#I got the buns to make sandwiches free too

[ruletheroost3]

People love to shit on people that buy frozen meals for being unhealthy or lazy but I've never been able to stack five different coupons with a sale and get $23 off $19 worth of fresh meat, fruit or veggies.

[thyme-in-a-bubble]

the dead ringer

buttercup, chapter three

a/n: yeah, this did happen to me in real life, although it happened on a bus so i couldn't immediately get away... ANYWAYS! enjoy this hurt/comfort heavy chapter!

summary: “I think I know something that might help a bit.”

warnings: matt murdock x baker!reader, neighbours to lovers, rape recovery, ptsd, crying, panic attacks, matt using his superpowers for the sake of hurt/comfort, boxing

word count: 2057

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Drizzling the flour into the wide bowl, like a dusty snowfall, you watched the number on the scale carefully as you neared the desired number. Though just before you hit it, Walter’s head suddenly poked in through the doorway leading behind the counter and interrupted you and Howard’s all-too-important discussion on what the day’s music choice should be. 

“Hey, Y/n? There’s someone here to see you.”

Laying down the scoop still holding a bit of flour, you dragged your palms down the brown apron tied around your frame and exited the kitchen. A bright smile spread across your face and crinkled up your gaze as you spotted who was standing on the other side of the counter. 

“Matt, hey–, oh my god,” you then suddenly noticed the bruising that blossomed out from under his tinted glasses and stretched up over the patched-up scrape that split his left brow, “what happened? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, just wasn’t paying attention last night, tripped and fell, that’s all,” he waved a hand, “I just wanted to stop by on my way to work, get a round of coffees to-go for everyone and perhaps some breakfast for myself, just whatever you think I’d like.”

“You’ll let me pick?” your eyebrows rose slightly. 

But Matt simply smiled and said, “I trust your judgment,” his grip shifted gently on the cane standing tall before his chest. 

As you moved to make the coffees, “alright,” you drew out a pondering breath, “are you in the mood for something sweet or savoury?”

Thinking about it a second, he uttered, “savoury.”

“Do you like sandwiches?” you popped the lids on the to-go cups. When he nodded, you placed the coffees in a little cardboard tray, “okay, I think you’ll like this one,” grabbed a brown paper bag and moved further down the counter, “it’s made with focaccia and has pesto in it as well as some tomatoes and cheese and stuff.” 

“That sounds amazing.”

“I also–, you know what? I’ll be right back,” you then abruptly turned and momentarily disappeared into the kitchen, grabbing a few of the pillowy buns still on the cooling rack into a bag. As you returned, you also snuck a hand into the display case and stuffed a few other goodies into the sack, “just for the others, if they want,” you placed the bundle onto the counter beside the coffees, “I just pulled them out of the oven a bit ago and they’re still warm.”

“What is it?” Matt tilted his chin. 

“Uh, some raisin buns, but I also threw two croissants in there in case they didn’t like raisins...” 

A soft smile warmed his bruised features as he reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet, “what do I owe you?”

“Oh no,” your hands waved lightly before you, “it’s on the house.”

“Y/n, come on,” he cocked his head. 

“Fine,” you light-heartedly sighed, “if you really wanna sing for your supper, then I’ll cash it in at a later date. I don’t know, maybe if I get arrested someday or something you could help me out.”

“You don’t have to bribe me with free baked goods for that.”

“No, but it sure doesn’t hurt, does it?” you chuckled. 

“No,” he joined in as he reached for the bags, “I guess it doesn’t.”

“You want some help carrying it?” you asked, hope seeping through your tone, “I could take my break and walk with you the rest of the way.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah, we just got through the morning rush, they’ll be fine without me for–, I don’t know, 15 minutes or however long it’ll take to walk to your office and back.”

“Alright, thanks,” he smiled, one paper bag hooked in the fingers that also clutched the cane.  

“I’m just gonna go grab my jacket, one second,” you said before ducking into the back to do so, letting your uncles know as you slipped out of your comfortable work clogs and into your sneakers. 

You ended up dividing the load, with you carrying the coffees and the last bag in one arm, though a few protests left you at first, begging him to let you carry all of it, they melted away as his free hand enveloped yours. 

When you reached his office, your arms wrapped around his frame as you hugged him long enough for your heartbeats to sync up, and just as you pulled away, his wide palms still warm on your back, you leaned in and planted a brief peck on his scruffy cheek. 

One of his hands swept up to meet the side of your face as your lips retracted. You pulled back so slowly that you weren’t sure you were moving at all, being drawn in by his warmth like a moth to a flame. 

His nose gently grazed against yours as he let himself linger, but just as your eyes fluttered shut in expectance that he’d kiss you, his warmth withdrew and he slowly breathed, “have a good day.” 

In a matter of seconds, you had gone from giggling, glancing down at some silly joke on your phone as you walked home, to panic instantly kicking in as a passerby’s voice pierced your soul and made your blood run cold.

Glancing around, you saw a stranger standing off to the side and yapping into his phone. It wasn’t him, it wasn’t Michael, but it sounded exactly like him, so much so that the tone sent your body right back to that very night as if no time had passed at all.

Willing your body to move, forcing it to conquer the short rest of the way home, once your front door shut behind you and your quiet apartment consumed you, painful sobs began to burst out of your trembling frame. Hyperventilating, you crashed into the nearby wall of the entryway directly across from the door, incapable of getting deeper into your home. 

Soon, a quiet and surprising knock found your door. 

“Y/n?” the worried tone of your neighbour sounded from the other side. 

Your shaky voice came out no louder than a whisper, “M-Matt?” 

There might not have been any other instances you could recall where accidentally forgetting to lock your door turned out for the better, because when Matt then tried the handle, it gently complied. 

Shutting it behind him, he rushed to you, “hey, hey,” he uttered softly, a hand soothingly finding your arm, “what’s going on?”

Attempting an answer, “I–, I–,” only incoherent sobs managed to seep from you. 

“Okay, alright,” he sucked in a controlled breath, one of his hands sliding up to the strap of your backpack, “how about we start by getting all the way inside, huh?” gently gliding it off you and resting the bag on the floor. 

You let yourself lean into him fully as he supported you on the short journey towards the couch. Wobbly taking a seat, his touch left you as he settled beside you.

Spine curving, you buried your puffy face in your trembling hands, letting the whole world drift away as small lakes were birthed within your palms from your pain. 

When the sobs eventually began to subsite, growing further and farther apart, your frame slowly unfurled. Instinctively flicking your hands before your form, you tried to physically shake even a fraction of the excruciating sensation off of you, but without success. 

Matt hadn’t moved an inch, simply stayed there right beside you. 

When your quiet voice eventually filled space, it came out broken and overflowing with emotion, “I thought it was him… it wasn’t, b-but it sounded exactly like him… I’ve done double takes every time I saw a stranger with the same haircut or felt nauseous every time I encountered the same name, but this really did sound like him. Same voice, same accent, same everything… but it wasn’t him… it wasn’t… it just sent me right back, you know?”

Hesitantly, you grasped his hand in yours, expecting the contact to only make it worse, to somehow taint and ruin his wonderful and soothing touch, but it didn’t, he didn’t. It was Matt. 

Trying to regain control of your breathing, you shakily sucked in deep breaths, feeling your gulps of air slowly become calmer and migrate from the very top of your chest, down to expand your sore stomach. Eyes only half open and utterly exhausted, you noticed that your head was now leaning against Matt’s shoulder. 

Glancing hazily down at yourself, you muttered, “fuck… I still have my shoes and jacket on…”

Reaching down, he offered, “here,” before sliding your coat off, resting it on the back of the couch, and leaning down to pull your shoes off. 

Curling your legs up onto the couch, the shift in your position offered you more relief than you’d expected. As you attempted to get as comfortable as you possibly could in the state you were in, you snatched up Matt’s hand once more. 

Offering your palm a soothing squeeze, he asked quietly, “what do you need, huh? What can I do?”

“I–…” you thought, your brain just as drained as your body was, “I don’t know… maybe–… maybe just be here a bit?”

Exhaling lowly, he flashed you a faint smile, “of course.”

Glancing down at his fingers, sweeping across your own, you said, “hey, Matt? Could you maybe–, uh… could you give me a hug?”

Not hesitating, his strong arms engulfed your quivering frame and a fresh wave of sobs swiftly bubbled out of you as he held you tight, though your cries didn’t push him away, he stayed steadfast, embracing you close till the eruption ultimately simmered down, leaving you nearly asleep against his tear-stained shoulder. 

As he gently lowered you down to lay on the couch, you tightened your grip on his shirt as he began to pull back, ushering him to sink down as well, allowing you to curl into his safe embrace and let slumber drift you away. 

When you finally stirred, the sun was nowhere to be seen. 

“Hey,” you blinked up at Matt still in the exact same spot as before. 

“Hey,” you replied groggily, “what time is it?” swiftly fishing your phone out of your pant pocket before Matt could conjure an answer, “oh, fuck… it’s nearly midnight… did you sleep as well?”

“Not really,” he shrugged, “maybe for a little bit, but no.”

“Oh…” you breathed, averting your gaze. 

“How are you feeling?” his thumb swiped your waist where his broad palm was planted. 

“…I don’t know…” you exhaled, “…exhausted… sad… angry… really fucking angry… so angry that it kinda scares me…” 

After a beat of silence, with only your woeful breaths filling the space, Matt then uttered, “I think I know something that might help a bit.”

Your gaze drifted from the faded paint on the walls to the worn punching bags as you and Matt sat on the edge of the central ring and his fingers worked at wrapping up your hands. 

“Do you come here a lot?” you asked, your vision gliding back to him. 

“From time to time,” he tilted his head slightly, “reminds me of my dad,” tucking the last end of the strip under the weave, securing it into place, he closed your hand into a fist and exhaled, “alright, you’re ready,” he adjusted your grip, briefly offering your wrist a squeeze as he said, “just remember to keep your wrist strong and your thumb right here,” he slid your finger down below your knuckles. 

You hadn’t gone into it with much hope, in fact, it was only out of your desperation just feel better that you even humoured the experiment. In the beginning, it did feel as silly as you’d imagined, nearly stopped completely, but at some point in the mess of it all, your punches grew more ferocious, they grew more brutal, and suddenly something inside of you snapped and unravelled. It wasn’t some magic pill, but the physical act did loosen something within you and gave away to a fresh release of sobs, though not the painful and unbearable kind you’d had to endure earlier. It was the kind that felt like relief. Even if it wasn’t permanent, in that very moment, you didn’t feel like you were drowning anymore. 

© 2024 thyme-in-a-bubble 

[courtingchaos]

Blackberry + Smash

Pairing: Thirty something line cook!Eddie Munson x Fem!reader

Summary: You and the line cook from next door have been flirting for too long.

Word Count: 2.5k

A/N: This started as something else, and ended up being a thing I put together for @newlips milestone of love! It's only in two parts because I'm incapable of writing anything within reason! Also I didn’t mention more than once I think, but Eddie and reader are 32 because I’m tired of pretending to be 20 again 🙃 (18+ NSFW etc. etc.)

“Eddie’s here!” One of the girls titters over the headset and you roll your eyes when you hear the chorus line out front. 

“Hi Eddie!” All singsong and sweet at him; he answers like Charlie to his Angels. 

“Hi baristas!”

It’s become rote at this point, his near daily appearance at 2pm, big smile plastered on his face when the bell rings overhead. He’s dressed for work, black t-shirt with ‘Stacy’s Tap House’ in large white letters across his back, black jeans and…crocs?

“Crocs dude?” You’ve moseyed out to the front register to greet him and notice his lack of steel toes. 

“What? You don’t like ‘em?” He lifts one leg up behind himself like a princess and dips his head into his shoulder to bat his lashes at you. “You wear them.”

“I don’t work with hot oil.” 

“Eh, I broke my laces and I’m lazy. Haven’t gone to the store yet.” He waves a hand at you while you type in his drink. It’s a truly atrocious thing with 14 pumps of syrup and 6 long shots and heavy cream. You give him shit every single time. You sneer playfully at him when he taps his phone against the reader. He follows you all the way down the line, mirroring your wrinkled nose. 

“What are you up to today?” You’re queuing up shots and pumping syrups and you catch him eyeing you over the glass. He crosses his arms over the top of the partition to lean forward and if he wasn’t Eddie, you’d ‘accidentally’ splash him with the rinser. 

“Oh you know, making some sandwiches, taking out some trash, selling hardcore drugs in the walk-in. Typical Wednesday.” He shrugs, bobs his head and keeps his eyes on you. You can feel it even while you have your head down, wiping the counter in front of you. You let out a little laugh and that seems to satisfy him. Looks back over his shoulder to the parking lot out front for a few seconds. You take the opportunity to stare at the long column of his neck, bared to you where his hair is pulled back into a bun. The tendon straining from the angle of his head. You could make real quick work of that pale skin, litter it with red and purple. 

“Is Jeff working today?”

“He’s in later, why?”

“Wanna bring him his americano?”

“Eh, sure.” He starts to turn back towards the register and you flap your free hand at him. 

“I got it, don’t worry.”

“You keep giving me free shit, they’re not gonna keep you around much longer.” There’s that smile again, the dimples that keep you up at night. What a bastard. 

“You think after 8 years they’re just gonna fire me? I’ll burn this store down first.” Smirking you hand him both drinks and throw two straws at him. His big hand slaps at his chest and he gasps, looking behind you to grab the other baristas attention. 

“Caitlyn did you see that? Is Andrew here? I need to speak to a manager!” 

Caitlyn just giggles at him, like you all do, and throws another handful at him. He snatches them all up off the counter top and the few that hit the floor to clutch in his fist. 

“These are mine now!” He’s backing up toward the door and nodding at the line who are all pretending to wave hankies at him. 

“Hey, Eddie? You make me sick, don’t come back in here tonight.” The smile is clear in your voice even if you are squinting meanly at him. He pauses for a second to wiggle his eyebrows at you. “I love it when you talk dirty to me.” His laugh follows him outside and you watch him jog to his green pickup. 

