#Pretty Boy - Chapter 3 - 36 | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

neutron-stars-collision · 7 months

Text

Deadlines & Commitments

Neil x F!Reader

Chapter 3 - Canning Town Underground Station

Masterlist; Chapter 2 Summary: Flirting, Leicester Square station mixtape, flowers and breakdowns in the cantina. Or another chapter of an unlikely liaison. Warnings: Swearing, E-rated language and imagery and more outrageous flirting. Author's Notes: Chapter a month might just be the new deal here, apologies. And this one's long, by which I mean over 11k 💁🏻‍♀️ It also seems like now that I've started, I can't stay away from Neil's POV so... yeah. Look out for a cheeky cameo too 😉 Other than that, I can assure you this is just as chaotic and ridiculous as the last chapter. These two are in full control, I'm just a mere scribe, doing my best. Hopefully it works. Hope you enjoy and let me know what you think? 💕 Taglist: @hollandorks, @kristevstewart, @stargirl25 (let me know if you want to be added)

Incorporating Neil into your daily (and weekly) life was easy. Almost terrifyingly so if you did as much as stop and think about it. Perhaps the self-preservation rooted deep within forbade you to reflect on it. Which, in hindsight, was a good thing.

After that first victory of obtaining Neil’s number, you did not hold back from texting and bombarding him with daily nonsensical memes that could have driven a different man to madness. Neil, however, took it in his stride. It was rare not to get a reply from him after longer than an hour. And that boosted your courage like nothing else.

Some days, the conversations went like this:

/ 🏹, 12:07 pm/ Show me what socks are you wearing.

/✝️, 12:13 pm/ Jesus, that’s forward.

/ 🏹, 12:14 pm/ That’s basically my second name. So?

/ 🏹, 12:14 pm/ I swear I won’t sell the pic on OF.

/✝️, 12:20 pm/ Well, if you do, then at least share the earnings with me.

Although you started the ridiculous conversation, when the next text came, consisting of a single image of a socked ankle bared by the familiar hand pulling up the pant leg, you nearly dropped the coffee cup in the middle of the Covent Garden. It was just an ordinary Tuesday lunchtime, with the square bustling with sound and movement. Using the rare sunny September day, you escaped the confines of the Royal Opera House to have your coffee break on the kerb. Thanks to the dwindling sense of coherence, you did not drop said coffee when you opened the photo. The socks you had asked for were black with a grey argyle pattern. But that was where the normalcy ended, for the rhombuses were filled with corgi heads. The brown-beige dogs stared at you through the screen with their beady eyes and were the reason for your hysterical laughter.

The overprotective mother tending to her children close by shot you a dirty look. Well, fuck her.

/ 🏹, 12:23 pm/ Neil, you’re too cute. Way too cute.

/✝️, 12:32 pm/ It’s what every guy wants to hear. Thanks, Cupid.

/ 🏹, 12:34 pm/ I never said you’re not hot, though. Which you very much are. So much that I thought of you when…

/✝️, 12:35 pm/ Yeah, don’t finish that sentence. Please.

/✝️, 12:35 pm/ I’d rather maintain my innocence.

/ 🏹, 12:36 pm/ As you wish 😘

That was not a lie. It was a result of yet another tiring day and an early night in bed when it was too early to sleep. So, you chose to fill the time like most women would, letting your thoughts drift to images and scenarios that always did the trick as your hand delved between your thighs. When you realised who you had been thinking of, the tension was so close to bursting that you did not try to shift the attention. When you came, the guilt was nowhere to be found.

After all, it was not a sin to think of pretty boys when taking the edge off. As soon as you realised that Neil did not take the flirty line seriously, that feeling of potentially having done something wrong became non-existent. It was fine. It was all fine.

Other times, especially during those Wednesday mornings on the Tube, your conversations looked more like this:

“I’ve got an invasive question…” changing the subject during your weekly chats was easy, for as soon as you set a weighty gaze on Neil, he sobered up too.

The endless questions did not seem to bother him either. Your boundless curiosity was particularly grateful for that.

“As long as you’re not going to ask me what underwear I’m wearing, I think we’re fine,” the poker face was only disturbed by Neil’s twitching lips, and the sparks danced in his eyes as he inclined his head in your direction, blessing you with the golden strands, “Shoot,”

Every time, you took a deep breath, silently gathering the courage to ask, and then let the question fall from your lips without a pause:

“When was the last time you’ve been in love?” the curiosity was all it was.

Yet still, Neil’s widening eyes made you consider that perhaps something else was underlining that desire to know. And that this question was different than others you had asked. Different from “Dogs or cats?” “Typical coffee order?” and “Any hidden talents?”. But it was too late to take it back.

“Oof, you weren’t joking” Neil seemed to shake it off quickly, only briefly offering you a glare before looking down to find the needed words, “Probably two-ish years ago…?” you were sure you had imagined the broken edge in his voice as Neil swallowed hard and continued “It was a disaster. She didn’t- Let’s just say I went in too hard and too fast, and she got scared. Pretty much ghosted me after a half-assed excuse” when he raised his head and meet your gaze, you could see the depths of hurt in his eyes.

Your heart felt pathetically hollow, but you smothered the feeling to nothing but an uncomfortable sting.

“Ouch,” a wince was easy enough to muster, and you followed it with an apology, “Sorry,” Neil’s crestfallen look was an inspiration for you to place your hand on his shoulder and give him a reassuring squeeze “I know that it doesn’t help, but it’s her, not you” you knew the light statement was the right way to go when Neil cracked a wry smile and gave your other wrist a tap.

“Thanks,” it was evident enough to realise that Neil was eager to drop the subject. It was clearer still that you were going to be the next target, “I won’t ask you the same since I know better, but… Do you really think no one could change your view on love?” yet when the question fell in the space between you, it was not what you had expected.

The surprise must have painted on your face, for Neil looked a second away from taking it back. You stopped him from doing that the only way you could think of – by extending your hand in what was universally thought of as a ‘hold up’ motion. It was not that you did not want to answer. And it was not the first time someone had asked either.

But it was not something you were keen on inspecting and tearing apart to offer an honest answer. It was a fact, pure and simple. A fact that you would believe in till the day you died. There was no place for love in your life, and there would never be. Full stop.

“Yeah, I do,” you met Neil’s waiting gaze and offered him a weak shrug. The strange disappointment in his gaze made no sense, so you chose to ignore it to shift your attention to the world outside the carriage as it arrived at the next station. The belief in your next words was as tangible as anything else you could conceive, “It would take a miracle”.

He did not ask that question again.

Those Wednesday morning conversations also became a source of information, which you had stowed securely in the compartment of your brain labelled ‘Neil’. After almost two months of acquittance, you knew that he was born and raised a Londoner (from Richmond, the posh fuck [affectionate]), was decidedly a dog person and had a chocolate Labrador growing up (a girl named Daisy), listened to alt-rock and 80s music and was what he described as a hopeless romantic. You still did not know what he did for work, only that he was decidedly not a tattooist, literary agent, paramedic, jockey, art critic, dressmaker, choreographer, or bus driver. Whether he was truly not just a priest undercover was still up for debate.

***

Only when you fled the confines of the ordinary tiny London flat kitchen and felt the night breeze of the city on your skin, left bare from the jacket you did not yet put on, had the question of the ages pop into your head. What the fuck? There was no answer. You shook your head against the memories of what had just conspired and stopped on the pavement to put on and fasten the jacket. Even annoyed, you could still feel the biting cold begin to settle in your bones.

You never expected to bump into Liam. Never in a million years would you have considered that those two friends you shared would extend the invitation to that man out of all people. And you certainly did not expect him to come.

Although, as he had unhelpfully explained himself, he only showed up because of the chance you would be there. The audacity made you shake your head vehemently, without a doubt attracting a glare or two from those who remained sober at this hour. In Soho on Saturday night, that was unlikely.

You walked through the cobbled streets with the neon lights lighting your path without an aim or a map. The only objective was to stomp the frustration into the cracked pavement and end up home. Somehow. Specifics were to be determined later.

Sure, rushing out of your mate’s flat like a lightning bolt could be seen as impulsive. But Liam offered you no choice. The pleasant buzz of alcohol did nothing to stop the embarrassment, which grew worse by the minute. The long walk in an unknown direction was a sad but acceptable consequence. Or so you aimed to maintain.

By the time you had seriously begun to consider using the dwindling phone battery to order an Uber and save you from the penance of someone else’s transgressions, the red circle with a navy blue bar appeared on the horizon. Salvation, at last. You picked up the pace, eager to get out of the cold and that one step closer to home. This close to Leicester Square and the theatres just having closed their doors on the last patrons, the bustle seemed quieter somehow, more subdued. It was a blessing for your budding headache and a threat to the thoughts eager to appear with nothing suppressing them.

You crossed the road and descended the staircase with a sigh. The heat of the station enveloped you like a hug as you passed the ticketing gates and spent an unnecessarily long time staring at the Tube map. When the logic kicked in, at last, you rushed over to the correct platform.

Only to regret it as soon as the timing screen came into view. Heathrow Airport 25 mins. The polite PSA text below informed you the line was experiencing delays. No biggie. They were sorry. The usual shit. A curse litany lodged in your throat as your eyes roamed over the platform.

All the noise in your head faded to nothing when your gaze settled on that familiar blonde head of hair. He was sitting in one of the few chairs with his head bowed over his knees in a position so exemplary for a Saturday night in the glorious London town. You skimmed over his body, taking note of the casual jeans and a t-shirt, peeking from beneath the unbuttoned jacket.

Before you knew it, your legs had started carrying you in his direction, a goofy smile present on your face. The improbability of it happening made everything easier. Because what were the odds?

Instead of counting them, you approached Neil, still so blissfully unaware of your presence and delivered an opening line:

“Hello, Father,” the joke did not yet get old, and you still got the kick out of it.

Especially when Neil raised his head fast enough to give himself a whiplash and gasped from shock.

“Jesus- Oh, what the fuck?” clutching at his heaving chest with all the drama he could muster, Neil offered you a look so full of surprise you knew he did not expect this to happen either.

The only weekend plans you had discussed over texts were that you had a party to go to, and he was likely to go out with his workmates at some point. But that was it. Zero specifics, no need to share them because there was no need for either of you to know the details. And yet.

“Is that how you should greet a lady?” playing on his theatrical reaction, you feign a shocked expression.

It was clear you would fail at any attempts of annoyance. Your cheeks were already aching with that kind of wide, manic grin only Neil seemed to cause. You could see his eyes skim over your figure, taking in your clothes with that sort of precision only he seemed capable of. Finally, satisfied with what he saw, Neil raised his head to meet your gaze again and got up to bow lowly at your feet:

“Apologies, m’lady,” before you knew what he was doing, he took hold of your hand and kissed your knuckles. A move so fast you almost thought you had imagined it if not for the fading sensation of his lips still ghosting your skin, “What are you doing here?” with his hand lightly touching your elbow, Neil steered you towards the seats.

Only now, with the surprises fading into the background, you took note of the empty platform. It was just the two of you sitting on the creaky plastic chairs. You shifted an inch closer to Neil, seeking the warmth radiating off his body and replied:

“As I’ve mentioned, I had an invitation to this flat party in Soho… And I went, but then, and you’ll never believe that happened-” recounting the improbable story felt good, and you took pleasure in the attention Neil gave your every word.

“Let me guess… Liam showed up?” his interjection followed your dramatic pause flawlessly.

Of course, he got it. Of course, he guessed. You shook your head at his eager smile, aware of the glee in your eyes:

“Damn, you’re good” your low approving whistle reverberated in the space. Most shockingly, there was a certain level of joy in sharing the story, even as your skin crawled with the embarrassment of what transpired, “Yeah, and it turns out that getting blocked did not make him smarter. It became a whole thing, along with him getting down on his knees in the middle of a kitchen and proclaiming his undying love to me,” you wondered if Liam was still there, kneeling on the tiled floor and waiting for your return.

Partially, you hoped that was the case.

Throwing you out of the strange ruminations, Neil shook his head and offered you a serious look:

“Blimey,” his tsk almost got lost in the PA announcement, crackling from the speakers. When it ended, Neil met your gaze with a sympathetic smile, “No wonder you ran away,” his knee nudged yours, triggering something you would not understand even in months.

Sitting upright, you nodded fervently:

“I had to” the emotions you did not know were present poured out from your lips as the next words fell in the space between you, “And like- He doesn’t even know me? He never saw me on the stage, and he thinks that making me cum a couple of times is enough?” a frustrated growl tore from your chest as you finished the tirade with a tired sigh and simple punchline, “Bullshit,”

There was no time or willingness to take apart where all that anger came from or why it was suddenly so important Neil understood your reasons. It just was. Later it was easily blamed on the alcohol still present in your veins. For now, you met his gaze and shrugged, answering the questions he seemed too shy to ask.

“With that, I must agree. It’s bullshit” nudging you with his shoulder, Neil smiled, brightening the clouds that still seemed to hang over your mind.

You shot him a brilliant grin, brushing away the concerns with terrifying ease. They had to wait, ideally forever.

“Thanks, babe” sugar coated your smile as you allowed yourself to gaze, taking note of the blush spreading on his cheeks. Although you would never admit it out loud, the blue of his eyes was slowly becoming your favourite shade of the colour. It was that thought that triggered your next confession, “Admittedly, meeting you here is a highlight of the night,” you watched as his eyes grew wider, evidently not expecting to hear something that honest. The moment stretched for what felt like ages until you found the strength to look away, focusing on the timing screen and the issues it posed, “Though, those delays are bullshit, too” your eye-roll elicited an instant laugh, which only added warmth to the kindling sparks in your chest.

“Mhmm,” Neil’s hum acted like an anchor, tying you to reality.

It was a better place to get lost in than the chaos raging in your head. You chose to stick by it, following the easy way out with a simple question:

“How come you’re here?” you turned towards Neil, hoping to block the platform and the world beyond from view.

Even if just figuratively and for a short while. If the answering bright smile was anything to go by, Neil was happy to humour you:

“I’ve been out for drinks at a pub, but then our crowd isn’t very… boisterous, so we all went our separate ways, and here I am,” he signed off the summary with an explanatory shrug, but you should have kept your guard up. Once his gaze settled on you with an intensity of intent, a pathetic instinct kickstarted your heart with all the subtlety of trainwreck, “Bored as fuck until you’ve shown up” the joy in that simple sentiment was enough to make your cheeks heat up.

Of its own volition, your brain provided the fresh memory of how Liam’s attention in that cursed kitchen had made you feel. How running away was the only option you saw then. It was different now; the quiet focus of the man sitting next to you was a welcomed change. A company you were happy to keep. For however long you were allowed.

“How long do you think till it’s-” ignoring the shyness that did not seem happy to be buried in Neil’s company, you changed the subject with all the grace of an elephant.

It was evident in how you stuttered, quickly abandoning the idea of finishing the sentence and letting it trail off into the quiet. It was too early to raise your head from the depths of shame it was drowning in. It was all a little too much.

“Could be twenty minutes, could be an hour… or never,” Neil’s voice gained a cheeky edge as if conscious of your minor crisis and happy to offer a distraction.

You risked a peek at his face, finding the signature smirk gracing his face. That expression never failed to feel like a sharpened knife piercing through the walls of your uncertainty. It complimented his face too well, dragging the attention to Neil’s sharp features and his remarkable eyes that always felt like they could see right through your bullshit and the pretending. It was terrifying.

It was then, in the light of his frightening beauty, that you decided what to do next. What was necessary to keep you (moderately) sane. One look at your tote bag lying on your lap offered inspiration:

“Fab,” your dry comment elicited Neil’s laugh and sealed the deal on what you wanted to do next. There was no backing out. You straightened your spine and swivelled on the seat to face him fully. When your knees touched him, Neil’s eyes widened almost comically. But that was only the beginning of the wild ride for him, you were sure of it, “Well, then… Dance with me,” the delivery of that line required a special nonchalance.

One that required you to hold Neil’s gaze long after you had finished speaking, and the words had only just dawned on him. Once they did, his eyes got comically large, and his lips parted on what could only be a mute expression of horror. A giggle got trapped in your throat, but you fought valiantly against it. For now.

“Pardon?” Neil’s choked-out question came after sequenced opening and closing his mouth with nothing coming up.

Your poker face was tearing at the seams. Foolishly.

“Dance with me, Neil,” repeating the request (order?), you extended your hand towards him, signing off the invitation for what it was.

The shock was still present on his face. Despite that, Neil slipped his palm, warm and fitting perfectly, into yours. You could tell that it was not entirely conscious on his part.

You sure did not mind it, though.

“I might have had a drink or two, but I didn’t think I was drunk enough to be hearing things,” Neil’s incredulity bled into his tone as he stared you down as if hoping the sheer disbelief would be enough to deter you.

Tough luck.

“Come on,” squeezing his hand, you switched the tactic with a question, “What’s the worst thing that can happen?” there was no judgment in your gaze, and you hoped Neil knew that.

If asked, you could not explain why that was something you wanted to do with him, there and then of all places. But it still felt important. Urgent, even.

The no-bullshit look you got in return almost made you burst into laughter.

“You’ll see me dance,” Neil deadpanned as if it was clear.

As if that was the peak horror that could befall him at your hands. Using the lifeline of your joined palms, you rubbed your thumb over the tender skin of his hand, hoping to let that act as a reassurance. That was a nonsensical fear to have.

Who gave you, a mediocre ballerina, the right to judge? Absolutely no one.

“And?” you offered Neil a brilliant grin, doing your best not to think about how right it felt to have his hand resting in yours.

That question seemed to catch his attention, pulling him back from the precipice of self-doubt. You watched as Neil pondered the answer, staring at you with that bright-eyed, anxious expression, complete with his teeth nibbling on his lower lip. He picked at the worried, fragile skin, and you did not think about soothing the damage with your tongue. Not at all.

“I don’t know… You’ll leave and block me?” when he finally found a plausible answer, it was the last thing you expected Neil to say.

Despite the seriousness on his face, you could not hold back the laugh that spilt from your lips. What an idiot [affectionate]. The adorable pout in his bottom lip was responsible for the recklessness you chose to implement.

Without thinking about it too much, you leaned in and used your free hand to cup his face, eradicating the remains of the gap between you. As your thumb brushed over his cheekbone, Neil gasped, barely disguising the sound with a cough. The grin spread over your face as you spoke:

“It takes a little more than that for me to block you,” that was true; you could barely fathom blocking Neil, least of all because of such a trivial reason. It was only after a beat that the second meaning of what he said sunk in. The meaning you expected Neil did not exactly consider slipping out like that. You grabbed it with both hands and a knowing smile, “Also… you enjoy talking to me that much?”

The jackpot shot came with a furious blush on his cheeks and an embarrassed scoff as Neil turned away from your watchful gaze. Your hands stayed linked. That, too, was an adorable reaction. It made that pleasant warmth in your chest burner brighter, though you refused to inspect it too closely.

Before you could consider pushing him for a reply further, Neil jumped up from the creaky seat and pulled you to standing using your tight handhold. The fake pep was visible from miles away, especially in that manic grin that almost seemed too wide on his face. But you did not have the time to question it.

“Okay, let’s just dance,” Neil tugged at your hand impatiently.

He did not seem capable of standing still, hopping from one leg to another. If that was a sign of what was coming, you knew you were not ready. Your eyes narrowed in what you hoped was a mildly threatening look:

“That’s a deflection tactic,” still, you took a step closer to him, finally putting that handhold to use.

“Yes, it is,” Neil nodded as his arms opened in a shrug.

That was your answer. You could only cement it with a smile as you allowed him to pull you closer, almost into his open arms, except-

“Wait, we need music,” remembering that crucial missing piece, you let go of his hand and darted back to the tote abandoned by the seats.

“No shit,” Neil’s dry comment was accompanied by the scuffling of his shoes over the cracked tiles.

You grinned, triumphantly holding out the speaker you had fished from the bag. That was the only pro you could think of that came from your earlier practice, and no time in between that and the disastrous party.

“Lucky for you, I came prepared,” you showcased it like a spoil of war and turned the speaker on, awaiting the sound confirming it had connected to your phone. When it came, you ceremoniously placed the device on the vacated seat and pressed play on your phone. Only once the music was playing, you turned back towards Neil with a flourish, “Voila,”

It took him an additional second to identify the song, the synthesizer filling the empty platform with a special kind of vibe. When the proper beat kicked in, you started shimmying your hips and shoulders to the rhythm, awaiting Neil’s reaction. You were not disappointed when he gaped at you with joy barely disguised underneath a frown:

“Really?” still, his foot started tapping with the singer’s voice.

Shrugging, you spun around him, feeling the music fill your body like it always did. You always felt the most alive when dancing. When your feet were following the choreography, and head was deliciously empty of everything but the musical notes and lyrics.

When you stopped to meet Neil’s gaze, you found him staring back in awe.

“What? It’s not me; it’s the holy spirit of the shuffle,” the song started heading towards the chorus, so you added the hand movements, orbiting around Neil and hoping to pull him along, “Can’t argue with it,”

‘Don't. Don't you want me?

You know I can't believe it when I hear that you won't see me

Don't. Don't you want me?

You know I don't believe you when you say that you don't need me’

It was an all-time favourite. A bop you did not have the heart to resist whenever it came on. Now was not any different. Your lips started whispering the words as your body moved through the space, overcome with the feeling of dancing. At that moment, you were grateful for the sensible footwear your past self had chosen that morning. Sure, dancing in high heels was possible, but the Converse made for a much better choice. They slid along the cracked tiles without resistance, allowing you to double the efforts.

It did not matter that you had an audience. Or that it was a particularly attentive one, for you never once felt Neil look away. He was still staring, standing almost stock-still, save for how his feet tapped out the beat. That had to change.

‘Don't you want me, baby?

Don't you want me? Oh!’

You stopped, chest heaving and limbs still too giddy with the effort. You met Neil’s unwavering gaze over the space and mouthed the chorus, aware of the interpretations he could easily reach. That was fine, nothing you were opposed to. In a way, him noticing half your actions did have a tentative hope behind them would have saved you time. And words. But that was a thought for another time.

Once you heard the female vocals come in, you reached out towards him, yet again presenting Neil with your open hand. Yet again, he did not hesitate, letting you pull him close. When the distance had been eradicated, Neil placed his hand on your waist with an experimental level of timidity. As if he was still fully expecting the move to backfire. Silly goose. Your hand ventured up his chest to his shoulder as you steeled your frame into what was expected of ballroom dancing. The habits were hard to shake off, after all.

