#I don’t want to try to manage an entire 12 hour shift stressed all to hell over you again

[insanechayne]

~ ~ ~

[weemssapphic]

Lipstick Stains - Pt. 12

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Larissa Weems x fem!reader

summary: Larissa takes you to New York City.

words: ~3.2k | ao3 link in title

chapter-specific warnings/content: nsfw - smut (cunnilungus - L receiving)

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

Larissa drummed her fingers against the steering wheel of her car as she waited for you to come downstairs. Her nerves were rising by the second - she was excited to be going away with you, of course she was, but with everything that had happened last weekend (or rather, with all the stress she knew she was responsible for), she needed this weekend to go perfectly. She wouldn’t accept anything less.

A flurry of movement caught her eye and she turned her head to see you walking towards the car, dragging your suitcase behind you. She could feel her nerves settle a bit at the sight of you, and she stepped out of her car to open the trunk.

“Hi,” you said, a little out of breath - the second your eyes met, your lips curled up into a beaming smile, one that stole the breath out of Larissa’s lungs.

“Hello,” Larissa replied with a grin, lifting your suitcase into the trunk with ease before turning to pull you into a warm, all-encompassing hug. Your arms wound around her waist, holding her tightly, and she could feel even more tension leave her body as the two of you melted together.

“I missed you,” you whispered into her shoulder, nuzzling your face into her coat - Larissa didn’t miss the way you inhaled deeply and it only made her hug you tighter, her heart fluttering.

“I missed you, too,” she whispered into your hair, pressing a light kiss to the crown of your head before reluctantly leaving your embrace to usher you into the car. 

The drive to the airport was a short and uneventful one - Larissa kept her hand on your thigh the entire time, drawing lazy circles over your jeans with the pad of her thumb. She could tell you liked it from your soft smile and the lovely pink tinge on your cheeks, but it was just as much for her own benefit -  feeling you kept her grounded, kept her breathing steady and her heart rate calm.

Miraculously, the line at the counter to check the luggage was short, and the line for airport security was even shorter. It wasn’t until the two of you were sitting at your gate, waiting for your flight, that Larissa noticed how you’d begun to fidget slightly - crossing and uncrossing your legs, flicking restlessly between apps on your phone, twirling strands of your hair between your fingers.

“Nervous flyer?” Larissa guessed - your cheeks turned scarlet and your gaze shifted to the floor in response.

“I’ll be fine, I just don’t fly often,” you said with a shrug, trying to sound nonchalant as you tugged your bottom lip between your teeth. Larissa found the little gesture absolutely adorable - it made her want to scoop you up in her arms and protect you from the world. Your nervous expression made her heart ache and she leaned over to press a lingering kiss to your temple, her hand coming to rest on your lower back. 

“It’s only an hour and a half, we’ll be up in the air and landing in New York before you know it.” She modulated her voice carefully, wanting nothing more than to soothe your nerves as you somehow managed to soothe her own. She held your hand as you were called for boarding, not letting go even when you were seated on the plane.

“I’m sorry,” you whispered as the plane began to taxi and your hand tightened around Larissa’s in a vice-like grip. Larissa’s hand was starting to ache but it didn’t matter - she would let you crush it a thousand times over if it meant she could provide some semblance of comfort to you, and she squeezed your hand right back.

“Don’t be sorry,” she murmured, feeling her lips pull involuntarily into a soft smile as you shut your eyes and leaned your head back. She leaned in, placing her lips next to your ear. “Just relax. You’re going to be fine.” She felt you squeeze her hand even harder and grinned, placing a chaste kiss to the spot just below your ear, feeling you shiver beneath her lips. “Deep breaths, my darling girl.”

“Are you trying to get me so turned on that I forget about the stupid plane?” you joked, your voice growing breathy as you peeked your eyes open to peer over at Larissa.

“Is it working?” Larissa dropped her voice an octave on purpose and flicked her tongue against your earlobe - you shuddered, and Larissa felt her own arousal grow as she watched you squirm.

“Y-yes.”

A salacious smile crept up Larissa’s face. “Good. I promise I’ll reward you when we’ve arrived at the hotel. We have the entire weekend to ourselves.” Larissa kept her voice calm and collected - she didn’t miss the soft whimper that escaped your throat, or the way you shifted in your seat, and she lifted your hand to her lips to press a tender kiss to your knuckles.

~~~

“Holy shit, Rissa, you can’t be serious!”

Larissa delighted in the loud, unabashed squeal you let out upon entering your hotel room. She’d already watched you carefully and with great amusement in the lobby of the hotel, your jaw dropping to the floor and your eyes wide as Larissa had taken care of getting you checked in. And now, seeing you practically vibrate with excitement as you abandoned your luggage on the floor in favor of rushing over to the windows with a wide grin on your face, Larissa was certain her heart was expanding by the second.

“Do you like it?” she asked, nervous butterflies beating their wings against the walls of her stomach - was it too much? Not enough?

You turned to face her - she was still standing rather awkwardly in the doorway to the room - your eyes wide as saucers and slightly glazed over. “You didn’t just seriously ask me that,” you said with a giggle, your cheeks turning pink. “I love it! But… are you sure? You must have spent a fortune.”

“I’m sure,” Larissa said with a soft smile, remembering to close the door behind herself before carefully setting down her own luggage. She toed off her heels and padded softly over to you, placing her hands on your hips and ducking her head to press a long, lingering kiss to your lips, before spinning you around to face the window. 

“You told me you’ve never been to New York City so I wanted to make this special for you,” she murmured, splaying her hands over your belly and pulling you against her. The view outside was stunning - the window gave way to a view of Central Park, all green trees against a blue skyline, and the best part was that the windows were facing the bed.

“It would be special either way, because I’m with you,” you whispered, leaning your head back against Larissa’s chest - she was almost certain you could hear her heart start to pound violently against her ribcage.

“Still…”

You turned suddenly in Larissa’s arms, taking her by surprise.

“You don’t have to impress me, you know.” You raised an eyebrow and Larissa felt her mouth go dry at the intensity of your gaze.

“How about I spoil you instead, then?” she whispered - she’d intended for it to come out confident and seductive, but instead her voice was breathy and nervous. She could curse herself internally for how weak she felt in your presence, if it weren’t for the fact that it was the most comforting feeling she’d ever felt.

The mischievous glint in your eyes when you realized you had the upper hand was undeniable, and your lips curled into a smirk as you leaned up, your mouth inches away from Larissa’s neck and your breath washing over her skin. Larissa shivered and squirmed, a soft giggle escaping her lips.

“What?”

“That… that just tickles a bit,” Larissa said with a smile, attempting to step back - you stopped her with a hand on her waist, a devilish grin crossing your face.

“Oh? I didn’t realize you were ticklish. Does this tickle?”

Your fingers danced across Larissa’s sides, trying to find the spots that would have her squirming - it did tickle a little, but Larissa shook her head.

“How about this?” Your touch slowly turned more frantic and Larissa couldn’t take it any longer - she stepped back with a laugh, just out of reach. Of course you followed her, your hands ghosting over her body, tickling and caressing - Larissa laughed harder, twisting this way and that as her body shook under your touch. Your own laughter echoed through the suite, and you giggled madly in response to a loud shriek that Larissa let out when the backs of her knees hit the bed and she realized there was nowhere to escape to.

Larissa allowed herself to fall back onto the bed - you were close behind, crawling on top of her, all giggles and smiles as you leaned down and pressed what must have been dozens of tiny kisses all over Larissa’s face. Your hands left her sides to grip her wrists, pinning them above her head as your lips continued their assault on her jaw and throat.

Larissa was mid-giggle when she felt her laughter die in her throat - your thigh had found its way between her own and pressed up into her sex. She could feel her cheeks flush as she met your gaze, taking in your blown pupils and the adorable grin on your face, looking like a cat that caught a mouse.

“This is for earlier, during take-off,” you whispered as you leant in and pressed your lips to the center of her throat - she swallowed thickly and her eyes fluttered shut as the softest of whimpers escaped her lips.

“I-I was going to reward you,” Larissa whispered back breathlessly.

“As if this isn’t enough reward…”

In that moment, your thigh began to rock against her cunt at the exact same time that your teeth sunk into her neck, and her brain short-circuited. A strangled moan clawed its way out of her throat, so loud and broken that Larissa’s face began to burn. Your tongue began to lick the side of her neck, soothing the bite marks you’d left - wet and cool, sending a pronounced shiver down her spine.

Your knee found Larissa’s clit through the fabric of her pantyhose and underwear and you rocked forward, sending a wave of pleasure shooting through Larissa. The pressure was delicious but it wasn’t enough - she began to writhe and squirm, needy sounds bubbling forth from her chest as she started to grind desperately into you.

Larissa needed more - she broke her wrists free from your grip to fist at the front of your shirt, tugging you harshly towards her and crashing your lips together. One hand threaded its way into your hair, holding you in place as she licked into your mouth, her tongue dancing eagerly with yours. She could feel your breathing become labored, little whimpers escaping into Larissa’s mouth for her to swallow - it would appear Larissa wasn’t the only one who was helplessly turned on.

“Darling,” Larissa warned, her voice breathy as her hands began to trail down her own body, rubbing and squeezing her breasts on the way down before reaching her hips and hiking her dress up. “P-please…”

You sat back on your heels, wasting no time in tugging her pantyhose down, and her underwear along with them. Resting a hand on either one of Larissa’s thighs, she could feel you gently pry her legs apart, her folds being spread open by the action. Larissa watched with hooded eyes as you sunk down between her thighs, lining up your mouth with her cunt - she could feel herself trembling in anticipation, her breath coming out in shallow puffs as her clit throbbed with need.

Finally - finally - your tongue met her pussy, eagerly exploring her folds. Larissa let out a shuddering breath, her hands fisting at the sheets beneath her as you began to make soft, muffled noises of pleasure, the vibrations of which shot straight through her entire body.

“You taste so fucking good.” Your voice was low and gravelly and it made Larissa’s belly fill with warmth, her core tightening. Your tongue lapped eagerly at her cunt, gathering her arousal and soothing it over her clit - the action caused Larissa to buck her hips into your mouth. This was the first time you’d properly eaten her out, save for the brief moment on the morning after your first date where you’d been so rudely interrupted, and it felt like heaven to Larissa - your tongue was incredibly skilled, and the sight of you hungrily lapping at her core, with Larissa’s thighs bracketing your head, was nearly enough to send the shapeshifter over the edge.

“I need - mmh - m-more,” Larissa found herself whimpering as she teetered on the edge of bliss - she just needed that little push, that little bit more friction…

Your lips latched onto her clit, sucking fervently, and Larissa got what she so desperately needed - her orgasm washed over her, her toes curling and her thighs closing around your head as she whimpered and moaned her way through the aftershocks.

Your tongue caught every drop of arousal that Larissa’s body had to offer, licking her pussy and thighs clean of any remnants of her orgasm with a pleased hum. Then you peeked your head up, your cheeks flushed and your pupils blown, and Larissa could feel a blissed out grin spread across her face at the sight.

“Oh, come here, you,” she whispered fondly, sounding out of breath as her chest heaved. You crawled up her body and snuggled into her, your lips finding her own. Larissa groaned - your lips and chin were wet and tasted of her own arousal. She wrapped her arms around your waist and tugged you closer, smiling into the kiss. “Thank you.”

“You don’t have to thank me,” you said with a chuckle, nuzzling your face into the crook of Larissa’s neck and letting out a content sigh. Larissa’s arms tightened around you and she allowed her eyes to flutter closed for a few minutes as she regulated her breathing.

Your stomach broke the blissful silence with a low growl, and Larissa chuckled.

“We should get ready for dinner, hm?” Larissa’s fingers danced across your collarbone, your jaw, before cupping your cheek and pulling you in for a kiss. “I’d like for you to unpack your gift before we go.”

~~~

The two of you unpacked your suitcases and you laid the gifts she’d packed for you on the bed, your fingers playing curiously with the tissue paper. Larissa sat down on the edge of the bed, crossing her legs primly and turning her attention to you.

“You may open it. I do hope you like it.” Larissa paused for a moment, then reached over and handed you the box. “Start with this one.”

You raised an eyebrow and began to tear gently at the tissue paper - Larissa watched intently, her heart hammering in her chest as your eyes widened.

“These are beautiful,” you murmured, turning your new high heels over in your hands. 

“I wasn’t sure if you’d have the appropriate footwear for your other gift,” Larissa confessed with a blush.

You set the shoes gingerly back into their box, turning your attention to the unopened gift. “Can I?”

Larissa nodded and gestured for you to go ahead, trying to mask her nerves with a sweet smile. You once again tore through the tissue paper, your cheeks flushing as you uncovered the surprise.

Larissa had a knack for figuring out people’s measurements - fashion was one of her passions, she’d even learned to sew at an early age. She’d found the perfect dress for you a while ago, one that she was sure would accentuate your eyes and fit your aesthetic. Despite her confidence, a tiny part of her was nervous - she never wanted to make you feel uncomfortable or cross some sort of invisible boundary. 

She let out a surprised squeak when she suddenly felt your arms encircle her torso and hug her tight, your head burying itself in the crook of her neck.

“Rissa, you didn’t have to,” you mumbled into her shoulder, your voice muffled.

“Oh hush… do you like it? You don’t have to wear it, I promise I won’t be upset.”

You pulled back, your expression earnest. “It’s stunning, Larissa. I love it.” Larissa grinned widely, then her cheeks went pink. She cleared her throat and her eyes flicked to the pile of tissue paper. “There’s more…”

Your brows knit together as you turned back to the dress, your fingers rifling through the discarded wrappings - your cheeks turning just as pink as Larissa’s when you saw the matching underwear set, in the exact color of the dress. You lifted the lacy thong and bralette, carefully examining it, and Larissa’s breath hitched.

“I’m sorry, I hope I-”

You cut her off with a kiss - long, hard, desperate. Larissa hummed against your soft lips, melting into you as you pressed yourself into her.

“Don’t be sorry, I’m not,” you whispered against her lips, before kissing her again, even harder than before - it took Larissa’s breath away and made her dizzy. “I’m going to go change… I’ll be right back.”

~~~

Larissa felt her breath catch in her throat as you slipped out of the bathroom. The dress fit you like a glove (filling Larissa with a certain smugness at having gotten your measurements right) - it hugged and accentuated each and every curve of your body, and drool pooled in Larissa’s mouth as her eyes hungrily devoured your body. Larissa had so been looking forward to going out with you but at that moment, all she wanted was to rip that dress off you, pin you to the bed and have her way with you over and over and over again. Especially knowing what underwear lay underneath the dress.

“You okay there?” Your voice brought Larissa back to the present - she clenched her thighs together with want and her eyes snapped up to meet your own, only to see humor dancing in your sparkling irises.

“You have no idea how much I desire you.” Larissa almost felt embarrassed at how gravelly and hoarse her voice had become and she cleared her throat, her cheeks quickly turning scarlet. You grinned, stepping forward until your body was pressing against Larissa’s - her hands automatically settled on your hips and the feeling of your body wrapped in that tight fabric was enough to have Larissa’s aching cunt clench around nothing.

“I mean if you want…” Your eyes flicked briefly down the length of Larissa’s body, hooded and suggestive. Larissa’s own eyes fluttered shut and she swallowed, hard, as her panties grew damp. 

“No,” she said, her voice much higher than she’d intended for it to be. “I mean, yes. But I want you to experience more than just this hotel room this weekend. We’ll have plenty of time later, when we get back.”

“I mean, if you’re sure.” You batted your lashes and Larissa’s stomach flipped - she felt properly flustered.

“You really will be the death of me, you do know that?”

Your smug grin as you pried yourself from Larissa’s grip to grab your purse said it all.

x

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[munsonfamilyband]

Part 7, things are starting to speed up!!! This got long but enjoy, I think it's a good section

TW gore, slurs, violence, allusions to sexual content

—————————

After they all managed to pull themselves together enough to stand, Steve herded the kids back to his car and he quickly drove them back to his house with Max sandwiched in the back listening to her music. Erica was in the front but she was turned to face the back the entire ride. When he pulled into his house everyone jumped out before he had even put the car in park, rushing into the house. When he walked into the house Steve found them all curled up on the couch, each of them holding on to Max. He ended up dropping onto the other side of the couch, the stress migraine making it feel like his whole head was throbbing with his heartbeat.

Steve must have fallen asleep at some point because he’s jolted awake by someone shaking his shoulder, only to find that he couldn’t really move. A glance downward showed him all the kids - they must have migrated toward him once he fell asleep and they made a cuddle pile with him at the base. Normally this sort of thing would leave him feeling overjoyed for days (Robin says he’s touch starved, he just argues that he likes hugging the kids) but at that moment it only reminds him of why they’re all distressed enough to seek out physical comfort. Looking up to see who woke him he saw Robin, anxiety covering her face, and he wiggled a hand free to reach out to her. She gripped it tightly and looked down at the kids.

“Is she… is Max okay?”

“For now… at least the music thing worked.” She nodded and sat down on the arm of the couch behind his head, dropping his hand to start playing with his hair. “Where’s Nance?”

“Getting food, we just got back and you all were asleep so she went to get dinner. It’s half past 6, because I know you were about to ask.” He tilted his head back to look at her face and either she could actually read his mind or his facial expressions were that telling, because she knew what he was about to say next too. “When Nance gets back, you should go. I know you’re worried about Eddie.”

“But, the kids, I can’t-“ She tugged on a piece of his hair to get him to focus back on her.

“Steve, Stevie, light of my life, they will be okay if you aren’t here for 12 hours. I know you worry about them, and I don’t blame you, but Nancy and I will be here to watch them. Plus, you won’t be of much good when you’re distracted by your boyfriend.” She stared him in the eyes, and he knew she was challenging him to argue with her. Unfortunately for him, all of her arguments were solid and he just sighed.

“Okay, just…if anything happens, please call for me. Today, with Max… I have never felt that scared before, even with the Russians. She was floating there and I couldn’t- I couldn’t save her.” Robin bent down and curled her torso around his head in a hug.

“I know, just hearing Dustin panicking over the walkie was terrible, I can’t imagine seeing it.” Steve wanted to take comfort in her being so close, he always did but her speaking so close to his ear just made his head pound and before he could stop it he winced. “Sorry, migraine? You don’t, do you think you…?”

“No, it’s a stress migraine. I got them in November too, this shit always brings them out. Could you…?” She was standing before he could even finish the sentence, heading upstairs to his room to get his meds.

After taking his meds, they worked together to shift the kids around so Robin could climb into the cuddle pile and the two of them sat together in silence until Nancy came back, shutting the door softly behind her. Crossing through the living room to drop off the food in the kitchen she sent Steve and Robin a small smile - clearly forced but she was trying. Steve decided that was the best time to wake up the kids, gently waking Max first because, just as he had expected she would, she jumped when he did so. Robin helped to wake the others while Steve calmed Max down and then they all went to the kitchen to eat.

When Steve had finished eating he cleaned up his plate and turned to the table. “I’m going to go check on Eddie. Right now, I don’t think it’s a good idea for anyone to be alone.” Everyone but Nancy gave him knowing looks, but she just nodded.

“That’s a good idea, Steve. We can handle things here, someone should be with him just in case.” Steve squeezed her shoulder gently as he passed her, grabbing his things to leave. Before he could step outside he was ambushed by at least 3 pairs of skinny arms, all of them squeezing him in a big hug.

“Okay, okay, let me go and we can all hug properly, come on.” The kids let go and he turned around, letting them all huddle back in and he squeezed them all close. “If you need me I have my walkie, so just call. I have to go now, Eddie’s been alone all day.” Reluctantly they all let him go, then Robin snuck in for her own hug before shoving him out the door.

~~~~

Steve stopped his bike when he got to Rick’s place, hopping off and walking it over to hide in the trees. Rushing back to the house he knocked on the door and whispered, “Eddie? I’m back, can you let me in?”

He heard faint shuffling inside, unable to see any moment as all the lights were off, before the door opened and Eddie was standing in the doorway with a grin. “Hey, baby, welco- you’ve been crying.” The smirk on Eddie’s face dropped and Steve knew he was registering the tear tracks on his cheeks. “Sweetheart, what happened?”

“We should probably get inside and then I’ll fill you in.” Eddie gently pulled Steve inside and walked them over to the couch in the dark - Steve figured that leaving the lights off was better if there were people looking for Eddie, so he didn’t comment. “We found out who Vecna’s next victim is.”

“Oh shit, who is it?” Steve looked up at Eddie, tears filling his eyes all over again.

“Max.” He watched the horror dawn over Eddie’s face, he was pretty close to Max too after all. “She-we went to the school to look though the counselor’s notes on Chrissy and Fred, turns out they both reported headaches and nightmares starting about a week ago, and then a day or so before break they started seeing things.”

“You-Steve, you’ve been having headaches and nightmares, you don’t think-?”

“No, I’ve had enough migraines to know a stress one when I feel it. I’m okay, Max is okay, for now at least. Rob and Nancy went to see Victor Creel somehow, and they figured out a way to stop Vecna from hurting his victims - their favorite song.”

“Huh, well at least she’s okay for now. Are you doing okay though? I’m assuming you saw it happen…” Steve nodded and let his body shift forward to lay on top of Eddie’s, feeling Eddie’s arms wrap around him tight.

“It was just like you said, her eyes were rolled back and she wasn’t moving and then she started floating and all I could do was watch and hope the music worked. God, as if that kid hasn’t been through enough already.” Eddie just hummed in response, pressing a kiss to the top of Steve’s head and holding him close.

~~~

At the same time, across town, Jason Carver and a group of his teammates were searching through the phonebook for Rick’s that lived around Lover’s Lake. He had been to see some of Munson’s friends and got a location for Reefer Rick’s house, they figured that was their best bet since the guy was in jail. Jason also assumed that because the guy was in jail, he was dumb enough to have his real name in the phonebook. And sure enough they found one Rick Lipton, address 2121 Holland Rd, right on Lover’s Lake.

~~~

Steve wasn’t sure how they had gone from reassuring cuddling to passionate making out on the couch, but he was absolutely not complaining. Eddie had rolled them over so he was covering Steve’s body with his own, letting Steve burying his fingers in his hair, while Eddie’s hands wrapped around Steve’s stomach to slide under his shirt and up his back. Steve knew they couldn’t go much farther than this, they didn’t have the time, but he was enjoying the simple pleasure of being held by and kissing his boyfriend.

That simple joy was disturbed when Steve heard the crunching of gravel far too close for comfort and he pulled away.

“Eddie, I think someone’s here.” The heard the distinct sound of a car engine and more gravel moving under tires as they scrambled to their feet, Steve rushing over to the window and spotting a very familiar car. “It’s Jason, we have to go. Now!” Quickly, they both headed for the back door, opening it as quietly as they could while they listened to car doors slamming on the other side of the house. “You hid all of our stuff, right?”

“Yeah, not even a dog could sniff out that shit.”

“Good, get to the boathouse, we can use the boat to get away.” Eddie nodded and led the way to the small building on the water, slipping inside before Steve followed him. They got into the boat as gently as possible, trying not to disturb the water, and then both grabbed an oar. “Alright, let’s go.”

Steve stood and opened the doors to let the boat out and they began paddling slowly away from Rick’s house. They were maybe 30 feet away when a shout came from the shore.

“Hey, freak! You can’t run from me!” Eddie and Steve made eye contact before Eddie dropped the oar and started trying to start the boat’s engine. At the same time, Jason and Patrick jumped into the lake and began swimming toward them.

“Eddie, we need to keep going!” Steve was starting to freak out, Jason was known for being hot headed and his behavior wasn’t making Steve feel better about him. Fortunately, by speaking Steve had alerted the other two boys of his presence and it seemed to stun them enough to pause, giving Steve time to start paddling again.

“Steve? What the hell, man-“ Patrick spoke first, they had gotten to know each other through Lucas and he seemed genuinely confused by Steve being there. Jason, on the other hand, took Steve’s presence completely differently.

“What did you do to him, freak? Did you put him under some satanic curse? Is that what you did to Chrissy? Did you make him a faggot like you?”

“Hey, Jason, chill, man-“

“Shut it, Patrick! First it was Chrissy now Steve Harrington?! Munson clearly has a vendetta!” Jason had started swimming again while he yelled, quickly gaining on them (Steve and Eddie weren’t exactly paddling in sync). When Jason reached the boat and tried to grab the lip of the side, Steve smacked his hand away with an oar.

“Jason, look, I get you’re upset about Chrissy but Eddie didn’t kill her-“

“You’re lying! He’s put you under some sort of spell! Has he touched you, who knows what diseases he’s given you-“ Jason’s hate filled ranting is interrupted by Patrick’s sudden gasp for air as he went under the water. The three other boys stayed very still, waiting for him to resurface, but when he did and he started floated a couple feet over the water Jason swam backwards in panic and Eddie tried to run, causing the boat to rock and knock both Eddie and Steve into the water. When they resurfaced they saw Patrick’s limbs snapping and his eyes being sucked into his head before he fell back into the water.

“Eddie, we need to go! Go, go!” Steve started swimming away from the house, Eddie following not far behind. When they reached the opposite shore they dragged their waterlogged bodies out and onto the rocks, laying on their backs to catch their breaths.

“Steve, we need to keep moving, the cops are going to be here soon.” Eddie was already pushing to his feet and he held a hand out to help Steve up. “Shit, Stevie, your hearing aid was on.” Steve reached up and sure enough it was, wrapped around his left ear was a now useless piece of plastic.

“Damnit, guess the government will have to get me a new one when this is all over.” He tucked it into his pocket and grabbed Eddie’s hand. “Let’s go, Skull Rock should be a good enough hiding spot.” Eddie gripped his hand tight as they started to jog through the woods, a grin on his face.

“My, my, bringing me to Skull Rock? How presumptuous of you.” Steve smiled, he knew Eddie was making jokes to cover up how terrified he was but it was actually helping so he let him continue pretending for now.

“Or, maybe I just think you’re special.”

“Well I’ll have you know, I don’t put out on the first date.” That finally got a laugh out of Steve, the first laugh in what felt like years.

They ran for a while before slowing to a walk, assuming that they were far enough into the woods to be hidden. Finally, when they reached Skull Rock, they both collapsed onto the ground under it, Eddie panting for breath.

"I really need to work out more. You'd think with all the sex we have I would have better stamina, Jesus H Christ," Eddie huffed out, his head tilted backwards as he tried to catch his breath.

