#Norm: I swear to-if you don’t go to bed in the next five seconds will call Neytiri

[lloyd-007]

[haikyuuuuuhypeeeee]

Chapter 1

⚠WARNING: Mention of previous character death, swearing, drinking alcohol, brief mention of suicidal thoughts (it's not explicit but one sentence can be interpreted as such)

• ────── ✾ ────── •

No more messages come from the new group chat, and you let your phone slip from your fingers and onto the blankets. You’ve been in your bed since the morning, only able to drag yourself away to use the restroom and even then it was a struggle.

You don’t understand why it hurts so much more on anniversaries. It’s not like every other day is a walk in the park - every single day is agony, living without Hajime. The place where your heart used to sit is now a huge gaping hole, tender and painful to the touch. The first breath you take upon waking up is a painful gasp, remembering that your best friend and one true love is not on this Earth anymore.

But why do the anniversaries hurt so much more? Normally you’re able to exist in society, attend your classes, meet with your therapist and be with your friends. But just because today it’s an even five months that mean you have to suffer more?

You make a weak mental note to ask your therapist about it at your next session. Maybe she can suggest some new techniques or a better way for you to think about it.

But for today you burrow further into your sheets, rest your head on your pillow and try not to think of Hajime.

It lasts less than a minute before you’re pulling your phone back to your face and navigating to the chat you’ve saved. Calling it a chat is generous - it’s more of a diary, a place you can spill your dark secrets and harrowing thoughts. You feel some sort of comfort in this, knowing that you won’t have to worry about someone reading those messages. But that idea also fills you with heavy dread.

Tears pool in your eyes - sadness, frustration, anger, grief. It’s the feelings you’re more than familiar with but they still manage to knock you down.

Why? Why? Why?

A soft sob hitches in your throat but you swallow it down. You’ve already spent your day crying on and off, and not that Hajime isn’t worth the tears but you need to get some water and food in your system.

You find the strength to sit up from your bed and make your way to the kitchen. You ignore the vase of blooming lilies and orchids on your coffee table, a small gift from your parents. Living in a prefecture away from them is less than ideal, especially in your fragile state, but you wanted to stay where you grew up with your friends. They all remained at Sendai University so you followed suit.

Your parents check on you frequently (almost too much for what would be considered normal but your life isn’t normal anymore.) And they’re reassured by the constant support of your friends. And honestly, even though you miss your parents dearly, you’re happy with them not seeing you like this. You don’t have to put on any front or make any attempt to be ok.

And they don’t have to see you make the decision to down the whole bottle of wine in your fridge tonight.

(It’s not the smartest idea you’ve had in a long time, but the bottle is gonna go bad, you pair it with a sleeve of crackers and hey, you’re a fucking adult going through a rough time right now.)

You ceremoniously cheers the air with your bottle. “To Hajime, I miss you.” You sniffle before tipping the bottle to your mouth and taking a long drink. The cool liquid flows through your body and soon enough you let yourself fall back into the pillows.

They’re soft, almost like clouds. You float, seemingly suspended in time.

Somewhere in the back of your mind you wish you could be floating in the clouds with Hajime.

• ────── ✾ ────── •

While the wine gave you a dreamless sleep last night, it also delivered a mean hangover.

“Fuuuuuuck.” You moan as you sit up. It’s a mistake straight away, and you slowly ease yourself back down. Your stomach is screaming in protest and your head feels like it’s been split in two.

“Jesus Christ,” you swear to yourself. Why in the world did you drink a whole GD bottom of wine?? You knew this would happen, you freaking knew it. But it didn’t stop you from being an idiot.

You wave your hand in the air as if to dispel the nagging voice in your head. You take another second to steel yourself before sitting up, your movements slow and cautious. It’s an easier maneuver than before, but it’s still not great.

As you’re still adjusting to being upright, a chainsaw noise in your room makes you jump and clutch your head.

“Arrrggghhhhhhh!” Of course it’s not an actual chainsaw but your hearing is amplified in your weakened state. And not amplified in the way that gives you superhuman powers - the exact opposite, actually.

You lilt to the side to grab your phone before dragging yourself upright again. God damn, I’m never drinking again, you think to yourself before unlocking your phone to check the messages.

You set your phone down without replying to the group chat. Mattsun and Makki are right about Oikawa messaging way too early for lunch. He can live without a reply from you.

But you won’t be able to wait too long, lest Oikawa comes to your apartment and knocks your door down. It’s his default as a compassionate but hard-headed individual. Even before Hajime’s passing Oikawa would be the one to mother them all. He would aggressively shovel food in you or your friend’s mouths while berating you for forgetting lunch, or wrap you in his coat so tight that you couldn’t breathe but it instantly stopped you shivering.

Since Hajime’s passing Oikawa had definitely upped his mothering tendencies but the balance between nurturing and aggression was out of whack. It was fine on some days, like the time that someone had yelled at Makki for bumping into him which ended with Oikawa being dragged away by you and Mattsun screaming at the pale-faced stranger. But it was less than ideal on other days, like today.

Messages sent rapid fire, each with a building passive-aggression that your hungover brain doesn’t want to handle today, are now the norm with Oikawa.

But you handle it, and him, because you know he’s hurting right now. And if this is his way of coping then so be it.

You are about to unlock your phone to reply and cease his badgering, but a message comes through that makes you freeze.

• ────── ✾ ────── •

A/N: The very first chapter of this story! Just a note that this is not a full SMAU, there will be a good amount of written content throughout the story. It's difficult to convey the intense emotions our characters will be experiencing solely through text. If that's not your jam this story may not be for you. Thank you so much for reading!

Taglist Open! Please send an Ask with the request to be added to It’s [Not] Okay Fic & SMAU (bold cannot be tagged): @psycho-nightrose @camcam1617 @kamalymaly @toobsessedsstuff @shookykookie30 @roro-707 @qualitygiantshoepsychic @cerealfrdinner797 @ara-mitsue @gray-444 @tanakasimpcorner @rintarovibes @jellien

[maybedefinitely404]

Day 16: Prinxiety

@tsshipmonth2020

Heeey, look at that, I’m behind! Day 16: When your soulmate listens to music, you hear it in your own head as well. 

Content warnings: assumed death of a soulmate (he’s not dead), depression, general sad vibes.

Word count: 2.6k

Note: the songs referenced in this fic are IDK You Yet by Alexander 23 and Love is Gone by SLANDER. Both of these songs make me cry and were the inspiration for this.

It was at midnight on December 19th when Roman’s soulmark first appeared. He didn’t realize this until 1am.

Granted, he didn’t know it was his soulmark for the first hour.

At first, the almost imperceptible steady beat in his head just seemed like a song that had gotten stuck in there. He didn’t remember ever hearing the song, but it wasn’t unlikely that he’d heard the tune at the store or on the radio and it unconsciously ingrained itself into his memory. He was working on an assignment that was due in the morning, a script analysis for one of his Theatre courses, and had begun to bop his head along to the music when his roommate walked in, eyes bleary and arms laden with books.

“Why aren’t you in bed?” He asked through a yawn, dropping the books on his desk and flopping into the bottom bunk. 

“I could ask you the same question, Pat,” Roman hummed, completing his conclusion paragraph with a dramatic flair of his hands. “Just finished my paper. Going now.”

“Lost track of time at the library,” Patton murmured in response, draping his arms over his eyes. 

Closing his computer, Roman popped his back and climbed up the small ladder into the top bunk, using his cellphone as a flashlight. He assumed Patton was already fast asleep (the man could fall asleep at the drop of a hat) and tried to follow suit, only to sit up in annoyance after several minutes.

Whatever song was stuck in his head was keeping him up. 

He remembered a tip he’d seen on the internet once, that said if you sing the last part of the song, it’s easier to get out of your head. Something about ‘your brain needing to complete it to be satisfied’ or whatever. As hard as he focused, though, he couldn’t for the life of him figure out what song it was, much less the ending. 

The more he concentrated on it, the louder it seemed to get, until it was no longer a hum of bass in the back of his skull, and he could make out the lyrics, the guitar solos, everything. He definitely hadn’t heard this song before. It wasn’t the kind you’d hear playing in public; it was loud, swears thrown in every chorus, just generally the kind of thing you’d hear in a Hot Topic but nowhere else. 

And then it stopped.

For a split second he was pleased, thanking his brain for finally shutting off, and conceded to lie back down. He might be able to get six hours of sleep at this rate. Pretty good, for a college student. 

Except as soon as he closed his eyes, another song started. It was another one he didn’t know, one he would have no way of knowing each word to. The realization hit him hard and his eyes shot open, nearly falling off the ladder in his haste to climb down.

“Roman? Everything okay?” Patton drawled, clearly having been woken up by Roman’s enthusiasm. 

“My soulbond!”

“What?!” That got his attention and he jerked up, narrowly missing whacking his head on the top bunk.

“The music in my head all night, it’s my soulmate! It must be his birthday!”

He was pulling up music on his laptop before he’d even processed it, hands freezing over the keyboard as his brain grasped for something to play. What could he play that would properly introduce himself to his soulmate? A show tune? Something from the 80s? But his mind had gone completely blank, and he couldn’t think of a single one.

“What do I play, Pat?” He gasped, tapping the mousepad in time with the upbeat tempo in his head. 

Patton was suddenly leaning over his shoulder, clacking a name into the search bar before pressing enter. Roman narrowed his eyes 

“Why that one?”

Patton shrugged, “It’s kind of cheesy romantic, like you. And the first line is fitting.”

“A valid point,” Roman announced, closing his eyes to listen for a pause as the music switched. The second the song ended, he slammed the space bar, begging it to play before the next one started. 

How can you miss someone you’ve never met?

Because I need you now but I don’t know you yet,

But can you find me soon, because I’m in my head,

Yeah, I need you now but I don't know you yet.

A little more depressing than he initially would have chosen, but he could see Patton’s point. The music on the other end had been paused and he smiled in accomplishment, knowing that he must have heard. He let the song play to the end of the first chorus before pausing it, waiting with his roommate with baited breath.

The silence was almost unbearably long, Patton watching him intently for some kind of indication that the music was back.

Hello,

It’s me.

Adele’s soothing melody filled his mind and he absolutely wheezed with laughter. Patton grinned and let him explain through gasps for air, and he let out a giggle in response.

“Okay,” Roman snorted, “What next?”

Patton passed out probably an hour later after helping Roman pick out songs that would adequately encompass him as a person, but the theatre student didn’t sleep last night. Eventually him and his soulmate found a nice rhythm, each playing a song in turn. It didn’t take long for him to assume that his soulmate was emo (a fact that had him blushing furiously), simply due to the overwhelming amount of My Chemical Romance and Green Day played in his head, and he figured it was probably pretty obvious that he was a theatre kid. The second song he played was from Heathers, afterall. 

When his eyes finally started drooping too much to ignore, he knew he had to end this soon. The soulmate’s song ended and he quickly pulled up the first thing he’d thought of, a children’s lullaby, trying to indicate that he had to sleep.

There was quiet on the other end when the song ended, before the beginning trills of Baby Shark started playing and he groaned, quickly muffling the sound with his hand so as to not wake his roommate. He didn’t let it play past one verse, thank Olympus, and then his mind was quiet for the first time in many hours. It seemed like a mutual agreement that ‘now is sleep time’, and Roman went to sleep with a smile on his face.

Their new norm was quickly established in the following weeks. It became obvious almost right away that playing their music at the same time was cacophonous and only caused headaches, so they eventually settled on switching days. Every second morning, Roman would wake up to his alarm and quickly start his morning playlist, a set of rousing, uplifting, exciting songs to get his blood flowing for the day. It was his day to choose the music, so he’d set his walking playlist for class and his study one for the evenings, sometimes playing an adventure podcast or something to spice things up. The other days, he’d be woken by the soft notes of melancholy tunes, starting the day slowly. As the morning progressed, usually by the time he was eating breakfast, the tone would change to something a little more fast paced, as if his soulmate needed to warm up before getting to the main act. As much as the music wasn’t his style, he found himself keeping pace to the beat with his steps, bopping his head along to the melody, humming a harmony to the more commonly played ones. Just knowing that this was his soulmate made it better. 

And then, one day… the music stopped. 

He’d woken up around noon, not a big deal since he didn’t have classes until after lunch anyways, but he knew for a fact that his soulmate was always up by 10, latest. Whether the other had classes or a job that kept his schedule, he didn’t know. It was an oddity for sure that there was no alarm. 

He put it off to the other probably having a sick day, or a free schedule, and he was sleeping in for once. The worry only started creeping in near the evening, when usually at this time, the music would start slowing down again as the sun set. There hadn’t been a peep all day, which was very unlike either of them. Even though the silence bothered him, he wouldn’t dare intrude on the other’s day, so he studied and ate dinner in silence, tapping his pencil against the table. Of course, he put it off to a one day fluke. 

Except, two days after, when it should have been his soulmate’s turn again, there was no music. And the time after that. And the one after that. It was almost two weeks of radio silence on the other end before he called Patton through broken sobs, pleading for him to stop studying and come back to the dorm. Obviously, he made the ten minute walk in five. 

And then Roman admitted the way his anxieties had been spiralling.

“What if- What if our soulbond broke? Did the universe realize we were a mistake? Or… or what if he died?! What if he’s hurt or dying or alone and I’m just-”

Patton shushed him gently, rubbing his back as Roman hiccuped into his shoulder. “When did this start?”

“Two- two weeks ago.”

“Then isn’t it possible that he just isn’t listening to music for a little while? Maybe he’s… somewhere without wifi. Or his phone broke.”

Even though he very much didn’t believe a word Patton was saying, he nodded along messily, clutching Patton’s shirt tighter. He eventually agreed to give him more time, hold on just a little longer, before completely giving up.

It took about a month before he did, and it didn’t get better from there. 

Their consistency had been their norm for almost nine months, over summer break and now into the new school year, and now it was torn away without warning. Roman refused to listen to music on days that weren’t his, even though Patton tried to tell him it was okay, but he wouldn’t. It didn’t feel right. He mourned his soulmate the same way he would mourn a close friend’s death, for he truly believed he was gone for good. The person he’d barely gotten to understand, much less meet, and he was just… gone. He was going to live the rest of his life without a soulmate.

Most nights he just did the bare basics of the homework he had to do, without any of the old flair he’d put into all his work, and curled onto his bed to watch a show or, on his days, listen to music. His old playlists had shifted to the bottom of his rotation, now only bringing sadder memories that Patton had insisted he not indulge in at this point, so it was usually just automated lists he found. Nothing was special about them anymore. 

Today was his day, an uneventful Saturday where the most exciting occurrence was Patton convincing him to come to the cafeteria and eat with other people. It had been tiring and only made him feel more alone, so his daily scheduled moping times had come up a little earlier. Patton had given him a hug and a gentle kiss on the head, telling him he had to go meet some people for a group project, and to call if he needed anything, before grabbing his bag and leaving. Roman didn’t miss the sad look tossed his way before the door shut.

Despite Patton’s advice, he was feeling particularly shitty today, and his fingers, seemingly with a mind of their own, pulled up one of his older playlists. One of the ones that was reminiscent of days when he actually had a soulmate. He clicked shuffle and tossed the phone onto the pillow next to his head, curling that much deeper into his blankets, as if he could somehow refill the void that had been cut out of him. 

How can you miss someone you’ve never met?

Because I need you now but I don’t know you yet,

But can you find me soon, because I’m in my head,

Yeah, I need you now but I don't know you yet.

The first song he’d ever played had become a sort of inside joke between them. Despite the song’s sad melody and somber lyrics, it was a reminder of the first time they’d interacted; an awkward, laughter filled night. At least, it had been on Roman’s night, and he could only hope it had been the same on the other end. 

He didn’t even realize he was crying until the pillow beneath him was tear stained and gross to lay on. Why had the universe chosen him as the target for its cruel irony? Not that he wished this on anyone else… but why couldn’t soulmates be foolproof? Why was there that margin for error, the always-there possibility that everything you’ve ever dreamed of will be ripped out of your hands just as soon as you think you have it? So close, but so far. At least before they’d connected, he’d lived in blissful hope and ignorance. 

The song ended and he pressed pause lethargically, not able to find the emotional strength to listen to more. Maybe Patton had been right. A glance out the window showed that it was well past nightfall, the full moon gleaming into his window, and he decided to just sleep the emptiness away. It hadn’t worked so far, but maybe tonight was the night. He turned off his phone screen and plugged it in to charge, rolling away to face the wall, and waited for the soothing peace of sleep to take over him.

At first, he thought it was just a hallucination, wishful thinking. More than once in the three months since his soulmate disappeared, he’d thought he’d heard music, only for the feeling to disappear as soon as he focused on it. A soulbond only became louder when concentrated on, so he eventually realized he was doing it to himself subconsciously, his mind struggling to fill the emptiness that had once been filled by the other’s music. 

When it disappeared, he figured it was music from someone else’s dorm filtering through the thin walls. But no, this was too clear, too distinct, too ingrained, to be coming from an external source.

He calmed his racing heart before he could jump to conclusions. This music isn’t like what his used to be. It must be your brain, because he’s gone. He’s GONE, Roman.

Much as he tried to push it down, he couldn’t. It was becoming evident that no, something was happening, and it had to do with his soulmate. As he had done for the time he’d known (could it be considered ‘knowing’) the other, he concentrated on the lyrics, because those were the only feeble ways they’d interacted in those times. 

I’m sorry,

Don’t leave me,

I want you here with me, 

I know that your love is gone.

I can’t breathe,

I’m so weak, 

I know this isn’t easy,

Don’t tell me that your love is gone,

That your love is gone.

Patton walked in after his group meeting to see Roman sobbing in his bed and, immediately assuming the worst, he jumped onto the bed and pulled him into his arms. Through gasps for breath, Roman was able to choke out that, “He’s back. He’s playing music. He’s back. He’s back.”

Part 2 HERE

[mrsalwayswrite]

To Call Forth Love - Chapter 3

Here is the next chapter! Yay! 

Words:5500

Warnings: mild swearing, possessive Ivar (maybe?), mild sexual tension, hint of violence

Series Masterlist

Tags: @youbloodymadgenius​

"Korítsi, one of these days I'll convince you to take a day off." (Greek: girl)

 Kari smiled as she re-tied her ponytail. Glancing over at her boss, she replied. "You would miss me too much. Besides you know I like working here."

 The woman shook her head. "You need a life outside of working- friends, a lover, anything besides this studio."

 "You just like listening to drama."

 "I'm happily married with my dream job; I need you ladies and your drama to keep me entertained. 

 Kari could only laugh along with her boss. Lydia Hansen was the best boss she could ever have asked for. The woman was in her mid-thirties, settled in life and always happy with a smile on her face and a kind word to share. She also had a mischievous side where she loved listening to the drama of her female workers, many coming to her for romantic advice or to vent about relationships. 

 Lydia leaned forward in her chair, putting an elbow on the desk beside her as she watched Kari. Even under the fluorescent lights, Kari thought the woman looked beautiful with her naturally tanned skin, short black hair and strong Mediterranean features. Kari could not help feeling like a used ragdoll next to her. 

"Why don't you come in at nine tomorrow morning, I can open the studio."

 Kari turned around after grabbing her purse from her locker. "Tonight is date night for you and Nels, which means several glasses of wine and you naked in your bed. If your stories are to be believed. So I'm guessing you don't want to be here at six-thirty tomorrow morning. Really, it's fine. I don't mind opening. I do it often enough."

 "And that's the problem. You've opened the majority of the time the past two weeks."

 "It's only until Sasha comes back from her family's funeral." Kari reminded her. 

 "Fine." Lydia huffed, then pointed a finger at her. "Then you're taking time off. I'll bar you from coming to work if you try to sneak in."

 "What if I want to come for classes?"

 "No. I'll kick you out of my studio. Do your yoga at home. By the skies above, you are a yoga instructor yourself. Just pretend to be teaching but alone….and at home!"

 The brunette smiled at her boss, knowing all of this was because Lydia actually cared for her employees. Both their physical and mental health. "No promises. Tell Nels 'hi' for me. See you tomorrow."

 "Go do something fun for once!" 

 Kari walked out of the office, chuckling. She waved to a coworker as she passed the front entrance before stepping outside into the late afternoon sun. Checking the time on her phone, she tossed it into her teal hobo bag and slung it over her shoulder, making her way towards the bus stop. In her black leggings, sneakers and purple racerback tank top with Whole Wellness Yoga Studio printed on the front, she could not help but feel slightly out of place as she walked the streets. Though no one gave her a second glance, she always felt like a fraud as she passed others by. The location of the yoga studio she worked at was certainly in the more affluent part of the city, and it showed by the manner of businesses in proximity and the looks and clothing of those who passed her by. 

 At one time she had worn expensive clothing, never paying attention to price tags, but those days were in the past. Although she adored working at the yoga studio, it barely made ends meet. Lydia mentioned once promoting her in the future to a manager, which came as a surprise since Kari had only been working there for just over a year. For now though, she was content with life. Happier than she had been in a long time. Even if her life seemed boring to others, only focusing on work and what the next book or TV series to enjoy was. It was her life, her choices. 

 For a brief second, she paused in her walk, thinking she had heard someone call her name. Which was highly unlikely since, truthfully, she hardly knew anyone in this city. With a mental shrug, she continued on, enjoying the feeling of the sunshine on her exposed skin. 

 "Kari Larsen! Don't you ignore me!" 

 The sudden scream made the brunette freeze in place, stunned and slightly terrified. Hesitantly, she turned, scanning around to see who had yelled for her attention. Luckily, it did not take long to notice the tall, blonde wearing the thigh-high boots and white, boho dress waving like a mad woman as she leaned over the short half-railing, separating the sidewalk and the restaurant's seating. 

 Smiling, Kari made her way back towards the woman, who beamed at her. "Gyda! When did you get back?"

 "Just yesterday. I know I say this every time but jetlag is a bitch." Gyda sighed dramatically, though her eyes twinkled in mirth. Leaning against the half-railing, she towered over Kari. On a good day, she stood just under six feet but with the short-heeled boots today, she peered down like a goddess from Valhalla surveying the lesser mortals. 

 "I don't know how you do it." Kari shook her head, adjusting her bag on her shoulder. 

 "Eh, you make it work." Gyda turned and peeked over her shoulder for a second before looking back at Kari. "What are you doing? Just get off work?"

 "Yeah. Heading home."

 "Do you want a ride?" She offered, tapping a finger along the railing. 

 Kari could feel the stares of the other patrons sitting outside and the wait staff, most likely wondering why someone like her was conversing with Gyda. Awkwardly, she toyed with her trusty diamond stud in her earlobe. "Not this time, but thank you. I'm sure you want to get back to your friends." 

 "It's just some of my many siblings and Torvi."

 "Oh, you'll have to tell her I said 'hi'."

 Gyda was a regular at the yoga studio when her schedule allowed. As a freelance writer, her schedule was chaotic at the best for time. Lately most of her works had been commissioned for traveling magazines, so her time coming to the studio was sporadic based on when she was in the country. It was through the studio that Gyda and Kari met. They would occasionally exchange pleasantries before or after Kari's class or in passing. Their friendship solidified only after Gyda found Kari standing at the bus stop in the cold rain months ago and offered to give her a ride home. They had met up a handful of times so Kari could hear all about the latest places Gyda visited and see the pictures she took, satisfying her own travel-wandering soul, sealing their friendship. 

 And through Gyda, Kari met Torvi. Though both women were at least ten years her senior, she enjoyed their presence and conversations. Torvi only came occasionally with Gyda as her guest to the yoga studio. At first, Kari was surprised when she learned they were sisters-in-law because of how close they seemed. Yet she found it refreshing, since most of her experience with family was tense to say the least. It was nice to know her own family's tendencies were not the norm. 

 "I will." The blonde exclaimed, her smile widening. "Oh! Do you want to meet Bjorn? I know you've heard Torvi and I talk about him enough that it's funny you haven't met him yet."

 "Oh, I'd hate to interrupt…."

 "Shut up. You're meeting him. Come on, I'll let you in through the main door, meet me over there." Then she spun on her heel and sashayed away, garnering a few lingering looks from nearby patrons. 

 If there was one thing Kari learned over the past several months of knowing Gyda, it was that the woman was head-strong and always got her way. So with an amused roll of her eyes, Kari headed around the restaurant to its main entrance just off the side of the busy sidewalk. The restaurant screamed money and prestige, something Kari learned both Gyda and Torvi had in spades. It was unnerving at first but their welcoming and kind presences help alleviate Kari's fears of being viewed as less. 

 Sure enough, Gyda stood waiting for her by the door. Chatting like a bird, she slipped her arm through Kari's and led her past the shocked waitstaff. The restaurant was even more impressive inside than how it appeared from the street. It was modern with a sharp black and white color scheme, tasteful and exquisite photos on the walls, and dark wood tables and chairs. Kari figured the price of a meal here was similar in cost to her monthly rent. 

 Gyda led her to a table that was outside in the sun, but partitioned from the street by the half-wall railing she had leaned over earlier to get Kari's attention. The brunette quickly counted five people already sitting there, apparently carrying on a lively conversation if the laughter meant anything. Before she could get a good look, Gyda directed her towards Torvi who reclined next to a man with an imposing physique and a long, blond, braided ponytail in a smart suit. 

 "Kari, this is my brother and Torvi's husband, Bjorn."

 "It's a pleasure to meet you." Kari smiled politely, taking his outstretched hand in a handshake. 