Despite the booming synthesizers and grooving rhythm, you let him lead you into a slow dance. With each step, Neil’s confidence seemed to grow, for his grip became firmer as he splayed his hand over the small of your back and pulled you closer. It did not matter that his technique would bring your snobbish teachers from ballet study to tears. What mattered was that you felt safe within his embrace, never shying away from Neil’s gaze as it stayed trained on your face. What also mattered was that the genuine smile was fixed on your face. Especially when the song was slowly ending, and Neil was not letting go. What a novelty that was. You worried that once you tasted it, it would be impossible to let go. To forget this careless feeling, encapsulated within a simple, tender hold and open, beautiful eyes.

“That was hardly a song for slow dancing,” when Neil spoke, the remark came upon a hesitant smile, so at odds with how sure his hand was within yours.

“We made do, didn’t we?” you could only offer him a smile, aware of the wobbly edges of your voice and the yearning of your treacherous heart.

Even with years of practice, it sometimes wanted what it could not get. Affection, namely. Or the tenderness that meant something, rather than the mindless touch of a loveless fuck. You hoped one day those two would disappear, leaving you perfectly satisfied with what you had.

As if aware of your dangerous thoughts, the song switch came at a perfect moment. The last beats of The Human League died down, replaced with an equally cheesy rhythm. If not worse. Neil’s reaction was instant. He stopped dancing abruptly, making you nearly miss stepping on his foot. Your eyes darted to his face as curiosity soared in your chest. The barely masked joy you found there only made that warmth in your heart feel like tongues of fire. You disentangled from the embrace to place your hand on his chest and push him back lightly:

“Come on, pretty boy. Show me what you’ve got,” you completed the encouragement with a wink and stepped back to give him space.

The hesitation stage lasted much less this time. Neil stared at you, evidently weighing the pros and cons of giving in, but as soon as Falco opened the song with the lines in German, he had made up his mind. It was your turn to be dumbfounded as you watched Neil thrash to the music, almost keeping up with the beat. He slid across the tiles, barely managing not to slip as Falco went on about Mozart and his flair.

‘Er war ein Virtuose, war ein Rockidol

Und alles rief: Come on and rock me Amadeus’

It was easy to say Neil got lost in the music as his lean body twisted and turned, claiming the space he was allowed to occupy. There was grace in his movement, as well as carelessness, perfectly balancing the dance into an ideal mixture. A rare spark of envy kindled in your chest as you did your best to ignore the question of what it must feel like to be this free. During the poor attempt at moonwalking as he circled you, you could no longer hold back the laugh. Neil’s hands weaved through the air as he threw his head back to shout the hook along with the singer. With each call of Amadeus’ name, the affection in your chest grew, becoming increasingly lethal. A show of that kind displayed not only his trust but also what kind of a man Neil could be if he got rid of his shyness and inhibitions. It was something you doubt you could ever forget.

And that could be a problem.

When the song drew to a close, and Neil’s heaving breaths alerted you that he was probably worn out with exertion, he stopped. The reverberating beats sunk into the background as you met his gaze, aware of the silly softness you could not eradicate from your eyes. Neil looked manic, his pupils dilated and irises sparkling. He was breathing hard, the exhaustion making him shrug off the jean jacket with impatience, so far that Neil did not bat an eyelid when the article landed on the dirty floor. The reveal of an old, worn-out t-shirt underneath that hugged his broad shoulders and biceps just right made your jaw fall slack.

That, too, could be a problem.

Despite the common sense screaming at you to look away, you stared on, aware of Neil gazing right back. A wiser person would have shaken awake in time to switch off the music and call this quits before any further damage could be done. But you were never the wiser person.

You looked on as the song switched into a different era of music, and gentle, cheesy chords of piano and percussion filled the platform with a ballad almost everyone knew. Neil was not any different. You noticed the change in his eyes, switching from playfulness to mild seriousness. As if he, too, knew your fates were being decided at that exact moment.

However, the results of those decisions would not be noticeable until much later.

Using Elvis’ crooning as a backup to help drown your thoughts, you reached out your hand towards Neil, repeating the invitation. It was up to him whether he wanted to take it. Just like everything else in your friendship. The eager hope was hard to nip in the bud. It itched and ached until you could hardly stand still, awaiting the sentencing for what felt like hours. At last, Neil closed the gap and took your proffered hand with an impassive look.

The second time bore all the experience of the first, making it easier to fall in place without hesitation. Neil clasped your hand in his and let his other arm wind around your waist, pulling you close. Much closer than before. Your hand found its way to his shoulder, curious fingers stroking the expanse of his neck, revealed by the t-shirt collar. You did your best not to notice the goosebumps rising on his skin. It was impossible to tell which of you moved first, leading into the gentle sway. Only once you started waltzing around the empty platform, it was impossible to stop.

‘Would it be a sin

If I can't help falling in love with you?’

Halfway through the song, you tilted your head back from where your gaze had been trained on the expanse of his chest and met Neil’s waiting gaze. The shock passing through your system felt like a fatal blow. There was no denying the fact that this was a first. The first time you had ever danced like that with someone, motivated by nothing else but the desire to do it. There was also no denying the fact Neil’s watchful eyes and the soft strokes of his fingers, running along the expanse of your waist down to your hip, felt like nothing else you could have ever experienced before or after. It was well past your usual flirty chats and casual innuendos. Well past the daily playfulness of whatever it was blooming between you. It was well past the worn-out tracks and lived-in spaces.

Absolutely fucking terrifying.

‘Take my hand,

Take my whole life, too

For I can't help falling in love with you

For I can't help falling in love with you’

It was impossible to say what had tipped the scales right then. Whether it was the song lyrics, drawing attention to all those things you would rather ignore till the end of time or the unwavering eye contact you had maintained as you spun across the space with grace that had not been there previously. Or whether it was due to how Neil held you steadily, all the while allowing himself to stare, eyes roaming over your face in a meticulous study. But perhaps it was just a trick of fate, a sudden loss of reason and logic that made you tip forward and give in to the gravitational pull of his orbit. Perhaps Neil was guilty of the same thing.

Before you knew what had failed and why, you were close enough to feel the gasp of his breath fan across your face. The air ghosted your lips as your nose brushed against Neil’s, and the time slowed to a crawling speed. There was no denying the fact that you wanted it. The want hummed underneath your skin and made it hard to think clearly.

You only knew that Neil closed his eyes, and his sharp intake of breath hit your lips, making you tilt forward. Making it oh so easy to let go and-

“This is Piccadilly Line service towards the Heathrow Airport,” the PA system crackled to life, forcing you to separate as if burned.

You blinked awake, barely noticing the train slowing at the platform and the music still playing from your speaker. One glance at Neil told you all feelings were very much mutual. It was a close call. So close you could almost feel the kiss that never happened. An uncertain smile played upon your lips as you turned off the music and jumped aboard the train. You could only hope the King of the Rock’N’Roll himself was wrong about this one.

***

It was a well-known truth that a pretty boy could make you a little stupid. Stupid enough to do things that, under normal circumstances, would be off the table. But all it took was a flash of blue eyes and a charming smile, and boom, logic gone, reason decimated. Usually, there was a price to pay for that.

But the potential costs meant nothing in the face of the revelations the Saturday night brought. Namely, the kiss that never happened but you could easily dream of. Which you did, just to brighten up the restless sleep. Needless to say, that night unlocked some things. Things that perhaps were best left untouched. But hindsight was a gift you did not yet possess.

Instead, you battled with a single idea that was difficult to eradicate. Sure, that night, or how it had almost ended, was never mentioned again. As early as the next day Neil reached out to you and set the tone you were happy to follow. But the memory remained, nagging at your brain for a week and not once letting go. It was a seed that planted another thought. The thought that nothing was preventing you from reaching out for more. That there was no script to follow with Neil. That idea was like a brainworm making a home inside your skull.

Because, yes, you were known to be a little stupid for attractive boys. And Neil was potentially the most beautiful man you have ever met. That proved to be a problem.

Exactly a week after that Saturday, you caved in. The autumn breeze was hitting your face and tangling your hair as you stared at the Thames. There was no better place to start a catastrophic chain of events than the Blackfriars Bridge. Or so you told yourself. You took out the phone to stare at the messages and opened the text conversation with Neil. It took an additional fortifying breath to start typing out the proposition and start the exchange.

/ 🏹, 5:39 pm/ So, I figured, since we already broke the rules on our hangouts last Saturday

/ 🏹, 5:40 pm/ Would you like to grab coffee tomorrow?

/✝️, 5:45 pm/ That’s unexpected.

/✝️, 5:45 pm/ Why the sudden change of heart?

/ 🏹, 5:46 pm/ I liked your moves.

/✝️, 5:47 pm/ I’m pretty sure no one’s ever said that to me.

/ 🏹, 5:49 pm/ Maybe they just weren’t looking. I knew I was.

/✝️, 5:51 pm/ Okay, yeah. I’d like that.

/✝️, 5:52 pm/ Any labels I should be aware of?

/ 🏹, 5:52 pm/ Nah, fuck the labels.

/ 🏹, 5:53 pm/ Unless you want to bring me flowers. Then let’s call it a date.

/✝️, 5:55 pm/ Then it’s a date 😘

You stared at the phone long after the screen went dark. Along with the buzzing joy and anticipation of what tomorrow would bring, there was also an eternal question. The question you had avoided pretty damn well so far. What the fuck have you done?

***

By the time you were meeting Neil in a café (chosen because of its perfect location between St. John’s Wood and Swiss Cottage), those nerves of anticipation had transformed into anxiety. The worst was that you did not even know what you were so nervous about. A date (that was not really a date) was nothing new. You have done it many times before, usually to great results. But suddenly, when Neil was inserted into the equation, all that you got was uncertainty. And a strong fear of fucking it up. It did not make for a good mix.

Part of it dissipated once you turned the street corner and saw him waiting in front of the café, a bouquet in hand, despite your line being nothing more than a throwaway joke. An affectionate smile was impossible to get rid of no matter how hard you may have tried. It stayed as you closed the remaining distance and met Neil’s gaze. Then it got transformed into a stupid grin as your eyes scanned him head to toe (hair just as messy as always, leather and jeans completed with sneakers – in other words: fucking hot). Once that foolery was complete, you could shift your attention to the flowers, now held out in your direction like a sheepish offering.

It was a colourful bouquet of wildflowers, freshly bloomed and coming from a florist rather than Sainsbury’s. The thoughtfulness was enough to make you blush. Before you could delve into an embarrassing attempt at cover-up, Neil broke the silence:

“You haven’t specified what kind of flowers,” his shyness was easily seen from the fidgeting hands and eyes unwilling to stay on your face longer than necessary.

That was your cue to get yourself together and accept the bouquet with a courtesy. That, too, was just a trick to drag that shy smile onto his face. It worked.

“Those are perfect, thank you,” with another smile, you turned towards the entrance and went in as Neil held the door. It was a cosy café with only a few tables and a bar-service ordering. You motioned towards the smiling server behind the counter with a question, “Wanna go order coffee?”

You did not expect in response to your innocent ask for Neil to come to a strange stand-still in the middle of the entryway and measure you with a look that spoke volumes about him having something to say and no way of expressing it. You raised your eyebrow, urging the words to come out and save you from death by perplexation.

After a beat, Neil seemingly found the ability to speak again and stumbled through a sentence:

“I’ve got… uh… a thing,” the emphasis on the final word was accompanied by an awkward shift, his hand automatically reaching up to comb through his hair and messing it up even more.

That did not help. At all. You blinked, aware of the comedy role you had just been awarded without warning. You were vaguely conscious of the server’s gaze, undoubtedly staring at the spectacle presented with fascination.

“Jesus, what thing?” when Neil did not elaborate, you prodded with another question, gaining a slightly hysterical edge.

It was probably that tone which made the most impact. Neil seemed to wake up, his hands gesturing as he attempted to explain:

“A thing about figuring out people’s drink order,” he shrugged, almost as if already embarrassed by ever bringing it up; that would not do, “Like a-”

“A kink?” you interrupted his explanation with a devilish grin, knowing that it would do the job.

That and the teasing, of course.

The reaction was instantaneous. Where previously there had been mild shyness and uncertainty, the furious blush had bloomed. Neil looked horrified as he took a step in your direction as if considering sealing your mouth shut before finally admitting defeat. What you got instead was a glare and an affronted reply:

“What? No! More like talent, I guess,” Neil shrugged, visibly battling the dilemma you were not privy to. You decided to help him the best way you knew how – by reaching out and squeezing his hand. Once. Just once. It was enough to do the job and make your fingers itch with an inexplicable desire to prolong the contact. Luckily, it disappeared when Neil recovered from his internal crisis and gestured towards the counter, “May I?”

You could only nod, happy that whatever had just transpired was past you. Not that it was not fun, but because of the audience that did not deserve to see what had happened. Whatever it was.

“You’ve got me intrigued, so now you have to,” shrugging upon Neil’s hesitant smile, you ventured inside the café, scouting for a perfect table.

Soon enough, the ideal booth had been located and taken as you awaited Neil’s return. You did not have to wait long, for as soon as you settled and placed your coat on the backrest, he sat in the chair in front. That sheepish smile was still in place, so you tried to bring back his confidence with dumb chitchat until you were interrupted by the server approaching your table. It worked. As you both fell quiet, Neil was visibly fighting a grin threatening to transform his face. The pride surged in your veins without respect towards your sense of humility.

The woman shot you both a bright smile as she set neared the table and put a steaming porcelain cup in front of Neil:

“Flat White for you, sir, and for your girlfriend-” you never got to hear the end of that sentence as Neil’s horrified expression and a loud interruption stole your attention.

“Oh, we’re not-” your laughter was almost enough to drown out his protest.

Almost because the server still looked extremely apologetic as she placed a larger cup in front of you with a clink.

“-Caramel Macchiato,” you waved off the atonement she seemed ready to launch and smiled, the curiosity at his choice already occupying your mind.

“Thank you,” as soon as the woman was out of earshot, you turned your cheeky smile onto Neil and covered his hand resting on the table with your palm, “Are you ashamed of me, my darling?” your favourite blush spread upon his cheeks, widening your grin in the process.

A blunder like that was not something you would ever lose sleep over. Even less so, considering that you were there with Neil. Even with your deep-rooted dislike over anything that had to do with relationships and the complications they lead to, you could not possibly be angry over being perceived as belonging to Neil. If anything, it was flattering.

“Stop it,” he shook off your hand, way too gently, and shook his head as if desperate to clear it, “I just didn’t-” after a beat, he dropped your gaze, giving up the fight, “It doesn’t matter, sorry” although you would do anything to understand the thought processes unfolding behind those slightly vacant blue eyes, you were not given a chance. Instead, he took a fortifying sip of coffee and looked at your cup, (not so) swiftly changing the topic “So… how did I do?” the anticipation in that gaze offered no space for a bargain.

You glanced at the beverage in front of you and slowly raised it to get a tentative taste. The warm liquid slightly burned your tongue, but before you could mourn the damage, the caffeine and creamy caramel filled your mouth with pleasurable goodness. It was a top-notch choice, making you follow that first sip with another almost without a break. Burned tongue be damned.

“Very good, actually,” raising your head, you met Neil’s proud smile. It was a much better look than the embarrassed expression from earlier, motivating you to add, “Maybe you should try getting into BGT with that talent,” you winked at him, even if to prolong the blush, which had begun to fade.

But also because it was fun to compliment him, considering that you meant every word and because of your suspicions that Neil did not get them often. That alone was a travesty, in your opinion.

“Very funny,” rolling his eyes at you with a happy smile tucked in the corner of his lips, Neil looked even better.

It was easy enough a conclusion that lightness and happiness were a good look on him. Especially when you were the cause. You tried not to let that go into your head, but… Well.

“I know,” you matched his smile with a smirk of your own, “Hysterical,” with the perfect pause to take another sip of the glorious coffee, you shifted the topic, “How was the week at the clergy?”

Without Neil’s continuous amused reactions to the same old joke, you would have dropped it by now. But how could you if it still got a laugh out of him each time? You couldn’t let opportunities like that slip by. No chance.

This time, Neil hid the joyous huff of laughter in the coffee cup as he pondered the answer.

“It’s been good. Fine,” a noncommittal shrug offered no room for guessing what it was that he did, which was still a mystery, but you counted wins where you could find them, “A bit busy, but what can you do. I might have a work trip coming up soon, so…” it was only when the second part of his reply was processed by your brain, currently preoccupied with staring at Neil’s mouth (which was a very normal state of mind to have), that you perked up.

That was important information. For two contrasting reasons. One was that whatever Neil did for work involved work trips, and that narrowed down the field, albeit barely. Two was that it would mean he would not be around every Wednesday, ready to meet you. That second deduction took hold of your heart with the icy grasp of disappointment.

“So, no more Wednesday meetups?” it was impossible to keep the sadness out of your tone as you settled a wary gaze on Neil.

Sure, it was survivable. But where would be the fun in it?

It was not fun to see that same apprehension creep into Neil’s eyes.

“Yeah, but only like… for a few weeks,” from his sudden dislike of eye contact, you guessed that the estimation might have been an understatement. Though you did hope he was not lying. The pitiful look must have been still present on your face, for Neil followed the statement with reassurance, “I’m sure you’ll survive without me,” he hesitated for a millisecond before returning your previous gesture and giving your hand a comforting pat.

You did not move it away, the pleasant warmth and weight of his palm seeping through your skin and soothing the sudden spell of sadness. It was difficult not to let that inexplicable feeling lead you into the deep end as it was not something you understood. It settled in the darkest cavern of your heart and accompanied its beat with its foreboding presence. There was no choice but to push past it.

“I don’t know, I’m going to miss you,” the confession felt dangerously light on your tongue as you registered Neil’s reaction. His beautiful eyes widened almost imperceptibly, and he quickly dropped your gaze, choosing to stare at the table instead. The only sign that you were heard was how his thumb stroked your hand repeatedly, “I hope you’ll be back before the premiere,” using the only way you knew of lightening the conversation, you made sure to slip in a playful tone.

Ever since the day you had shared joyous news with Neil, he often asked about the preparations for the ballet. He seemed genuinely interested in the process, the rehearsals, and your impressions at every stage.

When you innocently hinted at a costume fitting in your texts Neil immediately asked for a picture. You complied, gleefully posing in the dressing room mirror wearing the whole get-up, complete with pointe shoes, tights, and a white ballet tutu with the accents of blue flower petals. All in all, you had the right to believe that Neil would be interested in coming to see the ballet when it premiered. You had that covered.

“I’ll do my best,” his hopeful smile was enough to distract you, for soon Neil followed it with a question, “Do I get an invite?”

The cheeky smile was back in full force, almost wiping you off the surface of the Earth. More of that, please. Feeling brave, you slowly tangled your fingers with his to raise your joined hands from the tabletop and squeezed his palm. It was a silly question to ask. You had to make sure Neil knew that.

“Well, duh,” you started with an eye roll, taking pleasure from the feel of his hand holding yours, “I’m going to need a personal cheerleader for when I fail big time,” it was a rare thing to hear you admit the fear and anxieties out loud.

Most of the time, they only existed in your mind, never expressed. And especially not in a conversation because that fear of someone else confirming all you feared was overwhelming. It was better to appear invincible to the world than to let them know your weaknesses. Somehow this logic did not want to apply itself to Neil. No, he has heard it all. And yet, he did not seem keen on confirming you were right to doubt yourself.

“That’s not going to happen. You’ll be the perfect Cupid,” punctuating the encouragement with a squeeze of the hand, Neil shot you a brilliant grin.

The nickname was growing on you. It was also the cause of a few silly smiles during the rehearsals when you were addressed with your character role. That was alright, too.

Now, with the force of his beautiful smile shining upon you like a rare beacon of hope, you tried your hardest not to let the praise consume you whole. Instead, you turned to the faithful vice of sarcasm as you let go of his hand and settled your chin on your folded palms. Eyelashes and doe eyes in full force. Naturally.

“Wow, my charms must be working if you’re this blindsided,” curling the corner of your mouth in a smirk, your eyes roamed over his face in familiar patterns.

It was refreshing to remember why you invited him out in the first place. Why you have decided to break the unwritten role and step on the line you both had been tiptoeing from day one. Why nothing was holding you back from reaching for what you wanted.

This time, Neil did not turn away from your taxing gaze and met it head-on. Almost as if permitting you to proceed with whatever you desired.

“You’ve no idea, sweetheart,” mirroring your tentative smirk, Neil offered you a wink and picked up the coffee cup.

You were certainly not going to eschew a chance like that.

***

As far as first dates (could he even call it that?) went, meeting up for coffee and letting the conversations run without a disaster somewhere in between was rare. Even rarer still considering that Neil did not know how he got to this point and whether it was not all a dream. The jury was out on that. Even though Sunday was now two days ago, the meeting was still fresh in his mind, posing a thousand questions.

Because he really did not know how he got that place. The only certainty was that sometime between the surprising Saturday night meeting at Leicester Square station and the day after, Cupid made up her mind and chose to strike. Alternatively, she decided to act considering the realisations he was not privy to. Sure, that night at the station almost ended with a kiss. He knew that. He was there. But it did not offer answers as towards why an almost kiss made her behave in contrast to what Neil thought he understood about her.

Because a date was definitely a step above flirting. And it was hard to understand what that meant. If anything at all.

Now, on a rainy Tuesday afternoon, Neil stared out the window of the HQ cafeteria and tried his hardest not to think about it (her) for a change. It was not going well, as one could expect. From the corner of his eye, he could tell Ives was staring. Those piercing blue eyes (bluer than his, which has once or twice been proved during a night out as those things usually are) have been glancing his way instead of focusing on the sandwich on his plate. What a prick (affectionate). After what felt like a fiftieth glance, Neil dropped the napkin onto his place with force and turned towards Ives with a glare. The patience has worn out.

“Oh, just spit it out,” Neil hissed the words with ire.

The grin spreading upon Ives’ lips did not help a bit. The soldier leaned forward, abandoning his food and setting the perceptive eyes upon his friend. Mercilessly. With years of friendship, Neil knew this was not ending well.

“I haven’t said a word,” the man shrugged; a picture-perfect nonchalance.

If only.

“But you’ve been staring,” Neil’s attempt at covering up the tension with a bored tone failed.

He knew that as soon as he saw Ives’ unimpressed smile. There were no doubts about where this conversation was heading. It was the interrogation Neil had feared from day one. It was only a matter of time. Damn it.

“Go ask Henrik. Maybe he can help you gauge my eyes,” in moments like this, Ives’ cockney accent came out in full force, tearing at the shreds of patience Neil seemed to have.

Despite himself, he cracked a smile at the comeback.

