#I NEED TO CUT OUT CAFFEINE FULLY NUMBER ONE

[brunetterightsactivist]

Telling myself to stop getting so antsy and excited and wait the full year that I’ve been back on the pill for it to fully take effect and regulate itself and then my body and appetite and brain are going to go back to normal lol

[jarofstyles]

Reaper 11

Hellloooo! Sorry it’s taken a few weeks to update. So here we are with a cute chapter (enjoy while It lasts) and sort of domestic reaper. 

WC-10.4k

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warnings: a light chapter, sexy conversations, reaper in his element (the soft kind), cute couple things ---------------------------

“Wow, that was easy.” Bunny spoke under her breath as they approached the lounge. She was still blown away by how the club had managed to get away with this, how they totally passed through security in a blink. “Why aren’t we sitting—“

Her words were cut off by the automatic doors that opened up to a lounge for the airline's members. Massage chairs, complimentary snacks, TVs, Charging stations. All in private.

“Have a seat anywhere, baby.” Harry cooed, pressing a kiss to the top of her head and letting her explore the area before he himself went to get them some snacks for the journey. He wanted to distract her, he promised this trip he would focus on nothing but her. It’s what she deserved.

He felt himself unwinding with every moment that passed, he knew there was virtually no way that this guy could have tracked them here. Of course, he could never be 100% sure.

He had grabbed a few different snacks, his tendencies wanting to hoard them all in his duffle to bring with them but trying to be chill about it as he chose what he knew they liked and brought them over to the little table and chair she had chosen.

Their new phones were something she was still setting up. Their old ones still sat in the clubhouse and would be brought out every so often but sitting dormant would be better and no one had these numbers but Viper, Wiz and her mother. Thankfully she was now the priority to guard.

Being the wife of a member? She knew not to ask questions when people said they were being guarded. Y/N had begged to keep most of this from her in case the stalker got desperate and went to her instead, which they’d all hesitantly agreed to. Besides, she didn’t seem like a target anyways. They’d keep it that way.

“They’ve got those mini powdered donuts.” He murmured. “And the charged lemonades.. with caffeine. Some chips. The lemon cookies y’love.” He placed them one by one on the table. “But you can go n’look at the snacks if you want something different. There’s some fruit cups but I wasn’t sure if you wanted anything like that.” He didn’t want to waste fresh fruit.

Considering Harry used to not know where or when meals would come from as a child, he had a complicated relationship with food. He never wasted it. Cleaned his plate. He got panicky about it sometimes but that was something no one else knew. Bunny would, eventually. Maybe he would tell her in London.

There was a lot she needed to know.

Bunny looked at this assortment of snacks, feeling a smile creep on her face as she noticed how soft he seemed in that moment. Harry was fully back with her and she could see his body become less tense as he sat down next to her once again.

“Thank you,” She spoke softly, leaning over to press a kiss to his cheek. She didn’t have the heart to tell him all this sugar would likely have her bouncing in the plane, but she’d definitely knew she’d end up sleeping for some of the nearly 10 hour journey.

“Are you gonna eat anything?” Bunny wanted to make sure he had something in his stomach. They didn’t get to eat lunch and he was definitely drained from the intense waves of emotion he’d gone through today. Without another word she opened the bag of powdered donuts and fed him one, not giving him a moment to decline.

It was then that the ring on his finger caught her eye, remembering she’d had one on too. Married they were supposed to be. She wondered if Harry had ever pictured himself getting married or if it’s something he ever wanted. Something told her the answer had been no.

Harry chewed the donut, brow raised as she had basically force fed him. Somehow, he didn’t mind. He was going to eat but he wanted to make sure she was taken care of first, however it seemed like they both had similar mindsets.

He caught her glance at the faux wedding band on his finger, smiling to himself before wiping the powdered sugar that was surely on the corners of his lips. It was going to be a relief to be away from the whole scenario, yes, but he was excited to play pretend for a bit. To be someone else who potentially never had to worry about stalkers or cartel or trafficking or addictions. They could pretend to be people who’s biggest worries were what color white to paint their new home’s foyer.

“Know they aren’t the gourmet things you make, but those packets of powdered donuts are good.” He mumbled, leaning back in the seat and spreading his thighs as he stretched out. The lack of sleep and tense muscles were starting to have effects and it was annoying, but he would worry about that once they were on the plane. He’d probably pass out the moment they were off, knowing she would be tucked safely in the space next to him.

“I grabbed a few packets for crisps for myself and the ride. A few bottles to drink. They’ve got that fancy water. Swiped a few of those, though I kind of think they’re full of shit for sayin’ there’s all these extra benefits. How do they even know?”

Bunny was so endeared by him, the way his habits continued to shine through even in moments where he thought he was playing the part. It seemed he visibly relaxed as they began boarding the plane, insisting that she sat in the window seat to protect her from any possible dangers. Even in the privacy of first class, Harry knew he could never be sure.

Anytime he let his guard down it seemed to be when they creep made his moves. He wouldn’t let it happen again. No.

“You cold?” He asked softly, setting their backpacks in the overhead compartment but not before pulling out a hoodie for her to wear. The seats were roomy, it pissed him off that there was a massive space between them where the armrest was, but he figured once they were in the air she could find a place to rest on top of him. That would be much better.

“Thank you, baby.” Bunny cooed, slipping into the oversized hoodie. It smelled just like him, she relaxed immediately.

Harry liked seeing her like that. Curled up in her seat with his hoodie on her body, fingers curling around the cuff of the sleeve. Being able to experience this sort of thing made him feel a mix of happiness and guilt.

He still felt stupidly guilty about the fact that he had found the clubhouse. Granted, he knew logically it wasn’t his fault. The guy was a freak, a stalker, a psychopath. He was going to do shit if he wanted to do it. That still didn’t mean Harry was okay with how shit went.

Now that they were in the plane, though, and he had a pretty good feeling that she was safe, he allowed himself to smile slightly. Enjoying the sight of her, the idea of London after being away for a while, letting her see London and hopefully not have to worry for a few days.

“Didn’t know first class would mean y’can’t sit close to me.” He grumbled slightly, feeling needy. It was so foreign for him. He almost cringed at his own actions. Since when had he become someone who craved physical touch? Wanting to pull her body and feel the weight of it rest on top of him? He didn’t have a damn clue. It just happened with her.

“I didn’t think so either,” Bunny pouted, reaching a hand out to cup his cheek. “We have to be here for a while, I’m sure once we are in the air I can sit with you.” She smiled and leaned in to steal a kiss quickly before settling back in her seat.

It was big and comfortable, she was able to fully recline and sleep if she wanted to. A TV for each of them. She felt very fancy, especially when the flight attendant came to hand them some mimosas to start their journey. It’s been a while since Bunny had been able to drink, she was too preoccupied with staying safe. It felt nice to indulge even if it was from a plastic cup on a plane.

“You want mine as well?” Harry asked, raising a brow. He was thinking it would help her relax a bit, maybe enough to fall asleep.

“No, you have to drink yours too. It’s part of a trip, come on!” She giggled, moving to tap her cup against his.

“Cheers to the Davison’s”

“Course. My wife.” He gave her a little wink, a weird throbbing ebbing in his chest. The phrase itself was an odd thing to think about but he knew internally he would be milking it this whole trip. Her fake ring glittered in the artificial light making him wonder.

What kind of ring would she actually want?

He was broken from the thought when she called his name again. It was a habit he had been getting annoyed with lately. Falling into his own thoughts about her, accidentally zoning out. Imagining things. It was disgusting.

“Hm?” He looked at her with suddenly alert eyes. “M’sorry. What did you say, darling?” His thumb stroked over her wrist, gingerly moving back and forth over the pulse point.

“I said, please try and get some sleep on this flight.” Bunny spoke a bit concerned. He had been flighty all week, clearly sleeping at the clubhouse was starting to get to him. The darkness under his eyes paired with heavy eyelids masking his irritated eyes. She wished she could make this easier on him, but she knew a mental battle was always more difficult to fight.

“I’m going to try to as well. Don’t want to drive myself crazy on this plane for 10 hours.” She had a feeling her own anxiety wouldn’t let her properly shut her eyes. It’s been ages since she’d been on a plane, let alone for this long. The movies would help distract her, but having to stay this far from Harry wasn’t ideal.

“I’m actually really excited to explore London, you know?“ Bunny had an idea of what the place was like in her head, but she knew Harry would give her the most authentic experience. “Think of all the food! I mean, British food isn’t exactly the most gourmet but it’s part of the experience. Gotta take me to get tea and fish and chips and stuff.”

“Oi.” He squeezed her fingers. “Don’t knock it till y’try it. Brat. Insulting our food already, haven’t even tried it yet.” The audacity this girl had made him smile. He needed that. Needed someone to be calm and joke around with.

He knew that he was going to have difficulty sleeping. Even up in the air he felt a bit unnerved, not wanting to let her out of his sight. It was a bit of a helpless feeling, not wanting to chance her being taken the second he looked away. Realistically he knew it would be fine here. It was secure and safe and there was no way the man knew where they were with how many false trails they threw out for him.

Still, though, the paranoia hit him deep. He finally had someone he actually gave a fuck about, a girl he adored, and she was in danger. He wanted to keep her safe the best he possibly could.

“I’ll try t’sleep but I make no promises.” His sleepy face showed he may not have much of a choice in the actual thing though. Y/N could have cooed at the visual. His sleepy face was precious, however she did wish he was well rested.

“Well, I’m safe.” She muttered. “Nothing will happen to me here. You are ok to sleep. You’ve been protecting me for so long. You can rest now.”

It only took a few hours until Harry lost his battle against sleep. The lights had been turned down on the plane, snack cart long gone, nothing but the sound of white noise and shuffling from the seats around them.

Bunny wasn’t sure what it was that woke her up from her own slumber, but as she looked over to Harry’s seat she couldn’t have felt more relief. Never had she had the opportunity to watch him sleep, he was always up before her and always waited until she fell asleep before he let himself relax. If he even slept.

He looked so soft like his. His lips parted slightly, chest slowly rising and falling, his cheek pressed up against the pillow the airline provided. Bunny couldn’t help but feel warm, allowing herself to pull the blanket over him a bit more. He was deep in sleep.

Just like that she sat there and watched him, thinking about how important he was to her and how deeply she wished he could be free from the shackles of his mind. For once his brows weren’t furrowed, his jaw wasn’t tense, he was just… being.

Carefully, Bunny reached out to push some hair away from his face. She didn’t want to wake him, but he seemed to stir only slightly, leaning into her gentle touch as she began to play with his hair.

He was so beautiful. It was interesting to her because before she had met Harry, the word beautiful wouldn’t be really used to describe a man, but it was the best way to describe him. He had rough and humble hands, scars in a lot of places, but his face was angelic. Godly, really, like an Apollo. A Hades. That would be a good way to describe him.

Devastating beauty. Look but don’t touch. Admire but don’t approach. Marble skin and sharp features, deep green eyes and raspberry pink lips. Tempting, like an apple in the garden of Eden. Y/N had taken a bite. Perhaps it would condemn her to a life in hell, but with Harry at her side? She wasn’t sure she could complain.

Warm skin heated her fingertips as she watched his face. No harsh scowl, no angry frown lines, gentle face with some creases still evident from how long he kept those positions. They only added to his appeal.

If she didn’t know any better, she would say he was innocent. An innocent soul just searching for sleep, counting sheep in his head. Even knowing better… she sort of did. Getting to see the sides of the man they called Reaper, she had been able to peek behind the forbidden curtains into the soft underbelly of the beast, the tenderness he reserved only for her. She was honored that he would roll over and show her, give her the perspective no one else could ever see.

“Sweet boy,” She cooed in a voice so quiet only his subconscious could hear it. Her heart couldn’t take it, leaning in to place a loving kiss to his forehead before deciding to leave him be. Besides, there were only a few more hours left of the flight and she wanted to catch some more sleep of her own despite really wanting to cuddle up on top of him.

——————

“Attention passengers, we are now beginning our decent into London Heathrow. The local time is 1 in the afternoon, expect some overcast skies with a temperature of 12 degrees. Please fasten your seatbelts and return your seats to an upright position. Please be aware all lavatories are now closed. Thank you for flying with us.”

Harry rubbed the sleep from his eyes with a yawn, looking over at the angel laying soundly asleep beside him. He knew he’d have to wake her up so she could put her seat up, but he waited till the very last minute to do so.

“Bun,” He whispered quietly, letting his warm hand cup her cheek. “We are here, gotta sit up for me.” Harry’s voice was thick with sleep, getting used to it again now that he was well rested. He felt great, would feel even better after one big stretch.

“No.” She mumbled, though her actions contradicted her as she rubbed her eyes with her knuckles. Her lips were swollen from sleep, hazy and warm as he placed his cooler hands over her forehead.

“Yes. We’re in London.” He laughed, watching her eyes peel open and peep up at him as she tried to wake herself up. “Know you want to try out delicious local delicacies so… got to get chipper. Besides…” he leaned over the divider, his face leaning closer and pressing his lips to her cheek. “We’re on a pretend honeymoon, yeah? We can fake it nice. But we don’t have to fake all the parts.” Flirting with her definitely woke a part of her up- a part that was always reading to go for him.

“Hey.” She whined, holding his wrist. “Don’t tease me when you can’t do anything.” Her pout was soft, giving him sad eyes. “It’s gonna take like… a million hours to get to our hotel and you said no to the Mile High club. So… don’t be mean.”

Harry couldn’t help but laugh at her whining, he wondered how she could be so cute. He swore that every day it became harder and harder to say no to her. It was already difficult to start off with.

“I promise I’ll be able to make it up to you more than once on this trip if you let me, Darling.” He said as a matter of factly, bringing her hand up to place a kiss to the back of it. “Now come on, put your seat up and buckle up again.”

He wasn’t worried about the airport in the slightest. He’d been there a million times and every time he was able to get through customs without much of a trace. He knew he’d be able to keep her safe here, this was his turf. They could finally have a break from their worries.

“Once we get to the hotel, we need to eat something. If you wanna lay low, we can just do room service.” Harry was already thinking about laying down in a proper bed again.

“Kay.” She was properly sleepy, leaning against the divider and making a slight grabby hand for his again. Bunny, when sleepy, was very clingy and soft. She tried her best to not be a lot of the time because she didn’t want to smother Harry, but in this instance? She felt the overwhelming need to. They were finally somewhere safe. Maybe they could pretend to just be normal for once.

His heart clenched in his chest at the action. It wasn’t overly baby, but it cute and soft and she craved his touch so he gave it back to her, as long as she was seated.

He held her hand over the ledge as they landed, watching her sleepy figure stand up as he took their carry on’s from the overhead bins. Bunny’s backpack was lugged on his back while he placed the duffle on top of the rolling case, her hand taken in the other.

“It’s kinda hot when you do that stuff.” She admitted as they started to get off the plane. “When you just… kind of grab stuff for me and be a little domestic.”

Harry looked at her with a surprised gaze, brows raised as if to ask if she she meant it. Or why she said it. “What? It’s true.” She shrugged, hugging his free arm to his front. “The whole protector provider. I love when you take care of me.”

He felt a wave of smugness wash over him at her words, smirking to himself as he squeezed her hand.

“Now you quit teasing,” He moved down to whisper in her ear, “can’t do anything yet.” Harry echoed her words from earlier as they walked through the airport through customs. It already felt different, the two of them lost in a sea of people from all over the world. The anonymity was making Harry feel invincible which was a dangerous feeling for him to have. The hotel. That’s where they needed to be.

Bunny stayed close to Harry as the two of them proceeded through the electronic gates, heading off to the arrival pick up to find their designated driver. It felt so different, but oddly relaxing to be doing something other than staying in bed.

Harry scanned the whiteboards and papers looking for the name Davidson until he came across a face he hadn’t seen in years.

“You’re actually mad, you know that?” Harry couldn’t help his accent from slipping out, a wide grin on his face as he went to wrap his arms around his dear friend. TJ had grown up with Harry, the two got into all sorts of business together.

“What do you mean, bro?” The tall man patted Harry’s back with a broad smile. “My boys back in town with his misses, couldn’t miss that—” It was then that his eyes landed on Bunny.

“Bro,” TJ pulled back from Harry and reached out a hand for Bunny to take. “Pleasure to meet ya darling,” He spun her around cheering as she played along and gave him a twirl. “She’s leng, bro you’ve done incredibly well.”

“I’m TJ by the way,” The man was charming as ever. He was likely the only man Harry would ever trust around Bunny like this. Harry’s relationship with TJ felt like it stood frozen in time. The one true friend he had besides Sterling. This man was like blood. Of course he’d be the one escorting them.

It was surprising for Bunny not to see Harry snarling at the sight of a man touching her, but it seemed this was someone extremely important. Though Harry couldn’t be a hundred percent honest with him just yet for their own safety, he quickly informed the group they should get a move on before they spoke any further.

In an untapped car. Safe.

Bunny was watching as they spoke, keeping quietly to herself as Harry had his arm thrown over her shoulder in the backseat. He wasn’t going to abandon her for the front seat and TJ knew that, a bit surprised by the eagerness the man had to get back to her.

Harry was pretty much a lone wolf for as long as he’d known him. Seeing him all glittery eyed and soft for a woman was by far the last thing he ever expected. The same man who used to laugh at the idea of bringing a girl anywhere but a hotel or the bathrooms, was here protecting a girl who had snugly tucked herself under his arm as she played with his necklace.

“Can’t believe you’ve finally got a bird. I never thought I’d see the day.” He muttered, eyes going to Bunny. “You’re magic, Darlin’. Tamed the untamable. I’m happy someone finally got him though. You keep him in line?”

“Absolutely.” Bunny laughed, knowing that to a degree it was true. She just didn’t know how true it was under the surface.

“Good. This one’s a bit cranky as you know, but I know him to be a softy when he wants to be.” TJ loved to tease Harry. There was not much the man could hide from him considering he’d seen him at his lowest many times. Never in his life had he seen him actually commit to a woman. To show her the gentleness that came with his true platonic and now romantic love.

“Now, I don’t know much about why you’re here. I was told not to ask so I’ll respect the wishes. I do know you’re keeping it on the down low so don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone you’re here.” TJ continued, glancing at the two of them through rear view mirror. He couldn’t stop smiling.

“How’d you two meet then?” TJ missed his friend terribly but knew this was the life they both lead. They couldn’t stay in contact all the time without getting found out, so it made every moment together precious.

Bunny looked up at him, expecting to hear it from his perspective. Wanted to hear how he was going to explain it to his friend. How honest he’d be with her right beside him.

“She’s uh… she’s Sterling’s sister.” He said quietly. He knew that was somewhat scandalous, considering it was a very normal and expected thing to stay far, far away from your mate’s sister. Harry never was good with rules.

“No Fuckin’ way.” TJ muttered. “Does he know?” His eyes widened, looking in the mirror with shock on his face. He couldn’t imagine Sterling being okay with this.

“No.” Harry clenched his jaw. “He went off the grid when his father passed and his girl left him. I’m sure he’ll turn up again soon but…. He left me in charge.”

“So you shag his little sister?” TJ barked out a laugh. “That isn’t what he meant by take care of her.”

“Watch it.” Harry’s warning was lighthearted because he knew TJ. He wasn’t a dickhead who was rude to women. He was taking the piss, but it was aimed solely at Harry. “S’not just… it’s not hooking up and shit. It’s fine.” He felt a bit uncomfortable saying that out loud for the first time. He hadn’t even said it was more than that to Bunny yet. But it was the truth.

Bunny was half paying attention when she heard the words vibrate through his chest. They took her by surprise, not from the idea but from the fact he had dared to speak his thoughts about her out loud. He was right, it wasn’t just hooking up, he felt it all too.

“Woah, man…” TJ shook his head in disbelief, “That changes a lot.” He was still smiling to himself. He had never met Sterling but had spoken in the phone to him many times. He didn’t seem like the type of man to be irrational, but he knows how protective he was of Bunny.

“I’ve only see the two of you for a few hours and I already see you lot got chemistry.” He really hadn’t seen the man so relaxed in his life. If he didn’t know that they were here essentially in hiding, he’d think he really was just bringing his girl over to his stomping grounds.

“Brace yourself, mate. A Brother’s wrath is something else.”

“Trust me, I know.” He murmured.

Sterling was indeed going to beat his ass. He was going to be bruised and he was going to let him hit him because he understood. In a fight, Harry would win every time, but Sterling would die trying so he would let him get a hit in. It would be worth it. It would be worth every single black eye and sleepless night. She was.

—-

“So are we going to hit the pubs? Drinks on you, since you can afford a swanky fucking nest.” The man punched Harry’s shoulder before he helped them load their bags onto the luggage trolley. The hotel was posh, something Harry wouldn’t have chosen for himself- but it was definitely what Bunny deserved. Thank god Wiz was aware of that sort of thing.

“Sure, mate. Later though. I’ll text you myself but I think we’re just going to relax tonight. Jet lag is a bitch.”

“It’s calm, you’ve been traveling for ages. You stay safe yeah? You know where to find me if you need.” TJ shut the boot of his car and went to give the pair some parting hugs before heading off.

It felt so surreal for Bunny to meet a friend of Harry’s who wasn’t her brother. It’s this version of him that she fell in love with, he was still there. Always had been with her. Viper was right to choose to bring them here, Harry had never felt more at home.

The two walked through the revolving doors with their trolleys being wheeled behind them. Only the best service for one of the most luxurious of hotels in London.

“Davidson, Ryder.” Harry gave the man at the front desk the name when asked. It was funny to hear him say it, it sounded so unnatural but the man was buying it.

“Ah wonderful, the honeymoon suite. The lift is just on the right. Here are your key cards and a folder of all the things you may need.“ The man looked at the two delighted. It was an expensive package they were on, he wanted to make the best impression.

“Honeymoon?” Bunny chirped, looking up at him with wide eyes. “Ooooh. You spoil me.” It was fun to her, playing this role. Her ‘husband’ splurging to get the honeymoon suite and an expensive package. It was easy to play pretend with him.

“Course, Darling.” He turned to kiss the side of her head before taking the key cards and folded from the man, giving him a slight nod.

“Charles here will bring your luggage up with you so you stay hands free. We hope you enjoy your stay. If you need anything at all, just call to the front and ask for me. My name is Daniel.”

“Ace. Thank you.” Harry turned and headed towards the lift with Bunny’s hand in his own. The marble floor was shiny as hell. Not a scuff in sight. This was fancier than anything he had ever stayed in before, and he couldn’t help but feel happy that he was staying with Bunny for it.

Just because he had money didn’t mean he really spent it. Being without for so long meant he was a bit of a paranoid spender. He saved most of it, splurged sometimes on his bike and car, sometimes a subscription to an app here and there. But before Bunny, he didn’t have anyone to spoil. Now? He wasn’t going to hesitate.

Taking the lift up to their floor, Bunny stayed quiet. She had never been a place this lavish, she swore she saw her reflection in the floor. Even as they walked toward the end of their hallway, she was surprised at the grandiose doors and decor. She’d never think to book a place like this, but was thankful Wiz had considered their taste.

The room itself was rather dark in style, sultry if you will. Navy tiles covered the entirety of the open plan bathroom, a pair of sinks and mirrors highlighting the fact it was for a couple. She had to say, the mirrors facing the shower was a nice touch.

“Oh wow…” Bunny spoke under her breath, allowing her hand to swipe over then soft bedding. The bed was bigger than Harry’s, she didn’t understand the need for so many pillows but the gesture was appreciated. Her eyes were more focused on the terrace.

“Harry!” She gasped, immediately going to open the door towards it so she could get a better view of the city. “That’s Big Ben oh my god!” This was so cool.

“It is.” He smiled at her excitement. Harry thanked the staff member for bringing their luggage cart up, tipping him and locking the deadbolt before wheeling it into the foyer of the room.