 "Likewise. So, you are the famous yoga instructor these two go on about?" He asked, with a twinkle in his bright blue eyes. "I must confess, I find yoga a peculiar activity but with it helping Torvi's flexibility while we…."

 Torvi smacked his shoulder, making the men around the table laugh. "Ignore him, Kari. I don't know why I bring him out in public."

 "Hey!" He pulled her closer and planted a loud kiss on her cheek. "You love me."

 "Mmm…. most days."

 At that point, Kari looked up to peek at the others sitting at the table, ready to greet and then head out. Except the first thing she saw was a pair of stunning blue eyes that captured her gaze. Unable to move or look away, as if he was physically restraining her with only his gaze, her heart soared and stomach dropped simultaneously. 

 It was only when Gyda started to introduce the others at the table that she ripped her gaze from his, all the while feeling his eyes never leaving her. 

 "Let me introduce these other assholes quick. At the head of the table is Uncle Floki, and the two idiots across from us are Bjorn and my half-brothers, Hvitserk and Ivar."

 Hvitserk greeted her with a flirty smile on his boyish face; while the strange-looking man, Floki, just gave a single nod in acknowledgement.  

 "We've already met," Ivar said with a wicked smirk, letting his eyes blatantly trail over her form while he ran his tongue over his bottom lip, "isn't that right, kitten?"

 Kari hated how just from the sound of the pet name, her heart beat increased traitorously and a flush rose to her cheeks. It brought to mind how his hands gripped her hips, caging her to him, how his lips and tongue caressed her skin, the peak of pleasure that crashed over her without warning...and about all the ice cubes and make up she had to use to get conceal the marks and hickeys he decorated her skin with. "Um, yeah, sort of. I…. I didn't catch your name though."

 "It's alright. I can't blame you as we were otherwise…. preoccupied." The blue-eyed devil teased, either uncaring or not noticing the inquisitive looks from the others at the table. It was unfair how striking he looked in a simple black t-shirt, showcasing his broad shoulders and muscular arms that were award-worthy. 

 Mortification was the best description of emotion causing Kari to further flush but also avert her gaze to the food-laden table. For some reason she figured the likelihood of her ever meeting Ivar again was slim to none. Clearly they ran in different social circles and really they had no reason to bump into one another. Apparently universe, fate, whatever decided her life was going too well and decided to throw a curveball at her. Then to make matters worse, here he sat arrogantly and alluding to what occurred between them in front of his family. 

 It had not gone unnoticed by her that Gyda mentioned Ivar was her half-brother, making her a Lothbrok too, even if she did not go by that last name. 

 Kari peered around the table, a polite smile on her face in a poor attempt to mask any further revealing thoughts. "Well, it was lovely to meet you all but I need to be going." 

 "You sure you don't want a ride?" Gyda kindly offered again, already reaching over to grab her own purse. "It's not a problem." 

 "No, stay. The bus should be here in a couple minutes. Your food is getting cold."

 Gyda opened her mouth to say something, then seemed to reconsider and instead gave her a quick embrace. "Ok, I'll stop by the studio this week and we can catch up."

 "I'll hold you to that." Kari returned the hug; her body tingled as if bugs crawled all over skin making her want to flee the restaurant even faster. With a hurried "goodbye" to everyone else, trying to avoid Ivar's penetrating gaze, she headed out of the restaurant. With the looks she received from the waitstaff and patrons, she quickened her pace, feeling like an intruder in the lavish establishment. 

 Soon as she stepped outside, back onto the busy sidewalk and warm sun, she inhaled a deep breath. A part of her felt awful for how quickly she ditched Gyda, who had only ever been kind to her. Truthfully, she had wanted to meet Bjorn because of the stories both Gyda and Torvi shared. 

 All of that had been eclipsed by the sight of the man she had made-out with over a week ago in that dark club…. Ivar Lothbrok.  

 Never aloud would she admit how often she thought about him since their encounter. Yet she knew it was best to stay away from him, ever if a part of her fought the notion. It would be safer, for both of them. 

 Now suddenly coming face-to-face with him, her emotions warred within her as to how she should feel. 

 Her feet hurried along the sidewalk, worried she would miss her bus because of her detour in the restaurant….and maybe a piece of her needed to put distance between herself and the handsome, cocky man that plagued her thoughts. At the crosswalk, she practically bounced on her toes, willing the light to change color faster. Her mind whirled with the new information of Gyda's relations. Could they still be friends? It also answered her unspoken question of where the wealth came from that Gyda and Torvi were accustomed too. The Lothbroks may not be a household name but it was certainly known in the business world, especially since the many sons had stepped up and expanded its empire. 

 Without warning, a firm hand grabbed her upper arm, whipping her around. A shriek stuck on the tip of her tongue at the unexpected action. She turned to be greeted by a stunned pair of eyes and open mouth. 

 "Oh, I'm so sorry, I thought you were someone else." The flustered man said, retracting his hand from her and rubbing his beard with it self-consciously. "No wonder you didn't answer when I called…. I thought you were ignoring me. Are you OK? I'm so sorry again. "

 She placed a hand over her chest, heart hammering almost painfully. The man appeared so concerned about scaring her, it was endearing. "It's fine. You just startled me, I guess I was thinking too hard."

 He shuffled his feet for a moment, looking down at them before looking up again. "I'm Daniel, by the way."

 "Kari."

 "You headed, ah, to the bus stop too?"

 A genuine smile touched her lips as he sided up next to her amongst the crowd of others waiting to cross the street. "Yeah, actually. Just got off work."

 "Hey! What a coincidence. I plan on going home, eating whatever is in my fridge that doesn't have mold on it yet and sitting on the couch watching TV for at least the next three hours."

 "That sounds amazing. I may have to steal that idea."

 He turned to face her, placing his hand on her shoulder, and stared at her in mock seriousness that made her giggle. "I give you full permission, no need for thievery. And don't eat something healthy, it's a perfect night for gluttony."

 Before she could respond with her own quip, someone grabbed Daniel from behind, throwing him to the ground. Bystanders barely made it out of the way as Daniel just caught himself on his hands and knees. 

 "GET YOUR FUCKING HANDS OFF HER!"

 Kari stared in horror as Ivar loomed over Daniel, fists clenched and eyes blazing. Everyone nearby drew back, creating a wide circle and warily watching the fight that was threatening to happen. 

 "Ivar, stop!" Kari tried to move between the two men but he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her back behind him effortlessly. 

 Daniel hesitantly got up, scraped hands held up in surrender. "Sorry, man. I swear I wasn't trying to make a pass on your girl. Just making conversation."

 "Sure. Now fuck off and don't let me fucking see you around her again." He seethed; the words spat out from between clenched teeth. 

 Eyeing Ivar as if he expected the man to suddenly attack him again, Daniel started walking away in the opposite direction, casting occasional glances over his shoulder. 

 At this point the light for the crosswalk turned green and those bystanders waiting began to move, all the while still leaving a wide berth around Ivar and Kari. Though she tried to ignore them, she could not help but catch a few looks of concern and pity directed towards her. 

 Pulling away from the arm still around her waist, Kari made to cross the street when Ivar grabbed her wrist. 

 "Where are you going?" He demanded, lingering fury coloring his tone.

 "My bus is just up there. I need to go or I'll miss it."

 "No, I'm giving you a ride home."

 "What? No, I don't need…. I told Gyda it's fine."

 He scoffed, relinquishing his hold on her wrist. "I'm not doing this for Gyda, now come on."

 "No, really, I…."

 "It wasn't a suggestion."

 Equal parts dumbfounded and angry, she looked back up the street only to see the doors of the bus closing. She closed her eyes for a second, begging for patience and understanding. What she really wanted to do was ignore Ivar and walk away, find somewhere to wait for the next bus. But if Ivar had followed her from the restaurant and was now demanding he give her a ride home, she figured he would not be beyond dragging her over to his car, or whatever he rode in, and continuing to make a scene. It made no sense why he would follow her to offer a ride or attack a random man. She wondered if this was the Ivar Lothbrok that her friends warned her about. 

 Deep down, she found herself still wanting to be around him again. To see if the man she met at the club was the real him or just a mask…. plus, she hated to wait for the next bus. There was a creepy lady that liked to sit next to her and tell her about the latest escapades of her many gerbils or the newest “friend” her adult son brought home for the night. 

 "Fine." She stated, turning back to him. 

 "Good girl. This way."

 Silently, she followed him back towards the restaurant and down the next street to a luxury Mercedes car. In her mind, she decided that just because she was getting a ride from him did not mean she had to be friendly. Her plan was to ignore him and stare out the window. Hopefully that was enough of a hint to leave her alone. He was the one who chased her down to give her a ride. His infuriating actions may have spurred her pettiness to supersede the wisdom of ignoring him, especially knowing he was a Lothbrok. 

 The driver held the door open for both of them to slide in. The bench seat was spacious with a detailed leather interior and that unique new card smell. Another time, Kari may have loved to ride around in a vehicle like this, pretending to be a celebrity or someone important. Now she just wanted to get home. Even if that traitorous part silently ogled him, an arm’s length away from her. 

 "Where to, sir?" The driver asked once he took his seat in the front. 

 Then with an arrogant smirk, Ivar rattled off Kari's address. 

 Kari's plans to ignore him flew out the window. She stared open-mouthed as he leaned back in the seat, brace-covered legs spread out obnoxiously. The first real trickle of fear since meeting him danced up her spine. 

 "How? I mean…. are you…. stalking me?"

 He laughed, cocking his head to the side, to eye her lazily. "You're harder to track down than most people. No social media really. Pay most things with cash. It's like you're trying to hide something."

 She gulped, the revelation he could find out all that about her so easily was unnerving. But his last statement hit a little too close to the truth to bring her comfort. 

 "But it wasn't too difficult." He added brazenly, apparently ignorant of the anxiety his prior statement caused. "And now I found you." 

 "Why? I mean… why were you looking for me?"

 He stared at her, those predatory eyes prying into her soul. She shifted awkwardly, wishing to be free from his gaze but unable to tear herself away on her own accord. Caught in his trap, his web, all she could hope for was mercy. Unconsciously, her eyes drifted down to view his lips, the memory of them against hers at the forefront of her mind…. even more than the anxiety still skating on her nerves. 

 In an instant, he reached over and hauled her across the bench seat and into his lap. A squeak flew from her as she abruptly found herself sitting sideways on his legs. 

 As her mind raced to figure out what to do, and honestly how to feel about this, his lips descended on hers and all prior thoughts vanished. His tongue invaded her mouth, forcing hers to comply, demanding attention. Without hesitation, she gave in. Her hands traced his sideburns and the braids on the top of his head. No matter how many times she tried to forget his touch, his kisses, it haunted her. Now having his lips on hers once again, she found even her memories were incomparable to the actual feel, of his lips, his hands, his breath, his body, his scent. It all drew her in like a beacon, directing her to her greatest desire and darkest temptation. 

 "All I can think about is you." He murmured, his tongue tracing her bottom lip. "Fuck…. how good you taste, how good you feel…. I could barely focus on work."

 "Ivar…" she moaned, feeling herself melting under his touch. As he pressed kisses along her jawline, a quiver ran through her but instead of feeling ashamed like before, she tilted her head to expose more of her neck. Normally so reserved with physical touch, for some unexplainable reason, she felt safe enough to embrace her wanton side with him. Somehow, she knew he would not make fun of her actions. Perhaps it was because of his reaction when finding out her virginal status. All she knew was his touch, his very presence, drew forth a side of her previously unknown while making her feel safe. 

 His hands gripped her with an almost possessive hold. "Gods, I want you." He groaned against her pulse point, the sound wicked with the sheer desire infused in it. 

 And for some reason, those three words broke the spell holding her hostage to him. 

 She froze. Slowly she leaned back to stare at him. The truth, the confession, tasted like poison on the tip of her tongue. 

 "I…. I can't." She whispered, hating how weak her voice sounded. 

 "What are you talking about?"

 "I won't…. I'm not having sex with you."

 What lust and tenderness towards her vanished in the blink of an eye. His hands that had been caressing, now gripped painfully. Eyes that beheld her as a goddess, now threatened to cut her without remorse. The very air between them threatened to catch fire with a single spark due to the tension. 

 "Why not? Cause I'm a cripple?" He snarled at her like an enraged animal. "You'll kiss me and let me get you off but you won't fuck me? Or did your friends tell you who I am? Is that it? Now that you know who I am, you're going to run away?"

 "No, it's not… no, I don't think I'm the kind of girl you'd want." Tears welled in her eyes, both from fear and the physical pain he was causing with his forceful grip. 

 "And what the fuck does that mean? You know me so well, huh?"

 That poisonous truth dripped off her tongue once again. How could she tell him that if he truly knew who she was, he would reject her? It was not even a question but a fact. It was better for both of them to stay away, to never see one another again. How twisted was her truth, how deceptive was she in the face of a man known for his violence. Even as her innermost being begged to let go of her past self and embrace this…. embrace him.  

 "I'm nobody. I'm boring. I don't have money or influence. I just am…. You'd get tired of me in like two days." She took a steadying breath, her hands fiddling in her lap as to avoid his piercing gaze. The lilac color on her nails was starting to chip at the edges, redirecting her attention for a brief second. Even if all she wanted to do was run, avoid this conversation like the plague, she knew in a way, she owed him the truth. Her next words came out in a rush, otherwise she knew they would never pass her lips. "And I don't want to have sex until I'm ready and with someone who cares about me."

 She wondered if this was the spark to set him off. How quickly he would reject her, push her off his lap, laugh in her face for her orthodox ideal, call her frigid like others before. Mentally, she prepared for it, even if every time the words were still a dagger to her heart. This time would be no different. 

 What she did not expect was after almost a minute of painful silence, for him to gently grip her chin and turn her head to face him once again. 

 "Go on a date with me."

 She balked. "What?"

 He stroked her cheek, his hand that had been gripping her thigh, most likely leaving vivid bruises, now created soothing circles. It was his voice that shocked her the most. What had been harsh and unrelenting in cruelty now was soft and gentle. "Let me take you out. I'll even follow your damn rule of no sex. Though I know you want me just as much."

 "Ivar…."

 "You can't deny it." He taunted, with a devilish grin, "You like the idea of me touching you, bringing you pleasure, showing you what you've been missing with my fingers," teasingly, he glided his fingers along her inner thigh, close to her core, "and my tongue," he licked the shell of her ear before whispering the next part, "and my cock. Tell me you haven't thought about it."

 Her breath hitched with each movement of his, his filthy words making her wet without her conscious approval and the cocky bastard knew it. "I…. please stop…." She tried to plead, only to make him laugh. 

 "Stop lying to both of us."

 "Please, don't do this. I just can't."

 "Why not?" Jaw tense, he regarded her with a look of pure hunger but also exasperation. "Give me a damn good reason."

 "It's better if we don't."

 He leaned back fully in his seat as if examining her. That devious and deadly gaze pinned her, reading her very thoughts and secrets. Beneath it she felt vulnerable and naked, something she detested. She tried to squirm out of his lap, to put necessary distance between them. His hands only tightened on her, keeping her restrained in his lap. 

 "It's not…" he started then stopped to lick his lips. And there it was, a glimpse behind the mask, that vulnerability she caught a peek of when they were at the club, "...because I'm a cripple?"

 "What? No, not at all. That doesn't…. no, you're beautiful." Soon as the last word left her mouth, her absolute shock at his question morphed into humiliation. Both of her hands flew up to cover her face, burning with embarrassment.

 "Beautiful, huh?"

 "Shut up."

 He chuckled, running his nose along the column of her neck and sending a shiver down her spine. "And you still won't go on a date with me?"

 Cautiously, she eased her hands from her face to meet his amused gaze. "I'm sorry." She replied with a shake of her head. 

 He eyed her as if trying to suss out more of her secrets, head tilted to the side and eyebrows furrowed slightly. After a long moment, he smirked. "Alright. We'll see about that."

 "What?"

 "You heard me. You'll change your mind eventually. I can be very persistent with something I want."

 With a push of a button on a nearby console, loud music filled the air but he did not release her. Instead, he continued to stroke her back or legs as he gazed out the window. Every time she tried to squirm out of lap, he would tighten his grip on her hip or thigh, silently demanding she remain. Finally, she gave up and relaxed against him, enjoying his soothing touches and the warmth of his body. 

 Ivar Lothbrok was the most complicated man she had ever met. Just in the past hour, she witnessed him go from cocky to murderous to sensual and now dare she even say…. charming. It baffled her that he purposefully sought her out, even if it was stalker-ish. That he wanted to go on a date with her, knowing she would not put out at the end for him. Her image of him and the one painted by her friends were so vastly different…. she wondered which one to believe. Not that it truly mattered, since they would not be seeing each other after this. She could not open that door. It was better this way. 

 She was disheartened when they reached her home. The way their bodies fit perfectly together, how comforting his touch and presence was, it was unnerving and intriguing. A small part of her wished the drive was longer so they could continue remaining in this bubble of illusion. That she could soak this feeling up just a bit more, for something to hold onto when she was alone. How life could have been between them if fate was different. 

 The driver pulled up the luxury car in front of the unoccupied, short driveway. With no car there, that meant her roommate was not at the townhouse. Probably for the best, since if Alana had seen Kari getting out of a vehicle with Ivar, she would have lost her shit. 

 "Come on… tonight." He whispered into her ear, entwining their fingers, those exquisite eyes begging for her to change her mind. "Let me take you out, kitten."

 "I can't…. but we can be friends... if you want." 

 Soon as the words left her mouth, she cringed. What kind of stupid thing was that to say? She needed to stay away from him, she knew it. But seeing that last hopeful gleam in his eyes and the despair that replaced it as she told him 'no' once again…. it was too much. 

 A cocky smirk slowly spread on his lips, like he knew something that she was not privy to. He laid a kiss on the back of their entwined hands. "If you say so."

 Carefully, he helped maneuver her off his lap, and out of the vehicle, his hands grazing over her hips and thighs quickly. She turned around and raised an eyebrow, for him to only stare at her in an innocent expression. Instead of being upset, like she should have been, she just rolled her eyes and unsuccessfully tried to keep the smile off her lips. 

 "Um, thanks for the ride." 

 "Yeah. See you soon…. friend." With a teasing wink, he closed the door and a second later, the vehicle pulled away. 

 She watched the car drive away and wondered why the word 'friend' left a sour taste in her mouth. 

[mashupxreader]

Little Buddy

This is Little Buddy #2 

Little Buddy Chapter 1 

Hello, love bugs.

Din Djanin X Fem Reader 

Warnings - Talk of sex, drinking and drugs, swears but that's just because I like to swear.

Summary - Never have I ever in the void of space. 

"The little green bean is finally asleep." You said, throwing yourself into the seat off to the Mandalorians left. "You wouldn't think it from his cute little face but he sure can cry."

"If you would stop telling him you stole his nose he wouldn't cry so much," Mando said dryly as he continued to flip switches and monitor gages.

"But that pouty face is so cute. Does he make your mothering instincts come out too?" At this point, you had been on the ship with Mando and the kid for about two weeks. The start of everything was a little awkward. Mando is not much of a talker and is usually all business. You like to think; however, you have started to break him so that he talks a little more. Maybe it was the fact that you never shut up or that you were not used to the complete quiet of space, but he seemed to be fine with your chatting.

"You can go to bed if you want we have a while before we're close to the next planet." Mando let out a sigh. He was thankful for your extra help but switching off between using the little bunk and the chairs to sleep in wasn't the best.

"I'm not tired yet." You said, tapping your fingers on the armrest. "Do you want to play a game?" Mando turned to you, but you couldn't tell if he was amused by your suggestion or annoyed. "I will take your silence as a yes. Have you played never have I ever?"

"No." Mando got up in sat in the seat to the side of you.

"Oh, it's simple. So you say something crazy like never have I ever stolen a space ship I'm assuming you have and then if you have usually you would take a drink. But I guess if we have done it we will have to give a little back story to it. Consider this an ice breaker boss." Mando was silent, like always. Some days you swear he does it just to see how long you make it before having to fill the awkward silence. Then his modulated voice spoke up.

"I'll go first." You were surprised Mando was so willing to play, but then again it's not like it's that exciting out in space. "Never have I ever blacked out while drinking." You went to say never then realized that yes you had.

"I have but in my defence I was young and stupid okay?" You cross your arms, thinking about your question. "Here ill go easy on you." You say looking over at his stiff posture. Did the man ever just relax all of his muscles? "Never have I ever broken someone's nose. I will say I have broken some guys arm when he was trying to get with me but really it was his fall that did him in." Mando gave you a look. Yes, it was through the helmet, but it was a look none the less. "Stop rolling your eyes at me!"

"I broke the last five bounties noses y/n." Pftt did he even have a funny bone? No, he probably broke it. You weren't able to think of something sassy to say as he was already asking you a new question.

"I have but I want to know if you have. Have you ever been kicked out of a cantina?" You looked down, smiling.

"Which time?" You say with a laugh. "The worst was when I snuck in and was drinking random drinks that were left around. Thinking back now that's disgusting and I'm shocked I didn't get poisoned." You mad a face and stuck out your tongue. You weren't sure if tongues can remember tastes, but when you think about that memory, you could swear you can only think about all the random people's spit you have swallowed. Mando made a disgusted sound hearing your memory, and you honestly couldn't blame him.

"Okay enough about the nasty things I have done in order to get buzzed. Let me think I need a good one. I am going to take advantage of this." You tapped at your chin, making your silence more dramatic. "Ha. I got one! Never have I ever had sex with a sex worker." Mando was quiet for a second before speaking up.

"Is this where I say I have?" You looked at him in shock with your mouth open. Maker, you wish you could see his reaction under that helmet.

"No fucking way! I don't believe you. You are a hardcore Mandalorian. You can't have sex with random ladies!" Suddenly you found yourself sitting up ready to hear more about this.

"The creed says we are not allowed to show our faces. But there is nothing that says we can't blow off some steam." Mando leans back mirroring your posture. You were sure he had a smug smile on his face. Suddenly this game became very interesting.

"I suppose. Do you blow off steam often?" You used finger quotes around blow off steam secretly hoping you didn't sound too nosy.

"Every once in a while. Not since I have had the kid with me. There is a lady on Nevarro who understands my terms. Get in get out and keep the helmet on."

"Wow you sure know how to please the ladies," you said with a little laugh. Mando tilts his head at you, surely giving a look.

"Are you questioning my abilities? Because I can please women. When I pay for sex it's for my enjoyment." You gave a little look and an understanding nod. That was fair; it's not like he technically had to be concerned about their enjoyment.

"Okay, Your turn again." You say with a nod your towards Mando trying to play it cool like your mind wasn't completely blown about the new thing you have learned about Mando.

"Never have I ever had sex in public." You didn't realize that this game of never have I ever was going to go in this direction. Then again have you ever played a game of never have I ever and it not go to places like this?

"I have," you say with a smirk and a blush at the memory. "We were sneaking around and being horny teens it didn't matter where or when what mattered was that it was happening. When you were a teen were you sneaking around having sex with other Mandalorians?" Mando pauses thinking for a second.

"I wasn't. I kept to myself more than anything. Lots of other people were. I didn't do anything until I was much older." You wondered what younger Mando was like. It didn't surprise you that he stuck to himself. You could relate to that in a way. When you were younger, your dad was busy with his business, so it was mostly just you. Well just you until you started to rebel as a teen. Boys, drinking and other substances became a bit of the norm. You were sure that a therapist would say it was some type of escapism but this wasn’t the time to reflect on your childhood.

"So when you do please ladies what do you do about the helmet? I mean I'm sure you want to have your lips on your partner." You were straying from the game, but curiosity was going to kill the womp rat. Mando was somewhat open about his life, and you were going to take what you could before he became quiet again.

"Blind fold. It's a work around." that was said so matter of factly like he almost couldn't believe you didn't think of that yourself. "Why are you so curious as to my sexual endeavors?" It was a fair question why were you so concerned about what Mando did on his own time?

"I guess I just thought you were a bit of a prude to be honest." He laughed. He actually gave you a genuine chuckle. This brought a smile to your face. That was the first time in the weeks with him that you heard him do that. Why did your stomach flutter at that? Stop it y/n pull yourself together he's just a dude. A dude you assumed had a nice body from all the strength he needs to catch his bounties. No. Mando is not giving you butterflies.

"Well this was fun but i'm going to take the bed if you are going to stay up longer." Mando stood before turning to go down the ladder the metal making clunking sounds against his boots. Just like that, he was gone. Leaving you there to sit in all the information he gave you. I mean sure it's not like he gave you info like his back story but he was so willing to just tell the truth. Usually, people need liquor for that.

You leaned back against the chair, looking out into space to sit with your thoughts.

[hearteyesbowen]

just friends ☆ joshua bassett

you and joshua are just friends and nothing else. promise.

warnings: angsty, some swearing, some steamy writing, at this point assume anything i write may be long

part I , part II

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

Your eyes flutter open slowly, a bright yellow light blinding you as you wake up. You rub your dry eyes and smooth out your messy hair. The pounding in your head disturbs you as you clear your throat. You attempt to sit up on your bed until an a strong arm left at your hip prevents you from moving up any further. You look to your side and see a familiar hand, so you look back further and saw your best friend, Joshua. His curly brown hair covered more than half of his face, only showing his slightly open mouth. Soft snores escaped his lips as you watched his chest rise up and down slowly. You almost completely forgot you slept over at his house last night.

You laid back down and faced Josh, wanting to stare at his calming features. His arm tightened around your waist and brought you slightly closer. You felt your cheeks heat up. You did your best not to wake him as you moved your arm to snuggle into his warm body more. Your plan failed when you felt him softly shuffle above you and let out a low groan.

