#I forgot a bunch of groups but OH WELL!

[californiaquail]

went out to brunch for my friends birthday and nobody believed me when i said everyone at my workplace doesn't like me and wants me gone so now i'm laying in bed crying and like gaslighting myself about it. lol but the eggs benedict was great

[trippinsorrows]

give me a reason + two

authors note: wow! so humbled by people's interest in this one! forgot to mention that i'll be playing around with joe's career, in terms of the timeline and whatnot.

also, if ya'll ever watched the bernie mac show, i was very much inspired in one section by that scene where vanessa and them was doing that car wash at bernie's house lmaooo

in addition (last point, i swear lmao), i can do faceclaims for the character, mainly mariella's family. if ya'll want. i know some people prefer to visualize for themselves. just lmk.

i don't own any lyrics used.

previous chapter

words: 7k

song inspo: just give me a reason by p!nk and nate ruess

warnings: language, fluff, some angst, blink and you'll miss it sexy time.

Spring, 2005

Spring break.

The time looked forward to by most students, especially college students, who are granted a free week to get into all kinds of trouble, mischief and then return to campus like nothing ever happened. 

Joe and Byron can’t deny that they’ve definitely had their fair share of that the first part of college, but now with two years under their belts and only two years left to go, they’re focused on having killer seasons and landing their dreams of going into the NFL.

It’s why when coach decides to give the players a break, canceling all practices during said break, there’s not even an initial question about what they should do with their time.

Home.

They’re going home.

Because while being away is nice at times, there’s absolutely no place like home and being surrounded by the people you love the most.

Byron glances at Joe who’s looking down at his phone. “You gonna see Brianna while we in town?”

Joe looks up. He can’t say he hasn’t thought about it. Brianna, Joe’s last high school girlfriend, was inarguably the easiest of all the girls he’s ever dated. And if not for him not wanting to be tied down while away at college, he would have tried to make it work. 

“I don’t know,” he answers, truthfully. “We’ll see.”

“Well, I’m definitely hitting up Tamia. Heard she and ole’ dude broke up.”

Joe shakes his head. Tamia has been Byron’s on and off girlfriend since freaking middle school. They date, break up, date other people, break up with said other people and start right back over. Truthfully, Joe can see Tamia being the one for Byron considering how long they’ve been in this little cycle. 

“Just make sure you’re safe, man.”

Byron looks like he’s just been told to make sure he wears a seatbelt. “Always, bro. You know me.”

Joe knows him alright. Knows he can be reckless at times. And with so much at stake in the next upcoming two years, they can’t afford to be reckless. 

“I do. That’s why I’m saying it.”

“Man….” Joe laughs at Byron’s dismissal. “What do we have here?” Joe turns his attention to where Byron has set his gaze only to quickly scowl with disgust. “Ugh, they in high school.”

Joe is also instantly repulsed. “That’s fucking gross.” 

Byron shakes in his seat, as if trying to shake the disgust off himself when he sees something. “Wait a minute…” Joe again tries to see what’s triggered the exclamation of irritation. “Oh hell no.”

“What are you—what the hell!” Joe shouts out as Byron suddenly swerves into the next turn lane, barely missing hitting a car. “The fuck are you doing, man!”

“That’s Ella out there!” He answers, speeding near the station where a bunch of high school girls are operating a car wash, trying to raise money for who knows what. 

At the mention of Ri, Joe’s attention is snatched. “What?” He’s looking around as Byron looks to quickly park the truck, clearly eager to get out. Joe doesn’t see her just yet. It’s not until they’re parked and out of the car that his eyes land on her.

Her smile is the first thing he notices. She’s laughing. Not surprising. For as long as he’s known her, which has been his whole life essentially, she’s always the one in the group to make everyone laugh.

Usually from her klutziness. 

It’s never a dull moment with Mariella Holmes. 

Moving closer, he can see that it’s definitely Ri, and she’s giggling along with the other girls, dancing to what he recognizes is Black Eyed Peas latest song, “My Humps.”

It’s that realization that helps Joe understand why Byron is so annoyed.

The dancing could be seen as a bit provocative.

“Ella!”

Her head snaps up at Byron’s voice, easily landing on him. Joe watches her mouth drop open in shock before she shouts, “BJ!”

Dropping the soapy rag in the bucket, she’s nearly sprinting over to the two of them, tackling Byron with a hug first. “What are you doing here?”

It’s when she steps back that she moves over to him. She smirks, crossing her arms. “Should have known you wouldn’t turn down a chance to come see me.”

Joe laughs, pulling her in for a hug. “Never.”

“What am I doing here?” Byron cuts in, angrily gesturing to her. “What are you doing out here dressed like this?”

She looks down at her outfit, frowning. Joe does the same. It’s a bathing suit top with jean shorts and flip flops. What’s so bad about that?

And she expresses as such.

“Ummm, the dance team is having a car wash. We’re trying to raise money for travel costs this season.”

This doesn’t seem acceptable to Byron as he asks, “well, you ain’t having nothing else to wear? All exposed and everything.”

That’s when she rolls her eyes. “Oh my god, you’re so annoying.” 

He starts to pull his shirt off when even Joe chimes in, “dude, come on.”

“She’s half naked!”

“I’m wearing a bathing suit, BJ.” Mariella says it like he’s slow. Like he was on the short bus. “I know you’ve been away at school, so you haven’t been around as much, but I have boobs now—”

At that, both Joe and Byron turn up their nose. The last thing they need is that type of visual.

She continues, gesturing to her body. “I hit puberty, and allll the areas started filling out. It happens!”

“I’m gonna be sick.” Byron covers his mouth. “I don’t give a damn. You’re sixteen, not twenty-one.”

She gives a sly smile. “That’s not what my fake ID says.”

Joe catches her gaze, seeing that she’s just messing with him. It makes him laugh. 

“Your what? Girl, you done lost your damn mind.”

She laughs, shaking her head. “Relax, BJ. You know I can’t get a fake ID. My dumbass would feel too bad and turn myself in.”

“That’s true,” Joe chimes, and she glares, reaching over to hit him. She starts to say something, only for her eyes to go wide. “What’s wrong?”

She says nothing, just awkwardly shifting her weight from one leg to another. He starts to ask again when a new voice joins the conversation. 

“Hey, babe.”

Byron jumps to a new level of annoyance. “Babe?” He and Joe watch as some scrawny looking little boy, who’s really not that scrawny in actuality but looks it compared to Byron and Joe, walks up to Mariella, kissing her. 

Byron looks like he’s about to have a stroke. He asks with all the smoke. “Who the hell are you?” 

Scrawny scoffs and has the audacity to throw the question back at him. “Who the hell are you?”

“Oh my god.” Mariella murmurs, slapping her hand against her forehead. “BJ, this is my boyfriend, Derrick—”

Mariella having a boyfriend makes sense to Joe. She’s 16 now. Why wouldn’t she be dating? It’s normal and expected. 

If only Byron saw it that way. “Boyfriend? Since when do you have a boy—”

“Derrick, this is my brother, BJ or Byron, and basically like my non-blood brother, Joe.”

Scrawny AKA Derrick looks like he’s seen a ghost. “Oh shit, my bad—”

If only he knew that Byron doesn’t forgive nor does he forget when it comes to his little sisters, especially Mariella. 

He steps toward the shorter young man. “Naw. You bad. You wanted to know who the hell I was, so let me tell you, I’m the nigga that’s gon fuck you up if you ever—”

“Byron!” Mariella is now fuming, grabbing him by his arm as she tugs him in a different direction. “Give us a couple minutes.” She flashes a sweet smile at Derrick and a pleading expression to Joe for him to also be nice.

Joe waits until they’re out of hearing distance. He then slaps Derrick on the arm. “Don’t take it personally. That’s just Byron. He’s always been a hothead.”

Derrick gives a nervous laugh, showing off braces that Joe didn’t notice before. He refrains from frowning. Ri could definitely do better than this dweeb. “You like Ri?”

Derrick shrugs, offering an unimpressive. “She’s alright.”

And that’s all Joe needs to hear to know what this kid is really about. Stepping toward him, he keeps his voice leveled and expression ice cold. “Do anything to hurt her, and you won’t have to worry about Byron.” He gives a steel smile. “I’m the one you’ll never see coming.”

———-

Present 

Post-traumatic amnesia (PTA) 

Or some milder form of it. 

Amnesia, at the very least.

That’s what Dr. Reynolds says is the cause of Mari’s complete loss of memory. A result of the head trauma she received from the accident. A prognosis that somehow feels almost worse than the coma, at least to Joe.

Because for the life of him, he doesn’t know how to look at the woman he’s known his entire life, and have her look back at him like he’s a stranger, like she has no idea who he is. 

Because she doesn’t have any idea who he is.

As devastating as that blow is, he knows it hits harder for her parents. April nearly collapsed in Byron Sr’s arms as Dr. Reynolds informed them of Mari’s memory loss.

She was in tears, desperately asking, “but—but she’ll get them back, right, doctor?”

And Joe only has to glance at the doctor, the way his lips press together before he informs sympathetically, “we don’t know. Some patients do eventually retrieve their memories. Others….others never do.”

Joe can’t even allow himself to think of the latter option. 

A couple days post coma, he knocks on her door, seeing she’s alone, her parents most likely grabbing food or something.

She glances at the door offering a small smile that doesn’t meet her eyes. It’s insincere, and he doesn’t know how to feel about that either, because one of the things he’s always loved about her has always been her smile. So big and infectious. Just like her personality. 

“Hey.” There’s nothing big and infectious about her almost unsure tone. 

“Hey.” He doesn’t wait for her to welcome him in, just walks in, taking the seat on the side of her bed. “How you feeling?”

She gives a one sided shrug. He notices the cuts and bruising on her face have gone down tremendously. That's a plus in a situation full of minuses. “Don’t know.” After obviously thinking about the question more, she offers a more descriptive answer. “Very...confused.”

“About?” He then adds. “Maybe I can clear it up for you.”

“I don’t know. It’s….it’s mostly about who I am.” He could definitely answer that one for her. She shakes her head, providing an example. “Like, I’m apparently this big singer, but I can’t even think about singing right now. It doesn’t—it doesn’t even feel like me.” She chuckles bitterly. “Not that I know who me is.”

“You love music. Always have. And you’re good at it. Singing. Writing. Producing. Dancing. All of it.” She looks over at him as he says with all the honesty and sincerity, “there’s nothing, creatively, you can’t do.”

Mariella nods, as if taking in the information to analyze later on. “What about you?” She asks. “What do you do?”

A lot of things. A lot of things he now regrets deeply. But, that’s not her question. “Professional wrestler.” He starts to say WWE to see if she knows what that is, but that isn’t important. Shit about him isn’t the priority. 

Mariella looks him over, nodding. “It fits.”

He smiles a bit. The first he’s done in weeks. “What else do you want to know?”

She’s quiet for a few moments before asking the question he didn’t know he was dreading until now. “How did I end up here?”

What a loaded question he was absolutely not prepared for.

There’s a lot of things that led them to where they are right now. A lot of which he blames himself for, and her as well, but not nearly as much as he blames himself. They both played a role in how badly their relationship deteriorated, but Joe puts the bulk of it on himself. 

He’s older and should know better.

But, the specific incident that resulted in her accident, the blowout that ended with her requesting the one thing she always swore she never wanted to have happened when they got married…that’s it.

That is the truth she is probably looking for. It’s a truth, however, he can’t find it in him to tell her.

Because selfishly, he doesn’t want that to be the thing to trigger her memories, or any memories of all the things that have gone so terribly wrong the past two years. He doesn’t want that for her.

Doesn’t want it for them.

It’s why he settles on an answer that’s neither a lie but also not the full truth.

“You had a lot on your mind and went for a drive.” His voice shifts into something quiet. He’s still trying to process his feelings about that part of this whole thing. “You were hit head on by a drunk driver.”

Silence.

For a brief second, he’s unsure if he should have just told the truth. Been honest with her and let the cards fall as they may.

And then she speaks.

“Well, that’s unfortunate.” He looks up. Joe sees it. That sense of humor that some could only take in doses, but for him, it’s always been a highlight. She’s always been able to put a smile on his face even in the darkest of his days. “How long have we been married?”

Another unexpected question, but he answers truthfully. “This March makes 11 years.”

“Wow.” This seems to take her by surprise. “And how long have we been together?”

“That….that’s a bit of a long story.”

She lifts her brow, gesturing to her hospital bed. “Not like I have anywhere to be.”

He chuckles. She has a point, but the story of them…that seems too complicated or detailed to share in a freaking hospital. Because in his mind, he’s started to sort the different ways and things he can do to help remind her of who she is. 

Of who they were. 

Finally, he answers, “I just—I think you should—” 

There’s a knock on the door, Joe turning to see April and Byron Sr.

April is the first to speak, walking over to them. “I’m sorry to interrupt.” She’s almost hesitant to move too close. Joe can see she wants nothing more to engulf her youngest in a hug but recognizes the same almost uncomfortable expression Mariella wore the minute he walked in.

“It’s okay.” He assures, going to stand up. “I’ll leave you guys—”

“Actually,” Byron Sr. interjects, shooting Joe a sympathetic expression. “We were hoping to speak with you.” He looks toward Mariella, and Joe hates it. Hates the almost discomfort that exists between them. She’s always been super close with her parents. Especially her dad. “If that’s alright, sweetheart?”

Mariella shrugs, clearly unbothered. “Sure.” She starts to lay back in her bed a little. “I’m kinda tired anyway.”

Joe wonders how much of that is truth, and how much of it is her just wanting to be alone from people who are virtual strangers.

Strangers…

That’s definitely a word he never thought could be used in any context regarding Mariella.

Once outside the room and in the private waiting area, her parents wait until a set of nurses pass before April is the first to speak. She reaches over and places a comforting hand. “How are you doing, Joe? Really?”

A mess. He’s a fucking mess. Joe has seen much, much better days than the past few weeks. But, he also doesn’t want to make this about him, about his mental state, so he provides a half truth.

“Been better.” His response is gruff as he quickly moves to change topics. “What about you guys?”

Having his wife have no idea who he is is brutal, but he can’t even begin to imagine what it’s been like for two parents to not have their youngest child recognize them, to have no idea who they are.

Byron Sr. is the first to answer, mirroring his son-in-law’s words. “Been better.” 

April shifts in her seat, bringing her hand back to her lap. “We umm—we spoke to Dr. Reynolds earlier today.”

Joe looks up, partially wondering why he wasn’t present for that meeting. “Okay.”

“She doesn’t remember anything, Joe. Not her childhood. Not her family. Not…not even us.” April voice breaks at the end of her statement as Joe looks away. Hearing this again isn’t exactly helpful, though he would never disrespect her parents by asking them to shut up. Even if it’s what he wants. “And we—well, we just think—”

Byron Sr. cuts in, hand on his wife’s knee. “We want to take her back home with us, Joe.” Joe’s stomach drops. “We want to take her back to Florida.”

———-

Spring, 2022

Cameras.

That’s the one thing Mariella, Mari, still struggles to get used to. The bright lights flashing in her face as her photo is taken, whether on the red carpet, on the stage, or even when she’s just making a run to the grocery store. The latter one hasn’t happened as much as it used to, for which she’s grateful, but still.

So there’s a bit of an adjustment as she looks around the room, the hair and makeup team touching up her face once more before they kick off the segment.

She doesn’t regret it. Doesn’t regret it at all. It’s a good look for him. For her too. And beyond any type of benefit for their careers, she’s just happy she gets to see him.

Because that’s the part she doesn’t think she’ll ever truly get over or be okay with.

The distance.

As directed, she walks down the hall, making sure not to look directly into the camera. This is made infinitely easier by pretending she’s shooting a music video. Which, truth be told, it isn’t very different. 

Mari wears the confused expression perfectly, looking down at her phone as if it has information that could help her when she ‘accidentally’ walks into him.

Head up, she gasps and immediately gets to apologizing, just as was in the script. “Oh my gosh, I am so sorry. I wasn’t even looking where I was going.”

His eyes widen as he ‘realizes’ who she is. “Wow. No, you are absolutely fine. Wow. You’re Mari!”

Smiling, she points at him, “and you are…..”

He seems a bit taken back at first, like he’s waiting for her to also recognize him. When that doesn’t happen, he offers his hand. “Sami Zayn. Master strategist and locker room leader.”

She nods, perfectly conveying another confused look at just what that means. “Does—does that mean you’re good with directions? Cause I suck at them.”

“It absolutely does, and you are in luck, because I just so happen to be free right now and would love to give you a tour.”

She opens her mouth to protest, “oh, that’s so sweet, but I really should—” she looks down at her phone. “You know what, I’m a little early, so why not?”

“Awesome.” He claps his hands together and offers his arm. Mari smiles and links hers in his as he starts leading them down the hall, pointing out the most obvious of things. 

The camera cuts, and she engages in conversation with Sami, who’s actually a lot like the ‘character’ he plays. Super charismatic and engaging. Kinda reminds her of herself. So much so that before she realizes, they’re back to recording after having moved across the arena. 

“And lastly we have—” His eyes suddenly widen as he realizes where they are, Sami moving his hand to her back as he directs them in the opposite direction. “Wait, we do not want to go—”

“There it is!” Mari, however, is smiling brightly as she walks toward the door.

Sami looks like he’s about to have a panic attack, frantically warning, “Mari, I know you’re like an international mega star, but trust me, you do not want to bother that man—” He’s silenced by her knocking on the door. 

His face is turning red as he urgently whispers to her, “we should really get out of here. Like right now!.”

She turns to him, confused. “Why?”

And before Sami can respond, the door is ripped open, the scowling faces of the Usos the first thing Sami lands on. He’s preparing to get chewed out only for them to look at Mari and instantly start smiling.

“Whassup, Mari!” Jimmy is the first to greet her, pulling her in for a hug. Followed by Jey, the two of them engaging in some secret handshake that ends with a ‘Yeet’.

Sami, however, laughs nervously, gesturing between the three. “Wait, you—you guys know Mari?”

Jimmy answers, slinging his arm around her. “Man, of course. This family!”

“You’re related to them?” Sami asks, eyes wide. 

Mari opens her mouth to answer when another person emerges from the private locker room, taking up almost the entire door frame, face stoic and eyes cold. 

Sami looks like he’s about to piss himself. He swallows. “My Tribal Chief, I’m so sorry—”

He’s interrupted by Mari who smiles and pulls away from Jimmy to walk up to Roman.“Hi, baby.” Sami looks on stunned as she leans up and kisses his cheek, pressing her body into his, hand on his abs. “Sorry, I’m a bit late.” She grins over at Sami. “Sami was giving me a tour of the place.”

The reddening of his cheeks is about what and what with the red of his hair. “I don’t—I’m not—”

Playfully rolling her eyes as Roman continues to look like he’s contemplating murder, she lifts her left hand, showing off a beautiful diamond ring. “Roman’s my husband.”

Mouth open like a child who just found out Santa isn’t real, Sami does his best to reel in his surprise. “Of course, you’re married. I totally knew that!” He laughs nervously, hands on his hips. “That’s why I gladly brought you to the Tribal Chief myself. Wanted to ensure nothing but the best for the Bloodline’s first lady.”

“That was really sweet of you. Thank you.” She continues to smile, and Roman continues to send daggers with just one, stolid expression. Mari peers up, kissing him again as she reaches for his hand. “Come on.” She tugs him toward the inside of the locker room, Roman finally budging as he gives Sami one last look that has the redhead contemplating requesting a switch to Raw. 

However, as Jimmy and Jey go to follow along with their cousin, Roman is quick to slam the door in their faces. 

“Hey, Uce, uhhh,—” Jimmy tries to jangle the knob only to realize it’s locked. He starts knocking. “Roman! Hey, you gon let us in?”

A couple seconds later the door does open, but it’s Solo, followed by Paul Heyman. Wise Man closes the door behind him. He looks around, briefly bewildered and clears his throat, announcing, “The Tribal Chief has requested to be left alone this evening.” 

Sami is the only one to laugh, playfully shoving Solo and pointing to the locker room. “I bet he has.” Solo, however, also looks like he’s also contemplating murder. Sami coughs awkwardly and turns to walk away, just as the camera crew announces ‘cut’.

The remaining men share laughs about the promo, meanwhile inside the locker room Mariella relishes in the feel of being reunited with her husband in real life, and now in the WWE kayfabe verse.

She’s pressed against his body, arms around his neck with his locked around her waist, holding her to him. “Hey, Big Daddy.”

Roman, Joe, rolls his eyes. Mariella giggles. She knows he has such a love/hate relationship with the term of endearment, one of many she has for the massive man before her. “You miss me?”

He makes a sound, leaning down to connect their lips. “Always, baby.” 

She smiles into their kiss, “good answer.” His big hands venture down to squeeze her ass, Mariella moaning into his mouth which triggers something for him. He lifts her up, her legs locking around his waist as he goes to sit back down in the big leather chair. Joe’s tongue entering her mouth is enough to elicit another moan but also alert her to the fact of where he wants to take this.