She was quiet as she looked outside, the balcony door open as he placed his phone down on the dresser before approaching her from behind. Her hands gripped the iron of the railing, hair blowing in the wind as she looked at the view the room had left them. The air was nippy, making him shiver slightly as he walked out and placed his hand on her warm hip.

“It’s good?” He asked, leaning forward to place his face against her neck. His cold nose made her jump slightly, but she smiled to herself as he placed a chaste kiss to the cooking skin. His touchiness never seemed to get old.

“It’s perfect.” She replied, placing her hand over his. “It’s so luxurious. I’ve never stayed somewhere so fancy before. And the ‘honeymoon’ suite, no less. Do you think they’ve got lube?”

Harry barked out a laugh, the sweet moment turning comical as he pulled from his warm hiding place in her neck to gently nudge her around. “That’s your question? Little shit.” He snickered. “I doubt it. But we can get some. Why? Y’want to get kinky?”

The thought turned her gaze hot, eyes wide and full of lust. It was definitely something she’d like to explore with him. He must have some hidden side to him that he’d been holding back, she wanted to see it all.

“Maybe.” Bunny settled on that as an answer, “Later of course. Don’t want to get too worked up about it. We need sleep.” Her voice grew softer as she leaned into him feeling how chilly he’d gotten from standing out here.

“We’ll finish that conversation later.” Harry rasped lowly in her hear, hand traveling to caress the swell of her ass. He just wanted to hold her, touch her. Kiss her. She was right, the two of them needed some proper rest and food after their journey.

“Inside, yeah?” He wasn’t thinking much as he mindlessly started walking them back into the room and towards the bed. Wordlessly, he laid her down on the bed and got on his knees to tug her shoes off. Then socks.

“Can I?” He asked, soft as he wanted to make sure it was okay to be this vulnerable with her. Harry wasn’t one to do this, but he just wanted her to relax. To lay there while he got her ready for bed.

Wordlessly, she nodded. Her eyes rounded, wide as she watched his fingers ever so gently pull the socks off of her feet. He was delicate with the actions, his calloused fingers brushing the smooth skin of her ankles as he tossed the socks to the ground.

“Tired?” His voice was mirroring the sentiment, the nap on the nowhere near enough sleep for the lack of it he had been living with the last few days.

“Yeah.” She whispered. “Sleepy. Want to lay with you.” Her confession filled his chest with warmth. This was the sort of tenderness that he had been wanting more of. Secretly pining for underneath his hard shell, things Bunny just knew, somehow, to say.

“Alright. We’ll do that, my darling.” Fondness was evident in his eyes as he squeezed her foot. “But we need to get changed. Y’want one of those silk things?” She was sitting on top of the comforter but he wasn’t going to let her in the sheets with airport and plane clothes. No way.

“No. Want one of your shirts. One of the soft ones, please.”

Harry knew just the ones she was talking about. They were all so old and worn, his old band tee shirts. They had holes and faded logos but there was too many memories for him to let go of in them. It felt like a sign to him that Bunny had also grown so fond of them, as if she knew how special they were.

“Can you sit up for me for a second?” Harry approached the bed once again watching as she lazily sat herself up and watched him with sleepy eyes. “Just a second,” Harry cooed as he reached to unhook her bra and took the T-shirt off with it.

“There we go.” He hummed, pressing a kiss to her cheek as the hem of his Rolling Stones shirt settled at her thighs. “Go on, under the covers you go. I’ll be back in a minute.”

She watched his retreating back towards the bathroom, her heart beating hard in her chest. Sure, Harry had been tender with her before but this… this was much different.

It was a new. The level of softness and care made her melt back into the bed, a new side to the man exposing itself to her now that they were in a new city. Perhaps it was the jet lag, but she sure as hell hoped not. She wouldn’t mind getting this sort of delicate touch, the warm words and kindness to him, the way he looked at her like he adored her. She didn’t want that to stop.

“H?” She called. He had been gone for a few minutes, her bare legs moving back and forth in the softness of the sheets as she not so patiently waited for him to return. “What are you doing? It’s cold.”

“I had to find these.” Harry spoke as he approached her with what seemed to be a bottle with micellar water and cotton pads. “Never seen you go to sleep without doing this.” He said, adjusting her so head was resting in his lap.

He’d already stripped himself down to a pair of black boxers, hair a mess. He just wanted her to feel relaxed and happy that she took care of it the night before when she woke up. Never in his life did he think he’d be so tender with her, but it just felt natural.

Adding a bit of the makeup remover to the cotton round, Harry found himself repeating the actions he’d seen her do so many times. He made an effort to use the lightest pressure he could, Harry hoped he was doing a good job.

Bunny was happy to have her eyes closed because she swore they could have teared up. No one had ever done something like this for her, something so simple but so intimate. Her heart was swelling with love for him, how could she not sleep peacefully with someone like him by her side?

The fingertips gently held her chin as the cool pad ever so delicately wiped away the makeup on her eyes. She had gone light on the makeup today considering it was a travel day, but she had forgotten completely about it in her tired state.

Harry remembering this made her fall deeper. Part of her wanted to blurt it out. To pounce on him and cover him with kisses for being so fucking sweet. He was being so tender with her, swiping gently over her eyes to get the mascara from her lashes.

“Remember you said not to drag it. Cause it’ll harm your skin.” One of the times Harry had watched her do it, she had told him that she preferred this to makeup wipes because she didn’t want to damage her skin. He disposed of the used round, going to get another and soaking it slightly too fast with the water. A bit dropped on to her chest and he sighed, shaking his head.

“M’sorry, darling. Didn’t mean to do that. Let me just finish this eye.”

Her fingers came up to run over his warm forearm, his fingers holding her chin still in its pinch. Keeping her still while he concentrated on getting the makeup from her eyes and brows, he tilted her head when he saw fit.

“You’re unreal. You know that?” Bunny whispered, feeling his hand pull away but grabbing it back. Both hands lightly gripped it and flattened his palm out, pressing a soft kiss right to the middle of it as she opened her eyes, taking him in. He was exhausted, but fucking stunning. Hair in his face and stubble growing in, she couldn’t get enough of him and his imperfections. Somehow, they made him even more attractive. The scar over his eyebrow. All of it.

One hand released his palm to grab the back of his neck, guiding him down for a needy kiss. It wasn’t filled with the promise of sex, bur rather showing her appreciation. Her affection and honestly, her love for him. A little whimper left her mouth as he pulled away, his smile not enough of a reward when his lips were better on her mouth. “Why? Come back.”

“Let me put this away first, hmm?” Harry wasn’t sure how he’d grown so focused, but his protector was fully activated. He felt a lot safer here in London, even safer in this hotel. Harry could finally do what he always wanted to do, give her his full attention.

Pecking her lips a few more times, he stood up to place the things on the counter. Bunny let out a sigh, rested her head against the pillow feeling impatient. As Harry went to check all the doors were closed and locked, Bunny took a few deep breaths and melted into the mattress. This was so much better than an airplane seat.

“I’m back now, baby.” Harry mumbled as he turned off the lights, climbing into his side of the bed. He was thankful for the bit of light shining through the window, he wanted just enough light to see her in this state.

“Good,” Bunny sighed against him as he pulled her body closer. “All I wanted to do on the plane was cuddle but there was that stupid barrier.” She could finally feel herself relaxing now that they were back in their comfort zone.

“I know.” He settled in next to her, arm tucking her up against his body while he brushed her hair from her face. He was still exhausted, still ready to fall asleep, but it was hard to waste any moment with her. “But we’ve got all the time here to cuddle so… it’s okay.” They both know Harry would have said fuck it and brought her into his lap either way but he didn’t want to risk trouble on the flight.

There was a comfortable silence between them as Harry relaxed further into the bed, her fingers ringing his necklace and twirling it around her finger, the sounds of the city leaking slightly into the room.

Bunny was thinking. She wanted to ask something and she wasn’t sure if it was weird or boundary pushing but now that she had gotten a little taste of him outside of Vegas, how his stress level had relaxed and he had been so attentive… she couldn’t help but be a bit selfish.

“Do you think…” Her words were quiet as she laid her head on his bicep, avoiding his eyes for the time being. “Do you think while we’re in London we can pretend?”

The words sat in the air for a moment, Harry shifting slightly to try and look at her in the darkness but her gaze was kept away from him. She was nervous, and he hated that. He didn’t want her to be nervous asking him about anything. “How do you mean?” He kept his voice light, fingers going back to stroke over her hair.

“Like… when we’re here, can we pretend the stuff at home isn’t happening? I’m not being stalked, you aren’t on alert… we can just be a normal couple who’s on a trip to London. You’re just my husband who’s showing me around where he grew up and we don’t have to dread going home.”

He could hear her choking up a bit, his heart cracking a bit in his chest at the fact that they had to pretend at all. He wished it was real, that they didn’t have to worry, that she didn’t harbor all this anxiety and fear in her chest and he didn’t have to panic whenever he wasn’t with her. He wasn’t going to say no to this. A welcome break.

“Hey…” He cooed, shifting to lift her face to meet his. “Hey, my darling. Of course we can.” Her teary eyes broke his heart again, making him push the anger for her stalker down because it wasn’t the time to deal with it. She needed him and his comfort. “We can do whatever you want. Anything. I’m more than happy to do that with you.”

He tried to also push down the excitement he felt from her calling him her boyfriend. That was a title they hadn’t discussed, he had wanted to ask properly, but the fact she thought of him as that already soothed a huge part of him. He didn’t deserve her, but she had somehow decided she wanted him regardless.

———————

“This isn’t what I remember this place to be.” Harry sighed, wishing that London wasn’t so ever changing. Camden Market had been a place Harry went all the time as a kid, it was touristy so no one really noticed him, the vendors gave him free food, and lost importantly? It had all the necessities.

“There are more markets you’d like more but I think it’s a good place to start.” Everyone came here when they went to visit London. Harry could see its appeal, so many musicians walked these streets, it was home to the alternative scene. “Me and TJ used to come here and hang outback, smoking spliffs and reading some porn magazines. Looks much nicer now.”

The girl frowned.

“You were a literal baby.” Her pout was sad. Harry had been failed by the adults in his life time and time again. So young to be on his own, to be smoking, to be looking at explicit material. It made her angry that his mother had been so up her own ass she didn’t even notice it.

“I know. I had some shit times, but I made it work.” He squeezed her hand. “Don’t look so sad. This is a better part of my memories.”

Bunny scoffed. “Because you saw tits.” She rolled her eyes, but let it go. He was fond of hers now, so. It made sense. But still, she would worry about that later.

“I know you said you wanted to go and shop, so whatever you want. I’ll buy for you today.” He hadn’t had an excuse to spoil her properly before and now he did. While it wasn’t stupidly expensive here, it would make him feel good to be able to buy her some things. Make him feel useful.  There were plenty of stalls for her to get those cute little dresses or the jewelry with gems on them that she liked. He had one other place in mind for last.

“Oh? Am I getting a sugar daddy?” She blinked up at him, batting her lashes. Harry had always paid for their meals and things of that sort but they’d never gone shopping like this besides for the lingerie. That was the other time he got to spoil her.

“You’ve had a Daddy for a while. We’re jus’ adding the sugar on top of it. I will be expecting quite a bit later.” He reached up to squeeze her cheeks, making her lips puff out like a fish. “So be a good little girl and let me buy you some pretty things.”

The stalls were pretty overwhelming. There really was so much to choose from and so many things she thought were cool but didn’t need. However, the hidden vintage shops always caught her eye. There were so many tshirts that were soft like Harry’s, cool sweaters and jeans that were trendy and unique.

“These look cool.” Bunny pulled some cute baby tees off the rack, a striped red and black sweater she thought would go well with all the denim she had brought on their trip. “I’ve never had jeans like these, but I think they’d look cute…” She was sort of speaking out loud. Low rise was something she usually wanted to stay away from, but the way these were cut she thought they’d hug her body well. Make her look sexy.

It seemed Harry thought so as well, his hands immediately finding the softness of her tummy. “You’re picking them to drive me mad I bet. That’s alright, you’ll deal with the consequences later.” Harry was positive she wouldn’t mind, he just couldn’t be able to keep his hands off of her.

Bunny was also on the look out for some things for him, but it seemed that she was looking for something specific. She wanted to get him something he would genuinely get excited over.

His hands had hardly left her and it was a bit distracting, if she was being honest. Distracting in a good way. She shivered slightly as he tucked his hands under her shirt while she looked through a rack, very aware of how they looked with him attached to her like a second skin.

“We are really being ‘that couple’, aren’t we?” She laughed, turning slightly to look at him. Harry’s face showed he didn’t care in the slightest. He hadn’t been able to show this sort of soft affection with her beforehand. Why would he waste the opportunity now?

“I simply don’t give a fuck what any of the people here think.” He replied, fingers tucking slightly under the waistband of her jeans. “Gonna spend a shit ton at this store so, the owner won’t give a fuck after we check out. Do you want me to back off?” He taunted, moving his hands for a mere second before she snatched them back.

“I didn’t say that.” She grumbled. “I was just saying, it’s interesting. You’re like a puppy. A cute, deadly puppy.” That was answered with a bite on her neck, making her yelp and pinch his wrist, scowling slightly at the nip.

“Yeah, well. Puppy has teeth. So watch it.” He muttered, kissing over the mark he had made with his teeth, smiling as she melted back into him. “You’ve got a pain kink anyways. Properly just turned you on.” He spoke against her ear.

“What do you know?” Bunny asked with a raised brown. They’d never had a conversation about what the two of them liked, but they’d both had some good guesses. Their sec had always played off their natural dynamics, but they were both curious about what else hid beneath the surface.

He was right about her pain kink, a few others he’d definitely picked up on from their many encounters. Bunny felt comfortable around him, enough to let these sides of her shine through even when she thought they were hidden well.

“You having fun?” Bunny teased, noticing his hands were starting to feel restless against her body. He only ever got this way when he was needy, but she was thinking their location had something to do with the matter. They were both feeling free and relaxed in a new different country, not to mention it had been a little bit since they’ve been properly intimate. At least in a way that felt fully satisfying.

“I know plenty. I’m having lots of fun.” He said simply, knuckling over the waistband of her jeans. “I’m just thinking we have one more stop before we go back to the hotel and m’excited to show it to you.”

That peaked her interest. Another place? A place that he seemed rather excited about? Harry had been needy all day but it had progressed the later it got, his impatience shining through.

“Oh, really? Another place?” She turned in his grip to look at him properly, Harry’s little pout at the movement of positions making her grin. He was cute. He looked a bit scary to some, but to her he was a mushy, soft, warm ball of fluff. With some spikes attached, sometime.

“Yeah. Let’s check out here if you’re done. I think you’re gonna love it.” He pressed his lips against her slightly sticky ones, licking up her gloss. “S’perfect for us. Especially if we’re gonna be that couple… makes sense we would go there. So hurry it up.” His hand came down on her ass for a quick swat, making her squeak.

Bunny was quick to make her way to the check out, having selected only a few pieces as she wanted to make sure she bought things she truly couldn’t say no to. Her interest had been spiked and to think Harry was excited to go in a shop meant it was definitely worth exploring.

Being in London with Harry was already different than Vegas had ever been. Here, people didn’t stare so much they seemed to be unbothered by the two of them. There was a couple just like them around all the time. It didn’t make them unique, but it felt that way to her. Here in London, Harry seemed to shine, his charm oozed out of him and guided everyone to follow his word. It was different but welcomed.

Of course she hadn’t been able to go out much since this all started so it felt that much more exciting to be shopping at a market, but she was growing her own relationship with this city. The feeling it gave her was like no other.

“Should we go to that shop? You lead the way.” Bunny leaned up to press a kiss to his cheek. She was very excited.

Harry led them back. It was all the way in the back, a large “adult’s only” sign hanging over it as the blacked out windows had clued them into what it was.

“Remember you asked so sweetly if they provided lube for us. They didn’t… but I think we should get som here.” He mumbled, kissing the side of her head as he took their tangled fingers and brought her inside.

A sex shop. Bunny looked around with wide eyes as she took in the pure amount of sex toys, outfits, bits and bobs all over the place. She wasn’t shocked, really, but she hadn’t ever been in one before. She preferred ordering online.

A warmth filled her face as she suddenly felt a bit shy, holding on to Harry’s arm as her wide eyes peeped at all of the things he seemed so comfortable around. “What… What did you want to get? Just the lube?” She asked quietly, as if afraid to speak too loudly.

“Was hoping to get a few things to try with you. Is that okay with you, Angel?” He asked. “We don’t have to get anything if you don’t want to but… you know…” He shrugged. “Figured it’s a great shop for an eager little slut.”

Bunny swallowed thickly and decided there was not much else she could do in this shop besides look around and see what peaked her interest. She was a fully grown adult, there was nothing to be shy about especially with someone like Harry here with her.

The thick dildos grabbed her interest, wondering how I’m earth they managed to get them inside. The anal beads as well, they looked more like balls than beads. Of course, all for one’s pleasure. From her own discoveries, Bunny found she was quite the fan of butt stuff. She owned a few plugs and some beads, but she knew it wouldn’t compare to the real thing.

Harry couldn’t help but notice her eyes stuck looking over the plugs on the wall, a smirk growing on his face as he leaned down to whisper in her ear once again.

“See something you like? Can always try any of this with me you know? If I’d known I would have prepared some.” Harry had an extensive collection of toys. Most of them were never used, he preferred girls to have their own for their play. The collection he had were being saved specifically for someone special, if he found them.

Harry felt like he had.

“Maybe?” She turned to him, meeting his gaze. “I’ve... experimented by myself. I think I’d like to play around with anal, maybe. It could be fun.” She admitted, making Harry’s brows raise.

He hadn’t expected her to just come out and say it, but god, was he happy she did. He would be more than willing to teach her. Harry was, for all intents and purposes,  a very sexually well rounded slut. He had done a bit of everything, orgies and anal and anything under the sun. If she was to have a teacher, he would be a good one.

“Yeah? I think that would be lovely.” He moved towards them, bringing her along. “We do need to have a proper chat about it. Limits and such. Wants and fantasies. I think it would be good for us.” The thought aroused him, though. His sweet little bunny. Becoming even more depraved and dirty just for him. “What have you played with yourself, hm? Your fingers? Any toys?” He was beyond intrigued. The main conversation would wait until they were at the hotel, but this was something he wanted to know now.

“I have two of these,” Bunny pointed out the two different plugs she owned, one was metal and the other was glass. “I remember reading online that the silicone ones could harbor bacteria and the others were easier to clean… but the silicone ones are so soft. The beads I have are silicone. I don’t use them as often.”

It was strange talking about it in public, but it was a sex store. Everyone was in there for a reason. It was then that she looked over at the vibrators and felt her eyes widen, “And this one!! This um… this feels really good. I always cum with this.” It was an average sized pink vibrating dildo, it seemed the vibration was the thing that helped her out the most.

“That’s pretty much it, if it’s not that it’s usually my fingers but… I get tired and don’t want to use them sometimes. Imagine it being someone else.” That someone else usually being Harry.

He looked at her with dark eyes as she went over the list, his cock thickening with interest. Bunny, his sweet little Bunny, plugged herself up. She fucked herself with vibrators and used beads on herself. She was filthy, and she was all his.

“Imagine someone else, hm?” He smirked. “And who were you imagining inside of your ass?” Fingers tilted her chin up again, knocking his knuckles against the underside of it to get her eyes.

“You know…” She mumbled. “Obviously I imagined you. I’ve had a crush on you for literal years.” Her face was a bit embarrassed but she could see it soothed a territorial part of his ego.

“Obviously…” He drawled. “Good to know. Think we should get one of each. Maybe a set of plugs for you. D’you think you’d wear them around for me later? Keep yourself stuffed and stretched when we go out to dinner sometime so I can have it easier when we get back to the room?”

Bunny didn’t think of that.

She’d never considered wearing them outside of the house, never had a reason to really. It was surprising to her in a way that made her heart speed up, eyes dilated with lust. She’d happily let him take her in the ass, probably the only one she wanted inside.

“Yeah…” She breathed out, squeezing his arm a bit so he knew it was his turn to pick them out. He was far more knowledgeable, she was simply there for the experience. “We can do that.”

It had her wondering about what other things he’d imagined doing to her, with her. The handcuffs were certainly something that got his attention.

“And these?” He asked, gently holding up the cuffs with his free finger. “Want to get the softer ones for you, don’t think the ones I have are good for you.”

It was then that Bunny raised a brow.

“Who said I wouldn’t like the ones you have?”

Harry smirked back at her. The real metal ones that bit into skin, they were a bit rough but he wouldn’t tell her no. They’d have to work up to it.

“Because.” He dropped them into the basket, picking up her hand and bringing her wrists up. “As much as I love leaving marks on you, I don’t want you to hurt too badly. They cut you up. And you’re too precious.” He brought his mouth to the inside of her wrist, giving it three little kisses before lowering it back down.

She could feel it in her cunt. Every little smirk, every glance at her, every time his jaw clenched from the chewing of his gum. She was hot and wet and she wanted him to fuck her, soon. He had been extremely gentle with her lately which was always appreciated, but she wanted to know more.

“You’ll really teach me stuff, won’t you?” She asked quietly, picking up a ball gag and showing it to him. “I want you to teach me all the things you like. You’ve got more experience than me but I want to be good for you.”

Harry placed a hand over her hip, gently rubbing and squeezing the clothed skin to sooth her just enough. She had an expectant look on her face, one he had grown very familiar with.

“I said anything, didn’t I?” He hummed, taking in her features. “I’ll teach you everything you wanna know baby. Just want to make sure I know your limits, wouldn’t want to over step.”

Some of Harry’s kinks were a bit extreme, at times even for him. There were certain things he could only do with certain people and it was mostly because the after effects were shocking for those who weren’t yet desensitized. Lucky for Bunny, Harry had seen and been with all types of bodies and genders. There wasn’t much he hadn’t seen, but one thing is for certain. He got high on Bunny’s responses. She was the one who got him better than anyone else.

“Anything else in here grabbing your interest? We could always come back…” Harry was eager to get back to the hotel with this new information. He hadn’t expected to find out the things he had today.

“We can?” She chirped. “Well.. okay. If we can come back I think I’m good with these. We can just grab some lube and go, right?”

Her looking at him for approval also got him hard, nodding at her words and picking up the basket again to bring to the front. Harry was going to spend long, long hours teaching her exactly what he liked and let her experiment with what she did. “Right. I need to get you back.”

Or he may pull her into an alley to have his way with her. That was something he planned on doing, sure- but not till they had their talk.