Steve just laughed, nudging Eddie's foot with his own. "Or, it could be all the cigarettes. Robin told me how bad they are for your lungs. She thinks the only reason I don't have that problem is because of my years as a swimmer, it increased my lung capacity so the smoking didn't affect me as much."

"Fuck, now you tell me this? Stevie, how could you keep this valuable information from me? I need to be able to jump around on stage, and how can I do that with shitty lungs."

"Guess you'll have to quit then." Steve shrugged as he started to shiver. "I'm really regretting that swim right now, it is way too cold. And we don't have a walkie anymore."

Eddie quickly crawled closer and cuddled up next to Steve. "C'mon, princess, we can share warmth." Steve just smiled in response and leaned into Eddie's body. "In the morning, we can try to find a walkie or some other way to contact everyone else. I think there's a construction site not too far away that might have some. But right now, we should try to sleep, I think we're going to need our energy."

~~~~

In the morning, Eddie snuck off to find them a walkie and they managed to contact the others. They hid out of sight while they waited, only jumping out when they knew it was actually them. Surprisingly, Robin was the one to show up first, shouting about how she was right and someone else was wrong - that someone else quickly being revealed as Dustin, who was staring at his compass like it had betrayed him personally. When Eddie and Steve jumped down Nancy tossed them both some food and water and filled them in on the situation. Eddie had been officially named as a suspect and Steve was named in connection as either an accomplice or a potential victim. They also told them how they had figured out where Vecna was - the Creel House. After Steve mentioned them watching Patrick get Vecna'd Nancy asked if they knew what time that was.

"Shit, I know exactly when it was. We fell in the water and my watch got fried," Eddie said as he took off his watch and tossed it to Nancy.

"9:15, right around when the lanterns went crazy in the Creel House. So, now we know that's what he was doing and where he goes to attack people." Nancy started muttering to herself, probably trying to come up with a plan.

Eddie nudged Steve with his shoulder then tilted his head to where Dustin was pacing and staring at his compass. "Is Henderson possessed?"

Steve looked over at him, squinting a little. "Possessed? No. Mental? Absolutely." Eddie grinned at him, nudging him again playfully before Dustin interrupted everything by yelling.

"Bada bada BOOM! I was right!" Steve and Eddie both frowned but Robin groaned.

"Is this about the stupid compass again? I told you, Steve showed me where this place was, you were going the wrong way."

"That's the thing, Skull Rock is north from Lover's Lake, but the compass wasn't pointing north."

"Isn't that what compasses do though? Point north?" Steve was still frowning, arms crossed over his chest.

"Usually, yes. Unless there is something with a stronger electromagnetic pull nearby to change where it points. Something like-"

"Like a gate, Dustin you genius," Lucas jumped in, interrupting Dustin's little speech. "This happened to us the first time too. We were trying to find the gate and it led us to the labs because the gates have stronger electromagnetic pull."

"So, if we follow the compass, it could lead us to a gate? We could stop Vecna then, if we have a way into the Upside Down." Nancy was nodding to herself as she spoke. "Well, lead the way, Dustin. We need to see if there is a gate after all."

Steve stopped paying close attention to things after that, following everyone else while walking with Eddie at the back of the group - that way they could hold hands. Eddie only let go of him when he seemed to realize where they were and he rushed forward to stop Dustin from walking right into Lover's Lake.

Nancy found them a boat and then Steve and Eddie were holding it steady as Robin and Nancy got on, followed by Eddie. Steve stood and stepped in front of Dustin as he was trying to get on the boat.

"Woah! No way, do you want the boat to sink? That thing holds three, max." Steve grabbed the compass and handed it to Nancy.

"This was my theory!"

"Yeah, and now you're going to stay here while the big kids go check it out." Dustin grumbled and turned away, giving Steve a chance to jump onto the boat as he pushed it into the water.

"Hey! You said three!" Steve just shrugged apologetically, laughing as Robin yelled back at them to be good. Eddie grabbed an oar and started pushing them into the lake, following Nancy's instructions on where to go before stopping them in the center. Glancing around and not seeing a gate, Steve realized that it was probably under the water so he started untying his shoes.

"Uh, Dingus, what are you doing?" Robin's voice was filled with anxiety, and as much as he wanted to comfort her, they didn't have the time.

"Unless any of you can beat swim team captain for two years, I'm our best bet for seeing if that gate is down there." Steve stood as he spoke, pulling his sweater over his head and tossing is to Eddie (who was unsurprisingly staring at him). Steve watched as Eddie transferred the sweater to his lap and then grabbed a plastic bag and a flashlight, wrapping up the flashlight and handing it over.

"Be careful down there."

"I will, be up in a bit." Steve nodded at them before jumping into the water and swimming down. As he got deeper and deeper, a red glow started emanating from the lakebed. Getting closer to it, Steve saw what looked like a cut in the earth with vines like an infection spreading out from it. There was a film over the gate and Steve couldn't help himself, he reached out to touch it only to jerk back when something moved on the other side, making him drop the flashlight. He quickly kicked away, pushing himself back up to the surface before breaking through the water with a gasping breath. He grabbed onto the side of the boat, hearing Robin squeak in surprise. "There is definitely a gate down there. More of a snack sized gate than a mama gate, but it's there." Nancy opened her mouth to respond but before she could say anything Steve felt something wrap around his ankle and yank, pulling him under the water before it lost its grip. He quickly resurfaced, but he was only able to gasp once more before he was pulled under again, water rushing up his nose and into his mouth as he was dragged deeper and deeper, until he felt his stomach flip and he was on dry land. He was dragged across rocks and dry dirt, his back burning as he went, until he slammed into a pile of vines wrapped around a boat and the vine around his ankle released him.

Steve pushed himself to his feet and spun around slowly to get his bearings. He had never actually seen the Upside Down, but this was undoubtedly it - with the red sky covered in clouds and lighting, everything covered in vines, it had to be. A screech echoed from behind him and when he spun around, Steve saw three flying things headed right toward him. He started running away, but he was already injured and they were much faster than him. Something thin and muscular wrapped around his neck tight and yanked him to the ground, squeezing tight as he tried to pry it away. His hands faltered when one of the bat-like things latched its razor sharp teeth onto his side, and then again when another did the same on the other side.

His feet kicked out uselessly as he squirmed, trying to push off the creatures eating at him, his hands still pulling at the tail around his neck that was trying to crush his windpipe. He could feel the skin on his neck being rubbed raw by the tail and Steve kept trying to pull it off, but his attempts were getting weaker. He was gasping for air, black spots dancing in his eyes when one of the bats was knocked away from his side, ripping away from his skin with a sickening squelch. Standing above him was Nancy holding an oar and he could hear Eddie and Robin yelling behind her as more bats tried to swarm them. Steve managed to just barely catch Eddie hitting one of the bats hard enough to snap the oar in his hands in half. Robin slammed an oar down on the bat at his head right after and Steve was able to work his fingers underneath it's tail, pulling it away from his neck enough to bite into its flesh, his mouth flooding with bitter black blood. He heard the bat screech and its tail unraveled fully but Steve didn't let go of it as he stood up, holding on tight and slamming it into the ground a few times before stomping down on its body and pulling hard on the tail, ripping it in half. Once the bat was dead, Steve dropped the tail and spit out the blood in his mouth, his legs starting to shake from the pain. Robin was right next to him in a second, helping him stay standing as Eddie threw down his oar piece and yelled.

"Jesus H Christ! What the fuck!" Before any of them could say any more, they heard more bats screeching in the distance and a dark cloud started heading there way.

"We need to run!" Steve wasn't sure who said it but he wasn't going to argue, forcing his feet to move and thankfully, Eddie ran up next to him and dragged Steve's arm over his shoulder to help keep him moving. They all kept running, dodging vines on the ground as they made their way to Skull Rock and then they all huddled underneath it to hide from the swarm of bats overhead. When the swarm had fully passed, Steve felt the adrenaline leave his body very quickly and his legs gave out under him. Eddie stood strong and kept him upright for long enough to move him over to lean against the wall of the rock.

"Shit, Stevie, we need to stop that bleeding. Can you see okay? How's your breathing? Did they get you anywhere else? How-" Robin stepped in and grabbed Eddie's arm, pulling him away from Steve and stopping his rambling so Nancy could step in and take a look at the bites on Steve's sides.

She ripped the bottom of her sweater off and held it up, waiting for Steve to nod and lift his arms before starting to wrap it around his torso. "I didn't know you and Eddie Munson knew each other."

Steve glanced over at Eddie, trying to hide his smile. "We met last summer. After the mall, I couldn't sleep, so I went to him for weed and... we just became friends."

Nancy swallowed thickly and seemed to think over her words very carefully. "I don't want... I don't want to pry, but it, well, it seems like he might want... more. Than friends, I mean." She was avoiding eye contact as she tightened the makeshift bandages.

"Nancy." That got her to at least look at his face. "I wanted to tell you this somewhere nicer but he's going to be losing his mind so you would have figured it out soon enough. Eddie and I are dating, we have been since August." Her mouth dropped open in surprise but Steve kept talking. "The kids found out this week, only because I knew exactly where Eddie was when they came to search for him on Saturday. He's... god, I really love him, Nancy. I had known that I liked boys for a couple years before we met, but he's the first one I wanted more with, and he's incredible. I think you two will get along. I, uh, I wanted to make sure I told you this so that I could tell you that I did have feelings for you, just because I like boys doesn't mean that I can't also like girls. I wanted you to know that I didn't fake anything with you, okay?" She smiled at him and grabbed his hand, giving it a squeeze.

"Thank you, Steve, for telling me, and trusting me with this. We... I wasn't right for you, I couldn't love you the way you deserved. I am so happy that you have found someone who does." He squeezed her hand right back and then pushed off the wall to stand up. Not even a second after he was standing, Eddie had rushed over and was helping him put on his vest.

"There is no way I'm letting you walk around her without a shirt on. It's bad enough that you don't have shoes." Steve let him force the denim over his shoulders and he smiled at him.

"Thank you, Eds."

"Hate to break up the lovebirds but we really need to find a way out of here." Robin, as always, was right.

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

Taglist

@estrellami-1 @elliegrey2803 @satinalia @messrs-weasley @y0urnewstepp4r3nt @eddie-munsons-lunchbox @live-the-fangirl-life @nburkhardt @inmoonywetrust @henderdads @grtwdsmwhr @madamonsieur-silvrene @abookisproofofmagic @knitsforthetrail @imzadidragonfly @blackholegladiator @maya-custodios-dionach @phantypurple @booksandsience @formacoon @gregre369 @beeing-stuupid @imsociallyanxiousgetoverit @vlada-elya @i-less-than-three-you @spectrum-spectre

[feralmoonlight]

THE BOYS BEING STUCK AS ECLIPSE MUST BE SO STRESSFUL FOR THEM. Do you know *why* they’re stuck, or is that too spoilery? If it is, then what would the Reader’s reaction be to this whole Thing if they don’t get a proper job description? Does it take them a bit to realize Eclipse is two animatronics, or are Sun and Moon immediately panicking about that? 🌻

I mean, if you were trapped in a single room and left alone(awake) for 12 hours at a time and every other adult human you encountered saw you as little more than a fancy washing machine to be dismantled and tampered with on a whim regardless of your own concerns since the moment you came into being, you might get a bit stressed too? Constant threats of decommission, random upgrades and swapping parts on the same scale as having an organ transplant while conscious, getting ordered to parts and service because the 'new tech' wants to poke around and familiarize themself with your inner workings. CASUALLY TAMPERING WITH THE BASE AI and fucking over your entire sense of self until you manage to work with this new normal that never feels normal? There's a lot. But mostly it's just it finally got to be too much. Eclipse wasn't programmed into them. It just... Happened. And it's not responding to it's usual protocols. Because Eclipse has no programmed protocols or rules. It can hurt people. It can move around freely. It can, will, and has injured the P&S guys that tried to drag him down for maintenance. He's probably been stuck like this for a few weeks while people try and figure out that if it's someone that's obviously trying to force them to get help, they reject it. Moving into Reader's reaction~ The gist of "Help the Daycare Attendants" is vague enough. They'd know Sun and Moon are a thing from just general advertising for the plex through osmosis, like those commercials you can't totally ignore so you know about it even if it's not something you look into a lot. The first reaction of them walking into the daycare, half lit, mostly empty, and in an absolute MESS (Half destroyed jungle gyms, craft supplies thrown everywhere, some of the floor padding thrown up and some unfortunate staff bots that got sacrificed for science) it would be startling. THEN you've got this looming, jittery, MASSIVE animatronic just perched at the top of the tower, mostly in shadow, that just rumbles out this dual tone, static heavy "Go AWAY." Nope nope nope, fuck that. Fuck ALL of that. Except the employee that showed you to the daycare locked you in. HA HA HA fuck. alternate option is trying to go up the slide to the ball pit. BUT... that means getting closer to the thing that wants you out. Full on panic. But you're not leaving. Granted you CANT, you're still there. And he's getting twitchier. Agitated. Banging on the door and yelling at the person on the other side to open up, at least maybe it can see you WANT to leave. And maybe he does. When you look back up, it's gone. This isn't comforting. It takes a few hours, till the end of your shift, before someone finally comes back to open the door and you could PUNCH them. You didn't see him again, so at least that's ok, but fuck. For some reason you come back the next day, and the next. If he's just gonna hide, you'll take the free pay for dealing with this creepy ass room. Eventually it would click that the Daycare Attendants are kind of both active, in varying levels. Different vibes from the short first interactions would lean more towards an anxious fidgety Sun or a dark, dangerous, spiteful Moon. It's a coin toss on who's more present at the moment. Some days it's nothing though. Some days he just perches and hisses static at you from the tower. ON THE FLIP SIDE for Sun and Moon, they're in a really weird state. Like the AI Have blended. They're only really aware they're two AI when the swing is REALLY HEAVY one way or the other. If one goes dormant and lets the other lead while they rest (usually after exhausting their reserves). The true blend of eclipse is dual speech overlaid with heavy static, conflicting words and phrases, showing off the torrent of mixed emotions inside. The more they can split and flipflop between one or the other, the better off they'll be. If they can fully split their minds, they can undo the Eclipse state. But as long as they're so fucking stressed and distrustful, and one is latching onto the other mentally, they're stuck.

[brokenbones-singsongs]

Things that bother me that I don’t bother speaking about

1. Nothing fits me anymore. None of my clothes. Certainly none of my dresses. Nothing. I’ve gained so much weight since December that the $200 dresses I bought for my brothers wedding etc. this year don’t fit and the wedding is next week. I feel disgusting. I don’t take pictures anymore. I rarely ever wear anything but sweatshirts and yoga pants and I can’t buy anything from my favorite store literally ever anymore.

2. Because of the above, it’s taking everything I have in me not to fall back into my 15 year old selfs habit of just ✨not eating✨ but still working out and running miles every other day just to feel like I was skinny enough for it to be acceptable. I think about it every day and quite honestly it’s very hard for me to eat more than one meal without hating myself. Groceries are too expensive to manage an actual diet and be healthy. I have no extra income. It’s hard and frustrating and unhealthy and I’m exhausted and I HATE myself.

3. I spend every single one of my days wondering how my best friend of six years could just leave and not tell me why.

4. I also spend every single day thinking about how I ruined another girls life both entirely on accident and on purpose because even after I found out the truth of things I still pursued. I’m literally the asshole I swore I would never ever be.

5. I wonder all the time if I’m going to wake up one day and be told by my husband that he hates the way I show love and always has and he doesn’t know why he married me (because it happened before) and I don’t think I’ll survive another heartbreak like that

6. I want to do something constructive with my time like a regular yoga class or a gym membership somewhere structured and take care of myself and whatever but I can’t because I am a mom and it’s expensive. I’m lowkey resentful of my fiancé for having jiu jitsu even if he gets paid to do part of it. He gets to fuck off for several hours every week and do what he loves and I just…don’t. Ever. I’m always at work or always a mom and even when I go out with friends etc. I’m still a mom. I have to take the baby everywhere and I’m tired and I just want to exist outside of being depended on literally every second of the day. There is no reprieve.

7. I don’t like one of our dogs.

8. I’m not even sure I want to have any pets ever again after the ones we do have are gone. They’re like kids and some days it takes everything in me to get out of bed and pay attention to them.

9. I quit my job partly for money but mostly because I have a debilitating fear of failure and the moment I started getting micromanaged over missing the expiration on some fruit despite spending an entire day going above and beyond to be as perfect as perfect can be…something shifted and I spent days wanting to throw up over the stress of fucking up again. I can’t do it. I’m also beyond sick of the “social media content” I’m supposed to create EVERY. FCKING. DAY. Work isn’t they interesting and put menu rarely changes. I can’t take 900 pictures of the same damn thing. 3-5 images a day is asinine and I hate myself so why would I post videos of myself doing anything? Look like a gd land 🐋

10. I want to tell a lot of people to stfu up and I literally don’t care when they tell me their problems. Like literally 99.9% of people. I’m so tired of negativity and always having to try to figure out how to respond without sounding disingenuous.

11. I didn’t think I was depressed but nothing is bringing me Joy or has in a long time. I’m simply existing and dealing in a neutral state and idk if that’s testament to the coping skills I learned year ago or if I’m just in a weird kind of autopilot. But the more time goes on the more I start to realize I might actually need professional help.

12. I’ve started stuttering and having a harder time getting words out in the last year or so and I wonder if something is amiss. They thought I had a stroke when I was pregnant that was really just a horrible migraine…but what if something is really off?

13. I think I fucked up by not getting my tachycardia meds refilled thinking it was only exacerbated by pregnancy and I’d be fine because I’ve almost passed out several times lately. The cause could also be I’ve gained my baby weight back. It’s stupid and I’m worried. I like that it still beats and I’m alive.

That’s all for now.

[thestarrynightslover]

How to Say I Love You

Pairing: Jay Halstead x Reader

Word count: 2,582

Warnings: Smut implied.

Summary:  One day, Jay takes it upon himself to be an extra-cute boyfriend. The reason? It takes (y/n) a while to find out.

Disclaimer: I don’t own any of the One Chicago shows, or its characters, also not associated with it in any way or know anyone involved with it.

A/N: Posting super late because the day was hard. So, just some more Jay fluff to brighten our days. Hope you like it!

(y/n) = (your name) (y/l/n) = (your last name) (y/n/n) = (your nickname)

| masterlist |

As soon as you woke up, you felt light kisses being pressed to all of your very exposed skin, and an inevitable smile came to your lips.

“Good morning, princess.” Jay whispered in your ear with a husky voice.

“Good morning for you too, baby.” You answered him while bringing his face closer to yours. On that movement, before you could kiss him, you caught a glance of your bedside clock. “Oh my God, Jay! Look at the time! I thought we’d agreed to get as much sleep as we could after last night!” You quickly reprehended him. “Or have you forgotten that both of us still have to go to work today?” You asked, trying to sound annoyed at him when the most you managed to do was breathe out was a moan, as he nibbed your earlobe.

“Oh, I know how much you like sleeping, babygirl. But I know that there are a few things you’d give up your sleep for.” He stated in a very sexy tone.

“And what exactly makes you think that you’re one of those things?” You teased your boyfriend, hoping he’d respond to it like you thought he would.

“Ah, just a little something,” he teased back while slowly putting his hand between your legs, not even bothering to lift the hem of the shirt you were wearing, “like this.”

“Oh, Jay…” And, just like that, you were completely fine with waking up early.

                                                          ---

Throughout the day, you just couldn’t keep the smile off your face, as your boyfriend took it upon himself to be the cutest person in the world. Why? You had no idea. All you knew was that he'd gotten the day off but, since you couldn't the same, he'd decided to go to work nonetheless.

His romantics for no apparent reason started with a bouquet of your favorite flowers and a note that read:

“Will you be my lunch date today? *blinking face*

P.S.: 12:00 - 13:00 is all I have. Sorry, doll :(

Meet me at our spot?

⎼ Your bae.”

He used bae. If he wasn’t so cute, and if you didn’t love him so much, you would have cringed at the choice, and he knew it. Ah, that man...

A few hours after that, you went to meet Jay for lunch at your spot ⎼ which was one of the benches along the Riverwalk, where you’d first met ⎼, absolutely decided on calling him out for being so mushy. But, as you walked closer towards him, you could see that your boyfriend was holding a picnic basket in one hand, and a bottle of champagne in the other, and, as corny as that was, you couldn’t help but grin. 

“Drinking on duty now, detective?” You asked, raising your eyebrow at him.

“Nope. This one’s without alcohol. And, trust me, you’ll like it.” He told you, a sweet smile on his lips.

“Hum, maybe... But I wouldn’t really mind if it was bad either.” You half-whispered at Jay.

“Oh no?” He asked you with a smirk this time.

“No. The company makes up for anything else.” You said while moving to kiss him.

“Geez, babe, you're such a dork!" He said, making fun of you after the kiss was over.

"Really? That's what you're going with?" You, the dork? Big joke.

"What else can I say if it's the truth?" Jay asked you through his lashes, an innocent expression in-face.

"Look who's talking!" You said while rolling your eyes.

Not long after that, he put an end to your little banter. Saying that he didn't wanna spend another second of the few moments the two of you had until the evening arguing was an understatement. You agreed, even though you knew that both of you secretly enjoyed the bickerings as well as you did everything else.

Later, on that same day, when you were about to leave work, you decided to call your boyfriend.

"Hey, babe." He answered, on the fourth ring, voice letting on some tiredness.

"Hey there, handsome! I'm already leaving work, think I’mma go swim a little. Unless… There's a chance you're getting off a little earlier yourself?" You tried your luck, thinking about making him relax a little before you two left for dinner.

"Uh… Sorry, babe, I don't think I'll be able to." A deep sigh. Something was wrong.

"Jay. Is everything okay?" Another sigh. Shit.

"It's nothing for you to worry about, baby. Just a pain-in-the-ass case we can't seem to solve. When all I wanted to do was be home with you." He confessed.

"Huh. Now, tell me, who's the dork?" You heard his muffled laugh over the phone.

"I am. You know it. I know it. Everyone who knows us knows it." At that, you were the one who giggled. "And, believe me, I bear the title with pride." More laughing, from both of you this time.

"Okay, then… So, um, is there anything I can do? Maybe we cancel that dinner reservation?"

"No! No, not at all! You just… Go do your swimming and don't worry about me, okay?" Jay sounded a bit weird this time, but you brushed it off, thinking that it was just the stress of the day.

"Okay…" You replied, still unconvinced. 

"Alright, I gotta go now. Love you."

"Okay, bye. Love you too. Be safe!"

"Always, baby." With that, he hung up quickly, which he never did ⎼ always dragging the conversations for as long as he could. But, once again, you decided to do what your boyfriend told you to and not worry about it.

It was already a bit into the evening and you were stretching your body to leave the swimming pool, when you saw him. Jay. So you got out and walked over to him.

"Fancy meeting you here, miss (y/l/n)." He greeted innocently.

"Well, this is a surprise. Yet another one. On the same day." You said, just to let him know that his weird behaviors weren't going by unnoticed.

"Ah, you know what they say… Gotta keep the relationship interesting!" Ha, ha. He was up to something. So you just gave him a suspicious look. To which he answered with a huge smile, saying: "What?"

"Nothing. Nothing besides the fact that you're up to something. What is it?"

"Oh. My. God." Jay said emphatically, faking offense. "I'm offended. You think that poorly of me?"

"What do you mean?" You asked him, a bit confused this time.

"You really think that I can't just try and brighten my princess's day?" He said, walking closer to you this time.

"Well, I guess that I wouldn't object to that, but what I'm saying is tha-" Before you could finish your sentence, he was pulling you towards him, pressing your bodies on a tight embrace and kissing you passionately. 

"Oh no, Jay, you should let me go! I'm all wet!" You squeal out as Jay keeps holding you up in the air against his firm abdomen.

"I don't mind." He told you with a shrug of shoulders. "I'm used to having you like this." He, then, whispers in your ear and you can feel his smirk, as he kisses your neck.

"Jay!" You hissed in fake disapproval. "We're in public! You can't be saying these things to me in public!"

"Sorry, baby. But you know that I just can't help myself around you." He tells you, deliberately taking his time. At that, you just throw back your head in laughter. "Besides, it doesn't seem to me like you're feeling all that bothered with my actions…"

"But I am!" You said assertively. But then you remembered your conversation from earlier and asked him, in a softer tone: "Hey, um, how did the case go? Are you still feeling up for the dinner thing?" As soon as the words left your mouth, you watched Jay shift his entire demeanor.

"Yeah! We're definitely still going! And, as I told you before, the case was just a pain in the ass, nothing more." He sounded nervous. Weird. Like he was hiding something.

"Jay…"

"Let's just go, okay? Cause we still need to get ready for dinner. I already put your stuff in the duffel bag. My car's right outside." Jay told you quickly, like he didn't wanna give you time to make any conclusions.

"Okay, then…"

                                                           ---

“C’mon, (y/n/n)! We’re running late!” You heard your boyfriend shouting for you to come out of your shared bedroom.

“Hey! Don’t you dare to rush me! Not when you’re the reason I’m running late in the first place!” You sharply answered, stepping out into the living room whilst putting your earring on. “Besides, that place we’re going is just too fancy. I need to look perfect.” You added more calmly, only now realizing how Jay was staring at you. “What? Is something wrong?”

“Wha- wrong? No! No!” He quickly assured you and closed the distance between the two of you. “You already look perfect. Every single day.”

“What? Jay, I’m serious!” You pouted, giving him an annoyed glare.

“I am too! You look gorgeous, baby.” He told you with that glorious smile of his. “And, really, there’s just no place on the planet that could make you look any less gorgeous.”

“Okay, now you’re just trying to get me to hurry up!” You accused, hitting him with considerable strength in the chest.

“Ouch! That hurt! And, yes, I am trying to hurry you up! Because we have a reservation!” He yelled at you in response. If it was any other time, you would’ve argued with him, of course. But even you had to admit he was right, you were on the clock.

“Okay, okay! I’m just gonna grab my purse and we’ll go!” You shouted back, already from the bedroom.

After that, the two of you managed to leave your apartment and get to the restaurant on time, due to Jay promising the cab driver a doubled pay if he went faster.

As soon as you arrived, though, you saw it was worth it. You still had no clue of what got in your boyfriend’s head to take you out on this kind of date for no apparent reason like that, especially after everything else he’d already done, but you obviously weren’t about to complain either.

 The maître walked both of you two to a table on the upper floor of the establishment, it had an amazing view of the city and it was a pretty reserved space. So, right after you'd placed your orders and been left alone, you half-squealed at Jay:

"Oh. My. God." Your smile was wide and your eyes were shining. "This place is incredible, babe!" He looked at you with devotion, clearly amused by your reaction.

"I know right? I'm really glad we got to come here." He stated, his whole behavior letting you know that he was just as impressed.

And, like that, the evening flew by and you caught yourself stifling yawn after yawn.

