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sentientcave · 1 year ago

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Retirement Party

Chapter 4 - Runaway

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Contains: No Y/N, Kidnapping, Forcible relocation, Dubcon, Plus-sized reader, female reader, Poorly thought out action sequences, Guns, There is something fucking wrong with these guys for real, More reader details given, but we're still pretty vague about it. Even though it is hard for me. No promises for future chapters though I might even tell y'all her name.

~3.8k - MDNI - Dark fic! Please mind the content warning above

You wake in the morning with your nose buried in a thick patch of chest hair, and strong arms around you. Your legs are hooked around one of his thick thighs, and something hard digs into your stomach. You start to inch away, but his arms tighten, and his hips cant against you, a thick, sleepy groan rumbling in his chest. It would be a nice way to wake up, if not for the circumstances. It’s been ages since you slept beside another person, let alone someone that feels as comfortable as John does.

“John,” you say softly. You don’t want to fully wake him up, just get him to let you go. “John, please let me go.”

He hums, one hand sliding to your waist, and then down to your hip, pulling you closer, grinding you against his thigh. You squeak in protest, becoming aware that you’re already wet, like you’ve been unconsciously humping his leg in your sleep for some time. You push your slightly freer top half away a little, so you can look at him. He’s still sleeping, a little frown on his face as he’s pulled unwillingly toward consciousness. He really is handsome, especially like this, all his defences down, grumbling like a hibernating bear.

“Don’t wake up,” you tell him, as if it’ll make any difference. “I just have to pee.”

One of his blue eyes cracks open, a little unfocused. “You comin’ back?” His voice is rough from sleep, rasping like sandpaper.

“Sure,” you say, even though you have no intention of doing so. Your body seems as eager as his is for something you’re sure is dangerous. Maybe he smells good, like tobacco, warm, boozy spices and something undeniably male, and maybe he feels warm and solid against you, but you don’t want to encourage this. You just want to enough space to clear your head. His admissions last night still have you spooked, John’s words not tempered by a night of surprisingly good sleep. “I’ll just be a minute.”

He loosens his hold on you enough that you can wiggle free, his eyes opening a little more so he can watch you slip out of bed. He rolls over onto his back, and starts snoring gently before you’ve even made it to the bedroom door. You take the opportunity to snag one of the bags stacked in front of the closet and your purse off the dresser and bring both to the bathroom with you. You’re not sure what’s in the bag, but you know the larger suitcase has things from your closet in it, so you’re hoping this one has more from your dresser.

You get dressed, glad that most of your underthings and a comfortable pair of jeans and a thick sweater are inside and pack your toothbrush and makeup bag into the larger one, and creep downstairs carefully. One of them is snoring gently on the couch, but otherwise, the house is silent. You carefully fish a set of keys off the hooks by the door and sneak outside. You don’t know where any of your shoes are except the red heels, so you just leave in your sock feet, and pile your things into the pick-up truck. You’ll drive it into town and leave it there, buy a ticket on a train or a bus, and get the hell back home.

It sucks to have to leave everything you own, beyond the clothes in the one bag and the contents of your purse, but maybe you can call the cops— Well. Probably not. Better to just start over anywhere else. You have digital copies of a few pictures of your parents, and that’s better than nothing, even if their wedding album is sitting on a shelf in John’s living room, along with all the family photos that your parents took of you and them while you were growing up. Your mother’s sketchbooks too, and her camera, and your dad’s guitar.

You bite your lip, holding back tears, and start the truck.

No sense mourning things. The memories are in your head and your heart, not trapped in the pages of books or twisted into the strings of the guitar. You don’t need them.

You haven’t driven in a long time, and the truck, unfortunately, is a manual, which you haven’t driven in even longer, but you manage to pull away from the house without revving the engine too hard, and pick up speed once you get to the road, only just remembering to hit the clutch with your left foot before you change gears. You’d feel pretty pathetic if you only made it to the road before stalling out the pickup.

You’re not sure which way town is, but you figure the road has to lead somewhere no matter which way you choose, so you navigate blindly, turning onto a bigger road a little ways down the gravel one that leads to John’s house. Bigger road means more people, although the hour is still so early that there’s no one around yet. The sun is barely up, and it’s still shadowy in the woods on either side of the road. The woods give way to fields suddenly, the sun making a too-bright debut, shining right into your eyes. You flip down the visor and adjust the rear-view mirror, wincing when you see a blue car a ways behind you, approaching fast.

You didn’t notice the car when you were leaving— It must have been parked behind the bigger van that they’d used to move all your things— but it looks sporty and fast, and judging by the way it closes the gap, there’s no question that it’s them. You push the truck harder, squinting against the light, heart hammering. The car’s engine roars, loud enough that you can hear it over the blood rushing in your ears, and pulls into the lane beside you. Gaz motions for you to pull over from the passenger seat.

You slow up enough that they pull ahead a little, and you yank your steering wheel to the side and stomp down on the gas and the clutch, shifting into third gear and nailing the side of the car, shattering a tail light and making it spin, stopping just shy of the ditch.

For a moment, you’re still close enough to see the shock on their faces, but you’re moving fast and leave them in the dust, at least momentarily. It won’t take them long to recover and catch up again, and if they hit you with the same maneuver, there’s no way you’ll be able to get the truck under control. There’s not enough weight in the bed of the truck to compensate, and you’ll wind up in the ditch for certain.

Funny, how it comes back to you. Learning to drive along mountain roads way outside Aberdeen, either in your dad’s little car or your mom’s old truck (usually the car, which was the easier one to drive. Your dad was the safer driver too, the better parent to learn from), and you can almost imagine your mother in the passenger seat, laughing her head off at the insane circumstances, encouraging you to throw caution to the wind, to get a feel for the road under the wheels and the way the old truck handled. She always laughed when she was under stress, but it’s comforting to think of. Your mum would never let a couple of thick-headed military assholes get the better of her.

The car is catching up again, so you floor it and smash through a fence gate into a muddy field, where the car won’t handle as well, and speed your way across the stubbly remains of wheat, already harvested. The car follows, and, predictably, struggles, the low frame too close to the muck, bumping unhappily over the soft, uneven ground.

Laughter bubbles up in your chest, relieving some of the built-up anxiety. You smash through a segment of the fence on the other side and yank the truck back onto the road, giggling when the truck fishtails a bit, mud slicking the tires on the pavement. There’s so much adrenaline coursing through your system that you feel like you might be sick the moment you let any of this catch up with you. So you keep driving, and pray that it doesn’t.

The car gets close again when you reach another wooded section of road. Through the rearview mirror you can see Gaz pop out of the window, gun drawn, but you don’t hear the crack when it fires, you only feel the impact when the bullet strikes one of the rear tires. You shriek, slamming on the breaks as the truck spins out of your control and off the road, slamming into a tree head on.

The lurch forward as the airbags deploy, your body hitting them hard, knocking all the air out of your lungs as you’re slapped back into he seat. The seat belt bites into your shoulder painfully. You unbuckle yourself quickly, ears ringing too loudly for you to hear the screeching tires of the pursuit car. You fall to the ground when you try to get out, head spinning.

You stumble into the trees, still blinking away double vision. If you can find a good spot to hide— Maybe you can double back and take the car while they chase you blindly through the trees. You cast about, feeling every rapidly forming bruise, wishing desperately that you had shoes, and dive into the underbrush, scooting forward on your belly, brambles catching in your hair as you curl up, out of sight.

“Please come out, doll,” you hear Gaz call out, boots crunching through the woods, closer than you would like. “It’s okay, we’re not mad. Just come out and we’ll take you home, yeah?”

Johnny is yelling further off, his voice incomprehensible but sing-song, mocking. Gaz moves further into the woods. You wait until his voice grows a little more distant before you drag yourself back out, sweater streaked with mud, leaves in your hair, and quickly sneak back to the road. The car is still running, the driver door left open. You breathe a sigh of relief.

“There you are, bird.”

You scream. A gloved hand drops over your mouth, cutting off the sound, and an arm loops around your waist, picking you right up off your feet.

Fuck.

"Look what you did, bird. Wrecked up Price's truck. 'E's not goin' to be 'appy about that." He turns so you can see the slightly smoking truck, the front half of it crumpled beyond repair.

You shake your head until he pulls his hand away from your mouth. "Its not my fault I crashed. Gaz shot the tire out. I wasn't even going to steal it, just leave it in town once I'd gotten to a bus stop."

He hums. You hear the slight crackle of a radio. "Got 'er, lads. Come back to the car."

"Rog."

"Aye."

Ghost shoves you into the back seat. "Stay put," he says sternly. "You're already banged up, don't want to 'ave to tackle you."

You sigh, all the fight leaving you. You feel awful, bruised and shaken up and trembling, and you do nothing but watch as Ghost gathers your things from the truck and puts them in the boot of the car. You slump back in the seat, inspecting the scratches on your hands idly. Your head hurts, and your shoulder aches, and you feel a bit like you've been stepped on, but nothing feels broken, just bruised and tender. You got lucky.

Well, not lucky. There's very little about any of this that counts as luck. Especially considering the look on Johnny's face when he jogs out of the trees. At first he looks stormy, but he grins when he sees you and opens the back door to crawl onto the seat and on top of you.

"Steamin Jesus, where'd ye learn ta drive like tha'?" He asks. "Didnae ken ye were a racer."

"Outside Aberdeen," you reply. Your ribs hurt. Soap’s weight makes every little ache more acute.

"Price isn't gonna be happy about his truck," Gaz says, tossing himself into the driver's seat. "What were you thinking, doll? You could've been hurt."

"You didn't have to shoot the tire." You try to push Soap off, but he wraps himself around you, a bit tight, but bearably so. You’re trembling, and he’s trying to help, in a thoroughly unhelpful way. "I was just trying to get home."

"That's the wrong way. Your home's with Price now." Ghost gets into the other front seat, and Gaz reverses back out onto the road.

You sigh, leaning your head against the window, watching the countryside flash by. It takes an embarrassingly short time to get back to John's house. You didn't get as far as you would have liked, hardly got anywhere at all. Your eyes prickle with tears, but you don't want to cry in front of them. You want to go back to bed, maybe back in time to the morning. You would have been wiser just to curl up next to John again.

Soap drags you from the car, hands a bit rough on your bruises, and pulls you back to the house. John rushes out, worry creasing his face, blue eyes sweeping over you and turning furious. "What happened?" he barks, not at you, but at his men.

"Bird was makin' a run for it," Ghost says.

"Wrecked your truck," Gaz adds.

"That's not my fault!" you protest. "You shot at me!" You glare at him, frustrated tears overflowing down your cheeks. It’s like they have no idea what kind of stress they’ve put you through.

"Woah, woah, c'mere, doll." John pulls you against his chest, wrapping strong arms around you, stilling some of the tremble in your limbs. "You broken?"

You shake your head, leaning into him, gripping his t-shirt tightly. You breathe in raggedly, trying to steady yourself.

"Lads. Why did you shoot at her?"

"Trying to stop the truck."

"She's a civilian you muppets. I take it that the truck's in no shape to drive, or you would've brought it back. You could have killed her." He pets a hand over your head, plucking out a few leaves. "You should’ve let her go."

"She stole your truck!" Soap protests.

"So what? It's wrecked now anyway, innit?" The silence behind you speaks volumes. "Alright, doll, why don't you go get cleaned up? " he murmurs against the top of your head. "I need to talk to the lads, and what I have to say is not fit for a lady's ears."

He gently ushers you into the house and closes the door firmly behind you. You trudge upstairs, feeling utterly pathetic, and lock yourself into the bathroom. Still sniffling, you comb sticks and leaves out of your hair with your fingers and put yourself into a hot shower, where you give yourself the freedom to cry your eyes out, hoping that the sound of water drowns your stifled sobs.

The house is quiet when you shut off the shower and dry yourself off. You wrap the shirt you'd slept in around you and poke your head out into the hallway. John is right there, holding out a bundle of clothes. "Here, sweetheart," he says softly, like he's worried a sharp word will set you off again. He must have heard everything. "I sent the boys to deal with the truck and that tail light, so it's just us. Just come on downstairs when you're ready."

You open the door wide enough to accept the clothes, and he turns to leave again, content to leave anything else to be said when you make it downstairs.

He'd obviously taken his cue from what you'd been wearing already, because he gives you a sweater and jeans again, comfortable worn in things. You go downstairs carefully, every joint and muscle in your body aching, even after the shower.

"How do you take your coffee?" he asks. "Or do you prefer tea?"

"Coffee, please. I can make it. I'd feel better if I did, honestly." You skirt around him to the cupboard where you'd seen Gaz take mugs out, recognizing your own nestled among John's mismatched ones. You put milk and sugar in your favourite mug, and pour in coffee, stirring it throroughly. The clink of the spoon is loud, and so is the pan he sets on the stove top.

"Eggs and toast okay?" He asks.

"Um, yeah. That would be nice. Over easy?"

"Yes ma'am." He looks at you over his shoulder while butter melts in the pan, blue eyes all worry. "Did I say something to you last night? Maybe the sort of thing that made you feel like you needed to steal a truck and run as fast as you could away from here?"

"Um. Yes." You hold onto the mug with both hands. "Some stuff about wanting to start a family. With me."

His ears turn pink. "I see."

"I suppose this is where you tell me it was just the whiskey talking, right?" you ask hopefully. You like him, even if it’s ill-advised, maybe even dangerous to do so.

"Wish I could."

Your stomach twists. “Oh.”

John turns around fully, guilt and sadness written all over his handsome face. He steps closer and touches your arm gently. “I’m so sorry about what my boys have put you through, sweetheart. None of this has been right.” He sighs, brushing a few tendrils of still-wet hair away from your face, studying you, those intense blue eyes focused on you intently. “But there’s something special about you, doll. I really do want to keep you forever. Not if you’re scared, and not if you feel forced— It’s just, the thought of you leavin' and never wanting to speak to me again is— I don’t want that.”

You swallow nervously. “This is just really overwhelming.”

“I know. If I’d known, I wouldn’t have let this happen. Soap really could have just given you my number.” The smile he gives you is hopeful, and you can’t help but return it, just a little. “Now go sit down, doll. Let me take care of breakfast, hm?”

You nod and move to the table, sitting where you can watch him, and peek out the window too. The car is gone, but the van is still there for the moment, sitting idly to the side. You consider making another run for it, but your aching limbs protest even the thought. There’s not enough fight in you, and you’re not even sure you want to fight John, not the way you do the other three. His only crime has been wanting you to stay, and being a bit overzealous about it. You can’t be mad at him for that, can you? It isn’t really his fault.

Well, it might be his fault, in a roundabout way. He trained them, taught them how to ruthlessly pursue an objective. It’s just not his fault they can’t keep it from coming home with them. That’s a clear failure of whoever does their mental health assessments.

