#Hiring A Bartender For An Event

[escapadebars]

Can a Bartender for Hire Elevate Your Private Party?

A Bartender For Hire Private Party brings not only skill but also efficiency to your event. They adeptly manage the bar, keeping the drinks flowing smoothly while maintaining impeccable cleanliness and organization. With their professionalism and attention to detail, you can rest assured that your guests will be served promptly and courteously throughout the evening. hiring a bartender for your private party is not just about serving drinks—it's about elevating the entire experience for you and your guests. From enhancing the ambiance with expert mixology to providing personalized service and interactive entertainment, a professional bartender adds a touch of sophistication and flair to any event. So why settle for ordinary when you can make your private party extraordinary with a bartender for hire?

[born-to-lose]

God I miss this bar, I wanna go back so bad

[operationalchefconsultantblog]

Benefits of hiring bartenders for your private events

In this article we are going to talk about some of the major advantages of hiring bartenders for your private events, functions, gatherings and parties.

The right quantity of alcohol:

One of the major benefits of having a bartender at your disposal for the party is that you have the right idea on the quantity of alcohol you will be needing for the party and the guests. He/she is going to give you the near approximate estimates which is going to ensure that there is neither spending excess on alcohol nor there is spending less on the same. The thing that one experiences worse than excess of alcohol or excess spending on alcohol, is shortage of alcohol in the middle of the party. Professional bartenders deal with alcohol on a daily basis and they know how much people can take. All you have to do is show them your guest list and your expectations. Hence, having the bartender at your disposal ensures that you do not waste excess money on alcohol.

Allows you to spend time with your guests:

When you have a good bartender at your disposal you get to have a good time with your guest. It frees you from the duty to ensure that everyone is drinking. It allows you to spend time with your guests and engage them as a host should. If you are looking Hire temporary waiting Staff, and for Private events Bartender, consider Operational Chef Consultant.

[rhubarbar-events]

Hire A Professional Mixologist In Derbyshire

Every event held across the country normally needs a direction and in most cases, this is provided by the man who is organizing the event. Hiring a mixologist in Derbyshire is enlivening when well delivered and they dictate the tone of every event while providing a central control over the pace of activities as they unfold. Why it is important to hire a mixologist in Derbyshire when conducting an event:

You had spent a lot of time and also money to prepare your special day whether it is a birthday, anniversary or even a marriage, it will be a waste of effort in the end if your caterers are unable to create a memorable evening for you and your guests. And that's why it is recommended to hire a mixologist in Derbyshire.

Tasting Session Nottinghamshire have evolved beyond the old buddy method of the last half-a-century to a specialty in the modern day. To provide your guests at any event, a concise and well laid out evening session, it is important to hire a mixologist in Derbyshire.

Our mixologists add value to your parties, awards ceremony or wedding as a compare easily stands out in the midst of your gathered audience. It makes it easy to look out for something distinctive and appealing. The tasting session Nottinghamshire makes them ready for such roles.

When you hire a mixologist in Derbyshire for any of your activities, it provides a semblance of order and organization. And, this will require time management and ultimately, ensure that there is well-conceived plan that need to adhere to.

[lambtotheslaughterr]

One Way Or Another

A Rafe Cameron Oneshot

[THIS STORY WILL CONTAIN THEMES OF NON-CON/DUB-CON, MENTAL-EMOTIONAL-PHYSICAL ABUSE, ETC. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK. 18+. MINORS DO NOT INTERACT]

WC: 16.5k (just for a second, holy fuck. spent all day writing this. from 10 am to 8pm. i am feeling good & feel like i'm on a writer's high. thank you to all of you who made this happen: 62 pages of pure dark fiction)

Dividers provided by @firefly-graphics

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Summary: Reader's life couldn't be any better. She's working her dream job, living with her best friend, & may have met the one... but none of those things matter when her bestfriend/roommate begins seeing a volatile man from reader's past...

            It was Coyote Ugly night at your work, & you made sure to request the night off weeks in advance. There would be nothing to stop you from singing your heart out to the soundtrack of the movie as it played in the bar or dancing on the bar with your friends, not even having your coworkers & boss witnessing it all unfold. Ever since you were a little girl, you wanted to be a bartender all because of the film. It inspired your fashion choices, your music tastes, & most importantly, your attitude.

            As soon as you turned 21, you applied to every single bar in your area. And before that, you practiced your cocktail making, just enough to at least get hired. You knew without experience, it was difficult to land a job as a bartender. If you had to accept a position working at a hotel bar or fine dining bar, you’d take it, anything to get the experience, but your long-term goal was to find a bar with the same energy & vibes as your favorite movie. Your wish came true a year later.

            The Garage was just that. It was inside an old auto-shop with three large garage doors. During summer nights, those doors would be raised & they led out into the enclosed patio area where a stage had been built for nights when live music would be happening. The owner, as much as you wanted it to be a tough-as-nails woman like Lil in Coyote, was an older man in his 50’s named Rosie. Yes, Rosie. His full name Roosevelt but he had been going by Rosie since he entered the bar business. It was your first favorite thing about him.

            Rosie ran a tight-knit crew at The Garage. He was a no-bullshit haver but knew how to have a good time. It was him who trained you behind the bar, switching you up from making prissy, fancy shit & teaching you how to make a real drink, as he said. You loved him. And you loved your family there. Everyone accepted you & welcomed you with open arms & cold beer. It was all you could have ever dreamed for. And now, you were going to live out your ultimate fantasy.

            It thankfully didn’t take a whole lot of convincing on your part to get Rosie to agree to a Coyote Ugly night. You advocated for how it would bring in a good crowd, good money, & good times. Moreover, you promised to do all the leg work. You would take it upon yourself to work alongside the social media handler, Rosie’s daughter Angie who worked in the office alongside her father, to get word out & generate interest. A week before the event was supposed to happen, you had a guaranteed 100+ people wanting to attend. There was no RSVP, but just an event page on Facebook, & your work had paid off. The night was happening, & you would be at the center of it all.

            At your apartment that night, you got ready for the night. You admired your look in the mirror, scenes from the bar film playing through your mind. You smiled proudly at yourself. You look damn good.

            But your night would only be complete if you convinced your best friend, & roommate, to come with. As far as that morning, she was still on the fence. But the time was now. She was either coming or not, & if you had anything to say about it, she would be forced along.

            Leaving your room, you skipped down the hallway before turning a corner & entering the living room. Jules’ room was just off the living room, kitty corner from your room on the other side of the apartment. You were grateful for the distance, but only because you both were sexually active women & didn’t need to hear each other get your kicks in.

            Jules’ door was open & you swung around the frame, poking your head in.

            “Tell me you’re coming!” You hollered, noticing the door to her en suite bathroom was open & the light on, but she was out of sight.

            “Uhhh.” Jules laughed awkwardly, “No?”

            No? N O ?Well. You wouldn’t be having that.

            Entering her room, you marched up to her bathroom entryway, prepared to bribe her into coming, but before you could get a word out, you felt your jaw drop onto the floor.

            Jules stood in the center of her bathroom, posing with her hand on her hips & hiding her coy smile behind a lifted shoulder.

            “Wow.” You grinned, impressed, “You look fucking hot.”

            She was wearing a torn cropped lack crop top, the sleeves & hem shredded, & a mini, mini black leather skirt. To bring the whole look together, she wore a pair of black cowgirl boots & a black cowgirl hat. You giggled at the bolo tie around her neck.

            “Do I look like someone not to be fucked with?”

            “Hundred percent.”

            Jules scrunched her nose cutely, turning to look at herself in the mirror, “Good.”

            You joined her in the mirror, double checking your own look. You definitely didn’t look as man-eater as she did but you were still happy with what you wore. The two of you would undoubtedly be some of the hottest women there tonight.

            “Ready?” You questioned as you applied some of her lipstick to your mouth.

            Jules winked at herself in the mirror, “As I’ll ever be.”

            The night was in full swing as you danced among people. Dirrty by Christina Aguilera vibrated the room as you swung your hips & ran your hands along the length of your torso. Never before have you felt more like yourself than you did in that moment. Everywhere you looked there was women in backless tops, leather pants or denim skirts, a plethora of country rock fashion choices, & plenty of good-looking men. The only thing that would make this night better was bringing a stranger home for the night.

            Sweat coated your skin as you moved off the dance floor between songs. You had curated the playlist for the night. There was over 150 songs on the queue, all of which were either from the soundtrack or had a similar, fitting feel for the night. You knew that any moment Pour Some Sugar On Me by Def Leppard would come on & you were determined to drag Jules onto the bartop with you.

            Sliding between the sea of people, you eventually spotted Jules standing at a tall table near the patio entrance. She was facing you but hadn’t noticed you yet as she spoke flirtatiously with the man standing across from her. He had his back to you & was leaning over the table to hear what your roommate was saying. Jules laughed, smacking him gently on his arm. You knew that you wouldn’t be the only one bringing a man home tonight.

            As apologetic as you were to break up their conversation though, you had a goal in mind, & no potential suitor for your roommate was going to stop you.

            “Jules!” You greeted happily as you jumped towards her, “It’s almost time.”

            “Oh, hey, _____.” Jules smiled at you, “_____, this is Rafe.”

            But before she had even said his name, you were already looking him over & felt your world slow down at the familiar face standing before you.

            It had been a couple years since you last saw Rafe Cameron. You two were in the same grade in high school & attended a lot of the same parties, but you two never spoke to one another. He had a reputation in the halls as a cokehead & was known to snap at a moment’s notice & get into a brawl over the smallest of things. Definitely wasn’t the kind of person you wanted to hangout with. But you had to admit he knew how to throw good parties.

            “Rafe, this is my roommate _____.”

            Rafe smirked at you before offering his hand, “Nice to meet you.”

            You took his hand, ignoring the static shock you received when touching your palms together, “Likewise.”

            Jules was about to say more but the opening instrumentals to your most-anticipated song of the night began playing over the speakers.

            “Sorry, Rafe. I gotta steal her for a couple minutes.” Before Jules could resist, you began dragging her towards the bar.

            “Hey! I was talking to him!”

            “Talk to him later, this is way more important.”

            Jules then realized what was happening & started shaking her head knowingly, “You’re lucky I fucking adore you.”

            “The luckiest.” You smiled back.

            The two of you were quick to climb onto the bar where a few other women were already dancing to Pour Some Sugar On Me. Jules & you were naturals at dancing, having many dance nights in your living room. You danced sensually to the song as it blared over the speakers. Your cheeks hurt from smiling as hard as you were, enjoying the ooh’s & awe’s of men & women alike as they cheered all the women on. You spotted a few of your coworkers behind the bar filming you on their phones. You’d be sure to get those videos sent to you before the night was out.

            Jules slowly fell to her knees to whip her hair around her as she bumped & grinded the air to the music. You reached behind the bar to grab a pitcher of water & did the honors of pouring water on her as the first chorus blasted. Jules’ dancing & your pouring elicited an eruption of cheers. When the first chorus was over, Jules returned to her feet & the two of you danced seductively against one another. All eyes were on the two of you as you stole the show. Your lifelong dream of being a Coyote was coming true before your own eyes.

The song continued & by the time the final chorus came it was your turn to have everyone cheer for you. Jules’ was handed another pitcher of water & as the famous Pour Some Sugar On Me chorus began, you modeled yourself atop the bar. Your butt was down & your legs extended out the length of the bar. You were facing up, your arms holding you up behind your back, your legs bent at the knees. Then as the titular moment of the song happened, Jules poured the ice cold water over you.

A wave of cheers & enthusiasm erupted throughout the bar. When Jules finished pouring the water, you repositioned yourself to crawl along the length of the bar, catching eyes & stealing hearts. You spotted one man sitting at the bar, his eyes never leaving your own. He was cute, more than cute, he was Kevin O’Donnell cute. Your Coyote Ugly dreams were demanding you to end your performance in his lap.

The man grinned to himself as you swung your legs around to dangle off the bar on either side of him. He leaned back in his seat to stare up at you, a closed smirk across his handsome features. As the song closed, you slid off the bar & into his lap. With no introductions needed, you tangled your fingers in his hair at the nape of his neck & brought his mouth to yours, sealing the night with a kiss from a perfect stranger.

            His name was Jack. He was new to town. You were happy to be his welcoming committee.

            “What you did up there was…” He laughed, raising his brows in knowing.

            “I know.” You giggled, nursing your drink.

            After your kiss, Jack insisted on buying you a drink & you couldn’t say no. Jules’ hugged you once before returning to her object of desire. You were too distracted by your own man to question her own.

            “So, you work here?” Jack asked, looking around the place.

            You nodded proudly, taking in the environment, “It’s my second home.”

            “I like the energy. Seems fun.”

            “It is.” You confirmed, “Couldn’t have asked for a better place to work.”

            The two of you talked for a bit longer before you were interrupted. Jules slid in beside you at the table you & Jack were sat at, & her man for the night, the reputable bad boy from your high school, took the spot opposite her. You didn’t miss how his eyes lingered on your face for some time. You frowned internally but ultimately ignored it as you turned to your best friend.

            “Are you drunk?” You asked incredulously. It took a lot to get Jules drunk, she was a prime time heavy weight, & she was fine when you saw her only ten minutes ago.

            Jules pressed her lips together, smiling knowingly up at you, “Maybe.”

            “What the hell did you drink?” You chuckled as she rested her head on your shoulders.

            “We took a couple shots at the bar.” Rafe added to the conversation. You flashed your eyes towards him, taking in his appearance.

            “You look fine.” You pointed out, yet your heavy weight best friend was growing more drunk by the second.

            “I just hide it better.” Rafe smirked. His face was flushed. And after working in the bar industry for the last two years, you did know men’s bodies handled liquor better than women’s. So, you let it go.

            “Do you wanna head home?” You shook Jules.

            She shrugged but her eyes were fluttering closed.

            You felt disappointed but didn’t show it. The night was still young, you had yet to even partake in the karaoke aspect of the night, but Jules wasn’t going to last much longer, chugging water be damned.

            “Jack,” you glanced across to him, “I’m sorry, I’m gonna have to get her home.”

            “I understand.” He nodded, pulling out his phone, “Let me at least get your number. Maybe you can give me a tour of town.”

            You smiled at that, sharing your number to him out loud. Once he entered it into his phone, you told him you looked forward to his call & began to get out of your seat. But as you did, your world began to spin.

            “Whoa.” You mumbled, catching yourself on the table. You must’ve had more to drink than you thought.

            “You alright?” Jack asked, rising to his full height to help stabilize you.

            You nodded but you weren’t, “I’m a lightweight. Guess I drank more than I thought I had.”

            Jack grabbed your jacket, “Do I need to order you a Lyft?”

            You shook the offer away. But you couldn’t drive. Jules didn’t have a car so it was you who got the two of you there tonight. You glanced over your shoulder at the bar, wondering if maybe you could convince one of your coworkers to give you a ride but they were still slammed. The bar wouldn’t die down for a couple more hours.

            “I’m sorry, Jack. Would it be shitty of me to ask you to drive my drunk ass & my roommate’s drunk ass home?”

            Jack chuckled at that but ultimately shook his head no, “I don’t have a car. Don’t really need one here, ya know.”

            You nodded at that. It was true.

            “Fuck.” You moaned. Your head was growing dizzier by the second.

            Most times you would bite the bullet & cough up the money to pay for an expensive Lyft, but with rent due in two days, you didn’t have the funds. And you didn’t work tonight so no tips would help.

            “I can drive you.” A voice sounded from the other end of the table. Both you & Jack looked towards Rafe as he pulled out his keys.

            “I thought you had a lot to drink, too?” Jack questioned. You were relieved he wasn’t too trusting of Rafe immediately either.

            “Not really.” Rafe returned, his eyes on you though, “You want the ride or not? She looks like she’s gonna be sick any minute.”

            At that statement, you bent over to look at Jules. He was right. Her skin was looking ashen & she was frowning in her sleep. The last you wanted to worry about was her puking before you got her to her bed with a bowl on the floor.

            “Okay.” You nodded, accepting your jacket from Jack’s hands. “Thanks.”

            Jack helped you gather the rest of yours & Jules’ things. He attempted to help you carry her outside but your legs were beginning to grow weaker, your strength quickly dissipating.

            “I got it.” Jack reassured you as he lifted Jules into his arms cradle style.

            “Hey, uh.” Jack looked towards Rafe.

            “Rafe.” He shared his name. Jack nodded then gestured to where you stood leaning against the wall, “Wanna help her?”

            You raised your head at that. Rafe approached you, offering his hand.

            “I got it.” You faked, forcing yourself to stand up. Rafe made an unimpressed face but you ignored it. Just outside the door to the parking lot though you felt your knees buckle. Before you could hit the ground, you felt a strong & firm arm catch you around the waist.

            “Just lean on me. My truck’s right there.”

            As much as you didn’t want Rafe’s help, still unsure why you were feeling hostile towards him, you knew you needed to. Accepting his help, you leaned into his side as he kept you on your feet. A truck a few feet away beeped & the headlights flashed. Jack was ahead the two of you, waiting for Rafe to help him get Jules’ into the back seat.

            Rafe first brought you to the passenger side, helping you up into the cab. Your movements were slow & languid, like you were already half asleep. You shook your head, trying to clear your mind enough to fasten your belt, but before you could, Rafe reached across your front to secure the protective strap.

            “Thanks.” You mumbled, avoiding his eyes.

            “No problem.” He shut your door gently before joining Jack on the other side. You vaguely listened as the two men got Jules into the backseat before the door shut.

            By the time they finished, Rafe was quick to hop into the driver’s seat. You were holding your head in your hands, trying to keep your vision from swimming. Fuck, you really needed to keep better track of your drinking, but you were just having too much fun.

            The door to your side opened & Jack was there, “You gonna be okay?”

            You hummed in response, not trusting yourself to speak, worried that your speech would be slurred.

            “Okay. Text me when you make it home safely. I’ll text you right now.”

            All you could manage was to give him a thumbs up.