"Baby, you’re not too desperate to go home, are you? Because there's still one thing I wanna show you." Your boyfriend said, pulling you by your hand to get up. Then, he guided you to that part where you'd been able to view most Chicago, earlier in the night.

"Wow," you said, leaning against the balcony to see the details, "this really is great, babe." When you’d walked past this part you wondered about why they hadn't put any tables there, only a small couch, but now you knew. They didn't want to make that space ⎼ that landscape ⎼ prisoner of one couple, or one family, that would most likely stay there the entire night.

"It is." He agreed with you.

"You know, I hadn't brought it up yet, because I thought that you'd eventually tell me on your own, but you've been acting a little weird the whole day. This morning in bed, the flowers, then the picnic lunch, picking me up at swimming, and now this… You didn't sound too good on that call either, and I gotta admit that when you said we were going out for a fancy dinner, I didn't think it'd be here, where it's practically impossible to get a reservation. So, just… Talk to me, Jay."

"(y/n/n)... Would you even believe me if I told you that that's what I've been preparing to do the whole day?" He asked you with a shy smile.

"Will you be mad at me if I say no?" You asked, a bit apprehensively. He just laughed.

"Nah, not really." He told you jokingly. "But I have." He said, more serious this time. “Baby, you’re the best thing that ever happened to me.” He started telling you.

“Jay-” You whispered nervously, sort of anticipating what was about to happen.

“No, just- just please let me finish. I need you to understand how important you are to me, princess. Hell, I know that words aren’t really my strongest suit, but you deserve to know that you’re my light, my lifeline, my happiness… You’re my everything, (y/n/n). My entire world. And, because of you, now I think that it is actually okay to dream, to hope for a better future, for a future. That’s why I wanna ask you, tonight, to be my future, just like you already are my present.” At that moment you couldn’t keep the tears off of your face anymore, and you would’ve jumped him right then if he hadn’t gotten down on one knee. “Will you marry me, (y/n) (y/l/n)?” He asked you with a timid smile and teary eyes of his own. As you took in the man you loved, kneeled before you, holding an open box with the diamond ring you’d recognized as being his mother’s, you just stood there crying, not managing to say anything. “B- baby? Please say something.” Jay spoke again, letting out a nervous choked laugh. So you forced yourself to answer him.

“Oh m- my God, yes!!” You squealed out.

“Yes?!?” He repeated what you said, still on the ground.

“Of course, yes!!!” You confirmed, pulling him up to kiss you. While at it, your boyfriend, now fiancé, almost dropped the small velvet box he was holding.

“Okay,” he started, chuckling, after the two of you parted a little, “let me put this thing on your finger before you back down!”

“Ha, ha. As if I was going to! You’re only in a hurry because you’re scared you’ll drop your mom’s ring.” You bickered a little, letting him know that you recognized the jewelry, to which he responded with a bright smile, saying:

“It’s your ring now, princess. And, trust me, she’d love you almost as much as I do if she were still here.” He told you, shining eyes meeting yours, as he slipped the stunning piece in your finger.

“Jay.” You breathed out as the tears resurfaced in your eyes. “It is so beautiful…” You told him looking down at the ring you had in-hand. “And… You really mean that?”

“100%, princess. If I’m being honest, there are a lot of times when you actually remind me of her…” He said, tearing up a little.

“Awww, babe...” You said throwing your arms around him again.

And that’s how you two stayed. Just holding each other, under a very starry night in Chicago. More than ready to start walking down that new road together.

[superhero--imagines]

Part 1 Here! / Part 2 Here! / Part 3 Here! / Part 4 Here! / Part 5 Here! / Part 6 Here! / Part 7 Here! / Part 8 Here! / Part 9 Here! / Part 10 Here! / Part 11 Here! / Part 12 Here! / Part 13 Here! / Part 14 Here! / Part 15 Here! / Part 16 Here! / Part 17 Here! / Part 18 Here! / Part 19 Here!/ Part 20 Here! His POV Part 1! Here /  His POV Part 2 Here!  / Part 21 Here! < This is Part 22!>

Donate to Move to Higher Ground HERE!

Commission Info For Love Letters Here!

A/N: This has some NSFW themes, so if you’re under 18 don’t interact. 

Also the Tag list is closed, I think this is about how many people can add for this. An alternative is to follow and turn on post notifications. 

Um.. I guess this will be going on hiatus for a few weeks. I’m just busy at work, and I’m kind of out of ideas, also low engagement in the last few parts has made me feel a little discouraged.

That being said- if you order a letter with a twilight character, I’ll probably end up giving a hint for some things that will happen in the series. So if you are on the fence about getting a letter- or you just really can’t stand to wait, there’s always that option haha. 

 Anyway hope you like it ~

* “(Y/N).... what are you doing?”

* Muffled noise escapes you as you dig yourself deeper , drowning in his scent

* “(Y/N)”

* Your name leaves in a whisper and a smile curls onto his mouth

* “I mean how can you even see the television from that angle” he mumbles

* You sigh, your breath fanning across the lilac shirt he wore, you’re head firmly nestled in his back

* You’re in his room, lying beside him on his bed, essentially spooning him. The movie flickers on in front of you, you’re only half way through the first Harry Potter movie right now

* Honestly you’ve wanted to snuggle into Edward’s back for a while now, ever since you did it right before you both kissed for the first time

* It just feels so warm and safe here

* “I can hear it just fine” you mumble back. You feel the muscles in his back ripple as he shifts, your arm slinging over his chest.

* His hand covers your own. His hands so big it almost entirely envelops your own. And you can’t help but imagine what that hand would feel like in other places

* Tangled in your hair, trailing up and down your sides, under your shirt, dipping beneath the waist band of your shorts-

* Nope nope nope

* Gotta keep it PG 13

* He wants to go slow after all. Or at least you think he does. But well, you thought he might want to be with Bella

* And that was wrong

* Ugh, you want to pull out your own hair. how easy would it be if he could just read your mind and let you know-

* No it doesn’t work like that

* You sigh

* You have to put the work in if you want to make this work

* You have to communicate

* You stir besides him, wiggling you hand out of his and tapping the hard muscle of his abs

* Ugh, of course he’s chiseled like a statue

* Wait you’re a vampire, you tap your own stomach. It feels like a hard slab

* Well damn

* “Hm?”

* “We need to talk”

* “About what?” He asks absentmindedly, eyes never straying from the television.

* He must really like Harry Potter.

* “About sex.”

* He shoots right up. The remote falling to the ground with a clatter

* “Ah sorry, let me get that” he mumbles, climbing out of the bed to pick up the remote and put the movie on pause

* He clears his throat, sitting on the edge of the bed, a whole 5 feet away from you

* “So what did you want to talk about, again?”

* He seems so awkward, maybe you were right, maybe he does want to go slow

* But then what was with that “I’m not waiting for marriage” crap?”

* “I want to be physically intimate with you” you say bluntly

* Why did you say it like that? Like you’re some kind of scientist or something?

* *internal cringe*

* Not that he seems to care

* Edward’s grinning

* “Are you seducing me right now?”

* You’re not sure why but that smile annoys you

* You scoff

* “I’m trying to find out where you’re at, sexually speaking”

* He looks at the ground for several long seconds before finally meeting your eyes

* “So I um-“

* Okay you’re finally getting somewhere

* “I guess I have this kink where I like being called-“

* “No Edward not that!”

* You’re a little annoyed,

* But also a little turned on

* You’ll have to put a pin in that,

* oh boy, Edward with a kink.

* It’s probably something super vanilla like a praise kink

* or something cheesy like a daddy kink

* Like what are you, sixteen-

* Well, he technically is but-

* You’re getting off track

* “Do you-“

* how do you say this?

* “Do you want to have sex with me?”

* And it would sound like your propositioning him if you hadn’t emphasized the ‘want’

* You know he’s on the asexuality spectrum, maybe he just doesn’t feel like that for you

* You know he loves you a lot

* And wether or not he wants to have sex won’t change the way you feel about him,

* But knowing will help you manage your expectations

* “Why...why would you think that I don’t?”

* He looks almost hurt as he says it

* “We’ve been dating for two months and you haven’t made a move”

* Not after he said that thing about ‘Not waiting for Marriage’™

* You feel his hand cover your own, he’s still a heathy distance away from you

* But even just the touch of his hand on yours sends a shiver down your spine

* “How could you ever think I don’t-“ he cuts himself off

* His free hand moves to cradle your face, brushing hair away in that way he’s always done

* You sigh leaning into his touch

* “You’re so beautiful...so lovely.. of course I want to be closer to you in whatever way I can” his words leave breathlessly, and you can see he wants you just as bad as you want him

* “Then why-“

* “You live in my house,” he stresses. “You’re surrounded by my family, who haven’t been very subtle with how pleased they would be for you to join the family. We are literally never away from each other”

* “Do you want me to move back to Denali?” You joke and he laughs, amber eyes warm as he looks into yours.

* “I just don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable... or suffocated.” He squeezes your hand

* “I don’t want to make you feel like you have to do anything you don’t want to, for me.. or anyone else.”

* So he’s been trying to be considerate of you

* And of the living situation

* Isn’t that just so like him?

* You feel a small smile stretch across your lips, your hand threading into his hair

* “I don’t ever feel uncomfortable, not around you.”

* And it’s true, you trust him completely.

* You know he’ll never hurt you, never

* You foreheads are pressed together, and it’s only a small shift to catch his lips in your own

* Your hand escapes from his and trails to his face, your hands tipping his head back to get a better angle

* He feels so good like this

* He would feel so good underneath you, begging you to go just a little further

* “Now I’m propositioning you” you feel a small breathless chuckle escape him

* “There’s ... another reason I haven’t brought it up” he mumbles

* You hold your breath- he doesn’t have that bubbling desire does he?

* You were right, he-

* “If we did it in the house everyone would know”

* Huh?

* Noticing your confused expression he clarifies

* “Everyone would hear it happen, and everyone would know”

* Oh

* So all this times you’ve kissed-

* And that time in the car -

* Everyone knew?

* You groan covering your face in your hands, how will you ever be able to face Carlisle again?

* “Emmett would have bought us a cookie cake-“

* You raise an eyebrow and he falters

* “He would have bought me a cookie cake...it would say ‘bye bye virginity’ in pink icing” he whispers

* And you laugh

* “That’s so wasteful”

* No doubt Edward would be too embarrassed to let their humans friends eat it - which you don’t blame him for

* “Alright I’ll try to keep my dirty fantasies to a minimum” you laugh when he tugs you into his lap

* “Oh what kind of fantasies?” There’s that teasing boyish grin again

* “Please enlighten me”

* Well, it’s only right to tease him a little after all those hours you’ve spent mulling over what ‘I’m not waiting for marriage’ could mean

* “Well they all start off with a kiss, a good kiss, the kind that makes you feel like you’re just going to melt-“

* You rest your head against his shoulder, whispering into his ear

* “And then when it’s over, one of your hands is under my shirt,”

* you gently trace up his back and he shivers

* “and both of mine are under yours”

* “And then?” His voice is low, but he doesn’t dare to look at you

* You really shouldn’t tease him this much...

* but it’s so fun

* “We kiss again, my hands tracing over every inch of you, and when we stop I unbutton your shirt, trailing kisses down your neck”

* You trail a cold finger down the side of his neck

* He lets out a low sound, akin to a whine

* “And then I’ll suck here” your finger presses lightly into the hollow of his neck before repeating the process on his collarbone “and here”

* “You look so pretty with your neck marked up with hickeys, like poppy’s blooming in snow”

* You can tell he likes it by the shiver and whine

* So he likes that sensual shit huh

* You wonder what else he likes

* “And you look so pretty Edward, breathless, with that hungry needy look in your eyes just for me”

* Your hand trails down to his chest, and he trembles as your hand moves across his stomach. Resting on his lower abdomen

* His breath hitches, teeth digging into hi plush pink lip. He’s so needy, your finger trails in absentminded circles, and you swear he whimpers

* Aw so cute

* “And that’s about it” you say bluntly patting his stomach twice before moving to get off of him

* His eyes shoot open, a frown arching onto his mouth

* You hold back a laugh

* before you can fully get off of his lap he tugs you back to him

* “I see what you’re doing” he tried to pretend to be stern but you a smile twitching at the end of his lips

* “I don’t know what you mean. That’s just where the fantasy ends” you say as innocently as possible which only makes him grin

* “I’m sorry, I know I’ve been teasing you too much”

* “Hmm have you been?” You mock confusion and he laughs again, kissing the spot where your neck and shoulder meet

* “I’m sorry I got your hopes up”

* You scoff

* “My hopes weren’t up-“ Edward tilts your head towards him and you avert your eyes

* Okay they were a little high

* He pulls you into another kiss, soft and gentle

* “I promise I’ll make all your fantasies come true soon.”

* He already has, how many dreams that you never thought you would be able to have has he made come true?

* God, you adore this boy

* “But until then you’re going to have to leave”

* Scratch that

* “W-what?!”

* What did you do something to turn him off in the last .05 seconds?

* “It’s nothing personal-“

* You’re taking this very personally

* “I just need some time alone, and maybe a cold shower”

* Oh

* O H

* “R-right, well I’ll leave you to that” you mumble, clearing your throat as you move away from him, only briefly stopping on your way out

* “I’m going to take a few of these okay?” You say grabbing the other two Harry Potter movies

* You don’t wait for him to respond, leaving the room and heading to your own

* You run into Emmett who sends you a mischievous grin

* “Hey (Y/N), what were you-“

* “Nothing you would need to a buy a cookie cake for” you say, sliding into your room

* You look down at the DVD’s

* Why did you take these? You don’t even have a TV in your room

* Meanwhile Emmett’s still in the hallway

* “How did they know I was going to get him a cookie cake?”

* .

* ..

* ...

* You’re not sure where you are at first

* It’s foggy burst of green and brown

* And then you see him

* It’s Edward

* You breathe a sigh of relief moving towards him, as long as he’s here you’re okay

* “I’m sorry-“ you stop in your tracks

* there’s someone else there, clinging to his side

* “You were right- I do love her” He says and you’re confused

* The most faded and its Bella her wide brown eyes narrowed into a glare

* “Did you think you could just steal my future away from me?” She spats at you like her words are venom

* No- of course you never meant to take her place

* But you always hoped to- didn’t you?

* The intrusive voice causes a shiver to erupt down your spine

* You walk back, feet tangling into one another

* No that’s not right, Edward loves you- this isn’t right

* That’s when you bump into something hard- immovable

* You turn to see someone else entirely

* They’re wearing a black and red cloak

* Someone from the Volturi

* You gulp hard.

* So they’ve come for you have they

* The figure moves to remove the hood of their cloak, and you feel a gasp escape you.

* It’s you

* Only your face seems...sharper somehow, even more beautiful. But in an unnatural way, devoid of humanity

* Your eyes are as red as rubies

* You fall back, your foot getting caught in a tree root

* The Volturi-you sighs, crouching down so their impassive eyes can meet yours

* “You’ve really got to get over that whole timeline” their voice is different too, an air of disappointment ringing in every word. They sound bored

* You can’t manage to string together a single thought, let alone any words

* “Well don’t look so scared. I’m here to help you know” but their smile is cruel

* “Unless you can snap out of that lovesick dream of yours and finish what you started, this is the future that’s waiting for you”

* “That’s not true”

* Carlisle saved you, Eleazer took you in, Edward gave you a new future.

* You’re never going back to the Volturi

* But the you clad in the black and red robe’s smile only grows wider

* “It’s not true for now, but how many more years do you think you can handle until you get bored?”

* “Another 20? Let’s say 50 for good measure- then what?”

* You feel like a cold finger runs down your spine, your hair standing on end

* “I think you know exactly what” the cloaked you says, their eyes are serious now as they look at you

* “You need to finish what you started-“

* Finish what? What are they talking about? What did you start?

* Noticing your confusion they sigh

* “You need to stop focusing so much on what happened in the story, and start thinking about what happened after the story”

* After the story?

* Like after Edward and Bella had Their baby?

* “Now wake up”

* The words echo in your head until you fly upright, breathing hard as you take in the space around you

* For a second you’re not sure where you are

* This is your room, at the Cullen’s house in Forks

* You’re fine

* You’re safe

* You try to regulate your breathing, attempting to calm your mind with it

* It was just a nightmare. Not that you ever remember falling asleep to begin with

* “I didn’t think I could fall asleep anymore” you whisper

* You pretend to sleep, because it feels good. But you’ve never lost yourself like that before

* It felt so real

* “Finish what I started? And then after the story-“ You feel the hair on the back of your neck stand on end

* There was something- something you had tried a long, long time ago-

* Back when you still lived in Denali

* An idea you had come across once- after Edward told you how painful it was for him to turn

* But how would you even go about proving something like that?

* And what’s what might have happened after the book series got to do with any of this?

* You sigh, your head in your arms. It was just a dream wasn’t it? A nightmare from your insecurities?

* If you just whispered his name, Edward would be beside you, whispering sweet nothings into your ear, erasing all your worries

* “ Unless you can snap out of that lovesick dream of yours and finish what you started, this is the future that’s waiting for you”

* You gulp

* You don’t need Edward to coddle you through every little nightmare, you decide

* Turning in your bed, closing you eyes and hoping to dream a more pleasant dream this time But you don’t dream at all, tossing and turning until light filters in through the blinds

Tags:  @moonlights27 @thebluetint @the100thtwilight @awesomebooklover17 @oneofthepotterheads @smileygirl08 @imdoingathingmom @iconicgguk @yrawn @alyciaswhore @little-horror-show @wicked-watering-can @lazydreamers @ xxxmuxxx @ideas-for-you-to-adopt @poisoinedhope @maryleigh8796 @moose-squirrel-asstiel @hotmessgoodness @jaimewho @corabmarie @what-am-i-doing10 @alluring-venus @imdoingathingmom @anotheryooniverse @im-tired-not-sleepy @emmettcullenisahimbo @my-super-musical-life @smolvampiregirl @it-was-all-a-beautiful-dream @mihikaahujaaa @werewolflover3252 @teenagezombiekryptonite @shynz @reclusive-chicken-nugget @monkeyluver4546 @wonhomarshmallow @bwbatta @bubblyabs @thatwaspossesion @helzerat @parascape @ xxxmuxxx @katrodriguez99 @leilanixx

[pinkoptics]

AU-gust 2021 Prompts

4. Dancing

(Soooo it’s almost October… but that’s okay, right?)

Who wants some Dadneto feels? Who wants pining Erik?

If you do you’ve come to the right place!

Charles is nanny to Wanda and Peter, who’ve lost their mother, Magda. Erik is living a half life as an overworked single father, feeling the loss of his wife. Charles brings them back to life. This is the moment Erik realizes he’s desperately in love with Charles.

This exists in the Nanny Fic verse, but stands alone as a sort of prequel. You don’t have to have read Nanny Fic for this to work.

~2300 words

*

Erik knew the exact moment his heart had gone into free fall. One second in time when everything had crystallized, when notions and feelings that had been vague or easily ignored all shifted into place and could no longer be so easily denied.

Everything had been hard for so long, work especially, or completely, as work was virtually all he did. His entire existence boiled down to a desk, in an open space office, downtown. He got to work early, always early, trying to eek out the extra time needed to get caught up, even though he never quite succeeded in doing so. The day was spent in a haze of stress and tension, trying to meet unmeetable deadlines, and failing. He, and the rest of the team, would get scolded like school-children, belittled, until all the metal in the office vibrated imperceptibly. Imperceptibly because he needed this job— the stable pay, the incredible benefits, the mutant friendly culture. In the end, they all stayed late, too often, too late, to make up for the aforementioned deadlines. Overtime? Never. It was their fault, their incompetence, after all.

Lather, rinse, repeat.

It was no way for anyone to live, because it wasn’t a life. It was an existence, maybe, barely, but not a life.

Wander and Peter deserved so much more.

Every day he missed his kids. It was an ache like a stone in his shoe, but lodged instead in his heart, and he could see no way to remove it. Quitting, finding something else, it wasn’t an option, not in this economy. So the ache was always there. Always always always. When he finally did get home, he was tired. So fucking tired. He tried. He really did. He rallied as best he could for them but, at best, they got half of him because he was living a half life. Worn down, worn out, nothing left.

They had already lost one parent.

Magda.

Forever.

They barely had half of the other.

At least they had Charles.

Thank god for Charles.

His gratitude for the man and everything he did for him, for the twins, was staggering.

He shouldn’t have been able to afford a full day nanny/tutor after the education system had shut their doors on two young, volatile, mutants who couldn’t control their powers. Charles had swept in and hadn’t balked, like every applicant before him, at what Erik could pay. It was such a non-issue, Erik hadn’t looked a gift horse in the mouth, and had hired Charles on the spot.

Every day since, he had left them in Charles’ capable hands and, every day since, he had come home to bright smiles and happiness, to little people bursting with the need to tell him what adventures they’d gone on that day. There was joy, laughter and stability in the Lehnsherr household again. How could he be anything other than staggeringly grateful?

That’s all it was, gratitude, or so he told himself, until he couldn’t any longer.

When he ran his powers over his watch that lightning-strike evening, he was getting home around what should have been the tail end of dinner time. Charles stayed when needed, Charles cooked, even though contractually he was obligated to do neither. Erik paid him overtime, of course, but each day the clock ticked past 5:00 he half-panicked that when he finally made it through the door, Charles would throw his hands up and say ‘enough is enough,’ balking at yet another 12 hour day and justifiably disappearing from their lives forever.

Erik thought they would be seated at the table, finishing up— once again finding himself missing dinner, missing that precious time where he could talk to them, share a meal, share their day. If it had been a bit earlier, if he’d been on time, he usually found them finishing up their studies. Though he’d seen both many times already, he never failed to boggle at his kids sitting politely to dinner, or engrossed in whatever lesson Charles was offering that day. His kids — Peter especially — sitting. Engrossed. Learning. Sitting. They’d come farther, faster, under Charles’ care, than they had in an entire year at school. He was a miracle worker.

Today, however, he saw neither. They weren’t eating dinner, as expected, or even watching TV, as they did if he was particularly late. They were…

Dancing.

Well, Wanda and Charles were dancing, Peter was moving around the room erratically, random bursts of his incredible speed, that sort of resembled dancing, if you squinted. The control was itself incredible and something he never could have dreamed of before Charles. It was also incongruous because the music was— a waltz? Or, something like it. Erik wasn’t particularly versed in ballroom music.

Wanda and Charles, unlike Peter, were dancing in time to the music, in the proper way. Wanda was perched atop Charles’ feet in the manner small children sometimes did. She was smiling up at Charles with bright eyes, and Charles was smiling back with just as much warmth. The reddish glow that signified the use of her powers was escaping from her hands, though she didn’t seem to be using those powers in any way he could discern. She just seemed… happy.

“1, 2, 3, 4. Yes, just like that Wanda, you’re doing splendidly!”

Her smile got wider.

They turned about the cleared out living space and he came into Wanda’s line of sight. “Papa!” She leapt out of Charles’ grasp and surged toward him, tackling his long legs hard enough to knock him back a step. “I’m learning how to be a Princess, a real princess! Like they have where Charles is from!”

Peter stopped just short in front of him, after another burst of extreme speed, startling him back another step. Erik wasn’t sure he would ever get used to it. “I’m the court jester!” he announced, proudly.

Erik laughed, “Of course you are.” The warmth of their happiness began to chase away the weariness, the cold ache ever present in his chest, and replaced it with something else.

“We had a tea party!” Wanda went on and gestured to the kitchen table, where the remains of little tea sandwiches, cakes and biscuits were strewn about, along with a teapot Erik didn’t recall owning. “It was so fancy!”

Peter speeded to the table, knocking into it, and nearly upended the contents. He picked up a tea cup. “We held it like this! It was so silly.” He held out his pinky finger in that cliched way.

“Watch me dance!” Wanda all but plowed back into Charles, who winced as she stepped back onto his feet with just a bit too much force. He bore it in stride and picked back up where they had left off. “Do you see, Papa? Do you see? I’m dancing just like a princess.”

Erik reached out and stroked her hair as they passed. “Du bist eine Prinzessin, Bärchen.”

Peter began “dancing” erratically again. “I didn’t want to be a prince.” He crinkled his nose in distaste between bursts of speed. “Jesters are way cooler than stinky princes.”

Wanda did not respond but held her head higher, more haughtily.

Erik felt suddenly, wildly, close to tears.

As they made another pass, Wanda gasped and released Charles, lunging at Erik again. “Papa! You and Charles can be the King and Qu—” Her face screwed up in momentary confusion. “—King. We can have two Kings, right?”

“Of course. Whatever you want.”

With that settled, she went on. “Then, the kings should dance too!”

Erik’s eyes immediately flew up to Charles’, who looked just as taken aback by the sudden suggestion as he.

“Oh Bärchen, I don’t think—”

“Papa, the kings have to dance too!” It was a statement of inarguable fact. The sky is blue, the sun shines every day, the kings must dance. Peter stopped to nod his agreement.

Erik sidestepped. “The king could dance with his princess.”

That earned him 5-year-old exasperation. “Why don’t you want to dance with Charles? That’s silly. He can teach you. C’mon Papa!” She physically nudged him in Charles’ direction. Catching Charles’ gaze, he shrugged his shoulders helplessly. “It appears Princess Wanda has spoken.”

Charles’ face was alight with amusement. “Yes, it does appear that way.” He straightened his shoulders and extended his hand. “May I have this dance, sire?”

That hand was warm, when Erik placed his own on it, and soft. When those same hands settled on Erik’s upper back and waist, the heat seeped through the thinness of his dress shirt. He hadn’t been this close to anyone, hadn’t been touched, not since… All at once he wanted both more and less, to fall forward and pull back.

Charles was no less beautiful this close up— blue eyes still sparkling with amusement, a quirk to his very red mouth projecting the same emotion, a loch of his unwieldy hair falling playfully across his forehead, a sprinkle of barely there freckles across his nose. There should have been flaws. With their nearness, Erik should have been able to pick them out, but he couldn’t find a single one.

“Papa!” Wanda jolted him back to the room. “You’re not dancing!”

So they weren’t. Feeling very caught out, warmth rose to his cheeks. Blushing? Was he blushing? Erik didn’t blush.

“Have you waltzed before?”

“No.”

“Like this.”

Charles was gentle. He lead with authority, but

somehow managed to be gentle at the same time. It seemed to sum up everything he had learned about the man, watching him nurture his children back to life. After a few awkward steps and bumping knees, Charles’ lead was easy to follow and Erik found himself gliding across the floor in no time at all.

“You have a natural grace,” Charles murmured, as they turned about the room.

“Hardly. You’re an excellent teacher.”

“No.” The word was said with surprising firmness. “You’re very fluid, you feel the music. Musicality like that cannot be taught. Not easily. Certainly not this quickly.”

Something burned in Erik’s chest at the words, at the sincerity behind them. The feeling took a moment to recognize, but it was pride. When was the last time he’d felt proud about anything he’d done? The warmth spread, trickling outward from his chest, from where Charles’ hands were still pressing against him. Could he feel it too, through the small, open space between their bodies? He felt like he could.

Around them the kids danced too— Peter in his manic way, Wanda with an invisible partner.

He wanted to drop his forehead to Charles’, wanted to disappear in his warmth, his kindness, his care. Experiencing this small taste of it, he suddenly, desperately, wanted more— wanted to be the object of the same support, encouragement and comfort his children received. A nanny no longer, but a father to his children, a partner to him. All at once, he could see it so clearly, what it would be like if Charles didn’t leave at the end of each day. If he stayed, if they were…

Oh god.

To not be alone in this.

He couldn’t think the word.

To be whole.

He shouldn’t think the word.

To be a… family.

