You study him then shake your head. “I think you’re tired, so let’s just discuss what we gathered next time. You can go ignore me now,” you tell him with an understanding smile despite the slight banter.
You tilt your body in his direction and hoist yourself up a bit to put his headphones back yourself like it’s no big deal.
You settle back into your seat while he stills on his seat, stunned with what you just did while you get your readings again and shrink to your own bubble. You don’t seem to make anything of it, so he doesn’t as well. It was very you to mindlessly get on anyone’s —  particularly his — personal space anyways.
He increases the volume of his headphones and tries to relax. Yet, his attention keeps swerving back at you every now and then. You’re really concentrating hard with your brows burrowed while you stare at your hand-outs. After a while, he notices you bobbing your head from the corners of his eyes.
He can tell you’re as tired as he is and trying hard to fight the sleep that’s taking over you. The bunch of papers you previously held are now clutched on your lap.
On the last bob of your head, you snap out of it. You blink repeatedly and return your eyes to your readings again. To no avail, you’re shutting down with your eyes fluttering when you try again. You look like you decided to give it a rest and put your papers back in your bag. You cross your arms and lean back to your seat. 
He feels relieved that you finally yield to your physical exhaustion. He doesn’t need an additional bullet point to his list of why he can’t fully hate you. Also, you won’t run your mouth at him if you’re asleep.
He feels the soft thump of your head on his shoulder. You probably did too as you suddenly bolt up and tell him ‘sorry' which he only understands based on how you mouthed the word. You lean back again and try to settle back to sleep. But when you start dozing off, you sway to the other side of your seat which is the aisle of the bus.
He grabs your shoulder to prevent you from tumbling down to the aisle. Your disoriented self looks around, alarmed at his sudden touch.
“Just fucking lean on me,” he spits out, irked that he has to say it out loud. It’s not like he pushed you away. You could’ve just stayed as you were and he would’ve turned a blind eye at it out of recognition of the effort you put in today. He’d just consider it one of those times that you do something annoying and he just ignores you as a response.
You regard him with dazed eyes. You open your mouth as if you’re about to say something but decide against it as you shut your eyes again and you let your head rest on his shoulder. But even then, your head still falls forward from time to time. He puts a hand on your forehead to settle you back on his shoulder and slides a bit downward on his seat to accommodate you. 
Jesus Christ, you can study in a moving vehicle but can’t even do a simple thing like sleep properly on it. Why does he even have to adjust for you?
He heaves furiously in contrast to your steady breathing, letting him know that you’re easing deeper to your sleep. 
He distracts himself by looking at the window, witnessing the unmoving dark sky and the changing scenery below. He lets out a sigh.
Maybe he should’ve just accepted the ten point deduction.
Part 1 || Part 3 || masterlist
taglist (those crossed out can’t be tagged - pls check your settings?)
@ameliaxo @suikrem​​ @akaashisslave @tsumurai​​  @celestialarchiveshq​ @loving-unicorns106​ @flairlust @geektastic84 @anaiss97 @berna-dette​ @just4readingfics​ @suteorra​ @xxekitten69xx​ @simp4tsukkii @music-is-all-i-need @keshinslittlegirl @raspberrysunshinebby @iminlovewhaikyuu @pdiddy11 @lightyagamami @sailorscout1902 @lovershaikyuu
258 notes · View notes
serendipityjxmn · 3 years
Text
Mr. President
Tumblr media
Chapter 8
TW: None
Words Count: 1.9k
Link to Masterlist
Link to Chapter 9
Tumblr media
You’re deeply immersed in your own thought that morning at your desk. There’s a whole two weeks before Jimin’s birthday, but since you currently have no idea at all on what to do, you can’t help feeling restless.
“-and since it’s our seventh year anniversary, I was thinking of doing something special, you know? I even thought of buying a new dress just to celebrate it!” You snap out of your reverie, finally tuning back to Irene who had been telling about her boyfriend who she had been dating since college.
“That’s so cute.” You say sincerely to her, briefly wondering if you can have the same kind of happiness too.
She giggles. “Thank you, Y/N.” She draws her breath. “What about you? You don’t have a boyfriend yet?”
You blink several times hearing her question. “Uh- uhh, yeah no.” You’re probably the worst liar ever. You look back down at the file of Jimin’s schedule that you’ve been studying in order for you to make a summary. Something had been bothering you that you’ve been meaning to ask Irene for a while now.
“Eyy~ I’m pretty sure you have one-“
“Hey, Irene can I ask you something?” You cut her off.
“Yeah?” She looks down at the file you’re looking at, reads it for a few seconds before continuing. “Ah~ You must’ve noticed that.”
Clara Kim. The name that would pop on Jimin’s schedule every week without fail. Yet you’ve no idea who she is, what she does and why does he sees her every week. “Who is she?”