“Every time he comes in here he stares at you.” Caitlyn is still there hovering at your shoulder, watching you watch Eddie, and you can hear her smirking behind you. 

“Oh you don’t say?”

Hey chickadee. 

What’s up buttercup?

You’re closing, right?

Of course, what the fuck else do I do around here?

G a w d d a m n

What?????

Don’t gotta jump up my ass about it I was just trying to be a ~gentleman~ and see if you wanna hang later. 

Oh! Sure, I’ll check with Cate. 

 Jeff will have a shit fit. 

The restaurant closes at 10, your cafe at 9, so it gives you and Cate roughly an hour to race back to your apartment and change. You refuse to go out smelling like coffee and milk, even if Eddie tells you he likes the smell that lingers on your pullover. Weirdo. 

You’ve been digging around for ten minutes looking for your good pair of jeans, only to find them in the hamper. Still dirty from the weekend before where you’d gotten a little too rowdy and dropped a drink down the front of you. 

Plan B it is. Dress, tights, jacket. All black of course, why would you buy anything else? 

“Nah nah nah, I’m not third wheeling am I?” Cate asks when you walk into the living room twisting on your rings. 

“What? No. My jeans are dirty and this is like, the only other non work thing I have clean.” You’re a little defensive, sure. She didn’t need to point out the obvious so clearly now did she? Cate’s eyebrow starts to raise and your hand comes up, a loud ‘acht!’ falling out of your mouth. 

“It’s not a date! It’s just drinks. Like normal.” This isn’t new, you two going out with the kitchen staff at Stacey’s. It’s always been a little quid pro quo between the businesses and everyone is familiar with each other. They get free drinks more often than not, and you guys get free food (and also everyone gets to ogle Eddie). 

“I don’t know why you haven’t just asked him out yet.” Cate’s not wrong. However, “I’m having fun with it. Also maybe I’m waiting on him to ask me.” You shrug at her. 

The bar you all frequent is just down the street from the restaurant, small and a little loud it’s the best spot mainly because all the cooks know all the bartenders. 

Shots go down easier when they’re free. 

You’re off tomorrow, and Cate drove, but you’re still trying to keep it easy tonight. Didn’t need a repeat of last weekends adventure. 

This isn’t a date, like it always isn’t a date, but everyone knows. You two have been flirting for a few months now and it isn’t like you don’t know if he’s into you or not. You just like the chase on 

this one. He’s witty, funny, a complete asshole on occasion, and incredibly disgustingly hot. You’d told him about as much one night, everyone drunk in the parking lot trying to order an Uber home and he’d just flashed that toothy grin at you like he knew. 

“Has anyone told you how stupidly handsome you are?”

“Stupidly? No.”

“Well you are. Stupidly, for sure, but also handsome.”

“Hey.” He taps your shoulder with your drink, his insistence that he buy. 

“Hey yourself.” You grab the glass and smile up at him. Even after a full shift of sweating over grills he’s pretty, hair pulled down from his bun, loose curls around his shoulders. 

“How was work?”

“Other than the customers, it was fine.” You flash a fake smile and take a sip out of the tiny straw. Jameson and ginger ale. He remembered. A drink order shouldn’t make your heart beat faster but it does. Is the bar so low that you’d give it up for the simple act of remembering your drink?

When Eddie drops down into the seat beside you, his hand falls to your knee and gives it squeeze before taking it away to check his phone. 

No, the bar isn’t low, not for Eddie. But the drink is one of many things that makes you want to take him out to his truck and end this dance you two have been waltzing. 

All the times he’s obviously thinking of you you. Dropping off food and boba and cookies from that really nice bakery on his block. All the memes he sends you on his smoke breaks. The nicknames. It’s just been building really, ready to burst like an especially ripe blackberry. 

Oh it’ll be sweet. 

“What are you up to next weekend?”

“Well, I don’t know about Cate, but-“

“I didn’t ask about Cate.” He looks up from his phone, lays it face down on the sticky table top. Out of the corner of your eye you can tell Cate heard her name. As soon as she looks over at you two she’s facing back to Jeff to share a look with him. 

“O-kay. I was going to say I’m off actually. I have a wedding to go to on Sunday. Why?” 

“Is it in town?”

“Yeah, but I’m gonna be busy like, getting ready for it. I have to get my nails done on Friday. Why?” You lean towards him and push his own drink with your index finger. Anything to push a button. He watches you tease him, eyes dark in the dim lighting, and he reaches over again to tap his middle finger on your crossed knee. He delights in the way your eyes immediately snap to his hand to watch it. 

“Wanna grab lunch on Friday?”

“Aren’t you working?”

“Nope. Rare day off.”

Still watching his finger tap tap tapping away you realize you’re finally getting your wish. 

“Are you asking me out?” A bomb could go off next to you two you’re sure neither would flinch. His eyes on your eyes on his hand. He stops moving, clears his throat to get you to look at him. 

“And what if I am? You aren’t tired of making eyes at me in your lobby every day?” He breaks the tension and makes you laugh. 

“Oh me making eyes? Munson you’re a hypocrite and a liar!” You bicker at him while he scoots his chair close, leaned fully into your space to make big cow eyes at you. Calls you out on your bullshit some more. Gets you a few more drinks and before you know it the bartender is last calling all of you pointedly. 

Outside is cold but you’re buttered up with enough whiskey and Eddie’s giggles to keep your cheeks flush and warm. Everyone is milling around their cars and you’re just trailing along behind Eddie. You follow him to his truck, not intending on getting in. You’re still going home to your own apartment, your own empty bed, as sad as that makes you. 

That blackberry isn’t ready for picking yet, it would seem. 

“So Friday?”

“My appointment is at 11. We can meet after?”

“I can pick you up.” Hopping up into his driver seat he says that over his shoulder while he leans into the cab to shuffle through his glove box. 

“You don’t have to.” You swat his knee, a little admonishment. It might be a first date, but this isn’t either of your first go arounds. He doesn’t need to be chivalrous here. He sits up with a cigarette in the corner of his mouth. 

“Will you just let me pick you up? Jesus.” Huffs around it while he tries to light it. You take the lighter from him and strike it only to hold it just out of reach. He leans forward and you pull your hand back a little, a smirk and a giggle on your lips. A pause and he grabs your fist and pulls it back towards himself, sucks in until the cherry lights and you can see it reflected in his shining eyes. 

Maybe you will climb into the truck, blackberries are your favorite no matter what season. 

Eddie sees you sway forward and as much as he wants to let you lean in between his knees you’re just south of tipsy. He doesn’t want either of you to regret anything. Instead he holds out his palm, gesturing for his lighter. You drop it, still leaning forward and a new glint in your eye. He takes a deep breath and swings his legs inside and grabs his door to close it. Doesn’t miss the look of hurt on your face. 

“Friday.” He says with a smile. 

“Friday.” You back up enough for him to close his door, spinning on your heel to make towards Cate’s car but you stop and spin back. He rolls his window down, eyebrows raised. 

“Can I ask you something?” You lean heavy on the doorframe. He takes a drag and nods at you. 

“Do you actually sell drugs in the walk in?” 

He actually full on laughs, wasn’t expecting that question. 

“Sometimes, yeah.” His wrist is loose on the top of his steering wheel, sodium lights glinting off his ring. Absentmindedly ashes his cigarette on the dash. 

“Oh.”

“Is that okay?”

“Eddie, this is Indiana. You aren’t the first drug dealer I’ve ever met.”

“Yeah, but am I the first one you’ve had a crush on?” Smugness oozes out the window and you reel back, slap your hand against your chest in mock shock. 

“I’m sorry, I have a crush?! Have you met you?” 

“Oh I’m well aware of how I feel. Are you?” God, he’s feeling confident tonight. It’s only been months in the making. 

That itty bitty taunt brings you back in, hands still gripping his door. He watches your tongue poke out and swipe against your bottom lip, the little gem in your medusa piercing catches the light. 

Oh fuck it. 

He meets you halfway, soft lips warm against his own. You taste like whiskey and sugar and that last lime slice you ate while he paid the bill. He feels your hands snake up around his collar to hold, pulling him closer and it takes every single ounce of his willpower to not pull you in through the window. 

Off in the distance he vaguely hears Cate and Jeff and the rest of the bastards you’ve all been out with whistling and slapping car roofs. 

Both of you smiling breaks the kiss but your still in his face and hanging on to his jacket. 

“They’re so loud.” You whisper and he wants to chase it back into you. 

“I’ll kill Jeff later.”

“Oh don’t do that, he has such an easy drink to make.” There’s that laugh, the one that almost twinkles. Eddie wants to kick himself, he’s so far gone. Your fingers loosen, letting him lean back into the cab. He’s thankful for his long hair where it hides his growing blush along his neck. Finally you walk backwards a few steps, definitely heading toward your ride home now. 

“Friday. 10 o’clock?” Cements his plans. Nothing short of a black hole could tear these out of his hands. 

You nod about 20 times and watch him back up and then out of the parking lot, the cheer of everyone following his tail lights.

You nod about 20 times and watch him back up and then out of the parking lot, the cheer of everyone following his tail lights.

(Sacrifice for the read more)

[saintsir4n]

19

WARNINGS: MENTIONS OF WAR

1914

"YOU'VE got a what?" Finn asked, the expecting couple.

Isaiah's gasped, "In where?"

Days had passed since the celebratory drink in honour of another Shelby baby and the boys were still confused about all of it, so Tommy and Eden pulled them aside from their learnings to explain as much as possible, considering he and his brothers would be leaving in very soon.

"How is a baby in there?" Isaiah turned to his best friend.

"Sex," Finn answered, despite not knowing what he was saying.

The couple looks at each other in shock watching the two interact.

"How does he..." Eden was too stunned so Tommy took over.

"Boys, Eden's got a baby in her tummy, just like Martha did –"

"-- she might again," Eden mumbled, luckily only Tommy heard but she gave him an 'I'll tell you later' look and he continued.

"The baby will come when I'm not here, so you two need to be on your best behaviour," Tommy instructed, leaning down as they stared up at him with their innocent faces, "no messin' around, no gettin' on her nerves, just be good, alright?"

His words went straight over their heads, "Does that mean I still get sweets?" Finn asked no one in particular.

Tommy pinched the bridge of his nose, "Finn you've been told you're gonna be an uncle for the second time and you're worrying about sweets."

The Shelby boy awaited an answer.

"Yes, you'll get sweets Finny and another niece," Eden reassured him.

His brows pinched together, "What's that?"

Finn understood that he was an uncle but nothing more than that.

"Is it a girl?" Isaiah questioned, folding his arms, when he received a nod, the boys exchanged grimaces, "Ewww."

Immediately they ran off and went back to their books, leaving the couple alone.

"What the fuck?" Eden blinked rapidly.

Tommy took her hand, before palming her stomach once again.

"Now that's done, let's go," he said, nodding to the basket on the floor.

"But what's up with 'em?"

"Fuck knows."

__

Two days, the lads were leaving in two days. Tommy's heart hammered in his chest at the thought, nevertheless, he promised Eden a perfect day, filled with chocolate slices, sandwiches and a flask of tea. She wore the sweetest frock she could dig out of her closet, it was cheery red, matching the colour of her lips. He adorned a crease-free shirt which was concealed by his favourite navy blue jumper, his shoes were polished, and the gifted horseshoe and box were in his slacks.

Despite not carrying his gun with him, he decided the blades in his cap would suffice and along with the knife he knew that clung to Eden's thigh, they would be safe.

They rode Shadow once again, this time Eden was much more relaxed and free, the light wind combed through Tommy's hair and luckily didn't move a strand of hers, being that she styled it into a low bun.

After tying the horse to a nearby tree, they found the spot overlooked the city, allowing them to spread out the blanket and sit down, basking in the heat.

The sun felt like hot kisses against Eden's skin, leaving her with tints of amber, drawing Tommy's attention as he pulled out all the food he'd spent making up that morning. She was everything he dreamt of and more, the very thing that he yearned for in both body and spirit, she challenged him in ways he hated to love and often drove him to madness, but brought him back with only the right sequence of words. Eden bloody Dawkins, she was his home.

"What?" she felt his stare.

Tommy simply cocked his head to the side, raising his brow at her as a smile tugged at his lips.

"Aren't I simply a dream Tom?" she teased, winking at the man.

"That you are my love."

Eden bashfully laughed at his response and started to dig into the spread, she carved anything and everything, the previous night she'd woken up Tommy so he could make her some rose tea, he didn't have a clue of what she was on about and cautiously told his aunt about it. Polly wasn't pleased with being pulled out of her slumber but aided him anyway.

"How's the little one treatin' ya?" he gently palmed the slight swell of her stomach.

"Can't feel much, bumps don't show properly for another two months," when you're away, she wanted to add, but decided not to, "nausea's died down for now."

"Can see that," he nodded to a half-eaten sandwich in her hand, making her snort.

"And you can say it's a girl, Tom unless you don't believe your aunt," she gave him a pointed look.

"I believe her, things might change, just being realistic."

"'Cause you want a boy?"

"Did I say that?" his hand didn't leave her stomach as he picked up the flask.

"Y'know she's a girl, so you're not havin' a peaky blinder," she narrowed her eyes at him, "but by the grace of god, we have a boy he ain't becomin' a blinder Thomas alright? Promise me." he shrugged, making her hit his forehead, "You promised a perfect day so promise me."

He nodded after gulping down some tea, "Alright, I promise... if it's a boy he ain't becoming a blinder," he paused, "I'll make sure he goes to London and becomes one of those established toffs."

She scrunched up her face, "Ugh, I think I'd prefer a blinder."

They both started to laugh, but in truth wanted a bright future for their child, their children, not wanting them to be subjected to the same misfortunes they inherited, but it was a lot to ask for, let alone dream about. Money could change a lot, but it couldn't change blood.

"You thought of any names?" she asked, as he rested his head in her lap.

His eyes fluttered shut, "A few."