“Baby, we cannot do the nasty at your job.”

“I don’t know why you still call it that.” His fake irritation makes her giggle. It’s an inside joke between them that she’ll never let die so long as she lives. “And who says we can’t?”

“I don’t know. The FCC?” He rolls his eyes as she grasps at his beard that she can tell he dyed recently. Most likely because of his job. She wishes he could leave it be. She likes the gray. It does….things to her. “Besides, you know the deal. If we do it right now, we can’t do it tonight.” He continues to move his hands across her ass. “Mama’s got a show this Sunday, and I’d rather not be rendered immobile because my husband impaled me on his big ole’ dick.”

Again, Joe rolls his eyes, even though there’s more truth to her statement than the typical playful jokes she cracks at any given time. Joe has a high sex drive. She’s known this for some years. Mariella, however, does not. And it’s not even that she doesn’t enjoy sex with her husband. It’s that her husband doesn’t know how to stop, doesn’t know how to come, make her come one time for the one time, and just be done with it.

No. This man wants rounds. And truthfully, she just doesn’t have the stamina to keep up with him. Outside of porn stars, she doesn’t know who would.

Man is an absolute beast.

“So damn dramatic,” he chuckles against her neck. “You know I be doing most of the work anyway.”

She opens her mouth to protest. “Okay, that may or may not be true.” She can feel him smiling against her. It’s not like he minds. Joe is dominant in the sheets, wanting to be in control at all times. Her preference given he’s much more well versed in the sexual arts than she is. “But, in my defense, you’re built like a Greek god.” A Samoan god. “I get winded walking up the staircase in our house.”

“Bullshit.” He pulls back, pointing out. “You be on that stage dancing your ass off for damn near three hours.” 

She rolls her eyes, murmuring, “okay, that also may or may not be true.” Mari’s eyes flutter as he moves his hand under her dress. Long, thick fingers easily pushing aside her underwear, feeling the pool of her arousal. She squeezes his shoulders. “Joe….”

He grunts almost, gliding his fingers across her wet folds. She exhales sharply. “You this wet already and really want me to think you don’t want Big Daddy to fuck this tight lil’ pussy?”

Whining against him, Mariella unconsciously tries to move around on his lap to get his fingers back on her. In her, preferably. And it’s when he enters one of those deliciously talented fingers inside of her gushy opening, she caves. “Fine.” He smirks as she warns, “but you’re pushing me around in the wheelchair after!”

———-

Between a rock and a hard place.

That’s how Joe has felt the past few weeks, maybe even longer. But especially now.

He knows Ri’s parents are right. That they have every right to want her to spend time at home with them, in the place where she grew up, where most of her formative years and subsequent formative memories lie. Logically, it makes sense.

But, he can’t seem to get past his discomfort at the fact that Ri won’t be getting discharged and coming home with him. No, she’ll be discharged and hop on a plane with them back to Florida. Selfishly, he was hoping the doctor wouldn’t clear her to fly, but that plan went out the window. Dr. Reynolds is clearly on the same page with her parents about the potential benefit of being around constant triggers. Triggers that could help generate memories.

And Joe isn’t against that. At all. 

It’s just the fact that he won’t be there that rubs him the right way. 

“Joe.”

His eyes shut, an instant headache coming on. This is the last thing he needs. 

Turning around, he’s met with Olivia “Liv” Holmes default stare of icy indifference. Out of all of Mariella’s siblings, her family in general, Liv has always been his least favorite.

For a lot of different reasons. The main one being how she always treated Mariella when they were younger. Not mean, per se. But not kindly either. She always acted like Mariella was annoying, and she definitely could be at times, but not to the extent that Liv made it seem.

Like Mariella was just this big nuisance. It’s part of the reason she always wanted to hang out with him and Byron when they were growing up, because Liv spent most of her time with her twin sister, Everly, and her own friend group.

“Liv.” He really doesn’t feel like talking to anyone, let alone her. Their interactions have always been brief and limited to what is essential. For good reason too.

“I take it my parents told you we’re taking Ella back home to Florida with us.”

Joe has to bite back a smartass comment. Liv’s smirk and the almost smug tone of her voice isn’t what he needs right now.

“Yes.” He matches her energy a bit, reminding. “For the first couple weeks, at least. Then I’m going to bring her back home with me.” 

Where she belongs.

Liv smiles, but there’s nothing friendly about it. “We’ll see.”

Joe gives her a look. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“You know she called me.” He freezes. “The night of the accident.” Joe manages to keep a calm face despite his surprise at her words. Mariella has never been close with Liv, most of their communication occurring via texts and family group chats. 

There’s only one reason she would call her sister who happens to be a divorce attorney.

“I want a divorce.”

Liv continuing to speak is ironically appreciated, as it pulls him from the memories of what is now an infamous argument. “I was sleeping and missed her call, but she didn’t leave a message. Kinda wishing she did, because I’m still trying to figure out just what the hell she was doing out on the road that late at night.” 

He keeps his cool. Somehow. “I already told you—”

“I know what you said, Joe.” Her interruption is sharp. “I also don’t believe you, because what the hell could she have so heavy on her mind after winning 5 Grammys?” She crosses her arms. “It doesn’t make sense.”

When he doesn’t say anything, she continues her accusatory assault. “You seem to forget that we were in high school together, Joe. I know how you were.” At this, he can’t say anything, can’t necessarily defend himself against truth. “You and Byron fucked damn near half the girls in our school, probably at college too, and then all of a sudden you turn in your hoe card to be with my baby sister? Because you love her? I never bought that shit for a minute.”

While he can’t deny his promiscuous past, Joe isn’t about to stand here and let this woman act like he’s this horrible person who took advantage of Mariella. “What’s your point, Liv? Huh? I’m not fucking stupid. I know you never approved of me being with Ri, but just like I didn’t give a fuck then, I still don’t give a fuck now.”

Liv does relatively well hiding her disapproval among her family, to some extent. But Joe has always been hip to her truth. She thinks Mariella should have gotten with someone else, anyone else probably. Anyone who wasn’t him.

Liv, who has never done well with being challenged, steps forward, glare intense and purposeful. “I’m gonna find out what happened that night, Joe. Because I know there’s something you’re not telling us.” He keeps up his unreadable expression, though there’s a small chunk of guilt swimming around the back of his head. Not even about not being completely honest with Mariella’s family.

More about not being honest with her.

She lowers her voice. “And when I do find out—”

“Liv.”

Joe and Liv turn to see Byron Jr. standing before them with a disappointed expression.

Arms crossed, he steps toward them, focused more on Liv than Joe. “Don’t be starting no shit today, alright? This the last thing we need.”

In recent years, especially since becoming a father, BJ has matured from his hotheaded days, often even a voice of reason. One of the reasons he’s been voted Locker Room captain for his team, the 49ers, 3 years in a row.

Liv rolls her eyes. “You’ve always been blinded by your friendship with him—”

“Hey.” Byron raises his voice a bit. “I mean it. You blaming people doesn’t change what happened, and you know damn well Ella would have a fit at you coming at Joe like this.”

Not really. Maybe before. Before everything collapsed so tragically between the two of them.

“Whatever.” She gives a final almost warning glare to the two of them before stalking off, probably to go see Mariella.

BJ places a comforting hand on Joe’s shoulder once she’s gone. “You good, man?” 

Not at all. “Yeah.” He clears his throat. 

BJ gives a sad smile. “Don’t let Olevil get to you.” Her nickname from back when they were in high school makes Joe chuckle. “You going back to work next week?”

Joe blows out a breath. That hasn’t even crossed his mind the past couple weeks. He doesn’t even really know what storyline they came up with to cover his absence. Nor does he care really. “I haven’t even thought about that, man.”

“I think you should.” And before Joe can protest, Byron lifts his hand. “Hear me out. She’s gonna be with our parents for a few weeks, so you know she’ll be in good hands. What you gon’ do while she’s gone? Sit around the house sad and moping and shit? You know she would be chewing you out for that, telling you that you gotta get back in the game.”

Joe gives a bit of a smile. Byron is right. Knowing Mariella, she’d have a whole theatrical ass presentation as to why he should return to work, song and dance included. 

“Yeah…”

Byron slaps him on his shoulder. “Just think about it, alright?” 

Joe nods, because he will. And not for himself, not even for his job, because he doesn’t give a fuck about that right now.

But for Mariella.

His Ri. 

Because she’ll always be his Ri.

And he’s determined to make sure she doesn’t forget it this time.

———-

Spring, 2022 [cont.]

“Baby!” It’s a distant voice that becomes closer as it's repeatedly conjoined with a small hand shaking at his shoulder. “Baby, wake up.”

And he does. Eyes fluttering open, his vision is blurred initially, gradually clearing up to reveal the face of his beautiful wife. Cognizant of his surroundings, Joe realizes she’s sitting on top of him, notebook and pen in hand.

He smiles. It’s been a while since she’s woken him up for this. And while he’ll regret it in the morning, he’s grateful for it now. Grateful for these little callbacks to when they were broke, living in a crappy apartment, trying to chase the dream as inspiration struck her at all hours of the night. And she would wake him up, wanting his feedback. 

He didn’t really mind then. 

And he doesn’t really mind now.

That’s just his Ri.

Eyes squinting, she asks, “you up?”

He chuckles, also enjoying the sight of her straddling him wearing only his shirt. “Yes, baby. I’m up.”

“About time,” she complains, and he rolls his eyes. So damn dramatic. “I’m feeling inspired.” She says it while giving almost jazz hands, pretty brown eyes landing back on him. “Wanna hear the lyrics?”

He yawns, glancing at the digital clock that reads 2:37AM. “What else would I be doing at this time?”

She glares. “Is that sarcasm I detect, mister? Is it my fault my musical muse comes alive at night? That she flourishes when most—”

“Ri.”

“Huh?”

He closes his eyes. Joe loves Mariella with everything in him, but he’s not in the mood for one of her theatrical tangents at damn near 3 o’clock in the morning. “Lyrics.”

“Oh! Right!” Chuckling, he watches as she reads over whatever she’s written to herself at first. A bit of a habit. She’s always initially self-conscious about her lyrics. “Now, it’s just off the top of my head, so be nice, okay?”

“I’m always nice to you, Ri.” It’s the truth. As annoyed as he can get sometimes, she’s never been on that list. “And I’m sure it’s fine.” 

She smiles appreciatively, slightly taking him by surprise as she quietly sings the lyrics versus just reading them to him.

Yellow diamonds in the light

Now we're standing side by side

As your shadow crosses mine

What it takes to come alive

It's the way I'm feeling I just can't deny

But I've gotta let it go

We found love in a hopeless place

Finished, she looks down at him, expectantly, “well?”

“I love it.” He loves most of what she writes though. He especially loves to hear her sing. “What inspired it?”

“I don’t know. I was just thinking about us. About how far we come.” She shrugs, his hands rubbing circles on her hips. “Your show was sold out tonight, Joe. Mine is sold out too. Like, we both sold out Madison Square Garden. That feels almost too perfect to be true.”

He makes a sound. “But, it is, baby.”

“I know.” She sighs heavily and asks in a partial hypothetical tone. “We’re like really hot shit, huh?” Joe chuckles as she gasps and places her tablet down on his chest, quickly writing something down. He says nothing, having been with her for so long that none of her quirky ways really surprise him anymore.

“Also.”

“Also?”

She glares but moves to place the notebook and pen on the nightstand, resting her hands on his chest. “I was thinking about our conversation earlier…” He’s quiet, waiting patiently for her to finish her sentence even if it does have him a bit on edge. He’s never been good with waiting. “Let’s do it.”

Her answer takes him by surprise. “You sure?”

She nods, tugging at his beard. “We’re not getting any younger.” She giggles, eyes playfully narrowing. “Especially you, old man.” 

At that, he sucks his teeth. “Who you calling old?” He squeezes her side, and she squeals. He knows that’s where she’s ticklish. She falls out, laughing, and he takes the advantage of her being distracted to flip them so she’s flat on her back. “Naw, say it again. I ain’t hear you.”

“Joe, stop,” she giggles as he hovers over her, tickling her until she pushes back against his shoulder. He grabs her hand, restricting her when she opens her eyes. Her laughter quietly dies down when their eyes lock. 

Love. 

So much love.

Joe leans down and connects their lips, softly, slowly, just as meaningful as any other kiss they’ve shared. She moans into his mouth, feeling his hardened length graze against her opening, her essence already making its way down her inner thighs.

He feels this too, groaning and lifting her thigh to widen her as he carefully enters her, watching her arch her back at the entrance. She whimpers, hands moving around his shoulders.

He kisses her wrist, watching the pleasure on her face as he gives her deep strokes, slow and plunging, just how he knows she likes it. “Shhhh….let me take care of you, baby.”

And he does.

He always has.

He always will.

[wisteriaiswriting]

Hello! May I request for Sova, Iso, Gekko, Jett, cypher, and Reyna reacting to a reader who absolutely loves sour things? For example she eats lemons like oranges in a daily basis and eats super sour candy like it's nothing

𝔼𝕒𝕤𝕪 ℙ𝕖𝕒𝕤𝕪 𝕃𝕖𝕞𝕠𝕟 𝕊𝕢𝕦𝕖𝕖𝕫𝕪

Words: 864

He’ll search around for any type of sour recipes, to either make them himself or find someone else if he has a lack of time.

Most of the time he’ll try the food, whether or not he actually likes them (I imagine him as a spicer type.) you’ll be able to have the majority.

He’ll search around for any type of sour recipes, to either make them himself or find someone else if he has a lack of time.

Most of the time he’ll try the food, whether or not he actually likes them (I imagine him as a spicer type.) you’ll be able to have the majority.

***

Hours ago he left, and the only answer you got when asked was ‘Market.’ It seemed he was planning something as he would normally tell you, and even ask if you would accompany him.

This time though you were left in the dark until he returned. Which luckily wasn’t too long ago, now you had to endure him removing you from the kitchen for who knows how long. First he leaves you then bans you from your own house? What was he up to?

Well luck seemed to be on your side today as he was quick to call for you. Returning to see a bunch of packets on the counter, a closer inspection only showed Russian writing on them. Even with the images you had no clue.

“Y/N, I believe you’ve been asking about my homelands candy?”

Oh…

Majority of the time he just… doesn’t notice the amount of sour stuff you eat.

The only items he notices are the wrappers, fruits and other foods, although he won’t question you about it.

***

Recently Iso had started noticing a few things. Such as candy wrappers, especially sour candy. The fruit bowls had more lemons and other citrus fruits then the normal ones, the pantry was similar.

It wasn’t weird though, he had his preferences and you had yours. It just seemed to be sour food. While he wouldn’t eat it much if you enjoyed it he wouldn’t complain.

He’s learnt to handle anything but sour growing up.

If you eat anything sour in his sight he will openly cringe, might say something as well.

***

Gekko was bored. Everyone else was either on a mission or just too busy to deal with him, except you. He found you in the kitchen, eating what he assumed were grapes, from a bowl.

“Mateo, what some?” You held your hand out, which held the fruits. Ones he took gracefully. The sweet flavour never showed, instead covered by immediate sourness. Causing him to spit them out.

“What was that?”

“Hmm?”

“Those!” He pointed at the mess.

“Oh, they’re Gooseberries.”

She's cooked and tasted more than her fair share of sour food, so she’s learnt how to handle it.

Is aware not many people can handle sour well, but that won’t stop her from teasing anyone.

***

It was Jett’s turn to make dinner, and this time she made Tungsuyuk. She’s grown so used to cooking for the both of you she honestly forgot how others couldn’t handle the sourness of it.

But she also made yours special, able to give you a larger portion. Even then the others couldn’t handle it.

“Jett! What did you put in this?”

“C’mon Neon, I thought you could handle this?” Turns out she couldn’t, watching the group either give up or drink more water.

Due to his connections and access, if there's something you want he’ll be able to get it, the only problem is if he will.

He is kinda a picky eater, also much prefers spice over sour. So he won’t try many, only a select few me might enjoy.

***

The mission brief had just finished, and unluckily for you Cypher managed to scurry off from you. So until he came back around you’d have to either entertain yourself or find someone, but it seems he thought of that already.

As a decently sized box sat on your bed, seemingly just delivered as all the agents were in the meeting. And on top sat a note.

‘My Dear,

Hopefully these are to your liking, I’ll be waiting for your answer.

Love, Amir.’

And you guessed it, the box was full of sour Moroccan snacks and foods. Knowing he’ll be ready to order them and more.

This woman is not fazed, as she’s seen worse things. But will look at you like you asked the dumbest question ever if she sees you eating a lemon, at all.

From her experience souls taste… different to say. And a good few are weirdly sour, so she isn’t too put off by their flavour and sensation.

***

The day was just another, this one neither you or Reyna were to be sent on missions. So you spent it hanging around with others, while she was training. When she finally finished she started walking back to her room, passing you and Gekko in the living area.

A quick glance had her brain assuming you held an orange, nothing out of the ordinary. Until Gekko spoke up.

“Ew dude, why would you- stay away!”

At first she was alarmed until she remembered who you two were. Slowly stepping back to see you holding out the orange- wait no, that's not an orange. You were holding a lemon, one that currently had a bite mark.

At the realization she could only stare at you, turning into a glare when you made eye contact.

“Want some?”

[makos-ribcage]

No one loses ㅡ ༝ ˚ ｡⋆ 𓇼 ⋆｡ ˚ ༝

[] - You make Sanji jealous with the help of Zoro

𓇼afab!reader, she/her

! - Toxic relationship, hard language, sanji angst, soft nsfw and implied harsh nsfw

so ive realized how many ppl dont add the fact that sanji is a player when writing stuff about him, so i wanted to write smth based on it, i rlly like the start, enjoy :) if this get enough love ill write a second part :o

You knew what you were getting your ass into. You just didn't expected for it to be so bad from time to time.

You've been dating Sanji for a little longer than 3 months know, but knew him for years. You knew about his issues when it came to women. The fact that he would become a total dumbass, blindfolded, stupid ass man the second a woman appeared in his sight.

You knew that, but you also knew you really loved him, he would make you really happy, you loved the way he was such a gentleman, how he kept himself motivated despite his tragic past and every single little detail about his personality and looks that made him unique.

He also loved you deeply, more than any other woman, he thinks you're the prettiest and best woman out there. But that doesn't stop him to go back to his brainless self in front of women every now and then. You would usually just scold him a little, touch him or just talk to him and he would remember that he was taken and that he had to control his ass.

But not that night, you didn't even recognized him.

Once the Straw Hats became popular, a good amount of pirates and even just random people became "fanatics" of you. Fanatics of Sanji as well.

That blonde cook was good looking, with a deep sensual voice mixed with his height and his ability to cook, enough to make any woman fall over heels to him. Now that his popularity grew, women would even let slide when he was borderline a pervert just to get close to the straw hats or being able to fuck anyone that was part of the crew.

You were at a fancy bar, taking a lil rest from the piracy. Each one of the Straw Hats had a small group of people come around them as they entered the place and each one of them got rid of them in their own way.

Zoro ignored women until they grew tired, Nami stole every single men's wallet, Robin freaked them out with her hands, Luffy acted like Luffy, Usopp told a few lies so obvious that women realized it and you insulted any guy that approached you.

But Sanji? Oh, no. He totally forgot the fact that he was in a relationship the second more than 3 women surrounded him. Flirting with them, telling them that he can cook anything that they wanted, using that deep raspy voice that he knew you loved and place his big soft hands on the women's thigh.

You tried to get him out of there but he would make a comment about "Being enough for everyone", when you called him he basically ignored you, when you touched him he barely noticed. You felt terrible,

After that humiliation, you decided to seat down, your sadness quickly being replaced by anger. You stared at him from the bar with your drink in one hand. He was sitting on the opposite side of the bar with a bunch of women, one on each side of him, the rest surrounding him, massaging his shoulders, giving him compliments, making sure their boobs touched his arms.

You snapped when you saw one of those girls grab his cheeks and playfully kiss his lips. Him just accepting it with a big dumb smile on his face. What the fuck was he even thinking about? You came to the conclusion he wasn't thinking at all.

If he wanted to play a jealousy game, you could play too, and you were going to be the best at it. You knew how to hurt him, you were his girlfriend after all. Zoro.

Zoro and you were quite close. You were strong and independent and he really respected that coming from a woman, specially considering his childhood. You both saw each other as the same, you used to train together, you knowing he wasn't going to hold back because "You're a girl".

It wasn't something unknown that Sanji hated Zoro for some reason, he hated the fact that you trained together, getting to a point where he would just sit and watch your training sessions just to make sure he wasn't going to try anything on you.

You approached him on the bar. He was drinking one of the many drinks that he had planned for the night, slightly drunk but so were all of you. He stared at you as you came closer.