“Doubtful,” quickly hiding it in the sip of tea, Neil muttered a quip of his own.

While Henrik, the team’s medic, was a peculiar man, it was improbable he would be into that kind of thing. Unfortunately.

“Eh, I wouldn’t put it past him,” before he could hope this was the end of the conversation, Ives levelled him with another no-bullshit look and delivered the sentence in four simple words, “Mate, spit it out,”

If only it were that easy. For one, Neil did not even know what there was to tell. Sure, he has met a girl. He was probably thinking too much about said girl daily. But that was it. The end of the story. Pathetic, as per usual.

“I’d rather not,” as the last resort of keeping his dignity intact, Neil averted his gaze and fixed his stare on the dirty floor of the cantina.

A solitary potato chip was lying there, attracting attention. For one, maddening second, his brain tried to concoct an elaborate metaphor in which he was like that lonely, forgotten chip on the ground.

Thankfully, the idea was soon dispersed by his irreplicable companion and his booming voice, cutting through the idiotic thoughts:

“I beg to differ,” the hint of reassurance in Ives’ voice was responsible for luring Neil into listening, just as the soldier delivered the question, “What’s her name? His name? Their name?”

Admittedly, the inclusive way of asking was a nice touch from someone who frequently lacked decorum. Or, more accurately, did not bother with it. It was that addition that made Neil crack, with the final resolve crumbling as he tried to protest:

“There’s no- Cupid,” giving out a tired sigh, Neil finally raised his head and repeated the nickname with something ridiculously close to the softness of affection, “I call her Cupid,”

It made no sense. He knew that. But it did not help that whenever he thought of her, that stupid, embarrassing part of his heart was roused awake from periodical slumber. So much for being reasonable.

As soon as Ives whistled lowly and that familiar sardonic grin appeared on his face, Neil knew it was a mistake.

“Kinky,” his murderous glare got ignored in favour of another pressing question, “Who’s the lucky lady?”

Lucky was definitely an overstatement if you asked Neil. But he did not fancy getting into the specifics of the relationships yet. Instead, he happily let himself delve back into memories of that first meeting. He still could not find other apt ways to describe it than a strike of fate. Dramatic? Sure, that was his second name.

He did doubt that Ives would appreciate the insane poetic ruminations, however.

“I’ve met her at the Tube, and she’s a ballerina… Pretty fucking cool, at that” that was a non-negotiable fact. Period.

Yet from the way his friend stared at him, Neil could easily deduct that here, too, he sounded like the insane idiot that he was. An idiot that finds friends on the Tube and lets that develop into something else. Something he tried very hard not to define. It was going splendidly well. Of course.

“Uh oh,” as if reading his mind, Ives, the prick, pasted on a silly grin and bated his eyelashes down at him, continuing the interrogation, “Is that a crush I’m sensing?”

Fuck. That was, indeed, a mistake.

Not that there was a crush because there absolutely wasn’t anything of that sort. Idiot, he might have been, but not… No. No. Which is exactly why Neil had to pause to cover his face with his hands and let out a deep sigh. Conveniently ignoring Ives and his bullshit assumptions.

Only once he felt like the annoyance had simmered to an acceptable white noise, Neil dropped the hands covering his face and met his destiny in the form of an infuriating sardonic smile.

“No, she’s just… I’m fascinated, okay? I’ve never met anyone like her before, and we’ve got a good thing going with weekly chats and… stuff,” running out of steam, Neil let the last word trail off into silence.

He knew what it all sounded like. He did. Except that there was no better way of describing it (them) to the outside world. And he was certainly not keen on showing Ives the texts. Not after the last conversation this morning, which involved more innuendos and another rendition of What socks are you wearing? - his favourite game. Truly. What made the exchange more incriminating, however, was the fact that Cupid’s current socks brandished an image of an adorable pug with a caption: “Send dog pics”. Yeah, that. That was a theme he was so far happy to ignore. Kind of.

“Did you kiss her yet?” another ridiculous question acted like a wake-up call as Neil felt the loathed, crimson blush fill his cheeks.

“What is this? Middle school?” another outburst got met with a stoically blank face, not helping to ease the shame of being so goddamn transparent “No, I didn’t,” I wish, “We danced” offering the alternative lowkey felt like self-sacrifice.

Not because Neil was embarrassed of what had happened that Saturday night but because it stayed a secret to anyone who was not him or Cupid. At least, that is what she told him, much to inexplicable surprise, which he could not and would not try to understand.

“I never knew you dance,” the soldier’s remark, as always, missed the mark.

Annoyance at the whole world, at this rate, rose at a steady pace. Perhaps it would have been more accurate to say that Neil was frustrated at the circumstances of the relationship with the woman in question, but it was too soon for self-realisation to do its work.

“Of course, I do,” instead, it was the distant feel of pity that nagged at the edges of his soul as Neil allowed the dismissive reflection to be voiced without the veil of fake pep, “Anyway, none of it matters. She’s not into relationships, so…” he shrugged, aware of the pitiful picture.

In a way, it was easier to know that about her ahead of time. It was perfect information to push at his brain and heart whenever they got too comfortable with the situation. To remind them (and himself) that it was not going anywhere, and it never would.

But, for some infuriating reason, the heart tended to be a stubborn beast holding no regard for facts. Not that heart had anything to do with this just yet. Of course not. Neil just… liked her. As a human being likes another human being. Platonically.

“Surely, your roguish charm will convince her otherwise,” as expected, Ives looked as if he was trying very hard not to feel sorry for him and was failing.

The reassurance hardly worked if Neil was being honest. The existence of said roguish charm was highly debatable. But who was he to argue?

“Nah, it’s fine. I can be just friends with her” manifesting much, or whatever. It was a blessing to have a different topic to switch to, “Anyway, I’m not going to see her for the next couple of weeks since we’re leaving,” another attempt at a nonchalant shrug got lost in the heaviness Neil could not shake off if he tried.

Going off on a mission right now, in the middle of it all, was far from ideal. Neil liked his job, loved it even, but then, some operations felt like a drag from the moment they appeared on his desk. That was one of them.

“Yeah, Lisbon is on,” from the tiredness written all over Ives’ face, Neil could tell the lack of enthusiasm was shared, “Two weeks, but it might be longer,”

“Great,” sarcasm dripped from the word as Neil glanced at his friend and asked, “We’re going to bunk together?”

It was only half a joke. Because only the company made the perspective of that mission seem a little less daunting.

“You wish, love,” the answering grin on Ives’ face was the perfect punchline to the dramatic conversation. The soldier got up from the table with another quip, “You know I’m not into blondes,” he walked away without another glance, yet the laugh he elicited from Neil could be heard in the room above the cantina.

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yelenabemylova · 2 years

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Affliction - Older!Natasha Romanoff x Reader (epiphany au chapter one)

summary: after being shot multiple times in the field, natasha decides it is time to take control of her own life

warnings: blood, injury, inaccurate medical terms i learned from grey's anatomy, slight angst, age gap (nat is 36, r is 20)

"Natasha, please," you sobbed, tears streaming down your face.

"She's in v-fib, charge to 100," a doctor announced.

"Clear!" Bruce shouted as he shocked your wife with defibrillator paddles, everyone taking their hands off of her lifeless body.

Shaking, you cried aloud, "don't you dare die on me, Romanoff." Maria came over to you, placing a comforting hand on your shoulder, "it's okay, they're gonna save her."

Dr Cho grabbed her phone, "I need another two units of O-neg in trauma room 3 right now."

Bruce shocked her again, sighing in relief when the monitor began to steadily beep again, "sinus tach, we have a rhythm."

"Tasha," you hugged her tightly, being soaked by the blood spilling from her abdomen in multiple places. "Detka, I'm so sorry," she held you close to her, kissing the top of your head over and over again.

"It's okay, you're okay," you told her, but she knew you were reassuring yourself just as much, if not more. "Hey, hey, malysh. Listen to me," her hands trembled as she reached up to hold your face, blood smearing across your cheeks.

You leaned into her touch, your eyes closing as you sniffled lightly. "Everything is going to be fine, I promise. Soon, we'll be back in our bed, eating junk food and watching all of our favourite movies. Stay strong for me, pretty girl," she was soon taken away into an operating theatre, leaving you alone to pace in the waiting room.

Wanda kept you company, lending you a shoulder to cry on and supplying you with an abundance of tissues.

Time felt as though it slowed down while you waited for Natasha's return, your only source of distraction being the various members of the team coming to check on you.

Peter brought a deck of cards, letting you win every game to try to raise your spirits. You caught onto the boy's plan quickly, but didn't mention it.

Yelena pulled a gun from one of her vest pockets when a member of staff told her she couldn't bring her dog, Fanny, in. She sat on the floor with you while you wept and drifted in and out of feel, not even laughing at you once. The pain you were feeling was both understood and shared by the blonde.

A gentle hand shook you awake, dragging you into a room far too bright for your liking. Groggily, you stumbled into a sharp corner, falling to the ground in an exhausted haze.

Quiet laughter echoed throughout the room as a strong pair of arms lifted you off the floor, mumbling something about you being a 'stupid idiot' in Russian.

"Shut up, Lena," you groaned, assessing your surroundings. The source of the prior laugh was laid in a small bed, a thin blanket draped over her. Your eyes began to water, "oh god, Nat."

She beckoned you over to her, shuffling over to one side of the bed so you could squeeze in close to her side. "I thought I lost you," you kissed her cheek. "You can't get rid of me that easily, dorogoya," she tenderly brushed hair from your face, tucking it behind your ear.

Recovery wasn't easy for Natasha. All she wanted to do was get back out into the field, to which you objected strongly.

Even showering seemed to be an impossible task for her, standing for so long was too painful and she often called you in to help her. Of course, you didn't mind. You would take any excuse to admire her toned muscles, and you swore she purposefully flexed them every time she caught you trying to subtly take a look.

One evening, you found her lying in bed, white as a sheet, shivering intensely. "Nat, what's wrong?" you ran over to her, cradling her face gently. "My stomach hurts and I'm freezing," she croaked weakly.

Taking a look at her wound, your eyes widened at the sight of the infected area surrounding her sutures. "FRIDAY, get Bruce in here, right now," you held your wife's hand shakily. "Of course, Mrs Romanoff, right away," the AI replied.

"I love you," you told her as you waited in the infirmary together, afraid of what was going to happen to her. "Malyshka," she kissed your hand, "I think it's time for me to retire."

Taken aback slightly, you tilted your head, silently asking her to elaborate. "I want to stay safe and healthy for you, moya lyubov. Risking my life every other day isn't fair to you, I want us to have a stable marriage where I get to cherish every moment we share. You're the light of my life, the reason I get up every morning and the only girl I ever want in my life," her voice was strained, and she took many pauses between her words.

"I don't want you to stop doing the job you love just because of me," you told her. "It's for myself as well, I've never been able to experience a normal life. If I wasn't fighting for the red room, I was an agent here and I'm exhausted. After thirty-six years, I think I'm ready to live life the way I want to," the sincerity and pain behind her eyes made you realise that she was right, retirement seemed to be a beneficial option to both of you.

Smiling widely, you held her hand the entire time she was getting assessed by the doctors, excited for the next chapter of your life you would get to spend with her.

She was prescribed some antibiotics and soon enough, Natasha was back on her feet, struggling to find things to do when the days felt so long. The avengers were always arguing loudly, irritating her beyond insanity.

Flicking through a magazine, a large house in a small neighbourhood caught her eye. Over the course of the next few weeks, she bought the house and bought some furniture for it.

Walking into your room in the compound, your shoulders relaxed and your jaw unclenched when you saw Natasha sitting against the headboard of the bed. "Hi, pretty girl," she looked up from her book, putting her bookmark in place before beckoning you closer to her.

"I missed you, Tasha," you straddled her lap, nuzzling your face into her neck. "Are you okay?" she asked you, running her fingers through your slightly knotted hair. "The guys have too much energy," your voice was shaky, it was evident that you were overwhelmed from the interaction you had just shared with them.

Natasha felt slightly guilty, there was a perfect house ready to be lived in by the two of you but she hadn't found the right moment to tell you about it yet.

Staring into her beautiful green eyes, you felt at ease. No one compared to her, nobody in the world even came close. "I have something to show you," she picked you up, your thighs instinctively wrapping around her waist.

She took you down to the garage, helping you sit on the back of her motorcycle before driving across the city. Street lights illuminated the beautiful buildings until Natasha brought you to a slightly less bright area.

"Where are we?" you looked around at the big mansions, in awe of the sheer size of them.

"Home, detka."

#ybml writes #epiphany au #natasha romanoff #natasha romanoff angst #natasha romanoff fluff #natasha romanoff x reader #x reader #fluff #tw blood #tw injury #mommy natasha #older!nat #avengers #marvel #wanda maximoff #peter parker #yelena belova #bruce banner

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ae-azile · 2 months

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Azile's OC Round Up, Part 3 - Progression OCs.

Since I am actively updating this story, I decided to make the list of my prominent Progression OCs. I will likely add Fern and Milan to part 4.

Vice

Introduced in: Chapter 1 of Progression

Age: 36

Profession: Major Family Bodyguard

Characteristics: hardworking, morally ambiguous, loving brother, quick to feel resentment

Importance: Chay's first sexual partner.

Origin: Ex-cop, orphan. Became a bodyguard to bail his troubled younger brother out of jail. Became enamored by Chay's growing confidence, abilities, and muscles. Despite their age gap and first time being sudden, they slept together a few more times. Chay declined the offer to go out on a date, then slept with Vice's roommate not too long after. This was a problem because Vice has been in a FWB situation with his roommate for a while, so he felt betrayed by both of them.

Sand

Introduced in: Chapter 9 of Progression

Age: 26

Profession: Major Family Bodyguard

Characteristics: Loyal, quiet, friendly, relatively strong moral compass despite job

Importance: Chay's previous sexual partner, the only one he considers a friend.

Origin: Has very little family outside of the compound. Comes from foster care. Took the job for stability and a place to live, stayed for the friendships. Would have been open to dating Chay, but okay with being friends too. They work out together and sometimes have semi-heartfelt conversations. Honestly a pretty good guy.

Lane

Introduced in: Chapter 7 of Progression

Age: 33

Profession: Psychotherapist

Characteristics: Patient, understanding, trustworthy, calm, professional

Importance: Kim's therapist, and she has actually made some strides with him.

Origin: Lane is the older cousin of Tay. She is his mother's sister's daughter. While her immediate family is not directly involved with the mafia, she grew up close enough to Tay to know some of the traumas that occurred. Kinn already knew her and was on good terms with her due to Tay, so he reached out after it became clear Kim needed extensive treatment in order to feel better. Kim genuinely likes her, and would probably not be able to switch to a new therapist easily, or possibly at all.

Malai

Introduced: In Progression, Tankhun mentions visiting her in Chapter 20, and she is introduced in Chapter 22 officially. Versions of her character are also mentioned/included in The Masks Series, Lay Me Down to Sleep, and I Do (Not Understand What's Going On).

Age: 34

Profession: Litigation Paralegal

Characteristics: Kind, ambitious, maternal, excellent multitasker

Importance: Arm's older sister

Origin: Malai as a general character was first introduced in 5, 3, 1, and On, which is a novel length prequel to Giant Dancing Hedgehogs are Nightmare Fuel told solely from Arm's POV. In that, she lives with her younger sisters and is characterized as a hardworking sisterly/motherly figure due to rescuing Arm and the girls from the human trafficking situation they were all in. In this universe, she is more career oriented, but still a motherly figure at heart. She adopted her foster siblings after becoming of age from a really abusive and traumatic household. Arm is six years younger than Malai, but the next oldest and the only boy in their family. He often feels a need to make up for her sacrifices, but she makes them happily. A year before Progression, she had a close friend pass away, leaving behind twin toddler girls. While she balanced the motherly/sisterly role with Arm, Hansa, Nalin, and Preeda, she sees Tida and Priya as her daughters now. She doesn't have much interest in marriage or romance. A history of abuse partially plays into this, but it just isn't her thing. She likes being independent in that regard.

Hansa

Introduced: Chapter 22 of Progression, but versions of her character are also mentioned/included in The Masks Series, Lay Me Down to Sleep, and I Do (Not Understand What's Going On).

Age: 26

Profession: Horticulturist/Florist

Characteristics: Quiet, Non-judgmental, cautious, kind, carries a lot of trauma, but has been doing better

Importance: Arm's younger sister, Pol's love interest.

Origin: Roughly 18 months younger than Arm, Hansa was the person he was closest to growing up. In both this story and in 5, 3, 1, and On (although she had it even harder in 531). But in Progression, they grew up in an extremely abusive home where they were all traumatized, but the foster father took a particular interest in Hansa. Arm is protective of all of his sisters, but particularly her. She has been hurt a lot and struggled with her mental health when she was in her late teens to early twenties, but found solace in gardening and watching things bloom. She wants to find love, but the last time she tried went horribly. Other than Arm, she struggles with feeling comfortable around men. She was surprised to find Pol so friendly, fun, and approachable. Now that Arm and Tankhun are together and reach out more to spend time as a group, they often bring Pol. She actually looks forward to seeing him.

Nalin

Introduced in: Chapter 22 of Progression, but versions of her character are also mentioned/included in The Masks Series, Lay Me Down to Sleep, and I Do (Not Understand What's Going On).

Age: 20

Profession: Robotics Major, student librarian at university library

Characteristics: Highly intelligent, quick witted, smooth, tech-savvy, a romantic deep down.

Importance: Arm's younger sister, Macau's love interest.

Origin: Basically a mini female Arm, but more charismatic. Her main interests lie in further integrating and advancing robotics when it comes to the medical field and to help those living with disabilities live more freely and comfortably in their day to day lives. While she works hard and is a top student at her university, she is occasionally known to have fun. She did meet Macau at a party and had a night with him that felt magical. Is he an idiot for dropping his phone into a grate? Yes. Did she hold a grudge so she wouldn't feel sadness and rejection? Yes. But that's cleared up now, and they have been talking multiple times a day since her brother's party. She doesn't know if Arm will be thrilled about her potentially dating his boyfriend's cousin, and she loves and looks up to her older brother so much. But she likes Macau, so...🤷🏻‍♀️

Preeda

Introduced in: Chapter 22 of Progression, but versions of her character are also mentioned/included in The Masks Series, Lay Me Down to Sleep, and I Do (Not Understand What's Going On).

Age: 18 going on 19

Profession: Gap year. Looking into colleges, having fun until then.

Characteristics: confident, flirtatious, indecisive, attention seeking, challenging, family-oriented.

Importance: Arm's youngest sister

Origin: The youngest of Arm's foster siblings. Despite being the youngest when removed from their abusive situation, she witnessed a lot, which has caused certain rebellions, impulses, and avoidances in her. Her family worries, but keeps communication open. This helps, because she feels free and happy to talk with her siblings and share things with them. Came out as a lesbian at 15 and never looked back. Wishes Arm were more flamboyant and obvious in his own gay-leaning tendencies, so she's glad he's dating Tankhun, who is fabulous.

#oc round up #progression spoilers #progression ocs #progression preview #kimchay fic #armkhun fic

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paprikadotmp4 · 2 months

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wip ask game

ヾ(＠⌒ー⌒＠)ノ

tagged by the lovely @ladytauria !! thank yew bb ♡

rules: reveal the titles of the documents in your wip folder and tag as many people as there are documents. let others ask questions about the ones that interest them and post snippets or explain the contents as you see fit!

hMmMMmmMMMmmm... i'll organize by ship because i think that's easier:

BRUJAY 1. delusional bruce 2. grooming???? i guess?? 3. mafia jason x doctor bruce 4. stoke a fire (suicidal jason mob au)

BRUJAYDICK 5. but make them freaks

DICKTIM 6. [gift for my good friend ****] 7. dicktim chapter 1

JAYBUCKY 8. to hold saltwater in your mouth

JAYCEST 9. ak!jay x rh!jason dimension displacement

JAYDICK 10. "wow officer grayson," jason simpers, 11. brother dear spinoff 12. earth 3 is sooo sexxceee 13. scumbag dick but it's cute

JAYROY 14. jaybin x speedy mutual noncon

JAYTIM 15. AITA for not realizing i'm in love with my crime lord roommate? 16. [super secret collab w the boys ( *︾▽︾)] 17. darkroom (black, white, red light) 18. darlings kill you dead (/ pretty when you kill?) 19. deliver your eulogies (rr) 20. in motion time loop 21. online friends identity shenanigans 22. point and shoot (and have some fun, baby) 23. [frantic fanfic with 🍜] 24. [another frantic fanfic with 🍜]

JAYTIMDAMI 25. momegaverse [for ****]

JONDAMI 26. damian being a meanie 27. where dami thinks jonjay are together but they're just fwbs

KHOAJAY 28. chokehold (aka pining for bruce)

ROBINPILE 29. paprika interviews some vampires

SLADEJAY 30. roadtrip + injury 31. slade x eng major jason but subverted 32. speed dating is for schmucks [frantic fanfic with 🪼🐈] 33. [heheheh gift for ********; has romanjay]

TIMDAMI (urgh i forgot people call this damitim but i can't rearrange the numbering anymore இ௰இ) 34. a fine line / play nice / they fck in the cave or smth 35. deliver your eulogies (jaytim rr but timdami ver) 36. tmdm casefic plotting

i think most people i know have been tagged... just in case though, tagging: @37nightwalker @jacenpetertodd @disniq @marsupialmenace @azol-otl @setsailslash ??? come on buds!! ♡♡♡

#ask meme #answered #papi paprika #batc'est la vie

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bratshaws · 1 year

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through the hourglass 74. brb x oc

a/n: me @ me: stop creating more characters for this fic, you dumbass.

pairing: plus size!oc x rooster

warnings: fluff, IM SORRY IM JUST HAPPY OK

goodness gracious (pls read this one to know more what this fic is about!!)

chapter

1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10/11/12/13/14/15/16/17/18/19/20/21/22/23/24/

25/26/27/28/29/30/31/32/33/34/35/36/37/38/39/40/41/42/43/44

45/46/47/48/49/50/51/52/53/54/55/56/57/58/59/60/61/62/63/64

/65/66/67/68/69/70/71/72/73

(pls let me know if you want to be added to the taglist!! )

taglist: @mirandastuckinthe80s @roosterschanelslut @wiipes @lcahwriter @shrimping-for-all @gretagerwigsmuse @frenchtoastix

@lizzie-rdj @fanboyluvr @atarmychick007 @comebacktoearthpls

@peachiicherries @mak-32 @lizziespidiepridie @roosterswifey @ollyoxenfrees @piceous21 @sqrlgrl22 @hofficoffi @lexhalstead3 @lorilane33 @legendarydreamersharkparty @luckyladycreator2

@emilybradshaw @j-6o @louisahale @leobabbyyy @kulicny @winter-run @ktjmac @graciereads @bigpoppajes @taytaylala12

@caitsymichelle13 @becks-things @caatheeriinee07 @dhwanishah09 @jesfreedark @katiemcrae @lilmonstrjedi @hobiismyhopeu @teacupsandtopgun @insominac23

“And we’re home!” Rooster’s usually deep voice came out higher as he opened the passenger door to pick up Nikki, “Home,we’re home! Isn’t that fun?” Nicole wriggles her legs when he picks her up, kissing her cheek and closing the door with his hip.

