#I also feel like I talked too much today. which probably isn’t helping either | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

hearts401 · 11 months

Text

A Shitty Brother Kinda Christmas

(7,441 words)

Evan invites Michael over for Christmas after not speaking to him for over two years now. Shenanigans ensue

Michael was cold.

He was also annoyed and bored and excited and the slightest bit nervous.

But right now, he was just cold.

He was sitting out in the middle of nowhere waiting for a bus that had either already come or was nearly a half an hour late.

He was praying it was the latter.

It didn’t help that he’d had literally no time to prepare. Evan had called him at six in the morning and he’d had to rush to find a gift and means for transportation and it didn’t help that everything was closed for Christmas. So he’d thrown on the only coat he had and went for the first bus he could catch. Now he was stuck out in the snow waiting for a bus that might not even arrive.

But some things were worth getting hypothermia for.

Unfortunately for Michael, this was not feeling like one of those things. But it was a second chance, and he’s fucked up too much to give up on a second chance. Frankly, when Evan had asked for his number, he’d already expected not to hear from him ever again, and he’d made peace with that. As much peace as he could at least. It wasn’t something he thought about a lot, and he doubted Evan thought about it much either.

But today his head’s been full of it, as unpleasant as that is.

When the bus finally pulled up, the driver assured him that the snow was what caused the delay, and apologized profusely. Michael didn’t care, he was just glad it came at all.

The bus was almost entirely empty, which made his life a lot easier. He clicked on his phone, not that there was anything to look at. It was Christmas, after all.

When Evan had invited him, he’d known it would be disappointing to Jeremy; He always looked forward to Christmas, but he promised they’d have their own little Christmas when he got back, but this was the first time he’d spoken to Evan in… Forever. His little brother had a house for god’s sake! A house! And he lived with his friend! That friend who’d punched Michael, the friend who always let Evan stay over his house, the friend he’d totally definitely not gotten into a fist fight with more than once all because of his own stubborn attitude.

So yeah, Michael was a jerk. But in his defense, Gregory was stubborn too.

His phone pinged and he picked it up. It was Evan again. Geez, why did he keep calling? Michael had already agreed, he didn’t want to talk to him right now, not yet.

But he can’t keep putting it off, and he doesn’t wanna seem like he’s avoiding Evan. (Even though he is, technically.)

“Hello? Hello, hello?” He said, “What’s up?”

“It’s me.” Evan said, “Just wanted to make sure you’re doing okay? I’m really sorry it’s such short notice.”

“It’s whatever.” Michael replied, “The bus was late though.”

“It’s Christmas, that’s expected.” Evan replied.

This was weird. Not a bad weird, but not a good weird either.

“Yeah.” Is all he said, “Uhm, is there anything else you need? The service here is ass.”

“Uh, no, I was calling to tell you if the bus hadn’t come to just forget it because I didn’t want you to keep waiting. It’s cold outside.”

“No shit.” He said with a dry laugh, “I’m gonna go now. Bad service, you know how it is.”

“Oh? O-Okay, yeah, bye.” Evan said.

“Bye.” Michael said before hanging up and sitting back against the seat.

“Shitty service?” He mumbled to himself, “Idiot.”

“Well, that sucked.” Elizabeth said. She was hanging decorations she’d brought since their house wasn’t “Christmas ready” in her words.

“He’s probably just tired.” Charlie said, “I’m sure he’s happy you invited him.”

“Well maybe the invitation isn’t what’s got him in the dumps and maybe it’s more the timing?” Elizabeth said.

Evan shrunk back, “I really didn’t notice how close it was getting to Christmas, I just… I couldn’t decide if I wanted to invite him…”

Elizabeth shrugged, “Fair, I guess. I usually invite him over but he spends his Christmas with his friends a lot.”

“His friends?” Charlie asked, “Jeremy?”

“And those other kids from middle school.”

Evan scrunched up his nose, “He still hangs out with those guys?”

“Yeah?” Elizabeth climbs down the small step ladder she was on, “They’re his friends.”

Evan huffs, “Yeah, I know.” He mutters.

Charlie offers a small smile at him, nudging him, “He’s not bringing any of them, it’s just him, Ev.” She says, “I’m sure everything will be okay.”

He nods slowly, “Yeah, yeah I guess.”

“Hey, Evan?” Gregory calls from the other room where he’s helping Sammy set up for dinner.

“O-oh, yeah?”

“Why does Michael do that weird ‘hello? Hello, hello?’ thing?”

Evan blinked, “I… I don’t know, actually.”

“Oh my god he does that all the time I don’t think he even realizes it!” Elizabeth said, “It drives me insane!”

Charlie laughed, “Yeah, Sammy says he does it every time he calls him.”

“He does!” Sammy said, “Every time. I asked him about it once and he was just as confused as me! He just does it. It’s like an instinct.”

Gregory laughed too, “That is funny as hell I’m never letting him live that down.”

“Oh, speaking of living things down,” Evan hopped off his bed and headed to the kitchen, “You’re gonna be on your best behavior. If you and him fight, I’m sticking you both outside.”

“If you put me outside with him I’ll bury him alive in the snow.” Gregory said.

“I’m serious.” Evan said, “I don’t want you fighting with him.”

It’s not that Evan didn’t appreciate Gregory standing up for him, but it was stressful. He didn’t want his friend hurt for him, and he certainly didn’t want to spend Christmas breaking up his brother and his best friend.

Gregory looked over at Evan, “Yeah, of course.” He said, “No fighting.”

“And that means no punching, kicking, swearing, snapping, pushing, shoving-”

“Okay, okay, okay, no fighting.” Gregory said, “But he needs to back off sometimes, I’m gonna let him know.”

“I can let him know.” Evan said, “We’re going to have a nice Christmas like a family!”

They all turned to look at him.

“We’re going to have a nice Christmas like a… decent dysfunctional patchwork family…” He rephrased, “I-I guess.”

Gregory laughed at that, “It’ll be fun, I’m sure.”

“I wish you could’ve invited Nessa,” Evan said, “I’m sure she’d have loved to meet Mike.”

When Michael finally arrived, he was met with the entire house laughing at him. Even Evan couldn’t hide his amusement at seeing his brother pull up to his house soaking wet and shaking like a leaf.

“You look great.” Sammy said.

“Piss off.” Michael muttered.

“Come inside, you look like you’re gonna freeze to death.” Charlie said.

“I feel like it too.” Michael muttered.

They brought him inside and Evan found himself suddenly regretting every decision that led up to this.

He felt sick, and he realized with a shock that there was a reason he had avoided Michael. He didn’t know what to say to him, what to do with him, or what to talk about. What do you say to your big brother who you ghosted for nearly two years after getting his number? What do you say to the person who ruined your life? What do you say to the person who treated you like shit and almost killed you and only formally apologized a couple years ago?

Gregory must have noticed because he discreetly led Evan back to his room and sat down with him.

“Not ready?” He asked.

“Not at all.” He said, flopping onto his back.

“What is it?” Gregory asked, laying down beside him.

“I don’t know. I haven’t spoken to him in forever and I was cool with that but then we did talk again and then we split up again and I just… How can I never speak to him again after that? How can I not give him at least a chance to be better? But at the same time… I don’t want to talk about The Thing, and I don’t want to bring it up but I can’t move on if I don’t and I feel sick thinking about it because what if it goes wrong? What if I fuck it up? What if he fucks it up? What if all this bullshit was for nothing this whole time and I’m just gonna end up hating him more than I already do?”

Gregory listens intently, staring at Evan, “You know, I told you not to invite him.”

“I know but-”

He continues speaking, interrupting Evan, “But! You insisted. Why?”

“Because I want to give him another shot.” Evan said.

“And he came because…” Gregory raises his eyebrows expectantly.

“Because he wants to take that shot.” Evan said, slowly understanding.

“So, you want to give him a chance? You don’t have you, you don’t owe anything to him, especially forgiveness. Do you wanna cut this short? Nobody would blame you if you did. I sure as hell wouldn’t.”

Evan sits up, “I guess.”

Gregory smiles, “Why don’t you take some time, dinner’s not done yet. Nobody’s rushing you, and I’m sure Michael is just as nervous. The only difference is that he deserves it.”

Evan laughs a bit at that, “Be nice.” He said.

“No promises!” Gregory called as he walked out of the room.

Frankly, Gregory was right. Michael was just as nervous. In fact, he wanted to curl up in a ball and sink into a hole and die right about now. He didn’t know where to sit so he ended up standing awkwardly off to the side.

Unfortunately for him, Sammy was quick to act like he owned the place. Gregory and him were like siblings, to be fair.

“Come on Mike, sit down.” Sammy said, “What’s wrong, are you nervous?”

“No. Not at all.” He muttered, “I just prefer standing.”

“Yeah, well, you look out of place with the Christmas decorations and I need to take photos so unless you wanna be my santa clause, I suggest you move.” Elizabeth said.

“You're as blunt as ever.” He muttered.

“Thanks, I try my best.” She replied with a grin.

He sat down next to Sammy, pulling out his phone, only to have Charlie grab it away from him, ignoring the indignant noise he made.

“Aw, Jeremy? Are you guys dating yet?” She teased.

“Wha- no! Give that back!” He lunged, reaching for it, but she snatched it away too quickly.

“Come on, Mike, you’ve gotta have something interesting in your life, how’s my dad?”

“Uncle Henry’s doing fine.” He answered as he continued to chase her around, “Give it back Charlie!”

“What pictures do you have? Aw, is that your dog?” Charlie pulled up a picture.

“No, it’s Jeremy’s! Now give it back!”

“What’s its name?” She asked.

Michael looked over at Elizabeth and exaggeratedly gestured at Charlie, but she just laughed at him.

“She missed messing with you, this is your own fault.” She said.

“She’s right, messing with Evan isn’t as fun. He doesn’t get mad like you do.” Charlie said.

Michael scowled at her, but he couldn’t deny that it made him feel a lot better though.

When Gregory and Evan returned, Michael offered a smile and a small wave at Evan, that his brother slowly returned.

Evan was pale, but Michael didn’t mention it; He probably was too. Although that could just be from sitting out in the snow for half an hour.

He was still a bit upset about that.

Elizabeth invited him to sit beside her, which ended up sticking him right beside Evan, who had Gregory on his other side, who had Sammy next to him, and then Charlie beside him, and then it came full circle back to Elizabeth.

Great, cool, cool cool cool cool cool. This could go one of two ways:

One, it goes horrible and awful and everything that could go wrong does go wrong.

Or two, it goes fine and Michael’s overreacting.

But he could tell Evan was uncomfortable, and the tension was uncomfortable for him as well.

He took a breath before standing abruptly, “Actually, I ate at home and I could totally just grab a hotel or something so I’m gonna-”

“You’re not leaving.” Evan said.

Michael turned to him, “I’m sorry what?”

Evan shrunk back, “I-I just mean- you can stay here. Uhm… Unless you really don’t want to which is fine but you know you should stay here with us because it’ll make it easier and honestly who sleeps in a hotel on Christmas Eve I mean-”

“Okay! Okay. That- we can do that, that’s fine.” Michael said. He sat back down slowly, staring hard at his plate.

“And I can tell you didn’t eat at home.” Evan said, “I don’t like that you’re lying to me.”

Michael doesn’t reply to that, shrugging.

Evan’s eyebrows furrow, but he doesn’t say anything else. Gregory leans in next to him and whispers something, though.

So it went bad. Not awful, but bad. Michael didn’t eat much, but the food was good. Henry knew how to cook, and it seemed like he’d taught the twins how to cook as well.

Elizabeth leans back in her chair, “So, now that we’ve invited Michael, who wants to send a call to dear old dad? I have his number.”

Evan groans, “Not again with this…”

“Please, please Evan it would be so funny please.” Gregory shot up in his chair, “Please you didn’t let me do it to Michael let me do it to your dad.”

“Do what to Michael?” Michael asked.

“They wanted me to prank call you guys and send you random shit. Gregory, my dad will find and kill us all. I hope you know that.”

Prank call his dad? Prank call the William Afton?

“No wait I like this idea, Ev, we should do it one hundred percent.” Michael said.

“See? He agrees.” Elizabeth said.

Evan rolled his eyes, “You guys are the worst.”

“We’re the best actually.” Charlie said, “And it’s uhhhh… five against one.”

Evan sighed, “Do what you want. I need to set up our room anyway.”

Charlie cheered.

“I actually think I’m still in his contacts.” Michael said, “He keeps texting me, I don’t read 'em though.” He didn’t tell them that he repeatedly hesitated and refused to block his dad for a reason he himself couldn’t fathom. But to be fair, Lizzie hadn’t blocked him either. In fact, she still messaged him back sometimes. Even if the conversations weren’t friendly, he couldn’t imagine talking to his dad ever again, he didn’t know how she did it.

“And we don’t wanna start today, let’s use Charlie’s phone.” Sammy said.

They spent the night sending random images to William until he blocked them, and then they went on to relentlessly call Jeremy, who had apparently been asleep, before they went on to call Gregory, and stayed on call with him while he and Evan set up.

It was weird how normal this was. It was weird how quickly it had become just spending Christmas together instead of unloading 15 years of bullying and 21 years of loathing.

But then again, they were the Afton family, pretending to be normal was their whole thing. They did it for the first eighteen years of Michael’s life.

But he could sit back and enjoy this before the incredibly uncomfortable conversation that was inevitable. If him and Evan would quit avoiding it.

Gregory then came in to let them know the room was ready.

Sitting down in Evan’s house was one thing. Sleeping in it was a whole other thing. He felt like a teen again, when his dad was in the hospital for one of his springlock accidents and Michael had to stay with Henry while he was gone. That had sucked. His dad hadn’t wanted to bring him over Henry’s house, so he hardly knew Charlie and Sammy, and because of that he’d felt so out of place in their house. Not to mention his siblings were there, and by then he was sick to death of them.

Thinking back on it, he did have a lot of issues as a kid. Maybe he still had them. Who was he to dwell on it, though.

Michael Afton has issues, like that’s news.

This time he made a point to sit beside Elizabeth. She wasn’t the best choice, but she was the only one who still messaged him. Despite how she acted, she always wanted a family. But she got the Aftons, which is more like a classification than a family.

She gave him a disappointed look, but he ignored it.

The decorations in the room were really cool. They had lights strung up on the walls and they’d put up blankets to hang over them, as well as covering up the window. The floor was layered with blankets and pillows, and Michael noticed it looked like a nest.

He had taught Evan how to make nest-like pillow forts when he was only four. Michael had been seven, and hadn’t even been good at teaching, but Evan had really enjoyed it. Michael hadn’t enjoyed teaching him, but it kept the kid quiet and that’s all he’d needed. But this fort was obviously not a product of his teaching, since it was unlikely Evan remembered that.

Weird that he’d remember that. It felt like a karmic “fuck you” from the universe.

Evan was really enjoying this. He didn’t feel as anxious anymore, and it felt almost normal. He had been preoccupied with everything else to think about The Thing and it made him feel a lot better about it. He was also proud of the pillow fort, which Gregory had helped with a lot. They’d had it planned for a while, and he was glad it turned out so well.

Good food, good bed, good friends, and so far no issues with Michael. None that he wanted to talk about yet, at least.

This was a good day! A great day! And hopefully a great Christmas day would follow!

He was quick to pull his friends into it and talk to them about it. He loved how cozy it looked. Like a shiny little nest. It was awesome and he loved it so much.

“Wait. Wait! I need my camera!” He went out to the kitchen, “Gregory? Do you know where I put my camera?”

“I put it in the end table drawer! The bottom one, next to the couch!” Gregory called back.

“Awesome. Thank you!” He grabbed it and ran back into the room, “Mike get in the back you’re the tallest, Gregory and Charlie, I need you guys up front. Elizabeth, get closer to Mike, come on. Sammy, you’re perfect there don’t move. It’s on a ten second timer so hold that for a moment!”

He ran over to them, positioning himself beside Michael and behind Gregory.

He went to grab his camera when it was done, smiling at the picture, “It looks awesome, I can’t wait to print it.” He said.

The others crowded over to see.

“You’re pretty good at sitting still and looking pretty.” Charlie teased Michael, “It’s your one redeeming quality.”

Michael shoved her face away with his hand, “Oh piss off.”

“He said the thing again!” Sammy cheered, “He said it earlier too. I feel like I’m in England every time I talk to him.”

“Did I tell you guys about that time Evan screamed ‘you cunt’ at the top of his lungs?” Gregory said.

“No! No! You promised you wouldn’t tell them about that!” Evan wails, grabbing Gregory’s arm.

“He was playing a racing game or something and he just lost big time. Huge time. Horribly. Awful. It was embarrassing.”

“Gregory!”

“And he just shouted at the top of his lungs. In the most British I’ve ever heard him, it was insane.” Gregory continues, “He had to apologize to our neighbors. It was hilarious.”

Evan covered his face, “It was awful, I felt so bad.” He groaned.

Michael chuckled, “That’s funny, Lizzie was always the one who used British slang. She got it from our father.”

Elizabeth shoved him playfully, “Okay Mr. I-Say-Bloody-Hell-And-Piss-Off-Every-Five-Seconds.”

“Pi- leave me alone!” Michael said indignantly.

“He almost said it again!” Charlie said, laughing.

“Jeez, you people are impossible.” He said.

At that moment, his phone rang. “Oh, shit, it’s Jeremy. I’ll be right back!”

Evan watched Michael leave, his head tilted slightly to the side.

Gregory nudged him, “Feel better?”

“A bit… Thanks.” He answered.

Gregory smiled, “I told you it’d be okay.”

Evan nodded, “I’m stressing out a bit still but I do feel better. Maybe I was just overreacting.”

“Mike is being super weird though.” Elizabeth said, “He’s not usually like this with his friends.”

“Well duh,” Charlie said, “he’s overthinking just as much as Evan is. He’s just shit at hiding it because he’s not a ball of fear and sadness the way Evan is.”

Evan frowned, “Well I wish he’d just act normal. I don’t like that he keeps lying to me. He makes everything harder than it has to be.”

Charlie hummed, “He’s just scared. Like a little animal in the woods.”

Evan couldn’t stop his sudden and loud laughter at that.

But he did feel angry. He wasn’t going to say it, he wasn’t sure he was ready to say it, but he felt it. Michael wasn’t even trying.

“I’m gonna use the bathroom real quick.” He told Gregory.

Michael knew the call wasn’t Jeremy. He also knew it would end long before he wanted it to. It’d been one of his friends from middle school, and they had hung up several minutes ago. But he liked the silence while it lasted.

“So, you’re avoiding me?” Evan asked from directly beside him.

Michael jumped with a shout, nearly falling off the couch.

“Jesus Christ, Evan!” He gasped, “Don’t do that!”

Evan didn’t react, “Whatcha doin’?”

“Sitting… on the couch?”

Evan’s eyebrows furrowed. He looked like Dad when he did that.

“No, actually,” he said, “you’re being a bum. Alone on Christmas? Come on, we’re heading to bed now.”

Michael nodded, “Yeah, okay.”

They spent the night doing random things. Charlie told some scary stories, they watched a movie, Michael showed them his playing card collection and Evan beat Gregory at war at least ten times, and Elizabeth got a whole console out and they played a few different games.

Of course, the tension did not leave. Everytime he accidentally bumped into Evan or one of them said something a little too… Iffy… it only got thicker.

When he looked over at his little brother, he noticed he was asleep. Him and everyone else.

Well, except for one.

“Can’t sleep?” Gregory asked.

Michael shrugged, “Who can sleep on Christmas Eve?”

Gregory eyed the others, “Them, apparently.”

Michael chuckled, “Yeah, I guess so.” He said.

They fell silent, and Michael laid down on his back, staring at the blankets hung above him.

“You know I don’t want you here, right?”

“Yeah. I know.”

“But he does. Don’t ruin that for him. Or Elizabeth. She said she’s been trying to get you to come over for Christmas.”

Michael stares at him, “I don’t talk to her a lot, I thought she was just being nice.”

“She was.” Gregory said, “I don’t doubt she was. But she still likes talking to you. I don’t know, don’t you think maybe she actually cared if she asked every year?”

Michael scoffed, “I told her every year that I spend my Christmas with Jeremy. Or Henry.”

“Speaking of Henry, what’s he doing for Christmas if Charlie and Sammy aren’t there?”

Gregory sat up, “Charlie said He remarried or something.”

“Really?” Michael said, “That’s… He didn’t tell me that…”

“I might be wrong but that’s what I heard.”