            “Alright.” Jack nodded then he looked towards Rafe, “Make sure they get home safe, man.”

            “Yup.” The engine roared to life as he pressed a button on the dashboard.

            “I’ll see you later, _____.”

            You wanted to return the parting but Jack closed the door. The truck jostled beneath you as Rafe drove through the gravel lot.

            “What’s your address?” Rafe asked.

            Pulling out your phone, you languidly types in your address into the maps app. You hit ‘start’ & handed your phone to Rafe.

            The ride was mostly silent until the final couple minutes of it.

            “I remember you, ya know.” Rafe commented. You forced your eyes open at that. It wasn’t that you thought he would remember you or not, but you didn’t want to have one of those walk-down-memory-lane conversations with someone you knew was problematic in high school. Times changed everyone, you supposed. You weren’t always the confident & extroverted woman you were today. Perhaps Rafe had changed, too.

            “Yeah?” You responded. Thankfully, you didn’t sound as drunk as you felt.

            “Yeah, you dated that Junior kid for a while.”

            “Mm.” You had forgotten about Junior. You weren’t one of those people that considered high school boyfriends as real relationships. After all, the two of you only dated for two months your senior year.

            “What I remember most is your guys’ dramatic breakup at Phil’s prom after-party.”

            You frowned at that. That whole night was a messy blur in your memory. You remembered prom fine but the after-party was another story. You had always been a lightweight, but as you thought on it, you vaguely remembered catching Junior dancing with another girl that night.

            The memory resulted in a light chuckle from you, “Oh, yeah. Well…he was an asshole.”

            Rafe shared in your chuckle, nodding in agreement, “Yeah, he was.”

            “So, Jack, huh?”

            His sudden change in conversation made you finally look at him in the dark. The streetlights you passed under were doing little to light his face.

            “Jack?”

            “Think he’ll be any better than Junior?” Rafe questioned.

            What did that even matter?

            Searching for the right words through your addled brain proved difficult, but you eventually found them, “I don’t know… not like I’m going to date him seriously.”

            “No?” Rafe flicked his eyes to yours, “Why not?”

            Okay, you were not going to have this conversation with Rafe of all people.

            Ignoring his question, you were relieved when Rafe pulled into the parking lot of your apartment complex. But the night wasn’t quite over. You knew you wouldn’t be able to get Jules upstairs & into your apartment on your own.

            But as if he was reading your mind, Rafe switched the truck off & unbuckled his belt. He hopped out & you watched through the windshield as he rounded to your side. When he opened the door, you moved to get out but was stopped by the belt you still wore. Oh, right.

            Rafe beat you to it though, reaching around your front for a second time to release the buckle. You felt a chill riddle up your spine when his thumb grazed against your front, just above the top of your shorts. Rafe then placed a hand on your hip & guided you out of the truck. Even though it wasn’t a lifted truck, it sure felt like it as Rafe helped you climb out & down.

            “Good?”

            You nodded in response, wanting to keep your words few & far between.

            Next, you followed him around to the other side of the truck. You noticed that you weren’t as drunk as you were when you left. Your head was still pounding & your vision was still swimming, but at least you could hold yourself up now.

            Rafe swung open the door to the back & began gently pulling out Jules. She mumbled in her drunken sleep as he slung her over his shoulder.

            “If you want to lead the way, I can carry her.”

            “Thanks.” You sighed, desperate to get inside & crash into your bed.

            Inside the secure building, you used your key fob to alert the elevator of your presence. When the three of you loaded on, you pressed the lit up button for 5.

            “Thank god for elevators, right.” Rafe joked as he shifted Jules to piggyback him. Fortunately, she hung on.

            Once you reached your floor, you sped walked ahead to your door & swung it open. Rafe passed you by.

            “Take a right at the corner & her bedroom is at the end, off the living room.”

            Rafe followed your directions in the dark. You turned on the lights behind him as he went, hoping he didn’t bump into anything or accidentally drop Jules because of it. He managed to swing her door open & enter her room, you were right behind them.

            Rafe turned to face you before bending his knees to lower Jules closer to the bed. Once she was close enough, Rafe let her go. Jules groaned again at the sudden drop, her eyes fluttering open briefly before closing again. You entered her bathroom to dampen one of her hand towels.

            When you re-entered her room, you paused, watching silently as Rafe tucked Jules’ legs under the covers of her bed. He glanced up, likely having feeling you watching him, & shrugged.

            “I can’t sleep without a blanket of some sort when I’m drunk.”

            You nodded, mustering a smile. Approaching Jules, Rafe moved out of the way. You placed the damp rag on her forehead, hoping it’d help her feel less sick if she did end up throwing up in the middle of the night.

            “Would you mind doing me a favor?” You asked Rafe, glancing at him over your shoulder.

            “Sure, what’s up?”

            “Above the fridge in the kitchen are big bowls. Can you bring one?”

            Rafe nodded & left the room. You listened intently until you heard him in the kitchen.

            “Grab a glass of water, too, please!” You hollered.

            The faucet began running in the distance, so you took the time to lift Jules’ sheets. You overlooked her body, ensuring that Rafe didn’t do any weird shit when you were in the bathroom. But nothing looked out of place. Even her cowgirl boots were still on. Chuckling lightly to yourself, you quickly removed them from her feet before tucking her legs back under the covers.

            It wasn’t that you were a man-hater, you loved men. But recalling all the rumors surrounding Rafe in high school, & how even despite that he was a stranger, you didn’t want to take any chances. So far he had been helpful & friendly enough so you didn’t want to be quick to stuff him into a box labeled ‘creep’, but you’d certainly keep your eye on him.

            You heard his footfalls coming nearer so you stood up. When he entered the room again, he carried a large bowl in one hand & a glass of water in the other.

            “Thank you.” You offered him a small smile when taking the objects from him.

            Once you got Jules settled, you turned to face him, gesturing for the two of you to leave the room. You closed the door quietly behind you. In the living room, you eyed the kitchen on the opposite end of the space.

            “Did you want anything to drink? It’s the least I can do for helping.”

            Rafe sighed, contemplating your offer, “An energy drink if you got it. Feel like I’m gonna fall asleep behind the wheel if I keep going like this.”

            “I don’t have any of that, but I can make you a coffee?”

            “Yeah, sure, thanks.”

            You nodded, walking towards your kitchen. Rafe followed behind you, taking a seat at your small two person table in the corner. You felt him watching you as you pulled out the coffee grounds & began putting them into the coffee maker.

            “Thank you again.” You repeated, tossing him a look over your shoulder, “For helping.”

            “No problem.” He repeated, “Again.”

            You laughed quietly & softly at that. Once the coffee began brewing, you pulled out two mugs & left them by the pot. Then you turned back to face him.

            “How are you feeling?” He asked.

            You felt your brows crease, “What do you mean?”

            “Well, you couldn’t walk at the bar, but now you seem totally fine.”

            “Oh.” You straightened up that, also then realizing how much better you were beginning to feel, “Better, yeah. Must’ve just been a wave.”

            Rafe nodded at that but said nothing.

            “So.” you began, shrugging your shoulders. Small talk wasn’t your forte. It made you feel awkward.

            “So…” Rafe repeated.

            The two of you shared an uncomfortable laugh.

            “You looked really hot on the bar tonight.” His sudden & unsolicited comment surprised you. There was no hiding the shock on your face.

            “What?” You laughed, really believing you misheard him.

            “You heard me.” He smirked at you, his eyes trailing the length of you. You shifted under his gaze, shaking your head, “Thanks? I guess.”

            Fortunately, the coffee pot finished & you were able to distract yourself with pouring the two of you a mug of coffee. You brought Rafe’s his before returning to the fridge to pull out some French vanilla creamer.

            “Want some?” You shook the carton. Rafe waved his hand in dismissal.

            After flavoring your coffee, you joined him at the table.

            “So, what have you been up to since high school?” You finally asked, forcing yourself to partake in a dreaded topic of conversation.

            “Not a whole lot.” Rafe blew out air, “Working for my dad mostly.”

            “And what’s that?” You blew on your coffee before taking a sip.

            “Business. Real estate development. That sorta shit.”

            You nodded, “That’s good money though, right? You rolling in dough?”

            “Why? Want me to take you out on a date?”

            He was teasing but you still laughed uncomfortably, “Not exactly.”

            “No? Not the dating type?”

            Shrugging, you made a face that confirmed his suspicions, “Not really, no.”

            “Why’s that?”

            You sighed, leaning back in your chair, “No reason, really. Just haven’t met the right person, I guess.”

            “Having too much fun stealing & breaking hearts at the bar?” Rafe smirked.

            You rolled your eyes, “Something like that.”

            “You stole mine. Watching you up there…”

            The way he looked at you made your skin erupt with goosebumps. You bit your lip & Rafe’s eyes flicked to the movement. You shook your head, unable to hide your embarrassed smile, “You’ve always been a flirt, ya know?”

            Rafe’s eyes widened at that, “What does that mean?”

            You shook your finger at him, “We may not have talked in high school but you had a reputation. You were ‘the bad boy’. Breaking hearts and faces.”

            Rafe scoffed at that but chuckled nonetheless, “I won’t confirm nor deny.”

            A silly giggle left you but you immediately reeled it in the second you heard it. Were you…flirting with Rafe Cameron? Jesus. If someone had told you earlier that day that you’d end your night flirting with Rafe Cameron in your own apartment you’d say bullshit. It was funny though sometimes how the world brought people in & out of your life.

            “Oh, c’mon.” You shook your head, “All the girls wanted to date you & all the guys wanted to either be you or beat you.”

            Rafe laughed at that, nodding in agreement, “Maybe.”

            You lowered your eyes, memories of high school passing you by.

            “What about you?”

            You raised your eyes to meet his, “What about me, what?”

            “Did you want to date me?”

            There was no helping the sudden burst of laughter at his question. You bit your lip again, shaking your head, “Actually, no. If anything, I was scared of you.”

            Rafe’s eyes glinted playfully, leaning across the table, “That so?”

            “Mm.” You nodded, “I saw a few of your fights. You’re pretty hot-headed, ya know. All I wanted to do was not piss you off.”

            “You couldn’t even if you tried.” Rafe eyes lingered to your lips.

            A part of you was undeniably enjoying his apparent attraction to you. You didn’t care if it was the alcohol or whatever it was that was sexually charging the energy in the room. After all, you did want to take a man home tonight. Rafe isn’t who you had in mind, especially since he started out as Jules’, but Jules’ was lax. If you did end up sleeping with Rafe, she wouldn’t care. All she’d be interested in was how he was in bed. And now, you couldn’t help but wonder yourself.

            Inhaling sharply, you pushed your coffee to the side so you could place your elbows on the table, leaning forward so there was only a few inches between you.

            “But I’m sure I can make you happy.” You flirted suggestively.

            “I think you can, too.” Rafe stared at you through hooded eyes. Yeah. He wanted you, too.

            That being the only confirmation you needed, you rose from your seat, offering your hand to Rafe, “C’mon then. Let’s go to bed.”

            Rafe grinned up at you with that. Then he rose to his full height, but he ignored your hand. He towered over you, your head only reaching his shoulders. Before you could say or do anything, Rafe suddenly had his arms around your butt, lifting you until you were forced to wrap your legs around his middle.

            “Let’s.”

            A week passed before you saw Rafe again. And you honestly never expected to see him again. After the night you two spent together rolling around in your sheets, you passed out. When you woke the next morning, Rafe was gone. It wasn’t the first time, & likely wouldn’t be the last, that one of your hook-ups escaped into the night, but you’d be lying if you thought Rafe would be different since you two went to high school. But alas, Rafe only proved to be like most men. You weren’t miffed though. You moved on fast.

            As far Jules, her reaction to learning about you two hooking up wasn’t what you quite expected. She laughed it off at first but you could see that she felt something about it. You eventually got it out of her. She said that she actually liked Rafe. Unlike most of her conquests, she felt a natural draw to him & had thought that perhaps Rafe could be someone she’d date. It all surprised you.

            Jules, of course, didn’t blame you whatsoever since she had only met Rafe that night, & after you explained your history, or lack thereof, with him, she understood. But you could tell that she was disheartened to not get to know him more. But as the week passed, she got back into her usual good spirits.

            As for you, you heard from Jack a day after you met him. He started out giving you a hard time for not letting him know you made it back home safely that night, & you thought it best to lie & say that you passed out as soon as you got into bed rather than telling me the truth. The two of you texted for the whole day & before you knew it you had scheduled a date.

            The date itself was fun. You took Jack to some blacklight mini golf then the two of you had a couple beers at one of your favorite bars. The night ended with a hot make-out session in your car. After that, you two saw each other practically every day. Tonight would be no different. In fact, Jules was going out to the bars & you were staying in, wanting Jack to come spend the night with you. It wasn’t like you to wait to have sex with someone you were interested, so Jack was a rare case.

            But with Jules being out of the apartment for most of the night, you thought it an opportune time to have him over & you two could be as loud as you wanted.

            It was almost nine at night when Jules finally left. Jack was supposed to be there around that time, as well. But before she left, she poked her head into your room. You did a little spin for her as she tried to pick her jaw off the floor.

            “Damn, _____. Jack isn’t gonna know what hit him.”

            You smiled happily at that, admiring your lingerie in your full length mirror.

            “I hope so.” Jack was quickly becoming your Rafe. By that, you meant that you enjoyed his company beyond more than just the sexual tension. He made you laugh, carried a conversation, showed interest in your life but also wasn’t afraid to share details of his own. Plus, he was hot as fuck. The more you hung out with him the more he reminded you of a young James Franco. And Franco was always cute to you.

            “So, I wanted to talk to you about something really quick.” Jules revealed, stepping further into your room.

            You tossed her a confused but wary look, “…Okay. Everything alright?”

            “Yeah, at least, I hope so.” She laughed sheepishly, “I’m going to bars tonight, as you know, but…I’m not going alone.”

            You reeled back at that, but were smiling nonetheless, “Okay, babe, if it’s a date you know we trade info incase the guys are creeps.”

            “Yeah, I know.” She sighed, avoiding your eyes, “That’s kind of why I didn’t say anything to begin with. You already know him…”

            Done admiring yourself in the mirror, you sat on your bed, staring up at her in waiting.

            Jules moved forward to join you on your bed, “It’s with Rafe.”

            Oh.

            The revelation wasn’t what you expected but you nodded hesitantly, “Okay… that’s okay?”

            “I don’t know, is it? We’ve never really navigated these waters before.”

            You rolled your eyes at that, “Oh, my god, Jules, it’s okay! I have no claims to him. If you want to see him then see him.”

            She frowned at that, not entirely buying what you were selling, “Are you sure? I know we have a pretty lax friendship, but it’s not weird. I’ll admit, I did feel weird after you told me you guys hooked up last weekend.”

            A pang of guilt hit your chest, but you dismissed it with a forced smile. You had no interest in Rafe. He was a decent fuck, but that’s all he was. If Jules was serious about him, the last you wanted to do was have her thinking you were standing in her way.

            “God, I’m sorry. I’m such a slut sometimes.”

            Jules giggled at that but shook her head, “That’s not what I’m saying. I just want to make sure that you & I will be okay. And, obviously, if it gets weird or messy having Rafe around then I won’t mind kicking him to the curb.”

            You laughed at that, “It won’t come to that. Besides, I have my own man coming over tonight. Rafe…feels like it was ages ago at this point.”

            “Okay.” Jules grinned, her dimples appearing. You could tell she was really excited about this date. You only hoped that Rafe didn’t disappear in the middle of the night on her like he did you.

            “Okay!” You exclaimed, standing up. Jules stood with you. You hugged her, “Thank you for telling me. I’ll make sure Jack & I are all finished by the time you get home.”

            “No worries.” Jules pulled away, grinning at you, “If we do end up wanting to hook-up I’m going to try to get it done at his place, that way you two can be alone all night.”

            “Well, thanks, I appreciate it.” You smiled, letting her go, “But if you do go there, you know to text me where the address is.”

            “Yes, mom.” Jules rolled her eyes.

            With that, you exited your room & walked with her to the door. Jack would be there any minute & you still wanted light some incense & candles.

            You were unlatching the door & swinging it open, preparing to wave Jules off but a yelp escaped you at the tall, looming presence just on the other side.

            “Rafe!” Jules shrieked. The both of you were not expecting him on the other side, let alone anyone.

            Rafe’s eyes danced amusingly between the two of you as you both recovered from the jump scare but when his eyes stopped on you, staring at your chest, you glanced down. It was then that you realized you were still only wearing your lingerie.

            “Oh, fuck.” You muttered, quickly standing just behind the door out of sight as you tied the thigh length silk robe around your body. Jules realized what was happening by the time you finished & glanced up.

            “Sorry ‘bout that.” You laughed sheepishly as Jules stepped out.

            Rafe said nothing but was staring at you like he was trying not to respond.

            “Oh, jesus, let’s just get this over with.” Jules finally spit out, “You guys fucked. It’s nothing he hasn’t seen before. Right?” She looked at you to which you nodded quickly.

            “Right?” She focused on Rafe. He only mustered an awkward smirk.

            “Great. Now that that’s over with, _____...” Jules eyed you, “Have fun with Jack. I’ll see you either tonight or tomorrow.”

            At the mention of Jack’s name, you felt Rafe’s eyes flash to yours in curiosity. You blatantly ignored his wonderous gaze & waved at Jules, “Bye, have fuuun!”

            Then you hurriedly slammed the door. As much as you loved Jules for her direct nature, you sorely wished she hadn’t mentioned the two of you hooking up while you were standing there in practically nothing. But, fortunately the moment was over & you could focus on the task at hand: Jack.

            It was nearly three in the morning when you tip-toed into the kitchen to heat yourself up some leftovers. Jack had passed out. You had tired him out. You had always considered your endurance your best quality in the bedroom. It wasn’t often when a man could keep up with you. Jack was no exception, but he was fun, nonetheless. The sex was rushed at first. The second he saw you he couldn’t keep his hands off you. The after having sex that lasted for roughly fifteen minutes, you two relaxed & laughed about it.