The dogs were already alert by their presence, Eleanor’s deep bark being the loudest of the three followed by Jolene’s claws scratching on the door so they’d come in quickly, “We are all going out tonight, honey, isn’t that fun?” Rooster unlocks the garage door and the dogs go wild. Eleanor and Jack have the zoomies while Jolene sits patiently next to Rooster with her tail wagging on the tiled floor, “Hey,Jojo. Is Bea home?”

The pittie licks his hand after he pets her, then trots away to the hallway where she lies down, “Ah,not yet huh? That’s fine.” he places the baby bag on the kitchen counter, moving Nicole to his opposite arm, “She’ll be home soon.”

“Aa!”

“Yes,Birdie,mommy will be home soon.”

Nicole smacks her lips a few times, giggling when she sees Eleanor and Jack still zooming around the house, just a blur of white and brown running from one side to the other - Eleanor sometimes slamming onto something along the way as she usually did. Rooster smiled down at his daughter, fixing some of the strands that covered her forehead, “You know, maybe it’s better if we give you a bath, huh? Get all cleaned up when mommy gets here?”

She ‘aa’ed again, pressing her open mouth on his chin to ‘kiss’ him again, which makes him laugh softly, “Okay,silly girl, you wanna wait for mommy?” another kiss on his cheek followed by Nicole looking towards the front door, “Okay, let’s stay in the living room then.”

Today was…pretty nice, he had to admit.

It’s been some time since he spent time with Mav and now he had Nicole to add to the mix! There was nothing better than spending time with family…and Mav was his family. As he sits down on the couch, he leans back against it to keep his eyes on Nicole as she babbles happily, tapping her tiny hands on the seat and staring at it after the dull thud reached her ears.

So she did it again, slapping her palms against the top of the couch and gurgling a laugh because she was making noise. Bradley just smiled, tilting his head to have a better look as she had her fun…she was so big already. She was still four months old but he remembered how Claudia said that Nicole was ‘stretched up’ already for her age, she said that some of the boys were the same and he also recalled his own baby pictures.

“You are going to be kinda tall,huh?” he smiles, watching the pigtails bounce as she continues her rhythm creation, “...just don’t grow up too fast, okay?”

He was excited to see what his daughter was going to look like when older, that was something every parent goes through…but he didn’t want to miss her younger years either. There was always something he wanted her to experience, he wanted her to enjoy her young life the best she could and maybe that was why they were going out tonight.

While feeding Nicole back at Mav’s he was hit with a thought that this was special…and unique, this was an experience that was going to mold Nicole when she’s older. She’d grow with a fuckton of uncles and aunts, cousins, she’d have people to run to when she needs…maybe it was his own trauma speaking, because while he had a wonderful childhood - within his mother’s grasp that is - he missed having more moments with people around them.

His mother’s siblings were…alright, he wasn’t close to them. From what he remembers, his mother rarely spoke about them either and the few times they showed up was for a brief time and never again. They did show up to her funeral but after that they disappeared like dust in the wind.

Maybe he should’ve reached out then, maybe he should’ve vocalized his feelings more…but he was too angry to.

He tried finding their addresses to invite them for the wedding, but there was no such luck. Hell he couldn’t even find them online. It wasn’t bad, the people he cared about were at the wedding but it was strange not having part of his family there, especially on his mother’s side. His dad was an only child and his paternal grandparents passed away already…he wondered if there was any way to contact them?

Maybe there was one, maybe he should look deeper. Maybe they were just hidden in plain sight…he better talk to Bea about it, because while she knew how much he’d want to, he didn't want to take an emotional jump in trying to talk to them.

Or maybe it was better to likely let them go. They weren’t there for him when he needed, “...I just don't want to get upset about it.” he answers his own upset thoughts, “Not now, not when I have everything I never thought I’d have.” he turns to face Nicole, who was now running her palms back and forth on the couch’s fabric, watching how the tiny furs turned lighter every time she ran her hands over them “You know, your mother is a great listener.”

Nicole looks up at him, still running her hands on the couch, “She doesn’t have to be, but she is. And I appreciate it, but I don’t want to weigh her too much you know?” Nicole just blinked at him, “...or you because you are a four months old baby and certain feelings may cause stress when you are older- right. I better not talk about this then.”

Not to Nicole at least.

“Hey Nikki, look,” changing the subject was a great idea. He holds up his index finger, his daughter’s eyes immediately following it as he moves down until the tip touches the fabric. And he made a circle, the movement causing the furs to move and create a lighter shape on the couch.

Nicole gasped, slapping her hand on top of it and sliding down, blinking when there was only one broad line of pressed down furs instead of her father’s drawing on top, “Aah!” a few more slaps but the circle is gone, her little brows furrowed and she looked up at Rooster.

He grabs her much smaller hand, it almost disappears under his own, and holds her index finger up. He’s more delicate when touching the fabric because Nicole’s skin wasn’t like his, but he added enough pressure to draw something on the couch.

Now, he wasn’t Beatrice. He was shit at art, always was, but he could draw simple shapes and maybe a smiley face if he was lucky. And he could draw hearts, which was what he did just now, “This is a heart Nikki.” his daughter just kept looking at the new shape, amazement all over her face “See?” and he rubs her finger over the line as well, “A heart.”

He didn’t know why but this was weirdly entertaining, it was a lot better than to think about the relatives he hadn’t seen in years and yet wondered how they were. As he let Nicole’s hand go, he was happy to see that she tried to mimic his own movements, albeit not exactly but very close.

“Very good,Birdie.” he coos, making Nicole smile and drop the other hand to mirror its twin the best way it could, “Hmhm, very nice. You are a natural.” more tapping on the fabric, more quick movements of her hand that just added more lines to the drawing.

Rooster, however, looked up when he heard the garage door opening. Jolene immediately rose to her paws and ‘boofed’,tail wagging with her pups right behind her. “Look,Nikki. Mama is home!” and Nicole immediately stopped drawing, turning her head to the door Beatrice walked through every time she got home from work with her little fists shaking with excitement.

He hears the lock turn and Beatrice’s face peeks from behind the door, “Hi guys! Hi! Oh, God,Ellie!” she tries to push Eleanor back a bit so she could walk inside, laughing while avoiding a mean fall because she tripped on the dogs. She leans down to greet them, kissing their snouts and heads. Rooster just smiles, hearing her baby talking and footsteps approaching the living room, Nicole letting out little noises of excitement, “I think I hear someone!”

“She’s very excited to see you!”

The faucet opens as Bea washes her hands, “Only her?”

“I mean…when aren’t I excited to see you?” he quips back, smirking when he was met with silence. He was sure her face was bright red, “We are just chilling on the couch.”

“I’m on my way.” the faucet shuts off, followed by the dogs nails clicking on the floorboards and walking out of the kitchen past the couch, the twins about to have the zoomies again as soon as Beatrice stepped in.

Nicole squealed happily, bouncing a bit on the couch and in her excitement, she lost her balance and almost toppled forward onto the futon only for Rooster to quickly hold her up, “Nikki! God, are you okay,Birdie?” but his daughter just giggled, lifting her head to keep her mother within her vision, “Dumb question,huh? Course you are.”

“Hi sweetie!” Beatrice’s high pitched tone greeted their ears, the brunette made grabby hands towards Nicole then picked her up from Rooster’s hands, the little girl was still giggling and gurgling happily, her arms hugging her mother’s neck the best she could “Oh my God, hi sweetie!” Nicole squeals again when Beatrice kisses her cheek, burying her nose in her daughter’s hair, “God,I love the way baby shampoo smells.”

“I know right?” Rooster spreads his legs a bit, to get comfortable, “It’s great.”

Nicole babbles a bit more, holding onto the necklace that Rooster gave Beatrice, lifting the pendant close to her eyes just to see it shine a bit more under the light, “Everything okay?” Bea asked and Rooster has to hold back the amused chuckle, because of course she’d know if something was off with him from the second she walked in. He leans further into the couch, then pats his thighs so Beatrice could sit down.

She does, all the while still keeping Nicole in her grasp, the baby kept on babbling but dropped the necklace to hold onto her father’s shirt instead, “Just thinking about some things.”

“Such as?”

Rooster purses his lips, rubbing his knuckle on the edge of Nicole’s chubby cheeks, “...my aunt. My uncle.” he mutters, “My mother’s siblings.”

“What about them?”

“...I don’t know, I had a moment a few minutes back…thinking about all the things they ended up no doing for me.” he mutters, “I guess I’m a bit conflicted, because I’d want Nikki to have a connection with my mom’s family, she already has one with my dad because of Mav…so,I don’t know.”

Beatrice hums, gently shaking Nicole’s hand as her daughter latches her fingers around her own, “It’s not wrong to want that.” she smiles, “Because I’m sure your mother would be happy to see it too…but–”

‘I couldn’t even find them for our wedding.”

“Well,yeah…”

He sighs, frowning a bit, “I don’t know why I’m thinking about this now. I have my family in the Navy, those jerks are my family even if I shook them off,you know?”

“I know,honey.” Bea’s smile softens, “We can look for them, if you want?”

Bradley rolls his lips into his mouth, huffing quietly through his nose as he sinks into the couch bringing Beatrice and Nicole with him, “I dunno.” he mutters, “It’s…complicated I guess. They could’ve found me if they wanted too.”

“Well,yes.”

“...I don’t know,I really need to think about it. I really need to think about it.”

Beatrice furrows her brows, then rubs her thumb between his, “Are you going to be okay?” he nods, feeling the repetitive touch against his forehead, “I know you, Roos.”

“I’ll be fine,gorgeous…I promise…now, let’s get ready for dinner yeah?”

Nicole had never seen so many colors in her life, she was just four months old after all. That’s why when they went to the taco truck she just stared up at the bright colors, head tilted and all as she looked at them swinging above her head. Beatrice smiled, leaning against her palm with her eyes focused on Nicole as she pointed upwards to where the lights were, “Yes,Nikki, those are lights, aren’t they pretty?” and they were pumpkin shaped, she had to get some of those for Halloween.

Nicole just waves the chicken, the anguished cries echoing through the night as she shakes it in her grasp, excited to her new surroundings. Beatrice looks up to check on Rooster, seeing he was leaning against the truck with his hip cocked to the side…which made his ass appear even better than normal. She didn’t want to stare, after all this was a public place, but she did sneak a peek.

One that her husband caught by looking over his shoulder at her, his eyebrow arching with amusement as he mouthed a ‘excuse me?’ towards her. Beatrice blushed but shrugged, throwing her hands up in the air as if to say she had no idea what was happening, only for Rooster to playfully roll his eyes and look back to the cook inside.

And soon enough he returned with their food, steaming hot and smelling delicious.

‘Alright.” he places the tacos down, “I got the usual for us and we also got extra salsa because of it.”

“We never deny free salsa, do we?”

“Nope, never.’

Beatrice laughed as she popped her soda open, looking down at Nicole who was staring at the new object with wide eyes, “This is a lot of information for her…I hope it’s not too much.”

“I don’t think so.” he says while pouring the soda inside the plastic cup, “She seems to be having a lot of fun.”

Nicole furrowed her brows because what was that thing they were drinking and could she have some? “No,Nikki, this is for mommy and daddy only.” Bea says when her daughter just reaches for the colorful can, whining a bit but settling down when her mother started caressing her hand.

“So, how was the training today? Any good?”

Beatrice smiled while chewing her taco, “Oh it was great Roos. Jessie is so good! She said she worked as a waitress on a restaurant a few years ago, when she was in high school. She’s really good. Oh, and…” she looks around surreptitiously, “I kinda prodded her about the guy.”

“The guy?”

“The guy.”

Who was worse: a group of middle aged women gossiping about their enemies…or Beatrice and Rooster, who were almost too excited when talking about Jessie and her bar crush, “Yes, “ Beatrice leans closer even if the music playing made it obvious no one would hear them, “So I asked her a little bit, about what he looked like and such, so he’s about Fanboy’s height.” her husband hums, very interested, “About…I don’t know, maybe twenty five, she said and he has short curly hair, tanned complexion.”

Rooster blinked, wracking his brain in hopes to figure out who it was, “...tanned complexion…”

“She said it was like a surfer tan.”

“Oh.Oh, oh I know him. Jared, yeah he’s one of the new recruits.”

“Did you talk to him?”

“Just in passing.” he shrugs, “Nothing serious, just a ‘good morning’ and nothing more…he also calls me sir which is really weird to hear.”

“Well you are a Lieutenant.”

“I mean,yeah.” he shrugs, “But still, there’s just…I don’t know, I never got used to it before, still not used to it now.” Beatrice furrows her brows at him, a bit confused “You know what I mean.”

“Roos, well,I mean, you told me you were an instructor and you are…of higher rank. Why would you feel weird about it? I mean, what if you get promoted? Do you want them to just go ‘hey bro it’s a nice morning at the base,huh’?” Bradley almost chokes on his drink at Beatrice’s attempt of a male voice, it sounded like she had a sore throat and was relying on medicine to get it clean. He snorts against his hand, trying his best to keep his laughter down.

Beatrice has to do the same, biting her lips to hold her laughter back and distracting herself with Nicole. After almost choking on air and on his spit at least twice, Rooster coughs up laughing quietly, “You- holy shit- that was funny.”

“It wasn’t that funny,was it?”

“Baby you have no idea how hilarious you can be.” and again her cheeks turned red, her lips curling onto a smile, “Also,the honorific thing…it’s okay,I guess it’s just,well…Jared is like twenty one I think…Bea he was born in,what, the 00’s? Or something? Baby I was in high school when he was born.”

Beatrice chuckled as she dabs a napkin over her lips, wiping some of the sauce, “So you are just…hating it because it makes you feel…old?” he frowns, “...you know you look nothing like your age, right.”

“Hrm.”

“And even if you did, you’d still be so handsome.” Rooster smirked, bringing the soda can to his lips with his eyes still on Beatrice, he could live with that. “Besides, you look better than guys half your age, so…”

“Ah, smooth talking like that.” he tuts, “What’s a guy to think?”

Beatrice smiles at him, then reaches to touch his hand on the table, picking it up to run her thumb on the inside of his fingers, “I mean it,though.” she whispers, still touching his palm, “You are incredibly handsome and you still make my knees weak when you smile at me.” he laughs almost bashfully, licking his lips. Bea brings his hand to her lips, kissing his knuckles before setting his hand back down, “I need to go to the bathroom, Roos. I’ll be right back.”

“Hey, leaving be high and dry here?” he complains, pouting his lips a bit, “You can’t do that.”

Beatrice smiles, walking around the table towards him where she cups his face in her hands and brings their lips together in a gentle - yet amazingly sensual - kiss, “I won’t be long.” she whispers against his lips, letting go of his face with a giggle, looking down at Nicole before she turns on her heel and leaves the table.

Rooster follows the sway of her hips with a smile, tilting his head just enough to see the shape of her ass move inside those tight black jeans she favored so much. Nicole’s gentle noises snapped him out of his reverie, his eyes immediately moving to his daughter who was already staring at him, “How’s the night going,Nikki? Hm? Is it fun?”

“Bahbaah, buuhh!” and a surprise raspberry that neither of them expected considering the way Nicole jumped after she did that.

“Yeah,I’m having fun too, cutie.”

“Aa!”

“Yes,I know, mommy will come back soon.”

“Sir?”

He stops chewing, hoping he’s imagining things and he hasn’t heard the voice of one of the new recruits behind him. He inhales, choosing to believe it was all in his mind, “Sir, is that you? It is him,guys.”

Guys? Oh no.

#bradley rooster bradshaw #rooster bradshaw #bradley bradshaw x oc #top gun maverick #bradley bradshaw x reader #bradley bradshaw x female reader #bradley bradshaw x named reader

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morningstargirl666 · 3 months

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When is The Big Bad Wolf Act 2 coming out?? Are you going to release monthly or all at once?? (I just finished the series and I’m in love 🩷🩷 no rush to write, just wondering if you have an idea because you have loyal readers waiting to love it!!! Have a great day <3)

Hello! Lovely to meet you and thank you so much for reading, that fic is a BEAST. So glad you enjoyed it!

So. When is the next update coming out? [nervous laughter]

Thing is, I told myself now I'm halfway i'll go back and edit, smooth things out before this fic literally becomes too long to tackle and that kinda...turned into a full rewrite?

I'm not changing the plot. That's exactly the same. But my ideas for the lore have changed since I first started writing and I wanted to add in a whole lot more of characterisation and set up for the chapters to come. I rewrote The Little Wolf back in December and recently did some tweaking to chapter 5 of it just this last week (I couldn't work out how to fix it when I first did the rewrite but I had an EPHIPHANY okay). So The Little Wolf is around 35k now, which is a huge difference to the 11k it was in November when I posted chapter 35 of tbbw. It's got tons of new scenes, a sharper forcus on the Mikaelson siblings not just Klaus and two whole new chapters. Of course, you've probably already read that as it is posted and you're a new reader, but that's what I was doing before Christmas, essentially.

As for The Big Bad Wolf itself...boy, where do I start. I'm approaching 85k on the rewrite...only on chapter 7. Which technically used to be chapter 6, because I got 5 chapters in before I added a new chapter. I guess that's a record for my restraint, at least.

So, in terms of what's happening: I'm re-writing tbbw. The plot isn't changing, but new scenes are being added, conversations are being tweaked, the lore is being more consistently fleshed out. Grammar for dialogue is being given a complete overhaul because that was a mess. But. Listen. It's so much better. It's so fucking better. I re-read the chapters I've done and in some places, the drafts aren't quite finished yet, like my writer brain is like fix this later BUT omg it's like, THE shit. It's so good. I've very excited.

I'm not sure how long it will take to finish. I might be able to stop halfway and post the rewritten/edited chapters I've got so far but I make no promises because I feel more inclined to keep going and get it all done in one. Some chapters won't need much work at all as they've been more heavily edited in the past (chapter 8 and 9 should be done pretty quickly, just giving them a facelift), while others I'm really ripping into. There's one chapter I know I'll either delete or delete scenes from to be replaced with something else (don't worry, the scenes will go into my deleted scenes fic on ao3, it's not gone forever).

So yeah. At the rate I'm going, I'm not gonna lie, it may take till the summer before I get all this editing done AND finish the new chapter 36 update - and you may get two new chapters at once, because it might be a long one and I might split it. But by the end of it, tbbw won't be 378k anymore. It'll probably be closer 450k. So you'll get a 50k+ update (along with some bonus stuff) to the whole fic and then a week later I'll post the new chapters (I used to post fornightly, a chapter every two weeks, and I'll go back to that when I'm done).

But yeah. I've written like, 110k since December, which for context is is closing in on the equivalent of the second book of TLOTR trilogy: The Return of the King was 137,115 words. That's an epic novel's worth. In three months.

An arguement could be made that I'm making this fic way too long but I don't really care? I love writing this. It makes my head spin and makes me tear my hair out but...it's so much fun too. And I get to rewrite canon, the way it should have been (we were so ROBBED 😭😭😭), so hey! It's free therapy too! I'm not going to stop as long as I'm loving every second.

Thanks for reading, and thank for listening to my insane plans! Hopefully, I'll see you there on ao3 when this fic is back for business!!

-And it WILL be back.

#anon ask #the big bad wolf #tbbw #morningstar writes #klaroline fanfiction #klaus x caroline #klaroline #ask and you shall receive #don't lose hope anon I'm getting there #slowly but surely I'm getting there

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watchingeverydcmovie · 5 months

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Adventures of Captain Marvel (1941)

I am watching every movie based on a DC publication in release order, for more information, see my pinned post.

First movie, Adventures of Captain Marvel from 1941.

Release Date: 3/28/1941 (This is the offical release date but also confusingly not the date the film was released, but instead the date that the sixth chapter was made available to film exchanges.) IMDB Rating: 7.2 Age Rating: Passed Runtime: 3 Hours, 36 Minutes/12 Chapters

GENERAL -

Adventures of Captain Marvel is considered the first comic book character adaptation ever. Captain Marvel (now known as Shazam) was not owned by DC at the time of this serials released.

In general, the plot is about Billy Batson going on an archological expodition with a team, meeting a wizard, gaining superpowers, and then his team steals this artifact and then they're hunted down by a masked villan called the Scorpian who they very quickly realize is a member of their own group.

MY REVIEW -

Is this movie good? Questionable.

It has not aged well, and I wasn't expecting it to have, but oh boy, is there a lot of rascim in this thing. Otherwise, it's engaging enough, if repetative, and it's very often uninentionally funny. The format that serials of the time used means that every chapter ends with a cliffhanger, which often leads to unnecessary drama being added that you can guess the resolution to before watching the next part. This also didn't need to be as long as it is, and there are often plot points that were definitely added just to add runtime.

That being said, I think Frank Coghlan, Jr. as Billy is an extremely likeable lead. He's generally sweet and charasmatic, and I like the movie most when Billy, the female lead Betty, and their friend Whitey are together.

I think the action scenes are well choreographed if a little silly, and all of the actors are pretty good overall.

Final Rating: 4.5/10

Would I watch this again? No. Maybe if it was shorter.

RANDOM THOUGHTS -

Billy Batson spends this entire movie getting knocked unconcious. In fact, all of the characters do. There is so much head trauma in this movie, it's unreasonable, but extremely unintentinally funny. I wish I had coutned how many scenes end with or contain a character just getting knocked on the head and going unconcious, it has to be upward of twenty. Also, when Billy wakes up, he's always gaged, even if other charcters who are with him aren't. This makes sense considered that he has to say the word "Shazam" in order to turn into Captain Marvel. However, it absolutely *doesn't* make sense when you add the knowlege that absolutely nobody knows he's Captain Marvel or that Captain Marvel needs to speak to use his superpowers.