“Hm.”

Gregory looked over at him, “You’re kind of a loser, you know that?”

Michael stared at him for a moment before he burst out laughing.

Gregory shushed him, “You’re gonna wake them up, shut your mouth!” He hissed.

Michael flopped over on his back, still laughing, though he tried to keep quiet, “You are incredibly blunt.”

“Well, to be fair, I don’t particularly like you very much,” Gregory said.

“I can tell.”

When Gregory heard him go quiet, he glanced over his shoulder.

“Lightweight.”

Evan woke up with a pillow being chucked at his face the moment he sat up.

So he stayed down.

But he could hear Charlie and Michael laughing.

Michael sounded like he’d been doing this for a while, and Charlie kept squealing. The noise was quickly giving him a headache, but it made him feel better about the day, and that’s all he needed anyways.

The day?

Holy shit it’s Christmas.

Evan bolted upright, “It’s Christmas.”

Gregory laughed, “Yeah, it is.”

Elizabeth threw herself on Evan and pulled him into a hug, “Morning sleepyhead!” She said, “You’re the last one to wake up.”

“We’ve been waiting forever.” Sammy groaned, “So I started chucking pillows at you and seeing if you’d wake up.”

“I told him not to.” Gregory said.

Evan smiled, “You guys are amusing. Has anyone made breakfast?”

Charlie points at Michael, “I told him to.”

Michael pushes her finger away from his face, “And I told her that I have not cooked something edible since I was 15.”

Elizabeth shuddered, “That lasagna was not edible.”

“Har har har.” Michael muttered, “at least I tried.”

Charlie sat up, “Me and Sammy made dinner, it’s someone else’s turn.”

“I vote Greg does it.” Sammy said.

“What? Why me?” Gregory whined, “I always do it!”

“I’ll make it.” Evan said.

“I’ll come help.” Elizabeth jumped to her feet.

She grabbed Michael’s arm, “I’ll show you what edible actually means.”

Charlie waved Michael goodbye with a smirk on her face as he scowled.

Evan took out the stupid cinnamon rolls in the weird circle can thingy? He didn’t know anything about them but they were good so who cares.

Michael frowned, “This is breakfast?”

“You look like you live off ramen noodles, shut up and enjoy Christmas dinner as it should be.” Evan said.

Michael blinked a few times.

“… You don’t… You don’t actually live off noodles, do you?”

“…”

So Evan learned several unpleasant things about Michael’s eating habits.

But so far, so good. He’d only felt soul crushing anxiety twice since Michael got here!

So… Good?

He wasn’t sure but it wasn’t bad so that had to mean something.

Despite joking around, Evan was a bit irritated. Michael was still being weird and it didn’t help that Elizabeth clearly didn’t understand the tension.

“You two are too quiet, come on, it’s Christmas.” She said, “Loosen up!”

“I’m just tired, Liz.” Evan said.

She flicked his forehead, earning a yelp from Evan.

“Well, don’t be, it’s Christmas!”

He didn’t like how much this reminded him of home. He didn’t like that this reminded him of his sister avoiding and ignoring his problems or his brother never listening to him.

They were all so different, but some things never change.

Unpleasantly, his mind drifted to his dad. But he pushed those thoughts away. He didn’t know why he always thought of his dad when he talked to his siblings.

“Evan, it’s done.” Elizabeth said, “Do you wanna frost it?”

Evan nodded, “While they’re still hot.”

She smiled at him, “Then we can open gifts? You’re gonna love what I got you, I promise.”

No, his siblings were nothing like his dad. No doubt they have pieces of him in them—No doubt Evan did too—But they were not him.

Maybe he could learn to live with those pieces. He’d done it with Elizabeth.

But it was just so much harder with Michael. Even now, when they were laughing and pretending to be okay, he felt dissatisfied. He wanted more than this, he wanted reassurance that his brother actually wanted to change and didn’t just feel bad. What if Michael was doing this for himself? To make himself feel less guilty? Less at fault?

As cruel as it sounded in his head, he found himself regretting giving Michael this chance. He didn’t deserve closure, not when it had taken Evan over a decade to get his own closure. He knew Michael was trying, but why did he get to decide when this change of heart came along? Why did he get to decide when this ended?

He settled in his seat beside Gregory, who was talking to Charlie and Sammy. Elizabeth was quietly talking to Michael, and Evan stayed quiet. He had things to think over. A lot.

When they finished, Charlie and Elizabeth practically dragged him to the tree.

Michael hung back, and Evan felt a twinge of… Something. Sadness? Anger? He didn’t know. But it was something.

Elizabeth insisted he opened hers first, so he did. It was a camera. Except it was yellow and had little bear ears and…

“It’s Fredbear!” He exclaimed, “It’s so cute! Oh my god, Lizzie, this must have taken forever!”

“Charlie helped with it,” She said.

He looked it over, “And it’s brand new… Smile!” He pointed it at Elizabeth and Charlie, snapping a photo quickly, “Oh my god, I love it, Liz.”

She grinned, “I knew you would.”

Gregory smiled at Evan, pushing a small box closer to him.

Evan unwrapped it slowly, before slamming it down and giving Gregory a playfully harsh look, “You did not.”

Gregory laughed, “I really did.”

He held up the sweater, “This is so dumb I’m gonna wear it for the rest of my life.”

The sweater was black with a skull on it, but it was sporadically decorated with random Christmas things. It looked so strange and out of place and he loved it.

Of course he got Gregory an equally ugly sweater, one with flowers on it, but the middle of the flower was replaced with Glamrock Freddy, one of the characters made for Fazbear Entertainment after his father had sold it off in response to the horror rumors about it.

Evan knew they weren’t true, but they still made his skin crawl sometimes.

Sammy bought him a crochet kit, with a bunch of colors for him and Gregory to mess with. He must have remembered Evan mentioning that he wanted to pick it up as a hobby.

They continued exchanging gifts, and Michael was quiet for the most part, as if he was dreading something, which Evan found amusing; of course he was nervous, he’d had one day to find thoughtful gifts for people he hardly spoke to.

Suddenly, just as Evan was going to stand, Michael tossed something to him, and he jumped in surprise.

“I didn’t know what to get you, to be honest. I, uhm, I hope this isn’t a shitty gift…” Michael said, “I also hope it doesn’t like… ruin your day… it’s a hit or miss, so I’m taking a shot.”

Evan blinks a few times, “Alright…”

He carefully unwraps the gift, gasping softly when he sees it fully.

The fur is worn, and the stitches are messy—the handiwork of his uncle, no doubt—and one of the ears has a hole in it, but there’s no mistaking it.

It was Fredbear.

The original plushie.

The one he hadn’t seen since he moved out of his dad’s house.

He’d had another, one that Gregory’s dad had made for him, but it’d never been quite the same. It also didn’t talk to him.

… Well maybe that was a good thing.

He didn’t take his eyes off it as he spoke softly, “Where… did you get this?”

“Dad sent it to me since he didn’t have contact with you. He didn’t give me a chance to say I didn’t either. Henry patched it up and it’s just been collecting dust for the past few months.”

He stared at it. It reminded him of a lot of things. The animatronics on stage that terrified him, being bullied, his nightmares, his dad, The Thing, meeting Gregory, that day he broke his ankle, that time Mike almost hit him with his car his first time driving it, when he spent that first night with Gregory, and so many other things.

“Huh…” He said.

“Is it… a good gift…?”

“Yeah, yeah I missed him.” He said, “Thank you.”

Michael smiled.

Elizabeth stood up, “Well, that was sweet,” she said, “let’s get this picked up now.”

They all groaned, and Lizzie clicked her tongue, “Come on, guys, this isn’t our house, we can’t trash it and leave.”

So they picked up. It wasn’t hard, but at some point Charlie bumped into Elizabeth, who playfully pushed her away, and then that ended with the two of them wrestling each other to the ground. Sammy jumped in and for a moment Evan thought Gregory would too, but he didn’t.

So the two of them just continued cleaning while Charlie squealed. And he glanced over at Michael.

He was picking up alongside them, and Evan couldn’t stop himself from laughing a bit.

Michael frowned, “What? What am I doing?”

“Nothing, nothing, it’s just funny that you’re cleaning. We were lucky if Dad got you to pick up a sock, much less your room, much less Henry’s house.”

Michael scoffed, but didn’t say anything.

Thanks for participating in the conversation, I’m glad we’re talking. Evan thought sarcastically.

Gregory looked like he wanted to say something, but he bit his tongue when Evan gave him a look.

“No fighting, I know,” He muttered.

God this sucked a lot.

Michael didn’t know what to say. And he was annoyed that Evan would bring that up. He got so much shit from his dad for not picking up his room, but he could never bring himself to care. He’d hated that house, he’d hated his dad, he’d hated his siblings, and god he’d hated his little brother.

Not that he knew exactly why, though.

His thoughts were interrupted by Elizabeth grabbing his arm, “It snowed last night, do you guys still get snow over in Utah?”

“What? Of course we do!” He said, “Why wouldn’t we?”

“I don’t know, you seem so grumpy I thought you must have never experienced a good thing in your life.” She said.

Evan winced and Michael frowned, “I’m not grumpy.” He said.

“Sure, as if you haven’t been moping around. You know, if you were just going to sulk this whole time you shouldn’t have come,” Elizabeth crossed her arms, “Nobody forced you to come, but you’re acting like this is the worst place to be right now.”

“I’m just… nervous…” He said slowly.

“Nervous? About what? You came because you wanted to see us, didn’t you?” She challenged, “You’re just being dodgy today, I don’t know. You just nudged gifts to us and mumbled ‘thank you’ and hung back, why aren’t you at least trying to participate?”

“I am trying! I’m just not feeling it, okay? Why do you even care, you’re not the one who invited me!”

Elizabeth scoffed, “I invite you every year and every year you shut me down, but not Evan? Is this even about him? Because it feels like it’s about you!”

Michael stared at her, “I’m trying my best!”

“Avoiding us is your best!?”

He fell silent. One look at Evan and Gregory told him they had been thinking the same things.

Goddammit.

He really had been neglecting his sister, hadn’t he? It’s not that he meant to, it’s just that he didn’t know how to talk to her. Her life fell apart pretty quickly once their father’s parenting… declined… but even then she still reached out to their father. Whether she actually thought he could change or if she was just doing it for herself, though, he had no idea.

He was trying to settle these things one at a time! why did he have to fuck up with both his siblings?

“She’s not wrong.” Gregory said, “You’ve been weird lately, and it’d be much easier for everyone if you just… I don’t know… talked? You’re not getting anywhere sneaking around like a dog.”

Michael felt his anger spark at that, “I’m not sneaking around! And don’t call me a dog!”

Elizabeth clenched her fists, “Well if you were really here to make amends, you’d put some effort in, but instead this feels more like a shitty way of getting closure and making yourself feel better-”

Evan stepped forward then, “Okay, that’s enough!”

“-And maybe if you hadn’t almost killed Evan he wouldn’t hate you so much!”

The whole room fell silent.

Evan stared at her, “Elizabeth…”

“It’s true!” She said, “It’s true! He’s always done this! You just avoid us, you shut us out, like that will help, and then you come crawling back for forgiveness so you don’t feel like shit about it!”

“Elizabeth!” Evan shouted.

She turned to look at Evan, and they locked eyes for a moment. She sighed, “I’m going… To go to the gas station for a bit. Call me if you need me.”

Michael watched her go, silent. His gut was twisting and he felt sick.

He was a shitty brother all around, wasn’t he?

He couldn’t even get his sister to like him. Not that he’d tried very hard. Elizabeth made herself feel untouchable. She avoided her brothers because she didn’t want to be caught in the middle of whatever they were doing. She hadn’t been talking about Evan, not entirely. She was probably lonely, he realized.

He looked at Evan, “I didn’t… I’m… I’m sorry…”

Evan stared at him, “Do you want to talk about It? Now?”

Michael laughed, but it was dry and humorless, “No, but I’m willing to, if you want to.”

“We’ll leave you guys alone.” Charlie said, grabbing Gregory and Sammy and pulling them away.

“Liz is right, you’re not really proving anything other than the fact that you feel bad. Which is… It’s annoying.” Evan said, “I know you feel bad, I’ve known that since I got out of the hospital when I was ten, Mike. I don’t need to know you feel bad, I need to know you care and want to make an effort to change.”

“Well, I am trying I just-”

“Don’t know how?”

Michael looked up at him.

“...Yeah.” He said softly, “I don’t know what to do, I hardly know you guys anymore.”

Evan sat down beside him, “None of us do, it took Elizabeth years to even look at me, and even longer for us to finally start actually talking. There’s a lot of things we can’t fix. Elizabeth will always be blunt, that will never change. It’s something she got from Dad. She can’t help that, but she can make it better.” He looked up at Michael, “And I think you can, too. If you just talk to me, but you won’t. And that’s making it hard. I don’t want to push you or bother you but I really really need to just… understand this.”

“So… About The Thing…”

“Yeah, The Thing. Me almost dying, you putting my head into heavy machinery? That Thing?”

“Yeah.”

“I… I still have the scar, you know? It healed over pretty well though, head wounds do that. But I still dream of it, you know. Do you have nightmares?”

“Of seeing my little brother’s head get crushed like a grape? Yeah,” He took a deep breath, “Hard to forget that when I spent at least five minutes staring at it.”

Evan stares at the floor, “... I don’t even remember when it happened. I didn’t feel it at all. Not until I woke up, at least.”

He takes a deep breath, “I… Can I just ask you why?”

“What?”

“Why did you do all that? Why did you treat me like that?”

Michael fell silent. He never talked about the why. It’s not that he didn’t know. He knew. He had known since he started, since he watched his brother’s skull get crunched in front of him.

“I thought it was funny,” He said, “I didn’t like that Dad did all that shit to me. He obviously enjoyed it, and I enjoyed doing it to you. Some kind of fucked up stress relief, I guess.”

Evan stares at him, looking hurt, “That’s brutally honest.”

“You said you didn’t want me to lie to you.”

Evan nodded, “Yeah.”

They sat in silence for a bit, before Evan spoke.

“I don’t know if I want to forgive you or not,” He said, “It’s not that… It’s not that I don’t think you’ve changed but… I still have nightmares. I still remember these things that happened to me and they… they suck. But sometimes I feel like a jerk because I know you’re trying and I know you don’t get why this is so hard for me but… But I really hate you. I hate that you are here for closure, I hate that you are here at all. But I invited you.”

“I think I do get it.” Michael said.

“Hm?”

“I… I haven’t blocked Dad yet, did you know that?”

“Really? I blocked him the day I moved out.” Evan said.

“I keep not wanting to. I keep thinking, ‘what if something happens? What if I need to talk to him?’ even though I know that’ll probably never happen.”

“So I guess I can get where you’re coming from. In a weird twisted way, you know? I don’t know how to cut him off, but I don’t know how to talk to him. It’s like there’s a door open in front of me and I’m too scared to walk through it but what if I close it and it locks? What if there was something good in there?”

Evan doesn’t take his eyes off Michael, before he says, “Give me your phone.”

Michael blinks at him, tilting his head, but he slowly hands Evan his phone, “What’re you doing?”

“Blocking Dad.”

“What!? Did you not hear anything I just said?” He reached for his phone, but Evan was quicker and pulled away from him.

“There’s nothing behind that door, Michael.” He says, startling Michael with his intensity, “Nothing that you want or need. You left that room forever ago and you deserve to stay out of it for the rest of your life. You and Liz.”

Michael watched him and his hand dropped back to his side.

Maybe Evan was right. Maybe there was nothing behind that door. Maybe he was just wishing there had been something in that room. It’s like he was closing and opening it in hopes for something new.

“...Thanks.”

“Always available for cutting off shitty family members. I’m incredibly good at it.”

Michael laughed, “... Yeah… you are.”

Evan stood up, “I think that’s enough for now, I don’t know if I forgive you, honestly.”

Michael shrugs, “Eh, that’s not the most of my worries,” He says, “I guess this was something of a test run?”

“If it was, I think it turned out okay.”

When Elizabeth got back, Michael took her aside to talk to her. Evan didn’t listen in, but he knew what they were talking about, and he did indeed see them hug tightly. It wasn’t Evan’s business. He left it alone.

So things weren’t fixed. But they were better. They had wrapped old wounds. Nothing was healed, but they weren’t bleeding anymore, and that was good.

The rest of the day was fun. Elizabeth insisted Michael stayed, but he had to go home eventually, and there was a mutual understanding that he needed some time alone after all that. It was overwhelming, and Evan was definitely done with seeing his family for a bit. They weren’t friends, but it was something.

He watched Michael walk outside, where Jeremy had come to pick him up.

“Hey, Mike?” He called.

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for coming.”

Michael smiled at him, “Thanks for letting me.”

Not forgiveness, and in the end he would always prefer the family he’d made for himself, but otherwise this went well.

That being said, he was never inviting that many people over for Christmas again. He should’ve gotten them together for Thanksgiving instead.

Gregory pulled Evan back inside, “Dude, it’s freezing, come inside.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Gregory looked inside, “This place is a mess. What happened to ‘we can’t make a mess and leave it’?”

Evan laughed.

#im participating in the thawing of Mariah Carrey and I'm not sorry #Christmas #fnaf #five nights at freddy's #my writing #michael afton #evan afton #no specific au #elizabeth afton #charlie emily #sammy emily #gregory fnaf #really hope u guys like this i spent forever on it #no beta reader bc im impatient #some of the characterization might get choppy but to be honest i really really enjoyed writing this #afton brothers #flashlight duo

153 notes · View notes

justmeinadaze · 1 year

Text

We're A Family Part 16 (Steddie X You)

A/N: This is very much a Steddie chapter and I love it so much. This is probably going to be one of if not my favorite chapter in this series. I wanted them to really fully embrace that lovers aspect of their relationship and totally be ok loving each other as much as they love the reader.

Warnings: Parent Dads Steddie and Mama Reader, mentions of trying and struggling to get pregnant, SMUT (between the boys <3), lots of fluff, Steve VERY BRIEFLY mentions fears of telling his family they are trying to have another kid. I think that's it. Genuinely just a lot of sweetness in this one.

Word Count: 3116

“Fuck me…”, Steve pants as he throws his arm over his eyes.

“I just did.”, you giggle as you roll over to face him.

You and Steve had been spending a lot more time alone in the pursuit of baby number three. Of course, Eddie was still very much involved in sexy time but he insisted if there was a point where he could take the kids out of the house, you three should take the opportunity.

It had been a few months and still no positive test. The doctor insisted you both were healthy and fine, you just “need to keep trying.” The metalhead did everything he could to help.

“Eddie, baby, why are you smoking so far away? You can sit next to me on the porch here.”

“I know, sweetheart, but I read online that smoke can affect you when you’re trying to get pregnant.”

“You were smoking around me constantly before and we still got Ro.”, you laugh.

“Baby, I can do the dishes. You’ve been at work all day.”

“Y/N, it’s fine. You and Steve just relax, ok? I got this. Wayne said stress sometimes can make it harder for you two to…you know…”

“Hey, princess! I went grocery shopping today so you don’t have to on Friday after work. I also got some more fruit. I read this book at work that was saying it helps with trying to have a baby.”

Steve grins as he turns to face you as well. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I just…I don’t know.”

“Honey, it’s ok. It will happen when it happens.”

“I just feel bad. I feel like Eddie is stressing himself out taking care of us.”

“He has been going a little overboard.”, he chuckles. “Oh, I know that look. Dylan makes that face when he’s planning something. What do you have in mind, baby?”

***

“Mom, this place is amazing.”, Dylan’s jaw drops as he looks around the house the realtor brought you guys to.

It was a rustic style home that definitely had that country feel. The entryway lead into the kitchen on the right and gigantic living room straight ahead with a gorgeous stone fireplace. The back door was mostly clear glass so you would be able to see outside when the kids were playing.

“It’s beautiful. It’s not too far from Wayne either and it’s right next to the lake.”, Eddie grins, running his fingers along the countertop in the kitchen.

“It’s also within your budget and has those five rooms you had originally mentioned, ma’am.”, the man showing you the house guides you around, pointing out the two bedrooms downstairs and the backyard that is much bigger than your current one.

Steve pats Aurora’s back as she continues to sleep, drooling on the shoulder of his jacket.

“Do you mind if we talk for a minute?”

“No, ma’am. Take all the time you need.”

The four of you lean against the counters in the kitchen as you wait for him to leave. “What do you think, kid?”, Eddie asks.