"I need help." You told him, an angry expression on your face that he mimicked right away, thinking it was a dead or life situationship. "Help me get Sanji jealous." His face relaxed.

"Are you serious?" He whispered, feeling like you were teenagers at school.

"Very. Look at him!" You pointed at him, knowing that you could be yelling his name and he wouldn't notice, he was staring directly into some women boobs as he grabbed her waist. "I'm mad as fuck, and you hate him, let's make him mad. No one loses" Besides of Sanji, of course, but he deserves it.

Zoro considered it for a second. He did hated him, he did wanted to help you and you were hot. He gets to be drunk, flirt with a hot girl and make his nemesis mad, he truly don't loses anything.

He chugged his drink, then stared at you. "'Kay, what's the plan?". You smiled.

He put one of his hands on your hip, his hand lingering to your ass slowly. Both of you stood next to a wall near Sanji, you against the wall and Zoro in front of you. Now that you had him so close you realized how big he was. Sanji was tall, sure, but Zoro was big, he covered your body completely, and you felt tiny with his hand on your waist.

Zoro put a happy hand on one of your thighs again, playfully sticking a few fingers under your skirt, wanting to make the best of the situation now that he was at it. You placed a hand on his chest, and he drew you closer with his free hand. Talking to each other while being very near of each other faces. You could breathe the alcohol on Zoro's mouth, and he had a nice view of your cleavage.

Sanji stared at both of you in confusion, he was jealous of you simply talking to him back in the Sunny, seeing both of you so touchy definitely called his attention. But not enough for him to put a stop to his playful flirting with the women.

"It's not working..." You whispered to Zoro, directing your view to Sanji, slightly pouting. He stared into your eyes. "How jealous you wanna make him?".  He grabbed your chin, making you face him again. Oh, he was drunk drunk.

His hand drifted to your neck, squeezing it slightly, enough for you to open your mouth slowly to breathe better. Not even trying to dismiss it as a romantic kiss, he licked your lips slowly, kissing you and quickly turning it into a french kiss.

Out of surprise, and maybe something else, you slightly moaned in his mouth, and you felt his lips curl up into a small smile. His hands kept you in place by your waist, you touched his chest not being sure what to do, deciding to hug him by the neck and pull him closer as well. That heated kiss lasted longer than you expected. Zoro's hands explored your body confidently, the hand on your neck slowly going down until reaching one of your boobs.

You grabbed his wrist, not sure if it was being too much. But his hand didn't stopped at all and you didn't knew if Sanji saw you.

It was something childish and dumb, you didn't just wanted to make him a little jealous, you wanted him to feel bad, as bad as you felt watching him not pay attention to you just get some other girls boobs on his face. It made you feel terrible, feel like you weren't enough, like you were replaceable and you were just some girl he said yes to being her boyfriend just to have some pussy that he was certain he would have available always.

Zoro broke the kiss first, staring directly to your red lips, not because of lipstick but because of such type of kiss.

You felt a presence next to you, when you turned your head, Sanji was there, clearly really mad.

"Oh, you're here, I thought I'd had to fuck Zoro to call your attention." You said, probably as mad as him, but keeping a calm nonchalant expression. It was obvious his actions affected you, but you didn't wanted to show that they did, yet.

"I don't mind." Zoro said, back to his usual, less hot, self, also staring at Sanji.

Sanji pushed both of you aside, deciding to deal with you first and then beat the living shit out of Zoro after he was done with you.

He grabbed your hand dragging you out of the bar. Being cornered in a wall once again on an alley a few streets out of the bar and near the docks where the sunny was, now by your boyfriend, you stared at him straight into his eyes.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" He said, clear anger on the sound of his voice. "Out of all the men on that bar, It had to be Zoro, of course." He was mad, you could tell, but you decided to play your little act of not caring for longer.

"Yeah, but they were focused on how you were almost fucking every single girl in the bar, I bet they were jealous." You said, staring right into his eyes, he seemed to feel ashamed of his actions, just for a few seconds, a feeling that faded quickly as you kept talking. "But Zoro didn't seem to care, and since you were experimenting with girls hotter than me, I thought I'd do the same with someone hotter than you."

His face turned red quickly. He grabbed your face with one hand harshly. A grip tight enough to make your face hurt a little.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" He yelled at you, startling you for a second, but you were sure he wouldn't hurt you, either because you trusted him, because you were drunk or because you were mad, you weren't too sure.

"I don't know, you tell me, you've been an asshole to me all night!" You answered, as harshly as him, quickly getting more and more heated by his lack of excuses, you knew you were wrong, but so was him. And he started the whole deal so he had to apologize first.

He released your face, placing his hand on one of his hips as the other one rested next to your head against the wall. "Of course not! I'd never do such thing! You were the one almost fucking Zoro." Now he was treating you like you were insane. Flirting with other girls was already bad enough, but acting like you hallucinated everything and faking dementia was going to make you genuinely insane.

"Yes you did such thing!" You mocked him, watching his gaze get madder and madder. "I even saw you kiss one!"

"Nope, I don't remember that" He played dumb, and you stared at him dumbfounded.

"You're unbelievable! I can't believe I even started dating you!" You turned your head way from him.

He stared at you in surprise, he knew he had a problem, but he did love you, as much as his stupid behavior allowed him. "What the fuck do you mean?" His expression of surprise was quickly replaced by the same stare of anger you saw directed to you all night. You were forced to face him again as he grabbed your forearm with a little too much strength. Pulling you closer where you could feel his familiar breath. "I mean that I hate you!" You replied quickly, not giving it a lot of thought, probably going to regret saying that as much as he's going to regret not paying you attention that night.

"Fine! I hate you too!" He answered, not letting you go neither pulling you away despite of his words. You stared at him, his blue eyes that looked at you with a hatred that you didn't believe was genuine at all, he probably thought the same of your own stare of hatred.

"Fine." You whispered, looking down to his lips for a few seconds, as you licked yours.

"Fine." He mirrored your expression. Staring into your lips.

Before you could even process that you "Hated each other", you pulled him closer, pressing your lips into his own. He placed a hand on the back of your head while the other one got around your waist.

You gripped his shirt as the kiss continued, unbuttoning the first buttons of his shirt while Sanji's hand on your waist lingered lower and lower.

"Let's go to the sunny." You felt that deep, raspy voice that you loved against your lips once again.

"Yes."

[siyuuzii]

JUST WANT YOUR ATTENTION!

PAIRING zb1! ricky x gnreader

— in which (name) is a favored upper class and would always be asked by first years to help them with their school work, continuously depriving attention to their best friend shen quanrui. having been fed up with it, mister loverman decides to confront the first years about it, ultimately leading to him confessing his love for (name) to the freshmen's...

GENRE non-idol au, fluff, drabble, friends to lovers

WARNING|S threatening freshmans?

A. NOTE all writings and reactions from these idols are from MY imagination, it does not reflect their actions and reactions irl! dàjiě/dá gē is a word in chinese, meaning big sister (dàjiě) and big brother (dá gē) or eldest sister/eldest brother, while for lǎoshī is referred to a teacher. i used chinese words since ricky's nationality is chinese.

more under the cut !

“hey (name)! i've got something cool for you to see”

turning around you saw your best friend quanrui, walking with a swift pace, opening your mouth to say something, but instead of your soft voice that quanrui wished to hear, a young and annoyingly loud voice was heard instead. “dàjiě/dá gē (name)! come with us!! we need your help for something!” said five first year students who we're running quickly towards the both of you, well evidently, you. stopping for a second to catch their breaths before saying. “our teacher made us do a video project on how to make a diagram of a volcano erupt!” the boy in the middle said before getting cut off. “we've tried every procedures and steps and tutorials, but nothing worked! you're our only hope now!!” the shortest girl of the bunch continued with a pleading tone at the end. “oh, i... have something else to—” you tried to protest but was quickly cut short. “pretty please, dàjiě/dá gē (name)!~” all of them pleaded at the same time.

you sighed knowing your in a losing battle before agreeing to come with them. as they now grabbed you towards their room, you turn your head back to ricky to shot him an apologetic expression, while he just smiled and raised his hand up to motion a wave and walked away.

this went on for twenty. more. days. and it'll be always when he would come up to you to talk or just overall try to hangout with you, it's almost like they we're trying to keep him away from you! no, wait IT IS like they want to keep him away from you! and no way can he let that happen. so one day, after the first lunch break, he quickly went to the first year building after eating his fill to confront those pesky little attention stealers...

“hey you, your (insert random name) right?” ricky said while walking behind a group of short freshman's thats attention where quickly gathered. “y-yeah, do you need anything dá gē rick..?” now forgot to mention the ricky is has notorious reputation in all of campus. he's that typical bad boy campus crush with only one friend, that's you the school crush and also he only let's you call him ricky. “yeah, need you to stop always asking (name) for help with your stupid group projects, if your always going to rely on a senior for help then how are you supposed to learn to be dependent? and also why do you always have group projects? wang lǎoshī isn't one to give out group project every now and then—” before ricky could finish, he was quickly cut off by the truth. “okay, okay! you caught us... we don't actually always have group projects,” said the boy at the left. “we would always ask dàjiě/dá gē (name) to come with us because we are afraid that you're doing something bad to them! because you know.. they said you we're a bully....” (insert random name) continued before the girl next to him nudged his arm harshly to stop him from talking more.

not shocked by the sudden accusation, ricky simply relaxed his shoulders and reassured them that. “their my friend, not my punching bag. so stay away from them, okay?” he said in soft yet monotone voice befire turning around, once he was about to walk away a sudden ‘why?' was heard followed by a audible slap was heard. wherein, ricky only turned his head to look at them. “because i want to spend time with them for atleast once. and also because, they're going to be mine.” he said, as the group of freshman's only looked at him with a slightly shocked face. realizing what he just said, he swiftly turned back his head and slowly bolted out of the teen's gaze. ignoring the 'so you like dàjiě/dá gē (name)!?’ question.

the next day, after arriving to school, he was quick to grabbed his books and quickly went to find yoy, which turned out to be a mistake. since he saw you sitting on a railing outside your classroom with that... pesky little boy.. whispering something at your ear. when you two locked eyes, his stomach suddenly began to feel tingly, and his face not hiding it. i mean, he just can't especially on how you looked at him like the truth the you've yearned to come true was being said to you, the way you smiled so brightly with clear blushing cheeks. it's almost like his gaze was locked on you and only you can be seen and heard, and also can be the only one to break that lovesick gaze.

“right, so you, just want my attention, hm?” oh, how all his regrets on confessing his feelings to those freshmen's haved all been slipped away after you said those words.

[lyrakanefanaticwriting]

Love your writing and requesting a fic that is literally Gray and Lyra shopping for limes. And Lyra making Gray go speechless (bonus points if Gigi tags along)

ofc!! (im so sorry this took so long I’ve had 0 motivation lately im sorry 😢😢)

Grocery Store Confessions - a grayson x lyra fic

——————————————

Lyra picked up the bar of dark chocolate before placing it down in her cart as she followed Grayson and Gigi towards the snack section. Gigi had her car privileges taken away after she rammed it into a tree, and was now getting driving lessons from Grayson. Since she doesn’t have a car, as it’s in the shop, she asked if Grayson would drive her to the store. And as her older brother, Grayson had obliged. And of course Lyra was tagging along, because that was her new job as Grayson’s girlfriend. Gigi bounced towards the candy section of the aisle, before grabbing 5 bags of gummy’s and treats.

“I don’t know how you eat that much candy. It’s too sweet.” Grayson said, giving all the candy in her arms a look. Gigi just rolled her eyes before turning to Lyra with a grin.

“Lyra, do you want some candy? It will pair extremely well with your…” She trailed off as she glanced at the dark chocolate bar in the cart with a sour look. “Bitter chocolate.” Now its was Lyra’s turn to roll her eyes.

“Dark chocolate is supposed to be bitter. That’s why it tastes so good.” Lyra said with a half shrug. Gigi just stuck her tongue out, before speeding towards whatever other aisle had caught her attention.

Lyra turned before grabbing a bag of chips off the shelves, bending over to pick it up, and just as she did, she heard whispers from not too far away. Just outside of the aisle, she saw a group of teenagers boys close to her age whispering and stealing glances at her behind. As soon as their gazes met Lyra’s glare though, they started hollering and laughing before taking off. Lyra just scoffed before harshly grabbing the chips and straightening up again. Just as she did, she felt a hand on her waist. As soon as she looked down she recognized it. Grayson’s. His arm wrapped around her waist and he pulled her closer to him. Lyra smiled before looking up at him, and seeing a dark look on his face as he watched the boys jackrabbit towards the exit. Her smile only grew. Possessive, much.

“Maybe those boys were working up the courage to ask me for my number and you scared them off.” She said, her brow raising at him. His eyes met hers and a flash of surprise crossed his features. Alright, it’s clear that those weird boys were just looking for a girl to catcall, but teasing Grayson was hilarious.

“And what would you say?” He asked her, matching her brow raise with his own. Lyra took his hand off her waist and held both of them in hers as she took a step back, thinking.

“Oh, this guy?” Lyra said in a girly voice, angling her head to Grayson. “He’s just my lawyer. I’d be happy to take your number, hehe.” She twirled her hair dramatically, and a smile that only Lyra got to see touched his lips as he pulled her by her waist closer to him.

“Sure, sweetheart.” He said softly, pressing a gentle kiss to her neck. Lyra glowed from the touch, and just as she was about to say something else, Gigi popped out from another aisle.

“Guys!!” She said, hollering for no apparent reason. The two turned to her with a confused look on their faces. “I forgot we need to actually get grocery’s. Mom gave me a list.” Gigi pulled out a sheet of paper from her pocket. Grayson sighed, but Lyra just smiled before speaking.

“Alright, Gigi.”

The three of them were almost done the short grocery list Acacia had given them, but there was just one thing left: limes. Gigi went to pick up a bunch, before turning to Grayson with a grin.

“Remember these?” She said, her voice teasing. Grayson tensed suddenly, and Lyra got the feeling that he was hiding something.

“No.” He said. But just a bit too quickly, Lyra thought with an internal smirk. Lyra was wearing an innocent smile as she turned to Grayson.

“Why would you remember them?” She asked, her tone completely innocent as she gazed up at him. He brushed a strand of hair behind her ear before speaking.

“I don’t, and I have no reason to.” He told her softly. Then his expression changed into a glare as his gaze averted to Gigi. “Gigi’s just making things up for entertainment.” Gigi shrugged before speaking, a sly smile on her face.

“Sure I aaammmm.” She sang, stretching out the words as she grabbed the cart and limes from Grayson and took off towards the cash register. Lyra raised her brow at him, but Grayson just took her hand and walked after Gigi, grumbling “I said I was paying” as he did.

Once they were all in the car, with Grayson driving, Lyra in the passenger seat, and Gigi in the back, Gigi spoke up.

“Lyra, do you want to know the story behind the limes?” She asked with a mischievous grin.

“No, she doesn’t.” He said, his tone meant to end the conversation. Gigi, however, didn’t get the hint or just didn’t care.

“It was 3 years ago, before the first Grandest Game was created, and before I knew we were siblings. Him and I were at the store and-“

“Enough, Juliet.” Grayson said, cutting her off. Lyra turned to him, and was surprised to see the slightest blush on her face. Lyra had made him blush once before, but seeing it now still made her jaw want to drop. It was an unusual look for him.

“No, Gigi,” Lyra said, her tone teasing. Grayson glanced at her, surprise clear on his face. “Keep going.” Gigi obliged.

“So we were at the store, and I was confused on why he had a sudden interest with what happened to my father. And me, being the only one who didn’t know Grayson was our brother, decided to come to the horrifying conclusion that he and Savannah were-“ She stopped suddenly, but Lyra still shuddered as she realized what Gigi was getting at. “Snorking.” Gigi finished lamely. Lyra raised a brow at that, as nobody before had ever referred to two people dating as “snorking”, but Gigi was already moving on.

“Anyway. To prove that they didn’t, in fact, date in the past, he went on this whole tangent…” Gigi paused dramatically, grinning as she leaned forward in her seat to peer at Grayson. “About his girlfriend.” The blush on his cheeks grew a tiny bit redder, but Grayson kept his eyes on the road.

“So what?” He gritted out. Lyra was confused why he was embarrassed, and also confused on why he never told her about this girlfriend. Maybe it was an ex talking stage, or maybe he still had something going on with Eve, or maybe…

When Lyra realized what Gigi was getting at, she couldn’t hold a snort back as she bursted out laughing.

“You had to make up a fake girlfriend so Gigi didn’t think you were dating your sister?! Oh my god!” Lyra teased Grayson often, but this was beyond teasing. Right now, she was doubled over laughing, twisting around in her seat so she can breathe.

“Lyra!” He exclaims. Lyra wiped her tears, a smile still on her face, as she glanced at Grayson’s betrayed expression. That only made her laugh more.

“Okay, okay!” Lyra choked out, finally done laughing, “What was this fake girlfriend like?” Gigi grinned.

“Unexpected, smart,” Gigi stated, clearly trying to imitate Grayson’s deep voice. “Not perfect, and when I’m with her, I don’t have to be either. More stuff, but I honestly forget.” Lyra turned to Grayson.

“How poetic.” She says, biting her lip to keep her laugh in. Grayson just hums in response as he glances at her, his eyes softening as he takes in her happy expression, even if it came at his expense.

“I can be.” He says. Then, he glanced at her again, before imitating a hurt face. “But not anymore, because you made fun of me.” Lyra faked a pout, before leaning over the best she could with a seat belt, taking his face in her hands, and kissing his lips. It was a quick peck, but Lyra still felt electricity run through her body all the same.

“You’ll be fine.” Lyra says with a smile as she sits back in her seat.

“Ugh, I am never going in a car with you guys again!” Gigi exclaimed from the backseat, while making gagging noises. Lyra just rolled her eyes in response, meeting Grayson’s eyes and seeing a look in them that made her heart skip.

Love.

——————————————————————————

why do i feel like gigi + jameson bitch and moan when lyra and grayson kiss?? like i feel like they’d make such a big deal about it as a joke LMFAOOO

also i hope u like it!! :))

[jimblejamblewritings]

the fake date plot | part. 8

Summary: Gryffindors, seventh years, classmates, unrequited love. Just a few things Y/N and James Potter had in common. When a brilliantly dumb plan is hatched the two end up getting something a little different than what they wanted.

Warnings for the Series: oh, this is a slowburn now. Or at least that's the plan.

Warning for this chapter: smut

Pairing: James Potter x reader

Word Count: 2.0k

Previous Part | (Series Chapter List)

Heads turned when you and James walked into the Great Hall laughing as you held a bunch of stuff and he held ten times more in his arms than you did. It took a lot of convincing you but James Potter had money and liked to spend it. Your ideas of currency were very different and to him all this money was like spending only five galleons. So you let him get a bunch of stuff for your birthday. 

James was pleased with himself. Giving gifts to people made him feel so good inside. He hated receiving a bunch of them though, probably because he could have whatever he wanted without question. When you reached the table you set down everything and started laughing as you took the stuff from James so he could sit down as well. 

“Can you believe we both forgot our wands and we were already at Hogsmeade?” 

“That’s a lot of stuff,” Sirius said. 

“Yeah. I couldn’t get this one to stop so I now have a bunch of stuff. Thank Merlin I need it though.” 

Lily cleared her throat. “Are you coming to the party tonight? I mean it’s your birthday after all.” 

“I’m coming. No point in staying in my bed alone just because it’s my birthday.” You turned to look at James, pointing at him. “I do not need a new outfit.” 

He held his hands up in surrender, claiming that he wasn’t even thinking about making or buying you an outfit. For the rest of Saturday until the party, you didn’t see James at all. He and Sirius were leading quidditch drills in preparation for their upcoming game. Remus and Peter looked up when you entered their dorm. They were getting used to you just showing up. Remus was about to go back to looking at his scrapbooking project when you shoved an invitation in his face. 

“To Sir Peter and Sir Remus, the girls of dorm room nine would like to invite you to our getting ready event.” 

“Do you do this often?” 

You nodded. “Life’s more fun this way.” 

Without any hesitation, the two agreed to come with you. The girls’ dorm was arranged like theirs. But the decorations threw them for a loop. Bubbles, music, and a very sweet scent colored the air. When the marauders got ready for a party, the most they’d do is play music. This was basically a whole new world. They were pushed into fancy skincare and a scalding shower with water from the depths of hell. 

“Remus, how is your hair dry already? I wish I had your porosity.” 

“My what?” 

Mary laughed. “Porosity. It’s just your hair type, never mind. Are we all ready to go?” 

Your rather large group took your time heading down to the Slytherin dungeons. Even though you guys didn’t get along very well, Gryffindors and Slytherins were always invited to each other’s parties. The bass of the music could be heard from outside the common room. You couldn’t help but laugh at Regulus and Sirius already bickering, both with an empty cup in their hands. They had started making up but obviously it took some time and they were still brothers after all. Friendly bickering was in their dna. 