“Y/N?” Josh groaned lowly. His morning voice next to your ear gave you goosebumps.

“Josh?” You whispered.

“Did I wake you up?” He said as he removed his arm from your waist to rub his eyes. He moved his arms back to you and brought you back closer to him tightly. “Sorry about that, angel.”

“I’ve been awake for a bit.” You mumbled into his shoulder.

“Do I have to do anything today?”

You shook your head to say no.

“Do you want to go to the diner and get breakfast?” He asked sweetly, bringing your head back to look at you. You nodded and he let out a soft chuckle.

Josh arm slid off your waist. He sat up and stretched out his arm above him, letting the blanket covering his body fall off and revealed his toned stomach. You almost forgot that he went to sleep without a shirt on. You also forgot how much Josh likes to work out on his free days. He got up from the bed and went to his dresser. He noticed how you kept watching him grab clothes from his drawer.

“Are you going to keep falling in love with me or are you going to shower? Because if you don’t go now I’m going to take my sweet ass time.” He joked.

You jumped up from his cozy bed and threw the blanket at Josh, covering his body. You did a quick stretch of your body and saw Josh look you up and down. “Don’t flatter yourself, sweetheart.” You strutted past him and went to the bathroom to take a shower.

Yours and Josh’s friendship was odd. You’ve been friends ever since he moved to the house next to you five years ago. It started off as a normal friendship; You two would hang out all the time and even go on road trips once a month. Then about three years ago it shifted. You would always playfully flirt with each other, which confused all your friends and family. But neither of you saw it as flirting. You both somewhat understood what you were doing, but it never fully clicked as to how it actually seemed. Your parents would always tease you about him. You always went out to eat and see movies together, you would pretend to be dating if someone in public was making the other uncomfortable, and cuddling together or sleeping with each other became a norm. Either way, a relationship between you two would never work, you lived totally different lives.

Once Josh got hired to play the part of Ricky Bowen on High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, he definitely needed some help managing all of his time, and basically his life. You would offer to help him any time he needed you, so he made the best choice to hire you as his assistant. It didn’t change your friendship, it’s just that now you know his schedule and have the numbers to his manager and his publicist. This choice, however, sparked more talk between not only your family, but also his fans. If he were to post a picture with you, then his comments immediately flooded with either questions about your relationship or them “shipping” you two.

You never thought of Josh as your boyfriend. When other friends or family would ask you about him and as to whether or not you did like him, you always said no, it’s what you genuinely believed. Although thoughts of you developing feelings for him did cross your mind, you thought it was just a phase and you would get over it. And you did. The idea of ruining your friendship brought you fear, probably more than the idea of being in a relationship, which you absolutely despised.

After you both took a quick shower, you grabbed your keys from your purse and went back to Josh’s room. He was bent over, looking for something in his drawer. He turned around and instantly had a smug smile on his face as he found what he was looking for. He found the sweater he was searching for in his dresser worn on your body. It was his light beige sweatshirt that he would wear when he recorded a lot of his music. Coincidentally, it was the same one he would give you every time he saw you sad or crying, to which you grew a strong fondness for it.

“I don’t get why you like that sweater so much, it’s literally my most plain and boring one.” Josh laughed as he brought you into his side with his hand on your waist.

“I don’t know either.” You lied.

“Whatever, you always make my clothes look way better than me.” He complimented, wrapping his arms around your head and yours around his waist for a tight hug. He pulled away slightly to look down at you, your noses barely touching. “Are you ready to go out?”

➢➣ ➢➣

“Shut up, dickhead!”

Josh slammed his hands on the steering wheel of his car. His loud laugh burned into your ears with embarrassment and discomfort. He slammed his body on the back of his seat and clutched onto the sides of his stomach and the fabric of his sweatshirt. He snorted, trying to catch his breath.

“Y/N, you’re such an amazing girlfriend.” He joked

As to why Josh was now stuck in a fit of laughter was all your fault. While at the diner, Josh received a phone call from his manager, which he of course had to take. You were both waiting on any news about the show as he was promised a special announcement from Disney. He was told to come to set tomorrow to film something, but he didn’t know what yet.

The moment he left, the waitress that escorted you to your seats had come to take your orders. You told her what you wanted, and she asked about Josh, referring to him as your boyfriend. Without even thinking of what she said, you continued to tell her what you knew Josh would have wanted, which led her to believe he actually was your boyfriend. You still had not realized what happened until you were both finishing your food and the waitress came back with the check, mentioning you two as a couple. To not make it seem awkward, Josh played along ( and would not stop teasing you about it for the rest of breakfast ). So here you are now; Josh is still not able to breathe.

You shifted in your seat, “You can take me home now, Joshua.”

He wiped his teary eyes and calmed down from his fit of laughter. “Aww, I’ll stop now. I’m sorry for laughing so much.”

He placed his hand on your lower thigh and gently rubbed it. You eyed him and earned back a sincere smile. You rolled your eyes playfully at him, and placed your hand on top of his to give it a tight squeeze. He brought your hand up to his lips and gave it a soft kiss, making you hide your flushed face. Josh noticed and let out a quiet chuckle before starting the car.

“I was writing something a few days ago. I don’t know if I should record it.” Josh spoke, glancing at you.

You sat up straight and excitedly looked at Josh, “Can I hear it?”

“It sucks, Y/N.”

“Please, Josh. Everything you write is so beautiful. You know I love all of your songs, literally all of them.” You squeezed Josh’s hand tighter that stayed on your thigh.

“Maybe when we get home. It’s not a lot, it’s basically four lines, so don’t get your hopes up.” He warned.

“I’ll love it no matter what.” You smiled.

➢➣ ➢➣

You followed Josh to the staircase of his house. He had promised to let you listen to his new song and record it if you “didn’t make a big deal out of it.” You sat two steps above Josh where you knew his phone camera wouldn’t get you in frame. He brought his ukelele out with him too, and he nervously fiddled with the strings.

“Don’t laugh, ok?” He mumbled, trying to sit on the step comfortably.

You shook your head and watched as he let out a deep breath. He scooted up to his phone and went to the camera, and hit the red record button.

“I wish you all the best,

cause lord knows you deserve it.

And it took me time to see,

but I understand,

the best just isn’t me.”

Josh finished playing the final chord and quickly stopped the video. He let out a large exhale and slowly faced you. You were in awe. You were always so greatful when he played his songs in front of you, especially because you were the first one to hear them. He was regularly writing love songs, and each time you thought for a second that he was thinking of you as he wrote it. You always convinced yourself that it was nothing or it was for someone else, but this song felt different.

“So?” He asked nervously.

“Josh,” You gasped out, “that was so beautiful.”

“Don’t lie, it sucked.”

You got up from your step and moved to sit next to him. He set his ukelele in the step above you two and faced his body towards you. You held his hands in yours and he squeezed them tightly.

“It’s an amazing song, Josh. If you put out all those songs you wrote you would understand how much of an amazing songwriter you are. You’re the best musician I know.”

Josh looked up at you and gave you a small smile. He scooted closer to you and held your waist. You stared at him for what seemed like forever. Josh darted between your eyes and your lips. Instinctively, you slowly inched towards him, and you felt him do the same. Your lips were so close that you felt your breath fan over each other. Your mind raced with various thoughts; Just do it, if you never take the chance you will regret it. But if you take that chance and it ruins everything, then you would lose Josh.

A part of you stopped and backed away, Josh following suit. He quickly removed his hands from your waist and you scooted a few inches away from him. You cleared your throat and got up from the stairs. You held your hand out for him to grab and he hesitantly took your offer. He stood taller than you and with your chests almost touching.

“You want to watch a movie?” Josh asked, picking up his instrument.

“Sounds great. I’ll get the snacks.” You offered. You walked down the steps, leaving Josh alone to think about what just happened.

You ran down the remainder of the stairs and tried to reach the kitchen without stumbling, but you nearly ran into one of the bookshelves and almost fell over the couch. Your whole body felt lighter. You reached the kitchen counter and rested against it. Your hands grazed through your hair and roughly massaged it. The headache you felt from the past five minutes overtook you. You don’t like Josh that way, so why did you want to kiss him so badly?

Shaking your headache aside, you opened one of the wooden cabinets above you. You found the large box of popcorn that Josh bought and tried your best to reach for one of the packages. Once you did, you tore off the plastic packaging and harshly threw the bag into the microwave and set the timer. You laid back on the corner of the counter and let out a large sigh.

“Y/N?” You heard Josh’s voice from the living room and his steps that grew louder towards the kitchen. You immediately stood up straight and fixed yourself to look collected. He walked in and abruptly stopped when he saw you agaisnt his counter. You noticed his loss of words, “W-What movie do y-you want to watch”

“Anything, it’s your turn to pick the movie.” You replied.

He started to walk up to you and your breath got hitched in your throat. “Should I make hot chocolate?” He questioned.

You gave him a simple nod, trying not to stare at him for too long. He moved closer to you and you looked up at him. One of his arms gripped the counter to your side. He looked straight at you, his mouth slightly agape. You took in all his features once again.

“I’m sorry, I just need to get the mugs.” He whispered lowly, staring between you and the cabinet above you. You could have sworn he was about to lean in again.

Your head snapped back and you realized how much you overthink his little gestures. “It’s fine, I can get it.” You offered.

You turned around and stood on your toes, trying to reach for your favorite mugs. Why on the top shelf Joshua? Almost out of instinct, Josh held on to your waist to help you keep steady as you lunged for the cups. You let out a quiet gasp in shock. This isn’t new for him to do, stop overthinking. You eventually grabbed them and handed it over to Josh.

“I’ll make it just how you like it.” He smiled.

➢➣ ➢➣

Josh decided that you should finish your High School Musical marathon and watch the final movie. The first 30 minutes of the movie could not have been more dreadful to watch. The tension in the air was thick, and you were both so used to singing the songs together right next to each other. You two were almost on opposite ends of the couch, which although wasn’t too far away from each other, there was still a gap between you. The only thing separating you two was the bowl of popcorn.

Troy and Gabriella met at the rooftop of their high school, he had just asked her to prom. As much as you tried to hold it in to not seem bored, you let out a quick yawn. Josh overheard the little whimper you let out and scooted closer to your direction.

“Do you want to lay down on my shoulder?” Josh asked politely.

“You don’t have to,” You denied.

“I insist, come.” He demanded. He held out an arm for you to snuggle into.

You reluctantly got up and moved the popcorn bowl to the coffee table in front of you and sat down next to Josh. You moved the sweatshirt that he took off from behind the seat and to your lap. You left the smallest bit of space to not seem weird, although, for you, this whole situation was weird. Josh chuckled at your nervousness and scooted in closer to stop the big space. His arm wrapped around your shoulder and you laid on his. It felt as though nothing happened between you two nearly an hour ago.

Troy and Gabriella were in the middle of singing, and you hummed softly to the music. You felt Josh’s stare burn through you, but you tried to hold back from looking at him. You paid as much attention to the movie as you could. The two in the movie were in the middle of the rain, and were staring at each other intently, almost like how you and Josh were a while ago. They slowly leaned in as they were about to kiss until the bell rang, interrupting their moment.

You heard a snort come from Josh, “I swear, they’re always about to kiss every ten minutes and something always stops them at the last minute.”

You giggled, “I know, they should just finish what they were about to start.”

“Yeah, we should.” Josh replied. You turned to look at him instantly, thrown off by his remark.

“What?” You shifted your body to face him, one leg laying on the cushion and tucked under the other leg hanging off the couch.

“You know what I mean, let’s finish what we started. Your words.” He insisted. “Did you ever think we were just friends?” He whispered into your ear, sending a shiver down your spine.

He altered his position to mirror you, facing your body directly. He rested his hand on your knee and moved closer to exclude any unwanted space between you two, playing with the material of the sweater still on your lap.

“Is this ok?”

“Yes.” You murmered directly.

You studied his eyes for any hint of a joke. Josh did nothing but admire you. His hand crept up to your cheek and the other around your waist. Like the staircase, you both veered towards each other. You felt his soft lips brush ever so slightly on yours, feeling his hot breath again. He drifted away the slightest to look at you, searching for any sign of discomfort or aversion. You gave a minimal nod as to let Josh continue, which was all he needed.

Josh pushed his lips onto yours for a soft and sweet kiss. The hand that wasn’t on his hot chest went to his neck. You kissed back gently. Josh pulled away extremely slow, lingering his lips on yours for however long he could. His eyes slowly fluttered open, showing an almost dreamy daze. His hands fell from your face and waist to your legs.

You stared at each other for the smallest second, before the confidence deeply hidden inside of you struck out. You pulled him back onto you, and Josh waisted no time in eagerly kissing you back. His hands traveled up your thighs, gripping them tightly. He swiftly grabbed his sweater that lay on your lap and threw it across the room. You pressed up your chest to his and tilted your head to deepen the kiss further.

Josh went to put his hand on your lower back, pushing his body weight forward. You slowly went down behind you until your back reached the couch softly. He hovered over you, passionately kissing you. You played with the curls on his hair, twirling it around your finger. You felt him bite down on your lower lip, making you gasp. He took the opportunity to slide his tongue in, feeding into your teenage hormones. You tugged at the hem of his shirt, trying to pull it off. Josh removed your hands and pushed you back down quickly, trailing long and awfully slow kisses from your lips to your neck. You felt him bite under your ear, earning a whimper from you. You could practically feel the smirk playing on his face.

He sat up from on top of you and pulled at his shirt from the collar, removing it completely. He quickly attacked your neck again, leaving deep red marks on your neck down to your collarbone, stopping where his sweater covered the rest of your body. You bit your lip to hold back the noises begging to come out. His lips traced back up to your face, fervently kissing your swollen lips. You tugged at his hair, making him groan into the kiss, and you quickly nudged his face up and to his neck. You were able to leave two big marks under his ear before he wanted to go back to giving you attention.

You heard a vibration coming from Josh’s pants. The buzzing didn’t seem to stop him, as he kept creating new marks all over your neck. You wish you would have ignored it too, but you knew it could have been his manager again about the show. You grabbed Josh’s face and held it up to you, his face confused as to why you stopped him.

“Your phone, Josh.”

“That can wait.” Josh grumbled, desperate for his lips to be back on your body. He was stronger than you, so he easily pushed your hands aside to kiss under your ear again.

“Josh,” You moaned out, pulling his face away from your neck again, “just answer it. I’ll still be here.”

He let out a groan, and kissed your lips tenderly once more. He got out his phone that was almost about to finish ringing, and got up from your position. You sat up as well, fixing your possibly messy hair.

“Olivia?” Josh sounded in shock as he answered the phone. “What do you mean you’re here? With Matt?”

Panic took over you and Josh, and he quickly threw on his shirt. You fixed up the couch, picking up the sweater that Josh threw earlier, and bringing the dishes left on the counter to the sink.

“Yeah, I’ll get the door right now, just give me a second.” He rushed, hanging up immediately.

“Should I leave?” You asked, reaching for your bag that was left on the floor next to the couch.

Josh rapidly grabbed your arm and held it to his chest, “No, no, no, please don’t. I promise it will be quick. You can stay.”

“They’re going to see your neck, and worst of all, mine.” You said in fear.

“Please, Y/N. Stay.” He begged.

You let out a sigh, holding his face in your hands to kiss his cheek, “I’ll be in your room.”

➢➣ ➢➣

Josh had been gone for about 10 minutes, leaving you to hear them scream in joy for something you have yet to find out about. After a while it got quiet, which made you as to wonder if they had left or if they were still talking. Either way, you didn’t want to go down and check.

You took that time alone to really grasp what just happened. Everything moved so fast, and you weren’t prepared to face it. In the moment, you would have thought nothing of it, just pushing aside the reality of the situation and focusing on Josh’s body on yours. Now the guilt has come flooding in, overwhelmingly. You didn’t want to like Josh, it would just over complicate you relationship, as if it weren’t already. You hated the idea of dating, it was never something you were good at. All of your relationships ended with you being cheated on or lied to. You know Josh isn’t like that, but the memories it brings back is like nightmare fuel. And now you almost possibly hooked up with your friend ( and kind of your boss ).

You heard footsteps rushing up closer to Josh’s room, sending nerves to your body. The door swung open, making you jump in fear. Josh saw you lying on his bed, almost like this morning, and he tried to catch his breath.

“What happened, Josh?” You wondered, sitting up on the bed and walking up to him.

“We start shooting for our second season tomorrow!” He yelled out, a large smile built upon his face.

The anxiety somewhat washed away, leaving excitement for your friend. “That’s amazing! I’m so proud of you!”

Josh brought you back in for a tight embrace, picking you up off the floor. As he set you back down, he moved his head back to look at you. He leaned down again to try and kiss you, but you stopped him.

“I think we should talk about what happened.” Josh pulled away awkwardly, nodding.

“Yeah, you’re right.” He sat down on his bed, “Listen, I’m sorry if I took things too far. I honestly don’t know what came over me, it was kind of an ‘in the moment’ type of thing. I’m not usually like that.”

You sat down directly next to him, “I’m not saying I didn’t like it, because I sort of liked it a lot. But I’m more worried about what this means for us. We’ve been just friends for years, so why did today feel different.”

“It’s been feeling different, Y/N. Don’t lie to me and tell me you haven’t felt something change between us.” He argued.

“Josh, I know things have changed, but we can’t do this. We’re friends, and worse, I’m your assistant, too. How could that ever work out?” You whined.

“You being my assistant has changed nothing, absolutely nothing. And ‘only friends’ don’t sleep in the same bed together, or constantly flirt with each other, or make out on one’s couch.”

“What are you saying, Josh?” You asked reluctantly.

“I’m saying that I feel something for you that I know is wrong, but I have to express. Y/N, I like you, and maybe it took me a long time to realize but, fuck, you’re the best thing in my life.” He angrily blurted out. “All those songs I wrote, I always thought of you. I know you don’t like relationships, I know that. I’m so sorry I put you in this position, but please, let me try.”

You felt your eyes water, “This is all moving too fast for me. Josh, we can’t do this.”

“You couldn’t have said that before we made out?” He cried, rubbing his head restlessly.

“That was my fault. But I can’t, Josh. I’m sorry. I really want to say yes, but it’s all too much to handle at once. I’m so sorry.” You choked out, getting up from his bed.

“Y/N,” Josh stood up and grabbed your arm, forcing you to turn around.

“Just give me some time, alright? I’ll see you tomorrow.”

You yanked your arm out of Josh’s grasp and walked out the door, leaving Josh alone in his room to think if he ruined his life.

A/N - so this is probably has the most sexual-ish writing i can do without feeling like ive sinned ( ironic ) . i took the inspo of his music from his instagram , just not in the same order (: hope u like this little story , planning on making it a small series , so let me know what u think !! love y’all xx

[dreamingwithbts]

Demon (Boku No Hero) - Chapter 20

Warning: Swearing

It was the morning after the encounter with Stain and everyone was in the hospital, I sigh when I heard a notification, I pick up the phone and I see two messages, one from Katsuki and the other from Hawks, I click on the Katsuki message first.

Angry Pomeranian:

I heard Stain attacked Hosu. I hope your fucking ass weren’t there!

Me:

Sorry...I...can’t...hear you...bad connection...

Angry Pomeranian:

THIS IS A TEXT! I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!

Me:

Talk to you later! Bye!

Still laughing, imagining Katsuki angry face, I open Hawks message.

Cannibal Bird:

You are so in trouble, young lady! How can you go to a fight and didn’t even invite me or Tokoyami! But serious don’t do that again, that was stupid and dangerous. Will talk later.

I’m so proud of you my little baby bird, you’re just like me!

Me:

Hawks....I’m nothing like you, I’m way better! And I’m sorry I left without telling you, I hope you’re not in much trouble. I’ll see you later, cannibal bird.

I laugh even more seeing Hawks bipolar texts, he doesn’t even know how to react. “Excuse me? Do you know where my friends are?” I ask a nurse before she left my room. “Their in the next room, dear.” She says smiling. “Thank you!” I smile at her and wait for her to leave, so I can get up.

“Hey.” I say entering the boy’s hospital room. “Aka-chan!” Izuku says looking at me worried. “Aka.” Shoto nods at me. “Aka-san!” Lida says. “You guys look worse than me.” I say laughing seeing they have more bandage than me. “Are you okay Aka-chan?” Izuku asks worried while I sit on the free bed next to Lida. “I’m fine, just some scratches and some mental scars for life.” I say trying to joke. “Right...” Izuku whispers. “I just want to say sorry, for yesterday. Sorry Lida, and I’m sorry for your brother.” I say not looking at them. “What do you mean Ak....?” Lida was asking only to be interrupted by someone entering. “Oh, are you wounded kids awake? Ah, I see you here too, girl.” Izuku and Lida internship heroes enter the room. “Gran Torino.” Izuku says. “Manual-san.” Lida says sad. “Kid, I’ve got a lot of complaints for you.” Gran Torino says getting near Izuku. “Oh! S... Sorr...” Izuku tries to apologize. “But before that, you’ve got a visitor.” Gran Torino continues and all of us look at the door to see a huge human...dog. “Hosu’s chief of police, Kenji Tsuragamae.” Gran Torino finishes. “Shit.” I think while Lida, Shoto and I stand up. “Oh, you can just stay seated, woof.” The chief says to Izuku who was trying to get up. “Woof?” I whisper. “You must be the U.A. students who brought down the hero killer, right?” The chief asks us. “Yes.” Shoto answers. “Regarding the hero killer we arrested...” Chief continues. “He had some serious injuries, with burns and broken bones, and is receiving treatment under strict guard, woof.” He says. “So his still alive.” I think. “Since you are U.A. students, I’m sure you already know that when superpowers were still becoming the norm, the police attached high importance to leadership and standards, and made sure Quirks were not used as weapons.” The chief says. “We are so fucked!” I think scared. “And then, the profession of “hero” emerged to fill that gap, woof.” Chief says then starts explaining stuff while I’m cursing inside my head knowing we were going to be expelled and put to prison then I pay attention again when Shoto explodes. “Isn’t it a hero’s job to save people?” Shoto screams. “That is why you are not a full-fledged hero yet. Goodness, what are you being taught by U.A. and Endeavor, woof?” The chief of police responds to him. “You dog.” Shoto says angry, going towards him. “Go Shoto!” I say making Izuku and Gran Torino look at me, one scared and the other thinking while Lida tries stopping Shoto then Gran Torino stops him. “Hang on a minute. Hear him out until the end.” He says. “That was the official opinion of the police, and the punishment and such would only happen if this were all made public, woof.” The chief says. “So, what does that mean exactly?” I ask. “If it is not public, the burn scars would support Endeavor being the hero who saved the day, and it would end there, woof. Thankfully, there were very few witnesses. This would mean no one would know about your good judgment or achievements. What do you prefer, be recognized and receive punishment or Endea...” Chief says and this time I explode, and I stay in front of Shoto screaming. “ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME! No way in hell I’m going to let that mother fucking Endeavor take our credits! Choose other! I prefer get my punis....” I was silence by a hand on my mouth and then being force on a bed where Izuku looked me, so I was silence and trapped. “Please continue.” Izuku says nervous. “Very well. Personally, I don’t want to be the one to find fault with promising young ones because of one big mistake, woof.” The chief says giving us thumbs up. “Either way, we will need to take responsibility for being negligent in our supervisory duties.” Manual says then everyone apologizes. “I’m not apologizing anything! We did...” I say now up then two hand force me to bow. “Please Aka-chan...” Izuku whispers, but I just stay silence then the chief of police bows to us. “I can say thank you.”

Later that day, I was discharged from the hospital first than the others, so after being yelled and praised by Hawks our attention went to the news. “Endeavor finally catch the hero killer...” The reporter says. “FUCK ENDEAVOR MOTHERFUCKER IT WASN’T HIM DAMMIT! WHY HIM?” I scream angry. “What do you have against Endeavor?! His amazing!” Hawks screams at me in disbelief. “Who likes an asshole like him, who doesn’t know how to raise his kids!” I scream at Hawks while he screams back facts about how great Endeavor is. “Why am I here?” Tokoyami says sighing tired.

The next day I woke up by my phone ringing, it was Dad calling me. “My daughter! Gran Torino called me.” Dad says the moment I pick up. “Shit...” I whisper. “Language! Did you see him? Did he...?” Dad asks. “Yes...he knows...” I say knowing immediately want he wanted to know. “I see...how are you?” He asks. “Better than I thought I would be.” I answer him honestly. “Okay.” He says. “I want to talk to him.” I suddenly say, but I knew Dad wasn’t surprised. “We’ll talk after the internships, and I’ll see what I can do.” He says. “Thanks Dad.” I say. “Your welcome, my daughter. And thank you for helping Young Midoriya.” He says. “Of course Dad.” I say and we both say goodbye.