“I like it a lot especially since it’s by the water.”

“It’s closer to my store but it’s a bit of a drive for the three of you every morning.”

You chew on your nail as you think. “Just an extra 10minutes which isn’t too bad. What do you think, Stevie?”

“I’m fine with the drive. We may need to update some things though like childproofing the locks and stuff. Other than that, I think it’s perfect.”

“Alright, gentlemen. Let’s fill out some applications and pray.”

##############

“Hang on, Ed.” Steve reaches over and grabs Eddie’s arm as he begins to get out of the car. “You guys have fun! “

“Bye dada an daddy.”, Aurora waves.

They wave back with a smile, waiting for you three to get inside before the man drives away.

“What’s going on?”, the metalhead asks.

“Y/N and I thought you needed some time away from the kids and the house so we’re going on a date.”

“Did Y/N not want to come? She should have a night out to.”

“Eddie!”, Steve chuckles. “She’s fine, trust me. Let me show you what a date night with Steve Harrington is like.”

“Oh, someone’s cocky. Alright, Harrington. Wine and dine me.”, he grins.

***

“Mom? Are you okay?”

“Yeah, can you just…hold my hand. I’m so nervous.” Dylan smiles as he sits on the floor beside you and takes your hand in his. “This anticipation is killing me. With you and Ro it was just like ‘Hey, there’s a baby in there.’ I’ve never really had to utilize a pregnancy test like this.”

“With Aurora, you thought you were sick. Did you think the same thing before you found out about me?”

“Naw, with you, I was doing a routine exam and they had to make sure I wasn’t pregnant.”

The timer on your phone beeps and you sigh before reaching onto the bedside table where the test had been sitting. As you read the results, uncontrollable tears begin cascading down your face while Dylan wraps his arms around your neck.

***

“That band was fucking awesome!”, Eddie exclaims as the other man grins at his excitement.

Steve decided to take the metalhead to new bar just outside of the city limits. He knew how much he loved music, thinking it would make him happy to see some bands play while they drank and talked.

“It’s been a while since you guys have been on a stage like that. Do you miss it?”

The man shakes his head as he takes a swing of the beer from his glass. “I mean I still play with the guys but that rush that I used to get being on stage…no it’ll sound stupid.”

“No, come on. Tell me.”

“That rush I used to get…I get now with the kids. Dude, seeing Dylan on his first date and watching Ro learn do those vocabulary card things you got her… that makes me happy. I can’t wait to see what this new baby will be like.” Eddie notices Steve’s posture stiffen and he promptly reaches out to rub his shoulder. “Hey, it’ll happen, man.”

“I know. I hate seeing that sad look on her face with every period or failed test.”

“The doctor said everything was good though, right?”

“Yeah, just have to keep trying.”, he sighs before glancing towards Eddie. “I haven’t told my mom yet that Y/N and I are…you know. I’m afraid she’ll tell my dad and I have no idea what he’ll do.”

“Steve, babe, fuck your dad. He can try whatever he wants but he’s not breaking up our family.”

The man exhales a cute, breathy chuckle. “Did you just call me babe?”

The metalhead grins even wider as he leans closer to him. “Depends. Did you like it?”

#######

The bathroom door to the men’s room hurtles open as Steve pushes Eddie through it with his lips on his and quickly locks it behind him. The metalhead groans, shoving his back against it and begins fumbling with the other boy’s belt before lowering himself to his knees.

“Fuck.”, Steve mewls as the man below him takes his already leaking cock into his mouth. Eddie knows exactly how his husband likes it, you showed him well, and he revels in the sounds he pulls from him as he takes him deeper till he’s gagging around him.

It’s not just the action itself but his small, tender touches that have Steve moaning. While Eddie bobs his head, his hands roam the other man’s body, tracing the back of his thighs, up to his stomach. Steve can’t help but wonder how he would react if he spoke to Eddie the same way he talked to you.

“That’s it, Eddie, baby, fuck. Just like that.” His eyes fluttered closed as he tangled his fingers into his hair, guiding him as the metalhead’s rhythm picked up. Steve couldn’t hold out any longer, he needed him now.

He tugged on the boy’s hair and he took the hint, rising to his feet and hooking his lips to Steve’s sweet spot on his neck. Growling with desire, he lifted Eddie into his arms and placed him on the counter, aggressively yanking off his jeans. Pulling him to the edge, he lifted his leg over his shoulder and guided his cock into the man’s entrance.

Eddie’s eyes rolled as Steve slid his hand along his stomach, slowly thrusting his hips as he relished the feeling of the man he loved.

Did he tell him that enough? I’m sure if he asked, Eddie would tell him he’s being silly and of course he does. They had gotten much closer these past few years and became more comfortable sexually but there was a level of intimacy Steve felt they still struggled with.

“Eddie?” The man responded with a hm as he bit his lip to keep from moaning too loud. “I love you.”

He heard the change in Steve’s tone, promptly opening his eyes to scan him over. Propping himself up on one of his elbows, he reached over to caress his cheek as his thumb glided along his skin.

“I love you to.”

“No, No. I love you.”

Eddie blinked a few times before wrapping his hand around the man’s neck and pulling him down till he was hovering over him.

“I love you to. So fucking much, sweetheart. I-I grew up feeling like no one—mmm—no one ever really cared about me. Then I met you and Y/N.” He craned his neck to capture the man’s lips. “Steve, you can talk to me like you talk to her. I like it.”

“Yeah? So, you would like hearing—fuck—hearing me say things about how good you fucking feel, baby, squeezing my cock?”

“Jesus.” Eddie laid back flat against the counter as his hand reached down to stroke his own dick.

“That’s it, Eddie. Play with yourself while I fuck you. God, you look so fucking sexy right now.”

“Ha-harder, Steve. Please.”, he moans.

“Is that what you need, honey? I can do that.”

As he rolled his hips into his roughly, the metalhead covered his mouth with his palm, suffocating the urge to scream at the pleasure that ran through his body. His back arched as his abs tensed as rope after rope of spend hit the skin on his stomach.

“Fuck me.”, Steve groaned as he pounded into the man faster chasing his high. After a few more rough thrusts, Eddie felt him cum inside of him, look up to watch his eyebrows scrunch together and his neck muscles tighten as he did.

Gradually, he pulled his softening cock out of him and reached over to grab some napkins to help clean Eddie up.

“I’m sorry if these are rough. They aren’t like our towels at home.”, Steve sighs as he tosses the paper in the trash. As he begins pulling up his pants, Eddie abruptly tackles him into a hug, squeezing tightly as he lays his cheek on his chest. “Is everything ok?”

The metalhead nods. “Y/N does this to us after and now I kind of see why. I feel…closer to you if that’s even fucking possible.”

Steve softly laughs as he wraps his own arms around him, pressing him tighter to his chest with his palm. “Yeah, baby. I know what you mean.”

***

As they walk into the front door of the house, they are surprised to find it completely silent. Steve quietly searches the downstairs, turning off lights while Eddie locks everything down.

When the enter their bedroom, they grin finding everyone asleep in your bed. Dylan was on his side with you behind him, arm draped over him and Aurora who was snuggled up in her brother’s chest as she sucked her thumb.

Both men quickly changed out of their cigarette, bar smelling clothes and crawled into bed; Steve behind you and Eddie behind his daughter.

***

“Daddy.”, Ro coos as she lightly taps her father’s face with her palm. “Daddy. Wake up.”

“Ro. Aurora.”, you whispered as you tapped her side. “Leave daddy alone and let him sleep, sweetie.”

“Mama, no. Daddy wake up.”

Dylan groaned in his sleep as he rolled over to face you.

“Why? Why do you need daddy to wake up?”

She giggles as she falls to her knees and pushes at his arm. “Daddy, I miss you.”

“Well, that’s adorable.”, Steve sighs.

“Dada help Rara.”

“What do you need help with honey? Waking up daddy?” He lazily lifts his arm towards Eddie, trying to reach him with his hand. “Op, he’s too far. I can’t.”

“Dada!”, she growls and you feel the man smile in your shoulder. Aurora begins pushing at him again until he rolls onto his back and playfully pushes her aside with his hand.

“I think I chose the wrong side to sleep on.”, he grumbles.

“Hun-gee.”, she points to her stomach.

“Aurora Munson- Harrington, you did not just wake him up for that!”, you giggle as she beams at you.

“Whoosh!”, she exclaims as she pretends to throw something in the air.

“She wants dad’s pancakes.”, Dylan yawns as he stretches. “Which actually sounds good.”

“Can you take her downstairs and put on a cartoon for her, weirdo? Give them some time to wake up.”

Your son nods as he slides off the bed, coming around to pick up his sister and bring her downstairs. Both men immediately scoot closer to you, pulling you into their embrace.

“Did you two have fun last night?”

“Mhmm. He took me on a ‘Steve Harrington style date’.”

“Oh, you lucky man.”

“Did you three do anything exciting last night?”, Steve asked.

“We did. Watched a few movies and ordered a pizza. I did go to the store real quick and bought you guys something. Eddie, baby, can you look into your nightstand and grab the thing on top for me?”

He sleepily nodded as he shifted his body to grab what you were asking for. His eyes suddenly snapped open as he realized what he was holding.

“Harrington. STEVE!”, Eddie shouted startling the other man as he sat up making you laugh harder. The metalhead handed him the pregnancy test and he promptly sat up straighter.

“Is this…? Are we…? Is this real? You’re really pregnant?”

Your grin grows as you nod. Steve tackles his arms around you, kissing every part of your face his lips can reach. As soon as you’re free, Eddie does the same much more gently.

“Oh my god. I’m so happy.” Steve lays back down with a big smile on his face as he exhales.

“You see what I mean, babe? Same kind of rush but better.”, the metalhead grins as he winks at the other man whose own smile grows.

“Oh wow.” Both men look at you with confused looks as you smirk. “Ok, I don’t know what you two did last night but that energy is back.”

“Are you drunk? You shouldn’t be drinking if you’re pregnant.”

You giggle as you slap Eddie’s shoulder. “No, no, no. Nothing wrong with it. I kind of missed that…electricity…between the two of you. Maybe you both need a date night more often.”

After kissing them both again, you climb out of bed and head for the bedroom door, pausing as you turn to face them.

“I hope you know you both can be intimate without me. I genuinely don’t mind. I know you both love me just as much as you love each other.” You flash them one final smile before going down the stairs.

“We don’t deserve her.”, Steve sighs pleasantly as he watches you leave.

“Yeah, we do. Charlie didn’t deserve her. Fucking idiot.” Eddie lays back down, scooting closer to the other boy. “I still think about the first time I talked to her on the stairs outside of the apartment. He was making her feel bad about him not coming to see Dylan. When I opened the door to sit outside and smoke, I just wanted to protect her. I wanted to drive to wherever he was and kick his ass.”

Steve slid a little closer to him till the back of his hand was barely touching his.

“I always think about that night at The Hideout when we surprised her while she was on her date and you played that one AC/DC song for her. When she ran out of that bar…I can’t tell you how happy it made me especially after being away from her for so long. She fucking flew into our arms and I never wanted to let her go.”

“We kind of didn’t.”, he chuckled.

Their fingers intertwined as they turned to smile at each other. Eddie leaned over and brought his lips to his, both men laughing as they pulled away when they heard loud noises downstairs.

“Hey! Are you trying to make everyone lose their hearing?! Turn the tv down!”, Steve hollered over dramatically as they both entered the area.

“Told you.”, you sang from the sink as you washed some dishes you knew the metalhead would need.

Eddie wrapped his arms around you from behind, pulling you to his chest as he leaned his head on your shoulder.

“Taking more than her share, had me fighting for air She told me to come, but I was already there 'Cause the walls start shaking, the Earth was quaking My mind was aching and we were making it

And you shook me all night long Yeah, you shook me all night long.”

You grinned at the memory as he sang softly in your ear. Steve turned off the water before circling his arms around you both, kissing the top of your head. The sound of tiny feet slapping into the kitchen had you laughing in his chest.

“Daddy! Rara and Din hun-gee!”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah ya little butt. Come here.” She giggled as she ran into his arms and he lifted her onto the counter. “You’re going to help me?” Aurora nodded her little head as she waited for instructions.

Steve lifted you into his arms and carried you to the living room, placing you gently on the sofa.

“Did you tell them?”

“I did. They’re pretty excited.”

“I am to.”, Dylan smiled. “Did you guys want to play a game while we wait for breakfast? Especially since now she’s distracted.”

“I’m not really good with games.”

“Uh huh. Making excuses already, Steve Harrington. That’s ok. Dylan and I already know you suck.”

He jokingly scowls in your direction as your son hands you both a controller.

“What are we playing?”

#############

@adequate-superstar @kalinaselennespeaks @strangerfreak

@steddieloverrr @manda-panda-monium @alligator-person

@decadentwombatmiracle @katie-tibo @marsupiooo

@local-stoner-bitch @steamystrangerfics @lunatictardis

@adaydreamaway08 @hazydespair @actuallyspencerreid

@moviefreak1205 @waylandmorgernsternherondal-blog

@kik51199 @strngrlytn @idkidknemore @damon-loves-pie

@k-k0129 @micheledawn1975 @eddie86baby

@justmeandmymeanderingthoughts @3rriberri

@sashaphantomhive @chelebelletx @big-ope-vibes

@munsonzzgf @munsonmoonshine86

#steddie x reader #steddie fluff #steddie smut #steddie fanfiction #steddie #eddie munson #steve harrington #eddie munson fluff #eddie munson smut #eddie fanfic #eddie stranger things #steve fanfic #steve smut #steve stranger things #joe keery #joseph quinn #stranger things #fan fiction #steve fluff

252 notes · View notes

chaosduckies · 2 months

Text

Friends In Small Places (Chapter 4)

As I’ve mentioned when I had first started writing this, this piece is meant to be gloomy. So, I give you the fearplay chapter. I’m so sorry for the delay, but I hope you enjoy! (I have no idea how to feel about this scene-) Also, I get to put my three years of spanish classes to use :D (Translations are included)

Word Count: 3.5k

CW: Anxiety, panic attacks, slight gore mentioned

4-Liam

A week can pass by quickly.

Cas and I have been slowly getting to know each other a little more. Not a whole lot since some topics were a little too hard for him to talk about. Classes at college were getting even more tiring, and before I could ask to take the classes online it turns out that they had already handled it when I brought up the subject. So, now I was practically staying at Cas’s house almost all of the time. Although it isn’t too bad, I’ve noticed something about his behavior. He likes to stay close by me.

It’s not a bad thing, I’m not complaining at all, it’s just that it’s nerve wracking whenever he asks if I’m okay with him sitting near me. I’m not used to him all that much. I know most people are fine with being around shifters but of course I’ve believed all my life that most shifters were scary, intimidating even. It’ll just take some time to get used to living with one I guess. After all, I was supposed to be a therapist.

Today I was just writing some notes while Cas sat on the floor, a bright smile on his face as he looked at his phone. I was about to ask what that was about, but then I remembered him telling me something about seeing his parents sometimes this week. Was that today? If it was I should probably get ready. The only thing I knew was that I was required to be there the entire time. They didn’t tell me what was going to happen, how long it would be, but I’m sure Cas would tell me on our way there.

I shut my computer closed, placing my notebook on top of it before shoving it into my bag and glancing over at Cas. He seemed excited to meet with his parents. I would be too if I had been separated for however long. Then again I live in an entire different city than my parents. They do like calling every once in a while though. I don’t think they let Cas have his own parents phone number.

“Excited?” I mumbled, walking a little bit closer. I’m pretty sure we’ll have to leave soon. It was already noon and I was mainly waiting on a text or a call that explains that his parents were ready to see him. For some reason he’s not allowed to go in early which I find is kind of irrational, but I can’t just go against them. Heck, I wasn’t even supposed to be part of this organization.

“Mhm. Last time we were only allowed an hour to talk.” He smiled sadly at me, still looking positive about today’s outcome. I do hope he gets to see them today. I think he needs this. But I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone as excited to see their parents as Cas was.

“I’ve been meaning to ask you, but how old are you?” I asked, looking up curiously. He can’t be more than three years younger than me. He doesn’t go to school, and I doubt he’s any older than myself.

“Eighteen. I know, I act like a child.” He chuckled, messing with his hands. Nervous? I don’t really think I could do anything about that. Actually, for someone who has depression and struggles with emotions, he doesn’t lose control a whole lot. Only ever twice has he in front of me, minus the times where he starts growing a couple feet from either watching someone thing or thinking about something. I try my hardest to shut it down before anything bad could happen. Last time I freaked out and couldn’t do anything useful to help him.

“I don’t think you act like a child.” I laughed, hearing my phone go off. I hurried to pick it up, seeing Cas quite literally beam with a shocked smile. I told them we’d be right there, and then carefully climbed into his hands. Today would be a good day. I don’t know why I get the feeling something bad will happen. It’s just the way they had sounded on the phone…

——————

The building looked relatively normal on the outside, with a fancy look that had screamed “We’re rich,” there were different sized doors, but what caught me off guard was that there was an entire security system right at the front that makes sure you’r not bringing a weapon. Cas set me down near the human-sized doors, telling me to just do what they say and we’ll eventually meet up again. It’s kind of awkward taking instructions from someone younger than me, but he’s been here for much, much longer.

I went through security, answered a few questions, like who I was with, how long I would prefer the visit time be, mostly questions about Cas if I were being honest. Was this why he was only allowed a singular hour to talk last time? Because he had someone else? I don’t really mind spending a few hours here. What could go wrong? I answered as long as Cas and his parents were going to be here. I’d feel bad if I set a time limit. Plus, I’m sure his parents would love to spend some more time with him.

Eventually they lead me to a huge waiting room, where I was guessing I would be able to keep an eye on Cas. I was I trusted to stay in there in case something goes wrong, but I sincerely doubt it. What was there to be upset about in the first place? I think everything would be fine. I was just staying on the sidelines anyways. Maybe meet his parents, talk for a while. Heck, maybe I’ll even get to know a little more about him. Cas doesn’t answer some questions I have. All for good reason I hope, it’s not like I was going to force it out of him anyways. That would just be plain wrong.

Out side of the room, Cas had walked in, standing up near the platform I was guessing they’d be at. Weren’t they supposed to take me up there too? A woman wearing a suit walked into my holding room, taking a seat right next to me, “Kayla Cruz. I was Casper’s old therapist.” She giggled, holding her hand out. Oh? What was she doing here then? Why was she replaced by me of all people? She certainly looked like she was more trained for this job than I was. Something wasn’t right here.

“Oh, um, Liam Rover. It’s nice to meet you.” I smiled, shaking her offered hand and watching as Three people wearing a guard outfit instructed Cas about something to which he nodded to. Wasn’t I supposed to be up there? I think I know which way to go to get up to him. I guess I can wait an extra couple of minutes. I have no idea why, but I had a bad feeling about everything. Maybe I could ask Ryan later? I know the person he was placed with is a shifter who can only reduce their size, was this really any different? I’d have to ask.

The woman next to me watched, a frown on her face as she looked at Cas, a worried look on his face. His eyes darted all around the room, still waiting for when his parents walk through the safety of the doors high above where I was sitting. Was it supposed to take this long? Why was I the one worried? Was it just a feeling?

Th woman next to me glared at me from the corner of her eye, a smirk appearing on her face, “They told you he was meeting with his parents today?” She leaned back in the seat. I nodded my head, confused. “It’s technically true, but the company has deemed Casper here too mentally unstable to meet with anyone but shifters and his corresponding therapist, which would be you.”

My heart sank.

What the hell. This was just wrong! I have to go up there before they do anythi- I stared up at the platform, seeing a singular guard walk in, say something to Cas, have a short conversation that made his eyes grow wide and slide slowly down the metal-looking wall behind him. My eyes darted around the room, searching for a door to go and help him. Of course I was terrified about what they’ve done, mostly the outcome of what’s about to happen, but it’s not like I can just leave him here. I know what they do to shifters who can’t control their emotions. Their either sent off to a special captivity prison, or they… I can’t think about that right now. I am not about to become the reason Cas gets sent to a place like that. I don’t have the heart in me to do so.

I found a door that looked like it lead to the room, and almost as if they knew I was searching for it, it unlocked. I threw it open, rushing out, my heart beating fast and uncontrollable. My legs were about to give out from underneath me, breath shaky, my mind screaming at me to get the hell out of here. But I don’t. I knew what was about to happen. They weren’t letting Cas see his parents. I heard slight screaming and yelling in another room that sounded like a woman’s and crying from a kid. But I didn’t focus on that right now. I was more worried about the situation in front of me.