You spotted James on the couch… talking to Xeno. Taking in a deep breath, you went over anyway. Your boyfriend turned his head first, smiling as you came over. The blond boy next to him was slightly stunned. You wanted to adjust but chose not to. The literal climax of your plan was happening tonight and you still wanted it to feel as real as possible. James looked good sitting on the couch and everyone noticed as they snuck glances while doing their own thing. It was the color of a shirt peeking out under the rolled up sleeves of his quidditch jumper and the rips in his jeans. He has to do it on purpose and is aware of what he looks like. 

James extended an arm and his hand fell on your waist as he pulled you closer. “Hi, bug.” 

You sat on his lap and laid your head on his shoulder trying to ignore the piercing eyes from the boy you actually cared about. But you had to. Looking desperate for Xeno wasn’t the way to win him. James wrapped his arms around you while you held his drink for him, not bothering with getting one for yourself. 

“What up?” 

“Tired,” you said with a sigh. 

“You just got here.” 

That seemed to draw the attention of all your friends who were hoping you wouldn’t leave. Even if you were all doing your own thing separately, everyone still needed to be there. James covered your body as you wiggled around trying to get comfortable. Without a second thought, you pulled down the sleeves of his quidditch jumper. He laughed as he realized what you wanted. 

“I know but I was up really late and I kind of have a headache now.” 

“You do?” James asked in earnest. 

“A bit.” 

“You don’t have to stay. We can cancel all our plans tonight if you want to get some rest.” 

The tone of James’ voice made you look up at him. There was no playfulness in his eyes. He was very serious about everything. You gave him a smile. 

“I don’t want to cancel our plans. I’ll just take a nap here and then I’ll feel better.” 

“Okay. Accio, headphones.” 

James handed them to you. Music was already playing, at a very quiet volume, when you put them on. You figured they must have been connected to an enchanted music player. Adjusting yourself once more, you leaned back against your boyfriend with a smile and closed your eyes. Your friends swooned as you did so. In the middle of a loud and hectic scene, you were peaceful. 

James observed his talk with Xeno, trying not to be suspicious. Every so often, he would cast his eyes down to your sleeping form. He was still interested. He wouldn’t keep looking at you if he didn’t care at all. 

“Alright guys, I’ll see you back at Gryf,” James said as he got up and picked you up again. “I’m getting my lady to a bed and then we can keep the party going.” 

Since the younger kids were coming back to Slytherin from Hogsmeade to start their Halloween party, the older students were going to move to Gryffindor in about twenty minutes. They waved their goodbyes to James and promised to find him right away when the party moved upstairs. 

You woke up as James entered the common room and started towards the stairs back to his dorm. 

“Why do we always end up like this?” 

James looked down. “Hello, bug, how was your nap?” 

“Delightful. And I’m now very excited.” 

“Excited?” 

“Yes.” 

James wore a goofy grin as the two of you went inside the dorm. The two of you stood side by side in the bathroom as you brushed your teeth and freshened up. Your favorite songs played while you shaved and James trimmed all his body hair low. You moved to the room without thinking. You both sat in the middle of his bed, now with an awkward silence. 

“Should we lay down and just let it happen naturally? No one else uses this enchanted muggle projector so the professor just lets us keep it. There are a good amount of movies here.” 

“Okay.” 

You and him got comfortable on the bed, cuddling ever so slightly. James’ left hand sat just under your breast as his thumb gently caressed what was beneath it. Your hand snaked down his body and took an experimental squeeze of his pants.

The movie went on without more touches until halfway through. You stiffened up before relaxing at the fingers going under the waistband of your panties. He turned your head to look at him. James watched with lust in his eyes as he watched his fingers pleasure you. It was all of five seconds before your lips crashed onto each other and you moved to the edge of the bed. 

Nearly all of the sixth and seventh and dreaded eighth years moved up to the party in Gryffindor. Not seeing James right away, the others decided to go looking. Remus squeaked and everyone else peeked into the crack in the door. James’ hands squeezed your ass before moving slowly up your body until they were underneath the jumper he made you, fingers trying to undo your bra. You both laughed as he struggled a bit. Eventually, the bra was off, leaving you in just your panties and sweater. 

“They’re looking. How long do you think before they close the door?” James whispered against your lips. 

“I give it two more minutes. Is it just the marauders?”  

“I can see Dorcas, Lily, and Xeno’s friends. The plan is going swimmingly.” He leaned back, not caring that the others could hear. “Hey, you know we don’t have to do this. It’s okay.” 

You leaned back and that made James move his hands from under your jumper. 

“Bug, I’m serious. I will not have sex with you unless you’re one hundred percent sure.” 

“I want to. I’m just nervous.” 

James chuckled. “Hey, I’m nervous too.” 

“Really?” 

“Yeah. Do you not believe me?” 

“You always seem so sure of yourself.” 

“Being sure of school or quidditch is a lot different from romance or sex. Let’s take it slow, okay?” 

“Okay… Can I take your shirt off?” 

“Yeah, love. Can I take off yours?” 

You nodded. The door slammed followed by someone yelling sorry the moment James started lifting the hem of your sweater. The two of you couldn’t help but laugh. Reassuring James now that everyone was gone that you actually did want this, you continued feeling up and down each other’s upper body. He groped at your boobs, running a thumb over your nipples. 

“These are gorgeous.” 

“Shut up.” 

“I’m serious. So fuckin gorgeous.” 

“James,” you moaned as he took one in his mouth. 

“Can I fuck you, love?” 

“Absolutely.” 

You scurried up onto the bed in the most undignified fashion, making James laugh. He followed suit. James groaned as he started to sink into you, pausing when your nails dug into his skin. “Are you okay?” 

“It’s just hurts a bit.” 

“Do you want me to stop?” 

“No. Keep going.” 

He went slower, kissing you as he did to try and distract you. When he sunk in all the way, he checked in on you again. James waited for you to open your eyes. 

“We good?” 

“Yeah, please move.”

Your mouth dropped open as James started pumping. He smiled in satisfaction that you were feeling just as good as him. Maybe he knew what he was doing, just a little. You whimpered his name a little as you grabbed at his biceps. 

“You feel so good, Y/N. So warm and fit me just right.” 

He also felt warm inside you. He shouted your name before finishing inside you. The sheets stuck to your naked and sweaty bodies as you both tried to come down for your highs. James pulled you closer until you were on top of him. 

“That was amazing. I’m really glad we chose to do it with each other.” 

You pecked him on the lips. “I really enjoyed it… We should probably put on clothes before everyone comes in.” 

“We probably should. They’ll still be in your dorm. Do you want to join them after?”

You nodded your head as you got off the bed, James staring at your naked body. He grabbed your hand and pulled himself out of the sheets. The two of you stood side by side, comfortably naked, as you brushed your teeth and washed your face before getting in the shower together. James added a warming spell to the pile of freshly done laundry so you could have your pick of warm clothes. 

“Is it bad that I want to just stay here? Round two maybe.” James’ words were muffled as he put on a t-shirt and a jumper. 

You laughed. “Plenty of time for that later, pretty boy. Let’s go see our friends.”

(part 9)

THIS TAGLIST:

@starsval @helloitsmeeeeeee @callsigndiamond @isabela30 @rachelccollier @ghostkingblake @b3t0xic @ttulipwritezz @caelum-the-part-time-nihilist @superduckmilkshake @sendnuwudes @prongsprincessworld @slightlynotslightlyobsessing @wildernessflora @siriuslycaptainofthedawntreader @mommymilkerfanclub @amandachrystinallc @lupinsbookshelf @harrysgoldenwatermelon @loving-and-dreaming @that-simp-sin @bubybubsters @peachesgaeass @jellyfishlioncrab @cenkisabibl @sometimeseverythingsucks @6cexey @zellington

PERMANENT TAGLIST:

@venomsvl @peaches-n-sunscreen @summerellaz @supernaturallover2002 @sambucky8 @9daykrisr @thebitchinleo @23victoria @scarlets-widow @pagetpagetpagetpaget @lovexnatasha @awesomebooklover17 @1234-angelika @imatrisk @blackreaderatrisk @princess-jules47 @alexloveskili @a-marie-a @siriuslysirius1107​ @i-have-no-life-charlie

[rxmqnova]

Okay so how about (teen) lizzie is our best friend and comes to cheer us on at the chess grand championship match. On Monday the who school is teasing us for being a massive nerd, but are celebrity best friend has our back.

Cheers

The chess championship

NO ONE'S POV "Lizzie, what are you doing here?" Y/N smiles as soon as she sees her best friend, immediately walking over to her to greet her with a hug.

"Well, you're my best friend. I needed to come and support you on this important day" Lizzie smiles warmly, pulling away from the hug and tucking a strand of hair behind Y/N's ear. "I knew you'd win. It was amazing, you were amazing"

The thing is that Y/N had the last match at the grand chess championship and Lizzie knew it, so she came to support her best friend.

Y/N loves to play chess and she's actually really good at it. That good that she won the whole championship and Lizzie's surely so proud of her bestie.

———

Y/N's smile immediately fades when she steps into her classroom only to hear she's the main topic of everyone's conversations.

She's used on being teased and laughed at, but maybe she just hoped that winning the grand chess championship would change it, but it looks like it's the complete opposite.

Apperantly, the win made her look like even bigger nerd than her classmates already thought she was.

The day goes slowly, all the teasing and laughing makes it even slower. Y/N wishes she could just disappear.

When the horrible day comes to an end and Y/N finally steps out of the school, a huge group of people catches the girl's attention.

She walks closer, her frown gets immediately replaced by a bright smile when she spots her best friend standing in the middle.

"Ah, Y/N/N" Lizzie smiles, wrapping her arms around Y/N and pulling her in for a tight hug, and that makes everyone shut up.

"What are you doing here?" Y/N asks with a huge smile.

"Thought we could celebrate your win properly" Lizzie says with a smile, giving Y/N's hand a little squeeze.

Even though Lizzie came to support Y/N, they didn't actually get to celebrate after as Lizzie was needed on set for her new movie.

"You're the best" Y/N grins.

"I know" Lizzie teases, nudging her shoulders with Y/N's. "You ready to go?"

"Yes, I-" Y/N stops as soon as she realises she left her phone in her locker. "I forgot my phone, I'll be right back and then we can go" The girl blurts out and before Lizzie can respond, she's gone.

Y/N's quick to pick up her phone, though on her way back a bunch of people gets in her way, blocking her so she couldn't leave.

She opens her mouth to ask if they could let her go, yet the smirks on their faces already give the answer.

And there it goes again… the laughing and teasing for winning the chess match. Y/N just stands there, trying hard to ignore them, but it just seems impossible.

10 minutes pass and they just don't stop. Tears fill the girl's eyes and few tears even escape and roll down her cheeks.

Oh, how much she wishes she wouldn't have left the god damn phone here.

"You think this is funny?" A voice is heard from behind the teens and when they stand aside to look who dared to interrupt, Y/N finds her best friend standing there, an angry expression on her face.

"You should be proud that you have such an amazing, talented and smart girl at your school and not make fun of her for liking chess. There's nothing wrong about it, so just shut up and leave her alone" Lizzie glares at the group, wrapping an arm around Y/N's shoulder and leading her out of the school.

"Are you okay, Y/N/N?" Lizzie asks softly, rubbing Y/N's shoulder as the other girl wipes away her tears.

"Yeah. Thank you" Y/N mumbles out, giving Lizzie the best smile she can do at the moment.

"Screw them, they're just jealous at how amazing you are" Lizzie says as an attempt to cheer her best friend up, receiving a small chuckle back.

"You're the bestest best friend I could ever have" Y/N says honestly, wrapping her arms about Lizzie and giving her a hug. "Thank you"

"I'm only saying the truth. You're such an amazing, talented, beautiful and smart girl, Y/N/N. So screw them and let's go celebrate your win" Lizzie nudges her shoulder with Y/N's playfully, earning a chuckle, so she interlocks her fingers with Y/N's and starts pulling the girl towards her car.

Y/N smiles widely, now knowing better than to listen to a bunch of stupid kids. She has her best friend Lizzie who's truly the most amazing best friend she could ever have.

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

Elizabeth Olsen masterlist

Masterlist

[guppybibi]

hii !! can you do akito (shinonome) with a gf who’s OBSESSED with another group? i just thought of this and found it funny

he’s always like “why don’t we go to your place” and reader is like oh no it’s ok haha!! because it’s kind of embarrassing but there’s so much merch it’s impossible to take down

and one day he convinces you to let him stay over and boom. posters everywhere. cds everywhere. binders full of photocards. a whole shelf of albums just sitting there. don’t forget the dvds and polaroids! bonus points if you forgot to turn off your cd player when you answered the door so it’s blasting said group’s music as well 💀

( ++ doesn’t have to be any group in particular but i’m heavy in my enhypen phase right now, so maybe them? that’d make it even more nerdy but 😭 )

𖦹 pairing: Akito Shinonome x fem!reader

𖦹 content: Confused Akito, fluff, kpop stuff, idk..

𖦹 notes: aaaa i love this idea, tysm! for the group i chose enhypen as well but also stray kids because you can never stan too many groups ᵔ ᗜ ᵔ (i had the biggest stray kids phase lollzz, plus idk much abt enhypen:c sorrie) also wrote half of this at school wowie

⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*⋆*･ﾟ⋆*･ﾟ

-Just..so confused?? He doesn't get the thing about collecting photo cards and the terms fans use so you have to explain it to him.

-Once he gets it though he's just mildly concerned, for your sanity and wallet. He does commend your dedication and loyalty to these groups though (silently hopes you do the same with him.) 

-Occasionally asks you if VBS had merch would you buy some, his reaction would vary on your answer. -

-If you say no he’ll just say ‘uh huh’ and walk away. (pancakes are the solution, TRUST.) + he's just playing around, he isn't mad. 

-If you say yes he’ll just smirk smugly and try to talk everyone into making merch. (he fails)

He’s so confused right now, he just doesn't get what's the big deal about it. The ginger knew you absolutely loved these so called K-POP groups and he didn't mind at all, not a tiny bit. To be fair, he was somewhat an idol as well. A street musician to be exact but that was close enough. 

And today was another added episode to the collection of you not letting him go to your home, what exactly were you hiding from him? He stood before you, in all his glory, a skeptical look on his face. “C'mon doll..is yer room messy or somethin’? I’m sure it can't be that bad, trust me–I’ve seen worse.” He said in an attempt to reassure you, intently watching how your lips pressed into a thin line and your eyes darted across the park you two were at. “L..-look! A bunch of people are doing cool skating tricks!” You exclaim, pointing to a bunch of randos doing flips or whatever. Distracting him was worth the shot, no guarantees it’ll work though. 

He almost facepalms himself when he hears your shitty attempt at diverting his attention elsewhere. “Doll I’m not the smartest but I'm not that dumb..” It was honestly offensive that you thought that would work..You couldn't keep hiding forever, you two wouldn't progress if you didn't allow him to do something so simple as coming into your home. And as he said, he's somewhat of an ‘idol’ as well so he probably wouldn't find it too weird. Yeah, think positive! He won't think you're some kind of koreaboo or anything!

“Right..I guess you could come over to my place. But on one condition..” She starts. “Don't find it weird..?” He chuckles in response, shaking his head. “No promises.” 

And that's how he ended up in this rather strange position, sitting on your cozy bed as the posters on your walls stared down at him. “Wow..this is um..a lot.” His mouth formed a crooked smile, glancing at the shelf filled with albums. Where you got the money for all of this was a mystery to him. “So..who are they?” He asks, flopping back onto your bed, full of a bunch of stuffed animals. Your eyes start to sparkle, this was your time to shine, well rather to rant about your unhealthy obsession with these KPOP groups but let's not talk about that right now. 

After your rather lengthy explanation about every basic thing he needs to know, the expression on his gruff face seems unreadable. Was he angry or somehow jealous about it? Or was he simply just not interested in it? That might've been the case, but not right now at least. “Mmh..alright.” He sounded way too casual about it for comfort if you’re being honest. But if he was held captive and needed to be honest, extra–I know, he found this..mildly concerning addiction of yours quite endearing. It’s not like it would cause problems along the way, unless you spent all of your money on merchandise and went broke but he has enough trust in you not to do that..don’t break that by buying some lightstick that costs more than your kidney. 

[bridgertonbabe]

Bridgerton Spouses Support Group Chat #?

BSSG Group Chat

Kate: Guys can I ask you all a question?

Michael: Shoot.

Kate: Did you all go paintballing without me last week?

Message seen by everyone ✔✔

Kate: Ok it's been 24 hours since my last message and I know for a fact you've ALL seen it so what fucking gives?

Gareth: look if i send a cute video of george and you guys all flood the chat with comments and stuff then hopefully we can drown her out and lowkey gaslight her into forgetting all about it

Kate: What?!

Gareth: oh fu

Gareth sent a video

Michael: Awwwwwwwwww bless he's so adorable

Lucy: he has the cutest laugh!!! 🥰

Sophie: I can't believe he's getting so big already! 💗💗

Phillip: Cute x

Penelope: omg I love the onesie do you know where it's from?

Simon: See I told you he'd love the crawling crab.

Gareth: @ Penelope i'll ask hy

Gareth: @ Simon he can't get enough of it, it's his favourite thing atm

Kate: @ Penelope Well I got it from Bambino

Kate: And I fucking saw the message you obviously sent to the wrong GC @ Gareth , so you can all quit trying to GASLIGHT me!

Kate: Now I'll ask you again; did you or did you not all go paintballing without me?!

Simon: Ok fine we did.

Kate: AHA! I KNEW IT!

Penelope: How did you find out?

Kate: Greg asked me if I enjoyed the spouses paintballing afternoon when he came to pick Katie up yesterday.

Gareth: omfg wtf @ Lucy

Michael: Yeah rare L from you Lulu

Lucy: guys I'm sorry I forgot to take the wristband off before I got home and he instantly recognised where it was from so I had to fess up

Gareth: dammit you've jeopardised our entire set up

Lucy: no no no it's fine I swear! I know some of you guys don't have any trust in your partners but greg can keep a secret and respect our spouse group privacy! it won't get back to any of the other bridgertons, you've got to believe me!

Phillip: He literally blabbed to Kate.

Lucy: yes but only because I didn't tell him that she wasn't invited!

Kate: And why was I not invited?!

Sophie: Because you would have ruined it! You would have turned a fun afternoon into anything but just like you do with every other game and activity we've played before! You're just as bad as the Bridgertons when it comes to anything vaguely competitive and the rest of us just wanted some lighthearted fun without everything descending into chaos and the world burning around us, ok? And that is why we didn't invite you!

Phillip: Yep

Simon: Very that.

Kate: Wow.

Michael: Look Kate you've got to understand it's not you. It's just the psychopathic competitive Mr Hyde in you that scares the bajeebus out of us.

Penelope: yeah it really isn't personal

Gareth: except it is

Kate: For god's sake I'm not that bad! Sure I have my moments but that doesn't mean I should be excluded from your group activities! I can control myself! I've never done anything to cross the line enough to be compared to Mr Hyde for crying out loud!

Sophie: You accused me of faking going into labour with Alex and refused to call me an ambulance when we played Cluedo.

Simon: You keyed my car after Daph pissed you off in Monopoly.

Michael: And you threw Newton's poo on mine when I won charades.

Phillip: You've always mocked me for having panic attacks during game nights.

Penelope: You pushed Colin down the stairs.

Lucy:

Kate: Oh boo fricking hoo! I'm so sorry you're all a bunch of whiny oversensitive little babies who can't take the slightest bit of heat from some perfectly healthy competition!

Gareth:

Lucy: is the perfectly healthy competition in the room with us?

Phillip: I dread to think what you consider to be unhealthy competition.

Kate: Oh go have one of your little anxiety attacks about it then you weakling

Michael has removed Kate from the chat

Sophie: I would say I'm surprised she can stoop to a new low but I'm really not.

Lucy: and this is why I also don't regret not inviting her to laser tag or the escape room

[stardusted-bookworm]

Home

Warnings: None

Drawing familiar runes on the ground, Caleb bids adieu to the Nein before activating the teleportation circle. And goes home.

Home.

A hard-fought, hard-won place. Once foreign on his tongue, Caleb Widogast is slowly becoming accustomed to home. A place, and a person. A person he has not seen in a number of days, and after the fight he’d had… Let’s just say Caleb is more than eager to return home.

As the whoosh of arcana dies down, the Zemnian wizard is met with the comforting sight of his study in their Rexxentrum home. Paintings of various memories and dicks line the walls. Caleb clocks a new dick drawn on the corner of his desk. He makes a mental note to discuss appropriate dick drawing places with Jester later.