Five days had passed since our internships started, Hawks have been training me and Tokoyami better than I thought, even if he teases us and make us his slaves. Today, the three of us were patrolling the streets, Hawks sent Tokoyami to one direction while he sent me to other, and he would switch time to time with us, now he was with me. “How about some chicken, booby bird?” He asks me, flashing his red wings. “First, stop with the name, second you ate chicken like an hour ago!” I say to him. “That’s too long!” He complains, and I was going to answer him before I heard a familiar voice. “Katsuki?” I ask, looking at the source of the voice. “Oh? That’s Best Jeaninst. HEY!” Hawks screams waving making the two look at us. “Hawks.” Best Jeanist says approaching us. “Hey Kat....AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!” I start laughing hard when I see Katsuki hair. “SHUT UP YOUR DEMON!” Katsuki yells angry. “What happen to your hair? Oh my god, I need to take a picture for your mom!” I say laughing too much. “LIKE HELL YOU WILL BITCH!” Katsuki yells only for Best Jeanist to punch him in his head. “Is that how you treat your girlfriend?” Best Jeanist says making us both blush while Hawks giggles at us. “SHE’S/I’M NOT HIS/MY GIRLFRIEND!” We both scream. “Fuck this shit. Let’s go Hawks!” I say, blushing hard. “Alright, alright, Miss Tomato.” Hawks says laughing. “Bye Katsuki! Best Jeanist.” I say waving them goodbye wanting to leave them as quickly ad I could.

“If that’s how you’re going to treat the girl you like, I’m really sad for her.” Best Jeanist says to Katsuki. “Shut up!” Katsuki whispers.

Then with a blink of an eye, the days of internship are over, so Tokoyami and I are in front of a very sad Hawks. “I’m going to miss you guys so much!” He says with fake tears. “We’re going to miss you too, Hawks.” I say smiling to the bird man. “Come here Boob Bird, Face Bird!” Hawks says to us, hugging us both very tight. “Hawks!” I say feeling squeezed. “Hawks...” I heard Tokoyami whisper. “LET GO, BIRD MAN!” Dark Shadow yells coming out of Tokoyami. “Fine, fine! Goodbye guys and stay out of trouble!” Hawks says letting us go.

School day came quickly and right now I was in the middle of Kirishima and Sero, us dying of laugh seeing Katsuki still with the weird hair. “AHAHAHAHAHAHA. It’s the second time I see, but I still can’t stop laughing!” I say happy while Katsuki glares at us very angry. “Seriously?! Seriously, Bakugo?!” Both guys say dying of laugh. “Stop laughing! My hair’s gotten used to it, so it won’t go back even after I wash it!” Katsuki says, trembling in anger. “Hey, stop laughing! I’ll kill you!” Katsuki continues while we can’t stop laughing. “I’d like to see you try, Side-Part Boy!” Sero says making me have to support on Kirishima laughing too hard. “What did you say?!” Bakugo screams, and suddenly we heard a puff and I look at him. “Oh my god, it’s back! That was more hilarious, ahahahahaha!” I say making the boy still laugh. “There, there, Katsuki. It’s back, don’t worry about it that much.” I say petting his now normal hair. “Shut up.” He whispesr calmly making me shock but then smile at him.

We smile at each other until someone talked to me. “...were you three, right? And you Aka-san?” Kaminari says. “Hm?” I ask confused. “Oh yeah! The hero killer!” Sero says making me tense up, then I feel a hand on my hand and with the corner of my eyes, I see that it’s Katsuki who is glaring at Sero. “I’m glad you guys made it out alive! Seriously.” Kirishima says, then everyone started talking about it and I started trembling, for fear, sadness or angry, I didn’t know. “Come on, let’s sit. I’m going to tell you everything that Best Jeanist did to me.” Katsuki says ignoring everyone, making me sit on my place while he sits on his and starts talking making me stop listening to the others while I smile at him. “Thank you, Katsuki.” I think watching his face while he talks.

Everyone was in front of All Might, everyone in their hero costumes, and I could feel someone’s eyes on me. “If you take a picture it will last longer.” I say flirting to Katsuki. “Why if I have the real thing in front o me?” He flirts back, smirking. “Kacchan...and Aka-chan...are flirting...oh my god...” Izuku mumbles quietly while Ochaco giggles beside him. “Anyway, we’ll start now. Right. It’s hero basic training! Long time no see, boys and girls! How have you been? We’ll have some fun with a rescue training race today!” All Might says. “If we are doing rescue training, then shouldn’t we do it at USJ?” Lida asks. “That place is for training for disasters. Do you remember what I said? That’s right! I said race!” All Might responds to him. “This is Field Gamma! A dense are filled with factories laid out like an intricate labyrinth. You’ll break up into three groups of five-person groups and one of six-person groups, and go through the training one group at a time It’s a race to see who will rescue me first!” All Might explains too excited. “Of course, you’ll have to keep damage to the building to a minimum.” All Might says pointing at Katsuki making me laugh. “Don’t point at me!” Katsuki says embarrassed then we started, the first group went, and Sero won, then others groups went and it was finally my group turn. “Good luck everyone.” I say to them smirking. “Aka is going to win.” Katsuki says to the others who were watching. “I think that too.” Izuku says. “Who said you could agree with me, DEKU?!” Katsuki screams. “Ready? Go!” All Might screams, then everyone starts running while I stay in my place. “What the hell is she doing?” Katsuki asks confused then suddenly I disappear. “I win!” I say touching All Might. “.......huh?” All Might says confused. “WHAT?!” Everyone screams. “Young Aka how did you arrive so fast?” All Might asks me shocked. “ I teleported here.” I say smiling while my group sighs for losing. “That’s my girl.” Katsuki thinks smiling.

Note:Hope you like it! New chapter every Friday!

Tag List: @holaaaf @clickbait-official

[ms-katonic-of-tamriel]

Saw a fic tagged Lady Miraak/Lucien Flavius the other day. 

Oh my god.  That poor man.  He’ll be eaten alive.

OTOH Lady Miraak?? Have some courage and make it male Miraak.  Miraak’s bi as anything, he’ll take one look at this sheltered young Imperial desperate for knowledge of the Dragon Cult and... think things.

Bonus points for Very Sheltered Lucien at one point going “you know, if I were a girl, I’d be really nervous about now!  Because... because you’re a bit terrifying!” (Spoiler alert: Lucien Flavius is really nervous, and Miraak is grinning at him like a born predator.)

Miraak chuckles and tells him to report back for his first lesson the next day then goes off to track down the annoying but definitely Not Straight jester, also from Cyrodiil, because he has to ask, have the norms around same-sex relationships changed that much??

“No, no, only Cicero fears that Mr Flavius is... how can Cicero put this.  Sheltered.  Naive.  Barely twenty years old.  The only child of doting parents.  Has spent his entire existence in academic libraries.  Is likely untouched.  It is entirely possible he has managed to go his entire life blissfully unaware a relationship between two men is even possible.”

Miraak finds this hilarious and decides to have fun with that idea, and Dovahzul and history lessons are interwoven with VERY seductive body language, near-unmistakeable innuendo, getting Lucien all hot and bothered while not actually touching him then backing off immediately.  Eventually Lucien snaps and talks to Kaidan of all people, because he’s confused as all hell, because it’s weird, it’s wrong, he doesn’t understand it, if Miraak was a woman, he’d know it was flirting but Miraak’s a man, men don’t do that to other men, do they?

Kaidan the other bisexual facepalms, wants to know just how they ever let Lucien out on his own, tells him yes they do in fact do that, just as women often go out with other women, it’s perfectly normal and not remotely rare.  And yeah, Miraak’s seducing you.  Or trying to.  Do you need me to have a word with him, because First Dragonborn or no First Dragonborn, he doesn’t get to hassle you.

“No!  No?  I need to think about this.  A lot.  Oh Mara.”

Cicero is the next port of call.  Did you know about this, Cicero?  Men going out with other men?  Cicero stares at Lucien, puts down the anatomical diagram of pain nexuses that he’s been colouring in, looks at him long and hard and then bursts out laughing for a good minute before drying his eyes and nodding.  Yes, Flavius.  Yes, Cicero knew.  Cicero thought everybody knew.

“I didnt know!  Oh gods.  Miraak’s interested in me.  Oh gods.  Cicero, what do I do?”

“You are asking me for romantic advice??  Oh by Sithis... I don’t know!  Are you interested in him or not?”

“I don’t know!  He’s terrifying!”

“Good or bad terrifying?”

“Good... there’s a good terrifying??”

Cicero realises he now has to explain kink as well as queerness and wordlessly gets some books out of his personal collection. 

“Some people like having power removed from them and being rendered utterly helpless while a ruthless, ravishing brute does whatever they like with them.  Other people like taking helpless yet willing victims and having their way with them.  It does not surprise Cicero that Miraak is among them.”

“Which kind is he??”

“He just had five thousand years of Mora rendering him helpless, he’s either VERY keen on it or has had enough.  For you, boy?  Assume it’s the latter.”

Lucien whimpers.  Takes the books.  Runs.  Liriel gave Miraak’s mask to Dragonborn Gallery without hesitation and he’s been bare-faced ever since, with piercing blue eyes and long blonde hair and a smile that could tempt an Aedra to sin.  She let him keep the robes though, having had replicas made for her museum, the originals cleaned and mended, and then returned, and the First Dragonborn had been wearing those whenever Lucien had seen him.  Without the mask they were low-cut, to well below his collarbones, and while they weren’t tight-fitting, it was clear Miraak had muscles under there, and Lucien knew first-hand Miraak could fight with blade as well as magic.

Miraak was terrifying. That was a given.  But Lucien had to know for sure.

Next lesson, Lucien enters the safehouse, sees Miraak sitting by the fire, and Miraak only has to look to know something is wrong.  Different.  Lucien is staring at him and not coming any closer, and Miraak realises that after three and a half months, he’s finally fucking realised.

About time.  Now, what will the young seeker after knowledge do about it.

Silence and it is Miraak who breaks it.

“Is something wrong, goraan?”

“No - yes - have you been flirting with me??”

Bless him, his young student has finally graduated.

“You have finally noticed!  Well done, goraan.  Yes, I have been... how does Tamrielic put it.  Pushing my luck.  Nudging at the boundaries.  Wondering which will fall first.  Note I have not laid a finger on you.  Merely left suggestions in the air.  And despite becoming ever more blatant, you still come back for more.  Why is that, goraani?”

Oh gods, he’s changed to the possessive tense.

“I’m not your... I’m leaving. Right now!  I’m not coming back!  I’m not paying for Dovahzul lessons in sex!”

Surprise on Miraak’s face.  “It was never the intent you should, goraani.  Ah, krosis.  I took advantage of your naivety.  It was wrong.  I apologise.  If you wish to stop the lessons, I understand.  But if not, I will continue - only I promise to behave this time.  You have my word as an Atmoran.”

Atmoran honour and the swearing of a vow were covered early on.  Lucien doesn’t entirely trust him, but at length he sits down and the lessons resume.  Except they’re different.  Miraak is a respectful three feet away at all times.  No breathing down the back of his neck without quite touching.  No innuendo or purring or that damn smile.  Just Miraak being calm and professional and, and... Lucien hates it.  Hates every fucking second of it because walls have gone up, part of Miraak that was on display is now shut off, probably forever and Lucien... Lucien misses it.  Lucien misses the feeling of feeling scared out of his wits but safe at the same time because Miraak wouldn’t really...  Miraak apparently would.  If Lucien asked him.  Lucien does not know how to ask.  Or what to ask for.  But Miraak behind him, trailing a finger down the back of his neck, Miraak’s chest on his back and his arms round his waist... With arms like that, Miraak probably gives really good cuddles.

“Goraan.  You are clearly not paying attention.  If your mind is elsewhere, you are welcome to discontinue until it returns?”

“No!” Lucien gasps. Raised eyebrow from Miraak who wants to know where exactly his thoughts are flying if they are not here, and Lucien can take it no more.

“You. Utter. Bastard!”

Miraak doesn’t even look shocked.  “I am, yes.  Which of my many sins are you referring to?”

“You can’t just... you can’t just do this to me!  You can’t just spend months being all up close and personal and then just... just switch it off like it meant nothing!”

Strange look on Miraak’s face.  “Krosis, Lucien.  I was under the impression my attentions were unwelcome and you wished me to stop.”

“No!  Oh gods.  No.  You utter, utter bastard, I hate you so much, please don’t stop.”

Silence, Lucien’s face going bright red as he realises what’s just come out of his mouth, and he can barely look at Miraak.  Then the chair creaks, Miraak’s footsteps are on the stone floor and then gauntlets are removed, hit the table, and then Miraak’s hands are in his.

“Lokaaliin.  Is that your wish?  Truly?  For me not to?”

Miraak’s voice is gentler than Lucien has ever heard it and he finally looks Miraak in the eye to see the softest smile, one he’d not thought the man capable of, and Miraak’s reaching up to stroke his cheek, cupping his face and Lucien can’t stop himself leaning into his touch. 

“I’m scared, Miraak.”

“It is all right to be.  I have... not had a lover in a long time.  But I have not forgotten how to give pleasure.  I will give it to you if you ask.”

“I don’t even know how to - I’ve never had one!  Oh gods.”

Miraak just smiles and kisses his hand.  “It is all right.  I will take care of you.  It is your wish to move our lessons to a more intimate footing?”

Lucien nods, because Miraak makes him flushed and breathless and eager for... he doesn't even know what for.  Miraak takes him by the hand and leads him to the bedroom upstairs, promising nothing below the waist will happen yet, they can just talk and cuddle, yes?

After all the frantic worrying, for it just to be that is a blessed, blessed relief.  Miraak sheds his circlet, outer layers, strips down to his trousers, kicks off his boots and lies down on the bed, arms open for Lucien and Lucien hesitantly takes off his outer coat and his own boots and goes into Miraak’s arms, and from the moment skin touches skin, it is safety, reassurance, a throbbing strength that allays his fears as Miraak pulls him into his arms and holds him tight, and it takes Lucien a moment to realise Miraak is shaking.

“Are you all right?”

“Krosis.  Yes.  I am well.  I just... I have had no one in my arms like this in millennia.  Ah, goraani, I’m sorry.  Be patient with me.”

Lucien hadn’t expected that.  For all he’d seen Miraak as the scary First Dragonborn, he’d not even realised there was still a human being in there with feelings and vulnerabilities.  That... was a lot less scary, or rather it was still scary in a different way. Goodness, what if he hurt Miraak?  He’d never even thought of it that way round before.  Well.  He’d just need to be gentle, wouldn’t he.  Just as Miraak was presently being with him. 

It would be a few weeks more before sex actually started to happen.  Rather more before they finally told other people they were seeing each other.  Round about the time Liriel takes them both in her party, Lucien’s swarmed by Falmer, and then Miraak promptly immolates them all so fiercely you can’t tell flesh from chitin any more and when all the foes are dead, is frantically checking Lucien over, healing his wounds and then holding him so tightly no one can miss what’s up. 

Liriel has strong words for Miraak, but sees Lucien leap to his defence and at length decides, what the hell, anyone to be a reforming influence on Miraak is a good thing, and Miraak does seem to genuinely care.  Still, she does promise that if he hurts Lucien, she’s coming after him.  Miraak just smiles.  He’d expect no less.

Not so very long after that, Lucien moved into the safehouse with Miraak, and then it turned out his father got him a lead to this Dwemer ruin on Solstheim of all places and who better to go and have a look with him than a Solstheimer?  That led to a whole series of adventures, including that one time Miraak nearly broke up with him for remantling the Dwemer-Daedra entity that had tried to kill Miraak and possess his corpse... but eventually Miraak forgave him.  Even if he decided that if Lucien now had a demon horse, he was getting one, and acquired a Storm Atronach in horse form as his mount.  At least it wasn’t tentacled.

[kaoru-takaida]

Final Fantasy XIV Chapter: One Big Change...

*SPOILERS FOR SHADOWBRINGERS INTO PATCH 5.4*

… Hope takes one last glance at the now sleeping Tius and Kaoru. The “now a lalafell'' girl wrapped in the Miquote boy’s arms as they both sleep peacefully. Hope can’t help but smile. But there was still a bit of sadness and uncertainty that lingered in her chest. One her beloved could sense as he stopped in the doorway of the Dawn’s Respite. He reaches towards her and slips his hand into hers. She turns quickly, surprised at the sudden touch. They both leave the room. “Could I steal a moment of your time, love?” Alphinaud asks.

Moments later. Alphinaud and Hope are standing in the Solar. Alphinaud pulls the chair of Minfilia’s desk upright and slides it back into its spot. He’s silent a moment before he walks away from it. He sits down on the couch. “There were a few things I wanted to discuss with you.” Hope nods and sits down next to him. “The transformation that Kaoru went through… The magicks involved. Tis no arcana I am familiar with.”

Hope sighs now. “I noticed it felt way darker than I’m used to. Like the aether was distorted.” Hope scowls. “Nil and Krile said it was a ‘curse’. How would that be any different than a regular spell?” Alphinaud puts a hand of reasoning out.

“Spells are more common and easily used. They draw from the caster’s aether.” Alphinaud scowls now. “Curses, however, are more… darker in nature. They draw from the caster’s darkest emotions and despair. Instead of using their own, curses draw from the ambient aether of the caster’s surroundings. They’re highly dangerous and should never be attempted by anyone who does not have the knowledge or authority of their use.” Alphinaud closes his eyes, an elucidating finger pointed upward to prove his point. “Curses are more of a poison than a spell if one were to look at its properties. Given that they are formed of natural means and are preternatural when compared to normal spellcraft. Only ancient and malevolent curses exist on the same level as the one we just bore witness to. However-.” He stops, his eyes opening and his lips parting slightly. Hope smiles, and bursts into laughter now.

“Please, continue, Professor Leveilleur.” Hope says between high pitched laughs. Alphinaud’s cheeks glow red and he clears his throat.

“My apologies.” Alphinaud begins. He gives a small embarrassed smile. “All of the talk recently of Sharlayan and days in the Studium and of aetherial matters…” He gives a small sigh. “Tis all very familiar and nostalgic. And a part of me cannot help but feel a small tinge of homesickness.” Hope nods.

“I get that.” Hope tells him. “A lot has happened since we met a few years ago.” Hope closes her eyes now, smiling a beautiful smile Alphinaud swears was angelic. “We’ve all grown. In small ways and big. We laughed and cried. We braved overwhelming odds...” Hope’s voice trails off as the smile fades from her face. Alphinaud frowns now, concern now sweeping over his face. “Overwhelming… odds…” She grows quiet, looking down at the floor. The bangs of her hair drop down over her face, shadowing her eyes.

“Hope?” Alphinaud asks.

He places a hand on her shoulder. “We… all barely made it out alive in the fight against Emet-Selch.” Hope begins, her voice shaking. “Tius, Kaoru, and I almost became sin eaters. You and the other Scions almost lost your lives. And had it not been for that Ancient during the fight with Elidibus, us ‘Warriors of Light’ would have perished in the Void.” Hope grips the side of her robe that’s cascading down her legs. “And then at the Gardens… When Fandaniel appeared and…” She shakes her head. “We couldn’t do anything to stop him. Tius and I both. We were useless…”

Alphinaud swallows hard and scowls. “You weren’t! You were just taken unawares.” Alphinaud says, in a feeble attempt to help her calm down.

Hope shakes her head again. “We were. In that moment, on the ground, unable to do anything to help or protect you all, or to defend even myself. In that instance… I… I-I...” A tear drops from her chin and Alphinaud feels his breath catch in his throat. She looks up at him finally, revealing teary eyes and a pained look on her face. But there was something else there too. Something he knew only too well. It was… “I was scared, Alphinaud.” She tells him. His lips part and he purses his eyebrows. She sniffles, wiping some tears off of her cheek with her wrist. “I was so scared of what would happen. Of what might happen to you all. But even more selfishly…” Hope grimaces, closing her eyes and letting the tears flow. “I was scared I’d die…”

Alphinaud grabs her and pulls her head into his shoulder, holding her tightly. He closes his eyes, his face relaxing. Hope sits there a moment, just letting him hold her. Something about it was helping her. His warmth, his gentleness, even his scent. Every moment smelling his earthy musky cologne helped her relax. Alphinaud knew he didn’t need to say anything. She understood that he was there for her. That he was always there with her. But he had to say it, nevertheless. “I understand how you feel.” He tells her. He takes her hands into his. “There were so many times when you’d leave to go face some unimaginable danger and I’d be left behind hoping, praying, that you’d return to me safely.” He opens his eyes, looking forward. “And even when I’ve done all I could do to hone my skills and push my potential, I still was unable to do much to aid in your efforts against Emet-Selch and Elidibus. I always find myself a few steps behind you and the other Warriors of Light. And I, too, have found myself expecting death to take me.” Alphinaud pauses, gauging what to say next. “But…” He releases Hope's hands and she sits up straight to look at him. He gives a warm smile and sighs. “I keep faith in my hero. My love. The one who lights my world. My inspiration.” He removes a white handkerchief from his pocket on the inside of his jacket. “When the world is in darkness and all the odds have been stacked against me, I remember that I still have you and that I would do anything… anything… to see that smile on your face once more.” He gently dabs at the tears on her cheeks. “And that one day I could walk next to you not just as your partner.” He lifts her chin up slightly. “But as your equal.”

Nil sighs removing the leather band at the bottom of his braid. The twisted braid uncoils itself. He stares at the mirror in distaste at the small pearl of a third eye on his forehead. He’d hated it… Hated his upbringing. His existence in the Empire’s hands. Not Garlean, but also not Eorzean either. Alisaie walks past the washroom, but takes a step back as she sees Nil glaring at his reflection. She steps towards him. Nil hears this and hurriedly covers his forehead with his bangs again. “Ah, Miss Alisaie.” He says, clearly trying to hide his embarrassment. “Was there something you needed?” He asks, his voice a little more shaky than he’d wanted.

Alisaie gives him a small laugh. “Why cover it now that we know it’s there?” She asks. She leans against the doorway now. “And drop the ‘Miss’. We’re friends now, aren’t we?” Nil nods slowly, a smile on his face. Alisaie walks over and pushes his bangs to the side, making him flinch slightly. She nods towards the mirror. “See? Much better if you ask me.” Nil looks at his reflection and gives a small blush. "How about I pin it back with a braid?" He nods now, notably pleased that she was taking an interest in this.

She begins braiding his hair over when he clears his throat. "I needed to tell you thanks for understanding and accepting me." He tells her. She stops a second before continuing.

"Had I been the uneducated sheltered and spoiled child I was when I first came to Eorzea with Alphinaud, I probably would have rejected you the moment I had any suspicion." Alisaie replies. "But having experienced the things I have, and done the things I've done, thinking of you as simply 'another Imperial' would be an insult to everything we've accomplished and the people I've connected with." Alisaie tells him, pulling some if his hair over the braid and continuing to braid into his ponytail. "And I admire the bravery you've shown us thus far. Fighting your fate, challenging norms, taking your life into your own hands." She scoffs. "If that's not heroic, then I don't know what is." Nil is taken by surprise at the storm of compliments from her. And he could tell by the look in her eyes that she was genuine. She finishes braiding around his ponytail and let's the spare braid fall loosely onto his shoulder. "There…" She says, a bit nervous at the outcome. "W-What do you think?"

Nil smiles and admires his reflection now. He places the silver jewel over top of his third eye and nods. "Yes, I think I like this look." He tells her. Nil puts a hand up. Alisaie gives him a small high five and crosses her arms with a proud expression on her. "Mayhap you'd like to come help me find a new attire?"

Alisaie nods. "Mayhap I would."

Tius opens his eyes to see Kaoru, lovingly looking up at him. He had to take a second to recall her very VERY different appearance. Her eyes reminded him of a cute puppy's and he had to stop himself from commenting how cute she looked, knowing it would just upset her right now. Instead, he smiles a little smile at her. "Are you watching me sleep?" He murmurs.

She gives a quiet laugh. "Mayhap I was.." She says, snuggling her head into his chest again. "Not for long. I've only just woken up." Kaoru replies. She sighs once before sitting up. Tius sits up too, giving a little stretch. They're both taken by surprise as they spot a napping G'raha, hunched over the bed from his seat at Kaoru's side. A book openly placed in his left hand, and quiet breaths are heard as his shoulders rise and fall. Kaoru blinks in a bit of confusion and Tius's eyes narrow a bit in annoyance. "I wonder how long he's been asleep…"

Tius leans against the wall behind the backboard of the cot. "We should wake him. I'm sure there's still plenty of stuff that needs to be done right now."

Kaoru nods before turning towards the other sleeping Miquote. She places a hand on his shoulder, and gives a gentle shake. "Raha…" She says. His eyes open a bit as he inhales sharply, waking up. "Raha, you should sleep someplace proper if you're tired." G'raha notices who's waking him up, and instantly blushes. He jolts upward, his face flushed red.

"Ah." He stammers. "F-Forgive me. I had wanted to talk to you both when you had woken up. But in waiting, I fear my recent tribulations have caught up to me." Tius scoffs, crossing his arms.

"You better start taking care of yourself. Wouldn't want us to report you back to the Captain Lyna, now, would you, Exarch?" Tius teases. Kaoru gives a small giggle and even G'raha can't help but laugh at the comment.

"Nay." He answers, an embarrassed smile on his face. "I would not want to worry her more than she already is." After a moment, G'raha looks up at them. His smile is replaced with a serious look. "Now then… At the risk of souring the mood, there is something I would like to discuss with you both." Kaoru readjusts herself so she can sit upright properly. G'raha is silent a moment before he looks at Kaoru. "You realize that this is a curse that has been placed upon you, yes?" Kaoru nods. G'raha then sighs, closing his eyes a second before looking up at Tius. "Unfortunately, the means by which we are able to change her back are still unknown." G'raha purses his eyebrows. "And while I won't tell you to get used to your new form, I will say we are fortunate he only transformed you into a Lalafell rather than a toad, or some object without any sentience." But he shakes his head. "It will be rather difficult to identify this curse, much less finding out how to remedy it."

Kaoru looks down at the blankets in what Tius hoped wasn't defeat. Tius scowls. "But there could be one, right?" He asks. "A way to turn her back."