[i-am-bitterly-jittery]

Five Times Someone Mistook Roman And Remus (And One Time They Finally Met)

1. Austin

[Original post] • [2] [3] [4] [5] [+1]

Word Count: 701

Rating: Teen

Pairing: Intruxiety

Warnings: shouting, accusations of cheating (no actual cheating), swearing, shitty (ex)boyfriends, panic attacks

Also just to be clear Roman and Remus are not in any way related in this, they just happen to look a lot alike

~~~START~~~

This was only their third date, but Remus really liked Virgil.  

They’d originally been sent on a blind date by their mutual friend, Patton (who, Remus later learned, had had to bribe Virgil with cookies so that he’d even go), and had hit it off immediately. Remus was an artist whose work focused heavily on horror; Virgil was a fashion designer whose work could be called “Hot Topic-Chic”.  

But it wasn’t just their mutual participation in counter-culture and fascination with the darker things in life that made Patton certain that they were “soulmates”. No, it was the way that most of Remus’s favorite pieces were about finding hope in the darkness; it was the way Virgil lined his favorite clothes with a cute kitty-cat patterned fabric; it was the way Remus had named his dog Mr. Snuggles; it was the way Virgil’s apartment was filled with cuddly plushies that he made himself.  

And quite frankly it was the way that both of them had horrendous taste in eye makeup.  

But no matter what reason Patton had for setting them up, Remus couldn’t be happier about it.  

For their third date, they’d gone to Patton’s cat-theme café (which didn’t have any real cats in it since Patton was allergic), and then they’d taken their hot chocolates (since both of them were on medications that prevented them from having caffeine) and donuts to the park across the street. It had been threatening to rain all morning, so there weren’t too many other people out and about, but now the clouds were starting to clear.  

Remus wasn’t really sure what had happened — one minute he and Virgil were discussing the darker themes in cartoons, and the next there was a very irate man screaming at them.  

Or more specifically, screaming at Remus.  

“I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS!” The man screeched. “YOU'RE CHEATING ON ME!? AFTER EVERYTHING I'VE DONE FOR YOU!? AFTER I ATTENDED THAT SHITTY PLAY LAST MONTH!? Oh, don’t tell me, you actually are sleeping with that actor guy? I knew it! That ‘stage kiss’ had way too much chemistry! So, who’s this? Your third side-hoe? Fourth?” 

“Okay first of all,” Remus seethed; he had no idea who this man was, but clearly Remus resembled someone he knew, and clearly that someone deserved better. “Back the fuck up! Secondly, I don’t know who the fuck you are, but you have problems, dude. Thirdly, Vee is my only hoe, so write that down!” 

“Oh, grow up!” The man sneered. “You think gluing some shitty fake mustache to your face and changing your clothes makes you unrecognizable? Newsflash Ro, it doesn’t, so stop pretending you don’t know me, and let’s have a real conversation like grownups!” 

The man reached out to pull at Remus’s mustache, but Remus slapped his hand away before he could make contact.  

“Maybe you need to grow up and stop yelling at strangers in parks,” Virgil hissed, but the man fully ignored him.  

“You know what? We’re through! Your singing sucks, your acting is hacky, and it is weird that you’re a full-grown man who’s still into Disney! Lose my number, I never want to see you again.” 

The man shoved past Remus — knocking the cocoa out of his hand — and stormed away.  

“The feeling’s mutual!” Remus shouted at the man’s retreating form. “HE’S BETTER OFF WITHOUT YOU! What a turd.” 

“Y-yeah,” Virgil stammered, drawing Remus’s attention to the fact that he was shaking.  

“Are you okay?” He asked softly, taking Virgil’s hand gently. “I swear I’ve never seen that man before in my life! I would never–” 

“I believe you,” Virgil cut him off, breath hitching. “I do. I’m just bad at confrontation.” 

“Okay. Do you need to sit down? We can go back to Patton’s. Or there’s a bench over there if you want?” 

“Bench!” Virgil gasped.  

Remus led him over to the bench, and sat patiently while Virgil went through some breathing exercises.  

“So?” Virgil asked once his breathing had evened out. “I’m your only hoe?” 

Remus cracked a grin. “Oh absolutely! Nothing could compare to that ass!” 

Virgil lasted exactly two seconds before he was doubled over laughing and wheezing with Remus close behind.  

“You’re my only hoe, too.” 

~~~END~~~

I don’t think I’m quite sold on the title, but I had trouble finding a short way to word what this is (technically I don’t need to put “Five And One” but shut up)

This is my first attempt at Dukexiety as a pairing, and I’m not exactly sure I’ve quite hit the vibe, but to be fair, it is a new relationship soooo

(I picked Dukexiety mostly so I could have Virgil go “who are you and what have you done with Remus?” to Roman)

General taglist:

@royalty-of-all-things-snuggly @pixelated-pineapple @knight-shives @misunderstood-shadowling

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Looking for a Place to Happen

Warnings: non-consent sex and rape (series), age gap, general stupidity.

This is dark!biker!Sam Wilson x reader and explicit. 18+ only.  Your media consumption is your own responsibility. Warnings have been given. DO NOT PROCEED if these matters upset you.

Series Synopsis: There’s lots happening in Birch and you find it all too amusing.

Sister series to Smalltown Bringdown, When the Weight Comes Down, Little Bones, and Fully Completely

Note: We’re starting Sam’s installment but this weekend I’ll probably only be catching up on my headcanons and drabbles because I’ve been a lazy bitch and I’m sorry to those who have been waiting.

Thanks to everyone for their patience and feedback. :)

I really hope you enjoy. 💋

<3 Let me know what you think with a like or reblog or reply or an ask! Love ya!

Chapter 1: I've got a job, I explore

💀💀💀

The sleepy town of Birch was awake. 

In those last weeks, the arrival of outsiders had roused the attention of many once passive residents of the timeless territory. Those brick buildings unchanged by the tick of the clock inlaid into the old tower above the library that chimed every hour on the hour. They still stood with only chips in the mortar but the air tasted different. The frost was more bitter and the sky more grim. An omen of something no one could predict.

It was the perfect setting for a screenplay. The isolated town with its unsavoury secrets and the visitors who threatened to bring them to the surface. It was inspiring to you, to imagine what was hidden behind the stern wrinkled faces of the town elders and under the jackets of those men who wore the cut of the local club. The bikers ruled the town covertly but everyone knew that Bucky Barnes’ palm was lined with the map of Birch.

As a bystander, an unnoticed observer, just another ant in the hill, you watched from the side and amused yourself with the drama of others. It was like a soap opera or another HBO hype machine. Those things you aspired to when you could be free of this ho-hum town.

The snows added to the natural gloom of the place. The deep heaps smothered the noise and harkened back to those days of colonial settlement. Forgotten, desolate, fearful. 

You ventured down in your heavy boots that stretched to your knees and pushed your chin down into your scarf. As a child, you ran and jumped in those piles, now you were out of breath just trying to walk past them.

You stopped in the bakery that doubled as the only café, a place where the owner, Babs, tried to to intimidate the last caffeinated trends. She was always a few seasons behind but you didn’t mind so much. 

You ordered the salted caramel mocha and waited patiently as the quiet woman fought with the steaming machines. She was older than you but you’d work with her for one summer during high school, only five years ago. She had the eyes of a child still, but there was something worn in her. As if she’d been exposed to far too much in her three or so decades in that place. She was a harbinger of what you didn’t want to become.

You thanked her for your drink and set out once more into the billowing winds. Birch winters were never kind but this one was crueler than most. Your teeth chattered as you blew the steam away from the lid and hugged it with your mittened hands.

You stopped short as you heard the familiar ding of the diner door across the street. You recognised the mechanic who kept to herself and once growled at you in the grocery store. She stormed across the street, followed closely and quickly by a black-haired man you’d only seen once before. He was one of those outsiders who came to deal with the club men.

You sped up as you sensed chaos brewing and pulled out your phone as you balanced your paper cup in your other hand. You flicked your camera on just as you got to the front of the shop and the man grabbed the mechanic. You let out an ‘oop’ as she turned on him and you aimed the lens at the couple as they fell into the snow, the man’s shoes giving little traction to his steps. 

You moved closer, stunned by the scene, and kept your cell phone rolling as you found a better angle around the snowy walks. As she choked him on the ground he elbowed her and she coughed as she rolled away. She snarled as he clamoured to his feet, slipping and sliding as he marched away.

You killed the recording and watched the man cross the street again, nearly wiping out as he did and when you looked back to the mechanic, she was gone behind the clattering door. You chuckled to yourself and tucked away your cell. It was prime footage for TikTok; with a bit of editing, it would be comedy gold.

💀

You stomped up the steps of your grandmother’s house, this time through the front door as you heard her chair rocking in the front room. You usually took the stairs in the back as you paid her to live on the upper floor of the duplex. You checked in with her daily, she didn’t get out much more than the occasional trip to the grocery store when you couldn’t or you dragged her out to join you for a tea at Babs’.

“You’re late,” she grumbled as you set your cup down and unzipped your coat.

“For what?” you scoffed.

“It’s after noon and you don’t even come down to say hello? A ‘good morning, nan’,” she harrumphed.

You chuckled and hung your coat before shoving your boots over on the mat. You grabbed your mocha and leaned on the doorway as you watched her crocheting in her chair, reruns of some court show playing from the boxy television.

“I was working,” you said, “sent in some stuff for review. Hopefully not much work to be done.”

“I don’t know how you make money on that interweb,” she bemoaned, “I don’t trust it.”

“Maybe you’d trust it more if you used the Netflix subscription I got you,” you crossed your arms, “then you wouldn’t have to watch trash daytime TV.”

She shrugged and muttered under her breath. She could be crotchety but you liked her sense of humour. Your aunts and uncles never came around because they just took it as spite. You were the only one who knew how to handle the jaded old lady.

“Maybe you coulda looked out the window,” you snickered, “quite a show going on in town.”

“Hmm, what’s that?” she stilled her needles and reached for her tea stained cup.

“Just a fight. You wouldn’t believe it, that lady mechanic beat the shit--”

“Language,” she huffed.

“Anyway, she had this guy in a chokehold. It was awesome.”

“What guy?” she squinted at you over her glasses.

“I dunno. Some out of towner. Remember I told you about that burly dude hanging around the library?”

“There’s more?” she sucked on her teeth, “those bikers have never been good news and now they’re bringing in more.”

“Yeah, well, what’re you gonna do?” you sniffed as you took out your phone and rewatched the scuffle with the volume down. You shook your head and opened up your TikTok. 

“I don’t understand why you’re always on your dang phone,” your grandmother pestered.

“I’m not always on my phone,” you smiled at her smugly, “there are those time when I’m listening to you prattle on or you know, making you tea, oh, and cooking you dinner. What was it I did last week? Oh that’s right, I got Pippin out of the crawlspace.”

“I’m too old to be chasin’ that cat all around,” she huffed, “where is he anyway?”

“He’s your cat, I don’t know? Last time I saw him, I sent him back out the window for shredding my charger.”

“He knows you need to give it a rest,” she laughed to herself, “got your nose to that screen too much.”

“And what do you do, old lady? Crocheting doilies to put where exactly?”

She gave you that dry smile, the one that said watch it but carried a hint of humour still. You hit post and put your phone away as you waved off her irritation.

“Well, you know what, I sit all day at my computer, doing who knows what and you know what it got me?” you taunted, “a large mocha!” you sipped as you sat on the sofa and grabbed the remote, “and it’s paying my rent and putting bullet points on my resume.”

“Mhmm,” she scowled, “just remember, real life ain’t online. Those videos you’re always laughing at like hyena, that’s not reality. You forget it and it’ll come back and bit you. ‘Specially with those bikers.”

“Oh, nan, you know too well, don’t you? Didn’t you have a fling with one back in your hippie phase?”

“Two, actually,” she raised her brows, “I was young and stupid. Not like you, but still.”

“I love you too,” you chirped and sipped from your cup, flicking the station to Jerry Springer, “that’s more like it.”

💀

Your usual TikToks were sarcastic and dull complaints about your small town life. The response was less than pleasing but it gave you an outlet to vent. You liked to goof around and document the very specific type of weirdos that resided in Birch. But the video of the fight in the snow blew up your phone and made it difficult to ignore the buzzing as you went back up to your room to eke out the last of your captions for the ad agency.

When at last you could call your day hard-earned, you logged off and sent in your hours to the agency. Social media promotion was easy enough but the working gigs for a thousand different companies was tedious. You hoped you could build your portfolio enough to manage a single corporate page as you continued to chip away at your creative outlets.

You picked up your phone as you waited for Netflix to load on your tiny smart tv and flopped onto your bed, not two feet from your desk. You hit the icon in the upper panel of your phone and scrolled through the notifications, pausing to turn on another episode of the cable sitcom from ten years before. You snorted as you read each comment but the number under the video made your eyes round. The thing was bound to go viral.

As usual, you went down to help with supper. Pippin, the orange tabby, returned to cry at his dish and you fed him too. Your nan peered through her glasses at a crossword as she tasted the tangy pasta sauce. 

“More basil,” she snipped.

“Well, I asked if you wanted to help,” you muttered, “I think it’s good.”

“Hmmp, I need milk,” she jutted her chin out, “for my after-dinner tea.”

“You couldn’t say something like three hours ago?” you blinked.

“I could have but I didn’t,” she snickered. You rolled your eyes and she took another forkful of penne and filled in another line on her puzzle, “ah, no hurry, girlie, you know I’m patient.”

“Patient? You?” you chuckled as you took your plate and shoved it in the microwave to keep it warm. The ancient thing had a dial and the door stuck, “I’ll just go get it over with.”

“Don’t forget your mitts,” she called after you as you tramped into the front room, “it’s cold.”

You pulled on your knitted cap and matching mitts. You zipped up your parka and shoved your feet into the deep boots. You grabbed your wallet and buried it in the spacious pocket. You bounced out the front door and down the steps as the sky sent down another coat of powder for the night.

You went up White Forge Street and through the short path behind the diner that led to the main road. You glanced over at The Asp, the beacon of the dull town, and turned towards the grocer. Like anywhere in Birch, the store was outdated and stuffy. It felt like stepping into another time with the paper bags and chunky tills.

You went down the center aisle and stopped at the fridge to search through the frosted glass. Your nan only drank whole milk and the last time you carelessly grabbed skim, she whined that even Pippin wouldn’t drink it. She was particular but that was just her nature. You couldn’t say you were any less fussy in some instances.

You grabbed a jug and the door slapped closed against the worn rubber seal. You headed up the candy aisle and brushed your woolly thumb over your chin as you considered gummy bears or Reeses’ Pieces.

“Hard choice?” The deep voice jolted you.

You snatched the box of chocolate and looked over at the man in leather, his chin tucked down behind the collar as snow dusted his shoulders.

“Sure,” you said as you brushed past him.

The cut of the leather told you he was better not entertained. While you thought the men amusing, you weren’t stupid enough to engage with them. You rarely listened to your grandmother but she was wise in her own way. 

You knew a girl in highschool, she was fucking around with one of the club men in her junior year, she ended up with a baby and no support. You didn’t think he was into you that way but he could hardly have innocent intentions.

“How’s the old lady?” Clayton asked as he rung in your order at the end of the belt, you moved along with the groceries and pulled out your wallet.

“The usual, you know? She’s tryna quit again. Don’t know how long it’ll last.”

“Oh yeah? I’ll keep a carton aside for her,” he kidded as you felt your phone vibing in your back pocket.

“Don’t encourage her,” you swiped your card and punched in your pin, “although I don’t know what’s worse; the smoke or her sucking on those mints all the time.”

“Oh, it’s not the bitchin’?” he laughed.

“That, too,” you scooped up the paper bag and put your wallet away, “have a good one.”

As you came to the end of the first counter, you were nearly cut off by the club member as he swept around from till two. His own purchase of a car magazine and jerky was tucked under his arm.

“Ah, sorry,” he smiled, a sparkling smile, almost charming.

“No worries,” you continued on and he followed close behind.

“Those mitts look real warm. ‘Specially in this weather,” he said as you pushed open the door.

“Uh huh,” you kept on as your boots crunched out into the snow.

“You know where I can get a pair. Leather isn’t exactly thermal, you know?”

“These? My nan made ‘em. I’m sure Clayton got some hung up back there,” you looked across the street as you stepped up onto the ledge of snow between the sidewalk and the road.

“Am I bothering you?” he asked.

You looked at him dumbly and almost laughed in his face. You glanced back across the street then down towards The Asp.

“Sorta,” you answered.

“Make you a deal. Leave ya alone for your name.”

You eyed him. He was older than you like many of the Commandos. At least a decade, likely more than that. You chewed on your hesitation and cradled the bag more firmly against your side. His eyes strayed as he tried to see through the thick layer of your coat.

“Nah, I’m not s’posed to talk to strangers,” you said and hopped off onto the road.

You heard him behind you as he struggled to follow and as you came up to the other side, he came parallel with you and kept stride with you easily.

“I know you’re young but you’re not a kid,” he intoned, “what’s the harm in a name?”

“It’s a small town,” you stopped short of the end of White Forge, “I think I know enough about you to avoid you.”

“Oh ho, is that it? Well, I’m Sam, I’m not a stranger now, am I?”

“Not interested, Sam. Sure there’s women your own age over at the bar,” you nodded behind him.

“You wanna come see? Maybe have a drink?” he gave a crooked grin.

“You don’t give up, do you?” you shook your head, put off by his forwardness.

“Well?”

“Not tonight, Sam,” you turned around and headed down White Forge.

“Then what night?” he asked but you didn’t answer and he didn’t follow.

You turned down onto your street and refused to look back in case. It would be best not to mention the run-in to your nan, she was paranoid enough as it was. Besides, you’d forget about it by the end of next week.

[contemplativepancakes]

sunsets for somebody else

Daphne runs into her long lost husband arguing with another man in the grocery store. Things start to take a turn when she realizes they're married.

The bottle of bleach drops from Daphne’s hand into her cart, landing with a sloshing thud as she takes in the scene in front of her, frozen in her tracks. Emmanuel is standing right in front of her, arguing with another man about cleaning supplies.

Wearing a beige trench coat for some inexplicable reason—it’s almost 90 degrees outside—Emmanuel listens to a man who’s explaining in minute detail how to clean an oven. They’re both wearing wedding rings, and Daphne’s heart swells for a moment before she realizes it’s a different ring from the one she gave Emmanuel all those years ago.

“Dean, I don’t think this is safe for Jack. This is going to create noxious fumes,” Emmanuel says, squinting at the ingredients of the cleaner apparently-Dean had thrust at him.

Dean pinches the bridge of his nose, and Daphne squeezes the handle of her shopping cart harder, feeling faint. It’s not every day you come across your long lost husband at the Stop N’ Shop.

“I think the kid can take some fumes,” Dean says, plucking the bottle out of Emmanuel’s hands and putting it in the cart. “We wouldn’t even have to worry about this if someone didn’t let the pizza fall onto the bottom of the oven.”

“The directions said to put it directly on the middle rack!” Emmanuel protests, and Dean rubs a hand down Emmanuel’s back in a familiar way that makes Daphne’s stomach roil.

She’s not jealous, she’s not. She was just helping Emmanuel when she found him, after all. Their marriage was simply one of…convenience for Emmanuel. It’s not like he had a birth certificate with him, or a social security number. What did Daphne get out of all this? Well. Daphne looks at his cheek bones wistfully, her gaze dipping down to his strong forearms his trench coat is rolled up to reveal.

Dean rolls his eyes fondly, and then he tugs Emmanuel into his side, kissing him on the temple. Daphne jerks her stare away for a moment before returning it, noticing now that their wedding rings match.

“Emmanuel?” she chokes out, against her better judgment.

For a long second, she doesn’t think Emmanuel heard her, but he turns around. “Daphne?”

Daphne nods, her words forsaking her. She doesn’t miss the way Dean clutches possessively at Emmanuel’s hip.

“I…thought you were dead,” she finally says. “I filed a missing person report.”

Dean squints at her, before something like recognition passes over her face, and now that she thinks about it, Daphne recognizes him, too. He’s the one who showed up right before everything went to shit. Horror stories of Stockholm syndrome flash through her mind.

“Emmanuel, are you…happy?” she settles on.

Emmanuel gives her a smile, leaning harder into Dean. “I am.”

“Good. That’s. Good,” she says, a strangled look on her face, she’s sure. “Would you want to catch up some time?” she asks before she fully registers what’s coming out of her mouth.

Emmanuel gives her a warm smile. “I’d love that.”

As they set up a time to get coffee, Daphne tries to ignore the glare Dean levels at her throughout the whole conversation. He insists that their meeting be tomorrow, since apparently they won’t be in the area for long. Daphne tries to ignore the warning bells in her mind that tell her she’s about to get murdered and takes solace in the fact that at least they’re meeting in a public place.

Besides, even if Emmanuel’s husband is a serial killer, surely Emmanuel won’t let him murder her, right?

-

The next day, Daphne hems and haws as she debates what to wear. Whatever this is, it’s the exact opposite of a date, anyway. She knocks on the door of her foster child, Alex, to wake them up before she goes into the bathroom to do her hair and makeup. Really, she’s just doing it for herself. She’s allowed to want to look nice!

When she finally deems herself as ready as she’s going to get, she goes back to Alex’s room to make sure they’re actually up. To her pleasant surprise, they’re sitting on the edge of their bed putting on their socks and almost ready. “Excited for school today?” she asks.

Alex makes a face at her. “Never,” they say, but their voice at least has the edge of a smile to it.

They’ve come a long way since they were first placed with her, and even though Daphne knows she shouldn’t be getting overly attached, she can’t help it. She walks down the steps and into the kitchen, deliberating for a moment on breakfast before putting frozen waffles into the toaster. If she’s about to get murdered while Alex is at school, she can at least make sure the last thing she made for them wasn’t cereal.

Alex tromps down the steps, dragging their bookbag behind them, and Daphne hides her smile behind her glass of orange juice. Alex lights up at the sight of the waffles, disturbingly easy to please, as always. They inhale them, as teenagers do, before putting their dishes in the sink. Daphne cracks open her laptop as they wait for the bus, attempting to get some of her work done for the day since she’ll be taking a break later for the coffee. She really hopes her boss doesn’t try and call her while she’s out.

Or, maybe she does. She’s not sure she’s prepared for the level of awkwardness that she’s about to go through, but maybe it won’t be as bad as she thinks. She really wants to know what Emmanuel has been up to for all of this time. She’s still…embarrassingly hung up on him, and it would be nice to get some closure.

The bus pulling up in front of the house jerks her out of her thoughts, and she gives Alex a wave before they race off to get on. She watches them settle into a seat with one of their friends, and smiles at the fact that they even have friends now.

In the end, Daphne doesn’t manage to get much work done before she clambers into her car and drives to the coffee shop they agreed on. She doesn’t really think she needs caffeine with the way her leg is bouncing already.

Emmanuel and Dean are already there when she walks in, Emmanuel with a cup of black coffee he’s dumping sugar packets into and Dean with something with whipped cream and chocolate syrup drizzled on top. She gives them a tentative wave before ordering hot chocolate for herself, settling herself delicately in the seat across from them.

“So,” Dean says. “You were Cas’s wife?”

She squints. “Cas?”

Emmanuel speaks up. “After I regained my memories, I remembered that was my name.”

“Oh.” Smiling weakly, she tries to reconcile that. “You have them all back now?”

Emman—Cas nods.

“Just forgot about me, though?” she tries to ask lightly, but it comes out a little garbled.

“You took advantage of him!” Dean explodes from the other side of the table, making Daphne flinch. “Who the fuck finds someone naked with no memories and marries them?”

“Dean,” Cas chastises, his arm shifting like he’s putting his hand on Dean’s thigh under the table.

“I was helping him,” Daphne says hotly. “Would you have just wanted me to leave him there?”

Cutting Dean off before he can say anything else, Cas looks at Daphne and smiles in a way that makes her heart flutter. “I’m very grateful. I don’t know what I would have done without you. I’m sorry I didn’t reach out to let you know I was alright.”

Dean crosses his arms over his chest and leans back in his chair, taking a sip of his sugar monstrosity. He comes away with a whipped cream mustache, and it’s hard not to laugh as he wipes it away in total seriousness.

“So,” Daphne says. “You two have a kid? Jack?”

Scowling, which seems to be Dean’s automatic reflex, he exchanges a glance with Cas before softening. “Yeah, we have a kid. He’s four.”

Daphne thinks maybe Dean should have been a little bit more concerned about the fumes of cleaning chemicals if they have a four year old, but she keeps her judgments to herself. Cas beams. “He’s very bright.”

Returning the smile tentatively, Daphne asks, “How long have you two been married?”

“It’s almost our one year anniversary,” Dean says gruffly.

Daphne tries not to let it affect her, even if that’s more time than she ever got with Cas. “Practically newly weds, then!”