Then, his eyes catch on the painting hanging behind his desk. A portrait gifted to them for their third anniversary. The artist had captured a moment when he and his partner had been lounging on their couch, both looking off-paper. He is arching an eyebrow at something that was said, but his partner…

His partner is resplendent in the warm-toned light, resting on Caleb’s shoulder, head thrown back in laughter. The very epitome of joy. He looks softer, unwearied by an ever-hunting past.

It is Caleb’s favorite portrait of the two and had promptly hung it in his office when Jester had gifted it to them.

He studies the lines of his partner’s face, drinking in the details, memorizing his smile, as he had done so many times before.

Just then, he hears the shattering of ceramic and a loud “Scheiße!” from downstairs.

Caleb smiles and finally descends, joining his partner in their kitchen. 

Entering, he finds Essek Thelyss in all his glory, magicking the broken shards of a plate into the trash and furiously muttering under his breath. Caleb believes he hears something like “That’s what I get for wanting to do things by hand” mixed with Undercommon curses.

The sight is truly endearing. Domestic, one might even say.

Happy as he is to just stand and watch for hours, not a moment later, Essek absentmindedly glances in Caleb’s direction before locking eyes with him. A wide grin transforms the drow’s face into almost blinding beauty.

Widogast, you are smitten.

“Caleb!” Essek greets, folding him into an embrace. “You have returned! How was your trip? Were you able to reshackle Trent like you’d hoped?”

Too soon, his partner pulls out of his grasp and levitates the rest of the dishes to their corresponding places. Caleb is left bereft as the warmth quickly recedes.

“Ja, but—”

“Oh! That band of adventurers you sent me to, they reminded me much of the Nein. Well, in the sense that they are a motley bunch with… colorful personalities, shall we say?” Essek grins wryly at him before finishing his task.

“I see, that—”

“It was certainly an adventure with that group. We found Ludinus—Caleb, he used ancient Aeorian tech to show us the fall of Aeor. It was fascinating. I wonder how the enchantments were woven together to achieve that. I may want to work on that with you later.”

“Schatzi—”

“Then, we fought with one of the members’ patrons—she is a warlock, you see. Long story short, we were able to fight the patron off. After which, we teleported here where I led a long ritual to lock the patron into an Aeorian seal placed within the woman’s rib cage.” 

Here, Essek gets a haunted look on his face. “That… was mildly traumatic I won’t lie. Not the arcana of course, but there was much more blood and bones cracking than I would have preferred. But altogether, fascinating.”

“Essek—”

“Oh, I almost forgot!” Essek whirls around and clutches Caleb’s arms. “Caleb, you will not believe—one of the members of that group had a facet of dunamancy within their skull. It was truly unlike anything I’d ever seen before. Wait, let me collect the notes from my lab. It has much more detail that I do not want to leave—”

His partner begins to walk past him, excitedly chattering about this new discovery, and Caleb is frustrated.

He grabs one of Essek’s outstretched arms and pulls him into his body, Caleb’s other arm circling his waist as he draws his partner into a kiss.

It is longing and it is passion and it is desperation. It is a kiss of lovers parted for far too long.

 Caleb releases Essek’s hand only to sink his fingers into his partner’s silvery waves, the hand around his waist pulling him closer into the Zemnian’s warmth.

It lasts for only a moment, but seems to end far too soon as Caleb pulls back. Not far. Noses still touching, but far enough for him to whisper.

“I will gladly hear every detail of what your brilliant mind has uncovered of this band of adventurers, Herr Thelyss.” Caleb brushes his lips over Essek’s temple before continuing, “However, it has been a long week, month, year, and I would like nothing more than to lock my devastatingly handsome boyfriend and myself in our bedroom for a number of hours. If that is amenable to you.”

Here, Caleb draws back to get a full view of his partner’s face. Watches as the tips of his ears darken, lilac eyes glaze over, and lips part. All good signs, but still he waits for verbal consent.

Caleb kisses the corner of Essek’s mouth, mildly smirking at his partner’s state.

“Essek,” he prompts, stroking his thumb over the other’s cheek.

The haze from those gorgeous lilac eyes clears and Essek breathes just one word, one syllable that has Caleb sweeping him into his arms and teleporting to their bedroom: “Yes.”

[winniemaywebber]

Honeysuckle Rose • Part 8

james douglass x olive lewis

part one part two part three part four part five part six part seven

masterlist ao3 olive's playlist

notes: a little heavy petting 🤭

Something big is brewing on base, the Brass keeping their cards close to their chest. The Red Cross Girls navigate their way through revelations, chance meetings and feelings from the past that rear their ugly head.

Despite the very few hours of sleep she had gotten, the sun rising over the beautiful Suffolk fields as the gang had all congregated in the cool morning air in celebration of no longer being a fractured bunch, Olive felt refreshed. 

The group had left the club in the early hours to see the sun rise, telling each other that the lack of sleep would be worth it. The gang, joined by Curt’s co-pilot Dickie, sat on the surprisingly soft grass of the airfield in a gentle silence. The sweet countryside air whipped all around them, Olive finding warmth tucked inside of Dougie’s jacket, his arm around her as she snuggled into him. She laid her head on his shoulder, him smiling as she stroked his face. The fiery hues of the morning sky brought out the beautiful blue of his eyes, Olive practically falling into them as the two of them seemed to slip into their own little world. It was at this moment she realized; she was falling in love with him. It had hit her like a freight train, the thought causing her to gasp out loud.

“Okay, doll?” James asks, holding her even closer to ward off the cold.

“Never better, honey.”

—

The early start came with the beginnings of a headache from lack of sleep. However, Olive found herself extremely peppy for this time of the morning. She, along with Tattie, had gone about most of their morning duties occasionally exchanging quiet conversation and Tattie preparing herself for her impending hangover. “It doesn't knock you on your ass if you don't go to sleep,” she laughs, wincing at the sound of her own voice. 

“You didn't sleep? Jesus Christ, Spaatz. You mad bugger.”

“There was no point,” she replies, beginning to daintily arrange donuts on a tray. “By the time I'd have got myself into bed, it would have been time to get up again. There,” she says, placing the tray on the counter. She lights two cigarettes, handing one to Olive before pouring them a cup of coffee each. “This'll perk us up, kid.”

A bark echoes through what feels like the whole air base, Olive and Tattie both jumping at the sound of it. “Hold on to your hats,” Tattie smiles. “Here comes trouble.”

“Oh, yeah! He's brought Meatball with him too!”

Benny strolls up to the Clubmobile alongside Meatball, stifling a yawn as he approaches. 

“Demarco!” she cheerfully greets, pouring him a coffee before he even has a chance to ask. “What are you doing up so early?”

“Meatball was crying for the bathroom, then I saw Lemmons while we were out there. Said he needed me to look over something on Our Baby.”

“Ah,” she nods. “Leave the good boy here with me. It seems pretty easy out here today, so it's no bother.”

“Thanks, Ol. Hey, everything worked out now?”

“Oh, yes,” she blushes. “Everything smoothed over. What about you?” she enquires, eyebrow raised. “You set him straight?”

“Too right. I made it clear that it's only him you care for in that way. I told him that if he thinks he saw what he thought he saw, he should've asked me; I also told him that if he ever made you cry again, he'd pay for it. He got a little sheepish at that.”

“Christ,” she whispers, shaking her head in amusement.

“Hey, no hard feelings. We shook hands, back to being pals. No harm done.”

“Well, if you say so. Here,” she says, placing another two cups of coffee and a few donuts in front of him. “One for you, the coffees and other donuts are for Kenny and Wink.”

“Thanks. Run over and grab me if the dog is too much trouble.”

He turns on his heel and departs, Meatball barking incessantly as his person walks away from him without so much as a pat goodbye. 

“Benny!” Olive shouts. “You forgot something!”

—

“Good morning boy, hi!” Olive hears, seeing Meatball perk up instantly with his ball in his mouth, expecting playtime at the sight of more people walking up to the Clubmobile. Val bends down to pet him, scritching at the dog's ears as he drops the ball at her feet and pants happily in her face. “Did you have a nice snooze?”

“He snoozed more than any of us, that’s for sure.” Helen says, rolling her eyes and smiling.

“When I checked last night, you were snoozing on top of Dickie,” Olive smiles, cheekily pointing at her friend with a triumphant grin.

“He was closest,” Helen grumbles. “And Tattie took the dog.”

“Surprised Benny didn’t put up more of a fight for him honestly,” Tattie says, stubbing out her cigarette and turning to begin spot cleaning the counters.

Mentioning Benny's name seemed to be a careless mistake. At the mention of his name, Meatball leans forward and begins howling, Cleven’s assumption once again being proved right. 

“That wolf is part dog,” he had grumbled to Olive, a few days after their first meeting. Seeing her love on him, he crouched down beside her and told her all about how he'd come to be the group's mascot. 

“Benny won him,” he laughed, holding a hand out for the dog to sniff at. “Craps.”

“Probably the luckiest win of his life,” Olive had replied, nuzzling into Meatball for warmth. “Wait, how did you get him here all the way from Greenland?”

“He flew with us. Howled the whole darn way, Lewis. It was unbearable, let me tell ya.”

“I'll bet,” she had said, raising her eyebrows. 

“Benny joked that his dog was part wolf,” he pauses, standing up and wiping his hands on his slacks. “I said that wolf is part dog.”

“Okay, Meatball, shhh.” Olive crouches down to ruffle the fur between his ears in comfort, when suddenly, the dog mistakes her loving on him for playtime and jumps up onto her, pushing her to the floor.

“Oh, Meatball!” Val laughs, unable to pull him off Olive and help her friend as he continues to lick her face. Through the chaos, laughter and struggle, a familiar voice booms across to them, with Everett Blakely following closely behind.

“Wow, and here I thought I was the only fella who got to smother you in kisses!” Dougie’s voice calls out as he walks up the path to the Clubmobile, a smirk about his lips. He seems to have woken up incredibly happy, a jaunty little pep in his step as he walks up to greet everyone. 

“Fella, yes,” Olive looks up at him from her place on the ground, his blue eyes softly boring into her. “But he’s not a fella, he’s a Meatball.”

“Well, then he’s the only Meatball who gets to smother you in kisses.” Dougie approaches the dog, gently tugging at his collar to get him off Olive and helps her stand, his hand stroking hers as he does so.  

“Did anyone get any sleep last night?” Dougie questions everyone, looking at their exhausted faces as he helps Olive dust off, tickling her playfully as he does so. 

“James!” she shrieks, playfully swatting at him.

“Barely,” Val sighs, answering his question through Olive’s giggles. She moves slightly, joining Ev and snuggling into him. “I can’t remember the last time I stayed out all night like that.”

“Had to be sometime before the war…” Ev sighs, placing a kiss to the top of her head. 

“Somehow it always involves Curt.” Val groans, her back turned to the path the aforementioned man is now sauntering down. 

“Hey, yous guys!”

“Talk of the devil…” Val begins.

“And he shall appear,” Olive and Helen finish, climbing into the truck and pouring coffee for those who have now congregated around the area. They hand out the cups, now knowing each coffee order by memory. If anything proved how close these girls had gotten to these men, it was this very thing. Sometimes, all these men needed was a silent nod and a wry smile as a perfectly warm beverage and donut was set in front of them without a word. All the girls could do was hope they were able to make the same coffee the next day, hoping more than anything to keep seeing these familiar faces, just as the men wanted to see theirs. 

“Ol, Harding wants to see me. Not sure what it's regarding but I'd better get there al momento. Curt says he'll be on Meatball duty but–”

“Yeah, he'll sod it off after five minutes,” she titters. “Need one of us to go with?”

“Ev is giving me a hand, thanks, doll.”

“I'm sure he is, you cheeky pair.”

“Leave it, English,” she scolds with a wink, surprising her with a kiss on the cheek. “Be back soon, ‘kay?”

“Tell me what it's about when you're back! I may be sleepy but I am still nosy!”

—

“Mail's here!” Tattie yells, wafting a letter in front of Olive's face. She takes it from Tattie’s fingers with a smile, and takes in the unfamiliar penmanship written upon the envelope. It feels thick, the paper creaking slightly as she squeezes it to survey its contents without needing to open it. Not able to keep herself waiting any longer, she rips it open with her thumb and removes six thick pages, tied with ribbon, along with a single sheet of paper that's been beautifully folded into three. Setting the wad of paper to the side for just a second, she quickly scans the letter: your friend, Juliet.

“Aw!” Olive says, stuffing the papers back in the envelope they arrived in. “Brady's girl wrote me back. That's so sweet.”

“What you got there?” Dougie asks, stuffing a second - or was it a third? - donut into his mouth, looking at the huge stack of papers in Olive’s hand. She opens it, a huge smile spreading across her face, causing her cheeks to glow a little. Dougie feels his breath catch in his throat as he sees her eyes light up, quickly taking in the first three pages. It's the dimple in her cheek as she grins, the way her eyes sparkle and crinkle as her cheeks lift, the subtle glow of them, too. He clears his throat after realizing he's been holding his breath, a hand out towards Olive.

“I've got a few minutes. You wanna go somewhere quiet and read that?”

“I'd love to! Helen?” She calls, turning her head to find her friend. “You good here? I wanna go read this,” she says, gesturing to the thick pages in her hands. 

“Gosh, yes!” she cries, beginning to pour herself a coffee. “Take your time. I'll have Meatball bark if I need you!”

—

Sitting on her bunk with a sigh, she pats the space next to her. “Are you staying?” she asks Dougie, who is standing awkwardly by the door.

“Am I allowed in here?”

“It's just me, so, yes, I'd say so. Don't be trying to come in when we're all in here though; it gets a little cramped.” She pats the blanket again, hoping he takes the hint. “Come sit, darling.”

He finally begins walking towards the bunk, swiping up Val's copy of Screen Romances as he reaches Olive. “You think she'll mind?” he asks, holding it out toward her. Smirking, she shakes her head, beginning to open the letter again. Dougie sits down next to her as gently as he can, his arm wrapping around her shoulder. Her head falls on to him right away, as if his shoulder was always its safe place.

“How long do you have?” she murmurs, looking up at him from where she's laying.

“I've got a little while,” he smiles, opening the magazine right at the gossip column. “How ever long you need, Ollie.” 

She whizzes through the essay, her head on Dougie’s shoulder the whole time as he flips through the magazine, letting out little gasps and even an “ooooh!” when he reads about Clark Gable's latest exploits. Olive folds the papers back together and ties them with the ribbon they came with, smoothing out the silk as she ties it as neatly as she can, trying her best to replicate Jules’ expert handiwork. She looks over at Dougie, shifting slightly under his arm so she can sit up. He doesn't realize she has moved at first, his eyes still on the page and his brow furrowed in concentration. She smiles softly at him, trying her best to take in every detail of his sweet face.

“You're so into the gossip in that magazine, huh?” she asks, breaking the silence. He jumps, face now turning toward her. “Gossip queen.”

“What can I say? I like to be in the know,” he laughs. 

“That's just called being nosy, my love.”

“Yeah,” he blushes, taking her hand. “But you know you love it.”

“I do,” she sighs, her face coming towards his to kiss him as her eyes flicker down to his plush lips. She kisses him gently, her heart growing lighter as he smiles down at her. She doesn't pull away right after, and he isn't about to let her. His hand gently tilts her chin up to him and their lips meet again, the both of them softly falling into each other with a sigh. He delicately strokes down her chin to gently grip the side of her neck, an action that causes her to gasp and push her tongue into his mouth. A breathy moan leaves his lips as she kneels - never breaking the kiss -  and places a leg on either side of his lap. Her hands wander up to his cheeks, letting them take in his features without needing to open her eyes as his hands fall to her waist, gently squeezing and stroking each curve he can reach over her clothes. Sighs and moans pass between their lips, both of them fighting the urge to not get totally lost in it, a whine of displeasure leaving her as he pulls back to catch his breath. 

“Ollie,” he whispers, his chest rising and falling rapidly. “You're so pretty.” 

That does it for her. She quickly closes the distance between them, tugging on his shirt to bring him impossibly closer, intent on getting the very thing her body craves from him the most. The warmth of his body touching hers, the way he touches her: being so gentle with her that it was like she was something precious and made of fragile porcelain. Her mind recounts previous kisses with previous people and she is sure it’s never felt this good with anyone else, nor has anyone else treated her so lovingly. She sighs back into him, pushing her hips into his. 

She's not sure how long they stay like that, herself pulling away to catch her breath. The rule, it seemed, was that she was allowed to do that and he wasn't. Either way, she hated losing the time but loved the split second of taking in his half lidded eyes, as if he were in some kind of dazed state. His expression made a warmth erupt within her, her lungs filling with a contented sigh. She couldn't get enough of knowing she had got him into this state and only she was ever going to make him look like this. 

She adjusts herself on his lap, feeling him rock hard underneath her as she sits back down on him. As she moves, a hearty moan leaves him and his breath hitches and she begins to slowly rock on top of him. 

“Aaah,” he sighs, his hands now in her hair as he pulls her face away from his. He sees a worried expression flash across her face, her kiss swollen lips beginning to pout as he holds her hips still. 

“Why did you stop me?” she asks, intertwining her fingers with his. “Did I do something wrong?”

“No, no! God, no,” he urges. “I really really want to do this. But I don't want it to be some quick thing where we don't take our time. You deserve better than that.”

“I don't care,” she whimpers, planting urgent kisses all over his face and neck as he laughs. 

“I do,” he sighs, kissing her back once she breaks away. “I can't give you the time you deserve right now. I wanna do this right, take our time. Show you how you should be treated. Okay?”

“Fine,” she pouts, her eyelids blinking up at him.

“Hey, don't be like that, angel. Soon, I promise. Pinky promise,” he says, joining their pinky fingers together and kissing her hand. 

A tap, tap, tap on the window pulls them out of the moment. They both turn towards the window and see Ev standing out there, urging Dougie to go to him, Dougie patting Olive's behind to get her off his lap. “Give me a second, honey,” he says quietly, planting a chaste kiss on her forehead as he gets up off the bed. 

Olive watches them through the window, Dougie's eyes widening slightly with whatever information Ev seems to be relaying to him. She sees his shoulders droop slightly before Ev pats one of them, beginning to walk towards the hut, and gesturing by pointing at the door for Olive to let him in. She gets up off her bunk, placing the letter on the small desk next to it and walks towards the door, opening it quickly.

“You can open it yourself, Ev,” she laughs, smoothing her hair down quickly.

“How was your, uh, reading?”

“Educational, thanks,” she replies, blushing and giggling. 

“Can't believe that guy got to sneak in here before me,” he complains, shaking his head and pulling a small sheet of paper from Val’s stationary.

“Maybe you're not picking the right moments, Blakely. What are you doing?”

“Leaving a note for Val, English.”

“You're so sly,” she pokes, reading it as he places the small sheet of paper on her pillow. She catches sight of the last line and gasps, almost squeals, in fact. Love you.

“Don't let that slip before I can, Ol.”

“Don't know what you mean, Everett,” she winks, nudging him with her elbow into his ribcage. “I promise I won't tell her before you do.”

“Good. Then I promise to not tell you before Dougie does.”

She processes what he has just said. What did that mean? 

“Ha ha, yeah, good one.” She stumbles over each word, her mouth drying as her hands clam up. A false laugh tumbles from her lips as she rushes towards the exit, finding Dougie still outside and waiting for her and Everett.

“Everything okay?” he asks, her hand finding his instantly. She feels him relax into her touch, his face softening as she silently comforts him. She pulls him towards her and holds him close, breathing him in as she savors the words that have just been said. “I promise to not tell you before Dougie does.” 

“I've gotta go,” he sighs. “We're taking the new boys on a practice run.”

“New boys?” she questions, realizing that was why Val was beckoned by Red and Chick earlier. 

“Yeah, replacements came in today. Ev says they seem a little nervous, but–”

“Hey, you've both got it,” she says, pulling him close. “You'll lead them through,” she soothes, beginning to stroke the back of his neck. “I know it.”

“Thanks, sweetheart. I'll be back later, okay?”

“Yeah,” she smiles, kissing his cheek. “Be safe, all of you. Especially you.”

—

Olive spots Tattie leaning against the vehicle, smoking a cigarette and deep in conversation with Jack Kidd, Tattie breaking into peals of laughter at something he has said. Olive subtly looks between the pair of them, him smiling down at Tattie as laughter rises from her throat. She sees his whole face light up with joy as he watches her laugh, the first time she has seen him without a scowl upon his face. The air somehow feels different between them, and Olive finds it best to not disturb that. 

She feels a wet nose poking into her leg and turns around to see Meatball sniffing at her incessantly. “Hey, buddy,” she says, leaning down to pet him and making kissy faces at him. 

“Hey, kid,” greets Tattie, making Olive jump slightly. “Val and Helen are tidying up after greeting the new guys, so we're on Meatball duty.”

“I guessed. Ev had to come grab Dougie from me so they could go on their practice run,” she shrugs. “Curt just go too?”

“Jesus, no,” she laughs. “He gave up on doggy daycare after five minutes.”