You sip your coffee and watch John crack eggs into a pan. He keeps glancing at you, and his smile flickers on a little longer each time that he catches you looking back, until he doesn’t stop smiling, and just looks happy, glad to have you there, even if you’re just keeping a silent vigil on the other side of the room.

It's not like you have anywhere to go. It'll take days at least to feel like you haven't just been in a car crash, and days more to locate everything to pack it back up. So long as you don't have to share a bed with John again, you think you could live with this, for at least a week. It can't be that terrible, so long as the others leave you alone. You rather hope they just leave. If you asked, would John send them away?

"John," you say as he sets a plate with buttered toast and a couple of eggs on it in front of you, and sets a couple tablets of paracetamol beside your plate. "If I stay… Will they be staying too?"

"I'm going to have them leave this afternoon. That alright with you? We can go for a walk to the neighbours while they pack up, if you're up for it. Maybe dr-- Well, not drive." He sets his own plate down and sits next to you, handing you a knife and a fork. “Have to get that sorted out. But the neighbours-- Rob and Melissa-- Their dog just had puppies a few weeks ago. Do you like dogs?”

You nod, breaking the yolks of one of the eggs with a corner of toast. "My parents had a dog when I was growing up. Some kind of German shepherd cross. Best boy. His name was Rob Roy, because he was a wee outlaw. Mam found him digging in the trash and--" you stop and give John a baleful look. "Sorry. That was more than you were asking."

"No, that's the most you've said at once this whole time. I'd listen to you talk all day, doll. Don't ever apologize."

"Sorry I-- Oh, shit, sorry--" you press your fingers to your mouth, cutting yourself off. "Force of habit."

"I'd like to see you lose that one. You have nothin' to apologize for. Not one damn thing, and especially not talking. I think you have the prettiest voice I've ever heard."

You roll your eyes, but you can't help smiling. "You're just saying that."

He touches your arm lightly. "You don't know me too well yet, doll, but I never just say anything."

Yet hangs in the air, heavy and deliberate. He wants you to know him, wants you to stay with him, wants you to like him. Even if it makes no sense, the offer is tempting. It's been a long time since you've let someone get close— You've had the occasional fling, and the odd reunion with an ex that you’d stayed friends with, but grief is like a canyon you can't bear to cross. What if you love someone and you lose them, the way you lost your parents? How could you live with that all over again?

Still, there's something that feels like warm sunlight in his smile, and you can't help but incline toward him, slowly but surely reaching for the light. No one can live in the shade forever. There’s no nobility in suffering.

So you let yourself talk, at least a little. And he listens, hanging on to your words like they're precious, gazing at you with something unfurling in his expression that you can't name. You're almost afraid to try.

Image Credits: Banner

Dividers: 1 - 2 - 3 by @/Cafekitsune

#Retirement Party #Chapter 4 - Runaway #Whoops forgor to do this earlier #sorry friends I shouldn't make self-imposed deadlines I know the guy that sets em and he's a pushover #Doll girl you are doomed do not let that man give you the big hopeful blue eyes he is TROUBLE #Seriously though what is WRONG with these guys they are not making good decisions even a little #dark fic #cod mw fanfiction #john price x reader #OC: Doll #x reader #Sorry she's become more of a character and it's harder to deny her personhood for the x reader bit #so hopefully you can just enjoy being Doll for a hot minute

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getitoutofmymindwrites · 11 months ago

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Something impulsive | joel miller x f!reader x marcus pike, 7.1k

Summary: The distance between you and Joel grows. You decide to give Marcus a chance. A chance encounter shifts the balance between you and the two men.

Warnings: 18+ MDNI, image just for aesthetic purposes, reader does not have a description, angst, slow-burn, insecurities, first date nervousness, flirting, sexual thoughts, kissing, Joel still being a prick, Joel still being an idiot (bear with him) dog piss (bear with me, too), as always let me know if I missed anything!

A/N: And here I was, thinking that this time I'll keep it short. Who am I kidding. Thank you for taking the time to read anything I write! Love you all!

P.S.: Credits for the final scene go to @jessthebaker and this hilarious comment that I just had to include in the chapter:

Dividers by @cafekitsune & @thecutestgrotto

Main Masterlist | Series Masterlist

previous |

Radio silence.

That is what you would call it.

After your last encounter, you haven't seen or heard from Joel for two long weeks. No text, no phone call, nothing. Were you entering the winter phase again? Most likely.

You regretted the way you had challenged him that night. It wasn't really your style, but that's what happens when you bottle things up. Especially things like desire and longing. Eventually, they erupt like a fucking volcano after a long hibernation. Brutally. And yet you haven't got an ounce or a reaction. Something. Anything at all.

You were terrified that your friendship had been broken. You could have texted him. You should have. You felt it was all your fault anyway. You should have apologized. But you were angry. And selfish. And deep down you blamed him for your reaction, for making you feel helpless, a pawn in his hands.

But was that the case? And can you really blame anyone for your own actions? You were responsible for the way you reacted. You could have done things differently. You knew that. But you did not want to admit that to him.

Whether you were angry or not, you missed him all the same. You missed his presence, his voice, his scent. You missed the sound of his name on your tongue. The warmth of his irises and the softness in his eyes when he looked at you. And boy, did he look at you.

He may not have been a man of many words, but sometimes, just sometimes, his gaze spoke louder than any voice in the room. That's how you got into this mess in the first place.

One evening, on your day off, you hang out with Trish at your place. You needed the company, being alone with your thoughts for too long wasn't a good idea. The two of you sit on the sofa, drinking beer and eating pizza straight out of the box. You had already put your girls to bed and this was your happy hour.

"Are you dating Marcus you little weasel?"

"Where did that come from?", your eyes widen in surprise.

"Joel asked me the other day.", Trish reveals, laughing under her breath.

"WHAT?" you squeal in disbelief. Joel was not the type to ask about other people's private matters. Especially yours and especially to his cousin. "OK, please, elaborate."

"He asked me if you’re seeing him.", she continues.

"When did this happen?", you try to draw an imaginary map in your mind, gathering all the information available to you to understand what might be going through his mind.

"A few days ago, maybe?" she says nonchalantly.

"He asked that explicitly? Those were the exact words he used?", you insist like a hound dog looking for clues.

"Of course not." Trish rolls her eyes, "He danced around it for a while, but I pretended I didn't know what he was talking about -which I obviously don't- and then I made him ask directly."

"Oh god, give the poor man a break!", you exclaim, you could only imagine what a menace could she be when she wanted to.

"Well, are you?"

"No, I’m not. But if he asks again tell him I am."

"Why?", she frowns but looks amused at the same time. Oh, she's up to something.

"So he will leave me alone." Well he already kind of did, but maybe it was for the best to cut the ties once and for all.

"What do you mean? Is he bothering you?" Trish insists, curiosity sparkling in her eyes.

"No- he's- it's not- uh-" where would you even start, it's all a fucking mess, anyway. "Forget I said anything-" you try to end the conversation, but-

"I might have kind of implied that, though?" Trish wrinkles her nose, trying to minimize the damage.

"WHAT?"

"Only because he looked desperate" she rushes to explain, "and honestly you two should really fuck each other. So I thought maybe I could spice things up a bit."

A minute or two passes before you answer her. All this information bombarding your mind left a paralyzing feeling in your mouth. He looked desperate? Why the fuck? Was this the classic 'I want what I can't have'? He wasn't that type. And he could have his way with you if he wanted to. Couldn't he? Did he get the feeling that you weren't interested? What more could you have done, he was the one who went cold and hot all the time. "It's not like that." is all you say.

"The hell it isn't." Trish quips, almost offended.

"We don't want the same things Trish, and I won't make the same mistakes again." you draw the line. "What did he say?", you ask without shame, because you just have to know, even if it hurts you.

"Oh, you know, he put on his usual 'Joel grumpy face' and walked out on me. But honestly, what did you expect?" she shrugs and continues, "So, if 'it's not like that'", she air-quotes you mockingly, "why don't you give Marcus a real chance? He's a good guy and I don't often say that," Trish points her finger at you.

"I'm sure he is Trish, but I can't."

"And why is that?"

"Because it's not honest."

"To whom?"

"To him."

"And..?" she presses you.

You close your eyes, because you really don't want to say it and it feels frustrating but comforting at the same time to have a friend who knows you so well. "And to my heart.", you mumble coyly.

"Oh, baby c'mere. You really like my stupid cousin, don't you?" Trish wraps her arms around your shoulders, squeezing you into a tight hug.

"No, I do not." It's more than that. "And don't push it any further, it's not happening.", it's your turn to point the finger at her.

"Ok.", she sighs troubled. "Ok, look at me and listen carefully.", she makes a serious face, holding your hands in hers as she begins. "Joel's my cousin and he is a good man and I love him, but he has his own issues to deal with-"

"What do you mean?" You interrupt her curiously. You never thought to ask about his past before, it seemed invasive.

"It’s not my place." she cuts you off with a guarded look that seems so foreign on her face and continues, "The point is, you cannot wait for him forever."

"I'm not-" you start to deny it, but Trish grabs your face in her palms, squeezing you gently to make her point and you stop mid-sentence.

"You deserve to be happy. And you can't miss something you've never had." her eyes bore into yours, full of care and concern.

Her last words strike you like a slap on the face.

Oh, but you can. You already are.

Another two weeks have passed and you still haven't heard from Joel. He's stuck in your head like a virus, unable to think of anything else. This is the longest you've gone without talking. It's taking its toll on you, making you fidgety and jumpy, irritated by the simplest things. You've reached your breaking point and you're ready to call him, just to see if he's OK.

And, if you're honest with yourself, to give him a chance to make a move. He might think you don't want him to reach out. That thought makes you even more angry, you sound so pathetic in your head, begging for a man's attention. A man who has never made his intentions clear. You should stand up for yourself, hold your own.

You're at the office, shuffling through your bag, looking for your phone, still debating whether to call him. As you reach deep into your bag, searching through the million things you stuff in there, you feel a hard, papery thing on your fingertips. You fish it out and see that it's Marcus' card. You don't even remember putting that thing in there. But you remember him giving it to you.

He was such a gentleman and so thoughtful that night. He didn't ask for your number and he didn't press to put his on your phone. He gave you his card, clearly stating that he hoped you would get in touch with him.

"..why don't you give Marcus a real chance?.."

You take a deep breath and unlock your phone.

"..You cannot wait for him forever.."

This is it.

"..You deserve to be happy.."

You're going to call him. Right now? Yes, right now.

He picks up after the third ring.

"Agent Pike.", his voice deep and smooth, runs like honey in your ears. You remember how much you liked the sound of it.

You’re taken aback for a moment, you'd almost forgotten what he did for a living. It was strange but interesting to hear him like that, it stirred something in you. "Uh- um-" you lose your train of thought for a second, "hi- I don't know if you rememb-"

Marcus says your name instantly, the surprise evident in his tone. "I was beginning to think you'd either lost my card or I'd made a terrible, terrible first impression on you," he says with a soft laugh, vulnerability coloring his voice.

"No, no, god- no, nothing like that.. It was really nice to meet you!" you reassure him, because it really was.

"Yeah, you too.." Marcus replies and you can hear the smile in his voice. He doesn't say anything else, giving you time to collect yourself.

"I just-" you squeeze your eyes shut, trying not to freak out, pinching the bridge of your nose with your fingers, you hadn't planned this, "I've been really busy, with work and the kids, I haven't had a chance to..." the words catch in your throat as you think of the real reason you've been busy.

Obsessing over unavailable men.

But you don't want to lie to Marcus, he's been so kind and open, so you pause, looking for a way out of the hole you've dug yourself into.

"Hey, it's OK," Marcus takes the lead, sensing your discomfort, "you didn't have to call, but I'm really glad you did. I thought about getting your details from Trish in case you lost my number, but then I didn't want to force you into anything in case you didn't lose my number, you know?" he laughs timidly.

"Yeah, I know; that is so thoughtful of you. I'm- I'm glad I called." It feels strange to admit something like that, something so small, to be honest, to be so open and talk about positive things, to make someone feel good with your words on a personal level. You've spent the last few years just doing it for your daughters, loving them, hyping them up, rooting for them, but it's a change that you welcome and you discover that you really, really missed it.

There's a short silence on the other end, which makes you feel anxious, so you decide not to bother him any more. "I'm sorry I called during office hours, I-"

"No, no, no, don't even think about it, there are no office hours at my line of work anyway, so.." Marcus rushes to put you at ease. "I was just wondering if I should ask you out or if I'm jumping the gun," he blurts out and you can feel his hesitation through the phone.

"Well," you try to lighten the mood, "you're the one asking questions for a living, so why don't you earn your keep?" you bite your lower lip in anticipation and then snicker to yourself. You hear Marcus laughing, amused and impressed by your little stunt, and you have a deep desire to hear it again, knowing that it's your doing.

Marcus is not one to shy away from a challenge, so he delivers quite brilliantly. "It would give me great pleasure if you would go out with me," he says your name softly at the end, "I know it can be tricky with the girls and work and all that, but I'm sure we could work something out; my office hours are very flexible," he informs you, cleverly covering all your possible obstacles.

"I thought you didn't have office hours..." you return playfully, feeling lighter already, the thought of Joel still lingering, but the pain of it fading in your heart.

"For you I do." Marcus deadpans with an amazing ability to not make it sound cheesy. And you know exactly what kind of ability it is.

The one of honesty.

Your heart is in your mouth. You're sure of it. You can taste your heartbeat on the tip of your tongue. As much as you've tried to play it down, you're nervous, your stomach is in knots. You spend most of the evening whining to Trish on the phone, freaking out about what to wear and ending up with a "What does it matter anyway? It's one date and that's it, he's not sticking around. Yeah, he's not. I'm good, I'm fine, this is fine." you shrug as you look at yourself in your bedroom mirror.

Trish's voice brings you back to reality, "None of that, everything's going to be fine, you're going to have a good time and you're going to keep having a good time." You looked sideways at the phone as if Trish could see you through it, glancing at the time. "Ok Trish, thanks for the pep talk, but I have to go or I'll be late."

"Sure thing babe, have a great night-"

"Thanks Trish-" you speak over her voice sure she's done with the pleasantries, but-

"-and don't forget to fuck 'im."

The line goes dead before you can reply.

Jesus Christ.

"You got this. You got this. You got this," you chant to yourself, pacing the living room, checking the time on your phone every thirty seconds. "Yeah," you exhale with nervous conviction, "you got this." The doorbell rings and your stomach clenches. Conviction my ass, "No, you don't." you mutter before rushing to answer the door.

Your heels click on the wooden floor and you pin the hem of your dress down once more, just to be sure. It wasn't terribly short, but still, you haven't dressed for a date in God knows how long.

You open the door and your breath catches in your throat. But you could say the same about Marcus. You look at one another for a moment, both admiring each other. He looks sharp, clean-shaven, with a prominent jawline that makes you want to suck on it from side to side.