She gently patted him, "Spill."

He inhaled sharply, "It's a lot to ask..."

"Go on."

"Somethin' to do with my mum," his reply had her intrigued.

"Mara Shelby," he stiffly nodded at her mention, "it's a pretty name," she said smiling.

"Esme too," he added, recalling how he and John were up a couple of nights ago talking about it. Arthur joined in, and so did Ada before they passed out in the front room.

"Esmerelda," she liked how it rolled off her tongue.

He chuckled before saying the next, "Pollyanna, but don't tell Pol 'bout that."

"Secret safe with me," she giggled.

"You thought of any?"

"Nothing's come to mind, none have felt right, my mum told me that she spent months thinkin' of what to call me and then changed her mind on the day," she said, combing her hand through his thick locks.

"Really?"

"Yeah, spontaneous thing right?"

"Sounds it," as a man who made part of their child, he didn't want to influence Eden too much with the name of the baby, but the fact she was taking his input made him grateful.

"Just picturing the little girl, runnin' 'round, with a dog chasing her..." her eyes fluttered shut at the image.

"A dog, what one?" he questioned, envisioning the image also, it made his heart swell.

"Bullmastiff," she breathed out.

His eyes fluttered open. "Those big dogs?"

"Yeah, family dogs apparently, but can be brutal when needs be," she continued with the vision, believing it would be the perfect addition to the home they already dreamt of.

"Ballmastiff it is, anything else Mrs Shelby?" and with that question her eyes snapped open, glancing down at the smirking man.

She swallowed the lump at the back of her throat, "Not Mrs. Shelby yet, haven't even popped the question."

"That's true," Tommy sat up, then rose on one knee, rendering Eden to softly chuckle behind her shaking hand, "Now, I was gonna do this a while ago, back when I got permission from your parents. And yes even your dad gave me 'is blessin', a shock to me and all, but I promised I wasn't gonna fuck this up, and I'm not am I?"

"No, you aren't, keep it up."

"Been thinkin' of all the ways I was gonna ask you this, dreamin', talkin' talk my self 'bout how I was gonna ask you to be my wife, did it so often Pol thought 'bout 'avin' me admitted," a teary laugh escaped her at his confession. "So I thought what would my Edie do when she's stuck? She'd write it down wouldn't ya love?"

"I would," she admitted.

"But I couldn't do that," he jokily tutted, making her laugh even more, "I scrapped the paper and thought speakin' from the heart was better, even though I think I'm doin' a crap job at it, but you're smilin'" her smile reached her teary eyes, making his heart hammer once more, "best smile I've ever seen, the brightest too," his voice cracked slightly, "and a great woman once said 'you have to be a bright ball of fire to be seen' and I've never not seen you, Eden. You're everything to me, my bright ball of hope, Christ how sappy is that?"

"Keep goin'" She softly nudged him, despite her tears.

"Oh right," he reached into his back pocket, "even before that little one starting growin' inside you, I was gonna propose. We speak about the future and mine wouldn't be right — it couldn't be without you in it. You've always been in it, so Eden Mary Dawkins would you –"

"Yes," she practically fell into his arms, covering his face with kisses.

"Darlin' I 'aven't shown you the ring yet or properly asked the question."

"Fine, ask me," she playfully rolled her eyes, not letting go of him.

"Will you marry me?"

"Yes, it was always gonna be yes," she exclaimed.

An uncharacteristically wide smile broke out on his face as he produced a small box, but that didn't stop her from kissing him and he immediately kissed back, flooding her with feelings that burst through his chest and she did the same, swirling his mouth with the joy that took over her.

Pulling away, he presented her with a ring, that she squealed out, much to his shock, sure it shone in the sunlight, but he didn't think it was much, in honesty he thought she would hate it, but it was the best he could do.

"Brought it for cheap, don't be mad," he said, settling down onto the blanket again.

Her brows furrowed slightly, "And why would I be mad?"

"You deserved better."

"It's perfect," she wasted no more time and slid it onto her finger.

She even laughed when he fitted his cap onto her head.

My secret blinder, he thought.

She wouldn't stop looking at the ring, so he took his time to speak again, "I want us to have the best weddin', but can't do it now only when I come back, so promise me you'll tell people we're married."

"For protection?..."

"Exactly, protection, our little Shelby needs it, just like you," he and his family agreed to it as well, making sure to spread the word that they'd wed, so no one questioned it. Even asking Jeremiah to pretend he performed the ceremony and Polly to put together a fake marriage certificate.

"'Course," she smiled at him, watching as he slipped on a wedding band of his own. "Should we make up our own vows then?"

"If you want," he couldn't stop smiling.

"Well, I... promise to be loyal to you, always, mind body and soul."

He let out a nervous chuckle, "Not to love ey?"

"You can love someone and hurt 'em right?" she blurted out, eyes widening at the words she spoke. It was out of experience she wanted to be cautious, she loved Tommy and he loved her, but the future they planned wouldn't be plane sailing. "I promise to always love you, also, but loyalty, our loyalty to each other can't be brought, or made, it was always there, alright?"

Tommy couldn't disagree despite himself.

"I promise to be loyal to you, always, mind body and soul."

They sealed that vow with a kiss, arguably far more meaningful and sacred than the last.

The sun brightened, bearing witness to the faux wedding, shining down on their rings with its harsh rays, before Tommy turned to whisper something to her bump, putting on voices for his daughter to hear, making his fiancé laugh at his utter foolishness as she ran her fingers through his hair. Thirty weeks left of her pregnancy to go and Tommy had to make the most of this moment, imagining what their child would look like before she popped out.

He was about to go through the flames of war, but right now all he could think of was his family, and how he would make sure to cherish them, despite how little time he had.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

a/n:

for a while, i was trying to figure out how far along eden is and she's roughly two months pregnant, give or take a week.

we all know when it comes to tommy loyalty is more vital than love, merely because he's committed atrocities in the name of love and family, so he's really not one to be trusted.

how did you find this chapter? the proposal? the happiness between teden?

next time chapter will be the last before the epilogue and bonus chapter, guys so might want to bring some tissues.

[cookies-and-mirrors]

Prison of Stone and Flesh

Chapter Three

This is a collaborative fic between @cookiesupplier and @faceless-mirror.

Divider by @samspenandsword

Pairings: Chris x transfem!Vinny, Justin x transmasc!Ricky, Chris x Justin x Ryan, Chris x transmasc!Ricky, Ryan x ONBC, Ryan x transfem!Vinny, Ryan x transmasc!Ricky, Justin x transfem!Vinny

Triggerlist: transphobia, homophobia, abuse, SA, dubcon, religious trauma, past suicide attempts, mental health issues, grief. (To be added to)

Christopher, Justin, and Ryan are members of the Gargoyle Order, soldiers fighting in the angels war against the demonic supernatural evils of the world to protect human kind. Through the years they lost comrades and now just the three of them remain in their little town.

Now, Ricky and Vinny are moving into their church, stirring up old and new feelings, along with the past, posing the challenge of navigating this new chapter in their lives.

Can they all navigate this path successfully and break free of the prisons that is their lives of both stone and flesh, or will they all be trapped forever in a world that could prove to be a constant misery?

MASTERLIST HERE

Taglist: @embracethereaper42 @21-century-tae @dragon-chica @shilohrosechicken @phxntxsmicgoricxl

@missduffsblog @witchyweeb34 @spicywhenspeaking @lacktoesandtoddlerants @blackveilomens

@bngurngheart @dominuslunae @collapsedglasshouses @embracethereaper42 @emmmm127

@sunsshinesunny

(please comment/reblog/message to be added to taglist)

Chapter Three

Ricky had enjoyed the evening cooking with Vinny, everything was perfect and a fair majority had been unpacked. His blue eyes looked her over, “Excited to start your coffee shop?” He questioned softly head tilted some as his hair fell out of his bun, as he smiled at her tenderly.

She nodded, bright green eyes looking up at him, “Yes! I’ve been thinking about the menu- and I think I’m going to carry salads, sandwiches, and pastries. I really love the idea of roasting my own beans too but I wanna start easy on it. I’m gonna have the basics and then I’m going to experiment with different lattes-” she rambled her voice getting louder and louder as she practically vibrated in place. “What about you and the bar…? Coming up with some cocktails and figuring out what beers and wines you want to carry?”

“Absolutely. You know I have the experience for it. I definitely want to make grasshoppers regularly- but I was thinking about making some signature ones based off the Gargoyles and stuff… I’m gonna have a good selection of red wine and whiskey but I think I’m also going to carry a selection of mead-” he explained warmly to her just as excited with a timid but overjoyed smile on his lips. “It's hard to believe it's finally happening.”

Vinny nodded going a bit quiet her lips quirking some softly, eyes full of a mix of sorrow and heartache, “I know it’s not the easiest. You wanted them here so badly… but…” she swallowed and grabbed his hand lightly, squeezing lightly. “I know they’re proud of you- both of us.”

The elder nodded sadly, swallowing. His grandparents had passed a few months before. He felt guilt over using his inheritance to open the business and remodel the church. He still had plenty left… but he wished they were here instead. He knew it was silly. They both were older, his grandmother had passed before his grandfather who died of heart failure days later. Tears welled in his eyes remembering, eyes watering more and more. Vinny moved quickly to wrap her arms around him, holding his head to her chest. “I got you. I’m here. Let it out.”

Ryan, while he was here to keep watch over the Church, their home. It wasn’t much of a Church really, no longer a place of worship, to him, to them, it would always be a holy place. It was, after all, their home base, and they were warriors for the angels, warriors for heaven, and as such, this was holy ground, that was what mattered, right? Either way, he figured he could walk around, maybe wander the grounds a bit… see what their newest inhabitants were up to… not that he really needed to be all that close... Tilting his head and letting his senses reach out to listen in, Ryan felt himself deflate with Vinny’s words, wondering exactly what had happened with Ricky’s grandparents. He knew how much he loved them, how much they loved him.

Whispered words in Enochian fell from his lips, he knew to the mortals, even if they could hear him would hear nothing but gibberish, but he prayed for Ricky’s grandparents' souls. Wishing them safe passage on swift angel wings. Far better than becoming nothing but dust, which was what the likes of gargoyles had to look forward to when they were felled in battle by demons. Some think they ascend, others don't.. but Ryan.. no matter what the others try to tell him.. most days.. he just knows they turn to nothing but dust. Such was their fate.

Ricky was sobbing into Vinny’s chest, clinging to her like she was his lifeline as she pet his hair with tears in her eyes as she kissed his head. “It’s okay. It’s okay. I’m right here for you,” she murmured sniffling some. They had been her grandparents as well, taking her in without question when she had been kicked out. “They’re okay. They were amazing and wonderful.”

“I know- I kn…know… but I miss them. I miss them so much I can’t stand it, Vin. They were amazing, and so kind…I love them…” he whispered pulling Vinny onto his lap, still crying into her shoulder.

Vinny bit her lip for a moment, “Tell me about the signature drinks you wanna have on the menu-” she said after a moment, determined to distract him.

“W…wha-”

“What are the names you’ve come up with?” she said clearly.

“You don’t drink though-” he said confused, almost stunned by the demand.

“Just because I don’t do it often because of my alcoholic family, doesn’t mean I’m not going to help you run the bar.” she said firmly, “Just like you said you’d help me with the coffee shop. We’re in this together. We’re all we’ve got. We gotta support each other.”

The soft laugh that came from Rick filled the air lightly, and he smiled through his tears, telling her the drinks and his plan for testing them out and making them. That was one thing he adored about Vinny. She always knew how to snap him out of his sorrow and out of his thoughts with such ease. He would be lost if he didn’t have her.

Ryan couldn’t help but smirk a little. Christopher was going to have a coronary hearing about the bar plans more, not that he didn’t already know, but he did not really like the whole idea about alcohol and inebriation as a whole. It was safe to say, he wasn’t happy about the bar. Sacrificial wine was as close to drinking as the elder gargoyle ever really got, and that was only for blessings.

Hearing Vinny soothe Ricky, however, was something he admired. She used words and managed to bring him back from a spiral of emotional turmoil, in a way he hadn’t seen someone do in, in forever. Hold on to her Ricky, she was a good woman there, she’d treat you right, don’t be like other humans that took those around you for granted. They’d seen it too many times in the people that came into this Church, it was painful. Ricky wouldn’t though, he was always a good egg. 

Vinny pet his hair slowly, listening and committing every word to memory. “I think I can do that with some practice,” she answered warmly, playing with his long hair lovingly, twirling a lock of black hair between olive-toned fingers. “I think it’ll be fun… we can have a nice shop, and bar… and we can be happy and be ourselves… we can make them proud… I can name a coffee after them... and then they’ll always be around us... no matter what,” she promised, petting his cheek as he sighed contently, eyes fluttering softly as he melted into her. Food was long forgotten now as they cuddled awkwardly on the chair. 

“Princess… do you wanna sleep in the same bed tonight…?” he asked softly. “We don’t have to do anything. I just don’t want to be alone…” he breathed out gently, eyes fluttering as he breathed in her soft scent of lavender and honey. Beautiful… endearing… his best friend. His other half. His constant. 

She nodded slowly, smiling softly, “Yeah. I’d like that. Just us… wanna watch Gargoyles?” she asked out of the blue.

His laugh was much louder, “Yes- Yes please. I could totally go for watching Goliath dealing with angst.” he snorted, lovingly. He did truly love the show. It was his all-time favorite… maybe gargoyles and living in the church as a child rotted his brain somehow… maybe it was the religious trauma. Whatever it was… he was home. Here with his best friend and his gargoyles.

She giggled and got up, cleaning up the food. As soon as she was done, he was dragging her off giggling towards Ricky’s room. Getting comfy and curled up in the bed, the pair melted in delight, the classic show playing on the TV, savoring the gentle silence that filled the night. After so much change and all the work… the pair were exhausted, drifting off together with the show still playing.