G'raha's ears droop downward. "I'm afraid there's more to it than that. The curse wasn't just to transform her into a Lalafell." He puts a hand out, gesturing to Kaoru. "I'm sure you already feel it, or am I mistaken?" Kaoru shakes her head numbly. G'raha looks at Tius again. "The fix Alphinaud and Krile placed upon her will not hold. Ere long, her aether will become unstable again and threaten to bring her body into shock."

Tius chokes. "What?!"

G'raha drops his hands to his knees and looks down at his boots. "Think of it as a damn that's slowly about to be overtaken by a rising river." Tius looks at Kaoru now. "Left like this, she will surely die." He can see Kaoru trying her hardest to look unaffected by the news. But he knew despite the cold and calculated look on her face, and the composure. Tius knew she was scared.

Tius grabs onto her and holds her in his arms. He inhales sharply. Kaoru and G'raha both have wide eyed surprised expressions. The sudden embrace was unexpected. But even more so, Tius lets tears fall from his eyes as he holds her head. "I refuse to give up." He says. Kaoru chokes a bit, trying her best not to lose the little bit of composure she had. "I won't lose you, too." With that, Kaoru buries her face into his shoulder, and sobs. Her body shakes as she weeps into his shirt and muffled cries fill the room. And even G'raha had to try to hide the tears streaming down his cheeks.

Hope Gallant played by @louderthanthedj

The final Part will be coming soon...

[lovehugsandcandy]

Find the Lady (BP, Ash x MC)

A/N: So I started this when I was amused by the hijinks of BP and abandoned it when it started to get old but then figured I should try to finish it...because I do love me a snarky LI, don't I? This was already posted in AO3, sorry if you already read it.

Pairing: Ash x MC; mentions of Courtney x Mario ‘BrainMelt’ Bautista, Bachelorette Party

Length: ~3600 words

Rating: PG-13 (Swearing. Someone (?) drinks too many Bloody Marys and gets sick.)

Summary: Find the Lady but Mandy’s the Lady and, if Ash can find her, he’s not letting go.

Ash had to do a double-take, a triple-take, hell, a quadruple-take, when he walked by the open door of the Peanut Butter and Banana Quickie Chapel & Pawn Shop at the far end of the Strip. It wasn’t unusual for the gaudy gold doors to be propped wide open in the spring, Vegas heat not yet in full force, comfortable days still the norm before the fire of the summer arrived; the chapel was small enough that he was able to peer inside, past the makeshift pews, past the smoke machines and disco balls, all the way to the far wall where linen flowers and neon lights surrounded the glitter-gold script of their slogan. One-stop shop! We’ll put a ring on it and take it off your hands, too!

However, none of the garish decor caught Ash’s eye. Instead, it was captured by the trio who stood with their backs to him, speaking to the Elvis impersonator. Now that he looked closer, he could tell that it was the blond girl who hooked up with the magician and the hotshot doctor who just happened to live out East near Mandy. These two were just secondary to the sight that stole his attention though because, right in the middle, always right in the thick of everything, stood the gorgeous lawyer herself, braid cascading down her back as she spoke animatedly to Elvis. 

He wanted to head in, to say hello and take just a second to bask in her attention, to see her face, but he had to pause. If she was here, talking to a quickie minister with Reed at her side, it could only mean one thing. She definitely wouldn’t want him popping back into her life at this exact, special moment. So he took just a minute to watch, her hands flying through the air as she gestured to the flowers, the pedestal. He had to smile, melancholy as it was. He was glad it worked out for them. She deserved to be happy.

~~~~~

He hadn’t seen her in six months; hell, it felt like they had barely spoken over text since she left for the airport with her friends and his heart, but she was never far from his mind. He always knew that he was little more than an interesting diversion in her life, a wild story about the time she was in Vegas and met a two-bit hustler while on the run from the mafia, but for him? She was no drunken exploit or tall tale. Yes, it had been short romance, but it was the first time a tourist wove a path into not only his bed but his mind and his bones and his soul. He could still see her, clear as day, standing on the roof of his shit apartment, bathed in the sun's glow as it peeked over the mountains. 

He would recognize her anywhere.

Which is why he had to do another double-take on the Strip that night. He was in the middle of a game of Find the Lady, a pair of eager college-aged tourists focused on his hands as they followed the familiar routine, over-under left right left, when a dark braid caught his eye for the second time that day. He turned his head, quickly, too quickly, and his hands stuttered, the second card falling from his palm to the pavement below.

The girls in front of him laughed as Ash gaped at the card on the ground. He never messed up this game. “Wow, ladies.” He pulled his best smile out. “I think you both distracted me. You win this time.” He knelt to grab his card and held out the deck again. “Best two out of three?”

Once they had finally wandered off, after five more games where he made sure he focused only on his cards, not the gorgeous brunette he was certain he saw, he scanned the crowd intently. Nothing. He looked around.

“Jayson, man, did you see-?”

“I’m not helping you.” Jayson held up his discs. “I’ve had no success tonight because you keep telling people my mix tape is just me at karaoke.”

“It is you at karaoke. It’s not even good karaoke; it’s a clip from your phone at Club Yamang that ends with you screaming at a bouncer as they throw you out.”

“I told them I paid my tab.” Jayson glared.

“Yeah, with a stolen credit card.”

“Man, shut up, you don’t need to blow up my spot.”

“You have no spot.” Ash was still scanning the crowd, Strip packed with tourists and grifters and hustlers enjoying the glittering facades around them. “Do you remember-”

“I remember nothing.” Ash sighed as Jayson stalked off, clutching his CDs under one arm as he looked for his next victim.

With one last look around, Ash shook his head and got back to work. It’s not like she was here to find him anyway.

~~~~~

The next night found him outside the strip club, LIV DUDS blinking in the window. Shitty exterior aside, it was always packed on Saturdays, an easy way to catch willing coeds as they streamed out of the club, high on the buzz that only scantily clad strippers provided.

He was far from the door, eyeing the crowd and waiting for someone who seemed willing to play, when a shout made him turn.

“BACHELORETTE PARTY PART TWO! WOOHOO! ALL THE FUN WITH NONE OF THE GUNSHOTS!” His jaw dropped. It was the blond again, Courtney, the one with the enormous wild streak and dirty mind. She was bouncing, vibrating, visibly excited at being in her element again. And trailing behind her? Ash watched as the three amigos walked out, the senator’s ex and the one with the sketchy job and then, trailing behind with a blush on her cheeks and smile on her face, there she was. Mandy always took his breath away, every time he saw her, and this was no exception.

He stood, frozen on the spot, watching her talk on her cell, hands gesturing, as Diana put her hands on her shoulders to hustle her into a waiting Dryve.

Crap. 

He sprinted forward but watched as the backdoor shut, car lurching and pulling out into traffic.

Fuck. He glanced around, eyes falling on an idling cab. He dashed to the window, knocking frantically.

“I need a- Gene?”

Gene rolled down his window. “’Sup, Ash?”

“I thought you were still pretending to be a human statue by the Bellagio.”

“Meh. Gold paint took forever to wash off, especially when it got inside those tiny shorts and irritated my-”

“TOO MUCH INFORMATION!” Ash grimaced, making a mental note to bleach his brain as soon as he got home. “Anyway, I need a ride. Now.”

“I’m on my break!” Gene gestured to the tuna sandwich in his hands. “I haven’t eaten all day!” The words were barely intelligible around the giant bite in his mouth. 

Ash could just make out the taillights of their car heading downtown. With a deep breath, he opened the door and yanked Gene out of the driver’s seat.

“What the-”

“Here.” Ash pulled open the back door and shoveled him in before hopping behind the wheel, turning the engine, and peeling out. He could just make out the rideshare and had suddenly never been so grateful that the Strip was a long, flat line. “Just sit and enjoy.”

There was a rustling in the back and then a thud as Gene dove towards the floor. “My sandwich!”

“I’m sure it’s fine.”

“You stole my cab.” He was pouting, brushing off the grime from his food, but Ash sensed that it was halfhearted as he settled into the seat and stepped on the gas.

“Not stealing-you’re in it!”

Ash saw Gene take a giant bite of his dinner in the rear-view mirror. “Still stealing,” he sulked.

“Risk I’m willing to take.” He didn’t know what he would say to her if he caught up to them. ‘Congratulations’ seemed a little too fake, ‘Remember me?’ a little too bitter.

“Grand theft auto here. I can’t believe I took financial advice from a thief!”

“Not a thief, I’m borrowing. Much like one does with a loan when they incur a debt. But I’m giving your collateral back when we catch up with that car!” Ash concentrated on darting between traffic, keeping the Dryve in sight, winding his way up the Strip, past the familiar glittering lights and lively casinos. “And, come on! It’s Vegas! Live a little!”

“View’s different back here.”

“That’s the spirit. Enjoy the ride, man.”

Gene gazed out the window. “Did you know that Dirty Harry’s has half priced drinks tonight?”

“Yeah, they do every year on Clint Eastwood’s birthday,” Ash answered idly, focused on getting closer to the girls’ car, gaining some distance as it started to slow down.

“Hmm….” Gene peered at him. “You’ve been doing this a long time, haven’t you kid?”

“Stealing cabs?”

“Hustling on the Strip.”

“About ten years.”

“You ever think about doing something else?”

Ash thought to the manuscript saved on his laptop, forty thousand words, a treatise on hustling tourists and taking risks in the world capital of risky decisions, only partially completed before he lost his motivation, right around the time he realized he lost Mandy for good. He thought about his book and how maybe he could write from anywhere, even from the ritzy East Coast city where doctors and lawyers met and drank expensive whisky with their expensive degrees on the wall. 

He swallowed. Gene was still looking intently at him, eyes peering into him like he read minds. “Sometimes,” Ash responded with a shrug. “But right now, I’m just thinking about catching up to that Dryve.”

“Just don’t crash my cab. I don’t need anymore debt!”

“You got it.”

Finally, after running two red lights, a nerve-wracking close call with a drunk tourist, and inventive insults from the backseat that Gene should definitely trademark, the Dryve pulled up to a stop; he could see the Girl Scouts jump out and file into their hotel.

He screeched to a stop in front of the building, wincing as the valet dove out of the way. “Ok, take your cab, Gene. Here’s my stop.”

He slammed out of the cab but the “Hey, Ash?” from behind him made him turn.

“Yeah?”

“Good luck with your girl.” He had to smile. Of course Gene knew who they were chasing. Ash had always been obvious.

“Thanks, man. Thanks for everything.”

With that, he raced into the lobby of the hotel, the same hotel where he had accidentally rescued them from the gunman, the same hotel with the forest penthouse and shitty security that seemed to allow Norwegian murderers open access to guest rooms. He shook his head. Focus. No time for a walk down a truly trippy memory lane now; he had to find them. Where could they be?

Luckily, raised voices at the bar to his right were a clear signal. A loud commotion, raised voices, and breaking glass? Bingo.

He skidded into the bar and froze. And blinked. And blinked again. “Ummm....”

“Oh! Hi, Ash.” Aisha gave him a quick wave and then returned to the task at hand, trying to corral an overwhelmed Courtney while bobbing and weaving to avoid the signature hand flap. “Courtney, come on!”

“But....” Ash grimaced as her hand collided with Aisha’s shoulder, the slap barely audible with the noise of the insanity in front of him. “But...”

Diana peeked around her friends, barely visible behind the giant thing in front of him. “Hey, Ash.”

“Hi, Diana. Umm...” He blinked again, wondering if he blinked enough times, the vision in front of him would fade. Did he hit his head? “Is that an ostrich?”

She scoffed at him. “It’s an emu!”

“Why the hell do you have an emu?”

Courtney was still flapping her hands, limbs vibrating as she stood; Diana edged away from her and muttered,  “.... because we’re staying in the rain forest suite again?”

“What. Do emus even live in the rain forest?” The emu looked unfazed. 

“Who cares, Ash!?! Do I look like I watch National Geographic?”

“Yes?” He took in her prim outfit, the severe look on her face, and the bottle of electrolyte water in her hand. He nodded definitively. “Yes. You look like your idea of a wild night is binging National Geographic in a bathrobe and fuzzy slippers while wearing a face mask and drinking a green juice.”

She wrinkled her nose. “That was so specific that it feels like you were spying on me last weekend.”

He rubbed his temples. “Ok, where the hell did you get an emu?”

Courtney had calmed enough to join the world of the semi-functional and jumped in, “Ash, it’s Vegas! You can get anything here!” She lovingly stroked the neck of the bird; it seemed like it enjoyed the attention. Then again, who knew? “They still haven’t supplied any cute animals, so we had to find our own!”

“You mean, you stole it from the zoo.” Ash whirled to see Mandy walking in, a severe man in zookeeper garb trailing behind her.

“Borrowed!” Courtney’s voice did the screech-thing again.

“Stole and hid it in the suite until it escaped because no one fed it!” Mandy put her hands on her hips.

“What?!?! I left it cocktail weenies and made it Bloody Marys from the mini fridge!”

“It eats seeds. Insects. Grass.” The zookeeper edged closer. “It can’t metabolize alcohol; since water is scarce in their natural habitats, they have a tendency to consume vast amounts of liquids so it has reserves when-”

The zookeeper trailed off as the emu made a few grunting noises and, in a stunning display, threw up partially digested hot dogs and red liquid onto the bar floor as the entire group lunged backwards. They all looked at each other in stunned silence.

“Of all the vomit I thought I would see, I really didn’t think it would be from that.” Diana blinked, looking down at the violent red stain on the floor. For once, Ash agreed with her completely. The emu squawked and looked around, nosing its beak towards the bowl of peanuts on the bar. 

“Did that emu just boot and rally?” Courtney sounded as shocked as Ash felt.

The zookeeper sighed. “They really are amazing animals with a fully developed system of-”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake, enough with the zoology lesson.” Aisha glared. “Can you get this thing out of here?”

The zookeeper glared. “It’s not a thing. It’s the second largest bird on Earth with a wingspan of-”

“Ok.” Mandy patted his arm. “It’s amazing, but can you please remove it? I’m sure it wants to get back to the zoo.”

“Fine.”

Ash stepped out of the way, watching the zookeeper coo in some bird-language that made the emu duck its head and follow him out of the bar.

“Wow.” Courtney had stars in her eyes. “That creature is majestic.”

Mandy shrugged, catching Ash’s eye for the first time. He felt his heart stop. “Hi, Ash.” Hell, time stopped.

“And that’s our cue...” Courtney grabbed Diana’s arm, and he barely registered them brushing by, Aisha hot on their heels as they entered the bowels of the casino. The only thing he registered was Mandy’s gaze, pinning him in place with the weight of months of unspoken words and missed opportunities. 

She stepped closer and still he couldn’t move. “Earth to Ash.”

“Hey.” He looked behind him, taking in the open pair of barstools, past the pile of emu vomit on the ground, and set his shoulders. “Do you want to grab a drink? Not Bloody Mary’s?”

He could barely focus on anything else as they settled down at the bar and waited for their drinks. The dim lighting made her seem shadowy, gauzy, as if she were floating in and out of his daydreams; he had to shake his head and take a swig as soon as the beer was placed in front of him. It seemed like she was already so close to fading away, back into her normal life and out of his reach.

“I wondered if we would find you.”

Her voice brought him back to the present, and he shrugged a shoulder. “Vegas is a small place for a local. Also, the four of you cause so much trouble it was only a matter of time.”

“Courtney causes so much trouble.”

“And you’re right there with her.” The smile was impossible to stop. “I seem to remember you getting into trouble all on your own.”

“And I seem to remember you bailing me out a few times.”

“Don’t need to do that anymore.” He winced as the words came out far more bitter than he intended.

“Ash? Why are you…?” She put her hand on his arm and he inhaled sharply, as even that simple touch sent his mind spinning. He pulled away, needing a bit of distance, any distance, something to give him space from the memories of another bar, just like this, another time when he wondered if he would ever see her again. She sighed, watching him, dark eyes cautious and waiting, before she leaned in again to aver, “You know I missed you.”

He had to turn away so she wouldn’t catch his eye roll. “You stopped texting me but it’s ok, I get it.”

“I’ve been working on some things, Ash. I’m sorry but-”

“It’s fine.” He shrugged, lifting his glass. “It’s all transient. You know how it is.” 

“We had something real. You know we did.”

“Aren’t you getting married!?!”

“WHAT?” She stared at him. “To who? What?!?”

“To Reed? The doctor?” Ash shrugged, turning away from her to hide his face. “I saw you at the chapel. And it’s your Bachelorette Party. Congratulations.”

A hand on his cheek turned his face, so he could see Mandy gaping at him. “Reed? Wait, what? No, no, no. He’s here for the wedding, too. Courtney is getting married.”

“Wait, Courtney?” Any happiness he may have felt at the implication that Mandy might be fair game was supplanted by his shock. 

“Yeah. To Mario.”

Ash was so glad that he hadn’t taken another sip of beer because it would have ended up splattered on the marble of the bar. “The MAGICIAN?”

Mandy shrugged. “I think it’s good for her. She needs a bit of stability in her life.”

“I agree, but a magician named Mindblaster is the stability here?” Ash couldn’t stop the scoff.

“Ok. So it’s not a ton of stability.” Mandy smiled. “But they really are a great fit. And she’s happy.”

“Huh.”

She caught his eye. “And I’m not getting married.”

“I see…” It felt like the air had left his lungs. “So, are you saying you’re single?”

“I don’t know about single…” Ash felt his face fall as Mandy looked up at him, curiously. “There is this guy I like….”

He turned to face the bar, grabbing his beer. Of course.

A hand on his arm stopped the bottle halfway to his mouth. “You fool. You know my type. Japanese-American street performers?”

“Pretty niche, you know.” He had to smile ruefully, trying to keep the bitterness from his voice. “You remember you left him behind, right?”

She swallowed. “Ash… I’m moving to Vegas.”

“What?”

“My firm has a rotation program for high potential lawyers.” She looked at her hands. “I was selected and get to work with a top partner at a different branch across the country for nine-month trial period. If it goes well, I might have a permanent position.” Finally, she raised her head to meet his eyes. “It’s a big career opportunity. And I requested to come to Vegas.”

He carefully placed the bottle on the bar. “Are you serious?”

“Starts in two weeks. I want to be more than a tourist here. My career is so important to me, Courtney’s moving here, but I mean…I was hoping you…”

He cut her off with his lips. He just couldn’t stop himself from kissing her, pulling her close so the bar stool tilted and she was supported by his hands on her waist, her thighs against his, reacquainting himself with her lips and her tongue and the small of her back and the soft noise she made in the back of her throat and how her hands clutched his jacket as if she was afraid he would vanish.

Pulling back, he had to grin, eyes tracing over her face, the soft look in her eyes. He’s had some big wins in his life but this one takes the cake. 

“And here I was, thinking of moving out East.”

“Wait, what?” She was still so close to him and he watched the individual lashes surrounding those beautiful eyes flutter as she gazed at him.

He shrugged, feeling bashful. “I missed you.”

“Well, you’re lucky my type is extremely rare back home.”

“Your type....” He couldn’t stop the grin spreading across his face. “Tell me all about this street performer you like. Total hunk, right?”

“No one says that anymore.”

“Dashing hustler by day, fearless mafia fighter by night?” He smirked and leaned closer, drawn to the smile playing around her lips; it called to him, to his every cell, urging him closer.

“You legit peeled away as soon as we got shot at.”

“With an amazing sense of self-preservation?”

Finally, her grin broke into a wide smile, beaming across her face, and burned into his brain. “Oh my God, shut up and kiss me again.”

So he did. Nine months of this with a chance for more? That’s a gamble he’d take every time.

.

Tags:

Perma Tag: @leelee10898 @emichelle @client-327 @choicesgremlin @brightpinkpeppercorn @thequeenofcronuts @lilyofchoices @choicesarehard @desireepow-1986

This Mess: @tinypenguincheesemachine, @lizeboredom 

[jbbarnesnnoble]

Love from the Outside (Part Four)

Chapter Title: Grownup Christmas List

Features: Heart to hearts, fluffy moments 

Pairing: eventual Bucky/Natasha/Reader

Notes: This story went to me and went “ha, you THOUGHT this would be Bucky/Reader, but guess what! Sunshine is taking a shine to Natasha” so, that happened.

One more part after this and then the epilogue! 

Word Count: 1629

It had been five days since Sunshine appeared on the grounds of the compound. They were no closer to figuring out how or why she had appeared. But there was one thing they had concluded.

“There’s no way of safely bringing you back to your time. There are theories of course, but even if we could work out a way, we still don’t know what brought you here,” Bruce said.

“Since there’s no record of you after 1945, we don’t think you ever went back, or ever go back,” Tony said. Sunshine was quiet. Her thoughts were racing from one to the next. Never seeing Peggy again, even as an old woman. Steve had broken the news to her that Peggy had died a few years prior. Howard had died in 1991 at Bucky’s hand. Not Bucky. The Winter Soldier. Sunshine had made a point to distinguish the two in her mind. They came together with who Bucky was now. But while the Winter Soldier was part of who Bucky became, Bucky was not the Winter Soldier. Not anymore. 

“Sunshine? Are you okay?” Bruce asked. She nodded. 

“It’s a second chance, a blessing in disguise. Whatever force brought me here, whether it’s benevolent or malicious, it’s given me a second chance. I’d be a fool to squander it,” she said. 

“I know it can be a lot to take in, being in a new century,” Steve said from where he said. Sunshine smiled.

“Yes, it is. But I’ve got my two best friends to help me,” she said. 

The afternoon found the compound quiet. Steve, Natasha, Bucky, and Sam had a quick mission. Tony was spending time with Pepper and baby Morgan. Bruce was in the lab, Clint was with his family, and Wanda was off with Vision. Peter Parker had shown up for the holidays. Aunt May wouldn’t be joining them until later on, busy with work.

“Oh my. Has anyone looked at that cut?” Sunshine asked when she walked into the living area to see Peter. He was pretty bruised up.

“It’s fine miss. Uh...who are you? Are you a new Avenger? Mr. Stark didn’t mention anything about a new Avenger,” he said. 

“Oh, no. I’m...an old friend of Steve and Bucky. I’m a nurse,” Sunshine said. Peter’s brow furrowed. 

“I didn’t know they had friends...I mean, I didn’t know they had friends outside the Avengers,” he said. She laughed. She told him her name before telling him to call her Sunshine. He introduced himself too. 

“Now, let me take a look at that cut. Don’t give me that nonsense about healing factor. I used to make Stevie let me check him over all the time and stitch him up if he needed it,” she said, grabbing a kit from a cupboard. Tony had told her where she could find first aid kits if need be. She was going to start working with the medical team, but first she needed to brush up on 21st century medicine. 

“Now, forgive me, my medical knowledge is about seventy some odd years out of date. But treating a cut is one thing that hasn’t changed,” she said as she wiped the cut to disinfect it. 

After patching up Peter, Sunshine insisted on making him lunch. She couldn’t help but fuss over him. He reminded her of Steve in a lot of ways. And the kids in the old neighborhood. She was always fussing over all of them, making sure they ate something, using what meager savings she had sometimes to make sure they ate. 

It was late in the evening when the team returned. Sunshine had fallen asleep on the couch, Peter beside her. A movie played on the television and a bowl of popcorn sat forgotten on the table. It had been a quick mission, in and out for intel. There had been few complications. 

“Always taking care of the little guys,” Bucky said when he took in the scene. Natasha squeezed his hand. He saw a look on her face that he couldn’t quite place. 

“Let’s get them to bed,” Steve said. He picked Peter up, the boy barely stirring. Bucky sighed as he walked over to lift Sunshine off the couch. Natasha trailed him, opening the door to Sunshine’s room. Bucky set her down on the bed after Natasha turned the sheets down. Natasha pulled the blankets over Sunshine. She looked away when Bucky placed a kiss on her forehead, feeling like she was intruding on the moment. 

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

Things were quiet through the rest of the week. Bucky found that whenever he was looking for Sunshine or Natasha, the two would be found together. One day he found them making cookies while talking in hushed voices. It was more so Sunshine making the cookies, Natasha swiping cookie dough when she wasn’t looking, only to have Sunshine smack her hands when she caught her, mumbling something about getting sick from eating too much of the dough. Bucky couldn’t remember a time he’d seen Natasha so relaxed and at ease. He supposed Sunshine just had that way about her. 

The next time he found them together, they were next to each other on the couch watching Miracle on 34th Street, which had come out two years after Sunshine disappeared. He’d found himself joining them, sitting on the other side of Natasha. Sunshine had fallen asleep with her head on Natasha’s shoulder. Bucky took the opportunity to bring it up.

“You two seem to be getting along,” he said. Natasha nodded. 

“She’s one of the sweetest people I’ve ever met,” Natasha said, glancing at the sleeping woman. Bucky recognized the look on her face. It was the same way she looked at him when they were alone. 

“Tasha?” he asked, the words left unspoken. 

“I like her, James. I feel selfish for even saying it. I have you. I love you. But...even when you’d talk about her, before she showed up...I wondered what life would be like with her here. I know she would probably never return those feelings. The 40s weren’t exactly a hotbed of acceptance for anything that went against societal norms. But the way you spoke about her...and then she was here and I don’t know,” Natasha said. 

“I don’t know if you should say anything. She seems fine with us being together. I won’t lie Tasha. I do want to be with her. There will always be a part of me that wants to be. I love you, and that’s not changing any time soon. As understanding as Sunshine is...she was shocked yesterday when she saw two women openly holding hands when Steve and I took her into the city,” Bucky said. Neither of them noticed that Sunshine had started stirring. Much like they had earlier in the week, they brought Sunshine to her room, tucking her in. 