His hair is combed back and slightly to the side. He looks so handsome and then he smiles at you. A real smile, big and toothy and bright and beautiful. His eyes crinkle and his plush lips stretch with the force of it. His suit is elegant and clean, neatly pressed, and the two top buttons of his shirt are undone, showing a hint of his tanned chest, making it more casual.

"Hey.." Marcus speaks first, pulling himself out of his haze. His eyes drink you in, unable to land on one spot, admiring your simple but elegant black dress that stops mid-thigh, the softness of your exposed skin, the curves of your body and the features of your face.

"Hi..." you say back shyly, noticing his admiration.

"I- Christ-", he stutters almost confused.

"What's wrong?" you fidget with the fabric of your dress, your nerves getting the better of you once again.

"I almost forgot how beautiful you are-" Marcus admits, his eyebrows raised, a hint of pink spreading across his cheeks. "-you look amazing," he compliments, raising his arm and pointing his open palm in your direction.

You pray that you can fast-forward to the actual date and stay right here on the threshold of your house at the same time. "Oh, thank you -" you reply quietly, with a shy smile on your lips.

"These-" Marcus raises his other hand, suddenly remembering what he's holding, "these are for you," he hands you a beautiful bunch of flowers, obviously made specifically for you by a florist, wrapped in a beautiful ribbon. What is it about this man that turns the most clichéd things into thoughtful actions?

"These are so beautiful, thank you, let me-" you point towards the house so you can put them in a vase, signaling him to come in with your head.

"Hope it's not too much..", Marcus wonders as he enters the hall of the house.

"It's perfect," you smile warmly as you return from the kitchen with the filled vase and place it on the entryway furniture, admiring the arrangement. You place the palm of your hand on his bicep, reassuring him as you turn to leave.

His eyes shine with appreciation as he takes your palm in his warm hand, planting a soft kiss on the pulse point of your wrist. His scent fills your nostrils, sweet and masculine, and you can almost smell his shampoo as he leans forward. Your lips part and your eyes widen at the intimate contact, but instead of feeling pressured, all you want is for him to do it again on any part of your skin he likes. His plush lips are warm and soft, leaving the slightest trace of moisture as they part your skin, sending a wave of shivers through your body.

You stifle a gasp but you can't hide the dilation of your irises and he can't hide the hunger behind his. He cups your cheek in his hand, stroking your cheekbone with his thumb. "Ready?" he asks in a hushed tone.

"As I'll ever be."

The drive is bathed in bits of small talk and comfortable silence, appreciating each other's presence without having to fill the quiet of the cabin every second. Marcus' gaze is split between the road ahead and you at his side. He drives with one hand, his right resting comfortably on the gearbox.

God, you're such a cliché, noticing the way his broad palm rests there, the veins bulging between his fingers and on his hand and it makes you squirm in your seat. Your date hasn't even started yet and you're already feeling uncomfortable in your underwear. Are you that needy? Or is it him? Is he doing this to you?

Joel.

No, stop. Don’t think about him. Not right now. Stop.

Joel.

No.

Joel.

NO.

You don't realize you're holding your breath until Marcus is asking if you're all right.

"What?" you snap out of your haze, jerking your head to look at him. He looks worried, his forehead forming a deep crease between his eyebrows. "I lost you there for a minute, what happened?"

"Nothing, nothing, I'm fine."

"You don't gotta do that, you know."

"Do what?"

"Say you're fine. You're allowed not to be."

You start to contradict him, but then you realize he's right.

"You're right," you admit, looking at him sheepishly. "I'm just nervous- and it's not your fault-" you hasten to explain, "I just haven't done this in so long that it feels like it's happening to someone else, like I'm watching myself from a distance."

He smiles at you knowingly and you add frustratedly, "That's so uncool, I'm sorry, I should be-"

"Moment of truth?" Marcus cuts you off before you can finish your thought.

"Um- OK?"

"I'm already hooked." he bites his lip, stealing a glance in your direction, his shoulders shrugging as if he had just told you the most natural thing in the world.

"Excuse m-" you look at him in bewilderment.

"I know I should play hard to get and do all the stuff everyone does on a first date, act cool and whatnot," he gestures in the air with his free hand, "but really? I'm hooked. Captivated. So-" he takes a deep breath, exhaling forcefully, "if anyone should be anything, it's me, scared that I'm going to screw this up, somehow. But you know what?" he looks at you expectantly, waiting for a response.

"What?" you manage to croak, your whole body buzzing with anticipation.

"I'm going to choose to enjoy this night by being myself-" he stops and scrunches his eyes in thought, "-well, ok, I'm going to hold back a bit," he jokes playfully, making you both laugh at that, relieving some of the tension and he takes your hand in his, squeezing it gently, "because I don't know if I'll get another chance. I can only hope that at the end of the night you'll choose to see me again."

He brings your intertwined hands to his lips and kisses your knuckles tenderly. He's said all the right things, everything you want to hear and dear God, he makes you want to climb him like a tree. You bite your lower lip so hard you're afraid you'll draw blood.

He studies your face and your fluttered expression for a moment, a smile of accomplishment painted on his perfect mouth, before he adds, "And you shouldn't be anything other than what you want to be. Neither of us should."

The date was not what you expected, because it was actually a success. Zero awkwardness, lots to talk about, mutual humor and gentle glances. You started with dinner in a not-too-casual-not-too-formal restaurant and ended up in a great bar, lively but not too loud, where you had delicious cocktails over and over again. Not Marcus though, because he was driving. So responsible, you wanted to sink your teeth into his neck.

Marcus was truly interested in you. He asked you about everything, he really wanted to know about your life. You didn't delve much into the divorce and he didn't push it. But you told him more about your background, your work, your daughters, the challenges of being a single mother and to your surprise, he listened. Actively. When you told him it was his turn to spill the beans, he told you about his job and his specialty; his move to Texas for a fresh start and when you asked him why he felt he needed one, he reluctantly told you about proposing to his girlfriend of two months.

"I know, I know-" he raises his hand in defence as he shakes his head in disbelief, "I don't know what the hell I was thinking, I guess-" he looks down at his empty glass as if searching for answers, "sometimes I have a hard time letting things go."

He dares to meet your eyes through his lashes, to study your reaction. But your expression is neutral, no judgment on your part. "But I'm working on it, letting things happen naturally, you know? If it's meant to be, it's meant to be." he shrugs casually.

"That must be hard for you to deal with." you observe.

"Why would you think that?" he seems curious to know what you think of him, smiling crookedly.

"You strike me as someone who really tries to work things out, to fix what's broken. You don't give up easily, do you?"

His eyes bore into yours as he confirms, "No, I don't," smirking at you. You break eye contact and look down at your lap, biting back a smile of your own.

Suddenly you hear your name being called and you scan the room to find the source. You see Tommy just a few meters away, coming towards you to say hello. Marcus looks between the two of you, his eyes finally landing on yours, catching your faltering smile. "Hey, Tommy, how are you?" you hug him gently and then introduce the two men.

"Hi, nice to meet you." Tommy holds out his hand as Marcus extends his own, "You too."

"Who's the lucky girl this time, Tommy?" you tease with a devilish grin as you wink at him.

"The lucky girl is actually my brother." Tommy laughs breathlessly and your face immediately falls as he points his thumb behind him.

Joel is there at the other end of the bar, sitting on a table, his gaze fixed on you, his whole posture stiff, his jaw clenched and his eyes hard on you. You raise your arm weakly and wave at him, and he nods back sternly.

Marcus misses absolutely none of this.

How long had they been there? How much did he see? Did you do anything inappropriate? you keep checking yourself for any flawed behavior. But then you realize that you don't have to answer to him or anyone else. You can do as you please. So why do you keep hoping you haven't let him down?

"You wanna join us? There's plenty of room, come on.", Tommy invites you to their table.

You feel your legs give out just at the thought of this gathering and you try to decline politely, "We wouldn't want to impose, it's OK-"

Tommy gives you a confused look, as if you haven't spent the best part of the last two years hanging out together. "What the hell are you talking about, love? Come on, move that ass of yours." he waves his head in their direction. You glance swiftly from Tommy to Marcus and then back to Tommy, hoping he'll get the message, but he doesn't. Damn it, Tommy.

Marcus notices your apprehension and puts the palm of his hand on your forearm, caressing your skin with his thumb.

"Are you OK? Do you want to go instead?" he says in a quiet voice, just for you to hear.

You almost jump at his suggestion, "No, no, I just don't want you to think I'm not having a good time with you…" you lower your eyes, feeling vulnerable.

"Hey, hey, look at me." Marcus lowers his head to meet your gaze, "I think I'd know if this date was going south. But if for some reason it is and I'm too smitten to see it, I'm all ears." Marcus searches your eyes and you shake your head with conviction.

"It's not," is all you say, and you lean forward to place a kiss on his cheek, on the side of his face that is hidden from Joel's inspection. As if that would make what you just did any less obvious. Marcus' lips part, and he turns his head sideways to look at your profile, almost brushing it with his own.

His eyes linger on your mouth as you lean back to your seat, and then he licks his lower lip like a starving man preparing for his favorite meal. "Let's go meet your friends before I do something impulsive," he whispers in your ear, his grip on your arm tightening, his nose pressing against your temple and his lips brushing your earlobe.

Goosebumps spread across your skin and you have half a mind to get the fuck out of here and drag him back to your house. But instead you giggle like a schoolgirl and lead the way to hell, feeling the warmth of his hand on your lower back and the moisture of your pussy running down your thigh.

If a person could combust out of stillness, it would be Joel. You're not even sure he's breathing at this point. You train your eyes on his chest, trying to follow the rise and fall of his rib-cage, just to make sure he doesn't faint.

He's sitting directly opposite you, next to his brother, who's sitting opposite Marcus. He's nursing a beer with one hand, the other behind Tommy's seat. He barely speaks to you, he avoids looking at you and that makes you feel like you’re doing something wrong and he's giving you the cold shoulder. It takes everything you've got to swallow the lump in your throat and the tears behind your eyes, but you do it.

The same waitress who took your previous orders comes back and asks what you and Marcus are having. You order a beer, and before Marcus can place his own, Joel spits, "If you're driving her back, you shouldn't be drinking," giving him a disapproving look.

Your cheeks flush with embarrassment, your eyes dart from the waitress to Joel and then to Marcus, ready to apologize on his behalf. You knew Joel could be abrasive, but never so blatantly rude. Those were the first words he said to him.

Jesus, what is his problem?

Marcus seems to be able to handle his own, answering to you instead of Joel without missing a beat. "Good to know you have such protective friends," he says with a twinkle in his eye and then he orders, "I'll have the same as before, thank you.", shifting his gaze to the waitress. "One soda with a slice of orange coming up," she says politely and leaves to get your drinks.

You glare at Joel, but he doesn't seem to be paying attention, although he flinched almost imperceptibly when he heard Marcus' choice of drink. Marcus gives you a gentle kiss on the temple and you begin to suspect that he knows exactly what's going on between you and Joel, whose jaw is twitching at the sight of Marcus' public display of affection towards you.

You envy Tommy at the moment because he seems blissfully unaware, so you turn the conversation to him. Or at least you try, because as soon as you open your mouth to speak, Joel cuts you off and asks Marcus what he does for a living.

You can't help but think that after your first meeting in that god’s forsaken bar, it took him months to strike up a conversation with you, but tonight, for some reason, he just can't seem to shut up.

Marcus, being as polite as ever, gives him the general answer that he works for the government.

"Ah, a white collar," Joel replies condescendingly and your eyes bulge out of their sockets, "must be nice, relaxed." still not looking at you and God does he tick you off. Tommy shifts uncomfortably in his seat, stealing glances at you, not sure what's going on. In any other case you would have found it endearing. Not so much now.

You too are squirming in your seat, trying to think of a way out of this awkward situation. This is not how you imagined your first date would end. And it's certainly not how you expected to meet Joel after all these weeks.

Marcus seems unfazed by the veiled hostility coming his way, smiling back at Joel, almost enjoying the antagonism. "Not necessarily, but I can't talk about it either." This catches Joel's attention and he looks at you questioningly for the first time. You tilt your head slightly to the side, signaling what are you doing? but Joel takes his eyes off you, sipping his beer nonchalantly.

"What about you? What do you do for a living?" Marcus returns the question.

"We're contractors, me and Joel; we're brothers," he gestures between himself and Joel, "and we work together." Tommy chimes in quickly, having reached his limit of awkwardness at the table. You breathe a sigh of relief, but it's not long lived.

"And how do you all know each other?" is the next natural question to come out of Marcus' mouth.

Joel's eyes land on you briefly, something flashes past them and before you can stop him-

"She and I actually met in a bar..." Joel smirks at Marcus, but you speak at the same time-

"Joel-" Your voice is firm as a warning, fully accepting that your tone might be alarming to your unsuspecting company.

"What?" Tommy's voice falters, laughing uncomfortably, completely at a loss. Marcus reads the table, his eyes darting between the three of you, at the same time placing a protective hand over your shoulder, rubbing soothing circles with his thumb.

"What?" Joel repeats in a different tenor to his brother and he shrugs, smiling, "It's no big deal, tell them," he has the audacity to put you on the spot, nodding his chin at you.

You feel the contents of your stomach move up your esophagus, cold sweat coats your skin in a thin layer. Betrayal. That's all you can think of. "Uh-", you try to find the words, but nothing comes out, betrayal, you're not good at it, lying doesn't come easy to you, betrayal, especially with three sets of eyes on you. Joel just sits there with a smug look on his face and you wish you had the guts to slap it out of him.

Betrayal.

Marcus' voice brings you back to the present, are you all right?, a soft whisper caresses your ear and soothes your insides. The bile in your throat begins to return to its rightful place, but your eyes are already moist, your waterline glassy, a look of defeat and disappointment painted on your soft face. Joel sees it all written on those contours of yours that he has come to know and marvel at from afar, and it is as if a sudden realization hits him, snapping him out of his asshole behavior. He is cruel to you.

"All right, all right," he rolls his eyes and continues with a sigh, and Tommy's eyes return to his brother, but Marcus' remains fixed on you. "We met in a bar and we had a heated..." he stops abruptly and your face takes on a look of horror as he searches for the right word. "...argument." Joel finally adds. "We exchanged a few words, but then we ran into each other at my cousin's house and the rest is history." he laughs as he waves his hand in the air and winks at you.

You bite your lower lip as hard as you can to keep your chin from trembling, but a single tear of relief or suppressed anger, you're not sure anymore, escapes from the side of your face that only Joel can see, as you give him a forced, watery smile.