There's one scene where Captain Marvel rescues Betty from a group that kidnapped her and then turns back to Billy before she wakes up. Before she got kidnapped, she was attempting to get to a certain location before the bad guys, and Billy assures that he'll get there faster on his plane, and then brushes her off when she attempts to go with him. I saw this and was thinking "Ah, yes, Billy Batson, who is Captain Marvel, who can fly, does not actually own a plane, and will instead turn into Captain Marvel and simply fly there with his superpowers." Imagine my surprise, when Billy then goes to airport and gets into an actual fucking airplane. Why did that do that?? What was the point??????? The man can FLY.

I think I am far to used to modern superhero comics and movies where, like, "should the hero kill the villain" is posed as a tough moral quandry and the answer is usually "absolutely not", because Captain Marvel kills SO MANY PEOPLE. And not even the main villain, someone else kills the main villain, Billy just throws a henchman off the roof of a parking garage at some point. He gets his powers and immidiately goes lethal.

I'm also extremely used to the Captain Marvel/Shazam narrative of "very young boy gets superpowers and looks like an adult", which means that this movie's "young adult man gets superpowers and turns into a just slightly older but different man" is very funny.

FUN FACTS -

To achieve the special effect of Captain Marvel's transformation, the production team apparently put a trough of flash powder in front of Frank Coghlan, Jr. who played Billy and ignited it, which apparently lead to Frank Coghlan, Jr. losing a few eyebrows if the wind was particularly unfavorable.

Frank Coghlan, Jr. also apparently did not know who Captain Marvel or Billy Batson were before getting the role.

They used a paper mache dummy to achieve the flying effects from far away. It is incredibly obvious when they do this and also very funny.

#dc comics #dcu #shazam #captain marvel #movie review #movies #billy batson #1940s movies #watching every DC movie even if it kills me #seriously this is the first one and I'm already losing my mind just a bit

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jtl-fics · 2 months

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One time @halfpintpeach got me obsessed with the song Pretty Boy so just saying you gotta listen to it too. Also pretty boy please 🙏- @neilimfinejosten

WIP Wednesday 3/20/24 (Closed) | Pretty Boy

The light turns green and he drops the phone into the cupholder again no bothering to respond. Neil seems quite content to just be in the same car as Andrew as he hasn't even asked where they're going. Perhaps his junkie is more like a dog than he is a rabbit.

"Do you want to go for a ride?" elicits just about the same amount of joy in Neil that he's seen dogs experience.

Neil needs to be walked about as much too.

Make Me Write - 4/10/24 WIP Wednesday

#Of course <3 #FIC: Pretty Boy #AFTG #AFTG Fic #Neil Josten #Andrew Minyard #Andreil #Pretty Boy - Chapter 4 - 36 #WIP Wednesday Ask Game #3-20-24 WIP Wednesday #11

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smolwritingchick · 6 months

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The Bangtan Gal Chapter 36- My Ideal Type

Chapter Summary: Throwback chapter for Episode 95 of After School Club while they promoted Danger, Jennie shows off her guitar skills, reveals fun facts such as her ideal type, first kiss and the high expectations & insecurities with her anticipated DJ skills.

Words: 4,000+

Author's Note: English is in Italics.

----

With Eric Nam and Jimin as the MCs for this episode of After School Club, they happily announce BTS to come on stage. The members of BTS were all in their Danger outfits, promoting their new album Dark & Wild.

"Aye! What up! What up!" Jen happily greeted with a mic in her hand. Suga started to lay on the ground, posing coolly while Jimin kneeled next to him. "And let the goofiness begin." She laughed at the members lying around the set. She decided to sit with Jimin on the yellow box afterwards, while the rest of the members lay around the other seats.

"Okay, so they're lying around." Eric watched them.

"Okay, I think BTS is the first group who has...okay and now they sat on the MC chairs." The female Jimin looks around.

"What is going on?" Eric laughed. After they finally regrouped, BTS stood with the MCs. "We finally have Bangtan here in the studio. Nice to see you guys."

"2! 3! Bangtan! Hello, we are Bangtan Boys!"

"Woo! Yes, we have them here and it's really, really great to see you guys again." Eric says as Rap Monster recalls being on the show around 8 times. He discussed that it's been around three months since their last appearance and he's the second person to be on ASC the most and hopes to make the show more enjoyable.

"We have the energetic, charismatic, talented BTS here, in the studio. Please tweet us your requests for BTS with the hashtag, ASC, pretty please!" Eric announced.

"And BTS will be reading your names and doing your requests so tweet us now." Jimin added.

After a commercial break, BTS was seated with the MCs. Jen sat behind V, next to Jin. "Please introduce yourselves." Jimin gestured.

The camera panned to Taehyung. "YO! V!" He screamed and threw up a peace sign. "HI!" He grinned, waving the peace sign. Jennie let out a soft laugh at Jimin and Eric Nam's reaction because of how shocked they were.

"Ah, that scared me." Eric laughed, still startled.

"RAP MONSTER!" Rapmon shouted.

"Okay." The female Jimin chuckled.

"Chim! Chim! Hello!" Jimin introduced himself.

"SUGA!" He shouted.

"I'm your hope! I'm engine! J-Hope!"

After Jungkook and Jin introduced themselves in Korean, the camera panned to Jennie. "Aye~! It's your girl Jennie!" She waved and blew a kiss to the camera with both hands.

"They're all hyper today." Jimin applauded. "And I'm kinda getting small, right now."

"It's okay. Hey, you know you have a song with his name in it." Eric pointed out, glancing at Suga.

"Give me some Suga~" The MCs started singing and dancing in their seats.

"Suga! Suga!" The rest of the members started to sing and dance in their seats.

"Anyways, we have people that have been waiting for hours." Eric pointed at the screens to a variety of BTS fans with posters, and other merch.

Then he goes on to say that there are two Park Jimins. The one in BTS and the MC that sat next to him.

"I'm younger than him though, so I'm the second Park Jimin." The female Jimin informed.

"Shall we switch seats?" Jimin suggested as everyone let out a laugh.

"As we mentioned in our opening, BTS has been on the show the most often. Most frequent out of all our guests, so I'm sure they feel a little more comfortable and its more family like. How do you guys feel?" Eric asked.

"Of course, it's like family like, I see you like more often than my mom." Rapmon answered with a smile. Afterward, the members explained what they've been doing abroad from going to Germany, to America for a reality show.

"Did you learn any new English?" Eric questioned as Jen laughed at the random English words the members would shout out.

"What's up?"

"What's poppin'?"

"Turn up!"

"Church!"

"All right well we have a lot of fans that's excited to see you guys here on today's show, so we're gonna go straight into our pretty please corner." Eric announced as he and Jimin headed to the screen to check out the tweets.

The first tweet was from DyoQueennie, tweeting, 'Hi BTS I'm Queennie from BTS. I would like V to sing a song for me. I love you ❤.'

"Queennie, hello!" V waved and started to sing briefly, winking and calling her baby.

The next tweet was from piquantstyles. 'Can Jungkook sing Haruman to me and say "I love you, Esmeralda.'

After Jungkook sang a snippet of Just One Day, the members and MCs praised him for his angelic, smooth voice.

The next tweet was, 'Jennie, who is the idol you want to meet the most?'

"AILEE!" She shouted loud and proud, throwing her arms up in the air.

"Fangirl!" Suga teased

"I love her. She's so dynamic. If I could meet her, collab with her, or even be on the same stage as her, I would die. Like if I meet her, I will probably shout, 'This is not a drill! I am with Ailee!' Man, my life would be complete."

'ERIC. DANCE BATTLE WITH JIN' Was the next tweet read by the MCs.

"WOOOOOOOWWWWW!" The members shout, turning to Jin. Some of the members were shouting, "Jin! Jin!" while gesturing for him to dance.

"Oh, I have GOT to see this." Jen got comfortable in her seat.

Eric and Jin dance to Girl's Day's Darling as the MC Jimin and Jennie cringed. "Oh, I'm so embarrassed." The MC, Jimin looked on. Afterward, they have J-Hope and Jimin dance to Sistar's Touch My Body. "Wow!"

"Let Jennie dance! She's our guy group dance expert." Jin called her out.

"Yeah, let's let Jennie dance." Eric beckoned for her to come over.

"Jennie! Jennie, Jennie, Jennie, Jennie~!" The rest of the BTS members sing and chant while clapping their hands, encouraging her.

"Hahah, all right, all right." She got up from her seat and walked to the front of the studio. "Any requests?"

"Let's just put on a random song," Eric replied as Got7's Girls Girls Girls blared out. "Are you familiar with this?"

"I got you." She gave him a thumbs up, getting in position as the instrumental continued to play. But as soon as JB started to sing, she rocked back and forth, powerfully, smoothly dancing the choreography.

After she finished, she was applauded and praised for her dance skills.

"My question is, where does she have the time to learn these dances!?" J-Hope exclaimed.

"That's my secret." She grinned.

While watching her dance, fans tweet:

'My weave has been snatched!!'

'Stop-sleeping-on-Jennie!'

'DAMN! Go, girl!'

'Did she just smirk at the camera!? Rude!! Stop killing me!'

'Ahhhhh I love her!!'

Back to the questions, Jen was asked another question with the tweet saying, 'Jennie! You are the only BTS member who has yet to dye their hair! When are you going to dye it?'

"Hahah, I love this question. Everyone asks me this. My hair will be dyed when you least expect it. Patience is a virtue. I already know the color, just not sure what the style is. But it won't be anytime soon, unfortunately. But it will be worth the wait." She reassured the fans.

As they answer more tweets, Jen is asked another question with the tweet saying, 'Jennie! When are you going to show us your DJ skills?'

"Ah...I get so shy about it. I dunno...Suga has been asking me almost every day to show him me DJing in front of him instead of a little snippet of what I've played around with. He told me that he might want me to help make music for BTS or maybe use it for a concert, but we'll see. I just get so insecure about my DJ skills. Everyone keeps asking and then the high expectations. I'll admit I'm a little scared to show it off to the public. I'm not gonna say I'm not good enough but I'll just say that I don't feel like my skills are that level for me to showcase my potential for it. So, I'm still practicing alone, trying to keep away from Suga because he always tries to catch me practicing. One day I'll show my skills. We'll have to wait maybe a few years before I'm ready. Just like with the rapping which he's currently teaching me."

After a few more tweets, they all gather back in their seats for the pretty please requests as they reveal the winner's tweet for a special prize.

"Jennie, Rapmon do one of you want to read it?" Eric gestured as the two members glanced and smiled.

"I can do it," Jen spoke up as Rapmon nodded in response. "Okay, this tweet is from Sara Sarah. Say hi to Canadian A.R.M.Ys and please come here soon. Love you!" She read. "Aw, so sweet. What's up Canadian ARMYs!?" She waved.

"What's up!" Rapmon spoke up. "I like Toronto, I like Vancouver. I like everyone in Canada. I like the nature, I like the mountains, so I love you."

"He's just rapping." Eric exclaimed while the MC Jimin tried to mimic Rapmon's wording. "But his is so much cooler."

"O-kay." Jimin looked back down at her cards.

"I totally will make sure to try to make a trip up to Canada. I have yet to see the sights and I absolutely want to enjoy all the beautiful attractions there. So, shout out to all the Canadian ARMYs. You'll always have a special place in my heart." Jen eagerly said, making a heart with her hands.

"So, we gotta talk a little bit, it's been a busy few months for Bangtan. They've been overseas for a long time and they've been preparing for their new album that finally dropped. How's that been? How's that been going for you guys? You guys have been super busy. You guys doing okay?" Eric questioned the members.

"Ah...not okay." Rapmon let out a low chuckle. "It was busy but I think being busy is the best thing because I think it's better than not being busy. Having no schedule, ASC doesn't call us." He playfully rambled on.

"Oh really?" Jimin asked while Eric let out a laugh

"We rest, we've been getting fat." Rapmon went on.

"So, I've heard that your practice videos are a really big hit right now." Jimin went on and started doing exaggerated movements with Eric.

Once she stopped, Eric kept going and she tried to stop by placing a hand on his arm. His actions caused the members to laugh once again.

"So, this is BTS' first full length, so we want to ask what it means to BTS," Eric stated.

"It's our first official album and compared to our other singles and mini albums that was simply a warm up. This 14-track album is amazing." Suga explained.

"What's your personal favorite song?" Jimin asked.

As Suga said Let Me Know is his favorite since he produced it and it's different from other BTS songs because of the emotion, he decided to show everyone the high note.

"Everyone you may want to plug your ears." Eric joked.

"GIRL LET ME KNOOOOOOWWWWWW~" Suga suddenly sang and fell off his seat.

Eyebrows raised and jaw dropped, Jen stared at Suga in disbelief. "Oh hell no." She exclaimed while Eric approached Suga to ask if he was okay, while he continued to exaggerate the high note.

Afterward, Jimin stated that Danger is his favorite song. Rapmon said 24/7 Heaven is his favorite song, demonstrating singing the song.

"Okay, I'm a rapper, but I just did some melodies on that song." He explained, preparing to sing. "All night girl. I think about you all night girl. naeirimyeon geudael boge dwae. And I don't know what to say."

"GIRL LET ME KNNNNOOOOWWWWWW~" Suga overdramatically sang in a high pitched voice, again.

"Oh, mah gosh! Suga!" Jen laughed with the rest of the members.

V, of course, said that Cypher:Killer was his favorite as he eagerly performed it for the show.

"I ne beonjjae aelbeom jeonggyuui gwanjeom!"

"Cypher!" All the members shout, dancing around in their seats, getting hyped.

"I teuraegi naomyeon Haterdeul wanjeon!"

"Amjeon!"

As V went on, Jen hyped him up even more by shouting, "AYE! AYE! OKAY! OKAY! UH! UH! KILL EM! KILL EM!"

After settling down, it was finally Jen's turn to reveal her favorite song. "Okay, my favorite is War of Hormone because this song is very different for me. It challenged me because it made me portray a sexy persona for this song. I was so reluctant to even do it, honestly because I get embarrassed with sexy personas. I'm not used to it, it's not my favorite concept but I'll do it if you want me to. It made me try a new persona and I think it went well with my voice."

Jin's favorite song is please turn off your phone, while Jungkook's song is Rain and J-Hope's is Hip Hop Lover. Next up was a pop quiz, the question was how many times did the scene of Jimin hitting the sandbag appear in the music video? In the meantime, they reveal the fans for the Hangout session.

They reveal the first person, Anja from Serbia. She explained she went to their showcase and was on the plane for around 24 hours to Berlin, enthused that BTS is amazing, while the members and MCs were in awe.

"Dedication. Fans are amazing." Jen smiled.

Anja showed some of her drawings, mostly of Rap Monster while Jin asked where were the rest of the members. Her request was to see V dance the choreography for Danger. Then Eric requested for all the members to dance.

Next was Kasey from the U.K. She said that she went with her best friend to Berlin to see BTS and it was amazing. She thanked BTS because seeing them so passionate and hard working and talented inspired her to work for her dreams. After Rapmon translated, the members were touched by her kind words and her request was for Jimin and J-Hope to have a dance battle.

Next was a girl from America, whose name was Taylor. "Jennie! Jennie, you are my favorite member, and you inspire me to achieve my dreams, no matter where I go. I love you so much! You slay my life!"

"Aye! Thanks, girl! I love you, too!" Jen grinned happily. "It's fans like you who keep me going. Thank you for always being so supportive."

"Of course! So, my question for you is, what are your struggles while performing here and what do you want to improve?"

"Okay, I cannot for the life of me dance cutely. I can't do cute dances. I'm more into the badass concepts and powerful dances. I'll try my best to work on that, though. I want my high notes to improve. I feel as though my voice isn't strong yet, so I'm also working on that with vocal lessons. But I also want to try to sing different genres of songs and see what my strengths and weaknesses are. So, to help with that, I want to start working on covers to post on the BTS SoundCloud near the end of 2014 when I have some free time from the promotion, so keep a lookout, for that."

"And what is your request?" Eric asked Taylor.

"So, since you said you want to start working on covers, can you sing a little bit of one of the songs you want to cover?" She requested with an eager smile.

"Yeah, of course!" Jen beamed and began to sing a snippet of Amerie's Why Don't We Fall in Love. "So many things I'm goin' through. So much that I wanna do. It startin' to become so clear to me. Tomorrow ain't really guaranteed. So many days I've thought of you. It's about time you knew the truth. Got to act quickly, you and I. We fall in love, so many reasons why."

"Oh, my gosh!! I cannot wait until the full version! That was so good! I love your voice!" Taylor started fangirling on camera, earning a shy giggle from Jennie. She thought she was cute for freaking out like that, as she thanked her, while the MCs and members of BTS praised her for the song.

"I could hear the love and passion in her voice. Is there someone special in your life?" Jimin asked her. "Is Jennie in love?"

"Hahah, not yet." Jen waved away their funny accusations.

"How long have you been practicing?"

"I haven't practiced yet but since this song is a throwback, I already know the lyrics. But once the promotions die down and I'm not working on anything, I'll be practicing and preparing to record the cover."

After revealing the winner of the pop quiz, they go back to hanging out with the fans. A fan from China appeared as she was greeted by the members and MCs.

"Jennie, I have seen these questions all over the internet for some time now and wanted to ask them, so I hope you won't get too shy about them. Us ARMYs would love to know what was your first kiss like."

"Oooohhhhhh." The MCs turned to Jen while she buried her face in her hands, laughing. As soon as Rapmon translated the questions, the rest of the members yelled uncontrollably and eagerly awaited her answer.

"Ah, my first kiss...it's a very interesting story might I add. Shocking and off guard but somewhat cute. Well, it all started with a box of pocky. Or pepero as it's called in Korea." She began to explain. She tried not to laugh at the focused stares the members were giving her.

"You kissed with Pocky?" The MC, Jimin asked. "Aw, that's cute. Were you playing the pocky game?"

"Yeah. Remember when we filmed Rookie King?" Jen turned to the guys as they laughed and remembered the wild memories. "I hope he doesn't mind me sharing this out to the public, I don't think he knows this either but Jungkook was actually my first kiss since you guys wanted to smash our heads together during the pocky game." She shook her head.

Jungkook felt his stomach drop when he heard Jen say his name and saw her point at him. Then when she gestured about smashing heads together and said Rookie King before that, he had figured out what she said in English, immediately looking down at his lap, shyly. His face began to warm up as he tried to fight the growing smile on his face.

"No way! So that's why you had your head down for so long." Rapmon remembered clearly, ignoring the members but Jungkook questioned what Jen had said.

"Wow!" Eric Nam said, pleasantly surprised as he had a smile on his face, thinking it was cute.

"Aw! That's adorable!" The female Jimin smiled sweetly as Rapmon translated the bombshell to the members.

"Whaaaaaaaaaaa~!" The members but Jungkook start to yell and freak out in their seats. Jen tried not to laugh as J-Hope started screaming, running around the studio with Jimin and Tae. Suga had fallen out of his chair yet again while Rapmon shook his head at the chaos.

"Jungkookie?! OUR JUNGKOOKIE!?" The male Jimin pointed Jungkook out, who still shyly had his head down. "What is going on!?"

"What!? WHAT!?" Jin shouted in mother mode.

"Oh dear, I didn't think it would cause so much commotion." Jen rubbed the back of her neck. She avoided turning around to see Jungkook's reaction.

She hoped he wasn't mad at her.

"Jungkook, what is your reaction to that?" Eric questioned, turning his attention to the Maknae.

Feeling bold from an unknown source of bravery, Jungkook looked up, speaking in English, "Not sorry.", causing the guys of BTS to laugh.

Widening her eyes, Jen turned around, meeting his stare, taken aback at his reaction. He smiled at her as she turned back around, feeling her face heat up.

So, he wasn't sorry for giving her, her first kiss? He wasn't mad?

"Do you regret the kiss? How was it?" The female Jimin asked, wanting all the details. Everyone has their full attention on Jennie.

"Regrets? Honestly, I don't have any but if I'm nitpicking...I just regret not being a good kisser for him, to make the kiss more enjoyable, even though it was unintentional. So, I'm sorry that my kiss was terrible and sloppy, haha. But all jokes aside, no, I don't regret it at all."

"She's very considerate." Eric Nam pointed out.

As Jennie turned around to look at Jungkook, she decided to translate her statement for him instead of Rapmon, as she smiled at him, apologetically.

'But you have nothing to apologize for.' Jungkook thought to himself.

Next was Ardina from Indonesia, using a hangout free pass. She explained that watching Jimin dance made her go to dance school, and she danced for them, wearing the Bulls Jersey that Jimin wore.

"Yassssss! Go girl!" Jen looked on. She had some moves, it was amazing, and the rest of the members were blown away by her performance.

"Adina, I think you're better than me." Rapmon smiled.

Next was Olga from Poland, who asked Suga where she got his inspiration for his songs. The MCs translated that everyday life inspires him. She says she's supported them since debut and loves their meaningful songs. Her request was to ask Rapmon what his favorite method of learning is because he's one of the smartest students in Korea.

"Actually, it was computers. Playing games and yeah." He answered, shooting up a thumbs up.

Fanny from Belgium was next to talk to the group. She announced that she was going to show a drum cover of Danger. "Hey! Jen and Fanny should collab. Jen plays the guitar and fanny plays the drums!" V pointed out.

"That'll be nice!" Jen agreed. As they watched her play a small portion of Danger for the group, the members were in awe at her performance. "That was sick!"

After saying goodbye to Fanny, Rapmon pointed out, "We actually caught Jennie playing a guitar version of Danger."

"Putting me on blast!" She teased.

"Oh, are you planning on making an acoustic version of Danger?" Eric asked

"You never know." Jen shrugged.

"Can we see a demonstration?" Jimin asked as Jen was handed an acoustic guitar.

"I wonder if this was planned. You magically just had a guitar waiting for me, huh?" She teased the MCs who laughed in response. Making sure it was tuned up, she prepared to play. "Chorus. Five, six, seven, eight!"

A loud, strong strumming sound was heard, sounding just like Danger as the members swayed and bobbed their heads along to the music.

jangnanhae neo? dodaeche naega mweoya?

manmanhae Uh? nal gatgo noneun geoya?

neo jigeum wiheomhae wae nareul shiheomhae?

wae nareul shiheomhae? hetgallige haji ma

jangnanhae neo? dodaeche naega mweoya?

manmanhae Uh? nal gatgo noneun geoya?

neo jigeum wiheomhae wae nareul shiheomhae?

wae nareul shiheomhae? hetgallige haji ma

neo ttaeme neomu apa

hetgallige haji ma

neo naege neomu nappa

hetgallige haji ma

"Woo! Great job!" Eric applauded with Jimin. "Is that a full song? The acoustic version? It sounds so good."

