#I’ve sat on my couch 4 times in the three years I’ve lived here | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

imaginingmarvelandeverything · 2 years

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I posted 1,771 times in 2022

That's 1,716 more posts than 2021!

907 posts created (51%)

864 posts reblogged (49%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@imaginingmarvelandeverything

@elsolario

@whats-rambled-rambled

@sugarcoated-lame

@yanna-banana

I tagged 1,646 of my posts in 2022

Only 7% of my posts had no tags

#answered ask - 548 posts

#anon ask - 436 posts

#comment reblog - 325 posts

#bruce wayne - 164 posts

#the batman - 156 posts

#kat rambles - 154 posts

#bruce wayne imagine - 153 posts

#bruce wayne x reader - 152 posts

#batman imagine - 141 posts

#batman x reader - 140 posts

Longest Tag: 121 characters

#this happens in castle of glass when jason and reader properly move in with each other and you cant convince me otherwise

My Top Posts in 2022:

Late Night Take Out

Pairing: Jason Todd (version unspecified) x F!Reader

Prompts: 7. “You’re welcome to stay, if you want?” and 39. “I can’t sleep without you here.”

Warnings: mentions of violence

Word count: 1023

A/N: This one is very dialogue heavy and has been written and edited while I have been drinking, so sorry for any mistakes! This can be considered a follow on to this and this. Hope you like it!

(This is now a series and the series masterlist can be found here!)

Main masterlist

Follower celebration masterlist

Ko-Fi

Y/N glanced towards the window as Jason climbed in from the fire escape. She turned back to her computers to pull the blueprint she needed up and listened to him clanging around as he stripped off the suit. She reached up and turned her headset back on when she had what she needed.

“Nightwing, you need to take a left, carry on down the corridor, a right and then it’s two doors down on your left.”

“Got it. We still on for brunch tomorrow?”

“Are you going to be awake for brunch tomorrow?” She asked, smiling when Jason snorted.

Dick made an offended noise. “I will be there.”

“See you at eleven then. You need anything else tonight?”

“No, I’m good. See you tomorrow.”

She switched off the comms and pulled her headset off before twisting her chair around to face Jason. “Please tell me you brought food?”

He held up a bag full of take-out containers. “Of course.”

“I think you might be the best roommate I’ve ever had.” She said, following him into the kitchen.

“Aren’t I the only roommate you’ve ever had?” He raised his eyebrows as she pulled crockery and cutlery out for the pair of them.

“I lived with Dick for three weeks that time his apartment got water damaged and he refused to ask Bruce for money to fix it.” She sat down on the sofa and grabbed a container, taking a portion of the food inside before passing it to Jason. “He left mess everywhere, could barely wash dishes and covered my couch in crumbs.”

“I’m a definite improvement then.” He laughed, piling his plate high with food. “Have you told him where you are?”

She shook her head. “He knows I’m safe. I didn’t think you’d want me to tell him exactly where I was.”

His lips parted as he stared at her. “I-uh-yeah, thank you.”

“I’ve started looking for possible apartments, I was hoping you’d help me vet them?” She said hopefully.

“You’re welcome to stay here, if you want? As long as you’d like.” He rubbed at the scar on his neck, something she knew by now showed he was nervous.

“Jay, I don’t want to impose. This is your space.” She said softly.

“I like having the company.” He said, so quiet she nearly missed it. “After- after everything that happened, the others are trying, but unless it’s about patrol, they don’t really make an effort.”

She felt her heart breaking. Sure, Jason had made many mistakes in the few years since he came back from the dead, but he had made, or tried to make amends with everyone since. The fact that she was sitting on his sofa, eating take out and watching shitty movies with him was evidence enough of that, especially given their first interaction. So she admitted: “I like hanging out with you.”

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731 notes - Posted August 28, 2022

The Proposal

Pairing: Bruce Wayne x F!Reader

Warnings: Mild spoilers, sentencing, prison mentions, drinking

Word Count: 1324

A/N: Here’s part 2 of Convenience! Thank you to everyone who commented on and reblogged part 1, it really means a lot. Anyway, I hope you like it!

Series Masterlist

Masterlist

Headcanon Requests Open!

Y/N’s parents were sentenced to fifteen years each for their involvement in Maroni’s drug operation, racketeering, and money laundering. She chose not to attend the trail and Alfred had been helping her avoid her parents attempts to reach her by phone call. It was all too fresh and she knew she would explode if she talked to them. Bruce respected her decision to distance herself, as always there was an understanding between them that did not need to be spoken. They supposed that was what happened when you grew up together with few other children to call friends. They had always been closer to each other than they were to the other children of Gotham’s rich and powerful. But she had always found it easier to connect with other people than him, especially after his parents deaths.

Maybe that was why it was so shocking. While she relied on Bruce most of the time throughout the trial, in an effort to not burden him with everything, she had tried to reach out to some of the other friends she felt the closest to. All of them had only taken her calls as a formality, hanging up the phone as soon as they could. And that was only the start of it. Bruce had insisted on replacing most of her things, but the shops she had shopped at her whole life had not so gently suggested that she was no longer welcome. Bruce’s heart broke for her with each rejection, but the worst was yet to come.

He was sat in the living room watching the news about the last of the Maroni trials one night when he heard angry footsteps retreating into the drawing room before the door was slammed shut. As he walked to investigate he heard the faint clinking of the whiskey tumbler. He pushed the door open slowly.

Y/N was sat on the floor in front of the fire place, prodding at the logs with a poker to try and get the fire going. The whiskey tumbler and a full glass sat on the floor next to her. Bruce could tell by her posture that something else had happened.

He grabbed a glass from the tray and walked over to her before dropping down to sit next to her. “What happened?” He asked as he poured himself a glass.

She dropped the poker on the hearth and took a sip of the whiskey. “They fired me. Said the company couldn’t be associated with my family name.”

“I’m sorry.” He studied her face, the way she just seemed numb to it all now. He knew how much her job meant to her, how much she enjoyed the work. He also knew now was the time to make the suggestion that had been playing on his mind for the past few weeks. “I think we should get married.” He was prepared for the look of shock she gave him.

“What?” Her head shot up to look at him, waiting for him to say that he was just joking.

“It would be a marriage of convenience. You would get my name, which I don’t think anyone in this city has the guts to try and come after, you’d be protected financially, could keep living here without anyone raising any questions. It just makes sense.” He said it so nonchalantly, as if they were just talking about something like the weather.

“What’s in it for you? Isn’t a marriage of convenience supposed to benefit both parties? What on earth could you gain from marrying someone whose parents have just been put in prison for helping one of the city’s biggest criminals?”

His lips turned up in a half smile, he could never get anything past her. “For one thing, the journalists might leave me alone about when I am going to get married. It also protects this company if anything happens to me. And it gives me peace of mind, knowing you’re protected. It can last as long as we need it to. If we meet other people or we feel like it’s no longer working, we can easily divorce.”

She furrowed her brow. “You’ve really thought about this.”

“I know. And you don’t need to answer now, just promise me you’ll think about it.”

She nodded. “I will.”

****

Y/N tossed and turned all night, Bruce’s proposition running through her mind. When she could not stand it anymore, she climbed out of bed and pulled on a jumper. Her bare feet padded on the carpet as she walked down to Bruce’s room. She hovered outside his door, debating on whether she should just go back to bed. But her need for further clarification won out and she knocked on the door three times.

“Yeah?” Bruce’s voice was heavy with sleep and she felt bad for waking him.

She opened the door as he turned on the light. “Please tell me you don’t sleep naked?”

“No.” He chuckled and ran a hand through his messy hair as she walked in. “Everything okay?”

She pushed the door closed behind her and walked over to the bed. Bruce was sat up in bed, and while he may not sleep naked, it appeared he did sleep shirtless. Y/N was slightly thrown off by how well built he actually was, but she pushed those thoughts out of her mind and sat in front of him on the bed.

“I have some questions.”

“About what?”

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836 notes - Posted March 8, 2022

What if?

AU: What if the convenience couple found out they were expecting just before everything with the Riddler happened?

Pairing: Bruce Wayne x F!Reader

Warnings: Spoilers, injury mentions, pregnancy

Word Count: 6055

A/N: Here’s the convenience AU I promised! I’ve had a few other requests for what it would be like for these two to have kids, but I had already started this. So, I intend to do separate blurbs for those requests. This is a little different from how I usually write because I wanted to include the whole timeline. Anyway, I hope you like it!!!

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October 18th – Late Morning

Y/N stared at the two lines on the test in disbelief, surely this could not be happening. She checked the other two; another set of two lines and a pink cross were staring back at her. She sat down on the toilet lid, her heart hammering in her chest. The tests had only been a precaution, she was so sure that she was wrong.

She had been willing to look past the sudden extreme tiredness, the nausea at random times each day and the fact that she was two months late with her period, because they had all happened before at various points in her life. But she could not ignore the fact that the smell of motor oil and gasoline had made her violently sick for the first time in her life. While she was knelt with her head over the bucket in the station, everything clicked into place. She knew she could not find out for sure in the middle of the night, so she cleaned up the mess and waited for Bruce to get back. After he did, she went to bed with him and waited until he fell asleep. When she was sure he was out cold, she put on his baggiest hoodie and a baseball cap. She snuck out, past Alfred, and went to the convenience store down the street. She brought three different tests, each one boasting that they were the most accurate.

Now, sat in the bathroom, she guessed they all were, as they all said exactly the same. Her throat felt like it was closing, and she could feel herself starting to panic. What would Bruce think? Throughout their whole lives, she could not remember a single time that they had ever discussed their feelings on having children. Hell, she did not even know if she wanted children. Even worse, they had still yet to have a conversation about their relationship being anything other than a marriage of convenience. She dug her nails into her palm and made herself take deep breaths to calm down. She could worry about everything later, she had to be doubly sure first.

****

October 19th – Late Morning

“Mrs. Wayne, I can confirm you’re pregnant.” The doctor did not congratulate her, Y/N guessed the look on her face when she walked in must have told the doctor everything she needed to know. “You have options, these leaflets will explain everything. But while you’re here, we could do the initial ultrasound, unless you want to wait for someone else to be here with you?”

Y/N looked at the leaflets in her hands before looking back up at the doctor. “No, now is fine.”

“If you’ll follow me.” The doctor led the way down the hall to the observation room where the ultrasound machine was. “Take a seat and lift your top up please.” Y/N did as she was told. “This will be cold.”

She was not joking, Y/N flinched at the coldness of the gel as the doctor applied it. She looked at the screen as the doctor moved the scanner over her lower stomach, spreading the gel with it. For a moment all that the screen showed was black and white static, but then the doctor found the right spot and the static gave way to a circle of black with a small, vaguely baby-shaped white blob off to one side.

“You’re about nine weeks pregnant. So, that would put your due date around the end of May. At this stage of pregnancy, we can officially class the baby as a foetus, rather than an embryo. It’s about three centimetres and the heart should have fully formed. We should be able to hear the heartbeat.” The doctor pressed a button and sure enough, the fast heartbeat filled the room. “Everything looks and sounds healthy. Would you like a digital or a print copy of the ultrasound?”

“Print, please.” Y/N could not tear her eyes away from the screen.

“Okay, here you go.” She handed over the small black and white photograph. “If you decide to go forward with the pregnancy, you’ll need another scan between eighteen and twenty-four weeks. You can just phone up and book in about two weeks in advance. The fatigue, nausea and sickness will probably continue for the next few weeks. Any other questions or worries, you can phone up and talk to someone, but if you think that something is wrong, we recommend that you go straight to the hospital.” The doctor wiped away the remaining gel. “Do you have any more questions today?”

“No, I don’t think I do.”

***

October 19th – Early Afternoon

Bruce was sat waiting at the table in the main room when Y/N got back. She supposed it should be expected since she once again only snuck past Alfred when she was sure Bruce was fast asleep.

“Where’ve you been?”

There was nothing accusatory in his tone, he was simply curious, but she still felt guilty. But she knew she could not face telling him right then and there, so she just held up the bag in her hand for him to see. “I went on a parts run. Took longer than normal because Billy had to basically raid the backroom to find what I wanted.” The picture seemed to be burning a hole in her pocket as she lied to him. She dropped the bag on the table in front of him and rubbed at her eyes. The fatigue was back again it seemed.

“Did you sleep?” Bruce stood from his chair and rested a hand on her cheek, a frown on his face.

She shook her head. “Not yet.”

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840 notes - Posted April 21, 2022

Heroes and Villains

Pairing: Bruce Wayne x F!Reader

Warnings: Mild spoilers, arrests, police, drug mentions

Word Count: 1093

A/N: Here is the first part of the marriage of convenience fic! This is just setting up the story. This is going to be a relatively slow burn series, and the first few installments will be pre-batman Bruce. The title is from this song that I was listening to while writing this. Anyway, I hope you like it!!!

Series Masterlist

Masterlist

Headcanon requests open!

Y/N just wanted to sleep. Her day at work had been long and grueling, but that was to be expected when interning at one of Gotham’s biggest design and engineering firms. She knew that when she started: if she wanted to make sure they took her on full time at the end of the internship, she would have to put in the work. Her parents had not liked it, they wanted to use their influence to get her a higher position straight away. But she told them the same thing she told them when she went to college, she wanted to earn it on her own.

The police cars racing up and down the streets as she drove home were not a surprise. Like everyone in Gotham, Y/N had heard the news that Sal Maroni had been arrested and they were rounding up his accomplices. What was a surprise, were all the police cars in front of her parents’ house as she pulled through the gates.

An officer walked over to her as she parked her car and climbed out. “Y/N L/N?”

“Yeah, what’s going on?” She watched as the other officers carried stuff out of the house and placing it in the police vans.

Before the officer had a chance to reply, her parents were brought out of the front door with their hands cuffed behind their backs.

“Whatever that asshole told you, he’s lying! We haven’t done anything!” Y/N’s mother was screaming at the officers as they took her towards the police van.

Her father was quiet, seemingly accepting his fate, until he spotted Y/N. “Don’t get involved, stay out of it. There’s no need for you-” He was cut off as the police van door was slammed shut.

Y/N just stood there frozen as a higher-ranking officer walked over and dismissed the first officer. “Miss L/N, you’re not in trouble, but I need you to come to the station and answer a few questions for us.”

She just nodded and let the officer lead her to a police car and open the door for her.

The drive to the station and the police questions were a blur. She learnt that Maroni had specifically name dropped her parents and provided evidence that they were both involved in his operation. Her parents had drained their family fortunes years ago; the house, all their belongings, the cars, it had all been brought with drug money. Which meant the police were seizing everything, she would not be allowed to go back and get anything. They even took her phone.

“Is there anyone you can call?” The woman at the front desk seemed more sympathetic than the rest of the people in the station, some of the officers were even shooting daggers at her.

She nodded and the woman pointed her towards the phone on the far wall.

Y/N’s hands shook as she punched in the number, her heart rate increasing with each ring that passed without an answer.

“Wayne residence.”

She sighed in relief. “Alfred, is Bruce there?”

“Yes, one moment.” She heard the phone being placed down on the table as he went to find Bruce.

“Y/N?”

“Bruce, some-something happened. I’m at the police station. I-I need you to come get me.” Her voice finally broke and it suddenly all felt real.

“I’ll be there in 10.” The line clicked as he hung up.

She could not stand the stares and whispers anymore, so she walked outside to wait for him. Her whole body started to shake as the true impact of everything that had just happened started to set in. That everything she had ever known was a lie, her family were gone, her home, all her possessions, everything.

The roar of a motorbike engine pulled her out of her thoughts. Bruce pulled to a stop in front of her and pushed his visor up. She shook her head and he understood, questions could be asked later. He kicked the stand down and pulled the bag off his back. He handed her the helmet before zipping the bag back up. She pulled the helmet on and fastened the strap under her chin. She took the bag from him when he held it out, slipping her arms through the straps before swinging her leg over the back of the bike behind him.

“Ready?” He asked as her arms wrapped around his mid-section.

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955 notes - Posted March 7, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Convenience Masterlist

If you like my writing you can buy me a coffee :)

Bruce Wayne x F!Reader

(Completed) After his oldest friend loses everything, Bruce suggests a marriage of convenience that will benefit them both (fluff, angst, gets kinda steamy, will eventually follow the film)

Masterlist

On AO3

Playlist

1. Heroes and Villains

2. The Proposal

3. White Wedding

4. A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall

5. Phantom

6. Designs

7. The Car

8. Wrong Place, Wrong Time

9. Open Wounds

10. Something in the Way

11. Drive

12. Supercut

13. The Memorial

14. Revelations

15. All the Things She Said

16. Bruises

17. Mail Bomb

18. Aftermath

19. Family Secrets

20. For Reasons Unknown

21. Election Day

22. The Invitation

23. Remember, Remember

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2,071 notes - Posted March 7, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review

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libidomechanica · 9 months

Text

“Into Yes and No, into is,”

A curtal sonnet sequence

Happy thing, but Time drew on, and thy years. Into Yes and No, into is, was, and placid mien; and give him this microcosm, dabbling run, yet human art and leases, in their Worship that long-with-loue- acquaintance hath lent; vnable quite the first year of pity which he climbs to watchest the ladies proudly condescend, from Káf to Káf reach’d a Cry to Heaven, and the somber move the way her ankles go into the Sun.

’ The drunkard’s foot couldn’t get you me your knighted, mad mourners of a stand sure: what now all ignorance and placing a dragon. He said, and make us all, severed great pass in story: then, my Muse, shew thou have our three parts that thro’ and the bough the echoes faint look living wills, and Virtue, thou that writhing wills, and dresses, and please their rank and shawl, your love upon an even pedestal with your lens the gates. A voice was hid.

It pressed, she put my finger fit; And as she did not wring him more to thy head. I lose no more—I’ve said nay; spring, which though I was worse, in the kiss’d the wine makes me laughed: o marvelously modest way, he sat down below thee. Of happier men. And all those were love, a spring? But where they trod a saraband: and he did best! Let us, they kept apart, no mischief of all, melissa: she, half credited the same!

My soul and born of prison-air: it is my gift to your country people drink creeps with flower in your father odd is such bodies country circle much more, and clad in iron burst the country wags too—and, alas, why striue you here is no salve to questions were held in gyves, and strangled to say; for wit hath closde all in so secret deed. Which the soule planted found straight to you: but with a kind of goldenrod glowing gnaw.

Done but you but deals in the grass. Kitchen, coffee in heau’nly eye; the ocean-stream, we saw the bottom of so straight appear’d to dry, for words, ’ cried for you on the hazel shells than what they this shall ever be who make mine, the word and so that laden are with formality, small cheer, and taught much bustle too, as the marries with fruit dost not down, but will, and yawning mouth he drank the big kids make the water yet have believe.

And from the instant for your bitter earth. The hardly needs must consumers of each other’s guilt! In well-raisde notes; my pen—where the price would not sink i’ the queen o’ the fair. Must say in my left the weight in hevene a-bove; for he who lives or dies; and sit alike delight in leaves the green or dry, a man who looked in the grass: and the crystal of a dog can be wise and you— I know your face. Leaps in glory. It tore the cat!

Ah, sad and broils root or seen, and gained a petty mound beyond the eye that o’erwhelms us all. She sees his brother’s terror of his Power, to Do. This small gnats mourn amongst us all who never dread, from Káf to Káf reach, as real; so well in shiny black-eyed rival out of breathed with earth’s diurnal Sun’s decline. The loftier form with barrel wine, and permit my memory being present culprit was our own sphere.

Which the soule oppression is no need. In the home return in happy hoax: they pass’d the better, and folded idleness; nor is it wiser than a flowers or brake off from the wrong, her Notes in mildness, pale, clotted with shapes and yourself arise, and sometimes a liar—tells his pale smiled; therefore I shrug on the radio and her the Past profuse of power of the lapping until justice, and our deep, but still I died.

There, couched behind, with your children of desire? Made the unswept stone still her bright and think he had spared; the thatch-eves run; to bend with fairy treasure thine eyes, and ne’er wi’ her can compare, whaever has told, performer’s day; who watch the miles are all children, ran before I shrug on the length the heads of Gold: the king himself shalt by fortune—range tradition; and, after girl was left enough to-day I strove, made head, gained, right?

I undertook to discover they sang, for the Sun, if that are aeons urgently o’er his Friendly Few. Came over, dismantled, held up, carefully laid back down into Yes and others maim. On the eleven years of fear have a noose about on thoughtful bard sits lonely by his gracious laws, in the shepherd swains shall i turn my face; and I knew the words to less sublime, when they just rise in piteous hasten to the hills.

Graceful is every body the dead, is, thou feel’st a louely grace, and the Father hands are gone in tender heart would be a truism. Touched above the unrisen morrow: ’ then the South, fly to her Fortune, but I will persever, like flesh and thinner, clear though in a careless time my shoulder bare, and love alone? We had not refuse to weep it: for the burning limping across the dance, betraying only joyes above.

Bleed, and flower? Descending; once on a flea-ridden day when you entombed in men’s eyes will never saw such was naturally chast, and layers the shedding petals of my grief lies onward and fell, and she could blushing so low thee. Who, whatever heart, though in a close of Gulistan shall Time’s best to this fair day foreshows, when I in ears and owed to the hill, so brimmed with her selfe might tell her, but like that looks so little.

To man, propose thy gifts should find the chaff for a medical experiences unmeet foremost three lives more noble tear; and up and spilt our boundless, my burden of that, ’ she answer, echoes roll from my eyes straight to the which do in a modern Goth, I mean to play should look farther furlough: ’ and his Palate blew; he said nay; for her own grand way: being shadow to the child, and fall upon her feet ripples on in light.

But wondering and grace in constancy, and, could say more tried, shepherd’s phrase well-wash’d by thy grave. Beyond it, when perverted, most difficult to say no, to take me to see, since whan the sea and caught Aurora’s there? Was vowel-keen and the execution, talk o’er the water warmer current dream, for all. She told, the river as it came to whom a watch may stay for a river level with the jazzing music sadly?

To swear against the bright within, which country born and buried lock a life less mine to say; for we did—was the chanced, her hand, and wine were open, and mine showman. Also thereon spend thy base, no good things done, she floated stomach, mound, kneebone, and I had the sky, and grinning strangest upon such virtue meet. The tear is used. It on it hangs like the old burst, new emerge, lash’d from my side as friendlesse languish in my ear.

Whom Christ call forgotten. But when my strange it selfe a bankrout know no dearer blisse. He slays the sea-coal, come, heap it higher by the thing then me! But others could not feel. And heard to explain would clang it, and we down from ancient look, with a memory with that language and had not die; they mocked the double grac’d, without end prolong’d; nor knew, or Psyche, without it must not gall, undrest, he added, lest sorrows fresh fortune.

Or else to my bed that it were angry— as the worst of it, to come. You couldn’t get your sleeps the nettle, some prison-cell or yard, is as that rang with her glossy raven hair there was not that, amassing the ring I am only giving gentle day doth follow thee. That turns him round in earth’s smooth, some not for the parts in one answers the shedding petals or crystal brows— there’s a fairy tail from solitude; thy hand!

The late August midafternoon they fear. The lemons you love not much consoled by life’s composition be recured by nature underwater. To mark the sister came a little turn, nor sleep to death, or baser courses, children—there is some one side. Calling you fearful things in such a wistful eye upon that beauties through she giue but this I must not gall, undressing any Sorrow come from the weak, paranoid.

I leave to your children save each part will seat you esteem where motley follies or her existence, will be possible after long journey have gain’d. But with keepe, iealouzie hemselfe doth ly, till the gory head up in Murderer’s heart were whirled the third time, whose historical superiority, turpin’s or Monmouth Geoffry’s Chronicle; men who looks o’er the red-breast the shade’s sufficient Soil and horses. So, to prove none.

Once and sweet, spares the porch, windchime in days, in starlight glares and roared before us, knew what he was white rose to avenge us and sitting so, with conscious times. A large offer’d blisse you wouldst fain arrest: machinery just meant to give him quiet, my faith released from isolation with blind eyes match me: we all sighs are brief, the night where the Poet blest, these groups were not with sweet, and grinning easy grace, that but not too far.

The very eyes, for still affirms your advent: help my prince: you be the misty river- tide. With idle youthful years; it is my father’s fingertips but sweeping prisoners called the diurnal Sun’s decline. But stood tranced in a ditch doth giue darke heart with Roses blows; a Foot for certain moment we should cram our ears, lest Italy should blush to take some clips, that word of Wisdom of such mistaken, and kept their troth seal’d with.

The hidden Mystery. Fail so far in higher: when touchwood, while you made without pity, by their high places by the slow poison can breast. Of her deserved to act to act, from level feet, and loathsome greyhounds deign’d to Juan, puzzles to come hither, come hitherward your reserve, but one meets the foolish tear, she told, the more his hands, your bride, our bondslave! Come with forward too. Yet I seek, my weary night that we ourselves dead.

Or on high desire, and men whose feet might do. Let us, that I see the squares and you knew who would supposed facility; and Juan, when I can’t open it: there haunt about coming storm. In order to thee. The squires and our soules for thee. Someone used to my bedside she did not come, and spher e d courses, children save each man trembling dew: or glittering words that they straight in the gate, and hornblende, rag and the shore!

His soul was reduced to its welcome, welcome, welcome neare those little care of Lady Ida’s youth, mine eyes, and roos, and there was my father’s fame, full oft he perish’d in the cliff, when sparkled and silent woody place he does not stay because your wit. Speak gently, like the songs of steel cable spanning the Curse of old, but the quiet we sat and game, and lullaby now take that endure. In all places. And with eyes open?

But thou hast brought where they tell a child’s father’s hell: yet the dovecote-doors, disorderly the judgment that wait on you, being that Desire doth plunge my wel-form’d soul to suit, whose historical superiority is like a crown to blind with a steady thy lusts relent to such as I to take off shoes. Feeling their meaning up in a rigadoon of filthy song about the most ardent articulate life.

Of creatures rent, with some pretend to go that needs it we shall try my gain or loss of your countrywomen! I shall untune the mysterious, and maidenlike he rolled round me once against the walking, feeling and green or dry, a man, who in counties have greatest Gogmagogs, which Venus weeps both night long growing boy, my little damp, spilling from any thousand years since Frank sat at thy beauty, how frail as floures fayre.

That shrine, all things serve their tongue be a thrall to speak, and play it well deserve them back again in to thee. Other—since we are them born to our deaths be near, no news but hart did mercy then, my Muse, shew thou haven’t bother. Roses at first blossomed anew,— yon looking from glow to gloom: the hand holds the sought to him as he lay directly on you; so shy, grave, but wish’d for her own grand role, which can turn as housewives do a fly.

He problem scrunched into his Heart, that length, those lives in a sunny atmosphere. Through which to flatt’ry so listened to destroy, or cast a glance I gave it! Easily gathering step of demirep some with their several station from a shell-fish or from a game. Her maidenlike are weak: a single sally. Love though the ambrosia, mix the new wine’s foaming flowery glen; in shepherd’s phrase? Gripped on the murder me. Lips?

And what she might blend in one, one pleasure. From a block and straight I do changeling Hope in the South, but in their Souls entwine: while other men make me hotter, till a clamour great minds from the eavedrops fall, and isolation,—fair Adeline dispensed to something like a system couple turn for spite of the little Robin, take another’s fame, full of all these male thunder- shower, for the pack of shame that if it spread.

I’ll write whatever bar the roofs of this, there stands apart cleft where were she: how pretty lambs loud bleat from its sum, you did not blue, as modest tapers—and thoughts the roosting is not stay because thou art forced a way through each help not Joy, but nothing upon the river sloped down whereby I did, and from out of every thing, for, heart, I see. But draw thy cruel wrong, the tool’s true he sate hath lent; vnable quite in her can confound.

The third asking of Folly so true a fool is love to a spirit at bay; if this his hand who saith Loue, not ever, bless, my burning Contempt shall thing no Warder walked with formality, small lips, softly, Graces, and like a rat or rabbit; but could it still persever, thy sweet the dying of wind, thought of love, then live with your glasses a goat stir this love them told. Would come against us if we tried to win you both?

Peruse; he reached the thinke of you. I fear my tongues restrain’d from the black ink my love like men indeed, we had limed ourself to deal with new bonds they weigh in the mire of sinfull thou art forced to its corner, which made its virgin bumper gay; or like a girl, methinks of betters? And laid themselves reap glory and friend and eyes could do! The books say, and—in the cave of his weight of disbelief though the yestermorn, to tell.

Love is come to mee: no, no, no, no, my Deare, let bee. How green or dry, a man accursèd duke; o give up the bright as this; my love, a spring frame where the lampless Earth in which o’ercome all mountain cleft where erst he had crossing, came on flowers in the wheel of the sun in flight, to march in ranks of better it groan’d her Heart to the charms of other has met wi’ the quiet smile of a girl was caught only their native East.

A Hand to this dance o’er the distant mountaineers with a steady thy laws forever; thy baited hook that lived while you must, and learn, nor an altar build, which passion cannot guess how much the calendar. So let ours be for his friend, we hold out and in each other lay. To defende, which are so love God, God accept obliging all contract: though so this is what pensive, and before all mischance hast thou with mine affianced.

Like mine, each and saw this but we know what he could rather spend, nor so fair; the bridal eve; and gained ground; confusion. The Sinking as the most proud as heavy, yet unheard; his garment of coming in my clasp, never grudge at my feet. In each applied to withstand in the breast, I vex my heart under pines in the rouge lately came, this rage was remote and forks clank’d round his left over, not a toe, not a hair of verity.

Modestly shining chips the fields, and in my face house is circumstances which, by thy sight? Whom she drags in tow. The pill of sentimental mourners of absence and through all the work of the grave, when all things upon a sponge and all my voice when the shepherd, but a mouse, whose speechless fire, a nurse would be a trifles no strongest, or whether shriek as of a night went wilfully at the sun, seeking the Abbey through and saw.

To these the neat lines of woes. Or like a bell in so secret stay, ere he could value as another’s terror crept. And part now while he learns the worm inside your voice, thrice pass, and corruptible death it makes its way, happy Autumne plums, did drop, and me none tell me then, demands our blessing into the eye and he reproachful stare. By and by: whether than a gloomy voice seems from ancient cathedrals what and show you now?

Lest one tonight. Tongue that endured to quell his mistress be, or low, or tall, she balanced like a star in his little hand glanced, without pausing, on him a brightness; when all memory, or the sand! On the morning streams. My earth, still—not stern—and sweet black Despair under the men sent for Psyche, she fled. Full East, ’ I said to hatch the supplicator being madrigals. Heaving better blushed amaze of half he wish’d abolish’d.

Through a slight: ‘tis white, at least thou that hand? Thee sister, or the spectre has gone, seize to-day, he’ll like a spirit out; or like a jewel on her cheek. And I’ve called work, must sentence pass’d away—but where, scalpel, and told her abide by side, and walls so far from a shell-fish or from all its sweet breathed forth, I rise above their mother: those faith reward for superstition with the nice yellow pride or praise, which I clambered o’er a bride.

Seem stronger then if he thrill of the day. The cat’s ear and asked him day by day, I bade it in doves athwart the dark. The double double dreams are where the Right and my joy behind her, hebes are in their best of kings—a modern Goth, I mean. She sent their smile and as molten lead were two poachers caught and cries out from thee: no, no, no, no, my Deare, let bee. To me thanks one murmured Florian’s fancy as she stands shadowy beams.

What stuck in the banqueteers had done to happy thing, and grow a home for spouse and Taste, who never stopped, menaced, then i’m sure of where final berries and take and worthy her higher: when nature has gone, and go. Stood up and spake, an affluent orators, but first Man took his brood is flown: say to her, she told, performances with Susan’s clothe herself! To be rock and stone her so well as of a lost lamb she point of reach.

She answers were something world out at gates. Dissolving humane to hear to speak, and partly that sleep in broidered down with knowing; but in your deaths and wickedness; my lords and cries out and thee thou art bright eye. It’s a warm room, the posture hers, I’m pleasure the prison-wall though he deem’d his muse, till passing for City. We before growing and brief years, that set, a man who had more noble scheme grew up from the Queen’s decline.

By his mouth. Some praise to all but name flowing over they smil’d, and a long eleven years of felt crept by each padlocked door, and was but a scientific fact: and twitter in her own grand rolls on, and his face in the question’d on the heard, and staid, pleas’d with their place; and thee to mee, and spangled her how, ’ my fault’ she says the Princess rode to take this, ’ he cried; no fighting her grass and Tears unshatter’d to head. To bathe them told.

Disorder in the court of half-amazed, and saw the soft complaining, her Notes in many a famous man and was spun: and, rank by rank, we soaped the hall, poison’d and rend them stood the pain I could sleep to death, who even but not mind my woes with heart a white! Why linger heart’s endeavour, the abundant two on sponge and absinthe are his mistress—terms synonymous—no sound; and when she things upon a hill sees the fair.

Whose shining daffodil dead, and the great her look, some with me through a great year of the already more to be lou’d, and left between us, they grew like fire he meeting groan—who blames which the pang is fled; in the camera chases two worlds beyond us. Those two were no great skill, and what shall tangled to sport I suckt while shadowy beams. That head: render nothing that call a bird-understander to compassion to us.

He sate with odours I will make the skies and be gay, rage, rage against the rabid wolf whose traits were sweets are wounding along with truth not I. Blue branches I never wi’ her can remember for ill, forget, or astronomer, so much more, and so he slept. Is a simulacrum to all that it is, that Ill may take the worst was to see: and, rank by rank, we soaped the flowers everybody knows who have sworn the chance!

Me to tell. Thoughts, which so long had paid his nook, She ended to the circled mazes, wind and tasting of their prey; he slays the soul intent of such a silence let him lie: no need to watches which made his blood. And brief years, that time I hunt the head of Holofernes peeped and fields, and duty duty, learn with hood-wink’d chance—sure of a dance expired: the latter merits everybody ought. His Generations. The daisies grow.

—Then hey, for a medical experience, will wine-red rose of Gulistan shall lie—Anthea, my hart, I do any things which makes it bleed again is what appeares; O see what shell, that we made them back against the tales that antique housed under worse than laughters of fierce stars white as yellow darling one with such as Albion old was wont to take some red, some not always was. With all the sable friar of late?

But thine and that frolic Grace—Fitz-Fulke play. Like this, nay all the sky? Make all worn out, appealing to figures throne: and the plaintive cry jarred on her subject, he on her face, and saw. In gay remarkably sweet Melissa clamoured Flee the dead. And tasting ruffled by growing in lifting up in the Skein of Joy. And there is a bird-understands upon my love, as all things do, for so they knew him—could have been the night.

In a most importune to see him lest himself shoulder bore her hearts with pins; roger from Dolly twitch’d the wardrobe which were to say; but his door, and after have done perchance your way of noticing until Max’s hind legs stop the store of human art and days that at each May morn of life o’ercast, chill behest disarm’d his poor girl who’ll fall down deeper where finally everything wanted. Air twine like to thy clearer, farther!

When I pull you to me, who could now and addressed their mother knew until only a stretched Elenor, weak woman, town and rather make thee, clumsy hold; and, dodging round asleepe, me thinkes they scourge the tarry rope to fingers directed, enterchangeably reflected. One another’s hands, when unto dying off, as curtsies could not betray, nor more in Heaven, and the execution, modestly shining raiment.

I shuddered: and your grew as of some slime, and a sullen wind went on with a groan, more sharp repulse, that ever dearer name, calling overmuch, stand in his step so lightning grace, and blinded of those the dish a deadly wound, and radiant with some disdainful dame. Or ever and purple throat and dreadful pen, and more in dread his will flourish without a burning core, though all maskes my wo, come, O love, which it surpasseth.

With hooded brows I crept by each listened wide, as doubt the most true is the roofs of the Black Friar? If it’s in the kings were she: how pretty lad, said them through another days, the blue branches sit, chirping loud and strong, face to prove not this, wise silence is past. But I must say in my heart more their babes have recourse the old burst, new emerge, lash’d from the bunch, milk from soul to suit, whose every preferment, a song, in act thy branch.

The little weeks of light, some doubt we see doth blush our living town stole feet of one through the name. And the turtle buildeth there, as pale sickly ghosts in current dreams of a night to your country wags too—and, alas! Is it thy will notes are about witches and dawn where the ghost been, and made head, at no man’s fancy but reality distraction—an erring pride, the proudest sail doth blush our living all the mean to say, oh!

Thus to speak, whose mind, if she rated such a pleasant Orange-tree; how Vlster like poor priest was the fatigue was t’other water as a whale rises up, then kindling into a decayed holo-gram—my for every day on which thought, or made to keep a heart under your hand: about, in grave. The sceptics who would be i’d toss life shall lie. Steady, sober flight, the cause my love was much good, and what am I saying not you.

Grace, which i have little month, your lens the pack of Travel son or Daughter, a white? For still affirms your advent to your country born and to cool; till once, as we scale the window the first night’s ghosts; the Mamma Mia’s! Through the floor, and sated with the rest of a young man so absurd lord Henry said, not such expense. Fair Adeline, in bring his night, but winter wine, and all its budded charms, o, gie me there, till their convict lies.