In that moment, he wanted it so badly he could scarcely breathe. He was gripping Charles too tightly now. He knew he was. But, he couldn’t stop. It said everything he couldn’t and absolutely shouldn’t— please don’t go, please stay, please be here with us.

We love you.

I love you.

The clarity of it was striking. You’re Charles. I’m Erik. I love you. Please stay. Now. Always.

Striking, real, clear, but terrifying.

He let go. Too fast.

“Are you all right?” The concern on Charles’ face deepened the ache that had taken hold with such fierceness in his chest.

He wasn’t. He hadn’t been. Not for a long time. But, for an awful moment, he thought that he could be. With Charles, he could be. “Fine,” he ground out, unused to losing his composure so completely. “I’m fine just… tired. It’s late, isn’t it? I’m sure you want to be getting home.”

Was that…? No. He was projecting. Surely, he had not seen a fleeting burst of disappointment in Charles’ features. The man was nodding. The children were protesting.

“You know I’ll be back tomorrow.” Charles chided as he bundled them into a group hug which Erik had to restrain himself from joining.

“Can we play princesses—”

“And jesters!”

“—again tomorrow?”

“Of course, your highness.” Charles stood and gave them both a bow. Wanda giggled and curtsied in return. Peter bounced. “Until tomorrow then.” His gaze flicked from the children to Erik. “Have a good night, King Erik.”

Erik swallowed. It was painful. “And you, King Charles.”

When he was gone, Erik was half nibbling, half tidying the remains of the tea party, trying to ignore the prickling behind his eyes, trying to dispel every last feeling Charles had provoked, trying to banish every last thought and box up every last ridiculous hope. Wanda sat at the table watching him. She did so with eerie quietness for awhile. So lost in his own thoughts, he startled when she finally broke the silence.

“I like Charles, Papa. Do you like Charles?”

The way she looked at him, boring into his soul and past his defences in a way entirely too reminiscent of her mother, he knew the answer was in someway important, someway meaningful.

“I— yes, Bärchen, I like Charles.”

She nodded and having apparently received the desired response, she hopped off her chair and went to pester her twin.

Somehow he knew the word they had both meant wasn’t like, but love. A word neither of them dared say aloud. The people you loved, especially when you loved them most… they didn’t always stay. They could be taken and it hurt in a way you could never fully heal from. Maybe if you held back, maybe if you didn’t give it all, maybe they wouldn’t go.

Erik gave up on his tidying and slumped into one of the kitchen chairs.

He couldn’t be with Charles.

Could he?

*

If this has perked your interest in the original fic here is the link to Nanny Fic:

https://archiveofourown.org/works/12898845/chapters/29467485

8 chapters. Unfinished. Not abandoned.

[ramp-it-up]

Dammit, Rafa!

Pairing: Rafael Casal x Reader

Word Count: 4.6 K

Warnings: Minors DNI, Very light BDSM, a lil bit of Dom! Rafa and a lot of Sub! Rafa, Rocky Horror Picture Show live Shadow Cast, Oral sex (m, f receiving), slight breeding kink if you blink. drug use (just say no), unprotected sex (wrap it before you tap it).

A/N: This is a combination of an ask from @theatrenerd86 and a lovely anon as seen below. I JUST really read your ask and I think I changed it a little bit. I was so excited for the concept. I hope this is okay. 🥴

Rafael Santiago Casal was stressed out.

You had just the thing.  

As soon as you were able to get him out of the bedroom and on the couch after his jetlag, you presented him with the opportunity to make good on the bet he lost at the last friends-who-are family get together. 

He’d talked enough shit that night about how many shots he could do and how many you could tolerate. You decided to shut him up with a friendly wager.

Just before he passed out at the kitchen bar, he’d grunted, “Holy shit, she’s gonna fuck me good.”

Rafa was not necessarily talking about sex, he was talking about how you would make him pay up.

And he was right. He’d have to pay.

Now, three months later, the time had come.

Rafael had worked hard shooting a film out of town for 6 weeks, serving as both actor and director, and he was still coming down from the stress and responsibility.  

It had been three days since he’d been home and he was still wound up, even after sleeping almost 18 hours straight and you letting him use you at his will for sex.

The sacrifices you made for your man.

Rafa’s current situation: you holding up gold lamé boxers in front of his face.

“FUCK No!”  He wasn’t having it. 

“Unless you are paying me my SAG rate or above, I’m not wearing that shit.” 

He crossed his arms, stubborn as hell. And making you wet as you stared at the veins popping out.  They did something to you, but you were determined.

“You lost the bet, Cash.  You gotta keep up your end.”

Rafael had The Rocky Horror Picture Show memorized, as many times you’d made him watch it on video, but surprisingly he’d never been to a Shadow Cast.

“You know, growing up in Berkeley, I thought you’d have been to a show before.”

He rolled his eyes at you. 

“I wasn’t THAT kind of Berkeley kid. I was too busy being slinging dope. I didn’t have time to play dress up and see a movie.”

“Hmmmm. Such the attitude.” 

Rafa rolled his eyes again. You nodded and took note. Then continued on your mission. 

You turned around and picked up a tweed blazer.

“Okay.  If you don’t want to go as Rocky, you can go as Brad and wear a t-shirt, this jacket, and your glasses.”

Rafa considered it for a minute, 

“That’s what I’m talking about! That’s shit I wear on the regular.  You trying to have me ass out here in these streets….”

He grumbled as he took the jacket and you made a face. Your plan was working perfectly.  Rafa as Brad would be hot as fuck.  But this attitude....

Rafa leaned back, his arms spread out on the back of the couch. Those damn grey sweatpants. He was doing all of this on purpose.

“What’re you wearing to the show ?” His eyebrow was cocked at you.

You could clearly see his dick print, and the way he pushed his crotch up at you made you think he knew that very well.

The fact that all of your holes were well used and slightly sore from his homecoming did not make you any less wet at this moment.

“Well… I have options too.” 

You looked at each other and grinned. It was time for a fashion show.

First, you came out in a yellow belted shirtwaist dress and white cardigan completed with some black Mary Jane heels and paraded in front of him on the couch. 

“Janet! ” 

You called back, “Brad!” as he watched you closely.

It seemed as if your nipples were pointing at him through the cotton material of the dress and he saw the jiggle of his dreams as you turned around.

“You wearing any underwear under that?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” 

You looked coyly at him over your shoulder as you went back into the bedroom.

Next was a little french maid outfit. Magenta.

“Hot damn!”  

Rafael’s eyes were round and his mouth was open.

 “I-I like it. I like it a lot.”

He was palming his new erection through his pants.

Your outfit was skimpy and not at all functional if you were actually going to clean the house.

You approached him and started feather dusting his shoulders, then his head.  

He ducked and tried to grab your hand to keep from messing up his hair and you twirled away, then came back and started dusting the boner in his lap. 

He just sat there, looked up at you with those sea-blue eyes of his which then swept down your body. You brought the feather duster up to his neck and tickled him there.

Rafa grabbed the duster with his left hand and as you tugged back, he pulled harder, which landed you across his lap.  

“Well, what do we have here?” 

He rubbed your ass for a second before pulling back and giving you a stinging, and stimulating slap.

You weren’t about to get caught up, so you managed to wriggle away and stand in front of him.

Rafa was confident that he had you wet and dripping for him, which was true, and that he was in control, which was false.  

He didn’t try to chase you, just put his hands on the back of the couch and pushed his crotch up at you again. 

You had something for him.

You sat down beside him and reached into the pocket of the apron on your maid’s costume and held the items up for his inspection.  He rolled his eyes.

“Look what I found when I was getting laundry out of your suitcase.”

Rafa shifted his confident posture on the couch.  His eyes were wide, but he did not say a word as he glanced at what was in your hand and then away.

“What did you expect while I was 1200 hundred miles away?”

You put the intimate polaroids of you, and a couple of him inside you, on the coffee table. 

“The agreement was that you (and I) would get off to each other, on facetime, or on the phone, or, a couple of times via text. Which we did, almost every night.”  

You sat beside him and looked him in the eye.

“You weren’t supposed to do it without me.”

Rafa tried to lean over and kiss you, but you dodged his lips. Rafa sighed.

“But I didn’t do it without you, Love. Those are pictures of you, of us. I can’t get enough of you baby. I only used them a couple of times a week.”

You were getting heated. A plan formulated in your mind.

“12 times, Rafa? I can’t believe you.” 

“Forgive me? You drive me crazy. I had to have you and those polaroids helped. A little.”

This time you allowed Rafa to kiss your neck, and you let him wrap his arm around you and draw you into his lap. You could feel his cock brush against you under his sweats.

He was sucking marks into the skin of your neck and cleavage, and when he hooked his fingers into the top of the costume and pulled it down, letting your breasts spill out, you allowed it.

He sucked your nipples into his mouth roughly and those eyes looked up at you as you squirmed on him, trying to get friction on his bulge. 

Rafa’s hands were firmly around your waist, long fingers rubbing your mid section, seductively soothing you.

But he wasn’t getting away with it.

You watched him watch you as he sucked, tongued, and bit your nipples, until you decided to not fall for his antics. 

You leaned over and kissed him, your tongue establishing dominance in his mouth while you pulled his hair, making his head lean back on the couch. 

You leaned over and whispered in his ear before biting his lobe. He shivered.

“I’ve let you have your way since you’ve been back.  But it’s time out for all that now.  You’ve done it now.”

Rafa’s whimper as you scraped your teeth down his throat was everything.

“You’re not allowed to touch yourself, or fun, until the Shadow Cast. You’ve got to make up for this.”

The show was a week away.

Fuck that, Rafa thought.

Rafael dared to talk back. 

“How would you know if I touched myself?”

You just raised your eyebrows and stared at him, watching his neck get red.

“You want to go another week after that without sex?”

You could tell that Rafa was debating which way to go.  But you could sense what he wanted. 

What he needed.

Most of the time, Rafael was in charge.  

He’d taken careful steps to ensure that he would never have to go back to slinging dope on the corner. He liked having control. 

Even when it came to business with Diggs, Rafa was always the more aggressive. It’s what got him this far to begin with. Not backing down. Being the director. 

But nothing could compare to you, especially when you took control.

Rafa pulled you to him and you allowed it as he wrapped his arms around you.

He sighed into your neck as he kissed it.

“I won’t touch myself. I swear.”

“Good boy. In just seven days, I can make you a man.”

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

For the next week, Rafa took quick, lukewarm showers, stopping himself from touching himself for relief. 

At night in bed, he stopped himself from palming his hard on at night when laying next to you. The fact that you still insisted on cuddling with him drove him mad, but not too mad to disobey. 

You gave yourself cold showers, because in the mornings, when you’d come together in sleep, you wanted to jump on his rock hardness so bad, but you convinced yourself it would be worth it.

It was a hard week. Then Friday came and anticipation was in the air.

During the entire day, Rafael was impatient, yet restrained. As he got ready for the show that night, he listened to you rattle off the rules of interactive Rocky Horror from inside the closet.

“Okay, Here are the Rules:

1. Whenever Brad comes on screen, you MUST yell, ‘Asshole!’”

Rafa interrupted you. “Wait, I’m dressed up like an asshole?”

“Well, yeah. You’ve seen Rocky before.  Brad’s an asshole, Rafa. A cute asshole, but an asshole none the less.” You continued with the rules.

“2. This is before slut shaming was considered a no-no, so, whenever Janet comes on the screen, you gotta yell Slut!”

Rafa shook his head as he put on his glasses, making sure he was nerdy fly while you informed him of the rest of the call-outs.

“And Rule #69:

You MUST do the Time Warp.”

“I don’t dance. When sober.”

You came out of the closet, corset tight, heels high, Afro big, makeup frightening, dressed as Dr. Frank N Furter.

Rafa only stopped and stared. “Goddamn.”

You spun around to give him a look see before you put on your leather jacket.

You showed him a flask full of Jameson’s.

“I think you’ll dance tonight.”

“But what about the horizontal mambo?”

Rafa was all hands as he tried to get you to move your hips. You batted them away. 

“Be a good boy. It will go better for you later.”

Rafa nodded and stepped back, his hands in his pockets. He wanted to touch you so badly.

As you moved to leave, you handed him a heavy bag full of all the necessary supplies. 

“What the hell is all this shit?”

You looked up, trying to remember:

“Let’s see: Bubbles, because you can’t bring rice, water guns, newspaper, noise makers, rubber gloves…”

Rafa’s eyes got big at that one.

…”Toilet paper, cards…” you rifled through the bag. 

“Shit!” 

You ran in the kitchen and grabbed some bread, shoving pieces in the toaster.  You winked at him as you waited for it to pop up. 

“Can’t forget the toast,” you grinned into amused cerulean eyes.

“I have clearly missed out on life during my formative years instead of hanging out with the nerds and Rocky.”

“You have, indeed.”

Rafa almost turned back as you headed to the car and said, “And you’re a virgin tonight, so act accordingly.”

He soon found out what that meant, when crowded in the theater with various wonderful Rocky Horror freaks and geeks, they called virgins up to the stage to be sacrificed.

Since you were whooping and pointing at him Rafa couldn’t hide, so he went up to meet his doom.  

You snacked on your popcorn as the emcee “humiliated” Rafa by making him sing “Sweet Transvestite” because he’d played it safe by dressing as Brad.

It turned out not to be so humiliating, because Rafa’s voice is dope and he knew the words; he really got into it.

You could tell that Rafa was having a ball when he came back to his seat. 

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

You and he called out, hid under your newspapers in the rain, slut shamed Janet and most importantly, did the time warp on stage in front of the screen.

It was a real scene.

You drank the rest of your whiskey and Rafa lit a blunt on the way home. 

You put your feet out of the window so that Rafa could have a good view of your legs.

He caressed his hand up and down them, the fishnet texture feeling good under his palms.

“What do you think about Frank and Brad.” The weed was making you philosophical.

Rafa side eyed you as he drove.

“What? You mean me and you?”

“You know what I’m talking about.”

He chuckled, looking damn sexy driving with one arm.

“I think the whole film is avant-garde. Especially for 1975, it’s about queerness, conformity, and dictatorship. And of course free will.”

Rafa looked over and winked.

You took another toke and nodded. 

“I love that Brad was a bottom in that shadow scene with Frank. So fucking hot.”

You traced your fingers across your cleavage. Rafa had to concentrate to keep his eyes on the road.

“Of course, I’m also thinking about how Rocky was bound up when we first see him.

A little BDSM, don’t you think?” 

You watched Rafael’s profile as he drove. 

“And Frank was the one who did it to him. He seemed to worship the darling doc. Until, you know.”

Rafa squirmed and cleared his throat.

“He sure did.”

You smirked as you French inhaled.

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

You get back home, tipsy and a little high, but still in command of what you wanted to do. 

You went straight to the bedroom as Rafa got two bottles of water to bring with.

As soon as he entered the bedroom, you began.

“Strip,” you commanded.

“I beg your pardon?” 

Rafa smirked at you as he put the bottles down on the dresser.

He was trying it.

“I’m in charge now,” you raised your chin. “Got it?”

His eyes changed and he nodded eagerly, smirk turning into a placating smile. 

He was probably more eager than he wanted to show, which made you swell with pride.

“So.” You waved your hand at him. “Strip.” 

You did the same, stepping out of the heels and rolling down your fishnet stockings.

Rafa took off his jacket, and reached up to take off the glasses.

“Leave those on.” 

Smiling again, he left the glasses on as he carefully took off his shirt, then unbuttoned his pants as his hard on was getting bigger. 

He stood before you in his boxer briefs as you unsnapped the corset and threw it across the room.

You just raised your eyebrows and crossed your arms, foot starting to tap, and he quickly moved to take his boxers off. 

His cock was stiff against his stomach now, making your mouth water. 

“Get on the bed, face up.”

Rafael did as he was told, and trembled as you ran your hand up his leg brushing his cock, up his abs, to his chest, face and hair.

He reached for you and you moved away.

“What we’re not gonna do, is any of that unauthorized touching. It’s no way to behave on your first day out. But since you are such an exceptional beauty, I’m prepared to forgive you.”

You went over to your bedside table and brought out the red nylon rope and watched as Rafa shuddered.

“Assume the position.”

He obediently put his hands up toward the headboard, and didn’t move as you swung your leg over his torso and secured him to a couple of the posts.  

He kept his eyes down, staring at your crotch the entire time as you used the knots he taught you to make.

“Such a good boy for me. See, there’s no crime in giving yourself over to pleasure.”

“Yes Ma’am. No Ma’am.” 

You became wet as Rafa smiled up at you. You rewarded him with a kiss and a small cuddle. Then you got down to business.

You scooted backwards down his body and stared at his erection.

“What should I do to you? Want me to suck your cock?  Would you like that?”

"Yes ma’am please.” You loved to hear him beg.  

“C-can you do it reverse cowgirl style? So that I can see your ass?” 

Rafa looked desperate, but even though the thought of what he’d suggested made your pussy clench. You knew what he was trying to do.

“Are you trying to get me to sit on your face, Rafael?”

He nodded vigorously, hair flopping across his forehead.

“I want to give you pleasure ma’am.  Want to breathe you, feel you drip on my lips and drink you. Want you to ride my face until you cum.”

He was using his soft voice, but it was oh so sexy. Fuck, he was using his words to make your clit swell and pulse. 

And he knew it too. You saw the glint in his eyes.

“You’re trying to take control back, aren’t you, Rafael?”

He blinked, and his eyes blanked again. He gulped, and this time, he shook his head.

“No ma’am.”  He insisted, “Only if you let me.”

You stared at him a while as you took his cock in your hands and started pumping, rubbing the palm of your hand across his fat mushroom tip.

You loved how he was struggling to keep his eyes open and the grunts that were coming from his throat.

“I guess you have been reasonably good so far. But you still have to follow orders.” 

You shifted around and straddled his chest, reaching back to finally take his glasses off. All he could do was stare at you.

“I’m all yours, ma’am. Your ass is perfect. Served up for me like this.” 

The yearning in his voice was unmistakable. 

“Such a good, good boy” 

Your thumb flicked over the tip of his dick.

“Promise I’ll always be a good boy.” 

You used your hands on him again, your strokes fast and firm enough that he was nearly on the edge but not quite there. You felt powerful.

Slowly, you shuffled back, moving your ass toward his face. And your face towards his cock.

Kitten licks on his tip had him squirming on the bed, his hands now gripping the ropes which tied him fast to the headboard.

“Ma’am, please. Please….please.”

He begged and moaned against your cunt, moving his head and dramatically sweeping his tongue up your slit, making you drip and spasm. 

“Rafael! Your mouth....So, so good...” You groaned. 

Your praise only caused his cock to become harder. Seeing that, you pushed yourself down more firmly on his face.  

Rafa moaned into your pussy causing you to almost tip over.

“So, so good Rafa.”

You raised yourself up, bracing on his thighs, yours tightening around his face.  You were determined to finish the job.

“Tell me what you want and maybe I’ll give it to you.” Your voice was deceptively sweet.

He sucked at your clit for a little while longer before he pulled his face away long enough to respond. He watched your pussy quiver as he spoke.

”I want to cum. Please ma’am, I need to cum.” 

“Hmmmmm. No.” 

Your lips were a hairs’ breadth away from his tip. He groaned, and dove back into your pussy.

“And if you even think of cumming before I say so, you’ll be severely punished.”

You could feel him sucking your clit more intensely, trying to get you to a point where you’d slip up. 

But instead, you deep throated him until you reached his base and rested there for a moment. All the practice of taking his entire length was paying off in this moment.

You slowly started to bob on his dick and his attention to your core faltered as his head fell back to the bed.

“Shit…That feels so good. So fuckin’ good… Ma’am.”

Although you loved to hear his voice broken in ecstasy, the hand that was caressing his balls as you sucked him off tugged gently to remind him of his job.

Immediately his lips wrapped around your clit again.

When you felt his balls tighten, you pulled your mouth off of him, moving to kneel next to him on the bed.

“Huh...oh! Ma’am, please!” 

“I thought you were mine to do with as I please?”

Your hands danced down your body, briefly cupping your tits and rolling your nipples. 

Your lover looked as if he would die from want of touching you.

‘I am. I am. I just…’

“I just want to know, where do you want to cum? Cum in my mouth or in my wet pussy?”

You sat back on your knees and parted your thighs, so he can get another look at you.

“Definitely your pussy.”

You leaned over and smiled at him.

“We’ll see.”

You swung your leg over him and positioned yourself above the head of his stiff cock. 

You swiped him up and down the length of your slit, and then slowly sunk down, taking it millimeters  at a time. 

Rafael groaned, knowing that he wanted to push himself up into you, and you felt him bend his knees to plant his feet to do just that.

“Dont. Move.”  

Your voice was firm as you raked your fingernails down his torso, making sure to scrape his nipples as you went.

Rafa opened his eyes to see, and his mouth to gasp, and you rewarded him by sinking all the way down on him. 

“Fuck ma’am. You feel so good, so tight, so fuckin’ wet.”  You scraped his nipples again.

You smiled at his agony, keeping your eyes on him as he watched your body move. 

You went faster, rocking your hips which caused your breasts to jiggle as you slid up and down his pole.

He groaned again, but nodded, eyes squeezing closed to shut out some stimulation.  

But that was a no go.

“Open your eyes, Cash. Be good.”

Rafael just simply couldn’t think. 

“But you feel so amazing...Ma’am. And you look too… fucking goooooddd. Shit.” 

He could barely get it out, which only served to make you wetter. His eyes rolled back in his head, and he dropped it to the bed as you rose up on his length and then drove yourself back down on him.

“Open your eyes!”  

He did, his eyes a dark blue now, and trained on you as you repeatedly slammed down on him, fucking him mercilessly.

"So fucking perfect. I wish I could just touch you…” He said breathlessly between grunts.

“It’s not your wish. It’s my command.”  

You tried to look menacing and Rafael’s face convinced you that it worked. His eyes widened and he closed his mouth as your hips moved relentlessly.

He knew what you needed as well. His words.

“Thank you Ma’am. For letting me inside your tight, wet… ohhhh… I love you so fucking much.”

He was so sweet when he was needy. 

“Love you, love this pussy…”

“Ohhh, Rafa. I love you too. It’s yours anytime you want. If you’re a good boy…”

“I am. I will be. I promise.” He looked into your eyes and you knew it was true.

“Is this dick mine? No one else’s? “

Rafael’s moaned deeply, licking his lips to taste you again.

“All… yours….It’s your’s,” he breathed.

“Good boy Fuck, Rafa!…”

Your Bay Boy was a mess, moaning and bucking his hips up inside you. You let him, knowing how desperate and needy he was.  He was so beautiful. 

You rocked your hips back and forth, bringing yourself oh so close to the edge. 

Rafa’s hips pistoned up into you ferociously hitting the spot that made you moan loudly.

“Fuck, your cock feels so good,” you leaned down to whisper. “You wanna come? You wanna come inside me?”

You felt him shudder, you mustered all the strength you had to stop moving.  

He pulled at the restraints, wanting to grab you and hold you fast, but he couldn't.

“So close, Ma’am. More...please. I need to cum.”

You shushed him, putting your finger on his pink lips and smiling down at him. 

“I know, baby.”

And you started moving again. With purpose.

“Eyes on me.”

Rafa didn’t know where to focus, your face, your breasts, where you two were connected, the look on your face, the sensations. 

There was no coherent thought in his head except what you were doing to him.

You felt him pulse within you and decided it was time as your clit shuddered with your impending orgasm.

“Cum for me Baby, cum inside me. Paint my walls.” 

Rafa’s head snapped up and he growled.

“What did you say???”

“I said, come inside me. Fill me full of your cum. I want it all.”

“Holy fuck!” 

Rafa’s eyes screwed closed and he pumped everything into you like you asked. 

The feel of him swelling and releasing inside you triggered your own orgasm, but you still had a job to do. 

You untied him while he was still spasming within you. You held him close as he came back to earth, lightly rubbing and kissing his marked wrists.

You kissed him and murmured, “Are you ok? As he smiled at you and kissed you back.

You handed him a bottle of water as he readjusted.

Rafa took a drink, turned to you and murmured, “You’re amazing you know that? Just what I needed.” And he kissed you again, hand in your hair, massaging your scalp.

Happiness bloomed in your chest.

You lay in his arms and snuggled his neck while he moved his hands down your body. Then he pulled your hair to make you look at him.

“What do you need?” 

Rafa’s eyes searched your face, because he always made sure he took care of you, no matter who had been dominant.

“Nothing. Just need you.”

“You got me, love.” 

He smiled and  kissed your forehead, and then moved to get out of bed.

“No. I have a better idea.” You smiled up at him mischievously.

“First one in the shower calls the shots.”

You got up from the bed, ready to sprint to the bathroom, only to be overtaken by Rafael, who picked you up and backed into the shower, so that he was the first one to enter.

You cast your eyes down as he turned on the water, waiting for his command.

***********

Tagging:  @theatrenerd86 @sebastianabucknettastan @imatyoursurrvicesurr @riiyy @ivycomet @lonelydance @jbrizzywrites @sillyteecup @ohsoverykeri  @theselilwonders @mysearchforgratification @curtainremote @biafbunny @summerofsnowflakes @honeysucklechocolatedrippin @delaber @wreakhavoconmacroissantdiggs @einfachniemand @braidedchallah

[thebakingqueen5]

KW 2021: Role Swap

Day 4 for Kataang Week 2021 hosted by @kataang-week with the prompt Role Swap!

This is taken more in a figurative sense- rather than Katara being the Avatar and Aang her teacher, I wanted to shift their relationship dynamics and just add some pregnancy fluff of course, so enjoy!

Links: FF.net | AO3

Summary: Another year, another summer, another week of prompts celebrating our favorite couple. Kataang Week 2021 Day 4: Role Swap. Expansion upon the Yin/Yang oneshot from KVB 2021. During Katara’s first pregnancy, an interesting change in dynamics occurs.

Word Count: 2.6K

Aang let out a groan as a beam of sunlight shone through the glass window directly onto his face, promptly waking the airbender up. He rubbed his groggy eyes, yawning as his senses awakened, and rolled over onto his side, arms expecting to find his wife’s form peacefully resting next to him.

“That’s weird,” he frowned. Aang patted the empty space again, reaching farther across the bed this time. Nothing.

Aang was naturally quite an early riser, far more so than Katara, and it had become routine for them to cuddle for an hour or two in the mornings before properly getting ready for the day. So where was she?

With a short blast of air from his hands, Aang propelled himself upright so that he was standing on the hard, cold, stone floor of the Air Temple. He closed his eyes in concentration, blocking out all other sounds and sights to focus on the vibrations under his feet.

Aang muttered to himself, eyebrows knitted, “She’s not on this floor… not in the temple at all actually, so where- the spring? What’s she doing there so early?”

Wanting to know what his dear wife was up to, the airbender quickly grabbed some blankets from the cupboard (early mornings on the island tended to be quite chilly) as well as some moon peaches from the kitchen and made his way through the temple corridors until he was standing outside, his natural element instantly surrounding him with a refreshing cool breeze.

“Ah,” Aang sighed, taking a deep breath. He basked in the sun’s rays for a few moments, eyes closed as the sounds of birds chirping and the distant crashing of waves onto the shore filled his ears and relaxed his senses.

Then, remembering why he came out in the first place, the airbender began trekking uphill to the west side of the island, resuming his search for Katara.

In their early days of exploring, the waterbender had discovered a secluded stream hidden in the forest that cascaded into the sea if you followed it far enough. It also had a few natural hot springs along it, and it had quickly become one of Katara’s favorite spots not only to bend and spar, but to also just unwind and relax.

“Kataraaaaa,” Aang called out, pushing away the vines that covered the entrance to her little nook. “Where’d you go, sweetie?” He could hear the burbling of the water as it flowed over the rocks under its surface as well as the soft croaks of the frogs who called it home. He had to be getting close.

“Over here, Aang!”

The airbender’s head perked up in the direction of her voice and he grinned widely when he saw her, pleasantly surprised.

Katara’s eyes were still closed, her features serene from her seat on top of a round, flat boulder overlooking a wider part of the stream. She had obviously been meditating, but that wasn’t quite what shocked Aang the most.