            Then you ordered the two of you some food & while waiting for the food to come the two of you hung out on the couch watching an episode of The Boys. After eating & another episode, Jack gathered you in his arms & carried you into your room for second round. The second round was a lot more sensual. Now that the two of you had had sex in a hurry, you two were able to slow down & really learn each other’s bodies. You were winded by the time that session ended. You fell asleep as he scratched your back & when you woke up an hour later, he was still awake watching videos on his phone. You knocked his phone out of the way & straddled his lap. The third time was even more mind-blowing than the first two—being the perfect mixture of animalistic & intimate.

            After that, it was Jack’s turn to pass out. He had commented on your skills in bed & you kicked your feet about it. It wasn’t that you felt validated by hearing a man’s thoughts about what you could do but you also wouldn’t deny how good it still felt to hear.

            You tried sleeping yourself, getting only ten or so minutes when your stomach growled you awake. There would be no good night’s rest until you ate. So, that’s when you decided to go heat up some leftovers from yours & Jack’s order.

            Your apartment was quiet save for the metallic hum of the microwave. You stared at Jules’ closed bedroom door, & it was only then that you realized you hadn’t checked your phone whatsoever since Jack arrived. There was still a minute left on the microwave. You decided you’d go snatch your phone from your room really quickly then give Jules a call while you ate. But just as you entered the hallway, you heard the familiar sound of her keys in the door.

            As quietly as you possibly could, you backed up back into the living room then raced across the room to the kitchen, trying to look as natural as possible. But as you listened for Jules’ footsteps, you picked up on another.

            She wasn’t alone.

            You glanced down. You were in your robe but only your robe. Jack made quick work of discarding your matching bra & underwear. There was a throw blanket on the back of the couch. You made to move towards it, hoping to get it wrapped around you since the robe did little to really cover you, but just as you did, two figures appeared on the other end of the room.

            “Jules?” You frowned. She was slumped against Rafe.

            Your eyes flashed to his, your state of dress forgotten, “What the hell happened?”

            “Yeah, I don’t think she’s much of a heavyweight anymore. She was falling asleep at the bar.”

            Shaking your head, you approached the two of them. Rafe still held her up as you patted her cheeks, “Jules, babe, wake up.”

            But she only moaned & swatted your hand away, “Sleepy.”

            “Okay, okay.” You couldn’t help the glare you threw at Rafe. Whether or not it was his fault, she had only gotten this drunk in the last week while in his presence. You hoped it was just a coincidence but you wouldn’t settle on it quite yet.

            “Can you get some water, I got it from here.” You told Rafe before slipping her into your arms. Jules managed to use her feet to assist you in assisting her as you brought her back to her bed. Jules sighed happily at the sight of her bed before throwing herself down on it.

            You knelt beside the bed, tucking her hair behind her ear, “Did you drink a lot again?”

            “Mmm. Probably.”

            You sucked on your lip, “Jules, you can’t be drinking like that. You gotta be safe.”

            “Safe…very safe.” She mumbled, turning her head away from you as she curled into herself.

            The air in the room shifted as Rafe entered behind you. You stood up, taking the glass of water from him none-too-gently & putting it on her nightstand.

            “You can leave.” You told him without looking at him, “Thanks for getting her home.”

            Rafe scoffed behind you but said nothing. You listened as you heard his steps leave the room. Releasing a breath of air, you stared at your best friend as she slept soundlessly.

            “Jules…” You whispered to no one. Taking her shoes off, you threw one of her loose blankets over her & switched her light off. You’d be talking with her in the morning. You had to make sure that her getting so drunk was her doing & not Rafe’s.

            A muffled gasp escaped you as you closed her door, not expecting to see Rafe leaning against the wall just on the other side.

            You had your hand over your mouth to keep from waking Jules or Jack, but you glared hotly at Rafe over your hand.

            Closing Jules door, you stepped closer to him, hissing, “I told you to leave.”

            Rafe frowned, “Okay, sorry. I thought you just meant the room.”

            “You knew exactly what I meant.”

            You turned away from him, quietly stomping towards the kitchen. Rafe followed behind you.

            “What’s your problem? I thought you’d thank me.”

            “And I did.” You bit back. You were struggling to contain your anger. You had no proof that Rafe actually did anything, after all, he was helpful just last weekend & brought Jules back home tonight, but it still didn’t sit well with you. And your mom always taught you to trust your gut.

            “So why the hostile attitude? Did I do something wrong?”

            Inhaling sharply, you yanked open the microwave door. The food was steaming. But you had lost your appetite.

            “No.” You replied shortly, uncaring if you sounded convincing or not.

            You touched the plate but as you did, you hissed in pain. You were too caught up in your frustrations to remember to grab the plate of food with a hand towel.

            “You okay?” Rafe moved closer, peering down at you as you stuck your thumb in your mouth, sucking on it.

            You grunted in response. But Rafe just stared at you in disbelief.

            “If you run it under cold water it’ll help better.” He told you, his voice flat.

            “I know that.”

            Instead of approaching you, he backed up to the sink, flicking the faucet handle. Then he gestured to the sink, “Well.”

            Biting your lip in mild irritation, you neared the sink & stuck your thumb under the water. It wouldn’t burn, not visibly anyway, but it still hurt like a bitch. The cool water helped though.

            As the water cooled the sensation of your pulsing thumb, so did your anger. Shaking your head, you finally looked at Rafe over your shoulder, “I’m sorry. Thank you for helping her home.”

            “You’re welcome.” He returned, but the nicety has left his voice. He was as irritated as you had been.

            “It’s just, she doesn’t get drunk like this.” You told him, “I mean, she does! But it takes a lot. Like a lot, a lot. So, seeing her get this drunk twice in one week, just has me concerned.”

            “Well, I was there, & I’m telling you, she didn’t drink a lot. I don’t know, obviously, what her ‘a lot’ is, but it wasn’t a lot to me. A beer, three cocktails, & two shots.”

            You thought on it. That was still excessive, at least in your opinion. Jules could normally handle a bit more than that but perhaps Rafe was right. Maybe her tolerance was just changing for some reason all of a sudden.

            “Guess it makes sense.” You mumbled. Your thumb felt better at that point so you turned the faucet off.

            “So, what’s a lot to you?” You asked him, wanting to shift the negative energy between the two of you.

            Rafe glanced at you in momentary confusion before shrugging, “More than that.”

            “Guess that makes sense, too.” You chuckled softly, “You were a big partier in high school.”

            Finally, Rafe’s stone expression cracked as a smirk tugged on the corner of his lips, “Yeah, true.”

            The room was silent for a beat until your stomach growled. Your appetite had returned. Turning your back on Rafe, you went to the microwave & tapped the plate, testing the heat. It was grabbable now. You removed your food from the appliance then took your plate to the table. Rafe watched you silently before slowly approaching you.

            “So, you & Jack, huh?”

            “Hmm?” You flicked your eyes to his, before realizing what he had asked, “Oh, uh, yeah.”

            Rafe nodded, slowly dragging out the chair opposite you before sitting down.

            “And you & Jules.” You added, not wanting you or Jack to be the focus at that point in time.

            “Mhmm.” Rafe pursed his lips, cocking his head as he peered at you, “And you & me.”

            You scrunched your nose in discomfort, but offered an awkward smile nonetheless, “Yup.”

            “Does Jack know?” His question surprised you.

            You glanced away to cut into your enchilada, blowing on it, then placing it in your mouth. You chewed, staring back at Rafe. Then you shrugged.

            “I take that as a ‘no’.”

            “Well, it’s not like we’re together, him & I. He doesn’t need to know about my hook-ups. I don’t ask about his.”

            “But you want to date him.” It wasn’t a question but you still treated it as such.

            “Um, no? I don’t know. Why do you ask?” You took another bite, a lump forming in your throat at Rafe’s invasive questions.

            “Ah, well, Jules was saying that she thought you really liked this Jack guy, more than normal. Said you guys have been seeing each other pretty much everyday since last weekend.” For some odd reason, you felt like you were being interrogated, like a parent trying to get to know their teen daughter’s boyfriend before ultimately deciding that they weren’t good enough for her.

            You shrugged, “Yeah, I guess. But, same could be said about you & Jules.”

            Rafe raised his brows at that, “Yeah?”

            You nodded, “She almost lied to me tonight. Didn’t tell me who she was seeing. She’s never done that before. Plus, she admitted as much that she liked you more than just for hooking up.”

            “Hmm.” He looked away, deep in thought.

            “How does that make you feel?” It was your turn to interrogate him.

            “Not a lot.” Rafe returned quickly. His cold response had your earlier anger become lightly reignited.

            “And that means…?”

            Rafe leaned forward, his elbows on his knees as he gazed at you, “She’s nice, hot, fun. But…she’s not you.”

            The sound of your fork clattering against the plate as it slipped from your fingers made you jump slightly. Your body felt tense at Rafe’s confession. But you had to play it off. Quickly snatching the fork back up, you brushed off his comment with a sheepish chuckle, “Funny.”

            But Rafe didn’t share in your amusement. His unwavering stare was only evidence of his seriousness.

            “What are you trying to say, Rafe?”

            He sighed, his eyes dropping to the opening of your robe. You glanced down & quickly snatched the fabric closer to your chest. He smirked at that.

            “I’m saying that I know you’re wearing nothing under that & I want to see what you’re trying to hide from me.”

            You sputtered in shock, staring at him wide-eyed, “Are you fucking serious?”

            Rafe raised his eyes to yours, “Deadly.”

            “Alright, okay.” You stood up, your half-eaten food forgotten on the table, “I don’t know what the hell you think—’

            But Rafe stood too, quickly invading your space as you stood there attempting to talk him down. He pressed his chest against you & you didn’t have time to create space before he gripped one of your hips. A surprised hiss escaped your lips at his abrupt manhandling.

            “I think that dumbass in there can’t please you like I can.” Rafe spoke lowly, his voice even but firm.

            You swallowed, putting your hands on his chest in an attempt to push yourself away from him, but Rafe was quick to snatch both your wrists in his other hand.

            “What are you doing?” Panic flooded you. If Rafe was fucking with you, you weren’t finding it very funny.

            “I told you.” Rafe then quickly yanked on the ties of your robe & your robe fell open.

            You gasped as cool air suddenly brushed over your exposed front. You instinctively made to cover yourself help but Rafe still held your wrists in his hand. You were breathing heavily, watching in a daze as Rafe’s eyes darkened, staring at your body.

            Then, just as quickly as it happened, Rafe looked back up at you & smirked. Then he let you go.

            “Have a good night.”

            Like whiplash, Rafe was there one second then gone the next. You stood there in the center of your kitchen staring into the direction of the hallway where Rafe disappeared to. The front door to your apartment closed in the distance & you finally released a breath of air you had been holding.

            Then everything that just occurred finally hit you.

            “What. The. Fuck.”

            The next couple months were weird, to say the least. After Rafe revealed yourself to him he was around way too much. He & Jules began spending a lot of time together & before you knew it, they were dating. DATING.

            You sat on what he had done for a couple days before you finally told her about it. Or least, a little bit about it.

            First, you started by asking her if she was really serious about Rafe, like had real feelings for him. When she admitted that she did, you felt torn on telling her the whole truth or just a version of the truth. You eventually settled on just telling her variation of it.

            What you ended up telling her was that he came onto you again but you had rejected him & then he left. That was basically what happened, but you didn’t mention him undoing your robe, & you weren’t sure why. Rafe was no friend to you so you had no need to protect him, but Jules was your friend, & you had never seen her hung up on someone the way she was about Rafe.

            You had seen Rafe multiple times in the window between his harassment of you in the kitchen to telling Jules about it, & in that time he never said or tried anything again. He hardly even looked at you. You reminded yourself that he was an asshole in high school & that he likely viewed what he did as just a humiliating prank. But it wasn’t. Had you not already hooked-up with him you likely would’ve told Jules the whole truth, but since Rafe had already seen you naked & was just pulling one of those idiotic Alpha moves on you in the kitchen, you figured as long as it never happened again you could deal with seeing him & Jules together all the time.

            But it still ate away at you. It bothered you that he had the audacity to not only do that but then move forward & decide to date your best friend. But Jules was happy, more so, she was drinking less. It was the least you could ask for in her questionable relationship with Rafe Cameron.

            On the bright side, Jules wasn’t the only one to enter into an official relationship. After a few weeks of hanging out with Jack & having some of the best sex of your life, you & Jack progressed into a relationship. It felt like ages since you last had a boyfriend, but it felt nice. He was quickly becoming one of your favorite people. Even better, he & Jules got along great. She’d often join you guys on the couch when you watched a movie or show or even help out in the kitchen as the two of you made dinner. They were all good times, but they were often soured by the presence of Rafe.

            Now that you & Jules were in relationships, there was an ungodly amount of times when all four of you would hangout. It was like double dating all the time. If Jules & Rafe wanted to go out to the bars, they’d always convinces Jack to convince you. And then on nights when you worked, Jack would sometimes come in to see you, & right behind him would be Jules & Rafe. Your apartment with Jules was quickly becoming a home to your respective boyfriends.

            Your relationship with Rafe was interesting, too. Though he never made comments or did anything like he did that night in the kitchen, he still always found a reason to talk to you. It was never about anything especially important or engaging, but always just enough to have you two at least carry a conversation for some time.

            Jack still never knew about you & Rafe hooking up the night you all met & you wanted to keep it that way. In fact, you made Jules promise that she would tell Rafe to keep his mouth shut because if ever said anything, even eluded to it, you would make sure he’d regret it. And so far, Rafe never peeped a word about it. The only downside to Jack never knowing about your tryst with Rafe was that they too became good friends.

            Oftentimes, you’d see them laughing loudly with one another, like slapping each other laughing, & always having each other’s back on nights out if for some reason they came across a belligerent asshole. A small part of you was relieved that everything was seemingly working out, but a majority of you knew everything was too good to be true. It’d only be so long before the other shoe dropped. And what kind of shoe it would be had you constantly on the edge…

            But that was the least of your worries as you rushed to get ready. That morning, your mom called you to remind of the charity gala that was being hosted in her name & how you promised to be there. The event had completely slipped your mind. So, all day you were frazzled with that now being your mission. You were forced to call Rosie & explain everything to him, apologizing that it slipped your mind & you would be able to come into work. Fortunately, Rosie said he’d take care of it & that he would see the following night.

            After that, you drove to the shopping district hoping you’d find a dress that would be appropriate enough for the gala. These gala’s your mom attended were high class. No ball gowns or anything extravagant like that (though some people did wear stuff like that), but it was definitely an excuse for those in attendance to show off some of the nicer items in their closet. You had none.

            You got lucky when you found a dress that you could keep & wear again. It was equally elegant as it was just the right amount of sex appeal. Unfortunately, due to the short notice, Jack would not be able to come with you. You learned early on in your relationship that Jack moved to town to open his own café. It had a rough start but once the warmer months came it became a huge hit so he was spending a lot of his time there to help out. And tonight they were having an open mic night for comedians, poets, musicians. It was their first one so he couldn’t miss it.

            You were going to ask Jules next if she wanted to be your date but when you went to her room earlier that day, you could hear her throwing up in the bathroom. She had come down with the flu. So, she was a no go. It bummed you out that you wouldn’t have a date but it was your own fault for completely forgetting about it.

            It was thirty minutes before the gala started & you had just finished getting ready. You still had to drive 20 minutes to the venue so you would be cutting it close but at least you’d be on time. Before you left, you sped-walk to Jules’ room to check on her. She was sound asleep in her bed, a humidifier next to her bed billowing warm, wet air. You quicky stepped into the room & kissed your fingers before placing them on her forehead. You couldn’t afford getting sick after bailing on Rosie tonight.

            Then, you were out the door.

            You recognized the address as being somewhere in the industrial district on the north side of town. That thought made you groan, you hoped they had valet parking.

Traffic was a bitch but you made it with two minutes to spare. Thank you, Valet.

            Once you were inside, you sought out your mom. You found her in the middle of greeting guests as they entered the building.

            “Oh, honey!” She exclaimed, “I’m so happy you could make it.”

            “Of course, Mom. Is there an open bar?” You asked once she pulled away.

            Your mom rolled her eyes knowingly, “So much of your father in you. Yes, yes. The venue is up those stairs there, the bar portion is in a separate room across from it.”           

            “Great, thank you.” You kissed her on the cheek, antsy to at least get a glass of wine in your system.

            She waved you off to continue welcoming guests while you went to go retrieve a drink. After you succeeded in getting your wine, you entered the gala. You nodded impressively. There were a few faces you recognized as close friends of your mom’s & forced yourself to make small talk as you mingled your way over to a table by the windows. Once you made it through, you took a moment to yourself to relax. Your whole day had felt rushed & chaotic so you were happy to finally be off your feet with some sort of alcohol before you to keep you going.

            The charity event started soon thereafter, & before you knew it, you were enjoying your drink, watching as a couple hundred middle aged rich folk raised their hands for the auction portion. Once the auction was through, the host announced that dinner was served & to help yourselves & to enjoy the night while it was still young. You checked the time on your phone, noting it was only 8 in the evening. Your mom begged you to stay at least until 9 that way she can finish making her rounds then she could focus her time on you. You begrudgingly promised you would.

            When she disappeared, you decided to get your glass refilled. You were snaking your way between bodies, aiming for the doors that would lead you to the bar when you abruptly ran into another person.

            “Sorry!” You exclaimed, feeling embarrassed for not watching where you were going. But when the person you ran into turned around, the apologetic expression on your face fell.

            “Well, well. Fancy seeing you here, huh?” Rafe grinned, clearly not expecting to see you either.

            “Fancy.” You deadpanned, turning away to continue on your way. What the hell was he doing there?