What do I do? Something tells me this isn’t going to be anything like that other time. Cas has always watched how he reacts to things, what he does, but right now he’s not. He’s most definitely depressed, and there was just something else I couldn’t pin point. People do dumb things while they’re upset. They regret it all later, so it would be best if I make sure Cas doesn’t so anything he’ll regret. Because then that’s an entire different problem to deal with after this one.

“Cas!” I managed to scream at the top of my lungs, knees buckling underneath me, but I force them to keep me standing upright as his gaze falls onto me. I jumped, chest heaving up and down as I struggled to find the words to say. My body was frozen in fear, not even able to move a single limb from it’s place. He winced when his legs uncomfortably hit the wall opposite of him. I didn’t know what to do. It’s almost like… they wanted him to lash out. Why would they want that? Soon enough, guards ran in, yelling orders while one tugged at me to head back inside, but I didn’t move. Instead, I rushed forward, avoiding the somehow careful limbs that were trying to move into a compact position on the floor.

A guard was running after me, but I guess someone held him back since I was somehow gaining ground when I was running extremely slow and tripping every once in a while. I found Cas’s head, seeing him scrunched up as much as he could manage as of right now. He laid on the ground, arms and hands covering his face and knees up against the chest. He still realizes that he can hurt people. Maybe I can actually do this? Still, the size difference between us is huge.

Cas wasn’t crying or anything. Just mumbling words I surprisingly couldn’t make out. He didn’t sound angry. Just upset. That makes it easier to deal with. People do horrible things out of anger. And I could only imagine how devastating it would be if Cas wasn’t thoughtful enough to watch himself.

I found his head, buried underneath his arms and muttering incomprehensible words to himself. He groaned a bit, slightly turning his body to face the wall, moving his arms away from his face to lay them down. I guess he didn’t see that I was so close to him because his arm almost killed me. I quickly jumped out the way just before I would’ve been nothing but a pile of flesh and bones on the ground. My heart skipped a beat, unable to stare at the spot on the ground where I could’ve died. My breathing became a ragged, and the sounds close to me were slightly muffled, but it’s not like anyone was saying anything important to me.

Cas turned his head, eyes meeting my frozen minuscule frame and gasping. He moved his arm away from me, doing his best to slowly sit up without alarming the multiple guards in the room, along with the weapons they probably have imbedded in the room itself. I could tell he was still upset, but right now I was too focused on the fact that I could have died. That reminded me just how much power Cas had over me. Even if I was the one who was watching over him.

“L-Liam I-I’m so sorry I didn’t mean-“ He tried apologizing, voice hitching just before sucked in a sharp breath. My entire body was shaky, but I forced my legs to push me back up and walk over to the towering being. More people had walked in, Cas pressed his back closer to the wall scared. He knew what was going to happen. I knew what was going to happen. I just had to make sure it wasn’t the worst possible outcome of the the two. I don’t think I could handle the guilt that way.

The week I’ve spent with Cas has been amazing really. Even though sometimes I get a little jumpy from the fast movements, or feel uncomfortable at times when he’s around me, Cas really isn’t bad at all. We’ve hung out for a while, watched movies, played a few games. I think we’re friends? With that thought in mind I’d hate to see them take him to a place he doesn’t even deserve to be in. Of course I was afraid of him still, instincts and all, but I don’t want him to end up being alone.

I stood up, taking shaky breaths as I tried my hardest to stay upright. Come on I’m not even hurt- I was just terrified. Shocked. A little unstable right now even. If I had tried talking to Cas now he wouldn’t hear me. The distance between my and himself was huge. I looked back up at him, taking deep breaths. He stared worriedly at the people making their way in, looking ready to advance if he tries anything.

“I’m not scared. I’m totally fine.” I kept muttering to myself. It usually worked when I felt like this. It’s what my dad would keep telling me. Little did he know that I was terrified of everything going on around me right now.

Cas’s attention turned to me, a hand reaching taking up my vision as I stood frozen in fear. The next the thing I knew I was pinched tightly between two of his fingers, arms pinned to my sides and barely able to move any part of my body. The pressure against my chest increased, threatening to break my ribs. That was the least of my worries. I couldn’t breathe right now.

“I-I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you like that!” He freaked out, holding me dangerously close to his face. He’s not being his usual careful self, but that was expected when a person was upset. I gasped for air, trying to free my arms from the prison I was in currently, but Cas just kept looking over the the people on the ground that was far, far below me and muttering words in a language I couldn’t hear.

My heart was racing fast as my lungs had begged me for air. I managed to free one of my arms, and I forced my voice to work for once, “Cas!”

“…Lo siento. Lo siento mucho. Estoy arruinando todo...” (*Translation: I’m sorry. I’m very sorry. I’m ruining everything…*)He kept on muttering over and over again, and it just makes me wish I had paid attention to my spanish classes in high school. Something about him being sorry? I think have much, much bigger problems at hand though.

Cas shifted me in his literal death grip, allowing me to breathe, but he was pressing down harder, and a sharp pain erupted from my leg, but I was fueled by the adrenaline.

“Cas!” I screamed again, trying to pull myself out of his grip. His eyes darted to me, wide and shocked. It took him a moment to realize, but he let go, laying me down in his open palm, running a hand through his hair. I coughed for air, wincing when I checked out the leg that felt like it was on fire. Most likely broken, but nothing I couldn’t handle. It was fine though. I know he didn’t mean to. But still, my fear never wavered at the fact that he could quite literally kill me by not even trying to.

“¿Estás bien? I-I didn’t mean to-“ I nodded my head, biting down hard on the bottom of my lip. It’s okay, you know him good enough to know that he wouldn’t do any of this on purpose. I had to remind myself before gathering up my remaining courage to actually do my job.

“Cas, just take a few breaths, okay? You didn’t do anything wrong.” I had only hoped he heard over how shaky my voice was. He slowly nodded his head, I closed my eyes, hoping that when I opened them the ground wouldn’t be so far from me. When I peaked out, the ground was a bit closer, people stood on the ground, frozen in either fear or shock. I calmed my heart down enough to actually get a few more words in.

“Feeling a little better?” I asked, putting on the best smile I could manage right now. He slightly nodded again, continuing to take slow breaths.

“What happened?” I asked calmly, genuinely worried about what was said before I rushed in through here. Cas eyes me sadly, wincing, “I won’t… be able to see my parents for a long time.” He whispered, suddenly aware of everything around him again. He moved further into the wall, away from the people below us.

“And that means?…” He bit the bottom of his lip, “Apparently I’m too unstable to even see my own family.” He sighed, and I could tell he wanted to cry, but he knew what would happen if he gave into those feelings.

“I-I have a little brother. He loves trying to climb up anything he can,” He started laughing sadly, “You can imagine how much fun he has when he and my parents come for visits.” He sniffled a little, smiling. Oh. Oh. He’s calming down in his own way.

Why was the world so adamant on having people watch over the “dangerous” shifters? Cas doesn’t need me… and maybe shifters don’t actually need anyone to watch over them.

“Yeah?” I smiled, laughing with him while he seemed to have calmed down.

“… I’m sorry, Liam.” He pressed me up agianst the bridge of his nose, this time a lot more gentle. I winced from the sharp pain in my leg, but sucked it up. I think Cas needs this. Even if I was scared he’d accidentally hurt me again.

Cas let me down, facing the crowd on the ground that had rushed to help me up, limping the entire way until multiple people were talking behind me, rushing into places. I turned back, ignoring the warning from the people helping me. Cas gave a sad smile as the red band on his wrists started blinking, clasping themselves together like magnetic handcuffs. Cas sighed.

I heard people in another room yelling, even a child’s voice. It’s his parents. I gasped, finding a door to another room I haven’t been in, seeing a guard and a person with a suit and tie in there. Through the small window, I saw a tall man trying to comfort his wife, who sat crying on the bench while the child stared, screaming at the guard to let him see his brother. My heart sank.

They weren’t going to kill Cas. I knew they wouldn’t. I just hoped I would be allowed to see him in the hospital they’ll be placing him in. This wasn’t right. Not at all.

——————

Aghhh plot build up my beloved. This chapter leads up to something reallyyy important for later.

Aww all Cas wanted was to see his little brother 🥺

I hope you enjoyed! I have no idea how to feel about this chapter if I’m being honest, but I hope it’s alright TwT work is affecting my writing grahhhh. Thank you for reading though!

The drawing I did for this chapter is right here!

Taglist: @da3dm (If you would like to be added, leave a note or dm me! :D)

#G/t #g/t writing #g/t fearplay #g/t community #Friends in small places #oc: casper #oc: liam #my writing #aghhh idk how to feel about this one either #My writing style is just going down-#I hate it so much #I hope it goes back to normal #currently three in the morning #But I do not care #I said I would post this chapter no matter what #And here I am #I hope you guys enjoyed #Thank you for reading!#love you guys ❤️

42 notes · View notes

wordbunch · 1 year

Text

the fellowship tries to set you up on a date

a/n: i'm skipping the line of requests for a bit to post this for @queenmeriadoc 's birthday since it was my wife's request hihi 💛 anyway it's probably chaotic but I hope you enjoy regardless! It's platonic between you and the characters, but your crush is gender neutral ☺️

Aragorn & Boromir: now these two have sort of opposite kinds of advice and plans… while Aragorn is a very “what is meant to happen will happen” kind of romantic, Boromir likes to go out and make things happen, and they can’t really agree on how to get you together with that one person you have great chemistry with… Aragorn will hint, either in conversation with you or with your crush, that you should write a poem to each other, or just ‘accidentally’ happen to be in the same place at the same time, especially if it’s a more secluded or romantic place. And Aragorn will also somehow try to arrange this for you. Boromir, on the other hand, is more the kind to go for it and to advise you to do the same. However, rejection is SCARY so maybe you’re a bit hesitant, but Boromir certainly won’t hesitate to not-so-subtly drop your name in the conversation with your crush, or to just be like, “oh, you like them? just go and say so” … maybe it’s best to listen to both of their advice to a certain extent.

Legolas & Gimli: they might not agree on too many things, but they do agree that you should go and braid your crush’s hair, or ask them to braid yours, which can definitely turn out to be an intimate moment. but, like I said, they agree on little else - Legolas will try to get you to go on a walk in the woods with your crush, and the darker forest the better because then you have an excuse to be close to that person and be protective/be protected. Gimli would much prefer if you went and asked them if they want to practice sparring with you or help you better your sword fighting or something of the like. Actually Legolas would do an almost disastrous job when he goes to talk to your crush and drop hints that they should ask you for a walk or something… the crush isn’t even sure what Legolas is playing at, but Gimli on the other hand can be quite a sweet-talker (remember Galadriel), and he ends up smoothly persuading your crush to ask you to do something together. Furthermore, he doesn’t let Legolas live it down.

Sam + Frodo: okay they’re both maybe a little shy so they wouldn’t instantly want to pull the strings too much, directly, between you and your crush, but they’re more than willing to help you drop some hints about how you feel! Sam is definitely going to suggest to you that maybe you give flowers to your crush or cook them their favorite meal, and eventually he will, every now and then, mention your favorite flower/food/dessert to your crush in order to nudge them a little bit to get it for you. Frodo is also for sure in favor of small gifts, especially the ones that show that you know your crush and that you listen to them when they talk about their interests. Sometimes in front of that person Frodo will drop a small compliment about you like, “Oh, [Y/N] looks really lovely today, don’t you think?” overall both of them would be so supportive of you and sweet, but they wouldn’t meddle too much and try to influence the actions of your crush directly, but they will always encourage you and hype you up!

Merry & Pippin: BESTIE. good luck, that’s all I’m gonna say. Number one suggestion they’d have for you to get your crush’s attention is PULL A PRANK ON THEM. Or they would go to that person and suggest that they pull a prank on you, because why not? At one point, one of them would definitely accidentally slip up and say something among the lines of “[Y/N] really likes you” and then oops… something that they would do a lot is shamelessly compliment you in front of your crush, whether it’s your looks, humor, strength, intelligence; but you had to tell them to tone it down because it seemed like they were in love with you at one point. For sure they would somehow arrange for a little situation in which oh-so-accidentally you and your crush end up locked in the same room together or something. And you can’t even be mad when you hear them laughing from behind the door!

✨ taglist my beloved ✨ @lotrnonsense @starlady66 @queenmeriadoc @entishramblings @thesolarangel @silversword7000 @friendofthefellowshipsnerdblog @averys-place @valkyriepirate @emmaarenstarr @noldorinpainter @asianbutnotjapanese @adamgetawaydriver @fenharel-enaste @ironmandeficiency @starryeyedrogue @dinofromspac3 @wisheduponastar @lady-of-imladris @frodo-cinnamonroll

#lotr fanfic #lotr x reader #lord of the rings x reader #lord of the rings fanfiction #aragorn x reader #legolas x reader #boromir x reader #frodo baggins x reader #merry brandybuck x reader #pippin took x reader #samwise gamgee x reader #sam gamgee x reader #gimli x reader #lotr headcanons #lord of the rings #legolas fanfiction #aragorn fanfiction #boromir fanfiction #from my pocketses

270 notes · View notes

whiskeynwriting · 1 year

Text

MBFD - Chapter Ten: Even When Apart

Dave York x Female Reader

◆

Word Count: 5.9k

Warnings: 18+ (minors DNI)

Mentions of separation/divorce, reader descriptions, dirty talk, sexting, male masturbation, spanking, praise kink, mentions of oral (m and f receiving), unprotected vaginal sex.

◆

A/N: soooo we planned out this chapter a hot minute ago, and expected it to be way longer. But I hope you enjoy it anyway my babies <3 I feel like having 14k chapters and then 6k chapters is a running theme in this series lmao

Also, sorry for the late post lovelies. But if you know me, you should know it’s a regular thing 😂😭

◆

My Best Friend’s Dad Masterlist

Join My Taglist!

◆

“John,” He nods, walking down the hall. Just barely, the coffee in his to-go cup swishes inside, the contents still boiling.

His coworker returns the friendly gesture with a smile on his face, asking briefly, “Dave, how’re the kids?”

All he does is shrug, putting on a brave face. “Can’t complain.” But that’s the end of it.

As he expected, life’s been shit since you left again. But he understands, he can’t exactly live at your apartment forever. At least, not yet. He has considered it, though. Over the past few days, he’s been researching homes, mainly condos and townhouses. It’s not likely that he’ll be sharing a home with Carol and his daughters for much longer, and maybe you’d be willing to move with him. But Dave’s waiting to bring all of this up. He thinks it will be best to do so toward the end of your trip. Which is in about… shit, three days. He can’t fucking wait.

David is well aware that he’s living in a fantasy land. The two of you living together? Officially? It blows his mind to even think about it. At that point, Molly would have to know. There’d be no hiding it. But for now, he’s ignoring all of that. He’s choosing to bask in the peace you bring him.

Settling in at his desk, he releases a heavy breath. Honestly, he doesn’t need to be here this early - he hasn’t needed to stay so late, either. But it gives him time away from the anxiety surrounding his family, and in turn, helps him relax. He’s good at his job and truthfully, figuring out how to quietly and expertly remove people from their own lives is easier than dealing with his current familial stress. It does, however, have one downside. It takes time away from you.

“Oooh, who misses you?”

Immediately, you’re snatching your phone out of Angela’s hand, staring down at the screen to see the text Dave sent. Eyes widening, you feel a sense of heat run through your cheeks, and Molly notices, too.

“It’s probably just Anthony.” Rolling her eyes, she moves into her next stretch, preparing for today’s warm-ups.

“No, it’s not. I told you I’m done talking to him.” Trying to dull your annoyance, you turn back to your screen, smirking ever so slightly. He misses me?

Frowning, Molly leans upright once again. “Well then who the hell is it?”

The quiet that follows seems to infuriate your closest friend, because she’s immediately trotting over to snatch your phone from your hand.

“Molly!”

“Miss you, princess.” She reads out loud, raising a brow. “How come I don’t know about this?” It’s easy to see now that Molly isn’t angry, she’s sad. She assumed you’d tell her about your next relationship. And all at once, the guilt you’d been pushing down for weeks bubbles into your throat again.

“I, well, I just… I’m…”

“That’s funny,” She cuts in, staring at the screen. “My dad’s name is Dave.”

At first, you feel like an idiot. You really couldn't have changed his name? But as soon as Molly starts giggling, you release all your anxieties in one breath.

“That’s so weird, is he my dad’s age, too?” She jokes, tossing your phone back to you while returning to her position.

Chewing on the corner of your lip, you close your phone, shoving it into your backpack. “Maybe.”

“Wait, really?” Spinning on her heels, she darts back over, sitting on the floor in front of you. And a few other girls scooch in, too.

“Of course you’d be the one to go for older men.” Nora chimes in, causing you to turn your head.

“What? Why?”

“Maybe it is Molly’s dad.” And now, everyone is turning to Lexi. “What? It could be!”

“Yeah, right.” Molly snorts, rolling her eyes. “Like that would ever happen.”

“It’s not her dad!” God damn, this is frustrating.

“Whatever,” Molly groans, patting her hand on your knee. “Just tell us about him!”

Side-eyeing her, you grin, quickly glancing down at your hands. You almost can’t keep it in, your relationship with him. Not when everyone is so eager to know. Hell, you can do this, you can still keep this a secret.

“Well… he is older. And, I don’t know… we’re still kind of… new.”

“Have you said I love you?”

“Well, yeah…”

“Awe! Wait, who said it first?” The girls seem ecstatic, but you can tell Molly is still pretty hurt.

“Um… he did.” Your heart beats a little harder, thinking back to that night.

“So it’s definitely not new.” Lexi adds with a few of your girls agreeing.

“So, his name is Dave?” Molly inquires further, trying to ask the important questions. If you’re telling this guy that you love him, she should know more about him. “How did you guys meet?”

“Oh my gosh, what does he look like?!” Angela unexpectedly butts in.

“We have a… a mutual… friend.” It’s all you could come up with. “And he’s tall, way taller than me. He has light brown hair and dark brown eyes…” Trailing off, you find yourself caught up in the thought of him. “He’s pretty strong…”

“You said he’s older, right?”

“Mhm,” Nodding, you shake yourself out of your thoughts. You just had an overnight trip with him not too long ago, you should be able to focus on your personal life.

“Does he have a dad bod?” She’s grinning wildly, and now, every head is turned toward you. “Is he big?”

“Angela!” You scoff, still smiling. “Yeah, he has a dad bod…” Replying with a laugh, you turn away.

“And?”

Raising a brow, you turn to face your teammates. “You think I’d be with him if he wasn’t big?”

Everyone is giggling like little school girls, but Molly still can’t shake the feeling of being lied to. Why haven’t you told her about this? Are you not as close as she thought?

“Go stretch!” You demand with a grin, shaking them off. “We have warm-ups in ten.”

On the other side of town, Dave smiles down at his phone. Once you’d gotten a moment to yourself, you responded to him. I miss you too.

He hasn’t seen your pretty face in days, not in person, at least. But he’s been thanking the lord for SnapIt. Wait, no… Snapchat? Whatever it is, it’s been his only way of actually seeing you. At home and in the office, he can forget about personal calls and video chats. But cute selfies and quick videos easily make up for all of that.

“Jesus,” Giving his head a quick shake, he sighs, staring down at the video you just sent.

You’re in the bathroom, the camera fixed on your reflection in the mirror. That smile lights up his entire life, and prompts his own to form, too. And while the short clip might seem sweet, it’s less than innocent. What you’re wearing immediately sets him off.

“Remember this, daddy?” Comes your cute, girly little voice.

With one hand on your phone, the other finds the edge of your skirt, twirling it slightly. Of course he remembers it, how could he not? The last time he saw you in your cheer outfit was when he came on it.

His response is pretty simple, a picture of his work pants. Well, a specific spot on his work pants. With his hand holding his semi-hard crotch, he captions it with, think I’d ever forget?

“Hey,”

“Shit!” Nearly jumping out of your skin, you turn, seeing Molly. “Oh, h-hey, hey Goof.”

She smiles sheepishly, “Texting Dave?”

For a split second, your eyes widen. But then you remember, she now knows your boyfriend’s name. How… strange.

“Um, yeah.” It comes out as an awkward chuckle, quick to close your phone and put it away.