Ryan, however, was still wide awake. Despite being semi-aware during the day in the stone, being in the stone, most of the days passed in a meditative state, even if today had been all kinds of something else. He sighed, reeling his senses back to himself as the pair planned their personal night together, not wanting to intrude on the rest of their private evening. Even if they were planning on not having to ‘do anything’ exactly, humans, from his experience, always seemed to gravitate a certain way when sharing a bed. 

That was until a simple question caught his attention and Vinny’s soft voice might as well have yelled it through the entire rafters up to the rectory…

Wanna watch Gargoyles?

There was a show, on their television, about gargoyles? Dammit.. Ryan was so tempted to walk right down there and ask if he could join in to watch.. But Christopher would have his head.. So instead he sat by the door and listened… just listened to what he could until it stopped because the pair had drifted off and whatever was playing came to an end… Damn. He wondered if they could get a TV in the rectory?

[avocado-frog]

Month old writing share game

Thanks for the tag from @elsie-writes i procrastinated hard on this one but I think that the rules are just to share a bit of writing. So here's a little chunk from something I just wrote:

One time, a few years back, when Logan was nineteen, Lily was twelve, Jaxon was just about eleven, and Dylan was eight, they went to the park. He took them to the park to distract them, sometimes, but he didn't remember the specific reason that time around. Dylan had wandered off a little while after helping Logan pack sandwiches at home- after Lily and Jaxon already left- to go to the garden. Two older men, fifties or sixties, one in blue overalls and the other in a plain, grey shirt were teaching them how to use a rake. A woman a bit younger, dirty blonde hair in a bun behind her head, had a pocket of seeds for Dylan to plant. Logan sat on the bench to watch them, a bit warily. But they seemed friendly enough. Jaxon, usually, would run off to go find people to play with. He was sociable, he liked making friends, but even that day, as sunny as it was, it was still too early for kids his age to start coming over. Mostly, it was the parents of toddlers who wanted their kids to run off some energy. Sometimes, the toddlers would try and get him to play, too, and Jaxon obliged every time, but he seemed content with just his sister today. He didn't have any interest in gardening with Dylan. Lily was by the monkey bars, standing on top of the black platform underneath them. Jaxon sat on the ground, digging a hole in the bark with his hands. Lily jumped up to grab the bars, but she was getting tall enough that she didn't need to jump as high now. Once she had a grip on the yellow metal, she pulled herself up to sit on the top. She sat there for a while, talking to Jaxon about something Logan couldn't hear at the distance he was, and given his attention was split between them and Dylan.  Lily had swung her legs over the bars and leaned down in between the gaps to hang upside down, and of course Jaxon wanted to try.  He jumped up, just like Lily did, grabbed onto the bars, and it should've been a forewarning when his hand slipped before he regained his hold. He jumped up to sit on the top bars, and then his leg got caught in between, and he fell backwards trying to untangle himself.  He had picked the bar closest to the platform. Hanging upside down, right above the edge of the black platform, with his leg stuck in between the bars. He must not have been really thinking past getting his leg unstuck. Logan heard a woah, are you okay, that caught his attention just as he managed to free himself. And then he fell. And hit his head on the edge of the platform and hit it again as the rest of him landed in the bark. Jaxon hadn't even cried, which was astonishing to Logan, who had shot up like a rocket and rushed over to check on him. Because Logan would've cried hard if he hit his head like that. Twice. Lily had scrambled down to see if he was okay, too, but Jaxon only sat in the bark, moved to sit with his legs outstretched, one hand making a circle in the wood bits, blinking like he was confused. There was a steady stream of blood gushing from his nose, too. His eyes weren't quite uneven yet, but Logan didn't think for a second that Jaxon got away without a concussion. He instructed Lily to go watch Dylan, tell them where he went, while he took their brother home to check on him. Jaxon blinked again. Logan grabbed him by the arm, dragged him to his feet, and dragged him home, having to hold his own sleeve against his nose because Jaxon wasn't doing it himself.

Open tag since this is a month and a half old sorry lmao

[pheita]

First Christmas

So this is for the Mistletoe kiss tag from @bloodlessheirbyjacques, and it got steamy in the end. Yeah, these cinnamon buns have some spice once they got together lol Tagging @stormbrightwriter @kainablue @catharticallysarcastic @ashen-crest @chris-the-dragonslayer @weaver-of-fantasies-and-fables @contes-de-rheio @magic-is-something-we-create @queerlilchinchin If anyone feels like writing some holiday kiss for their story now, feel free to tag me lol

The examining looks over the entire living room was necessary one more time. Even though it wasn't the first time Tali would stay overnight, it was special because it was Christmas, and it was their first Christmas together. The Christmas tree was decorated and the fairy lights with artificial fir greenery also hung along the bookcase. Over the back of the sofa were several cozy blankets and in front of them was the new lambskin rug, which he had bought specially because Tali liked it fluffy. His inspection continued in the kitchen, where he checked again to make sure that he had everything needed for the next few days and that nothing was missing. In the bathroom, the small wellness basket was freshly stocked, and Constantine had picked up different bath oils for the two of them. At the thought of how Tali liked to bathe with him he had to smile. Now they just had to get through the staff party and could hide from the world for the next few days. The walk to the archives wasn't far, but the short walk from his apartment to the entrance of the safe haven had already been enough to cover him in snow that his coat got wet as soon as he stepped into the warmth of the safe haven. He hadn't completely shed his scarf and gloves when Tali also half knocked him over with her stormy greeting. "You're late," she reminded him. "The weather is worse than predicted." "Good thing we don't want to go anywhere." "I also have enough marshmallows that you could live on hot chocolate alone for the next few days if you wanted to." He saw she wanted to reply something, but didn't give her the chance, instead taking advantage of her brief speechlessness to kiss her. Embarrassed, she giggled to his amazement, then he heard someone clear their throat. Her parents were standing a few steps away with an amused expression.

"I don't think we have to worry about them getting too cold in this weather," Tali's mother commented. "We have to go." As best she could, Tali tried to pull him along, but her father stopped her. "Didn't you forget something, kitten?" Embarrassed, she let go of Constantine and said goodbye to her parents. Her father stepped toward him with an amused look. "The last time I saw her this excited was at Christmas, when she was ten." "Dad!" "I'm just telling the truth." While Tali was pulled into a hug by her mother, her father leaned in a little. "We hid her Christmas present in her bag. Would you please hide it until tomorrow?" "I'd be happy to." Constantine tried not to grin conspiratorially as Tali's parents prepared to leave. "Have fun you two, and don't forget to check in." "We will, Mom," Tali replied, annoyed. Once again, she grabbed Constantine and her small travel bag and pulled him toward the archives.

Laughter and music already greeted them as they entered. The large staff meeting room had been decorated with fairy lights, a Christmas tree and garlands hanging from the ceiling. To the side was a small buffet with drinks, cookies, and sandwiches. They had left jackets and Tali's bag in the office so it wouldn't get in the way, and they could move around more freely. Constantine was already skeptically scanning the garlands. It was Tali's first Christmas party at the Archives, and she certainly wasn't familiar with the specifics. "It's bordering on a miracle that I can find anything without alcohol," she laughed beside him with two mugs of tea in her hands. "It's a Christmas party, what did you expect?" "Less alcohol?" Instead of answering, Constantine just accepted his mug and pressed a kiss to her forehead. She snuggled into her oversized sweater with reindeer on it, then slid closer to him. If not for the fact that she wanted to join the celebration because it was her first time, Constantine would much rather be snuggled up with her already at home with hot chocolate, music and forgetting about the rest of the world, but that wasn't an option yet. He had promised her that they would stay at least an hour, so they did. He spotted that the sitting area was still empty and gently nudged Tali. "Shall we sit?" Her grin behind her mug said it all. "Take the mug, I'll get cookies." "Cookie Monster." "It's Christmas!" "No, Christmas Eve isn't until tomorrow and depending on what country you live in, even that doesn't count as Christmas yet." Tali stuck her tongue out while handing him her cup and then went to raid the cookies.

He just sat with Tali already on her way with a mountain of cookies when a laugh from another corner demanded his attention. Some colleagues looked to him or more to a point above him. The idea of what had happened and why the seating area was still empty made Constantine look up. Right above him in the middle of the fairy lights hung the sprigs of mistletoe. Basically, they couldn't have been missed if he hadn't been more concerned about counting the minutes until they could leave. "Alright, which one of you did it?" he asked to the group. The conspicuously inconspicuous look away from Francesco said it all. It should have been obvious that only an Imp could come up with such an idea. "What's going on?" By now Tali had arrived at his side, already chewing the first or even second cookie, of course. "Mistletoe," Constantine pointed upward. She acknowledged it with a nervous giggle and leaned down to him for a kiss. "I'm afraid that won't do." "It's not?" "Strip!" roared Lydia from the other corner of the room. Like a snake, Tali's head snapped around to Lydia and then back questioningly to Constantine, who was already tugging his shirt out of his pants. "We have some special rules about that here," he explained, thoroughly amused. It was easy to guess that Tali's higher thought processes were about to stutter, but somehow he also found it cute. "They would be?" "Whoever ends up alone under the mistletoe has to take off an article of clothing." "You're playing strip poker with the mistletoe?" laughed Tali, falling into the small sofa beside him. "You can put it that way if you want." The shirt landed on the backrest next to him and almost at the same moment Tali was on his lap, balancing the plate of cookies in one hand and leaning against him with the other. With a broad smile, she popped a cookie in his mouth and then kissed him. "Hmm, cookie-flavored Constantine..." The plate interfered between them, so he took it from her, put his arms around her and just looked at her. Gradually he could see it seeping into Tali's consciousness that he sat there topless, and she tried not to wander off with her thoughts. She put her hands around his face and leaned her forehead against his. "You could have warned me," she said. "I was trying to avoid the mistletoe." "They set us up?" "I'd actually go so far as to say it was planned." Just by the way Tali licked her lips, Constantine could tell that she was gradually losing the battle against herself, and in a way he just found it charming how something so simple could turn her on so much, and all the more eager to see how she would react to his Christmas gift. "I think the hour is up," she breathed. "You sure?" "Absolutely." They ignored the giggles from colleagues as Constantine collected his shirt, Tali took the cookies with her head held high, and they left. The speed with which she stuffed the cookies down her throat on the way to the office worried him a little, but Constantine said nothing about it.

The snowfall had stopped, thankfully, and they made it to his apartment quickly. As soon as he unlocked the apartment door, he looked over his shoulder at Tali. "I have one more question." "Which one?" "Why this sweater?" Lowering her eyes and giggling, Tali pushed past him. "To cover something up." "Cover up?" He took her coat and scarf while she was already moving on to the living room with the bag. "Oh my god, this is beautiful. Tali turned in a circle to look at the Christmas decorations and what he had changed to make it cozier. Constantine hugged her from behind and rested his head on her shoulder. "I'm glad you like it. I changed a few things in the other rooms, too. You still owe me an answer about the sweater, though." She fidgeted a little in his embrace. "An early Christmas present." "Does that mean I have to unwrap you?" he teased her. The giggle was answer enough. Tali dipped down a little so she could turn around in his arms. "That's what you do with presents." He rubbed the tip of his nose against hers with a smile. "Wait here." After a kiss on the nose, he disengaged from her and disappeared to the side, where her Christmas present waited. He was definitely queasy about whether it was the right one as he handed the box to Tali. A questioning look accompanied the delivery. "Your Christmas present." "Are you sure?" "I am."

She plucked open the ribbon and walked to the sofa with the box. Tense and nervous, Constantine watched as she lifted the lid and peered inside. Frowning, she took out the leather choker with both hands. Carefully, Tali stroked her fingers over the delicate pattern of cutouts and embossing, then her gaze went up to him. "This is beautiful, but I don't quite understand." Constantine sat down beside her and took the choker from her. The dark purple velvet lining the cutouts already stood out against Tali's skin. "After all, we talked at length a while ago about how you find it extremely difficult to express your desires and fantasies when it comes to sex." She nodded with a doubtful expression on her face. He smirked and carefully put the choker on her. The V-shaped cut made it lie more like a necklace at the front of her neck and didn't really interfere with her swallowing or talking. "My thought was that we can try to condition you to the choker in a certain way, that putting it on will put you in a mental state that makes it easier for you to talk about it and let yourself go during sex." "And you think that will work?" "There's a possibility, but I can't promise it." She stroked her fingertips over the top of the choker, which stopped level with her clavicle. An introspective smile appeared on her lips. "I want to try," she said, looking up at him. Stormily, he took her head in his hands and kissed her until they both needed air again. Her giggle confused him. "The shade fits." Tali tugged at her sweater, but it was predominantly green. It took a second for Constantine to remember that she meant she was basically wearing the gift. "It's time I unwrap my present." His hands darted under her sweater, sensing she was still wearing a shirt underneath. The sweater landed on the back of the chair, but Constantine's eyes were glued to Tali. Underneath the white blouse he'd seen so often on her at work, dark purple underwear was clearly peeking out, and if he was spotting the schematics correctly, it wasn't a normal bra. Her blush was already coming back to her face as he looked up, which he tried to alleviate with another kiss. As if she really was a gift, he gradually unbuttoned the blouse and gently pushed the fabric off her shoulders.

The bra was a balconette bra in almost the same purple as the choker, Tali's favorite color, and lifted her breasts tantalizingly. Her nipples were already erect. Constantine's thumb stroked her nipples feather lightly and got a soft sigh in response. He stood up and pulled her with him. "This is a set?" "Yes." Smiling blissfully, he knelt in front of her and unzipped her pants, helping her out of the pant legs and already using it to stroke her legs, which were in black suspender stockings tied to the dark purple suspender belt. The panties were open and had a small fine pearl necklace that was already sparkling wetly. His hands moved up to her hips and Constantine couldn't help but use the tip of his tongue to push the pearl necklace a little deeper into Tali's moist depths. Tali's legs almost gave way under her. He wanted to pull back, but her hands grabbed his hair and held him in place. Even though he had never told her how much it turned him on when she got so bossy, Tali just seemed to know. He played with the beads of the panties and used it as an additional stimulus while he took care of her clit with long strokes until she fell back on the sofa by herself because her legs finally gave way. Even then she didn't let him go and Constantine continued to torture her with slow long strokes, interrupted only now and then when he kissed her clit and lightly sucked on it. Tali's legs crossed behind his neck just a split second after she let go of his head and arched her back. He knew she had climaxed when she fell back into the cushions. Panting and her eyes crossed, she tried to look at him. "Fuck..." "Is that a request?" he teased her.