Instead of her traditional fur-lined Water Tribe garb, she was wearing Air Nomad robes in warmer shades of yellow, orange, and dark red like the fall leaves. Her swollen belly poked out from under the loose layers of fabric, and she had never looked so beautiful to Aang (except maybe on their wedding day).

“Hey, Tara,” the airbender murmured, walking up to her. He gave her a hug from behind and pressed a kiss to her temple, one of his hands interlocking with hers around the middle of her stomach while the other rested on top of her bump.

He raised an eyebrow at her. “Quite early to be all the way out here, no?”

Katara slowly fluttered her eyelids open, the corners of her mouth turning up as she leaned back against him. “Well, your child wouldn’t stop kicking me and woke me up, so I figured we’d try and relax for some time.”

Aang pouted. “Why is she always my child when she’s bothering her amazing and beautiful mom?”

“Because he gets it from his dad,” she deadpanned in response.

“Meanie.” Aang gave her a look and stuck his tongue out at her, causing them both to dissolve into laughter.

“Meditating isn’t usually your thing, nor are those,” he pointed out as he gestured to her clothing, an eyebrow quirked. “What brought this on?”

Katara blushed, looking away with a shy smile. “Well, I thought I’d take a page out of your book. Meditating always works for you, so I just figured why not try it? And these I’ve actually been sewing together for the last week or so. I found a pattern in one of the crates we brought over from the Southern Air Temple, and they’re a lot looser and comfier than my normal clothes. I, um, I hope that’s okay?”

“More than okay. The fact that you even cared enough to use the pattern, not to mention how you took my breath away- it’s concerning as an airbender, you know,” Aang grinned as Katara giggled at the last bit.

Suddenly, a frigid gust swept by them, cooling the already chilly morning air and causing the waterbender to shiver as she scooted closer to Aang, seeking his natural body heat.

“Spirits, it’s cold,” she muttered, rubbing her hands up and down the sides of her torso. “I’ve been out of the South Pole too long.”

Aang quickly trotted over to the entrance of the little den where he had set down the blankets and fruits he brought. “I have just the thing.”

He quickly grabbed two of them, one made of polar leopard skins from the Southern Water Tribe and another he had managed to sew using Appa’s shedded fur last spring, and snugly wrapped them around Katara, handing her a moon peach as well as her body warmed back up.

“You really didn’t have to, Aang,” she mumbled, biting into her moon peach and humming contentedly when she tasted its sweetness.

Fruit still in hand, she gave him a slightly awkward side embrace, enveloping him in the blankets with her while he returned the hug and kissed the top of her head, as well as her growing belly.

“Of course I did,” he said looking down at her. “You always work yourself to the bone doing stuff for everyone else, Katara. It’s high time you let someone do the same for you. Especially when you’re carrying such precious cargo.”

Katara rolled her eyes, the pink tint in her cheeks and upturned corners of her mouth giving her true thoughts away.

“Quite the role swap today, eh?” she teased. “Me in airbender robes and meditating while you start to mother everyone?”

“Not everyone,” Aang chuckled. “Just you. You take care of our baby, so I take care of you. Simple as that.”

“And I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Katara sighed. “Can we stay here for a bit?” she asked, leaning into the airbender a little more. “This is nice.”

“It would be my pleasure,” the airbender responded.

The couple did, in fact, end up spending the entire morning at the secluded creek simply relaxing, meditating, and enjoying each other’s company. It wasn’t until Katara’s stomach growled that Aang insisted they head back (“You’re eating for two now, sweetie, c’mon- I’ll even make you some mini fruit pies.”) and have a proper breakfast.

Time quickly flew, and the sun made its way across the cloud-streaked sky as the minutes turned to hours and the afternoon was spent taking a stroll across the island grounds. The training arena and meditation pavilion had been coming along quite nicely, and soon some Acolytes would be able to move in from the other temples, Aang remarked at some point.

Alas, eventually duties called, and by dinner time, the airbender was holed up in his office, back hunched over a stack of documents illuminated by a small candle on his desk.

Though he certainly didn't regret the day's adventures, they had put him back significantly. The council had been assigning more paperwork lately with even tighter deadlines in preparation for the unveiling of new city infrastructure, like the ferry to the island, and it was driving Aang crazy. He barely got any time away from his Avatar duties as it was, and this just added to the pressure.

Ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring!

Aang snapped out of his thoughts, startled by the chimes of the bell tower on the mainland and quickly counted how many he heard.

“12?! ” he thought to himself. “ How is it already midnight? I’m barely halfway through! ”

The airbender groaned, dropping his head onto the desk with a loud thump. All he wanted was to be next to his wife in their bed right now, and he couldn't even have that!

As if telepathically summoned by that last thought, Aang suddenly felt her soft hands on his shoulders, massaging them as they both sighed softly.

"You need a break," she whispered as she alleviated some of the stress held in his back. "You're so tense."

"Believe me, I know," the airbender muttered. "I wish I could just leave this all and take a break from work already."

"Well, why don't you?"

Aang turned his head to look at her as if she had just grown a third arm. "I'm the Avatar. I can't. This needs to be done."

She rolled her eyes, gaze still focused on kneading the knots in his shoulder blades. "Please, the world managed to go an entire century without the Avatar. I'm sure the council members can stand to wait a day without some lousy paperwork."

"But-"

"No buts," Katara harrumphed. "You're the Avatar! You're the one fighting for workers to have shorter work weeks and less hours so that they can be home with their families! Why not apply the same to yourself?"

Aang frowned. She did have a point. Technically speaking, he could easily skive off the paperwork and the council wouldn't be able to do anything. After all, he was the Avatar. Avatar Kuruk certainly had no problem with it (though that was a frequent point of contention between him and the other Avatars).

"People are relying on me to get this done, Tara. I can't disappoint them."

Abruptly stopping her movements on his back, Katara grabbed the documents and held them out of reach of the airbender.

"I'm going to tell you exactly what's going to happen now,” she huffed. “You are going to forget about these documents tonight. Tomorrow, if and when the council asks, you are going to tell them that everyone is taking the next week off because of how overworked they are. But for right now, you are coming with me for some nice, relaxing midnight waterbending. No sparring, just an orb of water back and forth.”

Aang opened his mouth to argue but faltered, seeing the determined look on Katara’s face. Instead, he just shook his head and chuckled.

“My wife, the epitome of responsibility and good work ethic, is not only encouraging, but actively telling me to blow off work and waterbend with her? Who are you and what have you done with Katara?”

The waterbender blushed, but the fire in her eyes did not die down one bit. “Maybe it’s this baby, maybe it’s the full moon, but you were the one who showed me how to have fun when I needed it, Aang. Now it’s my turn to return the favor.”

Aang sighed and set down his pen as he stood up.

“Lead the way.”

Katara eagerly took his outstretched arm and pulled him in the direction of the cove. On the southern tip of the island, surrounded by rocky cliffs on either side, there was a small lagoon, heated by the same source as that of the hot springs along the stream they had visited earlier. As a result, the water was comfortably warm all year round, and was incredibly effective for relaxing the mind, body, and soul.

The two arrived in mere minutes and the heat immediately had its desired effect. Tension evaporated away like water on hot coals as the two entered the steam and began to strip into their waterbending clothes, Katara in her bindings, slightly modified to accommodate her growing bump, and Aang in his undergarments.

The full moon reflected brightly off the surface of the water, creating an almost halo-like effect around the two benders as they entered the shallow end and began passing around a ball of water.

They easily settled into a consistent rhythm, moving back and forth in time with the ocean tide pushing and pulling around their feet. It was almost hypnotic in a way, and the monotonous motion calmed Aang’s erratic thoughts.

His head now far clearer, the airbender flicked his wrist, splashing a bit of water in Katara’s face.

“Did you just-” she asked in shock

He gave her a cheesy grin. “Maybe.”

“Oh, it is on.”

Instead of passing the ball of water back to Aang, Katara held it over his head, smiling devilishly.

“You wouldn’t,” Aang gasped.

“Wouldn’t I?” she smirked.

Without another word, Katara released her hold, and the sphere splashed down onto Aang, leaving the airbender soaked and spluttering.

“Two can play at that game.”

Aang swept his hands from side to side in a large motion that caused the water around Katara to rise higher and higher, soaking her from the hips down.

The waterbender began to form her counter to it, a large wave building behind Aang out of his line of sight, without realizing that the water around her had suddenly receded as he had the same idea.

The two simultaneously released their grips, and their waves swept over both of them, submerging them for all of a few seconds before the water settled and they came up for air. They were left sitting on their butts, completely soaked with their knees and torso mostly submerged, and burst into laughter.

“So much for some peaceful waterbending,” Katara chuckled.

“It may not have been peaceful, but it was exactly what I needed,” the airbender smiled. “Thank you, sweetie.”

“Of course,” she yawned, making Aang yawn as well.

“Looks like it’s time for bed,” he murmured, eyes bleary.

“It’s a warm night,” Katara said as she stood up. “Maybe we could sleep out here?”

Aang quickly strode through the water onto shore, Katara right behind him, and turned towards her, kissing her forehead.

“Cuddling and sleeping under the stars with my beautiful wife? Sounds absolutely perfect. Let me just get some pillows from the temple.”

“Oh, no, Aang, you’re already tired and worked so much today, you don’t have to do that-”

“Ah,” he interrupted. “My job to take care of you. Besides, the jog will help me sleep faster,” he winked, running off towards the spire.

Within a few minutes, he had gone and returned, pillows and blankets in tow, and the two quickly set up a little sleeping area on the beach so that they could finally settle down for the night.

“Ah,” Aang sighed as the two lay down on their sides and began to close their eyes. “The council might be mad, but you know what? Screw it, I’d take waterbending with you over boring paperwork any day."

“Well, I should hope so. I’d like to think I’m more exciting than paperwork,” she smiled, giving him a soft nudge. “You know, it’s not every day we get a whole day like this and it means a lot. You mean a lot. I love you, Aang. I hope you know that.”

“I do,” he smiled and leaned down to press a kiss to her stomach. “I love you too, Katara. You and our precious baby. Sweet dreams, love.”

“Sweet dreams.”

[mooniefics]

just one night

pairing : reiner braun / reader

word count : 2.9k

tags : fluff, angst, heartache, acknowledgement of reiner’s suffering </3

summary : being a field nurse had it's ups and downs, but everything about taking care of reiner braun was the best and worst thing about your job.

— originally posted 12 / 16 / 20 on ao3 —

"oh, you're finally awake." you set the tray of medical supplies in your hands down on the small desk beside the bed, shutting the privacy curtain before you returned to his side, "i was worried about you, you know?"

though most of his body had regenerated over the seven hours he'd been unconscious, he was still missing a majority of his right hand up to the wrist, the steaming, incomplete appendage he was now examining with a tired look on his face.

"what time did they bring me in?" his voice was husky with sleep, eyes low as they flitted over to look at you.

"around eighteen hundred hours yesterday," you said, placing the back of your hand on his forehead to check his temperature, "i administered some pain meds a few hours ago, but let me know if you need any more."

being a field nurse for the marleyan army wasn't the easiest job in the world, mostly consisting of lots of running around in the trenches with your heavy kit and avoiding as much gunfire and blood splatter as you possibly could while still helping the wounded. you had volunteered to work soon after the conflict with the mid-east allied forces had begun, seeing as it was either that or see your father be drafted out into the eldian unit to become cannon fodder like so many of the soldiers you'd seen barely able to crawl their way back over the sandbags just to bleed out and die before you could even begin to assess their injuries. you stopped keeping count of how many people you couldn't save after your first few days of active combat, becoming more focused on not going insane from how little you slept due to the rumbling of the ground from enemy artillery that shook the walls of the underground quarters and reading the letters your family sent from back home to maintain a shred of morale for the future.

though, the job did have some perks. it was always honorable for eldian families to have someone enlisted, and it also meant you could support your parents with your minuscule paycheck from the government. and, of course, meeting reiner braun was the biggest plus of them all, though you probably wouldn't admit it if anybody asked. you were a hard worker, and evidently had enough natural skill to quickly be promoted to the position that you were at now, assigned as one of the few nurses who monitored the wellness of the warriors and their prospective candidates.

"my regeneration has been slowing down lately, i should have more of my hand back by now." reiner murmured, more to himself than you.

"of course it has, you haven't been eating as well as you should be. i don't know much about titan biology, but i do know that a soldier like you, a warrior no less, shouldn't live off of sandwiches and beer, you've been losing too much weight."

he chuckled, a quick smile flitting across his face before he returned to his previous sulk. "you sound like my mother, chiding me about how i need to take care of myself. isn't there other patients that need your attention?"

"you wish. me and another nurse have already taken care of this entire hall, and you, mr. celebrity, get a room all to yourself." you grabbed a pen and his chart, scribbling down a few notes about his current status while you spoke, "plus, i'm supposed to be checking up on you every hour until you're all put back together, magath's orders."

he paused, thinking to himself before speaking. "so does that mean galliard is ok?" you nodded.

"and pieck?" you nodded again.

"and zeke?" you sighed, but reaffirmed once more.

"you've been checking up on me all night by the looks of it. aren't you tired?"

"gosh reiner, would it kill you to focus on yourself for a minute?" you rolled your eyes at his confusion, pulling up the chair at the desk to his bedside and seating yourself down, "this is my job, i'm used to doing my job. in fact, this is one of the easiest nights i've had in weeks. i don't know about you, but it shocks me that the guy they blew to pieces yesterday afternoon is asking me if i'm the one that needs to get some rest."

his brow furrowed, mouth drawing into a small frown. "sorry. i know that the war has been hard for all of us. i just don't want to make it any harder for you than it's already been."

you couldn't help but smile at his genuine concern, planting your elbows on your thighs and resting your chin in your hands. "you don't have to worry about bothering me, reiner." you replied softly, playfully adding, "you know you're my favorite patient anyways" just to see his cheeks flush red.

"is that so?" he murmured in reply, now smiling with you as he met your gaze.

"maybe." you teased, leaving him hanging for a few moments before you continued, "galliard's always awkward when i'm in the room, jaeger never has much, if anything, to say, and pieck, she's nice to be around, but she always looks so tired i feel a bit bad when i chat for too long with her. so, if it's anyone i'm stuck on the night shift with, i'm glad it's you."

you laughed softly at his expression, feeling a bit sheepish under his gaze. he'd changed quite a bit over the two years you'd known him, the shadows under his eyes deepening with a clear exhaustion, cheekbones becoming more pronounced and face growing gaunter as the stress of the war withered away at his physical and mental wellbeing. before you personally met, you'd always seen reiner as the physical embodiment of marley's armor, with his sturdy, unyielding frame, towering over nearly everyone he met from his stature, and the iron will that never seemed to falter no matter how many times he returned broken to the barrack's infirmary.

but now, you could see how everything had been taking a toll on him, how he was growing thinner and weaker each time he returned from a successful military assignment. you had come to learn that despite his regenerative properties, he felt every bit of pain that came with the injuries he sustained, experiencing the absolute agony of having his limbs shredded and bones shattered by cannon fire in his titan form and still having to push forward on the battlefield. you had an immense respect for him and his unyielding nature, but you always worried. even though you knew he would always manage to get himself back together again, you always worried for him. you remembered how you felt as you peeked over the sandbags, watching with a mixture of awe and dread as reiner threw himself in front of jaeger at the last moment to shield him from the unexpected volley of naval artillery, the way your heart thundered so loudly in your ears at the sight of his titan crumpling.

the relief you felt upon being ordered to his hospital room and finding him still alive was indescribable, and the relief you felt now being able to talk to him, to stare into his tired eyes and take in his handsome features you'd become so familiar with, flushed softly from your playfully exchanged words— you didn't want to see him go again.

"l-let me go get you a blanket," you said, snapping yourself out of your unnecessary thoughts, "i packed it away since i didn't want the steam to overheat you, but now that its just your hand and ankle i think it'll be ok to let you have it back now."

you quickly got up from your seat and slipped past the privacy curtain, opening up the supply cupboard with sheets and extra clipboards and things of the sort to pull out the blanket you'd originally taken off of him and put away.

you had to control yourself, to stop letting yourself be distracted by these thoughts and concerns about him. you knew as well as anyone else in marley that he didn't have long left to live. you hated that everyone referred to it as his 'term', as if after two years passed he could return home to live a peaceful life away from the war and bloodshed, to enjoy the luxuries of a normal existence that had been snatched away from him from the very start of his life. he only had two years left before he had to be eaten by one of those children, children that had similarly had their innocence and adolescence stolen from them by the marleyan government. you had told yourself over and over to not let yourself get so close to him, to not trick yourself into believing that maybe something could work between the two of you after marley's greed for natural resources had been sated and all the nations were finally at peace.

but you knew better than anyone that these feelings had been growing out of control, and each day you spent tending to him, watching him out on the battlefield, finding more and more about who he truly was besides a soldier only fed the fire you'd been fighting between fueling and snuffing out for months now. taking in a deep breath, you forced a smile onto your face, not wanting to concern him with an upset expression and risk dumping all your pathetic emotions out under his scrutiny.

"here we are." you hummed, flapping out the blanket a few times before you stretched it over his lap.

for a moment your face was close to his, close enough to see the small brown spots freckling his golden irises and realize just how intently he was gazing at you. you quickly retreated back to your seat at his bedside, still feeling his stare lingering on you, stopping yourself from asking him what was interesting enough to make him look at you for so long.

for another moment, there was silence, and you debated on making up some excuse to leave the room, but you knew you would have to come back in an hour, and he most likely wouldn't be asleep by then, but he spoke before you could think up any other escape plans.

"you know, i was happy to wake up and see you." you felt your heart skip, blinking at him, trying to make sure you weren't hearing things.

"really?" you mustered, feeling your cheeks grow warm at the sight of his smile.

"yes, really." he affirmed, the brightness on his face dampening a bit as he continued, "most of the time when i sleep, i get a lot of... memories, from my time in paradis, and they're not the most pleasant things to see while i'm asleep. and i was having another one of those dreams just now before i woke up, so it was nice to not be alone, you know? it's always reassuring to see you."

you felt a light flutter in your chest, nodding in response, torn between feeling sympathy for his nightmares or happiness from honest words. no, you had to stop being selfish. you had to stop letting yourself play along in this fantastical idea of a happy future.

"y-yeah, i understand," you replied, fixing your gaze down in your lap as you tried to avoid his intention, "i could put in a request for sleeping aids, if restlessness is becoming an issue."

"you know that's not what i'm trying to say." his hand reached out to rest over yours, giving it a gentle squeeze, imploring you to stop ignoring the obvious.

"reiner." you said firmly, lips pressing into a firm line, "we can't. i can't."

you could feeling that light, airy joy twisting down into something irksome, settling like lead deep in your stomach as he replied. "what's stopping you?"

"everything!" you snapped, stopping yourself to take a deep breath and regain control of your volume before you began again, "everything.. this war, this never-ending conflict, and.. y-your term, your life-"

"you think i don't know that?" he said softly, too softly, somber gaze flitting between the hand in his grasp and your face. he seemed so small just now, seated up against wall behind the hospital bed that was too little for him, barely covered by the thin, old blanket that was fraying at the seams, not at all like the stoic, unwavering warrior he made himself out to be in the public eye. "don't you think i'm tired of pretending? tired of having people toss the topic of my death back and forth like they're discussing vacation plans? i love marley, and i love what i can do for the people who look up to me, for the people who rely on me to be the hero. you never ask me about paradis, you never ask me about how i feel about all of this, you never expect me to be the hero, and you're still always here to listen, always here when i need you to be. but i just want to feel like i don't have to worry about all that, even if it's just for one night... i know it sounds counterintuitive, but i want to pretend like things will be alright.. for you, for me, for everyone. can't we just have this one night?"

your hand trembled, fingers lacing easily with his like you'd risked doing a few times before, tears pricking your eyes, feeling like there was something cinching around your heart and lungs and squeezing tight. the heat of his hand in yours was pleasant, calloused palm fitting perfectly against the contour of your own, thumb stroking softly over the side of your own hand.

you swallowed your apprehension, steadying your breath and blinking away the mistiness threatening to spill down onto your face as you moved from the chair to take a seat on the side of his bed. "ok. one night."

the relief that bloomed across his expression warmed your heart, the stress that had been creasing his face softening back into the relaxed, sleepy looking smile that you always poked fun at when you brought him his breakfast in the morning.

"you have to be up at seven, so lay down right, i don't want you to complain to me about your back hurting tomorrow." he complied, shifting back down in the bed to rest his head back on the pillow, allowing you to let go of his hand momentarily to tuck the blanket around him. "do you want me to go get you something to help you sleep?"

"no." he murmured, gazing up at you, "just stay here with me, please. i'll sleep just fine as long as you're here."

there was something so childlike about his words, not in the way of immaturity or naivety, but something that just made you want to take care of him, to protect him from the corruption of the world outside of the obsolete confinements of his hospital room.

"i will." you said, letting your other hand find the side of his face, "i promise."

and so you stayed, you stayed as long as he needed you to, alternating between stroking his cheek and slowly running your fingers through his hair. there were no words exchanged, but the silence was comforting, the quietest night you'd both had in weeks, only occupied by the intermittent footsteps of the other nurses making their rounds around the hall and the soft evening breeze blowing through the half-open window above the desk. you didn't care for how long you had to sit there, replying back to the small movements of his hands with your own reassuring squeeze as he slowly but surely fell back asleep. but even after his breathing had steadied out, and his grasp on your hand had loosened, you still stayed seated at his bedside, just gazing down at his sleeping face as your thought to yourself.

the war against the mid-east allied forces had come to a rocky close, most likely guaranteeing marley at least a few months of tension-filled peace before another nation made their strike on their borders once again. but you knew that marley wouldn't wait for that, you knew that they wouldn't stop until they had the world in their hands, paradis included. you'd heard the private murmurs of jaeger before you entered his room, seen the open pages of his journal when he fell asleep at his desk, you knew what he had been planning. and you knew that reiner would have to go running back to the island once again, and even if jaeger's grand scheme didn't drag him there by his collar, he would probably go searching out his own resolution him.

you checked your watch. 2:10. it was your turn to check the patients in critical condition down the hall. you sighed quietly, pulling your hand away from his and leaning down to gently press a kiss on his forehead, something you risked doing a few times before when you had these especially long conversations that made your heart ache for him.

but at least, you thought to yourself as you flicked off the lights, reluctantly leaving the room and shutting the door behind you as quietly as you possibly could, at least you could give him just one night of repose.

[kosmosguk]

sasaeng yan. jungkook x reader; drabble

warnings: yandere themes, mentions of violence, obsession, sasaeng behavior, stalking

a/n: coming to the end of the school year always hits diff, so hopefully that means I can post more frequently. thanks for being patient with my infrequent posting AND for the 1.5k followers we’ve hit. I never thought this acc would grow to that point so I’m in TEARS at how much ily <3 

Jungkook couldn’t stop looking at you from his spot near the front of the fansign line. In the midst of all these wannabe artists, you were a diamond in the rough. Sweet, kind, and gentle; Jungkook was more certain than anything else in his life that you were better than the rest. And you were here, real and in the flesh, and looking even more beautiful than you did on screen. 

He barely glanced at your other band members as he passed them through on his way to you, fighting a wave of nausea as they touched his album and signed on the back what he saw as crude, sloppy signatures. He could practically taste the bitterness of the hours of time he would waste later trying to wipe the ink of their pens off his album. He was reserving the front of the album for your signature only, for your touch only. 

It felt like forever before he reached you, but the time spent on his way to you was worth it. You were worth it. Everything he had done to prepare for this fateful encounter had been worth it. 

‘‘Hi! What’s your name?” you cutely smiled at him, looking breathtakingly gorgeous in the soft pastel colors of your group’s new concept. Jungkook could feel the heat on his cheeks, reddening his skin as he forced himself to meet your pretty eyes.

‘‘Jung...,” he stammered out before clearing his throat, nervously pushing the album onto the table before you,” Jungkook. Sorry, I’m just so nervous at how pretty you are in person.”

You paused for a second, flustered at the compliment the seemingly shy fan in front of you just spoke before shaking your head and grinning widely. Despite all the time that you had spent as an idol, compliments from your fans always managed to throw you off and fluster you, especially since they were more rare due to you being one of the less popular members of your group. ‘’That’s so sweet of you. Thank you for being a fan of my group, Jungkook-ah!’’

You called his name. You said his name in such a familiar way. You knew who he was. Jungkook’s heart nearly stopped in his chest as he watched you take out a thin pink marker and uncap the marker. 

‘‘Where should I sign?” you poised the pen over the album, looking at him expectantly for an answer.

Jungkook’s index finger shook and trembled as he eagerly lowered it to the very center of the album’s front cover. ‘’Here.’’

Your smile seemed to grow even bigger, like flowers blooming on a warm spring day, as you swirled your marker over the cover, leaving pretty curved letters that formed your name in the marker’s wake. When you lifted the marker off the album cover, your name had been permanently etched into the cover. Jungkook let out a shaky exhale at the sight, his ears tinging red in anticipation as he placed a small gift box in front of you. 

‘‘Oh? Is this a gift for me, Jungkook-ah?” You asked him, reaching out and opening the gift in smooth, gentle movements after he had nodded quickly in response, unable to respond properly. Positioned in pristine white tissue paper was a single cellphone charm of a bunny holding a pretty pink gem in the shape of a carrot. 

‘‘This is super cute; thank you so much for your generosity!” you pulled out your cellphone and clasped the cellphone charm onto your case, showing it off to him proudly. Jungkook was practically vibrating in happiness. You had accepted his gift, after all; didn’t this mean that you acknowledged and accepted him?