“Why am I not surprised?” she replies, smiling. “What do you need me to do?”

“There's a load of donuts we need to get rid of before they go stale. Know anyone on the ground that would be interested?”

“Seems I know just the guys, Tat. You parcel them up and I'll take Meatball over to the hardstands to see Kenny and Wink. This dog needs a run around anyway.”

—

The sun tucks itself behind the clouds, the skies graying as the afternoon passes slowly. It seems that British summer time never changes, Olive thinks to herself as loads up a tray with coffee and donuts for the ground crew. Placed in the middle was a paper bag stuffed full of donuts, the bag being found by Tattie as she rifled through the last of the day’s newspapers.

“Ah,” she declared, somehow expertly turning it inside out without ripping it, so as not to get newspaper ink on the baked goods.”Just perfect,” she had said, a half smoked Lucky Strike hanging from her red lips. Without warning, the smoke had risen up from the cigarette and crept its way into her eye, her hand instantly clamping over it as a single tear ran from the lid. “Darn it!” She had shrieked, whipping a cloth from Helen’s shoulder as she secretly tittered, her own hand over her mouth. Olive tries her best to hold it in, the full coffee cups shaking on the tray she was holding. 

“Get gone, English, before I clip you around the ear hole for laughing at me!”

“Yes, ma’am,” Olive giggled, slipping Helen a subtle wink as she departed.

Left with no other choice, Olive lets Meatball walk off leash. “Don’t make me regret this, buddy,” she urges, watching him walk not in a straight line but in some strange zig zag motion, as if to antagonize her into dropping the six cups of hot liquid straight on to the pavement. 

“Woah!” she scolds, nearly tripping over the furry fool’s body as he stops suddenly to sniff the air, panting at the sound of his friends’ voices from afar. He almost looks like he’s smiling at her, seeming to enjoy her almost panicking at each drip of coffee falling from its full cup. “Meatball, we’re about to not be friends if you have me tripping face first into the ground.” 

He suddenly obliges, though not to appease Olive; a baseball lands right at his feet and he’s off like a shot towards the hardstands the second he retrieves it in his mouth.

A few moments later, Olive finds him being fussed over by Lemmons. She places the tray down on someone’s tool chest, rubbing her sore arms. 

“Heavy?” Wink asked, nudging her with his elbow.

“Not really,” she replies. “Not much weight to it but it was the keeping it upright that was the challenge. Especially with trying to keep Meatball close by and not have me tripping over my own feet. Here,” she says, handing him his cup. “I know it’s a little late in the day, but–”

“No, it’s much appreciated, Lewis,” he replies, taking a deep sip. “We’re out here for a while longer anyway, and this’ll keep the energy up for sure. We’ve got a long night ahead of us, I think, judging by Harding’s urgency.”

“You know what it’s about yet?”

“I was going to ask you the same thing,” he laughs. “You seem to be in the know. Friends in high places and all that.”

“No special privileges here, Wink,” she jokes back, opening the bag of donuts and offering it to him. “I know as much as you, kiddo.”

“Olive!” Lemmons greets, grabbing a coffee from the tray. “Y’know, I expected more cold beer than hot coffee for keeping your little secret, but seeing as you brought donuts, I’ll let it slide.”

“You’d better,” she smiles, handing him the bag. She realizes that Wink is still standing in the same spot, absolutely in earshot. He is either too invested in his donut to look shocked, or there’s the alternative. Olive’s eyes narrow and bore into the young man in front of her, happily sipping coffee and petting the dog.

“Kenny…” she says through gritted teeth. “Did you tell anyone else?”

“Oh, heck,” he murmurs, his face dropping and growing ashen by the second. “Y’see, I just– well, he wanted to know why I was just so het up and I–”

“So you told Wink, without checking with me first, and he–” she stops, turning to the man beside her. “You’re fine with it?”

“Yeah, Olive. I was telling Kenny you seem a little different and I was just putting it down to you being English.”

“But I let it slip. I–I’m sorry, Ol.”

Her teeth bare again, her brow furrowing so hard that she is sure it could one up Valencia’s famous glare. “Kenny,” she growls, her eyes beginning to fill with angry tears. She drops the act the second she sees him wince at what’s coming next. She laughs, wiping her tears and sees his eyes grow wide. “I’m only fucking around, pal. It’s fine, you’re grand.”

“Jesus, Ol,” he breathes out, relieved. “Ya scared me, girl!”

“I told you, I’m an actor. I’ve got to pull it out every now and then to mess with my friends, it’s only fair.”

“Well, it worked! Hell fire!” He wipes his brow, finally taking a bite of the donut he had picked from the bag a few moments ago.

“Will you keep the dog for a little while? Me and the girls want to be ready for when the boys come back and we don’t want our nicer uniforms covered in dog hair.”

“What, not just this once? Take a little Meatball to dinner with ya?” Kenny coos, bending down to be close to Meatball’s face and pouting. Laughing, he stands up and brushes at his knees. “Sure thing, buddy. I’ll bring him back later.”

“Thanks, Ken. See you later!”

“Hey, thanks for dinner and a show!”

“You’re welcome!”

—

Back at the hut, Olive slumps on her bunk with a tired sigh. All this staying out into the early hours of the morning was beginning to take a real toll on her, no matter how fun it was. She feels herself getting drowsy, a sleepy warmth washing over her as she lay her head on her pillow for just a moment, to get the room to stop spinning. She calculates how long it's been since she went back to Pearl, and sits up in shock. Her whole body suddenly tense, she makes a mental note to go back as soon as possible. Not knowing how time will behave and treat her, she feels a panic rise up in her chest, the breathlessness of it making a rush of heat run up her body and burn her throat.

“Ol?” a voice, Helen’s, but sounds like it's underwater. “Olive, look at me,” she urges, her hand now on Olive's forehead. “Breathe, girlie.”

 She nods weakly, and begins to look around the room as the walls begin to close in on her. She tries to find something to focus on, her eyes falling to the bed opposite hers - Valencia’s bunk - with the note still sat prettily atop the pillow. Disappointed that Val hadn’t seen it yet, she hopes that she arrives back soon to retrieve it. It’s this simple thought, the thought of her friend smiling as she reads it, that brings her back to herself. 

“There,” Helen comforts, wiping Olive’s face with a damp washcloth. “I’ve got you. What pulled you out of it?”

“Thinking of Val’s face when she sees what he’s written.”

“Oh, I know!” She squeals. “I can hardly wait. Did she tell you who I met today?”

“No!” she cries. “I haven’t seen her since this morning. Oh my gosh, spill!”

She begins, her words coming out of her dainty mouth at a mile a minute as she regales the tale of meeting ‘the most handsome pilot I’ve ever laid my eyes on.’

“The most handsome?” Olive teases, hanging on every word.

“Yes!” she giggles, once again describing him. As she continues to chatter and giggle, Olive joining and doing just the same, the door swings open. Their conversation stops, their eyes sparkling and smiling widely at their friend. 

“You’ve got mail…” Olive sing songs playfully, pointing over at the pillow.

“What don’t I know?” Val smiles, her pretty green eyes narrowing at the two giggling girls on the bed opposite. 

“Nope,” Olive says, truly sticking to her promise of not revealing anything. She mimes zipping her lips, the action sending her and Helen into a peal of girlish giggles all over again.

“Olive!” she stomps, shaking her head at the mischievous pair who are falling over themselves with laughter. 

Olive sees Val’s eyes read the note one, two, three times, each time with a little extra speed than before. She stands up from the bed and stands in front of Val, that all knowing, cheeky glint still sparkling in her eye. 

“He…oh my God…” She stutters out, her hand flying out to find Olive’s to steady herself.

“He what, honey?” Helen asks, despite knowing exactly what she is referring to. 

“That’s the first time...in a note!” She cries, trying to find a way to steady her heart’s rhythm at the revelation. 

“The first time for what?” Helen teases again, still perched upon the bed with the same all-knowing look Olive has on her own face.

“Val, honey, are you okay?” Tattie asks, quietly entering the room. 

“DID YOU KNOW?!” Val yelps,  her attention turning to Olive, who is taken aback by the way Val’s voice is a few pitches higher than they’re all used to.

“Did I know what?” she asks innocently, almost winking at her.

“THIS!” she shrieks, waving the paper in front of her eyes.

“What’s it say?” the Brit asks, trying to peer around the paper to read the words she’s already read numerous times today.

“English, please!” She releases Olive’s hand and sits on her bed, her lungs tightening in her chest.

“Okay, okay,” she relents, taking a seat beside her on the bunk. “I promised,” she says, crossing her heart, “that I wouldn’t let it slip before you found out or he told you.”

“How did you…”

“Dougie and I were in here earlier,” she smiles at the memory, remembering the way he touched her hours before sending her organs dancing into a frenzy. “I was reading my mail when Ev came looking for him.”

“Yeah, okay, you two were ‘reading,’” she kids, rolling her eyes at her friend.

“Don’t change the subject, Valencia!”

“Olive!” Helen calls, her face now suddenly a picture of disgust. “Please tell me I’m not sitting where…”

“No, Helen, you’re safe. Nothing happened.”

“As long as I’m not–”

“Would you two please focus?” Val urgently cuts Helen off. “Everett just said he loves me!”

“Well of course he loves you!” Tattie says, rolling her eyes as she walks past the hubbub on her way to the shower block. 

“No, I mean, that’s the first time he’s ever said it.”

“I find that hard to believe,” she yells, turning one of the showers on, the squeak of the pipes causing her to need to raise her voice so she’s heard.

 “What makes you say that?” Val queries, the note still in her hands. 

“Well, for starters,” Helen begins, hoping she is not interjecting on whatever Tattie has to say. “It’s the way you gaze into each other’s eyes when you think no one is looking…” She rolls over, her stomach now on the bed with her feet kicked up behind her. 

“Or when we are looking,” Olive teases, nudging her a little. She reaches into her pocket and grabs her cigarettes, lighting two and handing on to Val. “Here, chicken, come on…”

Val takes the cigarette from Olive’s fingers and takes a long drag before exhaling quickly, Olive seeing that the deep breath she took is beginning to somewhat ground her. She begins to talk again, in her normal tone and slower this time, the words accompanied by a plume of white smoke as she speaks. Her eyes seem to glaze over, like she’s lost in another time far away from this one.

“The last person who told me they loved me,” she begins, blinking suddenly.

“There was someone before Blakely?” Tattie calls, her head popping around the wall of the tiled bathroom as she dries herself. 

“I don’t like talking about it,” Val sighs, her eyes almost back to their usual green tone. “We met when I started working at the bank. He was a big shot and I was a secretary.”

“Val, you don’t have to tell us.”

“No, it’s okay,” she sighs, looking between her friends. “I want to. I think I need to, to finally be rid of him.”

“Rid of him?” Helen questions.

“He was a real sweet talker,” Val starts. “Not like Curt or Ev. He was the kind of guy who could charm the skirt off a nun. Not even Curt can do that.” She titters, taking another pull of the cigarette in her hand.

“Oh…” Helen cringes slightly, still intrigued by Val’s story.

“So, he charmed me. Charmed me real good, made me lots of promises.”

“Val, did he…” Olive asks.

“No,” she urges, shaking her head. “I was so enthralled by him, I had wanted to.”

“So, what happened?”

“The secretaries would always leave at five in the dot. So, there would be nights I would go home and he would still be working, and so Curt would meet me and walk me home. And one night, we were walking home, we came up to the picture house, and there he was.”

“Oh no!” Helen cries, her hand slapping to cover her mouth as she figures out where this is going.

“He was with another woman,” she sighs, shaking her head. “I don’t know who she was, but I begged Curt to take me home.”

“Did you ever see him again?”

“Yes,” she says quietly. “In the police station, after Curt beat him within an inch of his life. They both got arrested for a public brawl.”

“Valencia!” Olive cries, somewhat shocked but not shocked at all at the mental image of Curtis Biddick defending his best friend with his boxer’s fists. 

“I had to identify them both. Curt had claimed self defense, so, when it came time to make my statement, I said that my ex had attacked me, and Curt fought back in my defense.”

“Oh my God!”

“I tried dating other fellas after the dust settled, but Curt was always wildly protective and made it difficult. I get why he did it.”

“He really is your protector, isn’t he?” Olive soothes, her fingers intertwining with Val’s.

“Until I found out he was the one who divulged my cocktail order to Everett…”

“Curt did?!” Helen cries happily, almost cheering at the discovery.

“He did,” Val smiles, the cigarette long ignored as it burns its way down to her fingers. “He surprises me in funny ways like that.”

“Insufferable, that one,” Olive chuckles, shaking her head. “But he really is a good egg.”

“What are you going to tell Blakely?” Tattie asks, joining the others in the room again. 

“That I love him too,” she grins, showing her perfect teeth. “Because I do love him.”

“Ohhhhh!” It’s Olive’s turn to squeal, almost jumping up and down in excitement. “I knew it!”

—

Olive and Helen watch as Val takes Ev’s note and delicately places it between the pages of the book that rests on her side table. Everett Blakely’s first ‘I love you’ was now secretly pressed between chapters seven and eight of The Great Gatsby. The girls then found themselves in front of the mirror, prettying themselves up for dinner. Being invited to eat in the Officer’s Mess was slightly anxiety inducing anyway, but even more so when Chick Harding would be sat just a few tables away. They dug out their cleanest uniform, once again glad that Olive had sent Meatball to the airfield for his daily exercise. For such an occasion as this, the uniform needed to remain dog-hair, coffee stained and donut sugar free. 

Olive watched as Valencia expertly daubed rouge on her cheeks and her signature Victory Red shade on her lips, pouting occasionally in the mirror so as to ensure she’d got the right shape. She tries her best to mimic her movements without making it obvious, pulling her dark brown hair out from under the silk scarf she had used to keep it contained all day, now pinning it away from her face. She had found the perfect shade after the disastrous testing and application of Val’s Victory Red on her first night in the hut. It’s one she will be happy to have kissed off her mouth later, that’s for certain. 

“That color looks good on you,” Val utters from next to her.

“Yeah?” She replies, meeting her glance in the reflection of the mirror and resuming the primping of her hair, hoping to somehow smooth it into submission. “It’s not too dark?”

“Not at all. It’s the perfect red for you.”

“I think only you can pull off that Victory Red,” Olive chuckles, the pair of them remembering how that shade had been much too light against Olive’s pale skin, it washing her out and making her impossibly more pasty. “It was not for me.”

“Oh, gosh, do you remember how fast you wiped it off?”

“Immediate no,” she laughs. A sigh leaves her lips, throwing a stray hair pin that had escaped from her hair onto a nearby table. “Ugh, this side does not want to cooperate!”

“Here, let me…” Val stands and walks towards her friend, standing behind her as she begins gently rolling Olive’s hair between her manicured fingers and pinning it in the desired spot.

“How do you do it?” She grumbles, her hair now perfect within seconds, all thanks to an expert hand. 

“From an early age, my mother taught me how to be a ‘proper lady’,” she replies, Olive stifling a giggle at Val’s impression of her mom. “‘Valencia, don’t leave the house without lipstick on. Don’t forget to set your hair.’”

Olive laughs fully now at the broken English accent that comes out of her. She is so good at it that it’s almost like her mother is in the room with them. “Is that what she sounds like?”

“Oh, yes,” Val nods. “And Nonna, not a word of English.”

“Well, you’re a whizz,” she compliments, looking up as the final pin is placed in her hair. “I need to pay attention to how you do your hair.”

“You’re doing just fine, chickie,” she winks, walking over to her side table and putting on her watch before collecting her jacket. Olive does just the same, Helen waiting impatiently by the door. “We were all there once.”

“Thanks,” Olive beams at her friend, shoving her arms into her own jacket. “Now, come on. It’s almost 5:30 and if I know those two…”

“They’re probably already outside,” she finishes, Helen opening the door. 

The two men stood outside, smoking together and deep in conversation, no doubt about the replacements that had joined them today. Listening in as they mischievously stare through the screen door at  their fellas, they catch that Ev had taken a few of the boys up and tested them on formations and calling out navigation patterns. Dougie had simulated a bomb drop for them, the pilot and the bombardier agreeing that two forts in particular had impressed them - the rest, not so much. 

“I wanted to take Ol to the pub tonight, but that’s not happening,” Dougie grumbles as he senses the girls making their way towards them. 

“I know,” Ev groans in response. “I owe Val a date but, based on what Jack told me earlier, we’re about to go through the mud for a bit.”

“This whole place is mud. Never stops raining!”

“This one sounds big,” Ev musters, his voice low. 

“He say where?”

“No, Harding’s keeping it close to the vest.”

“Dammit,” Dougie shoots out, teeth slightly gritted together in annoyance. “It would be nice to know what we’re up against for once.”

“Yeah,” comes the quiet reply from Everett, the final ember bursting from his cigarette. “Explains why he wants us looking after these new kids.”

“Fucking replacements…”

The conversation carries on, the men so involved in it that they still haven’t noticed the girls right by them. The compliments flow, them talking about a pair from Laredo who seemed to be the only ones worth their salt. 

Dougie does a double take as he realizes his girl is right by him. He throws his finished cigarette into the makeshift ashtray in front of the hut and smiles his sweet grin, holding out his hand. 

“Hey,” he murmurs. “You look beautiful.”

“Heh, thank you,” she giggles, feeling herself blush at his compliment. “You’re looking mighty fine yourself, my love.”

“Good day?” he teases, kissing her gently on the mouth.

“Hm, it was okay, I guess. Nothing much happened,” she pauses, this time being the one to initiate the kiss. “A lot of reading.”

“Oh yeah, we definitely read a lot. Can we read more tomorrow?”

“Only if you buy me a drink later.”

“Deal,” he winks, pulling her close. “Oh, you smell divine, Ollie.”

“Yes, I’m quite appealing when I’m not covered in dog hair and coffee.”

“I think you’re just as beautiful all the time,” he whispers, his voice in her ear sending a delicious tingle down her spine. She lets him keep gently whispering sweet nothings in her ear as she catches sight of Val and Ev going on ahead, the pair of them walking in step as he wraps his arm around her shoulders and keeps her close. 

“We’d better go,” she laughs, nodding her head towards their friends. “We’re gonna be late.”

“If that hut is empty, I’m fine being late.”

“James!” she scolds, but laughs nevertheless. “You are so cheeky!”

“Yeah,” he grins, his eyes beginning to light up. “Only for you, though.”

“Oh, it had better be only for me, Douglass,” she flirts, batting her long lashes at him. “Nobody else is getting a piece of this!”

“Nu-uh, no, ma’am. Never.”

The evening air has a chill upon it, Dougie feeling it the moment they begin walking towards the Officer’s Mess. He throws his arm around Olive’s shoulders and pulls her close, the warmth from his body edging the cold away with each step. 

“I’d give you my jacket,” he offers. “But I’d have to put it right back on in a second.”

“I understand, sweet. No bother at all.”

He stops, taking her face between his hands and plants a deep kiss on her mouth, both of them feeling the other smile as their lips meet. She giggles as they break apart, taking her thumb to wipe the lipstick from his lips. “Oh, seems this red is your color, too.”

“I knew it. Does that mean I can keep kissing you forever?”

“Sure,” she swoons, the word ‘forever’ sending her insides melting. “I’d like that.”

“Me too,” he whispers, a tone of nervousness to his voice. “Come on, pretty girl. We’re late.”

— 

Upon entering the mess, Dougie’s arm once again wraps around Olive, they hear Val’s voice loudly making a remark to Harry Crosby. Gesturing to the couple who are smiling themselves into oblivion, they hear “that about answer your question, Croz?”

“Sure does,” he laughs in response, smiling at them both as Dougie, ever the sweet gentleman, pulls the chair out next to Val for Olive to sit on before rounding the table to sit opposite her, next to Everett. 

“So, fellas,” he pipes up, his eyes crinkling from his smile. “How’s it going then?”

“Could ask you the same thing, Dougie,” Brady grins, nodding towards Olive.

“Oh, I’m great,” he enunciates, winking at his girl opposite him, who rolls her eyes in return.

“Brady,” Olive begins, tapping his hand to get his attention. “I just wanted to say how lovely your Juliet is. I received her reply today, and I’ve got to say, what an amazing person. What a magnificent writer she is. Those kids are lucky to have her as their teacher, that’s for sure.”

“Oh, thanks, Olive,” he smiles, his cheeks turning red at the mention of her. “Make sure you mention that in your next letter. I tell her that all the time, yet she never seems to take it in from me. Maybe she’ll listen to someone else.”

“Maybe so! I’m very much the same, John. It’s a girl thing.”

“She write you an essay?” he jokes, shuffling with the salt and pepper shakers on the table.

“She did, actually,” she nods enthusiastically, promising to show him tomorrow.

“Yeah,” Dougie interjects. “We read it together.”

The men at the table give a roaring cheer at his remark, Olive feeling herself turn a deep shade of beetroot as she begins to laugh. “James!” she says, holding on to Valencia as they both laugh with tears in their eyes. “Keep it quiet.”