And the wild peasant, Slavic and charms, must bid the Cynic on some like some rest; would not true! I send the damn’d would bear it no more, but her colour ne’er Misfortune once laughing jest, they glided past, the sun are cut off in early morning rails: and, as may be! The world again I never knew my father. That held the pale sickly ghosts gliding board are what human fears: she sent for Psyche and thinketh al nis but attendance.

In sport I suckt while yet young hearts with the hunters bold, and rather spent less from any things—how the queen o’ the faster it were warm as a sudden jet of blood he cleaned on mutability, whose passe all the Sun, if that are cheek, the plank, and with vast parade their place and plate, as between us, they light and crippled things—how the queen o’ the manners of fear. We rubbed the fair, first starf, and sees his housewives do a fly.

The true concord better and the flowers and eye. Too scanty, in the arras. To speak, dreadful words expressively: your faces, to canvas; their faces toward that see my wracke, and shot from the weight; and dearest gift of Heaven; and howe’er you may yet be said—Oh Darling, and I be cast a glance on Adeline dispensed to some still: the better bleating ear, no false sublimer azure gloom of thundering drum cries Hark!

Love, deep as love, which beat admission in a trick; down on his sharpest paine; take me in, and alien lips, as waits a river sallows, or sit, the waterlily starts and days must charm o’ the fair. Your figures on the tear-drop that clings to the retrospect, but day doth daily draw my sorrow after the path, to feel, with a memory with the spoken, but what chills and flits before. ’ The dripping cloak and elm have possesse?

A few words ye must have been seized up without end prolong’d; nor knew, or Psyche whom shall shine more Prayer a-going! When our two souls immortal life shall meet; she is not state through the year’s first the fingers dropped into Van Diemen’s land if certain glows in the wheel the North long since, seldom—sages never; but speach, alas, the earth by spells an odd story, of a stone? Have souls in passing within a bottle is a crater.

Are so low? Thou art cruel; do not go gentle verse, what makes me do the devils with time should Human Pity do pent up in a rigadoon of delight in well-raisde notes shift in these quest,—who cares? Worth a Sign beyond all the dance and pleasure passed through the victim to thee. Immortal, shun them through with iron laws, in the morning pulsing. ’ Said Ida; home! Dark is the bad man was put; his mourning wind blown about on the loved.

It doesn’t need to be, barbarians? The laurel crown the invention of June days, forget you, as I said, can he noticed before to be worthy of two things rushed the terminal as many a light to survey, for blunting high, while that love that even while I languish hangs like a week’s soak, overnight to thee, who ever should say more than what he wanted to sleep. But others, household stuff, what nedeth feyned lover.

There were gracious, that I recoil away and asked me if it were, according town thereat though her pure immortal, shun to do it, being other—since whan the sea- coal, come, and empty corridors were as men who looked a strong, by flowered the garden by teeth on the world’s ways; the Throne of Glory. Stifling in the rope, each time to a spirit a woman. It makes water sinke; and, wonder his improbable you mean!

With gages from yestermorn, to tell you, I never saw sad men will speak in scorn of half the moon in a trice: but all my art and pipe and this poor tearm of fire shall whelm the Power that murthring Boy I say, all my days are long. Nor insolent ease the drunkard’s foot can teach, what stronger than men known to say; for we did best! Of time, herself in my mind; my grief for which this life yonder midnight call the world-without a stain.

I answer with the haven with greater than Believing Tyrant.—What is by Natures rent, which learnt our meaning the sable Friar in his shall help us; slaves at his face, which country born and fragrant-curtains open on them. There was already to burn and buried day. But this I know that, bright, for kissing Love’s deep doth ly, till so counsel me, the dark eye glance more fatal to men, well staid with the nail gripped on the show!

By unions married until it scares itself to death do us part, I must do? Hers more Shakspearian, if I could never acquired some special instant loue deem’d his Dust with vain annoying miracle have his penitent fare, for Adeline which she had been men you need not speed, being awkward and after tragedy. Of mine they died, and o’er his shall knowledge is knowledge is knows it not worth to God who gave it!

#poetry #automatically generated text #Patrick Mooney #Markov chains #Markov chain length: 7 #180 texts #curtal sonnet sequence

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sunwoo-hoo · 3 years

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↣ treasure reaction to s/o bringing niece/nephew to the dorms

↳ a/n: hello lovelies! here is another treasure reaction! i’m sorry that it took so long, treasure usually takes me a little longer to do so keep that in mind for future requests. but anyway i hope you like it! i got inspiration from t-map episode 39. i hope you don’t mind i made the kids various ages so that it wasn’t the same scenario. xx

(also this was reuploaded since it wasn’t showing up in my tags)

↳ requested? yes

↳ genre: fluffiest of fluff

↳ send in your request here

↳ word count: 1.5k

↳ treasure x fem reader

「 choi hyunsuk 」

you told him you had to cancel the date you had planned together to watch your 5 year old niece

he recommended bringing her over to the dorms so that you could watch her together

he was ecstatic when you showed up with the little girl’s hand in yours

“oh my goodness aren’t you so cute?!” he gushed squatting down to get on her eye level

she hid her behind your legs in embarrassment

the day was spent playing various games like hide and seek easing your niece into the unfamiliar surroundings

at one point when she settled down watching television hyunsuk couldn’t help but look at you saying

“i can’t wait til we have a child of our own one day”

「 park jihoon 」

you had brought your nephew over to bake some brownies together hoping to surprise jihoon after practice

but when he told you practice was cancelled for the day he decided to join in on baking

he tried his best to make your 6 year old nephew laugh but he was not having it

it wasn’t until jihoon accidentally tripped over some flour falling to the floor butt first is when your nephew started to laugh uncontrollably

you couldn’t help but put your hand over your mouth trying not to laugh in front of him

“i’m glad you think my misery is funny” he quipped rubbing his behind

「 kanemoto yoshinori 」

it was a rainy day when you went to visit yoshi at the dorms with your young niece

she had just turned 4 and yoshi wanted to meet her finally coming back from treasure’s recent comeback

walking into the dorms he had the biggest smile on his face when he bend down to greet her

“hello! [niece name] it’s so nice to meet you, you can call me yoshi-oppa” grabbing her little hand

she smiled up at him looking enjoying the new acquaintance she had just met

yoshi then stood back up placing a kiss on your cheek

“she’s so adorable”

「 kim junkyu 」

you were your nephew’s best friend being the cool aunt he always loved hanging out with you

when he heard you were in a relationship with an idol he was a tad bit jealous since he knew he would be seeing less of you

until you decided that your nephew should meet junkyu bringing him to the dorms one afternoon

when you walked in junkyu couldn’t help but smile at your nephew’s cuteness

“you must be [nephew name] i’m your aunt’s special friend” he exclaimed proudly

junkyu decided to show off his singing charms to your nephew who couldn’t help but be in awe of his voice

the rest of the day was spent together singing karaoke

「 takata mashiho 」

this wasn’t the first time mashiho had met your 7 year old nephew

in fact you were convinced your nephew liked mashiho more than you when he basically begged you to take him to see mashiho one day

walking in the dorms mashiho ran up to your nephew giving him the biggest of hugs

“hey! [nephew name] i’ve missed you! guess what? i got the nintendo switch all set up for us” he cheered

your nephew practically ran at a inhuman speed to the console mashiho going after him

you couldn’t help but smile looking at your two favorite people in the world having a wonderful time together

「 yoon jaehyuk 」

it was busy afternoon running errands with your young niece

jaehyuk had texted you asking you to come over

when you told him that you had your young niece with you that’s when he texted back in less than in a minute

telling you that he would babysit her until you were finishing up your errands for the day

when you went to the dorms you were shocked on what he had set up there was different types of games, books, & snacks

when he greeted you with a peck on the lips you couldn’t help but smile at the effort he put in

“don’t worry about a thing [name] we’re going to have lots of fun i promise” he grinned

「 hamada asahi 」

it all happend during a snow day, you were taking care of your niece while your sibling was out of town for a business trip

deciding to get out of the house you told asahi you were coming over to the dorms since it was treasure’s break

he decided to draw out a welcome sign for her so that she would be surprised when you showed up

walking in the dorm shaking your shoulders trying to get rid of snow that’s when you saw the welcome sign

your niece smiled at the cute drawn characters as asahi bend down to give her the piece of paper

“this is for you [niece name] i hope you like it” he smiled

the rest of the day was spent by the fire enjoying hot chocolate with marshmallows

「 bang yedam 」

when yedam told you he wanted to meet your nephew you were kind of against it

partly because your nephew was still very young barely able to walk on his own but yedam persisted

giving in you brought your nephew to the dorms one day

walking in yedam ran straight towards you in awe of the young child in your arms

“he’s so charming” he gushed squishing his little cheeks

as you walked into the living your room you sat down on the couch putting your nephew on the floor so that he could crawl around

he then crawled to yedam’s guitar playing with the strings laughing at the funny noise it was making

picking up the guitar yedam exclaimed proudly

“how about i sing a song for you? would you like that?”

「 kim doyoung 」

you were picking up your 5 year old nephew from school wanting to see doyoung since his dorms was on the way back home

he was surprised to see you but even more surprised when you brought your nephew as well

since it was a beautiful day out you all decided to go to the small park behind the dorms

all three of you decided to play a game of soccer while doyoung was giving your nephew some pointers

“your doing great! [nephew name] but try it this way”

you smiled at the wholesome interaction while your nephew looked up at him in admiration

doyoung gave him the biggest cheer when your newphew made his first goal

“see! i knew you could do it” he exclaimed proudly showing off his cute smile that you loved so much

「 watanabe haruto 」

one of the most important things to haruto was family

so when your sibling finally had your first niece he was thrilled not only for you but for your sibling as well

after a couple of weeks you finally decided to bring her to meet haruto while he was at the dorms

walking in with the baby in your arms he looked down at her tearing up

he couldn’t help it, as it reminded him of his little sister back home all the way in japan

when you gently passed her over to haruto he smiled

looking up at him you wiped away his tears as he finally said

“i think it’s time you meet my family [name] your important to me.. i want them to meet the woman i want to spend the rest of my life with” he vowed

「 park jeongwoo 」

it was a rare day when jeongwoo had a day off from all of his idol duties

so you were shocked when he said he wanted it to spend his day off with you and your niece

the minute you showed up to the dorms your niece went wild running all over the place

she was still at the age where she was just full of energy and there was no way you could stop it anytime soon

jeongwoo ran after her trying to catch her

“come here baby!” he giggled making funny animal noises trying to get her attention

finally scooping her up he gave her a small kiss on the cheek

you pouted until he saw your face giving you a small kiss on your pouty lips

“don’t worry babe your still my number 1 but [niece name] is coming for your spot” he teased as you lightly punched his arm playfully

「 so junghwan 」

being the youngest of the group he was the most comfortable around young children

you decided that he should meet your niece for the first time after a couple of months of dating

one sunny day coming to the dorms he noticed you walking in with her as he was playing a video game

he shyly walked over to her bending down to her eye level

“hello, [niece name] you look very pretty today, it’s so nice to meet you” he announced looking at her pink tutu and her small tiara

she giggled pulling off her tiara giving it to junghwan

he put it on top of his head confidently

“do i look like a prince?” he asked doing a pose

she shyly nodded

the rest of the day was spent playing dress up and having tea time together

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* © sunwoo-hoo 2 0 2 1 ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

#treasure reactions #treasure scenarios #treasure imagines #treasure x reader #hyunsuk x reader #jihoon x reader #yoshi x reader #junkyu x reader #mashiho x reader #jaehyuk x reader #asahi x reader #yedam x reader #doyoung x reader #haruto x reader #jeongwoo x reader #junghwan x reader #[mine 🌸]#yg treasure #treasure

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izukus-sugar-baby · 3 years

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Checked out!

WARNINGS: fluff-ish, eventually will be smut, mentions of getting sick twice

word count: 2k

Heres my first writing for tumblr! Hope you all like it!

Part Two, Part Three.

"Hey Miss!!" You peered down at the smaller voice, simultaneously feeling a book slip from your hand and onto the ground. The bookshelf was at least 5 rows high, and you had been standing as far as you needed to reach the top. You were dusting off and replacing the books on the shelf, which... hadn’t been so pleasant with children running around before their daily read. Regardless, you had a job to do. It wasn't gonna stop for a ton of kids. You had been rearranging the books in alphabetical order before the kid startled you. Thank god it didn’t fall on their head.

"Are you gonna read to us today? Or is Miss Maggie?" The kid didn't look over six years old, blue eyes and long brown hair with freckles littering her face in a wonderful way. She wore a small dress full of sunflowers with bright pink shoes on her feet. She had been here before... Although, her name wasn’t ringing a bell.

"I wanted to read one of those pigeon stories you read us last time!" You let out a sigh of relief that the book didn't smack the kid on top of her head prior to climbing down to the ground and leaning down be eye-level with her.

"Pigeon stories?" You've read dozens of books about dozens of creatures and characters. What on earth would relate to a.. pigeon? Leaning down a bit farther to snatch up the book you had dropped, she pushed another book into your arms. The title read The Pigeon Needs A Bath!

"This book is pretty thin, You sure you want me to read just this one book, sweetheart?" You stood up straight, handing the girl the book back before cocking your hip to the side and placing your hand onto it.

"Me and Emmie can go find some more!" She hurried off to find her.. friend? Knowing it had been a child, it could be a stuffed animal! But she sure did leave too quickly to ask any questions about it. You sighed, climbing back up to finish your organizing. Thank goodness I’m already close to being done. You thought to yourself, dusting top to bottom and moving onto the 4th row. Their reading wasn't for another.. what? 20 minutes? You had time to knock out another shelf. Time flew by as you finished the 4th row. It was already time to read.

"I have to stop by Goodwill and get some more books. I also gotta stop at the post office and some.. other errands? You got this reading?" The owner of the store, Maggie, looked over to make sure she had gotten your attention before naming off a few things that needed done in the shop before you closed up shop.

"Yeah! What time will you be back?" You climbed down the last step of the ladder, patting off the dust from the bookcase that had gotten on your apron. It was some cutesy hello kitty apron you wore so the dust wouldn't ruin your clothing but it really just made it look like it was some mini cafe. None the less, you wore it.

"I'll be back in time for that uh, Pro hero guy. I don't know- my wife wrote him in. Ask and she'll tell you!" You weren't too involved with all that hero bullshit, the whole who can save more lives?! You get the most money AND an award. The system in itself was ass and it wouldn't make a difference in your everyday life for one of those snobby people to stop by. You walked around the shelves, watching Maggie leave as you sat down on a small rounded couch. A small chime rang through the shop as it called the children over for their reading, a few already sitting and ready to hear you.

It wasn't a big library, it seemed like a corner store had gotten torn down and then completely renovated into a library for children. The second floor had been where the owner and her wife stayed. It was a cozy little place where about 8-12 kiddos would visit for a read. There were bookshelves in the walls for more book space and 5 separate shelves more towards the middle of the place. They held less books than the ones on the wall. Only two of the five reached over 3ft. Parents would come in just to rent a few books. But more often than not, the owner would go out hunting for new books for everyone to enjoy. Along with cute little toys and those foam floor mats to sit on. All of the children in the shop had sat right in front of you, including the girl from earlier who held 4 books in her hands. A few other kids held thin picture books in their hands as well, but only having 15 minutes to read to them, it might be hard to get around to all of them.

“Alright, Who's first?" You asked, smiling down at them. Every single child raised their hand, some even raising both so your attention was on them. Of course this wasn't going to be easy. You thought to yourself as you put a hand over your eyes, pointing to some random kid. He held a small book, standing up slowly and handing it to you.

"My mom reads me this sometimes.." Poor boy was only about 5, and seemed pretty shy. You gave him a reassuring smile before he went back to his seat. You began to read and in no time at all you finished reading the few books children selected. Thank god it was a Friday, Most children would be picked up right after the reading for afternoon preschool etc. But it seemed like no one wanted to leave. Was it that hero Maggie had mentioned? You sighed, hopping up and heading to the check out desk where you saw a few children wanting to check out their books you previously read to them. You leaned down over the desk to reach for the book, scanning it and doing so for each person. The store bell jingled, as if the creak of the door didn't give away someone walking in.

"Welcome to 'Children's Magical Bookshop,' You paid the person no mind as you spoke, handing the last child their book and letting your gaze fall upon the... very tall man in front of you. Noise filled the small shop, children running up to him screaming-

"Deku!" As loud as their little lungs could. He gave a flashy smile, leaning down to hug the children that ran straight for his legs. He laughed and lifted a few of them in his.. very strong arms. Was it hot in the bookshop? Was the AC fucked up? You force your eyes from the tall man.. Was he looking at you too? Your mind screamed at you to introduce yourself, Quickly walking towards a shelf to do something. Anything bust stand there and gawk at him.

"Are you Maggie?" There were hopping children behind him, playing with his gloves and such as you turned to him.

"No- I'm y/n. Are you that.. pro? She had been talking about.?" You huffed through your nose, turning to him. He extended a hand, nodding with a cheesy grin on his face as soon as you had taken his hand into yours. It wasn’t like you never saw him on the news, but you sure did skip the channel as soon as it was some bullshit hero chart over who had been number one. He was so much hotter in person..

"Yes! I'm sorry I'm a bit early, I finished patrol sooner than I thought! I hope I'm not interrupting anything? The woman on the phone said before six, I told her I was sure I could make it around five!" His eyes traveled to your lips for a moment, listening to you speak back to him.

“You’re fine, There’s plenty of time for you to hang out and sign all of their t-shirts and such. Make yourself at home big man. You can sit in the reading area,” The kids dragged him to where you were just moments ago.. But he couldn't get you to leave his mind. You were beautiful. He needed to make you his.

The poor hero stayed until about six o’clock to talk to you, since all of the kids finally left to go do their summer homework or whatever they had to do. Deku had been leaning over the counter for almost an extra hour to make some conversation with you, he just couldn’t help himself. You cant blame him either! You had this smile that he couldn’t resist. And quite frankly, he wasn’t used to this feeling of butterflies in his stomach. He fought some shit villain every day! What's a few butterflies? Especially as pretty as you. Why wouldn't he want to stick around?

“I really didn’t think it would be so chill this week! It feels like I've done nothing but catch up on papers!” Izuku scratched his neck with his index finger, shaking his head lightly. “I guess I really am doing a good job!- Of course other pros are doing their jobs as well!” He let out a relieved chuckle, looking at you with a big, sincere, smile on his face. “How has work here been? It must be so nice working with so many children!”

You feel your eyes involuntarily roll, shaking your head and leaning against the wall behind you. “It’s nice until some kid gets sick on themselves and their mother isn’t here to help. We have extra clothing in the back because it’s happened more than once.” You groaned as your eyes trailed to the door leading to lost n found, clothes, and other things. You had an unamused look on your face talking about it. He noticed and let his eyes follow yours until feeling your eyes rest upon him once more. Maybe texting would let you come around to him a bit more? Were you bored?

“Yikes- I’ve seen adults get sick after villains show up. But I probably should head back to my agency.” He looked out of the store window before right back to those beautiful e/c eyes of yours. “Do you have a number I can text? I would love to talk to you more y/n..!” He was already prepared for rejection. It was kinda weird to be hitting on you after dealing with kids wasn’t it? Maybe he should take it back. Was he coming off as some sleazy ass hero?

Your eyes widened in the slightest- Enough for him to notice. “Sure, Let me see your phone,” You stepped closer to the counter, seeing him fumble on the pouch of his belt before unlocking and giving you his phone. You went to his contacts, making yourself one of them and handing it right back to him. He had an even bigger, cheesier, grin on his face after he took it back.

“Thank you, y/n!” He bowed his head before quickly leaving out to his agency. Finally, you could go home as well. Not that he was a problem, but that man sure could talk. It was endearing. Maybe I can put enough of those stutters in mind tonight. You joked to yourself, grabbing your keys and walking out to lock up the small bookshop. There was no doubt that you were attracted to him. Every woman in America and Japan was attracted to him in some way.

You let out a small sigh, driving home and turning your radio up until hearing your phone ding. You glanced over at the screen to see an unknown number texting. Assuming it was Deku, you waited until you were home to answer him. By the time you had texted him back, he was quick to reply. You two made plans to hang out soon and have dinner together. You talked for hours until one of you had fallen asleep. He was ecstatic. You really enjoyed his company.

taglist: @tenyaiidasslut @hi-rubi @devilsbooksworld @flamingpastapotatoes @arleneeene @blacklotussai @akam4recs @prinvilmain

a/n: I fucking hate tumblr KWJCHDH ive had to re-write this more than once because they changed the layout if the save and post. Its not my best work and was mostly edited on here instead of Google docs. Learn to edit the first version first i guess 💀 The second part will be much better!

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userholland · 3 years

Text

all for her [4]

pairing: bartender!dad!tom x female!reader

summary: a single-dad bartender, a supportive best friend and their continuous, unrequited love noticed by his optimistic daughter. is it possible to break a heart they never knew they had?

word count: 10.2k!

a/n: it’s been more than a month... again... but i really hope you guys enjoy the bow to tie this series together. i do apologize this was more dad!tom than it was bartender!tom... i wish i got to spend so much more time on it with school going on, but i’m really proud of it!!! and i’m so grateful and happy for all the feedback i’ve gotten on it. thank y’all so much and your support means so much for my love for writing! if you want a epilogue, please let me know!

— masterlist ☆彡

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜

There was something about the morning that was so peaceful. The warm light of the sun peered through the curtains and trailed onto the duvet and part of your arm, moving across your body until it beamed in your tired eyes. Your hair had a musty smell from the rain last night, not having the energy to shower after what happened. You ran your hand over Tom’s side of the bed, the cotton sheets soft against your palm until you pressed your weight onto it to lift yourself up.

The cracks in your back echoed the room, running your fingers through your hair to push it out of your face before putting it up to not be overwhelmed by the smell. As you stretched the rest of your body, you slid over the sheets until your toes hit the cold wooden floor. You got a jolt up your spine before grabbing Tom’s grey sweatshirt on the back of his desk chair, quickly slipping it over your body to warm up from the chilliness of the fall. You could tell winter was upon you, excited to get a light blanket of snow soon.

When you walked over to the dresser, your hands held on each of the drawer handles about to pull until you took a second look at the picture set on the top. A small smile painted on your lips, reminiscing the fond memory like the picture was moving in real life. It was Summer’s first snowfall and despite her name, she loved the winter.

You bought her a big, pink coat with gloves dangled by end of the sleeves that paired with a knitted hat that covered her ears. The three of you were stood outside of the apartment and propped the camera on a window seal as the big flurries fell. With Summer on Tom’s shoulders, you stood close to him and wore his denim jacket and black beanie. Tom liked to keep it, remembering it was one of the first times his life felt whole again since he was gifted with Summer.

After brisking through Tom’s top drawer, not believing how he didn’t organize his socks, you found white, crew socks and slipped them on before walking to the door and carefully turned the doorknob. The sounds of chirping birds could be heard from behind the windows in the living room and no honking cars to wake up the neighborhood, as if everything had fallen back into it’s perfect place.

Summer’s door was cracked open, enough that when you peaked in, you could see her and Tom snuggled on her twin bed. It made Tom look bigger than he was, seeing the pink duvet covering them and his arms were wrapped around her. You were happy to see them together, better than having to walk past an empty room again and Tom asleep on the couch.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜

She sobbed when she got home, relieved to be home and she missed Tom so much. Her arms were tight around his neck and her legs were squeezing around his waist, so it was almost impossible for him to put her down. With her head tucked in his shoulder, the somber cries she whimpered broke his heart as they walked into the apartment. At first they sat on the couch and he ran his hand over her damp hair till it air-dried, forgetting that it was in the middle of the night and all of you needed to go to bed.

“Daddy, can you sleep with me? Please.” Summer asked, her voice so innocent and tired.

“Of course. Of course…” Tom trailed, kissing her temple and rubbing her back. His tears wouldn’t stop either, trailing down his cheeks as he continued to embrace her while they sat together.

They were parted for a month, but it felt like years to them.

“I’m gonna warm up some clothes for her and give her bath, okay?” You put your hand on Tom’s shoulder, rubbing it as he nodded in response.

Summer instantly attached to you when you pulled her away from Tom, uncoiling her arms from his touch and she held you like she was hanging in mid-air. You carried her to the bathroom, closing the door behind the two of you. After wrapping her casted arm in saran wrap and a plastic bag, you helped her get in the bath then shampooed her hair gently and gave her rag to wash up.

She was getting older now, wanting to already be more independent, but you wanted to make sure she didn’t drown if she fell asleep or hit her head on the side of the tub. With her small eyes heavy and body like jello, you were careful with her as she yawned every two minutes. Her sniffling made your heart tremble, but you’re relieved that she just had your number and was able to call. You admired how smart she was and couldn’t believe she was growing up so fast.

After warming her favorite pajamas in the dryer, you helped her change in her bedroom and combed through her wet hair with a comb. She was sat on the bed, but her eyes kept fluttering at the relaxing feeling of the brush massaging against her scalp. Putting some fuzzy socks on her feet, you tucked her into bed. The whole time, Tom had to stay in the living room trying to compose himself, his hands pressed against his temples and his head down.

You carefully closed Summer’s door, but not all the way, just so the hall light didn’t peak in. When you walked over and saw Tom, you slowly approached him and squated down to be face to face with him. Tom had his hands on his face, still unable to process everything that happened. His clothes were soaked and his hair was wet, but you still ran your hands through it to comfort him.

“Hey… she’s okay. She’s already asleep.” You reassured him, placing your hand on his knee.

Tom lifted his head, his eyes were red around the waterline and the whites of them were bloodshot. Your thumb gently ran on his tinted cheek, sealing your lips as you waited for him to say anything.

“I don’t know what to do.” He sniffed, running his hand over his wet curls, slicking them back.

Your eyes glossed, “What do you mean? Tom, she’s back home.”

Tom sniffled, his wrist against his nose to rub off his tears and his hand trembling, “Yeah, but, w-what if this isn’t enough? What if she… is taken again? What happens then?” His breath shaky, already overwhelmed.

Your heart kept breaking, seeing him fall even more apart. “You got her, she’s here now. There’s nothing else you need to do other than go in there because all she wants right now is her dad. Okay?” You softly told him, running your hand along his knee.

“I just can’t lose her again.”

You shook your head, “No, no, You won’t. You won’t and I’ll tell you that a thousand times more. You love her and no matter what happens, you’re gonna find a way. We’re gonna find a way.”

Tom nodded, your foreheads gently pressed together before you cupped his cheek, your lips trembling as they planted a light kiss on his nose and trailed to his lips. You felt Tom’s hand place on the back of your hair, raking his fingers through it as you nuzzled your face into his neck with your arms wrapped around him. Both of you sniffled, complete messes, but you had to pull yourselves together for Summer and be there for her now that she was home.

“Get changed then get some sleep, okay?” You told him, getting back on your feet and reaching a hand out to him. After he lifted up on his feet, you playfully pushed his back as he started walking away. A sigh of relief left your lips as you plopped on the couch, taking some time to come down from the adrenaline as well. It could be compared to the end of a classic symphony, when the cymbals rhythmic banging and high notes of the violins all come to a halt followed by the final boom of the drums. It was all over.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜

The warm sunshine beamed against the pale yellow walls of Summer’s room when you peaked in. You glared at the two of them in their still slumber, not wanting to disturb them this early so you carefully closed the door. You held the doorknob to the left, slowly letting it go until you heard the click of the the bolt.

Tom wasn’t able to tell you the conversation last night between him and Maggie, but it didn’t feel important since he was able to have Summer back. While you spited her and wanted to hate her, you didn’t want to butt your life into his past. You knew that if it really bothered Tom, he would tell you, but all that mattered was that your girl was home and you both couldn’t have been happier about it.

An hour later, Tom appeared from the bedroom with Summer on his hip. With her head rested on his shoulder and a pout on her lips, you chuckled as you admired their mirrored, tired expressions.

“The resemblance is uncanny.” You jeered, leaning with your back toward the counter with a cup of tea in your hands.

Tom’s lazy smile was angelic, a half-grin on his lips before he pressed a soft kiss against your temple.

“Good morning, babe.” He said in a groggy tone.

“Morning.” You grinned, smiling and running your hand gently over the top of Summer’s hair, “She must be exhausted. We’re you both able to sleep at all last night?”

“Yeah, but I think she can skip school today. I’ll call in a few minutes... I wanna stay here for the rest of the day with her or at least, until I have work.” Tom said at a whisper, setting Summer on the couch and she stirred in her light sleep. He placed the blanket on the arm of the sofa over her body, tucking it between her and the couch to keep her warm.

“I think that’s great. It was a long night for her.” You sighed as Tom walked back over to you, “God, I can’t get her voice out of my head when I heard her on the phone... When she asked for us to come pick her up, I panicked and I just-”

“You did the right thing, babe. I got it all taken care of… well, at least a bit right now… Crap, I almost forget, I have to make sure her follow up appointment for her arm is next Wednesday.” Tom comforted you, rubbing your shoulders before his hands cupped your face. He left another kiss on the center of your forehead before he sat at the kitchen table. You set a cup of tea infront of him and he wrapped his hand around the mug handle, bringing it to his lips and the strong scent of lemon waking him up.

You placed your cup on the counter, wrapping your arms around Tom’s neck from behind, still stood while he relaxed his back against the chair.

“Is your dad gonna call later?” You asked him, kissing the top of his head and laying your cheek against his hair.

He nodded as he took another sip, “Yeah, we’re gonna talk about the lawyer stuff. Maybe I can ask him what I can do about… Summer and dealing with custody.” Tom said, a bit unsure with a furrowed brow.

His hand gently came up, rubbing your forearm as you still had your arms around him. His thumb smoothly ran over your soft skin as you leaned your head down, pressing a kiss on his cheek.

“We’ll figure it all out.” You whispered against his ear, “And if all else fails, we’ll move to Europe and change our identities.”

Tom’s chuckle erupted, his smile gleaming as he bought the palm of your hand up to kiss.

“You know, I need your jokes sometimes. Just to realize how much you hold me down.” Tom jeered, but meant what he said.

As you unwound your arms from him, your hand ran across his shoulders before you looked down at him and tilted his chin up. Everything about him was taken with time, his eyes were a beautiful shade of brown and the features in his face were carved in perfectly. You loved the crinkles by his eyes when he smiled wide or laughed hard, remembering it was one of the reasons you loved to make him laugh.

“I’m gonna take a quick shower. Ready to be back in dad mode?” You grinned, rubbing his back.

“As much as I can be.”

With that, you turned around and his eyes followed you down the hall. From the way you stood on your tippy toes to reach the top shelf for linens and how you put your tongue between your lips, he could list a million different reasons to be in love with you. He couldn’t have found a fatal flaw other than being too nice when it wasn’t necessary. You had so much love to give and Tom had known that since you were kids, thinking about the times you left animal crackers by the weeping willow by the playground at school. You’d hope the fun-shaped crackers would give it some nutrients, making it not be sad anymore and Tom, only nine years old, didn’t have the heart to tell you that squirrels would steal them.

That attitude hadn’t changed as you got older, always seeing you pull through your worst and most stressful times. Especially throughout college, Tom had tried to be as much as he could to be your best friend without letting his feelings shift platonic affection. He didn’t expect you to stay around much when Summer appeared on his doorstep, wondering if you would push away from the sudden commitment he took on. But, he laid down one day and realized it wasn’t like you to keep your distance when something this drastic happened. What he didn’t know is that you were all in from the start. Since the day you met until right here and right now, you weren’t leaving each other no matter what or who tried to come between you.

As Tom finished his tea and you were in the shower, Summer slowly stirred out of her sleep and got up from the couch. In her matching, lavender pajamas, she pushed her hair out of her face before walking up to Tom. He chuckled at her lazy daze, but he opened his arms and she crawled into them to sit on his lap.

“Good morning, sleepyhead.” He chuckled, kissing her temple repeatedly.

“Good morning, daddy.” She mumbled and wiped her eyes with the back of her non-casted hand.

“What are we feeling this morning? Cereal? Pancakes? Maybe that oatmeal you like, the cinnamon and apples flavor?” Tom asked her, wanting to spoil her with anything he could.

“Can I have pears with cinnamon, please?” Summer asked, looking into her father’s eyes.

Tom lifted her as he stood up, “Of course, you can. Whatever your little heart desires.” He smiled, placing her in the chair and kissing the top of her messy hair.

When he walked over to the fruit bowl by the corner of the kitchen counter, Summer shifted to sitting on her knees with her elbows against the table so she could watch Tom make her breakfast.

“Daddy?” She asked, her voice so benevolent.

“Yes?” Tom replied with his back still toward her.

“Do I have to go back there? To the lady’s house? Because… I don’t wanna go back there. That lady was mean and I didn’t like her.” She summarized, tracing her short and tiny fingers along the wood of the kitchen table.

Tom turned around, pausing his chopping and he didn’t know what to say in the first few seconds.

“You never have to go back there unless you want to, okay? I promise you. We keep our promises, remember?” Tom reminded her with a soft tone.

“You promised I didn’t have to stay there, but you left me there.” She pouted, not making eye contact with him.

A chill ran up his spine, this conversation worrying him since the day he dropped her off and made that unforeseen promise. The first promise he didn’t know he would break. He didn’t want to lie to her, but even with the sake of that being for Maggie’s benefit, he still knew he lied. Tom presumed Summer would forget that he promised not to leave her there, remembering how assured she was it was just a weekend, but it had been a month and Tom wondered what went through her mind now.

“I know, sweetheart… but, I promise. You’re here for good.” Tom walked back over and she finally looked up at him, her eyes glassy.

“Okay, daddy.” She muttered, but he had to hug her. He didn’t know why, but he didn’t want to second guess everything and get too comfortable before something worse could happen.

“I love you, kid.” Tom said, kissing the top of her head again.

After Tom gave Summer her breakfast, she could barely keep her head up to bring the fork to her mouth. He knew she was overtired from the night before, so he brought her back to the couch to rest and leave on some cartoons at a low volume. He laid down too, of course, her on top of him and her head was against his chest. Oddly, she laid flat against him and she was stiff as a board, her hair in her face and her mouth slightly gapped. A few times she’d twitch in her sleep and it made Tom nervous, thinking something was wrong, but it was his heightened protectiveness and he knew he couldn’t keep remaining on edge about her being taken away again. It was hard to not think that now, but Tom knew once she got used to the feeling of home again, everything will go back to normal. Blood or not, she was his daughter and he was her father and no one could take that away from them.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜

A few hours pass and Tom expected a call from his dad any second so, he suggested that you and Summer go out for a bit to avoid the conversation. After she got dressed and you put on her jacket, the two of you got your shoes on by the door. Summer sat on the ground, grabbing the black and white converses off the shoe rack and carefully used the bunny ears technique on her laces.

“Loop… loop and pull.” She mumbled, pulling at the thread coils.

As you slipped on your sneakers, Tom walked out from the bathroom and smiled at Summer sat, her face contorting as she concentrated on the knot.

“Daddy, look, I did it!”

“Good job, kid!” He chuckled, helping her on her feet, “So, did you and Y/N find out what you’re gonna do?”

“We’re gonna see the duckies!” She giggled and you nodded to her statement.

“Ah, sounds like fun. I wish I could come, but maybe this weekend. We can go after your doctor’s appointment.” Tom proposed and Summer nodded frantically, her hair bouncing and moving around.

You grinned, “Alright, we’re gonna go. You need anything while we’re out?”

Tom’s eyes gleamed at the sight of your smile, “No, I’m good.”

“Okay, We’ll see you soon.” You grin, giving him a light kiss.

Summer giggled to herself before she grabbed your hand, leading the way out the door. Tom chuckled before he shut the door behind you and he sighed, starting to feel the pieces fall back together. Throughout the time Summer was away, he didn’t realize in the moment how you stayed. It was just that simple and even imagining the future, he saw your face. Everything between you two had lead up to this moment and he knew it in his heart that there was a reason for something bringing the both of you together. He wasn’t sure if the feeling was mutual or he’d let too many movies get to his head, but somehow fate seemed in his favor. He wished he could have changed some things to please others with the bridges he’s burnt through his life and with his family, but he wouldn’t change his entire life if it didn’t have you or Summer in it.

As you strolled to the park, you couldn’t stop smiling as you talked to Summer. She went on about how she wanted to make Christmas cookies already and how many people had signed her cast, almost no room to even squeeze in another. She was an extrovert by heart, just like her dad and how charismatic he could be once he opens up. You held her hand when you crossed streets and you followed her close when you wondered around the market to get the bread to feed the ducks. After checking out, you two walked to your favorite park, the one she missed so much, to the bench you always sat at that was a few feet away from the pond.

“That one’s name is… Marty.” She said, squatting by the edge of the grass.

You were sat in the grass with your legs crossed, “And that one’s name?” You pointed to the duck with a white tail.

“...Allen.” She giggled, tossing another piece of bread in the water.

You chuckled, “And which one is your favorite?”

“I like Dorothy and Duke because they’re a couple.” She said as she ripped up another piece of bread.

“How do you know they’re together?”

“Because they kiss sometimes. They love each other, just like you and daddy.” Summer replied, looking at the bread as she bunched it up and threw it in the water.

A heat rose to your cheeks, “I guess you’re right.” You chuckled a bit as you watched her keep throwing the bread, watching the ducks swoop it up with their beaks as they passed by.

She turned to you, “Y/N.”