You poised your hand out for him to take, a common sign that it was him to move onward from his spot in front of you to the next member. Jungkook didn’t want to go. He wanted to stay in front of your forever, inhaling your subtle sweet scent and looking into your starry eyes. But if he stayed then he would be forced to move forward by security, and he couldn’t risk looking anything less than a man in front of his beloved. 

He reached out and clasped your hand with his, breathing in shakily as the warmth of your hand spread a drunk-like buzz from his clammy fingertips to his brain. 

He took the chance to blurt out what had been on his mind, knowing that you, his idol and his love, would never cruelly reject him. 

‘‘I love you, (y/n)!” he choked out, his voice raspy. He could feel his heart thrumming his chest frantically as he waited for your response. You blinked at him in surprise before your eyes curved up in upside down crescent-moon shapes and the tips of your lips curled up happily.

‘‘I love you, too, Jungkook-ah! Please continue supporting my group and me in the future!”

Jungkook’s heart ached in his chest as he forced himself to move away from you and onto the next member. He was dizzy now with elation to the point where he could collapse. You said you loved him back, just like he knew you would. You two were fated to be together, and cruelty would be keeping the both of you separated.

---

You sagged into the seat of the van, aimlessly playing with the cellphone charm one of your fans had given you at the fan meeting several weeks ago. You lightly mused to yourself as you sat in the empty van, having come out from an individual music video shooting that took an exhausting 6 hours for your 12-second part. The director had been super picky with your group’s new comeback, retaking one after the other.

The charm really was pretty, wasn’t it? It must’ve costed a lot of money too, judging by how the gem looked pretty authentic and real. You were broken out of your thoughts when the driver door slid shut, your manager coming in to take you back to the dorm room building. You barely glanced at the driver’s seat before turning on your phone to check on your SNS account. 

 You let out a long drained sigh when your phone beeped slightly before the screen turned completely black, your battery completely drained by the long shoot. The phone charmed sparkled underneath the flickering lights of streetlights as the van passed them.

‘‘Manager-nim,” you called out,” Do you have some water?”

A plastic water bottle was passed to you, and you reached out for it, too tired to care about your manager’s aloof behavior as you twisted off the cap and practically chugged the entire bottle until your thirst finally wavered. You wiped the droplets of water that had trickled onto your chin with the back of your hand and fell back onto the seat with a yawn. There was some strange taste lingering on the back of your throat, but you wrote it off as the faintly plastic-y taste that usually came with bottled water.

Your eyelids were getting droopy now, and you wondered how long you had been in the van. Usually, the filming place wasn’t this far of a drive from your dorm. 

‘‘Do you like the charm?” your manager spoke, in a softly sweet voice. You tried to blink your eyes open as you heard the voice. Your manager didn’t have that voice; his was usually more rougher and gravelly. You could barely fend off the wave of exhaustion as you tried to focus on your manager. Your manager’s build looked more different than usual, as he looked taller and more built. 

‘‘I’m sorry,” you slurred, trying to force your vocal cords to work,” What do you mean by that?”

‘‘It was pretty hard to get that charm, you know? It has a little chip on it that tracks your location, so I always know where you are. It stresses me out when I don’t know where you are, baby, so I’m really glad you were comfortable in accepting my gift. Don’t worry, your manager is safe too; I know you’re too kind and think about the well-being of others. I just gave him a light hit on the back of his head, nothing that severe if he’s strong enough.”

‘‘Hmm?” you could barely form words now. You were too exhausted to properly think. You met your driver’s eyes--he wasn’t your manager--in the rear view mirror, your vision bleary. You, you knew those eyes. He was one of the few fans who really paid attention to you at fansigns. 

‘‘Jung-?’‘ you couldn’t finish the word as your eyes, against your will, began to slide properly shut and the wave of sleep achingly gripped onto your bones.

Jungkook laughed lightly as he saw you fall asleep, succumbing to a mixture of sleep deprivation and the drug he had slipped into your water to make sure you got proper rest. You were so cute like this. He could stare at you forever, watching the way you breathed in and out in your sleep and pouted your lips slightly. He knew that when you woke up, you would understand. He had to do this. No one else deserved you but him. 

He shifted his eyes back to the night road, breathing out a soft,’’ Good night, baby. I love you.’’

He knew that if you were still awake, you would look up at him with pretty wide eyes and reply to him just like you did at the fansign. You would blush cutely and say to him,’’ I love you, too, Jungkook-ah.’’

[sneezefiction]

sleep over? please.

Akaashi x reader - scenario

prompt: Sleep over? Please.

a/n: Akaashi has my heart, y’all. i thought i’d write from a prompt this time around and i’m about to hit 100 followers, so, being me, i must celebrate with fluffy feels. i love this community. thanks for inviting me in so warmly <3 

warnings: slight cursing

wc: 1440

---

It wasn’t unlike you to be up late. Dim lights on in your room, phone in hand, mind fuzzy and tired.

It wasn’t unlike Akaashi to try and figure out the reason you’re still awake.

Somehow he always knew when you couldn’t sleep. Sometimes he knew by way of instinct and other times you just made your social media scrolls a little too apparent.

Tonight, it was Twitter that gave you away. Your late-night likes, retweets, and posts weren’t exactly incognito, so you expected to get a text from your boyfriend scolding you for still being up, rolling around in your bed sheets.

However, the text you received was far from nagging… 

12:53 am - Akaashi: Saw you on twitter. I can’t sleep either.

12:53 am - Akaashi: If you don’t want to, it’s fine, but I have a proposition...

12:53 am - Akaashi: do u want to sleep over?

12:54 am - Akaashi: Please.

---

12:55 am - Y/n: Give me 10 minutes

You’re not sure why, but his text surprises you. Akaashi has always been self-sustaining, not usually asking for much from you, his friends, or family. So the needier tone in his text gets you wondering if he’s actually okay.

You know better than to ask him ‘what’s wrong’ over text. In-person conversations are more comfortably suited for him. So you slip on some sneakers and swing a jacket over your shoulders, tugging the sleeves up and onto your arms making sure to be as quick as possible.

You pat yourself down for one final check - keys, bag, and wallet... all here. Nodding to yourself, you set off.

As you pull up to his house, you notice that Akaashi is already standing on his front porch waiting for you.

He’s wearing a textured, gray hoodie you gifted him a few months back and some name brand joggers. Akaashi always manages to be unintentionally fashionable, especially when it comes to lounge-wear.

As you make your way up the walkway, you notice his slightly unfocused expression. A clear sign that he’s feeling a bit off. Akaashi only ever got that way under major stress, usually relating to school or volleyball.

He lets out a breath, reaching his arms out toward you and wrapping them around your neck. A hand shifts behind your head, entangling your hair in lithe fingers and pulling your face gently into his chest.

“Sorry for asking you over so late.” He sighs, almost as though he’s disappointed in himself for being needy.

“I always tell you to let me know if you need something, Akaashi. I’m glad you texted.” You muffle out into his hoodie, drawing your arms around his back.

“Let’s go inside, I’m sleepy and I know you are too.” He states.

As if on cue, you let out a big yawn. This guy is something else. A prophet? A mind reader? Just super intuitive?

Ah, whatever, you give up thinking about it. He just is what he is… and now it’s my turn to figure him out.

You head to his bedroom, familiar with its colors of deep blue and crisp white and, as per usual, completely spotless. You’ve spent many a day and night theorizing, studying, and laying next to your boyfriend in this room. It’s a bit of a sanctuary in its own, quiet way.

Akaashi lets you crawl into his bed first so that you can claim your space under his covers. You feels the bed shift slightly as he joins you. He’s relatively silent, but not in his usual manner. It’s as though he’s trying to say something, his mouth barely opening and then closing right after.

So you let him process his words before they inevitably tumble out. In the meantime, you both study the ceiling above you, not making physical contact yet in order to minimize distraction from his thoughts.

“Y/n, do you like me?” He breaks the bubble of silence around you.

“Hm?” A silly question, you think.

“You know I do, Akaashi. I’m dating you, aren’t I?” You chuckle, turning your head to the black-haired boy. His face is entirely serious, eyes still fixed above.

“What do you mean exactly?” You question, matching his seriousness this time.

He runs a hand through his hair, then shifts his head toward you, reaching an arm under the blankets to grab your hand.

Rubbing your hand with his thumb thoughtfully, Akaashi clarifies, “I mean, why are you with me? What benefit do you see in being around me?” He pauses, taking a breath before his next question.

“Do you really see a future with me?” His cheeks are tinted pink, but the question isn’t cute or lighthearted.

It’s anxious.

You can practically feel the self-doubt in his whispers. A masked vocalization of his fears, probably stemming from the beginning of your relationship, spilling out.

You move closer to his body, pulling him into your chest, deciding that physical contact would be the best way to convey your answer.

“Akaashi… remember when we talked about college and plans awhile back?”

He nods. 

“And how we discussed long distance?”

He nods, but clearly the topic was more painful for him, his eyebrows furrowing slightly.

“You know it’s only a couple of hours, baby.” You remind him gently, “We have every weekend… every slower day… any school break to see each other again.”

“I know, I know.” He sighs, “But, do you really want me? Do you want to drive and wait for me?”

You unlink your hand from his to run your fingers along the outline of his slim jawline. It’s the first time he’s ever expressed his hesitance of your feelings for him.

He needed confirmation and confidence that you care for him. That you want to be by his side.

Throughout high school, he’d had the luxury of being a vital part of his team. They needed his skills. His team relied on him and trusted that he could follow through as a setter. Without Akaashi they would’ve been lost and, at the least, much weaker.

But you were a different issue entirely. You didn’t “need” him per se. His critical thinking and intellect could only get him so far in a relationship. Something he didn’t see himself being in for years… yet here he is, you in his bed, listening to him sort through his problems once again.

You see him flipping through the thoughts in his mind, so you bring him back to the real world, pushing his hair back to place a delicate kiss to his forehead.

He meets your eyes.

“I know you don’t see it my way, but Akaashi… this relationship is more than just some cost-benefit diagram.” You smile, eyes lighting up with humor.

“I am choosing to be with you because…” It’s your turn to blush, debating whether or not this is the time to say it.

And it really is time. He needs to know how you truly feel.

“... dammit, Akaashi, I love you.”

His heart jumps. Those were 3 words he wasn’t expecting.

You continue, “Yes, you add something to my life. You make me laugh and think deeper than I’m used to. You teach me perspective. You treat me so kindly but…” He’s listening so intently now,

“You are so much more than what you give. You make me want you. To hold you, text you, and call you if you need anything. To just lay here with you… you make little things so much more beautiful.”

Akaashi may not speak much, but this is a new level of speechless.

It’s like you’re confessing to him all over again.

But this time, it’s from the basis of love.

Nothing cute or made-up. Just... sincerity.

“So, please, if you ever think I don’t care about you or want you around, even if we’re fighting with each other or managing too much at one time, just call me. I’ll drop everything to get to you. I promise.”

It takes him a moment to handle everything. To grasp these abstract feelings and apply them to your relationship.

But after a minute of stillness he finally understands.

He feels the same. And he has for a long time.

It’s why he cares so much to hear it from you. To know that you don’t just like him, but that you are actively willing to seek him out. That you want his presence, his rough edges, and his faults in your life.

“I… love you too, y/n.” He manages to respond, unsure as to how he can answer to everything else you’ve just said.

So you bury your face in his hair, letting the flush slowly fade from your own face and breathe in the perfume of his cedar scented shampoo.

“Thank you for trusting me.” You whisper.

“Thank you for coming over.” He murmurs in reply.

“I love a good, emotional sleepover, baby. You should know that much by now.” You quietly jest, eyes closing.

“Yeah,” He hums, “I appreciate them too.” Mumbles Akaashi.

You both drift off into a serene sleep, releasing your hesitations and inhibitions into the tranquil midnight air.

---

From this day forward, you both refer to this moment as “Akaashi’s Therapy.” 

Since then, it’s become an inside joke, but only you two remember how monumental of a turning point this conversation was for your relationship. 

It’s why you both made it through your last year of high school together. It’s why, even with weeks (sometimes months) of distance, you both consistently went back to each other. Study nights, weekend trips, and Christmas parties.

And also why you’re here now, admiring the glimmering diamond engagement ring on your finger. Hand-in-hand with your best friend, now fiancé, at a summertime festival. It feels like a dream, but the many long years apart remind you that it’s very real. That you both made it.

No cost-benefit analysis or prophetic parable could’ve gotten you both to this point. No war strategy and not an ounce of magic could’ve held up...

But a sleepover? Hell yes.

[jalapeno-princess]

Coffee For Your Head

(He’s so pretty)

Mark Tuan X Reader

Genre: Angst with some fluff and a happy ending 

Word Count: 7.1K

Summary: After an exhausting and frustrating day at work, all you want to do is go home and fall apart in your boyfriend’s arms. However, a comment that is meant to be a joke turns in to a full blown argument between you and Mark; causing you to storm out of your shared apartment. 

A/N: Hey guys, so this week has been pretty shitty. I had to pay $700 to get my car fixed only to have someone steal my muffler (Hawaii is not the paradise everyone paints it out to be) but I’m not letting it get in the way of my life. Anyways, this imagine was inspired by that deathbed coffee for your head song but literally just the first verse (the song is actually so sad). I also have a couple of surprises for you all! The last and final chapter of crazy little thing called love is in the works, and I’ve decided to make a part 2 to “nobody compares to you” by popular request, so stay tuned. I’m also a few followers away from 700 that’s crazy!! Anyways, happy reading!

Never in the four years of your relationship has Mark ever felt like he didn’t want to look at you. Hell, there was never a time he wasn’t looking at you. From the moment Mark first laid his eyes on you, he was captivated by your beauty in ways he has never experienced before. 

Some days, he had to force himself to stop admiring your breathtaking looks so that you wouldn’t feel uncomfortable. After what took weeks of building up the courage to ask you out on a date, it didn’t take him long to realize that you were just as beautiful on the inside as you were on the outside. He honestly felt as if he was the luckiest man on earth to be the one who was extremely blessed to love you. 

Unfortunately, the two of you had your first actual fight just a few hours prior and he honestly wishes he could go back in time and keep his mouth shut so that the two of you wouldn’t have been in this disheartening situation. Although there were a few times the two of you would disagree and have a couple quarrels here and there, this was the first time you actually stormed out of your shared apartment out of anger and frustration. 

He was well aware that he went too far tonight; Mark knew you like the back of his hand. Just by your posture and the way you slammed your bag down on the counter, he had a feeling something bad must have happened at work. You were a registered nurse at your local hospital and as much as you wish you could say being a nurse was everything you could ever hope and pray it would be; it was quite the opposite. 

Sure, you had the honor of witnessing many miracles such as pregnancies, watching patients win their battles against cancer—just being able to help anyone in need were a few perks that came with being a nurse. However, being a nurse also came with great responsibility. There were lives on the line and just the simplest mistake; giving a patient the wrong medication, scheduling the wrong surgery or assigning the wrong diet could really affect the lives of those you were in charge of. 

Being a nurse was very exhausting; you were constantly on your feet for eight to ten hours a day and there were many people, either the patients or family members of the patients who always felt the need to take out their stress and worry on you. Tonight had been one of the most tiring and stressful days at work and there was nothing more you wanted to do than to change in to your pajamas and fall asleep in your boyfriend’s warm embrace. It was obvious Mark had other plans. 

Normally, whenever you came home so distraught and obviously shaken up, Mark would do whatever he could to comfort you and make you feel better. He didn’t understand what got over him tonight though—what started as a joke about you leaving the dirty dishes from earlier that morning in the sink as his way to cheer you up turned in to hours of yelling at each other and getting at each other’s throats. 

You told him he was a selfish, egotistical asshole who didn’t care about anyone but himself and he called you an aggressive bitch who takes things too seriously. As soon as he saw tears falling from your cheeks while you yanked at your purse and your keys that were still on the kitchen counter before storming outside, Mark was well aware that he fucked up. You weren’t a sensitive person; you did cry occasionally when work could be too much for you to handle, when you felt home sick being 3,000 miles away from your family or if there was a sad scene in a movie the two of you watched together then yeah—you would shed some tears, but it was only natural. 

When you guys did argue—if ever—you did tear up out of irritation; but you never allowed Mark to see how much your little disputes would hurt you because you didn’t want to feel vulnerable. He may have been your boyfriend, but you didn’t want him—or anyone for that matter, taking advantage of how timorous and fragile you were as a person. It took him a while to process that you actually left. He was too focused on the fight; there were so many things he believed he wanted to say to you in the heat of the moment, but he knew it was best that he didn’t. 

Now that he was all alone in the apartment, he felt like complete and utter shit. He knew the entire fight could have been prevented if he had just kept his mouth shut. What came over him that he felt the need to make such a stupid comment? You weren’t all that familiar when it came to California seeing as how you would only go out for work, with friends or with Mark. 

California was different at night; it’s was more dangerous and scarier, even for your boyfriend who has been living there his entire life. Seeing as how your family lived in New York and you hardly made any friends in the couple years of living in the relatively sunny state other than a couple coworkers, he had no idea where you could have run off to. For all he knew, you were at a bar getting drunk off of your ass and someone could have been taking advantage of you—or worse, you could have been driving and got in to a car accident because of how frustrated you were. 

From what he experienced with being in the passenger seat while you drove, he had to admit you weren’t exactly the best driver. You had two of the worst qualities a driver could have—impatience and anger. Normally, you were calm and collective. Even if life as a nurse could get very hectic and frantic at times, not once in your three years of working at the hospital did you show that you were on the verge of a mental breakdown. 

Mark never understood how you did it—but you were very good at managing your time and completing your tasks while under pressure. Your driving however was a completely different story. As much as he could only hope and pray you were somewhere safe, it wasn’t enough to stop the many negative thoughts and scenarios that his conscience came up with. Out of force of habit, he turned on the news to make sure nothing bad happened to you—God, why didn’t he just keep his mouth shut? If he just gave up his pride and took in to consideration the stress you were under, you’d be cuddling in his arms right now while the two of you watch reruns of Cake Boss—but instead, you were out driving in the freezing cold, alone and angry. He had no idea what he should do; even if he were to give in and admit his faults first, what good would it do? You were just as stubborn as he was. 

Knowing your headstrong tendencies, there was a big chance you would leave his messages unread and let his calls go to voicemail. He couldn’t blame you though, if it were the other way around and you were the one trying to get in touch with him, Mark would’ve ignored your attempts entirely. His guilty conscience got the best of him only after ten minutes; he knew there was no way he’d be able to go to sleep without finding out your whereabouts.

Mark: Hey. 11:56 p.m.

Mark: I’m sure you’re still mad at me and my apologies probably mean jack shit to you right now but just know that I am really fucking sorry. 11:56 p.m.

Mark: You don’t have to return my calls, but do you think you could at least let me know that you’re safe? 11:58 p.m.

Mark: I didn’t mean anything I said—you know me better than I know myself baby. I would never do or say anything to purposely hurt you. Fuck, the last thing I ever want to do is upset you y/n. I’m sorry I’ve made you so sad. 12:03 p.m.

Mark: I love you so much y/n. Please come home soon. 12:03 p.m.

He tossed his phone somewhere on the floor before releasing a frustrating groan—where could you have gone? A lot of places were closed at this time of hour and he decided that since you were driving, there was no way you could be drinking. Any club or bar was immediately crossed off of his list. There was also no way you’d go back to the hospital; it was painfully obvious that something occurred during your shift that made your mood sour—so you probably didn’t want to get near the establishment until you had to return back to work in the morning. 

Shit, that’s right. 

You had another shift in less than eight hours, God, Mark really felt like the biggest asshole on the planet. Knowing that there was a huge chance he wouldn’t be hearing from you any time soon, he decided to set up camp in the living room just in case you came back home and wanted to go straight to bed. He was also secretly hoping that you read his messages and forgave him; or at least felt a little less infuriated with him. 

No matter how much he tried to take his mind off of you, there was nothing that could distract him. None of the many video games he owned nor the new unsolved mysteries series Netflix had to offer could ease his unsettling nerves. Something inside of Mark was telling him to go out and look for you, but he knew that wasn’t a good idea. Honestly, he wouldn’t even know where to start. California was huge—he’d probably drive in circles for hours. 

The idea of getting in contact with his friends also popped in to his mind; you’ve grown close to his group of friends over the course of your relationship to the point where you could consider them all family. However, you were the kind of person who hated being a burden to others. You also didn’t want to involve anyone in your personal business unless you really had to. 

All he could do was lie on the couch and stare at the ceiling; growing more and more irritated with himself as the minutes went by. Your disheartened facial expression was imprinted in the back of his mind—this was the first time you looked at him in a way other than lovingly and with so much adoration in your eyes. He hated it; hated himself even more. 

He just really wanted you home safe. 

Your boyfriend had no idea how long he was waiting for you; minutes felt like hours as he continued to lie on the couch, doing nothing. As soon as he heard the click of the door sound off, he abruptly sat up; not caring if he seemed too eager. He sincerely meant everything he said over text message—your health and your safety meant more to him than his stupid ego. 

His heart began to race watching you walk in; there was nothing more he wanted to do than to run over to you and pull you in to his embrace while he repeatedly apologized for everything that he said and all the hurt he made you suffer through. For his inconsiderate actions, for not running after you, for allowing his pride and wanting to be the winner of the argument get in the way. But you looked so exhausted—so tired. Your body language spoke for you; it was evident that you were probably still hurt from his words and from what he learned with past experiences, you probably just wanted to go to sleep. He was curious if you got around to reading his messages or if you listened to his many voicemails.

His heart was begging him to get up and make his way over to you, but his mind didn’t want to make matters worse. Although he wanted to fix things immediately, he was going to wait for you to take control of the situation. You slowly took off your sandals and made your way in to the kitchen. The battle going on between his mind and his heart was currently consuming his thoughts; as much as he knew it would’ve been better to continue giving you his space, his heart had other plans. 

You looked as though you saw a ghost when you heard him make his presence known and only then did Mark realize it was 2:15 in the morning. His chest hurt when he saw you tense up; he began regretting his decision. You obviously weren’t ready for reconciliation. 

“What are you still doing up?” 

You still had your back faced toward him, but he was going to take whatever he could get. Instead of continuing to ignore him, which is honestly what he felt he deserved, you actually responded to him. It had to be a good thing—right? 

“I know you’re well aware that there was no way I’d be able to go to sleep knowing you were out all by yourself this late in a city you’re not all that familiar with. Especially because I was the reason. I—I was so worried.” 

The tension in the room was thick; he was practically walking on eggshells while thinking about what to say next. You were the definition of a sensitive person and it was a trait of yours that Mark was still getting used to. It was the truth though—Mark cared about you more than he did anyone else on this hell forsaken earth. If something were to happen to you, he didn’t know what he would do with himself. You were his person. That man would die for you if he had to. He found himself reaching out to you as a force of habit, but he retracted his hand as soon as he realized what he was doing. 

“Can we—can we talk?” 

You took in a deep breath and finally allowed yourself to turn around and face him. There was no way around this—you knew as you drove around that he would want to talk sooner or later. When you saw that he was still awake, you weren’t surprised. Being with him for all these years, you’ve grown to learn that Mark never allowed you to go to bed angry. He was the type to want to solve your problems before you were to fall asleep. 

The idea of you crying yourself to sleep because of something he said made his heart hurt. Only once in your entire relationship did you go to bed without listening to Mark’s apologies and it was because you didn’t want to deal with the drama any longer. He felt extremely bad that entire day though and when you arrived home that night, there was a bouquet of sunflowers, your favorite cake from your favorite bakery and a stuffed animal all sitting on the counter. 

Mark was going to make sure you knew just how sorry he was, even if it meant having to sleep on the couch tonight. You were much more calm than you were when you first stormed out. Right after the fight, you went straight to your car and sat in it for a while; allowing yourself to breathe and come to your sense before driving away. Then, you decided to go drive around the city until you pulled up to a 24-hour coffee shop. 

The exhaustion from your extremely stressful day was finally taking over you; and since you planned to stay out for at least another hour or two, you were going to need something that would keep you from falling asleep—and what better than a caramel macchiato with three shots of espresso? To your delight, you were the only customer there; you didn’t want anyone witnessing your breakdown as you cried quietly to yourself while remembering Mark’s harsh words that he directed towards you. 

Mark was the only good thing going for you in your life at the moment; all you wanted to do was collapse in his arms and have him comfort you—you wanted him to run his fingers through your hair while you were perched up on his lap, hiding your face in the juncture of his neck. Every single time you had a rough day, whether it was because of work, or something else going on in your life; but your boyfriend was really good at taking your mind off of any problems, worries or negative thoughts that you had. 

Coming home, only to hear him complain about how you didn’t wash your cereal bowl made your blood boil. You were scolded by your manager for almost giving a patient the wrong medication and it was the mistake of your colleague in training—yet you didn’t have the heart to confess that it wasn’t your fault. You understood how intimidating it was for first and second year residents; you’ve been there before, so you were fine taking the blame for something that you didn’t do. However, hearing your manager insult you and claim that you were inadequate and had no idea what you were doing made you feel as if it were true. 

The last thing anyone in the medical field wanted to hear was that they weren’t good at their job. You didn’t go through so many years of crying over how hard clinicals were on top of pulling all-nighters every single week there was a test or exam just for someone to make you feel like you had no clue on how to complete the tasks given to you. This was the first time you were scolded for something that you didn’t think was all that bad; the medication the patient was meant to take helped with soothing a sore throat. The one that the medical resident gave them had to do with decreasing heartburn—it wasn’t like it was a life or death situation. 