Irene looks around as if there would be anyone in close proximity that can hear you before leaning in and whispers to you. “She’s.. Mr. Park’s girlfriend.”
Girl-what? Your eyes feel like it’s going to bulge out of its socket.
Irene laughs a little seeing your expression. “Don’t look at me like that! What, are you sad now thinking our handsome president’s taken?” She chuckles.
“But-“ you rack your brain. Wasn’t his marriage a public affair? Although his wife isn’t disclosed, his employees should’ve known the boss’s status, shouldn’t they? “Isn’t he married?”
She scoffs. “You think he can’t have both at the same time?” She shrugs. “He’s young, rich and definitely good looking. You think he’s gonna just stick to his wife when so many girls are after his ass?”
You lose words to say. His girlfriend? Why would he marry you then? “You don’t think that’s his wife?” Although she obviously isn’t.
She chuckles. “Girl, would meeting his wife be part of his schedule?” You suddenly feel stupid. “I only see her once or twice so far now although I’ve been working here for a long time, and she really doesn’t look like someone’s wife for the record, and he sees her every week without fail. All tall and skinny like a model, big tits big ass long black hair like a vixen ugh. But,” she shrugs, “I don’t know. Mr. Park never says anything about her so it must be really private. If you see here, she usually comes every Friday at night, after we’ve gone back.”
There’s a twist in your heart that you do not wish to know the reason why. You remain silent after that and Irene leaves you to your own devices as well as your thoughts.
You were just organising your table before you go out to lunch when Minhyuk calls you to his office. You glance at Jimin’s office, he’s still locked up in it and you know he haven’t had his lunch yet so you planned to order take outs for the both of you. You sigh a little as you make your way to Minhyuk’s office.
There’s no one else in the office since everyone has gone out for lunch. A tinge of anxiety runs through your body. You have a bad feeling about this.
“Hey, Y/N. You going out for lunch? Mind if you grab take outs for me too?”
Oh. You smile politely. “Sure. What would you like?”
“I’ll have whatever you’re having.”
You nod then quickly heads downstairs and walks about a block away to find Subway. Packing lunch for three, you head straight back to the office. Slightly nervous, you head towards Jimin’s room first and knocks. He doesn’t answer. Perhaps he doesn’t hear you the first time?
So you knock again. Still no. Was he out? You didn’t see him come out though. Perhaps he’s walked out while you’re out ordering take outs. So you slowly let yourself in silently.
A huge mistake.
You stand at the threshold.
There he is, your husband. He’s sitting behind his desk and there’s a woman bent over him in a very seductive stance. She leans close to him, her fingers playing with his tie.
And you know immediately who she is. Fits perfectly by Irene’s descriptions. Clara Kim.
You don’t love him. But why do you feel your heart shattering into pieces?
Turn away, now.
Turn away before he notices you.
Yet you still stand there, frozen and unable to tear your eyes away.
And when his gaze suddenly flickers to you and your eyes widens that you find yourself turning on your heels instantly, food dropping to the floor.
He doesn’t owe you anything. He doesn’t owe you anything. He doesn’t owe you anything.
You chant those in your head as you run out, unsure of your own direction until a firm set of hands catch you.
You look up and gasps. Minhyuk is holding you by the arms. “Hey-hey. What’s wrong? Who dares to make you cry, little princess?”
You cringe at his nickname for you. Your hands quickly come up to wipe the tears you didn’t realise had fallen.
“I’m fine.” You give him a quick smile. “Just a moment, I’ll fetch you your lunch. I only got you Subway though. Are you okay with that?” You ask but you don’t wait for him to answer, quickly returning to your desk and fetching his lunch, unaware of him following you from behind.
When you turn, you find him right in front of you, leaning so close that you have to back away a little, making your behind bumps against the edge of the desk.
He smirks at your reaction and you feel your blood runs cold. He turns suddenly and you see him holding both yours and his lunch.
“You haven’t had your lunch yet right? Let’s eat together.”
And that’s how you find yourself sitting uncomfortably across Minhyuk’s table, your Subway laid cold in front of you.
“So, what’s up, princess? You wanna tell me what happened back there?”
You draw a breath. “Nothing happened.”
He lifts one eyebrow. “Really? Cause I know what I saw.” He says but earning no response from you, he continues, “Oh, come on.. just tell me. Too much workload? Or boyfriend problems..? You have.. a boyfriend, Miss Y/N?”
You hesitate before shaking your head slowly. “No, no I don’t.” But I do have a husband.
“So.. not a boyfriend problem then. You’re really tight lipped, huh?” He chuckles. “I just wanna be a good boss. You know, getting to know his employee, listening to their concerns.. all that. So you can find me. Anytime you want.”
You smile politely at him though it doesn’t reach your eyes.
There’s a knock on the door and you both turn to look at the same time. Your husband stands at the threshold and you immediately stiffen, freezing like a deer caught in headlights although you’ve done nothing wrong.