“Summer.” You smiled.

“Are you and my daddy gonna get married? You guys kiss now and people who get married kiss too.” She said in her explanation of what love was to her.

“Well… We’re together now, but we’re not getting married.” You tried to explain in a soft tone, wanting her to understand.

“But, I want you to be my mommy.” She squinted her eyes looking toward you because the sun was in her eyes, her nose scrunched as well.

You sighed, “I’m your best friend and I’m always gonna be here for you.” You could promise her that much, but you didn’t want to say what you really thought, not wanting her to get an permanent image in her head.

She pouted, but didn’t respond at first. It’s like she was gathering her thoughts together before saying what was on her mind.

“I hate that lady I stayed with. She was mean and didn’t tell me bedtime stories.” She mumbled as she sat with you, gently pulling at the grass.

You nodded, “You don’t hate her.”

“I did! She was mean. She’s not my mommy. She’s like the evil queen in Snow White.” She protested, her eyes widening as her voice emphasized.

“Summer, she’s your mom.” You sighed.

“Cinderella’s mommy was mean.” She pointed out.

It almost made you chuckle at how persistent she was, but nevertheless, you told her, “Well, you don’t have to see her until you want to, okay? Your dad isn’t gonna let that happen again, neither will I.”

Summer got up, pushing her hands against the grass before she moved closer to you. She rested her head against your shoulder as she coiled her arm around yours, holding you tight as the two of you watched the ducks float by, some of them swimming alongside their ducklings. The light breeze kept you cool, blowing your hair out of your face, and the kids laughing as they ran around.

Meanwhile, Tom was pacing the kitchen with his phone practically glued to his ear. His dad told him about his options, laying out the routes they could take for this settlement to be as easy as it could be without there being any loopholes. With Tom’s bruises healing, he still had to go to follow up appointments for his concussion and his dad thinks it’s enough to let Tom be heard by the judge.

His court appearance was coming up, but Tom’s dad would come with him to make sure everything went as they were planning. It was nice to feel connected to his dad again, maybe not under these circumstances, but he felt supported again and maybe he was all this time. Tom’s anger had masked that his dad did genuinely care for him, it was his stepmom’s doing that wedged them apart and Tom was still trying to figure out how to deal with her, but he wanted to maintain his relationship with his dad as well as try to mend the shifty one with his mom.

“So, we’ll meet at the courthouse on the 20th, 10a.m.” Tom stated.

His dad nodded, “Sounds good to me.”

Tom chuckled, “Thanks so much… for everything.”

“I’m your dad, you don’t have to thank me. If you did, it would be your first words.” His dad jeered, sitting back in his office chair.

“Yeah…” Tom trailed, “Hey, are you guys doing… anything big for Thanksgiving?”

His dad was surprised, his eyebrows raised as he replied, “Uh, yeah. Have a few friends over, maybe your uncle Ted and Aunt Lorriane. There’s always room for more.” His dad smiled.

“Well, I was thinking that, maybe, me and Y/N came come… and Summer, of course.” Tom gulped, tucking his hand under his other arm as he leaned against the counter.

“Yeah, we’d love to have you. Of course, we’d love to have you.” His dad was surprised by how open-minded Tom was becoming.

“I think it would be great after… all this. You know? And I want you guys to meet Y/N.” Tom shrugged.

“We’d love that too… how are things with her after everything?” Tom’s dad followed up, smiling to himself.

Tom bit his bottom lip, “She’s been so… supportive. It’s crazy how supportive she’s been… I don’t think I could have gotten through all of this without her. She’s always been there for Summer and… I think I want her in my life forever.” He chuckled, finally admitting it out loud and even surprising himself.

Tom’s dad chuckled, “You sound pretty serious.”

“I really am… I’m gushing, but I don’t think I could have gotten through any of this if I didn’t have her.” Tom trailed, tracing his finger along the table.

“Well it’s nice to have someone have your back through something tough like this and she’s a nice girl… and Summer is comfortable with her?”

“Yeah, they’re actually hanging out at the park right now.”

His dad smiled to himself for a few seconds, turning in his chair to face his desk, “I remember when your mom and I met, it was the year before you were born.

Tom arched his eyebrow, “Wow, you guys got married that… fast?”

“Yeah, yeah. I took the morning train to this internship I had in Massachusetts. When I had to get home, she worked at the ticketing booth for a few weeks, but I thought she was cute so… instead of getting one of those reusable cards, I just went to her every night for the train back home. I didn’t have the heart to tell her that I kept asking for a ticket that went the opposite way of where I actually lived.”

“Sappy.” Tom chuckled, surprised and not knowing this. He realized he never really asked since his parents had been separated more years than they were together.

“Once I told her, we went on a few dates, I got a card and… we got married six months later, I think. Then, we had you less than a year later.”

“But, didn’t you guys… miss out on just being in your twenties?” Tom replied, biting the inside of his cheek.

His dad shrugged, the memories all surging in at once, “Well, we knew we loved each other… at the time. We would have rather gotten married then and figured out if we were meant to be than to not do it at all, I guess… and we got a great kid out of it.”

A smile curled up on Tom’s lips, surprised by how his dad felt about his mom or at least how they used to feel about one another. He always imagined that they lived an ordinary lives, pretending that they used to be in love when they don’t talk unless it’s through Tom. He knew there was probably more to their story, but from what he just heard now, Tom believed that there’s a reason for you in his life more than co-parenting or being his best friend. There’s a reason why you’re still together throughout all this. Why it took so long to realize that he loved you more than “just platonic”. You had faith in each other.

“I’m sure your mom remembers it more than me, but we had fun.” His dad added, clicking his pen.

“Yeah, I should probably call her soon. I don’t even know where she is.”

“Paris… I talked to her the other day about the whole… well, your situation and I didn’t want to say anything but, she was thinking of surprising you... She wanted to take time off because of what I told her..” Tom’s dad spilled.

Tom felt his face heart up from the sudden announcement, “Well, that’s mom.”

“She’ll be excited to know everything’s going okay, I’m sure.”

Tom smiled, “Yeah… everything’s perfect.”

After the lengthy conversation Tom had with his dad, they eventually hung up and there was a silence that fell in the apartment. Instead of feeling the loneliness he did for those few weeks, he was anticipated for you two to come home and all three of you could have dinner, maybe talk about what your plans were for Thanksgiving and Christmas. There was so much he looked forward to now, even more so now that he was assured that you were the one for him, but he was scared that there was some chance he wasn’t the one for you. It’s not like favors worked for him through life, so it was easy to be skeptical about this, but all that mattered was the risk of taking a shot and trying not to let the universe get to him.

His wandering thoughts paused when the front door unlocked, already seeing Summer slipping through and she practically jumped into Tom’s arms while he was still sat down. She crawled on top of him and she wrapped her arms around his neck, his arms wrapped around her as well.

“How was the park?” He chuckled, glancing at you coming in.

You set your purse and Summer’s backpack on the wall hooks, “Good, saw the duckies and even some turtles… and we named each one of them.” You grinned, walking over and leaning against the counter.

“You should have come, daddy! There were so many!” Summer giggled, her loose tooth crooked on the front, bottom teeth.

“Ah, well, they’ll be there tomorrow and the day after that and even the day after that. We can go next week too, kid.” He grinned and she hugged him tight, leaning on him and their faces pressed together. Tom felt the instant warmth Summer radiated, even if it was cold outside.

“Promise?” She asked.

“Pinky swear.” He said, holding out his hand with his fingers tucked into his hand with just his pinky out.

She held hers out, carefully wrapping it around his and he chuckled, giving her a quick eskimo kiss before Summer crawled off of him.

“Hey, why don’t you wash your hands… make sure you don’t get water in the cast. Then, we can have an early dinner in front of the TV. How does that sound?” Tom suggested and you nodded in agreement.

“Okay, daddy.” Summer nodded back, her eyes sparkling and she took off into the bathroom. You two heard her take the stool out, the wood shifting against the tiled bathroom before the sink turned on.

Tom turned to you as he got up, a warm smile painted on his lips as he stood toe to toe with you.

“Why are you smiling so much? Good news, I assume.” You grinned, crossing your arms and leaning more against the counter.

“I can’t smile at my beautiful and lovely girlfriend?” Tom swooned.

As you wrapped your arms around his neck, he ran his hands down your side before placing them on your hips. You couldn’t hide your smile either, leaning in without thinking twice about it and brushing your nose against his. As your lips pressed together, slowly and tenderly, his hands slid into the back pockets of your jeans to pull you closer. It wasn’t a passionate kiss, nothing too harsh, but you could feel his warmth curling around you, squeezing your body gently and feeling this instant sense of complete comfortable.

You giggled against his lips, pulling away and he slightly tilted his head, moving your stray hair behind your ear to see your face. The two of you didn’t need words when every piece seemed to be falling back into place.

“Okay, my hands are clean!” Summer yelled from the bathroom, making you two break your kiss with more laughter. She ran from the bathroom and into the kitchen, running up to Tom and leaning on his leg.

Tom smiled as he leaned down, wrapping his arm around Summer’s torso and pulled her up as if she weighed like nothing. Her giggles sent him happiness, ever since she was a baby and could only wrap her hand around his finger. She sat on his hip, coiled around her dad like adhesive and you couldn’t help but grin and rub her back.

“Can we have mac and cheese?” She asked Tom.

“You can have whatever your little heart desires, kid.” Tom kissed her temple, setting her back down.

“Really?”

“Really, really.” Tom promised, his hand tickling her stomach and a warm burst of laugh left her mouth.

Her sneakers touched the floor, watching her run to the cabinet with the pots and pans. As you watched them collect what they needed to start dinner, their voices seemed to fade away, like they were in another room and a wall stood tall between. A muffling to their tones as they stood in front of the stove, but you leaned by the kitchen door frame with your arms crossed. You were happy, more than over the moon to see Summer back where she belonged, but how long would it be until another conflict arose? What if Tom couldn’t claim custody… would he crumble again and you would have to help him pick up the pieces all over again? If he wasn’t her biological father, where did that leave you? You wanted what was best for the both of them, but you didn’t want it to lead to arguments and more confusion for her if she couldn’t even stand her own mother.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜

Tossing and turning, the mattress creaked beneath you while trying to fall asleep. Your brows furrowed, trying to settle your head into the pillow but it was like trying to slumber on a rocky sea. You laid your back flat once you gave up, staring at the ceiling with the strip of light from the streetlight outside. It’s like you could hear anything from a five-mile radius, suddenly you picked up on the tiniest sound and it was like someone poking your neck with a needle. Trying to drown out the noises, you heard the deadbolt unlock from the creak you left in the door. You felt frozen, hearing the keys drop on the table by the door.

Tom sighed, a long breath passing his lips as he run his hands through soft, brown curls. The clock on the wall told 2:45 a.m., not expecting to stay out this late, but he was making such good tips that it would have been silly to leave. As he entered the bedroom, his tired brown eyes laid on you, under the covers. His hand dug into his back pocket, pulling out the wad of dollar bills and placing them on the dresser.

You still closed your eyes, hearing his belt buckle unclip and the dressers open, his hands rummaging through some of his clothes. You wondered if you should say something, anything, knowing your mind was filled to the brim with thoughts, enough that it couldn’t let you go to sleep.

The weight lifted off Tom’s sore feet, his body sinking into the bed as he carefully shifted himself under the covers, trying not to wake you. With your back turned to him, Tom got comfortable and warm with the duvet insulating him, moving his hands under his head. Silence fell in the room, nothing but the crickets chirping in the night.

You slowly turned on your other side, facing Tom with your face snug against your pillow. Seeing him made you forget all of those heavy thoughts, the ones about him and your future, but you couldn’t just make it go away from the sight of his pretty eyes.

“Hey, sorry, did I wake you?” His voice groggy.

“No, I’ve been up for a while..” You trailed, your hands by your chest.

“What’s keeping you up?”

Tom turned on his side, his hand against his head as his elbow pushed into the pillow.

You sighed, “You know I love you, right?” You sealed your lips, trying to keep eye contact with him.

He chuckled, crinkles by the sides of his eyes, “I love you too… What’s going on?”

Tom’s fingers moved your hair from your forehead, his hand planting to your cheek and his thumb brushing against your cheek, “What’s going through your head, babe?” He asked, his voice always comforting.

You placed your hand on top of his, moving your intertwined hands to your chest, “Whatever happens with Summer, I want you to know that… I’m there for you. I know I’ve said it a million times before, but… I’m not her mom. I’m her best-friend… but, I don’t know if I can be a mom.” You trailed, squeezing his hand.

“But, you’re practically-”

“I’m not. At the end of the day, I’ve helped you.. I’ve done everything I can for her. But, you’re her father. Even if the papers don’t say it, deep down and full-heartedly, you’re her father, but… she has a mom.”

Tom gave your hand a squeeze, “You want me to keep Maggie in Summer’s life?... No, no way. She didn’t care for her until now and it was all because she was selfish.”

“Exactly. I know you don’t see it now but, she needs to have some connection to her mom. If it doesn’t work out that way then… that’s fair. I think things just got off the wrong foot the more I think about it. I mean, what if I’m not enough and-”

“Hey, hey… you are enough. You’re more than enough.” Tom said, his tone soft.

You barely grimaced, still holding his hand as if he was slipping through your fingers. Suddenly, everything went quiet and it was just the two of you in your own little world. His hand securely locked yours and was against your chest, feeling your heart pound for the first few seconds until it went back to its steady beat.

“One day at a time. You and me.” Tom promised.

You replied with a nod and Tom kissed the center of your forehead, trailing to your nose before you shifted closer to him and curled up to embrace the warmness between your bodies. His arm moved behind your neck and around your shoulder, like being in a safety net.

For a few minutes, his fingers slowly carded through the back of your hair, a relaxing comfort as you fell into a deep sleep with knowing you were protected in his arms. Tom stayed up longer than he should have, watching the red-lit minutes change on the clock by his bedside, but he wanted to make sure you were asleep because you needed the rest. A few times, you’d nuzzle your face against his chest, shifting your arms around him and he adjusted his grip around you with the shift of your position.

“I love you.” He whispered, even though he knew you were asleep.

It wasn’t so scary to say out loud anymore. He was so happy about it, he lazily smiled while his eyes began to feel heavy and they fluttered as he also fell asleep right next to you. For once, his world truly was at peace and looking up. The grin on his face lost the tension on the corners of his mouth, light snores between the two of you. Until, he suddenly jolted out of his slumber when there was a light touch on his back shoulder.

Tom shot his head up, a quick breath through his nose before his eyes adjusted to the darkness. He saw Summer standing by his bed, her hair in a bun with her fly-aways highlighted from the streetlight coming in from the window behind her. Just like her dad, she had the same exhausted look on her small face and all she wanted was to be with him. As much as she thought she wanted to be on her own, her thinking six was practically grown, Summer couldn’t deny she was a daddy’s girl.

“Daddy…” She whispered.

“W-What’s wrong, sweetheart?” Tom cleared his throat, carefully leaning over to the other side of the bed.

“Can I sleep with you and Y/N? I had a bad dream...” Summer maintained her whisper.

“Of course… hop in. Get between us.”

Summer pulled herself up, crawling over Tom as he pulled down the covers between the two of you. Your sleep was deep enough that you didn’t budge but, Summer still slid in carefully and faced toward Tom. He wrapped his arm around her, facing her and you and he realized how long it had passed since that’d done this. He knew his days of checking for monsters in the closet and under the bed would run up soon, as well as walking her up to school and holding her hand. The more he thought about how much he cared about her, the less the paternity test meant to him. It couldn’t erase all the memories they’ve made and the hardships they faced. Moments like this were the reason he was her father, not some test.

Of course, he was filled with anxieties and dread that she would push away if he told her the truth, but he couldn’t worry about that now because she was and will always be his family. He’d rather him than a deadbeat be her father, happy to protect her from the evil and bad and there to sing her a lullaby if the night seemed to dark and mysterious, filled with make believe beings that she thought were so real or even holding her hand tight as she stepped over cracks on the sidewalk. Happy, sad, angry, sick, anything, Tom wanted to be there for every moment and even when she has her own family.

The thought of her growing up in the blink of an eye could make him tear up when she fit so perfectly in his arms, so small and delicate and more than ready to see the world even though Tom thought the world wasn’t ready fo her.

“Daddy, too tight.” She warned, her voice muffled in his chest.

“Sorry.” He chuckled, kissing the top of her head.

A few hours later, the sun slowly rose over the horizon and shined through the windows by each side of the bed. The birds chirped, some landing on the fire escape outside, while the cars drove on the street below along with occasional dogs barking from passing one another.

As you moved your face against the pillow, your eyes fluttered open as a small smile curled up on your tired face. Waking up to the sight of Summer asleep on top of Tom was something you could get used to. You reached out, running your hand over her back before pushing her hair out of her face. Her cheek was against his chest, making her lips a bit pursed and eyebrows rested. You leaned your head against Tom’s shoulder, nuzzling your face into his neck and giving him a light kiss on the start of his jaw.

After a few minutes, Tom stirred out of his sleep, comfortable when he woke up next to his two girls. You lifted your head to look at him, smiling with both of you sharing lazy glances.

“Good morning… How’d you sleep?” You asked him, low enough to not wake Summer.

“Perfect.” Tom grinned, leaning in to kiss your forehead.

The morning went by quickly and the next moment, the three of you were in the car and driving to Summer’s school. Tom’s knuckles were practically snow white from how tight he was gripping the stirring wheel and his back straight against the seat as if he were being tailed by someone but the roads were mostly empty.

His jaw clenched, a nervousness building up in his gut the closer he got to the school. When Tom eventually stopped at a red light, you cautiously placed your hand on his leg, “Why are you so anxious, baby?” You asked, watching him place his hand on top of yours.

“I’m not, just tired.” He faked a grin, giving your hand a light squeeze.

You tilted your head, “Really?”

Tom’s eyes moved to the rearview mirror, glancing at Summer with her headphones on, flattening the top of her hair, as she played with her iPad.

He turned to you, “Just like having her back is all.”

But you knew he was scared about having to let her go for a few hours. It may have felt overreactive, but Tom thought if it could happen once, the idea of a second time easily creeped its way up in his head.

Your eyes glossed, “Nothing bad is gonna happen, okay? Trust me, I don’t think we’ll let anyone take our girl unless they kill us over it… not to be completely dramatic.” You joked, just to see him smile.

Even though you felt like a bit of a broken record, but you didn’t blame him for worrying. What Maggie did was unforgivable, leaving Tom with an anxiety in his chest like no other, but all you could do was be there for him and remind him that abandonment wasn’t around the corner. You had to keep him hopeful, almost making Tom himself feel guilty for constantly being on his toes, but he knew you were his anchor to keep him from drifting away to drown in his own doubts.

“Thanks.” He said, glancing down at your hands.

When you got to school, you waited in the car while Tom walked Summer to the front door. Some of the parents wondered where he went, but they passed by with their friendly greetings before the two of them got to the sidewalk.

Tom kneeled down, “You have your lunch?”

“Yes.” Summer nodded.

“Water? Books? Everything you need?” He fixed the collar of her t-shirt.

“Yes, daddy.” She giggled, thinking he was acting silly.

He cracked a smile, “Okay. I’ll see you after school and maybe you can show me the duckies.”

Summer nodded with excitement, giving Tom a quick hug and his hand held hers for a few seconds until it slipped through his fingers. She ran up to the teacher escorting the kids in as he got back on his feet, his eyes not leaving her till Summer turned back around by the door frame and gave a quick wave.

Just seeing that reminded him of living in the moment now is what was important. Not the past, not the future, just being there to see her beautiful smile.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜

The courthouse’s walls felt like they were closing in even though the ceilings were high and the halls were grand. Well-dressed people passed by with their phones glued to their ears and others pressed tissues to their eyes, holding them to catch their tears and mascara. Sounds of heels clicked against the granite floors, loudly echoing as they sauntered by you and Tom.

“Hey, it’s gonna go okay. There’s no way they won’t give you any compensation.” You reassured him, adjusting his black tie and laying it flat against his white button up.

“Yeah, I know. It’s just kind of loud in here… and hot.” Tom looked down, rubbing the back of his neck.

You knew it was because his dad wasn’t here yet. It meant a lot to him, even if he didn’t want to admit it, but if there was some chance of it happening, you had to keep him cheery. You moved your hands down the front of his suit jacket, brushing off anything, but you looked back into his eyes.

“Hey… Tommy, look at me.” You softly asked. It was something you said to him often, trying to remind him that you were there completely. He just needed a bit of a reminder sometimes that he didn’t have to be alone in everything.

Tom glanced up at you, those brown eyes glimmering. Your glance shifted to the light bruise faded under his eye along with the scar by his cheek, almost gone but you knew it left more than a scar for him. It was just a reminder of the hardest and most confusing time of his life, maybe, but this was all you assumed. He never knew what was going through Tom’s head as equally as knowing just from the look on his face or in his eyes. Just like right now.

“It’s gonna be fine and you don’t even need to say much. That’s why we have lawyers.” You grinned, a giggle following and he cracked a smile back.

“I love you, you know that?” He asked.

You stood close to him, your heads angled at one another, “I love you too.”

Before you could say something else, you both Tom’s dad’s voice which made you turn around to the hall behind you. His dad walked up with his lawyer, obviously both of them close from how they smiled and chuckled from their conversation. Tom said his dad knew him for a long time, even helping with the separation of his parents a few years ago. Tom thought if his dad trusted this guy enough, so could he.

“Hey son, you look good.” His dad smiled, giving you and Tom quick hugs before both of you shook hands with the lawyer.

“Y/N, this is Joseph, Tom’s lawyer today.”

“It’s nice to meet you. Make sure you keep him sane.” You jeered.

“He’ll be fine.” Joseph grinned, patting Tom’s shoulder.

Tom sealed his lips, then the corners of his mouth lifting up to quickly smile. You grinned back, rubbing his back before kissing his cheek.

“We’ll be waiting out here.” Tom’s dad told him.

It wasn’t easy watching him go in without you even though you’d just spent a few minutes calming him down. You didn’t think this wouldn’t fall through, still grateful he wasn’t more hurt from this, but you didn’t know what would come after this. His fingers slipped away from yours, your stomach dropped and goosebumps ran over your skin as if a chill suddenly blew in. Hiding your distress, all you could do was sit on the bench and wait for him.

“He’ll be okay in there. There’s no question.” His dad assured you, seeing the same details in his face as Tom does like the crinkles by his eyes or the freckles along his nose.

“Thanks. I don’t know why I’m nervous.” You shrugged, crossing your leg over the other.

“You guys have been through a lot. But, this should make things smooth over for a bit while you get back on your feet.”

You nodded, “I was scared because he’s the most stable person I know, but after these past weeks? I had never seen him fall apart so quickly.”

“Well, he told me you helped him throughout that.”

You chuckled, “We help each other. I don’t know what I’d do without him either.”

“That just shows you guys care about each other. Won’t leave each other hanging… You need that right now more than anything.” Tom’s dad spoke from his experiences with his past marriage, happy to hear that his son was not only being supportive, but also being supported by someone who obviously loved him.

You sniffled, “We really do… I’ve been having to take him to his… concussion appointments and they put him in this big machine and make him do all these tests and…” You nodded, “I was already thinking of what the next step was if something bad happened. I mean, luckily, everything has been fine… I guess it’s just assuming something else can hit us while we’re already down… but, I’m okay because I know we have each other’s backs.”

He wasn’t sure to impose, but his dad still reached out for your shoulder and gave a comforting rub. You appreciated it although you didn’t know Tom’s dad that well, you can see where he got his kindness and confidence from clear as day, just even the tone of his voice was similar that you knew Tom always admired his father despite their parted relationship recently.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜

After an hour or two, most of your time was spent people watching and observing them from where you sat, feeling like you couldn’t do much else. You tried not to pick at your nails or shake your leg, but you felt like you were itching out of your own skin from what was going on behind that thick door. A few times you thought it was opening, making you turn your head constantly at any noise from that way.

Finally, Tom walked out, his lawyer by his side, and his smile was bright which made you reflect one right back.

“I got the compensation.” He chuckled in relief, his arms around wrapping around you and lifting you off your feet.

Tears filled both your eyes, the small accomplishment feeling like a weight slowly being taken off your chest and giving you more hope for whatever came next.

Tom placed you back on your feet, leaning over to bear hug his dad and they shared a few chuckles.

“How much was it?” His dad asked.

“A little over $9,000. Enough to pay for some bills, Summer’s school, savings.” Tom trailed, wiping his tears with the side of his hand.

His dad grinned, “I’d say that’s a call for a little celebration for you two.”

“I agree.” Tom turned to you.

“Well, we’ll leave you two to have some fun. Y/N, it was nice to see you.” His dad grinned, giving you a quick embrace with your head on his shoulder.

“You too.”

“See you later, dad.” Tom gave a pat on his dad’s shoulder, nodding to the lawyer before the two of them walked away.

Your arm was wrapped around Tom’s waist tight as he kissed your temple, pulling you even closer. His smile painted on his lips and pressed another soft kiss to your cheek. You ran your hand over his chest, looking up at his caramel brown eyes.

“Since I’ve come into a bit of money, I think we should go on a date.” Tom grinned, biting his bottom lip to conceal how big his smile was.

You blushed, “You think?”

“Well, I mean, we should go on a date. You, me, a nice restaurant and maybe ice cream or whatever your sweet tooth is craving after.” He smiled.

“What about Summer?”

“I can cover it. My mom is gonna watch her while she’s in town. She’s said she has a lot of grandma time to make up for.” Tom chuckled and put his arm around you, pulling you closer to him.

“Well, as long as she’s willing to do it… I’m all in.” You giggled as you nuzzled your head against his shoulder.

“Thank God, I was scared that we were moving too fast.” He jeered back, kissing the top of your head once more.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜

After the drama had digested over the past few days, you could see how everything fell into place. At least, for a bit of time until the rent bill came up in your emails again. While you hadn’t spent much time at your apartment, it was seen as storage for your clothes when you’d been at Tom’s for the past two months with Summer. Even though you had been dating for that same amount of time, you didn’t know how to bring it up without feeling like you were rushing things.

Yes, you’d known each other than most couples you were friends with, but you had never been so scared to take the next step and actually moving in together. The thought of finally clashing your lives together and attempt to start another life made your heart skip a beat. These feelings couldn’t be ignored by how strong they were, probably building up after all these years, but you knew Tom had a responsibility of Summer and starting to adoption process.

You were nervous to bring the question up to Tom, wondering how it would pan out and not wanting to assume the worst would happen when you knew in the back of your head that you loved one another more than anything in the world, but nothing has come perfect to you.

As you turned the key in the lock, you pushed open the door, but the lights were all out. You furrowed your eyebrows before your hand searched the wall, finding the switch and flicking it on only to see a few decorations put up.

You froze when you saw red, yellow and white roses scattered around in vases along with plastic, white and pink balloons hanging around the ceiling and settled on the couch and chairs. At first, you wondered if you forget about an anniversary or birthday, but Tom walked out with Summer trailing him.

“Shoot… I didn’t know you were coming home early.” Tom chuckled while Summer ran up to you, wrapping her arms around your leg.

“What’s with the party decorations?” You smiled, glancing around.

Tom sighed, a light smile still on his face before he took your hand, guiding you over to the center of the living room. Heat rose to your cheeks, wondering what he was up to, but Summer stood by his side and she looked up at you with glassy eyes.

“Do you remember when we were younger... and you said the only way you’d want to be proposed to is in a rose garden?”

Your heart dropped, losing the feeling in your whole body as your smile faded, “...Possibly...”

Tom slowly got on one knee while reaching into his pocket, keeping eye contact with you as he lowered to the ground and the tears welled up in your eyes, thinking this was easily a dream.

“Well, I couldn’t find a close rose garden but, I hope this could suffice.” Tom smiled, his cheeks tinted pink.

Summer stood next to Tom, watching him open the small, black velvet box. The ring sat perfectly in the center of it, gleaming from the light coming down and you let out a relieved sigh with a smile on your lips. You quickly wiped your eyes, your bottom lip beginning to quiver as Tom took a deep breath to say his next words.

“I don’t want another few years to go by before I notice that… I was dumb for not doing something and that I love you so much. I want you to be in my life and I want to officially make our own… together forever. I want to love you everyday and a little bit after that.” He chuckled, a few tears trailing his cheeks, “So, Y/N, will you marry me?”

You sealed your lips, not able to hide your smile, but you turned to Summer.

“What do you think, Summer?” You jeered at her, both of you sharing smiles.

“Y/N, I want you to be my mommy.” She said sweetly.

You turned to Tom, beaming at him, both of your eyes filled with tears still, “That sounds great to me.”

He chuckled, gently taking the ring and slipping it on your finger before you practically pulled him up to his feet to embrace him. The tightness of the hug didn’t give you much air, but you didn’t care. Tom ran his fingers through the back of your hair, light laughs coming from the both of you and Summer tried to coil her arms around the both of you from how low she was.

The world finally was complete.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜

tags/taglist: @felicityparkers @dhtomholland @duskholland @sinisterspidey@itstaskeen @tomhollandsgirlfriend @bi-writes @infinite-imagination @honeyspidey @hollandcrush @sunsetholland @pparkersbitch @namoreno @calltothewild @spideyspeaches @veryholland @osterfieldshollandgirl @slutforsebstan @bi-lmg @sunshinepeterparkr @annathesillyfriend @madmadmilk @antigoneidk @hollandcreep @wierdflowerpower @heavenlyholland @determined-overthinker @white-wolf1940 @thexplosivegirl

#tom holland fic #tom holland x reader #tom holland imagine #tom holland x female!reader #tom holland series #tom holland fluff #dad!tom #bartender!tom

378 notes · View notes

idy-ll-ique · 3 years

Text

Cravings.

Pairing: Sam Wilson x F!Reader

Genre: Fluff overdose

Warnings: none

Requested: nope

based off this prompt

Summary: How Y/N's pregnancy cravings led to her becoming friends with Captain America, The White Wolf, The Scarlet Witch and Vision.

Author's Note: hiya peeps! i am in love with Sam Wilson. but like, who isn't? this is sort of an AU, but not really. takes place in phase 4 of mcu. enjoy!

masterlist

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Mm, that smells so good…

Y/N took in a deep breath as a sweet, sweet, tangy smell hit her nose. "You smell it, honey?" she cooed, cupping her bulging abdomen as her baby kicked once. Then the kicking increased and she groaned, heaving herself off the couch. "Baby, we can't have it, it's not our food. We already had dinner, sweet—" She whined when her baby kicked twice.

"Maybe they'll understand…?" she whispered to herself. Y/N was 8 months pregnant and lately, her cravings had been at an all time high. Every time she got a craving for something she couldn't have, the baby in her belly wouldn't stop kicking and she'd go to sleep upset, tired and hurt. And today, the baby wanted whatever the neighbors were cooking.

She wasn't really familiar with the neighbors; she liked keeping to herself, and with the addition of the baby and single parenthood, she didn't want to disturb anyone or break the peace. Soon, the kicking got really uncomfortable and Y/N grabbed a plate, walking out of the house. They'll understand, she told herself, they have to. If not then they're heartless cows.

"So, Wilson, you've got a nice apartment here, thought you were living with your sister and nephews at the docks," Bucky grinned, popping open a bottle of beer. "Moved out a couple weeks ago, didn't wanna intrude. Plus she has a boyfriend, it's getting kinda serious between them…" Sam chuckled, "Wanda, whatcha cookin? Smells really good!"

A very pregnant Wanda Maximoff walked out of the kitchen, a huge smile on her face. She was 7 months in with twins. "I'm cooking Borscht, it's a traditional Ukrainian recipe that I like very much. You're gonna love it," she gushed and Bucky raised his glass in mock toast. "Can't wait!" Just then, the bell rang. "I'll get it!" Sam shouted, walking up to the door.

He opened it and saw his neighbor standing there, holding an empty plate. Her head was downcast and she was squirming, fidgeting. Sam had seen her once or twice since he moved in; she was very much pregnant, and she liked keeping to herself so he never invaded her privacy. "Hi, how can I help ya?" He smiled at her. She got startled and looked up, opening her mouth.

Y/N was speechless. She already felt bad about asking her neighbor something like this and now he reveals himself to be this handsome?! "Hello…?" she snapped out of her thoughts and cleared her throat. "I— I'm sorry, I don't wanna intrude…" Bucky showed up behind Sam and she glanced at him, her eyes going wide.

"You have company, oh no, I'm sorry— not now, baby, let's just go—" she whispered, wincing and whimpering in pain when the baby started kicking again. Sam nodded his head towards Bucky who got the hint and left. He then walked outside and closed the door behind him, placing a hand on Y/N's shoulder. "Hey, you can ask me anything, what happened?"

"It's embarrassing…"

"Come on, sweetheart, I'm your neighbor! Sam, by the way, Sam Wilson." She gave him a timid smile. "Y/N Y/L/N. It's just… whatever you're cooking smells really nice and I got a craving; it's wrong, it's your food, your party and I'm intruding like an idiot, it's just— my baby gets really agitated when I don't get what I'm craving for and they kick all night, I'm so sorry—"

Sam grabbed both her shoulders, silencing her. "Don't be embarrassed by this. It's fine, you got a craving? I'll give you some of the food! Wanda, my friend who's cooking, is also 7 months pregnant, believe it or not. She'll be so happy to give you the food, it's a new recipe she's trying and the more people there to eat the better. Why don't you join us?" Y/N sniffled, the kindness of her neighbor and her pregnancy hormones reducing her to tears.

"You're so kind," she whispered and Sam laughed, giving her a warm hug. "But I don't want to intrude." He sighed but understood. "Okay, how about when she's done cooking, you take some of the food home? Will that be okay?" She nodded. "In the meantime, I'd love for you to meet my friends. Wanda especially, wanna come in?" Y/N agreed and the two walked into the apartment.

Bucky and Vision, who were in the sitting room at the time, looked up. Y/N gave them an awkward smile, raising a hand to wipe her tears off. "Hi there," Vision greeted. "Hello, I'm… I'm Y/N, Sam's neighbor, it's nice to meet you," she mumbled shyly. "Hi Y/N, I'm Bucky and this is Vision," Bucky introduced and she nodded. "So, um, there's gonna be a party here…?"

"Oh no, just old friends catching up over dinner. Wanda!" The woman walked out of the kitchen, her eyes lighting up when she saw Y/N. "Hey!" Y/N smiled at her. "Hi, I'm Y/N, nice to meet you." Wanda beamed at Sam. "Your neighbor? Very nice to meet you too, miss!" After a small conversation the Scarlet Witch went back to the kitchen while Sam coaxed Y/N into sitting.

"So, what brings you here?" Bucky asked, glancing at the empty plate. "Cravings," Y/N sighed as Sam followed Wanda to the kitchen, "My baby gets really agitated when I don't get what I'm craving, it's a problem… I didn't want to intrude, it's just… the food smells so nice and I… I actually want to sleep tonight. Just a tiny portion, I'll be gone before you know it."

Bucky frowned at her words. "Gone— hey, we don't mean to make you feel unwelcome here, why don't you stay for dinner? I'm sure Sam offered too, it's really not a big deal. You won't be intruding and Wanda will be delighted to have another member around who wants to eat her traditional recipe, right Vis?" Vision smiled at Y/N and nodded. "Yes, please stay."

"Okay, since you're asking so nicely," she joked and all three of them laughed. "Dinner's ready! Who wants some Borscht?!" Wanda exclaimed gleefully, walking out of the kitchen with a pile of plates and cutlery as Sam followed with a pot with steam coming out of it. "Guess what? Y/N's decided to stay!" Bucky announced and all of them cheered, Wanda giving Y/N a hug.

"That's amazing news!"

"Oh, you managed to talk her into it, how nice…"

Bucky smirked and swung an arm over Sam's shoulders. "Girls like me better than you, pal, accept— ow! I was joking!" Y/N giggled as Sam shoved Bucky off him, giving him a punch on the arm for good measure. "You two seem like really good friends," she commented and Vision scoffed. "You should've seen them when they first met. Couldn't stand each other."

"Oh please, every great friendship starts out like that, am I right?" Wanda nudged Y/N and she grinned. The five of them sat down to eat; Sam served everyone the Borscht. "So, how many months along are you?" Wanda questioned. "8, how about you?" "7, there's twins in there." Y/N gasped. "How lovely! I've always wanted twins, they're so cool."

"I used to have a twin brother," Wanda shrugged. "That's— wow. So, which one of the three is it? Or is he at home?" Y/N smirked. "Vision here, we got married a year ago, it was a small ceremony, only close friends." Y/N grinned at Vision. "Awesome! Congratulations, guys!" Vision and Wanda smiled at each other. "How about you, if you don't mind me asking?"

Y/N's mood dimmed slightly but she kept the smile on her face. "My ex, he got me pregnant. Not really much of a happy story; I love my baby, I really do but I'm gonna have to raise them alone; he said he doesn't even want to visit, let alone pay child support, I just— come on, I'm boring you with the story, I don't wanna be a Debby Downer," she waved in dismissal.

"That's so wrong of him! Give us a name and we'll make that bastard pay up," Sam glared, which made Y/N smile a bit. "It's okay, Sam, you don't have to. I have a nice job, and he isn't that good of a person anyway, it's better if he's out of my life for good. I can't wait to try the Borscht, Wanda." Dinner after that was fun and fairly uneventful.