“It’s been an adventure; that’s certain,” Cas says, smiling serenely even as Dean elbows his ribs. “Tell us about you, Daphne. What have you been doing?”

Daphne shrugs a shoulder. “Oh, not too much.” Mourning the man I pulled out of the woods and saved and married, she doesn’t say. She knows Emmanuel never felt the same way about her that she did him. “I got approved to be a foster parent, so I’ve had a few kids come through.”

“Helping people has always been your calling,” Cas says softly.

Daphne takes a few minutes to gush about Alex, and her previous kids before them, before she notices Dean’s not actively glaring at her anymore.

“That’s…nice,” he begrudges when she finishes.

“What do you do, Dean?”

Looking like he just dropped something on his foot, he stammers before he hastily says, “I work construction.”

Daphne squints at him. She has the feeling he’s lying to her, but she has no idea why he would be.

“And what about you, Cas?”

“Oh, I mostly just take care of Jack.”

“You’re a stay at home dad?” she asks, the thought making her stomach twist into knots and heat rise to her face.

“Of a sorts,” Cas agrees.

God, they’re making it impossible to carry on a conversation with them. Daphne keeps a smile pasted to her face. “What do you two do for fun?”

“I’m convinced Dean thinks fun is superfluous,” Cas confides, even as Dean splutters at him. “But I like to drag him to thrift stores with me. Dean likes to bake, also.”

“I work on cars, too,” Dean says, and Daphne can feel his desperation to maintain his facade.

She tries not to quirk a smile at his discomfort. They chat for a while longer, Dean getting increasingly dodgy about the questions she asks before she finally excuses herself to go to the bathroom. She shuts the door behind her and looks down at the dank floor. Is she getting what she wanted out of this? She has no idea what she even imagined happening when she asked to catch up. Emmanuel running away with her? Maybe in her wildest fantasies. Taking a deep breath to ground herself, she looks in the mirror and checks her makeup, rubbing at her under eye circles before walking back out of the bathroom.

Cas is at the counter ordering another drink, for Dean, by the sound of the sugar content, and she walks over to him. Hesitating before she bites the bullet, she asks, “You’re not…like, being held against your will, right? That Dean seems,” she pauses, “interesting.”

Cas laughs warmly, putting a hand over Daphne’s. “No, nothing like that. This is a choice of my own free will, believe it or not. Dean is much more caring than he lets on.”

Well, Daphne’s not sure she believes it, but. At least he’s happy, and in the end, that’s all she’s ever wanted for him.

[animeomegas]

I can just imagine Shinsou and Aizawa cutting caffeine off little by little as he get close to give birth even he really needs it badly, so he becames really, and I mean really grumpy during labour.

Holy shit, I never thought about this, but you're so right!

Aizawa and Shinsou having to give up coffee as soon as they find out they're pregnant is hilarious.

They both sulk for ages!

Shinsou eventually gets over it and tries to convince himself that he likes decaf. It does him some good to learn not to be so dependant on caffeine actually.

Aizawa though? He's not so easily swayed. He is so grumpy, all the time! Tries those vitamin drinks that are supposed to give you more energy, but they don't work and he can't stand how they taste. Too sweet for him!

Things get a little better when he stops doing his underground hero work and can finally sleep through the night, but he still brings up the fact that he can't drink coffee every five seconds.

(Mic buys him a baby grow that says 'Wasn't worth giving up coffee' on it. Aizawa tries very hard not to be amused, but he secretly is.)

The literal second his pup is out of him, someone better get him a coffee. He doesn't give a single fuck that it's gross hospital coffee, he downs the entire thing and immediately asks for another one. The doctors let him get on with it because he said he's not planning on breastfeeding, so it doesn't matter.

Aizawa fully makes you get him a proper coffee from a coffee shop on route home. He's exhausted and his newborn is sleeping in the back, but he's not going home until he gets his fancy black coffee from an actual coffee shop instead of the gross mess at the hospital (he says having drank literal litres of it lol).

Aizawa fully believes giving up caffeine to be the worst part of being pregnant and he's very dramatic about it (in an Aizawa way).

.

"I need more coffee. Get me some," he orders, cradling his new pup against his chair with one arm while the other held out the empty coffee mug that he had brought with him.

"Shou..." you hesitate. "That would be coffee number five, I think you should take a break and get some sleep."

"I just pushed a seven pound object out of me and almost died. Get me some more coffee."

"Yes, omega, I'll be back in a minute."

.

Aizawa doesn't mess around when it comes to coffee.

[thenovelartist]

The Drunken Vow - Tears of Themis

Number 3 in the "Drunk Wedding" series, here's Marius.

Wow. The hammer smashing repeatedly into his head was a real pain.

Marius didn’t want to so much as move despite knowing he had to. It took him a hot minute to realize the reason he felt like he’d been hit by a truck was because he was hungover to high heaven and back. He cursed himself. Normally, he was far better at pacing himself so he doesn’t get trashed like this, and yet, here he was. Must have made a drinking exception last night for his graduation party.

When the bright idea lingered in his head that maybe he should go grab some aspirin, he took hold of it. Though, it did take him another minute to get up.

And when he did, he realized he wasn’t the only person in bed. His heart stopped.

What did he dooooo?

He didn’t want to look. He so did not want to look at the woman he brought home with him. What in the hell was he thinking?

Had he been thinking?

Probably not.

But still, he wouldn’t do that! At least, he thought he would never stoop that low. Besides he was in love with Rosa. He wouldn’t chose any other girl beside her.

Right?

With a groan, he fell back on his pillow, shutting his eyes and cursing himself for the second time this morning. He was a total piece of trash. Either that, or he was drunk enough to be swayed by some girl who took advantage of his inebriated state to get with him. There were a lot of those types of girls; another reason he tried to limit his drinks.

He rubbed his eyes, only to feel something metallic slide across his face. He barely registered it, but it was enough to make him look at his hands. When he caught sight of a ring on his left hand, he narrowed his eyes down at the unfamiliar band. He didn’t recall wearing any last night. So why…

Oh.

Oh…

Um… does the wedding ring go on the left hand? It was the left, right? Or was it the right?

He couldn’t think straight.

Steeling himself, he decided that he not only had to see just who was beside him in bed, but whether she was wearing a ring or not. Because if she was…

He didn’t want to think about it.

He turned his head, looking at the girl. Her back was to him; her nearly bare back, he realized. The covers had sunk down her shoulders to reveal the fact he could only see her in her underwear. Which started up a whole new round of blushing for Marius. How far did they go last night? Because for the life of him, he honestly could not remember.

After taking a breath, he forced himself up on his elbow so as to get a better look at the petite brunette beside him. As he pulled the sheet back up over her shoulders to preserve her modesty, he took a look at her face—

And dropped the sheet.

That was his beloved Rosa…

Oh, shhhh—

Frozen in place, his mind had come to a screeching halt. Rosa was in bed with him, they were both nearly naked, and yes, they both had rings. Plain gold bands, but there was no denying that they weren’t matching wedding rings.

Meaning they got married last night?

How could that have even happened? While Marius may have called it a graduation party, it was hardly anything of the sort: a couple of his college friends, their girlfriends, and Rosa, who he’d begged to come with him. They were all being responsible, right?

Right?

For the life of him he could not remember.

With a sigh, he rolled back onto his back and stared blankly up at the ceiling. Lifting up his hand, he stared at the ring, and a wave of disappointment hit him like a truck. He’d wanted this. He’d really wanted this, being married to Rosa. But not like this. He had been still trying to convince her to go out with him in the first place. Whether or not last night could be classified as their “first date” when it was really just a “fake date to dissuade any ribbing from his not-single friends” was still up for debate. He had been so close to asking her out for real, but just as he always did, he somehow chickened out and put up that too-flirty persona before cursing himself for it.

He let his hand drop, his arm now covering his face as he let loose a tired groan. Geez, he was an idiot.

“Marius?”

The sweet voice rang from beside him had him tensing up again. He lifted his arm from his head, squinting at the sudden reintroduction of light to his eyes as he looked over at Rosa who was now looking over at him with wide eyes.

He wanted to flirt, to do something, anything, to loosen the intense tension between them. But this was the one time he really couldn’t string anything together. He blamed it on the hangover. “Er… hi?”

Was she blushing? He was pretty sure she was blushing as she clutched the sheets against her chest and turned over to face him. “H-hey.”

Wow, this was so awkward. “Umm…” he started stupidly. “Uh… I think… did we get married last night?”

Rosa’s eyes could rival saucers with how wide they got. “What?”

This time, Marius forced a smile while he raised his left hand and pointed to the ring on it. “You’re in one, too.”

Her wide eyes shot down to her left hand. She blinked once. Twice.

“Holy cats, I’m Mrs. Von Hagen!”

…

Fifteen minutes later, they had gotten dressed and were now in the kitchen, staring at the marriage certificate Marius had found crumpled in the back of his discarded pants pocket. The smell of coffee that Rosa had started permeated the kitchen, and frankly, Marius was dying for a cup. Between the hangover and the headache from his drunk marriage, he really needed the caffeine. And maybe an aspirin.

Beside him, also staring at the offending document, Rosa was standing in clothes she’d stolen from his closet and somehow looked better in than he ever could. Marius, on the other hand, had barely enough wits about him to throw on a pair of comfortable pants and plain tee shirt.

“This… it’s legal, isn’t it?” Marius asked despite all ready knowing the answer.

She nodded. “Yeah. It means we’re legally married.”

Guilt wracked him even more. This wasn’t how he wanted to go about things. At the very least, he actually wanted to remember getting married. Best he could recall was his graduation party had gotten very out of hand and he’d allowed himself far too many drinks. Rosa then recalled leaving with him in a taxi, and she was pretty sure she remembered kissing him—which had sent Marius into a blushing panic because why couldn’t he remember THAT sweet memory?—but that was the extent of it. What had happened after that was something neither Rosa nor Marius could recall.

“I’m shocked at you.”

Marius glanced over to the girl giving him a confused look. “What?”

“You haven’t cracked one inappropriate joke yet.”

Though stunned for a second, he let out a self-depreciating chuckle before shooting her a forced smile. “Sorry, Miss Attorney. Or should I say Mrs. Attorney. Guess the shock of being married to you has really gotten to my head.”

“There we go,” she said with a wink.

She was going to kill him, but he would at least go down smiling albeit hopelessly embarrassed. “I’m more concerned for what we’re going to do about… this.” He pushed the paper over to her.

She giggled as she straightened the paper out in front of her. “I’m surprised you didn’t even suggest ‘hey, let’s just stay married’.”

He huffed, running a hand through is messy hair. “Like you’d go for that.”

“I totally would.”

He froze. Wait… what?

Looking over at Rosa, who was smiling at him with a feisty twinkle in her eye that he loved more than anything, Marius’ heart began to beat wildly. “You serious?”

“What do you think?”

He thought that if she was serious, he would die of happiness. He’d been trying to figure out how to best ask her out, seeing as all his previous attempts had been thwarted. There may or may not have been a painting he’d been working on as a gift to present to her that may or may not have just been an excuse to avoid figuring out just how to sincerely ask her out. Because he really didn’t want to mess it up.

But now… Now it felt like all that work flew straight out the window because…

“Earth to Marius.”

He blinked a couple times. “Huh?”

“I asked you a question.”

He gaped like a fish as his mind scrambled back to what she’d asked. “Do… you mean it?”

She grinned. “Geez, normally you’re the one who’s all cocky, but look at you now. Apparently, I just have to suggest I might want to stay married to—whaaa!!”

He didn’t let her finish. He swooped her up and set her back on the kitchen counter, trapping her in with his arms. “No, really. Do you mean it?”

“Do I mean what?” she asked, clearly a little dazed at their position.

But he didn’t really care, for once. Instead, he was inwardly freaking out over the possibility that she actually did care for him as much as he did her. “That you’d want to stay married?”

She blinked up at him a couple times before a smile crossed her face. “I do.”

That was all he needed to hear. In a second, he wrapped her up in a hug, garnering a squeak from her as he pushed her back and pinned her fully against the kitchen counter. “You really mean it?” he asked again, desperate to make sure. Because if she really did, he was never going to let her go.

His racing heart somehow settled when she wrapped her arms over his shoulders. “Yeah,” she said, voice sweeter than any dessert he’d ever eaten in his life. “I do. I mean, I didn’t think it would go like this, but—”

“Doesn’t matter,” he cut in, squeezing her tighter. “That’s all I needed to know.”

She giggled, saying nothing and just holding him tighter.

“Wait!” he realized, his foggy mind making it extremely difficult to string his thoughts together. “This means I can kiss you now!”

She blinked up at him before bursting into laughter. “Yes, it does, Mr. Von Ha—mphfff!”

He didn’t give her a chance to finish. He wanted to kiss her, and seeing as she was his wife—his wife!—now, he could do that.

This was really exciting. So exciting that not even the beep of the coffee machine announcing the coffee was finished could pull him away. He had a better drug now than caffeine, anyway.

She pulled away first, and he pouted at the loss.

“Much as I’d love to continue,” she said. “Can it be somewhere more comfortable than the granite countertop?”

Oh… “Sorry,” he said, a bit of guilt slipping in as he picked her up and set her back down on the floor. Or, tried to, anyway. She seemed more than happy to wrap her legs around his waist and cling to him for dear life.

“This is okay,” she murmured into his shoulder.

Yes, he thought, happily tightening his hold on her as he made his way to the couch. Yes, it was.

…

By noon, Marius was freaking out again. For totally valid reasons, he believed, so he really hoped Rosa would stop laughing at him.

“I’m serious!” he cried, pouting. “Do you want a real wedding or not?”

“Marius, calm down, will you? You just spent the last ten minutes obsessing over getting me a new ring—”

“Because you deserve it! I don’t even remember buying you that one, and I didn’t even get you an engagement ring, so can’t I do that?”

“I’ll let you, but not today,” she said, grabbing his phone from him.

“Hey!”

“Mr. Von Hagan,” she said, shooting him a stern look. “As your wife, it is my job to—”

“Wait! You’re my wife now!”

She leveled him with a tired look.

“Do you want to take my last name! Because then we have to get the paperwork for that. And we’ll also have to turn in the certificate, right? And wait a minute! You’ll have to move in! We’ll have to get movers and pack all your stuff and—”

“Marius!”

She slammed her hands down on the armrests of the chair he was sitting in, glaring at him with a look he knew full well meant “stop it.” “Calm down,” she said. “One step at a time, right? You don’t have to fix everything now, okay?”

He wasn’t convinced.

She sighed, hanging her head in exhaustion. “Ugh, I liked it better when you were annoyingly flirty,” she grumbled. When she lifted her head, her stern expression had faded into something softer. “Can’t we just enjoy today and figure things out as we go?”

He supposed they could, but he also didn’t want things to take forever. If she was going to be his wife, he wanted her here with him. Furthermore, he wanted everyone to know she was his…

Wait.

He shot into a panic for the umpteenth time that morning. “The media! I’ll have to call Vincent right now and tell him to pressure the news to tamp this down!”

“Unless they caught wind of it already,” Rosa grumbled.

But clearly she hadn’t even been aware of what came out of her own mouth because it took both of them approximately ten seconds to realize just what had been said.

And how likely it was.

With a new weight on his shoulders, Marius sank back into his chair with a groan. His first day of being married, and he couldn’t even enjoy it.

[pascalpanic]

Caffeine Rush: Chapter Two / Mocha

Pairing: Javier Peña x f!Reader

Summary: Javier learns his fate. You take him out to that dinner you promised.

W/C: 2.8k

Warnings: language, mentions of food, tooth-rotting fluff. I mean it. 

A/N: HI FRIENDS if you can’t already tell from my blog, I LOVE red velvet cake and this chapter is highly self indulgent. This fic is so near and dear to me because I really relate to the reader and put more of myself in her than I do others. I hope you guys enjoy!!!

previous chapter || next chapter || masterlist

Mocha: espresso, steamed milk, and chocolate. Beloved for the sweet taste.

To his surprise, Javier didn’t get fired. In fact, they didn’t even mention Los Pepes. He walked in there, sweating bullets and filled with anxiety and caffeine, only to learn that they weren’t the review board. They were operations, and asked Javier what he knew about the Calí cartel. Afraid it was a trap, he didn’t answer, until the man across from him cracked a smile and told him about his new assignment.

“Your work with Escobar and the Medellín cartel was unconventional, but we needed it. If you’ll accept our offer, we’d like to assign you to Calí to head the investigation into their cartel.”

Javier’s brain froze in shock. He was wordless, staring blankly ahead and furrowing his brow. After a few moments, he mustered out all that he could. “You’re serious?”

“Yes, Agent Peña. With the assignment would additionally come a raise in pay and rank, as well as-”

He shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. I’ll take it.”

“We haven’t finished the offer-”

“I’ll take it, sir. Thank you,” he said, nodding.

“Well… take this,” he said, making Javier stand from the chair across from the room and take the file from his hands. “This is the information you’ll need, including your new pay and details. We are asking that you take at least some of your banked vacation time. You have several months of it, Peña. Our code requires that-” 

Javier’s fully aware of this policy. Use it or lose it. Unfortunately, he’d never had much time or want for vacation while chasing Escobar. What would he do? “Yeah, give me a month off,” he said mindlessly as he opened the file and scanned over the front page, in utter disbelief. He registered his surroundings after a second and looked up. “You won’t regret it, sir. Thank you,” he says and shakes the man’s hand before leaving the room.

Now, Javier stands at a payphone outside of the embassy, dialing your number in his pocket. When you pick up and ask who’s there, he laughs happily. “They didn’t fire me!”

“Congratulations,” you laugh as you realize it must be Javier. “What all happened?”

“I actually got promoted,” he admits, the adrenaline and caffeine rushing through his bloodstream. “It was absolutely crazy. They didn’t even mention Los Pepes or anything, just-”

“Are you ready for me to pick you up now?” You ask, cutting him off. “You can tell me the rest over some food. You need it. You didn’t eat that muffin I brought you.”

“What are you, my mother?” He asks dryly, but he’s too excited to be too annoyed. “No, I’ll head back to the hotel. Pick me up in 30 minutes?”

“Sounds great. Congratulations, Javier,” you tell him, grinning into the receiver. 

“Call me Javi.”

“Okay… Javi,” you say, biting your lip to hold back from giggling. “I’ll see you then.”

There’s a click and the phone line goes dead. You start giggling happily, flopping back onto the couch. Javier makes his way to the hotel, smiling. He lights up a cigarette, sighing at the way the warmth of the lighter contrasts the cold and snowy air. 

-

Holy fuck. You’re going on what could possibly be considered a date with a really hot guy and you need to get dressed, quick. You hurry around your tiny apartment, throwing on something nice-looking and messing with your hair. You spritz on some perfume, straighten yourself in the mirror, and rush out to the street. 

Georgetown is beautiful in the snow, you smile to yourself, but you wince as you realize the snow might slow you down. Your car is a piece of shit, you have to admit, but you love it. Her name is Whitney, in honor of Whitney Houston, and you beg and plead with her to behave as you make your way to Javier’s hotel. 

The radio plays some music quietly, and a handsome dark-haired man stands outside of the hotel, smoking a cigarette when you arrive. You flash your high-beams at him and he smiles as he puts out the cigarette and tosses it in the trash. “Hi,” you almost sing as he gets in the car. “Are you a hugger?”

“Am I a what?” He frowns and asks, looking at you. 

“Do you like hugs?” You ask, as if it’s obvious.

“I… don’t really receive many. They’re nice, I guess,” he shrugs as he looks you up and down quickly. “You look beautiful, by the way,” he tells you.

Warmth collects in your chest at his words. “Well, thank you. And I ask because I wanted to give you a hug of congratulations. I’m a big hugger,” you shrug a little and tilt your head as you look at him. He looks nice, in a button-up and those tight jeans you saw him in earlier.

A car honks behind you and you jump, awkwardly waving behind you and taking off so the next car can drive up to the hotel. Javier chuckles a little. “Well… I do like hugs, I guess. No one has ever asked me that.”

You look at him briefly, with confusion in your eyes, before they find the road again. “What a sad, sad life,” you chuckle. “I suppose. Are you… like, recently single? Did you date when you were in Colombia?” You ask innocently.

Javier exhales in a light chuckle. “No, never really had a relationship. Lots of flings,” he admits, finding that to be the best word to describe his situation. “But no relationships.”

You nod along, eyes scanning the road as you drive to dinner. “I see.”

“How about you?” He asks, wanting to deflect the attention from himself. That seems to be a common theme with him, you’ve noticed. All the conversations center around you, no matter how hard you try to talk about him. 

“Well, no. I haven’t really gone out much or done anything, really. I’m a bit of a homebody, but once I’m out I enjoy it. Problem is you can’t find a date from the couch.”

You reach the restaurant not much later, parking outside. You get out after chatting a little more, and Javi is taken by surprise when you wrap your arms around him in a big hug. “Uh, hi?” He laughs. He instinctively returns it, enjoying the feeling of your body pressed to his. He hasn’t had anything so tender in a long time. 

“I told you, it’s a congratulatory hug!” You say with a grin as you squeeze him then break away. “I’m happy for you.”

He smiles down at you. “I… thank you. That was nice.”

“Well, there’s plenty more where that came from,” you tell him and lead him inside, opening the door and heading into the restaurant. 

-

Javier is a fantastic conversationalist. He tells stories with his hands, vividly explaining stories from the chase for Escobar. He tells you of his partner, Steve, and his crazy methods; about Colonel Carillo, who he still thinks is one of the strongest men he’s ever met; of Stechner, who you already want to gut-punch if you ever meet. 

You watch him and admire the way his eyes dart about when he’s telling a story, the way he draws maps on the table with his fingers that you have no hope of understanding. 

The food is great but the company is better. Javier’s laugh is a beautiful sound, one rarely heard by others. He listens to you just as attentively, smiling as you talk about the coffee shop, about Georgetown, all of your life. 

By the end of the night, it’s easy to declare that you really, really like Javier. You like the way his lips quirk up in a smile, his intelligence and humor. You don’t want the night to end, truly. 

When the bill comes, he takes it before you can even try. “Hey, I told you I was paying as a congratulatory dinner,” you frown. 

“That can be another dinner,” he says mindlessly as he signs the receipt. “I always pay on the first date.”

“Oh, is that what this is?” You beam at him, tilting your head, eyes twinkling. 

He smiles as he looks up at you. “I was thinking it was. I have at least a month off work now, to be wherever I want and I have nothing to do. I’d like to properly take my time to get to know you,” he offers, and it makes your heart flutter in your chest. 

“It seems like nothing about you is proper, Javi,” you tease and sip your drink, quirking an eyebrow. 

He mirrors you, sipping his drink too. “That’s fair. But we’re in the nation’s capital, I suppose we should be a little more…”

You look at him and try to fill in the blank, smiling. “Practical? Traditional?”

He shrugs. “I don’t know what I meant to say there.”

You chuckle a little. “Well, it doesn’t matter. I like the sound of that.”

-

After dinner, you give Javier a little tour of Georgetown through the windows of your crappy car. The snow from earlier in the day has collected, dusting the tops of window sills and awnings over shop entries. Despite the snow, the car thermometer reads that it’s somewhat warm for the time of year.

There’s one warm little place with glowing lights. Despite the hour of night, it’s clearly open. Javier asks what it is. “Oh, that’s a little bakery,” you comment. “My favorite place, honestly. Their red velvet cupcake is fantastic.”

“That sounds good. I like chocolate more, to be honest,” he comments. 

You continue driving for a few seconds, rolling your eyes. “They have a good one there, but it’s so one-dimensional. It’s just chocolate with chocolate on top. Red velvet is the best because you have the cake and the tangy frosting, and-“

“Pull over?” Javier asks, and you look at him in confusion but pull into a parking spot obediently and quickly. 