Still trying to get her breathing back under control, Tali just looked at him in that unmistakable way that said, "You're still asking so stupid?" The sight of Tali in lingerie, knowing that she had bought it especially to look sexier to him, Constantine enjoyed from this angle. Lost in thought, his hands wandered over her thighs, to her stomach, up to her breasts and back again. Just as he had slowly unbuttoned her blouse before, he repeated it now with his shirt, making a show of it for Tali with the knowledge that it would turn her on even further, but he also had an ulterior motive. Before standing up, he planted kisses on her thighs and got a purr in response. He loved it when she felt so good that she purred, no matter what the context. Pants and underwear followed the shirt and as so often, the sight of his erection brought a pleasurable lick of the lips with an eye roll from Tali. Secretly, he waited for the day she would finger herself at the sight. "The bed is much more comfortable, isn't it?" Constantine held out his hand, which Tali took, giggling, and pulled herself up. She pressed her hips against him, causing the beads of her panties to rub over his cock, eliciting a moan from him. One kiss later, she had sprinted ahead to the bedroom before he realized where she was. This Christmas was going to be more sensual than contemplative, he realized, but on the other hand, hadn't Constantine provided for just that?

[rbelle310]

A burger holder seems like a gag gift, but the weird plastic doohicky is the gift Kiyoomi buys Atsumu for his birthday because for as long as he's known Atsumu, the setter has never been able to eat a burger without it falling apart.

It's absolutely baffling to Kiyoomi: Atsumu is a man who displays so much dexterity and finesse with his (very beautiful) hands. His brother owns a damned onigiri store. How different could they be to eat neatly?

"It's so different Omi!" protests Atsumu with his mouth still half-full of burger (Kiyoomi very very briefly reconsiders his love).

He's halfway through his All-In Megastack and the paper lining on the tray is already littered with bits of lettuce, a half-bitten slice of tomato, and the tragic tail end of a piece of bacon.

Atsumu swallows and takes another big bite, dislodging a bit of onion that now dangles precariously from the tenuous grip of smashed beef patty and toasted potato bun.

Kiyoomi nibbles on a fry with pepper mayo while waiting for him to elaborate.

"An onig-" Atsumu starts, pauses to swallow again and take a sip of soda before continuing, "Samu's onigiri is perfectly shaped, an' y'know the rice is lightly kneaded to hold together with the fillin'. A burger's just..."

He gestures vaguely and the unfortunate onion (now nicknamed Mufasa) plunges to its untimely demise.

"A burger's just stacked. Mebbe it's got some cheese an' stuff to hold it together, but it ain't properly compacted."

"Sounds like what you really need is a sandwich press." huffs Kiyoomi amusedly, "But I've seen your paninis fall apart at lunch too. Why don't you just use the holder I got you?"

"Awww Omi~~ I can't carry it with me everywhere! It's not like I plan for burgers!"

"I suppose not." Kiyoomi relents.

Today was one such example after all. They were supposed to have conveyor belt sushi but the queue was too long for their voracious athlete appetites.

He finishes his fries and Atsumu wolfs down the rest of his now All-Out Megadebris meal.

"Gochisousama~" Atsumu intones, lilting Kansai-ben making the customary words all the more adorable to Kiyoomi's ears.

The love of his life is a walking mass of contradictions. He handles the ball with such grace, but grips his burgers with a hamfist.

He sometimes says the silliest things even in front of the press, but he's conscientious enough to say the customary words of appreciation to the line cook who will never hear it.

He'll put aside time every night to moisturise and manicure his hands to keep them in perfect condition, but here he is carelessly brushing sesame seeds and sauce off his fingers with a crumpled and over-used serviette.

Atsumu is baffling, yet endearing, he fills Kiyoomi with no small amount of consternation, but also causes his heart to swell with vast amounts of affection.

"Here, your fingers are going to be sticky." Kiyoomi chides softly, pulling a pack of wet wipes from his pocket.

He takes those messy hands in his own clean ones and carefully wipes each finger down, even rubbing under the nails. And once Atsumu's hands are sauce-free and pristinely smooth, Kiyoomi presses a kiss against a knuckle.

Thanks to the wipes, his boyfriend's skin smells like sweet muskmelon and aloe instead of fast food, so Kiyoomi is content to let his lips linger a little longer, maybe brush more than once against other parts of Atsumu's hands as he murmurs, "There, all clean."

"T-thanks Omi." Atsumu squeaks, face as red as the half-eaten tomato on the tray.

He's so hot and yet so damn adorable at the same time. Kiyoomi tightens his grip ever so slightly and gives a teasing smile that promises more than wet wipes and kisses when they get home.

Atsumu only grows redder at the provocation, squirming in his seat. Cute.

So, maybe Kiyoomi was just a teensy bit annoyed at his gift going to waste. But if he were really honest with himself, maybe the messy burgers weren't really such a bad thing if he could still make Atsumu blush like that with just wet wipes and a smile.

[bellamer]

He Asked For Extra Pickles ! (Poly!Lost Boys x Male!OC)

(Rihan's food got messed up and now the poor fast food employee has to pay the price)

-

"Aw damn..." Rihan said, taking the bun off of his burger.

"What ?" David asked, looking at Rihan, unwrapping his own burger.

"They must have misheard. I asked for no onions and extra pickles, they gave me extra onions and no pickles." Rihan said with a sigh.

"That can't be right." David said, furrowing his eyebrows. "Dwayne, you have the receipt, what's it say ?"

"One burger, no mayonaise extra cheese, One burger, no cheese, add bacon, one chicken sandwich no lettuce, chicken tenders with honey mustard, 5 orders of fries, One burger, no onions, extra pickles." Dwayne read off the receipt that was printed on the bag. "So they did hear him right."

"Guys, it's no big deal, it was probably an accident, I'll just take off the onions." Rihan said, as he started to remove the onions, only to be grabbed by Paul.

"The fuck you are, you're not going to eat that." Paul said with a frown. "You hate onions, the flavor of the onions have probably all seeped into the patty and bun, you won't enjoy it."

"We're gonna go up there and fix this." Marko said, standing up from the bench. "No one fucks up our man's meal."

"You don't really have to do this, I'll be fine-" But before he could finish his sentence, his boyfriends were already standing up, receipt in Dwayne's had, his fucked up burger in Marko's, while Paul and David were the first to march up to the counter. Rihan stood up quickly to try and stop the boys but it was too late.

They were already at the counter, the 18 year old minimum wage employee shrinking a little when he saw them.

"C-Can I help you ?" The employee squeaked out, shuddering from the glares. Rihan quickly pushed his way in between Dwayne and Marko, but before he could say anything, Marko handed Paul the burger and Paul slammed it onto the counter.

"What the fuck is this, huh ?!?" Paul asked the employee. "My guy asked for no onion and extra pickle, your ass gave him extra onion and no pickle, the fuck are you tryna do, kill him ?"

"Paul, what the fuck are you-" Rihan started, but he was interrupted.

"He is DEATHLY allergic to onions, and you give him extra ?!?" Paul yelled.

Rihan's jaw went slack as Paul caused a scene. Paul knew damn well that he wasn't allergic to onions. Suddenly, a middle aged man but in from the back, hearing Paul's tirade.

"Excuse me gentlemen, do we have a problem ?" The man asked, obviously the manager.

"Well, you see, your establishment fucked up our man's food." David said, putting the receipt next to the burger after Dwayne handed it to him. "Since you could have killed our man here with your mistake, here's what you're gonna do." David leaned in real close. "You're gonna give my man his money back and remake his burger, fresh, for free, understand ?"

Rihan was so embarrassed that he thought that he was going to die right then and there. The manager only nodded in agreement, not wanting to get on David's or any of the boys' bad side, opening the register and giving David a dollar back.

"That wasn't so hard, was it ?" David asked, as he handed the dollar back to Rihan.

"You could have at least let them keep the dollar !" Rihan whined as they walked back to their seats, waiting for Rihan's order.

"No they cant keep your dollar because you didn't get what you paid for." David said, rolling his eyes.

"Did you have to tell them I was deathly allergic to onions ?" Rihan asked, glaring at Paul, making Paul laugh.

"That's how you get shit done babe, it keeps them on their toes so they don't fuck up again." Paul said, wrapping his arms around Rihan's shoulders.

"If any of you ever do that shit again, I'll kill you." Rihan mumbled, reaching into the bag and eating his limp, now cold, fries, but he didn't dare complain about it out loud, for fear that his stupid boyfriends would make a scene again and just hoped that the employee didn't spit in his food.

[scrollsfromarebornrealm]

wayward (grand)daughter 11

The skies over Sharlayan were gray and getting darker as Reinhardt tapped a foot.  He’d volunteered to pick up Mathye’s library order, but Noumenon at the moment was extremely busy.  Reinhardt had offered to wait, and one of the mammets had given him a wait-token that would buzz when it was his turn. 

“Next time I should let Mathye get his own damn books.”  He muttered, peering up at the sky.  It wasn’t the fact that he didn’t like Old Sharlayan, it was that the entire island just felt...slightly off to him.  Or rather, the weather always felt wrong.  Or maybe it was Labyrinthos that unsettled him.  Either way, he wasn’t a fan of the city-state. 

The sky changes color any more it’ll match the damn gazeb-  Pain exploded in Reinhardt’s mind, his brain felt as if it’d been hit by a levin-bolt and suddenly he couldn’t see as his eyes glazed over, agony tipped-claws latching onto his very being and pulling--

And suddenly the dragoon could see again.  He was still on the gazebo, but soft sounds were coming from his right.  Reinhardt looked over and down--and then felt as if he’d slammed into a brick wall.  Sitting down across from him on the floor, her back pressed against the gazebo’s seat bottom...was Riven. 

But it wasn’t the Riven that he knew.  Horror paralyzed Reinhardt as he realized who he was looking at--this was Riven as Kari, when she was in the hands of her stepmother.  A nightmare that he’d only read about--now brought to life in front of him.  For Kari was gorging herself on food-one hand holding a sandwich, the other a bun, and she was tearing into them both as if the food would suddenly disappear or someone possibly come up on her and try to steal her bounty.  Reinhardt knew that feeling, knew that desperation.  Remembered it from his time in the Brume--the handful of times he’d actually gotten something hot to eat, trying to take it slow because if you ate fast you got sick but you just couldn’t help it , it tasted so good and if you didn’t eat quick the other kids or adults might notice--

He knew how clothing hung on a too-frail body, how to tuck and tie fabric to try and make it look presentable.  He knew how to stuff scraps of same-colored fabric in old, holey shoes to try and make them look decent.  He could see flashes of the bruises on Kari’s arms beneath the fabric, and if he had to guess that uniform was at least two sizes too big.  Then movement out of the corner of his eye made Reinhardt whip about.  Two men-a hyur and an elezen--were standing not too far away from the gazebo.  From his location, Kari’s back was to them, and if she wasn’t so invested in her meal, she could probably hear what they were saying.  The dragoon forced himself to look at the pair, who were arguing in low voices.  He needed to remember everything he could, if he let himself be distracted...

Wait!  The elezen had turned, showing more of his face.  Reinhardt stared-he’d seen the man before, but it had been on a page, another horror story he’d read.  Nionaut Trigelle, the man Kari had been sold to, who had been her supposed killer--and whose body parts had been found strung up in Scholar’s Harbor.  A noise made Reinhardt look back down, Kari had finished her meal.  She’d taken the empty basket into her lap and was looking at it sadly.  With a sniff, she wiped at her eyes with the back of her free hand. 

“Maybe they’ll have leftovers after the exam.”  She whispered.  Reinhardt’s gaze flicked to the books that were next to her, quickly taking in the titles. With a sigh, Kari hooked the basket’s handle over one elbow, moving to pick up the books with her other hand.  She started to rise to her feet--

As at the same time, Nionaut was walking away from his companion, a scowl on his features.  Reinhardt’s gaze flicked to the elezen--and then realization suddenly struck him.

Waitaminute.  One of the missing pieces in the investigation in Kari’s death had been just how Nionaut had been able to get at her to begin with.  His social circle and Camilla’s had never interacted, and yet somehow...  Nionaut had come to a stop, staring at Kari’s back.  Shock was on his features--he hadn’t expected to see the teen suddenly appear. 

He thought nobody was around.  Unaware of her surroundings, Kari started to make her way back to the Studium.  Nionaut snapped out of his daze-and started to follow her--and as Reinhardt threw up a hand in a desperate attempt to stop him, he felt himself starting to lose grip on his senses once more...

Reinhardt sucked in a breath, staggering as the migraine suddenly eased.  His eyes flew open, and he stared ahead for several moments as he realized what he’d seen.

“He thought nobody was around.”  He breathed.  Kari had been sitting on the gazebo’s floor.  She’d been hiding--hiding so she could eat in peace.

She was sitting on the floor, nobody can see you when you’re on the gazebo floor--not unless they’re actually entering it!  Fury, he thought she overheard him!  He thought she overheard him and...

“Followed her.”  As soon as Reinhardt said the words aloud, he knew he’d found the answer.

“He followed her back home.”

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

Master post for Poison Ewer

Also for better context :D  The gazebo setup in question.

blue: reinhardt orange: riven red: astrid’s murder victim and his companion

[keefwho]

May 23 - 2024 Thursday

11:30pm

5.5/10

Days for awhile now just keep being 'meh'. Even good days are kinda ruined by how meh I feel and how much I'm thinking about things. Thats why I need a break from the thinking.