Mark never did anything to upset you purposely; sure, he had a tendency to leave the toilet seat up every now and then and sometimes he would get crumbs all over the couch, but that was as bad as it would get. When he called you a bitch, it genuinely felt like a slap to the face. It physically hurt and you couldn’t stop thinking about the way his brows furrowed and his jaw clenched in anger as he continued to say such hurtful things to you. At one point while you were drinking your coffee, it became bitter—which was odd considering how sweet it actually was and you found yourself no longer wanting to finish it. 

Your argument with Mark was just taking up the entirety of your thought process that you were growing agitated with anything and everything. After reading his text messages and listening to a few of his voicemails, you didn’t know how to react. Mark Tuan was never the type to admit to his wrongdoings; he had so much pride and such a big ego—but not once did he ever use it towards you. You’ve watched the way he became ruthless while playing video games and said some things to his friends that you considered to be a joke; something he said to throw them off while being focused on winning. 

Even at work, if he did something wrong, he’d never admit to his faults. That’s just who he was; so for him to say that he was wrong—that he didn’t mean a thing that he said and he shouldn’t have upset you at all gently pulled on your heartstrings and you found yourself throwing away the remainder of your beverage and making your way back to the apartment. 

You weren’t sure what was going to happen once you were to walk in the door; he might have apologized, but that didn’t necessarily mean that he was going to talk to you or apologize again in person. Your mind would not let you get any rest; it was currently in a battle with your heart—your stupid, stupid heart that belonged to the man that made you feel like you were wrong for having a bad day. 

That—you had no right to lash out on him. You wished he would have heard you out first before attacking you for something so small and unnecessary; he could’ve washed the damn dishes himself if he was so bothered. But your heart wouldn’t stop telling you to forgive him. His job could get extremely frustrating sometimes. It might not have been as time consuming or energy draining as yours, but there were times where he would need you to hold him every now and then because his executives expected so much out of him. 

He probably had just as much of a hard day as you did—maybe he came home pissed off from something that happened at work and noticing that there was dishes in the sink that he knew were there from this morning got on his nerves. You felt like he could have handled it better though and you couldn’t help but think like he was growing tired of having to be your backbone; having to comfort you almost every single day on top of his own problems. Your mind wouldn’t stop coming up with all these thoughts and lies you knew weren’t true and you were well aware that it was best to start heading back to your place knowing that you had to be up again in less than five hours. 

Seeing him practically leap at the sight of you walking through the door sent so many emotions to your chest. You hated any time spent away from him—there were occasions where your schedules would collide and the only time you would see him was right before bed or if you were coming home from a graveyard shift while he was getting ready to leave for his job. 

The dried tears on his cheek confused you; he was the one who caused all of the drama and he had no problem making you feel like you were overreacting and being too sensitive. You were upset with yourself for wanting to walk over towards him and wrap your arms around him—but it was only natural for you to want to do so. 

For the entire duration of your shift, he was all you could think about; the thought of Mark was what kept you sane throughout the entire day. No matter how upset he made you, he was still the love of your life—your best friend, your favorite person, your soulmate. One fight wasn’t going to tarnish or falter your feelings for him in any way. 

Arguments were considered healthy in a relationship; sure, you could have done without the harsh words being thrown back and forth to one another, but you realized in the coffee shop that you would rather bicker and disagree with Mark every now and then for the rest of your life, then to have a relationship filled with constant joy and laughter with someone else. 

It was obvious that he was probably just as tired as you were, but the thought of him staying up worrying about where you were and waiting for you to arrive back home filled your stomach with butterflies. You made your way towards the dining table and took a seat; you waited for him to make the first move because you didn’t know where to start. 

“Did you—uh—happen to get my texts?” 

You decided to keep your gaze on the cup of coffee he placed in front of you; you didn’t even notice him heating some up for you. Your boyfriend was very observant of the way that you practically lived on coffee; on the days you had morning shifts, he would set an alarm to wake up before you and prepared all the things you needed so that you had less to worry about—coffee being your number one necessity. If you were to look up at him, you were well aware that you would probably cry just at the thought of how considerate he was even under a negative circumstance. 

“Yes. I didn’t have a chance to read them though.” 

That was a lie. You read every single one of his messages; each message pulling on your heartstrings the more you continued scrolling through them. Although you no longer held any anger towards Mark, you didn’t want to give him the benefit of the doubt. A part of you also wanted to hear him apologize in person rather through messages—but you felt in your gut that he would sooner or later. Honestly, you wanted to wait until you were to come home from work tomorrow afternoon so that you were well rested enough to have the right mindset if another argument broke out. 

“Oh. Well, I—For starters, I want to apologize for the way I acted towards you. I don’t know what made me say the things I did—I meant it as a joke but you obviously didn’t think it was funny and I don’t know why I expected you to. I’m so fucking sorry y/n. I was an asshole and you didn’t deserve it at all. I know I said some really cruel things in the heat of the moment, but I hope you know I didn’t mean any of it. You’re not a bitch nor are you over-emotional and you don’t get on my nerves. At all. I just—hearing you say those things about me sparked something inside that I wanted to hurt you as much as you hurt me. It took every bone in my body not to run after you. I’ll admit, sure—it was because I wanted to give you your space, but I was also very prideful and still so irritated with the entire ordeal. I regret every single thing I said and did tonight as soon as I realized just how scary it is being out late at night by yourself. I’ve never hated myself more than I did in these last two hours worrying about where you could have gone and what you were doing. I couldn’t stop thinking about your broken expression as you grabbed your things and stormed out the door.” 

His voice quickly grew shaky; you knew he was on the verge of crying again just by the tone of his voice. For some reason, you found yourself giving in to him and finally looked up. It felt like a slap to the face; seeing him with the most heart wrenching frown—not once in your relationship did you ever question Mark’s love for you and right now, hearing that he beat himself up for the last few hours while he was going crazy thinking of the many possibilities that something bad happened to you made you come to the realization that the beautiful man in front of you loved you more than you could ever fathom in to words. 

“I know you’re tired from work—I don’t know why I didn’t just keep my mouth shut. If I could, I’d go back and prevent this entire night from happening. I was so fucking scared y/n. You don’t know California all that well; you could have taken a wrong turn and ended up on your way to Las Vegas—your car could have broken down in the middle of nowhere and someone could have came and—I don’t even want to think about it. I’m sorry for hurting you—I know you’re well aware that I would rather sit and suffer through listening to Yugyeom and BamBam screaming while playing MarioKart than to hurt you in any possible way. You don’t have to forgive me. Hell, scream at me; yell at me, hit me, do whatever you want to me. Just know that I’m extremely sorry, and I’ll do whatever I have to in order to get you to trust me again.” 

He hesitantly stood up and didn’t even spare a glance at you before making his way back into the living room. You were upset that he didn’t give you any time to respond, but at the same time—you were extremely grateful. Right after he left you all alone at the table, you allowed the tears to flow freely from your eyelids as his apology continuously replayed in your mind. Whatever exhaustion you felt from earlier that disappeared right after you abruptly left the apartment was quickly returning—though, you didn’t know if you were physically tired or just mentally drained at this point. 

You gave yourself a couple of minutes alone just to plan out what you were going to do. Going to sleep sounded like the most rational decision to make; especially because you were meant to wake up in less than four hours to work another long, grueling and tiresome ten-hour shift. But you didn’t want to go to bed on bad terms with Mark. If he was willing to give up his pride and raise the white flag first just to make sure you were well aware that he was extremely regretful and apologetic of his actions, then it was only righteous of you to forgive him. You got up from your seat and put away the cup of coffee before taking in a deep breath and making your way in to the living room. 

The lights were off; but the lights from the hallway were still dimly lit enough for you to notice that Mark was lying down on the couch with a pillow and a blanket wrapped around him. This was the first time since you moved in together that you found him outside on the couch. A small smirk raised on your face—your boyfriend was always so courteous and considerate. 

He began tossing and turning in order to find a sleeping position he would be comfortable in. Your couch was pretty spacious and the two of you have slept on it countless times while watching movies together, but you were sure he was probably bummed by your response or lack thereof. You walked over to the end of the couch and gently tapped his thigh with your knee to get his attention. 

“What are you doing?” 

Although there was barely enough light to even see his figure, you were able to see him shrug nonchalantly at your question—as if you already knew the answer. 

“You’re still mad at me. I don’t want to make matters even worse. I’m giving you your space—“ You surprised both yourself and your boyfriend by flopping on top of him, earning yourself a soft whimper. Nonetheless, his hands made their way down towards your lower back without hesitance. His heart was racing against your chest; you had a feeling he wasn’t expecting for you to forgive him tonight let alone throw yourself in top of him. The two of you sat in silence for a couple of minutes, the only sound that could be heard was your breaths and his fingers tapping lightly on your skin. He placed a couple of gentle kisses on your jaw and gripped at your chin; lifting it up to make eye contact with you. 

“I lied. I did read the messages and I cried like a baby—you ass. Okay, I’m gonna start off by admitting that there were some things I also said that were out of line and that I did not mean. You are not a bad boyfriend at all Mark—you are the best boyfriend—hell, you are the best thing to ever happen to me. A lot of what I said was because I was so pissed off at you. I had such a terrible day at work. I was scolded by my manager twice for things I didn’t do, I had to work two extra hours to help out because three people called in sick, I was thrown up on and my break was cut short because we were so low staffed today and everyone in California all seemed to have kidney malfunctions on the same damn day. All I wanted to do was fall apart in your arms and have you comfort me like you always do—but then I come home and you make a comment about how lazy I am and I just—I cracked. Normally you’re always so good at picking up on the fact that I’ve had shit days; so, for you to make me feel even worse when all I wanted to do was find solace in you—it made me so fucking sad. And then I went out and drove for a while but I came to the realization that it wasn’t a good idea for me to roam around in a city I’m not familiar with while I was fuming so I went to a coffee shop and just thought about everything.” 

Feeling his grip on your hips tighten only made it evident that your words had an effect on him. Sure, you were telling your side of the story and you had every right to—Mark deserved to hear what an asshole he was towards you—the last person in his life that he ever wanted to hurt. But he could just picture you sitting in your car; sobbing and blaming yourself like you’ve done multiple times in the past even if it wasn’t your fault. You were the kind of person who had a tendency to think you were the reason why things went wrong. 

Usually, it was in situations at work; but he couldn’t help but feel as if you were beating yourself up about the argument that could have honestly been prevented if he observed your posture and body language and just kept his mouth shut. You wiped away a tear that fell from his cheek before placing a soft kiss on the corner of his mouth. 

“I wanted to continue giving you your space, but I had so many negative thoughts running through my mind. I was so, so worried about you. Baby I am so fucking sorry—“ you playfully pinched his cheek before covering his mouth with your hand. 

“No more apologies okay? Our argument is in the past. I just want you to know what happened and why I decided to return back so soon. If I’m being honest with you, I was planning on staying out until I had to head in to work again but sleeping in my car is not the most easiest thing to do. You hurt me Mark—I know it wasn’t purposely but for a few minutes, I actually contemplated on staying at a hotel or something. I didn’t want to see you for the rest of the night and I hated that I felt like that—even if it was for a split second. I always want you Mark. Every second—every minute—every hour spent away from you is spent thinking about you. What you’re doing, if you ate your meals on time, how you’re doing, if you miss me the way I can’t stop missing you, when I’ll get to see you next—then I got your message and they just solidified the love you have for me. Not that I ever questioned it once in our three years of dating. I’m sorry about the dishes—I’m sorry if I haven’t been myself these last few days but please Mark—I’m not acting this way on purpose. I’m so tired. You’re the only reason why I don’t end up in a mental institution at the rate I’m going. I’ll try to be better okay? I love you too by the way—so much.” 

The longer you spoke, the more tears fell from his eyes knowing how you must’ve felt so unhappy while overthinking the argument and just your entire day in general and he just felt so angry with himself. It was one thing for him to think about how much the argument must have bothered you, but it was another thing to hear you confess what had happened at work before coming home to a nagging and complaining boyfriend. 

He felt sick to his stomach and it was even more upsetting because he didn’t have the right words to explain just how sorry he was nor did he know what to do to make it known that he was regretful of the entire situation. Your boyfriend didn’t give you any time to prepare; he cupped your face in his hands and roughly connected your lips together. His lips were chapped and dry and tasted like salt from the tears. However, his movements were dominant and quick; his desire and need to kiss you was all that was on his mind at the moment. 

He wanted you to feel how much he loved you and how remorseful he was through the kiss. His tongue pushed down all but gently against your bottom lip before bringing it in between his teeth. The kiss continued to deepen the longer your tongues battled for dominance; any anger you held for your boyfriend was completely gone at this point. As much as you loved the way his lips melded perfectly against yours, you were finally feeling the wave of exhaustion re-enter your body and to Mark’s disappointment, you pulled away and placed your forehead against his.

“Babeeeee—“

“Come on, let’s go to bed.” 

You got up from off of him and reached your hand out in order to help him up. Mark was the definition of a clingy boyfriend—everyone who knew the two of you both witnessed and heard just how possessive he was over you and how he constantly had to be touching on you. But nobody ever complained—it was so adorable. He wrapped his arms around your stomach and placed his head on your shoulder while letting you guid the two of you towards your shared bedroom. You attempted to escape his hold in order to move around freely, but he had other plans and continued to cling to you like a sloth.

“Babe, I have to get ready for bed—“

“You can get ready while I hold you.”

“I can’t take off my scrubs with your arms around me.”

“I guess that means I have to take them off for you—it would be my pleasure baby.” You rolled your eyes and gently shoved him while grabbing one of his shirts and making your way towards the bathroom. 

“Baby?” You hummed in curiosity and gingerly smiled at him. 

“It’s already 3 in the morning. Maybe you should call in sick. I don’t like the thought of you going to work with barely any amount of sleep and I know we’ve moved on from our argument—but it’s only human for you to think about it again. I don’t want you getting yelled at again if your manager senses that you’re tired. Plus, you’ve been working so much this last month. I know you love your job, but it’s okay to take a well deserved rest once in a while—“ 

He had a point. Besides Mark, work was your ultimate priority. Sometimes, you put the hospital before your own health and private life. There were occasions where Mark would invite you out with him and his friends, but a lot of the time, you would either be at work or sometimes be called in as you started getting ready. Working so much led to over exhaustion every now and then but no matter how sick you felt—whether it was a cold, the flu or nausea, you would still find yourself tending to patients. It was something Mark wasn’t all too fond of; especially because your boyfriend seemed to be the only one genuinely concerned about your well-being. 

As soon as you finished your nighttime routine, you wasted no time making your way towards where Mark was sitting on the bed and crawled on top of him. He gave you a tired yet toothy grin and pulled you close to his chest. His hands returned to your lower waist and he even playfully pinched your butt; earning himself a slap to the shoulder. You brought one of your hands in to his hair while cupping his cheek lovingly with the other. 

“I know you don’t want me apologizing anymore, but I just want to say sorry one last time. I can’t promise we won’t argue again—we’re both stubborn as hell—but I promise to be more patient; more understanding. And I don’t want you leaving—you really did worry me baby. I love you so much y/n. I’m sorry if what I said earlier made you question my love for you—but I love you. I’ve loved you for the last three years and I plan on loving you for the rest of my life.” You placed a gentle kiss on the corner of his mouth before smashing your cheek against his chest. 

“I love you too. A lot more than I get around to telling you. Fine. If I stay home tomorrow, you owe me.” He gently pulled away from you and began wiggling his brows. 

“Oh, and what do you have in mind? You know babe, we don’t need to wait till tomorrow, I can give you what you deserve right now. I’ll take such good care of you—“

“I don’t mean sex you horny ass, I meant you make me breakfast in bed or prepare a bath for me. If I’m calling in sick, I want a relaxing day off.” He gave you an adorable pout while playfully hiding his face in between your breasts and whining softly. 

“Making love can be relaxing. Come on Y/n, it’s been almost a week since I had your pretty lips around my cock. I’m sex deprived. As much as I prefer you topping me and riding my cock like the professional cowgirl you are, I’ll take the lead. I’ll eat your pussy out until you cry—fuck you till you scream. Might as well you call out for the entire week. I think you and I both know angry makeup sex is the best sex. Don’t lie y/n, you miss having me inside of you just as much as I miss feeling your tight walls wrapped around me—“

“I think I made a mistake telling you to come in here. Go back to the couch.”

[sigillaria-svt]

Weekend Drives

Pairing: Idol!Choi Seungcheol/S.Coups x Reader

Word Count: 5,654

Warning: None

Genres: fluff, slice of life, weekend together

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Synopsis: For the past several years, you have been working hard in building your career and working yourself near the point of burnout. One person that has always been your stronghold during these times has been Seungcheol. You’ve known each other since you were in college, but it’s only been a few years since you started dating. Although you were completely happy just the way everything is, Seungcheol has something else in mind.

READER POV You slowly push down on the breaks of your car as the stoplight turns red just as you were about to reach the intersection. It was almost midnight, but you’ve just gotten off from work. Your team was preparing for a big project next week, and everyone had to stay late to finish everything on time. Although these busy seasons happened for only about a week or two, it still drained you to drive several miles home late at night only to get up early the next morning.

Tonight in particular, the tiredness was getting to you. You try to keep yourself awake, but your eyes are on the verge of closing themselves shut. When the stoplight turns green, it takes you a few seconds to notice and push on the gas pedal. Thankfully, there were barely any cars on the small road you were on.

Moments later, your phone rings, jolting you awake as the name of your caller pops out of the small screen just beside the steering wheel. You tap the receive button on the screen, his voice filling your car through the speakers.

“Hey.” Seungcheol says, who also seems tired from the other side of the call. “Are you home?”

“No, not yet. Took us a bit of time to finish editing and reviewing today.” You take a left turn at an intersection, making your way to the bridge that connects you to your home city. “I’m sorry if I haven’t been able to reply to your messages lately. I’ll make it up to you once we’re done with the launching, I promise.”

“No, it’s okay. Don’t be sorry. Keep doing what you’ve always been doing. I’ll be waiting, just tell me if you need anything.” He replies softly. During stressful times in your life, he has always been generous with his time and affection, so much so that you regret not being able to give the same back to him. “Should I hang up? You must still be driving right now.”

“No, you can stay on the line. I need someone to talk to so that I won’t fall asleep on the road.” You say, now near the middle point of the bridge. “How was your day?”

“We just got back to the dorm after practicing for a performance. It would be nice if you could watch us live, but I think it’s going to be on the day of your project’s launching.” You hear a few muffled noises as he shifts in his place over at the other side. “We also got some fruit from our manager today. Do you want me to come over and bring you some?”

“I live an hour away from your place, you should be taking time to rest.” You reply halfheartedly. You really wanted to meet him--it’s been almost a month since the both of you went out together, but you didn’t want him to go out of his way.

After a short pause, Seungcheol continues. “I really wish that we lived closer to each other. I miss you so much.” From his tone, you know that he’s pouting from the other side. “I don’t care how tired I’m going to be, I’m going to come over and visit you once you’re done with your project.”

You finally break out a smile. For such a tall and strong person, Seungcheol had always been soft when it comes to you. Many times have you heard your peers call him intimidating, but you know that he is far from what he shows on the stage.

“I’ll take that as a promise. Let’s eat something nice when you do come over. I heard that Joshua has been teaching you how to cook pasta lately.” You reply, now feeling more awake.

“Sure, sounds like a plan.” He says with a small laugh. “Where are you at right now?”

“At the highway. I’ll probably get home in ten minutes.”

“Alright. Tell your mom that I said hi, and that I’d bring over some oranges when I come over.” He says, remembering your mom’s love for citrus fruits. To be honest, it always made you so happy whenever he’d think about your family. Your family adores him too, so there’s really nothing to complain about.

“I will. See you next week, then. I love you.”

“Love you, too.”

Over the next few days, Seungcheol starts to call you more frequently. He tries to match the time when you’d be having a break, may it be during lunch or during your ride going home. Usually, those talks would happen for a minute or two, but it was enough to brighten your day--and hopefully, his as well. Although it wasn’t unusual for him to call you, it was a bit odd of him to call you that frequently. Perhaps he’s been getting really stressed out at work. At one particularly stressful period, he stayed over at your house for the whole day just to snuggle and recharge. You knew that if he was particularly close than usual, he was in need of someone to lean on. So, despite your busy schedule, you always made it a point not to miss a single call.

However, one time during a prolonged meeting a night before the launch, you were unable to pick up. You quickly find a quiet spot outside the office and call him back.

“Hey, I’m sorry I couldn’t pick up your call. I was in a meeting.”

“You’re having a meeting this late into the night?”

You check your wristwatch, seeing that it’s already 12:54 AM. “Oh wow, I didn’t know we took that long. We’re just making the final preparations for the launching tomorrow. Thankfully, we got everything settled.” You try to force a smile. “More importantly, how are you doing? You have a performance tomorrow, right?”

“Yeah. The kids and I got back to the dorms a few hours ago. The managers told us to have a good meal so we went out for a bit.” He replies. “Get home safely, alright?”

“Yeah, I will. Good luck on the performance tomorrow.” You shift your weight to your other leg. “I’m sorry that we couldn’t talk long.”

“It’s alright, hearing your voice is good enough for me. I love you, good night.”

“Love you too, sleep well.”

Just like that, the call ends. You can’t count the number of times you had to say sorry to him for not being that available. He assures you every time that it’s alright, but you wanted to actually be there for him, and not just be a voice on a phone call.

With your worries in hand, you return back to the office to get your things and head home to get as much sleep as you could before the hectic schedule prepared for you a few hours later.

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Although the launching event finishes at 4 PM, you take a few more hours with the team to help with the clean-up and logistics. By the time you finally finish, Seungcheol’s performance is long done. You quickly make your way back home tired but relieved that it’s all finally over.

Just as he promised, he’s already at your house, talking to your brother in the living room.

“Hey, you’re home.” He says with a smile, although he couldn’t really hide the tiredness in his eyes. “How was the event?”

You nod with a smile, changing into your house slippers as you come in. “It was good. There were more people than we expected, but we managed.” You take a seat across Seungcheol, right next to your brother. “Do you have a recording of your performance earlier? Let’s watch it together.”

Seungcheol takes out his phone and pulls up a video of their performance that was posted on YouTube. You smile the entire time, happy to see him doing what he loves. When the video is over, you give him excited applause.

“We did great right?”

“That’s was really, really good. I mean it.” You put a hand over his knee. “I mean your performances were always good, but you’ve really given it a big twist this time.”

He smiles and puts his phone back in his pocket. “This was the last performance we had for this promotion period, so we all wanted to end it with a blast.” He gets up and gently pulls on your wrist. “More importantly, it’s about time we make dinner.”

“You guys haven’t eaten yet?” You ask as you get up from the couch and move over to the kitchen corner.

“Oh, you don’t have to worry about us,” Your brother says, not looking up from his phone. “I’ll be taking mom and dad to our grandparents’ house for dinner, then we’ll be staying over for the weekend.”

“So we’ll just be cooking for two, then?” You ask Seungcheol, who’s already getting the ingredients ready.

“Three, if you’re feeling extra hungry for pasta tonight.” He says, handing you an apron hanging from one of the walls. “And a movie afterward?”

“Sure.” You reply, a bit too enthusiastic than you would want your brother to hear. You slightly lean into him, but quickly pull away to a safer distance. 

Although you and Seungcheol have been dating for four years, you’ve never been openly sweet to him when your family was around. Even if they were fine with the relationship, they have always been more on the conservative side.

Seungcheol proceeds to prepare the pot of boiling water, reaching up to open one of the cupboards. While he faces his back to the living room, you take a small peek at your brother. You’re surprised to find him looking back at you.

Even without saying anything, he understood what your gaze meant.

“Go ahead and do what you like, the house is yours for the weekend.” He says quietly with a shrug. “Just you know... don’t go overboard.”

You could feel your face heat up. “What do you mean by that?!”

Just in time, your mom and dad descend from the stairs, bringing with them bags with clothes for the weekend. When they see you, they give you a small greeting. Your mom gives a wide smile, but you could feel your dad linger a bit too long on Seungcheol.

“Ready to go?” Your brother asks, getting up from the sofa. “Did you make sure to bring all your meds?”

Your mom nods and moves over to hand her bags to your brother. Meanwhile, your father stands there near the kitchen, unmoving for a moment. Seungcheol looks up from the kitchen counters and gives him a small smile.

Without saying anything else, your dad nods and looks at the both of you before heading out the front door. 

“See you this Sunday, sweetie.” Your mom says, giving you a small peck on the cheek. “Call us if anything comes up, alright?”

“Alright, have a safe trip. Oh, and bring back some strawberries if they have some.” You reply with a hug.

You hear the familiar sound of your dad’s old car, and moments later they’re out of the house and on the road. When he hears the car leaving the garage of the house, Seungcheol puts his hand on your waist and pulls you closer to him. He leans his head on your shoulder and gives a big sigh.

“I miss you so much, you know?” He says softly, almost melting into you.