“Ah, Jimin! Come on in! We’re just having lunch together.” Minhyuk greets him.
Jimin doesn’t look at you when he answers Minhyuk. “I was gonna ask you out to lunch but it seems like you already have a date.” Deep down, you know that’s not true.
You stand almost instantly. “No, not at all Mr. Park. I’m actually done and Mr. Kim is all yours.” You pick up your lunch quickly and exits before Minhyuk could say anything and avoids any sort of eye contact with Jimin.
You don’t realise it was almost five in the evening as you’ve been so caught up in your own thoughts. For the first time in so long, you feel helpless. You sit down on your desk, feeling numb and empty.
Where are you supposed to go now? You sigh. When you reach home almost an hour later, you find yourself standing outside the door, just staring at it.
In the end, you’d still go back to his place.
In the end, he still owns you and you owe him everything.
With a heavy heart, you unlock the door and push it open. You take a long hot shower after that and you almost want to just climb in and curl on the bed once you’re dressed but you know you still have to prepare dinner for your husband so you come down and prepares his meal, trying your best not to break down while doing it.
Your heart thumps when you hear the front door opens. He doesn’t come straight to the kitchen so he must’ve went upstairs to shower. You swallow a huge lump in your throat. How much longer do you have to do this?
You knew you yourself signed up for this. A marriage without love. You dug your own grave out of desperation. So why does it feel so damn hurt seeing him with another woman?
You couldn’t contain the tears anymore and your vision goes blurry at once. For a few minutes, you just let the tears fall silently, without sobbing without weeping. Then you shut your eyes, take a deep breath then wipe the tears dry with the back of your hand.
Your assumption was right when he enters dining area half an hour later while you were setting up the table. You make a mistake of looking up at him because he looks so ridiculously gorgeous, always, even in his casual clothes that you find it so unfair. You look down immediately yet every nerve of yours is aware that Jimin’s staring at your face.
“What’s wrong with you?” He asks, slight annoyance lacing his tone.
You swallow, not daring to meet his eyes then just shakes your head. “Nothing. I already ate and I’m a bit tired so I’ll head upstairs first. Just leave the dishes in the sink, I’ll wash it in the morning.”
“Are you feeling sick somewhere?” You hate that your heart flutters at the slight concern in his tone.
Not trusting yourself to speak, you shake your head and walks quickly upstairs. Try hard as you may, you ended up crying yourself to sleep. You don’t wish to because you don’t want Jimin catching you like this, but you did.
Jimin comes up about an hour later and crosses the room to stand in front of you where you appear already fast asleep. If he comes up even 5 minutes later, he might not be aware of it. Yet here he is, standing before your sleeping figure, aware that you cried yourself to sleep. What gave it away is your lashes that are still slightly wet and the tears that are almost dried on your cheeks.
Jimin’s a man of secret, private matters and nothing that exposes himself of the sort.
Yet with you, he feels exposed, barren and naked.
He sighs and bend down. “What do I do with you?” He whispers, his face close to yours, watching you for a few moments before he gets up and climbs on the bed next to you.
The next morning, when you wake up and heads down to the kitchen, you see dishes from last night were already washed clean by Jimin.
Tumblr media
Link to Chapter 9
Posted on 210414 9:00PM
101 notes · View notes
fickleminder · 3 years
Text
the years start coming and they don’t stop coming
In which Lilith’s return distorts her brothers’ perception of time.
Part 2 here
You’ve never seen the demon prince look so embarrassed.
“I can call for —”
“No, it’s okay. They deserve this.”
But you don’t, goes unspoken. You can see the pity in his eyes, feel the palpable disappointment in the air. Even Simeon and Luke make sure to hug you extra tight before stepping through the portal to the Celestial Realm, and Solomon promises to check up on you after you’ve returned home.
Thanking Lord Diavolo and Barbatos for their hospitality, you turn towards the final demon in the council room and put on the biggest grin your breaking heart can muster. “Hey, c’mere.”
Satan doesn’t hesitate to throw his arms around you. It’s almost like he’s trying to make up for his brothers’ absence, the way he crushes you to his chest and cradles the back of your head.
You can’t find it in yourself to blame them. As far as miracles go, this is a pretty big one. Lilith coming back to life is an unprecedented event, one not even Barbatos had seen coming. Nobody has any answers either. She’s definitely not a demon, not an angel, not human; just an immortal who knocked on the front door of the House of Lamentation three days ago.
Her brothers haven’t left her alone since. You’re happy for them, you really are, but a bitter part of you can’t help but wish her return had waited until after the exchange program ended. At least Lucifer had the courtesy to pull you aside and thank you on his family’s behalf (though you’re quite certain you had nothing to do with your ancestor’s sudden revival), in addition to making a pact with you as a token of his gratitude.