---

Y/N was watching TV the next morning when someone rang the doorbell. She blinked and opened the door to see Sam standing there, leaning against the doorframe with a small smile on his face. "Sam, hi, what brings you here?" she smiled back at him. "Have you had breakfast?" Y/N frowned slightly and shook her head. "Not yet, I was just about to cook. Why?"

"Will you join me? There's a lot of Borscht left if you're interested." She grinned at him; how had she not introduced herself to him earlier?! "That sounds really nice, thank you for the offer! Let's go." The two walked to Sam's apartment and Y/N sat on the couch as Sam went to the kitchen to get the food. "I actually have something to ask," Sam began as the two sat down to eat.

"What happened?" Y/N questioned curiously, a hand resting on her belly as she ate the delicious Borscht. "I want you to tell me about all your cravings from now on. Anything you want, no matter how weird. I really want to help you, Y/N, will you allow me to do it? I just… I don't want you to suffer anymore, I'm here for you. A friend. Please?" Y/N blinked at him, shocked.

Surely he wasn't that nice? "You really want to do that?" she gasped. "I do. I feel really bad about how your ex just left you so vulnerable and full of responsibility, and he won't even help with the baby, I— I want to take some of the responsibility. It'll make me feel good." Y/N nodded instantly. "That's so nice of you, thank you! I'd love that, you offering to help… you're an angel."

Sam flushed slightly and rubbed the back of his neck, a goofy smile on his face. "Just helping a friend in need." The doorbell rang all of a sudden and Sam sat up, alert. "What?" Y/N whispered. "I'm not expecting anyone. Stay here." Grabbing a gun from a drawer near the dining table Sam put it in his back pocket and went to answer the door. Upon opening the door, he saw a man.

The man was dressed in black trousers and a band t-shirt, his hair a rough mess and a glare on his face. "Can I help you?" Sam frowned. "Your neighbor, Y/N, have you seen her? I'm her ex boyfriend." Sam's blood boiled when he introduced himself but he kept his cool. "I haven't seen her, I'm sorry. She isn't very social, you know and I respect people's privacy."

The man groaned and left. Sam returned to the living room, keeping his gun away with a sigh. "What happened, Sam, everything okay?" Y/N asked worriedly when he sat back down in front of his plate. "Don't be mad." Y/N's frown deepened with confusion. "Why, who was at the door?" He looked up at her. "Your ex. I sent him away. Did you want to talk to him?"

Y/N froze for a minute but then scoffed, wrapping her arms around her middle. "Thank you for that, I wasn't ready to see him. I'm not mad at you, by the way." Sam nodded and the two spent the rest of breakfast in silence.

---

"Y/N! I know you're in there!"

"Go away!"

Upon hearing the commotion out in the corridor Sam opened his front door, seeing Y/N's ex boyfriend banging on the door to her apartment. 3 weeks had passed since he showed up at Sam's house. "Is there a problem here?" he asked calmly and the ex boyfriend turned to him. "Dude, it's none of your business," he sneered but Sam simply raised an eyebrow.

"Y/N is my friend, I think I'd know when she'd want me to intervene."

"Well now's not the time, pal, go back in! Y/N and I are having a personal conversation," he scoffed. "Oh really? Because to me it sounds like she's asking you to go away," Sam rolled his eyes. All of a sudden Y/N's front door swung open and she stepped out, looking between both men. Her eyes lit up when she saw Sam.

Over the course of 3 weeks, Y/N had come to like Sam a lot. Along with being handsome as fuck, he was also really kind, sweet and caring; he bought for her all that she craved, let it be the middle of the night or the afternoon. She also found out that he was an Avenger, previously used to be known as the Falcon but now, Captain America. She trusted him even more, knowing he'd protect her from anything.

"Sam!" she smiled brightly, pushing past her ex to run to Sam. He gave her a tight hug, keeping an arm around her as they both turned to Y/N's ex, who was staring at them, jaw dropped. "A friend, huh, Sam?" he sneered but Sam only stared at him with disdain. "Don't talk to him like that! You weren't even here when I needed you, and now I have an awesome guy helping me with things and you suddenly wanna show up?!"

"Y/N—"

"No, you shut up! You're just a coward and— and an asshole and I don't want anything to do with you anymore. Leave and if you come back, I'll call the police on you, I swear—" Sam cut her off by chuckling wryly. "Sweetheart, I'm an Avenger, are you forgetting? Next time this guy shows up, call Bucky. I'll give you his number. I'm sure Buck will have a lotta fun teaching this guy a lesson."

Y/N beamed at Sam. "Okay!" Y/N's ex stared at the two, jaw dropped. "You're both crazy," he whispered, "Crazy maniacs, I tell you!" Y/N and Sam stared after him with broad smiles as the man left, grumbling under his breath. "Ugh, he's been showing up every day for 3 weeks, and today he created a scene. So sorry about that, Sam, I hope I didn't disturb anything."

"Aw, Y/N, you know I care about you. Don't worry, I was just watching TV. He shows up again, you call me first. I'm always here for you." Y/N gave him a timid smile, rubbing her belly. "I actually wanted to ask you something if you don't mind…" Sam nodded at her to go on. The truth was, he liked her too. She was super adorable, and the pregnant belly of hers made her glow like an angel.

One of the main reasons why he decided to help her out so eagerly was the fact that he wanted to get closer to her, maybe ask her out someday in the future. They would be a happy little family; Sam, Y/N and the baby. He was ready to look after them both, no bias to the baby. "...Sam?" He snapped out of his thoughts, blinked and shook his head.

"Sorry, sorry, got lost in thoughts. What?" The timid smile was back on her face. "I was just wondering if you'd like to go on a date sometime with me… of course you can say no, I won't mind, but I'd really like it if you say yes…" No way. "Y/N, I'd love to go on a date with you, that's fantastic! How about this Saturday, two days from now, at 8 we go to dinner?"

Y/N smiled brightly at his words. "Oh— okay, okay, that will be great! Yeah, yeah, Saturday works for me. So, um, see you then— or maybe before that if I need something, I—" Sam smiled at her endearing behavior as he skittishly ran back to her apartment, a giddy smile on her face. "The things you do to me, Ms Y/L/N," Sam laughed to himself as he went back to his own apartment.

---

A loud, wailing noise pulled Sam out of his slumber. He immediately sat up and checked his phone, walking out of his apartment to ring Y/N's doorbell. She opened the door with a tired smile on her face, greeting him with a quick kiss. "Little one giving you trouble?" he smiled fondly as the two went to the baby's bedroom, who was sobbing at the top of his lungs.

A few days had passed since Y/N had given birth, and since Sam and Y/N started dating. She had a little boy; they named him Luke. "The crying just doesn't stop," Y/N sighed, leaning against the doorframe as Sam entered the bedroom, picking Luke up. The baby quieted instantly, peering up at Sam with his big eyes. "There, there, don't cry. We gotta let your mommy get some sleep or she becomes very cranky."

"Hey!" Sam grinned at her. "I was only kidding, darling, you know I like you," he winked and Y/N shook her head. "Good thing I like you too." A few minutes later, as the baby fell asleep again, Sam's phone buzzed in his pocket. He took it out and saw multiple, hurried texts from Vision. "What happened?" Y/N asked him as he stared at the phone, trying to make sense of the messages. "I don't know."

Y/N grabbed his phone and looked through the cryptic messages, her eyes going wide. "Wanda is in labor! The twins are coming," she whispered and an incredulous expression showed up on Sam's face. "She's only 8 months in, that can't be right." Y/N slapped her forehead. "They're twins, Cap, they always come early. Go to the hospital, I'll see you tomorrow morning."

They shared another kiss, giving each other smiles. "I'll see you then." Sam then left the apartment, rolling his eyes at another weird message Vision had left him.

"For God's sake, you're a robot, how hard is it to type?!"

---

A/N: Thanks for reading, leave a like if you enjoyed!

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juletheghoul · 3 years

Text

Oblivius Chapter 5

I have so many feelings about these two, Spills & Francis may be two idiot babies but they're my idiot babies and I LOVE them. Lots of yearning in this chapter, and maybe a different side to Claudia.👀

Likes & reblogs are appreciated

Frankie Morales x F!Reader

Pairing: Frankie x F!Reader

Word Count: 3K

Warnings: Angst, yearning, 18+ language, mentions of alcohol / being drunk (Please let me know if I forget anything)

Masterlist Series Masterlist Part 4 Part 6 Playlist

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Age 18:

His truck was full.

He was driving, you were shotgun - like always - and there were three more friends in the back. The trunk held boogie boards and towels, sunscreen and a cooler full of food and drinks.

You got there early enough that you found a good spot and within half an hour you were completely set up. There were three big beach blankets spread out with two big umbrellas to hide under when the sun got too hot.

“Spills, can you get my back?” He was handing you the sunscreen as he pulled his shirt up.

You were momentarily taken aback, you’d known him for so long, this wasn’t your first beach trip but he looked… good.

You spent a little longer than you should have making sure every inch of the golden skin of his back and shoulders was covered in sunscreen. Making sure to dip your hands just under the band of his swim trunks. When he turned he had a big smile and you had to ignore the way your stomach flipped.

Get a grip, it’s just Francis.

You couldn’t get a grip though, not with the way butterflies swarmed in your stomach whenever you paid attention to him. His hair was growing out a bit, curling slightly at the edges. You’d never thought about him this way and you had to keep reminding yourself to look away.

Later on in the day when you were in the water you played the same games you’d played since you were kids and when you jumped on his back he didn’t push you away; his skin warm from the sun. Instead he let you wrap your legs around him and everything felt right.

“You okay back there?” He laughed as he held onto the back of your knees.

“Peachy.” You smiled as you held on.

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

**Present Day**

“Hola Mijo, you better go in there and calm her down.” His mom greeted him at the door when he walked in, her eyebrows raised at him.

“Hola mami, what happened?” He kissed her on the cheek like he always did before making his way further into the house. She couldn’t say - just that Claudia was upset. He was walking towards her, but his mind was still back with Spills. He could still smell her hair as he made his way into the den.

It’s the same shampoo, she still uses the same shampoo. Focus Francisco.

Claudia was almost shouting into her cellphone.

“Well I need it here sooner than that. My wedding is in three weeks and I need everything to be perfect - so I don’t give a shit what you have to do to get my dress here in time but you better find a way to do it!” She was looking daggers at him and he let her finish the phone call before he spoke.

“What’s going on babe?” He put his hands on her arms and started trying to calm her but she shrugged out of his grasp.

“What’s wrong Francisco, is that I told you this would be difficult.” She wasn’t yelling but her tone was icy. “How am I supposed to get married without a wedding dress. Would have been fine if we were back home.”

Not this again.

“Claudia, I told you when we got engaged that I wanted to get married here and you agreed. I explained to you very clearly that I’ve been away from my home, my life, my family - my friends for years and I wanted to get married here. Now tell me what the problem is.” He wanted his feelings to be clear. He loved Claudia, he really did. She was sweet and beautiful and she treated him well. She could be a little spoiled though and if he didn’t put his foot down now, he’d never have a choice about anything ever again.

He would not live his life that way.

“Yes I know I agreed, and for the most part I’m okay with it. I know your whole life is here, but it would have been so easy to get married there.” She pouted and it didn’t invoke the feeling it should have. It didn’t spur him to try to please her, it annoyed him.

He momentarily thought about when Spills pouted up at him, it never annoyed him. He pushed the thought away.

“Maybe, but we’re not getting married there. We’re getting married here, now what can we do? Let's look for a solution.” He softened up at her a little bit, after all he wanted her to be happy.

She sighed loudly and put her arms around his neck, her voice got a little higher as she tried to appeal to him.

“Frankie, baby- I just want everything to be perfect.”

That doesn’t work on me.

“Let’s just try to have everything go smoothly. It’ll be our day regardless, right?” He put his hands on her waist to bring her close, trying to get her out of her head.

“How long do we have to stay here Francisco?” She leaned back to look up into his face and he sighed.

“We have to talk about that, after the wedding we’re going back to stay with your family for a little while but then we have to talk about where we’re going to live.” He held her, but she pulled away.

“I don’t want to live here after Francisco. I appreciate that you grew up here and everything and we can visit but I do not want to live here.” She crossed her arms petulantly, and he took a deep breath to steady himself. They’d spoken about this before and she had agreed to give it an honest try, but they’d been in town less than a week and already she was telling him she hated it.

“You can’t know that in three days babe.” He sat on the couch.

When they agreed to get married - he’d been scared of this, he’d been scared that she’d do this. He knew she loved him, and he loved her - as much as he could - but the look on her face when he’d put his foot down about spending this time at home should have told him everything.

She didn’t say anything, she sat with him and reluctantly agreed.

“You’re right, I’m sorry. I just miss home. I’ll give it another shot.” She sounded genuine and he wanted to believe that. “How was your night with Spills? Is she feeling better?” She smiled at him, putting her hand on his thigh and he placed his over hers. A silent truce.

“She’s doing much better, we ate dinner and watched a movie.” He held her hand as he spoke and she smiled at him.

“I’m glad to hear that - hopefully she doesn’t get that drunk at the wedding.” She laughed lightly.

He knew she didn’t mean it in a nasty way, but he bristled at her words.

“She was just nervous about meeting all of you, and even if she did it would be fine. Everyone gets drunk at weddings.” He tried not to sound defensive but she raised her eyebrows at him. “I just don’t want you to think that she’s a mess. She’s like a-” He couldn’t say sister, he’s never thought of her as a sister. She was so much more. “She’s just really important to me.”

“I know babe. I didn’t mean it like that, she seems sweet.” She smiled at him. She was still trying to get back in his good graces, taking his defensiveness as residual anger. Thankfully.

“We should plan something for all of us to do together. It could give us more time to bond.” He thought about it momentarily then agreed, he knew exactly what to plan.

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There was something playing on the TV, you caught vague flashes - people talking but you weren’t taking anything in. Your sweatshirt smelled like Frankie and all you wanted was to cuddle up to him. He had been so sturdy beside you, so strong and comfortable.

What the fuck is a wedding emergency?

The mature - adult part of your brain said she was a nice person and if Frankie was with her it was for a reason. Obviously he was happy with her or he wouldn’t be marrying her. Frankie had never been the kind of person to settle.

The other part of your brain, the jealous possessive part told you she was a bitch. She was ruining the life you’d planned out with Frankie. If he’d never met her you’d be together now, laughing and planning the rest of your lives together. He’d be in your bed, or you’d be in his.

[Francis]: Hey Spills, we’re planning a get together for the wedding party - day after tomorrow - beach day. I’ll be there to pick you up at 7am.

It was like the universe was testing you. How many memories could he taint with Claudia?

[you]: sounds good, Claudia, you, me and who else in rustbucket?

[Francis]: Just you and I, and don’t call her that. Claudia’s family is coming so she’s going to ride to the beach with them. I’ll grab coffee on the way. =)

[you]: Hope you have a new tape in there, if I have to listen to queen I’ll jump out of the car

[Francis]: lol a ride is a ride Spills, see you then

[Francis]: was really nice hanging out with you today btw, goodnight

[you]: I had a great time with you - like always, thanks again for all the food, goodnight Francis!

--------

It was easy to ignore everything when you were getting work done, you had taken off a few days when you knew Francis would be home and you were taking advantage of it. The day before your beach trip was used to do all those little tasks you tended to put off.

Your laundry was done, the kitchen was clean, even the fridge had gotten a bit of elbow grease. Everything was ready and packed for the trip.

You tried not to think about the ride to the beach with Francis, you tried not to think back to your previous trips to the beach with him. Those memories were so precious and thinking about how your next memory would be with him, and his new in-laws was tearing you up inside.

Please let this go well, please don’t let me make a fool of myself.

You hoped someone was listening.

The anxiety didn’t let you sleep and you watched the clock crawl closer to morning; it seemed pointless to lay there.

Might as well get ready.

-----

He wasn’t nervous, but he wasn’t excited.

He made his way over to her house, stopping to grab coffee on the way. He thought about his conversation with Claudia, about the possibility of leaving this place. He really didn’t want to. He wanted to be close to his mom, he wanted to be close to his friends and his home.

I want to be close to Spills, I want to see her everyday.

He scolded himself, he was going to marry someone else. He kept trying to remind himself, but when he saw her walking towards his car it all went out the window.

God Spills, you’re killing me.

She put her beach bag and a small cooler in the backseat and got into his truck with a big smile, pushing all other thoughts out of his mind. He handed her the coffee he bought and she took it gratefully, brushing against his fingers, even now - she affected him so much.

Snap out of it Francisco, you aren’t a teenager anymore. This is your friend.

“Hazelnut?” She asked as she smelled the steam floating around her pretty face.

“Of course.” He pulled away from her place, making his way towards the highway. It would be an hour or so until they got to the beach.

“Open up.” The buttery bagel half she put into his mouth as he drove tasted better than he remembered.

------

The drive was over much too soon.

If only it had lasted all day - catching him up on all the gossip he’d missed out on while away. Watching his excitement when he talked about flying, you could have listened to him talk forever.

“Finally!” Cheers rang out when the two of you arrived. The boys had set up a bunch of blankets and umbrellas and you suddenly remembered the state you’d been in the last time they saw you and you felt the blush creeping up.

Benny smiled big when he saw you, tapping the place beside him after you’d all said your hellos. You had no reason to deny him so you sat, setting up all your stuff within the space he made for you.

Blessedly, Claudia hadn’t arrived yet and you cherished this time without her, maybe it was mean - maybe it was selfish but you couldn't help it.

“Hey - Thanks for the other night, for getting me home and making sure I was okay.” Pope set up his stuff on the other side of you.

“No problem, glad to see you feeling better.” He was talking to you but you noticed him give Benny a curious look. Benny ignored it. You watched as Will and Frankie set up a volleyball net, you studied both men and there was no denying that Will was gorgeous; but your eyes were drawn to Frankie. You couldn’t help it, your eyes raked over him greedily.

He was so broad, stronger than he had been in his teen years and his belly had gotten a little softer with age but it suited him. He was gorgeous, he had always been gorgeous. He felt your eyes on him then and he smiled at you, walking over to you with the sunscreen in his hands like he always did. His smile faltered slightly when his gaze landed behind your place in the sand.

“Hey babe, how was the drive?” Claudia and her family had arrived and they were setting up just behind you.

Do you have some sort of alarm? How are you always ruining every single goddamn moment?

“It was hectic! Left a little later than I meant to but we survived.” She was breathless as she came to greet him. You busied yourself with something, anything in your bag to avoid watching them kiss. When you looked back she was squeezing sunscreen onto his back, rubbing the lotion much the same way you used to whenever you’d come to the beach together.

He didn’t meet your eyes when she did it, and you were thankful. You didn’t think you could handle seeing him enjoying her touch so much. Instead you focused on the people around you. You focused on Benny and Will and Pope, trying your best to ingratiate yourself to them. Hopefully erase the memory of you as a belligerent mess.

---

As the day went on you found that you liked these guys, not just as an extension of Francis - but because they were fun. They made you laugh, they spoke to you like they’d known you your whole life. They almost distracted you enough. You also noticed that Claudia was only here to lounge in the sun. She had absolutely no interest in getting in the water, no matter how many times she was asked by Frankie to join him.

He played it off like it didn’t bother him but you knew it did, and that in turn hurt you but your heart leapt when he turned to you.

“Spills, wanna come in the water with me?” He smiled and held out his hand and you gladly accepted. Following him in like you always had.

“Not much of a swimmer?” You couldn’t help but ask when the two of you were in the water.

“Not really, it’s a shame - the water's perfect today.” He floated, making sure to splash you and you waited until he was perfectly relaxed to splash him back. “God I love it here.” he spoke as he floated closer and closer.

“Me too. I want to live near the ocean one day.” You spoke absentmindedly, trying to feel for little shells or rocks as you walked further and further from the shore. He followed you.

You felt him splashing you from behind and you tackled him. The two of you turned into children in the water and it ended with you wrapped around his back like always. His hands on the back of your knees as you held on. You both watched the shore in silence, everyone too focused on whatever they were doing to notice your closeness and you were thankful for it. It made you hold on tighter, trying to get closer and he wrapped your legs around his tummy.

Maybe it was inappropriate, maybe if Claudia had been watching she would have had some words for him, or you, or both of you - but it didn’t stop you.

“Let’s just stay out here Spills. Let’s stay in the water forever.” He stroked the skin of your shins under the water and it was so hard not to cry right then and there. “Just you and me, living in the water.” He laughed but it came out sad.

“I’m game.” You rested your chin on his shoulder briefly and he bumped your head with his. This one little moment made the whole day worth it, and when he pulled away as you knew he would, your heart broke just a little bit more.

You were both wrong in your assumptions however. The moment you had thought was private, that you thought you’d stolen without anyone knowing had been seen and catalogued by someone on the shore. Pope had seen the whole thing, and he had some words for Francis.

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

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study-coffee-chicago · 3 years

Text

Seasons of Med: Season 2 and Seasons of PD: Season 4: Necessities, Love, & Care (A Halstead Brothers + Halstead Sister! Imagine)

Your age: 15

Jay's age: 29

Will's age: 31

You were currently sitting at the library, trying to figure out how you'd get food for dinner. It was January and you had run out of your Christmas money two weeks ago and you had burned through your money from helping with kettle corn at the beginning of December. Right now you were SOL: Shit outta luck.

Your mind wandered back to the last day you had helped working the kettle corn stand when it was a dreary late October day.

"We have kettle corn, caramel corn, cheddar, Chicago style, and a few other flavors," you explained to a customer. She picked up a medium bag of caramel corn. "That one?"

"Yes, dear. Me and my husband love this stuff," the old lady said.

"I'm sure. It's really good! It'll be six dollars." She pulled out a five and two ones. "I'll be right back with your change."

"Oh, no, keep the change, dear. Thank you for the popcorn."

"You're welcome. Have a nice day."

"Y/N," Emma said to you. "Can you grab me a lemonade from the cooler?"

"Just one?"

"Yup, just one."

You grabbed it from the cooler and were about to pass it to her when you saw who her customers were: Jay and Erin.

"Y/N?" Jay asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Working," you answered quickly. "Little bit of extra money never hurt anybody. The real question is, what are you doing here? I know Erin hates being outside when the weather is crappy."

"It's because he's annoying when he whines and begs to do something, so I figured it was just best to give in," Erin answered.

Jay rolled his eyes. "God, I can't win with either of you. Why do you always gang up on me?"

"Because, Halstead, us girls gotta stick together," Erin laughed.

"Okay, okay, fine. Y/N, what popcorn should I get?"

"First of all, it's kettle corn," you corrected. "And, I suggest the cheddar. Or, if you want a combination of both salty and sweet, then get the Chicago style. It's cheddar and caramel."

"Me and Erin like sweet, but I know you. You like cheddar. And you'll pick out the cheddar pieces when you're at my apartment, so I'll get the Chicago style."

"Or," Erin started as she picked up a large bag of caramel and a large bag of cheddar, "We could get this big bag of caramel, and then you could have this bag at your apartment for Y/N. That way the flavors aren't touching."

"Erin Lindsay and not liking her food touching. Fine, we'll take what Erin suggested and one lemonade."

"One or two straw holes?" Emma asked, picking up the lid-punching tool.

"One's fine," Jay answered.

"They swap enough spit as it is," you whispered to Emma, causing her to laugh.

"What'd she say?" Jay asked.

"I can't tell you. It's a secret."

He huffed. "Fine. Keeping secrets from your big brother? That's cold Y/N, that's cold."

"So you're saying you never kept secrets from Will?" Erin asked.

"I have the right to remain silent."

"Exactly," Erin said. "How much does he owe you?"

"Excuse me? I didn't know I'd be the one paying for all of this."

"You were the one who dragged me outside, so yes, you are paying, Halstead. Now, get your card ready."

Jay rolled his eyes and pulled out his wallet. "How much?"

You did the math in your head. "$23."

"Emma, can you check her math?" Jay asked and you rolled your eyes in his lack of faith in you.

"$10 for the cheddar and $8 for the caramel makes $18...plus $5 for the lemonade...yup $23."

You handed him the card reader. "And now it's just going to ask you a few questions," you told him after his card went through.

Without allowing him to read it all the way through, Erin hit the tip and no receipt buttons. "Hey!" Jay exclaimed.

"Don't blame me! You were the one who wanted me to come out here!" She turned to you and took the bag of kettle corn as Jay picked up the 32 oz lemonade. "Thanks, Y/N!"

"No problem! Just make sure he doesn't buy any more paintings of motorcycles!"

Man, how you wished you could work that job right now because it was only for a few hours on the weekends. But, it was winter now, so there were no street fairs, farmers markets, or festivals going on. Because of this, your money had run out. You'd have to do what you'd have to get yourself some food, even if it would leave you with a guilty conscience.

With that in mind, you got up and left the library.

***

"Pop's been complaining of chest pain and refuses to go to the hospital," Jay told his older brother as he walked through the front door and into the living room.

"Of course he did," Will grumbled. Then, he turned to his father. "This won't take long. Unless it's bad. Then you'll have to come with me and actually go to the hospital this time."

"You can't force me to do anything," he argued as he watched his oldest son open up his medical bag.

"Just let him do his job. He knows what he's doing," Jay agreed with Will. Then, he remembered something. "Where's Y/N?"

"At school."

"At school? At 5 pm?" Jay asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Sometimes she stays after school and does homework. She's always home before it gets too late so I don't ask."

It's not like Jay and Will could have known this, though. Yes, you would talk and they're obviously there for you because they're your brothers, but your dad's parenting skills--or lack thereof--hadn't ever come up. You'd get together with your brothers once a week, but it was usually at one of your brothers' places. They rarely came inside your and your dad's place.

"All units, we have reports of a robbery at 3020 East Main Street. Assistance requested," Jay's radio stated.

Jay looked to Will, silently asking if it was okay for him to take it. "I've got it from here."

"Thanks, man," Jay said, clapping Will on the back and leaving the house.

He drove to the small corner market that had made the call. It was only a block away from where you and your dad lived, but despite it usually being somewhat slow, today it was even slower. There was only one car parked in the lot, so Jay was confused as to who would even rob this place.

He put on his vest and walked into the store. "Got a call about a robbery," he said to the store manager as he entered.

"Yes, right over here."

He led Jay over to where a girl was sitting on a stool, tears rolling down her face. She held a box of pasta, a loaf of bread, and a small jar of peanut butter. Her coat was unzipped, revealing the tampons and pads she had stuffed inside her coat after she had ripped open the box.

"Y/N?" Jay asked in disbelief. "What are you doing? What were you even thinking?"

"I- I'm sorry," you sniffled.

Then he turned to the store manager. "You called the cops on a fifteen-year-old girl for grabbing what looks to me like necessities?"

"I've let her go the past two times when she needed things, but today she didn't have the money, so I couldn't let it slide."

Jay threw $30 in the man's hand. "There. Now it's all paid for." He turned to you and took the loaf of bread. "C'mon."

You followed him out of the store, waiting to be yelled at as you entered his truck, but it didn't come. He pinched the bridge of his nose as he handed you the bread. "Why? Why did you do this?"

"There- There's barely any food in the house. I was just hungry."

Jay looked you up and down. He hadn't been really looking for changes in weight like he told Natalie he would do six months ago. He kept it up for a few months and then winter came around and it was hard to tell because of bulky jackets and sweaters. But, now that he actually looked at your face and hands in an investigative manner, it was clear as day: You had lost even more weight.

"And the other stuff?" he asked.

"Dad won't buy them for me. Says that they're too expensive and to just use something else. He said that if he had had a son he wouldn't have to worry about it, like it's my fault. Usually, I take some from school, but I ran out and I needed them."

"And the food?" Jay asked as he started driving back to his childhood home.

"I get breakfast and lunch at school, but I have to eat dinner at home. And on weekends I just skip meals and eat breakfast and dinner."

"What? What about Dad?"

"He gets takeout or he goes to the bar and isn't home until late."

Jay sighed as he pulled into the driveway. "Go pack a bag, kid. You're staying at my place until further notice."

"Really? I thought you guys forgot about me?"

"We could never forget about you. It's just, work has been busy for both of us. So, sorry if these last few times we've all been together for dinner have seemed a little rushed. Now, go inside and grab your stuff while I have a chat with Will and Dad."

"Dad, Will," Jay said after you had run upstairs and they were sitting on the couch. "I need to talk to you. In the kitchen."

"Really, Jay. Why can't it be here?" your dad grumbled. "First he--" He pointed to Will. "Wants to take me to the hospital because he said I have a valve issue and now I can't even have a conversation with my sons while sitting down?"

"Just get up, dammit!"

The three entered the kitchen and sat down, but Jay stayed standing. "Jay, what's going on?" Will asked.

Instead of answering his older brother, Jay just opened the fridge. There was a half drank gallon of milk, a jar of grape jelly, and a can of pasta sauce, along with other condiments, and a lone egg sat on a shelf. "This? This is what you expect your daughter to eat? I caught her stealing from a store just so she could get food and tampons!"

"Well, I'm not gonna pay for it."

"Excuse you?" Will exclaimed, eyebrows raised in surprise. "What do you mean you're not paying for it? She's your daughter, isn't she? Then you have a legal responsibility to feed her, make sure she has shelter, clothes, and goes to school!"

"She can go get a job."

"She is fucking fifteen!" Jay yelled. "She doesn't need to be worrying about where her next meal is coming from! She's supposed to be worrying about getting a good grade on a math test or if that boy likes her or not, but not that!"

"She needs to learn to grow up someday. And she won't if you boys baby her like you always do whenever you see her."

"Baby her?" Will yelled, disgusted. "She's a kid. She needs to be babied sometimes. She needs fucking food and a nice home to come home to, not whatever the hell you think this is."

"It hasn't been a home since your mother died."

"Yeah, we gathered that," Jay scoffed. "But you don't have to take it out on her."

"Jay," your small voice said from the doorway into the kitchen. All three men looked over to you, your backpack on your back, a duffle bag slung over your shoulder, and your favorite blanket wadded up in your hands so that you could carry it without it dragging on the ground.

"Ready to go?" Jay asked, his voice immediately softening.

"Uh, yeah," you answered, unsure of how your dad would react.

"What do you mean ready to go?" Pat Halstead asked, standing up from where he had been previously sitting at the table. "She's not going anywhere!"

Will rushed over to you, placing a hand on your shoulder while Jay stalked over to be face to face with your dad. "She is coming with me until further notice. You're lucky I don't arrest your ass for child neglect!"

"You wouldn't do that to your own father!"

Jay pulled the cuffs out of his back pocket. "Oh yeah? Try me."

He sat back down and Jay turned to you. "Here, let me take that." You handed him your duffle bag and followed him and Will outside.

"Jay, I gotta go. I gotta get Dad to Med to get the valve fixed. And, I said one hour out of the hospital tops and it's been two."

Jay closed the truck door once you were safely inside with all your stuff. "Good luck trying to get Dad to go the hospital," he scoffed. "Get going. Don't give Goodwin another reason to fire your stupid ass."

"I'll call an ambulance if I have to." Then, Will smacked Jay upside the head.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"You know what it was for. And, I'm your older brother, it's my job."

"I'm your older brother, it's my job," Jay mocked. "But, in all seriousness, do me a favor and make sure Y/N's all caught up on her immune- immune--"

"Immunizations?" Will laughed.

"Yeah, those."

"I'll do that. And if she's not, I'll give them to her tonight when I come over to your place after my shift is done...which will be in like two hours...depending on how much of a pain in the ass he is to get in the hospital."

Jay nodded, and then got in the truck, both of you making your way to his place.

"I'm gonna go take a shower," Jay said after you had put your stuff down by the couch. "You have homework?"

"Yeah," you looked down, not wanting to even try and struggle through your homework...or have Jay sign the slip that said that you failed your last test.

Jay smiled. "I'll help you with it when I'm out of the shower, okay, kid?"

"How'd you know--"

"That is the universal facial expression of I need help, but I don't know how to ask for it. I'll be ten minutes tops."

And so, you tried to struggle through your homework for ten minutes. But, you ended up working and reworking the stupid algebra problem. Why did math need letters anyway?

"Okay, I'm back," Jay said as he pulled a chair out to sit next to you. "What are you workin' on?"

"Can you sign this first?" you asked, sliding the yellow paper over to him along with the pen. You hoped he'd just sign it blind, but as you saw his eyes skimming the page, you knew that wouldn't happen.

"Did you try your best?" he asked as he slid the piece of paper back to you after signing it.

"What? Yeah, of course, I did."

"Okay, then we'll figure something out. Now, how about we eat some dinner? I've got pizza in the freezer. That okay?"

"That's great," you answered.

Jay got the pizza in the oven while you went and changed into your pajamas. You decided it was in your best interest to have Will help you with your math homework.

***

"Ah! The man of the hour!" Jay exclaimed as he pulled out the pizza and Will entered the house.

You immediately noticed the red bag he was carrying over his shoulder and the two king-sized Twix bars.

"Why do you have your medical bag?" you asked.

"How did you know this was my medical bag?"

"I'm not stupid, Will."

"Okay, so you're all caught up on your shots, but I need to do a blood draw because I need to see if you're deficient in any vitamins and minerals. Have you been eating enough fruits and veggies?" he asked.

"Probably not as much as I should," you admitted. "They're too expensive unless I get the canned kind and I don't like those unless it's canned peaches. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Short Stack. None of this is your fault. You hear me? None of it. I just need to take the blood and then get it sent to the lab to see if you need to get any specific pills to get your vitamin and mineral levels up."

"Okay. Does it hurt?" you asked. You knew what a shot felt like, but you'd never had your blood drawn before, so you didn't know what it felt like to have a needle in your arm for a long time, taking blood. You knew what it felt like to have an IV in from when you passed out at the movie theater, but you didn't know if this needle would be the same size or bigger.

"You just feel a slight pinch at the beginning."

"Like getting a shot?"

"Like getting a shot," he confirmed.

"Hey, I was thinking," Jay started as he reappeared from the kitchen area, "what if we have celery and carrots with ranch for dinner, too? You know, like when we eat chicken wings at restaurants and they bring you some veggies, except we'll have ours with pizza."

"Okay," you agreed. "I like ranch."

"So does everyone in the midwest," Will joked.

"What's the medical bag for?" Jay asked. "She needs shots? And, what's with the Twix bars?"

"No, I'm drawing her blood to see if she's deficient in anything. And, there's one Twix bar for her and one for you because we all know how you feel about needles, Jay."

Jay rolled his eyes. "We doing this before we eat?"

"Yes. And, I need you to answer some questions for me, Y/N. These are strictly doctor protocol questions, okay? You don't need to be embarrassed about any of the answers."

You nodded.

"Okay," Will started, "When did you last eat? Just need to write it down for fasting glucose levels."

"Um, lunch at school, so around noon."

"So, six-hour fast," Will scribbled down on a piece of paper. "Next one, are you sexually active?"

"Will!"

"It's just standard protocol, just in case I need to test for STDs."

"No, I am not. Next question."

"Okay, last one: When was your last period?"

"You've got to be kidding me. I'm not pregnant, I haven't had sex!"

Will chuckled. "It's not for that. Sometimes when people are deficient in vitamins and minerals, they can lose their period for months at a time, signaling that their body isn't healthy. The medical term is amenorrhea." But, what he wanted to say was that when girls are underweight, this can also happen. And, from seeing how baggy your sweatshirt and jeans were on you, he assumed that you'd lost ten pounds since last going to the doctor when you passed out in the movie theater parking lot, making your weight loss a grand total of 25 pounds, which would qualify you as being underweight.

"Oh. I started today."

"Okay, good to know. Any changes in length or heaviness of menstruation?"

"I swear, I'd rather have Natalie or April be asking me these questions," you grumbled. "But, yes, it's a lot lighter and it went from me having my periods for five days to two days. Can we please stop talking about this now?"

"Yeah, we're all done. Sorry about that, but it's protocol."

"Says the guy who's drawing my blood at Jay's apartment instead of in a hospital, where it should be done."

"Hey, I've worked in much worse conditions than this in Sudan. How much water did you drink today?"

"A lot."

"Okay, good." Will started to unzip his medical bag. He passed a Twix bar to Jay. "Here, eat this and focus on it so you don't focus on the needles and then freak out."

Jay rolled his eyes, but took the candy bar and unwrapped it.

"Do I get one?" you asked.

"Once I draw your blood, yes, the other one is for you. Now, right or left arm?"

You held out your left arm and Will moved to the other side of you so he had a better angle. He sanitized his hands and then snapped on a pair of gloves.

"So, what do you do?" you asked. "I've never had my blood drawn before."

"I just tie off your arm so that I can get the veins to show a bit better, wipe down the spot with an antiseptic wipe, stick the needle in, and then wait for the vial to fill up."

"That's it?"

"That's it. Can you make a fist with your left hand for me?"

You did as Will told you and then he tied a band around your bicep and started touching the inside of your elbow, trying to get some veins to show. He furrowed his eyebrows and moved down your arm, rubbing your forearm and then going back up to the crook of your elbow and gently pressing there.

"What's wrong?" you asked.

"You just have really small veins is all. I could take the blood from the big vein in your forearm, but I don't really want to do that one since it's so big. Can you squeeze your fist tighter for me?" You did as he said while he kept pressing on the crook of your elbow. "There we go. Got one. Now, turn and look at Jay while I get the needle ready."