Your eyes are wide in confusion. “What?” You ask him, concerned that something is wrong with the car. 

“I’m buying you dessert,” he chuckles and gets out. 

Your heart falls then and there for him. If you haven’t already decided, now you know that there’s no turning back. You want Javier Peña with a passion. “Jesus Christ, you could’ve told me that,” you laugh and turn off the car, getting off and bounding behind him. His long legs have already made strides ahead of you, leaving you to catch up. 

“You wouldn’t have stopped, would you?” He asks, the gentle snow leaving white flakes on his dark coat. He looks so pretty like this, the warm light from inside the bakery glowing against his dark hair. 

You roll your eyes but you’re smiling. “No, maybe not.” He opens the door for you and you thank him and follow him in. 

Javier walks to the counter and wastes no time. “Hi. I’ll take two red velvet cupcakes and two large coffees. How do you take yours?” He asks you as you join him at his side. 

“From my café,” you tease him, before turning to the woman behind the counter with a polite smile and asking for two sugars and two creams. Javier asks for his black. 

The two of you step back while she gets your order ready and you look at him, smiling a little. There are still soft white flakes in his wavy hair, which are slowly melting into water drops. 

You don’t know it, but he’s looking at you just the same. He admires you, smiling a little, just enough the quirk up one side of his mouth. “Thanks for buying,” you tell him and step a little closer. He’s warm, you can feel it radiating off of him, and the shop’s blasting cool air throughout. 

“Like I said,” he chuckles. “I always buy on the first date.” He reaches out to tuck a strand of your stray hair behind your ear. “Would you want to come up to my hotel room to eat the cupcakes?” He offers. 

You shake your head. “I work early tomorrow morning, I shouldn’t.”

Normally, Javier would be disappointed. Normally, he’d want to fuck you on the first date, leave you screaming his name until you can’t help but come back for more. But to his surprise, he doesn’t mind. He has a whole month to be with you, a whole month to fall for the woman he’s already half-lovesick over. “Not a problem,” he nods and walks to the counter as the woman calls that your order is ready. 

He hands you a large coffee, and you take a sip of the warm liquid, sighing. “There’s a little shelter out there,” you say, pointing to a bench with an awning above it to keep it clear from the snow. “Do you want to eat them out there?”

Javier half-smiles and nods. “That sounds good.”

It’s warm for the season, but there’s still a cool breeze. You hurry over and sit on the small bench, Javier sitting next to you. The sides of your thighs touch, and you’re both aware of it, the proximity this small bench forces you to squeeze into. Javier sets the box on his lap and opens it, revealing two red velvet cupcakes. “These look delicious.”

“They are,” you grin and pick one up, licking a bit of the frosting off the top and sighing in content with the taste. Javier watches you, and you’re suddenly very aware of the connotation. You look over at him with wide eyes, holding back a laugh. You both break down giggling at the action, your head falling against his shoulder. “I didn’t mean to do that like... that, I swear,” you shake your head as you sit up straight again. 

“You looked good doing it,” he teases you and bumps your shoulder as you unwrap the paper. “I’m going to save mine for later.”

You frown at him. “Come on. I have to be here when you try the best dessert of all time.”

“No,” he shakes his head. “I’m too full. I’ll have it for breakfast tomorrow or something.”

“Javi,” you whine. “There’s no point of you getting two if we don’t eat them together. You have to eat it, come on.”

Javier looks over at your cupcake, which has one bite taken. “Let me take a little bite of yours then.”

An idea strikes and you nod. “Sure,” you say casually, holding it up for him to eat it. When he goes in to bite it, you move it closer to his face, causing the cupcake to smash into his chin and onto his nose.

Javier thinks he’s the one that missed. “Fuck,” he laughs as he crosses his eyes as he looks down at his nose, seeing the cupcake and frosting smeared on his face. He sees you giggling and laughs. “Hey, you didn’t… what the fuck?” He laughs, bringing his face close to yours. “That was uncalled for.”

“You were being a grump. I had to,” you giggle, your face naturally coming closer to his.

“And we don’t even have napkins,” he shakes his head and looks at you. “How can I clean this up?”

Tilting your head, your eyes dart between his, smiling at the dark brown color and the way they soften under your gaze. “I have an idea,” you murmur, cupping the side of Javier’s face and setting the mashed cupcake back in the box. 

Just a moment later, your lips are on his. His eyes have fallen shut and he sighs as you kiss him, a hand finding your waist and pulling you closer to him. He sets the box on the bench behind him and scoots closer, a hand on the side of your neck. 

He tastes like coffee and cream cheese frosting, his lips unbearably soft for such a hardened man. You soften him with your touch, when you wrap your arms around his neck and pull him closer to you. 

He’s in fucking Heaven, he thinks, murmuring your name against your lips. He knows you already, knows the kind of person you are. He’d figured you’d maybe give a chaste kiss on the first date if you liked the person enough. The voracity of your lips against his tells him you might just reciprocate the intensity of the deep ache in his ribs he feels for you. 

After a moment, you break away and smile softly. “I didn’t get all of it,” you frown as you see that there’s still some frosting on Javier’s nose. 

“At least now we match,” he teases and wipes your face of some red crumbs that transferred to your chin with the pad of his thumb. 

You giggle and press your forehead to his, the warmth of his body perfect against yours in the slight chill of the December night. “Will you come visit me at work again tomorrow?” You ask him. 

“Only if you make me a drink that tastes as good as you do.”

-

taglist: 

@remmysbounty @mishasminion360 @blo0dangel @binarydanvvers  @sleep-tight1 @apascalrascal @randomness501 @spideysimpossiblegirl @notabotiswear @pedro-pastel @sanchosammy @lv7867 @greeneyedblondie44 @hunnambabe @astoryisaloveaffair @emesispo @pedritobalmando @magikfanatic @yooforia @oceanablue @sara-alonso @pedrosmustache @feelingmadclever @hnt-escape @radiowallet @obsessivelysearching @sugarontherims @a-court-of-feysand-and-elorcan @linnie0119 @1800-fight-me @autumnleaves1991-blog @toilet-keeper @evelynseventyr @metalarmsandmanbuns @shannababyy

[missymurphy1985]

Miracles (sequel to Reminiscing)

You'd been trying for a baby with Cillian for over a year now without success - he isn't getting any younger... What's next for the two of you?

Taglist:

@being-worthy @peakyscillian @queenshelby @noctvrnalmoth @margoo0 @janelongxox

"Baby it'll happen when it happens..." Cillian soothed your tears as he held you on the bedroom floor. Your period had just arrived, which meant only one thing. No baby. You'd been trying now for nearly 15 months and nothing but negative pregnancy tests and more sanitary products. You'd tried changing your diets.. you'd both cut out alcohol and caffeine.. but nothing.

"What if it doesn't, Cill? What if it never happens?" You dried your tears on the sleeve of your t shirt and sank into his arms.

"Let's book in with that fertility doctor yeah? Get some tests run, find out what's stopping us having a baby?" He lifted you back to kiss you. You nodded, reluctantly. You were dreading this.. what if you were the problem? Clearly Cillian was fine, he had the two boys.. if you weren't able to give him a baby you'd never forgive yourself.. would he even stay with you? The baby had been his idea... The thought alone made you feel sick.

"How about a weekend away? Just you and me, we'll head to Kerry and just relax for a few days?" You smiled. He always knew how to make you feel better. Nodding your head, he pulled you up from the floor and held you close. "Let's just get away from it all - no more talk of babies, just us, agreed?"

"Okay.. agreed."

The following day you woke feeling sore and achy. Your lower back feeling like you'd been kicked by a horse. Grimacing slightly, you lifted yourself out of bed to the kitchen where Cillian was making coffee.

"Hey, you okay?" He saw you limping slightly.

"Yeah, must've slept funny, my back is so sore!"

"Why don't you go lie down, I'll bring your coffee through?"

"I need to get ready, I'm meeting Lisa for a coffee this afternoon."

"I'm sure she'll understand if you're not feeling great y/n?"

"It's just a bit of back pain, I'll be fine once I've stretched it out. Don't worry," you smiled, kissing his lips and taking the decaf coffee from him. You pulled away suddenly as a sharp pain suddenly washed over your lower abdomen.

"And now we have period pain too... Wonderful..." You felt your eyes watering at the harsh reminder that you weren't pregnant and Cillian pulled you into his arms again.

"I'll call Lisa, go get back in bed." You rolled your eyes in annoyance. "I'm not asking, y/n." Feeling irritated, you made your way back upstairs and got under the covers. Cillian joining you shortly after with a hot water bottle, glass of water and some paracetamol. You took the tablets and Cillian placed the water bottle on your lower belly, before climbing in behind you and holding you close. He could feel your body tense every now and again.

"Hey, you okay?" He rubbed a hand up and down your arm to soothe you.

"My back keeps spasming babe, must've really done a number on it.." he pulled back from you slightly and ran a hand over your lower back trying to soothe it. He could feel the spasms as they came off and on every few minutes, the worry growing in his stomach. You were normally so fit, working out in your basement gym downstairs three times a week, yoga every Saturday.. pulling a muscle sleeping didn't sound likely to him.

You felt yourself drifting off to sleep as Cillian's hands massaged your lower back. The heat from the hot water bottle easing the cramps in your tummy.

You woke a few hours later to a white hot pain across your stomach and you cried out, clutching your belly. The pressure in your stomach was so intense you called out.

"Cillian!! Baby you there??" No answer. You reached for your phone on the bedside table and called him.

"Hey, you're awake -"

"Cillian come home.. please it hurts!!!" You heard the car screech to a halt.

"What hurts? Baby where are you? I'm on my way, 10 minutes okay?"

"Please... God it hurts!!!" Cillian stayed on the phone but you heard him talking to his sister in the passenger seat.

"Orla, call an ambulance, you're gonna have to come with me. Y/n stay on the phone until I get there baby okay?" You were panting now, the pain was unbearable. You could hear Cillian swearing at other cars, he must've been driving like a maniac... You didn't care, you just needed him now.. Orla was talking now, she must've been on the phone to the ambulance service, you heard her give them your address before you screamed as another white hot pain shot across your belly.

Panting through the pain, you felt the pressure in your pelvis start to increase in intensity. You pulled yourself to your feet slowly, and made your way to the bathroom. You were sweating from every where, your temperature soaring to new heights. You pulled your underwear down and sat on the toilet, convinced whatever it was you'd eaten that was causing this was about to make a dramatic exit. In that moment you heard Cillian and Orla burst into the bedroom, Cillian making his way into the bathroom to you. You didn't even feel embarrassed that you were sat on the toilet you were just grateful that he was there.

"It hurts so bad Cill... Please make it stop!!!!" You screamed, as a sudden need to push took over you. Cillian was frozen in panic, completely helpless, he didn't know what to do. Orla suddenly took charge, pushing Cillian to the side to check you over. You stood up slightly, your body taking over completely.

"Holy shit..... y/n lie down on the floor, come on... Cillian, get a fucking towel!!" Orla guided you slowly to the bathroom floor and opened your legs, Cillian quickly grabbing a towel that she placed under your hips.

"Fuck... Okay y/n look at me.. you're going to feel a need to push and I need you go with it okay? Just breathe... You're gonna be fine.."

"The fuck is happening Orla??" You screamed.

"You having a baby y/n.. right now.. Cillian get that end and hold her.. Get your shit together y/n and push!!" Cillian didn't have time to react before Orla pulled him to sit behind you holding you, your back to his chest as you gripped his hands and bore down as hard as you could. There was no time to think about anything else. The pain was like nothing you'd felt before in your life. Cillian breathed with you, grimacing slightly as his knuckles were being gripped like a vice but focusing his attention on getting you through this.

Within seconds the paramedics had arrived through the door Cillian had left open downstairs and taken over from Orla, giving you a mouthpiece to breathe into.

"Gas and air babe, it'll help, just breathe in and out okay?" Cillian whispered in your ear as you did as you were told and instantly felt the pain subside slightly. One paramedic was between your legs, the other radioing the hospital to let them know what was happening and to expect a mum and baby imminently.

The room was filled with the sound of a baby's cry. You heard Orla burst into tears, whilst you and Cillian were still too in shock to fully process what was happening. The paramedics offered Cillian a pair of surgical scissors to cut the cord, before placing the tiny baby girl in your arms. At that moment you both cried, looking down at the tiny bundle who was starting to settle, searching for your breast. You instinctively fed her, and Cillian gently stroked her head.

"Where the hell were you hiding her??" You looked up at him and laughed.

"I was about to ask you, when did you put her in there?!"

************************************

Opening your eyes, you felt hands roaming over your body as you lay in bed pretending you were still asleep. Those hands knew you better though and teased between your legs making your body shudder.

"I reckon we've got 10minutes before the 'threenager' wakes up... You'd better make this quick Cillian..." You turned onto your side and opened your legs inviting his now rock hard cock to rest between them. His fingers skilfully toying your clit making you moan softly. Easing himself inside from behind you, he began thrusting slowly. The only position available to you, your swollen belly now too large for any other.

"Fuck.. y/n.. still so tight..." You arched your back into his thrusts from behind you, both of you knowing this could be the last time before you had your new baby, due any time now. This pregnancy being much less of a shock than the first - you found out about 7 weeks in and you'd blossomed quickly. You'd loved feeling the little kicks, seeing your baby on the monitors at your scans, choosing names... You'd experienced it all and had relished every single second of it, making up for missing the first one's milestones.

"This really isn't going to last long.. you feel too good... Full of my child..."

"Cill keep talking to me.. I'm close..."

"Watching your body grow... Fuck you have no idea what that's done to me.."

Your hips rocked back against him almost frantically, his fingers still pressing on that bundle of nerves drawing your orgasm even closer. Before long you came hard against him, muffling your cries into the pillow so as not to wake your daughter in the next room. He followed not long after, spilling deep inside you.

Kissing your shoulder he pulled out, running his hands over your belly again and holding you close. A sudden giggle of your daughter emitting from the doorway.

"Mama!! What was Daddy doing behind you?" You pulled the duvet over you and Cillian helped you into a sitting position, your daughter climbing in-between you.

"Ready for some breakfast Niamh?" Cillian said as he booped his daughters nose and she moved to bite him playfully.

"Baby?" She pointed to your belly.

"Not yet little lady, soon though we promise." Cillian climbed out of bed and pulled his jeans on, picking the little girl up in his arms he playfully swung her over his shoulder, her legs in the air. You laughed watching Cillian bounce her over his shoulder, blowing raspberries into her waist making her squirm and giggle. Feeling another twinge in your lower abdomen you smiled.

"Maybe sooner rather than later Niamh, I think it might be time for that sleepover at Aunty Orla's house!"

The look of shock in Cillian's eyes made you laugh. "They do say it speeds things along Cill, don't look so surprised," you winced as he called his sister.

"You ready for this?" He kissed your head as he dialled the number.

"Definitely more ready than last time!" You laughed and tweaked your daughter's nose. "Let's get your bag shall we little lady?"

"No you don't, you stay there. I'll sort her out and Orla will come pick her up. You feeling okay?"

"Yep - I'm okay, they're not too bad for now. Her bag's on the hook behind her bedroom door already packed. My bag is in the closet downstairs ready. Just need to call the midwife and we're grand okay?"

"Love you... So much..." He kissed you gently and called Orla to come pick Niamh up. Your heart felt completely full and you couldn't wait to meet your latest addition.

[pinkhairedlily]

Chapter 8 - Student Council President Sakura

SCPS AO3 | PREVIOUS CHAPTER

“Oh, hello there Sakura.”

She almost lost her balance when she saw her next customers. Standing beside Kakashi with her arm entangled in his was a brunette, a spitting image of Dr. Aki Nohara, a giveaway that this was her sister. Sakura’s surroundings dimmed out of focus, and her hearing became muffled as if she was submerged underwater.

“Couldn’t mistake that green eyes for anyone,” Kakashi continued. “I’ll have a caramel butterscotch with extra whipped cream – make it super heavy – and Rin –“

“That’s supposed to be my order, you dummy,” the woman replied beside him. He chuckled in fascination and tightened his hold on her arm. “Besides, you don’t like sweets.”

“You’re still on a specialized diet so allow me to eat and drink whatever you want while you stick with – “ Kakashi glanced at Sakura, and she immediately mustered a tight-lipped smile. “One iced americano in your smallest size please. Thanks, Sakura.”

She took in a deep breath, suddenly aware that she wasn’t able to acknowledge her teacher and his companion, but so many things have been running through her head – like how did he know it was her? Why was he with Rin? Did he propose already? She hasn’t even confessed yet.

Somehow, in the dragging silence in her ears, she heard Sasuke cleared his throat. That was enough to break her from the spell, and she put on her bravest mask. “Hi Kakashi-sensei. Nice of you to drop by! I’ll have your order ready in a jiffy.”

Kakashi turned around and waved lazily at Sasuke. “One of my students is here too. Are you on a red eye advance study?”

“Can’t sleep so might as well have caffeine.”

“You’re too young to have this energy.”

Rin jokingly slapped Kakashi on the arm. “You talk as if you’re old already.”

“But aren’t I?” The pair slowly drifted away to find a table, but Sakura noticed the flash of recognition when Rin took a long good look at Sasuke, but her friend stared at them like he was throwing sharp draggers.

“He looks happy,” Sakura noted as she fixed their drinks.

“I want your favorite coffee,” Sasuke quipped out of nowhere.

“There’s a thing called palpitations. It’s caramel macchiato.”

“Might do me some good while I wait for you to finish your shift.”

Sakura sighed, feeling the tiredness come upon her all of a sudden so she relented. “Just take it to-go. I want to get out of here.”

She quickly asked permission from the manager, saying she felt sick and fatigued, and with her clocking overtime in the past few weeks, her request was immediately approved without deductions. The mixed winter and spring air hit her lungs as soon as she stepped outside. Sasuke waited for her across the street, a gesture that implied she could go to him or separate ways right now. As she vied for time to decide, she took one last look through the window.

It was a foreign sight. She has never seen Kakashi’s attention torn apart from his books. Even if he was talking, there would be an open page on his side, stealing glances on passages when the conversations got boring, yet there he was, fully attuned to whatever Rin was saying with no book around him…like she was his favorite book and he enjoyed reading every letter of her.

And Sakura realized she could never be the story he would even want to pick up.

She felt the tears coming so she started her pace on the same road. Across from her, Sasuke got the signal and went the other way.

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

The last term of their second year came like a bazooka. Sakura threw herself on her pet project as a sort of coping mechanism. The announcement was done during the general assembly which did not generate the intended buzz or reaction. After all, it was a tricky topic to handle and many facets of which were still stigmatized when talked openly in public. Naruto, ever the people magnet, broke the agitated atmosphere in the auditorium with a slow clap and was soon joined by many others.

The council created a Google form which allowed students to anonymously register, and they get assigned a schedule on the day their contracted psychiatrist comes to visit. All they had to do was provide their designated client number. The council further complemented this with short programs that serve as mental health breaks for the student body. Sometimes, this would be as light as a block screening of a coming-of-age film or heavy like a conference with faculty and teachers and questions and concerns are remotely flashed.

Then came Valentines’ Day, and the council organized this some kind of literary showcase that presented the opportunity to mingle woes of personal sadness and griefs with confessions that would have been left unsaid. Naruto and Sasuke both helped in constructing the makeshift stage in the middle of the soccer field that would be used later that afternoon.

“Cookie points for my crush,” Naruto grinned as he hammered away. “Thanks for picking the poem I will be reciting tonight, grumpy. Didn’t know you were into literature.” He jokingly elbowed the raven-haired beside him, and he got a death glare in return.

“Do it properly. Look at that nail sticking out like your porcupine hair,” Sasuke grumbled. “And yes, I’m not as uncultured as you are.”

“But I still don’t understand it though.”

“Ugh, just use the internet to search its meaning, idiot.”

“Meanie!”

A fellow runner peeked into their work area and knocked on wood. “Hey Uchiha. Some girl is looking for you.” Her face expressed grimace, having done this for more than five times already within the span of an hour. If it wasn’t Sasuke, it was one of Naruto’s fan girls or boys.

Sasuke went to her and fumbled around for cash in his pocket. “Next time someone looks for us, tell them we went home for the day. Here’s money for your date later. If you have anyway.”

“Whatever grumpy.” The runner replied, still half-angry, half-frustrated, but she took the money all the same and told the girls that ‘They told me to tell you they went home for the day so shoo shoo.’

Naruto laughed at Sasuke’s successful attempt at bribery. “Look at that rich money. I wonder whether Sakura will give us chocolates.”

“Have you seen their office?” Sasuke flipped open the curtains that will be hang as backdrop. “Their desk is filled with chocolates from her admirers – platonically, romantically, whatever. Some people from other schools dropped by too. You got serious competition.”

Naruto chuckled nervously. “As if I do not know that already. Haven’t you told me before- she likes everyone and everyone likes her.”

Not really true at all now, Sasuke thought to himself. But ignorance is bliss, Naruto.

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

The three sat on the grass beside the stage, having full view of the student body listening to the reciters. Throughout the program, Sakura went through each package given to her, visibly stressed with evident signs of sleepless nights under her eyes.

“Before I forget, happy Valentine’s day you two. My council-mates told me you didn’t get any chocolates,” Sakura gave each of them a pouch of small chocolate bars. Sasuke didn’t have to guess if it was store-bought or homemade based on the cuts on her fingers.

“Sakura, stop eating. I almost gagged at the seventh chocolate,” Naruto complained. He tried to get the basket of sweets from her, but she just moved it away from his reach.

“Everything tastes bitter,” she muttered under her breath. “I need sugar. My energy can’t keep up with the countless interviews. I understand that the school board liked the exposure, but the burden falls on me. At least have a teacher back me up?”

“Heard Kakashi-sensei volunteered to accompany you in interviews?” Sasuke was too late in shutting Naruto up, but the most that question got out of Sakura was an eyebrow raise.

“I need more sweets.” She proceeded to jam the rest of the Hershey’s kisses in her mouth.

“Okay, we have a submission from Uzumaki Naruto,” the announcer said. “Shout out to our rookie MVP!” A round of applause. “And who might be the recipient of this poem? We heard through the grapevine that he hid from his admirers all day. I know several people are waiting to confess to him!”

Sasuke instructed him earlier to send the poem anonymously and address it to Sakura, but the dumbass blonde mistakenly exchanged it. He rubbed his forehead in annoyance, but he can’t bring it up right now.

“Just read the poem!” Naruto shouted on the side, clearly embarrassed now. Sakura looked up at him, genuinely curious now, and her sticky chocolate-filled mouth was on the edge of firing him questions.

“Sasuke and I sent in poems! Just to support your program, nothing really too deep into it ehe.” Naruto glanced at Sasuke with slightly widened eyes. “Right, Sasuke?”

“Sonnet 18 by William Shakespeare,” the person started.

“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day

Thou art more lovely and more temperate.

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,

And summer’s lease hath all too short a date.

Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,

And often is his gold complexion dimmed;

And every fair from fair sometime declines,

By chance, or nature’s changing course, untrimmed;

But thy eternal summer shall not fade,

Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st,

Nor shall death brag thou wand'rest in his shade,

When in eternal lines to Time thou grow'st.

So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,

So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.”

Sakura slapped Naruto on the arm. “Didn’t know you read Shakespeare! What a romantic!”

“Isn’t it a tragedy?” Sasuke remarked, a look of disgust in his face when Sakura mindlessly offered him a toblerone. “No sweets for me.”

Sakura guffawed at Sasuke’s remark, and her laughing was a rare sight recently. She was in too deep in her student council functions that they barely see her. And when they did, she’d be a little bit closer to fatigue.

“What’s funny? Who’s Shakespeare? Let me in on the joke!”