"Nah, I was just playing around," Jen answered, placing the guitar down.

"Playing around? That needs to be recorded!" Jimin demanded.

"That's what I'm saying." Rapmon chuckled. "We'll think of something."

"I wouldn't mind playing the guitar more for our songs. I'm down for acoustic versions or even electric. We'll see in the future." Jen reassured.

------

And the last person was a guy from the Philippines, who happily greeted BTS. "I've been waiting so patiently because I really wanted to speak with Jennie."

"Aw, thank you!" She smiled and placed a hand over her heart.

"I wanted to tell you how much I admire you in BTS. And I also wanted to say that you are my ideal type."

As soon as she heard him say ideal type, she pointed to herself, stunned at his statement. "M-me? Really?"

"She's really surprised, haha." Eric looked on.

"I love your personality, you're so down to earth. And you have a pretty smile. You and Jin are my favorite members. Now, there are some male ARMYs around and I wanted to ask this question for them and for myself. Jennie, what is your ideal type?"

As soon as the MCs translated, the members of BTS turned to Jen, awaiting her answer.

"First, I'm shocked that I am your ideal type, like wow. You're the first that I know of to call me that and I am touched, so thank you. That just made me really happy. Like honestly, I'm not used to that and I'd feel left out since I'm never described as someone's ideal type here. I recall myself as a singing and dancing potato." She joked.

"A very beautiful potato!" The guy countered with a genuine smile.

"Hahaha, he's charming." Eric laughed.

"Thank you." She smiled. "Now, I don't have a specific person as an ideal type, like with Rapmon, who likes girls with red converses, though I personally prefer Nikes. And with Jungkook head over heels for IU."

"But to answer your question, my ideal type..." She paused for a moment. "Well, some things I would like is someone to be patient with me. Sometimes I'm not going to get things right away, but I would love for whoever I date in the future to just help me and be there for me and work with me through any struggles. Uh...someone to make me laugh, I love hugs so I would love to have someone to always be open to hug me and even cuddle. Am I getting too cheesy?" She looked around and got laughs in response from the MCs while Rapmon translated what she said.

"I do enjoy skinship, so hugs, or piggyback rides, anything. I tend to focus more on the personality, not the looks. I want someone that makes me happy and respects me. I'm outgoing so, if I date a shy person, I will do everything I can to bring them out of their shell. Everything." She shot the guy a thumbs up. She continued, "And another thing, to the fans and anyone in general, please don't change who you are to fit someone's ideal type. We're all different, we have different personalities from others. And I know what you're thinking. How can anyone want someone so skinny and bony like me? Or someone so chubby like me? Flat chest, big chest, skinny legs, thick legs, or I have acne on my face, scars or stretch marks, or whatever. Love comes in all shapes and sizes. There is someone out there for you."

"Sadly, there are people who don't understand that. And I think media can also be an issue because of that. Oh, I gotta look a certain way for this person and that person to notice me," she added. "Like no, don't do that. Keep doing you and be yourself. That's attractive to me. Let me see who you really are, behind any makeup and behind the scenes. And don't get upset when you're not like someone's ideal type. I'm guilty of this, I've had a crush on some K-pop idols before when I was younger. But remember that there's someone out there for everyone and someone will love you for who you are, no matter what you look like or what you've gone through. Just gotta wait. Love is patient. Love is unpredictable."

"I don't see myself dating anyone here since I don't really fit anyone's ideal type around here and besides, I always imagined myself dating someone in America, anyway. But you never know, someone might come in and change that. I think it's a beautiful thing, how love can be so unpredictable in the craziest ways. And whoever my special someone is, I hope that they are eating well, are happy, and are getting enough sleep. And I hope they're thinking the same about me. And...I just rambled. Sorry, heheh." She looked down, feeling her face heat up.

After Rapmon translated, Jungkook gazed at her. 'Love is patient and unpredictable.' He repeated in his head.

"That was inspiring." The female Jimin applauded with Eric. "I'm getting emotional."

"Did I answer your question?" Jen smiled at the guy on the screen.

"Very! Thank you for giving me hope! That was a passionate response." He smiled.

On the Twitter live feed, fans tweet,

'Yo...we ALL have a chance to date Jennie!!'

'Does she like girls!? Because I have a MAJOR crush on her, she's so damn beautiful!'

'Well she did say they instead of specifying a guy.'

'We don't deserve this girl!'

'Protect her!'

'I knew it! First kiss with Jungkook!? AHHHH! DATE!'

'We ALL have a chance with Jennie. She's so cool!'

'She just made me feel so much better about myself.'

'Do you think she'll date one of the members??'

'Well she did say she doesn't see herself dating in Korea, but in America.'

'Yeah but remember, she said love is unpredictable!'

'I bet her special someone is closer than she thinks.'

'I still ship her with V!'

'Nah, JenKook!'

'Um, no, JenMin!'

Before they could go to the next person, the MCs announced that they were out of time. They finally take their ending shot. "All right, thanks for joining us, we'll see you next time on ASC!" Eric closed the show.

#bts 8th member #bangtan boys #jungkook x oc #bts #the bangtan gal #bts additional member #bts fanfic #bts fluff #jungkook fluff #bts fanfiction #bts fic

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dollystuartwrites · 1 year

Text

Stray Gods - Chapter 35

Pairing: Gods!OT8 x !F!Reader

Genre: romance, friends to lovers, polyamory, mystery, supernatural, angst, fluff, smut

Wordcount: 3393

Chapters: [1] - [2] - [3] - [4] - [5] - [6] - [7] - [8] - [9] - [10] [11] - [12] - [13] - [14] - [15] - [16] - [17] - [18] - [19] - [20] [21] - [22] - [23] - [24] - [25] - [26] - [27] - [28] - [29] - [30] [31] - [32] - [33] - [34] - [35] - [36] - [37] - [38] - [39] - [?] MASTERLIST

Summary: With no memory of who you were, you wake up in the woods, only to be found by eight unusually handsome men. With no information of the past, the guys decide to take you in and take care of you for the time being. But that time becomes years, and as time passes, you start to notice that there is something different about them... and something different about you...

Warnings: angst, praise, thigh riding, kissing, fingering, overstimulation, lovebites, bad/miscommunication, low self-esteem, swearing, name-calling, dry humping, college, degradation, gods, special powers, vaginal sex, oral sex (f&m), mentions of contraception (condoms&thepill), injuries, mentions of death (but no character deaths), virgin!reader, teasing, orgasms, poly relationship, semi-public sex, daddy kink, strength kink, grinding,

I've probably forgotten some, so let me know if I did and I will add more as the story progresses.

Taglist: @eastleighsblog @tangerminie @speedybagelmongerpasta @swittyregan @septicrebel @jiimout @zandra-42 @julciaqwerty @vampcharxter Want to be added or did I miss you? Just send me an ASK or DM

Lots of love and many thanks to Leena for beta’ing this story. Couldn’t have done it without you <3

Han and Minho gave you a lift back home that day. You wanted to talk to Minho, and ask him if there was something bothering him, but the mood didn’t feel quite right. Han was happily chatting away about something or other and you and Minho simply went along with it.

You had hoped to talk to him when you’d arrive home, but as soon as you entered the house the commotion of daily life with the boys instantly swept the thought from your mind.

‘Han, you’ve got post!’ Jeongin called out as the three of you kicked off your shoes and hung your coats.

‘Post? For me?’ Han spoke, sounding pleasantly surprised. He walked into the kitchen where the Jeongin’s voice was coming from. You followed him curiously, walking in on Jeongin holding a giant bouquet of bright-coloured flowers, which was so large that it obstructed most of his features.

‘Wow,’ the word slipped out of your mouth at the sight of the bright pink, orange and yellow petals.

‘You can say that again,’ Felix said with a chuckle, walking past you carrying something that closely resembled a large bucket. He put it in the middle of the dining table and turned to Han. ‘I couldn’t find a vase large enough to fit the bouquet so I guess this’ll have to do for now.’

‘Holy hell, who’d send you this big a bouquet?’ Minho asked surprised as he too stepped into the kitchen. Your attention shifted from the boys to him, remembering in that slight moment the scene from earlier that day.

Han simply chuckled, breaking you from your thoughts again and walked over to Jeongin.

‘You can hand them to me now, I’ll put them in,’ Han offered.

‘Thank god, I swear, these are heavier than they look,’ Jeongin puffed as he handed Han the bouquet.

‘Am home,’ Hyunjin’s voice shouted from the hallway. All of you made a noise to greet him.

‘Wow, who’s got a new suitor?’ Hyunjin huffed when he saw Han struggle slightly to get all the flowers into the bucket as he walked into the kitchen.

‘It’s not from a suitor,’ Han said as he finally managed to put everything back in. ‘Can’t you see what these are?’

You took a few steps closer to study the plants but other than them being pretty and colourful flowers, you had no idea. Apparently, neither did the others as they all looked at Han with raised brows. Han sighed.

‘They’re Zinnia’s,’ he spoke as if it made absolute sense and explained everything. Han clicked his tongue as everyone still stared at him. ‘You guys never listen to me whenever I tell you stuff about plants and flowers do you?’ He grumbled.

‘Not really,’ Jeongin said with a shrug.

‘Nope,’ Hyunjin said, shaking his head.

‘Not at all,’ Minho remarked. Felix simply smiled guiltily.

‘Ugh, alright Zinnia’s are a very resilient and adaptable plant. There are about fourteen different types and-’ Han started to explain as he fondly looked at the petals of the flowers.

‘Yes- but what do they mean?’ Jeongin interrupted impatiently. Han gave him a destructive look but then spoke.

‘Thoughts of an absent friend,’ He said simply. ‘I got them from Hoseok,’ he added, pulling a card from between the flowers that none of you had noticed before and showing it to you.

You all nodded understandingly now which only made Han roll his eyes before he started to play with the positioning of the flowers, admiring them like they were made of glass and carefully rearranging them.

‘Oh, right, there’s something for you too Hyunjin,’ Felix suddenly remembered. He walked over to the kitchen counter and picked up a heavy and canvas textured envelope, their address embossed in gold foil and handed it to Hyunjin.

Hyunjin looked at it frowning and unpacked it. There was a matching themed letter inside and he read through it quickly. You couldn’t help but watch Hyunjin’s expressions to try to get a feeling of what he was reading.

‘Guys?’ Changbin’s voice sounded from the hallway.

‘Kitchen!’ You, Minho, Jeongin, Han and Felix called out simultaneously. Changbin came walking into the kitchen, raising his eyebrows at seeing you all gathered there.

‘Wow, is someone getting married?’ He asked when he saw the gigantic bouquet of flowers.

‘Han got them from Hoseok,’ you explained to him quickly.

‘Ah that happy fellow,’ Changbin said with an understanding nod, sitting down on one of the dining table chairs.

‘Oh. My. God,’ Hyunjin said suddenly.

‘What?’ Felix asked quickly, rushing over to stand next to Hyunjin and read the letter with him.

‘Namjoon invited us all to the opening of the Still Life exhibition!’ Hyunjin exclaimed excitedly. He turned and grabbed Felix’s cheeks and squished them before kissing him on his forehead.

‘Erm, how nice of him?’ Felix said, looking and sounding perplexed while Hyunjin was basically dancing through the kitchen.

‘He said he would, but honestly, I didn’t think- Anyway, do you know how hard it is to get tickets?’ Hyunjin almost sang, seemingly overcome with joy.

‘No,’ Jeongin said simply, sounding quite uninterested.

‘It’s impossible! You can only go there if you’re invited! I can’t believe we’ve been invited. This event was predicted to be the biggest and most important art event of the year! Art connoisseurs from all over the country will be there, important businessmen too, not to mention all the possible clients,’ Hyunjin said with a dreamy glow in his eyes. You couldn’t help but grin at the sight of him. You hadn’t seen Hyunjin this happy with something for a while, and seeing him making all kinds of aegyo faces, there was no way your heart wouldn’t melt for him. And the way his lips pouted as he danced around made you want to just kiss those plump pillows of his.

‘When is it?’ you asked him, walking over to stand next to him and Felix, reading over his shoulder at the invitation

‘It’ll be on the 25th, so soon! Oh my, I have so many things to prepare for it. I’ll have to get a new suit too. You guys should all probably buy new suits as well since-’ Hyunjin said, directing himself to the other guys.

‘Erm, I’ll be too busy with the exams then,’ Han said quickly, scurrying off and out of the kitchen.

‘Me too,’ Minho said, quickly following his mate.

‘Oh, erm, sorry Hyunjin, I have a vets-conference then,’ Felix said, looking slightly uncomfortable and quickly walking away too.

‘I got a fundraiser I’m hosting for the fire brigade,’ Changbin said dismissively, waving his hand before getting up and walking towards the living room.

Hyunjin’s face started to falter and he looked hopefully at Jeongin, who suddenly realised he was the last of the guys left, and quickly mumbled something about having to knit a new bed sheet for himself before running off too.

Hyunjin’s face looked like one of a beaten puppy and your heart broke for him.

‘I’ll definitely go with you,’ you said quickly with an encouraging smile, looking up at him with reassurance.

‘Really?’ He asked, his face instantly lighting up again.

‘Of course! Sounds like fun,’ you said genuinely.

‘So who sent those Zinnia's?’ Seugnmin asked during dinner. You looked up at him, surprised he’d know what kind of flowers they were, and for a moment you could’ve sworn you saw his eyes flicker at you, but it was gone too fast to be sure.

‘Hoseok sent them to me!’ Han said enthusiastically. He was about to say more but Seungmin interrupted him.

‘How nice,’ he said, but his voice was slightly dull and uninterested.

‘Oh, Chan,’ Hyunjin interrupted the conversation, looking up with a slightly hopeful expression on his face. ‘That reminds me, Namjoon sent us an invitation to come to the opening of the Still Life exhibition at his museum. It’s on the 25th and-,’

‘He’ll be assisting me with the fundraiser,’ Changbin spoke, putting his arm around Chan’s neck and pulling him into a weird sort of half hug half headlock.

‘Oh,’ Hyunjin said, his face dropping once more. ‘I thought you just said that as an excuse,’ he mumbled under his breath.

‘I’m sorry Jinnie,’ Chan said, genuine regret sounding in his smothered voice as Changbin was still holding him in a headlock he was trying to free himself from.

‘And what’s your excuse?’ Hyunjin sighed, looking over at Seungmin dully.

‘I don’t need an excuse,’ Seungmin said, taking a sip of his glass of water. For a moment you could see a slight sparkle in Hyunjin’s eyes, but then Seungmin spoke again. ‘I’m simply not interested. So, no thanks,’

Hyunjin was already opening his mouth, his face looking annoyed and hurt, but without really thinking about it, you quickly put your hand on his thigh. Hyunjin closed his mouth and looked over at you. You met his eyes with a soft smile, carefully squeezing his thigh lightly. He sighed softly and nodded almost imperceptibly, shutting his mouth again and putting his and on yours.

‘I swear Lino, if you ever decide to quit teaching, you should really start your own restaurant. This beef Wellington is excellent,’ Jeongin spoke, not at all seeming to notice what was going on around him.

‘What do you think y/n?’ Lino asked, suddenly directing himself towards you. Everyone instantly looked up at you at the mention of your name and the sudden shift in attention caught you by surprise, quickly letting go of Hyunjin’s hand under the table and withdrawing it.

‘Would you like to taste more of my meat??’ He said with a playful grin. The double innuendo made your ears grow pink instantly.

‘Adam?’ You whispered at the blonde scarfaced boy sitting across from you.

‘Hm?’ He hummed, not looking up from the book he was reading.

You looked around you, trying to talk as quietly as possible since you were seated in the library.

‘Do you know anything about art?’ You continued. Adam simply hummed again vaguely, clearly not at all listening to you. You kicked him under the table and he quickly jolted upright.

‘What?’ He hissed, looking startled and confused.

‘Art,’ you repeated. ‘Do you know anything about art?’

‘Erm, a little. But most of what I know is on European art. Why?’ He spoke back in the same hushed voice.

‘I erm,’ you began, hesitating for a second, and trying to think of how you wanted to explain the situation to him.

‘Wait, don’t tell me,’ Adam began, a playful grin on his face, ‘you’re going on a date again, aren’t you?’

‘Shut up,’ you hissed, but you couldn’t help but pout.

‘You know’ he began, still with that playful grin on his face, ‘I have to admit, as your friend, I’m still kinda curious as to which one of your housemates you like. I mean, I guess they’re all equally good-looking, but regarding their characters, I can’t help but be curious as to-‘Before he could finish his sentence you kicked him again underneath the table. Adam hissed angrily as he rubbed his painful shins and you snarled at him.

‘Fine! Fine,’ he added in a softer tone, as some students looked over annoyed by the noise he was making. ‘I won’t ask anymore,’

‘But what do you know about art?’ You repeated. Adam gave you a sour look, still rubbing his shin annoyed but when you pouted again and batted your eyelashes at him, he gave in.

‘As I said, not much.’ He whispered with a shrug. ‘I’m only familiar with the old European painters. But art, it’s such a broad concept. It’s not just paintings.’

‘Right,’ you said, thinking for a moment. ‘Then what do you know about still life art?’ You decided to ask. Adam frowned, thinking for a second. He had stopped rubbing his shin, although his leg was still drawn up.

‘They’re mostly paintings of fruit bowls and vases, right?’ He said unsure, then shrugged, ‘Sorry I don’t know much about it,’ he shook his head, ‘art never really had my interest,’

You hummed and tried to return your interest to your book, but it was of no use. As the art exhibition was creeping nearer and nearer, you were steadily becoming more nervous about it. The truth was, you didn’t know much about art at all. You had always loved to listen to Hyunjin telling you about it, and although you did not always quite get what he was trying to explain to you, you did understand why it was so important to a lot of people. There had been some pieces in the past that he had shown you that you had liked very much or even made you feel things. You also knew a little about the different styles, painting techniques and forms of art, but you were quite sure that in the face of a true art exhibition, you’d be completely clueless. Since you were the only one going with Hyunjin, it was very important to you that he would enjoy his time there, have someone by his side who’d understand what he was saying or why he liked something. You wanted to make him happy. Besides, he had also said that there’d be a lot of important art connoisseurs and business people there, and you did not want to make yourself or Hyunjin look like a fool.

‘Speaking of interest,’ Adam said suddenly, pulling you out of your thoughts and making you look up again. Adam wasn't looking at you but at a point slightly higher, somewhere behind you. ‘Your housemate seems to be very interested in that one particular page. He’s been staring at it for ages.’

You turned around in your seat and looked. It took you a second before you spotted him, but Minho was standing half-hidden behind one of the bookshelves, staring blankly at the opened book in his hand, his eyes unmoving.

You had never before seen Minho in the library before. Just like with the cafeteria, Han and Minho used to avoid these public places as much as they could, so as to not draw too much attention to themselves. Sure enough, similar to when he had entered the cafeteria, a small group of girls were standing looking at him. But since this was the library, this time they did not approach him and their giggles and whispers were stifled behind their hands.

‘Lino,’ his name left your mouth in a whisper. As if he was able to hear it, Minho’s eyes left the page and met yours. For a moment his piercing dark eyes locked onto yours and once again, you had this strange feeling that something was going on, that there was something bothering him, or something he wanted to say to you. But before you could even take another breath his eyes tore away from yours and he closed the book shut, putting it back on the shelf. Without saying another word, or even indicating that he had seen you, he left the library. You got up from your seat, half wanting to go after him.

‘He’s an unusual one,’ Adam's voice said unsure. ‘Did you two get into a fight or something?’

Adam’s question pulled you back and you sat down again, still staring at the door where he disappeared through. You tried to think back, see if you could remember if you had fought with him, but nothing came up. Nor could you remember saying something that might’ve hurt him. What on earth was going on?

‘No,’ you said, but still feeling unsure.

However unusual Minho had been acting previously, he didn’t show it at home. His behaviour at home was not at all different or unusual, and that look he had given you before seemed almost like you had imagined it. You were still hesitant to talk to him about it, especially since he acted so normal at home. Had you simply imagined it? Maybe it had been a coincidence that you had run into him twice before at unusual spots, or maybe you had imagined whatever that look had been.

He seemed so calm and cheerful at home, and you were afraid that talking to him about what you had thought you had seen made you look like you were imagining things.

‘So I talked to Namjoon and he asked me if I wanted to submit a piece for the exhibit!’ Hyunjin said eagerly as the two of you cleaned up the table after dinner.

‘Hm,’ you said, still too much in your own head to really hear what he had said. Suddenly you felt a hand on your shoulder and you have a slight start.

‘Y/n, are you alright?’ Hyunjin asked softly. You looked up at him, the pink locks of his hair falling in front of his face as he looked down at you with a slight crease between his brows.

‘What? Oh sorry, yes I’m fine, just school stuff,’ you lied, waving your hand and pushing the thought of Minho out of your head. ‘Wait, what did Namjoon say?’ You asked.

‘He wanted me to submit a piece for the exhibit,’ Hyunjin said with a happy grin.

‘Oh my, Jinnie, that’s wonderful!’ you said excitedly, genuinely happy for him.

‘Thank you Y/n,’ He said softly, ‘It’s going to be difficult though, finding the right piece. I don’t even know if I have something that he’ll like. Maybe I shouldn’t use my own paintings, but just find something fitting instead, seeing that the deadline is so soon already,’ he pondered aloud.

A weird itch inside you, clawed at you, leaving you slightly unsettled. It wasn’t hard to know what it was though, you knew exactly what your problem was. Deciding to be upfront about it you took a deep breath and spoke.

‘Jinnie?’ you began, piling all the dirty cutlery you had collected onto one of the plates as Hyunjin collected the empty glasses.

‘Yes honey?’ he said casually, but the sweet nickname never failed to give you butterflies.

‘I… I don’t know much about art,’ you began hesitantly. Hyunjin stopped collecting the glasses and looked at you. ‘It’s just- it’s such an important event, and there’ll probably be many people there, and…’ you stammered.

Hyunjin put the glasses down and cupped your face with his hands, his face soft as he looked at you.

‘You don’t have to go if you don’t want to, my love. If you’re just going because the others-’ he began but you interrupted him quickly.

‘I want to go!’ you said quickly, you didn’t want him to get the wrong idea. ‘I do, really,’ you repeated, trying to make him understand. ‘It’s just… I don’t want to look dumb,’ you whispered the feeling that gnawed at you. For a moment Hyunjin looked at you in surprise as he raised an eyebrow. Then he chuckled softly and kissed your forehead.

‘Don’t you worry about that y/n, half of the people that go there don’t know anything about art either,’ he tried to assure you, but it didn’t work.