With that, you could have summoned all of them to send you off just as effectively as Lord Diavolo giving the order, but it won’t be the same and you know it. Your only saving grace is Satan, the one brother who’d kept his head and anchored you in the sea of loneliness you’d been set adrift in over the last few days.
“I’m gonna miss you, cat boy.”
“I miss you already,” Satan laughs softly, pulling back with a warm smile. “I’ll stay in touch, I promise.”
You squeeze his arms affectionately and glance past his shoulders at the closed doors. There’s the smallest shred of hope in you that thinks the others will come bursting through any moment now, scrambling for one final chance to see you. You give yourself five seconds, silently counting down to a pipe dream, before pressing a kiss to Satan’s cheek and releasing him.
“It might not seem like it now, but the Devildom will always be here for you,” Lord Diavolo says as the world around you fades to white. “Farewell.”
.
.
.
“Did you lose track of time at the library again? You missed dinner last night LOL.”
“Levi, be nice!”
Satan only hums quietly in response. He can’t be bothered to correct the assumption; it’s a convenient excuse for when his brothers actually notice he’s missing anyway.
The irony of Levi calling him out isn’t lost on him. While the otaku is still obsessed with his games and shows, he’s no longer as shut-in as he used to be, venturing outside the comforts of his sanctuary more often. Satan has passed by the common room on many occasions to find him and Lilith gaming or binging anime together, and the content expression on Levi’s face proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that the void from his Henry’s departure has long been filled.
“Oh, but speaking of,” Lilith sets her cutlery down and smiles shyly at the fourth-born, “I haven’t had the chance to explore the libraries here yet. If it’s not too much trouble, can you show me around and recommend a few books?”
Shrugging non-committedly, Satan continues with his meal, not once looking her in the eye.
.
.
.
You’ve always wondered how someone with the Avatar of Lust for a brother can have such terrible fashion sense. It should be impossible to go wrong with dressing for a funeral, but you guess life (along with a certain eyesore of a tie) just loves to disappoint you. Still, you’re too glad to have Satan with you right now to care.
“Thanks for coming.”
“Anytime.”
You lean into the demon’s side as he holds an umbrella over both of you. Your eyes are drawn to the flowers he’d placed on your mother’s grave, the only splash of color against the dull tombstone. For the longest time, all you can process is the pitter-patter of the afternoon rain on the plastic wrap of the bouquet, and the comforting weight of Satan’s arm across your shoulders.
“She was in a lot of pain,” you admit after a while, your voice slightly hoarse. “The doctors had to sedate her. She went in her sleep.”
“I’m sorry.” Satan fidgets awkwardly, not quite sure what to say. He’s no stranger to death, but the loss of someone dear is unfamiliar to him. “Perhaps Simeon can find out if —”
“No, no it’s fine. I just — I need to —”
The umbrella is forgotten as Satan catches you, lowering you gently to the ground when your knees give way. You cling to him desperately, and it’s all he can do to draw you close as you start to wail.
.
.
.
Satan barely makes it three steps into the house before getting pounced on.
“How was it? Where did you go? Ooh you lucky demon, I want to hear all the details!”
“Oi, oi! What are you babbling on about?”
“Don’t act coy with me! Lilith saw you at the florist’s yesterday with the most gorgeous bouquet of flowers!”
“Yesterday? But —”
“How come you never told me someone caught your eye? I would have dolled you up, lent you some of my clothes —” Asmo gasps dramatically. “You didn’t wear that horrid jacket to your date, did you?”
Wrestling a hand free, Satan musses his younger brother’s hair. “None of your business,” he growls, walking away with a smirk when Asmo immediately releases him to fix his appearance. “Who do you take me for, anyway?”
“Aww come on, just give me a hint! Do I know them? Is it someone from RAD? Ooh, did you meet them at the library or —”
Ducking into the safety of his room, Satan shuts the door in Asmo’s face.
.
.
.
“Thank fuck. Who picked your outfit this time?”
“Barbatos. And shut up.”
You grab Satan’s arm with a laugh and lead him towards your table, politely introducing him as ‘Stan from work’ to any relatives who ask about the handsome young man accompanying you. Satan’s usual mask is in place, but there’s no mistaking the gleam of wonder in his eyes as he takes in his surroundings.
“Finally,” you sigh, sinking into your seat and grinning sheepishly at the blond. “Sorry about them. It’s just that they’ve never seen me with anyone, so they’re really curious about you.”
“Well, I’m glad you invited me along. I’ve never been to a wedding before.” The romantic in Satan is openly basking in the ambience of the reception. “You mentioned that your niece had gotten married?”
“Technically my first cousin once removed, but yeah.”
“And you’ve not been seeing anyone?”
“You would have been the first to know if I have,” you tease, nudging him playfully. “Apparently a lot of people are put off by the way I dress. Too modest, they say.”