“Let’s call on Kakashi-sensei, our very own student council advisor and youngest teacher in the university. He’ll be reciting a poem by Pablo Neruda. A man of culture, we see,” the emcee announced.

Sakura stopped laughing as soon as she heard his name. If Sasuke could glean into her thoughts, she’s probably making up excuses to escape right now.

Kakashi stood in the middle of the stage, holding an open book. “Let me just ramble on here for a bit. Neruda is a Chilean poet and a politician, but just as much as he is a revolutionary, he is a romantic and a worshipper of ideals and ordinary things. He often compared his muses to earth and nature – basic providers of our existence. It’s interesting to see. Now, this poem is what I would have wanted to say to someone who is fundamentally part of my existence, but she won’t listen to me.” Kakashi smiled even more at the onset of outburst of giggles from the students. “So you’re gonna be the audience whether you want it or not.”

I crave your mouth, your voice, your hair.

Silent and starving, I prowl through the streets.

Bread does not nourish me, dawn disrupts me, all day

I hunt for the liquid measure of your steps.

I hunger for your sleek laugh,

your hands the color of a savage harvest,

hunger for the pale stones of your fingernails,

I want to eat your skin like a whole almond.

I want to eat the sunbeam flaring in your lovely body,

the sovereign nose of your arrogant face,

I want to eat the fleeting shade of your lashes,

and I pace around hungry, sniffing the twilight,

hunting for you, for your hot heart,

like a puma in the barrens of Quitratue.

A thundering applause followed Kakashi’s poem and random shouts of, “Drop her name sensei!” “Good luck to your love life!” “Happy for you, sensei!”

As the lights went out on the stage, Sakura fished another pouch from her vest pocket, and Sasuke knew at once that it was Kakashi’s. She popped a bar into her mouth, staring blankly ahead.

“God, it’s so bitter.” Her lips started to quiver, and she started to cry.

Naruto threw a worried glance at Sasuke, but his expression must have given something away because the blonde didn’t prod, and he looked as if all the puzzles fell into place.

Sasuke just didn’t expect to be confronted about it as soon as the program finished. He was carrying blocks of wood to the shed when Naruto dropped the question – a question he already knew the answer to.

“You like Sakura.”

Sasuke inhaled sharply and halted his steps. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He stacked the wood against each other and turned to face the blonde. “Besides, shouldn’t you be worrying about exams?”

“What exams? We’re exempted from it,” Naruto bristled.

Sasuke smirked. “No, you’re not. You didn’t qualify for finals.”

“Oh shit.”

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

“What do we get in return?” Sakura asked as she munched on her bento box. Shouts of the practicing dragonboat team filtered through their space.

“But last time you volunteered!” Naruto said.

“We’re friends so my services don’t come free anymore,” she chided back.

Naruto glared at Sasuke. “If she’s not gonna do it, you’re gonna do it.”

Sasuke nonchalantly shook his head as he skimmed through Naruto’s notes. “What she said.” They weren’t notes per se, but doodles of Sasuke and Sakura and interestingly, projections of different batting stances. “I’m also not gonna forgive you with the duck butt hair.”

“But you have a duck butt hair!” Naruto crossed his arms and huffed menacingly. “Ramen?”

“Same old, same old.” Sakura finished her lunch and started to sip her cranberry juice. “Give us something new.”

“Ramen and…..karaoke?”

Sakura brightened up at the prospect. “Deal.”

“At least add snacks to your place,” Sasuke interjected. “And not just ramen. Put some nuts or fruits in your fridge.”

Naruto grumbled but raised two thumbs up in defeat. “Deal.”

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

Sasuke has thin patience when it came to teaching Naruto, Sakura observed. She didn’t know how these two managed to do the supplementary math lessons when she wasn’t a part of their group yet. She didn’t mind teaching, but Naruto’s short attention span was a devil of its own. He would be attentive to her for 15 minutes and then drowse off so Sasuke and her agreed on non-negotiables.

“No ramen break for you if you don’t finish this set of problems,” Sakura told him.

“You’re demon spawns,” Naruto cried out in defiance.

“If you don’t get a passing score on this sample test, no kani toppings for you.” Sasuke raised the stakes.

“Demon spawns,” Naruto repeated.

“You won’t call us demon spawns if you see your name on the list of passers.” Sakura started the stopwatch on her phone. “Now go.”

This took her mind off things, from Kakashi’s public confession to the blank career form hidden within the pages of her history textbook. It was a good distraction until the penultimate exams day. Naruto came in with a bandana on his forehead with FIGHTING written in the middle of it. Sasuke, as usual, breezed through it, already finished by the thirty-minute mark.

And she? Well, she liked exams. The time limit and the pressure allowed her the reprieve to shut the rest of the world out so she relished answering each number until the bell rang. It was a moment where she can focus fully on the paper in front of her, the sound of her pen scribbling, and her mind working full force to cull out the answers in her memory. Her utmost concentration on questions suspended her own questions on her feelings for a teacher, on her parents’ divorce, on her future.

When the school plastered the results on the bulletin board, she couldn’t help but release a satisfied chuckle. She turned to Sasuke who was surprisingly stoic about the results. “First place! The bonus point really helped.”

“Why should I bother with a teacher’s middle name for the bonus question?” Sasuke grumbled back. “Congrats. Stop rubbing it in my face already.”

Naruto was too busy pointing his name on the board and bragging about it to the student body, most especially the freshies. When he found them on the back of the crowd, he rushed to them and placed his arms around their shoulders “Drinks on me!!!!!”

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

“He really shouted drinks on me in the middle of the school, sauntered in here like he’s loaded, and ordered two pitchers of iced tea.” Sakura kept bringing this up since they entered the karaoke room ten minutes ago.

Naruto was preoccupied with inputting song numbers on the machine to respond to Sakura’s banters. “Technically, they’re still drinks!”

Sasuke was on the phone with the kitchen, and from what she could hear, he was ordering almost everything on the menu. When he sat down on the adjacent couch, Sakura leaned forward to him. “Are you gonna finish all of that?”

He jutted his index finger to Naruto. “No, but he will.”

The first notes of Michael Jackson’s Thriller wafted through the room, and the blonde made a quick impression of the artist’s famed moonwalk.

“Why are you opening with that?” Sakura cried out in amusement. “It’s not even Halloween!” Sasuke watched Naruto try to dance with a straight face, but she thought he was itching to face palm the whole time.

Naruto kept beckoning Sakura to join him in the middle of the room, but she was busy laughing at him and taking videos. “I’ll send these to Haru as a pick-me-up. I think this is the best remedy.”

Next was Sakura’s pick – Heaven is a Place on Earth by Belinda Carlisle. She couldn’t contain her laughter in between verses when the two boys finally heard that she was tone deaf. Naruto joined her with the other mic, trying to drown out the off-key notes. By the bridge, Sasuke stood up with them, a glass of juice in his hand, and mouthed the words.

“You know this song!” Sakura said excitedly.

“I don’t live under a rock!” He yelled back amid the loud music.

“OOOH BABY DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT’S WORTH OOH HEAVEN IS A PLACE ON EARTH. THEY SAY IN HEAVEN, LOVE COMES FIRST. OOH HEAVEN IS A PLACE ON EARTH!”

“Okay who’s next?” she asked when the next number flashed on the screen. Sasuke silently took the mic from her and faced the monitor with a hand in his pants’ pocket.

Naruto gripped the mic harder when the song started. “I’ll be your second voice, grumpy!”

She immediately went to the front and started recording. “One for the road.”

“No videos, Haruno,” Sasuke warned.

“Come on, it’s my remembrance,” she whined. He wasn’t able to clap back when the lines started to move.

“Turn around…” Naruto sang.

“Every now and then, I get a little bit lonely and you’re never coming ‘round,” Sasuke’s baritone voice filled the room like an empty coliseum.

“The fuck. You can sing?” Sakura gasped out loud. “How can you have that voice and not sing - like you know, every day?!”’

Sasuke gestured her to stop as he belted, stoic-faced, through the chorus with Naruto singing like a slaughtered pig in the background. Sakura stopped recording and joined them for the rest of the song.

Two hours and three pitchers of orange juice later, they finally settled on the couch and munched on Naruto’s leftovers of fries, buttered chicken, nachos, and calamari. On the karaoke monitor was David Bowie singing Heroes.

“Can’t believe we’re already seniors two months from now.” He stared at the ceiling, his eyes following the tag game of disco lights. “Elections of officers will be tomorrow which means Captain Haru will be formerly stepping down.”

Sasuke reached out and shook his hand. “Good luck next captain.”

Naruto immediately pulled out from his grasp. “What do you mean next captain?”

Sakura chuckled and patted his back as assurance. “Everyone knows it’ll be you. Have you seen how your teammates look at you when you’re discussing strategies?”

In the dimness of the room, she saw the flush on Naruto’s cheeks, and she found it amusing how he cannot take compliments.

Naruto scratched the back of his head. “Well, everything is possible, right? That said, I still haven’t filled out my college form, but I’m really set on getting an athletic scholarship and eventually be part of the national team! How about you grumpy? Changed your mind yet?”

“About what?” Sakura glanced at the silent raven-haired guy beside her. To be able to see this much of him was a nice privilege.

“I’m moving away after high school.” Sasuke fiddled with his half-empty glass, his eyes trained on the slushing juice. “I already sent applications to some universities in Europe.”

“We also have good medicine programs here. I don’t get why you have to move away so far. I’m so bad with converting time zones.”

Sasuke scrunched his nose in annoyance. “Are you dumb? The schools you listed are also out of this district.”

She seemed to be moving farther and farther from their exchange. Like an outsider peeking in, she understood the frailty of the moments in front of her, and by the time the next two months set in, the stopwatch would have started running its last lap. The bonds she has made so serendipitously were in danger of being cut off by dreams. She breathed in, engulfing the noise and scent of this room, panning every color and shape assembled like supercut in her head, praying that someday if she would lose herself, she’d come back here right at this frozen memory and relive the wonderful indecisiveness of adolescence and the chance to say I don’t know without repercussions.

“Sakura to earth?” Naruto’s voice.

“Idiot. It’s earth to Sakura.” Sasuke’s voice.

She blinked fast, returning to the moment that wasn’t finished playing out yet. She quickly brushed her hands on her eyes as if something got into her eyes, hoping they don’t see the small droplets of tears that have formed. “Oh uh, I have a list of prospects, but I’m not quite sure what to take.” The form was still blank actually.

“That’s a usual problem of anyone who’s too good at everything,” Sasuke replied.

“Are you complimenting me?” I wish I was.

“Should I take it back?” He proceeded to gulp down the remnants of his glass.

The monitor suddenly turned off, indicating their time has run out. “Hey guys, for our last term, let’s make the most out of it, all right?” Naruto asked. “I’m so happy we became friends.”

“No hugging please,” Sasuke said, but it was too late. Naruto’s arms were too strong to pull away from so the two allowed him a few seconds of skinship.

Naruto’s words struck a chord in Sakura; it was a resolve she tried to form and disfigure for several months now. Before they could stand up to fix their things, Sakura blurted it out loud before her courage took the best of her.

“For our last term.” She flexed her fingers and curled them up against her palm, placing weight on her lap as she ground her fists onto it. “For our last term, I’m gonna confess to Kakashi.”

AO3 LINK | NEXT CHAPTER | CHAPTER 9

[bedbellyandbeyond]

Dynamics

(Story Post)

Reid woke up when the twins started to cry. He got up quickly, hoping to handle it so their parents could save on sleep. Lucky for him, the wee beasties just wanted some attention, and he took them out to hold on the couch. He sat and played with them quite a while, but eventually they got hungry. Reid checked the fridge for milk bottles, but he couldn't find them in and among all the cuts of meat and baskets of berries. When they started to get particularly fussy, he gave up and decided to ask Nathan. When he didn't find Nathan or Dax in the loft, he was quite surprised. He did not expect Nathan to just leave the twins in someone else’s care without letting them know firsthand, so he had to be around somewhere, but it wasn't the biggest cottage and there weren't a lot of places to hide. After doing a round, checking the porch and deck and all, Reid could only hope Kent knew where they were. Hopefully, he hadn't disappeared either.

He knocked on the bear man’s bedroom door. “Hello?” He heard a low grunt and just took it as admittance. At the very least, he was glad Kent was there. Opening the door slowly, Reid peeked in. “Kent? Are you—” The sight he saw made him freeze in place. All three of them were there, Kent, Nathan, and Dax, all curled up in Kent's bed, fully in the nude. Dax actually appeared to be quite the blanket hog with most of it wrapped around him like a burrito. Kent’s body hair likely kept him warm enough on a summer night, and Nathan looked toasty snuggled under Kent's big arms. Reid had to hold in a cry of glee. He just backed out and closed the door. Another look in the fridge and he found some bottles in the vegetable crisper. Containing his joy as he sat feeding the twins felt like the hardest task of his life. Regardless, he was quite happy to keep the beasties occupied for a couple hours before their parents woke up. Slowly, closer to noon, the sleepy three rolled out of bed. Kent trudged out first and he made a beeline to the coffee maker. He didn't even acknowledge Reid's presence until after he had some caffeine in his system, then he came around and scooped up Gabriel so he could help feed him. “Sleep well?” Reid hazarded a question as Kent sat down in his armchair. “Mm…” was all Kent bothered to say. “Random question: what size bed do you have in there?” Reid asked. “…Queen, I think.” “Ah, okay… Not horrible. Could still be a bit cramped, maybe…” Kent looked at the doctor then stood again. He came over close to Reid, before scooping up Grace as well right from his lap and walking away. Reid blinked and turned to see him head to the door. “Where are you taking them, in case Nathan asks?” “Just out back.” Kent then disappeared out the door. Reid chuckled a bit to himself and just checked his phone notifications in case anyone was trying to contact him. It was Nathan's turn to sneak out. He must've gotten cold without his Kent blanket, Reid thought to himself. Nathan had pulled on his shirt and shorts again before leaving the room. When their eyes met, he just put his hand on his hip. “Shut up.” “I didn't say anything,” Reid said innocently. Nathan huffed. “‘I told you so' is written all over your face.” “Well…” Reid shrugged. “Did you enjoy yourself?” Nathan blushed and changed the subject. “Where are my kids?” “Kent took them out back,” Reid said. “So, how big is it?” “Reid, I swear to god…” “I'm thinking girthy, yeah?” “It is too early in the morning for the word ‘girthy'.” “And Dax? Quite the first time you got going on.” Nathan got some coffee from the pot Kent made. “I'm not going to share the details of my intimate life with you.” Dax’s head finally peeked out the bedroom door and he looked to Nathan desperately. Reid could see he'd dragged along the blanket to cover himself. “Nathan, I need some help…” “Can't untangle yourself from the blanket?” Nathan asked. “No, I can't find my underwear…” “Good morning, Dax!” Reid said beaming from the couch. Dax was startled and dropped the blanket a bit, scrambling to keep himself covered. “Reid! You're up! Uh, good morning!” “Absolutely the best morning. Did you sleep well?” “Uh, comme ci, comme ça…” Dax mumbled. Nathan exhaled. “He knows. Reid always knows things…” “Knowing things is part of what I do,” Reid stated. “Oh, uh,” Dax flushed red. “I mean, we didn't, you know… I mean, we did…” Nathan went over and handed Dax his coffee. “Relax, he's cool with it. Like, too much.” “I feel like I should buy you ice cream something,” Reid offered gleefully. “Can we celebrate in some way?” “I did want to see another museum…” Dax said. “There's an idea!” Reid supported. “On the way, you can tell me how we got here.” “Plane,” Nathan said. “Train,” Dax continued. “Aye, and automobiles, aye,” Reid said. “But you know what I mean.” Nathan shrugged. “It just happened.” He popped into the bedroom, pulled Dax's boxers out from under the bed and handed them to him. “I'd like it on the record that it was Nathan's idea,” Dax said, before closing the door to change. “Of course. He is the parriarch of this group,” Reid said. “So, what's the plan?” “There is no plan,” Nathan stated. “It was just a one off…” “Sure, sure,” Reid brushed off. “Did Kent enjoy himself?” “He wasn't comfortable doing everything so we kept it mostly topical…” Nathan shared. “But I think he's loosened up, for lack of a better word...” He gave Dax’s cheek a kiss when the other finally came out again, boxers on. “So, no penetration, I’m assuming?” Reid asked. “Another word it is way too early for…” Nathan groaned. “Shame…” Reid lounged across the couch towards them and propped his head up on his hand. “Can I ask, what were the dynamics?” “Dynamics?” Dax asked as he pulled on the rest of his clothes. “I'm a bottom for example,” Reid said, waving a hand. “Actually, let me guess…. Dax is true verse, Nathan's a bottom, and Kent's strict top. For now.” “Pretty much,” Nathan said. “That is eerily accurate,” Dax said. “I'm…gonna take a shower, then we can go out or whatever.” Before he could go to the bathroom though, they could all hear someone's phone started to vibrate. “Not mine,” Reid said holding up his phone. Nathan and Dax both started patting their person for their mobiles. Nathan then climbed up to the loft and grabbed the phone he found threatening to buzz itself off the top floor. “Dax,” Nathan said, handing over the device. Dax was surprised because he didn't recognise the number, but he answered. “Allô? …Yes, this is he…” He paused for a few moments. “…Yes, I did.” He waited a bit more, paling a bit. “Okay. I will try to come in today if I can, I'm way out of town…Alright, thank you. Salut.” Nathan put a hand on his shoulder. “Who was it?” “Syd. They want me to come in to have more blood drawn,” Dax said. Nathan frowned. “Today?” Reid crossed his arms over the arm of the couch. “Sounds like it's urgent.” “Yes, um… They believe they know what caused my behaviour last weekend,” Dax said. “I need more testing to determine the result. I don't really know what that means, but I think I should try to go today.” Nathan took his hand. “Okay, I'll go with you then.” “No, I can't ask you to do that,” Dax said. “Kent still has time with the kids and you should stay with them. I wasn't supposed to be here anyway.” Nathan frowned. “But you’re scared, I can tell. I want to support you.” Dax shook his head. “It's alright. I’ll go and I'll call you as soon as I know what’s going on. Part of me is a little excited actually, just getting some answers.” Nathan pursed his lips. “If you're sure, then…” “I’ll go with you,” Reid said getting up from the couch. “I'll get us a flight down courtesy of APID so you don't have to sit on a train all day.” Dax rubbed his neck. “You don't have to do that, but I would appreciate it.” Reid went around and patted Dax's arm. “Don't even worry about it. I'll make some calls.” “Thank you, Reid. Honestly.” Dax then turned back to Nathan. “Are you alright with that? It'll just be yourself and Kent left.” “I'm fine, but are you okay with that?” Nathan asked, wrapping his arms around Dax's waist. “Yes, of course,” Dax said. “I think we're in a good place. We can be comfortable.” Nathan nodded and kissed Dax's cheek. “Okay. Well, you should probably take your shower before you go with Reid. I'll get Kent to bring the kids in to say goodbye.” “Alright,” Dax smiled and gave Nathan a quick kiss back. “I love you.” Nathan smirked. “I love you too. You'll be alright.” “Thank you.”

[sylvctica]

scintila.

     “So, you’re the one who decided to take a potshot at my 𐎠𐎿𐎴, and boy did you take one using whatever that fancy weapon is. Thanks the gods he’s okay”—words said through gritted teeth that flashed between their lips—“but that doesn’t mean I don’t have a few words I need to have with you.”

      The smile plastered on Sylvie’s face definitely didn’t reach anywhere near their eyes—devoid of the amusement and life their tone held.

      Fingers dug in deeper into the jaw captured in their grasp as their target was lifted off the ground, threatening to sickeningly crack the bone like it were mere twigs in the grasp of the god; the clawing of sharp nails into the wrist of their vessel and the kicks to their body might as well have not even been done in the first place, they stood there taking it without a flinch or twitch. 

      Any cuts and tears into fake flesh and bone were immediately remedied by their regeneration.

     “Oh, don’t be so rowdy, you’ll exhaust yourself out at this rate and I can’t have that happen so quickly.” 

      A sharp sting followed through skin as fingers dug into the very flesh of the man, various alkaline born out of numerous strains of plants—all enhanced quite lovingly by the god—seeping into the body and overwhelming the man until thrashing limbs came to a loose stop. Unceremoniously, the man was dropped to the ground by Sylvie in a crumpled pile, the latter opting to squat down and peer down at him with a gaze akin to a predator ruminating on how exactly they will tear their prey apart. 

      Something was gurgled out in response, but the toxin was already at work in paralyzing the man, the sound garnering a bored, unamused look from the Dendro god. 

     “Sorry, you probably won’t be talking for a while. Shame, since I’ll have to ask in due time how you managed to get your hands on a weapon of the Abyss that didn’t utterly consume you—is your anger towards the divine all that strong?—but until that wears off ... I guess that gives me a little time to think on exactly what I want to do with you. I do hope you speak quickly and fluently when I get around to asking again.” Fingers grabbed the man’s jaw again, tilting it more out of curiosity to see if they could get any response from the body; even a sharp jab of fingers against ribs only got a muted jolt out of the limp body ... and wide eyes staring back towards them in fear of the complete paralysis that had taken over.

     “There are so many fun things I could do to pass the time … I have many lovely plants at my disposal, many who enjoy taking their time digesting a meal slowly through their special acids, and if you’d like, you can get a first seat view to how that works. I also have other plants that can offer excruciating pain to even have on your skin to where you want to scratch it off … though I’ll make sure you get a good taste of it instead to give an itch you most definitely can’t scratch … what else do I have? Raw caffeine to stay awake to the point of hallucinating with tremors. Opium in high concentrations. Salvia as a hallucinogenic. Quite a number of things!” 

      Although the god could control the amount of toxins and concoctions born out of nature’s goodies, the body was a fragile thing that could crumple, and they could not have that happen under their watchful gaze. A lazy smile graced their features, their touch gentle as it combed though the man’s hair.

     “But I think my favourite is thousands of small vines wormed through one’s veins to use them as a puppet. Physical pain and torture is all good, but sometimes the true fun is engineering someone into ruining their entire life! Maybe a public stroll stripped bare of your clothes while you’re still fully aware. Perhaps watching you ruin all your relationships one by one until you have no one left, and no one believing you that you were not the one speaking. Possibly burning all your life savings away, and valuables, on some rigged scam. Gods know there are also many things humans look down upon being done that break their little morals. So many fun possibilities in dismantling your life piece by piece until there’s nothing if I don’t find much joy in your writhing."

     "Well, regardless of my choice as to what I do with you ... were I to see that you are dying or trying to do anything to escape me ... I’ll make sure to bring you back again, and again, AND AGAIN. Speak well, speak clearly, speak with all the information I ask for, and I may decide you will not die today.”

[callemreine]

You got a name?

‘You seem like an interesting individual with good music taste for blasting RAIN by Ben Platt in the middle of the night’

AU August

Day/Prompt: Day 1 - Coffee shop

Ship: Pre-prinxiety, platonic royality

Word count: 1244

Cw: swearing / food mention

@tsshipmonth2020

Virgil has been working on this particular coffee shop for three years now and never has been assigned to the night shift. Unfortunately, with the loss of a few of their employees due to a new coffee shop opening that happens to be near where they all live, he had to be moved to the night shift. It didn’t matter if the other shop was nearer and that he has to prepare for a lot of caffeine to intake.

When he first got to this job as a barista three years ago, it took him a long time to adjust to the other employees, the regular customers, the route to the shop, and the environment. He isn’t going to do that again if not necessary.

He already knew a few of the employees in the night shift cuz’ he was always the last one at the shop and they always met at the end of the day to inform them if there were any deliveries or important memos(and sometimes gossip about the regulars).