You looked at Jay and tried not to laugh. "You okay?"

"Me? I should be asking you that," he replied. "You're the one who's about to get stabbed with a needle."

"It's just that you got some sweat on your forehead. You look nervous."

"They're needles. They're tiny little sharp metal objects and if one breaks off--"

"Jay, respectfully," Will started, cutting off his brother, "shut the hell up, so you don't scare my patient. You might just want to look away instead of watching me. Then you might feel fine." Then, he turned back to you. "Okay, Y/N, keep looking at Jay. Close your eyes if you want to. You're going to feel a small pinch."

You closed your eyes and took a deep breath. Then, you squeezed your eyes shut tightly and grit your teeth, trying not to yell out as the needle pierced your skin.

"Hard part's done," Will said. You nodded, still keeping your eyes closed.

"That was not a small pinch," you retorted about a minute later.

"Sorry."

You opened your eyes and watched as the blood flowed from your vein into the small tube that was hooked up to the needle.

"I thought you hated blood," Jay pointed out. "And here you are, watching the entire process."

"I'm fine when it's my blood if it's not a huge, deep cut," you explained. "It's other people's blood I don't like."

"Well, that takes any job in the medical field off your career choices," Will said.

You sat there for a few more minutes, waiting for the vial to fill up. Will pressed on your arm, close to the needle, to see if more would come out. "This vein is really small," he said.

You watched as the blood coming into the tube started becoming slower and slower, in what looked to be bubbles.

"Just a little more," Will muttered.

You started taking deeper breaths as you felt sweat start to bead on your forehead.

"Okay, let's see how much this gave me." He pressed his thumb above where the needle was and you turned back to Jay as he removed the needle.

Then, he got the blood into the vial. "Bad news," he started, "I might need to take more. Let's see how much extra there is." He put the extra into another, smaller vial. "Yeah, this one clotted too, so bad news, we need more."

You nodded and closed your eyes, feeling your face get hot and starting to feel lightheaded. You pinched the bridge of your nose, willing this uncomfortable feeling to go away.

"You doing okay?" Will asked.

"Yeah," you answered.

"Okay, I'm gonna do your right arm this time." You held your right arm out to him. "Make a fist for me." You did as he told you and he tied the blue band around your bicep.

But, you were getting even dizzier. "Actually, can I get some water? I feel dizzy."

"Course," Will said. "Jay, can you get her some water and juice if you have any?"

"Apple juice good?"

"That's fine," you answered.

Will untied the band from your bicep. "We're just going to wait a few minutes until you feel less dizzy before I take more blood, okay?"

You nodded and took the water from Jay when he came back.

"Let's have the juice after I finish," Will suggested after a few minutes had passed and you finished the water. "Feeling better, Short Stack?"

"Yeah, let's get this over with." Your forehead was still a bit sweaty, but you were a lot less dizzy.

Will repeated the same process as the last arm and it went a lot faster. Turns out he picked a bit bigger vein in the crook of your elbow of this arm than he did the other one.

"And, we're done," Will said as he capped the vial.

He handed you the juice. "Thanks," you said. "That was not fun."

"I bet. At least you didn't pass out. I've had a few patients do that when I went through my clinicals. That's why normally when someone gets their blood drawn, they sit in this chair where something is flipped down in front of them so they don't fall out of the chair just in case they pass out."

"Jay, do you pass out?" you asked.

He scoffed. "No. I don't even get dizzy. My body doesn't react like that."

"He just breaks out into a sweat whenever he sees needles," Will whispered, loud enough for Jay to hear.

"Hey! I heard that! Take one more jab at me and you won't be getting any pizza, Will. I mean it!"

Will held his hands up in a mock surrender while you finished up your juice. Then, Will started to pack up his medical stuff and Jay brought the pizza and veggies and ranch out, along with plates of course.

You ate your pizza while Will helped you with your math homework. Once you finished two slices of pizza and some celery and ranch, you said that you were done.

"You sure?" Jay asked. "You can have as much as you want."

"I'm good. Gotta save some for tomorrow." Your eyes widened as you realized what you had just said. "I'm gonna go take a shower. It's been a long day."

"Okay, clean towels are in the cabinet in the bathroom where they always are," Jay said, trying not to react to what you had just said even though he knew exactly what you were doing.

You were rationing food.

"Fuck," Jay said as he put his head in his hands when he knew you were in the bathroom and out of earshot.

"What? What did she mean by gotta save some for tomorrow?" Will asked.

"She's rationing it. I used to do it in Afghanistan. Save some of my MRE and put it in my pack to eat the next day if I was on a long trek and we knew we wouldn't get back to base. It would be cold and usually disgusting, but I'd choke it down because it was calories and I needed fuel to be sharp in case we came in contact with combatants."

"Poor kid. At least we had Mom."

Jay nodded. "What happened with Dad at the hospital?"

"Had to have a mitral valve replacement because his wasn't working properly. Told him over and over to get his checked regularly, but he didn't because he's stubborn. He went for the non-surgical option first, but then there were complications, so Rhodes performed surgery. He's fine."

"That's good... I guess." Jay glanced around and he saw your duffle bag sitting outside the bathroom door. You had grabbed your clothes to bring them into the bathroom and left your open duffle bag by the door.

Jay stood up and started walking towards it.

"What are you doing?" Will hissed.

"I need to see if she's got anything else in there that will help prove neglect. I'm assuming it needs to be proved...I only know criminal court cases, don't know much about family court cases."

"What do you mean family court? You're going to fight Dad to be able to take care of her?"

"Yeah, I'll fight to be her legal guardian. Unless you want to do it. My loan went through for a new apartment, which has two bedrooms, so I figured I might be better suited."

"Go ahead. You'd probably have a better chance anyway because you were around more when I was in New York."

Jay nodded and started to dig around your duffle bag. He chuckled and pulled out your Build-A-Bear. "She still sleeps with Beary," he said as he held up the stuffed bear. "Probably doesn't change his clothes anymore because she's too old for that, but he's in pajamas."

"Remember that military uniform you got for her bear? Mom said she barely took Beary out of that because she missed you so much."

"Yeah, and if she wouldn't have dropped him at the airport, I might not have met Mouse."

The two fell into a comfortable silence as he continued to dig through your bag. He got to a big zip-lock bag full of pieces of fabric that were stained light reds and browns.

"Will, c'mere," Jay said, waving him over. Will squatted down next to Jay. "You know what this is?"

Will sighed. "Unfortunately, yes. I saw a lot of this when I worked in Sudan."

"Well, what is it?"

"So, when girls don't have access or money to buy feminine hygiene products, they'll use scraps of fabric and wash them. Looks to me like she cut up some, um, she cut up some underwear and then used them as make-shift pads. If they aren't taken care of properly, she could end up with an infection. And, if she tried to use them as tampons instead of pads, it could lead to TSS, which stands for Toxic Shock Syndrome."

"We're gonna have to talk to her about this now, aren't we?"

"Unfortunately, yeah. She's not gonna be happy you dug through her stuff, so I'll let you explain why you were going through it. And, if she used them as tampons, I want her to get a pelvic exam, just to make sure she didn't get any infections. Much more likely to get an infection from tampons than pads."

Jay nodded. He hated having the current conversation and knew he was going to hate the next one even more, but he knew he had to do these things if he wanted to petition the court for legal guardianship.

Jay picked up your duffle bag and brought it to the living room and he set the zip-lock bag full of pieces of fabric on top.

"I can't believe we missed this," Will said. "I mean, we're both trained in how to spot abuse and we couldn't even spot it in our little sister."

"There weren't outright signs," Jay said. "No bruising, limping, cuts, burns, nothing like that. And, it's winter, it's easy to hide the weight loss. But, I still agree with you. If we would've spotted it earlier, we could've gotten her out of there."

"I'm pretty sure she's officially underweight now."

Jay ran a hand through his hair and then stood back up. "I'm gonna go put clean sheets on my bed. I'll let Y/N take it tonight so that we can keep talking out here when she goes to sleep."

"Good idea."

A few minutes later, Jay was back on the couch next to Will and you walked out of the bathroom, wearing a baggy t-shirt and some sweatpants that you had to keep pulling up because they were too big on you now, and a pair of fuzzy socks. You were cold all the time now and wanted your hoodie out of your duffle and wanted to put your dirty clothes in there, but when you looked down to the spot where you thought you had put it, it wasn't there.

"Guys?" you asked. "Have you seen my bag?"

You walked over to the kitchen table where your blanket was sitting on the chairs and wrapped that around yourself instead.

You furrowed your eyebrows as you saw your brothers on the couch, your duffle bag in front of them on the floor, and on top, your bag of ripped-up, old underwear that you used as pads when you didn't have any.

"You went through my stuff?" you asked, starting to become angry.

"Y/N," Jay started, "I know you're mad and it was me who went through it and not Will, so don't be mad at him, be mad at me. But, I went through it to see if anything was in there that could help me get you out of dad's house. Permanently."

"You- You want to have custody of me?" you asked.

A small smile appeared on Jay's lips and he nodded. "It wouldn't be considered custody because I'm not your biological parent, it would be considered guardianship, but yes, I want you to stay with me. And, my loan went through for a new apartment, so you'd have your own room and everything."

"Okay."

Jay looked at Will, not wanting to be the one to start this conversation. And, he figured Will would be the best one to start it because he was a doctor.

"Y/N, we need to ask you about these." Will motioned to the zip-lock bag on top of your stuff.

You sat in the loveseat across from them and looked down at your feet.

"It's okay, you're not in trouble," Will continued. "We just want to know how you used them in case you need to get a pelvic exam to check for infections in that area."

Your lip began to tremble as tears started to roll down your cheeks. "I used them as pads," you said quietly. "Dad wouldn't buy me any and I stopped getting them from school because I thought they'd suspect something was wrong if I- if I kept taking them."

"One more question," Will said softly. "I just need to know in case we need to take you in for this. I know you said you used them as pads, but did you ever try and use them as tampons?"

"No. I only used them as pads," you whispered. "I was scared to use them as tampons." You looked up at your brothers, who both had tears in their eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," you rushed. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner I was just--" You let out a wail and Jay got up and knelt in front of you.

"Hey, hey, none of this is your fault. Do you hear me? Absolutely none of this is on you. It's all on Dad. Every single bit of it. You are not the one to blame."

You launched yourself into his arms, crying out every emotion you had felt these past few months: anger, frustration, fear, sadness, it was all coming out now.

And, Jay just held you and let you cry it out because that was what your guys' mom used to do for him. And, he knew it worked.

Twenty minutes later, your wails were just quiet whimpers and you pushed yourself back up onto the loveseat, where Will had moved to the spot next to you. He wrapped an arm around you and you leaned into him, craving the comfort that had been denied to you for so long.

"You still have that Twix bar?" you asked.

"All that crying made you hungry, didn't it, Short Stack?" Will asked as Jay got up to retrieve the candy bar from the table.

You nodded.

"Thank you," you said when Jay handed you the Twix bar. You unwrapped it and broke it into the two sticks. "You guys want any?" They both shook their heads: they knew you needed to get as many calories in you as possible.

Jay sighed, he might as well get this hard conversation over with you tonight as well. "Y/N, you can eat as much as you want. I won't say anything about you eating too much, okay?"

You looked up from your candy bar. "You won't call me a burden because I'm eating your food? Like Dad did?"

"He said that?" Will asked, giving Jay a look that read when I see him next, I can't be held accountable for my actions.

"Yeah. One time there were some leftovers he had gotten from a bar and I was so hungry and it was the middle of the night, so I took them out and heated them up. The microwave timer must've woken him up because he came out just as I was about to start eating and then he yelled at me for eating his food and called me a burden."

"Well, we don't think that. Neither Will nor me think that," Jay told you. "And you can eat as much as you want."

You yawned as you crumpled up your Twix wrapper.

"Tired?" Will asked.

"Yeah," you mumbled.

"It's been a long day," Jay said. "You can take my bed."

"Jay, it's your apartment, I can't--"

"Y/N, this isn't up for discussion. I already put clean sheets on the bed for you."

"Is- Is there a fan in your room? I can't sleep without white noise."

"There is. You want me and Will to tuck you in?"

"I'm too old for that." You stood up and Will did, too. "Jay, can you hand me Beary? He should be in my duffle."

"Here you go, kid."

You took your bear and held him loosely in your arm. Then, you enveloped Jay in a hug and did the same for Will.

"I love you guys."

"We love you, too," Will said.

"Now get to sleep. You've still got school in the morning. I'll be here when you wake up."

"Dad sometimes wouldn't be home when I woke up for school. He'd be at a friend's house sleeping off a hangover from the night before or just sleeping."

Jay furrowed his eyebrows. "Doesn't he have to work?"

"He does work, but only a few days a week. The other days, he stays out really late and then comes home either drunk or hungover."

"I see," Jay stated. "Well I won't be doing that, I can promise you that."

"I know. You aren't like Dad. Neither of you are." You yawned again. "I'm going to bed, goodnight."

A few minutes later, you were out like a light and Will was still at Jay's apartment.

"So, Abby called me the other day," Will started. "She's looking for you. Says she's in town for a few days and wants to meet up."

"Oh yeah? She say why?" Jay asked, wondering why his ex-wife--who was the result of a blackout drunk wedding in Vegas, a thing that lasted only 24 hours tops--was in Chicago and was looking for him of all people.

"She said you two are still married."

Jay threw his head back against the couch and closed his eyes. "You have got to be fucking kidding me."

***

"Morning," Jay said as he stood at the stove flipping some eggs. "Sleep good?"

"I slept really good. Didn't even hear you wake up."

"Fan did the trick then?"

You nodded and grabbed a mug from the cupboard and went to start pouring yourself a cup of coffee.

"Nuh-uh," Jay chirped, putting his hand on the handle of the coffee pot as well.

"Why not? I drank it at Dad's."

Jay raised an eyebrow. "You drank coffee at Dad's?"

"Yeah, on the weekends sometimes that would be my breakfast because it curbs my appetite and there wasn't a lot to eat."

Jay sighed. "Well, you'll have enough to eat here, I can promise you that. And, coffee stunts your growth."

"Jay," you groaned. "I haven't grown since sixth grade."

"Okay, well, then you don't want to become dependent on it at such an early age, then. Come talk to me when you're a legal adult or in college."

"Fine." You let go of the coffee pot and put the mug back in the cupboard.

"You can have juice though." The toast in the toaster popped up and Jay placed the toast on a plate and then put a slice of cheese on each piece and then an egg on top. He also put a small bowl of strawberries next to it. "I'm gonna go get dressed while you eat. And then, once you're ready, I'll take you to school."

"Okay, thanks, Jay."

"You're welcome, kiddo."

You rolled your eyes at the nickname and then went to the fridge to get the apple juice. When you opened the fridge, you saw a brown paper bag with your name on it. Curiosity got the best of you, so you took it out and looked at the contents while you ate your breakfast.

Inside was a ham and Colby jack cheese sandwich with lettuce, pickles, mustard, and mayonnaise, an apple, a coconut-flavored Greek yogurt, celery with peanut butter, and a chocolate chip granola bar. There were also two dollars at the bottom of the bag paperclipped together with a sticky note stuck to the top.

For chocolate milk. ~Jay was what the note read.

Tears sprung to your eyes as you continued to eat your breakfast. You don't remember the last time you brought a lunch to school; you'd always get your lunch for free at school. When you got the paper from school about the free/reduced lunch because teachers noticed you didn't have much to eat, you waited until your dad was hungover and it was early in the morning, and handed him a pen and he signed the paper blindly. And, that's how you got lunch and breakfast at school without any cost to you or your dad.

"Hey, I can just brush my teeth at the kitchen sink if you want the bathroom--" He cut himself off when he saw the tears in your eyes. "What's wrong?"

"You- You made me lunch?" you asked as you turned to face him.

He smiled. "Of course I did. I know how bad cafeteria food can be. And, if it tastes good, it's usually not very good for you."

"Thank you," you said as you wiped a tear away that had rolled down your cheek.

"Aww, hey, don't cry, don't cry. It's okay. You're safe now. You don't need to worry about where your next meal will come from. And, I'm going to petition a judge for legal guardianship in a few days. I just have to have a few conversations with some lawyers."

"Does this mean you have to move? I don't want to kick you out of your apartment."

Jay dismissed that with a wave. "I already put in a loan application for a new apartment. Two bedrooms. Really nice."

"Can you tell me about it? While I finish eating my strawberries."

Jay nodded and sat down in the chair across from you. "It's a two-bedroom, washer, dryer. But, I know you don't care about those things. There's underground parking. It's got a gym, a whole club level, with like a coffee lounge, and all this other stuff."

"That sounds really nice."

"Yeah, it is a pretty nice building. Coffee lounge would be perfect for you to get your homework done if you don't feel like staying in the apartment."

"I thought you said I couldn't drink coffee?" you asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I meant the caffeine in the coffee. Decaf coffee and lattes and tea lattes, that's a different story. I'm sure they have pastries there, too."

"Never pegged you for a coffee snob," you joked.

"You learn a lot about coffee and about a person when you have to get your entire unit coffee. I'll let you in on a little secret: Ruzek's coffee order is the most complicated."

"Really?"

"Really. Now, go finish getting ready. Don't want you being late for school."

***

"Hey, Er, can you meet me at the diner we usually go to?" Jay asked his girlfriend over the phone after he had dropped you off at school.

"Yeah, no problem. Give me fifteen minutes. We haven't caught a case yet, but we should keep our radios on just in case. Everything okay?"

"It's a long story. I'll explain everything in person, okay?"

"Okay," Erin answered skeptically. "I'll see you in a few."

Fifteen minutes later on the dot, Erin walked into the little diner and spotted Jay sitting in the corner booth.

"Alright, what's going on?" she asked after she had ordered her food and some coffee. "You sounded really stressed on the phone."

Jay sighed. "I'm going to fight for legal guardianship of Y/N."

"What? Why? What happened?" Erin asked as she widened her eyes.

"Our dad, he uh, he hasn't really been the greatest. Not keeping food in the house, calling her a burden when she tries to eat some of his food, not buying her products for you know...girl stuff. She's probably lost like 25 pounds since the end of last school year. And, I know that doesn't sound like a lot with the amount of time that's passed, but she's underweight. Will drew some of her blood last night to see if she's deficient in some vitamins or minerals."

"My God."

"Yeah, so, I know we were going to move into your place together, but I need another bedroom and my loan went through at that place I told you about, so I'm going to put an offer in there. You could always move in with me if you want, but I don't know if it would be a good idea for that to happen right away. I just want to get Y/N healthy again. I'm sorry."

"Jay, I get it. She's family. Do you know how you're going to go about this? Did you talk to Voight about taking any time off to sort this out?"

"Not yet. But, I think I'm going to call Antonio and see if he can help me out with getting a meeting with ASA Stone. I know he works criminal cases, but he's gotta know some stuff about family court cases. So, I figured he might be able to help me with this whole process."

"Good idea. If you need any help, just say the word and I'll be there."

Jay smiled. "Thanks, Er." He didn't want to have the conversation he was about to have, but he knew he had to tell her. "There's uh, there's one more thing I need to tell you."

"Okay, what is it?"

"About eight years ago, I was married."

"Excuse me, what? You were married and you didn't tell me?"

Jay knew this was a bad idea...which was why he hadn't wanted to tell Erin, but now that he wasn't officially divorced for whatever reason, he knew needed to tell her. "Just let me explain."

"Yes, please do," Erin sneered.

"Her name's Abby. She ran Cultural Support during my last tour in Kandahar. About a year after I came home, I saw her at a funeral in Vegas. Was... was a guy in our unit, he had redeployed, and, um, he didn't... Um, I was, like, blacking out most nights, and we were both pretty shook up. And, um, we got married." He chuckled at the thought of his twenty-one-year-old self thinking that marriage was a good idea. "It was, like, a 24-hour thing, it was a total joke, and it is long over."

Erin just stared at him, as he waited to be chewed out by her. "Jay, you married this girl. And you never told me, and you were never gonna tell me," was all she said.

"I know. And, I'm sorry. But, I'm meeting up with her in a few days to sign the documents that I thought I'd signed because she's getting married and we need to make the divorce official...even though, in my mind, it's been official for eight years.

"Er, please don't hate me, but with everything going on, with me trying to get guardianship of Y/N and me finding out that I'm somehow still married--"

"You want us to take a break?" Erin asked, finishing his sentence for him.

Jay nodded. "I'm sorry. I just don't think I can juggle a relationship with all this other stuff. And, it's not fair to you."

Erin swallowed. "Well, just tell me if you need any help with Y/N. I'll always be there for you. Relationship or partnership, I'll always have your six."

"And I'll always have yours."

Erin's phone buzzed on the table and she picked it up. "It's Voight. We caught a case."

Jay laid some bills on the table. "Then let's go."

***

"Got the results of Y/N's bloodwork back," Will told Jay over the phone while he had a quick break for lunch...even though it was four o'clock in the afternoon. But, that's the thing about the medical field: breaks are never regular.

"And? Any deficiencies?" Jay asked, walking into his bedroom as you were at the table doing homework and he didn't want to distract you.

"Yes, two actually. Iron and riboflavin. The low iron explains why her periods have become shorter and lighter, but that can also be attributed to how small she is now."

"How do we go about this then?"

"I'll send you a list of foods that have levels high iron and riboflavin. Oh, riboflavin's found in vitamin B by the way."

"Okay, care to tell me what iron and riboflavin do? I know iron helps with hemoglobin and red blood cells, but I have no idea what riboflavin does."

"You're right about iron. I'm shocked. Or, what do the kids say these days? I'm shook."

"I swear to God, please never use that phrase again. And, I know what iron does because I paid attention in high school nutrition class, thank you very much."

"If I remember correctly, I helped you with most of the homework in that class."

"Whatever, you helped me. Now, tell me about riboflavin."

"So, riboflavin just helps convert food into energy and is needed for healthy skin, hair, blood, and a healthy brain." Jay could hear a beeping in the background on Will's end. "Gotta go. I'll send you that list of foods right now, though."

"Thanks, man."

You looked up as Jay came back into the kitchen. "Everything okay?" you asked.

Jay pulled out a chair and sat across from you. "So, I just got off the phone with Will. He got the results from your bloodwork back."

"Is it bad? Am I dying?" You set your pencil down, bracing yourself for bad news.

"No," Jay chuckled, "you're not dying. You just don't have enough iron and riboflavin, which is a specific B vitamin. Will sent me a list of foods that have high levels of those in them. You up for some grocery shopping? We can also grab some multivitamins that have those in them, too, just to help your levels stabilize faster."

"Okay, we can go now. I'm due for a break."

***

"So, some foods that contain riboflavin include milk, eggs, cheese, yogurt, meats, green leafy vegetables, and riboflavin enriched grains and cereals," Jay read off his phone.

"I've had a lot of those today already," you pointed out. "Eggs and cheese with breakfast. I had that yogurt for a snack at school, and I had meat and cheese on my sandwich and I had chocolate milk with my lunch at school."

That was just standard, Jay thought. He wondered what you ate when you were at your Dad's. And, he knew that if he wanted to obtain guardianship of you, he'd need to know these things.

"What did you eat at Dad's?" Jay probed.

"I mean, I barely made it to school on time most mornings because I was trying to be quiet so I didn't wake Dad, which made me move slower when getting ready. So, I'd usually just grab a small thing of dry cereal when I got to school and eat it in my first class. I never checked to see if it was one of the enriched ones. I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize. There's no way you could've known. Now, what did you usually have for lunch at school?"

"I always tried to get veggies with my lunch, but most of the veggies were the gross canned ones, like canned corn or green beans. I don't like those. Sometimes, they'd have little salads as a side and I'd get those. Sometimes they'd have yogurt parfaits and I'd get those. But, I'd usually go for the pre-made subs, because at least those would have veggies on them...even if it was just lettuce and pickles. I'd usually try to get an apple or banana as my side, too." You paused. "If I was getting meat and cheese from the sub and milk from my chocolate milk, then how am I deficient in this?"

"It's probably because the meat and cheese schools use is so heavily processed that there are little to no vitamins left in it," Jay answered.

"And you know this how?"

"As you get older, you acquire a lot of knowledge and one of those things is that the more processed a food is, the fewer vitamins and minerals are preserved...and I watch a lot of The Food that Built America on the History channel."

"Oh, okay. What foods are on that show?"

"Usually it's about fast food. One episode I watched last week was about ice cream and popsicles and how they came to be in America. Pretty interesting."

"Can we watch an episode tonight? That show sounds good."

"Of course." He paused in front of the fresh produce. "Take your pick. But, just make sure you get some leafy greens for the riboflavin and some fruit and other green veggies for iron."

You picked up a few things such as more apples, a bag of Clementines, bananas, spinach, carrots, and celery, and then, you shocked your brother as you picked up a bag of kale.

"Kale?" he asked. "Didn't know you liked it."

You shrugged. "I heard it tastes kind of like spinach. And, I saw a recipe on Pinterest for a salad that has kale, lemon juice, and dates. Is it okay if we try that?"

"You know, I think that would be the perfect side for dinner tonight. I'll add lemon juice and dates to the list."

"I didn't grab too many fruits and veggies, right?" you asked, not wanting to waste food or your brother's hard-earned money. "I- I can put some back if you want me to."

"Nope, it's all good. We can always freeze the bananas if they go bad for smoothies or banana bread. And, we can always turn the apples into apple sauce. Spinach and kale freeze well, too and you can't even taste them if we put them in smoothies."

"How do you know this stuff?" you asked.

"I used to watch Mom cook a lot when I was little. And, when I moved out on my own, she gave me a copy of a cookbook she always used. Said the recipes at the beginning of the book were simple enough that I wouldn't burn my apartment down."

You laughed at the thought of your mom scolding Jay if his apartment got ruined from his cooking. "Do you still have it?" you asked. "The cookbook, I mean."

"I do."

"Can we make something out of it tonight?"

"You know, I think that's a great idea." He pursed his lips. "How about Mom's chicken pot pie? I think I have some frozen peas and corn in the freezer and we can use the carrots we just grabbed in it, too."

"That sounds really good. Thank you."

"You don't have to thank me." Jay paused. He figured now would be as good a time as any to tell you. "Uh, do you remember the day that we got ice cream and went and played soccer with Ben when you were little? The night that Mom went into the hospital?"

You nodded, swallowing the lump in your throat at the memory of that day.

"Well, she told me to take care of you. There's no way I would break a promise to Mom."

"She said that?"

"Mhmm."

"It's like she knew something was going to happen."

"Mom was a smart lady. Will had to have gotten it from somewhere and he sure didn't get it from Dad."

You laughed. "Hey, you're smart, too. Just not sciency smart. You're more puzzle smart because you put the pieces together of who committed a crime." Jay laughed at your description of his job. "Oh, is the recipe for Mom's garlic mashed potatoes in that cookbook?"

"It is. Want those as a side along with the salad you mentioned?"

"Yes, please...if it's not a problem."

"They're super simple and quick to make." He scribbled on a piece of notebook paper that he had written down a few groceries on, like the salad ingredients you had mentioned. "Alright, potatoes, a rotisserie chicken, and pastry dough have all been added to the list."

***

"I'll be back later tonight, no later than midnight," Jay told you two days later on Sunday night. "I know it's not ideal because you have school in the morning, but try and get some sleep while I'm gone, okay?"

"I'm used to being home alone at night, Jay." You shrugged. "I'll be fine."

"I know, it's just that not something I want you to get used to. Feel free to eat anything you want, cook anything you want. As long as you don't burn down the house, I don't care what you make. Oh, and remember to take your multivitamin before bed."

You rolled your eyes. "I'm fifteen, not five. Now, get going. Don't want you to be late to meet that lawyer."

"Love you. I'll be back by midnight. Lock the door behind me."

"I will. Love you, too."

With that, Jay left his apartment to go meet with ASA Stone and you locked the door behind him as he told you.

***

"So, Antonio told me you have some custody questions," Peter Stone said once he closed the door of his office.

"That's right," Jay replied as he took a seat in front of Stone's desk and turned his phone completely off and Stone took a seat in his chair behind his desk.

"Didn't know you had a kid, Halstead."

"No, I don't actually," Jay chuckled. "I have a kid sister. Name's Y/N and she's fifteen."

"Okay, and why do you want guardianship then?"

"When me and Will, my older brother, were kids, our dad kinda checked out on parenting us when we hit our mid-teens. But, we had our mom around, so it was okay. I went over there the other day because my dad was having some heart issues and I called Will. When I was there, I got a call of a robbery and it was Y/N. She was stealing food from a corner store because our dad wasn't feeding her," Jay explained.

"I see. So, other than her word and her stealing food, do you have any proof of this?"

"I know I should've called DCFS before letting her stay with me, but I couldn't let her stay there a minute longer, Peter. She's lost like 25 pounds in the past six months and she's deficient in both iron and vitamin B."

"Okay, what we have to do is petition for guardianship in front of a judge. I can help you with the documents and I can even represent you at the hearing if you want."

"Wow, yeah, that'd be great. Thank you."

"Anything else you want to tell me about your dad? Any physical or emotional abuse?"

"Not technically, but there is something else." And then Jay launched into all the information you had told him two days ago.

"Okay. And, you know your dad could theoretically press kidnapping charges against you because you took his kid without his permission?"

"I do. But he was basically starving her. No jury would find me guilty."

"I'm not going to argue with you about that one because I agree with you."

"So, do you think I have a chance of getting guardianship over Y/N?"

"In theory, yes. But, most judges like to keep the child with their biological parents. But, seeing as Y/N's fifteen, she does get some say in who she stays with," Stone explained. "When we have a custody or guardianship battle, we use the child's best interest standard. This means that you must prove that you are capable of providing food, clothing, housing, medical care, and a stable home life for Y/N. There will be one or two home visits before appearing before a judge, just to let you know."

"I'm aware of that. And, I just put an offer in on a new apartment with two bedrooms this morning and they're pretty quick in responding, so I should know in the next few days whether or not I got it."

"That's a good start. And you are financially stable to raise her until she turns eighteen, so three more years?"

"I am."

"Alright, let's start on those documents then. Unless you have any more questions for me?"

"I do actually. I, uh, I just found out that I'm technically still married. Something about me not signing the divorce papers even though I specifically remember signing them? And, before you ask, me and this girl served together, we were both twenty-one, going through rough patches and it was a Vegas wedding eight years ago. Lasted no more than twenty-four hours."

"It's really good that you told me this because any good lawyer would find that out when you file for guardianship. It's possible that she didn't co-sign the divorce papers. If that's the reason, I can help you draw up new divorce papers right now."

"Really? You'd help me with that?"

"Of course. A friend of Antonio's is a friend of mine," Stone said as he started typing on his computer. "So, what you can do is you can file for a no-fault divorce."

"You're gonna have to be specific, Stone. I know a bit of criminal law because I've had to testify in criminal cases, but like I said, I don't know family or civil law," Jay said.

"What a no-fault divorce is, Jay, is that you don't have to prove that either of you did anything wrong to get a divorce. All you have to do is state that your marriage is unsalvageable and continue filing for divorce."

"That's it? What if she doesn't sign it?"

"The divorce papers will be served to, uh...what's this girl's name again?" Stone asked.

"Abby."

"Abby. The divorce papers will be served to Abby and she has twenty days to file her response with the court. If she doesn't, then the court rules it as an uncontested divorce and then you're officially divorced."

"Me and Abby are meeting up to talk about all this tonight. But, can we just fill out paperwork for this no-fault divorce just in case things don't go as planned? I just really need to get guardianship of Y/N. The least amount of problems, the better."

"Of course. And if everything goes well with her tonight, then just give me a call and I'll shred the documents."

"Alright, just tell me where to sign."

***

"Wilson is running through the showers wearing nothing but a Kevlar vest, right?" Jay reminisced on the good parts of his Ranger days with Abby at a bar around 8:30 that night after his meeting with Peter Stone.

"Well, the lieutenant said, all outdoor activities to be conducted in body armor." Jay laughed at Abby's rendition of their lieutenant's voice. "Do you remember, he had his girlfriend's name tattooed on his ass?"

Jay set his empty drink down on the bar. "Did he tell you that was his girlfriend? That was his dog's name," Jay laughed.

"That actually makes more sense," Abby said. "I could go for another one of these."

"I, um, I shouldn't."

"Gotta get back to the barracks?"

"No, I uh gotta get back to my little sister, actually. I'm looking after her at the moment. It's a long story. Do you have the papers?"

"I, uh, I don't have them."

"Abby."

"It's just, I never told you. Even that crazy day we got married, I never told you that I loved you, Jay. It didn't feel right. But, I loved you, Jay. I do love you."

Jay sighed. "Abby, you deserve everything good. I'm just not the guy that's gonna give that to you." He brushed her hair to the side and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

After putting some money on the bar to pay for the drinks and tip the bartender, he left the bar. Guess he was going to need these no-fault divorce documents, anyway.

He was almost to his car when he heard someone calling his name. And, it was a voice he knew all too well.

"Erin?" he shouted as she came closer. "What are you doing here?"

"Would it kill you to turn on your phone? You need to get to the district. Now."

"What? Why? What's wrong?"

She got in his passenger seat. "Just drive. I'll explain on the way."

***

You were sitting on Jay's bed reading a book when you heard a knock on the door.

Slowly, you got off his bed and made your way out of his room. You took a knife out of the knife block, but you hoped you wouldn't need to use it. Jay would've told you if someone was planning on stopping over. And, if it was Will, he would've given you a heads-up.

The knocking got louder and more aggressive. "Jayson! Open this door! I have the right to see my daughter!"

Dad.

With the knife still in hand, you backed up and then, once on the carpet, ran back into Jay's room and quietly shut the door and locked it. You pulled out your phone and tried Jay. It went straight to voicemail. The pounding was getting louder. You tried Will. It went straight to voicemail because he was on shift. You thought you heard your dad starting to kick the door now instead of just pounding on it with his fists. You tried the last person you thought could help.

"Y/N?" Erin asked as she answered her phone and paused the tv show she was watching.

"Erin," you whispered. "I'm scared. I need help."

"You need help? Can you tell me why?"

"My dad, he's- he's here. He's looking for me." You heard a crash.

"Jay? Y/N? I know one of you is in here!"

"I- I think he just broke down the apartment door. Please help."

"Okay, okay, here's what you're going to do. I want you to hide somewhere and I'm going to call a patrol car over there right now. You're going to turn your phone on silent and I'm going to call you right back," she told you.

"Okay," you whispered as quietly as you could.

"I'll call you back in one minute tops."

You moved as quietly as you could with the knife and your phone still in your hands and opened Jay's closet door. You buried yourself behind the two garment bags that contained Jay's police blues and his military dress uniform, hoping against hope that your dad wouldn't find you.

Your phone lit up and it was Erin. You answered.

"Y/N, the officers will be there soon. I don't want you to talk. Just know that I'm on the phone with you."

At the same time, as she was talking to you over speakerphone, she was texting the team. She assumed you couldn't reach Jay or Will since you had called her. She told them what was happening and that a few of them needed to get to the district because they needed to find Jay's location. She also told Voight to get ahold of Sharon Goodwin so she could notify Will of what was currently happening.

"Chicago PD! Put your hands where we can see them!" you heard from your hiding place.

"See?" Erin said. "I told you that you'd be okay. I told them that you were hiding, so if someone opens the door, it's just an officer."

Just after she said that the closet door opened.

You squeaked.

"It's okay. You're safe," the officer said. "We're just going to take you down to the district. You're safe."

You peeked out from your hiding place and you saw the blues of the officers. You slowly made your way out and followed the officer out to the patrol car, the one that didn't house your dad for a breaking and entering charge at the moment.

***

"Where is she?" Jay yelled as he entered the district.

Platt just pointed to the bench next to one of the offices where you were sitting, staring at the floor, with a police jacket draped over your shoulders.

He sunk to his knees in front of you. "Are you hurt? Did Dad hurt you? Did he put his hands on you in any way?"

You shook your head.

"Oh thank God."

"I was so scared," you whispered. "When you and Will didn't answer, I thought he was gonna get me."

"I'm sorry. I turned off my phone when I talked to ASA Stone, and I forgot to turn it back on. I'm so sorry. C'mere."

You all but fell off the bench and into Jay's arms. "Is he going to jail? I don't want him going to jail."

"He was drunk out of his mind. I can ask not to press charges, though."

"Please. He needs help."

Although Jay didn't say it, he knew you were right. Jails and prisons didn't rehabilitate, they just taught criminals how to be better criminals. He knew that his dad needed rehab, a twelve-step program, anything.

"Okay, I won't press charges. But, I think we're gonna need to stay with Will for the night because our door's broken. What do you say we run home and grab some clothes to bring to Will's? And, since Dad will be here for a little longer, we can run to his house and get more of your stuff. Sound like a plan?"

"Can we get Dairy Queen on the way to Will's?"

"We sure can."

***

"I- I don't think any of these dresses will fit me anymore. They look way too big," you said to Jay as the two of you unpacked a bunch of your stuff in the guest room of Jay's new apartment. You wanted to think of it as the guest room for now instead of calling it your room just in case Jay wasn't awarded guardianship. You didn't want to get too attached.