But not without good reason. The pact marks on your body may be slightly faded from disuse, but they’re still discernable if stared at hard enough: Lucifer’s at the back of your neck; Mammon’s over your heart; Levi’s curled around your right calf; Satan’s circling your left arm; Asmo’s dangerously close to tramp stamp territory; Beel’s just under your navel; and Belphie’s on your ribs at the side you like to sleep on.
Passing them off as tattoos without attracting the wrong kind of attention is a little tricky, so you’d rather take a page from Solomon’s book and cover them up. Being called a prude is easier than dealing with cultists.
(It also helps you to keep your mind off of them, because some wounds continue to hurt even after they heal, so there’s that.)
Sensing the drop in your mood, Satan clears his throat to get your attention. It’s only then that you realize there’s music playing in the background, and couples moving from their tables to the floor.
Your companion stands up and offers you his hand, this time with a genuine smile on his face. “May I have this dance?”
.
.
.
Lucifer’s tone books no room for argument. “This will be a family event, so I expect your attendance. Don’t think I haven’t noticed your little escapades over the past few months.”
“Tch.”
“Do I make myself clear?”
“Whatever. I’ll be there.”
Satan has to resist the urge to hurl his hardcover at the back of Lucifer’s head when he takes his leave. That’s no way to treat a book, after all.
Beel’s Fangol team has an upcoming match and it’ll be Lilith’s first time watching him play. She’s been hyped up for weeks, so it comes as no surprise that Lucifer would use the opportunity to turn it into a family outing. He’s been doing that a lot lately.
Gone is the stuffy first-born who can spend days in his office if left unchecked. Lucifer is still as strict as ever, still fulfills his duties to Lord Diavolo diligently, but it’s like he’s managed to master balancing work and play overnight. He makes more time for his siblings now, even if it’s to dole out punishments for their endless shenanigans, punishments that vary in severity depending on how cutely Lilith pleads on their behalf.
Lucifer has always doted on her, and she has him wrapped around her little finger. Belphie has even gone as far as corrupting her into pranking him, and she need only bat her eyelashes to get off scot-free.
Lilith was the catalyst for the Fall, her descendent the glue that brought her siblings back together, and her return the final piece in making their family whole again.
But you were family too, Satan thinks sourly, pulling out his D.D.D. to mark the date in his calendar.
.
.
.
When you invite Satan over to your apartment for tea, he never expected to be introduced to your new housemate: a handsome fellow with chestnut brown hair, sharp jade eyes, a runner’s body, and the softest-looking toe beans he has ever seen in his immortal life.
“Satan, meet Satan!” You hold out the tabby towards him with a shit-eating grin.
Both demon and cat blink owlishly at each other. The blond doesn’t know whether to feel endeared by the feline sharing his name or insulted that you would replace him so easily, but all it takes is a single bop on the nose with a curious paw for him to melt.
Satan the tabby, who normally prefers to scale your shelves and nap between your books, spends the entire day a purring puddle in Satan the demon’s arms, shamelessly relishing in pets and massages to the extent that at some point, you have a very real fear they might just end up absconding back to the Devildom together. Thankfully, some kibble and freshly baked treats help you separate the two for a while, at least long enough for you to get some decent conversation in.
You brew a pot of Earl Grey with the beautifully crafted tea set Barbatos gifted you when you had first moved in, and serve the scones you made earlier in the morning using the baking tools blessed by Luke during your housewarming. You don’t know if the little angel had actually imbued them with Celestial magic, but everything you cook somehow always lifts your spirits when consumed.
Satan has to catch himself in the middle of regaling you with Mammon’s latest half-baked scheme. The wistful look on your face is new; you’re usually eager to hear what his brothers have been up to, but something feels off today. He pours you more tea, slides another scone onto your plate, and waits.
“…Are they happy?” You ask after a while.
The demon knows better than to lie, even if it’s to spare you from the truth he suspects you’re already aware of. “Yes,” he admits grudgingly.
“I’m glad.”
Your smile doesn’t reach your eyes.
.
.
.
Lilith stands outside his room, holding a tray of tea and cakes.
“Hey, um, may I come in?” Her smile is both hopeful and uncertain. It’s a gamble, ambushing the fourth-born when he obviously has no interest in her. At best, he’ll make up an excuse to turn her away or just ignore her completely; at worst, well… she doesn’t really want to think about that. To her visible relief, he opens the door wider and steps aside.
Satan clears a space for her to set the tray down. There’s the briefest moment of hesitation before he drags your favorite armchair over and offers her a seat as well. He looks guarded but not openly hostile, a promising sign so far.
“You’ve been in and out of the house lately, so I haven’t had the chance to catch you. I thought we might sit down and talk,” Lilith says, pouring two cups of the hot beverage as she chooses her next words carefully. “The others told me about how you were born, but I understand that you are your own person. I’d like to get to know that person.”