This morning I made my mirror and sink spotless. I took great care and attention in making sure I wiped down every centimeter of the thing. I also cleaned out and reorganized the cleaning supply cabinet and had to take my trash out. For breakfast I made a jimmy dean sandwich and some cheetos. Also snuck a cookie with my coffee. I didn't feel like streaming at all this morning, I wasn't in a very good mood. But I tried anyways.

On stream I tried warming up with cats but switched to ponies. Then I worked on SZ's commission for about 90 minutes. No one showed up but 57 today and there was little talking. We couldn't watch shows because my internet wouldn't allow it. I ended early so I could go to the store for drinks. On the way there mom told me about the funeral plan for my nephew, I'm going to have to watch the house until next Wednesday. At the store I asked the nice lady if she had a favorite show lately. She said she watches a lot of anime and has been watching this show called Carnival Row I haven't heard of. I told her I've been watching Black Mirror. I kinda crumbled and became too robotic. I wish I had asked what kinds of animes and I wish I told her I've been watching cartoons like She Ra and Moral Orel. Regret is my strongest teacher right now so I'll do better next time.

When I got home I worked the remaining 30 minutes on SZ's commission and finished it. They really liked it and so did the others in their group. Then I watched more of this Star Wars hotel video DS sent me until I decided to roast hotdogs for lunch finally. I split one of the last logs for wood, got my firepit set up, and found a good stick to carve down. I had to thaw the bun and wieners in the microwave and then I toasted it all over the fire. The stick sucked, I had to redo the end multiple times because it kept burning. I didn't cook the hotdogs long enough to get warm inside so I microwaved them to finish. I ate them by the fire with ketchup and that was nice.

When I came in, I did a really weird request and worked on another Tumblr idea afterwards. I worked on this sketch for an hour but still don't think it's quite right so I'm going to redo it for the 3rd time next week. I'm not doing a good job of pumping out 1 idea per week, this drawing is currently going to take 3 weeks. I almost napped on my desk towards the end and did no VRchat world work today.

To chill for the evening I mostly watched some stuff like that star wars video. I tried booting up Minecraft to work on my snowman town more and joined AE and friends in the server VC. I didn't say anything the whole time, I just listened to them play Monster Hunter. When DS was free I left to call her and kept playing. We chilled to some music and then I put on that very long star wars video for both of us. When she went upstairs, I joined BR and seemingly the rest of the entire server in their VC to say hi. They were watching a really funny reaction video.

In bed DS and I did our puzzles and the connections was really stupid today. It was very late for both of us but I stayed up to enjoy the time with her. Its why I'm up late right now. I dont regret staying up but I do regret being in my thoughts too much tonight, especially with no intent of speaking up about it. I would have preferred letting it go for now so I could be an engaged, enjoyable person.

Like I said, this morning kinda sucked. Again I woke up and realized I don't like where things are and it started getting to me. At some point I journaled about a lot and got some other thoughts out. I think I'm getting closer to figuring out how to focus on what I think is important in a very simple way. First of all I knew not to act on how I was feeling because I wasn't in my rightest mind. I think whenever I act like that, I'll tend to be making decisions that work against me or from a place of selfishness. I also knew that to undermine my negative/unhelpful behavior, I can focus on doing my best no matter what I'm doing. Thats how I become proud of myself. It helps focus on whats really important like whats right in front of me. This is especially true of my relationships. Since they involve someone else, normally someone very important to me, I want to do them justice. It helps me become my best me.

[slotsforlife289]

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[maybenotmei]

how would malleus, Leona and Azul deal with their crush baking things some nights and the next day, crush leaves the boys some every single time wrapped up in a box tightly so they will stay fresh? What if they baked some mini buns shaped like lions, dragons or Octopuses/fish as well for once?

hi requestor, was just wondering if youre asking for my thoughts or if u want more arranged headcanons for your requests ^^ i'll do the former for this one, because i think it's cute, really! tell me if you want more arranged hcs though, and if this format is ok for your other azul request too!..... you're feeding into my interest for azul,,,,,,,,,,,

(though there may not be that much of a difference aside from layout...) THANK U BTW TO BUCKETOFFORKS FOR HELPING OUT W MALLEUS !!!!

ft. azul ashengrotto, malleus draconia, leona kingscholar

＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣

for azul, i think he'd be pretty intrigued at first. maybe because he'd see you consult jade about something, head to the kitchen, and go back carrying a small lunch box back to your dorm. it's pretty late at night, so it would make him wonder.

he doesn't wonder anymore after seeing the same lunchbox at his desk the next day, though.

this was the first occurrence of him getting something like this (and azul wakes up fairly early so he doesn't know how you were able to place this here secretly) and after piecing things together he... got flustered

oh my god if you actually confirm you made that cute octopus bun and that batch of rice and octodogs then he would feel extremely indebted to you and he's unsure how to pay back

also he probably would feel hesitant to eat it because it's 1. so cute (cute enough for him to take a picture, and keep it. that's rare for him) 2. most likely made by you .... he eats it anyway and my god it tastes so good?

the next day when he sees you again baking something and then that thing showing up on his desk again? you're just doing too much now— he feels like he's wallowing in debt from how much you're spoiling him with this food (do not take this negatively, he loves how your food tastes)

if you confirm it was you... then he's already thinking of ways to pay you back as quick as possible. don't insist he takes it for free he insists he does something for you as well

＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣

for leona, ....okay listen i don't know much aside from the fact he will eat it without hesitation if he knows it's from you

...what? your cooking is better than the cafeteria's. that's a pretty big compliment because people were fighting for that sandwich in the cafeteria, you know?

he would ask you when he first sees you at night in the kitchen, ask you stuff like "what are you doing here?" but wouldn't push the topic because he is tired and it is 10 in the evening. he would remember the lunch box on the counter though

and well, when that same lunch box arrived at his nightstand warm and fresh despite it being made hours ago, he... appreciated it?! i'm sure he has the guts to ask you to make more, since he's assuming you made it (damn, good guess...!) but not right now

your lion-shaped bread tasted the best though.

ruggie's thankful he doesn't have to fight for his life in the cafeteria anymore thanks to the secret person....

requestor im sorry i barely know anything about leona 😭

＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣

you... gave malleus food?

wow, i'm.... uh... honestly he doesn't know how to react either. like sudden food in his place? sounds nice, i wonder who did this (he probably knows you did it because you weren't slick with leaving the lounge wrapping something up at 10pm)

he would show up to the lounge holding the bunch of food because he wants to show it to the rest. lilia and silver would probably have a look at it and sebek is panicking very loudly because what if it's poisoned and malleus consumes it and suddenly he had failed to protect the young ma-

oh. he's fine. he took a bite. he liked it. it's not burnt at the bottom, and it's very well-baked. the dragon-shaped bread had some vanilla filling, which was nice.

the same thing repeats every day, though. you bake something, leave it at malleus's room (how did you even get inside?) or by the lounge addressed to him, the rest are in awe, sebek is worried, malleus enjoys it. you're... secretly thankful

when he does find out it was you who made it...

"child of man(?), did you make the bread? thank you 🙂" (he wishes you'd make some more)

okay this was difficult 😢 i'm not super familiar w malleus so im sorry :,,,,)

[reikuto]

BEACH DAY W/THE AOT CHARACTERS!

WARNINGS! — cursing, suggestive activity, use of the word dick(?), exaggerated content

CHARACTERS! — aged up!eren, armin, mikasa, jean, connie, sasha

A/N! — summer is almost halfway over and i’ve yet to go to the beach once, so yeah, this was very much needed. also sorry they’re so long lmfao.

EREN makes the beach his bitch. he totally rocks the whole surfer aesthetic with his swim trunks low on his hips, hair pulled into a messy bun, and sunglasses propped on his nose. the girls at the beach will have their eyes on him but he’ll always be captured by how good you look. not only is he happy to let loose at the beach but he gets to see you in swimwear, so it’s a double win. he can also very easily score the both of you free drinks at the tiki bar but he doesn’t do it unless you’re comfortable with it. he’s an adrenaline junkie, so get ready to be forced to go jet-skiing with him, maybe even paragliding as well. you could be recuperating from having your life flash before your eyes from this mf going 90mph on a jetski, and he’s already moving onto the next activity. he loves figuring out creative ways to sneak beer into the beach. like yes eren, the beach cops totally won’t find it suspicious when they see you drinking from a fucking sunscreen bottle. he also tans so easily, and you get incredibly jealous because how the hell does he get such an even tan so effortlessly?! who gave this asshole the right to look all good and tall and bronzed up?

ARMIN loves reading at the beach. reading in general is nice, but reading at the beach under the warm sun with an ocean breeze is just better. once, he fell asleep with the book on his chest and got a wack ass fucking tan mark. since then, he’s learned to be extra consistent in reapplying his spf 100 sunscreen as directed. prefers being at the beach in the evening because the sun rays aren’t as intense and because he likes watching the sky turn a beautiful mixture of pink and orange. always packs little snacks like grapes, cheese & crackers, sandwiches, etc. because duh? it’s only fitting to have a sweet beach picnic date with you! it’s also safe to say the two of you absolutely love the drinks from the tiki bar—except they’re incredibly dangerous because you can barely taste the alcohol. the both of you would accidentally drink one too many and suddenly be tipsy and giggling up a storm. once, after said particular instance occurred, the two of you could NOT stop cracking up at the sight of a rather large and deformed dick drawn in the sand. someone needs to keep you two away from the tiki bar.

MIKASA is a beach volleyball god. like yes, she looks very put together and gorgeous in her bikini, but the second you start playing beach volleyball, it’s over. her spike? deadly. you feel bad for whoever you two are up against because they don’t stand a chance. when she’s not completely demolishing in a game of beach volleyball, she’s lounging on a beach chair, taking in some sun as she sips on a fruity drink of some sort. like armin, she’s very on point with her sunscreen application to avoid bad sun burns. always asks you to help her apply it, knowing damn well that you get all flustered doing it. likes sitting with you in the shallow part of the water, talking about anything and everything as the small waves gently lap past the both of you. she’s also developed a habit of taking pictures of you two at the beach because it’s not so often you guys can go, so she just wants to capture the memory.

JEAN resembles a dad at the beach. this mf has a hat on, some ugly ass sandals, and is carrying three damn bags worth of beach shit. you stand on the side as he works the beach umbrella’s pole into the sand. he rejects any and every offer to help. i got it babe, just take out the towels. sets everything up close to the actual water because hello? he wants to see the view, not the back of some bald guys head. he loves splurging on drinks because of the fun little umbrellas and colorful straws they add to them. the both of you will lay comfortably on your lounge chairs, drinking and discussing your plans for later on in the day. he normally falls asleep after a while; work is tough and beach really has a way of making him relax. you typically end up napping as well, before being woken up by a hyperactive jean begging you to go in the water with him. if you don’t immediately agree because you’re half asleep, he’ll take you to there himself. and it’s not even in a romantic way; he’ll straight up toss you over his shoulder and walk right up to the water before throwing you in. don’t fall asleep around jean.

CONNIE acts like a kid at the beach. there is no napping or lounging if you’re at the beach with connie. you will be constantly moving; whether it’s through playing frisbee, beach volleyball, or just walking along the shoreline. you have to sit him down and practically force him to eat because he forgets to. brings a speaker and makes it embarrassingly loud, forcing everyone at the beach to listen to his music. you have to curse at him to turn it down before someone snitches. additionally, this mf gets sand everywhere; you don’t know how but every single crevice of his body has sand in it and you cringe at the mess in leaves in the car and at home. on a side note, he loves going to the beach at night because it’s practically empty, meaning he gets away with more out of pocket shit without getting in trouble with the beach police. (skinny dipping with connie? skinny dipping with connie). also loves going to the beach at night because sometimes people do bonfires and those are his absolute favorite. sitting with an arm around you in front of the fire, toes tucked into the cool sand, is easily one of his favorite feelings.

SASHA enjoys eating by the beach. like armin, sasha appreciates a good beach picnic. except, fuck grapes and crackers, she wants a lot more than that. if she knows there’s a grill accessible at the beach, get fucking ready. she’s not much of a cook herself, but the both of you will work together to make burgers, hotdogs, steak, or anything else the brunette desires. you’ll sit across one another on a picnic bench, eating comfortably as you look out at the view. the both of you would be a bit far from the water itself, but it was worth it in the name of meat. after sasha has had her fill, she’ll come over to your side of the bench and lay her head on your lap. the both of you would chat as you play with her hair. it’s only until the both of you have digested that she’s dragging you to the water. she’s the type not to care about bringing a bathing suit and would either go in with all her clothes or just her undergarments, there is no in between. loves going further and further in the water which is a problem cause she literally can’t swim. you have to religiously pull her back to where your feet can actually touch the sand when she’s distracted talking to you. she has a heart palpitation any time seaweed touches her because she thinks it’s an animal. you have to calm her down and urge her not to send the entire beach into a panic by yelling “shark!”

[thetoadghoul]

Volunteering: (Ohtani x Reader) <333 (Part - 2)

part 1!

plot: Wednesday’s game arrives which Ohtani invited you to, some bonding time before the first pitch <3 slowwwburn, long cause idk details are fun lol

Wednesday quickly arrived, made much faster by the crazy amount of work you were required to do for your ‘actual’ job. The last three days had been spent with you running around the LA area, as well as cyberspace, to serve your role as interpreter. It was hell, for more reasons than one. The biggest of all being that even though you were not in Japan at the moment, you were still required to wear a proper suit. That meant a tight navy skirt, stockings, and some blasted heels. Sexist men, long meetings, and endless paperwork aside, you enjoyed your job for the most part - but this aspect really wore on you. However, the pain in your feet wouldn't damper your excitement for tonight’s game. Today you were not actually volunteering at the Angels stadium.

The day before yesterday, when you were actually volunteering, a bashful Ohtani had tapped you on the back while you were picking up baseballs from the batting cages. When you turned around the giant man was holding out a lanyard with an attached document, marked ‘VIP Guest of Player’. It took all you had not to let your hands shake with nerves as you reached out and grabbed it gingerly.