“I… I was wondering.” Staring at the floor, she swallows, unsure of how to start this conversation. “Why haven’t you told me?”

“About Dave?”

“Yeah.” She nods, finally returning her gaze to you. “Did I, I mean… have I done something wrong?”

“What? No! No, not at all, Molly!”

“It’s just… I don’t know. You’re already saying I love you to each other, and… I just don’t know why you wouldn’t tell me about it.”

Jesus Christ, what the hell are you going to tell her? Is this when it happens? When everything just comes out? When your insides spill out of your mouth like word vomit? Every single secret you’ve been hiding, now rushing to the surface?

“Honestly,” Laughing away your anxieties, you shrug. “I thought you’d think it was… too fast. After Anthony.” Okay, that was good. That was smooth.

“Really?” Raising a brow, she shifts her stance. “I hate that guy. You being with literally anyone else is better than you being with him.”

You chuckle, eyes wandering. Not anyone else.

“I don’t want you to feel like you have to hide things from me.” Shrugging, she steps closer to you. “That’s all.”

Offering your best smile, you wrap her in a big hug. “Thanks, Goof.”

And you want to stay true to your friendship, you don’t want to lie to her. There are days where you’ve thought about the outcome of your secret relationship, and it’s really torn you to pieces. In the end, you figure it’s best if she doesn’t know. Maybe it’s best if she never knows.

A few buzzes from your phone end your brief moment, with Molly now back away. Pulling out your phone, you glance down, watching the screen light up with Dave’s name.

“Well… I guess I’ll let you get back to it.” She chuckles, acknowledging the notifications.

It’s weird, her finally knowing about this. And although she doesn’t know everything about this, her knowing some of it sort of… normalizes it. But you’re not exactly sure that’s a good thing.

Before you can get a response out, she’s walking away. “Tell Dave I say hi.” She grins, shutting the door behind her. Now that comment, makes your insides twist tight.

Doing as he says, you open the app, seeing another notification from him. And inside, you’re already full of butterflies, thinking about what he’s sent.

This time, it’s a video. It starts out in the same position as the photo he sent, directed at his covered lap. But now, his hand is moving, slowly undoing his belt before pulling it open. Thick fingers then move to his zipper, pulling it down to reveal the pretty periwinkle underneath. But then it abruptly ends. Frowning, you close the app to message him, wondering if he’d intended to send more. But just before you can, another video loads.

Groaning, David sighs, pulling himself out of his light purple boxers. He’s red, already dripping down the sag of his foreskin. Pulling it back, you can hear him gasp, a quiet noise as he holds himself in hand.

“I miss you, baby.” His voice is low, but sweet. Gliding his thumb over the tip, he sighs again. “Miss the way you feel around me…”

You’ve already spent at least ten minutes in here, so you’ll need to do this quick. And be creative. It’s not like you can just get naked in the middle of the bathroom, and you definitely don’t have the time for that. But Dave isn’t exactly a hard man to please.

“Fuck me.”

He thought the two of you were just having fun together, sending these messages back and forth. Sure he’d touched himself in a video for you, but he had no real intention of actually getting himself off. That is, until you sent an upskirt picture of yourself to him.

Your cheer uniform is clearly visible, and with your panties tugged to the side, he can see you perfectly. The smooth pinkness of your skin, just barely glistening for him. Jesus, he misses that, misses how it feels and tastes and smells. Fuck, he’ll have to convince you to give him your panties again, especially if you’re not sure when you’ll next see him.

Making sure to screenshot the image, he pulls it up in his photos, no longer having the Snapchat timer on it. Spitting into his palm, he stares at the screen, at the beautiful picture of your sweet, tiny pussy. It’s his, it’s all his, the entirety of your body. Your gorgeous tits and smooth thighs, the plumpness of your ass. All he wants to do is touch you, feel and grab on your most sensitive places. He loves your hips, loves digging his fingers into the thin skin, especially when he’s fucking you. Jesus Christ, it’s all he can think of, bending you over and taking you from behind, fucking you in his car, in the basement lounge of his home, anywhere secluded enough for him to have you.

Tugging on himself, he releases a rough sigh. Even though he has an entire office to himself, he still wants to keep quiet. He has absolutely no idea who could be walking the halls. Truthfully, though, it’s hard to do so when he has a woman half his age sending pictures from between her thighs.

His head tilts back, resting on the upper portion of his chair as he spreads his legs further. Thrusting up into his palm, he gasps, continuously brushing the flat of his thumb over his leaking head. He just loves how you play with it, how you tug his foreskin back to suck and lick on it. The next time he sees you, he’ll demand it, shove you down onto your knees until you’re gagging on him. It’s what he’s wanted for days, it’s what he needs.

Spit isn’t enough to be an adequate lubricant, nowhere near as slick as your cunt. It’s amazing to him, just how slippery you get, just how desperately you want for him. And he knows if you were here, you’d be doing this for him.

Slamming the phone down on his desk, he finds his breaths becoming ragged, using his now free hand to cup his scrotum. He fondles the softness of it, imagining it to be you while he jerks off into his hand. Internally, he’s thinking about your mouth, about the way you swallow him. Even when he cums, you’re sucking it down, urging it to the back of your throat and Christ, just the thought of it is enough for him.

It’s incredible how sensitive he gets, especially when he cums. He has to bite into his lower lip to keep himself at bay, to keep those whimpers from slipping out. Thrusting up into his own hand, he groans, eyes pitching shut with his brows furrowing just above. His mouth hands agape, unable to think about anything other than your pretty face. He can feel it oozing down the side of his hand, seeping into the cracks between each fingers, leaking over his knuckles. He never used to cum so much before you.

“F-Fuck,” He grunts out, eyes shooting open to look down.

Slowing his pace, he takes a breath, staring at his mess. Some of the warm, white goo is on his boxers, even his work pants, too. But he’s not frustrated about that. He’s annoyed about something else entirely.

“Should’ve filmed that.”

It’d be for the best that you accept her offer, you want to reassure her that your friendship is as strong as ever. But you just can’t bring yourself to. Dave’s presence is nowhere in that house, but Carol sure as hell is. She’s always complaining, whether it’s about Dave, or her work, or her friends, it’s always something. It’s never-ending. And you just don’t feel like dealing with that right now.

“I think I’m okay today, but thanks for askin’.” Is your final response, alongside a grateful smile.

“You sure?” Molly inquires, shifting her bag on her shoulder. “You don’t want to hangout today?”

“Not today, babe. But we will sometime this week, I promise.”

Honestly, you’d like to get home and eat. It’s been a long day, with an early practice and then another after your classes. You’ve barely had time for a latte and some crackers, and you’re starting to feel woozy from it.

“I need to get home and eat. Talk to you later!” And with that, you’re hopping in your Jeep.

Some days, it’s easy to get caught up in the world around you. With school and work and cheer and pom, Dave occasionally falls to the wayside. Even though you’ve been missing some classes and practices lately… But while these days come and go, he always wiggles back in somehow. Today had been busy, you weren’t able to respond to him after your flirty morning messages. But now that you’re driving home, finally on your way to relaxation, your head is full of him again.

“Hey, baby.”

“Hey!” You’re giddy all over again, just hearing his voice. You’d decided to call instead of text, you missed his voice. “How are you?”

“Tired,” He groans, staring down at the paperwork he’d been tasked with. “How are you?”

“Tired, too. But I'm finally on my way home, think I’ll take a day off tomorrow. This week has been draining me.”

“Just remember, we’ll get a break soon.” Smirking, he traces an imaginary shape onto his desk, sighing.

“What do you mean?”

“Our trip, we’re leaving on Thursday.”

“Holy shit, I completely forgot! Fuck, I need a break.”

“You’ll get one soon, princess.”

The way he says it makes you sigh, releasing the stress of your day. His voice is smooth and reassuring, deep and just a little bit gravely.

“I miss you.”

“I know, honey. But I’ll see you soon.”

“Tonight?”

“I don’t know, sweetheart. I’m pretty busy, I’ll probably be home late.”

Immediately, you have the thought of visiting him. You’ve never gone up to his work, you haven’t really had a reason to. But maybe you could surprise him today.

“Okay, babe. Just get some rest, okay?”

“Sure, baby.” He chuckles, checking the time on his wrist. “We can talk more later, okay?”

“Okay,” Pouting, you pull into your parking lot, wishing the call didn’t have to end.

“I love you, sweetheart.” He says it with intention, like he’s apologizing for your time apart.

“I love you, too.” And while your response isn’t said as sweetly, he accepts it, promising to text you soon.

As soon as the call ends, you’re scurrying inside to see what food you have. Instead of just visiting him, you figure you’ll bring him some dinner. He did say he was busy, maybe he hasn’t had the chance to eat yet.

Thinking back to the first time he stayed in your apartment, you remember one of his favorite meals. Easily enough, you find noodles and alfredo sauce in the cupboard, and some frozen chicken in the freezer.

“Who?”

“Dave York… does he, does he not work here?” It’s the third time you’ve had to ask for him, and everyone’s been acting super strange.

“No, he does, he does. I just… are you one of his daughters?” And now, you freeze up. “I haven’t seen you before.”

“I’m… a friend. Can you just tell me where to find him, please?” Did it have to be that big of a deal?

Though, you suppose it should be a big deal. This isn’t just any office, it’s the office for the Central Intelligence Agency. Maybe you should’ve thought this through.

“Sure… just let me give him a call. What was your name?”

Sighing, you hand your ID to the man at the front desk, watching him eye it while picking up the phone. He dials a quick number, Dave’s voice heard on the other end almost immediately.

“Yeah, I’ve got a younger woman here that’s asking for you.”

At this, he sounds flustered, though you can’t quite make out what he’s saying. But then this man is repeating your name, and he goes silent. Shit, is he upset that you’re here? Maybe this was a bad idea. Shit, shit.

“Ma’am?”

“Hm? Yes?” Startled out of your worried haze, the man says, “You can go in. He’s right down that hall, and to your right. Office number twenty-nine.”

Raising your brows, you feel a surge of adrenaline burst inside. “Oh… okay, thank you.”

You’re very suddenly intimidated by your surroundings. Everything looks so… professional, monochrome colors and sleek lines, engraved name cards and security surveillance at every turn. Regardless, you make your way down, albeit with timid steps. And when you’re at his door, you take in a deep breath. Gulping, you lift your hand, knuckles knocking shyly against the door.

“Come in.” His voice is deep, loud, demanding that you enter.

Slowly, you twist the knob, urging the hunk of wood forward. Peaking your head inside, you’re met with an abundance of dark wood and grays. Wooden side tables and shelves, and further in, a dark wooden desk, too.

“H-Hey, hi.” Grinning sheepishly, you fully make your way in, closing the door behind you.

“Hey…” Standing from his desk, you’re not quite sure how to read his expression. Both hands fall to his shirt, fiddling with his buttons. “What…” Walking toward you, he exhales a nervous breath. “What’re you doing here?”

“I, well…” Lifting the tupperware in your hand, you glance down, explaining, “I wanted to bring you dinner.”

As soon as he sees it, his eyes are wide, lips parting slightly. “You… brought me dinner?”

“Mhm, I made it. It’s chicken alfredo, I… I thought you’d like it.”

“Baby,” And the way he says it prompts your eyes to return to him. “Thank you.”

He takes the container so gingerly that you’d assume it was glass if you didn’t already know better. Spinning on his heels, he sets it on his desk, just as quickly turning back to you.

“Oh!”

“Thank you, baby.” Reaching out, he pulls you tightly into his arms, heart beating out of his chest. You can feel it against your own, your hands sliding up to wrap around his neck.

“Of course,” You’re flush from his reaction, beyond happy to see him this way. “I’m so glad you’re happy to see me.”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” He asks, loosening his grip to kiss your forehead. And then he’s turning, walking back to his desk.

“I don’t know, I’ve just never been here before and I got… nervous.”

“You’re cute when you’re nervous.” He’s chuckling, opening up the container and grabbing the silverware you brought with it.

Slinking into one of the chairs before his desk, you grin, watching him dig in. And in this brief lull, you take a look around his office, having wondered what it’d be like in here. All the lights are warm-toned, his shelves full of novels and his desk incredibly clean. Usually though, it’s quite messy. He’s lucky his secretary called first, it gave him time to hide a few things before you came in.

“Did you eat?”

“Yeah, I ate at home. Don’t worry about me.”

All he can do is stop and stare at you, smiling sweetly. No one’s ever been so thoughtful toward him before. In all their years of marriage, Carol never thought to do this. And if she did, she never followed through on it.

“You’re so sweet, honey.”

“Yeah well I try.” You respond, rolling your eyes with a grin.

With an ounce of confidence, you stand, making your way behind his desk. Wrapping your arms around him from behind his chair, you lean down, kissing his cheek.

“I was a little bit nervous, if I’m being honest.”

“Why?”

“Well, everyone knows I’m married, baby.” He laughs, thinking that was obvious. “And now I have some young girl bringing me food.”

Shrugging, you grin. “Maybe they’ll be impressed.”

Setting down his fork, he grins, turning a bit. “C’mere.” Grabbing hold of your hips, he pulls you into his lap, your back pressing against his chest. “I’m impressed.”

“With what?” You giggle, feeling his lips dragging over your neck.

“How caring you are, baby.” Kissing your neck, he grins, hands unwilling to move from your hips. “I’m lucky to have you.”

Tilting your head back onto his shoulder, you sigh. “I’ve missed this.”

“I know…” Dave groans, “I can’t wait to take you on this trip, do whatever I want with you for days.”

“You could do whatever you want with me right now.” You return, eyeing him from the side.

As if the sound was meant to directly ruin your moment, his work phone rings. And then, a notification pops up on his laptop. A work meeting.

“Yeah, not while talking to my bosses.”

Frowning, you release a pouty huff. “Could I maybe… stay? I’ll be quiet, I promise!”

At first, he’s inclined to say no. He isn’t sure what this meeting is about, but… he could always take it on his AirPods, too.

“Sure, baby. Just keep quiet, okay?”

Your face lights up at his words, nodding enthusiastically. Darting to the side, you grab a chair, pulling it up beside him. It takes all but two seconds for him to connect the call, popping in one of the small, white earbuds.

It’s cute, really, how sweetly you cuddle up to him. But can you help it? Going days without him feels like a fucking crime. And since he’s not on camera, you really can snuggle him, looping an arm around his and nuzzling into his shoulder.

Smiling, he enters the chat, happy to hear it’s about the upcoming trip. “Yeah, the tickets are set. Resnik checked into the hotel already, I’ll be meeting him early Friday. Yep, leaving Thursday night.”

He’s going through the facts, just running over the plan, but even though the conversation is mundane, you couldn’t be more entertained. The smooth melody of his voice lulls you into relaxation, that baritone sound rumbling in his throat.

Something about laying on the sturdiness of him, listening to him converse nonchalantly with his coworkers, it’s healing your inner child. Even though he’s at work, clearly busy, he still wants you here. He still does his best to make sure you know you’re loved.

“Come here.”

“Sh!” You giggle, moving with him. “We have to be quiet!”

“I know that.” Dave grunts in response, pulling you into his body again.

It all happened so quickly, him waking you up before leaving the office. You’re shocked that you fell asleep in the first place. Thinking back, you weren’t even that tired. Maybe he just made you that comfortable.

“Doesn’t mean I can’t have my fun with you.” He finishes, biting into your neck.

After he woke you up, he suggested that you come back to his home. Truthfully, it’s become far too easy for this to take place, for you to fuck Molly’s dad just down the hall from her bedroom. Coming home past midnight, he’s certain that his family will be asleep. And as long as you’re out before six the next morning, you’re in the clear. And anyways, he’d missed having you in his bed, beneath his body and hands. There was a point where you’d told him that you wanted a home, a home to share with him. And after that, he kind of lost it.

At first, it was innocent, the two of you snuggling in your undies together. He locked the door after you were both inside, releasing a contended breath once he finally got to hold you. Dave wrapped the covers around the two of you, settling into his bed. But then you were shifting, trying to get ‘comfortable’, all while grinding back against him.

“You know what I can’t stop thinking about? Your gorgeous fucking mouth,” Reaching up, he covers it with his palm, hissing into your ear, “And all the sexy sounds it makes.”

He’s holding you from behind, having shoved your panties to the side. Slipping himself out of his boxers, he slides along the slickness of your sex, grunting hot breaths directly into your ear.

“Jesus, baby, you don’t understand. You can’t do that to me, you can’t grind that perfect ass against me. I just, fuck, I cum so fucking easy with you.”

And while he’s talking, only riling himself up, you’re still doing it, shoving yourself back against him. Both of your hands are clinging to his forearm, lungs doing their best to release quiet breaths.

“Every time you leave, I think about you, baby. I think about you every goddamn second of the day. Think about your beautiful lips, tapping the head of my dick against them.” And that’s when you release your first, true moan, eyes fluttering just above his hand. “You want it, princess? You want me?”

It’s a smile whine, one accompanied with a nod, that you give in response. And with one small slip, barely adjusting the angle of his hips, he’s sliding in. It feels like it’s been forever since you felt him, the thickness of him splitting you open from behind.

“Talk to me,” He finally gives in, taking his hand away. “Talk to me, baby.”

“Baby,” You nearly squeal, feeling his hips thrust into you. All at once, he’s forcing you to take him, every inch. And it burns but it feels just right. “Fuck, I need this.”

“C’mon,” Dave grunts, teeth dragging along your neck. Sliding one hand down, he smacks your outer thigh, demanding, “Grind yourself against me.” And like always, you give in.

“More, daddy.” Already, your breaths have turned heavy, feeling his hips rotate against your ass. The sting of his slap still radiates along your skin, his fingers now pressing into the plump muscles he can’t seem to get enough of.

“I can’t wait to give you more, I’ll give you everything.” He promises, huffing out a deep moan. “When we’re on our trip, I’ll taste you everyday, every goddamn day.”

“David,” He’s pumping himself into you, meeting the smooth rotation of your hips.

“Fuck, I can’t wait to have your mouth on my cock again. Shove it down your throat and make you look up at me while you swallow.” He can’t even begin to tell you about the fantasies he’s dreamt up about this trip. “I can’t wait to take you with me.”

“I…” Sighing, you smile. “I can’t wait, daddy.”

“Daddy’ll give you whatever you want, okay, baby? Whatever you need, it’s yours, it’s yours, princess. Fuck.” Sliding his hand down, he fondles your chest, gripping you in hand. “Maybe I can show you off, take you to some beaches and clubs.”

“R-Really?”

“Fuck yes, you think I’d pass up that opportunity?” You hate to say it, but feeling like a prize to him is making you drip. “Let everyone see the sexy little thing that’s with me… Fuck, you can be so dirty, can’t you, baby? Sending me pictures of your pussy, huh? Letting me see up your cheer skirt?”

“I, I want that. Want you to do that.”

“I already have.”

“No, baby…”

“What?” Pressing his nose into your cheek, he groans. “What do you need?”

“Want you to do that at our next game.” And you almost can’t help the wicked smile that forms on your face.

“Yeah? At halftime? Just like how we first met?”

“Yes, baby.” The feeling of his cock dragging along your walls is almost too much when coupled with his words. And before you even realize it, your hips are stuttering in their motion.

“Did I tell you to stop?” Another harsh spank, one loud enough for you to worry.

“Daddy,”

“You like that?”

“You know I do.”

You can feel his stubble scratching along your jawline and cheek, his lips insistent in their kisses. But then he’s lowering himself, finding and then sucking on your neck.

“Do you like it, daddy? You like being inside me?”

“Fuck,” It’s a growl, one vibrating over your throat.

At this point, he’s slapping his hips against you, diving deeper every time.

“I loved sitting in your lap, daddy. Maybe I can do that more often at your office.”

“Maybe you can do a little more than that.”

You’re pulsing around him, trying to quiet your shrill gasps. Molly and Alice are just down the hall, and so is Carol. And to think you’re fucking their dad makes you hot all over again. It’s become so exciting. Hell, who are you kidding? It’s always been exciting.

“I love you, sweetheart. You were meant for this, you were made for me. Even when apart, I still want you. I still need you.”

“I need you, David.” Clinging to his forearm, you release a soft moan, feeling his tip punch against your most sensitive spot. “I love you.”

“B-Baby,” He suddenly stutters, holding you tighter in his grasp. And you almost can’t breathe from it, can’t think of anything else but him.

“I know, daddy. Will you cum inside me?”

“Jesus,” Eyes rolling back, he grunts. “You’re perfect for me.”