Luckily the bar is dimly lit, otherwise they would all be able to see the redness spreading across your chest, the rage manifesting itself on your body. Used and played is how you feel, and Joel is the last person you would have thought would put you in this position. You'd bet all your money on it.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Tommy wonders aloud, looking between you and Joel. You clear your throat and have no choice but to confirm Joel's lie. "It felt awkward at the time, so we pretended we didn't know each other. It was an unfortunate moment, one I deeply regret," you lock eyes with Joel and see his facade almost crumbling, "that will never recur, ever again." you continue to stare at him as you speak the last words with concealed bitterness. For the first time that night, he looked down at his lap in shame and regret, pretending to peel the label off his bottle with his thumb.

The ride home was silent, you were emotionally drained, something Marcus picked up on easily, so he simply offered his open palm, which you gladly accepted, tucking your fingers between his own. He continued to caress your skin, back and forth, and it was all you needed to calm your nerves.

As he walked you to the front door of your house, you felt compelled to apologize to him in a profound way. "I'm so sorry about Joel," you shake your head, looking down at your feet, your fingers scratching your forehead, a worried look on your face, "he can be intense sometimes -" why are you defending him?

Marcus lifts your chin with a gentle finger under it, his thumb caressing your jawline. "I don't care about Joel." With one simple sentence, he has erased him from your conversation. No more room for him to steal any longer of your night with Marcus.

“But-”

“I'm the one standing on your porch right now am I not?”, the implication clear in his voice and words.

“I'm not sure what-” you try to avoid confirming or denying his assumptions.

"Mhm," he smiles knowingly, his eyes fixed on yours, searching for something. You feel safe with him, but you can't shake the feeling that you've ruined everything. Marcus' eyes drop to your lips and he slowly leans forward, stopping just inches from you, waiting for you to initiate. You can feel yourself unable to relax, your body stiff, frozen. But you want to, you really do, so you ask instead, "Are you going to do something impulsive now?"

He smiles and leans even closer to your lips, his breath gently fanning across your plump skin. His nose gently nudges yours, "Yes, I think I might."

Your lips almost touch when a muffled voice followed by loud barks startles you both, causing you to pull away and look around for the source of the disruption. After a few seconds, you both see a medium-sized dog running down the street. You wait to see if its owner follows, but no one appears. You turn to look at each other, giggling at the strange interruption.

Marcus caresses your cheek with the back of his knuckles and you lean into his touch, the moment gone and lost. "I hope you had a decent time because I know I had a great one and I really hope I get to see you again."

"Marcus," you scowl at him, "are you fishing for compliments?" you chastise him teasingly.

"Well, a man can dream," he smirks playfully as he tries to get some distance between you in case he comes on too strong.

"You don't have to," you coo, grabbing his collar to crush your lips against his.

After the initial shock, Marcus holds your head in his hands, tilting it to return the kiss and deepen it. His soft lips massage yours, sucking and nibbling at your lower lip. His upper lip and tongue capture yours, tugging gently, sending waves of pleasure through your body. He licks into your mouth, exploring every soft cavity, and you suck on his tongue in return.

He grunts into your welcoming cavern and you fist the fabric of his shirt that adorns his chest tighter. He presses his body into yours, trying to keep his pelvic area from pressing into your lower abdomen, but you can feel his growing erection inescapably.

You come up for air and murmur into his mouth, "I had a great time and I'd like to do it again".

This time it is he who presses his mouth to yours, kissing you fervently, sucking all the air out of your lungs. Your body is on fire, your abdomen tingling with desire.

You whimper against his lips as you reach for the short curls at the back of his neck, tugging them gently between your fingers, causing him to growl against your wet flesh, and he can feel your nipples poking at his chest through the thin material of your dress as you press your torso against his in sheer determination.

He's sure he's going to lose it and fuck you in front of your house for all your neighbors to see if he doesn't stop now. He breaks the kiss, panting, his eyes boring into yours, your foreheads touching. "Christ, woman," he closes his eyes and laughs to himself, "you're going to give me a heart attack."

"Better me than old age, right?" you try to hide your teasing smile behind your tightly pressed lips.

"Hey, I'm about to arrest you for threatening a government official," he warns without any conviction or authority.

"Are you going to handcuff me, Agent?" you ask, looking at him through your lashes and it comes out more breathless than it should.

"Jesus." Marcus mutters through his teeth, his resolve hanging by a thread. "OK." he gives you a sharp look, "I'm going to leave for the sake of both of us," he says, but his grip on your hip tightens, as if he's afraid you'll disappear.

"You could come in, you know," you offer, looking at him sheepishly.

His expression is pained when he has to turn you down. "And I'd like nothing more, but I want to do this right. Please, let me do this right." Marcus pleads softly, rolling his forehead over yours in desperation.

"What does that even mean?" you ask, a bit embarrassed by his rejection.

"Means I want to wine and dine you, spoil you, give you the perfect date," he coos into the soft skin beneath your ear, making you shudder at his soft promise. "And when you think you can't go another second without my touch, then I'll come in and spoil you some more," he continues, brushing his moist lips along the pillar of your neck. "I will spoil you in all the ways you deserve." he finishes, planting an open-mouthed kiss on your pulse point under your jaw. Your knees buck and your pussy contracts, squeezing out your sweetness at the feel of his warm and wet tongue.

"OK," you breathe out in a shaky voice, nodding dumbly, cupping his face in your hands and planting a small kiss on the tip of his nose.

He smiles and presses his lips to your forehead murmuring "God, you're something," and his heart swells at your tender gesture.

Marcus takes a deep breath, pauses and seems hesitant, but speaks his mind anyway. "OK, I'm going to skip the whole 'three day rule' and call you tomorrow. Is that OK?" he looks anxiously into your eyes, "Am I rushing you?"

A spontaneous laugh escapes your lips at the sound of that. "I just invited you into my house, you think a phone call is going to rush me?" you frown, "You can call me whenever you want.", you say matter of factly. You turn to leave, but change your mind and face him again. "Actually," you bite your lip mischievously, "I need to make sure I can rely on the American authorities, so I'm counting on your word. I'll be expecting a call by tomorrow," you stifle a grin by pressing your lips together.

"Yes, ma'am." Marcus nods in amusement and gives you one last kiss, pressing his lips to yours for as long as he can before ushering you into the house. "Good night," he breathes against your lips.

"Good night," you whisper back with a shy smile and close the door behind you. Marcus walks to his car with a stupid grin plastered on his face, gets in and drives away, but not before making sure you have closed and locked your front door.

In the stillness of the night, Joel takes a moment to assess the situation and satisfied that the coast is clear, he carefully emerges from the large bush he was hiding behind.

He glances down at his dog pissed shoe and mutters to himself,

"Fuck."

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lees-chaotic-brain · 1 year ago

Note

this is for your event 🗣️🗣️

here me out.. gojo fic abt the song tell your girlfriend by lay banks. something like having a crush on gojo and he likes reader too but reader and gojo are with other people. idc who readers boyfriend is🫣

WC: 1.7k

CW: alcohol consumption (all characters of age), swearing, cheating (see above ask for details), female pronouns (reader referred to as girlfriend), not beta read AT ALL, reader is a bit of a crybaby lol

Note: thanks for sending an ask in emi!!! also, this song is fire i was literally jamming the entire time i was writing. also, sorry if you wanted this to be more true to the vibe of the song. i kind of interpreted it my own way and rolled with it lmao

listen to this while reading

Event Guide | Event Masterlist | JJK Masterlist | Blog Navigation

You loved your boyfriend, right? You had only been dating four months, but you wouldn’t have dated someone if you didn’t have feelings for him. Sure, he could be a little aloof, and a little rude, but he had his moments when he was sweet and caring. So why did you find yourself thinking of someone else?

During the day when the sun was out and you were thinking rationally you could convince yourself that you truly cared for him, but at night under the low lighting of the bar all bets were off. When you were a few shots past tipsy and your thinking was slowed, why did another face keep coming to mind.?

Initially, I wouldn't do this

Hennessy pourin' and shit gettin' fluid

And you never intended to cheat. And you definitely never intended to fall for your best friend who was also dating someone else. But when you spent time with him, or when he shot a flirtatious wink from across the room he ignited a swarm of butterflies in your stomach. A swarm of butterflies that went into hibernation when you were around your boyfriend.

You knew it was wrong, that you shouldn’t feel the way you did, but with the heavy beat of the bass coursing through you and cognac warming your insides your traitorous heart finally decided what it was Gojo Satoru made you feel. Desire. And…love. Oh shit, that wasn’t good.

Suddenly feeling a bit ill, you waved your concerned friend off and staggered outside to get some fresh air. Taking deep gulps of fresh air, you stepped into an alley to get some privacy so you could collect your thoughts. You wrap your arms around yourself in an attempt to ward off the chill of the night seeping through the thin fabric of your clothes.

As you stand there shivering, your thoughts are interrupted by a warm jacket being wrapped around your shoulders. Spinning around, you find yourself face to face with the one person you absolutely did not want to see at the moment. Confronted by the appearance of your best friend, you can’t help but start crying. It’s stupid, you know, but as soon as you lay eyes on him the shock of your realization wears off and your emotions kick in.

“Oh my god, hey, are you okay?” He panics, grabbing your shoulders and peering into your face concerned. “Why are you crying? What’s wrong??”

His care only serves to make you cry harder. Why? Why did he have to be like this? Couldn’t he just be a bad friend and ignore you? It would be so much easier that way. Unsure what to do, he pulls you into a hug, patting you on the back.

“Hey. It’s okay. I got you. Can you tell me what’s wrong?” You can't take it anymore. You both are dating other people, and you are definitely finding too much comfort in his arms. Pushing him away, you avert your gaze.

“You, okay? You’re my problem. Can you just leave me alone please?”

His brow furrows. “What do you mean ‘me?’ Did I do something? Also, I’m not leaving you outside by yourself at this time of night. Please, can’t you just talk to me? Whatever I did I-”

“I just realized I’m in love with you, okay?!” Your voice rings out in the stillness of the alley, and you clap your hands over your mouth, horrified. “Wait, I-”

You’re cut off by him gently taking your face in his hands and slotting his lips against yours. The kiss is soft and sweet; filled with years of longing and suppressed feelings pouring from each of you. It feels like home. It feels like love. It feels right, but you know it isn’t. Pushing him back, you stare at him wide-eyed, your chest rising and falling with rapid breaths.

“What…what was that?”

We was just friends, but then came in Cupid

The tension was buildin', we had to pursue it

“I like you too.” He blurts in lieu of answering your question. Then he pauses and corrects himself. “Actually I’m in love with you. I have been for a while. I just didn’t think you felt the same.”

Unsure of what to do or say, you just start laughing, because the two of you were idiots. You were best friends who supposedly knew everything about each other. Except for the fact that you were each in love with the other, apparently. Oh my god you were in love with your best friend and he was in love with you. Your laughter became tinged with hysteria as you remembered that you had a boyfriend and he had a girlfriend.

Tears filled your waterline. “Oh my god Toru what are we doing? I have a boyfriend!! And you have a girlfriend! We can’t be doing this…”

“Why not?” He gently cups your face in his palms and brushes your tears away with his thumbs. “Break up with your boyfriend. Be with me. My girlfriend isn’t a problem. She’s known about my feelings for you from the start. She’s in love with someone else too and we’ve just been using each other as a distraction. There’s nothing in our way.”

Standing in that alley with his vivid blue eyes on yours, you couldn’t help but believe him. What if he was right. What if the two of you really were meant to be?”

What it's been with us this whole time

Taking a deep breath, you step back, and out of his reach. If you were going to think about this rationally, you couldn’t be so close to him. You push your hair back out of your eyes and tilt your head back. He watches you from where he is, knowing that you need space to sort out your emotions and thoughts. After a few minutes you turn back to him.

“Alright. The first thing I’m going to do is break up with my boyfriend and apologize. After that, I’m not sure. I don’t want to make you any promises, because I’m not really sure of anything. The only thing I know is that I won’t be able to live with myself if I don't break up with him, because he doesn’t deserve to be hurt or deceived. Okay?”

“That’s fine.” Satoru says simply, looking at you with so much affection it hurts. “I’ve waited for you so long, a little while longer isn’t going to do me any harm.”

Your eyes soften. “Thanks. Now, I’m going to head back in, okay?” He steps aside, allowing you to pass. Heading back into the party, you feel nauseous, but you head up to your boyfriend.

Because if you ever want to be with Satoru, your relationship can’t start with deception.

'Cause I don't wanna live a lie, lie, lie

An hour and one extremely difficult conversation later found you sitting on a park bench with your head in your hands crying. Surprisingly, your now ex-boyfriend had been very understanding and kind about it. While he was clearly hurt and holding back tears, he had told you that he just wanted you to be happy, and that he was okay with it.

After reassuring you that he wasn’t angry, he hugged you one last time, wished you well, and walked away. Unable to stop crying, you were overwhelmed by a sense of relief, but at the same time guilt. So you had told your boyfriend. What now?

Should tell my boyfriend what I been doin'

The weeks after your breakup were tough. You told Satoru you needed time to yourself, because even though you logically knew that you shouldn’t feel bad, you couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming sense of guilt. You felt like if you started dating him now, it would be unfair to your ex, and that you should at least wait a little while.

You also discussed the matter of his girlfriend, and decided that it was okay for him to remain with her until you were ready, as the two of them were friends and he was helping her make her crush jealous. You didn’t mind him helping her, especially since you were making him wait and overcomplicating things.

You told Gojo as much, and decided that for the time being the two of you would remain friends until you were ready. You just needed a little time to figure yourself out. But you knew that you wanted to be with him. Just not right that second.

Took a break, had to focus on some me time

We can keep it low-key for the meantime

A couple months passed, and you went on with your life. Everything was normal, and you tried to push your thought of Satoru away, preferring to procrastinate on talking to him as long as possible.

Until one night, when you were cleaning your room and found a box of photos from your high school days with him. Going through them, you felt a sense of nostalgia, and affection. And suddenly you missed him. You missed him so bad it hurt. You needed him by your side, and you needed him as more than a friend.

Hit by this revelation, you sat there for a moment, stunned, before leaping up and grabbing your car keys. Driving well above the speed limit, you rushed to his house and banged on his door. Was it sometime after midnight? Yes. Did you really care? No.

You heard his groggy voice say something about waiting one moment, then the door swung open. And there he stood, right in front of you in all his sleepy glory. But as soon as his eyes landed on you they widened and all traces of sleep disappeared from them.

“[Y/N]! What are you doing here? It’s-” You interrupt him, tears already pouring down your face as you beam up at him.

“I love you. I’m ready to be your girlfriend now.”

Go tell your girlfriend that I'm your girlfriend (oh, oh)

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dyns33 · 11 months ago

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Strange way of life

No, it's not about my sweet Pedro (I'll let Silva be happy with his cowbow), it's a new Cooper Howard story, yaaaaaay !

Her cousins had gently teased her when the name had appeared on her wrist on her eighteenth birthday.

It was nothing unusual, it happened to everyone, even if what was once a joy was now the memory of a lost world. It was very rare for two soulmates to be in the same vault, very rare indeed. Legends.