‘But you know so much, and I’ll just be by your side, having nothing to say and looking dumb,’ you pouted, looking at the ground.

‘There’s nothing wrong with being a sexy piece of arm candy either, you know,’ Hyunjin whispered in your ear. Although his words made your spine tingle, you still weren’t convinced, but this time Hyunjin knew. ‘But if you insist, how about I give you an art crash course before? Would that help you?’ he suggested sweetly, letting go of your face and putting his hands on your shoulders.

Your ears instantly perked up at the idea. You weren’t sure how much Hyunjin would be able to teach you in such little time, but anything would be better than nothing.

‘You sure you have the time for that?’ you asked, thinking about how he had just been saying time would be tight in finding the right piece for the exhibit. Hyunjin shook his head and chuckled, drawing you into his arms and hugging you tightly.

‘Baby for you, I will make time,’ he whispered in your ear. You quickly buried your reddening face into his chest, hoping he wouldn’t see.

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iwritebutshouldi · 2 years

Text

The Boy Savior - Part 39

Summary: When you lose your family in a shimmer factory accident you lose everything with them. All you want is getting your revenge, but then you meet him… The Boy Savior.

Happening during the last two acts of Arcane at first (probably advancing further as I have plans with this story)

Ekko x Reader

Content Warning: -

Link to Prologue, Link to Chapter 1, Link to Chapter 2, Link to Chapter 3, Link to Chapter 4, Link to Chapter 5, Link to Chapter 6, Link to Chapter 7, Link to Chapter 8, Link to Chapter 9, Link to Chapter 10, Link to Chapter 11, Link to Chapter 12, Link to Chapter 13, Link to Chapter 14, Link to Chapter 15, Link to Chapter 16, Link to Chapter 17, Link to Chapter 18, Link to Chapter 19, Link to Chapter 20, Link to Chapter 21, Link to Chapter 22, Link to Chapter 23, Link to Chapter 24, Link to Chapter 25, Link to Chapter 26, Link to Chapter 27, Link to Chapter 28, Link to Chapter 29, Link to Chapter 30, Link to Chapter 31, Link to Chapter 32, Link to Chapter 33, Link to Chapter 34, Link to Chapter 35, Link to Chapter 36, Link to Chapter 37, Link to Chapter 38

Part 39

// A/N.: First of all, I'm sorry I was absent. I had a combination of a broken rib and pneumonia which made me take a break from writing (and everything) for a while and it was much harder for me to get back to writing than I imagined.

I'm sorry it took so long to give birth to this chapter! I've rewritten it at least a thousand times without a joke. I know where I want to end up with this I just literally CAN'T write it the way I would be happy with it so I ended up writing this lighter chapter instead because these two deserve a break t-t I listened to Crooked Still's Ecstasy while writing it, but you can imagine/listen whatever slow songs you like and think would fit in here if you'd like to! :) Thank you so so much if you're still sticking with me after I took such a long break and I so so so hope that I can finally break my writer's block! t-t ♥ Love you all! //

"You still have them closed, right?" Ekko asked. Your face was buried into the jacket on his back and your eyes shut tightly, as your arms wrapped around his chest. He maneuvered the hoverboard under the two of you, but you didn't know about your destination. He said he wanted to show you something he seemed kind of proud about - you just had no idea why he had to show it to you at night...

Neo had been at the firelight base for days now and there hadn't been a single night you didn't have to visit him. It seemed like that, without your voice calmly telling him about your new life and days, he couldn't fall asleep. You just didn't feel right about leaving him alone right at night...

"Yeah..." you answered, burying yourself even more into the young firelight's presence. You absorbed his calmness, trying to get rid of your anxious thoughts and feelings. You had something pretty rare - some alone time with Ekko, you definitely didn't want your mood to ruin it.

"Where are we going anyway?" You asked; you had been flying for long, long minutes now and the moment the two of you stepped onto Ekko's hoverboard, you had to close your eyes.

"I told you, it's a surprise." That was all he said. He kept repeating that all day, and as the hours passed by, you had become more and more impatient. Just as he finished his sentence though, you felt the hoverboard finally stop under you.

"We're here, but you can't open them yet. Come, I'll help you..." he said and you felt the weight of his leave the hoverboard. His hand gently reached for yours to help you down after him, pulling you close to him, embracing you into a quick hug, before letting you go.

"Can I open my eyes now?" You asked under your furrowed brows. You didn't understand what was all this fuss about. You heard a clicking noise and after that, lights shone through your eyelids.

"Uh-huh." you heard and finally opened up your eyelids. You had to blink a few times, after keeping them closed for so long, but when you were finally able to look around properly you felt your breath stuck inside your chest. You were at the very same rooftop Ekko first talked to you about his dream - uniting Zaun and Piltover, but this time it wasn't empty. Strings of lights decorated the fence at the edges, all connecting above your heads like a tent. In one corner, you saw an old, but warm blanket neatly folded in half and by it, there was a little table on which there was a gadget you'd never seen before.

"You'd been skipping sleep a lot lately, and were stressful, you know." Ekko said, watching your reaction by your side. "I figured, you could use some free time, where you can relax and just let yourself go." you looked at him, and tried to find your words, but your silence seemed to make him a bit worried. "Besides, I know it's a bit late now, but I guessed, you know, that it was time for a first date." he chuckled nervously.

Why was it so hard for you now to find the words? All you could do was just blink as your eyes panned the view around you.

"I know you're worried about your brother, but you don't have to be! Scar and Raven are on duty and I trust them with my life... I'm sure they can handle him..." he went on, itching the back of his neck and you finally reacted. Your hands reached for his cheeks and you pulled him into a soft, but affectionate kiss, your chest warmer than the sun itself when he kissed you back. You could feel the nervous tension leaving his body, as his arms gently wrapped around your waist.

"It is never too late for a first date." you chuckled a little, as you looked into the warm, brown eyes of Ekko. The lights of the strings above you twinkled in them and you felt kind of home under their watch.

"That's great to hear." he said, placing a soft kiss on your forehead, before letting you go, to step by the little table with the strange gadget on the top. "I remember you said you've never really had the chance to dance with anyone." he went on, placing a black, round, plate-looking thing onto it, fiddled a few more seconds and when the plate started rotating, you heard a barely audible noise at first. Then, just when you wanted to ask what was that, music started playing.

You did say something once about never really having anyone to dance with, - or any music to dance to when you were a kid. Your family, having to work in the shimmer factories, did not really have much money to spend on things that weren't crucial. Having to hide, of course, you'd never visit the local pubs either...

"Wait, is this a record player?" You asked stepping closer to the little table to have a better look. "I've never seen one before, but my dad always talked about the one his family had as a kid!" You said excitedly. "He loved music, you know." you explained smiling to yourself sadly. "They had to sell it when my parents married - they needed every cent they could get to start a new life..." Ekko watched you silently as you leaned closer to inspect the device from every angle.

"Benzo had this in his shop - he said it was perfect to woo the ladies." the boy laughed slightly and you found him the sweetest as he also shared new bits of his childhood memories. They weren't sad or angering this time, just nice, old moments from a life that probably felt like someone else's for him by now... "I've always thought it was kind of useless until, you know, now..." he shrugged a little as he stepped closer to you.

The song that started playing was soft but had a perfect rhythm to slow dance to. You had to admit you felt a little nervous when Ekko reached his hands for yours.

"Really?" you chuckled nervously as your eyes jumped onto his brown ones from his fingers, kind of looking for reassurance. He just raised his eyebrows and you grimaced as you gave yourself in, accepting the hand. He pulled you closer immediately - so close that your legs almost intertwined each other, and placed your free hand onto his shoulder, still holding your other one in his left one.

His right arm wrapped around your waist, pulling you as close to him as possible, and his body gently started rocking you as you leaned back to look at him. You tried to follow his flow, a bit awkwardly at first. "Am I doing this right?" you asked, frowning in your embarrassment.

"...Yeah." he smiled down at you from his own height gently. "So far..." he shrugged and you furrowed your brows in your slight confusion. "You know, I can't say anything for sure until we try the spin."

"The what...?" You wanted to ask, but a moment later, Ekko stepped away from you and pulled your right hand above your head. With a careful move of his arm, he turned you around yourself and before you could have even comprehended what just happened, the young firelight had already pulled you back into a hug.

"Yeah, not bad..." he said and after blinking a few times in your surprise, you chuckled a little.

You felt perfect. The lights around you turned the little, old, rusty rooftop into something magical - a secret hideout of only the two of yours. With the two cities distant in the background and the purple night sky laying above you like a cover, you felt like you were in a hidden corner of the whole world.

His scent fiddled you and you felt your heartbeat fasten as you looked into his face.

"Benzo was right about wooing the ladies." You smiled at him through your eyelashes and Ekko chuckled at your words.

"What, you're telling me that you're only falling for me now, and because of this record player?" He asked with pretended indignation and you shrugged before answering.

"You know, up until this point I wasn't really sure of my feelings..." you said, pulling another laugh out of the boy.

"You're lying." He said simply, his face putting up a more serious expression. Under the way he looked at you, you felt your cheeks go slightly pink. "You love me from day one."

You didn't answer, just stood up to your toes to press a soft kiss onto his lips. Both your arms traveled up to his neck, hugging him tightly and you felt his hands do the same on your waist. You wished you could freeze time. To be able to choose one moment to live in forever...

When the two of you parted, you leaned your head back onto his shoulder and let him lead you slowly as the song was coming to its end. His warmth felt pleasant in the light, cold, evening breeze that stroked your skin from time to time.

Your eyes drifted to the two cities in the background. They somehow seemed more... detached than the last time, you observed them from up here. Maybe it was just you, but the differences were so much more distinguishable now. Piltover was brighter than ever and Zaun, well, it was Zaun. Dirty, smokey, loud... And still, your heart pulled you closer to the latter one this time.

"Do you still dream of uniting the two cities?" you asked quietly. You heard the small exhale through the boy's nose - almost like a half, frustrated chuckle, before answering.

"I don't know," he said after a while. He had been thinking for such a long time, you were starting to believe he let the topic be, but then he spoke again. "The things that have been happening lately..." you knew he was talking about Ajuna and the way the Enforcers punished the whole of Zaun for Jinx's actions... "They just think they are better and... that they can do anything to us, just because they are wealthier and cleaner. Here people at least have hearts..." he took a long pause again and you patiently waited for him to finish his train of thoughts.

"I think, I just want Zaun to become better on its own." He finished and you leaned back to look at him, right into his eyes.

"Whatever you think is right, I'm with you." You said seriously and he smiled down at you.

"I know." He answered, leaning his chin against the top of your head.

"I love you, Ekko..." you said honestly, burying your forehead into the crook of his neck and closing your eyes. You felt his hug tighten around you, swallowing your presence to hide you from the world and all the problems, even if it only lasted for a very short while...

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bratshaws · 1 year

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through the hourglass 69. brb x oc

a/n: BOY OH BOY. this chapter went everywhere??? also next chapter is s m u t

pairing: plus size!oc x rooster

warnings: fluff, a smidge of suggestive

goodness gracious (pls read this one to know more what this fic is about!!)

chapter

1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10/11/12/13/14/15/16/17/18/19/20/21/22/23/24/

25/26/27/28/29/30/31/32/33/34/35/36/37/38/39/40/41/42/43/44

45/46/47/48/49/50/51/52/53/54/55/56/57/58/59/60/61/62/63/64

/65/66/67/68

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“What is the one thing you’d share with Nikki?”

Rooster looks up from under the towel, stopping the constant drying of his hair to look at Beatrice, her legs crossed as she sat on the edge of the bed, one hand holding her head up with her arm tucked under its twin, “Huh?”

She smiles almost apologetically, looking down at her legs, “When I was younger my mom would take me to parks so we could try to mimic the bird calling. We’d stay there for hours, it was so much fun and…I thought about doing this with Nikki when she’s old enough.” she laughs nervously, “I mean…unless she’s not into it.”

Bradley returns to drying his hair, dropping the towel to his shoulders and holding the ends with his hands, “You never told me that, that’s pretty cute.” Beatrice just smiles sweetly at him with her cheeks dusted pink, “But I think…if I had to choose, maybe trying to catch snowflakes with our tongues. My mom used to do that with me a lot…and of course we’d have to travel to Virginia to do it.”

“I think that’s doable.”

Bradley laughs softly, disappearing from her view into the bathroom to put on his underwear, “I think so too, but what brought this on?” he doesn’t see her shrug so he peeks his head on the doorframe, “Bea?”

“...My aunt Martha came over a few months back and she said that Nicole will always have something of us in her.”

“Well,she is our daughter.”

“No,no,she meant like…” she moves her hands trying to find words, “There will be things she’ll do that will connect to us. She said that Nicole is also really smart for her age…and i don’t know how she does that.”

“Well, your aunt did say when you’d fall pregnant.” he adds, putting on his pants, “And she was right.”

“...she was.”

Rooster walks out shirtless, with the white tee in his arms, sliding them into the sleeves and bringing the fabric to his shoulders, “I think Nikki will have a great time with us, we’ll be the cool parents,” he slides his head through the collar of his shirt, then pulls it down his body, pulling on the front so he’d be comfortable, “You know? Her dad is an amazing pilot, her mother is an artist,a model and a gorgeous bartender.” Beatrice laughs, rolling her eyes gently as he gets closer to her.

Beatrice is looking down at her hands when he sits down, chewing her lower lip, “I…I don’t really want her to grow too fast.” she confesses, “My parents said we all grew too quickly. That in a blink of an eye everyone was married, graduated or moved out…and I don’t know…maybe I’m being dumb.”

Considering that was one of his fears too, she wasn’t dumb. He looked back at her, seeing how her brows furrowed and her lower lip disappeared between her teeth, “Gorgeous there’s nothing dumb about it, it’s a normal fear.”

“I wish it wasn’t.”

Honestly he preferred to talk about that than Eric, their daughter always made him calm down after all, “Me too, but we are only humans. And new parents,” Beatrice still looked worried so he adjusted himself on the bed to face her fully, “C’mere.”

“Huh?”

He pats his thighs, “C’mere, my lap feels really cold right now.”

Beatrice looks from his lap to his face, slowly smiling and eventually climbing on his lap, her legs dangling on the side of his body as his lips touched her temple with his arms wrapping around her middle, “...I know it’s because we are new parents,” she comments with her eyes staring at the veins on his arm, “And I know it’s because…of my own traumas and whatever, but I don’t…I don’t want to overprotect Nicole too much.” he hums so she continues, “I want her…to climb trees,I want her to play,I want her to enter the ocean without someone picking her up every five seconds while she’s having fun.”

Rooster had his lips on her temple when he spoke again, “She will be fine. I think we both can manage being protective around her.” he says, “We already are even though we never had to endure anything bad.”

‘True.”

“So, believe me I think we’ll do a good job.” he says, kissing her scalp and leaning back to cup her chin with his thumb and forefinger, turning her to face him, “We’ll be fine, we’ll do good…we have each other.”

Beatrice smiles again, leaning into his touch when he cupped her cheek, “Thank you,Roos…maybe,maybe soon we can take her to the beach? At least for the first time?”

“I don’t see why not, it’s good for her to see the ocean for the first time too.” he says, rubbing the outside of her thigh in a back and forth motion, lips still pressed to her head, “Are you feeling any better?” she nods, “Any doubts that you have are gone?” she nods again, chuckling a bit, “Or else I’d kiss them out of you.”

“Oh then I have some still in there.”

They both laughed, quietly, amorously almost, with Rooster keeping his eyes around Beatrice, shielding her from the outside as much as he could, “You know what,” she ‘hm’ed at him, “You are very cheeky,Mrs.Bradshaw.”

“I learned from the best,” she looks up at him, “Mr.Bradshaw.”

Rooster’s eyes softened and his thumb brushed her cheek, “You know I never tire of you saying that.” he begins, “And I never tire of looking at you when you say it.”

“Yeah?”

“Oh,yeah.” he chuckles, adjusting her on his lap before resting his chin on the crook of her neck, inhaling the lavender scent, feeling the warmth of her body. He always missed her when he was gone, but this time he just couldn’t manage to let her go, even if he tried his arms refused to open, “Makes your eyes shine.”

And Beatrice laughs again, music to his ears like always, her hair tickling his arms as she moved, “Well,I have something wonderful to look at.” and his own cheeks flushed a dark red, making his golden skin almost appear bronze on the face. Beatrice chews her lower lip, wraps her arms around his neck with her fingers interlaced on his nape and tilts her head, “I made you blush again.”

“Are you going to make this a habit?”

“Probably.”

He smirks, dropping his lips to her cheekbone, pressing a trail of kisses to her jawline and to her lips, “Mm,as long as I can do the same.” he says, breathing in her scent one more time, “Make it even.”

“You always make me blush,Roos.”

“True,I do.” he whispers, “And I love it.”

Beatrice,who now felt much better than before, just smiled before their lips met in a slow kiss. One that eventually got a lot more intense, one of his hands sliding under the skirt of her dress to where he could touch the elastic of her underwear, turning them around so she’s on the bed and he’s on top of her.

She didn’t stop him, why would she, just brought him closer, gasping and moaning into his mouth when one of his hands came up to gently lower the strap of her dress, pulling the fabric down to show the upper side of her chest, “I’ve always wanted to fuck you when you are wearing this dress.” he growls, rubbing the gentle bump of her hipbone and the soft flesh that covered it, “It really is that nice.”

Beatrice laughs breathlessly into his mouth, tilting her hips upwards to meet his crotch - and the obvious bulge that was making itself known - “How long have you thought about it? You never told me.”

“Ever since I first saw you wearing it.” he murmured, “You looked cute and sexy and all I wanted was to fuck you.”

Beatrice whimpers, feeling his middle and ring finger brush the covered outer side of her sex slowly, with just enough pressure to touch her clit underneath, “You-You thought about that often…”

“Oh you have no idea,gorgeous.” he grinds his hips against her thigh while his hand is still busy between her legs. Beatrice’s soft moans and cries were music to his ears just like her laughter was. He desperately wanted her and it was more than missing her, it was about…having her close, being close, touching her, making sure she’s okay.

The ‘E’ talk made him angry and uneasy, he couldn’t help but suddenly feel overprotective over Beatrice when there’s a chance her ex is still squirming about like the little worm he was. Beatrice sighs out his name when his lips latch on the bare skin of her neck, biting the soft flesh and licking the freshly made abrasions, “Open them.” he whispers against her skin, referring to her legs and she does as he asks, spreading them even wider so he has more ground to cover, “Thank you,pretty girl.”

“Y-You are welcome.” she whispers, still feeling his fingers press up against her, his thumb hooking on the elastic band of her underwear and gently pulling down enough for his nail to brush over her pubic mound, scraping the skin there ever so gently, “A-Ah, Roos…”

“Sssh, it’s okay,” he mutters, “I’m going to take good care of you,gorgeous.”

Beatrice whimpered, “I-I,I h-had something p-planned.” the underwear gets lower and his hand slides inside, no barrier was preventing him from touching her right now, “B-But–”

“Oh?” she can’t speak because his middle finger is prodding her entrance, not yet pushing inside, “Do tell.”

“I-I…I can’t because–”

And suddenly the doorbell rings.

Rooster groans, dropping his head on her chest and breathing in and out heavily, feeling her move and looking up to see her looking back at him, “I’ll check.” he mutters, pulling his hand out and licking the tip of his middle finger, brows low and pants tight,erection throbbing, “You stay there, pretty and flushed.”

Beatrice could only nod with her chest heaving, hair a mess as she sits up to watch him walk out of the room. Eleanor was already at the door, sniffing the mail slot with her tail straight as a rod.

Maybe he should’ve checked on his phone first.

Rooster just mentally prepared himself, rubbing his face with both hands, “Ellie,down girl.” he calls when the white dog stood on her hind legs to look to the outside, she wasn’t growling which was a shocker for him, “Ellie,” he tries again when she steps between him and the door, he has to pick her up like she was a sack of potatoes under his arm, opening the door with a displeased frown.

Once he does he’s met with a young man, who looks up at him in surprise, probably because of the absolute murder in his gaze and a huge dog in his arm, “Yes, can I help you?” he didn’t want to sound snappy but there was something else he’d want to be doing.

“Oh,um,sorry. I-I’m one of Marcus’ assistants,” not the same one from before he noted, this one had long rainbow colored hair and was wearing bright pink contacts, “H-He asked me to bring this,” he lifts a box, “To Mrs.Beatrice.”

“Ah.” Rooster bounces Ellie under his hold when she started to slip, still holding the large dog like a potato sack, grabbing the small box from the boy’s hand, turning it back and forth in his hold, “Okay, thank you-”

“Oh, h-he also asked me to uh,” he pats his denim jacket, pulling out a piece of paper, “To give this to her as well, as a thanks.” Rooster just stared at him and the boy placed the piece of paper on top of the box, “A-Anyway, I’ll…uh,go now. Have a nice day!”

Rooster watches the boy scamper away and disappear from his view, before he sighed and stepped back inside, kicking the door closed after he placed Eleanor down. The dog returned to her alert position against the door as Rooster made his way back upstairs, looking at both deliveries with his brow up.

Once he’s back, Beatrice is sitting on the edge, still flushed but alert when he gets inside, “What is it?”

“Something from Marcus,” he waves the box and the folded paper, “He wanted to thank you.”

“Oh, he didn’t have to.” she says, reaching for the box when he holds it closer to her arms, picking it up gingerly and then setting it aside, only looking down at the folded paper with a frown, “This one too?” her husband nods, falling on the bed behind her with a gentle groan, his body begging for them to continue the activities from before but he chose to give her some time to check the gifts Marcus gave her.

He hears her ripping the paper that covered the box, then the ‘sshhff’ as she pulls the box from inside, followed by a click of a latch. Rooster peeks one eye open to check on her, but she has her back turned so he couldn’t see much, having to hold himself on his elbows to have a peek of what was the mysterious gift, “Oh this is so sweet.” she says and he sees her hand moving, turning whatever it was back and forth, “He really didn’t have to.’

“What is it?”

Beatrice looks over her shoulder at him and turns around to sit on her knees. “It’s a small muse figurine.” she says, holding the greek esque statue that stood in the middle of her palm, “Since he was working on Greek aesthetics and such, he said he was going to give me something that worked for both myself and the collection. And this is,” she lifts the figurine to check the bottom, “Erato, the muse of love poetry and lyric poetry…and erotic poetry as well.”

That got his attention.

“Go on.”

She chuckles, “Don’t be a pervert like that.”

“You are the one who said she’s the muse of Erotic poetry.”