A part of Satan is acutely aware of their one-sided relationship; he is familiar with her through Lucifer, but she has never met him. It makes sense for her to be curious about him, though Satan isn’t so sure he wants to return the favor. She reminds him too much of you in the way she prepares her tea, how she sits on your chair, her shy lopsided smile —
But she’s not you, and you’re not her, Satan has to remind himself lest he commits the same mistake his brothers nearly did after your lineage had been revealed. Now in a convoluted turn of events, it’s you who’s gone and Lilith here, and there’s no reason why he can’t give her a chance and treat her like the sister she could be to him.
It’s what you would have wanted.
Lilith tries not to let her shoulders slump too much when Satan quietly stands up and heads towards his door. She’s prepared to pack up and leave until she spots him grabbing several books from a nearby shelf.
“Have you ever read Mid-Fall Murders?” He asks, handing her a hardcover with a shy smile of his own.
.
.
.
“What’s it like?”
Satan’s grip on your hand tightens. “I don’t actually know,” he confesses, shuffling closer so that your shoulder and arm are pressed against his. It’s a strange sight, the two of you lying side by side on your bed, staring aimlessly at the ceiling.
“Will it hurt?”
“No.”
You’ve never heard a single word hold so much promise, but you have no reason to doubt the demon’s sincerity. Satan wouldn’t take pity on you just because you’re —
A light knock on the door, and in pokes Simeon’s head. “Ah, little lamb! I’m glad we made it in time.”
“Not so little anymore, Simeon.” You laugh softly, greeting Luke and Solomon as they trail in behind him. Satan brushes his lips over your forehead before getting up to receive your guests.
The day is as ordinary as it can be. You talk and catch up with your friends, trading stories and laughter over cups of tea that neither grow cold nor go empty. When the session turns into a mini book club gathering halfway through, Luke helpfully retrieves the debated titles from the massive shelf in the living room. He takes a while to find them; you’ve accumulated plenty of works over the years: recommendations by Satan, literature published under Simeon’s pseudonym, and handwritten tomes from Solomon to keep you in touch with your magic. The shelf is practically jam-packed with books, the only exception being a corner on the topmost tier, housing a little space that’s empty save for a worn green collar with a rusted bell.
Come sundown the five of you are still neck-deep in discussion, but as with all good things, the get together eventually reaches an end.
“Thanks everyone, it’s been fun,” you say, reclining back in your bed as Satan wordlessly cleans up. You squeeze his hand when he returns to your side and bid the others goodbye. “Hopefully I’ll see you guys soon?”
“About that…” Solomon clears his throat, wearing the smug look that usually accompanies a trick being pulled out of his sleeve, but this time it’s tinged more with excitement than mischief. “Simeon has a little present for you first.”
The guileless smile on the angel’s face betrays nothing as he steps forward and reaches into a small pouch at his hip. “Solomon, Diavolo and I have a theory. Now, keep in mind that this is all very experimental, but if it works, you’ll have more options to choose from, should you so wish.”
And then he brings out a ring.
.
.
.
“Are you, uh, are you okay?”
“Not in the mood, Mammon.”
“Oi, I’m trying to be nice here! Who do you think covered for your sorry ass when you came back past curfew the other day, huh?”
“What the hell do you want?”
“You may think you’re all stealthy and shit, but your eyes were pretty red that night. I thought you were at a book club meeting. Did something happen?”
“None of your business.”
“Argh, fine then! This is the last time I try to be a good big brother.”
“…Mammon?”
“?”
“...”
“...”
“I’m sorry.”
“Eh, what are you — you can’t just say that and then run off! Get back here!”
.
.
.
“Twenty, nineteen, eighteen…”
Lilith’s countdown echoes along the deserted hallway, prompting Beel to nudge the deadweight on his back. “Belphie, go get your own hiding place.”
“Mmngh… zzz…”
“Come on, or she’ll win this round with a two for one. Again.”
“…Just dump me somewhere she won’t find me then.”
A tall order, especially since Lilith can easily track them down by listening out for Beel’s stomach and/or Belphie’s snores. Still, the sixth-born lumbers through the house as quietly as he can, doing a one-eighty whenever he hears Lilith’s cheerful hums coming from the opposite direction. Technically they can avoid being caught if they keep moving, but that would be cheating. They hid in the attic previously so that’s a no go, their room’s too obvious, the kitchen too tempting, the common room too exposed…
Maybe Levi’s room? The otaku had sound-proofed his walls to avoid distractions from the outside world when he’s gaming, so it’s an ideal location to hide. He can stash Belphie in the bathtub and run interference until time’s up.
Backtracking, Beel breaks into a light jog towards the other wing, keeping his ears open for their seeker. It’s only because of his heightened senses that he’s able to pick up the faintest traces of magic on one of the walls, causing him to pause in his steps.
“Hmm? Why’d you stop?” Slightly more awake now, Belphie rubs his eyes and slides off his twin, who’s studying the blank space intently. “What’s wrong, Beel?”