And unfortunately for Y/N, she was no exception.

If Lucy and Norman were snickering, it was because of her reaction when they read the name.

"… Cooper Howard ? My soulmate is the actor Cooper Howard ?! The famous Cooper Howard ?!"

"Uh, no, I don't think so."

"He would be over two hundred years old. Sorry, Y/N, but he's long dead. Maybe he's his descendant, or a guy with the same name."

"But I love Cooper Howard ! I've seen all his movies ! That would make sense !"

"Not really, no." Norm said, visibly a little sad at his cousin's excitement.

Sure, maybe the great Cooper Howard was still alive, in a hibernation chamber, in another vault, and waiting for her.

But even if that was the case, there was little chance that they would ever meet. There was no indication that it would be possible to come out soon, and so the rule was to ignore names when choosing a partner.

If not, humanity would have died out long ago.

Unfortunately for Vault 33, most of the young people were quite romantic. Her brother could try to be reasonable, Lucy stopped mocking to hug her cousin, saying that it was wonderful that she was destined for such a wonderful man.

They had been fans of the cowboy since childhood. At the same time, there weren't many other movies to watch.

A few years later, Lucy had her name, which wasn't that of an actor. At least, not a known actor in the vault, even if it was special. Titus Maximus.

Norman noted that it sounded like a name from Ancient Rome. He joked that his sister and cousin probably had soulmates who could travel through time.

While Y/N wanted to wait as long as possible before making a decision about her love life, Lucy sadly accepted that she would probably never meet Maximus, asking to meet a man from Vault 32 to get married. This pleased neither young Norman, for security reasons, nor Y/N, for emotional reasons. Besides the fact that he could be a dangerous cannibal, ugly and mean, there was nothing to say that Lucy and him would love each other. She could wait for her Titus.

"No, I don't want to wait anymore. I want love, real love. I can't keep dreaming and having fun with Chet…"

"Chet ? Your other cousin ? That's disgusting, Lucy !"

"I know ! That's why I need a husband. And if I ever meet Maximus, I could always divorce him. You can wait for your Cooper if you want, cowboy or whatever. I understand and I don't judge you. So don't judge me either."

That wasn't enough to prevent the massacre that followed. It was only because she had retreated to her room that Y/N escaped death, not seeing Overseer MacLean being kidnapped either.

More than this idea of marriage, she found that leaving the shelter to go looking for him was very bad. She had never really loved her uncle, finding him strange. Her parents had also always been wary of him, even more so after the death of her mother's sister who they followed here before the plague.

But Y/N loved her cousins, both Norm and Lucy, and so there was no way she was going to let her go alone.

The poor widow drugged Chet because he would have been a burden, she already knew that her little brother would only help her get out, and when her cousin insisted on coming, she couldn't say no.

They were probably among the smartest, bravest and most skilled people in the vault. Together, they had a better chance of surviving outside.

However, nothing could prepare them for this devastated world. It was nothing like what their teachers had said. The sun was hot, the air full of dust, the earth barren, and the people rude.

The worst was that mercenary in the city of Philly, who started shooting at everyone while laughing, ready to kill Lucy because she was defending the poor man whose leg he had blown off.

Y/N didn't really want to get involved. She admitted that the treatment inflicted on the one who seemed to be a doctor and his dog was not normal, and that in other circumstances she would have intervened.

But they were not there for that, and if they wanted to find Lucy's father, it was probably better to avoid trouble.

This misadventure was not in vain, however. Because not only were they saved by a man named Titus Maximus wearing a huge sparkling armor, but they also recovered the doctor's head which could be used as a bargaining chip against Henry MacLean.

And above all, they had crossed paths with this ghoul dressed as a cowboy, exactly like in Cooper Howard's films, who spoke exactly like in Cooper Howard's films.

Since the atomization, meetings between soulmates were very rare. So double meetings ? Impossible.

Until a monster ate the head, Lucy kept jumping up and down like a child, terribly happy, immediately forgetting her failed marriage and a little bit about the reason for their presence near this radioactive lake. Even if she hadn't had time to give Maximus her name, there was little risk in saying that their savior was made for her.

"It's him ! I know it's him ! I only saw his face for a few seconds, but he's so handsome, so brave ! Did you see how he didn't hesitate for a second to jump in front of us and take the bullet for us ?"

"Yes, I did."

"I wonder why that horrible mercenary wanted to take that poor man, and what he was going to do to him. Do you think he has a soulmate ? Oh, do you think the doctor had a soulmate ?!"

"I don't know." Y/N sighed, trying to convince herself that it wasn't because the mercenary looked and talked like Cooper Howard that he was the actor, or her soulmate.

She could have asked him the question, when he caught up with them without too much difficulty, while they were wondering how to get the head back. Because without the head, there was no way to save Lucy's father.

Her poor cousin tried to explain it to the Ghoul, while he plunged her again and again into the water, while Y/N could only watch and beg, tied to a pole.

The plan he had put in place to attract the beast worked well, too well, and in the end, in addition to losing what he was looking for, the mercenary had his bag snatched, which obviously contained important things.

"Fuck… Fuck !" he yelled, pointing his gun at Lucy, as if the poor girl was responsible.

He didn't shoot. Visibly changing his mind, he took them both, forcing them to walk without water or food for days, to an unknown destination.

Several times, Y/N hesitated to give her name, to see his reaction. When he asked them after putting a bullet in Roger's head, her cousin answered first and he jumped, not giving Y/N time to speak.

He had understood that they were cousins. He must have thought that they had the same name, MacLean. Not Y/L/N.

She could have said it. Several times. But saying it was getting an answer, and she didn't know which one she wanted.

Either this man wasn't her soulmate and they were going to die. Or they were destined. And Y/N couldn't believe that this abomination, this heartless monster, could be for her. Even less that he could be Cooper Howard, the good sheriff who punished the bad guys and saved damsels in distress.

No, it couldn't be him. She was almost certain of it when he cut off Lucy's finger with a smile.

Arriving in front of the Super Duper Market, it was a surprise to be untied. Then he announced that he was taking two women in more or less good condition, in exchange for vials.

He hadn't killed them, just sold them.

No, he couldn't be her Cooper.

It was totally impossible.

But as Lucy walked through the store trying to stay dignified, holding back her tears, Y/N couldn't help but turn to the Ghoul. If she was going to die, she had to know.

He frowned, waiting to see what she would say, probably in an attempt to gain his pity.

"Are you Cooper Howard ?"

The question surprised him for a moment. Something flashed in his eyes, indicating that it had been a long time since he had heard that name. But he quickly resumed his closed demeanor.

"Not anymore, sweetie."

"I'm Y/N Y/L/N."

The doors of the Super Dupper automatically closed before Y/N could say anything else or see his face. It probably wouldn't have made much difference anyway.

#fallout #cooper howard #the ghoul #cooper howard x reader #cooper howard imagine #cooper howard fanfiction

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webslingingslasher · 1 year ago

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okay hear me out. how about a big exam is coming up for peter so he just buries himself in books and barely leaves his room, wants to be left alone and trouble respects it to the best of her ability. but naturally she takes it upon herself to take care of him cause he's so immersed in his studying he forgets himself. maybe she brings him food or something and peters like 🥹🥹🥹

*cleaning out my inbox*

peter's smart. not in just an impressive way, but in a way that could envy the top scholars. peter is smart. when he tells you he needs ‘study hibernation’ time, you give him all the space he needs.

until he puts taking care of himself on the back burner. then, it becomes your job to take care of him. it's in the girlfriend rule book.

peter doesn't look up when you softly open his door, your text was left unread, but he must've at least read it at a quick glance. unless he was so invested in his textbook and computer he couldn't look over.

'hi, petey.' you softly kick your shoes off, padding across the hardwood at his hello back. 'hi, trouble.' wrapping your arms around his neck, you lean over his shoulder to kiss his cheek. 'see my text?'

'mhm,' he leans back into your touch, but he doesn't lose focus. 'did you eat dinner?' peter shakes his head into your chest, you curl to place another kiss. 'thought so. i brought you some chinese, if you're interested.'

peter claws at your hands, he's suddenly famished and dying. the idea of shrimp fried rice makes his mouth water. 'yes, please. thank you.' you pat his shoulders, a way of telling him, 'don't worry about it, i'll get it.' and just like magic, his favorite is right in front of his eyes.

'anything else?' peter's got tunnel vision, his hands almost shaking at how fast he's trying to tear the plastic it's stuck in. 'no. thank you, thank you. i love you.' peter's brewing headache was swept clear, food healing him from within.

a third kiss to his cheek, 'alright. love you too, talk to me before you go to bed?' you weren't able to take one step before peter spins one eighty in his chair, the styrofoam didn't dare leave his clutches, peter spoons in another bite as he cries out. 'you're leaving?'

'you're studying! i don't wanna bother you.' peter eyes his bed and your bag, 'you didn't get anything?' you shake your head, 'i ate with ally, i got yours before i left.' a whine, 'no! can you just... lay there and talk to me? just while i eat this, promise.'

you appease him and sit down on the corner of his bed. 'you're going to finish that in five seconds.' peter stops, and physically hurts himself by putting his takeout box down. 'i'll... i'll slow down then.'

'are you sure about that?' a shuffle, another mountain of rice, 'no.' it's all muffled. peter gathers his strength and breathes deep, your sweet voice fills him more than a plate of chinese could ever. it's a little torturous, because he's going to starve when you leave.

#frat!peter drabbles

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jessicafangirl · 1 month ago

Text

Shadow Of Eden

Well...surprise. Here's yet another story inspired by fucking Ghost and they won't leave me alone. GOD DAMN POCKET SWEDE STOP DOING THIS TO ME.

This idea came out of nowhere and I absolutely love it. This is set in an alternate reality with magic, ghosts, demons, etc. Maybe a bit of steampunk but I'm working out the world. Here the goddess Lilith was not happy with Papa Nihil's behavior towards women and she took her revenge by cursing him and his sons. The Emeritus Brothers were made into Nagas, half snake and half man. They watched over the gardens and orchards of Eden's Shadow and eventually became myths themselves. All have given up on breaking the curse and gone into hibernation except Copia, the youngest. He'd all but given up hope too until the day you ran through the gate.

I hope you like this story. If you do please let me know...again I have no idea where this came from but the idea sank its fangs in and won't let me go. If you enjoy please comment, kudo, send me shirtless Naga Copia and Terzo for reasons. If you like this I will see about turning it into a series for our favorite brothers (THEY ARE BROTHERS TOBIAS.)

You can read it here at AO3 as well.

The air was burning in your lungs as you ran. The bandits had attacked the carriage without mercy. Even the horses were slaughtered, the ground stained red with their blood and two of your other passengers who had met their fates quickly. You’d seen an opportunity while two of the murderers started arguing over who got the first crack at you. You’d seen the writing on the wall immediately, either raped or murdered…or both. You’d ran into the trees and didn’t look back.

You could hear them stomping through the brush, boots not even trying to keep quiet as what sounded like three of them chased after you. You clung to the bag strapped over your chest as limbs and branches slapped against your body, cutting your skin and grabbing your clothes.

This was supposed to be the new start for you. Going to a new town, a new land after the loss of your family. You were the eldest daughter, never married, never courted really. Now with 40 plus years of having been the one to take care of your parents when your sister died, you’d been given a choice. Sell the little printing house your father had built and actually live your life or find yourself tied to his business partner in marriage.

You weren’t the type to be chosen as a good wife. You knew how to read for one as well as write. You enjoyed it actually and enjoyed writing stories as much as reading them. You’d gotten along with many of the historians and writers who came to the print shop. It was a place you thrived. Even though Horace, your fathers partner, wasn’t thrilled with how your father allowed you to learn so much. That wasn’t the norm for women…he was willing to overlook these “faults.” He felt duty bound to help you, hence his not so enthusiastic marriage proposal.

Horace was nearly 75 years old. Even though you were considered an old maid at this point…you couldn’t see yourself in any way shape or form marrying him. So you’d made it simple. You’d sold the business, the house, and took your money along with a few possessions and headed towards the rest of your life. A life that had been sheltered except when it came to your imagination.

And now, here you were. Running for your life wasn’t on your wish list of things to experience but it would appear you had no choice in the matter. One particularly thick branch slammed into your forehead, and you nearly blacked out. You caught yourself on the forest floor, hand to your head. It came away sticky with blood. The sound of boots was coming closer. You needed to find somewhere to hide.

You weren’t familiar with where you were. In fact you had no idea where in the journey you’d been ambushed. All you knew was that you couldn’t stay where you were. You stumbled to your feet; grateful you had gone with pants and not a dress or you’d be tripping over yourself no doubt. You were dizzy but determined. You started forward again.

The trees started thinning out slightly and then as you looked up from the dirt and leafy forest floor you saw it. It was a giant wall with a large black iron gate. Beyond the wall you could see what looked like a castle but for some reason reminded you more of an enormous church sitting atop a hill. Below it, where the gate would open up was a massive garden and orchard.

You leaned heavily against a smaller tree as you stared into the darkness of the garden and foliage. Maybe whoever lived inside would help you. Maybe…or maybe you would be better off taking your chances with the forest. Exhaustion clawed at you, your head throbbed, and the adrenaline rush of the chase was abating and letting you feel every ache that it had left you with. The faces of the other passengers as they were shot in front of you were burned into your minds eye. You may not know who was beyond the gate, but you knew what was after you. “The gate…” you said to yourself and pushed away from the tree.

When you got to the black iron gate you saw the spikes sitting atop it, sharp and deadly. No one would be climbing in that was for sure. Squinting you read the letters that were set within the iron EDEN’S SHADOW. There was no chain or lock on the gate but as you tried to push it open, it wouldn’t budge. After two more attempts you looked closer…there was nothing physical causing it to lock. But you noticed some glyphs engraved within the metal.

Magic. God damn it. You weren’t as familiar with it as some were. Mainly because your parents and the village weren’t fans at all. “God is the only magic we need child.” You sighed. You’d read what books you could of course and in time you’d come to the conclusion that God and Magic were connected. Or at least magic could get you closer to the god of your choice. But sadly it was one subject you weren’t as well versed in and now…well that was coming back to bite you in the ass.

If this was a church though, beyond the garden and trees, maybe the gate would let you in if you asked for sanctuary. Right now it was your only chance.

“Please…” You said softly, desperately as you leaned close to where a lock would be. “I need help. I…I need to hide. Please help me.”

A heartbeat passed and then another. Suddenly a loud groan of unused screws moving hit your ears and you jerked back as the gate slowly swung open. You glanced back into the forest worriedly, then ducked through the open gate. It closed behind you faster than it opened with a nerve shattering clank of finality. The shadows seemed darker now on this side of the wall, the air warmer and scented with flowers and fruit. Apples you thought.