“Uh, see you on Wednesday.” The man looked to the side awkwardly, running a hand through his hair.

“...Yeah.” You responded with a small smile, feeling stupid, but it was all you could think of.

“Well, uh, I better go...” He motioned behind his back with a lazy thumb, staring to jog backward.

You nodded quickly, rushing to go back to picking up balls before you said something super lame, or weird.

It wasn’t till you were on the way home did you take a look at the back of the stadium pass. It read ‘Guest of Shohei Ohtani’. So he had put in the request for you, that was just like him, so kind. It would be an understatement to say you weren’t excited for tomorrow.

-----

Currently, your heart was still racing, but for another reason other than a certain super cute and insanely talented baseball player. It was because it was almost three-thirty in the afternoon and you were running around your company-provided apartment, trying to get ready as fast as you could. Ippei let you know you should get there around four-thirty, by then the team would have been done warming up and starting to enjoy a pregame meal while the away team got the field to themselves. From that point onwards, pretty much everyone was free to relax in the clubhouse till just before the first pitch.

With little time to consider, not even enough time to take a shower after having just got off work, you went with an oversized red T-shirt, baggy jeans, and some cool Jordan’s. This was your go-to, and it was comfortable. You don’t have many clothes anyway, living out of a suitcase.

Right as you were about to run out of the door you remembered to grab your standard Angels cap, it had been provided to you as part of your volunteer uniform a while back, slipping it on over your tight work bun. You would let your hair down later.

All right, everything was in order, Uber scheduled, lanyard secured.

It took about half an hour to arrive at the stadium, and once it came into view, you instructed the driver to let you out in front of the ballpark entrance. It had been a long time since you got to go through the gates as a member of the audience, it actually gave you a wave of nostalgia seeing everyone in their gear, so hyped up for the game, tailing gating outside for what was probably hours.

Once you were through, you started walking through the concession stands and various other stalls, dodging around the fans that were already inside watching the warm-ups, as well as hanging out drinking and eating. There were pictures of Ohtani everywhere, people taking turns snapping pictures of each other in front of the various cutouts of him. The air was buzzing with energy, and it seemed like all for that guy. Honestly, you had worked for a couple different teams over the years, but you had never seen hype like this. It was surreal, seeing a legend in the making.

You smiled, gripping the lanyard around your neck, making your way through the stadium. Shohei was super nice to do this for you, really, you should show him your support. Maybe a quick peek in the team store would do? Plus, you deserved to spend some money on yourself. After all, this was the first time you had really been ‘out’ in the almost three months you had been in California. Your free time was either working, volunteering, video games, or sleep.

You took a couple moments in the Angel's merch shop, quietly perusing the aisles, keeping an eye out for any Ohtani-themed items. Unfortunately, there weren’t really that many, probably sold out by the fans. What was there, was way too small for you.

“Y/n, you here to watch the game?” A young voice sounded.

When you turned to see who addressed you, a familiar girl was standing there grinning.

“Hey Jordan! I didn’t know you were working tonight.” You grinned back.

Jordan worked at the store as a stock manager, she was close in age to you so the two of you often hung out. You had invited her over a couple times, both bonding over your love for crappy reality TV, beer, and of course, baseball.

“Yeah it was last minute, a girl was feeling sick and there wasn’t anyone else cept’ me.” She sighed.

“Bummer, text me if you need help?” You offered, to which she waved you off.

“Nah, you enjoy being here and NOT working.” She chuckled, walking over to organize a messy shelf.

“So, you looking for something in particular?” The girl glanced over her shoulder.

“Uh yeah, you recommend any cool Ohtani stuff? Or is there any at all... seems wiped clean in here.” You said while looking around.

“Ohtani? You here to cheer him on too then. Wanna catch his eye.” She teased.

“Don’t say it like I’m just here for my like, prince charming.” You snapped back playfully, but, maybe a little too fast.

“Aren’t you?” She pressed with an eyebrow.

“Okay, I’m leaving.” You pouted, fake walking away.

“I’m just kidding, actually, stay here for a second I might have something you’ll like.” Jordan yelled as she jogged off to the back room behind the counters.

You did as you were told and when she came back there was a large white Angels jersey in her hands.

“Ta-da!” She grinned, twisting it around to show the player’s name on the back.

“Oh, it’s in Kanji? That’s cool, I didn’t know these existed?” You questioned, running your finger over the ‘tani’ character of Ohtani.

“It’s the last one on the floor, had to grab it off the mannequin. Hope it’s not too big? It’s XL?” She questioned, passing it to you to hold.

“Nah it’s perfect, can’t you tell.” You joked holding the jersey next to you, while you showed off your oversized clothes.

“Figured it'd be fine, wanna get rung up? I’ll give you that ‘good good’ employee discount. But, don’t tell anyone.” She smiled, heading to the register, to which you nodded and jogged after her.

After you finished your purchase and waved bye to Jordan, it was time to head to the clubhouse. It was around five, so you were later than you planned but Shohei usually practiced batting in the cages a little while longer while everyone headed in. Slipping the plastic shopping bag into your purse, and ripping the tags off your new jersey, you slipped it on over your T-shirt, smoothing out the material as best you could. It felt great to finally have some real merch from the team, and part of you sort of wondered what Ohtani would think when he saw you. Hopefully, it wasn’t too much to just show up in his gear after he pretty much randomly invited you, let alone in the stadium-specific one, as you just learned from your colleague.

After you got to an employee-only doorway, you pushed on it hoping it was actually open. Ippei had also let you know via text that it would be unlocked for you. Another kindness of Shohei, not just inviting you, but making sure you had access to all the catering and AC inside the resisted area of the building. You slipped in and locked the door behind you, not wanting to encourage some intoxicated fans to follow. The hallway was empty and cool as you started making your way to the clubhouse.

You were admittedly a bit nervous by the time you got to the doors, feeling a bit awkward about strutting in as anyone other than a volunteer for the first time. Carefully you pushed open the door, making sure not to hit anybody. The room was full of chatter, some players eating, some playing cards, others watching TV on the room's monitors. You looked around for Ohtani, but he wasn’t there yet apparently. No matter, you strolled in and went for the snack area. Truthfully you hadn’t eaten since that morning, and that was just a toasted bagel. Turning your back to the rest of the room, you began filling up your plate with cocktail shrimp and grapes.

“Nice jersey.” Ippei said, coming up next to you, grabbing small sandwiches for his plate.

“Is that sarcastic?” You questioned with a smile, finishing your plate.

“Nah, I’m sure he likes it.” Ippei jerked his head to the left.

He? You leaned back to see around the man, meeting Shohei’s surprised face almost immediately. Had he been standing there the whole time? He had obviously been staring at your back, at his name, bashfully looking up to your face when you moved, blinking a couple times to clear his eyes.

“I uh, got it ten minutes ago.” You grinned awkwardly, pointing your thumb proudly at the jersey, hoping he wouldn’t think you were a weirdo.

The large player didn’t say anything, blinking more slowly this time before opting to just nod gently, with a quick “thanks for your support”, hurriedly leaning forward to start filling his plate with all kinds of foods.

—-

Once everyone had their food the three of you found a place to sit while you ate, it was at the back of the room away from the noise, and where the two usually sat before a game anyways. A small conversation started while the three of you ate calmly.

“Why... do you only have grapes, and shrimp?” Ohtani questioned suddenly, looking at your plate baffled. You looked down at it as well, pausing for a moment trying to find out what was so weird about that.

“Uh, well, it’s because... these things are... super expensive in Tokyo. It’s like a rich person food to me.” You smiled, eating a couple shrimps happily.

“Wow. That’s so sad.” Ippei chuckled before taking a bite of his sandwich.

Shohei on the other hand burst out laughing at your response, making you laugh a bit too at your pitiful confession.

“Seriously, I feel like a mega-rich, and very posh, Ginza lady right now - eating nothing but shrimp and fruit. So fancy right? ” You exclaimed, popping a grape in your mouth.

The Japanese player laughed even harder, tears building up as he wiped his eyes.

“Those people wouldn’t touch that stuff with a three-meter stick.” Ippei stated, letting out a small laugh.

“Just let me have my moment.” You pouted through a smile, shoving more shrimp in your mouth.

The other man calmed down finally and was now sitting there smiling while he ate.

“So, fancy y/n, are you okay to sit in the dugout tonight. Not too unrefined for you?” Ippei questioned with a smirk.

“That’s, allowed?” You asked, surprised.

“Yeah, if you want to. Can’t stay there the whole time, but.” The man responded nonchalantly, shrugging his shoulders.

“It’s the best place to hear, ‘the surprise’.” Shohei added, food in the process of being shoved in his mouth.

“Well, doesn’t seem like there’s any other option.” You smiled at the player, who nodded in acknowledgment.

“He’s batting first tonight, you won’t have to wait long.” Ippei spoke, starting on the next sandwich.

“Hope me being in there won’t be bad luck.” You joked.

“You believe in that?” Ippei smirked.

“My family ingrained it into me, wasn’t allowed to watch a single super bowl game in the living room till I literally moved out.” You frowned, stabbing a grape.

“Harsh.” The man smirked with a small laugh under his breath.

“You will be good luck, for sure.” Shohei leaned forward in a hunch to take another bite of food, smiling sincerely at you as he looked up from his food.

“Then, I will see to it that will become a very good omen. Please believe in me.” You responded in the highest form of keigo you knew, bowing rigidly from your seat for comedic effect. Since you never studied that level of grammar, it was really freaking bad, causing the two men to laugh again.

“You’re funny.” Ippei chuckled.

“Yeah, and your Japanese is so good though?” Shohei exclaimed, eyebrows raised, eyes wide.

“Nah it’s pretty bad, I fell off the study wagon a long time ago.” You laughed awkwardly, waving a hand in front of your face.

“You’d be there forever if you stayed on.” Ippei chuckled again, while Shohei nodded in sullen agreement.

“Writing would be nice though, having to look up every other kanji at the doctor's office, or like city hall makes me literally sweat, like, a lot. Buckets. But when I look around, I'm the only one.” You giggled.

“You’re so honest.” Shohei chuckled, wiping his mouth with a napkin, still leaning forward in his chair, you grinned back at him. Your eyes locked for a while, you had never noticed, but his eyelashes were sort of long.

At that moment Ippei had to take a call, letting the two of you know he’d be back in a bit, walking off. The two of you looked away and finished eating in silence.

When you looked up from your empty plate, the large player was now staring at you with a soft expression. The warmth in his eyes made you blush, he didn’t even break his gaze once he was caught like he usually did. You responded back to him simply with a shy smile, before being the one to avert your own eyes to the floor again.

Thankfully at that moment, a group of Angels came over, slapping the Japanese man on the back, starting up a conversion. They were going over strategies for the game and overall just getting hyped up. You didn’t have much to input, so you just kind of sat there enjoying the excited chatter. Shohei smiled merrily the whole time, inserting little jokes, completely affected by their excitement. The way he carried himself really reminded you that the essence of baseball was really just about having fun with your teammates and giving it your all. He looked simply happy to be there, and it made you smile too, just watching him goof off. It was charming to see his duality of being a just big kid with endless laugher, versus the super-serious, and seasoned player he was on the mound.

You were really trying hard not to but, you were rapidly developing feelings for Shohei. The last three months of volunteering here, you of course thought he was really cute and kind, classic boyfriend material. A simple crush, like many of the girls working around him, surely had as well. However the possibility of you two actually dating had always been a foreign concept, one which stopped you from even considering it, at all, you just didn’t know if you even could. With you both traveling for work, how would there be time? Plus, what about the media? His family? Yours? All those things seemed unscalable walls, that is, until this moment, when you could feel his gentle eyes on you once again.

Maybe, there was something? Or maybe, he was just a super nice guy, and you were treated no different than anyone else.

When you snapped out of your thoughts, Shohei was starting to stand up, grabbing everyone’s empties plates. He reached his hand towards you, asking for the one in your hand with a tiny nod of his head, to which you thanked him, stood up, and handed it over.

Well.

Either way, you were so screwed.

-------

Hope you enjoyed! <3

[coldsandfluff]

Friday Night Fever (F/M, Original, Illness Care-Taking Fluff)

Wrote this little original F/M care-taking fluff fic inspired by something that happened to me when I was in college (basically, caught a cold, three friends came over unannounced and insisted on me coming with them to the bar until one of them noticed the thermometer on my nightstand and realized I really was too sick to go). I've changed all the characters personality/appearance (including myself) so that we are completely unrecognizable, and added more to the story of course 😚

So if you like group of friends, platonic to maybe romantic care-taking fluff and F/M illness, read on!

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Annabel left the sandwich shop at the end of her evening shift, feeling the cold autumn air seep through her jacket. Darkness had blanketed the town hours ago, and college students were already filling the streets on their way to the bars to celebrate the end of the week. Not that they’d really needed a reason to drink, of course.

As she launched the trash bags in the large dumpster in the back alley, Annabel felt an uncomfortable shiver running down her back. She’d been feeling under the weather for a couple of days, downing vitamin C fizzy drinks to stave it off. What she’d hoped would end up being a little annoying cold was turning out to be more than she’d bargained for. She could feel the icy tendrils of a fever crawling on her skin, and all she wanted to do was slip under the covers of her warm bed and sleep all weekend.

Her phone pinged as she started making her way back to her apartment.

Finn: We’ll be there in 40 minutes. Zack wants to pick up some pregame vodka from the store first.

Annabel sighed. She’d met Zack, Finn and Alex at her second job—a fancy new restaurant in the heart of town where she’d been waitressing part-time for the past two months. They’d hit it off on opening day, when Zack had accidentally broken a whole stack of plates. No one had seen what had happened but the four of them. Zack had gotten his dishwasher’s apron stuck on the door handle, and his hands had slipped at the sudden pull.

The crash had been deafening.

Right before the owner had rushed in to ask what had happened, Zack’s best friend, Finn, had kicked the wheel of the cart where the plates had been sitting a few moments ago, giving Alexander and Annabel a knowing look.