“There’s something here, something…”
“It’s just a wall —”
“No, don’t you feel it? I know you weren’t around then, but it’s the same glamor as that time Luke went missing and we —”
Beel goes white. He whispers a name, a name not spoken in the house for years, and a door flickers into view. One hand grabs Belphie’s in a death grip as the other twists the knob and pushes the door open, revealing an old yet familiar room.
The place is devoid of life. Most of the furniture are covered by sheets, resting under thick layers of dust. In the middle sits a tree, sagging with age and soft with rot. Sunken footprints mark the demons’ furtive venture into decrepit memory, and the creaking of floorboards with every step only tethers the growing nightmare closer to reality.
A photo frame crashes to the ground.
.
.
.
They deserve this.
Satan feels it the moment the spell concealing your room was broken. It had been his way of protecting your memory, ensuring that your sanctuary would only be accessible to those who made the effort to remember you. He cast it about a year after you had left the Devildom, after he realized that leaving your door in plain sight wasn’t doing you any favors.
Hidden away in an alcove at the back of the garden, curled up with a blanket and a thermos of hot tea, Satan slides a bookmark between the pages of his latest novel and leans his head back, closing his eyes with a heavy sigh.
Even this far away from the house, he can hear the cacophony of screams and shouts, objects being flung and shattered into pieces, a muted bang suggesting that a wall has just collapsed. The fallout comes as no surprise; waking up after living the past hundred years or so in a daze will do that to a person – or in this case, demons.
Although the sounds of fighting call to the rage bubbling within him, the vindictive thoughts of his brothers getting their just desserts cool it to a simmer. He knows he’ll have to face them eventually, but he’ll cross that bridge when he gets to it.
“Meow?”
Emerald eyes blink open. There’s a faint rustle from the nearby bushes as a tiny Calico wanders out of the foliage, peering around the garden curiously. Upon spotting the blond demon, it perks up and makes a beeline for him.
“Hm? You’re not Callie. Are you new here, little one?” His mood considerably improved, Satan extends a hand towards the kitten. It skips the finger sniffing step and goes straight to headbutting his palm, begging for attention.
“You’re an affectionate one, aren’t you?” Satan caves immediately and scritches away with a delighted chuckle. He examines the markings on its tri-colored fur, wanting to recognize the friendly feline if it comes back in the future. The Calico is mostly white with patches of brown and black splashed over the back of its neck, near the base of its tail, just under the side of its ribs, and several other spots that seem to collectively resemble a familiar pattern…
Satan’s hand stills. He whispers your name, trembling with hope, and the kitten practically leaps into his arms, nuzzling his chin with a happy purr.
923 notes · View notes
fairestwriting · 3 years
Note
Saw your ask about the s/o wanting to ask out the vice dorm leader, and the dorm leader tries to help out, but falls for them instead? How about the same situation, but with the rest of the dorm leaders not listed in that one?
thank you so much for giving me an excuse to write more of this (anon is referring to this post!) also i will be counting ruggie as a vice dorm leader to do leona in this, and wont be doing idia because the one other ignihyde member is a whole Baby
+ ko-fi link, if anyone feels like financially supporting my writing
Leona Kingscholar
So you’re the unfortunate soul who ended up, for a reason or another, teaming up with Ruggie often to do Leona’s bidding.
You were uneasy about it at first. Ruggie would talk often about how the lion was such a pain in the ass, you were expecting so many bad things when you had just become his... sort of coworker. But somehow, Leona ends up being rather pleasant towards you.
Leona himself doesn’t know why that happens, you just don’t really grate on his nerves. Maybe it’s because you’re so harmless, innoffensive in a way that isn’t weak and obnoxious. Yeah, he really doesn’t hate you.
So when your crush on Ruggie begins to feel hopeless, like you just couldn't get your feelings through to him no matter what hints you dropped, you take a deep breath, and decide to ask Leona for help.
Leona looks at you blankly when you blurt out the question, and you immediately apologize, telling him to forget what you just said because it was something stupid. Surprisingly, a lopsided smile appears in Leona’s face. So you were into Ruggie? Was that why you were always running around with him to help Leona?
He likes you enough to tease you about your crush, so he does -- And somehow, in the end of the conversation, he ends up agreeing to setting you two up. He’s weirded out when he catches himself actually willing to do you a favor, but figures that, eh, why not, that couldn’t be too hard. It might be good for him, even, if Ruggie was dating someone maybe he'd nag Leona way less.
You two have a couple conversations at the garden about how you were planning to approach the situation. You tell him about how you'd been trying to hint at your feelings for the longest time, but it all just seemed to fly over Ruggie's head. Leona finds this impossibly funny. So he was oblivious?
Leona is likely older and more experienced with relationships with you, so he ends up just giving you some general advice on how you could act more straightforward. You're having trouble just imagining how to do things through his descriptions of actions, so you two end up sort of... mimic-flirting.