You quickly moved further into the grounds, not wanting to be visible if your pursuers happened to find you here. The gate might open for them too, who knew. And you didn’t want to be standing there in easy shot range of their weapons. It wasn’t more than 30 seconds later that you heard the rustling of the branches and trees outside of the gate. You quickly moved to hide behind a tree, ducking down and peering through some bushes at the entrance.

There stood two of the bandits, dirty clothes on their backs and weapons in hand. The two had faces that looked haggard and lined, some teeth missing. You’d known the road could be dangerous but never would have guessed you’d run into men like these.

The one who was balding and had stringy, greasy hair that fell to his shoulders looked around. “Fucking hell.” He muttered as he saw the black iron gate. “This is the cursed place.”

The other man, tall and thin and obviously younger turned to look at him with brown, nearly black eyes. “What are you talking about?”

“Eden’s Shadow…you’ve never heard the fucking story?” The older man turned, giving a wary glance at the land beyond the gate.

You grew concerned as you heard this. Cursed? You’d just blindly walked into a land that was cursed? Great….this was getting better by the minute.

“What story?” the younger ruffian asked.

“The Church. The brothers. The Goddess. It’s been around for…well…at least a century.” The older bandit looked up towards the large building. “The legends say Lilith wasn’t pleased by the family who lead the church and she cursed them. Heathens the lot of them, dark magic and the like. No one who goes in there comes out again.”

You swallowed down a knot of fear in your throat. Had you just ensured your own destruction?

The younger man glared into the dark. “Horseshit.” He said, his voice rough and angry. “I bet she’s in there. There’s nowhere else for her to go.”

“You willing to risk it being true for a bit of rough?” The older man asked, raising a scarred brow.

“She’s pissed me off and made us run through this fucking forest for a mile. She’s earned a good pounding.” His companion replied.

You couldn’t just sit there and wait for them. You started backing up slowly, trying your best to be quiet. You’d made it a couple yards before your foot found a stick, cracking it so loudly it could have been a muzzle blast. They definitely heard it, and you caught a glimpse of them making for the gate.

They started jangling the black iron, trying to get it open. Maybe it would stay closed. Oh god you hoped it did. But you needed to move fast. Before you could do so though something dark and nebulous came out of the shadows. You didn’t even have a chance to scream before what seemed to be the shadows themselves wrapped around you and pulled you behind a large and fat blossomed rose bush. The darkness held you by your arms, one strand wrapping around your mouth and the other around your legs so you couldn’t move if you wanted to. You could only watch as to your horror the gate opened.

The men seemed as surprised as you were terrified. They had their eyes wide and weapons in hand as they moved inside. As you watched, it looked like the already deep shadows of the garden seemed to darken. It was nearly nightfall, and the sky above was deepening to a rich purple. Any other time it would have been beautiful to watch, but right then if the cloud of black wasn’t holding you upright you would have buckled in fear. You hated feeling helpless, but right then there wasn’t much else you could do. Whatever it was holding onto you wasn’t releasing you.

“I don’t like this.” The older bandit said, his gaze flicking around the path they were walking.

“You know she’s in here…I heard her.” The younger one replied, viciousness in his expression. “Come out woman…it’ll make it easier on you if you do.” He said loudly.

From the darkness came a strange noise, almost a hiss, very nearly a growl. It made the two bandits pause. “What the fuck was that?” The older one asked.

The younger man’s bravado won out. “Probably just an animal. It doesn’t matter. Let’s find the bitch.”

At this, there was a rustle of leaves followed by a another strange hissing noise. As you watched you saw a flicker of something between the branches. It was white and caught the light of the moon that was just breaking through the clouds. It glinted like a pearl for a moment and disappeared. You pulled at the ephemeral bonds that held you and still couldn’t move.

The two men were now getting closer to where you were. You tried to scoot away but you were still held tight. The young one glanced your way, and you know he saw you as a sick grin spread over his face. “Well…lookit here…just waiting by the roses.” He said, moving quickly in your direction.

“What’s…what’s that on her?” The other man asked, heavy brow furrowing.

“I don’t care; I’ll be on her soon though.” The tall one said, taking another step.

And that’s when it happened. As you watched it looked as though some black, thick vine came down from the tree he was near, wrapping around him quickly and tossing him aside into the trunk of another tree like he was weightless.

The older bandit let out a scream as he looked up into the leaves of the tree. He fell backwards, scrambling across the leaf covered ground. You couldn’t see what he was seeing, the shadows not letting you go still. But his eyes were wide, filled with fear, and he was mumbling incoherently.

In the next moment you watched as a shape fell gracefully from the branches. When it stood up you saw the outline of a man, seemingly tall. When the moonlight broke through another cloud your eyes widened as you took in the sight. He was shirtless, that much you could see, his skin as white as alabaster.

He glanced back at you for a brief moment, and you realized what you’d thought was a pearl was actually his left eye. His right was darker and there wasn’t enough light for you to tell the color exactly. His face appeared to be painted…black lips, black around his eyes and along his cheeks. Your own eyes widened as you realized it was supposed to be a skull. His hair seemed to be brown…but you couldn’t be sure. His pale chest was covered in dark hair as well, but you couldn’t see beyond that.

His eyes took in your position, narrowing at you for a moment before turning back to the bandits. “You…tressspass…here?” You heard him speak, the words carrying an accent you weren’t sure of and a strange sibilance to them. You deduced the growl you’d heard was possibly of his making.

The older man seemed too scared to move now with the newcomer towering above him. The younger man was now standing up, hand shaking where it held his gun. “She came in here and she’s ours. We’ll take her and be on our way.” He managed to say without stuttering.

You heard a chuckle come from the pale man. “She’sss yours?” he asked, disbelief in every letter.

“Fucking right she is.” The bravado was coming fast now from the younger one. The older bandit had tears in his eyes.

The painted face smiled, but it wasn’t in amusement. There was something decidedly deadly about the way he was watching the two men. “She doesn’t seem to be inclined to believe you ssstronzo.” He said.

“She doesn’t have a choice. We’re taking her.” The young man’s voice shook for only a moment.

As you watched the pale man’s expression changed. If he looked deadly before he was downright murderous now. “You take away her choice? You threaten her here?” His voice was low, the r’s rippling with a menace within the words.

The older man had managed to back away enough he was trying to stand, the younger was moving closer to a fate you doubted was going to be a happy one. “I’ve had enough of this...we’re taking her now.” The wide-eyed bandit fired his pistol.

You let out a muffled shriek at this but as you watched the pale figure moved faster than you’d ever seen a person move. He dodged the bullet which hit the trunk of a tree near you. His eyes met yours again as he saw how close it came to you. You would swear that the white eye glowed in that moment, the other burning with a green flame. Then he turned back to the man who’d fired.

The pale man growled and lunged at him. The older man had finally found his footing and promptly fell again when the force of the pale man’s attack hit him as well. He was so quick it was almost a blur and that’s when you finally saw him, as the moon in all it’s glory came out from beneath the clouds completely.

He was holding the young bandit up off the ground, his hands grasping the filthy jacket. His fingernails were black, nearly long enough to be claws. He was muscled but not in the way so many of the villagers men wanted to be. His waist narrowed down with just a bit of stomach which shared the same dark hair that covered and tapered down his chest. But where his hips should become legs there were none.

Instead, the man’s body turned into a long, serpent tail. The scales of which glowed under the moonlight, a brilliant blue that seemed to almost glitter like a diamond would. It was at least five feet long and combined with the rest of him he was nearly nine feet tall. He held the bandit like he weighed nothing.

“You dare attack someone who came to me for sssanctuary…” The snake man rasped at the man who now appeared to finally realize just how fucked he truly was. As you watched the pale face snarled, showing sharp and glinting fangs that were soon buried in the neck of the bandit.

The man screamed and it was filled with agony. Before your eyes his face blackened, the veins in his flesh appearing beneath his skin in dark lines as if filling with some sort of poison to the point of bursting. In the back of your frightened mind you thought “It’s venom…”

The older bandit’s eyes were wide, and tears were flowing down his cheeks. Not in sorrow at the loss of his partner, but in complete and mindless terror. A wet patch grew in the front of his pants, and you knew he’d soiled himself.

The snake man pulled his fangs from his victims throat, the body limp and discolored in his grasp. Some black fluid fell down his chin, still leaking from his fangs. He turned to the older man and smiled. “I believe thisss is yoursss.” He said and then flung the body at him.

The body landing next to him seemed to awaken him from a stupor and the older man let out a scream and then ran towards the entrance. For one moment you thought that it would shut on him, locking him in with you and this creature you’d never even imagined could exist. But no, he fled through the gate which then shut behind him, all while being watched by the pale figure that was wiping it’s mouth on the back of its hand.

You were too afraid to even move now. You had no idea what was happening, but you were fairly certain that even if the shadow bonds that held you were loosened you wouldn’t be able to open the gate. Your head was throbbing, and your vision was starting to blur as everything that you’d witnessed, the chase, it was too much.

The snake turned to you then, just as the shadows decided to let you go. You caught yourself on the small trunk of a young apple tree, black spots swimming into view. He blinked at you, his shining blue tail pushing him a little closer.

It was as though he was hesitating, trying not to frighten you now. Which, it was a little late for that. You’d seen him just inject a man with toxin to the point his veins nearly ripped out of his skin. But you’d heard him speak and the words weren’t threats to you but to the ones trying to hurt you. You took a step backwards when he moved another bit closer, one hand trying to hold onto the tree the other pressed against your throbbing head.

“Please…please…don’t…” You managed to say, feeling bile rise in your throat. The world was spinning and the pain in your head was getting worse.

The creature ducked under a limb of a nearby tree, his eyes watching you warily. “Bella, I will not hurt you…I ssswear.” His voice was soft now and was that a stutter, just there. Almost nervous.

You couldn’t believe him…right? You needed to try and run…but to where? The bandits were still out there, and you had no transportation. You didn’t even know where you were. No…you knew. You were in Eden. This was the garden of Eden. No, the shadow of Eden. Then that meant he was…

You couldn’t finish the thought. Your legs buckled beneath you, and you prayed you weren’t going to throw up your meager lunch. Before you hit the ground you heard a rushing sound, something moving quickly over the ground, through the leaves and twigs. You felt arms grabbing you, wiry and strong, stopping you from falling to the earth. “Ti ho bellissima…ho te.”

You looked up to see his skull painted face looking down at you, your cheek resting against his white chest. You tried to push away but another wave of pain and dizziness made you gasp. “I need…to…go…” you tried to say, the words barely audible.

“Sssei malato. Ci prenderemo cura di te.” He spoke again, voice gentler as he slipped an arm under your legs and lifted you up like you were a feather. You weren’t light by any stretch and how easily he did so made you tense up. You had no idea what he was saying either…which was only adding to your fear.

“Please…please let me go.” You tried again, palms against his chest. He was warm to the touch which surprised you.

He shook his head no, locks of his brown hair falling over his forehead from where it had been swept away. He was moving across the ground now, the large blue tail fast as he moved upwards towards the hillside. His arms clutched you closer, tighter as he started up the steep slope. When he spoke again, you understood him, but it seemed as though he wasn’t used to the language. “I…I can’t let you go sorella. I…I must tend to you, and you must rest.” He glanced down at you, and he gave you a small smile, melancholy evident in his now softer eyes. “You are sssafe with me. I promise you.”

You didn’t have a choice here. You were hurt and you were in no condition to try and run. Out of the human males you’d encountered the very obviously not (at least completely) human one was the only one who hadn’t tried to kill you. Your head fell back against his chest, and you noticed the scent of flowers and something sweet like honey seemed to come from his skin. “What…who…are you…” You managed to mumble out. Your eyes were so heavy.

He'd already made it up the hillside when you asked your question and now you heard the doors of the large building atop the hill opening. “My name is Copia…” He replied. You heard something rustling and with some effort opened your eyes to see figures emerging from the shadows. They were all in black, with silver masks on their faces. You could see eyes peering out from them, glancing at you then up at Copia.

He quickly said something in that other language you didn’t understand. Was it…Italia? Or something older? You couldn’t tell but the new arrivals started moving right away, Copia following them, the sound of his scales swishing along the marble floor. He glanced back down at you. “What I am…that’s a long story bella. Think of me as the guardian of the garden, the serpent protecting the trees.” Another sad smile. “Protecting Eve from those who would harm her.”

You find yourself in a room filled with glass cases and a couple of beds. Was this a hospital? The figures in black were moving around, three of them in the room with you. Copia slipped in through the doorway with a grace that was well…inhuman. With care he laid you down on one of the beds. One of the silver masked attendants came over to you and carefully removed your bag from your shoulder and your jacket. You tried to hold onto the bag; it was everything you had in the world now. But you were weak, and it was pointless to try and fight.

Copia slid up to the bed, his black tipped fingers taking hold of yours without much fuss. “Sssshhh. It’s alright. It will be right over there.” He gestured to a chair where the bag and your jacket were placed.

You looked up at him with pain filled eyes. The expression on his face was kind, so unlike what you’d seen before when he’d fought the bandit. He brushed aside some hair from your forehead, brows narrowing at the wound there that was bleeding. “You must rest bella. Let us take care of you. You are sssafe here.”

“I’m…scared.” You couldn’t stop the words from escaping your lips. You shuddered as the shock truly took hold of you then.

Copia used the tip of his tail to grasp a nearby blanket from a stack of them. He placed it over you, tucking it in around you. “I know cara…but you are sssafe now.” He tilted his head slightly taking in your face, the color of your eyes. He hadn’t seen a human woman in…a long time. “What is your name bella?” He asked at last.

The warmth of the blanket helped. You didn’t realize that one of the silver masked figures had a syringe until you felt the pinch of it in your arm. More warmth then slipped into your veins. It made the unease lessen and you just wanted to sleep then, more than anything. “My name…”

“Si, cara…what’s your name?” Copia took a warm washcloth and wiped away some of the grime from your cheek carefully.

You gave it to him, barely conscious as the sedative did its work and the pleasant feeling of the cloth wiping away at the dirt soothed you.

He repeated it, his accent and the sibilant way he spoke making it sound far more musical than you’d ever heard it. “Un nome bello come te.”

You had no idea what he was saying again, but it didn’t really matter. You were sinking into the dark then, your eyes growing heavy as they looked into his mismatched gaze. “Are you going to tempt me…” you asked without thinking before falling into oblivion.

Copia’s black lips parted at the question, his forked tongue tutting against his teeth. He brushed the cloth along your chin, watching the way your pink lips parted just a bit at the movement. “Oh dolcezza…you are the temptation here.” He said softly, with the conviction of a man who has accepted his fate.

#the band ghost #tobias forge #ghost #cardinal copia #papa emeritus iv #copia #monster fucker #you and copia #copia and you #copia and reader #snake men #naga

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gustofnostalgia · 1 month ago

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SOLACE

―― Because the season I like is a short thing, It melted away without me noticing. Alone in this moving scenery. I stand still and think of you.