            Once you made it to the edge of the room though, you felt a slight tug on your elbow, deterring you from your destination. A curse died on your tongue as you glared at Rafe dragging you through a set of glass doors & onto a patio. You didn’t even know there was a patio. Had you, you would’ve hidden out there all night to avoid Rafe,

            “What are you doing here?” He asked, admiring your outfit.

            “You first.” You battled.

            Rafe chuckled but answered, “Networking.”

            “For?”

            Rafe rolled his eyes, sighing, “My dad’s business?”

            You pursed your lips. You supposed it made sense. But Jules hadn’t mentioned it.

            “Why isn’t Jules here then?” You knew well enough that she was sick & resting at home, but since she had never mentioned it, you wondered if Rafe had even bothered to mention it to her.

            “Because I didn’t ask her.” Rafe responded like it was the most obvious answer in the whole world. But you wouldn’t accept.

            “God, you are such an asshole. She’s crazy about you, ya know. And you treat her like crap.”

            Rafe bit his lip in though, narrowing his eyes at you, “You sure about that? Pretty sure I actually spoil her. More than she’s worth.”

            “Oh, you—” All the possible offensive terms you could think of threatened to spill out but this wasn’t the time or the place, “That’s it. When I get back home, I’m telling her everything.”

            You spun on your heel then, prepared to go find your mom & apologize but you had to leave early. You couldn’t stand to be here for a second longer knowing Rafe asshole Cameron was present.

            But when you left the patio & entered the hall, where there was conveniently no one was around, Rafe snagged you by the waist before shoving you into a bathroom.

            “Rafe, goddamnit!” But Rafe shook you to your core when he pressed your back against the wall & covered your mouth. His hand going to the handle on the door & locking it.

            “I’m gonna take my hand off now, think you can shut the fuck up for two seconds?”

            You glared at him but nodded once. Rafe removed his hand but only stared at you.

            You slapped your hands together, waiting for him to get it over with.

            “I don’t know what the fuck you want, _____. You’re so annoyingly confusing. More than most women.”

            You frowned at that. What was he talking about?

            “You come onto me the night we meet then you suddenly want nothing to do with me. I never asked you out on a date because you said you weren’t interested in dating. I was fine with that, though. I could live with just hooking up. But then come to find out you’re dating Jack, fucking him, too. So, now I look like an idiot because you told me you don’t date. And that’s a lie. So, when I found out & tried coming onto you again that night in your apartment, you rejected me. All for that dumbass in your bed. I mean, what is a guy supposed to think? I’ve been very patient, waiting for you & Jack to get through whatever it is you guys think you’re doing but nope, nope, Jack’s here to stay, Jack’s such a good guy, Jack’s the one.”

            All of his words were becoming jumbled together in your brain. You could do nothing but stare at him wide-eyed & in shock.

            Rafe was huffing, his lips in an upside down smile as he stared through you, “What do you have to say, huh? Because now, all this time, pretending to be into Jules, I’ve just been trying to get close to you. To show you that I’m who you want. That you regret rejecting me. And you can’t say I haven’t been good because I have been. I don’t touch you, flirt with you, make it obvious that I want to fuck your brains out, that I want to beat Jack to a pulp every single time I see him put his hands on you. It should be me, _____. You know that.”

            A surprised but unamused sigh left you. Everything you thought about Rafe was true, but just much worse. He was only dating Jules because of you. Only hanging around because of you. You needed to snuff this man out.

            “Rafe…” You licked your lips, struggling to find the words, “I don’t know where, at any point, you got into your head that we were something more than just a spontaneous, convenient hook-up but that’s all it was. Okay? That’s it. There was sexual tension & I acted on it. Simple as that. I mean, you were gone the next morning! We had nothing more than just casual, one-time sex.”

            Rafe’s eyes narrowed as you spoke.

            “And as far as Jack goes, that’s none of your damn business. I meant what I said when I told you I don’t date but things change, & I don’t care how fast they change, I don’t owe you anything. I’m not some fucking prize that you are competing against Jack for, & even if I was, let me tell you, he is by far a better man you will ever be. A real man doesn’t use a woman to get closer to her roommate, to try & make her roommate, I don’t know, fall for him? That’s some psycho sociopathic shit, right there. Okay?! So, what you’re gonna do now, is you’re gonna call Jules & you’re gonna break up with her. I don’t care how you do it, but you’re gonna get it done. I would love nothing more than to tell her myself about how much of a piece of shit you are, but she’s my friend. My best friend. And I don’t want to hurt her. So, the least you can do is soften the blow.”

            It looked as if he wasn’t listening anymore, his eyes glazing over, but you knew he was. He was hearing every single world.

            “Man up.” You stepped forward, “And give her what she deserves.”

            His eyes finally shifted back to yours, “Careful what you wish for.”

            The look in his eyes sparked a bout of fear within you.

            But then Rafe was unlocking the bathroom door & next thing you knew he was gone. Your heart was racing, the interaction an explosion of emotions. But with him gone, you were finally able to relax against the wall. You placed your hand on your chest, willing your heart to slow down. Jesus. This day just wouldn’t give you a break, would it?

            Unfortunately, your night never improved. When you got home later that night, you could hear Jules crying in her room. As relieved as you were that Rafe called her, you were still disheartened to hear her sobs from the front door. Stopping by your room first, you kicked off your heels & tossed your keys on the bed. Then you hesitantly walked towards her room. Her door was cracked open.

            You were about to enter her room but another’s voice stopped you.

            “I’m sorry, Jules.” Rafe.

            What the fuck was he doing here?!

            Not waiting to get answers from Jules, you slapped her door open, standing angrily in her doorway. Jules & Rafe were on her bed & Rafe was holding her as she cried into his chest.

            “What the hell’s going on here?”

            Jules looked up then but her solemn face quickly turned to one of anger as she set her eyes on you. She stood up, looking you directly in the eye, “I should be asking you that! I trusted you!”

            You stared at her in confusion before glancing at Rafe who sat smugly on the edge of her bed.

            “Jules, look, I don’t know what that fuck told you but he’s ly—”

            “Lying?!” Jules questioned, her voice growing louder, “Yeah, he said you’d say that. But he told me everything!”

            You crossed your arms over your chest, glaring at the unapologetic look on Rafe’s face, “And what was that?”

            “That you’ve been coming onto him for months!” Jules screeched, “I knew bringing him around was going to be weird but if you still had feelings for him then you should have told me! Now you’re telling him to break up with me so you can have him. I can’t believe you would do that!”

            “What?!” You raised your voice, “No, no, that is not what’s happening. He’s the asshole, the creep!”

            “Oh, shut up, _____!” Jules glared at you through her angry tears, “He has proof of you saying so!”

            You stumbled at that, “Proof? What? What proof, Jules?”

            She spun around, snatching a phone that wasn’t hers off the bed before raising it up between the two of you. She clacked on it & then turned the volume up. It was your voice that came out.

            So, what you’re gonna do now, is you’re gonna call Jules & you’re gonna break up with her. I don’t care how you do it, but you’re gonna get it done.

            “Motherfucker…” You whispered in disbelief. But then the recording stopped. Jules played it again.

            You shot your eyes between the two of them before settling on Jules, “That’s all he recorded? You don’t think that’s weird, Jules? There’s nothing before, nothing after, it’s all out of context. Yes, I told him to break up with you but so I could have him! He’s a fucking psycho!”

            Jules shook her head, chuckling darkly as she tossed the phone back on her bed, “I want you out of this apartment. Tonight. And then I never want to see you again.”

            “Jules! No, what? Wait!” But she was shoving you out of her room & before you could get another word out, she slammed her door in your face.

            “Rafe, you fucking asshole! Tell her the truth!” You beat against the door but all you could make out on the other side was Jules bitching about you before her room started blaring music.

            You couldn’t believe this was happening. Rafe had gotten to her. Turned your closest friend against you. Well. Fuck him. He wasn’t going to win. Not that easily. Jules wanted to never see you again, that’s too damn bad. Because you weren’t going anywhere, not as long as Rafe was in her ear feeding her lies.

            You walked into work angrily the following night. Your coworkers greeted you but you could only manage a grunt. Jules was far from happy to see you when you came out of your room that morning but you needed to show her that you weren’t going anywhere.

            “My name’s on the lease. I pay rent. I’m staying.” You told her to which she sneered at you before grabbing her coffee & disappearing in her room.

            Her door was closed but you told her through the door that you would never betray her like that. That the person who was lying to her was Rafe. She never responded, & you never saw her again before you left for work. But you wouldn’t give up.

            You threw on your outfit for your shift then left in poor spirits. Working helped you distract yourself from the bullshit of your disastrous home life & potential friend break-up. It was busy & your regulars listened to you as you told a few of them about few details of your dilemma. They all held hope for you & Jules to figure things out. That left you feeling slightly better. But around midnight, an unexpected guest appeared at the far end of the bar. You smiled for the first time in 24 hours but your smile quickly fell at the furious expression on Jack’s face.

            “Hey.” You said warily, flipping over a 16oz to pour his usual beer.

            “I’m not staying.” Jack told you, his voice hard.

            That wasn’t a good sign.

            “I just came to tell you that Jules told me everything. The recording, everything.”

            “Jack.” You sighed exhaustedly. After last night’s intense fallout, you didn’t think to call Jack & tell him what happened. But you never thought Jules would reach out to him herself.

            “Save it.” He held up his hand, “I just wanted to tell you in person.”

            Before you could try to defend yourself or even explain a little bit, Jack was out the door. You watched tiredly through the windows as he sped off.

            Jack didn’t understand either. He would, but not yet. First, you had to get Jules to know the truth, get Rafe out of the picture, then after all that, you & Jules would tell Jack the truth together. You just had to be strong.

            “You alright, kid?” Rosie’s voice sounded behind you.

            You pressed your lips together, feeling them shake. You felt like crying but you forced yourself not to. Rafe couldn’t get away with this.

            Turning around, your head hung low, you simply nodded to Rosie.

            “Why don’t you take a ten. I can man the bar, start closing duties.”

            You didn’t have the energy to debate it. You exited the bar & went to sit at the far end. Pulling out your phone, you hoped to see any messages from Jules but there was nothing. You tried calling her but your call went straight to voicemail. She likely blocked you. Good thing you lived down the hallway from her.

            Holding your head in your hands, you thought about how you got here. How the fuck did you get here? Everything was fine & then suddenly it wasn’t. You realized you should’ve told Jules about Rafe from the beginning. Told her about how he came onto you in the kitchen that night. If you had, Rafe wouldn’t be in the picture, you & Jules would still be friends, & Jack would be drinking a beer less than 10 feet from you.

            “Fucking Rafe…” You muttered out loud.

            Could this night get any worse?

            Unfortunately yes, yes it could.

            You kicked at the tire of your car, frustrated that it suddenly wouldn’t start. Rosie had already left. He closed up The Garage with you & walked with you to your vehicles. But while he started his up & pulled out of the parking lot, you sat behind your wheel staring mindlessly out the windshield. You so desperately just wanted to talk to Jules, to just tell her everything. It had only been 24 hours & all you wanted was your best friend back.

            So, when you finally broke out of your thoughts & went to start your car, it only added to your shitty night that the engine sputtered then died.

            “Fuuuuuuck!” You screamed, beating your hands against the dashboard. Your hands were throbbing afterwards but you could barely feel it. And if you thought it still couldn’t get any worse, pulling out your phone & finding it dead only proved you wrong.

            “’Course.” Tossing your phone back into your bag, you glared at the bar across from you. There was chargers inside, but Rosie had the keys to get in & you had no phone to call him.

            Getting out, you locked up your car before rounding to the front. There was no point in checking under the hood, you would have no idea where to look first. You had always said that one day you’d learn car stuff for shit exactly like this, but you had yet to do it. It would be next on your agenda. After getting Jules back.

            You glared into the darkness of the road. The Garage was on a long stretch of a two-lane highway. During the day it was used regularly, but as soon as night came, the only reason people were on it was to come to your place of work. There would be no one. It was then that you decided you were going to be forced to walk back home. It was only a mile or so walk, most of it being spent on the highway, but you weren’t stoked about walking down a dark, desolate highway in the middle of the night.

            But what choice did you have?

            Facing your car once more, you kicked at her tire, “See you in the morning, princess.”

            You were only about ten minutes into your walk, your jacket wrapped securely around you as you stomped along the pavement, when you heard an engine in the distance. Now, you weren’t one of those girls who thought to yourself ‘oh, kidnapping wouldn’t happen to me, that’s only in the news’. So, you had no plans to put your thumb out & hitching a ride. Even if it was a nice elderly woman. You had seen too many true crime documentaries. It was better to be distrusting then it was to trust the wrong person.

            Unlike Jules, you thought bitterly. But it wasn’t her fault. It was all Rafe’s.

            When the engine grew closer, you moved off the highway. There were no streetlights on this stretch of the highway, so the driver wouldn’t spot you until they passed you. It also helped you were wearing darker clothes. Otherwise whoever it was might get some sort of idea. And if they did spot you whether before or after they passed you, you were mentally preparing yourself to launch yourself into the woods & make a run for it.

            You glanced over your shoulder as you walked, spotting two headlights in the distance. You hoped they would hurry & pass you by so you could walk freely again without worrying about getting snatched off the road. You already had enough stress on your plate.

            The engine grew closer but as it did you could hear begin to slow down.

            Great.

            Still walking, not wanting to let whoever it was get closer, you spun around expecting to see a middle-aged man giving you a toothy smile. But the lights were so bright you couldn’t make out anything. All you could see was the silhouette of someone sitting in the drivers seat. They didn’t move closer, they didn’t signal for you, they didn’t do anything. Just idled there in the middle of the highway.

            “Alright…” You could feel panic begin to grip you. “That’s not a red flag.”

            But it didn’t stop you. You just kept walking. And as you did, you heard the truck begin to roll closer. As it did, you moved further off the highway until you were forced to walk on the dirt along the tree line.

            You breathing fast at that point. As subtly as you could, you reached into your bag, looking for your taser. You had never had to use it before but you always kept it charged in the off chance you’d need to. And now seemed like it would potentially be that time.

            “_____.”

            The sound of your name horrified you, but more than that, it was the voice that carried it.

            You spun around on your heel, staring wide-eyed as Rafe hung an arm outside his window, his eyes dead set on you.

            “What the fuck do you want?”

            “Need a ride?” He asked, ignoring your question, but there was no sense of wanting to help you in his tone.

            “Fuck no.” You spit, glaring hotly at him, “I am walking home. Carry on.”

            “I’m heading there anyway.” Rafe smirked, “Booty call. You know how it goes.”

            You made a face of disgust. He still had the audacity to talk poorly about Jules even after convincing her that you were the bad guy. But were you surprised? No, no you weren’t.

            “Just fuck off, Rafe.” You dismissed him with a flick of your hand before marching ahead. Much to your chagrin, Rafe only followed alongside you in his truck. You made sure to keep a good distance between where you walked & where his door was. If he decided to jump you again like he had at the charity gala the previous night, you wanted a head start into the woods.

            “We can talk.” He stated, “Work something out. I can get Jules to forgive you.”

            You shook your head in disbelief, running your tongue along your teeth in annoyance. He was just egging you on, wanting to get a rise out of you. Like always.

            “C’mon, you know you’re tempted.” His voice grew lower.

            “The only thing I’m tempted to do is rip your fucking throat out & shove it up your ass so you can taste your own shit.”

            “Well,” Rafe chuckled darkly, “I’d need my throat to taste it, wouldn’t I?”

            Stamping your foot against the pavement, you finally stopped to face him again, “God, can you just leave me the fuck alone?! You got Jules, you won, she fucking hates my guts. I’m the bad guy in this story, I get it. Your narrative is working out great for you, Rafe. So if you’re done boasting, please! Leave. Me. Alone.”

            He peered at you through heavily hooded eyes, an unimpressed smirk appearing on his face, “I didn’t win, _____. Jules isn’t who I want. You know that.”

            His words chilled you to your core. It was then that you were reminded of where you were, or weren’t, which was pretty much in the middle of nowhere. Just you & Rafe.

            “I just want to walk home, okay?” You felt your voice shake with fear. Rafe smiled then. He heard it, too.

            “Ad I’m offering you a ride.”

            You felt your eyes begin to water as you stared past him into the cab. If you got in the cab, there was no saying what he would do to you. Your chances were better outside of the truck.

            “Rafe—”

            “I’m not gonna ask again. Get in the truck, or I’ll fucking make you get in the truck.”

            You shook your head, taking a step back. His eyes flashed to the movement before flickering back up to yours. His gaze hardened, “Fine. My way it is.”

            Before he could shift his truck into park, you were already diving into the trees & running at a full sprint. It wasn’t a second or two later when you heard Rafe’s door slam shut before the sound of foliage being crushed sounded behind you.

            “_____!” Rafe yelled, “Get back here!”

            His voice, full of anger & determination, bounced off the trees as you ran past them & further into the woods. You couldn’t see shit in the dark & you could feel your ankles stumbling & whining in discomfort as you tried to keep your feet ahead of you on the uneven earth. Scared tears coated your cheeks as you pumped your legs, begging to any god anywhere to please get you out of there. But no divine intervention intervened.

            It was the worst feeling you could imagine when you felt a hand grip the fabric of your jacket & yank you backwards. The wind was knocked out of you when Rafe threw you to the forest floor.

            “We coulda worked this out.” Rafe huffed as he stood over you.

            You rolled onto your side, desperate for your lungs to open so you could breathe. But Rafe circled around you like a vulture getting ready for the kill. You weren’t sure you’d even get another breath of air before he stole whatever you had left.

            “We coulda talked, came to some sort of agreement!” He yelled in frustration, “But you’re just so fucking stubborn, so fucking defiant. You like that with Jack?”

            Rafe laughed darkly to himself, “Something tells me you’re not. You’re probably the most perfect woman with him.”

            You gasped sharply, painfully, when your lungs finally opened. Then you were coughing. But as you were coughing, you were searching for your bag in the dark. The taser. If you got your hands on that, you may have a chance.