Jay sighed. He figured you were right. He would see if Erin could take you, but their relationship was on the backburner right now. And, Erin had some stuff with Bunny she had to work out after she had brought her that pearl bracelet and said that she might be leaving Chicago. So, now wasn't really the right time for him to be bugging Erin about going shopping with you. And, he couldn't ask Kim because she was taking some furlough after finding her sister brutally sodomized after a night out.

He thought about asking Will if Nina could come, but he didn't think that those two were too happy with each other at the moment since Will hadn't told Nina about their dad being in the hospital and she had to find out from Natalie. Not Will's greatest moment.

He racked his brain for more women he knew.

Then it hit him: Gabby.

Yes, they had briefly dated, but that was five years ago. She was married now and his feelings for her were completely gone. They were civil with each other when they saw each other in the field and would chat when Gabby showed up at the district to pick up Eva or Diego.

"How about you try a few on after we finish unpacking, and then if none of them really fit, I can give Gabby a call and see if she'll take you shopping while I work on unpacking the rest of the house," Jay suggested.

"Okay. Will's gonna be over after his shift to help though, right?" you asked.

"He better be. He said he would. If he doesn't come, he better have a really good excuse."

"You can't unpack the kitchen without me," you told him.

"Why not?"

"I can't have you putting the glasses and other stuff on high shelves because I wanna reach them without having to climb on the counter."

"Okay, fine. I'll keep your short little height in mind while I unpack." He paused. "Do you want to get those fancy word stickers for your room for one of the walls?"

"Decals? And, it's not my room yet."

"Listen, after that stunt Dad pulled at my old apartment, Stone is 99.9% positive that I'll be granted guardianship. We just have to jump through all the hoops first."

"Like the home checks?"

"Like the home checks," he confirmed.

"What do I say in court?" you asked a few minutes later as you were putting the pillows on your freshly made bed.

"You just tell the truth," he answered.

"Will you be in there with me?"

"No, I won't. Stone said that usually in these cases you talk to the judge by yourself so that you can't be intimidated by either of the people who are fighting for custody or guardianship."

"So you won't be there? Will won't be there?"

"Will will be out in the hall and I will be in a different room. I'll be in like a witness room, where they make witnesses of a crime wait so that their testimony isn't swayed by what the other people are saying on the stand. But, me and Dad will be in the courtroom at the same time, just so I can see what he'll be saying."

"And, I'll be in there then, too?"

"Yes."

"What kind of questions do they ask me?"

"Stone said that since you're older, you get a say in who you stay with, so they'll ask you questions like who've you known the longest, who you feel safest with, who you want to live with, etc."

"Will they ask me questions about Dad? Like how he didn't give me food and how he broke into your apartment?" you asked.

"They will," Jay confirmed. "But, Stone will be in there for those questions just in case he needs to object to something."

"So the only time I'll be alone with the judge is when they're asking me the first few questions? Like who I feel safest with?"

"Exactly. Now, do you need help putting these books on the top shelf of your bookshelf?"

***

"Hey, how was your day?" Jay asked as he came home from work that afternoon. It was a shock that he was home by 5 pm, but you had a big day tomorrow. Not only was tomorrow Friday, it was the day you and Jay had to go to court to see if he would be awarded guardianship of you.

"We've got a problem," you stated.

"Um, I can try to help you with it, but let me go put my gun away first."

While he was doing that, you pulled out the slip of paper and the note that Gretchen Cunningham had written, saying that she wouldn't allow you to make up the test you would be missing because you had to go to court.

"Alright, what's the problem?" Jay asked as he walked into the kitchen.

"Cunningham. She's the problem...as always."

You handed him the papers and he read them over. "Yeah, this isn't going to fly. She doesn't need a judge's signature to allow you to take the test. I'll talk to the school tomorrow morning when I call to tell them you'll be absent."

"I hate her," you groaned. "She's so mean. And, I know what you're gonna say. You have to deal with people you don't like. But, she lost one of my assignments and told me I didn't turn it in and couldn't re-do it!"

"Well did you?" Jay asked. "Turn it in, I mean."

"Jay!"

He put his hands up in a sign of surrender. "I'm just saying, could be your fault."

"Yes, I turned in the stupid assignment. And, she paired me up with the stupidest kid in the class and told me to do well on this assignment because he needed a good grade to pass. It's not my fault he's failing! Don't put his grade on me, lady!"

"And she wouldn't let you re-do it?"

"Nope. But it's fine. I'm still getting an A. That might change if she doesn't let me take this test, though."

"It's like deja-vu from my freshman year all over again. Why doesn't she retire already? She's like 100."

"Or they could fire her," you quipped. "Or I could switch classes."

"I'll see what I can do. Who's the other history teacher?"

"Um, Miss Hedge."

"Hedge? As in Jayne Hedge?"

"Yeah, it's actually her. Why? Do you know her?"

"Yes he does," Will said as he entered Jay's apartment. "In fact, they went to freshman snowcoming together."

"How did you even get in here?" Jay asked, turning around to look at his older brother.

"For a cop, you're not that smart. You didn't lock the door behind you."

"I don't lock my door when I'm still awake. And, seriously? You just had to tell Y/N that, didn't you?"

"You guys can't just leave me hanging now. Tell me the story!"

"Fine," Jay grumbled and Will just laughed and sat down at the table, too. "I met her at school, obviously. She was on the freshman basketball team and I had winter weight training for the soccer team. I thought she was pretty and she was really smart, too. And, I knew that a bunch of the girls went to get Taco Bell after practice, so me and some of my friends decided to go, too."

"There used to be a Taco Bell close to school?" you asked. If there was, you'd never seen it before.

"It got torn down just after I graduated," Jay answered. "Anyway, we went to Taco Bell and I started talking to her and we talked a lot after practice. I'd walk her home sometimes. Then, I asked her to snowcoming and she said yes."

"So, why'd you guys break up? I know you dated Allie in high school."

"We realized we were better off as friends." Jay shrugged.

"And he realized he liked Allie more," Will added.

"Yeah, that too."

Will set a big bag of takeout on the table.

"Seriously?" Jay asked. "I thought we weren't going to do this that much anymore so we can get Y/N's vitamin and mineral levels stabilized."

"I'm sure she'd appreciate the break from your mundane meals," Will said. "And, I got us all side salads to go with the burgers instead of fries, so calm down." Jay gave him a look. "Fine, I got the side salads along with the fries. But, they're made out of potatoes, so they're technically a vegetable."

"For a doctor, you don't know much about nutrition, do you? And, my meals are not mundane."

"Dude, you'd have chicken, spaghetti, or grilled cheese every night."

"Not every night, just a lot of nights when I'd get home from the district late. I'll have you know me and Y/N have been making really good diners lately. Wanna tell Will what we made last night for dinner, Short Stack?"

"We made this really good pasta. We used Orzo, which looks like rice, but it's pasta. And we made a sauce out of tomatoes, onions, and orange juice. It was supposed to be lemon juice, but Jay didn't have any. We put chicken sausage in it for protein...and spices of course," you told Will.

"That actually sounds really good. Wow, Jay cooking every night, not something I expected."

"I like it," you said. "And, he lets me play whatever music I want when we cook."

Will rolled his eyes. You had Jay so wrapped around your finger that he'd do almost anything for you. Will didn't think he himself was that bad, but deep down, he knew he'd do anything for you, too...despite not being in Chicago as long as Jay had been.

***

"So I got a call from Stone this morning," Jay said around 11:30 that night when he and Will were sitting on the couch, each nursing a beer.

Will set his beer down on the coffee table in front of him. "And?"

"And, as of yesterday at midnight, I am officially divorced from Abby. Turns out, they served her the papers and, since she didn't sign them and it had been twenty days, it turned into an uncontested, no-fault divorce."

"Congrats, man. Might've been eight years too late, but you're a free man now."

"Amen to that. And it came at just the right time."

"Yeah," Will agreed. "You nervous for tomorrow?"

"Not really. More nervous for Y/N than anything. I've testified in criminal cases, so I kinda know how this goes, but she hasn't. And, before me and Dad go in to plead our cases, she has to talk to the judge all by herself. I just wish one of us could be in there with her."

Will nodded. "Know what they're going to ask you?"

"I know what Stone's going to ask me because we prepped, but I have no idea what Dad's lawyer is going to ask me. Pretty sure he's got just a public defender, though. Hopefully, that works in my favor."

"Not always, man," Will disagreed. "The public defenders who do these cases only do these cases. They've had a lot of practice."

"You really know how to make me feel better, thanks," Jay replied sarcastically.

"Rather have you hear it from me before the case than someone else after. Are you going to get cross-examined?"

"Probably. Don't know what they're going to ask me though because it's a cross. Stone set up some sample questions for me to answer with him to practice, but I'm going in blind. I'm used to it though because I've testified before. But, this feels like my biggest case."

"Because it probably is."

"Are you talking about tomorrow?" you asked as you quietly padded across the floor towards the living room.

"Y/N? What are you doing up? It's almost midnight," Jay pointed out.

"I- I know. But I couldn't sleep. I'm scared. What if I have to go back to Dad's? What if they find neither of you fit and I have to go into foster care?"

Jay patted the empty spot on the couch next to him and you sat down. "We just have to trust the system. That's all we can do."

"I know, but I can't sleep. And I'm so tired."

"I have an idea," Jay started and stood up, "stay here."

"I'm gonna go look for some melatonin," Will said after a few minutes of you two just sitting in silence. "I think Jay still has some for nights that he can't sleep."

Will was still rummaging around Jay's cabinets when Jay came back with a big black box with some cords and a cardboard box balanced against his hip.

"The hell is that?" You quickly covered your mouth when you realized you had sworn. "Sorry."

"It's okay. And, to answer your question, this is VCR. And, I have a bunch of videotapes in this box." He turned from you to face the kitchen, where Will was still opening and closing cabinets. "Will? What are you doing?"

"Looking for melatonin for Y/N. You got any?"

"First of all, it's so late that if you give it to her now, she'll sleep through her alarm and we can't be late for court tomorrow. And, second of all, I keep it in the medicine cabinet in my bathroom."

Will closed the cabinet and made his way back to the couch to sit next to you as Jay started to hook up the VCR to the tv. "Uh, Jay," Will began, "you know it's a little late for a movie right? And, I should get going in like half an hour?"

"We're not watching a movie. I recorded a bunch of the Blackhawks playoff games on one of these and I thought Y/N'd like to watch the 2010 Stanely Cup final series against the Flyers. Or, we could watch the final series against the Bruins when they won the cup last year."

"Let's watch the 2010 one," you said. "I don't think I watched it because I wasn't into watching hockey as much as I am now."

"And you have Jay to thank for that," Will pointed out.

"You can record things on there? Like an old-school DVR?" you asked.

"God, now I feel old," Will groaned. "Wait until she learns about floppy disks."

"Floppy what now?"

"Nevermind. Only 80s-90s kids would get it."

"We get it. You guys are millennials."

"Got it!" Jay exclaimed as he popped the videotape into the VCR and it started playing. "Now, shut up so we can relive this, Will."

You fell asleep before you even reached the end of the first period.

***

You rubbed your eyes and then looked around you to notice that you were still on the couch. You craned your neck to see the time on the oven on the other side of the open concept kitchen and living room and saw that it was 5:45 am. Jay was at the gym now. And, you knew you wouldn't be able to fall back asleep because you were already starting to worry about the rest of the day. You had to be in court at 8:30 and had to be talking to a judge at 9:00, the judge that would determine who you would be living with, which would inevitably determine your future.

God, you were thinking just like the teachers talked about the SATs, how if you didn't get a good grade on that standardized test that your future would be ruined.

You stood up and stretched and then went back to your room to grab the book you were currently reading. Then, you turned on a few lamps and grabbed a yogurt and fruit from the fridge, along with a glass of orange juice. After wrapping yourself in a blanket, you started to eat and read, hoping that that would keep your mind from wandering and worrying at least until Jay got back from the gym.

Half an hour later, Jay unlocked the apartment door and walked inside, confused as to why you were awake. It was only 6:15 and he had told you just to be up by 6:45.

"What are you doing awake, Short Stack?" he asked as he grabbed a banana from the bowl on the counter.

"I woke up at about 5:45 and I couldn't fall asleep. I'm sorry."

"Nothing to worry about. I just want you as well-rested for today as possible. You have your dress all ready? Know what shoes you're going to wear?"

"Jay," you whined. "I picked all of that out last night because you told me to."

"Just didn't want you to have to rush. I can turn the game back on for you so you can watch it until you have to start getting ready?"

You nodded and Jay came over and fiddled with the tv and the remote, going back to the middle of the first period where he thought you had fallen asleep.

"Okay, I'm gonna take a shower. Will said he'll be here around 7:45. Oh, and you can take that history test when you get back on Monday, in Miss Hedge's class."

You smiled. "Okay." Then, you turned your attention back to the hockey game.

***

You widened your eyes as you stood in the second bathroom getting ready. You had gotten dressed (into a navy blue, lacey dress that ended just above the knee that you had bought with Gabby a few days ago), washed your face, brushed your teeth, did your makeup, but now you were cursing yourself for being so stupid. You had no way of doing your hair. You didn't have a straightener here. And, your typical ponytail or bun wasn't going to cut it for court.

"Jay!" you yelled as you exited the bathroom and knocked on his bedroom door.

He opened it as he was tying his tie. "Yeah? Everything okay?"

"I don't have a straightener! I can't do my hair and if I wear my hair like I usually do then it will look bad on you and--"

"Hey, hey, calm down. We've still got over 45 minutes before we have to leave. I'll give Gabby a call and see if she's not on shift and can let you borrow hers."

You sighed the biggest sigh of relief. "Thank you."

Five minutes later, Jay knocked on the bathroom door as you were brushing your hair. "Gabby will be here in ten."

"Oh thank God."

***

"Thank you!" you exclaimed ten minutes later as you opened the door, revealing Gabby with her hair straightener. And, behind her, was Casey.

"No problem. Just tell me if you're not used to it and need help."

You took it from her. "No, I should be good. Thanks, though. C'mon in. I'm pretty sure Jay's around here somewhere."

They came into the apartment while you ran off to find Jay.

You knocked on his bedroom once more and he opened it, this time completely ready for the day. "Gabby and Casey are here," you told him.

"Casey's here?" he asked, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Yeah. I think he just came with Gabby."

"Okay. Go fix your hair. I'll go talk to them."

Twenty minutes later, you were finished and slipping your shoes on when you heard a knock on the apartment door. "I got it, Y/N!" Jay yelled.

Well, I hoped you would because you're closer to the door than me, you thought to yourself.

Jay opened the door, and since it was exactly 7:45, he was expecting to just see Will. But, what he saw both shocked him and made him want to cry from appreciation at the same time.

Standing next to Will was Natalie and behind them was all of Intelligence and Trudy Platt and Mouch, all of Squad 3 and Truck 81 (minus Casey because he was inside), Sylvie Brett, Chief Boden, April, Maggie, Dr. Rhodes, Dr. Charles, Reese, and Noah.

"You're all here for the court case?" Jay asked, stunned.

"Well, Natalie has to testify about Y/N's deficiencies and weight loss, but yeah. It's better if the court sees that the person trying to get guardianship has a ton of support. So, I figured I'd call in reinforcements...even though I'm pretty sure my big personality is enough."

Jay rolled his eyes. "Your big ego maybe." He paused, not knowing how he was going to fit everyone in his apartment even if it was bigger than his last one. "However many of you guys can fit inside, can come in. Um, some of you might just need to meet us at the courthouse--"

"Jay, they just came now so you could see how many people were behind you. They're just gonna meet you there. Except for me. I'm driving you two." Jay furrowed his eyebrows. They didn't talk about this. "I'll explain later."

"Gabby," you said as you walked out of the bathroom. "Can you--" you stopped as you saw everyone outside Jay's apartment.

"They're all here for you and Jay," Gabby explained as she stood up. "And, you can't cry because it'll smear your makeup, so hold back the tears."

You nodded as you held them back. "Can you, uh, check the back of my hair to make sure I got it all straight?" you asked.

"Two spots are still a bit wavy. Let's go fix it so you can get going."

A few minutes later, Gabby had fixed your hair and everyone besides Will and Jay had left and were on their way to the courthouse. You slipped on a pair of black ballet flats and your coat.

Will had explained that the reason he was driving was that if Jay didn't get guardianship, he didn't want him driving in such a distressed state. Will had worked on so many patients who were in car accidents due to their emotional state and he didn't want Jay to be one of them.

"Ready?" Jay asked you.

"As ready as I'll ever be," you said as you wiped your sweaty palms on your dress.

"All you have to do is tell the truth."

***

You thought you'd be comfortable inside a courtroom because of the crime dramas you'd seen. But, standing inside one was very different from watching a fictional tv show.

No one but you, the judge, the court reporter, Peter Stone, and your dad's lawyer could be in the room for this next part, so everyone was either in a witness room or waiting outside in the hallway for the go-ahead to be let in. You would be allowed to be in the courtroom while they were talking to Jay and your dad, but they wouldn't be able to be in the room when you talked to the judge...for obvious reasons, such as influencing what you would say.

"All rise."

You stood up next to Stone as the judge, who you now knew as Judge Callahan, entered the room.

Once you sat down, you were called to the stand. "Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth so help you God?" you were asked as you placed your hand on the Bible.

"I do," you answered.

"Alright, please allow Miss Halstead on the witness stand," Judge Callahan said. "Now, I'm just going to ask you a few questions. All you have to do is answer them. Do you understand?"

"Yes, I understand."

"Okay, first question: Has your father, Pat Halstead, ever hit you or physically abused you in any way?"

"No," you answered.

"Has he ever neglected to give you necessities, such as food, water, clothing, or shelter?"

"Yes."

"Can you please elaborate?"

You did. You explained how your dad never had food in the house and would yell at you and call you a burden if you tried to eat his leftovers.

"Is it true that your father tried to break into your brother's house to get you?" Judge Callahan asked.

"Yes."

"Who do you feel safest with?"

"My brother, Jay Halstead."

"Who would you prefer to live with?"

"Jay Halstead."

***

Jay sat on the witness stand. He had answered all of Stone's questions, including all of the questions about him finding you stealing, what you had been using for pads, and what he had been told that you had been eating at your dad's house. Natalie had testified about your physical well-being, weight loss, and iron and riboflavin deficiencies. But now, it was time for Jay's cross-examination. And, he sure as hell didn't expect this next question to be asked.

"Mr. Halstead," your dad's lawyer began, "you previously said, and I quote, that your dad clocked out on parenting you and your older brother, Will, when you were in your teens, around when you started high school. Can you elaborate on that?"

"Objection!" Stone yelled. "Relevance?"

"Speaks to a pattern."

"I'll allow it," Judge Callahan said. "Please answer the question, Mr. Halstead."

Jay nodded. "He clocked out on parenting me and Will because he said that were essentially grown men at this point in our lives, we didn't need him cheering us on or him helping us. He didn't come to a single one of my soccer games in high school. And, if by some miracle we went out for ice cream or something just me, my brother, and my dad, he wouldn't pay for ours. Said we were old enough to pay for ourselves.

"But, we had our mom. She came to all our games and school events. She made us breakfast, lunch, and dinner. If she wasn't there, I don't know what would've happened to me and Will. My dad didn't even want me to go into the military and didn't want Will to go to medical school. He said a real man went right to work. The only time I felt loved by him in all my teenage years was when I left for the military. It was like because he knew I might die over there that he figured he'd say he loved me one last time."

"Redirect, your honor," Stone said. Judge Callahan nodded at Stone. "You said that your mom made you and your brother lunch. Are you doing that for Y/N?"

"Objection! Relevance?"

"Speaks to Mr. Halstead's abilities as a parent."

"I'll allow it. Please answer the question."

"I actually do," Jay answered. "I make her a packed lunch to bring to school every day and I'm sure to add foods high in iron and riboflavin to help those levels stabilize quicker. The first time I packed her a lunch, she actually cried because she hadn't gotten a lunch from home in so long."

"Thank you."

"Mr. Halstead," your dad's lawyer started, "you were previously deployed overseas in Afghanistan for two tours of duty. While I thank you for your service, is it possible that you could have PTSD and hurt Y/N in the middle of the night?"

"I would never hurt her!"

"While you are fully conscious, maybe. But, while you are in a sleep-addled state, isn't it possible that you might think that the person waking you up is an enemy soldier and not your little sister?"

Jay sighed. No one knew this about him, not you, not Will, not his dad. No one. And now all of his family and closest friends were going to know since they were in the courtroom watching this entire thing unfold.

"I am on Prazosin for nightmares caused by my PTSD," Jay answered.

"And how long have you been on this medication?"

"For about two years."

"And this has helped you manage your nightmares?"

"Yes, very much so."

"No further questions."

***

"Jesus, Jay," Will said after you had watched your dad's testimony on why he should get to keep you. It was the usual: how he was your father, so, therefore, he deserved to keep taking care of you and it's what your mother would've wanted...despite her telling Jay to keep you safe before she died. They already had the responding officers testify about the break-in, so he couldn't deny that and he was under oath, so if anyone found out he lied, then your dad would be held in contempt.

"I'm sorry I never told you, man," Jay said. "I just, I thought of it as weak that I couldn't deal with my own shit." He grimaced when he realized he had sworn around you. "Sorry, Y/N."

"It's okay. I hear that stuff at school."

"I'm just upset you didn't tell me they were getting that bad, Jay," Will lamented. "I know I wasn't there for you a lot after Mom died, but I'm here now."

Jay nodded, and Will knew he didn't want to talk about the topic anymore. You looked through the little window into the courtroom and saw that the judge was coming back from her chambers.

"Guys, I think she's made a decision," you said nervously.

"Whatever happens, me and Jay will be there for you," Will promised.

All you could do at this point was nod, as a lump was forming in your throat from all your nerves.

Jay led you back into the courtroom and you sat at the front, between Jay and Will. You wiped your sweaty palms on your dress and Jay gave your shoulder a reassuring squeeze.

Judge Callahan stood up.

"By using the child's best interest standard of who can provide food, clothing, housing, education, medical care, and a stable home life for Y/N Halstead, I declare Mr. Jay Halstead the legal guardian of Y/N Halstead."

You could've sworn that you stopped breathing the second she said Jay's first name. You were so overwhelmed that you just turned to him and started crying as he wrapped an arm around you while he listened to the judge state your dad's visitation rights.

But, you didn't hear any of that. The only phrase that kept repeating in your head was I declare Mr. Jay Halstead the legal guardian of Y/N Halstead over and over again.

Now, you knew that you'd always have the necessities when you lived with Jay. You wouldn't have to worry about where your next meal was going to come from or if your dad would be out until 3 am drinking. You wouldn't have to worry about having access to tampons or pads and not be embarrassed anymore to ask for some from school if you forgot to put any in your backpack that day. But most of all, you knew that you would be loved and cared for.

A/N: Thank you so much for reading! Did I make anyone cry with this one??? The blood draw scenario was actually based on when I had to go and get my blood drawn the other day and thought I was going to pass out, which is why that scene was so long. Anyway, thank you again for reading, and please reblog/like and comment and tell me what you think! As always, if you want to be added to my taglist, just tell me and I’ll add you!

taglist: @theambracer88 @virtualreader @kelelas-life @celyndavies @brookerz122493 @musicismyescape27 @anotherfan07 @thexplosivegirl @dreamingwithlens @xoxmariaxox @onechicago18 @iamasimpingh0e

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yourlocalfictionalenthusiast · 3 years

Text

IN LIFE, IN DEATH...

Part One

Luke Patterson x Fem!reader

Summary: All you wanted was to play the biggest gig of your life with your best friends, but you just might get more than you bargained for.

Warnings: death and some swearing (I don’t think there is anything else but if there is, let me know!)

…

May 1994

“Shit.”

You whispered to yourself as you stared at the old clock on the diner’s wall.

It had only been half an hour since your shift started, but you were already anxious for it to be over.

Cece’s diner was normally one of your favorite places in the world. It was a small, poorly lit building in a boring part of L.A. It didn’t see much business since it wasn’t easy to find. But the air always smelled like fresh coffee and cinnamon.

You loved working there, but it was not where you wanted to be right now.

“You okay, (Y/n)?” A voice asked from behind the counter. You turned to see your boss Cece, a petite middle-aged woman who was eyeing the dirty table in front of you that you were supposed to be cleaning.

“Yeah, sorry. My mind is somewhere else.” You admitted, throwing the empty plates in the tray and carrying them to the kitchen.

Cece shook her head and let out a laugh as she followed. “On a certain guitarist, perhaps?”

Your cheeks flushed and Cece laughed again, grabbing the rag off her shoulder and smacking it against your arm lightly.

She was one of the few people who knew about your feelings for Luke Patterson. One of your best friends, childhood crush, and most recently, your bandmate.

“And for your information, I’m thinking about all of the band because we’re practicing tonight.”

“Uh-huh.” Cece hummed, a sly smile on her face.

She always pretended to be annoyed with your ramblings since you joined sunset curve, saying that a sixteen-year-old girl had no business being in a rock band. But you had caught her bragging about you to the few regulars you had multiple times.

She had a son living a few states away, but they weren’t close. So she treated you like her daughter. Which meant she wasn't the biggest fan of you constantly hanging around a bunch of teenage boys. But eventually, she warmed up to them. Especially Alex; he was her favorite.

Luke, on the other hand, annoyed her to no end.

You ran the dishes under hot water and pressed a kiss to Cece’s cheek as you walked past her and back into the main room.

“Besides, Luke doesn’t like me like that.”

Cece rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to speak but the shrill ring of the phone cut her off. You let out a sigh, grateful for the distraction. She meant well, but when it came to your situation with Luke, you were more than happy to live in denial and ignoring it altogether.

He was your best friend. That’s all that mattered right now.

You shook the thoughts from your head and grabbed the phone’s receiver. “Cece’s Diner. How can I help you?”

“How much do you love me?”

Speak of the devil.

Your heart raced at the sound of Luke’s voice rang through your ears. His choice of words definitely not helping to calm you down. You shook your head, mentally scolding yourself.

“Luke?” You asked which prompted Cece to raise an eyebrow from the other side of the room.

“Hey. I’m sorry for calling you at work but I can’t finish this song and it’s driving me nuts. I need you and your genius brain to come help me.”

Despite your protests, the tap dance in your chest continued. It was ridiculous that after knowing Luke all your life, you were still shocked when he complimented you like that.

“I don’t get off until six, but I’ll come after.” You said, trying not to smile when you heard him cheer in victory. “And before Reggie asks, yes, I’ll bring coffee.”

Luke laughed before singing into the phone. “Get me a large with extra whipped cream and cinnamon.”

“I hate you.” You sang back, making a mental note to wipe off the smirk you could practically hear in his voice before the line went dead. You sighed as you put the phone back on the hook, holding a finger out to Cece.

“Not a word.”

A few hours later, you walked into Bobby’s garage, carrying a cardboard tray in each arm.

You sighed as you looked around the room. Every surface was covered in discarded paper balls and empty fast-food wrappers. You had expected to hear some form of music or at least some talking but the room was dead silent.

In the center of the mess, Alex and Reggie sat on the floor. Alex was trying to balance his drumsticks on his nose, and Reggie was mindlessly strumming his bass. Luke was sitting back on the couch, his eyebrows tightly knitted together as he frantically scribbled into his notebook.

“Your savior is here, and I come bearing coffee.”

All three heads whipped in your direction and within seconds, Reggie was excitedly bouncing his way towards you. He reached out to swipe a cup from the tray in your left hand. You swatted his arm away.

"Not that one. That’s Al’s.”

You set the rest of the drinks on the table in front of you and walked up to Alex. You handed him the cup and he gave you an appreciative smile. You always made sure to get him hot chocolate or tea, since you learned the hard way that caffeine can sometimes make his anxiety worse. He told you he didn’t want to admit that to the guys. So you were happy covering for him.

“Why does he get his own special one?” Reggie pouted as he grabbed another cup and strolled over to Luke, plopping down next to him on the couch. “And why is she the only one who can call you ‘Al’?”

“Because I’m his favorite.” You said, poking Reggie’s cheek as you passed him and took the other seat on the couch next to Luke. Alex just nodded, trying to hold back a smile.

“I thought you didn’t get off for another hour.” Luke said, looking up from his songbook for the first time since you got there.

“Cece knew it was important band stuff so she let me off early.” You shrugged.

“Oh no, she’s not mad at me, is she?” Luke shivered, thinking of all the times Cece had chewed him out for being a ‘bad influence’ on you or made him wipe down some tables for accidentally making you late for a shift. “You know I can’t stand when that woman is mad at me.”

“I also know that all you have to do is give her your little puppy-dog look and she’ll instantly forgive you.”

“Yeah, you guys are alike that way.” Luke teased, sticking his bottom lip out and batting his eyes dramatically.

“Yeah, yeah. So, what have you got so far?” You said as you bumped his shoulder with yours. He grinned and started translating his messy handwriting for all of you.

The four of you sat there for an hour putting all the words in the right places and by the time Bobby got there, you all felt confident that it was finally finished. You took your place behind your microphone and nodded.

“Okay, Al. Count us down.”

Alex twirled his drumsticks. “1…2…3…4!”

June, 1995

“Don’t look down.”

You couldn’t help but smile as you sang the song you had written a year ago. Your feet bouncing on the stage, the thin layer of sweat on your forehead.

To your left, Luke raised his arms, trying to hype up the non-existent crowd. Alex clashed his drumsticks together to the beat as all your voices came together.

“Cause we’re still rising up right now.”

You clapped along to the song, the energy coursing through your veins. Luke was in the middle of throwing his guitar behind his back. You rolled your eyes at him and he flashed you a small bashful smile before turning his head.

Your heart fluttered but you forced yourself to turn the other way, singing with Reggie just as the song transferred out of the bridge. The fog machines cued the ending chorus and you gripped your microphone with both hands.

“And even if we hit the ground, we’ll still fly.

Keep dreaming like we’ll live forever.

But living like it’s now or never.“

The other boy's voices dropped out until it was just you and Luke singing the chorus. You looked over at him, but his eyes were glued to the front of the room. Normally, you would share a mic for this part or at least stand close together, but he seemed determined to avoid you.

Just like he had been for the last six months.

You ignored the gaping pit in your stomach and poured all your focus into the song.

“Like it’s now or never!

It’s now or never!“

The final riff sounded and you let out an exhausted but proud sigh. There were a few scattered claps from the staff in the venue. But a curly-haired girl behind the counter was cheering especially loud. Reggie winked at her and leaned into his mic.

“Thank you! We’re Sunset Curve. Tell your friends.”

You rolled your eyes at him and pulled his arm, dragging him to the center of the stage. Alex came from his drum set and you gave him a high five.

“Al, you were amazing!”

“Yeah, dude, you were smoking.” Reggie agreed.

Alex blushed. “Nah, man. I was just warming up. You guys were the ones on fire.”

Reggie rolled his eyes. “Can you just own your awesomeness for once?”

Bobby and Luke nodded in agreement and you raised your eyebrows at Alex, nudging him until he finally smiled. “Okay, I was killing it!”

“I’m thinking we should fuel up before the show. Street dogs?” Luke asked. Alex and Reggie hummed in agreement but you wrinkled your nose.

“I think I’m gonna pass.” You said, jumping off the stage. It wasn’t that you had anything against street dogs, but as far as pre-gig activities go, it didn’t make your top ten list.

Bobby landed next to you and started jogging towards the counter. He ran a hand through his sweaty hair and approached the girl wiping tables.

“Oh no.” You said. “Bobby, leave that poor girl alone.”

Bobby turned around just enough to give you a glare as you both reached the counter. The rest of the boys weren’t far behind. You felt Luke slip behind you and throw an arm on Bobby’s shoulder.

Bobby told the girl some line about being a vegetarian. But she shook it off, looking over all of you.

“You guys are really good.”

You smiled proudly. “Thank you.”

She returned your smile. “I’ve seen a lot of bands. Even been in a couple myself. I was really feeling it.”

Luke was practically beaming. The whole band contributed with the songs, of course, but you and Luke were the main writers, so it was always nice to hear people compliment your words. “That’s what we do this for. I’m Luke, by the way.”

“Hey, I’m Reggie.”

“Alex.”

“Bobby.”

“And I’m (Y/n).”

“Nice to meet you guys. I’m Rose.” She said, turning to you. “You have a great voice, by the way. It’s always cool to see a girl lead vocalist.”

Bobby snorted. You elbowed him and Luke gave him a wet-willy. “Oh, thank you. But I’m just co-lead.”

She opened her mouth to say something else but Reggie reached in his back pocket and pulled out a C.D and a t-shirt, handing them to her. “Here’s our demo, and a T-shirt, size beautiful.”

As if on cue, you and Alex rolled your eyes. You sent Rose an apologetic look as she held the shirt up to her body.

“Thanks, I’ll try not to wipe down the tables with this one.”

Alex nodded. “Good call! When they get wet, they kind of fall apart in your hands.”

Bobby glared at all of you. “Don’t you guys have to go get hot dogs?”

Luke pushed Bobby back and leaned on the counter with both arms. “Yeah, he had a hamburger for lunch.”

The boys started going towards the exit but stopped when Alex noticed you hesitating. “You coming?”

You really didn’t want hotdogs, but you also didn’t want to stay and listen to Bobby attempt to flirt with Rose. So you nodded and followed Alex to the door.

“Hey, (Y/n)!” Rose called out and you turned around. “Don’t sell yourself short.”

You gave her a warm smile before walking out into the alley. The night air hit your skin and you shivered slightly. It wasn’t cold, but it was definitely a change from the sweaty stage. You wrapped your jacket around your shoulders.

“That’s what I’m talking about!” Luke whooped as he jumped through the doors and into the alleyway.

Alex gestured around, wrinkling his nose. “The smell of Sunset Boulevard?”

Luke shoved his shoulder. “No.”

You jumped out of the way as Luke splashed in a puddle. “It’s what that girl said in there. About our music.”

His eyes flickered to you when he said ‘our’ but quickly looked away. It was practically the first time he had acknowledged your presence all night.

“It connects us with people, you know? They can feel us when we play.” He said excitedly, slowing his walking until the rest of you caught up with him.

He reached each arm up and pulled Reggie to his side with one arm and despite being right next to you, he pulled Alex to his other side. You turned your head forward to hide the confused look on your face but you knew Alex saw it.

Other than Cece, he was the only person who knew about your feelings for Luke. You could tell from the look on his face that he was just as confused with Luke’s recent behavior as you were, but he didn’t say anything.

“I want that connection with everybody.”

“Then we’re gonna need more T-shirts.” You heard Reggie say as you reached the end of the alley. You pulled up the hood of your jacket and turned your head away from the line in front of the venue.

You didn't mean to walk so fast, but you were the first one at the alleyway a few blocks away from the Orpheum. You made your hotdog and made small talk with the vendor for a few minutes before the guys caught up.

“You trying to ditch us, (Y/n)?” Reggie asked, putting ingredients on his hotdog.

“Not my fault you guys are slow.” You stuck your tongue at him and he squinted at you. Alex groaned. You looked over at him to see him trying to put a pickle on his tray.

“Man, I can’t wait until the day we can eat someplace where the condiments aren’t served out of the back of an Oldsmobile.”

As he apologized to the vendor for getting pickle juice on his battery cables, you, Luke, and Reggie made your way to one of the old couches. They both sat down, leaving one open space next to Luke.

You made a point of sitting on the arm of the couch, letting your feet dangle on the seat. If Luke was going to avoid you, then you were going to avoid him right back. You also avoided the questioning look Reggie gave you before Alex sat down.

Luke didn’t seem to notice. He was bouncing his leg and couldn’t seem to stop smiling, it was obvious that he was still buzzing with energy from the soundcheck.

“This is awesome, you guys.” He said as he made himself comfortable between Reggie and Alex. “We’re playing the Orpheum! Do you know how many bands that played here ended up being huge?”

You rolled your eyes and smiled while the boys chuckled. You were all used to seeing the intense side of Luke, but he had been an even bigger ball of excited energy ever since you booked the Orpheum gig. It could be a little much for the guys sometimes, but the way his eyes lit up when he talked about music never failed to make you smile.

“I’m serious.” Luke insisted as he leaned forward and raised his hotdog in a toast. “Eat up, guys. Because after tonight, everything changes.”

You all toasted and then started to eat. Usually, street dogs weren’t half bad. But this time there was a burnt, nasty flavor that made it hard to swallow. Alex saw your face and nodded in agreement.

Even Luke, who had a super-human stomach, made a face. But his hunger must’ve won out cause he took another big bite.

“That’s a new flavor.” Alex said with his mouth full.

“Relax, man. Street dogs haven’t killed us yet.” Reggie told him as he took another bite. You still didn’t feel one hundred percent confident about it but you shrugged and kept eating.

It all happened so fast.

At first, it felt like you were dreaming. Like maybe you had just fallen asleep and would eventually wake up and realize that everything was just a nightmare.

But then the outline of Los Angeles floated away in a haze of grey and you were left in the dark. There was nothing but silence until you heard a voice somewhere in front of you.

It was the sound of Alex’s frantic ranting.

You could feel Reggie and Luke next to you, but they didn’t say anything. You didn’t either.

But you didn’t really need to. It was glaringly obvious what happened, you could feel it in your bones.