The sloppy sound of your meeting sexes makes your face burn, and if it weren’t for the loud fan in David’s room, you’d be worried. It makes you grateful for the times you get at your apartment, where you can be as loud and sloppy as you want. And you’re sure this vacation won’t be any different.

“I’m gonna take you with me,” He promises breathlessly, eyes pinching shut. His tongue is laving over your neck, lips kissing your jawline and cheek, moaning sweetly, desperately into your ear. “I can’t wait to take you with me.” In less than three sharp thrusts, he’s spilling into you, feeling the hot liquid rush out of his tip. It shoots into your center, the gooiness of it coating your insides white. His muscles turn to jelly, his once steady breaths now faltering, especially when you shove your hips back against him.

“I love you,” He proclaims through his high, his voice and chest straining as he speaks to you. “I love you, sweetheart. You’re mine.”

“I know,” You promise in return, nuzzling back into his barely-covered body. “I know, baby. And you’re mine.” Reaching around, your fingers find that soft, light brown hair, finding gentle purchase with it.

“You’ll always be with me, I promise.” Kissing the shell of your ear, David sighs, basking in the sensation of your fingers in his hair. “Princess, I’ll take you everywhere.”

#Dave York #MBFD #MBFD Series #My Best Friend's Dad #My Best Friend's Dad Series #Dave York x you #Dave York x reader #Dave York x female reader #Dave York smut #Dave York fluff #Dave York series

227 notes · View notes

persephoneflowerpetals · 1 month

Note

Hey!!! I hope you’re doing well :) I feel like you’ve been feeling a bit down recently I dunno I could be wrong and you’re just busy but either way I hope your week starts to get better soon!! I just wanted to drop by and check on you and make sure you’re all okay!! Ik you’re probably busy as hell but keep up the good work!! You’re doing good :D!! I’m proud of you!! <3

Hi! Oh my goodness thank you so much!!! I seriously appreciate you sending this!!! This made me very happy!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I genuinely didn’t think anyone would notice, but at the same time I haven’t been as active on here as I usually am so I guess it is a little obvious lol. I was honestly thinking about making a post talking about this but yeah. You’re correct on that. I’ve been struggling with my mental health recently, mainly my anxiety.

It’s really weird because I’ve been doing fine life-wise. I mean, we had a tropical storm come in last week, but it didn’t really affect me or my family or anything and it’s long gone now. It’s been pretty sunny recently lol. But like, back in April I was still working in retail and I had that car crash where my car got totaled and I had to look for a new car AND a new job (which worked out in the end because now I have a nice new car and a great job that isn’t as stressful for me), but ever since I woke up from a creepy nightmare last week, I’ve just been really anxious and on edge. I’ve been having trouble sleeping and been having more eventful dreams and occasional nightmares. So I’ve been more tired than usual and feeling off. Idk I guess it subconsciously triggered some hidden pent up anxiety or something. Similar thing happened to me in high school before I was diagnosed with anxiety but it was A LOT worse because I didn’t know why I was feeling the way I did so I had a hard time coping.

Anyways, I was trying to stay offline for a while so I wouldn’t trigger any anxiety because I felt like every little thing would make me anxious. I’ve also felt too anxious and tired and uninspired to write or post, so that’s another reason why I haven’t been active. I’ve just been trying to focus on myself and my life right now, trying to find some help now that I actually have decent insurance lmao and just trying to focus on things that will keep me calm for the time being.

I will say that I’ve been doing a little better. Like yesterday and today I haven’t felt as anxious and I haven’t really had any nightmares. Just eventful dreams lol. I even got the inspiration to work a little bit on the next chapter of ‘Til Death (I’m kinda stuck on writing a scene for it so I’ve had a bit of writers block with that lol) last night so that’s progress I guess lol.

But like I said, I really really appreciate this ask! It means a lot to me that you guys care about me that much ❤️. Hopefully I’ll be back to my normal self soon and I’ll be back to posting my silly Hades and Persephone stuff lol

12 notes · View notes

kafus · 7 months

Text

okay well i guess i didn’t need my alarms cause i can’t seem to sleep more lmao. it’s 5 am

soooo pokemon presents in a little less than 4 hrs huh? realistically i’m expecting something either johto or unova related and since they’re apparently lighting up NYC today, which is not usual for pokemon day, i’m kind of leaning unova. i have mixed feelings about this since as much as i actually did enjoy my time with BDSP, i was dually disappointed by them and i’m still sad that sinnoh isn’t going to get the HGSS or ORAS treatment ever - if unova remakes were to be of a similar caliber of bdsp, i’d rather them just not exist at all frankly. nostalgia bias and my immense love for sinnoh aside, i think the unova games, especially bw2, are some of the best games in the entire franchise, and if they are remade, or get bw3 sequels, or whatever, i want them to be GOOD. lets not spit on the legacy of gen 5 now!! but. i remain cautiously optimistic. i’m not a super cynical pokemon fan and like i said i did enjoy bdsp despite everything. also a legends kyurem or whatever would be awesome btw i wanna see the og dragon lol. johto would also be cool but i’m having a lot less thoughts on it for some reason. i’m sure if they announce anything johto ayano will have incredibly passionate thoughts about it

now i’m not really one for predictions, the above talk is maybe the most obvious outcome since they usually do remakes mid-gen. instead i’ll just talk about some things i would WANT even if they’re a pipe dream and i don’t necessarily expect them:

a new PMD. not an explorers remake, a new PMD with a fresh story and everything. we haven’t had a proper new PMD story since 2015 and i MISS IT. i’d also enjoy explorers remakes but frankly i want a new game the most and i wanna play as sprigatito SOBS THE PALDEA STARTERS WOULD BE SO GOOD FOR PMD

gen 3 on NSO with full online capabilities and also connectivity to NSO ports of colosseum and gale of darkness. i 100% do not think this is happening but it would blow me away if it did. the amount of gen 3 that so many people were never able to experience as children, especially me… could finally be done online!!! it’d be cool if they removed all the dumb trading restrictions too but unlikely. (as an aside if they released gen 1/2 VC again with stadium compatibility that’d be epic but i somehow expect that even less)

some sort of new stadium-type game with home compatibility that provides single player trials similar to that of the old gen battle frontiers. i just REALLY really miss old singleplayer battle challenges. i want a new one to spend a bazillion years on making wacky teams and winning w them. i enjoy VGC but sometimes that singleplayer experience hits different

i really am a spinoff enjoyer. surprise me with something new! that isn’t a mobile game with gacha elements! just a whole new standalone pokemon idea. no idea what genre just excite me

MAKE A COMFY FRIENDS SPRIGATITO PLUSH OR SO HELP ME GOD (this is barely related to the presents im just thinking about it i want one soo bad 😭)

and those r all my thoughts i think. these presentations r always a treat because i wake up early and watch them with my friends. i probably won’t be liveposting it on tumblr bc i will be lost in the sauce of discord w the besties. i’ll provide my thoughts later though!

#kiki was here #kiki.txt

14 notes · View notes

vilandel · 1 month

Text

Tears Of The Night II

Summary Night is a time of many moments for lovers… Also for comforting each other the best they could.

A/N And here is the second part, because sometimes it's Nozel that needs to comfort Vanessa 💜 Part II, where Nozel comforts Vanessa 💘

Ao3 link

♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣♣

Vanessa was crying.

And Nozel hated when she cried. Even more when he had no idea why.

She had landed on his balcony late this evening, teary eyes and shaking. It had worried him. Vanessa was normally joyful, more optimistic than him. But now…

Nozel had asked what was hurting her, but Vanessa didn’t answer. She just asked him to hold her. And he did. He wasn’t really good at comforting people, but Vanessa loved hugs and at least this was something he was able to do.

If only he could help her better. She was always there for him when he was feeling down, guilty. Nozel wanted to do the same for Vanessa. But what else could he do when she wasn’t telling him what made her cry?

Now they were lying on his bed, she had her face against his chest while his arms were tightly around her. Vanessa calmed down a bit, but she was still sobbing. Nozel put a soft kiss on the crown of her head.

“What is wrong, my beloved?” he finally asked her, as even her sobs became rarer. Nozel didn’t usually called her by a nickname. That was way more Vanessas speciality. But he would do it on some occasions. To show her that he’s happy, for example. Or that he cared for her, like in this very occasion.

“It’s… it’s stupid, really. You may find me pathetic,” Vanessa whispered, her face still against his chest.

“I would never,” he whispered back, caressing her hair. Why would he find her pathetic? He was long passed that and for Heaven’s sake, he loved her too much to actually care if she would happen to be pathetic on occasion. Well, maybe he biased towards Vanessa at this point, but this was only a detail.

“Well… I had a mission today with Gordon and two other knights from the Golden Dawn. An escort mission… For noble ladies…”

Nozel nodded slowly. He could already imagine where this will go. His hold on her tightened.

“Not much, they wanted an escort from their manor to Raque. I have no idea why they wanted an escort for such a small journey, but a lady pretended it was for her younger daughter, who’s health is apparently very fragile.”

“Let me guess… those were nobles of house Vitrail.”

“Yes. How did you find out?”

Vanessa looked up to him, forgetting for a second her teary eyes, before looking down again.

“It is apparently common knowledge within nobility. Lady Rosette, the second daughter of the Head of house Vitrail, is very well known to be not very healthy. The lady who told you that is probably lady Cristal, her mother. She never misses an occasion to talk about her younger daughters poor health… when it isn’t about her perfect older daughter.”

Just the thought of lady Athénaïs gave Nozel a sick feeling. Not only because this lady was considered by too many people a perfect match for him, a young royal Head of House and there was no day passing without her parents sending him at least two marriage proposals for her. Because apparently, not every royal would be good enough for her and he was one of the rare ones who would be.

But the thought also made him sick because he could more and more imagine where this conversation was going. Athénaïs was as arrogant and self-centred as she was beautiful and intelligent. She knew which words to use to make a very sure person fall into self-doubt and to the destroy the reputation of someone, without even sounding mean. She had her own opinions about the places of peasants, commoners, witches and even persons from low or medium nobility. Worst of all, her high opinion of herself was also a weapon to crush hopes of mostly naïve and young ladies, who were either of romantic nature or having a crush on someone, in rare cases maybe even in love.

Nozel knew that Vanessa wasn’t someone who would let words get to her that easily, she was stronger than that. But with what he knew of Athénaïs Vitrail, he feared that something actually hurt her. And he couldn’t allow that, Vanessa deserved nothing of this!

“I see,” Vanessa replied to his previous statement. “That must be this girl who stayed in the carriage. She looked very frail and pale… She was actually the only really nice noble there. I’m… I’m not crying because of her.”

“It was her older sister, then.”

“Yes… how did you find out?”

“I just joined the dots. I know the image Athénaïs gives of herself within royalty and nobility. But I also know that deep down, she is a horrible person. I’m sorry that she said something that hurt you.”

“It’s not your fault, Nozel. You weren’t there… You’re not… Well… You’re not what she thinks you are.”

“Please, Vanessa. Tell me what happened.”

“I told you, it’s… stupid. I shouldn’t have let her words come through me.”

“But it did happened and I surely won’t blame you for that. Remember how horrible I was feeling on the birthday of my late mother? It was stupid too, in a way. But you were there for me.”

Nozel sighed, but continued before Vanessa could protest, “Let me be here for you as well, Vanessa. Once you told that we should take care of each other, comforting each other. I’m not good at that, but I will still try and do it for those I care about. And you’re one of them.”

Vanessa just looked at him and Nozel tried to not look away, sitting up with her. He felt flustered after that speech, even though he meant every word of it. He just wasn’t used to those kind of things. But maybe with time, with her at his side…

There was surprise in her eyes, mixed with gratitude, sadness and happiness. Nozel slowly put a hand on her cheek and she leaned into the touch.

She was such a beautiful soul. Caring for others, being there for them, sometimes even forgetting herself. That last part in particular reminded him a bit of himself. Nozel didn’t realized at first and still today, he was surprised about the subtle similarities they shared, despite their complete opposite ways to deal with many things.

“Well… It’s true, Athénaïs told me things that really hurt me. At the start, I actually liked her, because she took care of her unhealthy sister, always looking if she was alright.”

Nozel nodded slowly. He didn’t know if taking care of her younger sister was Athénaïs’ only redeeming quality or if it just was a strategic way to give a good image of herself.

“But… at one moment, during the trip… we ended up alone. I don’t really remember why. And… she took a look at me… it was like she was judging me and I didn’t like that. But I was used for nobles to judge me quickly, so I said nothing. But… then… she asked me if I’m in love.”

Vanessa let out a tiny sob and Nozel already felt the urge to hug her again.

“I found the question strange and it made me feel… I don’t know, odd maybe? So, I just said yes… I didn’t mention that I have a boyfriend and of course, I never said it’s you. And then… she looked at me with… pity? I don’t know, it didn’t looked genuine, so I don’t know if it really was pity.”

It wasn’t.

Nozel took her hands in his.

“So… she said things about love… that it was the only privilege non-noble people could have, but that it was, well… still rather foolish to marry out of love. Because apparently, once the feeling is gone, we’re stick with a person we only respect at best and that soon adultery affairs would start. That it was better for non-noble people as well to marry so that they would gain more land for their farm for example… Well, she said that with such compassion and explained that this is why nobles usually never marry out of love, that I have no idea what to respond.”

Vanessa looked down, sighing. “I asked who she wanted to marry, if not for love. Well… is it true that her house has a high reputation from marrying a lot into the royal families in the past?”

“Yes.”

“So it wasn’t bluff… well, she… she apparently considers herself… the perfect match… for a royal… especially for you,” Vanessa continued and it broke Nozels heart to hear her sobbing again. “First I was angry, because she clearly only saw you as a prize, which she thinks she deserves more than anyone. I hated it so much! I even told her that you’re more than just that. She said yes and I thought… I don’t know what I thought exactly, maybe that she would say something positive about you. But then, she had rather harsh words, not really against you but against the way you lead your house. She said that you took some dumb decisions… it was basically the same things that old fart from House Vermillion judges you own, only that she… excuses you a bit because you became Head of House with fifteen… that was the only point I couldn’t disagree with her, honestly and it made me sick to agree on something with her! But then… she said that you should have been married long ago and still do, that only a spouse would make take good decisions concerning your house… and of course, she… considers herself the perfect one for that.”

“And I refuse to even consider her an option,” Nozel whispered angrily before hugging Vanessa tightly. “She can’t even hold a candle to you.”

“I… I still let her words go through me. Because she then looked at me, claiming that she understood that I defend him, because you have a literal fan club in the kingdom.”

Which was by far not as amazing as it sounded.

“And well, she told me that you won’t ever notice me, because I’m a witch and you’re a prince and because this would never happen in real life. She then went away and I… I’m so ashamed, Nozel! I compared myself to her and her beauty really made me insecure. And… I… asked myself if you didn’t proposed already to me because I’m not good enough…”

Vanessa put her hands on her face as she started crying again, “I told you it was pathetic! I told you that freedom is important to me and we agreed to… wait… with that important step, because you know how royal laws and rules and such can be like a cage! You told me that you refuse to take my freedom away from me. We agreed to go step by step with every important step! And now, I’m here wondering why you haven’t propose to me, comparing myself to a beautiful but bad woman and let her words get at me. But I was so angry how she view you, I…”

She cried again and Nozel just held her tightly against him. He wished that it could be enough to protect from those stupid but hurtful words, from the self-doubts, from… so many things. It wasn’t enough, he knew that.

And still he wished for it.

“I don’t blame you, Vanessa. Athénaïs is sadly talented to put words in a way so that they hurt other people. But you know me, better than she ever will.”

He let her go a bit, so that he could see her in the eyes. In those beautiful, teary eyes. Nozel took in a breath. He knew what he wanted to say, he knew what he needed to say. It flustered him and he clearly wasn’t used to say things like this. But he wouldn’t back away.

“I love you, Vanessa. If I could, I would give the world. You’re the one I want to grow old with. I would have propose to you many times already. But I know how much you love your freedom and I refuse to be the one to put you back in a cage. You know all that, we already talked about this. Our relationship is still young and well… marriage… isn’t the priority, other steps come before that. But don’t think that I didn’t propose to you because you’re good enough.”

He take her face softly in his hands, leaning his forehead against hers. “You’re more than good enough. You’re perfect for me. I will propose to you, only if you want it and only when we’re both ready.”

“I… I’m not against it. Not with you, because you would never put me in a cage. Marriage out of love aren’t cages, I believe. I… want to grow old with you as well, Nozel. I want it, I’m just… not ready. I want to learn and understand how your world works, I want to get over my fear. But I’m not there yet.”

“I will never force you. Take all the time you need. We made it work so far, we will continue to make it work… This is what you told me at the beginning of our relationship.”

“Yes.”

They stayed like that for a while, before Nozel spoke up again, “Also, you have no need to compare yourself to Athénaïs. You’re thousand times more beautiful than her.”

“Don’t you think you’re a bit biased? After all, you’re my boyfriend…”

“I was also talking about your inner beauty, my beloved.”

He felt his cheeks getting red and saw her blushing as well. Still, he felt happy and relieved as a soft smile appeared on her lips. She was starting to feel better…

“I really hated how she talked about you…”

“Don’t be. I’m used to it, after all those years.”

“You shouldn’t be.”

“I know.”

They felt silent again. Not a heavy one, it was more comforting. Nozel wrapped his arms around Vanessa, pulling her softly against him, while she leaned her head on his shoulder.

“Feeling better?”

“I do… Really. But isn’t it stupid that let her words hurt me?”

“No, Vanessa. We all have moments like this. Moments of self-doubt, when insulting words, even the most subtle ones, can pierce our hearts. We just have to know that we aren’t alone, that there are people we can go to, for comfort, for a shoulder to cry on. It usually goes better after a good cry.”

“This sounds familiar, in a way.”

“I’m sure of it. Normally, you tell me things like this and we both know that I need speeches like this.”

Vanessa giggled softly, which Nozel could definitely consider as a victory. His lips brushed her temple, lingering over her silky skin.”

“I never cared about it in the past.”

“What do you mean?”

“What nobles think about me. About my status and my background. I never cared that I’m just the Drunken Witch in their eyes. I had the Black Bulls, I enjoyed my life. But since you became such an important part of my life, I began to care… I didn’t understood immediately, but… now that I think about it, it’s maybe because you’re important for me. Our relationship, what the future awaits for us. It’s surely this.”

Nozel swelled with love and pride at those words. She was important to him too, their bond was today one of his biggest treasures.

He didn’t care about what others thought of them. Or, he didn’t care enough to let it lead his decisions. Even though he knew what consequences rumours could have, opinions and prejudice within nobility were far more important than they should be.

But Vanessa was worth it to stand strong against this unfairness. Even more than worth it. And he would do anything to protect and help her. He was ready to fight for her and he would.

“Does it confirm somehow how serious it is between us?” Vanessa asked, looking up at him. Nozel just smiled at her, caressing her cheek.

“I believe so.”

Vanessa smiled. A soft smile, but it was the proof that she was really getting better. Nozel didn’t know if his comforting was good at all, but it visibly helped her. Nothing else mattered to him right now.

“I’m… I’m actually happy that I immediately came to you, instead of worrying and doubting all alone. I just… needed you at my side, to confirm that this is the real you, not what that… woman pretended.”

“If you ask me, this proves that you have a strong spirit. I think most people would have let those words get even more through them. Not you. You came and you told me what was the matter. Thank you.”

“What for?”

“For trusting me. It really makes me happy.”

“You trust me too, otherwise you wouldn’t show your sad and vulnerable side in front of me… Thank you Nozel, for being there, for me.”

Nozel smiled as leaned down his head to kiss her. Just softly, but it was enough to leave an immense fire in him. Vanessa gave in, one hand in his unkempt hair.

This kiss only lead to another one. Soft again, but it soon became more heated. It might lasted long but Nozel couldn’t tell. When Vanessa and him finally parted, he was on his back, with her over him, gorgeously smiling at him while running a finger on his nose. It wasn’t much, but that vision of her made his heartbeat increased heavily.

“Athénaïs Vitrail clearly doesn’t deserve you. You’re thousand times too good for her,” she said with a smirk, before kissing his nose.

Nozel just chuckled. “Why should I even think about her?” He rolled them both over, making Vanessa yelp. “I have the most wonderful woman of the Clover Kingdom in my arms right now.”

He didn’t even wait for an answer from her, as he directly went for her lips again.