            “Looking for this.” Rafe questioned.

            In the dark, you peered over at him as he held your purse by a single finger. He shook his head knowingly before gathering it in the palm of his hand & chucking it into the forest. You heard it thud somewhere in the distance. Fresh tears escaped you as Rafe used his shoe to roll you over onto your back.

            “Please, Rafe, don’t. I’m sorry for running.” You weren’t, but it was survival now to kiss up to him.

            But Rafe just stared down at you, “It’s too late for your apologies.”

            He bent at the knees then before grabbing a fistful of your hair & forcing you upwards into a sitting position. A pained whimper parted your lips, forcing you to bite your lip to stifle them.

            “What do you want then?” You cried out, your hands clinging to the grip he held on your hair.

            “Same thing as before.” Rafe responded, his voice flat & emotionless. You stopped crying to stare at him. He only gazed at you unfeelingly.

            “No.” You shook in his hold. “No!”

            You screamed & thrashed, trying to kick at him but Rafe easily overpowered you, forcing you back on your back as he climbed on top of you.

            “No! No! No!” You screamed, cried, begged over & over again. But all of your fight was falling on deaf ears. You beat your fists against his chest & back as he wrestled with you to get your jeans off. The chill of the forest erupted your skin with goosebumps & you felt like your heart was going to burst outside of your chest.

            Rafe was quick to remove his own jeans, shoving them down his thighs. Once he did, he focused on your upper half, yanking your arms out the sleeves of your jacket before pulling the top of your tube top down. You were practically fully naked in the middle of nowhere with Rafe Cameron on top of you.

            But that didn’t matter. You never stopped resisting him, never stopped trying to get him off you or hurt him. Everything you did though, it was like it didn’t register to him. Like he didn’t feel any of it. You knew Rafe was scary but this was a new level. He was a fucking monster.

            His fingers hooked around the fabric of your underwear & tugged on it until you heard the seams snap & tear. You desperately reached for the back of his hand, grabbing two handfuls of his hair before yanking as hard as you could.

            It was the first reaction Rafe gave. He hissed in response, ripping his head out from under your grasp. It was a short-lived win before you saw him raise the back of his hand & whip it across your face. A sharp gasp left you at the assault, & you tasted blood on your tongue as your lower lip burned.

            “This is what you said, _____.” Rafe snarled as he finished tearing your underwear from your body, “’Man up & give her what she deserves’. Those are your words.”

            Sobs racked your body as he repeated back to you your own demand of him.

            “That’s exactly,” He snatched you by the throat & raised you up enough until his face was only an inch away from your own, “what I’m doing. I’m giving you exactly what you deserve. What I should’ve done from the beginning.”

            He released you, & your head smacked against the soft earth but it did little to comfort the blow.

            You whimpered like a beaten & abused dog as Rafe wrestled your legs apart to fit himself snugly in between them. You placed your hands on his chest, using all your strength to prevent him from crushing you with his body but your strength was nothing compared to his. He forced your elbows to bend as he lowered himself on top of you until your chest were pressed against one another.

            “Don’t cry.” He kissed you on the side of your mouth, forcing you to whip your face away from him, “It’s nothing we haven’t done already.”

            A sharp pain shot up your spine as Rafe forced himself inside you. He chuckled darkly to himself as one of his hands caught you by your chin, forcing you to look at him. You desperately searched for anywhere else to look that wasn’t him but he was all you could see. That smug & evil smirk, the glint & prideful glow in his eyes. It only grew worse when he began to groan as he snapped his hips against yours.

            Your fingers dug themselves into the earth as Rafe raped you on the forest floor. You were hyperventilating beneath him, unfeeling from the waist down, but it was a nightmare you couldn’t wake up from. You wished you could do what some women had reported happening when they were raped & how they were able to shut off their mind & go anywhere else, but yours wasn’t doing that. It was happening & you couldn’t stop it.

            Rafe tucked his face into your neck as he moaned loudly & freely, like a predator having caught his unwilling prey in the world of beasts. No one was coming. No one could hear your cries. This was Darwinism at it’s finest. Only the strong survived.

            Your tears had stopped but you were still panting, staring past Rafe’s head at the tops of the trees. You couldn’t make out the night sky beyond them. Everywhere you looked was pitch darkness, & you saw it most whenever Rafe forced you to look at him while he fucked you to his hearts content.

            It felt like hours before he finally came. He growled like the beast he was as he thrusted himself inside you as deep as he could go. You groaned in pain as your hips flared at the stretch of them. Your body shook beneath him as he stilled completely above you. But you could still feel his cock spitting his seed inside of you. The fact of that made bile rise in your throat.

            Rafe rolled off you a second later, hissing as his own body shook with the aftershocks of his orgasm. An ungodly burning & stinging pain originated from between your legs & you were terrified to see what he did to you.

            Then he started laughing. It wasn’t the loud, jovial kind you often heard in your bar, but the snarky, cocky kind that reminded you exactly of who he was in high school. You had heard it plenty of times.

            “God, that was good.” Rafe breathed out, “My imagination whenever I fuck Jules doesn’t even come close to that.”

            Jules’ face flashed through your mind & you rushed upwards. You turned to the side, holding your stomach as you bent over & vomited. Tears returned to your eyes, blurring your already dizzying vision as you emptied what little contents were in your stomach. As you continued to only throw up stomach acid & a few bites of food, you felt a hand on your back.

            A fit of fury came over you & you lashed out at Rafe as he attempting to comfort you. After he just raped you! It was a joke.

            But Rafe yowled as you swung your arm at him. This stole your attention & you peered through your dirtied hair as Rafe held his face. When he removed his hand to inspect his hand, you marveled at the three scratch marks going from his forehead down over his right eye & ending on his cheek.

            All you could do was start laughing. And then you couldn’t stop. You were laughing hysterically, pointing at Rafe like he was a kid on the playground who just got humiliated in front of everyone. He snarled at you, knocking your hand away & catching you by the throat.

            “You think that’s funny?” He sneered.

            You grinned, still laughing despite your air being restricted. Rafe growled before throwing you back to the forest floor.

            “I’ll tell you what’s funny, _____.” He yanked on your shoulder, turning you over to face him, “Here’s the deal. And its your only two options so I’d listen real fucking close.”

            You glared up at him, wanting nothing more than to finished what claws did & tear his skin completely from his face.

            “You’re gonna get in my fucking truck, we’re going to the apartment, & you’re going to go to your room. I’m going into Jules & I’m either going to A. break up with her & tell her we’re together or B. do to her what I just did to you. And I’ll do far worse to her.”

            The threat forced your panic riddled body to leap upwards, “Don’t!”

            “I won’t, unless you make me. That’s your choice, _____. I either stay with her & hurt her every fucking day, or I get you & I’ll never lay a finger on her.”

            You shook your head, staring up at him, “Please, Rafe, you got what you wanted. Just leave us alone.”

            He sighed, kneeling down to be eye level with you, “I want you. All of you. All the time. And for everyday I go without that, Jules will suffer.”

            Imagining Rafe doing to Jules what he just did to you forced fresh sobs from you. You covered your mouth to stifle the cries. You couldn’t let him do that to her. You didn’t care if it meant she’d hate you forever. You just couldn’t let him hurt her. No one deserved that. Not even you. But were strong. You may have been Rafe’s prey that night, but you were a survivor. But if you knew what Rafe was doing to Jules every day in & night out, you’d never be able to live with yourself. One way or another, someone was getting hurt. You knew it had to be you.

            “So?” Rafe tucked a strand of your hair behind your ear, “We have a deal?”

            You leaned away from his touch, but peered up at him through your wet lashed.

            Rafe saw the resolve in your eyes. He grinned devilishly.

            Only the strong survive, you repeated to yourself.

            Only the strong survive.

i'm fuckin' whipped, babes. like whhhhhiiiipped. i cannot believe i cranked this out in less than 12 hours but fuck. i. did. it.

this is 3/10 requests from my 500 followers celebration request opening!

as always, please share your thoughts w me via commenting, reblogging w reviews, or talking to me in the ask box. i'm super antsy to here what ya'll think of this ridiculously lengthy one shot.

thank you for reading! & thank you for the anon who requested, i hope they are happy!

oona<3

Read this post on why doing more than liking a tumblr writers work is essential to our content creation.

[my love language is words of affirmation, it would make my day if you could comment your thoughts, reblog with tags, or drop an ask that shows your support. thank you for reading tumblr writers, we appreciate you]

taglist: @jsrafesgirl @bunnycvnts @ditzyzombiesblog

to be added to a taglist read rule 11 here. requests will be dismissed otherwise.

[waokevale]

The Overlapped AU [Aka Superhumans disguisted as Dinner Theater workers]

The Owners

The Managers (Engineer & the HR person)

The Waiters

The Security

The Performers (Wes is mostly on cleaning duty though)

The Kitchen staff (the others are usually tasked to help, though very few are actually trusted at all times to be there)

The Bartender and the Host

The Dishwashers

The Clerk & The Supplier

So this AU came to me upon a dream, and I just had to make it real...

The synopsis below:

The event of April 17th 1906 does happen, however instead of Charlie and Maxwell being kidnapped into the Constant, the Constant overlaps with the real world and spreads itself onto Earth.

Charlie and Maxwell in the process become corrupted and have to hide away temporarily. Both of them soon began to hear strange voices, source of which neither is quite sure, telling them, compelling them to hide the corruption's effect from the publicity, for the time being.

They come to a mutual realization they have to fix this mess somehow and hunt down any and all corrupted by the tome, by any means necessary.

(Maxwell still has codex umbra, but it is sealed shut for the time being until he's sure it won't spread more if Their influence. )

But the corruption didn't just appear out of nowhere, it's been leaking way long before Maxwell found the Codex, if to a less prominent extent.

Thus, in few years passing, they form a Dinner Theater, a rather inconspicuous establishment from the first glance. Very quickly they began "hiring" employees, which in reality means tracking down and blackmailing those who have been corrupted but not fully lost themselves to its effects, in order to hunt those who had.

Winona was against the idea at first, as she found out. But seeing the effects of corruption first hand, she quickly had a change of heart and integrated herself into Charlie's new environment.

Eventually they gathered a rather generous amount of people. Once a person's proven to be trustworthy to a point, they're give higher positions in the company.

However those who aren't, are likely to be shunned or "fired" which...you could probably guess what that means.

Many of these people gradually come to terms with the reality of their situation and accept their newfound purpose, being thankful that at least they still have a roof over their head and a warm meal, instead of being viewed as monsters or outcasts to the greater society.

(Wilson though, can't quite accept this notion. He keeps claiming that "this is just a big misunderstanding, I'm just a normal guy!" Yet the truth could be far from it.)

When Maxwell and Charlie hear of the danger looming, they immediately inform their "staff" of the matter. Those who are more experienced in combat come along to face whatever opponent may cross them, while those who aren't, stay behind, to be an additional aid or a medic in case the battle gets too intense.

Whenever any suspicion arises in the town about the shady business going on in that particular building, the two owners alongside their employees practically gaslight anyone and everyone into believing they're but the most regular entertainment center.

The characters who have either willingly or unwillingly lost their humanity, mostly in the physical sense, are given special devices constructed of Thulecite and bits of nightmare fuel (made by Winona, Wicker and the main two), which effectively hide away their true identity, or surpress the effects of their ailment.

There's also a few other people important to this story, especially the One, which even Charlie and Maxwell refer to as "The Boss", though what many most recent hires don't know, is that there's someone who's in a position much higher than the owners themselves, controlling their every move.

Correlating to that, another person, or rather, a set of people per se, working for a much different cause. Though most of them are "people" in only a visual sense of the word.

And while, there might be someone inside the well-known around town diner, who just might be more than what appears on the surface, literally and metaphorically this time.

__________

If you're interested to learn more about this AU, do let me know. If you have any questions, I'm happy to hear and answer them!

[moonjxsung]

Welcome to the Starchive.

༘⋆₊ ⊹★🔭๋࣭ ⭑｡˚

🏷️ add yourself to the taglist.

⚠️ 18+ blog. minors are strictly prohibited from interacting with my content.

🚫 I do not give permission for my work to be reposted or translated anywhere. All writing is my intellectual property and my own, original work.

Copyright Ⓒ 2023 by Moonjxsung. All rights reserved.

☆彡 Bang Chan

there’s nothing here yet…

☆彡 Lee Minho

° When the Rain Stops

↳ (9.8k) A passing storm during a road trip forces you to seek shelter in a little dive bar on the outskirts of town, and you find yourself drawn to the bartender.

° Where the Storm Looms

↳ (13k) Now living in the city he despises, Minho is determined to find you again- despite the sacrifices he’ll have to make.

° Lost in Translation

↳ (26.5k) The older brother of the boy you babysit is an enigma, in every sense of the word- and you’re determined to figure him out.

° Begged & Borrowed

↳ (30.2k) A turn of events causes you and your longtime best friend Minho to confront your true feelings for each other- except you’re already getting married to somebody else.

☆彡 Seo Changbin

there’s nothing here yet…

☆彡 Hwang Hyunjin

° Snowed In

↳ (7.9k) A snowstorm traps you inside with none other than your perplexing ex-boyfriend Hyunjin, leaving the two of you to contemplate the relationship you once had.

° Visions of You in Solitude

↳ (26.5k) You were hired to paint him- not fall for him. But intentions quickly shift when Hyunjin finds himself infatuated with you and learns the secrets you harbor.

☆彡 Han Jisung

° Reckless Convictions

↳ (31.5k) Your senior year of college takes a strange turn when you develop a relationship with your professor.

☆彡 Lee Felix

° Seasons

↳ (24.1k) Seasons come and go like your love for Felix once did- but when he reappears in your life several years later, things are much different.

☆彡 Kim Seungmin

there’s nothing here yet…

☆彡 Yang Jeongin

there’s nothing here yet…

[haleswallows]

Aaaand @deadonmayn day 1. Dialogue Prompt: 'are they gone yet?"

Teaser:

Jason is not helplessly attracted to Siren. He’s not. But he can’t stop himself when Siren comes back to the bar half an hour later.

“Are they gone yet?” Jason asks, failing at keeping his eyes off Siren’s hands. Their nails are shaped into tapered points, and painted a glittery silver.

Siren shrugs, a languid movement. But there’s tension in their hands, a stiffness in their shoulders that speaks to a carefully reigned in violence beneath the surface. It draws him in and Jason turns towards them. “Oh Alvin, your beer got spilled. Here, a replacement on me.” Siren signals the bartender regardless that Jason had already ordered another to nurse. “Other than the unnecessary posturing of men hired for brawn over brains, hopefully the rest of your evening will be only as eventful as you pay for.”

Jason hums. “I always enjoy myself, except that Katai called me a grotesque.”

“Hm,” Siren sweeps their eyes over Jason, lingers a bit on his shoulders, chest and hands. “Don’t take it personally, she has bad taste in men.”

“And you? What's your taste in men?” He says it without thinking, suddenly desperate to know. There's a darkness in Siren’s eyes before they lean towards Jason. Their hand slides across the bartop with the movement.

“Wouldn't you like to know.” Their breath is cool over Jason's ear, he shivers. Then Siren snags Jason's beer, takes a long swallow. Their throat bobs and brings filthy thoughts to Jason's mind. “Good evening Alvin.”

When Siren skirts around him, they trail fingers up Jason's arm, ghosts over his shoulders, taps once on his ear. Jason holds himself still, scared to press into the touch like he wants.

It's only after he notices Siren stole his beer.

[solargeist]

I'd like to think Mumbo met Arianna while she was at some big fancy party and he was a bartender. He had no idea who she was (not his type of music) and they just hit it off.

Yes; this is because I just saw art of Bartender!Mumbo

-Lunar

oh man that’d be cute, regardless of how they meet I don’t think Mumbo knows who she is at all, even by name he doesn’t know.

It’s Probably an event Grian put on since he hired her, Mumbos there helping him.

grian loses mumbo at some point and then spots him over at the bar chatting up the star of the event like it’s EASY… She’s LAUGHING with him…. And grian is a bit nervous, she was SO expensive, mumbo.

[escapadebars]

Party Like a Pro: Professional Bartenders for Hire

Party Bartenders For Hire, Hiring a party bartender can elevate your event to a whole new level. They can handle everything from creating signature cocktails to ensuring your guests' glasses are always full, allowing you to relax and enjoy the festivities. But with so many options available, how do you choose the right party bartender for your needs?

[myosotisa]

Talk It Good - e.m. - part 1

Rockstar!Eddie Munson x Bartender!Reader

‖  summary: Eddie Munson, rockstar and worldwide fuckboy, winds up in your quiet bar the night after a show. You get to talking with him and end up learning more than you bargained for.

‖  notes: implied fem!Reader, angst, hurt/comfort, alcohol consumption. no y/n, no pronouns. 2nd part will contain discussions of sexual content and discussions of dubcon.

‖  word count: 3.1k

‖  part 2 ‖  cross posted on ao3 ‖

There was something about being on the closing shift that was immensely gratifying. Especially on weeknights.

While it meant you were thrown into the deep end the moment you stepped into the door, you preferred that to having it slow and easy until you were just getting ready to leave and then getting rushed. It also worked out well for your boss after he promoted you to a shift lead – he worked the afternoon shift and then went home to his wife and kids. Leaving you to close the place out 6 days a week. The bartenders he’d hired to help you on busier days and around events respected you and overall, it felt like a pretty good gig. Enough to pay the rent you split with your roommate in the city and put food on the table.

Tonight, you were working alone. It was a Wednesday night and the place was real slow which was nice, because yesterday had been a shitshow. There had been a sold out metal show a couple blocks over and the place was packed before, during, and after the show. A busier night than you had ever experienced since you started working there a year and a half ago. Your boss had ended up staying to work a double and one of the part time bartenders had come in, and the 3 of you together were still swamped. After a night like that, having almost no one around was a blessing.