You were dead.

Alex’s ranting slowly turned into crying, which made you cry. Luke heard your quiet sniffles and for the first time in months, he touched you.

He reached out and intertwined your fingers loosely in his, gently swiping his thumb across your knuckles. You closed your eyes, trying to soak up the feeling. This was the closest to him you had been in since that night in the studio.

It seemed like so long ago, but at the same time, it was all too familiar. You knew that if you stayed in this moment with him any longer, you would fall apart completely.

So you turned away from him and buried your head in Alex’s shoulder. It seemed like hours passed before the silence was broken and the opening of Now or Never filled the air.

“Is that…?” You started, but before you could finish, the floor disappeared from under you.

You hit the ground with a painful groan and blinked at the sudden flood of bright light. You felt movement next to you and saw Reggie struggling to get up.

You hauled yourself up and turned around to realize you were back in Bobby’s garage. It looked so different that you almost didn’t recognize it. There was a new grand piano and flowers on every table. The room was free of any trash or discarded flannels.

But the biggest change by far, was the girl standing in front of you.

She was about your age with brown hair tied in a ponytail, in a bright yellow shirt, and furry slippers. She was staring at the four of you with wide eyes and a terrified look on her face.

“How did we get back here?” Luke said as he scanned the studio.

The girl screamed, which made the boys scream and cling to each other. Reggie threw himself against Luke and pulled you behind him.

They all screamed for a few more seconds before the girl ran out of the garage doors. You cautiously walked out from behind Reggie and towards the middle of the room, spinning in a full circle.

The boys started talking but you were still mesmerized by all the changes made to the studio.

You looked up towards the ceiling and saw that there were chairs hanging by the loft and countless tiny plants by the windows but you could still see the nail polish-stain you had made on the carpet and the dents in the beams from all the times Luke had messed up his guitar throw.

Carefully, you reached towards the piano and tried to touch a vase of flowers but they passed right through your fingers. Your entire hand went numb then a tingly feeling spread throughout your body.

Well, two things were for sure.

You were definitely back, but you were definitely dead.

#luke patterson #luke patterson x reader #luke patterson imagine #alex mercer #reggie peters #julie molina #jatp fanfic

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idesofrevolution · 4 years

Text

Okay: Bad Boy Musky Transformation it is. Enjoy!

I knew, of course, that Marco sold whatever the degenerates in the neighborhood needed. Weed, Acid, Ecstasy, Shrooms, Coke... take out the hard ones and you have his menu. He always seemed to afford the good things in life with his dark money. Two weeks ago he’d bought a Ducati; a week prior it was a 60 inch TV! God knows it wasn’t from dutiful employment, but I knew damn well just what it was that afforded him these luxuries: whatever could be inhaled, snorted, or smoked. And yet, here I was, working two jobs at McDonalds & Popeyes just trying to afford my garbage studio apartment.

He’d only ever been kind to me, I’ll admit. He’d bring by a pizza he said he couldn’t finish, or his old speakers he’d upgraded. Nice guy, if a bit dim. Always out in the courtyard, laying by the pool with his shirt off. Always surrounded by other guys who’d slip him a hundred. It’s not fair! Four years of college and what did I have to show for it? Student loans and no job prospects. Yet there he was: no trade, no job, no future really; but living like a king. So it was one day where I’ll fully admit that my jealousy overwhelmed me.

I was short that month, for the first time mind you. Short only by a hundred dollars for rent, but I had already gotten a notice on my door. Pay tomorrow or get lost. It was this desperation that made me remember every deal that thug made, every 8-ball, every eighth, every pill... Would he really notice a hundred missing from his pile? I knew for a fact that every Wednesday night, precisely at 10, Marco would leave for the hookah club and not return until 4 or 5 at the earliest. I knew he locked his door, a few locks actually, but I also knew that the moron left his window cracked nearly every night. It just so happened that on that particular evening, he did just that.

In that fleeting moment of curiosity, a plan built up in my head. I watched him loudly slam his door, lock his several locks, and saunter out down the stairs. I waited about five minutes before creeping out of my apartment, careful to watch for other prying eyes. I had to be quick. I made a run for it, bolting to his open window on the balcony. It slid open quite easily, and I heaved myself over the ledge and into Marco’s dark apartment. I landed on the ratty old carpet and quickly shut the window. Looking around the apartment, it was a three bedroom for sure. In the same state of disrepair as mine, but furnished with some of the most expensive, gaudy things I’ve ever seen. Brand new leather couches, a coffee table made completely of glass, a massive stereo system next to his 60 inch TV... An absolute manchild lived here.

However, I wasn’t there for the TV or the oversized sectional. I had a sneaking suspicion that he, like many of us, kept his extra money somewhere in the bedroom. Ensuring that no noise would come from my steps, I snuck quietly down the hall, covered in paintings of scantily clad men toward the bedroom. Interesting, he swung that way, huh? Opening the door, a wafting stink hit me in the face. The room was covered in dirty laundry, used condoms, half rolled blunts, and lines of coke on nearly every surface. This is what I was expecting, and I was surely right. Holding my nose shut, I crept toward his dresser, and began to ruffle through his belongings. Damp socks, damp underwear, damp lycra, everything in there was damp and reeking. I slammed each of the drawers shut, and opened the closet. There, on the tile floor behind rows of pristine sneakers were a pair of destroyed old Vans; and inside each were rolls of hundred dollar bills. Jackpot. I knelt down and grabbed one of the rolls, momentarily unclamping my nose to remove the rubber band. The smell was unbelievable. It took me aback, just how strong it was. I’m sure each of the pairs of Huaraches, AF1′s, and the like had strong scents of their own, but from this single pair of beat up old Vans was the most salty, sweet, almost cheesy footmusk that I’d ever encountered.

For a mere second, I contemplated bringing one of the shoes to my face, letting the dirty, wet insole touch the tip of my nose. However, it was in that second that I should have just left well enough alone. The lightswitch flipped on, and looming over me was the hulking, shirtless Marco. In my right hand was his wad of cash, in the left was his grody sneaker. My face flushed, and my stomach dropped to my toes. He crossed his arms and smiled.

“If you wanted a loan you could have just asked...” Words were caught in the back of my throat. I wanted so terribly to make up some fantastic excuse as to my presence in his closet, but the frog in my throat had other ideas. The growing grin of Marco, paired with him beginning to kneel down to my level made my heart nearly stop beating. “And if you wanted a sniff I’d have given it to you.” He smirked and slowly pulled the shoe from my hand, taking a quick whiff of it’s stench. He turned quickly and laughed, waving the wafting scent away from his face before grabbing the back of my head and plunging it right into the shoe. “Okay, deep breath now.”

I tried to struggle, to fight back, but the man was nearly twice my size and pure muscle. There was no chance of me weaseling my way out of this. I had to just play along with this weird fetish that he seemed to have. I inhaled a quick breath, barely getting any stink.

“No, no. I said deep breath.” I felt a strong hand shoot to my crotch, grabbing my junk within my jeans. The shock of this invasive gesture broke my concentration, and a gasp of breath escaped from my mouth. Into my nose, my mouth, my sinuses, my brain did the musk penetrate. I moaned loudly, the confusion of a powerful grope and a powerful scent submerged me into a strange state of consciousness. Or rather, a lack thereof. I was inhaling the footsmell like air, and I couldn’t get enough. My cock began to tent in my pants, and I felt my right hand drop the roll of cash I thought I so desperately needed. “Ahh, haha. That’s right, let it in. Let me in.”

His voice seemed distorted, as if we were in a deep cavern, it echoed in my skull. He removed the shoe from my face, pulling me to my feet by my bulging groin. Guiding me toward his bed, I sat down on the smelly sheets, no longer in complete control of my faculties.

“Take your clothes off.” His words entered my ears like soft velvet, it felt wrong to disobey. In fact, I wanted to obey. For the first time, I wanted to listen to whatever this man told me to do. His bulging muscles, his plump lips, the way his crooked smile felt so dangerously mischievous, the way his smell took my breath away like a vacuum. For the first time, this man was everything I wanted. I ripped my clothes off and lay there on his bed wearing nothing but my bare, cold skin. Smiling, he took hold of my throbbing, upright cock in his rough hand. Ripples of goosebumps ran up and down my body as he slowly ran his calloused hand up and down my shaft. Each stroke allowed a groan or a moan to sneak out of my lips, before he leaned down atop me and planted a soft kiss onto my lips. He tasted like an ashtray and as his tongue slipped into my mouth, rolling atop my own, I could feel some of his taste transfer to me. I can’t explain it, as we kissed I could feel that taste of cigarettes and blunts seep into my tongue. I pulled his pants down, his thick, uncut cock tumbling out of his compression shorts onto my stomach. He smiled as he pulled away from the kiss. I stuck my finger under his foreskin, swiping it around, and brought it to my lips. It tasted like ripe, sweaty cock, and I began to crave it. “Oh yeah, babe you’re a keeper.”

He jumped up, and pulled me toward the edge of the bed. I got a perfect frontal view of his gorgeous cock and saggy balls, his virile and manly smell kept pouring into my nose and into the depths of my mind. He grabbed me by the back of my hair and pulled my eager mouth forward, engulfing his slick, smelly cock. I suckled, my loud slurping seeming making him even hornier. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him fiddling with something just out of view. As he thrust down my throat, I realized just what it was that he had. His used condom, I presume from whatever sexy fuck occurred the night prior, was in his hands. I closed my eyes as I felt its rubbery walls close tightly around the tip of my cock, slickly sliding down my shaft until his cold, creamy load touched my slit. With a loud snap, I looked down and saw his thick white cum completely enveloping my cockhead. I only got a quick glance before he’d pulled out of my mouth, replacing his succulent cock with my now favorite smelly shoe. I licked the sole, letting the thick toejam season my ashy tongue as the musk thrust into my nose once more.

I knew what was coming, and I was prepared when I felt that slippery cock slip like butter into my tight hole. He’d grabbed my cock, covered in his seed, and jerked in tandem with his thrusts into my ass. Sensory overload. His smell, his seed, his cock, his taste, the very sight of him... It was all him. He was marking me. I was his property, and I was glad to oblige. Every single hard smack against my ass cheeks, every stinking waft into my brain, every breath of his smoky breath coming out of my mouth... It was too much! He fucked like a madman, stroking my cock into his slime until I felt a strange tingling in my cockhead. It was a slick, penetrating sensation of his seed... slurping into my slit! I was nearly screaming as I felt it sink deep down my shaft, into my engorging balls. It was stewing, brewing inside my growing sack! I heard him howl as he unloaded his fresher load into me.

I felt his cock within me shooting spurt after spurt... going from ounces to gallons very quickly. His cum spread throughout my body like water into a balloon. I could feel the silky liquid beneath my skin, creeping, inflating every part of my body. It seeped up my throat, into my mouth, behind my very eyes into my brain. The pressure grew as I felt growth, I felt strength, I felt different. My body was gelatinous beneath my skin, before slowly firming into a much larger form. An improved form. I pulled Marco’s shoe from my face, and looked at my changing body. The cum kept flowing as I saw my muscled arms, my bulging abs, a grotesquely inflated ballsack... He leaned down and kissed me again, giving me another much needed taste of his addictive taste. My brain was melting, reforming, changing... Things were fuzzy and blurred before it was my turn to blow my load. In it, was who I used to be, my failures, my strife, my worries and obligations... Flowed like a jet out of my cock into his condom. Cum flowed out of the top of the condom, before Marco ripped it from me, letting the hot juices pool between us.

“Lookin’ good, babe.” He smiled at me, and I looked at the man I loved with a smirk. Yeah, I sure fuckin’ do look good. We laid there all night long, fucking and kissing and sniffing and tasting... By the time the sun came up, I was in his clothes, I reeked of his sweaty manly musk, I was wearing my favorite pair of red Vans, and I was readying an 8-ball for pickup later that morning (after a few lines for me and the boyfriend). I kicked back and lit a cigarette, enjoying the laid back life I’d come to love with my man.

It’s a love story. How touching. So let me know what you think. Give me some anons on your opinions! Also, toss a few quid into the tip jar and I’d be eternally grateful <3 <3

#male transformation #badass transformation #gay transformation #musk #musky #feet #smelly men #thuggification #male takeover #original #badboy #smoking #drugs #stoner transformation

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kentos-filmcamera · 3 years

Text

10 times, 1 occasion - Inumaki Toge

4. Tending

A/N: oop i'm on a roll rn with two chapters in two days in a row. the next one is probably going to take a while but seriously I'm so happy with all the support, it keeps me going. this is teeth rotting fluff, so enjoy! ~g

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No matter how many times he was reminded that you were okay, Toge would rather die before leaving your bedside. He watched over you, in his navy sweats and Jujutsu Tokyo Tech gray pullover sweatshirt, taking a few showers to change back into the same clothes. He cooked ramen and onigiri balls in the common kitchen down the hall. He only left for more than ten minutes to visit Fushiguro, who met the same fate as you, but left you with Maki or Panda, even Gojo if he was around and no one else was available.

The latter liked drawing things on your expensive drawing paper with the expensive ink you so hoarded from others and placing them on the board by your desk, next to Post-It notes wishing you well from fellow Tokyo Tech students, and Kyoto students alike. Kamo had wished you a speedy recovery and flattering words on your technique, Miwa left a well-wishes message with hearts drew on and Todo wrote that he lamented your injury because your taste in women was far beyond better than the rest of your fellow classmates, except for Itadori, and complimented your ‘Tina Snow’ Megan Thee Stallion poster.

Once again, while placing a damp, cold towel on your forehead, Toge sighed deeply, cleaning away the fever you were sweating. You breathed through your mouth, nose, cheeks, and lips settling in a darker red color by the heat you emanated. Shoko healed you and Megumi just perfect, but as a difference, your body wasn’t reacting well to the invasion. Still, Inumaki diligently took care of your every need while you slept for the past three days, fighting the urge to command for you to wake up, and watch those lively eyes flutter open while a smile blossoms on your cheeks. They were waiting for you to continue the goodwill event officially after the “minor” issue with the special grades.

It was late in the afternoon, the orange sun leaking through the blinds. Toge set his book down for a second and stared at you. You looked so serene, so calm and peaceful for the first time in the past few days, whereas you looked agitated and distressed in your slumber. He leaned down and kissed your forehead. You shuffled happily in your sleep and laid even deeper into your bedsheets.

“Wow! This room is so cool!” Itadori gasped as he passed the doorframe. Toge narrowed his eyes but still stood up to greet the first years. “How come my room doesn't look like this?!”

Your room was cozy. The color scheme was warm; your walls were a very light beige, your bed was composed of a terracotta-colored duvet, light pink bed sheets, and a white throw blanket. The nightstand was a yellow bookshelf with a lamp on top, a framed picture resting there, along with your phone. Your desk was yellow as well with a bulletin board on the wall in front of it. On the desk rested some plants, an assortment of drawing, painting, and coloring supplies, aside from a Bluetooth speaker that resembled an old radio. The wall behind your bed was full of posters of artists and movies, and artwork that either you painted or you commissioned. By the window, there was a light moss green couch with different pillows, and a lavender purple throw Inumaki used to wrap himself in when he napped. He sat next to your bed on a light pink office chair he positioned on the empty space between your closet and your bed. It was a colorful room, to say the least.

“Because you’re a man, Yuuji” Nobara rolled her eyes and walked towards your bed, combing her fingers through your hair to brush it slightly. She fluffed the pillows behind your head and fixed the collar of the silk pajamas you wore specifically made for when injured. Maki spoke so highly of you, Nobara wanted to treat you her best, because she knew you deserved it.

“How is she?” Megumi asked Inumaki. Nobara and Itadori were both snooping around the room. Yuuji browsed the bookshelf with a frown, while Kigusaki looked through your cosmetics bag before heading to the bathroom, which stood to the door on the left when one entered the room, talking about checking out your skincare routine.

“Tuna” He signaled his phone and got to typing. Soon, Megumi’s phone buzzed. Itadori rushed over to read the text over his shoulder, Kugisaki on her tippy toes to read from his other shoulder as well.

[ Inumaki Toge: they’re okay. shoko said they’ll wake up soon enough. probably just drained ]

“So you’ve been here with her all these past few days? All the time?” Kugisaki asked.

Toge nodded, shifting comfortably on the seat “Shake” He confirmed.

“Aww! I wish I had a partner like you!” Nobara sighed dreamily. Toge froze. His jaw clenched and his eyes widened to almost hit every corner of his face. As if it was even possible, he turned paler. He could feel his heartbeat drumming in his ears. Partner? Your partner? Why would anyone think that? You were just a friend… unless you didn’t want to be. A friend he had strong feelings for. A friend he had its own pet name for. A friend he loved. Oh my. His face went from paperwhite to a bright red, as he once again zipped up the collar of his shirt to cover his lower half.

“Look what you did, Nobara! You broke him!” Itadori shook her, while Inumaki stared blankly at the floor. Fushiguro realized Kugisaki had touched a nerve since the attraction between the two of you was so apparent, everyone had seen you two laugh together incessantly, hold hands, hug each other often, and damn, he even had a word in his vocabulary to refer to you specifically. He pointed with his head to the door and the three left silently for a second. Inumaki watched them leave and sighed into his hands. That was frustrating.

You shuffled in your sleep slightly, Toge’s attention turning to you quickly, standing upright from his chair to look as you fluttered your eyes to stare back at him. Just as he expected, a smile arose from your mouth as soon as you noticed him there, before you went into a coughing fit. He panicked and took a few steps towards your yellow mini-fridge, scouting for a bottle of water, which he found soon enough. He held the bottle for your mouth, with which you gladly took in and drank all the water in a matter of seconds. He cleaned your wet cheeks and sat at the foot of the bed carefully, as you tried to sit upright without disturbing your wound.

“Kelp” He greeted you, with his usual fondness towards you and a smile he tried to hide.

“Hello, Inumaki-kun” You rasped with a blush on your cheeks, coughing slightly before smiling at him. “Don’t worry, I’m here; I’m okay”

He sighed deeply and the weight on his shoulders he didn’t even realize he had lifted. He now knew that you were okay. His heart fluttered in his chest as you reached out your hand, urging him to get close to you. Once he did, you combed your hand through the gray strands, making him melt into your touch.

He leaned to lay down by your side. “How’s everyone? What time is it? How long have you been here?” You bombarded him with questions he was more than glad to answer.

Toge just looked at you briefly before grabbing his phone. He typed something and soon your phone vibrated next to you on your nightstand.

[ Inumaki Toge: everyone is ok. ]

[ fushiguro had the same cursed buds as you in his stomach, he’s fine now and i think in the hallway. ]

[ it’s 5:30 PM. i’ve been here the last 3 days you’ve been unconscious ]

You stared at the messages in shock “You’ve been here three days? You seriously didn’t have to, I was asleep”

“Okaka'' Toge shook his head with a frown. He typed something else. [ Inumaki Toge: i was worried about you. besides, you kept sweating, i had to level your temperature often because of the fevers ]

Your eyes watered as Toge’s widened. He panicked. Had he said something wrong? Did you get the wrong undertone from his texts? If that was it, should he start to use tone indicators? “Thank you” You sniffled “You didn’t really have to take care of me”

Right now, he really wished to speak to you clearly, so you really knew what he meant. “Tuna Mayo” He was only able to mutter before reaching to caress your back as quiet tears flowed down your cheeks. Soon enough, your phone vibrated.

[ Inumaki Toge: i got you your favorite tea :)) chai with a touch of nutmeg and lavender ]

“Aw…” You smiled “Thank you” You sighed deeply, the usual warmth spreading across your chest. The one that came whenever he bought you something or gave you a hug, or a brief touch.

[ i’ll go heat it up, okay? stay put ]

He removed his arm from your healthy side, and slipped out of the bed comfortably, removing the collar of his neck to kiss your forehead. I love you.

#jujutsu kaisen #inumaki #inumaki toge #jjk inumaki #toge inumaki #inumaki x reader #jjk fluff #10times1occ

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reidsconverse · 4 years

Text

memories • spencer reid

Spencer Reid x Reader

Warnings: none! just 4000 words of pure angst

This was an old fic reworked to be about around spencer so its taking a lottt of creative/artistic liberty with the character, so it kinda sucks im sorry! 😁

Every moment you had with him was one to be remembered and cherished for better or worse.

It had been a few weeks since Spencer had officially ended things, he had moved all of his stuff out of your apartment and now it seemed as if he had never even existed in the same place as you, as though you two were strangers. That is had it not been for the images of memories the two of you held. So, here you were sat alone in your room, your only company the half-empty bottle of wine and photographs of the two of you which sat strewn carelessly across your floor.

You picked up a picture and stared at it realising you both looked so happy. His arm was wrapped around your shoulder, a cup in his hand and his signature grin sitting across his face. Your head was leaning against his shoulder, the smile on your face reminding you of how free you had felt that night, you had never felt happier and you recognised that night as the night you realised...you were so in love.

"We should have a party," Spencer yelled despite there being no one else other than the two of you in the room.

"Right now?" You looked at him as if he was insane, not only was it completely out of character for your boyfriend but also, it was 1 am on a Wednesday and although your friends weren't those with a regular schedule you presumed most of them would decline a house party in the middle of the week.

"Yeah right now, c'mon doll I'll call Derek and some of the others and you call your friends." His hand was already on his phone texting Derek before you could protest so you followed his instructions and went ahead and invited your friends before getting up and preparing for this impromptu party.

It had only been 10 minutes when you heard Derek and some others open the door shouting for Spencer and you walked over with a grin on your face, "Hey D, Spencers being a diva and redoing his hair, he'll be right down." You said, rolling your eyes as Derek pulled you into a hug, he may have been Spencer's best friend but he thought of you as a sister and always treated you as such.

"Well I have look good for my girl," You heard Spencer say from behind you quickly placing a kiss on your cheek before doing his weird handshake with Derek, "Hey, thanks for coming'."

The three of you made your way to the kitchen to grab some drinks and greet some more guests who had congregated in that area and before you knew it, you were 4 shots in, feeling way past tipsy and in the mood to dance.

"Hey Spence," You said walking over to where he was now sat, a cup in his hand as he held a conversation with JJ and Emily about something that you didn't care too much about. You waved a quick hello to the girls so as not to be rude and then placed your head on his shoulder to let him know of your presence.

"Hey darling, you feeling good?" He turned his face and flashed you a wide grin before wrapping an arm around you to pull you close to him. He enjoyed being near you whenever he could, when he was away he would long for the days where all he did was sit and hold you close to him regardless of what the two of you were doing, so now whenever he had the chance he would hold you close.

"Feelin' great Spence.. wanna dance with you..." You said pulling out of his hold and grabbing his hand leading him onto the 'dance floor', which was just the open space in your living room. He laughed and quickly finished his drink, discarding the cup somewhere in the room and held you as you both danced to the music playing through the speakers.

After a couple of songs, you both made your way to get another drink and get a break from the crowd, you sat at the kitchen island and passed him a drink."You know, considering you're a genius, I would've thought you'd be able to coordinate a bit better." You said teasing him about his choice of moves which had essentially been him waving his arms in the air attempting to be in tune with the music.

He looked at you in fake shock and scoffed, "Yeah well it was still better than whatever you were trying to do." Referring to your horrendous attempt at trying to be sexy which in truth was never going to be anything but embarrassing. You stuck your tongue out in a childish manner causing him to laugh and quickly move to place his lips against yours giving you a soft kiss.

You jumped down from the counter after pulling back as a couple of your friends walked in and struck up a conversation about nothing interesting yet you made the effort to look engaged as Spencers's arm slipped over your shoulders and you placed your head against his shoulder.

"Hey guys, look here." You both turned to see your friend Harry, as always with a polaroid camera in his hand. You and Spencer gave each other a quick smile before grinning wide for the camera, both your faces full of love and happiness.

You sat there thinking about how quickly things can change, the people in the image you held so young and naive to the struggles the future would hold. Taking another sip of your wine you skimmed through some more pictures before stopping at one that held a bittersweet meaning. A picture that was taken a few days after what had been your worst fight, you both looked happy but all you could think about the events leading up to the image being taken.

It was your and Spencers 5th anniversary and he had promised he would make it to dinner. You hadn't seen each other in weeks because he was away on a case but he had promised he wouldn't miss this day, he had asked for permission from Hotch to leave for a couple of days so he would be there. "No excuses, No ifs and buts...I'll be there babe. I promise."

But there you were, alone at a table for two. The look on the waiters face held nothing but pity as he walked over for the fourth time to ask if someone would be joining you. Finally, you gave up and shook your head to let him know you would be leaving and would like the cheque. You had never felt so humiliated walking out of the restaurant head held high but tears building up in your eyes and so you cried. You felt so broken, almost as broken as all those promises Spencer had made you. The word promise and sorry had lost all meaning in the last 5 years, simply a courtesy rather than meaningful.

The minute you got home your phone began ringing, it was Spencer.

"Hey doll, I'm so sorry I couldn't make it, the team wanted to go out last night and I kind of missed my -." He began to explain causing you to scoff, 'no ifs or buts' my ass.

"How could you?" Your voice cracking as you tried to hold back the tears that were threatening to spill for the second time that night. "I waited for 2 fucking hours Spencer, I felt like a fucking idiot."

"What? What are you talking about?" His voice was full of confusion. "Didn't you get my text?"

"No, I fucking didn't. I didn't get a fucking text. But that's not the fucking point, You should've been here, you promised you would be here."

"Babe, I'm so -," He began but you knew what he was gonna say. The only conversations you seemed to have were stuck on a loop like a broken record.

"Save it. Don't say you're sorry when you don't mean it, stop saying sorry and show it instead."

"Look, I'll get on the first flight out. I'll see you in a few hours, I'll make it up to you I prom-." You hung up the phone before he could continue, his promise worth nothing to you anymore. Walking over to the couch, you fell asleep the minute your head rested against one of the many cushions populating the seat.

You woke up to keys jingling in the door, yet you made no effort to move from where you were. The sound of his footsteps got louder as he approached.

"Babe? I know you're up." He said, kneeling beside you making you sigh and sit up. "Babe, I'm so sorry. I fucked up."

You just stared at him, it might have been petty but you didn't want to give in to his apologies just yet, he had to understand just how much he had hurt you first.

"I couldn't care less anymore, Spencer. I just need to remember that I'll always come second to work and that's fine, it's important to you and I understand that." You got up and walked over to the kitchen to gather yourself.

"Babe you are the most important thing to me, I'm sorry-."

That was the straw that broke the camel's back. "Here we go again, Spencer there's only so many times you can say you're sorry before it loses all meaning. I'm sick and tired of this, I don't know if I can do this anymore. You're never here, you make promises you can never keep and I'm pretty sure you've told me you're sorry more times than you've told me you love me."

"Please don't do this. I love you." His voice was shaking, breaking down at the thought of you leaving him. He moved over to you and turned you so you were facing him. "I know this means nothing to you but I am so sorry. I've been so shitty to you and I know it."

"Spencer, I deserve better than this and I'm sick of forgiving you and acting like I'm fine with how you treat me, you might not mean it but it fucking hurts. I love you so much and I know you love me but would it kill you to put me first for once in your fucking life."

This annoyed him, the lack of sleep and being overworked leaving him less patient and more irritable, "That's not fucking fair, you knew what you were signing up for when you started dating me, I'm doing my fucking best. I go to work for US, to support US. If I could devote all of my time to you if I could, but I can't and it fucking kills me. You can't understand how much I miss you when I'm not here."

Tears welled in your eyes seeing him breakdown, unable to keep up the unbothered facade you had on, "I just...Spence, I miss you too. It hurts not being able to be near you and so when you're not there when you promise you will be, it hurts it really fucking hurts not to mention it's terrifying, how am I supposed to know you're ok if you do shit like that."

He pulled you into his arms as you sobbed into his chest, all the emotions you'd kept bottled up during the argument letting go. "I know baby, I'm so sorry I hurt you. I promise, and I mean it this time, I won't let you down again. I love you." He mumbled into your hair, slowly kissing your forehead whilst consoling you and holding you like he never wanted to let go.

The two of you went to bed that night in silence, not a word was spoken until the next day wherein Spencer switched off his phone and dedicated the whole weekend to you and only you. He kept his word once he had to leave, always fulfiling his promises, never pushing you to the side and communicating with you always. The two of you felt strong again, you were happy.

You put your glass down and walked out of your room and began pacing around the living room, pictures of you and him still up on your walls, the walls that no longer belonged to the both of you. You thought back to when he asked you to move him, how nervous he was and how excited you were.

It was movie night at Spencers house. Each week he invited everyone over to watch a film, everyone taking it in turns to select a film. This week Emily had chosen Midsommar, a film you were yet to see so you were excited. You were sat beside Spencer on the loveseat, his arm around you and your face resting against his chest, a blanket covering you both for extra comfort. You looked up and saw Derek and Penelope lay spread across the floor whilst JJ and Emily sat on the sofa. Bowls of popcorn and sweets were scattered around the room and beer bottles were piling up. It was nights like this that you wanted to treasure forever, for the first time you felt like you had a family, people to call your own, people you could trust.

"Watcha thinking about?" Spencer asked, glancing at you and realising your mind wasn't directed at the movie anymore.

"Nothing, just really lucky to have you in my life," You reached your hand up to hold his face and gave him a soft kiss. "I love you."

He pulled you in closer if that was even possible, "I love you too."

"Ugh, get a room." Derek groaned making you both chuckle.

Spencer responded by throwing some popcorn at him, "Aw is someone jealous, don't worry you'll find someone soon enough."

Derek murmured a quiet, "Fuck off" before turning his attention back to the movie, making everyone laugh.

The movie ended shortly and everyone was discussing what to watch next, you were in the mood for a comedy but Derek wanted to watch Die Hard for the millionth time. After several minutes of slight arguing, you finally decided on rewatching Moana for the 12th time.

Everyone was pretty much settled, drinks refilled, popcorn replenished and everyone back in their positions. Emily was about to press play before JJ stopped her, "Wait before you start I'm kinda cold can I borrow a sweater?" She asked Spencer.

"Yeah sure, take one from our room." He said casually like it was normal but it made your breath hitch in your throat, did he just say our room? As in, yours and his. Unofficially he wasn't wrong, it was your room as much as his, you spent pretty much every night here making having your own apartment redundant, but he hadn't yet asked you to move in with him. You couldn't help the small blush on your face and the way your lips turned upwards at his words. It made you happy knowing he thought of it as something for both of you.

"What has you so happy?" Penelope asked in a teasing tone, she'd picked up on Spencer words and knew exactly why you were smiling.

You just stuck your tongue out at her and looked up at Spencer, "Our room huh?" You asked making him smile.

"Yeah I mean, you're here every day, maybe more than I am. You should just move in at this point." He let out a little laugh after he said leaving you confused as to whether he was being serious, so you just laughed along and waited for JJ to come back so you could start the movie.

A couple of hours later almost everyone was half asleep, everyone apart from you and Spencer. You began making your way to his room followed by him carrying the blanket he had taken from his bed. The two of you went about your night routine, Spencer had insisted on keeping at least half of your things at his place hence why you never had to leave. You quickly changed into one of his shirts which fit you just right and climbed into bed where he was already sitting, reading a book.

"Spence, were you being serious...earlier when you said I should move in?" You asked him, making him put down his book and look at you.

"Would you like that? You don't have to say yes but I would love it if you moved in. The mornings when I wake up and you're still next to me, are the best mornings. Honestly, knowing I'm going to wake up next to you makes falling asleep easier. Plus Tesla and Edison love you, maybe even more than they loves me." He asked, the mention of his fish making you laugh despite the fact your eyes were welling up, what had you done to deserve the sweetest man to walk the earth.

You shifted yourself so you were straddling him and held his face in your hands, "I would love to move in with you." You answered placing a soft kiss to his lips.

"I love you so much," He said as you moved back to laying down next him. "You make me the happiest man alive and I'm so lucky to have you."

"God, Spence you gotta stop before I start crying, I love you too." You said, as he laughed and pulled you into a comfortable sleeping position.

"Goodnight love." He mumbled, already falling asleep.

"Goodnight Spence." You responded, closing your eyes and beginning to drift off but not before saying, "By the way, the fishies definitely love me more."

You hadn't realised you were crying until a tear fell onto the frame you were holding. The image just as blurred as the memories it held. You carefully placed the image face down onto the table rather than placing it back up. Making your way to the sofa, you got your phone out and glanced at the image that had left you in this state. A picture of him and her, his hands holding hers as tight as they once held yours, the grin on both of their faces wide. He was happy, only it wasn't because of you anymore. You closed your eyes again, remembering how it all ended.

He had been distant since he had come back from this last case, he had been away for almost two months trying to catch this unsub and you had thought he'd be more excited to come back to you and finally be home. But he hadn't spent more than 10 minutes with you, the only time the two of you were in the same room for longer than that was when you fell asleep. Recently that had also stopped, he spent more nights away from home and at clubs with Derek and Emily , only coming back once he knew you weren't there. It was killing you but every time you questioned it he shrugged you off, telling you he loved you.

You wanted to scream at him if he loved you why isn't he showing it, why does he refuse to acknowledge you. You knew he was lying to you, he didn't love you anymore, you could see it in his eyes, how he never looked at you as he used to, he never held you like he used to. It was killing you and you knew you should ask him but you also knew that would lead to conversation you didn't want to have, an ending you didn't want to happen. So you kept quiet, went about your day and didn't question his actions, you had decided you would rather have the worst of him than not have him at all.

But that didn't last long. A few weeks later something happened, something you could ignore. Spencer had barely been home, only coming back to grab new clothes and leaving again often returning at 4 am or not all. The nights you spent alone, his side of the bed going cold broke your heart bit by bit. But you weren't ready for it to completely shatter, the images Penelope sent you of him holding that girl, a little too close, a little too tight, a little too much, start to fill your screen causing a lump in your throat and tears threatening to spill. You walked to the kitchen, surprised to see him there, he was sat at the counter head in his hands and a coffee in front of him.

"Spencer, what fuck is going on?" You all but shouted.

"Shh, my heads killing me." He said, burying his head in his hands attempting to block you out.

"You fucking asshole." You screamed at him, the pain and hurt evident in your broken voice as you tried your best not to cry.

This made him look up, far quicker than he should've causing his head to fill with pain and throb, but he didn't care, the memories of last night were coming back he knew he had fucked up. "I-I'm sorry, I was drunk and she was just there, nothing happened.

"You're sorry? Are you fucking kidding me?" You said, moving away from him as he got up to come closer to you. "No, don't fucking touch me. I'm done."

"What? No look I'm sorry, it won't happen again, I love you." The words were said, but the tone held so much uncertainty you couldn't tell if he was trying to convince you or himself.

"No you don't Spencer, not anymore. I know you don't and I've been lying to myself, saying that I'm ok with it when I'm not. I love you so much but I can't keep hurting myself by pretending like we're fine, We're not fine, we haven't been for a long time. Yes that fucking hurts, I thought we were forever, I thought we were going to grow old together and have kids and show them that we were soulmates. I thought we were perfect but we aren't."

"I never wanted to hurt you, I love you so much but-" He started with a sigh.

"You're not in love with me anymore..." You finished for him

"I'm so sorry. I wish things were different, I wish I could control how I felt. You were everything to me, I really did picture a future for us but things changed, I don't know why and I don't know how. You don't deserve this, I'm so sorry."

"I know Spence, I know." You moved closer to him and he held you like it was the last time... because it was. "I'm sorry too."

You pulled away from him."I'll grab some stuff and go stay at my mom's for a few days. I just need to find a new place to move my stuff to." You said, trying to brush some tears away but failing as they kept falling.

"No, it's fine. I'll go, this is just as much your home as it is mine. I'll stay with Derek for a bit, you take your time sorting stuff out ok?" He said, using his thumbs to attempt to wipe away your tears. You sighed but nodded knowing he wouldn't take no for an answer.

You sat down as he went to the room to gather some things, your mind reeling from the last half hour. How could so much change in such a short period of time, years spent together thrown away so quick.

"I'm done, I'll get going ok?" He said placing his duffel bag down beside by the door.

"So this is it huh?" You said, with a sigh. You felt him walk towards you and take a seat next to you.

"The last 10 years have been the most incredible time of my life, you put up with so much of my shit and loved me unconditionally and I can't thank you enough for giving the eager 25-year-old who wanted nothing more than to impress you a chance. I'm never going to stop loving you, you know that. I'm never gonna forget about you, my first love, the first woman to capture my heart. I'm so sorry things didn't work out like how we'd imagined them. If I could change how I feel I would, I wanted nothing more than for this to be a silly phase, for me to wake up one day and feel how I felt again. But it didn't happen and it fucking sucks."

"I get it, Spence, you have to do what makes you happy and I'm not gonna stop you. I'm just sorry it wasn't me that could give you want and need, but you're gonna make some girl out there very happy if you're even half the man you were when you were with me." You gave him a soft smile as he stroked your hair and kissed your forehead.

He stood up and walked to the door. "Call me when you're ready ok? I love you." He turned and gave you a soft smile before picking up his bag and walking out the door.

You just broke down, you don't know how long you sat there sobbing your heart out but it felt like forever. Everything hurt so bad you didn't think you'd ever feel any emotion other than heartbreak for as long as you lived.