“I hope I will never work for Athénaïs and the women of her house ever again,” Vanessa sighed as they parted. “Except maybe her poor unhealthy sister. But how in the world can she be considered a perfect match for a royal when she is obviously lacking kindness and respect?”

“No idea,” Nozel replied as he kissed her temple. “And honestly, I don’t even care about the reasons. They’re probably stupid.”

“You’re right. I don’t feel sad about her words anymore, thankfully. But I’m still angry at her. How can she talk about you like that?”

“I guess that no one ever put her in her place. Since you’re this upset about her, how about I let you rip or throw in the fire any marriage proposals about her I surely will get tomorrow?”

“You mean… I can do whatever I want with those?”

“With my blessing.”

“Thank you so much, honey!”

She rolled on top of him, laughing breathlessly and she kissed him senseless.

Nozel kissed her back, happy that Vanessa was now feeling better. Yes, he would be there for her, just as she was there for him. That was the kind of relationship they had.

#Black Clover #Black Clover Fanfiction #My Writing ☘️♣️#Nozel Silva #Vanessa Enoteca #Nozessa #Nozel x Vanessa

6 notes · View notes

ghostradiodylan · 9 months

Note

Which Hacketteers do you think are pro Christmas music and who do you think is totally against it?

Okay this is a great question and such a hard one for me because I’m kind of ambivalent about Christmas music myself! I like it fine for a couple of days beforehand but when it starts playing in stores right after Halloween? I’m still in spooky mode, stop trying to make me be merry for the sake of capitalism! 😂

Also given the setting of New York state, I wonder if any of them come from Jewish or otherwise non-Christian families. Idk who’s most likely to fit into that category but it’s a consideration. Christmas culture infects everyone though lol.

❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️

I feel like Jacob is a literal child so he probably gets super excited about everything Christmas and is like helping his parents put up elaborate light displays and buying Christmas themed snacks and stuff, so he’s probably listening to Christmas music the day after Halloween and I feel like Emma might be similar. Emma might come Christmas caroling at your house because she loves performing so much! Emma doesn’t mind a pop cover or a bit of Mariah Carey at all.

Kaitlyn might be a total Grinch if left to her own devices but she can’t help indulging Jacob a little. She doesn’t mind Christmas music in the context of Christmas movies but she probably wouldn’t listen to it on purpose just for fun. She has a secret soft spot for the soundtrack to The Muppet Christmas Carol.

I feel like the holidays might be complicated for Ryan. We don’t know why his mom isn’t around, though I obviously have my headcanons for fiction, but that might make it a little bit of a tough time for him. At the same time, he seems really invested in his sister so he probably wants to make Christmas special for her. He lives with his grandparents, so maybe they’re listening to the more classic, old school Christmas music and jazz covers and he’s probably fine with that.

Dylan I think could go either way, either he’s rolling his eyes about it altogether or he’s making massive playlists of indie and alt rock covers and then throwing in annoying goofy songs like “Dominick the Donkey” and “I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas.” I think he probably does not want to hear Christmas music prior to Thanksgiving. But maybe I’m just projecting as I often do.

Abi’s watching The Nightmare Before Christmas on repeat to match her Hot Topic aesthetic. 😂 She likes that original soundtrack and the various artist cover versions and “Yule Shoot Your Eye Out” by Fall Out Boy. But when it’s actually the week of Christmas she gives in and gets into the regular cheery stuff.

I wonder how long Nick has been in the US because I always think it has to be so weird for Australians to have all this wintery themed Christmas music when it’s summer in their hemisphere at Christmas time! Maybe he gets really into it because it’s so different from what he’s used to. Or maybe he gets cranky and misses the summer and listens to Tim Minchin’s “White Wine in the Sun” to remember warmer holidays. Could go either way.

Maybe it’s his 50’s fit talking, but I imagine Max being into the old crooner type Christmas music, Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra and more recently stuff like Michael Bublé that’s copying that style. I feel like he starts terribly serenading Laura with that music in early November.

I feel like Laura might not get super into Christmas until school is out because she’s so driven, so maybe she pushes all that out of her mind until then, except when Max is badly crooning “White Christmas” in the shower. But then again, I also headcanoned her as a choir kid in high school so she probably had concerts to practice for too that made her get into the spirit earlier than she really wanted.

Thanks for the asks today y’all! I think my brain is tapped out but I will be meditating on some I can send back! 💜💜💜

#the quarry #merry quarrymas #jacob custos #emma mountebank #dylan lenivy #ryan erzahler #kaitlyn ka #abi blyg #nick furcillo #max brinly #laura kearney #beautiful asks from beautiful people #thank you kat 💜

15 notes · View notes

rollinouttahere · 1 year

Text

Devil’s in the Details

Miguel O’hara x fem!Reader

1.7k words

I should definitely be working on other fics right now, but after finally getting to see the new spiderverse movie I needed to write this and get it out of my system. I didn’t necessarily write this with him being yandere in mind, but it can easily be interpreted that way. Also I know that it’s debatable if the version of himself that he replaced even was spider-man, but I felt like it worked best for this fic if he was. Might do a part 2 later.

It's the little things, you know?

When you make the commitment to marry someone, you sign yourself up to learn every single seemingly unimportant detail there is to know.

From more overt things like how they take their coffee, to something as minute as what section of the grocery store they like to go to first. It's not until you've learned these little personal quirks that you feel like you truly understand them. At least that's how you feel.

That's why it was so bothersome when these little things suddenly changed.

Despite how hectic his life was, Miguel was ultimately what you would call a creature of habit. He had his routines and habits and was absolutely loathed to change them. You suppose he took comfort in being able to control the smaller aspects of his life.

The first thing you noticed was something so minor, that you would have felt stupid pointing it out.

He put his socks on in the wrong order. Usually he did the left foot first, then the right. However, one morning he started with the right foot.

You couldn’t help but stare, which Miguel picked up on almost immediately. His red eyes glanced up through his hair to lock with yours. He quirked a brow at you, “Is everything alright, mi vida?”

Embarrassed to be caught gawking, you scramble to come up with an excuse, because you were absolutely not going to admit this was over the order that he put his socks on. That was probably considered a weird thing to pay attention to. Your parents did always say you were too observant for your own good.

“Oh, I just couldn’t help but notice that there’s a hole in that sock,” you strutted closer to him as he quickly looked down to try and find what you were referring to. He didn’t see anything and looked back up at you questioning, only for you to bop him on the nose, “Ha! Made you look!”

Briefly, his eyes widened in surprise, but then relaxed as he chuckled, “Aren’t you in a funny mood today?”

“Always am!” You giggled and returned to the process of getting ready for the day.

It wasn’t important. For all you know, you were misremembering and he had put them on in the typical order. Yeah, that was definitely it. You were feeling pretty drowsy today, it only makes sense that your brain would confuse something minor like this.

You let it go.

At least, you tried to.

Even if you did let the sock thing go, more inconsistencies popped up. It was always something small, but as the days ticked by, it added up and weighed on you. The slight changes to his speech patterns, him kissing the wrong side of your face in the morning, doing insignificant things in slightly different orders, it was all getting under your skin.

There was another problem. You felt like you couldn’t talk about any of these because almost all of the changes were either so tiny that it felt silly to talk about, or they were improvements to how things used to be. That’s not to say that you felt like your husband was dropping the ball before, but now he was so much more attentive that you didn’t know what to make of it.

You knew what you were getting into way before you ever said ‘I do’. Miguel isn’t your average Joe with a typical 9 to 5. He’s a workaholic scientist whose side hustle is being Spider-Man, you knew full well that there were going to be plenty of times where things simply wouldn’t work out the way you wanted it to. Super villains aren’t exactly known for respecting that the heroes they’re fighting had dinner plans that evening. It’s okay though, you understood. You loved him enough to not let something like that cause problems in your relationship.

So why was him suddenly making more time to spend with you and your daughter bothering you? Why couldn’t you just be happy and grateful? Gabriella certainly was, yet you couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.

Finally, though, there was a slip up even you couldn’t ignore or let go.

It happened one evening when he had taken you out to a nice restaurant for a date night. Not just any restaurant, your favorite. Miguel didn’t have the time to take you there very often, but that just made the instances where he did all the more special.

This restaurant had a particular dish that you thought was to die for, it was literally the only thing you ever ordered when you were here. When something is that good, you don’t want to risk trying something new and not liking it as much.

Before the waiter could come and take your order, nature called. You stood up from your seat, “I’m gonna go use the restroom, could you order for me if the waiter comes back before I do?”

“Of course, what do you want?”

You paused and looked at him like he’d grown a second head. The guy who teased you for having the most predictable order ever was asking what you wanted, and he looked completely serious. There was no coyness in his expression or sarcasm in his tone.

You forced out a laugh, he must be more stone-faced than usual today, “Very funny, dear. My usual, the thing I always order when we’re here.”

Briefly, panic flashed across his face. It was so fleeting that you would have missed it had you so much as blinked, but you definitely saw it. Luck appeared to be on his side, though, because that’s when the waiter arrived. Immediately, Miguel prompted you to order first.

Something was definitely wrong here, and that exchange confirmed it.

After that, you felt more justified in analyzing all those little discrepancies. Granted, you weren’t sure what you were hoping to find. You had no clue what could possibly be going on. Miguel has forgotten things in the past. He’s a busy guy, having plans slip his mind was hardly unexpected, but not remembering a detail about you was unheard of.

The issue, one of many, was that you weren’t even sure what you were looking for. You can’t imagine that he’s keeping secrets. He’s told you about his superhero persona, what could possibly be more under lock and key than that? Cheating is out of the question too, you know he would never.

Maybe it was brain damage? He did get thrown around a lot, it certainly felt plausible, but you couldn’t recall any serious head injuries lately.

Researching on the internet didn’t help much either. The articles you found were either all about cheating or capgras syndrome. You didn’t feel like you had capgras syndrome, the idea that your husband was replaced by an imposter was stupid. Even if one of his enemies had some bullshit power that allowed them to impersonate Miguel, they’d only do it long enough to take you or Gabriella hostage. Why keep up an act for this long? What would there be to gain? It didn’t make sense.

Basically, you were at square one.

That brings you to today. He forgot his lunch at home and you took it upon yourself to bring it to him. Despite all the oddities, you still loved him dearly and were excited to check in on him at work. You made your way down the familiar hallways of Alchemax with a skip in your step and some extra food for yourself, hoping to be able to have lunch together.

Without knocking, you throw open the door to his office. Miguel was watching something on a holoscreen, but dismissed it so quickly that you didn’t get a chance to see what it was.

Well that’s suspicious.

“Hi, honey! You forgot your lunch again, so I was thinking we could eat together!” You held up and gently shook the lunches for emphasis.

His initially startled expression morphed into a warm smile, “I knew I was forgetting something.” He turned away from whatever it was he was working on to face you properly, happily accepting the hug and kiss on the cheek you gave him. “You’re too good for me.”

You lightly slapped his arm, “Aw, don’t say that!”

He opened his mouth to say something else, but was cut off by his AI assistant popping up. “Miguel, someone is here to see you.”

“I can see that, she’s already in here,” he rolled his eyes.

“Not her, there’s someone… “non-local” here to see you... It’s important,” Lyla went so far as to make air quotations when she said non-local. You’re not sure why someone not being from around here was such a big deal. Lots of people don’t live in Neuva York.

His face hardened momentarily, but he forced it to relax when his gaze switched back to you, “I’ll be right back.”

With that, he hurried out the door, leaving you alone in the office. You gently put the lunches down, took a quick glance of your surroundings, and then scurried over to where his holoscreens were. Finally, finally, you might have a clue as to what’s going on with Miguel.

Lucky for you, he didn’t take the time to lock it before swiping it away. You pull them up with bated breath, not sure what you were going to find but anticipating it nonetheless. The screen stalled and buffered for a split second before resuming what it was displaying previously.

It was a video from your wedding. During the reception while you two were cutting the cake. While Miguel had the decency to not smear the cake across your face, you weren’t so merciful and scooped some icing off your slice to wipe on his nose. He definitely let you have that, his reflexes were too good for you to have actually caught him off guard.

The warmth in your heart from seeing the fond memory was quickly replaced by the heavy weight of guilt. What the hell were you doing? You went snooping because he was acting a little weird, and all you caught him in was watching home videos at work.

Maybe… Maybe you were over reacting. Imagining things, even. In his lines of work, it makes sense that he’s going to act a little weird or forget things sometimes. You dismissed the screens and resolved to let your suspicions go for the time being. There was no rush to go prying into what little private time he had like this.

It’s not like the world was going to end tomorrow or anything.

#spiderverse #across the spiderverse #miguel o'hara #miguel o'hara x reader #spiderverse x reader #spiderverse x you #spiderverse x y/n

35 notes · View notes

indigo-a-creeping · 1 month

Note

Hi Indigo, I got to see my results today. I think they look good for now but I’m interested to see how swelling changes them. I wasn’t super happy with the MA that helped me today. She was super nice and but super mechanical and definitely more of a get-in-and-get-out type. Which isn’t great when I have questions. I should have been more assertive. I ended up having to keep a drain in because my left side drained 20ml in the last 24 hours and 30ml the 24 hours before and they were concerned about the 30ml being on the line of their limit. So now I get to travel home with a drain, which isn’t their fault but it’s still annoying for me. But like, I only have one follow up appointment a week from today where I submit pictures, I don’t even talk directly to anyone. And I don’t know how long I’m expected to sleep elevated or how long I have to sleep only on my back or if I can drive or when I can lift my elbows higher than my shoulders. It’s just frustrating right now. And knowing that no one in my family gets it is tough.

I feel really disappointed right now and it’s not with the results. It’s with everything else.

I just want to thank you because you don’t even know me and yet you’ve been the biggest help out of anyone. So thank you, from the bottom of my heart, it’s meant more than I can say.

I'm sorry things have been rough. The MA I had was not super forthcoming with information either (I feel like no one really was), and I am also often not good at speaking up.

There was someone in the group text of people who had surgery in May who went to the GCC the day after me, and they also had to go home with one drain in. They said it was pretty easy to get out when the time came.

You will have more followup appointments in the future (at 6 weeks, 3 months, and 6 months, I want to say), just submitting pictures and a brief summary, though you're able to write as much as you need to. For me, they just said I was "right where I needed to be," and that was it. If you have concerns that aren't addressed or you just want extra support, you can always call them.

I slept elevated for another week after the post-op appointment, and then took away pillows as I felt comfortable. When you feel like you can sleep on your side, it's probably going to be okay (though I waited a long time because I didn't want fluid to build up unevenly). I tried gingerly lying on my side at maybe week 4-5? I didn't feel comfortable sleeping that way for another couple weeks.

You can drive as soon as the anesthesia and bigger narcotics are out of your system. I started driving just past 1 week. It was tough at first, mostly because the binder made it hard to turn my body enough (so not super safe to drive, but I did it anyway). The first week of driving I kept my hands low to turn the wheel with little movements, and week 5 I felt like I didn't have to protect my chest from the seatbelt.

I was reaching out almost as far as my arms could extend the day of surgery, but I know even at week 3 I physically couldn't raise my elbows above my shoulders. By week 6 I could lift my arms, and I had maybe 85% flexibility and strength back (that's when I went back to work).

You can find information online, but each surgeon has different guidelines and everyone heals differently. Especially at this point, you'll be pretty safe listening to your body.

I know how you feel being alone with this, and I'm glad I've been able to help! I hope this helps too!

#top surgery #top surgery recovery

3 notes · View notes

mirrortouchedsea · 1 year

Text

Everyone tells me to just stay the same (but it's not like that)

Word count: 1640

Summary: Hinata finally decides to tell Rinne about his past at Yumenosaki. CW for Setsubun mentions, identity issues, and mentions of abuse

Read on AO3

---

Hinata isn’t entirely sure what compels him to send a message to the leader of Crazy:B. Rinne Amagi had a habit of doting on him and treating him like another younger brother, which he knew Yuta wasn’t a big fan of. Yuta would often call Rinne a bad influence on Hinata, but Rinne was also one of the only people who treated him like a normal kid.

It was kind of addicting in a way. It wasn’t just Rinne who had treated him like that either. The rest of Crazy:B had taken him in as one of their juniors (despite the fact that Kohaku was younger than Hinata) and Alkaloid, or at least Hiiro, had taken a liking to him as well. He treasured those nights that he spent with Niki and Hiiro playing video games and snacking on homemade sweets late into the night.

Maybe it shouldn’t have been surprising that the first person he texted was Rinne on the anniversary of Setsubun. It had only been a year and yet it felt so much longer than that. He was grateful that the year since then had been filled with smiles and warmth, much more than years previous had been. The Amagi brothers were partially responsible for that change in his life.

Rinne responded quickly and asked if he’s alright since he doesn’t normally send cryptic messages like this in the middle of the day. He said he’ll be there in 15 minutes after debriefing with his unit.

Hinata didn’t bother replying to that, instead opting to just tell Rinne everything when he gets to the rooftop garden with him. He needed to figure out exactly what he wanted to tell Rinne anyway. It’s not in the older man’s nature to judge people based on things they can’t control, and he would understand a lot of Hinata’s own problems…probably. Rinne also wasn’t fond of showing weakness in front of other people.

Hinata sat at the edge of the garden, towards the back. Being so high up reminded him of that day, but this was almost cathartic in a way. He was in a better place now, with people who didn’t know about that incident at all and cared for him as his own person. As much as he knew Yuta didn’t like the nickname Rinne gave him, it was a comfort for Hinata.

Hina, such a simple nickname and yet it was a breath of fresh air, a new start, and here he was about to change everything. He just hoped that Rinne wouldn’t change how he talked with Hinata afterwards.

Hinata was dangling his feet over the edge, looking down at the bustling street below when Rinne finally sat beside him.

“What’s up, Hina? Somethin’ on your mind?” Rinne’s voice was gentle today, soft and even. Such a strange contrast to the Rinne most people knew.

“Mmm, you could say that,” he replied, not looking at the older man. “Rinne, have you ever felt like…people don’t see you for you?”

Rinne chuckled. “Every damn day Hina. Even back home…” he trailed off. Hinata knew not to push that topic.

The two of them were like peas in a pod in that sense.

Hinata laughed too. “Yeah, I knew you’d get it.”

They sat in silence for a few minutes, Rinne waiting patiently for Hinata to keep going and Hinata searching for the words to say. But just having someone else there helped keep him from spiraling too much.

“I just…feel like people wouldn’t miss me if I was gone, because they see me and Yuta-kun as the same person. It hurts a lot but I don’t know what to do about it because…I feel the same way. Like Yuta-kun and I are one person in two, but that’s not true anymore. I try to keep telling myself that we’re different but it’s hard to change how you think when it’s all you’ve ever known.

Yuta-kun has so many friends and is always laughing and smiling with them and I want to be like that too, but after ah…”

“After what, Hina?”

“After Setsubun fes, people started treating me like I would break at any moment. I’m not grandma’s fine china or anything that will break if you handle it too roughly! But everyone at Yumenosaki can’t seem to get past that video.”

Hinata still couldn’t look at Rinne, but he knew Rinne was confused. He hadn’t known about Setsubun at all. Of course he hadn’t, he didn’t go to school with them and was much too old to have been there at the same time as Hinata even if he had. It’s why he was drawn to him in the first place, along with his roommates, Niki and Hiiro.

“Ah, sorry. You don’t have any idea what I’m talking about, do you?”

“Not a clue.”

“Long story short, I had a mental breakdown on the roof of the school last year and…it was filmed and everyone at the school saw it. It’s not like I had much of a choice in the distribution either, so everyone was just watching me like I wasn’t a real person.”

Rinne moved a hand to Hinata’s back and began rubbing gentle circles between his shoulder blades. There were damp spots on Hinata’s cheeks. He rubbed his eyes with his hands balled up in fists. Why did his lowest moment have to be broadcast to everyone he knew? Why was it made to seem like a spectacle for people to watch and not do anything to help? Even after his monologue to his brother making it clear that he didn’t want to be treated like the same person anymore and not knowing how to distinguish himself without just moving into the background, nobody offered him help.

He was drowning in the unknown and it took the creation of ES and Crazy:B for him to find a lighthouse to guide him to somewhere safe. Even when Crazy:B was against the entire world, hated by everyone, Rinne and the other members never once hurt 2wink. After their collaboration at the nightclub Rinne had taken a liking to Hinata. He was there for him to lean on when he wasn’t sure about the direction of his unit or how to be a big brother or a good senior to the new first years or just how to navigate life.