There were a couple of people milling around, mostly pairs of business partners getting a drink after work or a date or a couple of friends getting together. There was 1 lonely guy sitting at your bar but he had made it very clear he wasn’t interested in talking. Fine with you. You were in charge of the playlist coming through the bass-heavy speakers and that was better than listening to some drunk dude talk about his problems.

You were crouched down by the laptop, queuing up your next few songs of choice, when you heard the telltale sound of one of your barstools being dragged out. Bracing your hands on your knees, you pushed yourself upright with a huff to greet them when your voice caught in your throat.

Wide, brown eyes peered back at you from across the counter as soon as you appeared. He looked familiar, alarmingly so, but that wasn’t the main thing that caught your attention. He looked nervous as he made eye contact, to a level it could almost be considered fear in his eyes.

“Howdy,” you offered with a kind smile, which seemed to immediately put him more at ease. “What can I getcha?”

“An Old Fashioned, please.” His voice was a bit rough around the edges and matched the rest of his aesthetic a bit more than his eyes. He was wearing all black, a plain t-shirt stretched across his broad shoulders. His hair looked long and wiry but was pulled back behind his head, leaving only his wispy bangs across his forehead and a single curl hanging in front of his ear. Both ears were pierced but currently without jewelry. In fact, the only thing he had on that was discernible beyond the black ink tattoos trailing down his lithe arms was a silver chain around his neck.

Still racking your brain for why he looked so familiar, you busied yourself with pulling out a glass instead. “Choice of whiskey?”

He leaned a bit closer, his painted forearms resting on the counter with his hands clasped. “Whatever you got top shelf is fine.”

“You got it, handsome.” You threw him a wink as you turned for the bottle and were delighted to come back to him with a bashful smile gracing his pouty lips. While you had thrown out that line way more than a few times to people, especially men who ordered liquor from the top shelf without asking what it cost, you generally didn’t tend to mean it. But this guy – even though he looked like he was trying to hide in a crowd, was still downright pretty.

You could feel his eyes on your hands as you muddled a sugar cube with the bitters and a bit of water at the bottom of the glass, leaving the pestle off to the side to wash, added a small pile of ice cubes, and then poured a generous amount of Sazerac 18 Year Old Rye on top. Finishing it off with a slice of an orange and a cocktail cherry, you were about to slide it across to him when he asked, “Actually, could I get 2 cherries? Please?”

A soft warmth bloomed in your chest at his earnest tone, the softly added please. You were a sucker for a guy with manners. “Well, just because you asked so nicely,” you replied with a teasing smile, knowing you would have given him them anyway even if he hadn’t said please. You plopped another cherry on top with your little tongs and slid it across to him with a practiced ease. “Top Shelf Old Fashioned, extra cherry for the man in black. Wanna start a tab?”

“Sure, thanks. ID or card? It seems different everywhere.”

“Either’s fine,” you assured him, side stepping a few paces to place your used tools into the sink you used to wash dishes when you were working on your own. “Travel a lot, I take it?” You watched carefully to see how he reacted to the question, wanting to get a feel of if he was here to talk or just here to drink. But you also couldn’t deny that there was a part of you that was curious about him and the careful way he held himself.

“You could say that,” he replied with a smile that implied he didn’t exactly like it that way, a credit card held towards you from between his knuckles. You pinched it between your own fingers and pulled it away from him, couldn’t pretend you didn’t notice it was one of those fancy, heavy metal ones. It didn’t fit with the patterns you had picked up over the months. Normally cards like these belonged to people like those business men drinking their scotch, neats over at one of the booths, or the trust fund kids that waved it around to buy shots for the bar on daddy’s money after one too many. This guy was late 20s, early 30s, too scruffy to be in business, too polite and earnest to be a trust fund kid. Maybe some crypto-millionaire kid who got lucky young? But even then, those kinds didn’t travel a lot, at least, not to cities like this.

“So how long are you in town?” You continued on, not yet getting a feeling for him and what he wanted.

“Week or so,” he tapped the tips of heavily calloused fingers against his condensated glass. “What about you? Live here long?”

“Three years, give or take. Enough to get a lay of the land but still find out new things every once in a while.” He nodded, eyes falling to his drink as he gave it a stir using the corner of the orange peel before taking a sip. Not sure why, but a small part of you seeked his approval, so you asked, “To your taste?”

“Perfect, actually. Thank you…?” He paused and motioned with his hand like he wanted your name to complete his sentence. Blinking a few times in surprise, you told him what it was, which brought a soft smile to quirk up the corners of his mouth. “Nice to meet you.”

“I’d say the same but I think I would need to know your name first,” you tried to tease him again, wanting to see if he’d get all flustered like before, but then that fear trickled back into his expression. Too fast to be casual, your eyebrows drew together in concern and you rushed to say, “You don’t have to tell me anythin’ you don’t want to. Just thought it would be the polite thing to ask.”

Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat as he swallowed, he tried to chuckle off the sudden awkwardness that had appeared. “That’s alright, really. Name’s Eddie.”

The name rang a bell, the same inkling that had been on your mind when you’d first seen his face. You let it bounce around in your head for a bit, trying to see if you could come to any conclusions, but stopped short when you saw the way he was looking at you. Nervous, like before, but also a bit shy. Like he was expecting a bad reaction from you after learning his name. You couldn’t possibly think of why until it hit you.

Eddie Munson. The rockstar. Him and his band, Corroded Coffin, had been the ones playing last night, that all the people were talking about. You recognized his face from magazines – he’d been on the covers of half the rags on the stand at one time or another. America’s bad boy with an asshole reputation. A ladies man who partied hard and was photographed with a different girl leaving his hotel every other day. He was missing the leather, the chains, the earrings, his trademark rings, but it was him alright.

Which really made you confused. This guy wasn’t anything like that. The Eddie in the tabloids was an attention seeker with a penchant for violent outbursts: loud, crude, mean. Wrecking hotel rooms, breaking people’s hearts, and doing it all with a grin that made girls throw their panties on stage. He was still just as attractive as the internet made him out to be, maybe even more so, but this guy was nice, normal. At least had been so far.

Ignoring your realization completely to deal with later, you found yourself asking, “So where do you call home when you aren’t traveling?”

And so the two of you talked for the better part of 3 hours. You’d taken breaks to serve other patrons and refill his Old Fashioned, but always made your way back to his side of the bar. He was funny, even a little bit goofy as he got more comfortable joking around with you. He asked thoughtful questions about you that weren’t too deep or prying and you tried to do the same, ignoring when he would skirt around some answers more than others. He seemed to think you still didn’t know who he was and was working hard to hide it. While you didn’t know why, you were fine to let him keep thinking that as long as he kept laughing with you.

“So,” you were pouring out a batch of mixer that would be expired by tomorrow, looking up at him through your eyelashes, “what would you say is your patron sin?”

Intrigued by the topic change but also confused, he asked, “Patron sin?”

“Yeah, like if you had to pick one of the 7 Deadly Sins and say which one you struggle with the most, what do you choose?” The corner of his mouth turned up immediately and his pink lips parted but you interrupted, “And if you say Lust, you’re no fun.” His face immediately dropped, his lower lip sticking out in a pout. “Everybody always wants to say Lust, it’s against the spirit of the question.”

A fingertip circled the lip of his watered down Old Fashioned as he studied you. “You ask people this question a lot?”

Your shoulders lifted in a small shrug. “Mostly with friends at parties. I think it tells you a lot about a person. Or maybe there’s just some part of me that likes making people take a look at the worst parts of themselves for fun.”

“Jesus H. Christ, you really are trouble, aren’t you?” His shoulders shook with a laugh as he averted eye contact to look over the bar again. “Hmm. Well, if you’d asked me this question in school, I would’ve said Sloth for sure. Nowadays…” He trailed off, his eyebrows drawing together like he was really trying to think about it. Which you appreciated. There was some part of you that always liked it when people took it seriously. “I think it’d be Pride.”

Letting out a hum of thought, you could imagine it was pretty easy for a rockstar to succumb to the sin of Pride. “Y’know, some circles say Pride is the worst sin of all,” he looked up at you then, his expression strangely aloof. “They say it’s the root of all other sins.”

“Oh, yeah?” His tone was dry, humorless. “Guess that means I win, right?”

You let out a stiff laugh too, reaching for a rag to wipe down the counter out of habit. “Somethin’ like that.”

“What about you?” You met his eye contact again, feeling a bit confused. “It’s only fair, after all. What’s your patron sin?”

“Oh.” You paused, not used to being asked the same question in return. You knew what it was, it just wasn’t often that someone actually asked for the answer. “Uh, Envy.”

Eyebrows raised in intrigue again, he leaned forward with his long fingers steepled in front of him. “You the jealous type?”

Flushing against your will, mad at yourself for being so easily affected by his charm, you leveled a glare at him. “Yeah, so what? Not like I get a choice in the matter.”

“Just wouldn’t have thought you were the type, is all,” he leaned back again, looking incredibly pleased with himself for some reason. You were just about to open your mouth and rip into him for his prideful nature when you caught sight of a nervous blonde approaching him from behind. He noticed your eyes directed over his shoulder and he seemed to tense up immediately.

“Excuse me, Eddie?”

It was like watching a switch get flipped. His spine straightened, his shoulders setting – like he was trying to make himself look bigger, take up more space. “Yeeess?” His tone changed too as he spun on his stool towards her, his mouth tilting in a sly grin. As soon as he was facing her, her cheeks flushed tomato red and she shifted her weight between her high heels.

“Sorry to bother you, I’m a really big fan,” her voice wavered, her smile wide. “Do you think I could take a picture with you?”

“For a sweet thing like you? Absolutely.”

The purr in his tone made you borderline uncomfortable, but it seemed to be enough to send her into nervous giggles. You pushed yourself further down the bar, not wanting to get caught in the background as she raised her phone with a shaky hand to take a selfie with him. She gushed about his concert last night and how she was already saving up to buy tickets for the next one while you busied yourself washing dishes. He didn’t say much of anything, mostly just thanked her for her rush of compliments and hummed and ahh’d until she excused herself back to her table, barely able to contain her excitement.

You watched carefully as he waited until she was sitting again, her back to him, until he exhaled. It took half of his presence with him as he shrunk forward and tipped back the rest of his watered down whiskey and bitters. He set the glass back on the counter and swiped both hands on the condensation, rubbing his damp palms across his face roughly. Inching back over, you put your rag back under the counter and asked, “Another?”

His hands dropped instantly, wide, brown eyes on you again. “Oh, uh, no. I’m good. Thank you.” You offered an awkward smile as you took the glass and slid it over towards the other dirties. “Listen, about that… I just-”

“I know who you are,” you interrupted, assuming he was about to try to explain the interaction.

He blinked a few times like he was shocked. “You… you do?”

Annoyance prickled at the base of your neck. “Yeah, do you think I live under a rock or something?”

“No, no,” he rushed to try to assuage the sudden tension in you. “It’s just that, you didn’t…”

The annoyance bloomed, your jaw setting in tension. “I didn’t, what? React? Fall all over you as soon as I saw you?” His mouth opened and closed a few times, looking at a total loss for words. “Well, sorry to disappoint, Mr. Rockstar.”

“That’s not what I meant,” his voice was quick, unsure, but that did little to settle your growing ire.

“What did you mean then? Did I ruin your little game?” Hot air bubbled up as you tossed a half cut lime in the trash can behind you. “I bet you were all excited to rope me in with your charm and your money. Make me your next one night fling to get photographed leaving your hotel in the morning.” You scoffed, refusing to make eye contact with him as you continued. “Y’know, I bet you like service workers, pick 'em out on purpose. Tell them pretty lies about what you can buy them while they’re living on tips to get by. They’re used to serving men like you, right? Probably would do anything you wanted if you just asked ‘em the right way, huh?”

When you finally looked up at him, his face was stone. Unreadable. His teeth clenched tight. Like he was waiting for you to finish. So you did.

“Well, if that was your plan, you’d be better off going with blondie with the selfie. Because it’s sure as hell's not gonna be me.”

A moment of quiet tension rang out, almost like there was no other sound in the bar. “Right,” he replied softly, eyes downcast as he pulled at his wallet. “Well, uh, sorry for taking up so much of your time.”

If he’d lost half of his presence when his fan walked away, the Eddie after your little speech was a shell of a man. All of the color, all of the life drained out of him like water. It poked a hole in your attitude, causing a bit of you to deflate, your heart to twitch a bit in your chest. He’s been nothing but nice to me, why did I do that? He did absolutely nothing to deserve that.

Your own shoulders fell, biting your lip as you stepped toward him again. “Eddie, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have…”

“No, no, you’re right.” Pulled a $100 bill out of his wallet, set it on the counter between you. “Keep the change. Have a good night.”

And then he was gone, never looking back once.

Gingerly taking the crisp blue bill between your fingertips, more than double what the drinks had cost him, and glancing over at the credit card he’d left in his hurry to leave, you squeezed your eyes closed and heaved a sigh.

Great job, idiot.

this was originally going to be a one-shot, but now it's 1 part angst, 1 part hurt/comfort. blame @jo-harrington. let me know what you think and your predictions for part 2!

[loveshotzz]

i just had a thought. of the foxy lounge doing special valentines day events.

ex a: for a certain amount of money, eddie, steve, or a woman they hired as a temp to help cover the night will do the renaissance fair thing where they continuously pour a beer into your mouth while praising/degrading you

ex b: for an even higher amount of money (dont think about the gross implications of this, just vibes), one of them will baby bird a shot into your mouth

ex c: they both are sucking on heart shaped lollipops and sticking their red tongues out at people all night

mayhaps they are both wearing baby pink crop tops with horrible romance puns on them. mayhaps they are handing out candy necklaces and slipping people the sweetheart candies that say things like 'eat me' and 'nice ass'. the possibilities!!!!!!!!

MYO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

PLEASE let both of them baby bird a shot into my mouth at the same time. They would be absolute menaces and heartbreakers on Valentine’s Day.

Rick would purposely host a ladies night(gn) every year, it’s without a doubt their most profitable night. bouncer!steve gives out those little store bought paper Valentine’s at the door with a heart shaped lollipop and a drink ticket.

I’ve always wanted bouncer!steve or bartender!eddie to get auctioned off for the night like in Coyote Ugly 💀 I think that would be fun.

[rhubarbar-events]

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[sacr3d-joeyxx]

The New Hire pt.3

Slipknot x Reader

It’s a long-ish chapter..longer than the regular chapters

TW: Heavy-ish Alcohol & Puke

“You’ll be out in 13 shots~”

You smirked and smiled at Sid, before looking him up and down.. and then you saw Paul looking at you….something seemed wrong in his eyes, it was unsettling yet somehow calming? It’s hard to explain but it didn’t matter because you were about to make Sid cry because of how many shots he’s going to go through..

“What’s the alcohol of choice?”

Paul smiled at the question Sid asked you..it was funny yet cute watching your lips puckered into a smile..before the word vodka left your lips..he smiled and watched Sid’s eyes twitch a little bit..

“Straight vodka, no mixers..”

You heard the cooler open and you looked over to see a shorter guy with long black hair and red streaks in the front…he looked kinda cute..but his eyes were the prettiest you’ed ever seen..they were like an ice blue..you could feel yourself staring and getting loss in them before someone else cleared their throat and you looked in the direction to see where the sound came from, it was Jim..

“That’s Joey..he’s our drummer”

You smiled at Joey before seeing what he had in his hand, it was a brand new bottle of vodka..in his other hand were two shot glasses. How long they had this? Who knows but it was cold enough for this one of a kind event that was about to take place in this kinda run down green room.

“Well, I guess let’s get started”

Joey poured both of the shots, I guess he’s going to be our own little bartender for this little adventure. Sid picked up the shot glass and waited for you. You picked up the glass and you counted on to three.

“One..”

“Two…”

“Three…!”

You both downed the shit of vodka at the same time however you didn’t have a reaction to it at all, but you could say the same for Sid..he coughed a little bit and his face turned a bit red before he got in under his control..you snickered at the fact he’s already shown a reaction. Joey pats Sid on the back and tells him to get his head in the game.

“Next round!”

You shouted at the top of your lungs, sending a clear message that this was going to be a long night of drinking til you drop.. and with that Joey filled the glass again, then you both downed the shot..it was like that for a good long while until it was the 13th shot..you smiled at Sid as you both downed the shot quickly. He was still there mentally but it was clear that it wasn’t going to last forever.

“You..don’t look alright over there..Sid~”

He paused for a second before he said he was fine and could continue, so Joey poured you two another round of shots.. and it went on like that again it was round 32. Yes round 32..it’s a lot but both of you were stubborn as shit and neither one for you were stopping until someone dropped to the floor. Joey poured another round and you reluctantly picked it up but Sid didn’t, he mentally tapped out but his body physically tapped out after he puked his goddamn guts out..you weren’t so far behind him either though..went he puked you walked over to him to check on him and you ended puking on him. It was absolutely disgusting..you puked on this drunk ass man and to be honest it was funny according to the rest of the guys.

“Well fuck me, they puked on Sid..”

You chuckled that they found you puking on Sid funny, however it felt like you were about to pass out.. and who would have guessed…you passed out for a hot second as you fell you expected to land right on top of him but somehow you were caught by someone and they easily picked you up in their strong arms..they chuckled and it sounded like Paul.. but it wasn’t but then you opened your eyes again and it was Joey he was holding you bridal style..you looked him up and down before leaning near his lips.. and stopping to ask a question…

“Joey…what’s stopping us from kissing each other?”

Joey looked at you before smirking softly..

“Nothing really..”

You leaned in fully and both of your lips connected, it was passionate enough that Joey to lose his footing for a second but he quickly came to his senses and started to carry you towards the couch he was sitting on before you walked in..while you were busy swapping spit with Joey and possibly getting your rocks off..Paul and Jim bent down and looked at Sid who was laying there covered in puke..his puke and your puke..absolutely disgusting….