“Yeah, Doug,” Ev says, ruffling his hair a little. “Keep it quiet.”

Next to her, she sees Val catch the eye of one of the new replacements that had been mentioned earlier. Due to her having not been introduced to them yet, she is finding it hard to place which one had captured Helen’s heart and mind this morning from description alone. Nevertheless, Olive smiles brightly at them in greeting, the curly haired mustached man waving across to Val. 

“Hey, Val,” Benny calls from the other end of the table. “Looks like you’ve caught the eye of some of the replacements.” Olive sees Everett’s head twitch just a little at Benny’s words, turning his head slightly to get a better look. “Starry eyed kids.” 

“Rosenthal and his crew?” Val responds, shaking her head with a laugh. 

“Uh, no, actually…”

“What?” Ev scowls, and finds the men Benny has been referring to. His eyes narrow towards them, his gait akin to a wild cat ready to attack. Olive feels her chest tense up, hoping and praying this isn’t the start of a whole new argument, so soon after getting over the last one. 

“Everett, they’re not doing anything,” she pleads, her voice soft. “They’re just–”

“Drooling at my girlfriend like a pack of dogs.” 

Olive quickly looks over each of her shoulders, hoping that brotherly Curt Biddick isn’t in the vicinity. Olive isn’t sure who Curt would go for first in this situation - Ev for acting in such a way, or the new boys acting like uncouth savages whose mothers hadn’t taught them manners. 

Dougie places a hand on his friend’s shoulder, bringing him out of the envious trance he’d gotten himself in. “Ev, hey pal. They’re just kids, they’ll learn.” 

Olive sees Ev’s eyes unlock from the group with a shake of his head as he hears Dougie’s words, the ready-to-pounce stance dropping almost immediately. 

“Yeah…learn not to ogle other people’s girlfriends,” he spits, pointedly talking to those same boys, whose faces had dropped a mile in fear. 

“Everett…” Val warned, her eyes meeting Olive’s in some kind of confusion. Before he can respond, Gale Cleven stands with his hands on his hips, ever the authoritative figure. Major Buck Cleven addresses the boys, their faces now pale and their eyes darting to fixate on anything but Everett Blakely. 

“Fellas,” he nods. “Those girls will get your utmost respect, understood?” 

“Y-yes, Major,” they all stutter out, Buck nodding before moving along to say hello to everyone. 

“Boys. Miss Lewis, Miss Val,” he smiles, giving Val a little wink after realizing she has heard his talk with the replacements. “Enjoy dinner, everyone.”

“Thanks, Major.”

“Thank you, sir.”

Val and Ev, who are sitting opposite one another just like Olive and Dougie are, begin quietly talking to one another. Olive finds it best to not listen in, having found that this situation was enough drama for one night. Instead, she catches the eye opposite her, Dougie shaking his head and rolling his eyes with a smile as the pair murmur next to them.

— 

Dinner finishes, and the group finds that the tiredness has finally caught up with them all, Olive and Val exchanging tired glaces which are not just from feeling full after all they’d eaten for dinner.

“So, club?” Dougie asks, taking a drag of his just lit cigarette and passing it across to Olive.

“Hmm, no. Not tonight,” she shakes her head, blowing smoke out of her mouth. “Unless Val wants to?”

“Hell no,” she laughs, dark circles beginning to form under her eyes. “I need my bed.” She pauses for a second, evidently piecing a thought together. “Why don’t we just go sit outside our hut for a while?”

“It’s a nice night, I don’t see why not,” Olive agrees, already beginning to stand. Dougie rushes up behind her and helps her with her jacket, holding out his hand for her to hold. “Come on, honey,” she smiles, before leaning up to kiss him on the cheek. “We can have a cuddle.”

“Perfect.”

The group makes the short walk back, Dougie not letting Olive’s hand go for a second. Every now and then, he puts it to his lips and kisses the back of it, smiling softly at the sight of their fingers linked together. Once the hut is reached, the girls rush inside and place a vinyl on the player, gesturing for one of the guys to grab a chair and prop the door open so the music can be heard from where they will sit. 

“Ev, we need a record player in our rack,” Dougie says, handing a cigarette up to Olive who is sitting on his lap, his arm around her waist, holding her close to him. 

“Croz has a record player,” Ev responds with a sigh, him and Val squeezing up to share a chair so they can be as close as possible to one another. 

“Yeah, but he plays fancy stuff,” he laments, his free hand squeezing Olive’s waist a little more. 

“What exactly is fancy stuff, Doug?” Val asks with a laugh. 

“You know, opera and stuff.”

“Classical music is nice,” Val reasons to him, her eyes softly narrowing at him. “Nonna plays a lot of classical Italian at home. It’s actually quite nice.”

“Hey, Ol,” Dougie asks, nudging her a little. “What does Pearl play?”

She smiles, happy that this is a question she can answer truthfully.

“A lot of Glenn Miller in her house,” she sighs, another reminder to go back to her and reality looming over her. 

“She has good taste,” Ev offers, nodding. 

“Heh, yeah. She sure does.”

The four of them excitedly begin exchanging anecdotes about their families, Helen and Tattie joining them while Ev is in the middle of a story, regarding his mother and how she dealt with his rebellious behavior as a child.

“All I heard was, and it scared the life out of me, let me tell ya, was ‘Everett Ernest, if you so much as look at that vase–’”

“Wait, wait!” Olive shakes her head, wanting to make sure she heard him correctly. “Your middle name is Ernest?”

“Yes, and what of it, English?”

“I'm sorry, it's just–” she is cut off by the sound of a cackle erupting from her own throat, clutching her stomach as her eyes squeeze shut. “I didn't expect that. You don't–” she squeals, trying to compose herself. “You don't look like an Ernest, that's all.”

“Go on then, what's yours?”

“Maude,” she giggles, catching the glint in his eye as she says it. 

“Maude? Jesus, Ol, that's somehow worse than Ernest!” It's his turn to laugh now, the pair of them throwing their heads back and laughing loudly into the night. 

“I think it's cute,” Dougie says, sweetly tapping her nose with his finger. 

“Thank you! I think so too.” Her nose wrinkles sweetly as he touches it, him mirroring her expression and pulling her into a quick peck on the lips. 

Tattie lights one of the last cigarettes in the pack, passing it between the group. 

Helen, the most inexperienced smoker of them all but not wanting to be the odd one out, keeps coughing at each drag she takes. The dainty little noises leave her every few seconds, her chest heaving delicately as if she were a sickly little kitten.

“Helen, doll,” Olive urges. “Put that out. You're hurting yourself!”

“I don't wanna look like the party pooper!”

“I can promise, you're not,” she laughs, gesturing with a wave of her hand to give her the cigarette, the tip covered in her lipstick. As she stubs it out, she sees four men round the corner, all of them wide eyed and seeming to be taking in their new surroundings. Val looks up with a grin and waves, beckoning them over while Helen visibly swoons at the sight of the thin, dark haired pilot. 

“Ohhhh,” Olive says, knowingly. “That'll be Nash, then.” Helen simply giggles, tucking an invisible strand of her behind her ear.  “There is no hair loose, my girl,” Olive guffaws, shaking her head. 

“Ol, come meet the new fellas!” Valencia calls, three of the four in front of her. Nash had made his way over to Helen without a hello, his target clear from the moment he'd seen her leaning against the wall of the hut. 

“This is Robert,” Val begins. “Speas here is Nash's co-pilot and…where's he got to?”

“I'll give ya three guesses,” the round faced blond man perks up, eyebrows wiggling.

“That was fast. He's keen.”

“Sure is. Sorry, Miss…?” he says, looking at Olive.  

“Lewis. Olive Lewis.”

 “No way!” he gestures to himself, patting his chest three times in a fit of excitement. “Pappy Lewis!” 

“Oh, what?!” she squeals, clutching on to his arm. “I mean,” she stutters. “It's a pretty common name, Pappy.”

“Never met a Brit with the same one before though. Truth be told, never met a Brit til just now.”

“It's your lucky day. A Brit and a long lost cousin,” she jokes, stubbing out the last of her cigarette. 

“Oh! You're right! Hey, Rosie!” he calls over to him, not realizing he's still stood right next to him so he almost deafens the curly haired pilot. “Came all the way to England to find my cousin!”

“Pappy, she's not–”

“Long lost cousin Olive,” he says, pulling her into a hug. Olive pulls away as he loosens his grip on her, platonically grabbing his arm to lead him over to Ev and Dougie. Olive catches sight of Everett talking in hushed tones to Dougie, his hand on his shoulder. Ev is carrying an expression that's rarely seen, his brow softly furrowed and his body squared up as if to cover Dougie’s from where he is sat. The pair seem to be speaking softly, Ev obviously talking Dougie down from a mood that hasn't been apparent thus far. Olive worries, instantly trying to break the ice between them and her new friend. She rifles in her pocket and pulls out the box of cigarettes, somehow hoping that a simple gesture will give some ease to the surrounding atmosphere.

“Smoke?” she offers to Pappy as they reach the two men. “You guys have–”

“We've met,” Dougie says sharply, taking the last pull of his Lucky Strike as he stands. 

“Doug…” Everett urges, gesturing for him to sit back down. Olive can clearly see Dougie’s neck tightening, a vein beginning to pop out on his forehead. His face is covered with a thin sheen of sweat, him wiping at his brow quickly as Olive takes in his expression, her eyes full of concern. 

“Excuse me, Pappy,” she says, placing herself in front of James. “Honey,” she soothes. “What's up?”

“Nothing,” he replies, his voice meek and quiet. “It's nothing.”

“You wouldn't be acting like this if it was nothing.” She puts a hand on his face, before raking her fingers through his dark hair. “Come on, come with me.”

She links her fingers with his and takes him to a quieter spot, the back of the hut where they can't be seen. Instantly, she crosses her arms and shakes her head, as if to urge him into telling her what's going on.  “Well?” 

“I need you to know I'm not mad,” he begins, his eyes stuck on a spot on the pavement below. “I just…I get uneasy sometimes.”

“Can I ask why?”

“Someone - an old girlfriend - stepped out on me. Was unfaithful and I don't–”

“My goodness. I could never. I would never.”

He sighs, the back of his head against the wall as he breathes out. “I just need to know you're my girl.”

“Oh, James,” she mollifies, lifting his chin to have him look at her. “I'm your girl.”

“What if you change your mind?” He sounds so unlike himself, his voice, so small and meek, barely above a whisper as it cracks just a little.

“I will never change my mind. D'you hear me?” He nods, his blue eyes suddenly swimming. “Never, ever. However long you want me for, at least.”

“Oh, I'm planning on a really long time.”

“Good,” she smiles, pulling him closer to kiss her. “I'm yours. Okay? And when you feel ready, you can tell me the whole story.”

“Okay.” The deep breath he seems to have been holding escapes him, Olive seeing his chest collapse a little with relief. He smiles at her, gently stroking her face. “Hey, you think we can sneak in and do some more reading?”

“No chance of that, darling,” she says, nodding towards the group still outside. “But I’m sure we can read here for a little bit. Maybe a bedtime story, hm?” She grins at him, and he catches a cheeky glint in her deep brown eyes as she kisses him, open mouthed and firm. He gently pushes her against the wall, her opening her legs slightly to accommodate his lean body pressing on hers. Gentle moans pass between their mouths as they kiss, pushing their tongues together, trying to find a moment to breathe. His hand gently strokes down her neck, her eyes squeezing further shut to bite off a groan that’s trying to escape from her throat. It’s when he softly presses his fingers on the area he is holding that the moan crawls from her mouth and into his, him laughing on her lips in return. 

“You’re fresh, James Douglass,” she murmurs, his lips capturing hers again as the hand eases its grip. She finds his bottom lip with her tongue and gently nibbles, her hands finding themselves in his hair, softly gripping his hair and mussing it, the pomade slightly sticky upon her fingertips. She doesn’t care. All she cares about is the man in front of her, his mouth moving and working upon hers as if he never wanted to kiss another woman this way ever again. She shivers at his touch, the hairs all over her body standing on end as he plants soft kisses on her jawline and neck, making Olive quietly moan, her warm breath condensating in the dark, starry evening. 

“Can we say goodnight like this all the time?” he mumbles into her skin, his tongue finding her jugular. 

“Yes please,” she whines, her hips bucking into him as she goes to grab him once again. “And good morning, good afternoon, good evening…” her voice drifts off as he presses his lips to hers again, silencing her. He teasingly breaks away as she gasps, sighing in frustration. She catches sight of him in the moonlight and cackles for a second, his kiss-swollen lips covered in her lipstick. A familiar voice booms over the whole base, shocking the couple slightly. “The light was on. Everyone get back to your racks,” followed by a very stern  “James Douglass. Bed. NOW!”

“I’m beginning to think we need to find better hiding spots,” Olive says, rolling her eyes.

“Come on,” he whispers, pulling her off the wall. “They’ll be wondering where we got to.”

“Oh, I think they’ll know. Come here, love,” she says, pulling a spare handkerchief from her pocket. “You need this.”

“Do I look pretty?” he pouts, leaning forward to get her to clean his face. 

“Always, doll,” she reassures, touching his nose with her own. “There,” she nods, not a smear of lipstick to be seen. “They’ll never suspect a thing!”

The two round the corner, still giggling from their little tryst as they catch Val smiling sweetly at them. She gives them a little wave as she makes her way into the hut, leaving the door open for Olive. The lull of the night surrounds them as they quietly bid one another goodnight. A sweet kiss planted on her lips makes her toes curl. He kisses her cheeks, her nose, her forehead and touches her nose with his one final time. No words are spoken; it’s as if nothing else needs to be said, the actions seeming to do the talking. She watches as he turns and walks away into the night, Olive finding herself thanking the stars above for bringing her here.

taglist: @sagesolsticewrites @ginabaker1666 @hephaestn @manonsmanicmind @derry-rain @bobparkhurst @archival-hogwash @lestweforget5 @butterfly9012

[pumpkin-bats]

Dress Up - Straw Hats Fic

[Small fic of the Straw Hat crew shenanigans.]

a/n: A prompt my friend said in passing and it possessed me. My first fic on tumblr and I hope it's okay- please enjoy our wonderful silly pirates!

summary: A few of the Straw Hat members crash a party in disguise for a chance at winning a prize. They just so happen to all be crossdressing. And Luffy is incredibly dense.

contains: Annoying flirting attempts, sfw topics, crossdressing, mention of chest area, especially Zoro's, post 2 year time skip, mostly from Nami's perspective.

wc: 2.5+k

Let it be known that Nami's not a gold digger. That being said, three hundred million berries was three hundred million berries.

The Straw Hat crew was originally just passing by. A little pit stop for supplies before they got to the next nightmare island Luffy wanted to take them to. They didn't tend to dawdle too long in places their adventurous captain found boring.

At least, that's usually the case. Now they have other plans, if Nami has any say in the matter. And she has a lot to say about the matter.

Apparently some rich geezer in the fancier part of town was hosting a party for his rich geezer friends. According to the intel she gathered when out shopping, they have a tradition of playing a game with a cash reward for the winner. From what she could tell, it seemed more like a gathering to bet and gamble than anything else, but the prize was real.

The only catch was the guest list. A list that excluded people not friends with said rich geezer. People such as, politely speaking, crazy pirates. And she'd checked, their wanted posters had been pinned up around all areas of the town they've stopped at. Hence why only a small team went out to get supplies while they left the more energetic and easily recognizable members to wait back on the ship.

So her first solution was to get some disguises.

"Why are we doing this again?" Usopp tugged lightly at the bunched fabric climbing over his collar bone. There was clear distaste in his expression but Nami paid it no mind as she slapped his hand away to fasten a thin, glittering chain around his neck.

"Because the only group not going to that party just so happens to look a lot like us." She adjusted the necklace and brushed a few curls out of the way before stepping back to admire her work.

"That's great and all... but do we really have to go dressed like... this?" Usopp gestured at his outfit, to which Nami gave him a merciless smile.

"We have to be convincing right?"

As she said this, her fingers flit into the air to reveal a small photo. She'd managed to get her hands on it a few hours prior, and it's the backbone of her plan. There were six people posed in the photo, dressed to the nines and clearly part of some noble's inner circle.

She tapped one perfectly manicured nail at a striking woman in a sleek crimson dress. The lush black curls framed her face perfectly, looking soft despite the grain of the photo. All of it gave the impression of a powerful, gorgeous person ready to rule, even with the outlandishly long nose at the center of her face.

"I'm not doing this," Zoro growled, hands crossed over his chest. At least, he attempts to. He was clearly having difficulties trying to rest his arms on top of the feathered boa draped over his bare shoulders, the garment falling down his front to stop just above his waist.

For the rest of the boys, she had to add extra padding to give the illusion of a well endowed chest. Therefore, Nami found great amusement in the fact that Zoro's dress was completely unaltered on the top.

"Oh please. You look great!" She tightened the bow around her collar and brushed off the front of her jacket. "Besides, you still owe me five hundred million berries. consider this a chance to pay off a tenth of it."

"Wha- you-! Oi, the number went up! it was less than that last time!"

"Sure, but that's because you forgot about the interest." She stuck her tongue out at him playfully, meeting her thumb and forefinger in a small circle to finish off her signature money pose.

"Unbelievable..."

"These people do bear a striking resemblance to us," Robin noted, taking the photo into her gloved hand to further observe it.

This was the main reason Nami suggested they do this. Every person in the photo looked almost exactly like some member of their crew except in the opposite gender. Since there was a lack of lookalikes for Chopper, Brooke, and Franky, she had to ask them to stay behind for a little while.

Although, considering her plan included Sanji, Zoro, and Luffy, she would have to keep a tight leash on them if she wanted even the slightest chance at winning the prize money. But she had a feeling that it would be worth it in the end. Besides, a part of her was extremely curious to see what they'd all look like cross dressing and so far she wasn't disappointed. Sue her, Nami deserved to have some fun of her own every now and then.

"Ah... Of course I'd do anything for you, Nami-Swan- but uh...." Sanji's face was twisted like he was in pain. She knew he didn't have the most fun on the island of okama, and was quite proud that he was still willing to go through this for her despite that. And she couldn't deny that he really did look flattering in the long, skin tight, black dress he wore.

"You look lovely Sanji-kun." Is all Robin needed to say to have Sanji twirling around and forgetting all of his hesitation. Zoro, on the other hand, was still less than pleased.

"Shouldn't Luffy be done by now?" Usopp chimed in again, casting his gaze at the outhouse they'd gathered around to change. Before Nami got a chance to reply, the door promptly smashed to the ground.

Luffy lowered one, pencil thin heeled shoe from where it hovered in the air, likely the culprit for the decimated door. A soft 'fufufu' echoed from Robin as the group took in the appearance of their captain in a genuine attempt at looking like a girl. And not a single soul had words to speak.

Despite the deep, drooping frown, Luffy was more dazzling than anyone expected.

His legs had no hair and were virtually unblemished. Because of this, Nami thought it would be safe to put him in a deep, wine red dress that ended mid thigh. The top was loosely ruffled to detract from his broader shoulders, and the resulting illusion was a powerful one. Even the wig Robin styled, paired with the light makeup, made him look almost unrecognizable.

Sanji simply stared, mouth slightly agape, which allowed his cigarette to fall from his lips and land mutely on the ground. Zoro's mouth was locked shut but his eyes were blown wide enough to pop. Usopp blinked a few times before holding his hands up in the air.

"I concede. I won't doubt your black magic transformation skills anymore."

The grin that crept onto Nami's face was wicked. They were so getting that money.

~

Nami was very aware of the type of attention she garnered when entering a room. Sure she was part of the self proclaimed 'weak trio' in her crew, but she knew her charms, strengths, and skills, as well as how to use them to her advantage. One thing she'd learned over the years is that there's nothing more eye-catching than confidence.

It's because of this that she was immediately able to read the energy of the room the second she and her friends entered the party.

Now, when people first hear stories of Luffy, they assume that his presence is large and commanding. A powerhouse echoing magnificence with every step he takes. But only those who really know him understand how easy it is to let him slip under the radar. Or lose him in a crowd, in her personal experience. All in all, he was quite unintentionally deceptive in that way- though it proved helpful in many of their adventures. However, this... this was not one of those times.

As they walked through the threshold, it was like watching moths become ensnared by a beacon of light. Every eye in the room glazed over the crew to settle on their captain. Nami's never been on the outside of this scenario and she'd be lying if she said it wasn't an enthralling sight.

Luffy entered the way Luffy enters any room. Casually, confidently, and with some degree of a goal in mind as he moved forward. All these traits flared off his skirt and flickered from the ends of his curled wig. Every clack of his heels on the tile was a booming echo and the curve of his shoulders had the eye of almost every man and woman in the vicinity.

Nami would be tucking this information into her back pocket for future plans.