You put the jar down on the counter and run one of your hands through his hair. “This week was rough, wasn’t it?”

He nods into your shoulder before pulling away. He checks the pot and finds the water boiling. You hand him the salt and the uncooked pasta, and he carefully places them in the pot.

“We had a few fights with the kids this week.” He says, leaning one of his arms on the counter as he stirs the pasta with his other hand. “I don’t know, maybe everyone was getting sensitive because of everything that’s going on.”

“Were you able to talk it out?” You say, putting your hand over his.

“Yeah, it’s all good now. It’s just... you know, that lingering feeling after an argument?” He says. “I feel like it’s my fault for not really going a good job.”

You lean your head on his shoulder, trying to comfort him the best that you can. “But you know you did all that you could, right? I know that you feel disappointed in yourself a lot, but I’ve always been proud of you for everything that you’re doing--perfect or not.”

He gives a nod and turns his head to put a kiss on your forehead. “Thank you.”

You spend the rest of the night cooking dinner and talking about all the things that you couldn’t over your series of phone calls. All the anxieties that have been building up, all the frustrations and disappointments. Time flew by so fast that midnight eventually came without a single movie watched. If not for a random call from your coworker, you would have stayed up until morning without a single dish washed.

“You cooked most of the meal tonight, I’ll wash the dishes this time.” You say as you pick up his plate and walk to the sink. “You still want to watch a movie after this?”

“I want to talk a bit more.” He says as he walks to you and puts his head on yours. “You didn’t finish your story about the broken photocopier.”

You laugh a bit at his pouting. “It’s not much of an exciting story. Just a little inconvenience that made me skip lunch trying to fix it so that I don’t have to pay for it.” You continue to wash the plates even with his weight on you.

“And what about the guy that helped you out?”

“Oh, him? He’s a guy from another branch that was brought over to help with the hectic preparations. And...” You stop in your tracks. “Wait, are you jealous?”

He doesn’t reply, but stands there behind you, shifting his weight from one foot to another. You quickly rinse off the plates and forks and put them over the metal rack next to the sink.

You turn around to see him a bit sad. “You don’t have to be jealous. You’re the one here with me right now, not him. Besides, he already went back to the main office. I’m not going to meet him again.”

You cup his face in your hands and give him a small kiss on his chin. “Are you alright? Do you want to head over to bed?”

“It’s okay, you’re mine for the rest of the weekend.” He intertwines his hands with yours and leans his forehead on yours. “Let’s go.”

The both of you make your way to your bedroom upstairs, but not before making sure that all the lights downstairs are turned off and all the doors locked. You grab your pajamas and head over to the bathroom to change. When you got back to your room, you see Seungcheol snuggled up well under your sheets.

You stroke his hair before getting under the sheets with him. “What do you want to do tomorrow?” You ask him, who seems to already be half asleep.

“Let’s watch a movie for real this time.” He mumbles, pulling you closer to him until you’re completely within his arms. He burrows his nose into your shoulder and breathes in. “Let’s go for a drive tomorrow evening. I want to go to that spot in the mountain with the city view.”

“That sounds great.” You say as you trace circles on his forearm. “Let’s bring my Polaroid camera, it’s been a while since we went out on a drive.”

“Mmmhmmm.” You could feel his breaths become slower and deeper. He must have had a really tiring day to fall asleep right away like this.

To be honest, you’re really proud that both of you held out for this long. Your parents made it clear from the first day of the limitations in place before marriage, and although it frustrated you and Suengcheol, he really tried his best to follow through, out of respect for your parents. Even though there were many times when he disagreed with your parents on the inside, there was not a moment where he didn’t respect them; it made you love him all the more.

“Cheol, are you asleep?”

No reply.

“Well, just in case you are, I want to thank you, really. Thank you for always keeping up with me even when you were busy with all the things going on. I love you so much.”

You feel him pull you even closer to him. “I love you too.”

“So you’re awake after all?” You say with a small laugh.

“I wanted to know what you’d say to me if I were asleep.” He gives you a small kiss on your shoulder. “I’m always more than glad to give what I can to you, don’t think that my sacrifices for you are a burden to me.”

Hearing those words makes your eyes water. Even though you know that he loves you, hearing those words from himself washes you over with a wave of reassurance. Although you’ve never doubted it, during a night like this, you become more certain that you really are safe when you’re with him.

“So stop beating yourself up for all the times when you think that you haven’t repaid my love enough. I do all this for you because I love you, not because I need you to pay me back. Alright?”

At this point, tears flow out no matter how hard you try not to let them. “Yes, I’m sorry.” You couldn’t keep the shakiness out of your voice. “Well... you know, I can’t put it to words. I’m just so sorry.”

“No, don’t be.” He puts a hand over your forehead and you turn to bury your head in his chest. He strokes your hair and continues to speak softly, “I understand that we can’t always be together, but being with you tonight and holding you close is more than enough for me. You don’t know how much comfort I feel just by being by your side.”

“Why do you have to say it like that, you’re making me tear up even more.”

“You don’t like it?”

“No, no, it’s very reassuring. Thank you.” You wipe your tears off, giving him a kiss on his jaw.

“Is that all?” He looks down at you and leans in closer. “Can I get more?”

This time, you let out a bigger laugh. “You’re such a baby for someone your age.” You say lovingly. Despite it, you lean in and meet his lips. He smiles as he kisses you back, all while keeping his hands on your waist.

After a few seconds, he pulls back. “Let’s stop here, we might not end until morning.” He says, planting one last kiss on your cheek. “Let’s rest well, we have the entire weekend, anyway.”

“Alright, alright.” You say softly. “Good night, for real this time.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

With that, the both of you fall into a deep sleep, tangled in each other’s arms.

▫▫▫▫▫▫▫▫▫▫▫▫▫▫▫▫▫▫▫

When you wake up, you find yourself alone on the bed with Seungcheol’s scent still lingering faintly on the bedsheets. You shuffle in your place, trying to get yourself adjusted as you ready yourself to get up. After a brief stretch, you pull the bedsheets off of you and head over to the bathroom to wash your face.

“You up?” You hear Seungcheol from downstairs.

“Yeah.” You mumble, still half asleep. 

You hear heavy footsteps on the stairs, followed by a pair of hands on your shoulders as you rub your face with soap.

“How long have you been up?” You look at him through the reflection in the mirror, hair disheveled and faint stubble apparent on his jaw.

“Probably thirty minutes or so. I went out and got us some coffee and bread from the bakery down the street.” He rubs small circles on your back. “Let’s eat and go out for a walk.”

“Sounds good.” You say as you wipe your face with a towel.

The two of you spend the rest of the day relaxing in different ways possible. After a small stroll in the nearby secluded park, both of you went back home to watch a series of movies. On his days off, you knew that Seungcheol was the type to enjoy lying around rather than going up and about. You didn’t mind either; cuddling up to Seungcheol was like hugging a giant teddy bear. To be honest, it relieved your stress more than the movies you watched.

After a short nap and a few snacks, the both of you get ready to head out for your promised drive. You take with you some extra snacks and your polaroid camera, making sure to bring his favorites along in your small backpack. You return to the living room wearing a comfortable dress and some sandals, earning a dimpled smile from your boyfriend.

“You look nice.” He says, car keys in one of his hands. “Got all you need?”

“Yeah, let’s go. We have to get there before the sun sets so we can take good photos.” You say excitedly. After all the long hours at the office, going outside was literally a breath of fresh air. “Let’s stop by at the noodle shop at the mountain for dinner afterward.”

“Is it really just about food and photos?” He says jokingly. He takes your hand and the both of you walk out together. Seungcheol makes sure that all the doors are locked before both of you get into his car and drive out onto the highway.

You pull up your phone and connect it to the car, choosing the playlist you reserve for going out on long rides.

“Don’t tell me, you actually made a playlist just for this?” He asks, putting one of his hands on your thigh as he makes a turn to the left. “You even have some of our songs on your playlist.”

“A road trip isn’t complete without music. I’ll be in charge of the song, just focus on driving.” You say as you flip through the playlist.

He says nothing and simply smiles, tapping your thigh to the beat of the song. When one of the old ballads comes on, the both of you burst out singing. When one of his rap songs comes up, you try to catch up to the lyrics, only to get a burst of laughter from Seungcheol.

Even without talking much during the drive, these little moments made you happy. You didn’t want to forget it when the both of you would get back to your daily schedules, so you pull out the polaroid camera from your bag and take a photo of him as he drives.

“Hey! I wasn’t ready!” He says, looking to the side as he drives.

“Eyes on the road, Cheol.” You say, satisfied with the picture as you pull it out of the camera. “What are you so worried about, you look good in the photo.”

“You know, I gained a bit of weight during the promotional period.” He said in a soft voice. “I thought that I’d be able to make up for what I eat by practicing hard, but that wasn’t the case.”

You turn to him and put your hand on his stomach, giving it a tiny rub. “I think you look better and healthier nowadays. So long as you’re in a healthy weight, you don’t have to worry about it.”

You smile and run your hand through his hair. Seeing him putting on weight was much better than seeing him sad and deflated. You remember him back in 2019 when he lost so much weight because of his mental health. It was the time the two of you almost broke up; you wouldn’t want to see him being sad like that ever again.

“We’re almost there,” Seungcheol says, slowly hitting the breaks as he approaches a stoplight. “Give me the camera, I want a photo of you in the car too.”

You hand him a camera and give him your widest smile. Just as the photo was taken, the stoplight turns green. He quickly gives you back the camera and focuses back on the road.

“I’m sorry sir, you have failed your driver’s test.” You tell him, giving him an exaggerated look of disappointment.

“Your fault for being distracting.” He replies with a pout.

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

As you go up the sloped road into the mountain, you’re filled with a sense of glee. You press a button to pull down the windows and feel the fresh air rush into the car. Just in time, one of your favorite acoustic ballad songs comes up.

“Today is such a good day.” You say under your breath.

Eventually, you arrive at your stop. At the end of the mountain road, there’s a small garden cafe that overlooks the whole city. At the back, there’s a small open field where a few families and couples have set up their picnic blankets as they await the sunset.

Cheol turns off the engine after parking underneath one of the trees. You hurriedly open the door, slinging your bag behind your back. You run over to the door of the cafe where they’ve set up a small flower booth. “Cheol, come on! Look, it’s so nice over here!”

“I won’t even be surprised if you trip out of excitement.” He says with a laugh. He locks the car and heads over to you.

You take out the polaroid camera and take picture of the both of you. You wait for the photo to come out, only to see the Seungcheol wasn’t looking at the camera--he was looking at you. It makes you a bit flustered, and you quickly tuck the picture into your backpack.

“What? You didn’t let me see it.” He puts his hands on his hips, but you’re already making your way into the cafe. “Hey!”

You can’t help but have a smile on your face. Even though you’re already moving into your late twenties, you still feel like a teenager when you’re with him. It doesn’t help that he also has a childish side to him that makes you want to tease him even more.

“Look, they’ve got all kinds of cake.” You say as you look through the glass counters. “Oh, and macarons too!”

“Let’s get the macarons, then. It’ll be easier to bring out on the field.” He says as he pulls out his wallet. However, you put your hand over his to stop him.

“I want to pay for this one, at least. You’ve been buying everything since yesterday, I should at least treat you just this once.” You say firmly. He opens his mouth to object, but you quickly cut him off. “If you’re saying no, I’m going to leave you behind in the mountains and you’ll have to sleep in a tree trunk.”

He gives you a look of both confusion and amusement, but ends up laughing it off anyway. “Alright, fine.”

You finish the transaction with a box of macarons, some tea, and a slightly thinner wallet. The both of you settle down at a spot near a tree with a wooden table and two chairs. 

You take out your camera and take more photos of him, happy to see his dimpled smile. He does the same for you, smiling as every picture comes out. For a moment, he lingers on the last picture.

“Hey, do you remember when we first met?” He says, putting down the photo on the table as he looks up at you. “We had a very weird way of meeting.”

“You just debuted around that time right?” You say, taking a bite of one macaron. “I was a working student that happened to get lost at the hectic backstage. If it weren’t for you, I’d probably never be able to find my way home that night.”

“I don’t know if I’ve said this before, but it was like meeting a lost cat, for real. I was panicking inside because I thought that I’d end up making you cry.” He says with a small chuckle. “You’re still as clumsy, but at least you’re now responsibly clumsy.”

“I almost made you late for your performance.”

“But it ended up well anyway.” He says with a shrug. “Who knew I’d be meeting you more than once for other promotional activities? It was only when you were transferred to another branch that I didn’t get to meet you as often.”

“We had our first big fight that time. You wanted to live together, or at least closer to each other, but my parents wouldn’t allow it.” You run your finger through the rim of your cup.

He puts his elbows on the table and leans in closer to you. “You’re not going to cry again, are you?”

You wave him off with a laugh. “Of course not. I’m just, you know, happy that we’ve come this far. We’ve had to hide to for quite a while, even going as far as telling people that I’m a staff member.”

“But what if we don’t have to hide it anymore?” His tone suddenly goes serious.

“You know we can’t do that.” You say with a sad smile. You look down at your cup. This time, you really are trying to bite back the tears. You didn’t want to cry, not when the day has been going well so far.

You hear him shuffle in his seat, but you keep your head down. He stays silent for a few moments before sliding something on the table.

“Look at me.” He says gently. You look up and see both of his hands on the table, with a tender look in his eyes. “What if we don’t have to hide it anymore?”

“Then I’ll go to your schedules every day and say cute and embarrassing stuff in front of your members. I’ll post wacky pictures of us without having to worry about all the comments.” You say with a laugh as tears fall down. To be honest, you don’t even know why you’re crying. Perhaps it’s the accumulation of all the times you’ve missed him, or of all the times you wished that he was just a normal person. You’ve always made sure to be careful not to let it show.

He takes your hand and puts it on top of his other hand. After a short pause, he puts both of his hands over yours. That’s when you notice a small box beneath your hands.

Your eyes quickly shoot up to his, and you see a faint hint of tears threatening to fall. “Open it.” He says simply.

You pull out the box, your heartbeat beating faster and louder than it has ever done before. With shaky hands, you open the box to find a silver ring inside with your name on it.

“I’m sorry for making you wait all this time.” He says.

You look up at him, now crying uncontrollably. You love this man so much, you couldn’t explain it. A part of you is in shock at what’s happening, while another part is leaping over in joy.

“I’ve talked about it with the company, had a long talk with the kids.” He says, wiping the tears off your face with his thumb. “I talked with your parents too. It took me a lot to convince them, but they said that they’d allow it.”

You put a hand over your mouth, trying not to let him see the mess that you’re in.

“So what I’m saying is, will you marry me?”

You nod your head, still unable to contain your emotions. “Of course I will.”

Seungcheol tries to contain his smile, but ends up crying along with you. “Ah, come on, we need to stop crying.” He wipes away his own tears and pulls the ring out of the box.

Your vision is blurry, but you manage to give him your hand. He puts it on you and pulls out his own ring afterward. With a shaky hand, you put his ring on him, albeit not without a fit of tears.

Moments later, you hear a loud cheer from behind. When you look back, you see all his members smiling and waving. You quickly wipe away your tears, trying to at least cover up the mess you were in. From now on, these aren’t just going to be Cheol’s kids, but they are also going to be yours.

“Congratulations!” They say, giving Seungcheol punches and slaps on the back.

“Didn’t I tell you guys not to follow us here!?” He says angrily. However, you can’t help but laugh at him being embarrassed. “I made sure to go somewhere far so that you wouldn’t even think of stopping by!”

Nevertheless, he gets showed with calls and cheers.

At that moment, you finally compose yourself. This was going to be the start of the time where you would no longer have to hide. You’re happy. You’re excited.

Seungcheol looks over at you in the midst of the chaos, smiling back.

“Let’s take a photo with both of your rings,” Jeonghan says as he picks up the camera from the table. “It’s a shame to come all the way here just to cry and go home.”

With puffy eyes, both of you stand in front of the camera with your hands up to show the rings. Now, he had more than one ring in his hand--one for his brothers in the group, and one for you.

Here’s to great years ahead.

- END -

[gildedmuse]

Room For One More

I wrote this just off the cuff, for no reason. It was inspired in part by conversations with @jhaernyl and @babblebuzz so I encourage you to blame them, even though neither of them asked for this, wanted it, or suspected they were about to get 1000+ words in their messages. 

It’s suppose to be Mihawk.x Law x Zoro, but it never got so far. It features Mihawk x Law as a married couple, Zoro as Mihawk’s too young and too cute and too sexy assistant that Law finds just suspicious... And also really fucking hot.

PS: Sorry for the requests I haven’t filled, especially Go To War For You. It’s coming, I swear! I just got out of the hospital and straight back to work, and I lost my train of thought there. But I’m slowly writing it out. Because obviously I love me some MiZoLaw

PPS: See people this is what you message me/converse with me. I just write up 1000 words of nothing. You are to blame.

Room For One More: Get Him Out

Ooohh... Au where Law is married to Mihawk and one day he comes home to find his husband leaning over and around this green haired.... KID (that's what he is, he is a goddamn kid, Law thinks. He may be all of 18. Barely.) Law just stands in the door, utterly unacknowledged as Mihawk continues speaking in that low, sexy voice of his and Law is too upset to even hear what he's saying, but he sure as hell can see the way his husband's mouth is so close to the boy's ear the three gold bars hanging from it jingle together. Like a fucking alarm bell as far as Law is concerned.

Law coughs.

Twice.

That finally does it. Both of them turn as if they just noticed Law when he'd come in mid rant about a patient who just won't take his damn meds and paperwork and yet only know have they managed to notice his existence.

Mihawk smiles even as Law glares him down. "Law, you're home early."

"Actually, I'm home precisely when I was supposed to be."

Mihawk nods, brow furrowing for a mere second, thrown by the snippiness in Law's voice. Oh sorry I sound upset about walking in on your clearly private session with school boy jezebel here, honey. "Which in your case, is early. I can't name the last time you did not stay late at the hospital for one reason or another."

"I had a frustrating day, I wanted to call it an early night. I wasn't aware that we'd have... guests." Law's eyes not so subtly fall to the boy, unable to see him completely since he's still sitting there between his husband's arms. Plus he's gone back to whatever is in front of him on the table. Sure, now he feels a sense of shame.

When his gaze goes back to his husband, Mihawk has an eyebrow raised. Law knows that look. The "I am older and wiser than you and do not understand at times why you behave the way you do" look. Law hates that look, but right at this particular moment it makes him want to stab something.

Preferably something green, cute, and sitting in between his husband's arms like it's no big deal.

"I informed you earlier. Red-Hawk offices are under going heavy renovation and will be unusable for the next two weeks, forcing me to work from home." Yes, Law remembers the conversation. Although, admittedly, only barely. He'd had just gotten off two major surgeries and countless troublesome patients and a 12 hour shift. Mihawk himself had apparently been forced to run meeting after meeting, and all alone thanks to the newly wedded Shanks and Benn having both come down with some undescribed illness, that was on top of his normal work overseeing product development, speaking with potential clients, whatever he did at that office of his, the very description of which always bored Law. He knows it's something sports related, that it makes incredibly good money but also keeps Mihawk constantly busy and nearly as exhausted as Law. Just the other day he ended up sleeping over at the office and...

Oh. Oh, fuck, Law has been so stupid and naïve. And he supposes this boy's name just happens to be At-the-office.

"This is Roronoa Zoro," Mihawk continues, ignoring the narrowing of Law's eyes. "He's one of our interns. He's acting as my temporary assistant while Perona is on vacation."

Right... The pink haired gothic doll that acts as his husband's right hand.... Lolita (that wording had never sounded so wrong to Law. He'd met Perona plenty of times. While the girl gets on his nerves, she is apparently incredibly effective. He's also seen her with Mihawk and there is absolutely nothing going on there.) Her absence is part of what's been adding to his husband's recent stress at work.

Stress he's apparently found a cure for. A very new cure, apparently. Barely old enough to be out of testing.

The boy glances back at Law since the first time since he first interrupted them. His husband stands up, freeing the boy to sit up a little straighter. Law had been right. He is cute. Annoyingly so.

"Hey there," the boy says in such an incredibly causal tone it actually throws Law for a second.

"Roronoa," Mihawk's already low voice seems to dip a little deeper, more authoritative. Usually sexy as hell, goes right to Law's cock. Unless he's exhausted. Or it's being used on his fucking boy toy.

The kid actually rolls his eyes! "Sorry. How do you do, Dracule-san," Zoro says, using his schoolboy on his best behavior voice which, who knows, he may actually still have use for. His voice is lower than Law had assumed, almost expecting him to sound like a child not yet through puberty.

"It's Trafalgar, actually," Law corrects him, and it's a pointed correction. Instead of being relieved that at least the boy knows he is indeed the husband here, he's more annoyed than ever. So Mihawk told him he was married and the boy came anyway?

Zoro shrugs off the mistake, apparently entirely unaffected by Law's rather legendary bad looks. "S-- My apologies, Trafalgar, I was unaware."

Law can't help but notice that despite the still formal language, Zoro has already thrown away the honorific. Much like he already thrown away any respect for the sanctity of Law's wedding vows.

You know what, no. Law's day had been hell and this is simply too much right now. "Excuse me. I'm starving," he mutters. He moves by Mihawk without stopping for their usual kiss, not even looking at his husband as he goes to open the fridge.

It doesn't mean he misses the way his husband's striking golden eyes follow him, just like a hawk's would as it studies its prey. Nor does he miss how eventually the feeling burning into the back of his neck drops away. He hears a low sigh, almost neutral except he knows his husband. He can hear the frustration.

Good. Let him be frustrated..

"Roronoa," Mihawk says, sounding almost as tired as Law feels. "Do you remember when I showed you the study earlier, where I keep all the file logs."

Law is too busy trying to ignore the goddamn child in his kitchen to care what he replies. He does, however, get out some vegetables right at that moment, and so sees the way Zoro turns his head up, exposing a long column of his neck, stretching it above the collar of his undone dress shirt, as he gives his husband a sort of searching look, pausing before he nods.

"Could you take the papers up there, please, and finish the form as instructed. Law is trying to dig out a damn chopping block but does hear the boy say, "Yeah, sure." and the scratch of chair legs along with shuffling papers.

Just as Law has finally found what he needed, right where it was supposed to be but that's not the point, he hears Mihawk approaching. Before he even makes it halfway to Law he's stopped. "Wait."

Law looks up on instinct. Mihawk's deep voice also attracts Zoro, who had finally almost been gone. "Don't start the next form until I am there. Simply file what we've completed."

"Yeah, okay."

"That will be all, Roronoa." Zoro actually has the nerve to roll his eyes before he turns to start leaving again. Not that he gets far. "Roronoa," his husband adds with another sigh. Frustrated still, annoyed and... endeared. Yes, damnit, Law knows Mihawk too well.. "It is the other door." Zoro's shoulders go very stiff. He huffs but says nothing, making a quick turn and marching out of their kitchen. At least.

Law slams the chopping board down on the counter so hard he's surprised neither of them breaks.

"Law.." Mihawk places a heavy hand on Law's shoulder which is quickly dismissed. He picks up a knife - perhaps not the best choice at the moment... For Mihawk - and starts chopping away at some peppers. They are nice and green and easy for him to slice apart. "Law... Darling," Mihawk tries again, this time not attempt to touch him. He is watching Law chop apart the pepper, which is good. One of them should probably be paying attention to the way he wielding a sharp blade around his fingers while exhausted and enraged. "Very well, I can see that you've come to certain conclusions, but let me assure you those assumption are entirely incorrect, likely the result of your long shifts and lack of sleep.

Law ends up embedding the knife in the board. He turns to Mihawk, an aura of pure darkness. Honestly, he loves the man, bit is this the time for one of his "be sensible, I'm right" speeches? Law glares up at him, temped just storm out only that would just make Mihawk feel more confirmed in his believe that Law is over reacting.

Instead, after a deep breath, Law starts in on him, his voice low and logical while still with an edge of danger. "I walked into our kitchen to find you leaning over some boy BARELY out of high school - hopefully! - whispering in his damn ear.... Don't think I don't remember you doing that to me. I believe you later admitted to loving being able to watch my face as you slowly worked me up into a frenzy. Was the boy getting hard for you? Or had you only just started?"

Law's voice is laced with some much bitterness and maybe... Maybe some heartbreak but Law is burying that deep right now. Yet Mihawk's face gives him nothing. His husband leans against the counter with his arms crossed, watching him go off on this rant with neutral and yet somehow analytical expression. That just drives Law temperature even further. Even more than Mihawk's utter lack of an answer.

"Your reaction?" Law's voice is raising with every word, furious that Mihawk is giving him so little when Law has every right to be mad. "Once I get you attention, at least. You're very first comment when I come home exhausted and stressed and find you with some green haired, rude little brat? Surprise that I'm home early."

"I apologize, Hawk-ya, that in interrupted your time with-

Mihawk pulls Law in for a kiss. It's not sensual or deep, but it's sincere. Which... Law can't even understand. It makes no sense. It makes Law want to cry and as that realizes comes Law realized he already has been.

Why is Mihawk doing this to him? Just tell him the truth.

When he pulls back, Mihawk appears at least somewhat contrite. Still, when he finally nods it feels like like an agreement and more like he's acquiescing. "Perhaps it would have given the circumstance to give you more time to adjust to this change, but let me assure you that Roronoa is only here in an official, business capacity. "

"And what's his business? Sucking my husband's cock?" Law bites back, no longer wanting Mihawk to try and disguise what is obvious, like he thinks Law is an idiot or, more likely, so overworked and so rarely home he simply would never notice the indiscretion and would be too exhausted to bother caring if he did.

Is that... Is that how Mihawk sees their relationship?

Mihawk reaches for him again but Law has had enough. He jerks away before Mihawk even gets close to touching him, eyes fire and challenges as he stares up at the older man. “Where did you pick him up? A damn kindergarten?”

“He’s an intern for RedHawk, as I explained earlier,” while Mihawk’s words are still rather simple, straight forward in many ways, his tone is patient. Like he’s dealing with a damn child. “And he is nineteen.” Well, he probably has practice since he’s sleeping with one. “Please, Law, you are clearly exhausted. Let me finish instructing Zoro on some final matters and we’ll both of us lay down. It’s been a hard week and-”

Oh, he’s sure his husband will instruct the boy on all sorts of things. Law swings around, hunger completely forgotten. “You’re right, Hawk-ya,” he spits the old nickname with a venom, storming from the kitchen, his hunger completely forgotten. “I do need rest. And frankly I think that is more likely to happen if I don’t have to share my bed with two other people.”