“Joey..your eyes are so pretty..~”

You said while having drunk hiccups…Joey smiled and thanked you for the compliment before he leaned away and then breathed heavily before sighing..he knew he had to stop this from going any further..you were drunk and not in the right state of mind..he knew that it was not right…

“I know they are pretty, but you need to get a bath and calm yourself down..”

Joey pats your head and brushes your hair back behind your ears..

“Paul..is there anyway you can get some to help bathe them or at least wait in the bathroom until they are done with showering?”

Paul thinks for a second and sighs..

“Everyone else is drunk off of their asses besides us…so one of us could just wait for them..”

Joey sighs and huffs before turning around and walking out of the green room..

“Where the fuck is he going?”

Clown asked before Paul hinted that he might be going to get clothes for them..they’re small but they’re also around the same height as Joey..It’s been a couple of minutes later since Joey left to get you clothes..Eventually he came back and he had clothes in hand..it was some black sweatpants and a sweatshirt that had a faded metal band logo on it..Joey smiled and looked at you before looking at Sid, Paul, Clown, Craig, Jim, Corey, and Chris..They all looked back at Joey..before he opened his mouth.

“Soooo…whose going to wait for them to shower?..Like I got the clothes sooo..”

Corey and the drunk Sid raised both of their hands before looking at each other with a wide eyed expression as if they were shocked to see each other raised their hand. They snickered before they were immediately on one another on the cold concrete floor of the green room where punches were being thrown and where they would take turns choking each other out..

“GUYS!!”

Clown yelled at the both of them and before Paul and him separated Corey and Sid from each other’s throats..Clown slapped Corey and then he punched Sid and he fell down and on his face before groaning loudly and then going quiet. Paul shook his head and angrily sighed before chuckling and saying that he’ll just wait for you in the bathroom because it’ll be insane if he lets one of them wait for you.

“You’re fucking crazy, the both of you”

Paul picked you up and grabbed the clothes Joey had picked out for you to wear after the shower then walked to the green room door and opened it then walked out and headed towards the bathroom area of the backstage area that bands were aloud to use, and then he sat you down and stood you up so you could physically walk to the shower area yourself..Paul sighed and smiled softly while looking at you…He tried to explain what you needed to do to you so you could get cleaned and get dressed yourself with him having to help you..

30 minutes later

You stumbled out of the shower area all dressed and what not into Paul’s arms..he looked at you before sighing and picking you up once again and walking back to the green room and heading back in there..He looked at everyone else and gave them a glare…

“I’m going to let them sleep with me tonight..”

[sublimeinal-messages]

OKAY OKAY SO THE TRAILER’s DROPPED AND WHILE IM SO BEYOND PSYCHED TO SEE EVERYONE I HAVE SOME OBSERVATIONS. (With pictures). Apologies for the long post lol

First off:

Powers confirmed coming back for everyone!

Five is teleporting, Viktor’s powered up, Ben’s got the horror, Luther has his muscles again

Speaking of Luther, he seems to be all over the place. In some shots he has his muscles, in some he doesn’t, in one shot he’s donning spacegear, another he’s in a ballpit, and they even make him sit in the back of the van for old time’s sake

No Sloane tho?? No sparrows at all as far as I can tell :| idk how to feel about that

Another little detail I noticed was when they all pile in the van together, Lila calls shotgun and is promptly shoved aside by Five out of sheer pettiness. And then she has to sit in the middle

They seem to have a bonding moment in the subway with Lila sobbing as Five holds onto her, which I’m very curious about (and scared)

Diego’s shown at a birthday party taking care of a little girl!! With braids! Possibly their daughter? Talk of a rescue mission makes me think their daughter might be kidnapped

Allison shown with a kid also has me thinking Claire returns which makes me so happy

Allison also doesn’t seem to be shot in a villainous or shunned light, so it looks like this season isn’t intent on bashing her (yet. As far as I can see, which honestly thank goodness…)

The dark circles under Ben’s eyes worry me, almost as much as the shot of him in prison(?) and him seemingly being out of sync with the others. Is this Sparrow Ben perhaps? Does it have anything to do with the possibility of there being another Ben? (Maybe he’s accused of identity theft?)

There’s also Another Tentacle in the promo image shared yesterday which I noticed. Maybe a second horror?

I thought maybe it had something to do with Jennifer since there’s been an actor hired for a character with that name, but now I wonder with the two Bens situation…

Reginald might have his Umbrella academy in the woods again? aligning with the comics. Unless this is someone else’s house. But the windows and white brick match.

Really curious how the academy has been rebranded in this universe to be a house for boys. Six, specifically. Seeing as how Allison is the only umbrella-born girl, it’s interesting to see how this universe has shifted to accommodate them all

Viktor might be a bartender?? The area looked familiar but it could just be my eyes. But apart from his Direct Interview with Reginald, (oooh scary) he seems to get in a physical fight with someone. Which is a new approach for him as a characater

Forgive my shitty captures but if it’s not Luther, diego, klaus or five I’m guessing it must be Ben?? But it’s hard to say, but he sure is going at it tho

Who are the square dancers??? My heart wants it to be jayme and Alphonso but the people here look older to me, so it could be Nick Offerman and Megan Mullalley.

Actually upon inspection the fuzzy square dancer has a matching beard pattern to Nick offerman Exactly. So that’s absolutely him.

Klaus really seems to be struggling again, and has those plastic gloves in almost every shot I see. Him dressing dark and drab also says something about his state of mind as well as the panic attack he seems to have :( but at least they’re all back together 🥲

Looks like they also seem to celebrate Christmas together? And a birthday. Honestly I’m just so happy to see them together for events like this I love these dysfunctional dorks so much

There’s so many more things I’m sure I missed and I’ll be rewatching this a few more times until the season drops (three months!!) but in the wise words of Diego: Let’s Fucking GOOOOOOOO I’m so excited for this. HELL YEAH, THE UMBRELLAS BACK TOGETHER AGAIN BAYBEEE

[a-heart-attack-ow]

The Arrangement. Part Thirteen

Part Twelve

Part Thirteen:

Over time I’d perfected the manicured image. 

The perfect wife and mother. 

Without missing a beat. 

A modern day princess, wrapped up in the perfect clothing. The perfect wedding rings and currated photoshoots. If I was being honest, I didn’t know if I would ever get used to this. All of the handshaking. The fake confidence that I forced myself to exude. Internally, I was sure I’d have been better at this by now, that I wouldn’t be phased by the fancy dresses. 

The madness. 

The money. 

The faces of men in suits who held power they shouldn’t have. 

The truth was, I hadn't gotten any better at being the wife of Colby Brock. Not even after three and a half years of marriage. Not even having a child together. I still felt as out of place as I ever did. I tried to not be bothered by the looks on everyone's faces when I walked into the room, looks of praise from people I hadn't ever meant to impress. I breathe a sharp breath as I walk into the party, cascades of red and black flowers flowing over the ceiling. The chandeliers offer the only indication that there's a roof above our heads. I keep my eyes forward as I walk along the marble floors, my shoes silent because of the music blasting over the speakers. Colby was somewhere in this mess of people, but I wasn't going to bother looking for him. Instead I looked for the bar, my eyes scanning over the crowd until I found it tucked into the corner of the room. I'd never been to this mansion before today, but it was bigger than any home I'd ever been in before. Colby had rented mansions like this out once a month for these lavish parties. After we'd moved from our old home to the cottage there wasn't room for this many people. 

Not that we wanted them in our space. 

I swallow hard when I catch a glimpse of Katrina, Kris, and Celina at the bar. Sam on the other side of Katrina, their shoulders brushing. Somehow, we always ended up here together. A band of misfits that didn't enjoy the black tie affair or the nauseating excess of wealth. 

"Ah there's our girl, looking as hot as ever."

Katrina says loudly over the music as she turns to face me. The dress Celina had picked out for me was a sexy, tight, burgundy dress. A mermaid fit, strapless, with a sweetheart neckline that really pushed up my breasts. Hanging tight on every curve. The dress was eye-catching and I could tell by the way men stared at me as I walked by. Not caring that my husband was somewhere in the crowd. 

"Thanks Kat, but if I had it my way, I'd be in sweats and holding my baby."

I join them at the bar, pulling up a seat next to Celina. She smiles and nods in agreement, we'd all rather be anywhere but here. Thinking of my daughter, I feel a twinge of sadness and a bigger sense of guilt. I hated leaving her at home with a sitter. I hated not being with her, even if it was only for a few hours. 

"I think we'd all rather be home with Eleanor. Do you think Brock will notice if we sneak off?"

Kris states lifelessly before taking a shot, slamming the glass down on the counter top. My friends did love my daughter and came over multiple times a week to spend time with her. Sometimes I was convinced they didn't like me anymore and only wanted to see my baby. I gesture to the bartender who looks me up and down, a smirk forming as he studies me closely. He was the same bartender we'd hired for our monthly events and by now he was fully aware of my order without me saying a word. I didn't know what it was about the men at these events, the way they looked at me like I was up for grabs. I didn't know if it was because they actually thought I looked good or if it was because of the fame I now had. Gone were the days of shy Emilia who didn't know her way around the traditions of the family I married into. In the years that had passed I'd become an expert and sought to grow further from just being Colby Brock's wife. I did interviews, rubbed elbows with famous men and women who'd all supported my charity endeavors. In the past two and a half years I'd made a name for myself within my family. I no longer relied on coaching from anyone and that's how I wanted it to be. Katrina still helped with PR, but her role had turned into more of a friendship than a working relationship. I found a sort of confidence in myself over the past few years and maybe that's what attracted the men at these parties.

The desire to break me.

I give the bartender a smile when he hands me my drink, his phone number on the napkin under my drink. 

His fifth attempt to give it to me over the months he'd been employed with us. 

I roll my eyes and down the champagne flute in seconds. God I wanted to go home. 

"In this dress he would notice her absence for sure."

I shoot Sam a glare as he puts his hands up in defense. In the years that had passed he and Katrina had found their way back to one another. Something that I thought was really sweet, because the way that they looked at each other made my heart melt. Instead, Sam and I had gone back to being friends. Friends who still hated these parties. 

"I haven't even seen him since I got here. We rode separately because I had a work thing that ran longer than expected. I doubt he even knows I'm here."

I rasp as the bartender gives me another glass of my usual. This time I don't bother looking at him, out of fear he'll send me another suggestive smirk. I keep my eyes on Sam who laughs while wrapping an arm around Kat's shoulder. 

"You know, that he's fully aware of your every movement right? He probably knew you were here the second your stiletto touched the ground outside."

A smile finds my lips when he says this ridiculous comment. Even though a part of me knows it's true, because he always seemed to keep tabs on me no matter where I was. With anyone else, I might think it was a little possessive, but with Colby I knew it was only because he worried about me going out on my own. 

"Ooh ominous." 

Is my only reply, sarcasm evident in my voice. A tone that earns a laugh from my friends. I had been so good at doing what was asked of me for so long that occasionally I couldn't help but be a little sarcastic. Maybe a little bitter that I'd been performing for as long as I have been. I try not to let the thought naw at me too much. I wouldn't trade any of this for the world because I was so in love with the life I'd built with Colby, but there were times when I felt like I was being tested for a quiz I didn't study for. I can see Sam try to formulate a response but doesn't bother when he sees someone come from behind me. Glancing over my shoulder I lock eyes with Johnnie who gives me a shy smile. 

"Colby needs to see you upstairs. Said he doesn't want to be kept waiting." 

My jaw clenches at the demand, mentally I can hear the tone of his voice. Colby never liked to be kept waiting and I'd spent years spoiling him by being obedient to his every whim. Whims that I would challenge it if I didn't already know what was waiting for me upstairs. 

What he was planning to do to me upstairs. 

"Thank you for telling me, Johnnie." 

I breathe the words, anticipation creeping its way up my spine. I give my friends one last glance before complying with where I was told to be. Slowly pulling myself away from the bar and back through the sea of people. I can feel myself unable to ignore the way my body pulls myself through the crowd of people with newfound determination. I can't bring myself to care about the other people watching me or whatever they think of me. Instead, I mindlessly walk myself up the stairs of the mansion, feeling dozens of eyes boring into my back with each step forward. Or the way the crowd murmurs amongst themselves as I reach the top of the stairs, everyone seeming to know where I was going. 

And who I was going to. 

What I was going to do to him. 

At the top of the stairs, I see a door directly across from the landing, the door opened a crack. Glancing to my left and then to my right I notice that all of the other doors are closed except this one. So I use that as my sign that this was the room I'd been summoned to. With trembling legs, I step forward, my hands pushing the door open. I take a few steps inside of the room, noting that it's empty. I hear the door close behind me and that's when I'm aware that I'm not alone. I don't turn to face the culprit behind the door closing. I don't need to because I can feel him behind me, his aura electric. I breathe a slow shallow breath and stare at the curtains on the windows directly in front of me. The room we are in looks like a random guest bedroom, not big enough to be the master. In the center of the room, up against the windows is the queen sized mattress. I keep my posture straight as I feel his fingertips go along my spine, lightly enough to cause chills to go up my spine. I feel his eyes on me as he takes me in, appreciating all of the hard work Kris and Celina put into me looking presentable. I smell his cologne, as he stands behind me. His chest against my back, his breath on my neck. He hums in approval as I lean into him. 

"Well, look at you darling. You clean up nice."

I can't help my smile to myself, his lips light along my collarbone. 

"That's just because when you normally see me I'm covered in marker or dirt or whatever else our daughter gets into." 

Along my skin I feel him smile, breathing against me as he thinks about what I've said. It was true, 99 percent of the time I was covered in something gross. It had been that way since Eleanor was born. Babies had a way of being messy little humans and there was no way around it. He chuckles darkly. 

"True, my god does she get into everything..."

He pauses, kissing along my neck. My eyes flutter closed at the contact, his arms wrapping around my waist as I lean back to give him as much access to my neck as possible. Lightly, I feel his tongue dance over my skin, marking me with each gentle suck. I feel my lips part as I focus only on him and the way he's making me feel in this moment. My breathing is uneven and desperate for whatever else he has planned. He hums as his fingertips toy with the zipper of my dress, not wasting a second before dragging the zipper down, the dress falling onto the floor around my feet. The cool air of the room causes my nipples to harden without the safe confines of my built in bra. He slides his hands down from my waist to the top of my lace underwear, toying with the fabric. 

"... I see you're wearing the new underwear I bought you." 

My head feels fuzzy as he slowly drags the fabric down my legs at a cruelty deliberate pace. His head remains in the crook of my neck as he does this, lips never leaving my throat. I reach around, my fingers in his hair. I try to ground myself in reality as I knot my fingers in his hair. I feel his hand slide in between my thighs, fingertips grazing my clit. His middle finger traces the sensitive bud, my knees buckling for a second as his arm holds me in place. I feel my breath immediately grow uneven as he rubs slow circles. 

“My baby doll is so needy. I fucked you this morning, but you’re acting like you’re touch starved.” 

His voice is deeper, his lips remaining light on my throat. He slides his middle finger inside of me, curled and ready to inflict maximum damange. Inside of me, he feels good, my head tilting back against his chest. My eyes flutter closed and a moan brushing past my lips quietly. He lifts his lips from my throat, his head resting on my head as he holds me, finger fucking me without apology. He adds another finger and groans in satisfaction at the mess he’s made of me. Around his fingers, I feel my walls tighten around him. 

“Can I cum on your fingers daddy?”

I whisper in heated breaths, my question pulsating through the silence. Something snaps inside of him whenever I call him this. Something feral and fucking glorious. 

“Do it baby doll.”

He growls, his fingers thrusting further inside of me at a faster pace. Unrelentlessly daring me to do what we both want me to. I feel the nerves building, my walls tightening around him violently, my legs shaking. He holds me up, aware that my legs will give out if he doesn’t. He kisses the side of my head, his eyes never leaving me as he watches me fall apart on his fingers. I can’t think as I release, cum coating his fingers. When I finish and my chest is still heaving, he pulls his fingers out of me. Turning my head to face him, I watch him lick his fingers clean, my stomach flipping in excitement. 

A sight I could watch all day. 

“Fuck Colbs.”

I whisper, my breathing still unrecovered. He chuckles, his hands pulling my lace underwear back up legs. He slaps my ass once it’s covered causing me to laugh as I turn to face him. He looked so good dressed in a suit, his blue eyes piercing me through the dimmed light of the room. He looks at my body, taking in the sight of me. He reaches out to cup my breasts in his hands.

“If I wasn’t expected downstairs in five minutes, I would touch every inch of you.” 

He sighs, wishing we weren’t on a time limit. Without wasting another moment he slowly turns me away from him, leaning down to slide my gown back up my body. He zips me back into it and kisses the side of my head once more. I glance over my shoulder and give him look of sympathy. Becoming the head of a company had pros and cons. One of those cons was that he always had to entertain the assholes in suits downstairs. He moves his body from mine and I turn to face him once more more. His eyes suddenly look tired as he really studies the dress Celina had picked for me. 

Like the men downstairs. 

He approves. 

“I need to give Kris and Celina a raise.” 

A smile tugs at the corners of my lips, my arms folding across my chest. Sometimes, under his gaze, I felt like he was seeing me for the first time. Not that I was complaining, it was a strange spark that made everyday with him feel more special. I lean into him, my hands finding either side of his face. I study him and breathe a deep sigh. 

“They’ll laugh when I tell them that.” 

He places his hands over the top of mine. Gentle as he rubs his fingertips lightly along my skin. Neither of us wanted to be here, but we knew the price of our roles. The price of the life we maintained. 

“Walk with me to join the party?”

He asks pulling back, his hand outstretched to hold mine. Without speaking I take his hand and let him guide me out of the room. The moment we emerge from the room, the silence that had fallen over the guests falters. The faint chatter resuming when they no longer want to try and sneak a listen to their fearless leader.

And whatever he’d been doing to his wife upstairs.