Beatrice just smiles more, turning the small figurine back and forth in her hand before putting it away, “I also said she’s the muse of love,’ she slowly climbs on his lap, “And lyric poetry.” she whispers, lowering her mouth to his, “You are the one who chose to latch on that specific one for some weird reason.”

Rooster was so glad to have that pressure on top of his crotch he let out a soft groan, placing his hands on her thighs and moving her hips slowly to get some friction between them, “Not my fault you bring that out of me.” he whispers, “Now can we go back to what we were doing?”

“Hmmm…” she kisses the tip of his nose, “Don’t you want to know what I’m planning?”

“If it involves you and I getting naked and fucking until our legs give out, I’m all ears.”

Beatrice bites her lower lip, she loved when he talked like that. “It’s part of the plan.”

Rooster’s brown eyes darted to meet hers, his chest expanding as he inhaled “Part of the plan,huh?” he just squeezed her thighs, the plump flesh molding against his fingertips and he couldn’t really think about nothing else but having those thighs wrapped around his head as she screamed his name, “How long will this plan take?”

Beatrice thought about it, biting her lower lip, “If you give me…fifteen minutes I can do it.” she says against his mouth, kissing his lips sweetly and repeatedly, “And if you can wait for me…here on the bed, all flushed up and pretty.”

The usage of his own words really did make him flush up a little bit more than before, the hold on her thighs got firmer and his lips dragged down to her jawline, right where her jaw ended and her ear began, “Hurry up then.” he says, hand swooping down to slap her ass with a resonant sound only for a squeak from his wife to follow, “And I’ll be here waiting for you.”

Beatrice giggles, cupping his face to kiss him one more time before she hurried off his lap, the movement making him hold back a groan and look up at the ceiling when he felt like he was about to burst. Instead he interlaced his hands behind his head and followed Beatrice with his eyes as she walked away from him and into the bathroom.

However,a gentle cry coming from Nicole’s room stopped her, “Oh, is it time already?”

Rooster huffed out a defeated yet amused sigh, “I think so.” another cry, this one louder, “Do you want me to check on her?”

“No,I can do it.” she looks back at him apologetically, “I’m sorry Roos-”

“There’s time later.” he murmurs, but her eyes move from his face to the bulge tenting his pants, “I’ll be fine. Go.”

In reality he wouldn’t be fine, not unless he took care of it right now. It was starting to get uncomfortable.

“I’ll make it up to you.” Bea says, “I promise.”

He was a bit surprised when his in-laws showed up late that night to pick Nicole up. At first he was…unsure if he wanted his daughter to go when he just got back, but when Beatrice appeared behind him at the door, telling her parents “Thank you for picking Nicole up.”

“No problem,Tesoro.” her father says, “You two have a nice dinner out.”

Dinner?

Rooster hid his reaction nicely, only waving at Nicole and his in-laws when they were already at the car, before he closed the door and looked over at Beatrice. His wife looked impish, with that cheeky smile on her face and her hands behind her back, “...dinner,huh?” she nods, still smiling, “Is this part of the plan?”

“Hmmmm…it is now.” she says, “I thought about it earlier today after…the several interruptions we had,” she slowly wraps her arms around his neck, pursing her lips as she spoke, “And after you had to deal with it yourself…and I thought,well…why not treat you?”

“Treat me,huh?” another nod, her lower lip sliding into her mouth, “...I do like treats.”

“And with Halloween right around the corner I thought you deserved an early one.”

Bradley tried to hold her when she stepped away from him but the fabric of her dress slipped from his fingers like water, her hands sliding down his chest with her fingernails gently scraping the fabric over his pecs, “Where exactly are we going then?”

“Somewhere that’s just perfect right now.” she says, backing away from him, “Not too cold and not too warm since we’re nearing fall.”

He furrows his brows with a confused smile, chuckling at the sudden riddle with his hands propped on his hips, “Uh-huh.” she just looked so proud of herself, still backing away as she neared up the stairs “And what should I be wearing?”

“Something easy to take off,Lieutenant.” and she turns around to rush up the steps, leaving Rooster standing down there with his mouth open and with a shudder darting all over his body. He had to calm down before he did something here.

And if she wanted to treat him, who was he to deny that?

“What’s easy to take off?” he mumbles to himself, looking down at his denim pants “These are kind of easy to take off.” maybe it was his already horny mind but he couldn’t wait to see what Beatrice was planning because there was that glint in her eye. The one he saw back on that Christmas night - oh he still remembers that every day - or the day she dressed up - and he ripped that suit immediately - the one that he knew would be responsible for magic to happen.

He inhaled shakily, with a smile, then rushed upstairs to meet her in their room, thinking on what exactly he could wear for this sudden treat dinner.

#bradley rooster bradshaw #rooster bradshaw #bradley bradshaw x oc #top gun maverick #bradley bradshaw x reader #bradley bradshaw x female reader #bradley bradshaw x named reader

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grumpygreenwitch · 2 years

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The Fairy and the Prince #17 + #18 + #19

Part 1 - Part 2 - Parts 3 & 4 - Part 5 - Part 6, 7 & 8 - Part 9 & 10 - Part 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 & 16 - Part 17, 18, & 19 - Part 20, 21 & 22 - Part 23, 24, 25 & 26 - Part 27, 28, 29 & 30 - Part 31, 32, 33 & 34 - Part 35, 36 & 37 - Part 38, 39, 40 & 41 - Part 42 & 43 - Part 44 & 45 - Part 46 & 47 - Part 48, 49, 50 & 51 - Part, 52, 53 & 54 - Part 55 & 56 - Part 57, 58, 59 & 60 - Part 61, 62, 63, 64 & 65 - Part 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71 & 72

As with the kelpie, I didn’t want to split this particular storyline very much. Two of these chapters are relatively short, anyways, so here they are.

Winter came and winter went. Princes went into the woods; some came back. Every now and again one made it into the palace; the occasional nightmare would plague Adam long into the years of his life of Alaric, snatching up a bread knife and rushing at the Dowager during a celebratory breakfast, screaming in a language that hurt the ears and the mind. He found himself in the incredibly odd situation of no longer being the youngest prince, as more boys were sent to the palace by their parents. Most did not want to come, but the lure of the crown, of being named heir, of the wealth and power that would fall upon their families if they should succeed where so many others had failed and died, guaranteed that the Queen Dowager never ran out of potential princes.

No one doubted the curse anymore. Master Leminy's sparse hair had gone completely white. He refused to train a replacement, though, and Adam found some degree of respect for his old enemy, because the Master of Scions simply refused to drop someone else into the mess, refused to burden anyone with the nightmares he already carried. He alone would bury the princes until he could see a King chosen.

It became impossible for Adam to hide the fact that he had friends no one could find in the palace grounds. On his thirteenth birthday the Dowager kept him for three torturous hours over tea only she drank and cakes neither of them ate, and every question was ��a trap. Some were subtle, some were more obvious, but each one begged him to betray Linden. He could scarcely breathe when she at last excused him, her mouth pressed into a thin line of disapproval, her blue eyes gone to ice with anger that wouldn't betray through her gracious tone or her kind words. Adam was told she would write to his parents, asking why no one had come to visit, why no presents were sent for his birthday or for the many holidays, why he was not asked to visit home. After all, he'd made it clear to all and sundry he didn't wish to become King, did he?

It felt like a threat, and he couldn't have said why. He spent those blustery, chilly days after his birthday, while he waited for Linden, sneaking around trying to figure out if she'd put someone to follow him. He had far less faith that he could turn an agent of the Dowager to his side.

But she did nothing, and he met his friends when spring at last truly and fully arrived. To them he confided everything as they traded coming-back and waiting-for presents, much to Needlemaw's amusement, not that she minded the gift of a beautiful pearl and silver button stolen from Arditty. Certainly not from a defeated enemy, but too pretty for her to reject, she'd added it to her girdle. She convinced the others that Adam had a rightful concern; while all their experience might be with their own Royals, there was no reason to believe an old crone perched on a throne and throwing young boys at the woods in the hopes one would stick was any better.

They taught him to disappear. Hiding the prince under a plain woolen shawl, Boulder taught him to become little more than a stone on a field, a tumbled-down wall in the garden, a weathered stump in the woods. While he still couldn't understand the language of the trees (or even hear it), Linden still taught him to take their hand so they could take him around one vast craggy trunk and out from behind another. They had to be trees that liked him, but then, Linden assured him that most of the trees in the Royal Woods did.

Needlemaw taught him to stalk. To creep up along walls and ceilings, to climb using the most slender of cracks in mortared stone, the finest of fissures on a beam or a pillar. To turn the tables on anyone who might be following him, to become their shadow instead. She didn't escalate those teachings to what she actually did when engaged in such sport, but she did let them practice on her. They failed to surprise her every time, and their punishment was usually that of any youngling of her clan: being pinned down and tickled until they could scarce breathe.

She reminded them that growing up didn't have to be unkind.

For a while everything was as it had always been. The only notable event came when spring and summer hung perfectly in balance against one another. Adam and Linden had gone to check the nests under the many eaves of the palace - there was a cat roaming about, and Linden did not approve. They liked the finches, chatty and fearless, the ferocious sparrows with their chests always puffed out and ready for a fight, the swallows that spoke of distant lands full of strange wonders. When they returned, they were informed that someone had indeed come looking for the young prince, but he'd not seen Boul, and Needle had made pleasant enough conversation with him.

"Nice as bread in milk," she described him, and Adam had to turn to Linden.

"Bland, she means."

"Is that... good?" he asked hesitantly.

Needle laughed a little. "Good enough. Bland hardly ever asks questions. Don't neither of ye worry about it, I'll be dealing with him if he's for poking his fine an' elegant nose in our little pie."

Adam made his own minor inquiries, through Culli-maid and a few of Arditty's suitors, with whom he'd made friends after they'd be cast aside by the fickle young woman. He had to, because as summer gained strength they began to see less and less of Needlemaw, and more and more Boul would report that she'd gone off to distract the lurking presence.

Bread in Milk, he found out, was Prince William of Astings, about to become sixteen when autumn arrived that year. He had to agree with Needlemaw's opinion: William was intelligent enough, smart enough, funny enough, capable enough. He was a whole of 'enough' without any single exceptional point to his favor. Even his looks were appealing enough and little else. He welcomed Adam's overtures of friendship, the younger boy once again having the advantage of being 'safe'; Richard knew he faced no competition for the crown there.

For the life of him Adam couldn't tell what Needlemaw saw in William that kept her from making the older prince disappear. He didn't fool himself as to what she was and what she could do; he'd had plenty of time to learn that she was the least patient of them all, and that by a very broad margin. He'd half expected her to come back from one of her forays with William chewing on one of the older prince's limbs, the rest of him gone into the blackness of the maw beyond the needle-like teeth. But William was alive, and she kept going off with him at least once a week.

They missed her, and Adam was the first to tell her so, just as the first leaves began to turn. It brought the redcap to perfect stillness.

"It's not in a silly way or anything," Linden hurried to add as they stood, stalwart as ever, by Adam's side.

"Very little of what ye all do has ever been silly," Needle replied, her voice low and full of unknown currents.

"Even the kelpie?"

"Dealing with the kelpie were dangerous," she replied. "But never silly. If yui'd been silly then, none of us would be here and the water-horse would be awful well fed." She dropped to a crouch before them; both Linden and Adam were beginning to shoot up, the first more than the latter, day by day growing further away from childhood. But she was still taller than both; only Boul outstripped her in both height and mass. "Why would ye miss me? There's a handful, a dozen, a hundred like me that could take me place tomorrow if aught came on me head."

"Yes, but they wouldn't be you," Adam replied. "They wouldn't have come climbing with us, they wouldn't know the secret ways into the caves, they wouldn't have done and said and shared all the things we've done with you. They wouldn't be Needlemaw, they'd just be someone else."

Linden shrugged. "And don't say they'd be the same if they called themselves Needlemaw. They'd just be someone called Needlemaw, they wouldn't actually be Needlemaw. Bit confusing, that."

"In a grove of linden trees I'm nae sure yui've a call to be talking about confusing names," Needle replied, reaching out to ruffle Linden's gold-tipped hair. "I didnae mean for ye to miss me. I've not been missed ever before, and I don't know how to fix it."

"Just hang around a bit. When you can."

"Adam..." She tugged her cap low, kissed the tips of her fingers and touched their chests. "I'll do what I can."

She kept her word. She lingered on long after Linden and Boul couldn't come, as summer turned to autumn and then to winter, cold and dry, the air crackling with the season. Part of it, Adam guessed, was because she wanted to see William. But she spent a great deal of time in Adam's quarters as well, much to the initial unease of the young prince's companions. She charmed Dane by teaching him wrestling moves the masters of the palace didn't know, and she allowed Beli to teach her letters, though she couldn't be bothered with numbers, betraying her narrow interest when Adam shared with them both primers on tactics and strategies, and books on battles of yore. But mostly she was found sprawled at Culli-maid's feet, helping with her knitting and her mending, fascinated by the way thread became fabric became cloth, and making a friend of Culli by her honest admiration.

For a while Adam fretted that someone would barge into his rooms and see her, the conversation with the Dowager looming large in his mind once again. Until Arditty actually did barge in, and Adam realized she couldn't see Needlemaw. He wasn't sure what the lady-in-waiting saw, it was a blur, a shadow behind Needle's real shape, the shape of a big cat or a lanky hound, or something in between. It hurt his head and made his eyes burn if he tried too hard to focus on it.

But eventually she, too, had to leave. "The doors close, Adam. 'Tis the season of parties in the court, and she would have the guts and gizzards of any as didn't show up. We all throw a party for the twins, each clan and burrow and nest and wee court. They hardly ever show up, but one cain't risk the time they do decide to come, aye? So there's parties and competitions and challenges and all sorts of posh and politics..." She stuck out her long black tongue and made a disagreeable sound.

"Will you be alright?" Adam was trying not to feel forlorn, and he knew he wasn't doing too good a job of it.

She reached out to brush back his hair. "Well as can be. Will ye?"

"I always try to be. Winter seems longer and longer each year."

"'Tis not," she assured him. It wasn't. It was actually growing shorter, because during winter the Folk in the Woods couldn't have the full measure of their cruel sport. They had been applying a fair measure of their immense power to bridge that gap, and it was beginning to show. "We'll all be back before ye ken."

With that, Adam had to be satisfied.

***

It was spring nearly fully fledged the next year when his birthday rolled around again, and once again the Dowager Queen closeted herself up with him. This time there was a parcel from home, a basket of sweets he'd not had since he'd left, and a belt with a silver buckle - gifts for a child. The Dowager pursed her lips, her disapproval mute as she presented the gifts, and Adam found himself torn between his fear of the old woman and her questions, and some measure of appreciation that at least one person knew he was being treated unfairly by his own family.

To be fair, he never really thought of his parents anymore. He seemed to recall his mother had wept when his father had set him in the coach that had brought him to the palace, but it seemed so long ago sometimes that he didn't trust the memory. It was hard to love people who had forgotten him so thoroughly, who never wrote, who thought he was still nine years old. Even Lemony-Leminy found a more apt peace offering for his vexing charge, gifting him access to the Dowager Queen's library, which was usually reserved only for those princes sixteen and older. It was given to him under the excuse of saddling him with more studying, but Adam knew that the years had taken a great deal of Leminy's spite out of him. To some degree, he suspected the Master of Scions was simply glad that Adam had managed to stay alive so long.

William came to him on a foggy afternoon. The encroaching darkness was warm and full of promise, and Adam felt nearly sure he could hear the whispering of the trees after all, even ensconced in a big chair in the library, a treatise on architecture on his lap. Spring would end winter's reign that night, and morning would bring his friends back to him.

"Adam," William's formality had the younger prince instantly on his guard.

"William."

"I heard your birthday just passed. Fourteen, is it?" When Adam smiled politely and nodded, the older prince added. "And still standing by your choice?"

"I don't see that the Queen gets any joy of her crown," Adam shrugged a little. "I don't know why anyone should want it so badly when she's our example."

At that William did laugh, surprised more than anything. "The things you say!" he chided. He drew a deep breath and looked out the window. "It should be spring proper soon."

Adam felt even warier. "A day or two."

William nodded. "I..." He hesitated, and then stretched a hand out to Adam, who nearly threw himself out of the plush chair; just because all the others knew he was no competition didn't mean he'd not learned to be cautious of them. He stopped when he realized there was a small parcel on the older prince's hand.

"Just... I mean." William worked his lips into a thin line. "Would you?"

And Adam understood with a crashing, shocked sort of disbelief. "William."

"I know it's not much," the older prince stumbled hurriedly over his words. "We're not wealthy, my family. But I wrote them and they know I'm seeing someone and I didn't... tell them much." He ran out of words and rocked uncertainly on his feet. "And they didn't mind." A little sheepish chuckle escaped him. "They didn't care. Shows what they think of my chances, ah?"

"William, I'm sure it's not like that," Adam protested, because he desperately wanted to believe on William's behalf that it wasn't like that, even though he was terribly certain that it absolutely was.

"Anyway!" The older boy rallied. "I just, if you could just... let her know that I think well of her. That I missed her."

Adam took the small wrapped parcel gingerly, feeling a hard, tiny box inside the fine paper.

"I'm not elf-touched, you know. I went to the priests and checked," William declared almost defiantly.

"Elf-touched?"

"Yes. When they put their power on you, on your heart, and you can't think or say or do or breathe anything but them."

"She wouldn't," Adam protested before he knew what he'd done.

William stared at him, then looked away at the world beyond the window. "Well, I suppose you'd know. But I checked. And I'm not. Just in case she'd think the present was for - Anyway. Would you get it to her? Please?"

Adam stared at the little gift, feeling as if something, some immense trap, were hovering over both William and Needlemaw. But he also knew he couldn't refuse. The choice of what to do with whatever might be inside the little box went only to one being. "I will," he assured William.

"Thank you."

***

Against his best judgment, Adam kept his word. The foggy weather turned into pouring rain the next day, but the day after it was a rainbow-kissed drizzle, and he launched himself out to the woods, feeling as if the palace were trying to strangle him. When he met Linden and the others they all fell in a heap of glad laughter under the gracious linden tree, covered in early green buds. They all took time to admire the tiny mushrooms growing out of Boul's shoulders, a mark that the young troll was, too, leaving childhood behind. They exchanged coming-back and staying-and-waiting presents, much to Needlemaw's quiet amusement. Adam shared out the candies he'd been given, and they all rolled gleefully on the damp green grass, simply glad to be free of the cold season, glad to be together once again.

Adam almost didn't give the redcap William's present, but it would have weighted on him like a knot of briars around his heart. In the end he washed his hands carefully so he could present it without smudging it with mud. "William sent this for you."

In the silence that descended over them, only the drizzle whispering over the new green could be heard.

"He didn't," Needlemaw had gone very still.

"He did. He checked. He's not charmed or anything. He..." Adam sighed. "He missed you."

"What a foolish thing it is, to miss the likes of me," she whispered, picking up the small bundle with the very tips of her black, deadly talons. "To hurt on my behalf."

"You're our friend," Linden replied simply. "It comes with everything, that. The good and the bad and the everything else. Wouldn't you miss us, if we were gone?"

Needlemaw couldn't answer. She shouldn't, she knew. Her people were legion, an uncounted mass, a horde that overran and drowned. No one counted them one by one except their own kind, their own kin.

Except for one young mortal boy, an even younger troll, and a wild fey sapling, first in centuries sprouted by the Green Court.

"What is?" Boul asked.

"Who cares!" Needlemaw declared tartly, and threw the little parcel in her mouth, swallowing it in one gulp and tackling Linden in one arm, Adam in the other, picking them both up and running wild through the woods, howling like a moon-drunk wolf.

It was the longest time she'd spend with them that spring. From then on, nearly as soon as Adam met them she would disappear, returning only when it was time for them to part for the day. Linden could call for her, and she'd always unfailingly come, but it was obvious she didn't appreciate being summoned so, and Linden grew as loathe of doing it as Boul and Adam were of asking.

They ended up following her, of course. Much later on in life, Adam would nurse a suspicion that they'd only succeeded in the end when the fairy maid had at last become too distracted to balk her pursuers, or when she'd simply stopped caring about hiding from them.

One early summer day, with Boul gone to rest for the day, Linden and Adam caught up with her in a gazebo that sat half over the waters of a still, gracious pond on the older side of the palace grounds. The pond had sat there long enough to grow shallow with the silt of many years, home to the occasional heron and family of swans. An ancient wisteria twinned heavy, powerful vines around the pillars of the gazebo and its deep violet blossoms made a nearly perfect curtain between its occupants and the world. For the first time Adam saw what William saw, a lovely young maid with wild and curly red hair pinned at her back in a rough braid, the predatory yellow of those bright eyes gone to a sharp hazel that seemed dull in comparison, Needlemaw's mouth small and plain and boring.

He couldn't look very long; his head began to pound if he did, because flickering under that sight he could still see Needlemaw, deadly and alien and dangerous, even as she combed long black talons through William's curling brown hair, even as the two shared a bottle of berry cordial and a tray of grapes and cheese tidbits, laughing and speaking in quiet tones he'd grown to recognize from Arditty and her many beaus.

Neither Linden or Adam said anything, of course. They didn't know what to say. Adam only knew that Linden was upset, and he couldn't quite figure out how to ask why without asking why. They slipped away to the shady, cool space beneath several rows of ancient peonies and laid down, head to head, backs on the cool dark ground, staring up at the patches and pieces of the pure spring sky.

"It's not forbidden or anything, is it?" Adam dared at last.

"No," Linden replied curtly. "But it's very stupid of her."

"Oh." Adam popped his lips soundlessly until Linden smacked his shoulder for it. "They seem to be fine."

"Adam, do you really think Needle's for marrying a princely sort?" Linden demanded tartly.

"Well, no. She'd be bored to death five minutes in."

"Yes." Linden shifted to rest their weight on their elbows, and Adam canted his head to stare at those angry, shattered, many-colored eyes. "Do you need me to explain what happens when someone like Needlemaw gets bored?"

Adam bit his lip. "Oh." When he tried to pop his lips again Linden swatted him once more. "Well, she doesn't look bored is the thing! Maybe William's nice, maybe she really does like him, and he likes her."

"Not her. Not the real her." Linden seemed to think, chewing on their lip, and finally dropped their head to their hands with an impotent, impatient sound.

"Yeah, I'm not telling her, either," Adam agreed.

#the fairy and the prince #linden and adam #linden the fairy #adam the prince #original writing #boul #boul the troll #boulders-for-brains #needlemaw #needlemaw the redcap #fantasy #fantasy writing

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