The next day, Sunshine and Natasha went for a walk around the compound grounds. It was cold, but neither woman minded. They were both bundled up. There was a bench clear of snow that they sat on.

“Natasha, can I tell you something? You must promise not to tell anyone, especially Steve,” Sunshine said. 

“Of course,” Natasha said. She raced through the possibilities. What could Sunshine have to say that she didn’t want Steve to know? 

“I think...I think I find myself just as attracted to women as I am men. Well, some women. I think I have a type,” Sunshine admitted. Natasha raised an eyebrow.

“And you don’t want Steve to know? He’s not...he’s not bigoted. This is the 21st century, Sunshine. Women can marry women, men can marry men. Sure there are still jerks but Steve Rogers isn’t one of them,” she said. Sunshine nodded.

“I know. That’s not the part I need you to keep secret,” she said, taking her locket off. She opened it. One side held a photo of Bucky, the other a photo of Peggy. Natasha’s eyes widened.

“You and Peggy?” she asked. Sunshine sighed.

“It just wasn’t the done thing. We were both hurt, both grieving. There were a few kisses here and there, but...it was never going to be more than that. She was talking about maybe going out with someone we worked with. I could never be sure if we gravitated together because of the loss or because of mutual attraction. I’d always thought she was beautiful, but...it just wasn’t done,” Sunshine said. 

“And you’re worried Steve will be upset?” Natasha asked.

“I don’t think he’d be upset. But...Peggy and I...it isn’t my story to share. Not without her. Not with him,” she said. 

“Then why tell me?” Natasha asked.

“I’d like to think we’ve become friends since my arrival. I felt like this was something I needed to get out. But if I told James...I’m not so sure he’d be able to keep it from Stevie. Those two always shared everything. I swear they were worse gossips than the old ladies in the neighborhood,” Sunshine said. Natasha laughed. 

They fell into an easy silence. Sunshine’s thoughts wandered. After losing Bucky, losing Steve too, her heart was broken into pieces she wasn’t sure would mend. She and Peggy had leaned on one another to put the pieces together again, to move forward and continue the fight against Hydra and other threats. She became more than a nurse. She and Peggy shared a pain that others around them couldn’t understand. 

The two women headed back as the temperature grew colder and snow began to fall. Christmas was rapidly approaching and Natasha couldn’t help but think that a new chapter of their lives was getting ready to begin. 

[toviitaffee]

Welcome to Brookden, little one

Author's notes: The fate of this AU is questionable. It won't have a linear sequence chronological timeline kind of thing. If I do decide to post more, it will be random stories from the AU but it does have a vague storyline. The tag for this AU is ‘The Magical Orphanage AU’ and it might get a master post if it expands enough. For now, enjoy this mess and tell me if you like it. Please. I need confirmation.

Summary : In a world of magic, fairies and dragons, misfortune find us at every step. So how, pray tell, are the lost and abandoned supposed to live when no one else will care for them? It's quite simple really. They can head to the Brookden Orphanage, there they will be taken in with open arms.

Pairings : Implied romantic Remile, everything else will be platonic because THEY ARE CHILDREN BETWEEN 4 AND 7

Warnings : minor injuries, amnesia, I hurt poor baby Virgil a little in this but you only see the after effects of him being hurt.

Word count :3,179

When the young boy opened his eyes, he wasn’t really sure what he should be expecting. His head hurt just enough to show that he probably hit it really really hard but he didn't know how or where that happened. Did he hurt it while playing? Did he trip over? Maybe someone kidnapped him?! Oh Gods was he going to ever see his family again? The next question that the boy asked himself correlated in a way with the first observation he made about not knowing what to expect when he woke up - just who were his family?

What he did see through unfocused vision was the tips of his violet or maybe they were brown hair and an unfamiliar wooden ceiling. The boy blinked a couple times. When that failed to help as much as he’d like to, he sat up and began to rub at his faulty eyes with tiny fists before blinking a couple more times for good measure. At least that got rid of the blurriness. It didn’t get rid of the nagging pain behind the eyes though. Or was it at the back of his head? It was then that he realised almost everything hurt in one way or another. He looked around, hoping to find someone to help him understand why it all hurt. Eyes swept across a small room in quick, slightly panicked motions. Everything was wood or stone. Well, except the bedding and the tapestry slung over the window in an imitation of a curtain. There seemed to be some light streaking through said tapestry but it was far from enough to make out anything more than vague shapes in the room. It terrified him.

Just before full blown panic settled in instead of the muffled sobs the boy tried to keep in, the door opened allowing more light in. He knew that someone, somewhere told him he was a big boy that should keep his fear to himself to make sure the monsters won’t try and get him, but he didn’t even remember the tone of voice in which he heard it. The boy was trying to mask the tears that managed to escape by wiping his face with the sleeves of the shirt he had on but it did nothing about the stinging in his eyes that was probably visible to the man that now stood in the door, holding a lamp in one hand and something else in the other. The boy peeked through a gap between his arms to look at the man. He was tall, very much so, with dark hair and dark glasses over his eyes. Why would someone use something to see better and tint it dark? Let alone wear it in the dark! This could only mean that the man was some sort of monster that was sensitive to light and could see perfectly fine with no light whatsoever. Then what was the lamp for? To scare him one last time before he was devoured in a single bite? The man remained in the door frame, potentially staring right at the young boy with his mouth slightly opened.

“Ughhhh oh shit. I totally did not expect to see you like, awake yet, kid. Shit, I wasn’t meant to swear, Emile will absolutely murder me. Lovely. Fuck I did it again. Shit. Fuck. Ahhhh. Ok I’m just going to shut the hell up and you’ll pretend you didn't hear a word of that, alright?” the man spoke. His hands were gesturing quite wildly despite both being occupied. The boy didn’t really know how to respond. Demons didn’t feel bad for saying bad words in front of young children did they? Maybe the man had magic that made his eyes sensitive. Nothing really made sense right now so maybe if he was nice to the man things would somehow end up alright? With the decision made, the boy took a deep breath as he lowered his arms before nodding slightly.

“Great! Now, I’ll just go grab the one that is actually good with kids and he’ll talk to you because I still don’t know why that man trusts me around children. You just stay here for a sec, gurl, and it'll all be good,” he spoke again, this time with a grimace that showed some of his teeth. There were no fangs involved so the possibility of the man being a demon or a monster was definitely declining. He turned to leave, placing the lamp on a table that wasn’t all that visible before the room was lit up. At least the room wasn’t dark when he was left alone again after the door shut. 

The boy decided that the room deserved another look around now that it was more than just shapes or formless blobs of grey. The tapestry that covered the window wasn’t all that intricate but it wasn’t simple either. It seemed to be depicting some sort of magic user, helping a village of some sort. The bedding in which he slept was a simple pale blue, the only other coloured thing besides the tapestry. Everything else was in similar shades of brown or grey from the abundance of wood and stone across the room. The walls, the floors, the bed frame, the little table, the dresser, the mirror… The young boy was immediately drawn towards the rectangular object with a plethora of questions running through his head. He slid off the side of the double bed and slowly half walked, half waddled until he was stood in front of the mirror. His head was more focused on the ground and his bare feet that were soaking up the cold from the wood beneath them. Then he got the courage to look at the figure that was looking back at him.

He was definitely a small kid, maybe a bit scrawny but by no means starved. Not in appearance at least. The shirt he had on definitely didn’t belong to him, it reached way past his knees and it turned out the sleeves have been cuffed multiple times just to make sure they wouldn’t restrict his hands. His hair was a mess, both in style with curls sticking up in every direction and the mixed brown and violet colours that had no real pattern in distribution.  Purple and green eyes stared back once he decided to examine those too. Huh, two different eyes weren’t the norm, were they? He tried to avert his eyes from the purple, green and blue splotches that covered his entire body that wasn’t covered by the clothing. The temptation to take off the shirt to see just how bad the bruises and scrapes were was strong but it disappeared almost the second the door creaked for the second time that day as it was opened.

“Oh, sweetheart you should not have left the bed just yet! We don’t know how hurt you are and we wouldn’t want to make it worse now, would we?” said another man who must’ve been the one the previous one was on about. He moved quickly through the room but not quick enough to startle the young boy whose eyes returned to looking down at his feet. He was also tall, yet shorter than the previous man. There was no more odd looking glasses or dark hair, instead normal, thinly framed spectacles covered kind, brown eyes from below a mop of curly, caramel hair. In an instant, he was kneeling beside the boy, gently turning his smaller frame to face the adult instead of the mirror. The boy complied in movement but his eyes did not rise.

“Well, you don’t seem too hurt except for those scrapes but those will heal soon enough. Now, how about you tell me your name and where you’re from?” the man asked after having a look at the child in front of him. The man wasn’t sure what to think. The boy was definitely still very young, but it wasn’t new for him to see kids beaten and bloody, not with the kids that crossed paths with him in this very house. The boy seemed to think for a little bit, brows furrowed in concentration as his expression changed from hurt puppy to something along the lines of frustration at the spot he was glaring at.

“Virgil… I think,” the little boy replied. He struggled to recall his name, but shouldn’t that be the easiest thing to remember? Virgil was definitely just as confused about his situation as the man seemed to be. Something that the boy only realised when he allowed himself a glance up only to see confusion laced concern pass through the kneeling man’s face. It quickly disappeared though as their eyes met. He also noticed the man with the dark glasses once again standing in the door frame.

“Virgil huh? It’s a nice name kiddo! I’m Emile and that over there is Remy, can you tell us anything else you know about yourself?” Emile asked, his hand reaching to run through Virgil’s messy hair. It didn’t seem like he was trying to fix it though, more like he was looking for something that shouldn’t be there. Virgil couldn’t tell if he found anything, Emile was really good at not showing what he thought when he knew the boy could see. Virgil was trying to think of anything to tell the man. It was obvious he meant well and he would help him. It was just that he couldn’t even remember how old he was. He remembered being proud when his birthday came around but if he was three, four or maybe even five, he couldn’t tell. So Virgil shook his head slightly, choosing the non-verbal answer despite the ache in his head. Talking hurt more.

“Why’s that Virgil? No one is going to hurt you if you tell us, promise,” Emile continued with the questions. Remy moved to sit on the bed, just behind Emile, putting a reassuring hand over the shorter man’s shoulder. They shared a look Virgil didn’t understand before they both returned their eyes to him.

“It’s not that I… don’t want to. I do! It… hurts to think. And talk,” Virgil murmured, diverting his eyes to the floor once again. His hands began to fidget with the hem of the shirt, tugging at the end of it and weaving it in between his small fingers. Emile then decided that the child before him trusted him well enough for now. With that decision made, he picked Virgil up and held him delicately yet still close to him. Comfort, Virgil realised, Emile was trying to comfort him. For some reason that caused some sort of damn inside the boy to brake. The pain, the strange room, the unknown yet kind men and the oh so irritating lack of memory. It all came crashing into one huge wave of tears and wails. 

For a moment, Virgil thought that the pain just went away with that but that couldn't have been right. He clung closer to Emile and sure enough, that was where the warmth and the soothing chill were both simultaneously coming from. It was a familiar warmth for some reason. A warmth that Virgil learned to associate with Magic. Was it his magic or was it someone else's? Virgil wasn't even sure if he had magic of his own, causing the seemingly never ending turmoil inside of his head to worsen. The boy vaguely registered the two adults speaking to each other before another soothing aura was enveloping him and sleep began to welcome him in it's dark embrace once more.

When the boy opened his eyes once again, the room was much brighter than previously and the much too big shirt had been replaced with clothes that were much closer to his real size. The tapestry must've been moved away from the window and he must've been changed while he slept. Virgil decided to sit up before trying to clear his vision once more, noting that sitting up definitely hurt much less than it did before. Everything hurt much less.

What Virgil also acknowledged was the fact that his curls somehow became even more untamed. It was as if the hair had a mind of it's own and it was deciding to blind the poor boy. A frustrated pout formed on his face as he shoved a hand through the mess in an attempt to pull it back. An attempt that proved fruitless as the hair simply fell right back down to where it previously was, obstructing the boy's vision once more. Virgil groaned at the lack of obedience his own hair decided to show only to be met with a giggle that was definitely not his own.

Virgil tensed, eyes rapidly moving from one corner to the other to try and spot the source of giggling. Suddenly, there was another boy in his face with freckles all over and glasses similar to Emile's. The boy was a few years older than Virgil but had a similar messy situation with annoyingly curly hair that was a lot lighter than anyone else's Virgil has observed since waking up for the first time in this room. He was also the only person he saw with blue eyes so far in the day. Or did he sleep for more than just a couple of hours?

"Hi! You're Virgil, right? I'm Patton and I'm your new friend. No argument about that. We're gonna have a ton of fun together alright?" the boy, Patton, said very rapidly. It was almost too quick for Virgil to understand all of it, but he managed. For some reason, the younger boy's apprehension disappeared, only to be replaced by an excitement that didn't quite feel like his own but it wasn't foreign either.

"Alright," Virgil answered with a small smile, not really sure how else he should answer to the older boy. Patton slid off the bed, offering one hand to help Virgil and also to lead them away from the now familiar room. Virgil did follow after Patton to the best of his ability but with his hand held by a very excited boy who was half dragging him by this point, it was hard to stay on two feet when the world still tried to be spinny. It seemed that Patton noticed after the third time Virgil almost nose dived into the wooden floor and decided to slow the pace.

"Emile had to go out to the town for something, he didn't say what which is kinda weird but that doesn't matter. Either way, he tasked me with making sure you're comfortable here and that you're alright. I usually do that sort of stuff. I'm really good around other people, or at least Logan says so. Oh! Logan is one of my friends here. We're gonna go meet him and Roman so you have more than just me as a friend!" Patton half explained half rambled as he led Virgil down the stairs and into a common area of some sort. Sure enough, two other boys were in the room. The older one with black, straight hair and glasses identical to Patton was reading a book by the fireplace while the other boy, younger but still potentially older than Virgil was playing with a wooden sword. He had light brown hair with small streaks of red or orange and a slightly darker skin tone than the other boys.

"Patton! You're back from your mission to retrieve the warlock from his tower!" The younger one exclaimed, running straight for Patton the second he saw them. Virgil, regardless of the excitement he seemed to keep despite the nerves, chose to hide slightly behind Patton.

"Indeed I have, Roman!" Patton giggled with the younger boy before turning to Virgil, "this is Roman, he's our resident prince and the best person to play pretend with. And that's Logan, he's the scholar so if you want to know a lot of cool facts he has like almost all of them! Guys, this is Virgil!" Patton explained, gesturing to each boy as he made the introductions. Roman bowed in response to his while Logan simply nodded in acknowledgement before going back to his book.

After that, things seemed to settle for a while. Patton ran off to play with Roman. They were still in the room but they were much too active for Virgil, who was still very much so tired despite being asleep for who knows how long, to join in. They both invited him to play but he declined with a 'maybe another day. I just want to rest today because everything hurt earlier'. The two older boys had much less practice at hiding concern while Roman didn't even catch on that he should've been concerned. Or if he did, he didn't show anything about it. With playing out of the question, Virgil struggled for something to do. He was just sitting by the fire, watching Roman try to save Patton from a dragon.

He must've looked particularly miserable as Logan kept sneaking glances at him. Or maybe the oldest boy simply knew that the youngest one was itching for an activity despite being too tired for a more active thing to to. Regardless of what gave him away, when Logan noticed him glancing back, he made a gesture to beckon Virgil to sit with him on the comfy chair that was just big enough for them both to sit. And Virgil did. He was, afterall, looking for something to do. Patton did say Logan was smart, maybe he could help figure out what to do.

"Can you read yet, Virgil?" Logan asked once the younger boy was settled, half leaning against the older boy's side. He wasn't quite sure if he could get nestled into Logan's side without both of them getting uncomfortable at the close contact of someone they don't quite know. However there was no way of avoiding contact whatsoever.

"A little. I don't think it's much though," Virgil answered quietly. He wanted to pull his knees closer to his chest but that meant creating even less space for Logan. Something he did not want to do at all.

"I could teach you a little more, if you'd like?" Logan offered, glancing at Virgil and adjusting the glasses to fit better on his face. Virgil smiled back and nodded at the opportunity. He could already tell that he was far from a child that liked being boisterous. He'd say he's more like Logan, sitting in the corner doing something calm and only half joining in the more ambitious games and activities. So that was how they spent their afternoon. Logan was slowly teaching Virgil, who was by no means a bad student, to read. Roman had managed to save Patton and they moved onto another game of pretend, sometimes involving the reading duo as the wise-men who assisted them in their adventures. All in all, this was not a bad start to Virgil's new life at Brookden Orphanage.

[timeisacephalopod]

Risk

Since I was on about how TonyRhodey is clearly an amazing ship that is widely underrated I have decided to write some college AU of them ft smol Tony and protective!Rhodey! Warning for creepy, only semi consensual/ forceful behavior (nothing terribly graphic but know its there).

Pepper is giving him looks and yeah he knows. He doesn’t really like Tony spending any kind of time with Tiberius Stone but its not really like he can tell the guy to stop it, that’s not his place. Tony’s grown enough to make his own decisions. Probably a little too grown given that he’s only eighteen but likes to pretend like he’s ten years older than that. Rhodey thinks it makes him feel more at home in spaces where everyone is older than him but most of the people they’re in class with are older than Rhodey too and he doesn’t really feel the need to act older than twenty one. But then his father hadn’t been a piece of shit who liked to abuse him for acting anything less than perfect either so maybe that’s why.

He thinks maybe that’s why Tony likes Tiberius to begin with, because he’s looking for validation and Ty’s plenty happy to give it to him, provided Tony does what he wants. There’s a million and one red flags in how he acts with Tony but Tony doesn’t much listen when Rhodey tells him about it and Pepper has her own methods of dealing with him that mostly involve a lot of convincing him her ideas are his ideas and then once he’s done what she wants reconvening him they were her ideas the whole time. Which, to be fair, they were but that’s more work than Rhodey’s willing to put in. He’s a lot more straight forward than Pepper and he likes things that way. The only thing he does put effort into is hiding the way he feels about Tony. Its not that he doesn’t want to tell him, but Tony has never really been single and if he is Rhodey swears its never for more than a day. So he keeps it to himself.

“Have I ever told you that I hate Ty?” she says and Rhodey raises an eyebrow.

“No you haven’t. Why mention it now?” he asks.

Pepper looks back over to Tony and Ty, “because that isn’t going to end well and you might need my backup in pointing out how much of a skeezy slime bag Ty is. It’s easier if you have immediate examples. Happy hates him too.”

Happy Rhodey knew about because he’s not shy in giving Ty looks but Pepper’s better at hiding it. “What makes you think it’ll go wrong now?” he asks. They’ve been with, and Rhodey uses the term loosely, each other for months now and things have been steady. Its not a good relationship by any means, but its not as bad as it could be.

Or at least that’s what he thought, but the look on Pepper’s face says otherwise. “He tells me things he doesn’t tell you, and even if he didn’t Ty doesn’t act the same around you as he does me. He views you as a threat, I’m just a woman.”

Rhodey snorts because that’s a massive misread of Pepper but okay. He has bigger concerns though. “And you haven’t said anything? To Tony, I mean.”

She shakes his head, “he doesn’t do anything until he’s good and ready to do it, you know that. But things have been getting worse and I don’t know what that looks like because he’s stopped talking to me. He hasn’t stopped talking to you though, which I think is weird.”

Its not, but Rhodey happens to have more insight into why than she does. “I’d be suspicious if he stopped talking to me in a way you wouldn’t be. Don’t look at me like that, you’re here talking to me, not confronting Ty like I would. And Tony knows it too. Isolation only works when your friends aren’t a pain in the ass.”

“Isolation? That shouldn’t even be work, Tony hates people as much as he likes spending time with them,” she points out.

Yeah, Tony the contradictory extrovert. He likes being social, but hates being around people. Symptom of a life in the limelight- Tony wants the social aspect without the headlines and never has managed to find that balance. “Isolation is basically abuse 101- you need to make sure there’s no way out otherwise you don’t get full control over a person. And yes, Tony’s done half that work for Ty but we aren’t nearly as hard to shake.”

Pepper gives Tony a worried look but its fine, Rhodey knows its fine because if its not some shit is going to happen and Ty’s not going to like it much. “Just keep an eye on him,” Pepper tells him. He will, partially because he’s worried about Tony, but also because Pepper’s got a good sense for these things. She always seems to sense when something is about to go wrong in Tony’s life before the rest of them. Rhodey doesn’t know how she does it and he kind of wishes he had that skill for himself. It would be easier, he thinks, to help Tony if he knew when Tony needed the help.

*

Yeah, seeing Tony fawning over fucking Tiberius in his lap kind of made Rhodey want to punch stuff but he leaves it. He hates Ty, and he wants to get rid of him, but he’s not going to do it in a way that will be sure to make Tony act a fool and try and get rid of him out of some misplaced sense of needing to rebel from whatever norm he perceives. Tony has never liked rules, spends as much of his time breaking them or bending them as he can, so Rhodey has gone out of his way to make sure Tiberius isn’t a rule. No sense in appealing to Tony’s sense of rebellion, that’s not going to do anyone any good, least of all Tony.

But he does make sure to check on Tony once everyone leaves mostly out of habit. He’s not sure when he developed the habit of stopping by his room every once and awhile to listen in but he’s been at it for awhile. Most of the time he can hear Tony drawing, or typing, or sometimes working on an actual design though Rhodey has mostly trained him into the habit of working on anything metal in the lab. Today though he doesn’t hear much but the rustling of bedsheets and he wrinkles his nose. He’s not exactly content to stick around and listen to whatever comes next but he hears a soft noise that he’s pretty sure came from Tony so he pauses for a moment.

The continued rustle of bedsheets almost drives him away again but as he’s moving back he hears Tony speak. “Wait, Ty, no-” Tony starts and maybe he has more to say, Rhodey has no idea because that’s all he needs to burst in. He doesn’t recall being able to move that fast, and he definitely doesn’t recall having the strength to grab someone by the scruff of their neck and toss them off a bed but that’s what he does.

Its not until Ty lands on his ass that it occurs to Rhodey that there’s a million things that could have led to Tony saying those specific words in that combination that didn’t equal anything bad per se. Its the fact that Tony scrambles off the bed and behind Rhodey, clinging to the back of his shirt that confirms his suspicions though and Rhodey sees red. “You’ve got five seconds or less to get the fuck out of my sight or this’ll go from assault to homicide,” Rhodey tells Ty and his tone must be something else because he’s never seen anyone that pale, not even Loki and his skin tone is the palest Rhodey has ever seen.

Ty does scramble out though, Rhodey’s eyes on him the whole way out. Pepper walks by a few moments later, giving Rhodey a nod as she moves off in the same direction Ty had. He doesn’t pay attention to whether or not he hears the door open and close as he turns to Tony. His eyes are wide and he looks shaken and a little pale but mostly okay. “Damn Rhodey,” he murmurs, “you’re scary when you’re mad.”

Rhodey doesn’t want Tony to be afraid of him though so he sighs, forcing himself to relax some for Tony’s benefit. Doesn’t seem to do much. “Tony,” he says softly, “are you okay?”

Tony has never liked that question, but today he says nothing about it as he presses himself into Rhodey’s chest, hugging him tightly. Rhodey circles his arms around Tony too, trying his best to convey how much he cares about him into the action but he’s pretty sure he fails.

*

Rhodey can’t sleep but Tony did insist he was fine even though Rhodey knows he’s not. He can’t make Tony do anything though so he leaves him be and now all he has is staring at the ceiling until he either falls asleep or his alarm goes off for class tomorrow. He’s almost grateful when his door opens and he expects to find Pepper there but he finds Tony instead, looking overly shy and extra small on account of wearing Rhodey’s MIT sweater. Its large on him so on Tony its huge because he’s so damn short.

“Can I sleep in here?” he asks in a small voice and that hurts, really. Rhodey extends an arm in a silent okay and Tony closes the door. He makes his way over to Rhodey’s bed fast, crawling into it and curling up next to him with his head on Rhodey’s chest. Rhodey curls an arm around him and holds him tightly, half afraid he’ll run off and do who knows what. Its a ridiculous concern but he can’t help but feel like maybe Tony will ignore all of this happened tomorrow because he’s a little too used to letting bad behavior go. He’s had a lifetime of practice with Howard.

“Thanks,” Tony murmurs some time later and Rhodey’s arm tightens around him for a moment.

“Nothing to thank me for, Tones. Its nothing.” He wants to say a whole lot more than that but he doesn’t, not right now. Tony has bigger problems to consider right now so he doesn’t need Rhodey’s mess of feelings.

“It is to me,” Tony says almost so low that Rhodey nearly misses it but he doesn’t. He doesn’t respond though, letting Tony have his private moment.

They lay like that for awhile, Tony curled up in his arms while Rhodey stares at the ceiling, sleep still evading him. He’s trying to find a good way to bring up maybe never speaking to Ty again when Tony shifts, pressing his face into Rhodey’s neck and nosing at it a little. He frowns, confused for a moment until he carefully presses a kiss to Rhodey’s neck, soft and slow and he’s probably thought about this exact situation enough to be embarrassing. Except now its happening and for the worst of reasons.