Their group was quick to separate, sticking in pairs to help reduce any unexpected, and frankly unhelpful, outbursts from any of the more... rambunctious members. Robin kept to Sanji, Usopp with Zoro, and Nami with Luffy.

From what she'd understood during her information gathering, the game would be a sort of trivia. She had no doubt that they wouldn't fly through with flying colors, especially when working alongside Robin and Usopp. The concern was making sure the remaining three didn't blow their cover before they could even get to that point.

So here Nami found herself at one of the fancy tables, decorated in the poshest way possible with gold ornaments and jewel studded dishware. All items she would absolutely find a way to sneak back to the ship before they left. Luffy sat beside her, arms crossed over his chest and an ever present pout on his face.

"I'm hungry," he grits out, leveling a blazing glare out at the dance floor. "And these clothes are uncomfortable."

"I promised you a big meal after this, didn't I?" Nami replied calmly. He sank further into his chair, blowing a silky black strand of hair out of his face.

"Meat?"

"And more."

"Hm."

Nami can't help chuckling at her captain. He was an adult and more reliable than he looked, but he certainly had his own childish moments. A part of her was touched that he also agreed to go along with her whims for this, even though it went against almost everything in his nature. Wild Luffy, sitting quiet and polite. And in a dress at that.

As she swirled a flute of champagne, pitching it up to take a sip, she was quick to catch sight of a finely dressed man making his way over to their table.

She set the cup back down and rested her chin gingerly atop her hand. Recognizing the look on his face and having experienced this one too many times before, she prepared herself to play the man like a fiddle. He looked like a fellow with money in his pockets, surely she could snatch his wallet while he was preoccupied. Then she belatedly realized that she wasn't 'Catburgalar Nami' in that moment. Because Luffy was not 'Monkey D. Luffy' in that moment either.

"Lord Geraldine." The man gave Nami a brief tilt of his head before immediately redirecting glittering eyes on a displeased looking Luffy. "Lady Celestine, I'm glad to see you all decided to attend. I wanted to say that there's something... different about you today."

It took Luffy a moment to realize the man was talking to him. He blinked up at the guy, pointed at himself, looked at Nami, then looked back at him.

"Uh, yes. I mean no." Nami pressed her face into her hand. She also forgot that Luffy can't act for the life of him.

"No, I do quite insist that you seem a little different." As he spoke, the man bowed at the waist to be more on level with her captain before gently taking a lock of Luffy's fake hair in his hand. "Could it be a new style you're trying out? A new perfume perhaps?"

"I don't wear perfume," Luffy stated bluntly. Nami began to reach out to him, thinking of something to say to step in and distract the man before they were discovered.

"Ah, I see." Luffy's eyes met the man's and Nami swore she saw him shiver. "Your natural beauty is just extra dazzling then."

"Er... sure?" Luffy lifted a hand to scratch at the back of his neck where the line if his wig dug into his skin. The man followed the line of his arm and the fluttering movement of his hair. Nami can't tell if she wanted to laugh or cry.

"You know... I've never dared to speak to you. I didn't see any reason to before but, I don't know what I was thinking then. Someone as... enchanting as you- how could I not?" There's almost the whisper of a sigh to his voice and Luffy's expression twisted into a frown.

"I am not," he bit out, throwing the man off guard entirely. The stranger reeled back, although his face colored a deep red at the power and authority in Luffy's voice.

"I apologize if I've offended you. I just wanted to-"

"You're annoying. Go away." And with that, Luffy returned to his previous demeanor of pouting in his chair with his arms crossed, glaring out at the dance floor. Except now there was an extra air of irritation around him that wasn't there before.

"Oh... I... yes, Lady Celestine. Sorry to have been a bother." The man stumbled for a moment before scuttling away. Rather than looking upset, he seemed awfully pleased with himself in a way that made even Nami's mood sour just a bit.

Once he was gone, Nami snapped out of her daze to look at Luffy. She wasn't sure what to expect when coming to this party, but that interaction was not it. Not to mention he turned on the man so suddenly, she can't determine what part of that speech had set him off.

"What was that about?" She asked, leaning into her palm.

"He called me enchanting," he spat out, making Nami blink. There's something she's missing here, she knows it.

"What's so bad about that?" She didn't flinch when his eyes snapped over to meet hers. The hostility wasn't directed at her, but he was clearly upset for some reason.

"I'm not enchanting."

There's definitely something here that she's missing. He said it with such force and venom that it made the word sound evil. But this was Luffy she was speaking too, and there's likely more to it than just what the surface was showing. So she tried a different approach.

"Mhm, and what do you think 'enchanting' means?"

Now it's Luffy's turn to look at her with slight confusion. His expression eased, shoulders losing a bit of their tension while his expression screamed that she was the weird one in this moment.

"It means rich and weak!"

Ah, there it is.

Nami decided in that moment that she may just try to steal the money later after she finds out who ends up winning it. Especially when she sees another nobleman waltzing over to their table with a carnation in hand. There was no way she was going to stop a line of suitors from interacting with Luffy before he eventually snapped. 

And maybe she'll get a chance to explain to him what the word 'enchanting' means. After she finds out what word he possibly mixed it up with in the first place.

{Fin.} Thanks for reading!

[wonik1ss]

Together Again — Ni-ki

pairing : enha!ni-ki x 6th newjeans member!reader

song rec : l.a. boyz - victorious 

summary : ni-ki finally asks you out after a few months since your first meeting

a/n : no more after this!

want to read part 1 & part 2?

After Ni-ki had helped you with your dance, you guys could never get back in contact. When you were free he was on tour, and when he was free you had your first concert with your members.

Even now you were still busy promoting. Which was a given because of the six songs you had this comeback. But even after your promotions you felt like you and Ni-ki would be busy.

So you kind of have thrown all hope away of seeing each other again after realizing how busy being an idol really was. So when you walked out of your changing room ready to go home, you were surprised to see Ni-ki. The youngest members giggled but Minji shushed them and left to your groups van.

“Ni-ki what are you doing here?”

“I texted but you didn’t answer.. I just wanted to know if you’d.. hangout with me for awhile”. You pondered the thought noticing you weren’t busy and Ni-ki obviously wasn’t busy since he was asking.

“Sure we’re are we going?”

“It’s a surprise”. Ni-ki said as he told you to close your eyes; and he helped you walk out of music bank.

As you got a in one of’s hybes vans with Ni-ki you heard a door open and the suddenly you were in an elevator.

“Ni-ki were are we?”

“Just keep your eyes closed! We’re almost there”. You could hear and feel the eagerness as he dragged you threw two more doors.

“You can open your eyes now”. Your eye brows furrowed as you opened your eyes to see Ni-Ki’s room.

“We’re hanging out here?”

“Ya no one’s in the dorm expect Jay to supervise us”. You laughed when Ni-ki put quotation’s around supervise. Then pointed to a sleeping Jay on the dorms couch threw the slit of the door.

“Ok wait here while I get the snacks”. You nodded sitting on his bed waiting for him to come back with some delicious treats.

“Here they are!”

“Are you sure we can eat all that Ki?”

“No but I bought this with Jays money so it’s fine”. You laughed again as Ni-ki got his laptop and pulled up scream 6.

“Oh I love this one!”

“Oh ya..?”

“What is that a problem Ki?”. Ni-ki turned away as he blush and scratched the back of his neck hearing the Ni-ki you gave him.

“No.. I just didn’t think you would have seen it that’s all..”. You nodded and turned to the screen popcorn and sour patch kids in your hands.

As the first kill happened you jumped while Ni-ki laughed.

“It’s not that funny!”

“Here I protect you from the scary ghost face”. Ni-ki said as he put his arm around your shoulder pulling you closer to him. real smooth ni-ki real smooth.

As the movie continued you and Ni-ki stopped paying attention and started a small food fight that ended with a bunch of popcorn in Ni-ki’s hair.

“You got some popcorn there”. You said as you pointed to three pieces of popcorn on the taller boys head. Ni-ki took two off his head and smiled at you, until his eyes went wide watching you get closer.

He finally closed them as he felt you only a few inches from his face.

“There you forgot one”. You said as you tossed the third popcorn into trash next to you. y/n the rizzantor at it again.

For the rest of the movie you two made side comments and giggled during the most stupid scenes.

“You know I actually think Ethan’s really hot”. The older boys head snapped to look at you and you giggled.

“What’s wrong Ki?”

“Nothing I’m just obviously more attractive”. You laughed as Ni-ki tried to flex.

“Really”

“Ya really”. You blinked twice as Ni-ki got closer and closer to your face.

“Why do you not think I’m hot too?”

“Nope not at all”

“Well then can I show you something?”

“Ya-“. You barely started your sentence when Ni-ki gave you a quick kiss and the smiled back at you.

“Hay that was to short!”

“Ya? And what are you going to do about it?”. Ni-ki said taunting you while getting of his bed. Then started the chase of your trying to get another kiss; as Ni-ki dodged your attempts.

“This is why I said we shouldn’t have them here together again..”. Jay whispered with the rest of his members nodding in agreement while; watching the two of your run around Ni-ki’s room happily.

Oh wasn’t it nice to be together again…

[s2pdoktopus]

Since I have been rambling here a lot I will also ramble about my dear mdzs children

So these four are made because I joked about populating the female species in MDZS and then I made more...

Disclaimer: I am not Chinese so these names are very much like when Anime grabs random names for English characters. They don't make sense.

First RongQuan

I completely forgot what Chinese characters I grabbed for her name (something that means melting, I think?

The design idea for her is that of a simple looking woman

She became a disciple because she wanted to and her father loves her very much he used his family ties to get her in. Upon entering, it became very clear that he has absolutely no talent for cultivation. This, and the well known fact that she's here because nepotism, made her the subject of many disciples' teasing. To compensate for her lack of talent she became a push over, doing many menial tasks to contribute to the sect. She's too tired to feel mad about the treatment most of the time.

Post-canon:

She's doing the same thing she's always done. Her mother fears that being involved with a sect riddled with so much scandal might ruin her marriage prospects. She thought about agreeing with her mother for a solid minute but ultimately decided that if men can't handle being involved with her as a Jin disciple, they can't handle her at all and politely rejected to do as her mother asked.

Lan FeiRi

I also completely forgot what her name's Chinese characters are. (One of them is the character for sun, I think)

Her design idea is that of a fairy, I tried to make her hair have the silhouette of a butterfly for this. It's also why I chose something that would spell FeiRi lol

She is a child orphaned by a demonic cultivator and adopted by a Lan couple. She cultivated a little late so her cultivation isn't as good as it could've been but she's average on power, overall. She exudes nearly the same tranquil energy as Lan XiChen. This is just a facade though, she absolutely loves it when people she deems evil get the justice she thinks they deserve, she can be sadistic. The ultimate two-faced individual, she could be smiling on the outside but seething on the inside, caring on the outside but laughing out in joy over others' suffering on the inside.

Post canon:

She absolutely hates that the grandmaster of demonic cultivation is living just a few minutes away.

(she has one of my favorite designs among the mdzs ocs I made)

Nie QiaoLu

Again, I forgot what her name means.

I designed her last. I didn't know if my designs are outrageous already so this is me dialing back down. But she looked too simple with straight hair so I made it wavy.

She is the strongest female cultivator in her age group, She is a distant relative of Nie Huaisang. She used to be a quick-tempered child but when the reality of the Nie cultivation sunk in, she sought to find a way to minimize the possibility of qi deviation. Instead of finding some new techniques she found Hanguang Jun. She thought, surely, by imitating him she will be less susceptible to qi deviations and so she went ahead and lived her life with such belief. As if the natural consequence trying to imitate one of the twin jades, her social skills were stunted and she is disconnected from her emotions.

Post canon:

She came back to rejoin society and the first thing she heard was Hanguang Jun's recent marriage. Her reaction was, "Oh. Congratulations to him, I guess?" She's still unaware of the things happening around her. Someone needs to anchor her to the ground. (Her head is so empty she might just float away, never to be seen again...)

Ok. The Jiang kids I made plenty of first of all:

Yu Lilai

I do remember that her name is supposed to mean "beautiful future".

Lilai already has a whole post explaining her. She is my favorite to use of the bunch in the silly comic stuff I made because there's no stake in her. She's the kind of gag character you will see in an anime who has an eccentric yet loving and supportive family.

She's also my favorite of the bunch :3

I have no height chart for these kiddos anymore

Jiang Lian

Jiang RenJi (courtesy name)

His given name means "to unite" and the courtesy name means "sturdy foundation"

He is a distant relative of the main Jiang family. His great great grandmother left the sect to live a civilian life away from Yunmeng. He reentered the Jiang sect when he was eight because he heard about Jiang Cheng's story and felt really bad for him. He wanted to help rebuild his ancestral home.

He is the responsible and ever-so-reliable Shixiong! He is the guard dog to the sheeps that are the baby disciples. Though he lacks Lilai's talent in combat or XinXue's silver tongue, he is the person the baby disciples trust the most. A sturdy leader, fitting his name.

Xiao XinXue

You know how Wei Wuxian is abbreviated to WWX and Jiang Cheng is JC? Yeah. XinXue's name is just so it can be abbreviated to XXX. XinXue name means "new blood" I forgot what Xiao is supposed to mean though.

Her family was killed by demonic cultivators and Jiang Cheng saved her. She is also the first orphan the Jiang sect save whom they eventually took in as a disciple.

. She harbors a deep hatred for demonic cultivation and doesn't think anything is wrong with punishing them. In essence she represents the irl people who just hate Wei Wuxian and an answer to people who think demonic cultivation users are just poor unfortunate souls who had no choice.

She's wrong in some points and justified in other points. No one is telling her to let go of her anger but her friends, Lilai especially, are quick to tell her that she needs to direct that anger to the right place (and not to a man who was dead during the death of her family). She goes to RenJi to vent whenever she needs it.

(and RenJi is always there to tell Lilai that she really needs to be more gentle with her wording)

She's usually very mischievous. It's difficult to be mad at her because seeing her happy is a far cry from the catatonic girl they nursed back to consciousness. Surprisingly, she is the most nurturing of the disciples. It's an unspoken agreement that she handles the other traumatized kids they will save.

I planned to make more characters with funny abbreviations like, XD, LOL, OWO, etc but it's tiring to look for Chinese characters...

Finally, the nebulous existence of

Jiang Xie

She never had a name first, then someone asked and I had to give her a name. Then I forgot what the name was and I have no internet to look. For the first time she's gonna get referred to by name in a drawing so I just put Xie and was done with it. Then I forgot that it was Xie lol. I finally looked up Chinese characters to make names for others and I named her MiFu (overflowing blessing, something like that) then I saw the comic again where she is Xie and well Xie it is. Thankfully it could mean harmony which fit her despite her chaotic tendencies.

She was never planned to be anything beyond the first comic thingy. As someone who only watched the worst version (the anime/manhua) finding out that the temple scene is different from what really happened, especially people's outrage about it compelled me to both make something silly about it that can comfort the traumatized grape. Lol.

Then some people really liked her, I did have some not funny ideas in my head so I just drew that. Sometimes others would comment stuff that gave me ideas so I made those. In a sense she's a group effort I guess. She just developed like that. She is a joke character at her very core though. I wanted to hit a balance of funny innocent children stuff without making her just a walking ball of gags.

Ultimately she's a good kid who likes helping people by suggesting solutions only children would think of (Jin Ling has no dad? Swear brotherhood with her so they can share her dad!) It usually doesn't help but it makes the receiver of the advice feel better more often than not. Promising to break the legs of her loved ones' bullies is her love language.

[takenbypeter]

Could I request prompt number 15 with Peter Maximoff? He meets the reader when he’s about to get in trouble for something he almost certainly did, and the reader just rocks up unasked and out of nowhere to provide him with a plausible alibi. The reader has somewhere else to be, so they have to rush off, but it’s pretty obvious to everyone in the vicinity that they’ve made quite the impression on one Peter Maximoff.

Convenience Store Crush

Peter Maximoff x reader

Words: 1102

Number 15: “they said my crush on you is obvious.”

Authors note: I totally forgot bout the running off part and the end of your ask so I do apologize for that but I hope u still like it

“How are you?” Asked a frequent buyer. She was an older lady who would come into the small corner store where you worked every week.

It was always the same faces in this small town. The same faces asking the same tired questions and you were honestly over it.

“Eh, same old, same old,” you replied scanning her few items.

“Sometimes that’s not so bad,” she said and as you were about to politely counter the doorbell went off signaling new customers entering.

You watched as a small group of people, seemingly around your age walked in followed by a gray haired guy. The guy looked in your direction for a mere moment before nonchalantly following his friends. He was another of your regulars…well sorta. He’s been coming in every week just to roam around but as always you let it go because you truly did not care.

They looked like a strange and colorful bunch together, it was obvious they were mutants. But you didn’t mind, personally you thought the whole idea of having powers was unique, sometimes you even wished you had some but alas you didn’t. Pushing that thought out of your mind you went back to your business cashing out your current customer.

“Have a good day,” you said as you waved with a cheesy smile, although you didn’t necessarily enjoy this job you considered all your smiles to be genuine. You waited bored as this was typically one of the dead hours on your shift.

As you laid there hunched over the counter you heard a commotion close by.

Growing curious you left your post and head to the noise and as you neared you began to pick up your manager's voice.

“I don’t know how you’re doing it but I know you’re doing it,” said your manager.

“I’m sorry, is there a problem here?” Asked a woman's voice. You peeked out from behind the next aisle as you began to match voices to faces.

“You bet there’s a problem! Every time this young man comes in, something goes missing! At least ten snacks go missing and a sign always goes missing.”

The red haired girl turned to the gray haired boy, while he automatically put his hand up in defense, “I have never stolen anything from here in my life, I swear.”

“Oh I don’t believe that for a second you’re out! You’re all out!”

“Actually, he’s telling the truth,” the group’s eyes fall to you as you come out from your hiding spot, “when he came in last week, he bought something. I cashed him out.” Now was that the truth? Not necessarily. The fact is he’s actually only bought something twice from your store and was that last week? No, but you didn’t care.

Your manager turned to him still accusingly but you continued before she could start again, “are you going to throw out a whole group of paying customers just because you think one guy is stealing? You don’t even have evidence!”

Your manager's hand went down into a fist as she glared at the group and she walked up to you before stopping, “if I catch him stealing, you’re outta here with them,” she whispered before pushing past you.

With your nightmare manager gone you turn back to the small group of friends, “sorry about that, please continue shopping,” you said leaving them be and returning to your post.

It wasn’t that long before they came up to you to get rang up. You went through them one by one and honestly every one of them seemed genuine.

Then came the last one.

The gray haired one.

He only had three items in his hand, “is this all for today?” You asked.

“Yeah, thanks.”

Picking them up you began scanning them. He took the opportunity to talk to you, “and thanks for what you did…earlier.”

“It’s no problem,” you respond, without taking your eyes off the scanner and his items.

“Do you believe me?” He asks.

“Nope. I know you did it,” you said, tone stating it in a matter of fact manner. “And I know you all are a part of the X-men. You? You’re the speedy one.”

“Quicksilver,” he corrected and you finally looked up at him, meeting his eyes which widened in the slightest.

“…But other’s know me as Peter Maximoff.”

“Am I "others "?"

Peter’s lips tug a little beginning to shape into a small smug little smile, “you can be, yes.”

“Well Peter Maximoff, is that why you come every week? To loot?”

Peter’s eyes looked up and to the side while his lips stuck out in thought, “mostly, I also come to see you,” he looked confident for just one second before he immediately made a face, “was that as creepy as it sounded because hearing it out loud sounded very creepy. If it did I most definitely am sorry.”

A smile now pulled on your lips, “…yes it was definitely creepy…but also weirdly sweet.”

“Ahem,” you heard a cough from behind him, no doubt coming from his group of friends that have been watching the whole thing. You watched as his friend, who wore red-tinted glasses nodded with his head in your direction. While you two stared at the group you failed to notice Peter’s hand behind the counter that was so obviously waving them off and at that signal you watched the red haired girl pull the guy with glasses’ arm before the rest followed after. You watched as they all left the store leaving behind just you and Peter.

“Right, so my friends…they say my crush on you is obvious, so I figured I’d come in here and just ask you out.”

“Oh…so is that your way of asking me?”

His eyes squinted as he let out a drawn out, “yeeesss?”

“Well if that’s your way of asking me out then no I will not go out with you.”

Peter’s lips pressed together as he put cash on the table and put his items in his hand.

“But, my shift is done at seven. if you come back then with a real way of asking, then maybe I’ll go out with you.”

Peter’s lips spread into an honest smile.

“But take it easy, some people need their jobs.”

“Right, sorry bout that.”

“Oh not me, I’m planning on quitting anyways but some other people.”

He let out a light chuckle, “right! Okay, see you at seven,” he said, almost dropping one of his items before he shoved the door to leave.

Suddenly this job just made your life a little bit more interesting.

-

Dialogue Prompt 2