I keep my eyes forward, Colby slightly in front of me as he pulls me towards the landing. Upon reaching the top of the stairs, the camera flashes start. The meeting of madness starting with careful documentation. The fake smiles find our faces with each step down the stairs. The flashes only growing more unstable with each step forward. We pause at the bottom of the stairs, eyes locked on the photographers. 

Posing 

Like we’d always been trained to. 

After a few minutes my cheeks hurt. Colby raising a hand, a gesture that meant for them to stop. 

Or else. 

When the photographers disipate the careful gazes of our guests come into sight. In a blur of flashing lights that lingered long after they’d ceased in my eyes. Colby looks at the men, the pompous look he wore around the men he worked with etching into his face. I don’t listen to him speak as he addresses the mindless businessmen. I only stare at him with a fake look of support, my eyes trained to fain interest. When he finishes speaking he takes his leave, steping off the final step. He joins the party and I am quick to walk back towards the bar where my friends still lingered. I notice the way they look back at me when I weave through the people, the party starting. I keep my focus on my friends, but pause when I see someone in the crowd that I hadn’t expected to be there. 

The woman from the garden.

Colby’s ex that he’d spoken to while I watched on helplessly. The same day that our lives changed forever. Seeing her now, long black hair loose and in a tight dress, looking like a flawless ghost that I thought I’d repressed. My brow furrows for a moment, her brown eyes locking onto mine. The shy demenor she had the day in the garden was nonexistent here in the belly of the beast. I don’t know what to do, I don’t know what to think, and I don’t know what it means. The same woman he’d told to stay away was in attendence? Suddenly, my stomach drops and I hear the ghost of my mother-in-law’s voice in my head.

‘One day he will do what they all do. And you need to be prepared for it.’ 

‘I just want you to understand your role once Colby decides he wants to play with someone new.’

‘You’ll be expected to endure it. You’ll be expected to stand by him and love him, even if he starts fucking someone else’

Rationality doesn’t find me as I feel my stomach turn. How was it that my mother-in-law was able to haunt me so thoroughly when she’d been dead for three and a half years? How was that fair. I’m so inside of my head that I don’t notice that the woman has moved her way over to me. Close enough for me to reach out and touch her. 

“Emilia.”

She says my name, her voice light and soft. For a moment the jealousy and anxiety of what her prescence could mean eats away at me.  Unable to respond for a moment. 

“Y-yes.”

I whisper, my lips parting despite wanting to remain silence. 

“I need you to listen to me before he finds out I’m here.” 

The composure she once had fades as she pulls herself closer to me. Her hands reaching out to rest on my waist as she moves her lips to the side of my head. So she can whisper in my ear without anyone hearing her. 

“The men here, members of the Brock family estate, they’re plotting something big. Something bad.”

I feel my breathing hitch. 

“What are you talking about?”

I whisper back. 

“The board members, Sam, Colby, they’ve been up to something big. My father is a member of the board and I know they’re doing something illegal. Something that will make them a lot of money.”

I don’t know if I believe her, but when I feel her slide a flash drive drive into my hands I feel like there might be some truth to what she’s saying. 

“He’s not like them.” I rasp more to myself than to her, a statement that causes her to grip on me to tighten. As if she’s trying to make me believe her through her touch alone. 

“Maybe, but he’s allowing the board to do this without fighting them. I’m telling you this because you seem like a good woman. I don’t want you to get hurt like I d-”

She doesn’t get to finish speaking before I feel her grasp get pulled away from me. Forcibly, Corey pulls her away from me, his eyes serious as he tries to be gentle. Jake joins him, taking the otherside of the woman, gentle but firm as he pulls her away from me. I look on in horror at my friends dragging her. 

“Please, we were just speaking....” 

I raise my voice, making sure that they don’t notice the flash drive she’s slipped into my hands. 

“...You don’t have to drag her out.”

Both men give me a look, a momentary pause. Normally, when I gave a direction they listened, but today they seemed to be under other orders. 

His.

I give the woman a look of sympathy and attempt to reach out for her. To help her somehow, but when I move forward I feel an arm wrap around my waist. An arm that holds me still to the spot. I glance over and feel my heart drop when I lock eyes with Colby. His face is serious, to anyone else it would look like he was worried about me and getting the woman as far from me as possible, but I see through that. He’s serious because he knows he’s too late. 

She told me too much.

I keep my face innocent, looking at him without any indication that I knew anything. A doe-eyed look that normally landed me in his bed for hours. A look that causes him to swallow hard for a moment before pulling his eyes to the woman being carried out of the party. His grip tighter on me as we watch on in silence, his fingertips rubbing slow circles on my skin. Around us, others look on in horror, but without surprise. 

As if they expected her to snap. 

Like they’ve seen it before.

–

An hour later I’m pushing open the door to the cottage. My eyes focused on finding my daughter.

Home Sweet Home.

Eleanor is sat in the middle of the living room, playing with building blocks with Nate. Nate had gotten babysitting duty, but from the massive smile on his face he didn’t seem to mind. Instead he sat with her on the floor with toy hair curlers in his hair and a fairy god mother wand. It’s a sweet sight and I needed it after whatever the hell I’d witnessed at the party. Whatever the hell was on the USB that I slipped into my clutch without anyone noticing. I smile at Nate when his eyes move to me, a grin on his face as he gestures to his hair. 

“Nelly did my hair, what do you think?”

He asks proudly, something that makes Eleanor giggle. 

“It’s the best you’ve ever looked.” I feel myself freeze when I hear Colby’s voice from behind me. I’d ridden home with him promptly after the events at the party, but after what she said I didn’t know if I wanted to be near him. I didn’t know what she meant but I knew that I wouldn’t like it. He closes the gap between us, his arm wrapping around me once more. He’d been extra handsy since the interuption at the party, like he knew that I knew something I shouldn’t. Like he was trying to smooth out any disruption that had formed in the wake of her truth. I pull away from him and move to where Eleanor is sitting on the floor, lifting her little body off of the ground and holding her close. 

“Tell Uncle Nate, thank you for coming to watch you.”

I tell my daughter, my tone soft as I shoot Colby a look that tells him he needs to dismiss Nate so we can speak. Nelly gives me a big grin and leans her head against my chest. 

“Thank you Uncle Nate. I had fun.”

Her small voice always makes my heart ache, she’s just so cute, sweet, and I love her more than anything. I give the top of her head a kiss, and give Nate a smile before walking down the hallway, my daughter waving goodbye over my shoulder. I don’t look back, I just carry us into my daughter’s room. 

“Mama, are you okay?”

Eleanor asks me quietly, her small fingers finding the tips of my hair. She plays with the strands as I hold onto her. Suddenly I don’t feel okay. Suddenly I’m freaked out by what happened or what it could mean. I didn’t want to think of what Colby was up to and if he was keeping something from me. I knew he didn’t tell me everything because he rarely talked about his work. Instead, he focused on what I was up to with my charity work. There had been an unspoken deal that we’d made when I decided to do good things with my position of power. He did whatever he needed to and I tried to undo it with doing good things. 

Like some sort of tug of war. 

“Yes, baby I’m alright. I just didn’t like being away from you for so long.” 

I’m not lying, going out made me miss her like crazy. Especially when it came to going out to parties. Parties I didn’t need to go to. It was always the same rich assholes that my husband prioritzed. I give the top of her head another kiss and hold in any emotions that I’d been left feeling. 

“I miss you too.”

She whispers, her little face peering up at me. She looked like Colby, she had his eyes and the same little pout he had. She had our dark brown hair, but had my nose. She is beautiful, kind, and perfect. I breathe a sigh as she yawns, rubbing her eyes. She was up later than her normal bedtime. 9:00 p.m. being well over an hour past her normal schedule. 

“You want to go to bed?”

I ask her, quietly, her head giving me a faint nod as her eyes close. Her ability to fall asleep on cue was impressive and I envied her for it. I bring her to her bed, and lay her down. Her fingers still entwined in my hair. 

“Can you sing me a goodnight song daddy?”

She asks, her eyes opening for a moment as she looks behind me. Where he stands, one hand on the door knob as he watches his two girls. His tie is loose, his face soft as he looks at Eleanor. She had him wrapped around her fingers and he would do anything for her. Including singing lullibies that he’d learned through her favorite cd he played in the car with her. She gives me a smile when I lean down to kiss her little cheeks. 

“I love you Nellie.” 

I whisper, standing up and glance over at Colby. His eyes focus on me more serious than before when he realizes I’m not staying with him while he sings to her. I don’t give him a look back, I ignore him as I pass him, my hand brushing his for a moment. He huffs out in frustration before walking over to our daughter’s bed. He sits on the side of the bed and I watch him brush her hair out of her face as he starts to sing to her. He had a beautiful voice, a talent he might’ve been able to pursue if his parents hadn’t forced him into the family business. But I try not to let the beauty of his voice distract me from being pissed. 

Instead, I walk from the nursery and move towards our bedroom. Once inside I undo the zipper of my gown and step outside of it. Laying it on top of the hamper on my side of the room. Absentmindedly I take off my jewlery and put my heals back on the shoe rack. I need to unwind but am unsure of how I can. I remember that the flash drive is in my purse, but I decide to deal with that later. I decide that I need to talk to him and see what he tells me. See if he tells me the whole truth or if he leaves stuff out. I slip into my night dress, its silky fabric hanging on every curve of my body. An outfit change that catches Colby’s eyes when he finally joins me in our bedroom. 

At the door, he closes us in and watches me as his fingers turn the lock. He takes a step forward and I take a step backward. Tension falls over us, thick enough to cut. The united front we’d built for the last three and a half years, seemingly broken after one evening. 

“What the fuck happened tonight Colby?”

I ask, my voice cold and controlled. A tone that doesn’t match my face, my doe-eyes seemingly making me less threatening. He smirks, his hands toying with his tie. Pulling the fabric off and falling to the floor. He undoes the each cuffling and his jacket. Shoes tossed to the side. His belt resting on top of his hamper. I don’t look away as he takes his pants off, his hardened cock causing me to squeeze my thighs together.

“What did Shea tell you?”

He asks, his button-up shirt falling to the ground. He looks at me smugly now that he’s fully naked in front of me. Fuck, did he look good. He always looked fucking good. 

“You’re doing something illegal.”

I whisper, his smirk growing. Without missing a beat he takes another step forward, mine another step back from his. He reaches out to grab my arm when he realizes that I have no intention of letting him corner me. 

Deciding to take what’s his. 

My body is flush against his within seconds, my nightdress pulled from my body. His hands are on either side of my face, his lips inches from mine as he gazes down at me. The arrogance in his face, my body always putty in his hands. 

“I’m doing what the board wants me to do. If I don’t they could vote me out of my position and do worse. I’m doing the best I can to appease them and keep them under control at the same time. It’s an impossible job, but I’m trying.”

My eyes dart from his to his mouth. 

To those fucking lips.

“I saw her that day in the hedge maze. I never told you that your mother dragged me out there because she wanted me to see you both and to tell me that it was my job to let you fuck other women. I saw how you treated her. We’d been watching you when that man came up behind us and shot your mom.”

His jaw tightens at my admission. The fact that I’d never told him in the past three and a half years. I was over here angry that he’d been up to something but was I any better? I couldn’t be sure. I’d kept it to myself because I didn’t want to hurt him in the middle of his grieving of his parents. A gasp escapes me as he holds me firmer. 

“You’re grilling me about keeping things from you when you’ve been doing the same? My baby doll is a hypocrite.”

He chuckles darkly, his hands moving from the side of my face. He pulls back, before kneeling down before me. Sliding my underwear off for the second time this evening. His hands are on my thighs, his eyes locked on me. 

“I didn’t want to hurt you. How is that the same as doing something illegal?”

The question comes out in a whimper as he stands up and lifts me up off of the ground. Wrapping my legs around his waist, as he carries me toward our bed. He growls as he pins me beneath him, his hardened cock grinding against the wet folds of my needy sex. My body betraying me with an eagerness for him to be inside of me. 

“Semantics Emilia.”

He groans aligning with me and pushing into me full tilt. A moan escapes me as my back arches into him. He lingers frozen as his cock savors the way my walls fit around him. Like two puzzle pieces always meant to be connected. 

“How illegal is this?”

I whimper as his lips move to my nipple, his teeth lightly pulling. His cock slides in and out of me with such force and eagerness that I can’t ignore the bliss of feeling him fuck me. I wrap my legs around his waist as he thrusts inside of me, stretching me out in the way that only he could. A hand wraps around the breast he’s not teasing with his mouth. A grip of tight satisfaction that I knew would bruise. 

In the way that I liked it to.

I close my eyes when his lips move from my nipple, to the valley of my breasts. Light kisses trailing up and down. 

“I can’t tell you.” 

He grinds himself deep inside of me, penatrating me deeper. A sensation that forces my jaw to clench. Fuck did it feel so good. Despite myself I’m overjoyed that I’m in his bed even if I was doing a shitty job of getting to the bottom of my interrogation. I’d never made it as a detective if a great cock was all that it took to silence me. 

“Colby.” A warning that I don’t have any authority to invoke. A warning that he laughs off as he peers up at me from the valley of my beasts, where he’s formed a sea of hickeys. An area that I could hide from peering eyes. 

“Emilia.”

He growls, another thrust, his hips unrelenteless as he fucks me deeply. His warning tells me that I need to stop asking. But I need to know what Shea had meant because if it was something terrible it had to be stopped. His hands move to my hips, lifting them in a new angle so he can fuck me deeper. His eyes close as he savors me, memorizing how tight I am and how my walls start to clench around him. I’m going to cum soon and he knew it. 

“Daddy please. I need to know.”

I plea knowing full well what my words will do. If he wanted to play dirty I could do it too. His eyes open as he glances down at me, his eyebrows raised. Not believing I’m being so persistent. I half expect him to be annoyed, but he’s not. He’s turned on.

Like he always fucking is. 

Like he always made me feel whenever we were together.

“Cum for me and I might tell you.”

His words are a command. Amusement in his eyes as he fucks me deeper. His thrusts still in rhythm even though they get sloppier the closer he gets to his own high. I arch into him, moaning as my walls tighten unrelentlessly. I cum all over his cock and when I do I feel him slam as far into me as he can holding me as he finishes. His cock shooting his seed deep inside of me. He holds himself there as his cock twitches a few more times before he pulls out of me. 

I lay there, head spinning as he watches me. Satisfied by how good he felt and how good he knew I felt. 

“The board has a secret perscription that they’re working on pushing out before it's ready. I’ve been trying to get them to test it properly, but they’ve been giving the drugs to our workers. There are severe reactions to the drug including severe hallucinations. The man who killed my parents, the disgruntled worker, had been taking the drugs when he went after my parents. He’d been hallucinating all sorts of shit and blamed my parents for it. I really can’t tell you anything else Emilia. I’m not trying to be difficult, if the board found out you knew, you could be hurt. I’m not risking that.” 

I look over at him and sigh. I didn’t want to know more, not when I needed to stay safe for our daughter. I knew that the company my husband inherited was complicated. But I also knew that I was only here to help use our positions to help people. The drama with Shea had detrailed me and derailed the safey net I’d built with Colby. We’d gotten to a really good place over the years. We had more good days than bad and for a moment someone had wedged between that and I let it. 

“She gave me a flash drive. With information on it. It’s in my clutch.” 

I whisper matter-of-factly. Noting the look of shock that overtakes his face. Seemingly impressed that I hadn’t told him sooner. 

“I’ll watch it with you.” 

He states lifelessly as if he already knows what’s on it. My brows furrow as I study him. 

“I never said it was a video.” 

He nods, looking away from me. He sits up in the bed, glaring at the wall in front of him. 

“You don’t need to. It’s an old video I made with her. She’s been shopping it around for a while. I’ve had to pay off many people to keep it quiet. Because it would ruin our image.”

I sit up, feeling dread quickly fall over me. Unsure of what’s he implying. 

“If this gets out, everyone will know our relationship started off as an arranged marriage. People would lose their shit and not trust us. They’d know everything we built had started out as lie. It won’t matter that we’ve turned it into a truth.”

I feel the weight of his words when he says this, realizing that the media finding out we’d started out as a lie would make everything we’d done feel like a lie. Like we weren’t trust worthy and that it would break up the work we’d put into making a change. 

“What did you do?”

I ask him, an accusatory tone in my voice without meaning it to. He doesn’t want to look at me, but wills himself to. His eyes soft once again. 

“I filmed a sex tape with her the night before we got married. I tell her that I’ll always love her even if I’m in an arranged marriage. I tell her that multiple times throughout the video. I thought she deleted it, she promised she did, but the last few weeks she’s been threatening me with it.”

I feel a pang of betrayal even though he didn’t cheat on me. I just can’t understand how someone could tell another person that and then go fuck someone else the next night. How could he tell her that and then fuck me? How could he sleep at night knowing he’d hurt her like that? I get up from the bed swiftly, my body feeling dirty suddenly. Used. Like I’ve done something wrong. 

Even though I knew we hadn’t. 

Even though I wouldn’t change a single thing. 

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

I ask, mentally remembering the woman who’d been at the house party the night after we got married. The woman he’d been whispering to, so close their lips almost touched. The woman who I hadn’t realized was Shea until now, because that night I was tipsy. I was devestated and married to an asshole only 24 hours before. But now I see it, I see her. She’d been there from the beginning. I know Colby realizes I’m upset. I see it on his face as I grab my robe off the corner of my nightstand where I’d drapped it earlier. 

“She was there the night Sam punched you in the head...” 

I am breathless. 

“...The girl you told me you were only talking to. The girl you’d fucked two nights before.”

I am reeling. He looks ashamed with himself, his eyes suddenly unable to look at me. I sigh and decide that I can’t be here right now. Not in the same room as him, not right now. 

“I’m going to sleep in Nellie’s room tonight. I can’t look at you right now.” 

My words are piercing and I see it on his face. I know he’s hurt but I know that staying here might make me forgive him instantly. I know all it will take is for him to say something sweet and I’ll fall right into his grasp mindlessly. 

And right now I needed to let myself be angry. 

Even if it killed me to do it.