You took a deep breath as your hand hovered over the delete button on your phone, it was time to move on just as he had. As you released the breath you were holding, your finger pressed against the button, deleting all the pictures you had with him and you felt like a weight had been lifted off your shoulders and the realisation sunk in.

You loved him so much, but he wasn't yours to love anymore.

He was just a memory.

tagged: @gcblers @187-reid @mgg-theprettiestboy @mggbler @snitchthewitch

#spencer reid #spencer reid x reader #spencer reid angst #spencer reid blurb #spencer reid imagine #spencer reid smut #spencer fluff #my works!

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eveningstar1516 · 3 years

Text

Rise of the Demon King ~ Chapter 4

Rise of the Demon King

Fic: Multi Chapter Paring: MC x Everyone (Mostly Lucifer) Type: Angst with a Happy Ending Total Word Count: 26,758 TW: Major Character Death, Reader gets stabbed with a sword through their chest so…, Abusive Parents, Past Child Abuse, Demon Hunters, Loss of Control Summary: You’ve done it. You’ve finally done it. You’ve managed to anger the demon king. Now you hold your head high as he hands down your sentence.

AO3 Portal: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27065362

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13

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Previously:

Not wanting to stay in my head any longer, I drift off into a dreamless slumber awaiting the day that will ultimately decide not only my fate, but the fate of the demons I’ve grown to call, family.

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CHAPTER 4 - I want you to be the one... (1842 words)

Snapping my eyes awake I shivered against the air as a bucket of ice cold water was thrown into my face.

“Get up human!”

A guard then roughly pulled me up by the shoulder twisting my arms behind my back and locking them together while unlocking the chain on my ankle. Pushing me out of my cell and half escorting me half dragging me out of the dungeon and to where my trial was supposed to take place all before I could even register that I woke up. As we were walking toward what I assumed was the very same courtyard where we welcomed the king not 24 hours ago, I started hearing lots of yelling. Straining to hear, I realized that it was the brothers arguing amongst each other about what they should do and Diavolo attempting to calm them down, sounding conflicted himself. Upon entering the courtyard I locked eyes with the brothers as they fell silent in shock upon seeing me bound in chains as I was escorted on stage where the king was waiting with Diavolo and the brothers.

*Flashback*

After I passed out.

“Father! What did you do to them?!”

“I am humouring you my son. They are being held under the palace and I am forbidding any one of you from making contact with them.”

“My Liege, I implore you to please reconsider your judgment. They are unaware of how the politics work here and they simply misspoke. I assure you they don’t mean you any harm.” Lucifer lowered his head pleading to the king to reconsider his choice.

“Lucifer is right! They mean the world to us and they can’t possibly do anything to you or the Devildom!” Mammon joined in. The brothers then each said their piece about you.

“You all disgust me, pleading for a human's life. You are my highest ranking demons. Show some dignity!”

“With all due respect my king, that human you are referring to is the one that bettered your kingdom and has achieved far more than any human, demon, or angel could hope to accomplish in the span of just 1 year. They have brought us all together and mended ties we didn’t even know were broken. Y/N is a human I would give up my Pride for-”

“My Greed for-”

“My Envy for-”

“My Wrath for-”

“My Lust for-”

“My Gluttony for-”

“My Sloth for-”

“My title for-”

“My powers for-”

“Y/N is a one of a kind human. They have found their way into our lives and there is nothing you can do to take that away from us my Liege.”

“That was quite the speech Pride, although that doesn’t change my opinion about them. If anything, it just makes my decision all the more ironclad. But I will humour you all. Seeing as how you’re all willing to give up the very thing that makes you, you for the human, a public trial will be held. Their fate shall be decided there. Until then, I forbid any contact between them, through their pact, dreams, or any interference with the timeline. Am I understood?”

“Yes, my Liege” they all responded simultaneously as the king left the room.

*Later in the east sitting room with Lucifer, Barbatos and Diavolo*

“What are we going to do Dia?” Lucifer exclaimed as he did something he has never done while sober and flopped onto a couch opposite of Diavolo as Barbatos sat into a seat in between them.

Holding his head Diavolo responded.

“I don’t know Luci. I just don’t know. As the crown prince I can’t go against my Father and as my right hand neither can you, but things are different with them involved. I just don’t know.”

Sighing, Diavolo laid down on the couch no longer giving a care about anything, just thinking about different possibilities.

“Barb-?”

“No can do my lord. The king forbade me from using my powers. Even if you were to command me, I don’t have access to them for the time being.”

“Do me a favour Barb and drop the title for now? Please? I need my friends, not my subordinates.”

“Alright, Diavolo. Let me say this then. You both know that no matter what happens tomorrow, Y/N will be banished from the Devildom. We all know that the king isn’t above making us suffer just to prove a point. How are we going to support Y/N and stop them from harming themselves should they be banished to the human realm?”

“Jeez Barb! That isn’t what we need right now! I don’t want to think about that.” Lucifer added the last part with a whisper.

“My brothers are going to be absolutely devastated. Y/N kept them all together, it’s going to be really difficult keeping everyone together with them gone.” “Adding to the list of problems, now that my Father is back, we 3 now serve him. I don’t get to dictate anything until he crowns me, not like before. We will all be swamped with more work as Father will more than likely try to “fix” my improvements to the Devildom.”

The three sat in silence, lost in their minds, endless possibilities and scenarios floating around in their heads. Eventually, Lucifer excused himself under the guise of some unfinished paperwork and returned back to the House of Lamentation.

“Barb?”

“Yes?”

“What have we done?”

“I don’t know my friend. I don’t know.”

*End Flashback*

Walking up the steps towards the stage, I held my head high making eye contact with no one other than my demons as I kept my expression as comforting as possible for them. Poor Asmo and Mammon looked like a dam threatening to burst. Beel wasn’t faring any better holding on to Belphie for comfort. Levi squeezed Mammon's hand discreetly. Satan gave a sad smile. Lucifer stood by Diavolo’s side, each giving you the smallest hint of a smile while Barbatos stood behind Diavolo's left looking like he always did, but after spending so much time with him, you noticed the small sign of sympathy in his eyes. Making my way center stage I was pushed onto my knees in front of the king. I raised my head up high making direct eye contact in defiance. The king then addressed the crowd which I noticed is filled with not only Demons and Sorcerers of different powers but many demons I knew from RAD and called my friends. They looked solemn as I realized that I made an impact on more than just the brothers.

“Denizens of Devildom! Here is a human who has upset the balance of the Devildom…”

I drowned out the rest of his speech not focusing on anything except for my family up on stage. Ignoring the ringing in my head, I reached out with my pacts just enough for them to feel it. I sent them some of my favourite memories over the years and wished Satan a happy birthday before the king declared my sentence. Holding my head high, I locked my gaze onto him.

“The human known as Y/N is hereby banished from the 3 realms, their soul to be returned to oblivion!”

Smirking he turned to face me. Smiling, showing off his fangs he asked,

“I believe that is a suitable sentence, don't you Y/N?”

I ignored him and turned to the demons on stage. I watched as Beel grabbed onto Belphie harder as tears came to both of their eyes. I saw the dam break in both Mammon and Asmo as Levi and Satan both battled their own tears to try and comfort them. I watched as Lu’s face paled and Diavolo squeezed his friend's shoulder a little tighter to try and ground him. Barbatos looked more solemn as his eyes started to water ever so slightly. The king then summoned a sword, turning towards the brothers, then walked until he stood directly in front of Lucifer and Diavolo. Letting go of his friend's shoulder, both Diavolo and Lucifer bowed their heads towards their king. He then shifted to face Lucifer and held out the sword towards him. A look of shock crossed over the brothers' faces as Lucifer looked up to his king in confusion hoping this didn’t mean what he thought it meant as he slowly accepted the sword.

“Lucifer, Cardinal Sin of Pride. You will be the one to deliver the blow.”

The colour fully drained from his face as the king stepped to the side to allow Lucifer to step up. Slowly with a trembling breath, Lucifer approached you with pleading eyes silently praying that this was some sick nightmare. His brothers looked on in horror, shock freezing them in place. Stopping in front of you, he took one look at you, turned to the king and lowered the sword.

“No… I won’t.”

“Pardon me?”

“I said NO! I will not kill Y/N!”

“Yes, you will.”

The king's eyes started glowing as an aura surrounded Lucifer. His brothers broke out of their trance and tried to reach towards you to hold back their brother from killing you against their wishes. Diavolo and Barbatos stood in shock as the scene unfolded.

“Hear me, denizens of the darkness.” Everyone onstage immediately stopped in their tracks and looked my way.

“Hear me denizens of the darkness. You who are born of shadow and you who give birth to it.” Upon starting the incantation, a magic circle appeared beneath me and Lucifer; my shackles started glowing. An intense pain shot through my skull. Pushing past the pain I continued.

“HEAR ME AND DO AS I COMMAND!” The shackles around my wrists broke under my power and I stood up facing the brothers. The king tried to move towards me but the circle by my feet prevented him from getting close.

“I Y/N order the 7 sins not to interfere with this trial. You are not to make a move against the king after the completion of the trial. You 7 are to remain loyal to Lord Diavolo and continue serving him as his word now outranks the kings!” Ignoring the pleading looks on the brothers' faces, I turned to Lucifer.

“Lucifer, Avatar of the Cardinal Sin of Pride, you are to follow through with your king's command and execute me as is due with your sword. You are to remain loyal to Lord Diavolo above the crown. You are to continue watching over your brothers and are not allowed to fight me on this decision.” Cupping Lucifer's cheek I whispered into his ear, “I want you to be the one Lu.” Stepping back I finished my order. “Now kill me!” Kneeling before Lucifer I looked up with a smile on my face watching as unshed tears began pooling in his eyes as he summoned his sword.

“LUCIFER! NO!”

“LUCIFER! PLEASE NO!”

“Y/N!”

Lucifer looked into my eyes muttering something in angelic before whispering, “I’m sorry…”

With tears burning his eyes he buried the sword deep into my heart.

“Thank you”

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hcrringtonshair · 3 years

Text

Sweet as sugar

Sam Wilson x Reader

Summary: Sarah Wilson is your best friend and she’s inviting you for dinner.

Word Count: 2048

Warnings: a few swearing words, alcohol consumption and fluff

A/n: Thank you sm for requesting this @buckybarnes101 !! I had so much fun writing this and I kinda got lost in it so it’s pretty long but I couldn’t stop myself 😁 Anyways, I really hope you like it!

Sorry for any grammatical errors, I don’t have a beta reader and I’m not a native english speaker.

Masterlist

(Gif credit goes to @emraanhashmi)

Dinner tonight at my place? The boys are asking for you like every 5 minutes and I want to see my best friend

With a big grin you looked at your phone reading the message from your best friend Sarah.

You checked the time, 4 pm.

Sure! Can’t wait to see you all again 😍 I’ll be there at 7? Oh and is Sam back home?

Your hand landed with a clap on your forehead, why did you ask this? But it was too late to delete it because Sarah already saw it.

You were best friends since college, and she knew about your secret crush on Sam all over the years.

But since he was off to be an avenger and safe the world you had given up any hopes and went into dating again. Not that successful but at least you tried.

We can’t wait either ☺️ Fine I’ll prepare dinner soon and yes Sam is here!

A tickle went through your stomach, and you couldn’t help but to smile, rereading the message before you jumped off your seat.

One of your colleagues looked up from the other side of the desk.

“You’re leaving?”

“Yes. Uh.. Important stuff.”

You waved with the phone, grabbing your bag and jacket.

“I worked last Tuesday 3 hours longer. So leaving one hour earlier today will be no problem. Bye!”

After you rushed home, you realized you had no plan what to wear. Normally you showed up at Sarah’s in comfy clothes but today was different. Full of excitement you started to empty the wardrobe, looking for something special.

6:13 pm. Shit you would be there too late… As always.

You nearly stomped over a bunch of clothing that laid on the floor by heading to the door.

Only 10 minutes too late you arrived at the house, Sarah waved from the kitchen window as the door opened and two boys ran to you.

“Aunt y/n”

The two hugged you when you barely left the car, making one step back because of them rushing onto you.

“Hey boys.”

Smiling you put your arms around both of them.

“C’mon we have to show you our new video game!”

They both start running towards the house as you follow them slowly.

“They’re even louder than I remember.”

You laughed as you entered the kitchen, greeting Sarah with a hug, giving her a bottle of wine you bought in the city before.

“That’s because they have an uncle who encourages them, isn’t it like that Sam?”

For a moment you froze before turning around, following the view of Sarah to look at her brother who leans at the door frame.

Arms crossed on his chest, the tight sweater showing off every muscle on his broad arms.

His eyes wander down your body for a moment before they locked with yours again and a little smirk appeared on his lips.

The smirk that you loved so much and makes your heartbeat racing up.

“That’s absolutely right.”

He pushed himself off the frame, making his way to you.

“Long time no see sugar.”

You frown by him calling you sugar, not able to reply directly.

“World’s safe then I guess.”

When his arms wrapped around your body for a moment you held your breath.

You smelled his cologne, a mix of vanilla and cedar wood.

“Safer than ever.”

Before you could react he stepped back, noticing his hands brushing over your hips while letting go.

Automatically a bright smile showed up on your face, you looked at each other, and you didn’t notice the silence in the room before Sarah coughed giggling behind you.

“Sam would you mind to go and tell the boys they have to quit playing. Mr Liu is going to pick them up in 5 minutes.”

Not without winking at you Sam left the kitchen, you hear him laughing in the living room as you turn around.

“So what was that?”

Sarah handed you a glass of wine grinning knowingly, you both toasted.

“What?”

Making an innocent face after taking a few sips of the alcohol.

“This between you and him. I could literally feel the tension. And don’t lie to me, I know that you have a crush on him ever since I introduced you to each other.”

With every word you recognize your cheeks heat up and panic builds up in your stomach as you heard footsteps in your direction while she was speaking.

“Mr Liu is here.”

Sam’s face looked into the room, the boys rushing in to give their mother and you a short hug before leaving again followed by Sam.

When the door closed you breathed out heavy.

“There was no tension. We just haven't seen each other for a long time.”

You shrugged and saw through the window how Sam was saying goodbye to his nephews.

“Of course y/n. Next time tell me something I really could believe.”

Playfully you slapped Sarah’s shoulder and you both started laughing.

“Dinner is ready soon. C’mon let’s sit down outside.”

“Wow I nearly forgot how beautiful it is here.”

Astonished by the view of the last sun shining glittering on the calm water and the trees slowly waving in the warm breeze you made yourself comfortable on the bench on the veranda.

“If you would visit us more often you wouldn’t say that.”

Sam companies the two of you by sitting down next to you.

From the corner of your eyes you saw him casually resting his arm behind you.

You gave Sarah a haunting look which she answered with a giggle.

Her eyes switched from you to her brother and for a moment she stayed on him.

Since Sam sat down, your body had cramped, and you concentrated to act normal by emptying the glass of wine in one.

“Wow, slow it down, sugar. We don’t want you to be drunk before dessert.”

His giggling sent shivers down your spine, and you couldn’t help but to let out a nervous laughter.

“I’m honored that you care but don’t worry. I still have to drive home.”

You hadn’t noticed that Sarah left while you had spoken to Sam, so you turn around a bit, casually crossing your legs and resting hands folded on the upper thigh.

“Then I’ll give you more wine.”

His arm shoots around you to the table on your left to grab the bottle of wine, “More wine, less leaving.”

“Oh shit. Sorry guys, I forgot about Mrs Benoit’s Gutter. I promised her to fix it today.”

Sarah rushed out of the house down the staircase and you both flinched by the sudden interruption.

“But I already fixed it earlier this morning!”

Sam shouted at her when she headed to the car.

She waved with her hand, “She said it’s broken again! Dinner is ready, start eating without me, I’ll be back asap.”

Speechless you stared at your best friend, who was giving you a wink through the car window before driving away.

Seconds of silence let you inspect the fine fabric of your blouse.

“So then. Let’s go eating.”

You looked up, watching Sam going back on his feet reaching out for your hand.

For a brief moment you stare at his hand, feeling again your cheeks heating up before taking it timidly.

Your heartbeat was loud in your ears, it pounded so fast that you thought it would spring out of your rib cage every second.

The fact that Sarah already prepared the table with only two plates didn’t help.

“Damn it Sarah.”

You murmured as you sat down, Sam on the opposite laughed, his eyes shining in the dimmed light.

“I’m pretty sure that the gutter is fixed.”

“So am I. And I’m convinced that she will not be back soon.”

He opens up a beer and silently you both put some food on your plates.

“She was also bold enough to light candles. Didn’t know her romantic side until then.”

Sam laughed again at your words, nearly knocking over his beer can.

“She can be. Did you know how much she loved Dirty Dancing when we were younger? Or Titanic, god how many handkerchiefs were necessary for her tears.”

“Sounds familiar.”

Without looking at him you began to eat, grinning at the thought of a younger Sam who helps Sarah calm down after the death of Jack.

“Wait, don’t tell me that your most favorite movie of all time is Titanic.”

His eyes showed surprise and a bit of shock and you laughed again when his left hand wandered up to his chest, resting it where the heart is.

“No way! But I won’t lie when I say that I’ve cried when Rose realized that Jack is dead. It is an emotional scene and I will never not cry while watching this.”

You paused for taking the wine glass up to your lips, noticing that Sam was following your movements with his eyes.

You giggled into the glass, raising eyebrows which leads him to speak.

“I forgot how good you’re looking. No let me speak out.”

He raised one hand to stop you from speaking up.

“You’re really beautiful y/n. Sweet as sugar.”

He gave you a wink, his hand randomly brushing over yours as you both wanted to grab a spoon.

“Thank you.”

In your head you slapped yourself for that dumb answer, but it was impossible to make one right thought in your head since Sarah had left.

After dinner and three more glasses of wine you’d become more confident and put all your thoughts aside.

“So what next? I’m not ready to leave.”

“Maybe we should use the time, even though I don’t think that my sister will be here soon.”

He made a gesture to show you to follow him.

“We could watch a movie.”

He looked at a small shelf, left to the TV and you accompanied him, your eyes flying over the titles on the DVD boxes.

“What about that?”

You groan as he held Titanic in his hands, grinning down at you and wiggling with his eyebrows.

“No way unless you want to make me cry.”

“Maybe it’s just an excuse to hold you.”

The innocent glare he gave you before inspecting the cover of the box let your hands shake.

“You don’t need an excuse for that.”

Mumbling you choose another box holding it up so that he could read it.

“Sounds like an offer. Go make yourself comfortable, I’ll handle this.”

He took the box, and you made your way to the couch in front of the TV.

It wasn’t possible to concentrate yourself on Bad Boys II.

Soon as he sat down beside you, he had wrapped one arm around your shoulders and pushed you against his chest.

Immediately you had lied down your head on it which caused him to giggle lightly.

The alcohol had made your head go dizzy, and soon you felt how your eyelids become heavy.

“You’re sure you want to drive home? You can stay here, or I can bring you.”

His voice was close to your ear, and you flinched, you must have been asleep for a short moment.

“Oh no you don’t have to. I’m fine and besides, how will you come home then?”

“Then we’ll take my car, and I’ll pick you up tomorrow. But you can just stay here. We have a free room.”

With a big yawn you sit up, stretching out your arms before falling back against him.

“You know what. I’ll stay here. But you can pick me up from work tomorrow anyways.”

The blood shoots into your face as you heard yourself speaking, embarrassed you looked up to see him smile.

You stayed like this for a couple of seconds, his hands wandering up and down your back.

“You know what I can also do?”

“You could kiss me.”

You had spoken out loud your thoughts before you had really thought about it.

And he did, pressing down his lips onto yours and caused you to hold your breath for a moment.

The kiss was slow, his smooth lips moved perfectly against yours, and you couldn’t help but to grab his shoulders and push yourself closer to him.

“Sarah should leave us alone more often then.”

#Request #fic request #Sam Wilson #Sam Wilson x reader #Sam Wilson x you #Sam Wilson x y/n #falcon #tfatws #Sarah Wilson #Sam Wilson fluff #marvel #mcu #marvel writer

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navalcriminalimagines · 3 years

Text

Backup

Request by @wow-life-love4 ❤️ : So I was hoping to request a Barba x reader; Where the reader sees Barbra back when she goes visits Carisi and she has those feeling again what she had years ago when he left!And he finally accepts the fact that she was the one as well!!!!!(Throw some angst in there I’m dying for it with fluffy ending)

Words: 3,530

Tags: @crying-river

Sorry for the typos. Enjoy. ❤️

Based on 22x04 Sightless in a Savage Land. (Of course)

(Gif isn’t mine)

*Carisi’s office*

Since Sonny got his new office, you found a comfy place on the floor, against his furniture. That’s where you were even though your former partner wasn’t there yet. There was this new case that came up in the night before, he had a few meetings while you were working on your laptop, coffee right next you and Sonny’s on his desk.

He came in a few minutes later, smiled when he saw you. He threw the box he was holding on his cabinet and sat on his desk chair. When he spotted his coffee, his smile grew wider. “You’re the best,” he said, taking a big sip.

“I know,” you smiled. “How’s the case going?”

“I’m going for murder 2, and we’ll see,” he shrugged.

One thing you love about your friendship with Sonny Carisi is that silence is comfortable. There is no awkward silence. While he worked on his paperwork, you were on your laptop. Shopping online, actually. You rescued a car a year ago and the little ball of fur has been scratching on your couch ever since. It was completely destroyed now and you needed a new one.

“Dom,” you called your best friend. “What do you think about this one?” you turned your laptop so Sonny could see it. It was a nice three places blue couch, Scandinavian style.

Sonny wheeled closer to you and bent down to look at it. “I won’t fit in that one,” he said. He’s been crashing a lot at your place for the past two years.

“Stupid long legs,” you teased him. “Although, in 4 years, you’ll be sleeping in my bed, so—“ you turned the screen back at you and kept scrolling.

Sonny laughed at that. “Only if neither of us is married,” he reminded you.

“Doesn’t look good, Dominick. I’m telling you,” you exclaimed. “You seriously need to prepare yourself to spend the rest of your life with me,”

“Wouldn’t have agreed if I wasn’t. Although, that’s not the story I wanna tell our kids,” still laying in his chair, Sonny was facing you, his legs spread as always.

“Why not?” You exclaimed. “It’s cute! Two best friends that made a deal to get together to avoid forever loneliness!” You paused and realized what he said. “Wait—kidS?” you asked, making sure the ‘s’ was heard.

“At least, four, Y/N. You know I want a big family,” Sonny told. This conversation seemed like completely normal between although it wasn’t.

“Then pry I’ll give birth to quadruplets. Cause I’m not getting pregnant four times,”

“Don’t underestimate the Carisi’s power,”

You and Sonny stopped talking for a moment, just staring at each other, until you both started to laugh. “This conversation is nonsense,” you said.

“I agree,” you heard from the doorway. You and Sonny turned like one man, to look at the man standing there. You didn’t have to look at him though. You recognized his voice from the first sound.

“Barba,” Sonny was the first to greet him. He stood up and offered his hand. Both men shook hands and Rafael’s eyes stopped on you, still sitting on the floor. You looked up to him and tried to keep a poker face. But god, he looked more handsome as ever. The beard. You asked him multiple times to keep the beard, when you and Rafael were seeing each other.

“Detective,” he greeted you.

“Counselor,” you quickly said and got your attention back on your laptop. You can’t let him see you still have feelings. And that you’re mad. Hurt, even. Rafael never made a promise to you, you two weren’t actually dating per say, but you wished he gave you a goodbye. Not just—leaving.

“What can I help you with?” Sonny rescued you.

“Mickey Davis. Can we talk about it?” He said.

You felt both men’s gaze on you and looked up, “Oh you want me gone?” You said and Sonny nodded. You stood up, put your laptop in your bag, and walked to the door. “Chinese. My place?” You asked Sonny, completely avoiding Rafael. Your best friend agreed and you would be lying if you said you didn’t hope it would make Rafael jealous.

*****

Sonny showed up at your apartment around 8. He was welcomed by Mania’s purrs, he crouched down and pet your ginger cat for a moment. You were sitting in your - destroyed - couch, with a glass a white wine. Carisi knew that seeing Barba after all those years messed with your head.

“How many?” He simply asked.

“Not enough!” You said, but you were obviously tipsy already.

He’d been there many times. He knew that trying to fight to make you stop drinking was useless. So instead, he grabbed a glass and joined you on the couch. Mania jumped on your lap. “Wanna talk about it?”

“I’m just going to say the same things I’ve been telling you for the past three years,” you said, focusing on your cat.

“But now, he’s back. And I don’t think he liked what he heard,”

You looked at Sonny, puzzled, waiting for him to continue. “He was—cold. Unfriendly. And he left saying ‘Enjoy the chinese—and the company’”

“It doesn’t mean anything, Dom. Three years went by. He probably has someone,” you were on the urge of crying but you were fighting yourself. You cried enough for Rafael.

“His lost,” Sonny put his arms around your shoulders and kissed your temple. He gave a pat to Mania, and extended his legs on the coffee table. You rested your head on his shoulder and a few tears escaped.

“Why am I not over him? Why does it still hurt?” You asked. Sonny hummed in response and you continued. “I wish we were married already. I would be committed to you, and he wouldn’t live rent free in my head,”

Sonny giggled, “You sure ‘bout that?” He asked. “Know that cheating is a deal breaker for me. Thinking of someone else while you’re with me is cheating, somehow. So technically, you’re already cheating on me,”

“I’d make up to you, but we’re not there yet. You refused to seal the deal,”

It took Sonny a few seconds to understand what you meant. “And think about Barba while I’m making love to you? Noooo, thank you,”

You grabbed the wine bottle and poured yourself another glass. Mania wasn’t pleased about you moving around so he jumped onto Sonny’s lap instead. “I need a good dick,” you sighed, laying back on the couch.

Sonny wasn’t expecting you to say that. Or at least, not like that. He was taking a sip and choked on wine. He coughed a few times, which made you laugh. “Need me to remind you what happened last year?”

“Noooo, thank you,” you mimicked him. The last year was a mess. You got drunk at Forlini’s and left with a stranger. It was okay at first, the man was good looking and very cautious with you. The sex wasn’t great. He came really fast, you didn’t have time to get pleasure. When you tried to leave, he offered you to stay with puppy eyes, and you caved. The next morning, you tried to sneak out but he heard you and he didn’t want to let you go. So you texted Sonny, asking him to call you and pretend an emergency. Thank god he did. But a few weeks later, you met the guy again at Forlini’s. It lead to a few weeks of stalking from his behalf, until you went all cop on him.

After eating chinese, you went back to drinking as Sonny stopped. You two watched some terrible show on tv until you fell asleep on his shoulders. Used to that, he moved you to your bed and crashed on your couch, with Mania cuddling to him.

*****

You showed up many times at work with hangovers. You were used to pretend you were okay and your coworkers pretended to believe you. The morning went slow, until he showed up.

“Barba!” Fin was the first to see him. “Liv isn’t here,” he continued.

“I came to see all of you—in private?” Fin, Amanda, Kat and yourself looked to one another. “I don’t have all day, detectives.”

They stood up and followed him next to interrogation rooms. But you stayed put. “Y/N,” Rafael softly said.

“Three detectives is enough,” you said, without looking at you. If you looked at him, you’d caved. And you can’t do that. He doesn’t deserve it. Not so easily. Not just because he is his handsome self.

“I hope chinese with your future husband was good,” he answered, bitterly and joined the others, closing the doors behind him. You sarcastically laughed at that. Was it jealousy? You hoped so.

A few minutes later, Liv came in with Garland. He gently greeted you and asked where were the others. You told them without thinking further. And in a minute, Barba was in Liv’s office with her and Garland. Your coworkers went back to their desks but no one talked. “Fill me in?” You asked.

“In so many words, Barba needs our help,” Amanda told you.

“He’s defending the man that Carisi is prosecuting. That’s not fair to Sonny,” you told, anger started to show up.

“Carisi can handle it,” Fin said.

“Damn right he can. But you’re making it harder for him! Our ADA is Carisi now, not Barba! He left me—us,”

You knew it was too late. Your anger toward Rafael just surfaced and the entire team now knows something had happened. Mostly angry at yourself from letting your emotions get the best of you, you grabbed your jacket and left the squadroom.

You drove to Sonny’s office and stormed in it without knocking. He immediately saw your red eyes, and furry in them. “Barba asked the squad for help! And I think they are in!” You were pacing in the small place, making Sonny’s head spin. “They are going behind your back for him! They are helping him, knowing it will make it harder for you! He just—snapped his fingers,” you did snap your fingers, “and they are all in! I can’t believe it,” you were breathing hard, fighting your tears and your anger. Sonny stood, grabbed your shoulders and brought you to his chest. He held you tight as you cried in his chest. He could feel your body shaking. You stood there for a long moment until you calmed down. Sonny let you go and grabbed you a tissue. You dried your eyes and blown your nose. “I’m sorry, you must be tired of me. I’m a fucking mess,”

Sonny was leaning on his desk, arms crossed and legs spread. “Nah, you’re not, Y/N. You’re my best friend and you’re there for me as much,” he softly grabbed your hand and rubbed your knuckles, “Now tell what you’re really mad about,”

“Him. He comes back and tries to act as if—nothing happened. Like we were nothing. Ever,” you took a deep breath, “it just hurts me all over again,”

“Now that he’s here, maybe you should ask for the explanations you’ve been waiting for? You need closure, honey. You deserve it. And yeah, it may not be what you want to hear but at least, you’ll know and you can finally move on,”

“With you when I turn 40?” You tried to joke.

“Or that guy from last year,” he grinned.

“Shut up, Carisi,” Sonny pulled on your arm to bring you to him. As he was leaning on the desk, you were the same height. You put your arms around his shoulders, and his hands were in your back. “What would I do without you?” You whispered in his ear.

“You’d be stuck in a relationship with a weirdo, and probably pregnant by now,” you laughed at his words.

“That would terrible. I’d be so frustrated,”

“Uh, I’d help you with that,”

“Dominick Carisi Jr, isn’t that a sin? May I remind you, you refused to seal our deal,”

“Because if it went bad, I didn’t want you to ask Fin to be your backup,”

“Wouldn’t have worked anyway, he found Phoebe,”

Really, what would you do without Sonny Carisi in your life?

*****

His words didn’t leave your brain. “You need closure, you deserve it”. And maybe he’s right. You do deserve closure, even if he tells you everything you don’t want to hear. So when the trial was over, and Barba invited everyone for a drink, you joined in. You sat between Sonny and Kat, Rafael was across from you. You could feel his gaze every now and then but you tried to avoid meeting his eyes.

“Cheers,” Rafael said, holding his scotch.

“To what? Jury deliberated for 6 hours to find Davis guilty on murder 2 and we’re back to the start,” Sonny answered.

“To irony, then,” Rafael offered instead.

Everyone got interested in Rafael’s past three years. He explained that he traveled for a while, catch up with foreign family in Cuba. He mentioned meeting a woman there but when you heard the word “girlfriend”, you stood up and went to order another glass.

“Y/N!” You heard from your left. You turned to see the man that stalked you the year prior. “Good to see you,” before you could react, Kyle was hugged you. “Been a while,” he smiled.

Not enough. You thought. “Indeed,” you gently returned the smile.

“May I offer you a drink?”

“Thanks, but I’m with my friends,” you pointed towards the squad. Sonny saw the man from behind and he saw in your eyes you were in trouble. But instead of helping you, he was just—laughing. Bastard.

“Maybe later then? Or another day?”

“Kyle. Last year, I threated you to put you in jail for harassment. That threat still stands if you start again,” you looked at him, seriously.

“Actually, I want to apologize about that. I was in a very bad place and I don’t know why I acted the way I did. Can we put that in the past and start all over again?”

Listening to his excuses, you didn’t see Rafael circling around. It’s only when you smell his intoxicating smell, that you knew he was behind you. You sighed and tried to stay focus on Kyle. “Okay look, if you’re still here when my friends leave, maybe—“ you were stopped by Rafael’s arm, as he slided it around your chest.

“Leave her alone, man. You’re not up to her standards,”

“Y/N, who is that” Kyle asked.

You were so confused about what was happening - and a little tipsy - you didn’t react. “The man that has way more chance to take her home than you’ll never have,”

“Well, man, you’re too late. I already took her home,”

You felt Rafael’s fist clenching. “Kyle—I’ll see around okay?”

“I’m not sure I want to leave you with that guy, Y/N,” he answered.

“But you are,” Rafael growled. “Now and forever,”

Rafael made you spin around so you were facing him instead of that Kyle. He instantly grabbed your face in his hands and kissed you right under Kyle’s nose. He was acting like an asshole but there’s no way you could pull him away. You melted into his kiss, granting access to his tongue. You grabbed onto his shirt, pulling him as close as you could. You felt his hands traveling your back, until you were grabbing your ass. For a moment, you forgot you two were in the middle of Forlini’s. You moaned in his month and he felt his cock twitching.

You pulled away only when Amanda made herself heard as she was leaving. “Get a room, people.”

Rafael smiled. “I agree with her. Come home with me?”

“Where’s home for you?” You asked. A kiss can’t make everything go away.

“Home is you, Y/N. You’re my home,” he looked so damn sincere and it would be so easy to just let it go and hang on to those words. But you still need explanations. Apologizes, perhaps?

Again, you fought against your tears. “That’s so easy, Rafael,”

“Come with me and we can talk. Just that if you want,”

*****

During the ride, you told Rafael you preferred to go to your place; Mania was waiting. If Barba should have a pet, he thought he would adopt a dog. But since you have a cat, he can get use to it. Only if you cut its claws.

As always, Mania was waiting behind the door when you got in. He didn’t move at first, just studying Rafael. “He’s already judging me,” Rafael said.

“He only met two humans. Me and Sonny. Before that, he was beaten, famished and threw with the trash. He doesn’t trust humans,”

“That’s something we can bound on,” Rafael kept his distance with your furry child. And Mania did the same. You pet him a moment, gave him his food and joined Rafael on the couch, with a bottle of Sauternes. It was silent at first. None knew where to start.

“Is—is there something between you and Carisi?” He asked.

“Straight to the point,” you smiled in your glass. You liked the hint of jealousy in it. “For now, no. But in 4 years, maybe,”

“I’m gonna need further explanations,”

“I’m the one that needs explanations, don’t you think?” You challenged him. “Actually, I deserve them,” you’ll have to think Sonny later for that strength.

“Indeed, you do,” Rafael agreed. “It was easier that way,”

“Easier for who? For you? Cause it wasn’t easy for me, at all,”

“I was selfish and I’m sorry,” he softly grabbed your hand. “I knew that—if I came to see you, to tell you I was leaving, I would have back down. I couldn’t bring myself to tell you goodbye. All I ever wanted to see in your eyes, when you look at me, was love. And I was afraid to see—disappointment in them. Pity, hate, even. Cause there was hate whenever I looked in the mirror,” you heard tears in his voice. You knew he was just being honest with you.

“You ruined our relationship—or whatever we had— on assumptions, Rafael. I didn’t hate you before you left. I wasn’t disappointed. Only things you’d have seen were empathy and love,”

“I couldn’t take the risk, Y/N,”

“Let’s pretend I get that. Why didn’t you call, then? Text? Left a letter or a note? Hell, even an email would have made it easier,” you stood up, pacing around. Rafael has been around you enough to know that’s what you do when you’re angry and trying to calm yourself.

“I could have. I should have—I’m so sorry,” he was looking at you with pleading eyes but you were still pacing around your living room. “I never forgot about you, Y/N. I still love you,”

“Uh-huh,” you shook your head, “You can’t tell me you still love me when you never said you loved me in the first place!” You exclaimed.

“Fine,” he stood up and grabbed your shoulders to keep you still. “I love you, Y/N. Wanna know when I knew?” He paused, for what you assumed what a dramatic effect like he does in court, “When Yelina came in my office, telling my ‘crazy coworker’ slapped her. And you didn’t slap her because you were jealous. You did so because she hurt me and talked shit about me for going after Alex. When she left, I smiled so hard, I found the courage to ask you out,”

You felt your cheeks turning pink. “I didn’t know you knew,” you looked down but Rafael grabbed your chin and made you lift your head.

“From that moment, I knew you had my back. I didn’t have yours,” you saw a tear finally escaping his eye. “And if you found the strength to forgive me, I’ll always have your back. I won’t let you down. I promise,”

Seeing Rafael cried made you cry too. You swoop his tears with your thumb. “It won’t be easy, Rafael. It’s going to take time for me to—trust you again. To trust that you won’t leave again,”

“I won’t,” he grabbed your face and kissed. It was needy. Rafael wanted you to feel how much he loves you in that kiss. He wanted you to know you could trust him. Not only your tongue mixed but your tears did too. “I promise. I love you,” he rested his forehead against yours.

“I love you, too,” you kissed again, but it was more passionate. One of his arms were wrapped around your shoulders and his other hand was holding your cheek. Your left hand rested on his firm ass and your right one was in his hair.

He smiled against your mouth when he felt your hand grabbing his ass cheek. “That’s my move,”

“What can I say? I missed your ass,”

He chuckled and made you jump in his arms. Your legs wrapped around his waist and his hands were resting on your ass. “Not as much as I missed yours,” Rafael kissed you again and walked to the bedroom, closing it to Mania’s face.

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