Rhodey pulls away a little, titling Tony’s head up before he can give him a sad, hurt look and he kisses him softly. That’s something he’s wanted to do for forever too and yeah, maybe his reasons aren’t exactly great here either but he knows Tony won’t take outright rejection well. So he kisses him, gives him at least a little of the attention he wants so he doesn’t feel put out and react badly. “You don’t need to do that, Tony. Just be here, okay? Just let me feel you here,” Rhodey tells him, shifting a little so Tony’s a bit closer to him. Tony relaxes some at least and settles back into his side, head resting on Rhodey’s shoulder.

He can feel Tony smile and Rhodey does too, genuinely happy that Tony is here even if he wishes it was under better circumstances.

*

Tony absolutely is not a morning person assuming he fell asleep at all the night before, so Rhodey’s not surprised that he’s up before Tony. He has a long morning routine anyway and Tony also hates anything to do with jogging and exercise so Rhodey’s happy to go himself. He is, however, a little surprised to find that Tony’s awake by the time he gets out of the bathroom post shower.

He walks over and wraps his arms around Rhodey’s waist, “hey,” he murmurs. Rhodey smiles and hugs Tony back.

“Hey. You’re up early,” he notes and Tony snorts.

“You know I don’t sleep well.” He pulls away and Rhodey knows he’s got more to say but he keeps quiet for now so he pulls himself out of Tony’s grasp and goes to his closet to find a shirt. Tony stands there awkwardly for a few moments before wandering over and leaning against the door frame. “You kissed me last night,” he says and Rhodey can hear the question in there but he doesn’t know what Tony is asking.

“Yeah, I did,” he says, sparing Tony a glance. He looks nervous, a little confused.

“You didn't need to,” he murmurs and there it is. So he thinks Rhodey has some ulterior motive which, technically he did, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t want to kiss Tony.

“I don’t do anything I don’t want to Tones, you know that,” he says in way of an explanation.

Tony steps forward and wraps his arms around him again and Rhodey curls an arm around his waist. “Yes you do, you get into all sorts of trouble you wouldn’t if it wasn’t for me,” he points out.

“None that I don’t really want to be in and even if that was true I’ve wanted to kiss you for years.” He figures the confession might do something to abate Tony’s anxiety and also its something of a relief to get off his chest.

Tony looks surprised by that and Rhodey likes to think he shouldn’t, but Tony’s better at recognizing interest in the form of lust, not love. Leads him into a lot of trouble. “Why haven’t you said anything?” he asks and Rhodey shrugs.

“You’re never single and I never really felt the need to drag you into my shit.” And he didn't know how Tony would react. He’s a naturally touchy person, given the chance he’ll spend most of his time stuck to someone so his touchy nature isn’t really much to go by. If Pepper didn’t shake him off so much he’d do the same with her. But Pepper likes space and also Tony is terrible for getting in the way and if nothing else Pepper is single minded in her focus, even when Tony’s trying desperately to get her to pay more attention to him than her text books. Its kind of funny to watch until Tony gets bored of tormenting her and goes to torment him for awhile. Still, point is that Tony is by nature a cuddly guy so any time he spends like that with Rhodey doesn’t really indicate interest.

“Then why say something now?” Tony asks, always the over thinker.

“Because you’ll keep harassing me until you get an answer you’ve decided is good enough. Might as well cut the twenty minute inquisition and tell you the truth.” Tony’s a nosey little bastard, and curious too. In another life he probably would have been a great journalist. Or just his regular pain in the ass self.

“You’ve really wanted to kiss me for years?” he asks, smiling. His eyes are bright, teasing, and its nice to see.

Rhodey nods, “technically you were my first actual crush,” he tells him. He didn’t really get it then mostly because people don’t talk about men being attracted to men and until Tony pretty shamelessly spent time pursuing them Rhodey never really considered the possibility in earnest. Once it occurred to him though he never really stopped thinking about Tony.

“I thought your first crush was Carol,” he says and Rhodey lets out a long sigh.

“One time, one time I have a minor interest in a lesbian and no one lets me live it down. And it was only a minor interest because... well, no one ever really did live up to the bar you set.” Tony’s a tough act to live up to and if Rhodey’s honest he’s not sure he ever let anyone try. Maybe there’s someone that’s better for him, he probably won’t ever know because he’s only really had eyes for Tony.

“Really? Why?” Tony asks, baffled.

Yeah, Rhodey really wished he didn’t do that but he’s met Howard, he knows what Tony is used to. Somewhere along the way he lost all value in himself and Rhodey hates Howard for that, really. He’s never really been one to hate much, its not in his nature, but people who treat Tony like shit make his blood boil. “Because Tony, you’re smart- I love watching the way you work through problems, the way you invent. And you’re compassionate, more than you give yourself credit for. And you’re funny even if you’re also a right pain in the ass, and you might be impulsive as hell but I love your curiosity. You’re easy to love,” he says, shrugging.

He wished that Tony didn’t look so suspicious at that, like Rhodey is lying to him or something but Tony doesn’t accept love as easy as he accept bad treatment. Rhodey knows this about him and he’s long accepted that he’d have to work hard to convince Tony he cares. He’s fine with that.

“What, do my good looks not appeal?” he asks and Rhodey resists the urge to roll his eyes.

Yeah, everyone with functioning eyes knows that Tony is hot but that doesn’t do much for Rhodey. Or anyone else if they’re honest about it. He’s never met a person who hasn’t had a moment where they thought someone was attractive until they opened their mouth and they decided maybe they weren’t worth it. But Tony’s looks are never what appealed most to him. “Tony, you’re probably the most attractive person I’ve ever met but I want you, not the package you come in. That’s a nice bonus though, I’ve probably spent too much time staring at your ass. Made a mathematical equation for the curve of it once and that’s weird, I don’t know why I said that.”

Thankfully Tony finds that hilarious because he throws his head back and laughs.

*

Rhodey hands Maria a wrench and she takes it, giving Carol a worried look. She’s hanging out of the engine area of the plane looking ridiculous like that but she’s the one who knows this plane best so they’ve left her to it. Rhodey could probably fix the issue faster, he’s got a boosted intelligence on his side, but Carol has experience on hers. Also its kind of funny watching her dangle out of the plane. “You think she’ll fall out of that?” Maria asks and Rhodey shrugs.

“Probably, but she’s like a cat. She always lands on her feet,” he says and Maria snorts.

“Someone hasn’t been paying enough attention. Carol’s like a toddler, always landing on her ass. You okay up here?” Maria calls.

Carol shimmies around until her feet manage to find the ladder she used to get up there. “I’m good,” she says and Rhodey shakes his head.

“She says that like she isn’t committing like fifty health and safety violations not using the right equipment to get up there,” he says to Maria, who laughs.

“Carol will be Carol.” She shrugs and she’s not wrong. Carol reminds him a lot of Tony, all wild energy with no real direction to point it in even if she’s got obvious passions. For Tony its inventing, for Carol it's flying. Both of them are nuts but that happens to be their appeal.

“What? It was like a five second fix and if anyone tells Lawson I’ll kick your asses,” she says as she climbs down the ladder. Rhodey and Maria shake their heads and Maria goes off to deal with the Jeep she’d been working on.

“Hey, so what’s up with you and Tony?” Carol asks and Maria turns around and walks back over mid-way to her task.

“What?” she asks when they look at her. “I want the gossip from a reliable source. So far I’ve heard like five stories about how Rhodey tried to kill Tiberius Stone and if there’s a body don’t tell me, I want plausible deniability,” she tells him.

“I’ll help you hide the body. What?” Carol asks when Maria gives her a look. “He’s a total d-bag and Rhodey has done the world a service by strangling him to death.”

He rolls his eyes. “I didn’t kill anyone, but I did maybe threaten to kill him a little. But it was his fault anyway and-” he tells them the rest of the story, plus the extra bits about his maybe relationship with Tony. He’s not really sure what’s going on.

“First of all let me take back wanting plausible deniability, I’ll help you bury him too. Also, I’m pretty sure Tony just doesn’t know what to do with a decent relationship. He’s got awful taste in men,” Maria says and Carol snorts.

“Is there such thing as good taste in men?” she asks and Rhodey gives her an offended look.

“I’m right here,” he points out.

“You don’t count as men, you’ve risen above that,” Carol tells him, punching him in the arm.

“I don’t know if I should be offended or flattered,” he murmurs. 

“Flattered. Also, Maria is right. He’s dealt with a weird amount of shit. Give him time and he’ll probably stop wondering when the facade will drop,” she says and Rhodey frowns.

“What’s that even mean?” He’s known Tony for almost more time than he hasn’t, he knows Rhodey by now so why would he be waiting for the other shoe to drop?

Carol frowns, “what, you’ve never had that happen to you? You know, you know someone for awhile and they seem fine, but once you’re in a relationship they like... go Gremlin on you?”

What? No he hasn’t had that happen to him. “Uh, explain,” he says and Maria rolls her eyes.

“He’s a dude,” she says and Rhodey squints.

“Tony’s a dude,” he points out.

“Tony’s a dude who’s into dudes. Guess guys do it to each other too, but sometimes when meet men they seem fine. You agree on a lot, they seem pretty cool, and then when you date them its like all that was a ploy so they could get into a relationship with you and act like they own you. That person you liked in the beginning? Poof, disappeared,” Maria says, waving a hand around.

Carol nods, “or sometimes you don’t even get to the relationship stage. Sometimes they ask you out and then when you say no they lose their minds like you’ve just murdered their mother right in front of them,” she says, shaking her head. “Point is, Tony’s definitely had this issue. Its what Ty did,” she points out.

Now that she mentions it that kind of is what Ty did. Tony likes attention, provided its the kind he wants, and Ty gave him what he wanted until Tony spent the amount of time with him that he wanted. Then he started pulling back on that validation unless Tony did what he wanted and that’s a pattern?

“What, do women not do that?” he asks. He’s never run into any but that doesn’t mean much. Its not like he’s run into many men who do that either, or maybe he just hasn’t noticed the right patterns like Carol and Maria obviously have.

Maria shakes her head, “no they do, but not usually in the same ways men do. I run into less problems with women.”

“Yeah, me too. Most of the ones I run into that pull that are usually manipulative assholes, but Maria’s right. Its in different ways. They’re usually more subtle about the whole guilt trip do-what-I-want crap. Still, point is Tony has maybe run into too many people who seem fine until they aren’t so give him some time,” she says.

Rhodey sighs, but he long ago accepted that Tony is more work than most. So there’s a little more to it, he’ll deal with it.

*

Tony looks agitated when Rhodey gets home and he sighs. “What’s wrong, honey?” he asks, pet name coming out maybe a little too easily but Tony doesn’t notice as he walks over, flinging his arms around Rhodey’s waist.

He looks over to Pepper, who looks more annoyed than Tony. “Tiberius won’t stop calling,” she says and as if on cue the phone rings. Rhodey holds out his hand and Pepper hands the phone over to him easily. Tony looks worried but he shouldn’t be. Rhodey knows how to handle himself.

“What the hell do you want?” he snaps immediately and shit, he hopes its not someone else.

“Oh great, he’s got you to do his dirty work,” Ty says and Rhodey lets out a sharp laugh.

“Buddy, if he got me to do his dirty work you’d know it so how about you fuck way the hell off,” he snaps.

“Whatever Rhodey. Put Tony on the phone,” Ty tells him and he lets out another laugh.

“Fuck no. Stop calling, don’t show up here, disappear from Tony’s life. He doesn’t need you here,” he says, rolling his eyes.

“He’s not that good at sucking dick, Rhodes. Hand the phone over,” Ty says and Rhodey swears to god he sees red.

“I don’t know shit about Tony’s skill at any kind of sex and I don’t need to to have enough basic respect for him to tell assholes like you to fuck off. And lets not act like you’re more moral than he is when you’re out here forcing people into it,” he snaps, hanging up before he says anything he regrets. Pepper raises an eyebrow and Rhodey knows that look. She didn’t like Ty before, but she’s about to ruin his life now. “Know that I endorse anything you do, and if I have to help you hide a body I will,” he tells her.

Pepper turns to Tony, who’s half turned in Rhodey’s arms to look over at Pepper. “Seems like you’ve missed a few important details in that relationship when you told me about the shitty things he does,” she says in an overly cheery tone. “Doesn't matter. I’ll take care of him,” she tells them, pleasant smile on her face and honestly Rhodey would feel bad for Ty if he didn’t think he was so deserving of Pepper’s wrath. Rhodey might be more willing to confront him, but Pepper is about to ruin his life and any possible way he could recover from it too.

Good.

*

Rhodey is attempting to do homework when Tony comes into his room, walking over and sitting in his lap. He shakes his head and wraps his arms around Tony’s waist. “You here to bug me?” he asks and Tony rolls his eyes.

“You love me,” he tells Rhodey, nose in the air.

Rhodey presses a kiss to Tony’s cheek, “yeah I do. But I assume you have a reason for being in here aside from being a bug.”

Tony makes an offended noise, acting more like himself than Rhodey has seen in a long time. Its nice to see. “Can’t I just want to spend time with you?” he asks innocently.

“Sure, but usually when you want that you show up with food,” he points out. “So what draws you in here?” he asks.

Tony shakes his head, leaning into Rhodey. “So uh. Stone International tanked today, something about unethical experiments with pharmaceuticals? Ty got arrested and newspapers indicate there’s more crimes to come,” he says.

“Pepper,” Rhodey says and Tony nods. “Ty’s a fucking idiot for deciding I was the bigger threat.” Pepper might not be the physical type, but damn if she isn’t terrifying nonetheless.

“Ty’s an idiot for a lot of things,” Tony says and yeah that’s true. “He used to tell me that you guys mostly only put up with me for my money,” he admits softly and he’s probably lucky he’s in jail because Rhodey is tempted to punch him. Or worse.

“That is in no way even remotely true,” he says, trying to temper his reaction some because that pisses him off.

Tony smiles a little, “I know. Kind of caught a clue when you listed off all the things you liked about me and my looks and money weren’t on the list. I know when you’re lying and you weren’t.”

“You could have asked before, I would have been happy to set that straight,” Rhodey tells him. “And I don’t just like those things about you Tones, I love you. I have for years, and I genuinely don’t think I could ever love anyone else like I love you. I don’t give a shit about your looks or money.”

When Tony wraps his arms around him Rhodey hugs him tight, hoping that the action conveys his love for Tony.

*

Maria and Carol look more annoyed that Rhodey has ever seen them. “Honey, I say this with love. But there is no amount of money that will make anyone put up with you, we do it out of love,” she says,

Tony gives her an offended look and turns to Rhodey, pouting. “Look baby, you know you can be a handful. Doesn’t mean we don’t love you for it,” he says.

“Am I the only one who thinks his antics are fun? Remember that Justin Hammer? That was great,” Carol says and Maria shakes her head.

“I don’t get you. I love you, but I don’t get you,” she says.

“Justin Hammer is the worst thing to happen to this planet, he’s worse than napalm!” Tony says viciously.

Pepper frowns. “I can think of at least five people in your life alone that are worse than Hammer,” Pepper tells him.

Tony sticks his nose in the air. “Nope, he’s the worst.”

Rhodey shakes his head. “Listen Tones, point is we all love you even if sometimes you get weirdly attached to hating people because they stole your mechanical pencil once.”

Maria frowns, eyebrows drawing together. “That’s what that was all about? We terrorized that guy for four straight months because he stole a pencil?”

“It was the best pencil I ever had! And he’s the worst! Every time I see his stupid rat face I go into a blind rage,” Tony says, emotion evident on his face and Rhodey sighs.

“I’ve stopped trying to make sense of the way his mind works because its fascinating regardless of the ‘how’ bit. Also, in his defense Hammer is actually horrible. Can’t stand the guy either,” he says, shaking his head.

Tony grins, puffing himself up. “See, Rhodey agrees with me!”

[freddie-roger-brian-john]

Surprises - part five (BxRxR)

A/N - second last part! Beware, this is kinda messy.

Warnings - swearing, giving birth.

Word count - 1591

——————

Ben and Roger had rushed you out to the car the second they understood what was going on. The babies were coming, the three of you had to get to the hospital as soon as possible. As they ushered you out the door, Ben made sure to pick up the baby bag that you and Roger had organised earlier that week. It had everything you would need for the next few hours.

Ben sat in the back seat with you as Roger drove. You were leaning against him as he ran a hand through your hair, trying his best to stay calm. You could see how much Roger was beginning to panic. He kept glancing back at the two of you and he was practically shaking in his seat. He gripped the steering wheel so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

As usual, you were the worst. You were just thankful that Ben had become accustomed to helping you calm down whenever you freaked out about the babies. Though you didn't say anything, he could practically hear your thoughts.

"This is really fucking scary." The words had come out shaky. You had meant for them to be a joke but the honest and panicked way in which you said them made even you question the tone.

"I know, baby," said Ben, "but everything's gonna be ok. You're gonna do so amazingly." You didn't believe him for one second. You didn't tell him that though, you kept quiet as your mind replayed every time you freaked out and every time Ben or Roger had helped you calm down. You needed their words to do this, that much you knew.

The three of you arrived at the hospital quick enough and it didn't take long for you to get as comfortable as was possible in a hospital bed.

Since month five, you had had a new doctor after Dr Simmons had moved to another hospital. Dr Malcolm, a tall man who wore glasses, had been her replacement.

He entered the room to see how far along you were. At this point, contractions were becoming the norm and you were extremely uncomfortable.

"You're already dilated 7cm," he informed you, Ben, and Roger, an hour after the three of you had arrived. "Looks like all your babies are coming soon." He told you not to worry and reminded you that the reward would be worth the discomfort. You were about to thank him for his words of encouragement when the door of your private room burst open.

"Tell us we're not too late!" Came the voice of Freddie Mercury. Seeing Roger's bandmates made you smile for the first time since your water had broken. Behind Freddie, you saw Brian and John file into the room after him, both beaming.

“You’re not,” Roger told them with an amused look on his face. The amused look was mirrored by Dr Malcolm who took his cue to leave and give the seven of you a moment. Roger and Ben both moved from their chairs to perch on the bed either side of you. Taking the hint, Freddie and Brian took the now empty chairs while John pulled a spare one closer to your bed.

“How are we feeling?” Brian asked you, giving your arm a comforting rub.

“Fine,” you lied. You knew immediately that no one in the room believed you.

“It’s gonna be ok,” John assured you. “Trust me, Veronica and I have been through this three times and every time, she’s been just fine.”

“You’re going to be more than fine,” Freddie told you. “You are going to do absolutely amazingly. Your babies will the second and third most beautiful in the world.”

“Second and third?” Ben questioned.

“Haven’t you seen my baby photos, my dear?” Freddie asked. “I was a work of art.”

“You still are, Fred,” you said, a genuine smile creeping up onto your face. Though you disliked how often the band went on tour or how long they would stay at the studio, you couldn’t help but love the men in it.

After a while of chatting and getting reacquainted with the boys, they excused themselves, knowing that you were probably in too much discomfort for a room that crowded. Roger was about to leave with them but just as he reached the doorway, he stopped in his tracks.

Another, rather sudden, contraction had snuck up on you and caused you to cry out. Ben, who was still next to you, grabbed your hand and allowed you to squeeze it as hard as you needed to. Roger decided that he couldn’t leave to chat with his friends when you were like this.

He returned to you side and took your other hand, ignored the sharp pain that hit him when you began to squeeze his hand as well.

Once the pain subsided, you opened the eyes that had been clenched shut and let out a deep sigh.

“This is gonna really hurt, isn’t it?” You said, looking at neither of them.

“Yeah, it is,” said Roger, “but it’s going to be so worth it.” You nodded, you knew he was right.

About half an hour later, Dr Malcolm returned. After informing you that you were already at ten centimetres, it truly hit you that the babies were coming.

“They’re coming now?” You asked, your voice shaky as you grabbed Ben and Roger’s hands.

“I’m afraid so,” Dr Malcolm replied. Nurses and midwives were called into the room, all the while you kept a firm grip on your boyfriends’ hands.

“You can do it, I know you can do it,” Ben told you, whispering words of encouragement into your right ear.

“You’re gonna be great,” Roger said into the left.

A few minutes later, the three of you had decided that childbirth was terrifying as fuck. Both Ben and Roger absolutely hated seeing you in the state you were in. Actual screams were spilling out of you as people kept telling you breathe and to push. You wished you could just tell everyone to shut up. “I can’t do this,” you breathed just as you thought you couldn’t push anymore. “I can’t.”

“You can, I promise you, you can,” Roger told you, though he sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than he was you. His eyes were wide and he looked like he was preparing for your death.

“Can one of yous do it for me?” You cried as tears began spilling down the cheeks that were already drenched in sweat. Both men let out a small, breathless chuckle, though their eyebrows remained furrowed with concern.

“The baby’s crowning,” Dr Malcolm announced as the pain intensified. Ben’s grip on your hand (which was just as tight as yours on his) loosened a little. He was no longer looking at you, he was looking at Dr Malcolm.

“Can- can I look?” He asked. When the doctor nodded, Ben quickly kissed your forehead before dropping your hand. Your now free hand shot over to grab Roger’s arm and you let out another cry. “Oh my god,” he said, his eyes glued to the sight of his baby’s head. “Roger, come on.”

“Nope,” said Roger, his feet rooting to the spot on which he stood beside you. “No way.”

“Rog, it’s your baby, you don’t want to miss this,” Ben tried to persuade.

“Not a chance. That-” his hand gestured down your body “-is my favourite thing in the entire world, I’m not watching a baby come out of it.” Ben rolled his eyes.

“Suit yoursel-” Ben’s mouth fell open.

“What?” You asked. The pain had subsided mildly and the cries that filled the room told you that the first baby was out.

“It’s a boy,” Ben said, his voice quiet. Had you not been more exhausted than you had ever been before, you would’ve smiled, jumped up, and ran over to see your baby. However, you were still heavily pregnant and had just pushed a person out of you. You leaned your head back against the pillows and closed your eyes.

“A boy?” Roger asked, his previously worried face split in two by a smile. “I have a boy?” His voice wavered as tears filled his eyes.

Ben nodded. “We have a boy.” Roger stood up to go and cut the umbilical cord. Between the two of them, they had agreed that Roger would cut the first and Ben would cut the second.

However, the second the baby was taken to be cleaned up, both men were right back by your side. “You did it, sweetheart,” Roger told you. “You fucking did it.” Still unable to muster the strength to lift your eyelids, you smiled weakly.

“I fucking did it,” you agreed. Your breathing was heavy and sweat covered your face. “But I- I don’t know- I’ve not got in in me to do it again.”

“You do,” Ben assured you. “What I just saw you do was the most impressive thing I’ve ever seen. I wouldn’t be able to do it, Roger definitely wouldn’t be able to do it, but you can.” You opened your eyes and lifted you head up from the pillows slightly.

“I can,” you said slowly. Smiles broke out onto Ben and Roger’s faces. You nodded to yourself and said, with more conviction this time, “I can do it.”

“That’s the spirit,” said Dr Malcom as he returned to his previous position between your legs. “It’ll be over before you know it. One down, two to go.”