REQUEST! " I BRING YOU WITH ME EVERYWHERE I GO. " ― Courtship

WORD COUNT: 1k+

TWS: READER IS A GEM, READER IS HINTED TO BE OLDER THAN ANTARCTICITE, READER IS MENTIONED TO HAVE SOME FORM OF HAIR SIMILAR TO THE GEMS, ESTABLISHED RELATIONSHIP

◡│They are limited with the time they spend with you, only being able to indulge in your presence whenever winter arrives as there is little to no moisture present in the air, so it's more than likely you refuse to hibernate and choose to spend the rest of the season with them (And when they're liquidized once more, you frequent their area and speak of your day.) While they do appreciate it, it stirs a great amount of concern within them as you receive less sunlight than the norm, resulting in you having quick drops of energy.

◡│With this, they try to adjust to having you accompany them in their tasks — afraid that, if they were to leave you alone, you'd end up being too tired and go rest but they'd never admit that aloud. — having been isolated for long periods of time due to their state, they generally spend a generous amount of their time teaching you how they fulfill their duties since it's one of the things they're masterful at (they consider these occasions as dates).

◡│Although, contrary to this, they don't feel troubled putting you to work on some days (Only when they deem you to have enough energy to do so without struggling), outright scolding you when you happen to complain or mope 'however the small smile on their visage stays cemented on their face while they do this'

◡│Despite presenting themselves with an uptight and formal face, they soften around you. Antarcticite finds that the sensation you bring to their heart mimics the exact feeling of being in their liquidized form: they feel tingly, fuzzy, relaxed, extremely pudgy when they're near you (internally at least).

◡│The milky white gem is such a softie in your presence, regardless of displaying a stoic demeanor, they sometimes compromise the composed look they always have to smile gently at you when you do anything in front of them, or, try to add a tinge of a sweet saccharine tone to the way they speak to you.

◡│But even if they're trying, their words still come off too blunt to the ears..

"You look less sogged down today." ⟶ "Chipper are we? i was worried you'd be sluggish throughout the season." ⟶ "From how sloppy you are, I would be convinced you were more deliquescent than me."

◡│As the significant partner of none other than the esteemed Antarcticite, it's evident how much special treatment you'll be receiving from their end — where they shamelessly admit they favor your thoughts, suggestions, and simply your character more so than anything else (of course, if they didn't get so flustered about bringing it up ) —

◡│Out of habit, they are practically always seen with their eyes focused on you and you alone. They can't help it, given that they're quietly pleased that they have the right to formally label you as theirs, and the same goes to you with them. You capture their heart every single time your eyes reach their own, such a composed yet smitten gem they are.

◡│They're still extremely gentle with you, not only because any harsh contact could potentially harm you, but also, them in the process if they're not too careful. Often times, they do their best to be careful whilst interacting with you physically, even hesitant to do so in most cases.

◡ Speaking of physical affection; they commonly struggle to initiate this as they've only been introduced to touch whenever they receive their annual hug from Kongo-sensei — paling in comparison to being touched by you instead — so they're naturally, inept with attempting contact with you. Arguably, they do their best! A few lingering caresses on your arm here and there, a gloved hand to your face - tucking a stray lock of your crystalized hair back to its proper place.

◡│When receiving though, it takes no amount of effort to make them blush and melt in your arms like viscous alloy. Affection is rare to most gems, even more so for Antarc who only experiences it from Kongo-sensei, and now, only you. It shows from how the apathetic looking lustrous becomes timid under your touch.

Pristine were the follicle-like shards that fall on your shoulder as a pair of arms cling to your torso, maintaining a consistently firm grip on your body, anxious of pulling away "I would like it if we were to.. Stay like this for a while. If you do not mind of course.." Antarcticite pleads softly, voice partly muffled by your uniform.

◡│They compensate for their hesitance in touch and unfamiliarity of warm words with their acts of service. Always ready to take action if you ever find yourself being mentally down. While being scarce with what they can do for you (especially due to how most of what you do with them in the Winter being very tedious.), they also enjoy gifting hand-crafted items for you, ice sculptures in specific.

"Ah, Antarc. You've returned later than usual, anything happen?' You inquire, curiously tilting your head as the luminous gem continues their silent stride towards you "Nothing in particular, I simply took longer in order to tend to an additional task." "Oh? And what would that be?" You hum, turning away for a moment only to catch a glimpse of an iridescent form in front of you that wasn't Antarcticite. "..Making something special for you." They murmured, the white gloves clutching the gift reflected on it's figure compromised of ice. To your knowledge. This was a flower. "It is very rare to spot greenery whenever Winter occupies the month. I.. Supposed you would have missed the small herbs of life." They beckon for you to reach it, coaxing you as their eyes looked elsewhere, quite embarrassed to face you. Your lithe fingers graze over their own, making them shiver from the sudden touch but quickly relax, before grasping the sculpture in your palm "The ever stoic Antarcticite, straying from their meticulous schedule to make a gift for me? How sweet of you." They mumble something under their breath once they swivel their neck your way. "Beautiful." They say "How pretentious of you to compliment your on work" You respond. Unbeknownst to you, while your attention was fixed on the artificial flower, Antarcticite' s gaze was devoted solely on you, they smile, ever so slightly "Yes.. How prideful of me."

◡◡◡ I loved Antarctictite as soon as their debut was made and have found their character to be the most likeable out of most of the gems, I was overjoyed when I was requested to make this, hopefully it suits your taste :)!

#Lotl #Hnk #Houseki no kuni #Houseki no kuni x reader #Land of the lustrous x reader #Antarcticite #Antarcticite x reader

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oxymoronicmoron · 10 months ago

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[Sleep | Nosramus/GN!Reader]

Rest hardly comes to a person when their thoughts are filled with yearning. Seeking one’s touch, seeking one’s company, it makes the act of falling asleep that much harder. So in a time of need, the only person who you could consult regarding this matter in the dungeon you found yourself in, was the very person you had been yearning for. The only space which you could truly call “safe.” Though your footing may have been quiet, your presence still caught the trained eye of the silver-haired alchemist, and as you stood by his room’s doorframe, he turned his head to face you. Upon seeing you, a smile made its way onto his visage. “Oh, what a pleasant surprise.” Voice as smooth as you remembered it, the cozy energy he emitted strong as ever. It didn’t come to you as much of a surprise, though. After all, it had only been a couple of hours since you two last interacted, it’d be more shocking had you forgotten about it, than it is to remember. “Did you leave something behind?” With a shake of your head, you negated his statement. You had to come up with a reason as to why you came here, something besides “I wanted to see you,” though it hurt your brain to think about for too long. “...I don’t feel entirely comfortable sleeping alone. Not while I’m down here, anyway.” A rational sentiment, judging by the horrors you faced every corner you turned. You hoped he’d accept your reasoning as a valid excuse to be here. Hoped that he wouldn’t push the subject further. And to your delight, he did just that. “Very well. You may use my bed, if you so wish.” “Could you please join me?” You spoke before you fully thought it through, but even with the silence that followed, you didn’t regret your words. And eventually, after sensing the sincerity of your request, he let out a soft chuckle. He was taken aback, sure, but he wasn’t entirely opposed to the idea. Especially not now that he had lost the companion that once guarded him. His chuckle warmed your heart every time you had the pleasure of hearing it, and it almost made your stay in the dungeons worth it. You wished for nothing more than to coax that sweet sound out of him every chance you were given. With a wave of his hand, he invited you to enter his room, and you did so without any semblance of hesitation. You’d do anything if he were the one to request it. Now, however, was not the time to think about that. You had earned a small victory, and in the moment that was all that mattered. Nosramus brought a hand to your lower back, and though the touch was feather-light, it still aroused thoughts in you which you could live without. You entered the bed first, and though that meant that in the case of an emergency you’d have difficulty escaping, you trusted the safety of the room enough to calm your anxiety. That, and your reluctance to doubt Nosramus’ guidance in fear of him retracting his offer, dissuaded you from requesting a change in the assigned sleeping positions. You were quick to scoot over to him, seeking his embrace. Your desire for it was what brought you here in the first place. And though he may not have been the warmest person you had ever come in contact with, the chill of his skin remained comforting. As was his scent. And the weight of his arm as it wrapped around you in an almost protective manner. Finally, you had found a place you considered safe enough, a presence you considered comforting enough. One that even in the worst of places could bring a smile to your face And with the sound of crackling fire, and the steady breathing of your friend You were lulled into a deep sleep. – 658 words “There’s no bed in the level 5 mines lab” let me dream!!! also this is not beta-read i'm gonna go hibernate again

#fear & hunger #fear & hunger fanfiction #nosramus x reader #Nosramus #My writing quality has degraded SO bad I deeply apologize #also i havent interacted with anything related to fear & hunger in some time so this may be inaccurate #all i had was a keyboard and a dream #x reader #fluff

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that-one-girls-blog-posts · 2 years ago

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PICK A CRYSTAL, GET A READING 🔮 🪽 🧿

take a moment to choose

🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍

1.goldstone 🌟

Hi welcome to this reading!♡ You chose the goldstone which stands for joy, abundance and personal development and right of the bat I feel like this is a huge subject for you right now.I pulled the 8 of cups and the page of wands which if you know the cards of the ethereal visions deck are both illustrated with characters holding these huge sticks and looking into the distance. It looks like they already took the first few steps of the long and hard journey ahead of them and are now at a point of taking a break to plan, overthink and almost reconsider their next steps. They might be waiting for the night to come or pass so they can continue safely which can feel a little stagnant but it's really a smart safety precaution. There is a little bit of a bitter taste to it since the 8 of cups is also interpreted as purposely leaving in the night to go unseen. Maybe you are not sure if you are taking this path because you know it's for the better or because you're trying to run or hide from something and you are scared to be perceived while possibly making a mistake.

The path ahead of you is pretty clear, you know which steps you should take next but that also means you can clearly see the challenges, rough stones and mountains you will have to face. Therefore this definitely is a situation where you need to properly plan what you're gonna do next, instead of blindly jumping in like I feel you would usually do(sometimes taking a leap of faith makes sense and can be very exciting) but in this section of your life it's part of an important lesson you're supposed to learn, to atleast have an idea of where you are going and why you want to be there.

“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail”.☝🏽Things seem to get a little overwhelming right now but I have no doubt you are taking the right steps and you are very much capable of handling the challenges thrown at you🤺

Though this is a situation you are rather new to, you feel confident in your position (props to you, many people would try to slow things down out of fear, but not you👏🏽) there still is a teenie tiny bit of self-doubt that I feel like you don't really want to acknowledge even exists, but it's a healthy amount, it's good to question things from time to time, even yourself, your knowledge and capabilities. Maybe this is something that you could consider in your next shaddowwork session or when journaling

Do I have the tendency to try and handle things on my own?

Is this habit safe for my current situation?

Which kind of subject do I maybe need to research more before taking my next steps?

I feel like this is a very unique path to the point where you struggle to find people who can help and understand you in this situation but please remember that you are never truly alone (believe me been there done that👨🏻‍🦲) and that you can always find some helpful words somewhere even if it's from people online or a quote from a book..... it's okay to ask for help or guidance, doing so is a sign of a healthy relationship with yourself, no one knows everything and it's good to ask for help before any serious damage might be done.

🧝🏾‍♀️The Oracle card I pulled for you is the Spring which fits this "beginning of a new journey but haven't gotten very far yet" vibe very well. In spring, the seeds in nature have just begun to sprout, loads of them are still in the protection of the earth and need a little more support from sunshine, rain !!and time!! until they are ready to take the next step and show their face to the world. This also shows that you feeling stagnant is a natural state your current environment,which means you're not really missing out on anything right now, and the place you want to enter is also not yet ready for you, everything needs a little more time to get out of hibernation🦔

💋LOVE

I can't see much change regarding your love life in the near future, the stagnation is also showing it's affect here.You are really focused on the path ahead of you, because you recognize it's importance. Whatever is happening at the moment, this is lifechanging and who knows, might even bring you to the place in life where love is waiting just around the corner🤭

If you're in a relationship I feel like you and your partner are going through a phase where you also feel like there's not much happening but under the surface you are deepening your relationship to each other, maybe your communication recently got on a deeper level or you found a new side on the other person that you are exploring and getting to know and love, enjoy the moment🫶🏽

🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍

2.aquamarin 🌊

Hi welcome to this reading!♡ you chose the aquamarine which is associated with calmness, intellectual and spiritual abilities as well as communication. I think there's a pretty big chance that you felt called to this stone because of the calming energy part, like it's something you really need right now. I'm getting the energy of a situation where you need a lot of strength, there's problems with communication, discussions and fights, maybe at home with people you are close to, very likely a romantic partner. BUT through this chaotic energy on the outside you have found a "new" resource inside yourself?!?!?!!! There is a quietness and stillness that you didn't know you had in you!🧘‍♀️

For you I pulled the 2 of cups in reversed and the star. The other person you're dealing with has very firey energy and I feel like you do too, might be astrological or just very strong temper. In the past you always had a very intense way of communicating with eachother, both of you wanted to stick with your point but somehow you always found a way to agree somewhere in the middle, lately this has gotten more difficult tho. There might be something like trustissues involved which are causing this sudden problem, anyways this other person is trying to open new doors with old keys and won't change their behavior during difficult moments, but you, you found a way of dealing with this in a very relaxed and laid back way! this is amazing! It's like your way to argue has matured! but it's important to say, please don't start going into the opposite direction now and let the other person walk all over you!! beeing the "bigger person" will not always be the best for you, a certain amount of selfrespect is needed. You now need to find a way of getting your point across without leaning too much in to one of the extremes. you're on a great journey of growth and I feel like you are also very proud of yourself and can recognize your change.🥹

🧝🏾‍♀️The Oracle card I pulled for you is the raven which is very interesting since they are associated with occult wisdom, magic, the spiritual/the divine and growth which confirms the spiritual abilities aspect of the aquamarin. I feel like this new mysterious source of calmness you found within yourself is almost like a gift from the divine! or maybe your ancestors or your spirit guides, whatever you believe in (this feels like an energy which is comfortable in the shaddow as in remaining a secret or unknown/unseen, I think you might know who fits that description;)) They gave this to you and are guiding you through it! I feel like meditation might be an amazing tool for you right now to find the secret messages within the new found silence 🤍🪶

💋LOVE as mentioned earlier I feel like the struggles you are facing right now, might be with a romantic partner. I dont think there's something severly "toxic" going on and I don't think there's much doubt in the relationship or the in other person. You are someone who recognizes that noone is perfect and you can easily see the good in other people despite their flaws. You know you will work through this issue and everythung will be okay🤍(trust your gut on this, I can always be wrong, if you have any suspicion of danger coming from a person in your life, remember your safety and take action accordingly🙏🏽)

If you are not in a relationship there might be a crush, it can be very distant, who you are overthinking right, you saw a new side on them and now you're not sure anymore how to feel about them. Remember that you don't really owe crushes anything especially if you're not in contact so you are free to explore your feelings on your own and take as much time doing so as you need 💌

🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍

3.smoky quarz🌫

Hi welcome to this reading!♡ you chose the smoky quartz which is great for manifestation and other spiritual work, wishes, protection and cleansing, which I think is really funny since the stone looks kind of polluted like there's smoke trapped inside of it and how do you clean with a dirty sponge yk?