They’d all told the owner that the cart was broken and had tipped over without anyone touching it. Somehow, the owner had bought the lie. That night, Zack insisted on paying them a round of shots at the bar, and a tradition was born: The four of them. Every Friday. With lots of alcohol.

It was the only time Annabel let loose. With her two jobs and college, she was struggling to find free time, but Friday nights had become sacred. There was nothing like downing drinks and letting the buzz take over, following her three new friends wherever they wanted to go. It was always an adventure. Especially with Zack at the helm.

But tonight, there was no way she could make it.

Annabel: Actually, I can’t come tonight. Sorry.

She walked past a group of friends laughing and hollering, wishing she’d felt as good as they did. But the headache growing behind her eyes wasn’t going to let up, and adding alcohol to the mix would only make it worse. Not only that, but her nose had started running in the past two hours. She’d had to go blow it in the restroom every half hour, getting herself banished from the front of the store by the manager. She’d washed her hands so often that her skin was almost raw.

Just like her nose.

Finn: Nah, you’re coming. Nobody cancels Friday night. Come on.

Annabel couldn’t hold a smile. She typed back, sniffling. Her sinuses were prickling like crazy, as if she’d accidentally inhaled a cloud of tiny fireworks. She stifled a sneeze in the crook of her elbow, mid-word. “Ehh—Ehh’KSHHeeww!” Her eyes watered from the force of it. She wiped the tears away and resumed typing.

Annabel: I’ll make it up to you guys next weekend. Drinks on me.

She grabbed a crumpled tissue from her jacket pocket and dabbed at her nose. Her apartment was only a few blocks away, beckoning her. As she crossed the last stretch of sidewalk to the entrance, she kept checking her phone.

No reply.

Shrugging, she unlocked the front door and took the stairs.

***

Back in her apartment, she made a beeline for the bathroom to the right and used toilet paper to blow her nose, finally free to make as much noise as she wanted. She winced from the roughness of it on her chapped nostrils, but it was all she had. She wasn’t exactly the planning type. Her idea of a grocery list was memorizing the first three items and hoping the rest would come to her as she walked through the aisles. Most often than not, she’d have to make a quick run at the convenience store down the street to get what she’d forgotten.

She gathered her thick curly hair into a bun and looked at herself in the mirror. It was enough to confirm that she’d made the right decision. Her eyes were glazed over, her skin was so pale that her freckles popped like they did in the summer. Except for that slight flush high on her cheeks, of course. She popped a thermometer under her tongue and removed her work clothes, leaving them in a pile in front of the bathtub.

Shivering from the sudden change in temperature, she covered her arms with her hands and ran to her dresser. Her warmest, softest sweater was the first thing she grabbed and put on, before throwing on a pair of comfy leggings and wool socks. The thermometer beeped.

100.8 °F. Figured.

She rolled her eyes and shuffled over to the “kitchen” of her studio apartment, which was the size of a matchbox and only contained a mini fridge, a microwave and an old sink. She poured herself some water and walked over to the bed, placing her glass and the thermometer on her nightstand. She would have brought over medicine as well, but she’d run out last semester after catching the flu going around campus, and had forgotten to replenish her stash. No matter. She could sleep this off. It was just a cold.

She suddenly sneezed twice in a row, as if her body wanted to protest her minimizing her illness, then got under the cover. Just as she was getting a little warmer, propping up her laptop to watch a movie, there was a knock at the door.

Annabel sat up, startled.

“Anna, open up!” a voice said behind the door.

Zack.

Annabel chuckled. Of course they wouldn’t give up that easily. She groaned, getting out of the warmth of her bed. She considered rushing to the dresser and putting on cuter clothes—they were her friends, but they were still boys, and she didn’t want to look like shit in front of them—but the thought of it was enough to drain her energy. Screw it. She walked over to the door and opened it.

“Finn told us you don’t want to come,” said Zack as he walked in. It was her friends’ first time coming up to her apartment. They’d usually wait for her downstairs. “So we’re here to change your mind.” He didn’t look at her, too busy checking out her place. He was dressed for the night—a buttoned-up shirt, navy blazer, jeans and dress shoes. His casual chic style always stood out in the local bars filled with broke college students, but he liked it that way.

Finn walked in after him, a crooked grin on his lips. “See, I told you you can’t cancel Friday night.” His shaggy blond hair half-covered his eyes, as always. Finn and Zack had been best friends since high school, and couldn’t have been more different from each other. At least physically. Finn was tall and lanky, Zack was smaller and worked out a lot. But they were both party guys, always ready for a crazy night—even though Finn was a bit more mellow than Zack.

Finally, Alex came in, and Annabel closed the door behind him. He had a sheepish look on his face, as if apologizing for the other two. He was a lot more like Annabel. Quiet, chill, along for the ride—whatever it may be. His deep brown eyes held her gaze for a second too long, and Annabel noticed one of his eyebrow raise ever so slightly. She bit her lip, feeling self-conscious about her appearance. They’d never seen her in such a state before. Thank god she hadn’t had the energy to remove her makeup yet.

“So this is where you live, uh?” Zack said, sitting on her desk chair and spinning it around and around. “I like it. Dorms suck.”

Before she could reply, Finn tsked. “Wow. So no love for your roommate, uh?”

“Dude, I love you,” Zack said, “but between you and an apartment all to myself, the choice is obvious.” He stopped spinning and turned to Annabel, crossing his arms over his chest. “So what’s so important that you can’t come with us? Do you have a date?”

All three boys turned to her. Annabel almost laughed. Could they not see the condition she was in? She cleared her throat. “No, I’m just not feeling well.”

Finn sat on the edge of her bed and examined her from afar. “Like what? Stomach thing? Flu?”

“Probably a cold, I guess.” Annabel could feel Alex’s gaze on her at her side. She glanced at him, then looked down, feeling silly. Now that she was saying it out loud, it sounded like a poor excuse. But she did have a fever, after all. She just didn’t want to start listing her symptoms.

Zack clasped his hands together. “You know what will make you feel better? Alcohol!” He grinned, as if proud of his solution. “Didn’t they used to give brandy to people when they were sick? We’ll make a special mix for your throat. Something with lemon and orange juice. You’ll be fine.”

“I don’t know, I already have a headache…” Annabel said.

“Just take a couple of Tylenol. It’s like a hangover in advance,” Finn said with an encouraging smile. “One time, I went out clubbing with an ear infection and everything was fine. Actually felt better the next day, weirdly enough.”

“I don’t know guys, I won’t be much fun if—” Annabel was interrupted by a fierce tickle deep in her nose, spreading like wildfire. She ducked to her side, away from Alex. “Ehh’KSSHeeew! ‘KSSSHeeew!”

“Bless you,” the three boys said almost in unison.

“See?” Annabel said, pointing at her nose and sniffling. “You want me to sneeze all over you guys all night?”

Finn shrugged. “We’ll bring tissues. Whatever.”

Alex walked over to the bathroom and grabbed the toilet paper roll from the counter, then handed it to her. “Here.”

Annabel ripped a piece off and wiped her nose. “Thanks,” she said, sheepish.

Alex’s gaze paused on her for a few seconds before he turned to the other two. “Guys, she’s obviously sick. Let’s just go and let her sleep.”

“It’s just a cold,” Zack said. “She’s young and healthy. It’s nothing.” He got up and put his arm around her shoulders. “Come on. Give it an hour, and if you’re not feeling better after a few shots, we’ll walk you home.”

Annabel considered it for a second, trying to fight the shivers. Maybe if she wore something warm and took a few shots, she wouldfeel better. Numb the pain a little, at least. While she pondered it, Finn laid down on top of her bed spread and locked eyes with the thermometer on her nightstand. He frowned and sat up, picking it up.

He looked at her, thermometer in hand. His voice softened. “It’s that bad, uh?”

Annabel blushed. Why did admitting that she had a fever feel so vulnerable? She looked down and nodded. “Kinda.”

Zack looked at the thermometer, then back at Annabel. He narrowed his eyes and put a hand on her forehead. “Ooof,” he said, a hint of concern slipping in his tone.

Finn got up. “Let me see,” he said, walking up to her and placing his own hand on her forehead. His eyebrows shot up. “Yikes.”

“Yeah, you need to be in bed,” Zack finally said, guiding her back to bed. “Why didn’t you say you had a fever? Jesus, Anna.”

She shrugged, sitting on her mattress. “I don’t know. I just get fevers with colds. I guess it’s normal for me.”

“Fevers suck,” Finn said. “Last time I had one, I stayed in bed for two days and everything hurt.” He walked over to the front door. “We’ll miss you tonight, though.”

Zack followed. “Hope you feel better. We’ll text you all the crazy shit that’s going to happen so you don’t miss anything.” He followed Finn out of the apartment, leaving the door open for Alex.

Alex watched them walk by, then grabbed the roll of toilet paper on the counter where Annabel had left it. He brought it over to her nightstand and gave her a sad smile. “Do you need anything?”

Annabel shook her head, relieved that she was going to be able to stay in bed. “I’ll be okay.”

He seemed to hesitate for a second, then nodded. “Let us know if you want us to get you food later. I know I can never sleep when I have a fever.”

“Thank you.” She smiled. Her nose scrunched up, overtaken by another annoying prickle. “Ehh… Iihh’KSSSHHeeww!”

“Bless you.”

Zack’s voice sounded from the hallway. “Alex, you coming?”

Alex snickered. “I guess I should go.” He walked to the door, then turned back. “Feel better, okay?”

“I will. Thanks.”

***

Annabel tried to sleep, but her fever and runny nose kept waking her up, leaving her floating halfway between dreams and reality. It was clear that she wasn’t going to get any rest in her state. She needed cold medicine.

It took her a long time to finally convince herself to get out of bed and go to the convenience store, but she managed to push the covers away and get up. She shivered, causing another tickle in her sensitive nose—it had only gotten worse in the hour since the boys had left. She ducked at the waist in an exhausting triple. “Ehh… Hehh’KSSSHeeeew! ‘KSSHHeeew! Hiihh’KSSHeeew!”

Just then, another knock sounded at the door. Annabel frowned and made her way to the door, cracking it open.

It was Alex. Alone.

“Bless you,” he said with a shy grin.

Annabel let him in. “Aren’t you supposed to be out with the guys?”

He shrugged, closing the door behind him. “I thought you might need this.” He showed her a plastic bag filled with tea, tissue boxes, ramen, cough drops and—she gasped—cold medicine.

Alex chuckled. “So I was right. You don’t have any medicine, do you?”

Annabel laughed. “How did you know?”

“Your nightstand. You only had a thermometer on there. When I’m sick, I take Nyquil everywhere I go.” He handed her the bag. “And I wanted to make sure you had tissues instead of toilet paper. Your nose will thank me.”

Annabel touched her chapped nose, smiling. “That’s so sweet of you. Thank you.”

“It’s nothing.” He stood there for a second, as if not knowing what to say. “I’ll uh—I’ll let you rest.”

Before he could go, Annabel put her hand on his elbow. “Wait. Do you want to—” She stopped halfway through her sentence, her nose scrunching up yet again, her eyes fluttering. She spun around and sneezed, covering her nose with the sleeve of her sweater. “Hehh’KSSHH! Ht’Ksshht!” She turned back around, blinking away the tears and laughing. “Sorry!”

Alex laughed, too. “Bless you.” He held her gaze, then looked down. “What were you going to say?”

“Oh—I was just wondering if—maybe if you’d like to watch a movie with me. I don’t think I can sleep until the medicine kicks in.” As soon as the words left her mouth, she regretted saying them. Of course he didn’t want to watch a movie with her. This was Friday night. What kind of college guy wanted to hang out with a sick, sneezy, nose-drippy girl on a Friday night instead of getting drunk with his friends. “Sorry,” she added quickly, “I forgot that the guys are probably waiting for you. I guess I’m kind of loopy from the fever.”

Alex took a step forward and placed his hand on her forehead. The gesture was so gentle, so soft, that Annabel closed her eyes, appreciating the coldness of his palm on her hot skin.

“You are definitely burning up,” he half-whispered, frowning. “I was wondering if the guys were exaggerating. Guess not.”

Annabel bit her lip. “I’ll be okay after I take the medicine. You don’t have to stay.”

Alex removed his hand. “I do,” he blurted. “I mean, I do want to watch a movie with you. And stay.”

“Are you sure?” Annabel asked through her blossoming smile. “Aren’t you worried you’ll catch my cold?”

“Actually, I have a confession to make.” Alex led her to the bed and placed the content of his bag on her nightstand. “Last Friday, I kind of had a cold. It wasn’t as bad as yours, pretty minor, but… Zack convinced me to come out anyway and I—I think I might have given it to you. You drank out of my glass and I didn’t have time to stop you.” He looked at her, his eyes wide with guilt. “I’m so, so sorry.”

Annabel laughed. “I can’t believe Zack didn’t rat you out earlier. It would have been the perfect example of someone going clubbing with a cold and ‘being fine’ anyway.”

“He probably knew it was partly his fault that you’re sick and didn’t want to admit it.”

Annabel shook her head. “Well, you owe me a Friday night.” She got into bed and patted the spot next to her. “That means I get to pick the movies.”

Alex grabbed the throw blanket at her feet and draped it over her. “That sounds fair.” He walked over to the other side of the bed and settled next to her. “But when you fall asleep, I can’t guarantee I won’t change it.”

“Deal.”

After taking a dose of Nyquil, Annabel started the movie, snuggling under the blanket. She wondered what kind of crazy adventures Zack and Finn were getting themselves into. She expected to feel FOMO, but instead, she shot a glance at Alex next to her, and realized she wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.

Maybe it was the fever, or maybe it was Alex’s shoulder touching hers, but it felt like this was the start of a different kind of adventure. Maybe not alcohol-fueled, but Nyquil was pretty close.

All because they’d shared a not-so-secret cold.

And Annabel had a feeling it would be worth the fever. And the countless sneezes to come.

THE END