He says things he'd usually say if he wanted to get someone's attention, and tells you to try to keep up with him as practice. If you could be blunt, maybe it'd finally hit Ruggie that you liked him. Somehow, it's sort of fun to do this, he hadn't really found someone who caught his interest in a while, so Leona hadn't really flirted with anyone since then. He's kind of pleasantly surprised at how amusing this is, even though he still acts prickly with you, telling you not to get the wrong idea about him, he's just trying to get Ruggie to nag him less.
You have these meetings for a while, the practice banter ends up becoming natural, so natural Leona finds himself calling you his friend in his head, looking forward to seeing you, even. What the hell got to him? He doesn't know, but it's been a long time since he's had this much fun.
One day, you're having one of your "practice sessions" and you finally decide that you had built up the resolve to straight up ask Ruggie out. When you say that, Leona's face goes blank. So you were going already?
He goes back to normal in just a second, a smirk showing up on his face as he patted you on the head. Look at you, you're confident enough to get together with Ruggie, now! You've come so far. He gives you some words of praise that you appreciate greatly, proud of yourself for your progress and actually getting close to the grumpy dorm leader of Savanaclaw, but when you turn around his smile falls into a tired expression.
Why does he suddenly feel depressed? There's no way he'd get attached to some random herbivore that didn't even have the guts to ask someone out. Right? He's assuring himself that in his head, but even that sounds like a lie...
Leona can just laugh. Really, he's the lowest of the low, isn't he? He had actually gotten attached to your little games, how stupid. He's taking this to his grave, he hopes he can sleep off this disgusting feeling in his chest now that Ruggie will have someone else to take care of...
Kalim Al-Asim
A friend of Jamil’s is a friend of Kalim’s too! He’s so elated the first time he sees you around the Scarabia lounge talking to him, he insists on throwing a big party, and that’s your introduction to Kalim.
You were just Jamil’s friend, nothing more, nothing less. Maybe you're in the same class, or in the same club, something like that, and you just ended up getting along better between yourselves than with other students. Jamil was clearly more relaxed around you.
The issue was, as you got to see more of him, you were starting to fall for him, and you were falling hard -- And even as you got to know each other, Jamil was so mysterious and almost untouchable, even as he seemed to be just a regular guy. You didn't know how you could possibly just walk up to him and confess.
In your desperation, you decide to have a talk with Kalim about it -- He's the closest person to Jamil, right? And he was so friendly, maybe he could give you some pointers.
When Kalim hears about your problem, though, he isn't satisfied with just giving you some pointers, no way. He's so excited to know his newest and oldest friend might get together, he wants to make sure you two are matchmaked perfectly! Kalim promises he'll help you plan the perfect date!
You're dragged into meeting up pretty much everyday before you can notice it. Kalim grabs your arm, all giggly, and takes you to his room, asking to sit on the bed with him as he asks you all sorts of questions about you and Jamil. It feels like a tween girl sleepover, it's pretty embarrassing to just talk about your feelings and the moments you've spent together out loud, but Kalim never makes fun of you for it at all, he's so happy to listen it's just easy to talk and talk and talk...
After he knows some more about you and Jamil, you start brainstorming date ideas. Of course, the suggests throwing a big party for you two at first, but you quickly refuse that, saying Jamil would prefer something more discreet, which gets Kalim thinking...
There aren't a lot of good dating spots in campus or even around it that Kalim knows, so he makes the decision that you two need to go exploring, hunting for what would be the perfect one for you and Jamil!
So you two walk all around campus, asking each other for input on places you think might be nice. You think a picnic in the woods near the school might be nice, but Kalim thinks it could be better, and you two end up sneaking out to outside NRC.
He has such a blast with you, visiting cafés and restaurants and walking around at the park. You always have this look of wonder in your face when you're with him, and he knows it's because you're thinking about someone else, but even that gets his heart racing, you're so dedicated.
Eventually, you find a small, cozy restaurant just nearby enough that Jamil would accept going to with you. Kalim says he wants to eat there just to test things out, and you two get dinner together. When you do, you're so comfortable around Kalim that you can't stop talking about Jamil, and even then he can't help but stare at you with this big smile on your face, he thinks you're so wonderful -- But, ah, that's such a bad thing for him to think about.
You end up taking his hand as you leave the place together, and he feels his heart twist with a bittersweet feeling. You're talking about each detail of the date plan you'd put in practice soon, and Kalim can't help but think about how much he wishes you were talking about him.
When he leaves you at your dorm's doorstep, Kalim is holding back tears you can't see because of how dark it is. He tells you you're so happy for you, and he wishes you and Jamil the best, giving you a big hug before he walks back to Scarabia, and he smiles even as tears spill from his eyes. He wanted to tell you what he was feeling, but he just couldn't bring himself to -- All he has left is just hoping Jamil treats you well.
118 notes · View notes