~*~*~

It was Virgil’s first day on the night shift and he is currently on an empty bus, listening to one of his playlists. He wanted to get some rest earlier to prevent intaking much more caffeine than he needed. He liked to pretend that he did get some rest and, not ended up endlessly scrolling and indecisively changing the appearance of his Tumblr blog.

When he arrived, he saw his co-worker, Janus, cleaning up the counter and preparing his stuff to end his shift. There was a small exchange between the two before Virgil fully settled in behind the counter, waiting for his other co-workers to come in. Eventually, Patton came in causing the bell on the door to ring, catching Virgil’s attention. “Good evening, Virgil!” Patton cheered as he skipped to the back, passing Virgil, to drop his stuff.

The two conversed for a while, with a customer or two coming in every once in a while. After an hour or so, Patton excused himself to sort out the delivery the shop received earlier. He also informed Virgil that if a person named Roman comes in, just tell him that Patton is at the back and just let him through. Virgil was worried they were letting random people inside, but Patton had been on the night shift for as long as he was on the day shift so, he just nodded at Patton’s request.

After a few customers, Virgil decides to make himself a drink. While his back was facing the shop’s entrance, he heard the bell by the door, signaling that a person had entered the shop. “I’ll be with you in a sec,” Virgil stated, still not facing the person.

~*~*~

Roman has been friends with Patton ever since they were in kindergarten and even though he wouldn't exactly trust the man with his life, seeing that he'd drop anything to pet a cat, he's still the friend that Roman had since the start and he wouldn't have it any other way.

As Roman entered the shop with his earphones blasting some Ben Platt tunes, he’s frantically searching for something in his messenger bag. He looked up when he realized no one had greeted him when he entered. Usually, Patton would happily greet him with a pun or already handing him his drink. Now, he sees a barista with purple hair with their back facing him.

"Ahh, you're new I presume," he continued to look inside his bag as he walked to the counter. "Well, my order is kinda complicated so, you're gonna have to write this down," he warns as the barista walks over to him. "Okay, SO... a skim milk latte, with 2 extra shots of espresso... affogato style... make two of those shots without caffeine... add only 4 squirts of fat-free vanilla... steamed at 180 degrees... add caramel on top... no whip... and don't fill the cup all the way…" he notices the barista just standing in front of him. He stops what he was doing and fully looks up to see the other doing something on the monitor in front of him. "W-why aren't you writing this down?" Roman inquires as he marvels and gawks at the gorgeous human being in front of him. Eyeing him from head to... how far his eyeballs can reach with a countertop in between the two.

"What size?" the barista asks, keeping their eyes on the monitor. "Uhh… the big one. Do- do you need me to repeat everythi-" He was cut off, "Ventihalfcafquadextrahotwithroomskinnycaramelmachiatto? You got a name?" Roman doesn't know how to react. He's in between confused, impressed, and somewhat offended. The barista was now looking at him, waiting for his answer. Roman looks over to the other's name tag that says 'Virgil'; when he looks back at Virgil, realizes that he still hasn't answered. "That…" he trailed off.

Virgil raised an eyebrow. "That sure is… a question... that has an answer," Roman continued, stammering. Virgil rested his chin on his palm, his elbow on the counter. He flashed the customer an amused grin, "Take your time, man. I got all night long," Roman’s face went red but eventually did tell the barista his name after apologizing. “Ahh. So you’re Roman,” Virgil acknowledged as he wrote the name on the cup. “Patton’s in the back. Let yourself in,”

~*~*~

“Why didn’t you tell me you had a hot new barista coming in today?!” Roman whisper-yelled to his friend as he closed the door behind him. “Who? Virgil? He’s been working on this shop for as long as I have. This is his first time in the night shift, though,” Patton explained as he took the box of their new blender out of the larger box and handed it to Roman. “Can you give this to him and ask him to set it up on the counter? We’ve been waiting for that blender for months,” Patton politely asked with a smile. “Sure thing, Pat,”

“Hey. Patton asked me to give this to you and he asked if you could set it up,” Roman stated as he handed the box over to Virgil. Virgil finished the drink he was working on when he recognized the box and snatched the box from Roman’s hands and exclaimed, “Oh! Thank fuck! We’ve been waiting for this for months!” He placed it on the counter and excitedly took out the blender from the box. Roman snickered at the other’s antics, amused. “Oh! That’s your drink right there,” Virgil pointed to the drink he left on the counter. Roman thanked him and flashed him a smile as he heads back to his friend.

“What’cha got there, Roman?” Patton began. “Uhm? My usual drink?” Roman replied, confused. “No, silly. There’s something written on the side,” Patton giggled. Roman rotated the drink in his hands and sees small scribbled untidy handwriting. ‘You seem like an interesting individual with good music taste for blasting RAIN by Ben Platt in the middle of the night’ followed by a phone number. Roman blushed at the note.

He could hear the bell by the door ring followed by talking, muffled by the walls:

“What’s up, bitches!”

“Sup’ asshole. Where the fuck have you been? Is that- Is that a drink from the traitors?”

“Don’t worry, babe. It tastes like shit. I was gonna throw- Is that a new blender?!”

“Fuck yeah it is!”

‘This is going to be interesting,’ Roman smiled.

I honestly don't know how to write when it isn't prinxiety so for the entire(ish) month will be mostly prinxiety. But, if you want me to write a different ship with the prompt on a specific day on AU August, send me an ask! I can at least give it a try😅

[burning-clutch]

Shielded From The Truth

Cross posted on A03: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30441042 -.-.-.-.- Warnings: Mild wounds. Number two in the phic phight! When his parents put a shield up around Casper high to keep the ghosts out, and it means that Danny’s day hardly goes to plan. And he was so close to being on time for once too…. PHIC PHIGHT 2021 For team ghost! -.-.-.-.-.- Prompt by: Silverwing013 Danny's parents have kindly offered to set up a ghost shield generator for Casper High. Hijinks ensue as Danny attempts to handle the situation. 

-.-.-.-.-.-

Danny groaned as he only half listened to his parents rattle off whatever ghost nonsense they were going on about as he ate his breakfast. A bowl of dry cereal because the milk was contaminated and he really didn’t want to chance it giving him more than a stomach ache. This had become the norm this week it seemed as his parents seemed invested more than usual into the ghost shields that they had been working on and improving.

Why only shields? They would be installing one in the school soon… but beyond that? He wasn’t sure. They probably told him, sure, but being a teenager and one that had parents that hated half of him, had the effect of making him only lightly listen to the weapons and things that were meant to fully kill him off. That and at least the ghost shields weren’t usually a hindrance to him, in fact, they had proven themselves useful on a few occasions.

Plus he had the added advantage of being able to simply return to his human form and slip through the shield with little issue. Given his parents had no knowledge of half ghosts existing, at least he hoped not, they shouldn’t be designing a ghost and human shield. After all, that would defeat the purpose, right? It wasn’t as if Amity really had any human threats anymore.

Well, regardless of the eccentricities of his parents he could at least take some comfort in the fact that Skulker couldn’t simply attack the school to get to him any longer.

Small mercies he supposed.

Danny blinked as his father said something to him before slapping him on his back causing the teen to practically choke on his cereal from the force of the smack. “Isn’t that just great Dann-o?” the large man exclaimed happily before looking at his son expectantly. Oh great, he wanted him to ask something? Great.

“S-Sure” Danny choked out as he flailed, grabbing in front of him for the orange juice he had nabbed from the fridge, it thankfully hadn’t been in there long enough to start glowing… yet…

He shook his head as he finally got his breath back without inhaling dry cereal pieces into his lungs. When he was sure he wasn’t going to sound like some dollar store squeaky toy he tried to ask his parents a question, always a dreadful time if he were honest, but hey, he would usually be late for school anyway.

“So this will go around the whole school?” Danny tried weakly.

“Yep! And the best part is it’ll sense where there's an evil ectoplasmic entity nearby and spring up instantly! We made sure there won’t be a ghost within Twenty feet of the school before that puppy jumps up to the rescue! Like a big Fenton airbag!” Jack exclaimed all too enthusiastically for what the current time in the AM should allow a normal person to exhume.

Danny hummed noncommittally and sent a glance of ‘help me’ to his sister, who, in turn, rolled her eyes at her little brother. “And the shield even uses the ghost’s power to run the shield right?” Jazz asked side eyeing her father from her own spot not wanting to fully engage in the conversation they were having.

“Oh, yea! That’s the best part!” Jack practically cheered out.

“And the stronger the evil skum is the faster the shield will react and sooner it will be picked up. It will only go off on a level three or higher.” Maddie explained with a pleasant smile as she sips at her coffee.

“And we got it all finished last night to be ready for you kids today” Jack added happily.

“Hooray, more fun on a Monday” Danny sighed out into his last bites of cereal. Jazz snorted but didn’t comment, though Danny blew her a childish raspberry.

Jack continued to go on about the more intricate details of the shield they had put up though only one thing really caught his attention in the spiel, “-And Vladdie helped with the funding to outfit the school! Even helped us get the materials we needed to make such a large shield!”

“Ah, there it is…” Danny groaned letting his head fall forward onto the table in instant defeat.

“Danny! I really wish you would learn not to stay up so late playing video games! Look at you! If I get another call from one of your teachers about you sleeping in class-” Maddie started only for Danny to cut her off jumping to his feet.

“Yep! Thanks for that, mom! Look at the time! Love you bye!” Danny prattled off quick as could be before grabbing his book bag by his feet and bolting like a scared rabbit. After all, if his mother never finished that sentence when he inevitably fell asleep he couldn’t be grounded… she never officially gave him the last warning…

That’ll work, right?

It wasn’t long when he was out of the house that he was at his usual waiting spot for Sam and Tucker. Unsurprisingly, Sam got there first though they didn't have to wait long for Tucker to lumber forward, half asleep to his friends, and together they made their way towards the school as a unit.

Things seemed well enough until he got onto the stairs leading up to the main doors. That was when all hell broke loose. A deep alarm sounded before his father’s voice rang out from the speakers, in his over the top cheery way that only Jack Fenton knew how to pull off.

“Attention kids! Guess there’s an evil spook nearby so we’re deploying the shield! This ghost protection was brought to you by Fenton-works and sponsored by your mayor!”

Danny frowned. “My ghost sense didn’t go off…” He mentioned quietly to his friends.

“Maybe the shield sensors are more sensitive than you are?” Tucker asked with a frown.

“Since when?” Sam argued incredulously.

“Well who or whatever it is, it isn’t bothering me right now and no one’s screaming, no one’s panicking, so it can wait. I’m actually going to be on time for once!” Danny says waving the notion off.

He continues his trek up the stairs and towards the doors of the school, though when he reaches the threshold of the shield he finds himself having to really push hard against the thing. It was like hitting a wall of foam or Jell-O. He could push through if he pressed hard enough but it was not pleasant or as easy as going through the air.

Once through the initial shield wall, he blinked slowly feeling sluggish and as though all his limbs were moving through water. He even sort of felt like he was having to ‘swim’ as he walked like he was both heavier and lighter than he should be, but unable to find that buoyancy happy middle ground.

“Dude…” Tucker said smartly as he frowned at his friend’s almost slow motion, yet stop motion like movements. It was eerie, to say the least, not to mention the more pressing issue that he noticed right off the hop, “Your eyes are shining, man. And your, um… Neck...”

Sam, ever prepared for whatever bull their lives seem to throw their way, slipped her bag around to her front and offered Danny a pair of sunglasses, which the halfa put on promptly, along with the spider webbed patterned black and silver scarf.  “I mean, it’s better,” Sam argued, not even giving Tucker's look of disapproval her full attention.

“They’re spider glasses.” The boy states with a shake of his head. “Not really digging the whole-” Tucker waved his arm about Danny’s head in little circles, “-pseudo goth thing” he finished finally. Though he had to admit it was at least marginally better than seeing his friend’s glowing eyes and the electric scars showing up on his neck and disappearing under his shirt collar.

“Better?” Danny asked out sluggish, his voice almost sounding like it was being drawn out on a tape deck that was starting to lack battery power and not playing at quite the proper speed making the pitch and timing slower and lower.

Sam and Tucker shared a look before offering a thumbs up to their friend, both deciding it better not to address… whatever that was… The look they shared between one another spoke of their mutual hope that this would perhaps be one of those problems that simply go away on its own.

Ignoring the problems they have usually makes it go away… Yeah, that always works out.  

Danny makes a grab for the door to pull it open again, having that weird slow stop motion effect, like he was flickering between blinks rather than making a smooth motion forward. “Ehm, maybe don’t move around too much man… it’s um… creeping me out.” Tucker offers helpfully.

“Huh?” it took Danny a minute to process, as while he looked slow to them they seemed to be hyped up on caffeine to him… “Why are you talking so fast?” He wondered, his head almost appearing to glitch into a tilted and confused look.

“I think the ghost shield is making you go all slow motion. Just stop talking.” Sam says forcefully before letting out a shudder of her own.

Sam and Tucker share a glance before they each grab onto one of Danny’s arms and half drag him off to his locker. Despite his friends’ efforts he still got many looks shot his way, and a couple of people started whispering to one another as he passed by them.

“How is this going to work if I’m already weirding everyone out?” Danny asked, voice still sounding like a slowed record as he blinked sluggishly and his head jerked almost unsteadily from side to side. From his perspective, everyone was speeding along and talking at 1.5 times the normal speed.

“Maybe I should look for the ghost that triggered this, maybe Tuck, can you look into this mess?” Danny asked after a moment of trying to figure out what was being said around him through the noise of the hall.

“Yeah that might be best…” Sam responded shifting from leg to leg as she locks eyes with a basketball jock who was staring at their group incredulously.

“I got you, man, I’ll change everything to present and, block any ‘call home’ recommendations.” Tucker pipped up already pulling out his PDA to set that up preemptively.

Danny nodded and let out a hum before glitching his way out the nearest exit and out of the shield’s bounds. Once he slipped back out through the barrier, strangely enough, a harder feat than it was getting in, but that wasn’t a problem he wanted to focus on, he already blamed Vlad so he would simply continue to do so until the fruitloop showed himself.

As soon as he was through the green line of the shield Danny practically fell forward in relief. That stifling feeling now gone from his core and bones making his movements fluid and normal, well as normal as a clumsy half ghost could be anyhow…

It was a moot point and not one Danny wanted to think on too long. He gave a quick “thanks” to his friends, before diving between the dumpster and the school’s bricks, transforming into his ghostly alter ego and taking off into the sky. He would do a few laps around the school and city as he looks for whatever ghost set off the shield.

-BREAK-

It wasn’t until lunchtime Danny returned looking much more windswept and all around more miserable. He entered the courtyard through the side joining his friends out on the picnic table they had claimed.  He made it over to them, flopped down on the bench next to tucker with a groan before his head smacked into the table before him.

“You find them?” Tucker asked around whatever horrid monstrosity of a sandwich he was eating, spewing bits of half chewed bred at Danny’s head.

“No” Came the muffled reply, filled with tired disdain.

“No ghost sense?” Sam wandered, flicking the bits of bread from Danny’s raven hair and back towards Tucker.

“No”

“Huh… You think it was you who set off the shield?”  Sam wondered with a thoughtful frown.

“When I went into the back end of the generator though it wasn’t supposed to go off for anything that low, Danny in human form is like a two at best,” Tucker argued spinning his PDA around to show what he’d found when he hacked into the motherboard of the Fenton’s latest device.

Danny groaned. He supposed had he listened to his parents he could have been more prepared for whatever lunacy his parents’ decided to toss his way but alas, his short attention span and teenage rebellion and lack of caring got the best of him yet again.

Joyous of joys.

He tuned out his friend’s back and forthing for a bit, wondering if he could get away with smashing the device as Phantom when Tucker had his a-ha moment of discovery. Danny turned his head and raised a brow at his friend who was furiously typing away at his device.

“You were right about Vlad, Sam”

“Naturally,” She agreed.

“Well, he had an over right line here specifically set for Phantom’s ecto- signature,” the boy states running his finger along the line of code he’d found in the program.

Danny’s mood instantly brightened at that. “So then we just get rid of that bit right? And BAM everything’s fine?” He asked. “Man, what happened to me? Why do I want to get into the school again?”

“To keep up the illusion of normalcy on this mortal plane.” Sam supplied stabbing at her salad a little more forcefully than she probably needed to.

“Eh, yeah, I suppose.” Danny agreed with a lacklustre shrug.

“There, that should do it” Tucker spoke, interrupting whatever tangent Sam was getting ready to spew off about how normalcy was only an illusion created by corporations or some other such thing.

“And just in time The bell just rang,” Danny says with a small grin clasping a firm hand onto his friend’s shoulder. “Nice one Tucker!” he cheered as the trio made their way over to the doors that would lead them back into the cafeteria.

Unfortunately, as soon as Danny’s hand hit the door handle the shield once again sprung to life, though this time, instead of simply having a hard time passing through the shield, he was thrown back across the field earning a cry from several students who were following the trio.  

“Grapes of wrath Mister Fenton!” Lancer, (of course it was Lancer) shouted out in worry, his shout even carrying over the prerecorded message containing his father’s voice. Lancer half jogged half waddled over to Danny who blinked up blearily to his teacher, eyes flashing green for the briefest of seconds before draining back to blue.

“Leave it to Fen-turd to get himself possessed.” Dash snorted from behind the pot bellied teacher earning a few nervous glances between the small crowd of gathering students. The mutterings of the students didn’t take long to start up after that.

“I’m not possessed,” Danny argued, though, it was rather hard to make said argument when the palm of his hand was burned and leaking ectoplasm from where he had touched the door.

“Course he’s not possessed! He’s a ghost himself!” Wes shouted pointing an accusatory finger at the youngest Fenton.

Danny glared. “Not the time Westly.” He muttered under his breath as he was hauled to his feet by his friends. He tried to brush himself off only to end up smearing the ectoplasm from his hand onto his jeans, leaving a luminescent streak across his thigh.

Seeing his chance the ginger jock was all too eager to point it out. “See look! He’s bleeding ectoplasm!”

“No, I’m not! It’s from the shield! it sputtered out at me.” Danny tried to protest, though even in his own ears it sounded like a weak argument.

“Really?” Wes argued and marched over to the shimmering shield. The teen waved his arms about freely in the shield’s range hopping back and forth pointedly across the line of the barrier before showing his hands and clothes were completely clean of any glowing goo. “See! Ghost!” he accused again after he did a little pirouette to show his lack of ectoplasm.

“Yeah? Well, it sputtered at Danny only ‘cuz it turned on with him in the threshold.” Sam tried to argue back glaring at the ginger, venom in her gaze.

“Well then, why don’t you just walk through the shield Fen-toad?” Dash said with a smarmy grin, ever eager to get his own jabs in and seemingly not wanting to be outshined by the ginger conspiracy theorist’s bullying of his favourite punching bag.

“Fine” He spat back bitterly and marched up to the shield with a huff.

Sam and Tucker exchange a glance with one another as Danny presses his hand into the shield again. Thankfully this time there wasn’t anything that blows him back but he also really had to try and push through the shield.  

Danny could see out of the corner of his eye Wes’s smug grin as he grunts and does his best to push through the shield. His persistence is rewarded and he falls to the ground on the other side jumping up and giving a quick ‘HA!’ as he faces the small gathering crowd of students shifting uncomfortably just beyond the shield.

Sam had a look of exasperation and she looked like she was trying to restrain herself from face palming. Tucker on the other hand had no such restraint. He was almost over eager to bury his face into his hands.

From Danny’s perspective, he simply smacked into the ground and stood back up, but from the other students’ perspectives, Danny fell into the shield but instantly slowed down, looking as though he were falling with the moon’s gravity rather than the earthly speed everyone was used to. It also didn’t really look to them like he had hit the ground, instead glitching his body back into an upright position before cheering in that low slow motion state as he had earlier.

And if that wasn’t damning enough his eyes were glowing a lovely shade of ectoplasmic green.

Wes smirked, seemingly very smug and content with himself and this development. “See told you all he was a ghost!”

“T-that’s enough Mister Weston… Right…” LAncer muttered to himself a few moments watching as Danny seemed to glitch about as he cheered before seemingly realizing something was wrong. “I think there was a procedure to depossess a student…I bet the teachers in Bridgestone don’t have to exercise their students in this manner…” He complains. Sure they had gym class and he would appreciate the pun and irony if he wasn’t so tired.

“I don’t get paid enough for this,” he muttered, ignoring the look of panic that spread across Danny’s face.

It took some doing, a lot of flailing limbs and pressing himself against the damn shield, but Danny soon was through back out and free. His eyes still glowed brightly as he stared at his classmates looking very much like a deer in the headlights. Eyeshine and all might he add.

A few of the students were snickering, because only in Amity park could one get possessed by a ghost and have it come across as though someone had merely said something embarrassing or misheard an instruction and was now staring blankly ahead.

“Er….” Danny stared at his classmates half panicked before simply vanishing from view.

“Moby Dick!” Lancer exclaimed, almost dropping the book he was thumbing through from the Fenton parents. Sure it was a ghost, and could potentially be dangerous, but it wasn’t attacking so there wasn’t really anyone panicking.

Instead, the teacher simply felt tired. “Right, I’ll call the Fentons and let them deal with this, Everyone back inside I do believe the lunch bell rang already!” the teacher called out shooing the students into dispersing.

Danny stood there invisibly and holding strong as he internally groaned. At least they thought he was possessed, that could be easily explained away but he was not looking forward to trying to explain it to his parents…

Still maybe if he gets ahead of this…

It was with that thought in mind that he bolted away into the treeline beside the school, transformed and headed off to his home landing in his bedroom only a few minutes later. He went human, back intangible and invisible came out the door, made sure the coast was clear before speeding his way down into the basement.

He just made it down the stairs startling his mother and father who blinked at him curiously, when the phone rang cutting off his mother’s “Honey? What are you doing home so soon?”

“It’s the school calling Mads,” Jack says, sounding disappointed as the large man sent a look of disapproval to his boy.

“Wait!” Danny jumped forward answering the phone and instantly hanging it up.

“Daniel!” His mother exclaimed abashedly.

“I wanna explain first! Do you know how all your stuff goes off on me? Well, the shield at school started doing that and they think I’m possessed! I’m not, it's just the… ya know…” Danny rambled off hurriedly hoping against hope that his parents wouldn’t try to send him to decontamination … again… (Thanks to his ghost half, it burned in places he didn’t ever want to burn)

“You’re possessed Dann-o?!” Jack exclaimed instantly pulling a Fenton gun from somewhere on his person and brandishing it towards his son.

Danny threw his hands up and waved them placatingly at his father. “NO! Just the normal stuff! The contamination from the portal accident set it off. I got too close to the sensor!” He says quickly ignoring how his parents seem to flinch slightly.

His parents shared a look before his father seemed to deflate, seemingly upset at the fact his son wasn’t possessed. “I thought we fixed that... “ Jack says with a frown. “But, we can’t let the school know we may have messed it up! I know we’ll just run the tests again and fix it in the night!”  

“Yeah, that would be- Wait what?” Danny blinks. Why couldn’t they just go down and fix it normally? Of course, his parents had to be weird about this too. “Thanks… Is there anything you need from me to help?”

And with those words said he almost instantly regretted it. “Well… We would really like to know why your ecto signature lines up perfectly with Phantom’s but perhaps that can wait.” Maddie offered with a small amused smile.

Danny sputtered at that, “Wh-What?”

“We set up a monitoring system so we can tell which ghosts most frequent the school… Phantom was the one that triggered the shield twice today. There actually wasn’t anything else that did,” Maddie explained with a deepening frown.

“You sure you’re not possessed, son?” Jack asked again this time sounding almost defeated in how, well, normal a volume he asked that. The hidden meaning was all too obvious especially after he mentioned his accident…

They thought he was dead! The portal killed him! And as the growing pit of dread grew into Danny’s stomach he couldn’t help but feel awful knowing they were correct in that assumption, well at least half right anyhow.