[shirleylawson]

Four Days in Dubai

After I unpacked my bag last Wednesday from my London/Brighton trip to see my girl I was told by my darling husband to re pack, as we were off to Dubai the next day. Just got back from 4 days in Dubai, first time in the Middle East and not a social visit so absolutely exhausted. We had to go for us to basically make the final decision on whether or not to sign on the dotted line to transfer there or not (and I had a few wee contacts of my own to see, but keeping quiet about them at the moment, due to my superstition) and of course this time wifey had to come along as she is the one who has the final yay or nay at the end of the day!. Firstly, 4 days is not enough to get a real feel for a place but, depending on your pace, and ours was approx. 4 hours sleep per night, you can get a fair idea. If I had to choose whether or not to live there according to the flight, then the deal is done! We travelled Economy Class, of course, but with United Emirates Airlines, it doesn't feel like economy. Three tunnels take you onto the aircraft, one for First class, one Business and us cattle classes in Economy. We had to pass through the last two aisles of Business to get to our seats without even a whiff of the champagne and caviar being served in First, but the sight of the business class was enough to make me wonder if they all sat through there in First Class in a Living Room setting with shag pile carpet, full four poster beds and a log fire! Our flight was wonderful. Five hours and 40 minutes of sheer relaxation. A warm fluffy blanket and big soft pillow on every seat, which reclined backward and outward for your legs. Huge TV/Computer/Games Station/CD Radio in front with 700 channels to choose from. All the latest movies, I watched, My Sisters Keeper, Julie& Julia a bit of Malcolm in the Middle and listened to some of the new Red Hot Chilly CD and we had arrived, being served three times in between with wines, and a wonderful three course meal. There was an under aircraft camera to watch the assent from Rome and descent into Dubai. As we approached Dubai airport the first thing that stuck me was the proximity of the airport to the actual city. The runway seemed to be in the very centre of all these magnificent buildings and I felt I could reach out and touch the tips of them. From the air Dubai has a skyline similar to Manhattan but on a grander scale and with the lights and glitz of Las Vegas thrown in. I could see the Burg Dubai (tallest building in the world) rising above them all and it was spectacular. We disembarked and the airport was not a disappointment after the flight. It was huge and as I stood at passport control I looked up and couldn’t see the where the building ended, all I could see where lights and water falls and sky trains whizzing past, I felt like I’d stepped into another century. All airport staff are fluent in English and are only too willing to assist you with any enquiries you may have with a smile. It took a fair hike to eventually arrive outside but of course we were standing on Travelators the whole time and trying to take in the sights of the airport. I never thought an airport would make me want to get the old camera out (unfortunately it was packed away). The floors were white glistening marble with the gleam of silver everywhere (had to keep on the Prada sunglasses, also to show these Arabs I’m a classy Italian broad), sparkly little fairy lights and fabulous water features accompanied by music. Never mind a bloody hotel, I thought, lets just go get some sleeping bags and park here for the 4 days! We wouldn’t have needed the sleeping bags as it turned out, with an abundance of leather reclining seats in front of TV’s and computers. The services offered inside the airport were also very impressive, a line of pristine baby buggies in wonderful Disney Technicolor lined one wall for complimentary use and looked like a baby had never had it’s nappy soaked bum near one. Outside the warm night air hit us. It was 11.30pm but still warm and me in my boots and padded jacket. Our dear friend from Rome Paolo was coming to pick us up. He’s been living and working there for just over a year now and we’ve known him for 13 years, so we trusted his judgment of life in Dubai. Outside there was a queue of limousines and hummer limos…………..does no one have a normal car in this city?? Apparently not, Paolo drove up in his huge 4 by 4 Merc! The drive to his apartment took all of 20 minutes and then I saw some of the real Dubai City!!!! I craned my neck out the window the entire journey as Stefano and Paolo chatted away and caught up after not seeing each other for some time. Row after row after row of the most spectacular examples of 21st century architecture lined the streets to my left. Each building making me gasp until the two second gap of the next. Apartments blocks, office blocks, hotels and restaurants each one more impressive than the other. To the right was the sea. A pier stretching as far as the eye could see in the shape of a palm tree full of hotels, swimming pools and talcum powder beaches. Paolo’s apartment was on the 22nd floor of a dark blue building, the glass looked dark blue from the outside but normal from the inside. His balcony had a sea view to the right with the Marina and all the amenities it had to offer, a pool directly below and the skyline of glittering, sky scrapping buildings to the left. We sat out there drinking and talking and laughing (Paolo’s girlfriend lives with him) till 4 am which was silly, since Stefano had to be up early in the morning and had a hectic few days ahead, but he managed! He went off to “Internet City”, the main office area of the city by 08.30hrs and I set off to check out the local area. Taxis are in abundance (just like Rome I hear you say…………….not), in fact, there is even no need to raise your arm or call for one, they seem to instinctively know you are coming to the road for a taxi and up they pull. Out gets the driver and opens the back door for you, with polite, thank you Madams and welcomes. All the locals speak perfect English I soon learnt, even though I insisted on speaking to everyone in Italian!!! Please don’t ask me why I did this, as I have no logical explanation why my seriously defective brain seems to work slightly different to the norm. After 4 days of doing this and seriously analysing why I would speak in Italian to these polite English speaking people, I can only assume it’s because in my brain they are foreign, and with all foreigners I speak Italian (I did it in Greece last year also) as that’s MY foreign language that I know! Does it make any sense to anyone? Please tell me it does! Shopping malls are pretty standard (by Dubai standards of course, think airport, sky trains and water features) but they had Marks and Spencer’s, Debenhams (dedicated to British readers) New Look, Top Shop………every single High Street British shop including, of course, Italian designer shops and the American chains, although I have to say it was a mainly British city from the signs (lift not elevator) and the electric plugs in the houses (heaven, adaptor stayed in the bag for 4 days). To give you an idea of the size of the mall it is equivalent to 73 football fields with over 700 shops (I read this outside;) and has an indoor ski resort in which you can ski or snow board or sledge the day away and swear as far as the eye can see that you were in the Alpine Mountains. Lisa, Paolo’s girlfriend and I headed down to check out the beach which was a 5 minutes walk from the apartment. The beach had long white sandy beaches running into the crystal clear sea, the Persian Gulf, (surely they can’t have cleaned that up manually as well?) which gave me time to digest my lunch and listen to some tunes on my ipod whilst catching some much missed sun rays. Since it is after all November, it started to get a wee bit chilly around 6pm, so we headed up to the apartment and joined our men folk in the pool for a swim. Whilst swimming my laps of the pool I see three women chatting away at the side of the pool and detect Scottish accents. Swimming a little closer, not only are they Scottish but from Glasgow so I casually, accidentally swim up to them and say, “Hi, are those Scottish accents I hear?” “Yes, one of them replies “I’m from Newlands” We get into a wee bit of chit chat and discuss how long they’ve been living there (one 9 years, one 5 years and one a sister who’s just visiting) and why we are there and I’m trying to decide if it’s for me. I ask if they like living there and the two that live there say it’s like living in paradise. “So?”, one says, “What do you think, do you like it”. “Well I can’t really tell at this point as it’s only been a day and at the moment I kind of know how Scarlett Johansson felt in Lost in Translation, it all feels a bit like a golden cage and surreal to me. “Where have you come from?” she asks, to which I answer Rome, I’ve been living in Rome for the last 6 years. “AAAAhhh” she says with a look of disgust on her face, “well if you can cope with living in Rome you can cope with living anywhere!!!!!” well (directed to my Italian friends and other international friends living in Rome) it was like someone had insulted my kid! You know that feeling? Like, you can moan and complain about your own kids all you want but,……………. if someone else does!!! I thought, you cheeky cow, I never thought I would feel so defensive about Rome. I told her I think I would miss the history and the piazza’s and the general integration and embracement of the Italian culture, but was still feeling a little shell shocked by her comment when Stefano, who was eaves dropping said, “So you’re from Glasgow?”, Yes she said, we moved from Glasgow to here. “Well”, says Stefano, “I suppose anywhere would feel like Paradise straight from Glasgow!” Shabam!!!! and he swam away leaving me smiling and wondering how I never manage to think of smart comments at the right time. First night dinner was had at the Royal Hotel Meridian, the hotels seem to be the place where all the local expats hang out for drinks and eating as alcohol is not served in pavement open air cafes. No idea what the star rating is of this hotel as it seems to be the same rating as every hotel I have seen but if I worked for the AA hotel rating system, I would give this a big 10 star rating. I felt like a super star. When I went to the bathroom the door was opened for me and I reluctantly stepped into the cubicle, checking my back that she wasn’t following me in to wipe my ass. She very discreetly left the restroom and returned when she heard me open my door with a clean hot towel and even put on the bloomin tap, (hey, this kind of service was giving to me in Starbucks that morning, not quite on that level but not too far off). I returned to find the waiter rush tomy chair for my return. I really wanted to say, like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman, “Look darlin, I’m a sure thing, I’ve been living in Rome for 6 years and I’m impressed if you say sorry after bumping into me, it’s really easy, no need for this, honest!”. The guys went inside to choose the fish and lobsters that were still swimming around happily, so I declined. The most amazing fish and crab was served and eaten by all (we were joined by another couple who are friends of Paolo’s) and we then walked down to the hotel swimming pool and drank some drinks under the gazebo and looked out over at the spectacular grounds. Stefano and I went for a walk in the gardens and he put his arm around me and said, this is the life I have always wanted to give you, would you rather be here or in Rome right now. I looked around and said, without a doubt it is spectacular and breathtaking but honestly………….I’d rather be snuggled up with my huge log fire crackling away under our blanket watching TV in Rome! Over in the bar we could hear some English football being watched by some Brits on a big screen TV and some Scottish accents in the balmy night air. We left to go onto another bar called Budda Bar which was in an Indian style,(I suppose the clue is in the name) and had a cocktail before deciding at around 2am that since we had to get up at 08.30am we had better head for home. Another step out into the night with a taxi stopping before you even know if you need one yourself and another fare of 10 dirham’s which is less than 2 euro’s (10 dirham’s is 1.80 euro) and when we gave him a 20 he was most grateful. By the way, we took a taxi back to the airport which is around 25-30 minutes and it cost 12 euro, with luggage and helping in and out of the car. We both walked down to the seafront at lunchtime the next day relaxed and knowing that the work part was over and lets really see this place. We stopped into Starbucks and had a coffee and decided to drive up the desert and go sand dune quad biking. The drive wasn’t long, around 45 mins before we reached a landscape untouched by human hand of approx. 2,500 miles of desert. It was still bright and sunny when we paid for our buggies and all four of us headed over to the “practice area” to get the hang of the buggies before excitedly driving through the gate and heading straight for the desert. The first mile or so you can see that people have been coming here at night and having bonfires or whatever and leaving their rubbish behind (bastards!) but after that it’s miles and miles and miles of swooping dunes and wind brushed sand with no sign of human touch. In the distance a few wild camels and apart from that just…………..nothing! It was such fun! Stefano took a dune a bit too cockily and toppled his buggy over but apart from his pride, nothing was hurt! The sun started to set and we all four stopped at the top of a huge dune around 60 ft high and watched this wonderful sight. You feel the silence and no one said anything for a few minutes (which believe me is a wonderment in itself from Paolo). Then once again we were off all racing along and over taking one another and we all reached the top of a dune at the same time and braked hard to look down at a straight vertical drop of around 60 feet. We all parked and looked down and decided that we wouldn’t take the chance and put the buggies into reverse, we lacked the needed adrenaline rush of an 18 year old at this point and with a combined age of around 150 years, we all headed back to the flag in the distance, which was our marker flag for returning the buggies. What a fabulous experience. That night we went out for a Persian meal in a restaurant set on a channel not unlike sitting in Venice, only a few years younger. Again, first class service, first class meal and wonderful wine. We thought about going to the cinema one night but decided it was really silly to go to the cinema when we had such little time and you can go to the cinema anywhere, although looking at the website of the nearest cinema was enough entertainment in itself. Huge individual leather reclining lazy boys in pairs or fours. All with waitress service of meals, wines or snacks accomplished by the push of a button on your chair. Basically, to summarise the rest of the trip was very short indeed and I would have loved to have had another week or two there. We slipped away early one morning, insisting that Paolo stay in bed as taxi’s are so cheap, and there we were back in the wonderful airport where I felt I had been in only yesterday. Whilst waiting for my flight I popped into the toilet to be greeted by another towel/open door woman and thought, how will I survive without you in Rome? We landed at Fiumicino airport in the morning and before going outside to call the Park&Go guy to get our car I ran into the tobacco shop to buy cigarettes. As the woman threw my change down on the counter ignoring my outstretched hand and saying nothing but nodding to the next customer to tell her what he wanted I thought, yip, back in Italy, a vero?. In conclusion…………….we spent a very stressful next few hours back at home discussing back and forth the pro’s and con’s of staying in Rome or leaving and working and living in Dubai. I would miss my house terribly, and the friends I have made. Stefano would miss the outdoor life and his horses. I would miss my dogs. He looked like a 12 year old boy at one point and I felt so bad for him that he couldn’t make the decision. If we don’t like it we can stay a minimum of one year perhaps 18 months. If we do……….. indefinitely. The house here in Rome will always be ours, we will rent it out and in fact already have an interested family without even having advertised. Chris will come live with us when he finishes school and there are an abundance of British Colleges and Universities although I think he has his heart set on sailing school. I would spend July and August in Rome to escape the 50 degree temperatures over there and to have Jen over for the summer as that’s where all her friends will be returning from University for the summer are and where she feels is home. She will of course come to Dubai to visit us and I will go there, but we already agreed that if this job was taken, that summers would be spent in a rented apartment in the city centre of Rome. Without talking about finances, although it’s hard not to as they are incomparable, I would be able to go to Brighton and see Jen whenever I wanted to without worrying about how much the flight was and staying as long as I wanted.  I could go up to Glasgow to see Chris for the next year or so till he is with us also or have him come down for weekends in Brighton. Money would be no issue. We have made the decision. It’s a yes!

[toptaiga]

Trust Me

Not a request just wanted to write a series. Hope you like it.

Genre: Thriller AU

Word Count: 3127

Warnings: None for now

Pairing: None for now

Description:

Living every moment of your life in paranoia was the norm for Mingyu. He couldn’t help it. Maybe he was watching too many thriller movies with his roommate, Wonwoo. For as long as he can remember there was always a feeling of someone watching him. Brushing it off as much as possible, he continues his daily life as a sophomore in high school. Mingyu was quite a popular kid until he befriends a quiet, foreign student from Japan. Soshida Mayu was her name. She never really spoke much and she never needed to. With her petite, 5-foot frame; Mingyu towers over her like a bodyguard. Little did he know that he was the one being protected.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -Mingyu’s PoV-

As I quietly shuffle my feet against the cold carpet; I stopped to take a few seconds to breathe. Nervous, I stood in front a single white door. Slowly turning the doorknob, I push the door open as quiet as possible. Hearing the familiar snore in the room immediately puts me at ease. My muscles relax slightly before I enter the cozy bedroom, and shut the door behind me. Careful not to make any noise, I tiptoe to the side of the bed and gently poke at the sleeping figure.

“Wonwoo.. C-Can I sleep here tonight?” My question was immediately answered with a groan.

“You know you can’t do this every night right? We’re boys. It’s weird.” Wonwoo states with a hint of annoyance in his groggy voice.

“I’m sorry. But I can’t sleep again. I’m scared.”

“Gyu, what if I get a girlfriend and she spends the night. But that night you can’t sleep again. What are you going to do?”

“... I can sleep on the floor in here.”

“Absolutely not.”

“Please! School starts in five hours and i want to get at least three hours of sleep in!”

“Fine. But this is the last time Gyu, I swear to god.”

Ignoring his comment, I squish myself into the queen sized bed ned to the other. As I close my eyes, my mind fills with contentment and security.

It’s not long until the feeling disintegrates as the sunlight peeps through the blinds, waking me from my dreamless sleep.

-

Bolting up from Wonwoo’s bed, I take a moment to look around only to realise the alarm from my phone was going off. After swiping the screen for the alarm to stop I looked up to find Wonwoo already awake and dressed for class as he sits on his arm chair, reading a love novel in silence. I slid out of his bed and we went on with our usual morning routine. Wonwoo would stay with me in the bathroom as I took a shower because I always feared someone would come after me when I’m the most vulnerable. Then, I’d drag Wonwoo back to my room so that I could get dressed. He would have his back facing me as he waits with his hands in his pockets. I knew he hated it, but would he still dread it if he really knew how terrified of being alone I was? The feeling of panic and anxiousness buries me under a 2-ton bag of fear and it wasn’t something that could be understood so easily. To Wonwoo i looked like a simple crazy kid with too much imagination. He always said these thoughts are messing with my mind and body and that I should see somebody for my mental health. Whether he believes it or not, if it wasn’t for Wonwoo’s help I feel like I’d be a goner in this world. I’m thankful to have a friend like him but at the same time I feel bad that he basically acts as my caretaker.

I took a minute to look at my complexion in the mirror. The three hours of sleep really shows on my face as I let out a soft sigh. After dusting my sleeves off, I slung my backpack over my shoulders and patted Wonwoo’s back.

“I’m ready.” The other turned at the sound of my voice and nodded, leading the way out of the shared apartment complex. After locking the door behind us, I followed right behind Wonwoo,  almost a little too close for his comfort. I gently held onto the little IU keychain hanging from Wonwoo’s backpack without him knowing as we continue our journey to school. As we inch our way down the busy streets of Seoul I start to feel more anxious with every step I take. I instinctively turn my head from side to side. Occasionally I would look behind me, but I never saw anything abnormal. Eventually, I hung my head low as I stayed inches apart from Wonwoo.

Was I really just crazy? I’ve lived up until now, why am I so scared? I never did anything wrong… Did I? All my thoughts were just choking me that I didn’t even realize that I was on the verge of crying.

“Stop thinking about it.” The sound of Wonwoo’s voice pulls me from my thoughts temporarily as I nod gently to the command. I suck up my tears, not wanting to embarrass myself in public.

“Sorry… Can you walk with me to my homeroom Woo? I don’t think I could go by myself today.”

“Keep this up and people will start to think that we’re dating. Which we’re not.”

“Please Woo?”

“Stop with the nicknames in public and just go. You’re safe here. It’s all in your head.”

“But just-”

“Bye Mingyu.” Wonwoo interrupted my plead for help as he slapped my arm gently. I watched as he entered the school’s corridors. This time I really feel like the tears will spill. I took a hesitant step into school and looked around. Other students were happy, laughing, joking with each other and I’m standing here looking like a fool.

“Mingyu!” A high pitched voice came from down the hall. Frozen in my place, the owner of the voice placed her hand on my shoulder. “Hey, what’s wrong?” She squatted slightly to get a better view of my face. For some reason I couldn’t mutter a word to her no matter how much I tried. “Where is Wonwoo?” Her facial expression turned into worry as I didn’t respond to her questions. My breathing was becoming uneven again as I tried to muster up some courage to talk.

“J-Jaein… I n-need to go.” She immediately understood what was happening and mentally cursed Wonwoo for not taking care of me.

“I’ll help you to class if you want Gyu.” Jaein held onto my arm as she tried her best to console me with subtle rubs on my back.

“It’s okay…” I said as I exhaled deeply. She nodded and gave me a brief but warm hug.

“Text me if you need anything, okay Gyu?” I nodded.

Once I was alone, not only did I feel embarrassed but I started to feel anxious again. I’m losing my mind. People around me were stealing glances at the crazy one-man show happening in the foyer. The hallways started to flood with students freshman year and up as it neared the beginning of class. I started to feel dizzy, but i knew I had to get to class quickly. I jet up the stairs, pushing students out of the way before sputtering a broken sorry to them afterwards. Rushing into my designated homeroom, I stopped again to breathe. My friends greeted me but I wasn’t in the right mind to greet them back. Slowly, I walked over to the desk in the corner, farthest from all the doors. Taking off my backpack and setting it on top of the desk, I plopped into the chair and slid down against my chair in a slouch position. I wiped the sweat off my forehead with my sleeve and let out deep exhales before scanning the entire classroom. My best friend sat in front of me and turned his body around to face me.

“You don’t look so good Mingyu.” He said as he handed me a water bottle and apple flavored hard candy from his backpack.

“Thanks Myungho.” I took the water and downed half of it before fist bumping him and returning my attention back to the front of the classroom. The homeroom teacher entered the classroom and the class leader called the room to attention. After standing to greet the teacher I yawned into the sleeve of my school uniform. I rested the side of my head against the palm of my hand as I fight the urge to fall asleep in the beginning of class. As soon as my eyes close for .01 seconds the class goes into a rowdy crowd of “OOHs” and “WHOAs”. My eyes shoot open for a moment to see what was going on.

“The new student will be here shortly, she moved here from Japan and says she’s eager to continue education here in Korea. Make sure to welcome her and make her feel at home.” Tch. A new student? Whatever.  I thought to myself as it’s not something to get rowdy over. I close my eyes again to see if I could sneak a couple more minutes of sleep in while the teacher and class waits for this new student.

With only three whole minutes of shut eye, I found myself looking at the opened door. Everybody went quiet as they turned their head in the direction to see a petite girl the size of a middle schooler shuffling her way inside. She kept her head slightly low as she stood next to the teacher. I guess she’s just shy.

“Please introduce yourself to the class miss.” The teacher said with a cheerful ring in her tone. The girl flinched slightly at the teacher’s enthusiasm. Hesitantly the girl sighed softly and lifted her head up to see her face. Damn. Insomnia hit her hard too.

“Soshida Mayu. Just call me Mayu.” She said loud enough for people in the back to hear before bowing. Mayu excused herself to sit in the only empty seat which is next to mine. As she walked closer to my direction, she stopped midway as I came in eye contact with her. Mayu blinked once before sitting in the seat next to mine without taking off her backpack. I couldn’t help but at this point feel a little curious. There were a lot of “why” questions linked to Mayu that I wanted to ask but didn’t really bother to. Throughout the day I snuck a few glances at Mayu who sat up straight, kept her eyes on the lesson and didn’t move an ince. Not even for lunch time. She didn’t move or talk even when the other classmates wanted to talk or have lunch with her. Mayu had medium length hair that she braided messily into pigtails with a strands of loose hair framing her face. Her eyebrows were filled in as you would see it on TV recently. The tired in her eyes were plastered on her face as if a whole year of sleep wasn’t going to get rid of them. She had a rosy red lip tint on that matched the rosy blush that trailed along her cheekbones and nose bridge. Maybe she’s trying to hide how tired she is with makeup? If so, it’s not working girly. She doesn’t even smile. I thought to myself, not noticing that she had been staring at me the whole time as well. I broke out of the trance and looked out the window, the glaze in the window showing the reflection of her still looking at me after I had looked away. Something about her creeped me out and I know I wasn’t the only one thinking the same thing. The rest of the class completely avoided Mayu as they deemed her weird looking with a creepy vibe.

-

Class for the day ended and I got up, dragging my backpack behind me as I head to the school’s library. Wonwoo always promises to meet me in the library after school before we head home.  I push the glass door to the library open, waving to the friendly librarian as I enter. I strut my way over to the fiction section of the library only to see that Mayu girl again. I watched as she struggled to reach a book on the highest shelf.

“Um. Do you need help?” I quietly asked. She looked up towards my towering figure. I was a whole foot taller than her yet she looks like she could rip me in half easily. Mayu pointed towards the book she wanted and I grabbed it off the shelf for her. “Here you go.” I cracked a fake smile to see if she would do the same. No luck. Mayu mumbles a quiet thank you as she hugs the book close to her chest. We stood there for an awkward second just staring at each other before I decided to break the silence. “I… have to go find my friend…” I said as I turn around to dismiss myself. Mayu quickly steps in front of me, stopping me from leaving.

“He’s not here.” She whispers enough for only me to hear. For some reason it sends a shiver down my spine.

“What do you mean? He always meets me in the library after school.” I started to sweat. Mayu avoided eye contact with me as she looked down towards her book.

“Your phone.” She says, almost inaudible. Confused and a bit frightened, I took out my phone from my pocket. My eyes widen as I got a text from Wonwoo short after. My body heated as I felt angry and upset at the thought of Wonwoo going to hang out with his friends after school without me. I’d rather sleep here in the library than walk home alone. I started nibbling at my fingernails anxiously.

“I can walk you home.” Mayu looks up at me, her facial expression not changing one bit.

“Stop. Stop this. Who are you?? Why are you reading my mind?? Get away from me!” I suddenly started to feel dizzy again. Embarrassment and shock was overwhelming as people shushed me in the library. I felt like breathing was the hardest thing for me right now. I needed to get out of here. Mayu stood still before reaching a single hand to mine. Once our hands came in contact it was as if Mayu had sucked all the ill feelings from my body. I regained my conscious and yanked my hand from hers. “I-I can’t walk home with a stranger. I know you don’t talk much but you’re going to make me trust you.” I crossed my arms demanding an answer. She stood there in pure silence as she continued to stare up at me. I realised it was only getting darker outside and there was no point into putting full trust on someone. Trust comes with time and time I do not have a lot of. I sighed in defeat as I held onto a loose strap from Mayu’s backpack, “just because I’m letting you walk me home doesn’t mean I trust you even a little bit. I just really don’t want to walk alone.” Mayu nodded as she went to check out her book.

“Fair enough.” Is all she said back.

Once we exited the library, the wind of the night blew making me tense up uncomfortably. It was a silent walk between the two of us though the night life of Seoul was roaring around us. Halfway towards the shared apartment complex, Mayu stops in her tracks. Confused, I tug on her backpack strap.

“Hey, why did you stop? We’re almost there.” I asked. Mayu looked up at me with a frightened glint in her eyes. I couldn’t help but copy and paste her expression onto my on face.

“Let’s run,” she whimpered as she grabbed a hold onto my wrist, “now!” Without a question in the air my body moved on it’s own. I sprinted wherever the latter lead us to. I don’t know if I was being crazy or if the footsteps of someone chasing behind us was real. I ran with Mayu as if my life depended on it. Soon the footsteps behind us faded as we continued running. Mayu’s steps slowed down as she encountered a mustard-yellow door. She unlocked the door and dragged me inside, shutting and locking the door behind her. She closed the blinds and turned off any main light source, only to leave a small lamp on. Mayu turned to Mingyu and sighed, a slight hint of sadness in her eyes. “Make yourself at home..” She whispered as she poured two glasses with peach juice from the fridge, handing a glass to me. I quietly thanked her as I downed the whole glass in one.

“Where am I?” I asked as I look around the small space furnished with only small kitchen that could only fit two people at a time, a red-tattered couch, a small 24-inch TV, a nintendo-64, a tower of different animes, the lamp, and a small picture hung next to an old calendar from 2016.

“My home…” Mayu sips on the peach juice casually as she strolls to the couch.

“Cozy.. I guess.” I sit next to Mayu.

“Hey! Mayu! You’re back! How’s school!” A man who was three times bigger than Mayu comes from the bathroom and waves eagerly with a smile. Mayu replies with nothing but a simple, “good.”

The man fixes his glasses and looks at Mingyu curiously. He was tall but really bulky at the same time. He wore red basketball shorts and a blue sailor moon themed shirt. “Oh uh.. Hello! I’m Sam! Short for Samgyeopsal. HAHAHA. People just call me Sam for short. Nice to meet you.. Uh … What’s your name?”

“Mingyu. My name is Kim Mingyu… Is your name really Samgyeopsal??”

“Probably not. I don’t know my actual name to be honest. So what brings you here? Are you hungry?”

I raise my eyebrows, fascinated at how somebody doesn’t know their real name. “I actually don’t know why I’m here to be honest and no I’m not hungry. I was walking home with Mayu when all of a sudden we just started running away from something or someone or…. I don’t know. Mayu! What was that even about?? When can I go home??”

“Home isn’t safe.”

“I don’t feel safe anywhere I am so what’s the point!”

“Quiet.”

“Mayu! I need answers! Can’t you tell me what we were running from?!”

“...”

I close my eyes and groan in defeat. I might as well rest here and go to school with Mayu instead tomorrow morning.