Anyways, I feel like you are a very hard worker which so far has already paid off, whatever you are doing your great efforts are recognized. You might have a higher position at your job or you're something like the schoolpresident or the captain of your sports team( Congrats on whatever it is🏆). Being a leader Is a very sought after position but oftentimes the responsibility is much less glamorous than it looks on the outside, but as it looks in your life you are absolutely it slaying it!

For you I pulled the King of swords and the 10 of wands.You are very used to your position almost like a monarch or a nepobaby (love that for you👑) but you definitely give off the vibe of someone who was born into their fate, maybe you come from a family of teamcaptains or entrepreneurs?When you stepped into your place you never questioned it and immediately took the reins. You don't mind the hard work because you know how much responsibility you have and how many people are relying on you so you take the job very seriously.

Lately, I feel, you've been getting a little tired with carrying all this responsibility, I personally really understand the need for a control in a position like this and how hard it is to share the work with other people when it's you who is kind of representing everyone and everything. If someone fucks up the job, you're gonna have to pay for it so you much rather just do it all on your own and make sure it's perfect. This is an admirable trait but unfortunately not easy to sustain for a longer period of time. At some point the work will be too much for you to carry alone!!

🧝🏾‍♀️The Oracle card I pulled for you is the path and I feel like yours right now is the journey of trying to find people you trust to take some of the weight off of your shoulders👯I think your situation requires a special way of support, you don't just need someone who will simply take some of the weight and carry it alongside with you but someone who instead helps you to push the the weight Step-by-step.

It's like when you get stuck with your car. You dont need someone to take out the interior so it's less weight to push😂 but a person who will get to the back next to you and push! Or like a president who doesn't want a vice president to actually take control but an assistant who will help organize everything🗂

It's a tricky situation and it's tricky to find someone like that but I feel like by going with the flow and allowing people, chances and opportunities for support to come into your life, you will find a unique solution that will not only make your life easier but protect you from a serious burnout! I see this process taking some time since your situation is so specific. There will be many offers of support that are just not right but by simply keeping your eyes open and allowing more ideas to come to you, you will find a way🩷

💋LOVE

I wonder whether or not I should even say something right here💀 You're a workaholic and there's simply other things in head right now than romance. If you're in a relationship things are stable and steady and will continue like this... If you are single don't expect much in the next few months, you are really on a self-development journey right now and there's not much space for other people and their problems in your life BUT If you crave love remember that you have to set priorities and in fact go out and get to know people to find that special someone. It's tragic I know but you got this #gaslightgatekeepgirlboss 💅

🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍

⚜️dear audience⚜️ I hope you enjoyed this little session and it resonated with you, please remember that collective readings, due to their nature won't be as accurate as a personal reading and might not even be for you at all, so please, choose intuitivly, take what resonates and leave the rest🌟 feel free to share any feedback and your experience with the reading in the comments🤍 thank you

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astrobuggy · 3 months ago

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BLOG INTRO!

I've been posting for a while, and I haven't even done a blog intro for people to know what I'm about 😓

If you don't know me or you've seen most of my random posts or if you've been with me for a while (mutuals, HIII >♡<) , hi, I'm Astrobuggy! I'm not new to this Tumblr thing, kinda, I've been here for a while lurking until I decided to spill some of my ideas, and now I'm here 🧍‍♂️

Random info :p

Pronouns: I go by anything really, but I do prefer she/her :] (You can call me a man, and I would think I finally grew a dick 🧍‍♂️or a Walmart bag idc :p)

Sexuality: Guess (even idk, bro 😭🙏)

I am a minor 👍 (whenever I say that, I feel like I'm going to be sent to the mines, or I've awoken 5 different pdfs in my area of Tumblr 😞)

I will randomly post random tweets that don't make sense. Consider those my crash outs and move on, please 🤧

Content you will see :]

🦉 I post art here.... sometimes 🧍‍♂️ They mostly consist of my own TSAMS aus that center around Lunar or just Lunar

🪶 I talk mostly about TSAMS, TLAES, or (MY SHAYLAAA 💔) Lunar from these shows (people who have been here for a while know this 😞)

🦉 As mentioned, you will see TSAM aus. As of current, I am working on an au called "Project Eos." Basic summary: Lunar, but he is a father of 3-4ish and is fixing up their home 🧍‍♂️Oh! And he's an astral here 👍

Rules

Idk, don't be mean 🤷‍♂️ ( I will probably update this if I do run into a problem)

Interact!

🦉 If you're a TSAMS/TLAES/TEAPS/TSBS enjoyer :]

🪶 A Lunar fan or simp (Please, I need to find more people like me 😞)

Idk what else to add 😓

DNI!

Trump Supporters, Proshippers, if you're genuinely just a horrible person (I'm just trying to vibe over here bro, leave me alone >:( ), homophobes (why are you scared of gay people l 😭?), zoophiles, transphobic, pedophiles (GET AWAY), TSBS hater (Why are you interacting with me? Aren't you fucking up your algorithm or smth??), necrophiles, anything REALLY weird tbh

More random stuff

I am in different fandoms like:

Epic the Musical

Helluva Boss (tho im starting to realize that it is kinda getting on the brink of being trash 😞)

Sfs (Stories from Styx, well- kinda)

There's more, but they're in hibernation

As in terms of NSFW, just don't. I may talk about giving characters backshots until they feel nothing but me, but those are jokes (kinda 😏). I think you get the point. You can say some freaky shit to me about some characters, and I'd be on the bandwagon 🗣Just DON'T SHOW ME IT. The goes for gore as well

This is the thing that represents me :] (you see me crash out, just think that this is me)

Other than that, have fun on my blog and be FREAKS

#blog intro #blog info #persona art

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theharmonious13 · 6 months ago

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242 - Overdue

'Morning Assholes' Kamimura lmao

Tamba burning a rock LOL

Nobody thinking about the incinerator despite it being used in one of the previous episodes I thought?

Tsuno and Ojima doing dishes, heck yeah

Kamimura taking a boiling hot shower each day is genius, I didn't think of that method

'*Dramatic Sigh* The unseen blessings of dietary restrictions' Okazaki 😂

Ojima ditching Tsuno for Hiroaki immediately makes sense after today's events 😭

'Later Skaters' I love you and your words Watari

The handful of characters in this scene makes me relieved that none of them are dead, phew

243 - Fading Memories

Tsuno bringing Mai breakfast 🥺

I'm glad we finally get some insight on Mai's perspective of the uh... beating from Dr Kan

Mai making Yanagi leave the medbay because he's starting to overwork himself too... oh honey

'Where's Tamba?' Guys we've barely seen her this chapter I hope she's not the victim, if the fandom guesses that right I will be shook

Body Discovery 3

I peeked ahead seeing this was next in the order, I am scared as hell

If Hama discovers this body too he'll never catch a break 😭

NO WHY DOES HAMA KEEP DISCOVERING THE BODIES, POOR MAN

So now I wonder if the cold turns off when the body is discovered to hide the time of the murder, or if the murder happens pretty much asap without the killer being around

'If I was at home right now' Watari no more saying the banned phrase pleaseeeeeee

'I'd be picking up my little brother and chucking him in the pool or something' I can't stop loving Watari 😂😂😂

The time of this episode is almost over... where's the body?

Hasegawa discovers the body in a different room? That's a fun way to divert expectations

245 - Bloodbath

KAMIMURA!? HE WAS ALIVE THIS MORNING COME ON MAN

I'm actually sobbing, he's my favourite character I'm so sad he and Hasegawa will never be able to hang out ever again

...although it makes sense because none of them will have any interactions with other students unless one of them disappears

Kamimura can't help with the crime scene investigation, or crime scene cleaning anymore... gdi it makes sense to break up the crime scene guarding team but I'm still really sad over it

I THOUGHT EVERYONE WITH A PORTRAIT ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THE SCREEN WAS SAFE FOR NOW, THE HELL

'Where's Kamimura's head!?' Oh... no...

Ken telling Okazaki to shut up - POP OFF KING

'Why are we still wasting time?' Omg Okazaki I wish you had an ounce of empathy

Tsuno yelling at Okazaki... yes please

Okazaki being extremely rude... this is why you're my least favourite oof

Hama volunteering to guard the body, and then Watari following suit... how sweet of them both

Ojima and Hasegawa pairing up... yes please

Yanagi and Mai already pairing up because of the medbay situation is 👌

Hasegawa being really upset and more emotional than usual... my por boi

Okazaki doesn't want to investigate with Tamba? Big plot twist

Hiroaki reminding the group he doesn't trust them is good actually

Okazaki is really taking charge this investigation, I hope she's pulling a Sasaki and ends up being the blackened 1) Because I'm biased as hell and 2) I can't imagine any other character being that gruesome with murder, especially after Okazaki's beatings with Wada

Hiroaki reminding them that they're losing time, very hypocritical Okazaki

Okazaki shut tf up about not wanting to work with Tamba

I love Hama and Watari comforting eachother

246 - Rude Awakening

Shigeki was ASLEEP AND SHIRTLESS? Man was he winter hibernating lmao

It means Hayashi and him don't have alibi's for the first murder... fuckkkkkkkk

This interaction went exactly how I expected it to go, Hiroaki being straightforward and giving all the answers bluntly while Shigeki is emotionally devastated

Hiroaki wanting to investigate alone rather than with Shigeki and Mai makes sense lol

What happened to Yanagi's back?

'And wake up already! God!' I love how this line is delivered by Hiroaki 😂

247 - Neon Hazard Forensic Inquest: Medical Bay

Mai was sleeping too? Makes sense but these guys are so scuffed for alibis

Mai saying Hama is too soft to be guarding the body 😭♥️

I love how half asleep Yanagi sounds, and how alert and immediately awake Mai was the moment Yanagi said Kamimura had died

Hama came to talk to Chiba and Harada... omg poor Hama is grieving like there's no tomorrow

Mai knows he was not sleeping 👀

248 - Neon Hazard Forensic Inquest: Library

Hasegawa, Wada and Hama should form a book club 😭♥️

Wada has a stomach ache? I accidentally spoiled myself that there's a second body discovery coming up so THAT BETTER NOT BE A DEATH FLAG

249 - Neon Hazard Forensic Inquest: Art Supply Room

Watari carrying on the legacy of luminal 😭

Kamimura tied up? Head wrapped in bandages? This is gruesome as hell... he definitely DIDN'T DESERVE THIS

250 - Neon Hazard Forensic Inquest: Kitchen

Ojima trying to help Hasegawa calm down 🥺

The pain in Hasegawa's voice 😩

Hiroaki showed up yoooooo

Don't insult Hasegawa though even though you two are not fans of eachother 😭

Kamimura's leftovers were eaten this morning... they better have not been poisoned

Even though it is making the investigation a bit a of a sham I love Hiroaki wondering around at will lol

251 - Neon Hazard Forensic Inquest: Boys's Dormitory

Hayashigeki sighing when Nakamigawa turns up 😂

Mai giving him lip because of what happened in Ice Fairy is a power move

I wonder if it's the suicide set up Hiroaki wants to put away before they investigate...

Suicide note? Thanks Mai for keeping his privacy even though I'd like explicit confirmation

Them having to rely on Hiroaki's info and him being theatrical about it is 😂

Mai threatening to split up if Yanagi doesn't tell the truth about his alibi and him softly saying... 'Please, just- trust me.' Oh my god the angst 😩♥️

Toxic substance for suicide 😩

Hasegawa has a note? Kill Hanano in the next two days or I can't say sorry for your friend? THIS IS SO CRUEL PSYCHOLOGICALLY NOW THAT KAMIMURA'S DEAD WTF

Kamimura and Hasegawa thoughtfully put together Sawa's ashes I can't even 😭

Mai doesn't trust Shigeki, makes sense but oh my god not the drama 😩

Mai shares Hiroaki attempted suicide, to earn trust, how noble

'It's not about respect, it's about trust' I love Hayashi so much you guys have no idea

Wada has blood in his room and a saw... I really hope he's being framed

Blue key? Did Wada make it into the mysterious room? I really want to know how he got the key too

A HUGE struggle in Kamimura's room... at least he put up a strong fight

Kamimura's ROOM KEY?

Yanagi doesn't think they should be looking up to Sasaki?

I really want to know what Yanagi isn't ready to share about yet

252 - Neon Hazard Forensic Inquest: Music Room & Drama Room

I want Tsuno to learn the trombone 🥺

And Wada with Tuba? Yooooo they can form a band

For the record I SAID THAT BEFORE TSUNO, psychic moment ✨

Wada hiding his injuries for Tsuno... and the angst he has when replying to Tsuno's 'you know I'd want to help you right?' is 😩

Wada Tsuno mental check

THEY SAID THEY LOVE EACHOTHER VERY WHOLESOME 🥺

253 - Forensic Hazard Forensic Inquest: Body

They have to play surgeon to investigate the body... poor Hama and Watari

They had to go get Hayashi... poor souls 😩

Hama talking to Kamimura while he has privacy is strangely sweet... I'm glad he picked up the method from Wada

Minor wounds... head mostly fine

KAMIMURA HAS NO TONGUE???

Didn't know it was shirt, sweater then hoodie

HIS STOMACH IS OPEN? ORGANS ARE COMING OUT? HASEGAWA IS GOING TO LOSE IT?

Kamimura had a knife? Not for self harm I hope...

Kamimura lost his room key? Damn...

254 - Neon Hazard Forensic Inquest: Girls's Dormitory

Tsuno's room is wrecked? HOW MANY FIGHTS WENT ON, this is the episode before the next BDA right? WHO WAS IN HERE?

Monomoko not giving a damn about Watari's burning is a mood

I love this group collaboration

Hasegawa sounds so desperate...

Oh? Double set up

Hiroaki apologising to Mai about his behaviour and her awkwardly accepting the apology... character development

Mai beefing with Tamba so much do that she refuses to enter her room 👀

The implication that Hiroaki was looking at Yanagi's chest instead of his allegedly dirty room 😂

Hiroaki's still really affected by Chiba's death... aww

Hasegawa losing it at the brief body description... this trial will be hell for him

Yanagi wants to know why he was used by Sasaki in the decision game and the trial... he's finally realised, poor Yanagi

#tetro danganronpa pink #tetro danganronpa #tetro danganronpa spoilers #dr tetro #tetro pink #i need therapy after what they did to kamimura

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