“Yeah… I’m… I’m me…” Danny managed out his voice cracking

“O-oh hun....” Maddie sniffed.

“But it’s not I… I’m me, I promise and I’m not all dead. I still have a heartbeat and everything!” Danny argued or rather tried to as his mother was quick to kneel before him taking his face in her hands as tears bubbled down her chin.

“Mom really I’m like … half at most. More human with a side of ghostly abilities ya know?”

“Oh, it’s okay Dann-o… You're still my son, I know ya are. It’s been almost a year since that accident and you’re mostly still you.” Jack said. “Just worse grades and more hormones and-”

“Thanks, guys really,” Danny sighed in relief both at dodging the potentially awkward birds and ghostly bees talk as well as the tepid acceptance he was getting. Awkward though it may be it was still acceptance nonetheless.  He was happy for it just the same.

“Maybe while we work on fixing up the shield to ignore Phantom’s signature you can tell us about some things?” Maddie asked sniffling again as she looked over her son’s face trying her best to hold herself together and not outright bawl at the thought she had killed her youngest child.

“Y-yeah… I’ve been wanting to tell you about this for a while now but, well, ya know…” Danny offered uselessly.

“I think it’s us who should apologize for that, son but maybe we can just all go get some triple chocolate fudge milkshakes and go deal with that shield after dinner?” Jack offered with a smile, ever the one to break up tension.

“Yeah, yeah… that sounds good.” Danny agreed. Well, it wasn't how he was expecting this to go, but he was kinda glad it ended up like this. Maybe now they could repair their strained relationship.

As Maddie ruffled up Danny’s hair the teen offered her his first genuine smile in almost a year.

-.-.-.-.-.-

Total words: 4245 Complete

[gumnut-logic]

The world was blurry as he let his head slide on one hand and stared out through the kitchen window. Gordon was in the pool, swimming his morning laps. The sun had yet to rise and Virgil had broken several laws of physics rising himself. This time of day should not exist. But then it didn’t, because it wasn’t day yet because there was no sun!

But no, supersonic big brother wanted to do some special training today. Training that for some reason had been scheduled at sunrise.

It was possibly important, likely scheduled just to get his ass out of bed at this godawful hour. Occasionally there were some issues with having your brother in command. Brotherly love only went so far, brotherly snark had more mileage, and Scott did have that twist of his lips when he announced the schedule.

Four pairs of eyes had immediately turned to him and his return glare had been insufficient to deflect the amusement that followed.

But it was okay. It was fine. He had his own skill drills up his sleeve. Two am would be convenient for him next time, definitely. After all, they all had to keep their skill sets up, didn’t they?

In the meantime, it was black coffee and repeated attempts to focus on Mateo. Mateo was distinctly blurry, and dark and...

“Hey, Virg!” Alan whacked him on the back.

His face nearly ended up in his coffee. “Alan? What the hell?”

“And good morning to you, too, big bro. Ready for this morning’s run?”

He stared at his bright and peppy, yes, peppy, youngest brother. Augh. “Go away.”

“Aww, did the big bear have to get out of bed a little early?”

“Alan...”

“C’mon, Virg, it’s gonna be fun. A race around the island, wind in your hair, blood pumping...it’s gonna be awesome.”

Virgil stared at him, his brain slowly picking up that something wasn’t quite right. “Alan, why aren’t you comatose?”

“What do you mean, big bro?”

A slow blink. “You hate mornings almost as much as I do. Who are you and what have you done with my little brother?” His eyelids drooped all of their own volition.

“It’s called prepared, bro. I’m in it to win it.”

Virgil’s eyes narrowed. “Are you on something? Because if you are, Scott’s going to kill you, and once I’m awake, I’ll resuscitate you so I can kill you again.”

“That’s violence, bro. It’s cool, I promise.”

An arched eyebrow that almost hurt. “What did you do, Alan?”

“Nothing. Well, nothing you aren’t already doing.”

“You drank coffee.”

“Noooooooo.”

“What did you do?”

“A little caffeine is all.”

The arched eyebrow flipped into a frown. “How much?”

“Enough.”

Virgil’s back straightened. “Alan.”

“I’m fine, bro, I promise. I know what I’m doing. I’m not stupid.” A blond frown. “Besides, it’s not like you don’t do the same with your coffee after coffee after coffee technique.”

Virgil’s lips thinned, but to be honest, the kid was right, he didn’t have a leg to stand on. But... “You’re not yet an adult, Alan.”

“Yet, I take the responsibilities of an adult, Virgil.”

“Your body isn’t fully mature!”

“Well, thanks for that, Doctor Virgil!”

“You have to look after yourself!”

“Hard to do anything else when I have four brothers mother-henning me all the time!”

“We worry about you!”

“Well, don’t! I can look after myself.”

“Alan!”

“Virgil!”

“Hey! What the hell is going on here?!”

Virgil found himself looming over his little brother, one brain cell after another slowly catching up with what the hell was going on. Bright blue eyes were staring up at him defiantly, his little brother’s shoulders tight and fists clenched at his sides.

Virgil forced his own fists to uncurl. There was a reason why he preferred not to see this time of day. Disturbed sleep disturbed his calm, his control, and things like this happened.

Scott loomed over the both of them and Virgil took a step back, slumping back onto his seat and hulking over his coffee almost in a pout. “Better ask Alan, he’s the one being stupid.”

“Speak for yourself, Virgil.”

“Both of you, shut it.” Scott could glare with the best of them, but Virgil had exhausted what little energy he had and ignored him. “Alan, dosed himself with caffeine.”

“Virgil!”

He could feel the laserbeams shooting out of Scott’s eyes switching targets and landing on Alan. There was no satisfaction, just blergh. Here we go.

And sure enough, Scott started in on his little brother. There was, of course, shouting. Virgil idly wondered how come Scott got to yell and he didn’t. But then Virgil didn’t really like yelling anyway.

Coffee. Its warmth drifted down his throat and spread into his bones. Oh god, he needed it. Maybe a second one after this? But then the word ‘caffeine’ came up amongst the explosions beside him and he reconsidered. No need to become a target himself.

He let his foggy mind drift a little. It was all his fault really. He could have gone to bed early, but he had made the mistake of getting into a discussion online with an engineering idiot. The topic had become heated, chemical formulas launched like bombs and laced with reactive equations enough to take out half the engineering community. In the end, he’d thrown a hissy fit and sat up to three am writing up his argument. He’d chucked it onto his blog with a great deal of satisfaction and was looking forward to rubbing it in the man’s face.

Just as soon as he could boot his brain.

Coffee, give me strength.

Gordon wandered in at some point, a damp towel around his neck. Being Gordon, he prodded the conflagration in progress and got burnt. The argument became three sided.

Virgil considered snoozing on the counter.

Then he hit on the idea that he could possibly sneak back to bed. He stood up slowly.

Brains bounded into the room, tablet in hand. “Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Brilliant, so b-brilliant!”

The argument came to a sudden halt, four pairs of eyes turning towards the engineer.

The engineer didn’t notice, eyes glued to his tablet. Max bounded in behind him, whirring excitedly. It was the robot who prevented the distracted Brains from walking into the kitchen counter.

“Oh, thank you, M-Max.” His eyes didn’t leave the tablet. “Did you see the p-polymer ratio? Amazing! Such elegance. You know, I am quite d-disap-pointed that I didn’t think of this myself. The applications are going to b-be in-numerable.”

The distraction was enough to break the fuel lines of the argument and Scott settled for a final threat, Alan a final glare and Gordon, a snort of derision. The moment to escape was lost and Virgil slumped where he sat.

Damn.

“Virgil, you going to eat before we run?”

Alan was right, Scott mother-henned.

“Maybe.” Ugh, c’mon coffee kick in. He needed operational braincells.

Scott was peering closely at him. “Earth to Virgil.”

“Shut up, Scott. You got me up at the ass end of the day, I’m here. Don’t expect much more.”

His brother grinned, and Virgil had the odd urge to thump him. Just because this was his element, didn’t mean he had to be a smart ass about it. “Your next physical is going to be hell.”

The grin faltered. Aah, that’s better. Hmm, perhaps his brain was slowly booting. Go, coffee.

“Virgil! You h-have to see these equations. They are brilliant!”

What? Brains’ tablet shifted the remains of his coffee to one side and Virgil found himself staring at a series of numbers that made little sense at this time of the morning. “Brains, looks great. Can I review them later? I’m not all here yet.”

The engineer didn’t appear to hear him. “Look at the polymer decay to reaction ratio! This is a self-healing polymer!”

Huh? He frowned and forced himself to focus. The appropriate neurons clicked into place in his brain and suddenly what he was seeing made sense.

Shit.

He grabbed the tablet, eyeing the equations and spinning calculations in his head. Brains was right. This was perfect. The polymer would be able to self-heal with the application of a mild electrical current. Give it a pattern to follow and it would populate and keep it populated, even after disturbance.

“Did you discover this, Brains?” He frowned. There was something familiar about this. Maybe they had discussed it recently.

“Oh, no, this is V. T. Green. The man is brilliant.” There was that word again. Brilliant.

But it still took a second for it all to click into place.

V. T. Green was his blog. V. T. Green was his pseudonym online, used for obvious reasons to keep his identity hidden. The blog had been for amusement originally. A place to stash his favourite music and art, but at some point, he had found himself venturing into engineering circles and getting into discussion with the online community. It made for interesting discourse and he was able to keep up to date with some of the latest innovations. Not that he could share his own much and IR was well ahead of the majority of the world thanks to one Hiram Hackenbacker, but on occasion he would fiddle with ideas and make suggestions. It was also a great place to postulate out-there concepts.

The equations on Brains’ tablet were Virgil’s.

“Where did you get these?”

Brains was full of far too much energy for this time of the morning. “Green p-posted them during the night and they have h-hit the world by s-storm.”

“What?”

Brains frowned at him. “Haven’t you heard of V. T. Green, Virgil? He is o-one of the leading engineers on this p-planet. I have been f-following his b-blog for over a year n-now. You r-really m-must check it out.”

“Um, must have missed that one.”

“H-how could you m-miss such an important s-site? I know you k-keep up to date. The man is at the centre of a massive discussion about polymer cohesion and decay. Last night, Coloncous in Spain had the nerve to challenge him in the most ridiculous manner. I was so close to cutting him off myself, he was embarrassing us all, but Green replied with this. As expected, it is a brilliant explanation and Coloncous had no choice but to concede and crawl back into the hole he should never have come out of in the first place. He was a fool to think he could go up against Green. But this solution has so many possibilities. Do you realise this could be integrated into Two’s cahelium hull and she would be able to heal damage midflight? Four would be able seal herself in an underwater emergency. So brilliant.”

Virgil stared at the engineer. He didn’t think he had ever heard Brains say so many words in a row. And his stutter had disappeared two sentences in.

“What did you say about sealing Four, Brains?” Gordon’s ears had obviously pricked up at the mention of his ‘bird.

Brains’ attention was immediately drawn to the aquanaut, his verbal diarrhoea spilling all over Gordon and freeing Virgil.

Taking the opportunity, he pulled out his phone and brought up the website.

Shit!

He had notifications enough to clog his inbox. Due to the early hour, his phone was still on silent and he hadn’t heard any of them. A quick glance identified several prominent names and universities.

Shit. His eyes widened.

He glanced up at his family who were now eagerly discussing safety seals for Thunderbird Four. Even Scott’s eyes were wide and enthusiastic.

Shit.

Um.

Yeah.

He needed more coffee.

-o-o-o-

V.T. Green (one of my absolute favourites :D)

[trexrambling]

Finding Tomorrow - Chapter 6

MASTERLIST

Overview: It started with a chance meeting, a bold request, and a book. With a past full of loss and a future centered on searching for something more, one person may make all the difference in what tomorrow could bring.

Pairing: DylanxReader

Word Count: 2,566

Warnings: mild language

Soundtrack for Ch6: “Life is Good” by The Hunts

Listen on Spotify

Listen on YouTube

“You’re taunting me, aren’t you?”

Dylan’s eyes cut sideways to look at me. “You’re supposed to be asleep.”

I blink some moisture back into my eyes to unstick my contacts and reposition my head on his shoulder. “You’re literally reading my book right in front of me, like when the kidnappers reveal the live hostage to their parents.” His finger goes to the corner of the page, like he’s about to dog ear his spot, and I sit up stiffly. “Oh hell no, don’t you dare. Have you been doing that this whole time?” I literally rip the book from his hands, documenting the page number he’s on in my head before thumbing through the previous ones. I spot at least three other creases on corners and turn to him with fire in my eyes.

He looks scared, as he should be. “I, uh, I don’t have a bookmark.”

“This is a dealbreaker,” I mutter under my breath, “an absolute dealbreaker. And things were going so well.”

I catch the driver’s reflection in the rearview mirror and see the smirk on his face. Then I look at Dylan to see the growing uncertainty on his.

He swallows. “Do you, um, do you have a bookmark I could borrow?”

“Oh no, sir, I’m holding onto this until you can prove proper care.”

“You can’t be serious?”

I slip the book into my backpack as an answer. He’s looking at me like I’m crazy, and my cheeks twitch as they try to suppress a smile.

“Hey, Randy,” Dylan says, leaning forward, “can you take the next exit? I think I saw a sign for a mental institution. We need to make a quick stop, drop this one off before she, you know, murders me. Or worse.”

I do burst out laughing then. “Or worse? What would be worse than murder?”

“Oh, you know, excruciating long lectures on proper book care- ow! Hey, hitting isn't nice, Y/N.”

“We’re only eleven minutes away, if you two could just keep it together for a bit longer,” Randy informs us from the front seat. That statement sobers me up a bit. All the anxiety I’d managed to subdue for the four hour car ride comes creeping back in, like unwelcome weeds in a sidewalk crack.

“Hey,” Dylan says, wrapping an arm around my shoulder, “it’s going to be great.”

I manage a pinched smile and let my head fall back onto his shoulder.

His cheek leans against the top of my hair. “Look, just follow my lead this weekend. I know the territory, so, as long as you don’t go rogue, you’ll be fine.”

“So stick with you?”

“Exactly.”

I reach for his free hand, and he wraps mine in his until we pull into the parking garage of the convention hotel.

“Damn it,” Dylan mutters as his eyes scan the space out the window. “Randy, man, I thought this was supposed to be a private entrance.”

I glance out and see at least two people with cameras, one with a microphone, and maybe ten average looking people who are probably guests of the hotel. There’s someone in an official looking suit with a nametag trying to shoo them away, but the effort is quickly overrun as soon as they realize whose Sedan is pulling in.

Dylan lets go of my hand and looks at me, and I can read the debate going on in his head as clear as words in a book.

“Hey, uh, Randy, is there a coffee shop close by? Maybe you could drop me there so I can pick up some caffeine first?” I give Dylan a smile. “I can walk over after. No big deal.”

I can tell he doesn't fully love the idea, but Randy has already parked the car and the medium sized wave of people waiting for Dylan to exit is growing more excited by the second. “You sure you’ll be okay?”

I roll my eyes. “I was getting coffee by myself long before I met you.”

“Okay, smart ass.” He places his duffle bag strap over his shoulder and snags his pillow from the backseat. “Just call me when you make it into the hotel so I can find you.”

“Will do.”

He opens the door and slides out, giving me a wink before closing it again. I watch as he walks towards the entryway, the hotel attendance and, judging by her lanyard and ‘Staff’ T-shirt, a Comic-con handler flocking him on both sides to hurriedly usher him in. He hangs back at the door and turns to face everyone pushing in on him for attention, and I smile as I watch him pause to take a picture with a fan and sign a poster for another.

“Ready, miss?” Randy asks.

“Yeah, I’m good.” We pull out of the spot and head towards the garage exit, the navigation system at the front routing us to a coffee place only two streets away. My phone buzzes in my pocket, and I pull it out to check the message there.

Neither of those girls asked me out for coffee. The audacity.

I snort out a laugh.

Randy drops me at the cafe, my backpack weighing heavy on my shoulders as I give him a small wave goodbye. A raindrop hits my nose as I sling my other small bag over my shoulder, and I make it inside right before a steady shower descends from the sky.

“That’s...just great,” I mutter to myself. I set my bags down and dig around to find my rain jacket and umbrella. I order as custom of a coffee as I can for both Dylan and I, hesitating for a second before tacking one on for Tyler Posey as well. Might as well sweeten the first impression as much as possible. I honestly want to order the whole cast coffee at this point.

With my bright yellow rain jacket zipped up tight, my polka dot umbrella shielding me, and coffees in a drink carrier cradled against my chest, I trek out into the light, but thick, rain. It’s only a five minute, brisk walk, but the bottom portion of my striped linen pants are damp and (thanks to a surprise puddle) my flats are soaked through by the time I make it under the awning of the hotel entrance. I shake out my umbrella and go through the automatic doors, my wet soles immediately slipping and squeaking on the slick tile. I kick them off my feet and wrap them and my umbrella in my rain jacket before placing the bundle into my knapsack. Then I dig out my phone and call Dylan.

He picks up on the first ring. “Hey! You here?”

“Yep! Where do I go?”

He leads me on a route through the hotel, getting me turned around twice, leading me into a laundry room once, and then I finally make it to a long hallway by the conference rooms with a security personnel stationed on each corner.

“Alright, I think I’m here.”

“Okay, you should see me in three, two, and-”

He comes into view around the far corner, phone to ear, smiling as his eyes latch onto me. He ends the call and immediately looks down at my bare feet. “Where the hell are your shoes?”

“They were attacked by a puddle,” I say with a shrug.

“Shit, it’s raining? I should have just let you come in with me.”

“No, it’s fine, really. Plus, we’ve got coffee now.” I hold the carrier up on display, and he reaches out to take it for me.

“Three?”

My cheeks grow warm, and I shift from foot to foot. “One’s for, uh, Tyler.”

He throws an arm around my shoulders and guides me down the hall. “Oh man, he’s going to love you.”

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

The next ten minutes are a whirlwind. I’m introduced to so many people, most of whom I already knew and the rest I forget the names of instantly. Holland and the other female cast members are stunningly beautiful, even more so in person, and unbelievably nice to the point where I’m easily conversing and laughing alongside them. I beam like an idiot when I shake Tyler Hoechlin’s hand, giggling when he says something that may not have even been funny. Dylan pulls me away from him with a disapproving look.

Then Tyler Posey comes in, throwing the doors to the conference room open with a grand flourish and proclaiming loudly, “Where is she!?”

I'm in midconversation with Holland and Shelley, and I instinctively shrink behind them a bit. “I feel like I should run. Should I run?”

Holland laughs. “Probably.”

In seconds he’s crossed the room and literally picks me up off the floor in an engulfing hug that knocks the breath out of me. “Oh, you’re beautiful.” He turns, still squishing me against him. “Dylan, you didn’t do this woman justice with what you told me.”

I’m blushing from head to toe and struggling to breathe, but I manage to squeeze out, “Well he described your beauty to perfection.”

“Dude, come on, man, you’re crushing her,” Dylan says, pulling Tyler’s arms away from my back to release me from the vice grip. My feet find the floor again, and I’m swiftly tucked into his side. “You okay?”

I suck in a deep breath. “Yeah, yeah, I’m good.”

“She got you coffee,” Dylan says to Tyler.

His smile gets even bigger. “You got me coffee?”

“I got you coffee.”

“We’re practically best friends now. It’s official.” He claps a hand on Dylan’s shoulder. “What a keeper, man.” He winks at me. “It’s great to meet you, Y/N.”

I smile. “You too.”

A staff member enters the conference room and announces that there’s fifteen minutes until the panel, prompting a sea of motion across the space as everyone heads towards their personal hotel rooms for last minute preparation.

“Here-” Dylan pulls out a lanyard with a pass on it from his jacket pocket- “I picked this up for you. Puts you right on the front row, in the splash zone.”

He slips the pass over my head, and I look up at him with raised eyebrows. “Splash zone?”

He picks up his coffee with an offhanded shrug. “You never know.”

---------------------- I’d never been to a panel before, only watched them on YouTube after the fact. And even if I had been to one, nothing could have compared to being front and center, literally so close I could see the outline of perfect chest muscles beneath Tyler Hoechlin’s shirt. But what I mainly saw was Dylan, because the pass he’d gotten me just happened to be the seat that was smack dab in front of his panel chair.

It was a packed room, and they’d designed the panel to give most of the time to audience questions, which I absolutely loved. I kept a notebook in my lap the entire time, aimlessly sketching and doodling to keep my now sandaled feet from tapping the floor and my brain focused. I was riding a weird high of continued disbelief and excitement and just pure joy as the day continued to unfold.

There were lots of questions about the ending of Teen Wolf, about the projects and movies that everyone had worked on since then, about plot holes and general opinions and personal platforms saying how much so and so had affected them. I loved watching everyone on stage interact with each other, like a family dinner conversation with all its inside jokes and laughter that had the whole audience joining in.

“So my question is for Dylan O’Brien,” the next person states.  

“Hi there,” he replies into his mic, leaning forward slightly.

She pulls out her phone. “So there’s a picture of you going around online right now that I’m sure everyone else is curious about as well, so I was just wondering, first of all, what type of dancing can you do, and if the girl you’re dancing with is maybe someone special, or…” Her voice trails off suggestively, and my previous calm state does a drastic one eighty as my pen stops moving mid-sketch on my paper.

I can hear my heartbeat in my ears, getting louder and faster as the voices around me fade to white noise. I look up and instantly catch Dylan’s eye. He looks away and says something into the mic, and I watch the girl who asked the question walk up to the front of the stage. A security person takes her phone and hands it to Dylan, and the ringing in my ears fades back out as his voice fills the room again.

“Man, you guys are creepily good. I mean, privacy, pffft, what’s that, man?” He uses his own phone to take a picture of her screen and hands it back over. “So, um, yeah, I was coerced into trying out some dancing last week.”

“Show us!” someone from the crowd yells out.

“Hell no,” he replies with a shake of his head. “I suck. A lot.”

My phone vibrates in my lap, and I shield it as best as I can from the people to my right and left as I open a message from Dylan.

It’s a snapshot from Wednesday night of the two of us on the dance floor. My face is only partially visible, but there’s no denying that it’s Dylan. We’re both laughing, his arm on my back and our hands entwined. I have no idea how the hell this got out, or who the hell took it, but I feel an unexplainable anger course through my blood that helps stabilize some of the previous panic.

“Who’s the person you’re with?” the girl asks again, and I very much wish I had packed a shovel to slap her with because god she wasn’t letting this go.

My eyes lock back on Dylan, and the room takes on an almost uneasy silence. Tyler leans over and whispers something into his ear, and Dylan smiles and brushes him off.

“So...yeah. I did meet someone recently. And it’s, uh, it’s going good. Really good, actually.”

There’s a clamor from the crowd of gasps and exclamations and shouts for more information, and I just sit there, frozen in my seat, mouth hanging open.

“Next question!” Posey yells into his mic. “And I’m feeling kind of left out over here, so if it could be for me that would be awesome.”

I snap my jaw shut, mind racing, no longer listening to what people are saying around me or the questions they’re asking. I keep staring at Dylan, knowing he’s doing his best to not stare back, to not give away the fact that the girl in question is literally sitting ten feet in front of him.

I’d been clutching my phone tightly in my left hand, and I bring it up now to type out a message with shaky hands.

Well.

A few seconds, then-

Well, what?

It’s ‘Going well’, not ‘good’.

He literally leans back in his chair and laughs, interrupting Crystal, who was in the middle of answering a question. He shows his phone to Tyler, who reads the message and then laughs alongside him.

I bite my lip to keep my own laughter muted and send another text.

But in all seriousness, I’d have to agree. It’s been great.

---------------------- read Chapter 7

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