At some point, Rinne had pulled Hinata into a side hug and just let him cry into his side. Hinata leaned into the touch and allowed himself to let it all out.

Rinne’s hugs were always warm.

It took several minutes of crying before Hinata ran out of tears. His sobs turned to sniffles and he pulled his legs to his chest.

“You didn’t deserve any of that, Hina.” Rinne’s voice was serious, but not cold. It was a warm honey-sweetened tea on a rainy day.

Another stretch of silence. Hinata’s head was spinning and numb and full of cotton.

“But…I know how it feels. When I was younger, I had to keep my emotions in check, especially in front of other people. Any sign of weakness was always punished by my father. ‘A good leader doesn’t cry’ he would tell me.

When my mom died, I was…eight or nine. I couldn’t cry at her funeral and when we returned home I just couldn’t hold it in anymore. I’ll spare you the details but he punished me severely. I never wanted Hiiro-kun to see me like that again and I made myself stop feeling. It felt like I was just there to be the next leader of the village, never allowed to be myself.

What I’m tryin’ to say here is that I get it. I know how it feels for people to try and put you in a box that doesn’t fit, and how they treat you when you finally break. It’s okay to be frustrated and angry that it happened, but you can’t let it consume you. Show the world that Hinata Aoi is his own person, that you aren’t just that video and that you’re here to stay.”

Hinata sniffled and leaned more into Rinne’s touch.

“Thanks, Rinne-senpai. It means a lot, heh. I guess we all have our own burdens to carry.”

“Yeah. Life is about learning to carry them and not let them drag you down. If it gets too heavy, I’ll be there to pick you back up and carry it for you.”

“You don’t have to go that far, Rinne-senpai. How will I learn to carry my burdens if you take them for yourself? Wouldn’t that just make it heavier on you?”

“I’ll take on everyone’s burdens if it means they get to smile just for one moment. I’ll fight fate itself if that’s what it takes.”

“I’m not sure why, but I believe that you would find a way to do that, even though most people would say it’s impossible.”

“Thanks for believing in me, Hina.”

Hinata laughed, Rinne lightened the mood just enough that he felt like everything was at peace for the moment. His cheeks were stained with tears and his eyes would be puffy and red when he returned to the dorm, but at least he’d be smiling.

Even if the world was against them, Hinata could count on Rinne at least being in their corner no matter what. Rinne was a lighthouse to people like Hinata, a steady light in the rocky ocean saying that someone is there, watching out for you.

Despite the front that he put up and how he had a bad habit of pushing people away, Rinne was always there when it mattered.

Hinata fell asleep curled up on the rooftop as Rinne hummed a gentle melody from his hometown. And everything was right with the world.

#shay writes #enstars #ensemble stars #hinata aoi #rinne amagi #aoi hinata #amagi rinne #dont tag as ship #i think about them too much. have you seen my meta post on main? have you?#this is based on that. ugh theyre so.#i read setsubun a month ago and then reread night club and i was like. oh this make so much sense #why hinata feels kinda distant from the other characters sometimes #the kid just wants to be normal but he really cant after setsubun huh.#and then you get these new guys who know nothing. and well. second chance.#also i felt like rinne was too direct but also i considered that like. 1) hinata doesnt need stupid riddles and games right now and 2)#rinne was very straight forward with hiiro in the main story so i think he can be up front about this stuff when he knows the situation #calls for it. so i think this is fine. its good. big bro rinne means so much to me do u understand #also he gives the warmest hugs. not necessarily the gentlest or anything but theyre very warm. to me #anywayyyyyyyyyy tag ramble over im waiting for an email from my loan provider #biting and maiming i need to pay my student loans please please please #okay im doneeeeeeee im done i'll cross post this to ao3 in a bit

21 notes · View notes

fangirlwriting-stories · 1 year

Text

Protector

Chapter One

Author’s Note: Hey, put this together very intentionally because it's far more likely I might not have an update for the next couple weeks in a row. Three weeks at the worst, but I'm not sure how I'll be doing, I've got finals and then some traveling coming. So enjoy this while you can, I can't promise when exactly I'll update next!

Also, note though, this isn't a hiatus, this is a "I edit these chapters on Saturdays and post them on Sundays, and my next couple Saturdays will be very busy." Worst case scenario, you'll get a new chapter before the end of May. Thank you all for your patience with my wildly shifting schedule.

Chapter Thirty-One:

Janus was being insufferable again. Virgil doubted he’d ever have enough time to truly sort through his feelings in regards to him, but Janus definitely wasn’t helping by watching him and Remus like a hawk every time they were in a video, or talking to Thomas, or doing anything where he was present. It made it difficult to share his concerns with Thomas when Janus was glaring at him every other sentence.

He did his best to avoid him if he could, but that wasn’t always possible, meaning sometimes he walked into a room and Janus was there, or Janus walked into a room where he already was, and there wasn’t much either of them could do about it.

Virgil kind of wished there was this morning, though.

Yesterday had been bad for him and Remus both, and when Virgil had woken up in the middle of the night and Remus hadn’t, they’d assumed he’d sent a nightmare to Roman again, meaning last night probably hadn’t been fun for him either.

Remus, though he didn’t say it, was clearly upset and frustrated that he didn’t know how to stop sending Roman nightmares. He vanished into The Imagination instead of talking about it, which in turn bothered Virgil, because what had happened to doing this together?

Then he’d made his way down to the kitchen, shoved some food in his mouth, and sat on the couch in his living room to listen to music and ignore the rest of the world.

And that, naturally, was when Janus showed up.

The glaring started pretty quickly, and Virgil realized not long after that he was not in the place to deal with it today. So, he turned up his music as much as he dared and tried to block Janus out.

But that plan was kind of ruined when Janus walked over to him and stood above him, clearly ready to wait until Virgil acknowledged him.

Virgil pulled his headphones down around his neck and looked up at Janus in exhaustion. “Can we not today, Janus? Please?”

“Thomas is doing worse, we need to talk about it,” Janus said.

“Well maybe I feel like shit too,” Virgil said, moving to pull his headphones back up.

“Hey,” Janus snapped, grabbing them and dragging them down again. “I want you to stop taking it out on him.”

“Oh sure, I’ll just do that,” Virgil said, rolling his eyes. “Except, oh wait, the last time I stopped affecting Thomas you all weren’t the biggest fans of that.”

“There is a middle ground between ducking out and making Thomas a giant mess, Virgil.”

Not when things were this bad.

Virgil sighed, trying to make it sound irritated, but not really succeeding. He looked up at Janus for a second. There were dark circles under his eyes that were almost successfully covered with makeup, and his shoulders were slumped almost imperceptibly.

Virgil sighed, and leaned back against the couch with a thud. “I’ll see what I can do,” he muttered.

“See that you do,” Janus said coolly, and he stalked off towards the kitchen.

Virgil sighed and rubbed at his eyes. He took a deep breath, and pulled the anxiety swirling around his chest into a tight ball. Then he buried his head in his knees and took a couple deep breaths.

Keeping his anxiety inside like this might make Thomas’ day better, but it sure wasn’t going to do the same for Virgil. He couldn’t blame Janus for wanting a break, though.

Before long, the other sides began to make appearances, and Virgil sank back out to Remus’ room to get away from them and see if Remus was back from The Imagination yet.

He wasn’t really surprised that he wasn’t. At least when Virgil checked, the way wasn’t blocked.

When he appeared with Remus it didn’t exactly make him feel better, though.

“Hey, Re,” Virgil said, shoving the tight ball of anxiety in his chest further down and walking past the large torture scene Remus had conjured up. “You doing okay there?”

“I’m having some feelings, and I don’t like them,” Remus said from where he was watching with his head firmly pressed against his knees. “So I’m going to watch Malice beat them out of me.”

Virgil winced. “Okay. Do you maybe want to talk about it instead?”

“No.”

Virgil gave him a worried look but didn’t say anything, and sat down after turning away from the torture scene. He made sure he could still see Remus, and leaned his head against his shoulder to show what support he could.

“D’you need to talk?” Remus asked.

“I’m just anxious,” Virgil said. “Trying to give everyone an easy day.”

Remus turned to give him a worried look of his own. “Don’t hurt yourself.”

Virgil nodded. “I know.”

Remus turned and looked back out at imaginary Malice again. “I don’t understand my feelings, Vee. Can’t they ever make sense?”

“I don’t think feelings work that way,” Virgil said.

“Why did none of them ever check on us?” Remus asked, burying his head in his knees. “Didn’t they care at all?”

Virgil didn’t know what to say to that, so instead he wrapped his arms around Remus from the front and pulled him gently to his side.

“I mean what did we do?” Remus asked, wrapping his own arm around Virgil. “Do they actually just hate us that much?”

“They didn’t know what was going on, Re,” Virgil murmured.

“Because they never bothered to look.”

“Well… yeah.”

“I hate them.”

Virgil glanced over. “Re…”

“No, I do. I don’t know why you don’t.”

“Because they…” Virgil started, and trailed off as he realized he didn’t know how to explain either.

“Aren’t you angry?”

Virgil nodded. “Yeah,” he said. “But I can be angry and also not hate them.”

Remus scoffed and glared away.

“I think,” Virgil said slowly. “That Logan and Roman have started to put something together.”

Remus went still.

“And as soon as they did they offered to talk about it. Well, in their own ways.”

“You trying to say Logan made a stupid hypothetical statement and Roman acted like a jerk again?”

Virgil laughed a little despite himself. “That’s part of the package, Re. It’s who they are. They were both trying to help. Besides,” Virgil swallowed as he thought of Patton. “I can’t blame them for being a little mad when I hurt all of them on purpose.”

“You only did that because Janus was being a terrible person again,” Remus snapped.

Virgil winced. “Remus, he—”

“You’re saying I’m wrong?”

Virgil was quiet for another minute. “Janus is really bad at caring sometimes,” he said quietly. “But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t.”

“And that’s my problem?”

Virgil glanced over. “Of course not.”

“I’m supposed to forgive him because of his intentions?”

“Re,” Virgil said, his eyes widening. “Of course not. I’m not asking you to forgive him.”

“It’s just not okay to hate him? Or any of them?”

Virgil paused and absorbed that for a second. Eventually, he shook his head. “No, you can hate them Remus,” he said quietly. “As long as you’re okay with the fact that I don’t.”

“Even Janus?”

Virgil pressed a hand to his chest. “Janus is scared.”

Remus was quiet for a long moment. Finally, he sighed.

“Okay,” he said. “I respect your decision.”

“I respect yours too,” Virgil said, leaning against Remus’ side. “I love you, Re.”

Remus leaned back. “I love you too.”

Remus waved his hand and sent the images of him and Malice away, and Virgil turned around.

…

The anxiety in Virgil’s chest didn’t go away the next day either. Instead, keeping it all tucked inside like that seemed to have increased it, which tended to be how it worked.

But it had been a long week and everyone was tired, so Virgil resigned himself to a day of sitting in his room and trying to breathe.

Remus didn’t seem to like that, and spent most of the morning trying to glare him into submission. When he finally accepted it wasn’t working, he huffed loudly in annoyance and decided to camp out in Virgil’s room to help. As a result, they both spent most of the day there doing grounding exercises and watching TV shows as an attempted distraction.

Virgil hoped the bad nightmare he got that night meant the anxiety was out of his system, especially when he woke up feeling better the next day. He kind of doubted it though. It would be back, and no doubt worse than before. And he didn’t want to try and shove it inside again. That could cause problems.

Virgil groaned as he sat up, and Remus shifted quickly awake next to him.

“Morning,” Virgil grumbled, rubbing his hands over his face.

“Good morning. I’m making you breakfast,” Remus said.

“What? Why?”

“Because you’re going to take it easy so your inevitable crash isn’t as bad. I’ll make you scrambled eggs, and I’m not going to add anything weird to them. Just come sit down at the table and relax whenever you’re ready.”

“You don’t have to do that, Re.”

“I don’t have to do shit, and you can’t make me. I’m doing it anyway.”

Virgil laughed a little. “Okay.”

“Good. See you in a bit.”

Remus sank out, and Virgil laid back in bed for a minute to allow himself to wake up more slowly.

After a half hour or so of scrolling through tumblr, he finally pushed himself into a sitting position and climbed out of bed to get dressed.

Because he was taking it easy, though, he didn’t sink out to the kitchen, and instead headed out of his room, stretching as he did. He made his way towards the stairs and smiled a little to himself as he heard Remus’ loud singing from the kitchen as he got closer.

Once he got to the bottom of the steps and before he made it to the kitchen, though, he spotted Janus and Roman talking quietly in the living room.

“I’ll just have to go fix it myself,” Janus grumbled. “Like always.”

“Hey,” Roman said, but stopped a second later as he noticed Virgil.

Janus glanced up a second later, and then his gaze turned so furious it actually took Virgil aback for a second.

He gave Janus a look, trying to convey ‘what the fuck is your problem?’ without opening his mouth, and headed into the kitchen, where Remus had finished Virgil’s eggs and was now making his own, adding edible glitter and cream cheese frosting.

“Here you go,” Remus said, turning to take a break and handing Virgil his eggs. “They’ve been kept magically warm. You’re welcome.”

Virgil smiled as he took them. “Thanks, Re.”

Remus smiled back at him and went back to slathering cream cheese icing into a frying pan.

Virgil sat down at the table and let out a relaxed sigh. He’d admit, this was actually an alright way to start the morning.

Eventually, Roman showed up in the kitchen, and Virgil braced himself for snapping and attempts to kick them out, but surprisingly Roman just moved quietly over to the freezer and pulled out some frozen waffles.

Virgil gave him a confused look, but turned back to his eggs after a second. He wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

It wasn’t long after that when Remus dropped his plate of eggs on the table and splatted the cream cheese icing on the table around it. Virgil just managed to cover his eggs in time, but glared at Remus anyway. “I hate you.”

Remus gave a loud overdramatic gasp and pressed his hand to his chest. “Virgil! How dare you! I am wounded!”

“I believe the rule was that you could add all the cream cheese frosting on your eggs that you want as long as it stays off of mine.”

“That was a rule?” Remus said, wobbling his lip and giving Virgil puppy dog eyes.

“I’m immune to those,” Virgil said, taking another bite.

“You heartless monster.”

“Why thank you,” Virgil said with a grin.

Remus stuck out his tongue before turning back to his eggs. “It’s cheese,” he said. “People like cheese on eggs.”

“Cream cheese frosting is absolutely not the same thing,” Virgil said, making note of Roman walking to the couch with his food out of the corner of his eye. “And I can’t know for sure that’s all that is. You’re still a menace.”

“Why thank you,” Remus said with his own grin.

Virgil finished his breakfast before Remus, but not that long before since Remus liked to inhale his food. Virgil had just put his own dishes away when Remus started on his, so Virgil leaned next to him on the counter to wait for him.

“Hey,” he said, keeping his voice down so Roman couldn’t hear from the living room. “Do you want to try some brainstorming today?”

Remus sighed, but seemed to give it a moment of thought.

He turned to Virgil after a second. “No. I wanna make something for me.”

Virgil smiled warmly at him. “I think that’s a good idea, Re.”

“Yeah. And then I wanna make something for you.”

Virgil blinked. “Me?”

“Yeah.”

He didn’t elaborate, as apparently he’d decided that didn’t need explanation.

Eventually, Virgil just nodded. “Okay,” he murmured. “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet, you haven’t seen it,” Remus said with a grin.

“Oh Thomas, what are you going to do?”

“That would ruin the surprise!”

“I’m going to regret this.”

“Most definitely,” Remus agreed.

Virgil was about to say something else when, very suddenly, Thomas’ anxiety spiked.

“The hell?” Virgil said, looking around. “I didn’t do anything.”

“What?” Remus asked.

“I don’t know, Thomas’ anxiety just… I’m gonna go check on him,” Virgil said.

“Not alone you’re not,” Roman snapped suddenly, causing Virgil to jump and glance over.

Virgil groaned. “God, fine, just come on,” he said.

“Want me to come?” Remus asked.

“No, I don’t want you to accidentally make it worse,” Virgil said, before wincing. “Sorry.”

“None taken. I can do that. Meet me back in my room so we can head to The Imagination?”

“Okay.”

Virgil sank out, and Roman followed him. A second later Virgil appeared and Roman rose up.

“Thomas?” Virgil asked, and Thomas glanced up as he stepped forward towards the couch. “Are you okay?”

Thomas blinked at him for a second. “Wouldn’t you know?”

The anxiety in the air suddenly spiked again, and Virgil gasped in surprise, pressing a hand to his chest.

“Well, I’m not doing that,” he said, rubbing it.

“What do you mean you’re not doing it? Aren’t you my Anxiety?”

“Yeah, we’ve actually had that figured that out,” Virgil muttered, looking around. “But no, that’s not me. Can you sense everyone else? Are they okay?”

“Uh,” Thomas said, looking up as he thought. “Well, you and Roman are right here, and I’m not really getting anything from Remus right now, other than… cream cheese frosting on scrambled eggs?”

“Yeah, don’t worry about it. Go on?”

“I think Patton’s okay, and Logan’s not setting off any alarms… hang on, I’ll just—”

He pulled his hand up, and Logan and Patton both rose up in their original spots. They both looked a little surprised, but otherwise normal.

“Okay,” Virgil said, looking back at Thomas. “Where’s Janus?”

But Thomas was looking towards the steps in confusion. “I summoned Janus,” he said. He did the same motion again, and again nothing happened.

Then the next second, the anxiety spiked again, and this time everyone seemed to feel it.

Virgil turned to look at Roman. “Well Princey, you were with Janus last, where is he?”

“What— he had to go clean up the mess you and Remus made with the barrier,” Roman said, looking unsure.

Virgil’s heart dropped into his stomach. “Something’s wrong with the barrier?”

There was another anxiety spike.

“Are you telling me,” Virgil said, walking forward and grabbing Roman by the shoulders. “That Janus went into the subconscious, alone, when Remus and I weren’t there?”

“He—” Roman said weakly. “He can go where he wants Anxiety, you’re not in charge of him—”

“Shut up!” Virgil screamed, and sank out to the commons. He looked over at Janus’ door, and found it flickering in and out of existence. The barrier on the door to the other commons was flickering in the same way.

“REMUS!” he screamed, and Remus opened his door in less than a second, sprinting out to meet him.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“Janus went to the subconscious,” Virgil said, starting over for the door to the other commons.

“Janus did what?”

“That’s why Thomas is freaking out, because something’s wrong,” Virgil said, summoning his scythe. “I have to go after him.”

“What?” Remus exclaimed. “No, you don’t, Virgil.”

“Re,” Virgil said, looking towards Janus’ flickering door in the distance. “They’re going to hurt him.”

“So fucking what? Let him learn what it feels like!”

“Remus,” Virgil said, squeezing his eyes shut. “I can’t.”

He didn’t know how to explain the swirl of emotions between his panic about the others, his worry about Thomas, and somehow, most prominently, the heart-pounding nerves that came with the idea that Janus was going to be hurt.

But he also really didn’t have time to try and explain, so instead he looked at Remus and hoped his eyes could convey all of the emotions his words couldn’t.

Something seemed to get across, because Remus bit his lip. “I don’t want you to go,” he whispered. “But I can’t stop you, can I?”

“No,” Virgil said. He took a breath, knowing the reaction he was about to get with this next part. “And you have to stay here, Remus.”

Remus stared at him. “What? Fuck no. Are you insane?”

“Remus they have Janus,” Virgil said. “If they kill him, the barrier goes down. And the core sides are going to need someone here who knows what’s about to happen.”

“I don’t care what happens to them!”

Virgil bit his lip. “Well, I do.”

Remus scowled. “Who said you could play dirty?”

“That’s not playing dirty. You want me to play dirty? If they have to go through what we’ve gone through, all of the ways we’ve negatively affected Thomas get a million times worse. You want to hurt Thomas?”

Remus gave him a death glare, and Virgil gave him a firm serious look back.

Finally, Remus growled and clenched his fists. “If you’re not back in an hour I’m coming after you.”

“Fine.”

Virgil picked up his scythe and started for the doorway to the other commons, with the flickering barrier from Janus still in place, at least for now.

And if Virgil had anything to say about it, it would stay that way.

...

Chapter Thirty-Two

#sanders sides #virgil sanders #remus sanders #roman sanders #janus sanders #platonic dukexiety #platonic anxceit #my fic

25 notes · View notes